Chapter 35: Toy Town Attacked, Monzaemon Devoured, the Situation Grows Increasingly Dire
File Island, Toy Town Sector.
When LadyDevimon carried Mizuki through the descending clouds and touched down on the painted cobblestones, the vibrant, childlike wonderland from his memories was nowhere to be found. Instead, a sprawling landscape of shattered plastic, torn plush fabric, and scorched building blocks stretched out before them. A suffocating, dead silence hung over the ruins, replacing the cheerful melodies that should have filled the air. Mizuki stepped forward, his boots crunching over the fragmented remains of a giant toy train. They were too late.
'...'
He surveyed the devastation. Deep craters marred the pastel-colored earth, and the lingering scent of ozone and burnt data drifted on the stagnant wind. The battle that had torn this place apart had clearly ended hours, perhaps days, ago. The earth had returned to a grim stillness, leaving only the sorrowful breeze to wander through the motionless debris.
"Mizu, Monzaemon..." LadyDevimon trailed off, her crimson eyes scanning the desolate plaza. "He..."
"Yeah," Mizuki replied, his voice low and steady as he knelt to examine a pile of corrupted, blackened stuffing. "He must have already fallen victim to Devimon's venomous grasp."
After a thorough sweep of the central mayor's mansion, Mizuki reluctantly accepted the grim reality.
"Devimon likely made his move on Monzaemon while we were busy searching for Andromon in the Factory Town," Mizuki analyzed, brushing the dark soot from his fingertips.
Considering the massive power gap between an Ultimate-level like Monzaemon and a heavily armed cyborg like Andromon, Devimon's tactical choice was ruthlessly efficient. By absorbing Monzaemon's data first to bolster his own strength before attempting to subjugate Andromon, the fallen angel had played a very correct, very dangerous game.
A complex sigh escaped Mizuki's lips. If he and LadyDevimon had not intervened, would Andromon have simply crushed Devimon using his hidden Mega-level combat data upon their encounter?
He shook his head, instantly discarding the notion.
If the ancient cyborg truly wanted to eradicate Devimon, there would have been no need to drag the conflict out for this long. Factoring in Andromon's deliberate act of allowing himself to be controlled by the Black Gear, Devimon's entire reign of terror seemed to be a calculated trial. A crucible the cyborg had intentionally left untouched, either as a test for himself or, more likely, for the DigiDestined.
'Speaking of the DigiDestined...'Mizuki looked up at the fractured sky.'I wonder how strong Taichi and the rest of the kids have become by now?'
Only two or three days had passed since their paths diverged, but given the sheer potential of those children, more than half of their Digimon partners should have achieved their Champion forms by now. Yet, with the timeline and plot completely derailed from his original knowledge, a heavy knot formed in his stomach. Could those kids really handle an anomaly like this heavily enhanced Devimon?
LadyDevimon stepped closer, the chains on her leather garments clinking softly. She tilted her head, her sharp intuition piercing right through his silent contemplation. "Mizu, are you worried about those children?"
"Worried... somewhat, I suppose," Mizuki admitted, crossing his arms. "After all, the current situation has already spiraled completely out of control."
A sharp, calculating glint flashed in his dark eyes.
"Think about it," Mizuki continued, his tone dropping an octave. "The previous Devimon we faced could, at most, output the strength of an Ultimate, or perhaps an ordinary Mega-level if he pushed himself to the absolute limit. But now? After he devoured Monzaemon's data, he already possesses the foundational requirements to evolve into a top-tier Mega."
"A top-tier Mega?" LadyDevimon repeated, the casual grace draining from her posture as her expression hardened into deadly seriousness.
"Exactly." Mizuki raised a single finger, tracing an invisible line in the air. "It works just like the relationship between Gatomon and BlackGatomon."
"When Monzaemon, a Vaccine-type, is heavily corrupted by concentrated Virus-type data, he undergoes a dark mutation into a Virus-type subspecies known as WaruMonzaemon. If Devimon successfully fuses his own core with WaruMonzaemon's data, the resulting mutation could trigger an digivolution into a terrifying Mega-level entity. A being that carries the title of a Demon Lord... Creepymon."
"Creepymon..."
LadyDevimon murmured, testing the syllables on her tongue. Even though she had never encountered this specific entity, the mere utterance of the name sent a violent, instinctual tremor through the dormant holy Digicore buried deep within her chest. It was a visceral reaction to an ancient, overwhelming evil.
Mizuki noticed her sudden tension and waved a hand dismissively, breaking the heavy atmosphere. "Alright, relax. Creepymon or whatever else, it is strictly a worst-case hypothesis for now. Let us not even talk about whether Devimon has the processing capacity to fully convert Monzaemon into WaruMonzaemon."
