Digimon: Dark Worlds

Heart of the Dark King | Chapter 25

(This is a more boring chapter with a lack of fighting and contains more backstory stuff, you can skip this one if you'd like!)
A few days later...
The group had been traveling down many paths, not knowing where they were even going anymore. They all had a feeling they were reaching another important area though, as more and more of the Dark King's allies had attacked, despite not being near a single Dark tower. These attacks happened so frequently that the group's Digimon were getting more and more exhausted, making each fight harder, and more draining...And it didn't help that Ryudamon was still in his In-Training form, Kyokyomon, making him unable to fight.
Now, the group was scaling these Rocky Mountains, hoping it would help them avoid more evil Digimon attacks.
"Man...My legs are...killing me!" Cora huffed, walking the rough trails.
"My whole body...is killing...Me.." BlackGabumon weakly huffs. Taeka looks behind at everyone with worry.
"Dracomon, you sure you don't wanna rest for a bit?" Taeka asks.
"Yeah...I don't need to rest! I'm...Fine..." Despite looking just as tired as the others, Dracomon tried his best to sound confident.
"Er...Alright..." Taeka thinks for a moment, trying to find a way to cheer up the group.
"W-well hey, look on the bright side! We haven't run into any other Digimon for a while, so maybe climbing up here he-"
"RAAAAAAAARRRGHHH!!" Taeka's pep talk is interrupted when three Digimon; two BlackGarurumon and one BlackGrowlmon, suddenly pop from behind some rocks, roaring loudly.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me." Blaine grumbles.
"Come on guys...Let's do this!" Taeka looks behind herself, looking at how tired everyone was.
"I'm...Too...Exhausted...To digivolve..." BlackGabumon mumbles.
"Guess it's just...Up to us three then." Lopmon says, looking at Labramon and Dracomon.
"DIGI-ARMOR ENERGIZE!!"
"DRACOMON ARMOR DIGIVOLVE TO...ALLOMON!!"
"LOPMON ARMOR DIGIVOLVE TO...PTERAMON!!"
"LABRAMON ARMOR DIGIVOLVE TO..."KANGARUMON!!" The Digimon all charged at each other...But there was one problem. They were all still way too weak to even fight properly, easily getting overpowered by the evil Digimon.
"Oh no..." Cora looks down at BlackGabumon. "Are you sure you can't Digivolve?" BlackGabumon only responded with a grumble, leading Cora to pick him up. The Digimon kept fighting, but starting to lose...

...When suddenly, a giant dinosaur Digimon came from nowhere, slashing at the two BlackGarurumon...And sending them flying down the mountains.
"MASTER FIRE!!" The MasterTyrannomon blasts a red hot blast from its mouth, at the BlackGrowlmon, sending the remaining Digimon flying as well.
"AUGHH! H-He's an ultimate! Don't hurt us!" Lily whimpers, hiding behind Taeka.
"...Don't worry, I'm here to help you, not hurt." MasterTyrannomon turns to the group, speaking in a calm voice.
"Thank goodness, it's nice to finally run into a friendly face for once." Erik says, with a weak smile.
"...Come, I know a safe spot we can rest in." MasterTyrannomon motions for the group to follow. They follow the big Digimon to a downward path for a bit...Until they reach a cave entrance to another area, what appeared to be some ruins. The group all squeezed into the cavern, which was pretty big on the inside.
"Whoa, what is this place?" Taeka asks, looking around.
"The Ancient Ruins." MasterTyrannomon responds. "This is a pretty sacred spot, even bad Digimon won't come here for trouble, so we'll be safe here."
Everyone looks at the inside of the ruins. There were pillars holding the area up, although they looked pretty old, and some had even crumbled, turned into rubble. The walls also had some drawings and writings on them, written in an unfamiliar language and symbols.
"I don't recognize this language..." Lopmon says, eyeing the walls.
"That's because it's written in ancient Digital language." MasterTyrannomon responds. "This language was only used hundreds of years ago, so most Digimon today wouldn't know about it...
...But I can read it, if you'd like." The group nods in response, as MasterTyrannomon eyes the walls, thinking for a moment.
"...These all tell of tales and prophecies from the past. I'll read this one."
