Chapter 44: digivolution Under Madness
"How is this possible... LadyDevimon... you actually reached the Mega level?!"
Dark, viscous data leaked from the bullet holes riddling NeoDevimon's torso. He clutched his chest, his six crimson eyes twitching erratically as they locked onto the figure standing before him.
LadyDevimon.
No, that name no longer applied. She was now BeelStarmon.
The battle had barely even begun. A single, fleeting exchange of blows, and she had reduced him to this pathetic state with a mere handful of bullets. His innate Dark Adaptability and high-tier Virus Data Resistance should have shrugged off such projectiles. Instead, the wounds burned with agonizing intensity, tearing through his core code.
This was absolute power suppression. In the face of a true Mega-level entity, his resistances meant nothing.
"...Why?"
The word rasped from his throat, a jagged edge of pure resentment.
Why?
Why!
She was practically a newborn in the Digital World! How could she constantly surpass him in every single stage of digivolution? Whether it was reaching the Ultimate level, and now the Mega level! Why was he always forced to stare at her back, forever one step behind?
A sickening crack echoed through the air as the bone-white mask covering NeoDevimon's face fractured. A torrent of pure, unadulterated malice flooded his core. The surrounding shadows seemed to come alive, twisting into an invisible, suffocating hand that crushed the last remnants of his sanity.
"Power..." he gasped, his voice distorting into a demonic gurgle. "I need... power!"
His original, calculated plan had been to devour the DigiDestined, using their rich data to safely ascend to the Mega level. But logic had fled. Crushed by BeelStarmon's overwhelming presence and drowning in his own toxic hatred, NeoDevimon abandoned all restraint. He violently tore away the limiters holding his unstable data in check.
A tidal wave of pitch-black miasma erupted from his form. The pressure shattered the remainder of his mask into digital dust, exposing a pair of eyes that burned with nothing but feral madness and bottomless malice.
"This is bad!"
Taichi's eyes widened as the suffocating aura washed over them. He immediately shouted toward Mizuki and BeelStarmon.
"Devimon is forcing an digivolution!" The goggled boy clenched his fists, sweat beading on his forehead. "After Ultimate... comes Mega! We can't let him finish!"
Sensing his partner's urgency through their shared bond, MetalGreymon did not hesitate. The massive cyborg dinosaur lunged forward to make his post-digivolution debut.
"Let us start with this!" MetalGreymon roared.
[Trident Arm!]
The heavy, mechanized claw detached from his arm, propelled by a burst of thruster fire. The tethered metal slammed into NeoDevimon's chest, pinning the mutating demon to the ground. Immediately, the armored hatches on MetalGreymon's chest snapped open.
[Giga Destroyer!]
A high-pitched mechanical whine pierced the air as two massive, shark-faced organic missiles launched from his chest silos. They tore through the sky, leaving thick trails of white smoke in their wake.
But MetalGreymon was not finished. He unhinged his massive jaws, a terrifying heat gathering deep within his throat.
[Mega Flame!]
The scorching fire-breathing ability he possessed as Greymon had not vanished upon reaching the Ultimate level; it had only grown hotter. Usually, the sheer destructive convenience of his Giga Destroyer missiles meant he rarely needed to rely on his flames. But right now, to ensure NeoDevimon was completely eradicated before his dark digivolution could finish, MetalGreymon held nothing back.
The missiles and the torrent of superheated fire converged on the pinned demon simultaneously.
BOOM!!!
The resulting detonation was apocalyptic. The entirety of File Island seemed to groan under the sheer kinetic force of the blast. The earth fractured, deep fissures spider-webbing outward from the epicenter as a blinding dome of fire turned the dark night sky into brilliant, scorching day. The shockwave tore through the forest, flattening trees and sending violent tremors all the way to the distant coastlines, churning the ocean into angry waves.
This was the true, terrifying might of an Ultimate-level Digimon.
Could NeoDevimon possibly survive a direct, combined assault of that magnitude?
Taichi honestly did not know. Ever since Devimon first appeared, the suffocating sense of dread he projected had been entirely overwhelming. To the DigiDestined, the fallen angel was a nightmare second only to the sheer, beyond understanding power of Mizuki and BeelStarmon.
'Wait, what? Me?' Mizuki blinked, rubbing his chin.
Because of that lingering terror, Taichi refused to let his guard down, even with his partner now standing tall as an Ultimate.
"MetalGreymon, how are your energy reserves?" Taichi shouted over the roaring flames. "Hit him again! Don't give him a chance to recover!"
