A Walk in the Woods (Hiroyo, Tsukiko, Eleonora)

The group had been through many trials and tribulations together, but in the end it seemed like everything had gone according to plan. Layla had been successfully escorted through the Server Woods, and she ever rediscovered the mysterious flower that she had sought. While it was a harrowing day for everyone's bodies and minds alike, in the end they could rest well knowing that they had won the day.

Objective Summary: Main Objective - Protect Tsukaimon's human
as they go through the deepest parts of the Server Woods - SUCCESS!

Secondary Objective - Find the flower Tsukaimon's
human is looking for - SUCCESS!

Mission - COMP-

If only it were so simple.

Layla's eyes widened, jaw following to hang open slightly. Tsukiko, someone she had trusted and confided in, just called her out as a suspect. "What?" she asked, stammering slightly. Her posture stiffened and she took a few steps away from Tsukiko. It was almost as if she feared what the girl was saying. "Hey, come on. You can trust me. I know this forest is really confusing, but . . . Tsukiko, please! It's me! We fought together, explored together . . . I . . . how could you?" Her throat hitched a little as she spoke.

If she was startled before, Eleonora's additional pressure made it worse. Layla screamed as as Gurren and Lagaan aimed their weapons at her. She squeezed her eyes shut and flinched, wrapping her arms tightly around herself as if hoping it would protect her. "What are you doing?" she pleaded, tears shimmering at the corners of her eyes. As she spoke her voice was hysterical, wobbling as if threatening to break into tears at any moment. "This forest is driving you guys crazy! Please, somebody . . . Tsukiko . . . Hiro . . ."

Tsukaimon dashed between Layla, Gurren, and Lagaan, puffing her cheeks up to try and look intimidating. "Get away form her!" she squeaked, her ears tensing and relaxing with each breath she took. Her nubby legs shook from fear, but she still brought herself to take a few steps forward. "Lay wouldn't hurt anybody! You're just being a bunch of big bullies! I . . . I'm gonna-!"

"No."

Tsukaimon turned around, ears sagging. Layla had raised up a hand to silence her. The girl had crumpled to the floor, head lowered and face tear-stained. "It's okay, Tsukaimon. This is all my fault, anyway," she said, a sad smile spreading across her face. "This forest is really dangerous. It gets to your head. It eats at you. It makes you doubt anything you've seen. I knew what it was capable of, but I was so worried about finding this stupid flower that I didn't even think to warn them. So maybe they're right. Maybe I am the bad guy here."

Tsukaimon rushed to Layla, burying her face in the girl's side. "Lay, no," she whined, trembling with worry. Layla, with the gentlest of touches, set a hand on the Tsukaimon to hold her closer. "I don't care if you made a mistake. I'm not gonna let them hurt you. I'm never gonna let anything hurt you. I promise . . ." However, with a single pat on the head, Layla had once more silenced Tsukaimon. For a second they sat there in silence, as still as statues.

Then Layla looked up, a soft smile on her face. "I don't know what you're going to do, Leo," she said, voice soft and quiet. "But . . . it's not like you're trying to hurt me or anything. You're trying to smoke out some body-snatcher, or doppelganger, or a Digimon causing mischief. I know it's weird to hear this from me, being in your line of fire and all that, but I really appreciate that you're that worried about me. So the least I can do is answer your question, right?

I'm Layla."

Slowly Layla rose to her feet. Then she rose. Then she kept on rising, until she stood to at least ten feet tall. She stretched back as if to yawn, only for two pairs of black wings to unfurl from her back as she did so. Her jacket rolled off of her shoulders as she did so, settling there like some sort of mantle. When she looked back at the group there would be something different about her. It was impossible to put to words: maybe it was a difference in her complexion, or her facial expression, or even the way she carried herself, but Layla suddenly seemed to look irresistibly beautiful. This would be doubly the case for Hiroyo, who would feel as if a velvet-gloved hand had wrapped around her heart.. If one were to tear their eyes away from Layla and turn to Hiroyo, they would notice a faintly glowing mark on her cheek.

Data started to shimmer around Layla's body, forming flowing purple garments around her sleeves and lower body. One hand poked out through the garment, coated in a golden gauntlet, while the other remained as is. She produced a gilded headdress from the garment and slid it through her hair, parting her bangs and revealing a bat-like mark on her forehead. Slowly, Layla's remaining garments blended into this new outfit, until soon her appearance was unmistakable.



The Demon Prince of Lust, Lilithmon, stood before the group. "I've always been Layla."

Babamon may have been quiet through this little investigation, but she hadn't been merely observing. Her meditative stance belied the fact that her broom was softly pulsating, as if an attack had been charging As Lilithmon finished manifesting Babamon swung her broom with all of her might. It extended from the safety of Babamon's house to Lilithmon's current position, glowing brightly all the while.