'Armor Digivolution: The armor Digi-eggs are commonly used with many Digimon species to reach new Digivolutions that they couldn't reach normally, each Digivolution with their own unique elements and powers. Many Digimon have grown selfish for a Digital-Egg's powers, however, declining the amount of Digi-eggs found. We are keeping the few Digi-eggs that are left hidden and protected, to not be used for selfish desires.'
"Whoa, they used armor Digivolution all the way in the ancient past?" Blaine says, amused.
"Yes, this method of Digivolution was very common in the ancient times, but is almost impossible to find now." MasterTyrannomon responds. "Pick another writing if you'd like."
"Whoa..." Gummymon hops out from Lily's backpack, his eyes sparking as he looks at the drawings.
"That one! That one!" Gummymon hops up and down excitedly, trying to motion to a drawing high up on the walls.
"That one!" Lily points to the drawing Gummymon was motioning to, which depicted a humanoid, angel-like figure.
'Lucemon: Lucemon was a divine angel who brought peace to the Digital World during chaotic times. However, Lucemon grew mad with power and pride, bringing about a dark era to the Digital World. Eventually, ten legendary warriors defeated Lucemon and ended his reign of terror, but rumors speak that the fallen angel Digimon will return someday...And become more powerful then ever.'
"Lucemon?" Taeka opens up her Digivice, curious.
'Lucemon: Rookie level, Vaccine. One of the seven great demon lords. MUST NOT AWAKEN.'
The Digivice lacks a picture of Lucemon.
"...What the?" Everyone looks at the odd message on her Digivice.
"Seven great demon lords...Didn't the Digivice's say that Belphemon was a demon lord too?" Blaine asked. "As well as...The awakening part?"
"Yeah, but haven't we heard those names somewhere else before?" Erik asks.
"Yeah, Soulmon was talking about the demon lords!" Labramon responds. "He was talking about another demon lord named Laylamon!"
"I'm surprised you all know so much about the demon lords." MasterTyrannomon says. "I'm sure you all know of the Dark King's plans with Belphemon then?" Everyone shakes their head no in response.
"Ah, well, you see...Belphemons normally not supposed to awaken this early, but...The Dark Kings planning to speed that process up."
"Er...Why exactly would he want to do that?" Dracomon asks.
"He...Wants Belphemon to become his partner." Everyone gasps in response, shocked.
"It's a bit of a long story, but...I used to be friends with the Dark King, back before he was evil, so I have an idea of what happened...Even though I wasn't there for what happened." MasterTyrannomon says. "Would you like me to tell you all?" Everyone shakes their heads in response.
"Alright. This is all of what ExTyrannomon told me..."
'Flashback...'
It had been days since Axel decided that he no longer wanted to go back to his world. ExTyrannomon was pretty happy about it, but now he was confused about one thing...What were they going to do next? ExTyrannomon initially thought that Axel wanted to return to his home in the woods, but it seemed like Axel had different plans, walking down a completely different path, speaking to any friendly Digimon they came across...
...'What exactly was Axel doing?' ExTyrannomon thought more and more to himself. It didn't help that Axel kept refusing to answer the question, and any other moments, Axel had random fits of anger and pain, so ExTyrannomon didn't wanna ask. Well finally, he decided enough was enough, as Axel finished speaking to another Digimon, continuing down the trail.
"...Axel? Come on buddy, can you please tell me what's wrong?" ExTyrannomon asked, but Axel ignored the question, sounding like he was...Mumbling to himself, quietly. ExTyrannomon huffed in annoyance, running in front of Axel and stopping.
"Axel, come on! As your friend, I just wanna help you, and you're making it impossible when all you do is keep ignoring me!" This was the first time ExTyrannomon spoke to Axel with anger, quickly covering his mouth as he realized.
...But for some reason, Axel had an odd smirk on his face.
"...Why don't you turn around, maybe you'll finally get an idea." ExTyrannomon cocked his head, confused, until he turned the other way.
...They appeared to be walking towards some mountains...With what appeared to be a half broken tower resting between the mountains. ExTyrannomon's eyes widened when he realized where they were going.