"You got it, Taichi!"
MetalGreymon braced his legs, his chest hatches whirring open once more. But before the missiles could lock on, a massive, grotesque claw formed entirely of swirling, toxic miasma violently pierced through the thick smoke. It shot forward with terrifying speed, aiming directly for Taichi and MetalGreymon!
Fortunately, someone else was far faster.
"Belle!" Mizuki's voice cut through the chaos, sharp and commanding.
"I know!" BeelStarmon replied, her tone dripping with lethal confidence.
A cold, deadly glint flashed across the barrels of her twin handguns, the Rizoma de Loto.
[Double Claw!]
She moved like a blur. The hidden bayonet blades on her guns snapped forward, crossing in a vicious X-shaped arc. The energy claw hurtling toward Taichi was cleanly severed into dissipating chunks of dark data.
But the attack was a feint.
While BeelStarmon was distracted protecting Taichi, a second, even larger miasma claw erupted from the billowing smoke, lunging straight for Mizuki!
The jagged energy talons were inches from tearing into him when a brilliant crimson barrier materialized out of thin air. The Digi-Soul shield flared with intense light, absorbing the kinetic impact of the giant claw with a heavy, metallic clang.
"What is this thing?!" Taichi yelled, shielding his eyes from the shockwave.
Before anyone could process the sheer speed of the ambush, the demon lurking within the inferno finally stepped out of the smoke, revealing his completed digivolution.
He possessed none of the dark, aristocratic elegance of his Champion form, nor the cold, calculated lethality of NeoDevimon. The entity standing before them radiated nothing but pure, unadulterated madness. His body had mutated, growing several times larger than before, yet his proportions were unnervingly slender and gaunt. Massive, elongated arms dragged near the ground, ending in jagged claws that pulsed with a sickening scarlet light against the night sky.
This was Devimon's Mega form.
DoneDevimon!
"Heeheehee... Hahahaha!" A broken, hysterical cackle tore from DoneDevimon's throat. "Foolish BeelStarmon! Did you really think you could interrupt my Mega digivolution with such pathetic firepower?"
His jaw unhinged, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth dripping with corrosive data.
"Utterly foolish! I will make you watch as I tear your precious partner to shreds and devour his core!" DoneDevimon shrieked maniacally, his massive, spindly legs launching him forward like a coiled spring, hurtling straight toward Mizuki.
The demon did not care how the human had blocked his miasma constructs earlier. The raw, physical power of his true Mega body was infinitely superior to those mere energy projections. He would crush the boy instantly.
Or so he thought.
"You ugly freak... get the hell away from my Mizu!"
BANG!!!
A sonic boom shattered the air. Flapping the tattered black wings formed from her dark scarf, BeelStarmon materialized directly in front of Mizuki, intercepting the charging monstrosity.
DoneDevimon dwarfed her in sheer size, a towering nightmare of muscle and claws. Yet, BeelStarmon did not even flinch. She simply pivoted, raising her long, leather-clad leg in a flawless arc. Her heel connected with DoneDevimon's jaw with the force of a meteor.
The impact generated a shockwave that kicked up a ring of dust, sending the massive Mega-level demon hurtling backward through the air like a discarded ragdoll!
"What!?" DoneDevimon crashed into the dirt, his scarlet eyes wide with disbelief.
"Surprised?" BeelStarmon scoffed, lowering her leg with practiced grace. "Mizu always says that size doesn't mean a damn thing in a real fight!"
A mocking smirk curved her lips. Framed by her exquisite features and wild blonde hair, her smile was dangerously captivating—a perfect blend of glamorous allure and ruthless, street-fighter swagger.
Taichi and MetalGreymon watched the scene unfold from the sidelines. Both BeelStarmon and DoneDevimon were Virus-type Digimon born from the Dark Area. Yet, looking at the stunning, gun-toting blonde woman, and then looking at the gaunt, drooling monstrosity pulling himself out of the dirt...
Boy and dinosaur exchanged a long, deeply understanding glance.
'Taichi,'MetalGreymon projected through their bond.'MetalGreymon,'Taichi replied silently.'He's incredibly hideous, isn't he?''Yeah. Absolutely hideous.'
DoneDevimon froze, his hyper-sensitive audio receptors catching the blatant disrespect.
"..." A vein pulsed violently against his exposed skull.
"You miserable little bastards..." DoneDevimon roared, his voice cracking with humiliated rage. "Don't get too cocky!!!"
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