Imogen’s mind wandered as she followed the dim glow of the Keeper through the tunnels. She had been a protector for so long, but until just recently she had no idea how much she yearned to be protected.
She flinched as rain started falling outside. Sighing, she kept moving forward and withdrew back into her mind; no meteors just yet.
Leomon, the first presence she felt safe with since before her mother died. The staunch presence and stoic strength exuding both confidence and kindness. She remembered his first appearance, coming to aid them in a world so foreign to her, a beacon of light through her desperation to live and get back home.
A world so foreign to her. She had only been here a month or so, and now Imogen would make the same sacrifice Leomon did for a world she barely knew.
Drops of water outside echoed through the cavern as she walked.
That was one night Imogen would never forget. The frightful presence of Devimon, exuding a fear she had never felt before. She let out a gasp as she forced herself to relive that event.
Blue data of the Frigimon scattering to the wind.
Dorugamon desperately trying to fight it back.
Fear as the black claws reached towards her.
Hope as Leomon barreled out of the Temple to save her.
Shame crept up in her gut as she remembered how she ran. How, if she just had the strength she had now she and Chrysalimon could have saved him.
Imogen’s legs started to burn; if only she was able to join a sports team back home. She laughed silently, football would have been great preparation for her death march.
Thunder rang outside as the rain got heavier. Her thoughts turned to Tavaras and her heart pang, the loss still raw.
Guilt gnawed at her. Guilt for not being strong enough to help. Guilt for not being able to witness his last moments. His strong smile replayed in her mind as she recalled the warmth of his embrace.
Imogen wiped away a tear as she laboured on. The rain stopped and she heard herself breath deeply as the light appeared at the end of the tunnel.
First step, done.
—
"Hey, I think I need to stop for a bit." The Keeper turned around, not having broken a sweat after their three hour climb. Imogen's legs and sides on the other hand burned like crazy and she struggled to talk; they had been outside the cave system for a couple of hours now, their walk illuminated only by ROOT's flaming sash. Now though the sun was starting to rise and Imogen could make out the giant shadow of the mountain she still had to climb.
The young girl coughed as she sat down to rest, the relief in her legs immediate though countered by the dusty air getting caught in her throat. Only a couple of hours after it rained and it was so dry. Who knew marching to one's death would be so irritating.
She opened her eyes and stared east; one way or another this would be her final sunrise.
"Thank you, for doing this." Imogen could feel the faint heat of her sash as ROOT sat next to her. The girl sat quietly; how do you even respond to that? No problem? She was sacrificing her life for God's sake! The somber climb had given her a lot of alone time to just think, and the more she did the more she resented her lot in life.
"This world... it's so beautiful." She turned to Chrysalimon, close beside her. "I wonder, what are you thinking? Will I finally find out what you are?" She laughed as her partner just hovered there, nothing reflected in those yellow eyes.
"You're all such a mystery. Chrysalimon most of all." ROOT mumbled. Imogen looked at her curiously, and the Keeper clarified. "Humans and Digimon, two halves of the same being. The other Digimon though, Dorumon, Veemon, Biyomon, Wormmon, those are all Digimon that have been known to the Digital World. Your partner though? It must have something to do with God Link. Just as there has only been one of each Legendary Warrior."
"I'm scared." Imogen kept her gaze on the rising sun and felt herself start to laugh after a lengthy silence. "Tav would have known how to comfort me." She looked at ROOT, who looked back uncomfortably. She brushed her weathered blonde hair from her eyes as she shook her head. "Never mind, come on let's get going."
—
One labored step after the other, Imogen continued her march up the mountain. There was just the singular, rocky path, as if no one ever expected anyone to climb this, but it had to be there. It made sense: this was where her mother saved the world.
"Need another break?" ROOT glanced back, and Imogen shook her head, staring at the ground not wanting to see what was still to come. The sun was climbing higher and she knew time was running out. Maybe she should have asked Valemon if she could just fly her up. Oh but what she wouldn't do for some shade.