Not even turning to face the attack, Lilithmon reached up to catch it in her bare hand. With but a moment's application of pressure, she then splintered it into shards of wood and data. "I'm impressed, you know," she crooned, her voice a richer, more mature version of Layla's. Each word out of her mouth would slide into Hiroyo's ears like the smoothest silk. "You hid your secret garden quite well. But I suppose our little game had to come to an end sooner or later. If you'll excuse me, I have some flowers to cl-"

Suddenly, Lilithmon froze up. Her nose wrinkled in frustration as she stopped her monologue. "Excuse me, everyone. I need to take this. Terribly sorry," she explained, looking up towards the sky. "Tsukaimon, you can have fun with everyone will I'm busy. And don't worry about me, I'll keep along just fine." She set her golden-clawed hand on Tsukaimon's head, promptly reducing the bean back to a black Digitama.

Or, at least, it seemed to be a Digitama. For a Digitama it hatched awfully quickly. Tsukaimon's ear-like wings popped from the back of the egg in record time. After this came a pair of distinctly un-Tsukaimon limbs, powerful, lanky forearms that took on a disgusting amber color. Equally powerful legs, short and stout, quickly followed. The distended egg-beast took a few shaky footsteps towards the group, only to erupt into a long, bestial head. Eyes trailed down the head from nose to neck, and is teeth almost seemed like flesh-like extensions of the rest of its body.



"How do I look, guys?" the newly-christened Devitamamon asked, keeping the same child-like enthusiasm despite its horrific new form. Its voice warped and distorted with each word, as if being filtered through several broken speakers at once. "C'mon! Let's play tag!"

And then, without a further word, it charged forward.

Mission Objective:

S̻̩̟ú̲̙͕̙̣̮̮r̲̘̦̯̘v̸̯̪̳̳͖̣͚i̥̭͓̬͟v̱̜͓͎͘e̛

As soon as the buzz rang out from Roger's wings, Devitamamon stopped her gleeful charge. She immediately reared back on her legs, frantically trying to clasp her oversized claws over her ear-holes. With how disproportionately long her arms were, it almost looked hilarious. That left her sides open for Morgan's laser volley, each shot causing her to stagger back a little bit more in the last. Finally Mitsuharu came in like a whirlwind, each swing of his spinning blade causing the tottering Devitamamon to stagger more. A final spinning slam was enough to send the Devitamamon tipping right over. It landed on its back, wings, arms, and legs flailing in a panic as it started looking around.

"You guys don't play fair," she whined, rocking back and forth to try and stand up. Her movements were wobbly and disorderly, effects that Morgan would clearly recognize as those of a successful Bug Buzz. Yet, why was a Digimon as high level as Devitamamon so badly effected? Its eyes were swimming in all directions, and it seemed barely able to remember where its legs were.

Unfortunately, it didn't seem to need to. Rather than rock back onto its feet, it bent its arms backwards and assumed a crab-walk style stance. Its jaw pried open to a massive degree as shadowy tendrils spilled out of its mouth. It was almost as if Devitamamon had a dozen tongues. They began flailing in every direction, snapping like whips as they did so. Slowly, shakily, Devitamamon began crab walking towards Mitsuharu. "If you guys don't play nice, I'm gonna get real mad," she said, words muffled by the shadowy mass in her mouth.

All the while, Lilithmon seemed more wrapped up in her call than in the affairs in those non-demonic figures present. She shook her head, almost in disbelief at the person on the other line. "Of course I manifested. Who cares if it isn't fair? Do you really think anyone else is waiting?" she asked. "Wait, how did you even know I manifested? Have . . . have you been spying on me?"

She shot the group a wry, tired smile. "Men, am I right?" she asked. It was so casual, that it almost sounded as if she wasn't trying to kill them.

Leo didn't forget, though. In fact, right when Lilithmon turned to say that, Leo's rock met its mark. This time there was no dodging, no blocking, and no demonic power at work, as Lilithmon had done to Babamon's staff. Instead it just smack directly into Lilithmon's forehead, falling with a hollow thud. The expression on her face was unreadable, her eyes widening and her smile growing longer. She didn't say a word for the longest time.

Then an uproarious laugh cut through the woods. It didn't seem to be a sound. It didn't come in any direction besides the center of everyone's minds. It sounded like a young man's laugh, hardened and pointedly cruel. Lilithmon seemed to hear the worst of it, considering that she flat-out cringed when the laugh rung out. However, even those at the fringes of the battlefield were still exposed to the laugh. Lilithmon let out a very frustrated huff, then promptly turned back to the group, muttering "Beelze-jackass" under her breath. At the very least, Leo had gotten her off of the call.