"...What?! That's where Belphemon sleeps, w-why are we going there?!" Axel ignored ExTyrannomon as he continued walking, but the little Digimon panically ran in front of Axel again.
"Axel, I-I thought I told you to avoid Belphemon, h-he's dangerous and could easily kill us!" Panic rose in ExTyrannomon's voice as he tried to find any reason to stop Axel...Who seemed absolutely unfazed.
"And b-besides, the tower is sealed off with rubble, so it's way too difficult to get inside!"
"And? I'm sure you're strong enough to blast through the rubble, then we can ea-"
"AAAAAUUGHHH!!" Before Axel could finish, he suddenly felt a sharp, splitting pain through his head, doubling over in pain.
'Oh no, not again...!' ExTyrannomon had seen these random headaches happen to his partner multiple times, but he absolutely could not figure out how to stop them.
'Hmm...' ExTyrannomon stared at Axel, trying to figure out how to help...When his eyes traveled to the mask shard, that looked like it was tightly glued, dug deep into Axel's skin.
"I know what it is! That mask shard is dug so deep into your skin, that must be what's causing you so much pain!" ExTyrannomon exclaims.
"No...I'm...Fine..." Axel grumbles, still clutching his head.
"Don't worry buddy, I'll get it off you!" Before Axel could object, ExTyrannomon clutched onto the shard, yanking it as hard as he could. This only hurt Axel even more, the shard refusing to budge.
"Stop...It..." Axel hissed in pain.
"Don't...worry...I...Almost...Got it!" ExTyrannomon yanked even harder. Axel grumbled in pain once again.
"I...Said..." Axel suddenly felt a surge of strength as he pushed ExTyrannomon away, enough to knock him on his back.
"...STOP IT." Axel practically growled, his voice getting noticeably deeper.
"...If you don't wanna get smacked again you'll stay out of my way, and only speak to me when I need it, alright?" ExTyrannomon was silent with shock for a moment, before silently nodding his head yes.
After that the two continued up the mountain trail to the tower, finding a way to get inside. It was pretty dark inside the tower but they managed to find their way through, and found him...
...Belphemon. They couldn't fully see him due to their dark surroundings, only seeing his silhouette, but they definitely knew who it was, the Digimon's figure towering over the two.
"WHAUGH!! S-stay away from him, Axel!! He could seriously hurt you!!" ExTyrannomon whimpered with terror.
"Relax, he's asleep. See?" Axel whacks Belphemon on his side, who doesn't budge an inch.
"...What's this stuff?" Axel kneels down, looking at these small pools of thick, black ooze on the ground.
"D-don't touch that stuff!! I-It could seriously burn you, or worse!!" ExTyrannomon whined, yanking Axel away from the mysterious ooze.
"Hey, relax, you sound like a mom or something." Axel chuckles, walking away to look around again.
'Hmm, he's calmed down pretty fast...' ExTyrannomon thinks to himself. '...Ugh, I wish I could just figure out why he's so upset...'
"...You're a human, aren't you?" Suddenly a quiet voice cuts through the silence, coming from Belphemon, ExTyrannomon shrieking in terror.
"Ugh, you really have to screech like that when I just woke up?" Belphemon growls in annoyance. "Besides, I can't even move in this form."
"I-It doesn't matter, I still won't hesitate to attack you if you h-hurt me or Axel!!" ExTyrannomon tried to stand his ground, despite his voice being filled with fear. Belphemon only huffed in response to him.
"...Whatever, I wasn't speaking to you anyways." Belphemon eyes turned to Axel. "You're a human. How did you even end up in the Digital World?" Belphemon asks.
"Uh, it's kind've a long story..." Axel mumbles in response.
"Hmm, alright then." Belphemon and Axel stare at each other for a short, quiet moment until Belphemon breaks the silence.
"Hey kid, wanna help me with something real quick?" The big Digimon asks.
"Axel will help you with no such thing!!"
ExTyrannomon squeaks.
"Sure, what is it?" Axel asks. Belphemon's eyes narrow down to one of the dark pools of ooze.
"You see that ooze? Try thinking about any object you'd like, then stick your hand in there...And see what happens." Axel looks unsure for a moment, before kneeling down to the ooze, closing his eyes and thinking...Before shoving his hand in the puddle.