"Even if he really succeeds, the evolutionary path to a true Demon Lord is incredibly complex and unstable. Judging by his previous forced digivolution into NeoDevimon, if he does manage to break through to the Mega level, he is far more likely to mutate into DoneDevimon rather than a true Demon Lord."
"Is that so..."
LadyDevimon studied Mizuki's profile intently. His tone carried his usual breezy optimism, a casual confidence meant to soothe her nerves. But she knew him far too well. Beneath that relaxed exterior, she caught the microscopic tightening of his jaw and the intense focus in his gaze. He was preparing for the worst. He absolutely did not believe that Devimon was incapable of achieving that monstrous form, despite his reassuring claims.
A Demon Lord. LadyDevimon narrowed her crimson eyes, her clawed fingers flexing at her sides.
She had no concrete measure of how devastating such a creature might be, but the impending threat crystallized one absolute truth in her mind. In order to meet the upcoming challenges, she had to become stronger. Whether it meant unlocking the true power of her own Mega form, or fully weaponizing the volatile Data Rewrite ability inherent to her Ancient Species bloodline.
'I must master all of it. Every last drop of power.'
A fierce, burning fighting spirit ignited within her chest, pushing back the lingering dread.
But to reach that pinnacle, her first hurdle was to completely comprehend the foundational concept of zeroes and ones that governed this digital reality. Thanks to Andromon's cryptic guidance, the violent stress of her frequent form changes, and the massive influx of knowledge from deciphering the Factory Town's encrypted codes, the pieces were finally falling into place. She could feel the threshold of that ultimate breakthrough hovering just inches from her grasp.
She cast a sidelong glance at the young man standing beside her in the ruins.
'Mizu... rest assured. I will never let you down.'
File Island, Village of Beginnings.
The sky had bruised into deep shades of violet and orange by the time LadyDevimon and Mizuki finally returned to the nursery grounds. The familiar, colorful landscape instantly dragged their memories back to the grueling clash against Devimon just a few days prior.
However, the atmosphere today lacked any of the previous hope or relief. There was no good news waiting for them here.
"So many Digimon..." LadyDevimon murmured, her boots touching down softly on the grass. She scanned the sprawling clearing, momentarily stunned by the sheer volume of refugees. Dozens upon dozens of Digimon were huddled together beneath the large shade trees. Almost every single one of them was wrapped in thick white bandages, nursing horrific burns and deep lacerations. "Why are they all so badly scarred?"
"Devimon did this!"
A ragged, familiar voice barked from behind them. Mizuki and LadyDevimon turned in unison.
It was Elecmon. However, compared to the fiercely energetic, battle-ready guardian they had met days ago, this Elecmon looked utterly hollowed out. His tails drooped heavily, and dark circles framed his exhausted eyes.
"Elecmon, what exactly happened here?" Mizuki asked, stepping forward with a deep frown. "What kind of massacre took place in these few days since we left?"
Facing Mizuki's intense gaze, the exhausted caretaker did not attempt to hide anything. He slumped against a wooden fence and truthfully recounted the nightmare that had unfolded over the past few days.
"That monster, Devimon... in his desperate bid to amass more power, he began indiscriminately attacking the inhabitants of File Island," Elecmon growled, his voice trembling with a mixture of rage and deep sorrow. "Using those cursed Black Gears, he launched surprise attacks across multiple territories. So many Digimon were caught completely off guard. They suffered devastating losses without any precautions."
"What?" Mizuki's frown deepened into a harsh scowl. "Didn't I explicitly warn the territorial leaders before we left?"
"You did warn them! But only the Digimon residing here in the Village of Beginnings actually believed it," Elecmon snapped, looking deeply indignant. "Because nothing of this magnitude had ever occurred on the island before, the others simply refused to believe that Devimon possessed such a terrifying means to control other Digimon."
"Tsk..."
Mizuki clicked his tongue, a sharp sound of absolute disgust.
"These guys are still far too careless."
Was it because they assumed everyone was capped at the Champion level? Did they genuinely believe that no matter how ambitious Devimon was, he could never surpass the established hierarchy of the island? These Digimon had stagnated in the relatively comfortable, isolated environment of File Island for far too long. Their horizons had shrunk, leaving them blind to the true horrors of the digital world.
Mizuki exhaled slowly, forcing the spike of frustration down and reigning in his temper. Anger would not heal the wounded or undo the slaughter.
He looked out over the sea of bandaged, shivering survivors. In a cold, pragmatic sense, perhaps this brutal wake-up call was not entirely a bad thing. Blood had been spilled, and illusions of safety had been shattered. At the very least, after suffering such a catastrophic loss, the surviving Digimon of File Island would finally be forced to abandon their petty territorial disputes. They would have no choice but to unite and stand together against the encroaching darkness.
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