Unfortunately, it was Solarmon X that had gotten the most of Lilithmon's attention. She followed the glowing gear's line of sight, towards the bed of flowers that Hiroyo was currently rooting around in. And as she watched this, she saw Gurren about to open his mouth.

"Miss Oda, we simply cannot forgive you for siding with this witch. It pains us to do this, but . . . "

That wasn't what Gurren said at all. And nobody else would hear that little alteration. However, Hiroyo would hear it loud and clear. What was a warning aimed her way would instead warp into a condemnation. How would Hiroyo react to it? Would she panic? Would she disbelieve what she heard? Or would she take comfort in the bats that swarmed to her side in order to protect her? They fluttered in great masses from Lilithmon's sleeves, forming a wall between her Hiro and the wicked Solarmon X.

With these the battle lines drawn, who would Hiroyo believe in?

That just left Eleonora. Lilithmon turned back to her, the rigid smile returning to her face. "I'm sorry, Leo," her voice like a dagger slathered in honey. "I've been neglecting you, haven't I?" She slowly, inevitably floated towards the girl, the only sign of movement being her hair softly rippling in the wind. When she approached, it wasn't to attack the girl but instead to try and gently caress her cheek, the smile on her face softening.

And then Lilithmon's eyes burned. "You want my undivided attention? Then listen," she said, voice barely above a whisper yet echoing louder in Leo's ear than any sound she had previously heard. "You are dead. The moment I laid my hands on you, you have perished. Now you are but a wandering wraith, doomed to walk the Digital World. Your Digimon, your will, your freedom . . . these are still yours alone. But your humanity has forever been stolen from you on this day." And then she parted from Leo, not having done a single thing to her.

And yet . . . Leo would feel so strange upon hearing this, would she not?

With both Hiroyo and Leo in a rather compromised state, the Ashikaga Clan's firmness and focus on their duty stuck out all the more strongly. Babamon smiled at Tsukiko as she came to her side. She protectively setting a hand on the girl in case Lilithmon cast her baleful gaze over to them. "Know this creature? She's a spitting image of me in my prime!" Babamon said, an almost proud smile spreading across her face. "I almost forgot how much of a looker I was back then. Ah, memories . . ."

Perhaps these seemed the rambles of a doddering old woman. But Babamon knew well what she was talking about, because not long after her trip down memory lane she continued. "Lilithmon are mental manipulators first and foremost. What they lack in direct strength, they make up for in their charm, guile, and iron grip over your senses. Not that she isn't a Demon Lord, of course, so it's really only less strength than her peers. She's still a good deal stronger than any Digimon you've seen.

As for escape . . . well, this forest has been a bit of a battleground between the two of us, so to speak. I knew this new Lust'd be coming after me sooner or later, and that until the time came to reveal herself I'd have way more power to bear over this forest than she would. But now that she's letting her full power loose, she's gonna be the one this forest falls under the sway of. So whatever you do, don't trust the fog. I can tamper best I can, but I warn you I'm not gonna be the one who wins.

Then again, if my old eyes aren't failing me, the ring of fog's been broken in at least one spot. She'll be able to see you either way, so that might be your best route."

The Devitamamon froze up as poison spored rained down on her shell. Her already-diminished movements started to slow to a crawl, her fingers and toes dragging trails into the dirt with each ponderous movement. Soon her limbs had locked up on her entirely. As soon as she realized her predicament her mouth tore open in an ear-piercing scream. The tentacles around her mouth began to spasm and undulate as her eyes practically bulged out of her head. "Meanies!" she shouted, voice slightly slurred from the dizzying buzz and muffled from the paralysis setting in over her body. "I just wanted to play tag! Stop! Bullying! Me!"

Maybe her bug-eyed expression was comedic at first. However, Devitamamon's eyes started bulging far past the point of silliness. Soon they had swelled up to the size of boxing gloves, their yellow color decaying to a pitch black. It was as if a bunch of hives were expanding out of Devitamamon's face. Then, once fully "ripened," they fell right off of Devitamamon's face. They bounced as they hit the ground, moving in an unpredictably towards pretty much any Digimon on the battlefield. While their paths were shaky and slow-moving, it was still pandemonium on the battlefield: at least 20 of these orbs must have started bouncing around at once.

As Devitamamon made her attack, Lilithmon's bats swarmed around Hiroyo. Their eyes glowed as brightly as Solarmon's flaming surface. However, as they packed in to form a dense shield around Hiroyo, it seemed another challenger had taken up their role. Mitsuharu had slid right between Lagaan and Hiroyo. They let out palpable sighs of release as their formation loosened. A few that were previously close to the flame even took the time to hide behind Mitsuharu. Would Lagaan heed his general's order and fire despite Mitsuharu's presence, or would he hold his fire and avoid toasting two friends for the price of one?

