A Gentleman's Debut! [Armor Hunt]

The minutes passed, and after a while it became increasingly apparent that the Hawkmon was just stalling. "Well, it’s good to hope, but it’s the waiting that spoils it," Quill mumbled to himself. It seemed that nobody of note was coming around to accompany him in his quest. That was just as well. Something in the back of his mind told Quill that this would be a journey he'd have to undertake alone. With a resigned sigh, Quill made his way into the labyrinth.

The afternoon sun didn’t even shine down in this thick forest. All Quill could see is thick brush and shady trees in the narrow paths of the labyrinth. All at once, regret began to set in. What if he got lost in this place? There weren’t really any defining landmarks to help him find his way; no change of scenery whatsoever. Was he just going around in circles?

Finally letting his nerves get the better of him, Quill shot up into the air to try and get a lay of the land from above. Once he busted through the canopy, he noticed that from above this place looked just like any old forest. The vexing part, though, was the fact that you still couldn’t pick out anything noteworthy in the area.

Would he have noticed the presence of something like a Digimental before even entering the labyrinth? Quill wondered if the key to his evolution could even be found here. He tried his best to focus, and just when he was about to give up on feeling it out, there was a ping in the pit of his stomach. His eyes laser-focused in a certain direction, and he shot down back into the forest like a missile.

After a short descent, Quill found himself in front of a strange temple. For some reason, he felt like he had been here before, but couldn’t place it. He certainly had no memory of it from his past life and wasn’t even sure of any lives before that one. With a deep breath, he found his way into the tunnel and began the real journey.

When Quill was finally able to uncover his eyes, he found himself in a strange white void. There didn't seem to be any limits to how far the space would go, nor any feeling of anything else sharing this infinite space with him. He stood there for a moment in stunned silence, not sure how to react to what he was seeing. Was this some kind of trap? He looked down at his hands, and the Digimental had disappeared.

The stress of the situation was quickly getting to Quill. He normally was so composed, but had been somewhat shaken ever since he had entered the Tyrant's Labyrinth. Something must have been plaguing his mind, but he couldn't figure out what it was for the life of him. Now his own doubt and carelessness had gotten him stuck in an endless void. His goal to find his friends wouldn't ever come to fruition. He wouldn't even be able to return to his village again. He was just doomed to wander aimlessly in nothingness until his data finally gave up and fell apart.



Just as Quill was about to begin lamenting his own loneliness, he noticed a strange black spot on the ground a few yards away from him. A moment later, a figure seemed to form out of the darkness and appeared before him. "Wh-who are you?" he asked, his gentlemanly demeanor shaken from the whole ordeal.

The creature said nothing for a moment. It just stared at Quill with something resembling a morbid curiosity. He noticed a red marking on the creature's forehead that resembled the symbol on the Digimental and the walls of the temple. In another moment, the air in the void seemed to heat up, surprising Quill. "Not much of a talker, are you?" he observed. Without a moment of question, he threw his feather straight at the unknown entity with the speed and precision of a throwing knife. Unfortunately, it didn't do much of anything. merely bouncing off thte armor plating of the creature's head. This Digimon was clearly stronger than he had planned for.

Sufficiently annoyed, the enemy Digimon charged across the void and rammed straight into Quill, sending him flying across the empty white space. The bird tumbled to the ground, coughing harshly as he came to an unceremonious halt several feet away. Finally, after that vicious attack, the beast spoke.

"What do you seek?"

Quill was initially perplexed by the question, but decided to answer to the best of his ability. "I seek new power."

"Power alone is insufficient. If you only seek power for the sake of having it, then you are unworthy."

Quill was about to retort, but the Digimon was upon him before he could even speak. Another tackle sent him reeling across the void. He stood up again, albeit slower this time. Once he got back on his feet he clutched his arm with his opposite hand and looked a bit uneasy.

"What do you seek?"

Quill was getting slightly impatient. What kind of trial was this? Just give the answer they wanted to hear or get tackled? Though perhaps he hadn't been specific enough in his answers. "I want to reunite with my friends," he answered. "I need to get stronger so I can travel and find my friends from a past life."

"A past life? That could have been ages ago. Meanwhile, all your friends could have been reincarnated multiple times, deleted completely, or just forgot about you entirely. What makes you think earning a new power will change that? Why not just let go of the past and form new friendships?" The beast began to charge again, but Quill had had enough. He jumped into the air, dodging the tackle.

"I have faith in my quest, no matter how daunting! No matter how perilous the road ahead may be, I will walk it until I reach my goal! For the sake of those I care about, I will not let go! That is the mark of a true gentleman!" Quill had kind of spoken without thinking, but the words rang true. His bond with the other members of the 7/71st was so unshakable, he knew not even death could break it. In that moment, his affirmation of conviction awakened something within him. He felt the presence of the Digimental in his very code, pushing him to draw upon it. He focused on it as much as he could until he began to glow with a brilliant light.

"Digi-Armor, Energize!"


"Hawkmon Armor Digivolve to...Halsemon, the Storm of Chivalry!"

Halsemon was immediately ready to throw down with his opponent, who he now recognized as Sethmon, his opposite. "Current Amplifier!" As Quill shot through the air, a gust of wind appeared from nowhere and seemed to push him faster and faster into Sethmon.

Sethmon, of course, wouldn't back down. Even if Halsemon had overcome the trial, that didn't mean the battle was finished. "Desert Accelerator!" A hot wind blew from behind Sethmon as he shot into the air after his opponent at a comparable speed.

Speed alone clearly wasn't enough. Quill needed an extra twist to ensure his victory, and that was exactly what he would do. "Tempest Wing!" Quill began to rotate his body clockwise, becoming faster and faster until he was nothing but a blur, a tornado that would blow away anything in his way.

"Reverse Tempest!" Sethmon, not to be outdone, began rotating his body counter-clockwise in response until he was also nothing but a streak of fiery wind in the void.

The two attacks collided with extreme intensity. The mixture of the cool breeze from Halsemon and the hot desert winds of Sethmon created a giant tornado, not to mention their two corkscrew attacks. The end result was a massive explosion of fire and wind that obscured the outcome for a moment.

When Quill opened his eyes, he was back in the air over the Tyrant's Labyrinth, still in his new Halsemon form. When he looked down at the place where the temple had once been, he was mildly surprised to find that it was totally vacant. With a smile, he realized that this was his first true victory for himself since being reborn. He couldn't wait to return to the village and share his tale with the others. After that, he could finally set off on his journey. His smile turning into a grin, Quill flew into the setting sun, ready for a well-deserved rest.