This Is What Your Life Is Like... [Hunt] [Shichi/Taka]

Growlmon roared its high-pitched shriek as Petermon tore into its hide, spinning to snap and claw at the annoying little fairy. Petermon's hit-and-retreat tactics led the dinosaur digimon a few steps away from Gawain, giving the KnightChessmon a chance to... turn to Shichiro and wave frantically? "Gawain, what?" He took a few steps towards the battle, not looking back to notice any worry his boyfriend might have on his face. Gawain gestured, shouting "Sire, the Sword!" Sword? What- oh, why was the black king chess piece hanging from his digivice glowing?

Shichiro stood on the checkered pattern of the broken ground. a wasteland of black and white bodies and stone all around him. At his side, the PawnChessmon he knew now he would come to call Gawain, its armor scuffed and chipped yet whole. Before them lay the Black King, topped where it fell after relinquishing the sword that lay at their feet. It was easily half again as long as Shichiro was tall. He knelt to examine the obsidian digizoid blade, reaching out to run a finger along the fuller... which left behind a glowing radiance. Laying his hand on the weapon, the light intensified and grew to encompass the weapon, diminishing and reducing the substance of the blade until he held a small, softly glowing object in his hand. When the light had faded completely he was looking on the familiar shape of the battered old black king he'd made into a keychain.

Sharp pain in his knee and left palm brought Shichiro back to reality, his eyes tearing a little from the shock. He'd blacked out, or passed out, or something, and stumbled. He was down on his knees, supporting his weight with one hand. The other held his digivice and the object from his dream. In more ways than one. Staggering to his feet, Shichiro slipped the keychain from its hook. "Gawain!" he called. The KnightChessmon was ready when his human partner hauled his arm back and lobbed the king as far as the little chess piece would go- straight into Gawain's waiting hand. He closed the ivory gauntlet over his prize, raising it with a shout.

"Knightshade!" With a burst of light and digicode, the chess piece reformatted into a larger shape, an obsidian digizoid longsword he gripped tightly in both hands, its dark blade a sinister contrast to the KnightChessmon's armor. Gawain spun the blade in a quick attack motion, feeling its weight and making the blade sing through the air. He seemed to like what he found.

"Oh," Shichiro breathed, nearly laughing at the sheer display. "It's on now."

Gawain paused, his blade held in a ready position as he turned to regard Shichiro, his 'lord,' silently questioning. Past him Shichi could see Growlmon already focusing on them, his haunches bunching as he prepared to pounce. "Finish it, Gawain!" The KnightChessmon nodded and turned back to his opponent, raising Knightshade high. "Knight's Charge!" Metal hooves dug into the earth and launched him at a blistering gallop straight at his opponent. Growlmon, seeings its opportunity, responded in kind. "Pyro Blaster!" It spat another great blast of flame directly at the Chessmon. There was no way he'd avoid it...

Shing! Gawain moved so fast he was almost impossible to see. The fireball dispersed to embers as an obsidian digizoid blade passed through its heart, and then the KnightChessmon was skidding to a halt to Growlmon's left and a little behind him, Knightshade held up high at full extension from his body at the end of a single cut. The red dinosaur stayed very still, and then just... collapsed, two halves falling in different directions before dispersing into bits of data that seemed to be drawn towards Gawain and Knightshade. There was a flash as the digimon was surrounded in digicode, and then his form shrunk back to the familiar PawnChessmon. A single streak of light flew away from his as he did, dropping down to land in Shichiro's open palm. Smiling, he slipped the black king keychain back onto his digivice and ran over to his partner.

At Gawain's feet were a pair of digieggs- one red and black, the other a shell of armored plates. Wait, two?

That left the strange metal-encased egg. Gawain seemed to find it of particular interest; when Shichiro approached, the digimon pointed at markings along one of the armored plates. They looked like little space invaders drawings. "Digicode, m'lord. The language of the Digital World." Shichiro stepped up next to Gawain, peering at the digicode with interest. "What does it say?" "It reads 'Honor,' sire. Fits you. 'Tis yours."

Shichiro chuckled a little self-consciously. "Honor," he mused, and reached out to lift the egg from its perch. The moment he shifted it the digicode gleamed brightly, then began to glow outright. The glow spread over the surface of the metallic egg and then its form just seemed to collapse in on itself and transfer into Shichi's digivice as a beam of light. Recoiling a little, he held the device out to look at it. The egg was displayed on screen with one of the symbols from its surface in the background.

"M'lord... 'tis a digimental! 'Twill allow me to armor digivolve to a champion form, separate from my natural state. Will be a valuable tool in our fight against wickedness, indeed."

"I'll come with you," Shichiro insisted, stuffing his digivice in his pocket. "You and Petermon were amazing, Takun. You two were so... in sync. And those things you were shouting. Battle plans? That is so cool." His gaze went to the kids' direction, where he was relieved to see they were safe and taken care of. Takahiro had acted quickly. "I can't believe how fast he is. How many different strategies do you have?"

Gawain clink-clanked over a few moments later, his usual stoic self. Though he did seem to have a certain satisfied roll to his gait. Patting himself on the back for a stylish victory for his 'lord,' no doubt. The damage Growlmon had done to him seemed to have been fixed with the infusion of power from the digivolution; Gawain's armor was spotless and unmarred. He still didn't have legs, though.