As if her will made it happen, a dark shadow passed overhead, and for a second Imogen felt that relief she so desperately wanted.
Until she looked up, and her mouth went dry.
Devimon swooped down in front of her, sadistic grin on a pale white face contrasting the pitch black body. He spread his tattered wings, blocking her path to what would end them both. His body was larger than she remembered it, and Imogen stepped back, almost buckling under her own shaking legs as Chrysalimon put itself between them.
"You." ROOT clenched her fists. "What you did to Log Temple is unforgivable. Even without my weapons..." with a cry the Keeper of the Chronicles, blinded by vengeance, lunged towards the Devil. Devimon barely spared her a glance and swatted her aside. Imogen swallowed a lump in her throat as her guide hit the side of the mountain with a scream.
Devimon [https://wikimon.net/images/thumb/3/3d/Devimon_New_Century.png/171px-Devimon_New_Century.png]
" Little girl." His scornful voice sent shivers down her spine, just as it had haunting her dreams. "It appears the daughter doesn't quite have the mother's courage." She squeezed her eyes shut, hearing Leomon's final words in her mind.
"I won't." Her voice was barely a whisper. "I won't be afraid." Louder now, she felt courage in her heart. "I won't despair. Not after so many have sacrificed so much." She opened her eyes, steeled with determination. Tavaras's face echoed in her mind, his smile reassuring. Chrysalimon's yellow eyes flashed. "I will fight my fears, and that starts and ends with you!"
Her partner shot forward, blades armed to carve a path to fulfill her destiny. Devimon snarled, and reaching out with his hand he shot a wave of dark energy to the incoming cocoon. Imogen winced as the force of the attack bounced Chrysalimon into the ground. NO! Her partner recovered quickly and flashed towards their enemy again.
"We're much stronger now, Devimon!" Imogen said, forcing her eyes to meet his. Deftly evading Devimon's claws, Chrysalimon wrapped the devil's arm and waist in five of its tendrils. With the last one, it struck towards his face.
Not losing his smirk, Devimon grabbed the tendrils with his free hand. Imogen's eyes widened as he tore Chrysalimon from him and swung the purple cocoon around and into the mountain side. Turning to Imogen he bowed mockingly. "As am I. I must thank you humans for killing Demon's lieutenants; their power was delicious." He licked his lips as he laughed.
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She stood trembling, rooted in place by fear. With a laugh, Devimon lunged at her. "And let this be my first act as Lord Demon's new commander!" Imogen opened her mouth to scream just as a blue figure darted in from behind her and struck the Devil back with a ferocious kick. Hope surged within her heart as Hudiemon darted through the sky, landing another kick to Devimon's face before he had a chance to recover.
Feeling her renewed vigor, Chrysalimon itself flew up, lashing out at Devimon's back with all six blades. Just as it reached him, Devimon spread his wings and flew high, punching Hudiemon down as she caught up to him. In the same motion he grabbed Chrysalimon's tendrils and again swung it down, slamming it into Hudiemon.
"Hudiemon!" Edward ran up beside Imogen, hands on knees and breathing heavily.
"E-Edward?" Imogen gasped, turning to her brother. "How?" He stood up, wiping the sweat from his brow.
"Never mind that, we gotta beat this guy. Got it, sis?" He looked at her and she saw the protective confidence on his face. Imogen nodded and managed a smile.
Devimon snarled down at them, wiping blue data from his lips. "You children stand no chance." With a ferocity she had never seen, their enemy screamed and lunged towards Hudiemon.
The butterfly warrior spread her wings and let loose a shower of scales. "Infinity Dream."
"As if!" Spreading his own wings, Devimon flapped viciously and a gust of evil wind spread. Imogen clung to her jacket and hair as the attack blew away the scales. Edward shouted as Devimon lunged at his partner once more with outstretched claws.
Clink Imogen clutched her stomach as Devimon's claws struck Chrysalimon, a crack appearing where his attack landed.