ExTyrannomon yelped at this action as Axel felt something heavy form in his hand, yanking it out of the puddle as the ooze glued itself to his arm for a moment, until ripping his arm free, and revealing...
...A large, heavy brick in his hand.
"Whoa, how'd I do that?" Axel asks in awe, not noticing the smile creeping up on Belphemon's face.
"Hey kid, you wanna help me with some other important stuff?" Belphemon asks.
"No!!" ExTyrannomon squeals in anger. "I know you're planning something bad, and no matter what, I'm not going to let you hu-"
"SHUT THE HELL UP ALREADY!!" Belphemon roars a huge scream of anger, the force of the roar strong enough to push the two back a bit.
"Whoa, you're strong..." Axel says in awe. He stays silent for a moment until a smile creeps on his face.
"Hey, if I help you out with whatever you need...
...Would you do the same for me?"
'...Flashback ends.'
"After that, the two made a deal with each other." MasterTyrannomon says. "If Axel found a way to awaken Belphemon much faster then originally intended...Then Belphemon would become his new Digimon partner, replacing ExTyrannomon." Everyone was silent for a moment, still processing everything MasterTyrannomon said to them.
"Whoa...So is that dark ooze stuff what they use to make Axel's towers and castles?" Cora asks.
"Yes, you're exactly correct." MasterTyrannomon responds. "The Dark towers, Dark chips, even the devices used to travel between the Digital World and your world...They're all made out of the ooze, which is known as dark matter. It has the power to bend to the will of anyone with evil in their hearts, into almost any object...Which is why it's so versatile, and used to keep almost any Digimon under Axel's control. That's what the dark chips, and dark towers are used for." Everyone exchanges differing glances between each other, once again thinking of all this new information.
"I can't believe this! Not only is this guy forcing all these Digimon under control, but he's also abusing his Digimon partner too?" Blaine says, voice full of anger. "As if I couldn't have any more reasons to hate this guy."
"Honestly, I wouldn't fully blame him for all of this." MasterTyrannomon says, everyone looking at him in confusion. "Look over there." MasterTyrannomon points to one last cave drawing, depicting an odd shaped Digimon.
'Apocalymon: A Digimon formed when many negative thoughts were drawn together by darkness. Defeated many years ago by a group of Digidestined, but is doomed to possibly return one day.'
Everyone looked carefully at the Apocalymon drawing, the Digimon donning a mask design that looked familiar.
"That mask he's wearing...It has the same line work as the one Axel wears on one eye." Lopmon says.
"Exactly, that's why I'm led to believe that Axel is possibly being controlled, by this Digimon specifically." MasterTyrannomon responds. "But I think if you're all able to stop Belphemon from being awakened, then whatever dark force is controlling Axel will let go of him, and he should go back to normal. I know you've all done a great deal of help for everyone in the Digital World, and we'd all appreciate it if you'd help us once again, by defeating the Dark King, and Belphemon." Everyone looks at eachother, nodding with a new determination.
"We won't let you down MasterTyrannomon, thank you so much!" Taeka says. "Where would we be able to find Belphemon?" MasterTyrannomon leads them out of the cave, pointing to an area in the mountains.
"The main castle Belphemon presides in is close by, but very well protected. There's an underground sewer entrance nearby if you wanna get inside undetected. Just be careful of the Numemon lurking in the sewers, and you should be fine."
"Yay! Time to beat up Belphemon!" Gummymon hops up and down excitedly.
"No offense, but is it a good idea to bring such a tiny Digimon like Gummymon in there?" Ryudamon asks.
"I can take him back to my village to keep him safe for now, if you'd like." MasterTyrannomon says.
"Nooo! I wanna fight the bad guys!" Gummymon squeals.
"Lily, you're the one taking care of him, so you should decide." Lopmon says. Lily looks at Gummymon, thinking for a moment, before handing him to MasterTyrannomon.
"Well come back for you right when we win, ok?" Lily hugs Gummymon one last time, before the group starts to walk off.
"Alright guys..." Taeka points to their next destination.
"...It's time to TAKE ON BELPHEMON!!"