"Iggy!" Edward grabbed her shoulders as she doubled over. Kicking Chrysalimon to the side, Devimon grabbed Hudiemon's leg as she went in for an attack and slammed her down.
Imogen winced at the shaking earth, both her and her brother's partners now on the ground. She shrugged Edward off and stood up, staring defiantly in Devimon's red eyes. He glared back at her, hatred burning a hole in her soul.
"Iggy." Edward stepped up, his own eyes piercing through Devimon. "I promise, I won't leave you again. Not to this evil."
Devimon sneered in disdain. "Stupid boy, you can boast all the heroics you want, but it doesn't change the fact you're powerless."
"THEN I'LL GET MORE POWER!" Edward yelled. Imogen looked at her brother. There was conviction in his words. "If I don't have the power to help my sister, then my partner and I will get more. I've resolved that much." A bright glow shone from under Devimon. The devil grimaced and lunged towards Edward.
"Wormmon always told me that together we have the power to do anything. I believe him." Imogen saw his back as he stepped in front of her, standing firm.
"You're too late, boy," Devimon screamed.
A flash of light bound in between him and Edward, and kick from a glowing, clawed leg sending their foe in his flying back. "It's about time I caught up to the others, Edward." In place of Hudiemon's feminine voice came one deeper and more masculine, retaining some of Wormmon's nasally infliction.
The white glow faded, and flying in front of Imogen and Edward on both insectoid and draconic wings was Wormmon's new form. Clawed legs encased in green armour broke from the light, along with long, blue arms with three claws on the end. An insectoid face encased in the same green armour as the legs appeared, and a blue tail.
"I am Dinobeemon now. Edward, thank you. Let's end your family's nightmare."
Dinobeemon [https://wikimon.net/images/5/50/Dinobeemon.jpg]
"Shit!" Devimon recovered and shot a blast of evil energy at them. Bracing himself, Dinobeemon took the impact and with a roar broke through, racing towards the Nightmare Soldier.
"Hell Masquerade!" As Dinobeemon reached Devimon, the devil's eyes darted as the insectoid warrior danced around him. Imogen looked on in awe as the afterimages made it look as though Devimon was trapped in a whirlpool of green and blue.
"I won't die to you, coward!" Devimon roared as he spread his wings. Evil wind radiated all around, yet Dinobeemon didn't stop.
"Anything you wish to tell him?" Dinobeemon looked back to Imogen. She shook her head.
"Let it be done with, he doesn't deserve anything."
"You won't win in the end!" Devimon lunged towards Chrysalimon as Dinobeemon's afterimages closed in on him. Devimon screamed as countless blades cut him down. He spared one, final defiant glare towards Imogen before shattering in a burst of blue data, showering over Chrysalimon before scattering into the wind.
"Ha." Imogen collapsed to her knees, clutching her hands together. A demon always in the back of her mind, gone. She shook and tears fell freely as Edward leaned down and put his hands around her shoulders. "How did you find me, Eddy?" She looked up at her brother, seeing him in a whole new light. Her heart ached as she realized she wouldn't be able to rekindle any kind of relationship with him in the real world.
He smiled down at her. "Chrysalimon woke me up just before you guys left." Imogen recoiled and stared at her partner returning to her side. Solid as ever apart from a crack on its shell, the cocoon settled beside her.
"Huh. You're really stubborn but it seems your subconscious still knows what's best for you." ROOT walked over to them, bruised and rubbing her arms.
"Sorry." Imogen mumbled. "For leaving you like that." Edward laughed and rubbed the back of his head.
"Yeah, guess I had it coming, eh?" Imogen giggled.
"Thank you," she whispered. Sighing, she stood up and gazed towards the peak. One hurdle down, yet still there was a mountain to climb. Edward clenched his fist.
"Is there no stopping you, Iggy?" She shook her head sadly. Rubbing his eyes, Edward stepped up next to her, and Imogen grabbed her jacket as Dinobeemon flew over to land behind them. "God, please forgive me for taking my sister to her death," he whispered. Imogen felt a rush as the large insect/ dinosaur hybrid grabbed her in his hand. Looking over she saw Edward in his partner's other hand with tears in his eyes, and ROOT clinging onto Dinobeemon's elbow. "At the very least we can save you from having to climb a mountain."
Gratitude washed over her while her stomach turned, the breeze cooling her sweating body as they started to fly.
—
Imogen gazed up at the sky, staring at that familiar purple scar behind the rolling white clouds. The sun peeked out right overhead, a crescent behind the worlds' distortion. As with the sky, scars blemished the peak. Susanoomon's last stand untouched by Digimon for the thousand years since.
"What are you going to do when you get back home?" She looked over to her brother laying down next to her, Wormmon resting on his chest. He gazed back with sunken eyes and shrugged.
"Work, maybe find a nice girl, get married, have kids." He sighed. "That was always my plan, but... now I want to do more with my life, you know? You- you made me want to do more, Iggy."
"Huh?" Imogen couldn't help feeling stunned at Edward's words. He laughed.
"You really gonna make me say it? You know I'm not good with this sorta stuff." She smiled and poked his arm.
"Oh come on, you're so close to becoming human." Imogen lost her smile as her brother began to shake.
"God, what have I done?" He wiped his eyes and forced himself to look in her eyes. "All because of my cowardice I missed growing up with you. I missed the chance to get teased like that, I missed the chance to get to know you and everyone else, and I deprived you of the chance to have the childhood you should have had. And now, despite everything, you're lying here ready to give it all for people you barely know. That's what I mean, Iggy. You're a hero, and you're my inspiration. You've made me want to be more like, well, Tavaras."
"Oh come on, don't make this harder than it needs to be." Tears fell from her own eyes.
"It's true, and you need to know how great you really are, because I know it's something Dad will have never told you. As little as it may be worth coming from me, I'm proud of you." She lay there in stunned silence, feeling her own heartbeat as goosebumps washed over her. Getting up off the ground, she extended her hand to her brother.
Looking at her, Edward grabbed her arm and she pulled him up, wrapping him in a tight hug. "That means more than you know, Eddy." She whispered, giving him a peck on the cheek. "Thank you, for giving me my brother back, and giving me the strength to do what's needed." Letting go, she gently pushed him back and moved to remove her mother's weathered brown jacket. Edward shook his head and grabbed her hands.
"No, it's yours. Always has been yours. Let it go with you, wherever that may be. Let it remind you of mum, and remind you of all the good times we've shared in these past weeks, however few they were."
Smiling gratefully at him, she took her pendant off her neck and held it in front of her. Two gold circles in an eclipse swung like a pendulum, and her brother stepped back, tears falling freely down his face but smiling. From her peripherals, she saw ROOT behind him looking on in awe. The God Link shone bright like the sun itself as Chrysalimon took its place at her side, purple body taking on a gold shine of its own.
Just as she had witnessed with her mother, her partner unraveled in a dust of gold energy swirling around her, but this time the sphere was not a sea of storms, but a calm wave. Imogen began to glow, and she saw her own arms break into dust and join the swirling energy around her. She felt a warmth as her vision faded, the last views from her human eyes being that of her dear brother standing behind the radiant power.
Yggdrasil [https://wikimon.net/images/thumb/5/56/Yggdrasill_7d6.jpg/200px-Yggdrasill_7d6.jpg]
As she regained her vision, Imogen found herself gazing down at Edward and ROOT, both looking up reverently. She felt whole, but still herself. Was this Chrysalimon? Her new body, a giant of pristine white metal tinged with grey stripes, could not smile but inside she felt a wave of relief. This was her, always was and always will be.
The new Goddess of the Digital World. Instinctively, she knew what she had to do; first order of business, get her brother and Deon home. She began to glow with divine power, seeing the seal Susanoomon left on the door to the world. It was weak, barely a speck of gold energy now covering the purple hole in the world overhead.
She looked down and spoke, her voice ringing clear and loud. Echoing through the peak. "I am Yggdrasil, and it is time to make things right."