It was only when Gurren launched his bomb that the swarm snapped back into action. Immediately they broke to the left, leaving Hiroyo's side to protect the flower patch. Furry black bodies rushed towards the drills with the discipline of a soldier's platoon. Each bat that didn't join the initial rush hung back, raising their wings like shields in preparation for the aftershock of Gurren's bombs. The screen of bats buckled as the explosion was set off, vanishing from sight as smoke filled the air.

When the dust had settled, the bats were standing firm. A few charred bats fell from the swarm, dispersing into data as they hit the ground, but for the most part the swarm was intact. The bat heading the swarm blew a brief raspberry at Gurren, but otherwise remained on standby. If they could attack on their own, they sure weren't taking that opportunity.

Lilithmon smiled in satisfaction. Her mental conditioning on Hiroyo had worked perfectly. The conditioning she forced on Eleonora had worked even better. The despair in her eyes as she convulsed like a corpse was exactly what the rock-slinging brat had deserved. And now, Tsukiko was agreeing to a ceasefire without any other push needed. Any dissent in the little party had either been charmed away or crushed beneath her heel. When Lilithmon had cupped her hand on Leo's face, the girl would have noticed that her arm was surprisingly tensed. All of that tension had melted away now. Even Lilithmon's strained smile eased back to its previous state.

All of that went out the window when Morgan shot at her. The laser dispersed right into Lilithmon's robe, not even leaving a mark on the Demon Lord. She dropped from her floating position above the ground, sighing in a mix of frustration and amusement. If anyone was facing Lilithmon, they'd notice she had even rolled her eyes after the attack. "You're joking," she said, voice dry as the Sahara. She turned to Morgan, the look on her face less one of frustration and more one of exasperation. "You didn't honestly think that would hurt me, did you? And if you're trying to get me away from your human, you must already know my Familiar Bats have that little matter covered. So, what is this, then? Jealousy? Frustration? Or just some poor, lost little bee trying to play hero?" As she said this Lilithmon stepped towards Morgan. She quite literally looked down at him as she spoke, leaning in an almost taunting fashion. Was she daring the bee to make his move?

She had barely leaned for five seconds before something hit her right on the back of the head.

Lilithmon wheeled around, her previous sigh intensifying to a frustrated groan. "Will you people stop throwing things at m-?" she started to ask, only to be silenced as she realized there was a rotten apple settled at her feet. Quickly Lilithmon tugged her arm to her face, covering her mouth and nose as the apple exploded into a perfume-scented purple gas. Her eyes burned like white coals, visible even through the dense purple cloud. It was clear that she was looking for her new target.

On the other side of the cloud stood Babamon, triumphantly tossing an apple up and down. "It's called a distraction, you stupid little girl!" she said, cackling a little. "Or do you still think you're too high and mighty to worry about those?"

The cloud dispersed in an instant, Lilithmon slicing through it with a thrust of her arm like a knife through hot butter. "Oh, no no no," she said. "I just thought this sad, cowardly shell of a past vessel would know what was good for her and keep out of this. But if you're in such a hurry to gain your old power back, I could always load you and oblige.

Babamon tossed her remaining apple aside. In its place, she drew the two broken halves of her broom from behind her back. "I'd like to see you try," she hissed. She motioned with the broom in her front hand for Lilithmon to approach.

The Demon Lord was all too happy to oblige, springing off of her back foot with surprising speed. As soon as she did so Babamon averted her eyes, drawing up both fragments of her broom to block a smash from Lilithmon's clawed gauntlet. One half of the broom parried the gauntlet, while the other thrust forward to smack at Lilithmon's exposed side. Unfortunately, Lilithmon saw this coming, and slid away from Babamon with a grace that left her spinning. The two twirled apart like dance partners, only for Lilithmon to lift her leg in mid spin. As soon as Babamon was back in fighting range, Lilithmon smashed a brutal axe kick down onto Babamon's head.

The old witch hit the ground hard, but defiantly rose back onto a single knee. "Is that the best hit a Demon Lord can pull off?" she wheezed, forcing a laugh out between ragged coughs. "And here I thought I'd wasted my power. Compared to you, I might as well have been a legend!" Lilithmon's answer was to punt Babamon away with the hell of her foot, sending the witch sliding right back towards her hunt. Fists balled into a white-knuckled grip, she stalked after Babamon, each footstep echoing through a worryingly silent forest.

If Tsukiko wanted Babamon to take Lilithmon's attention, she had sure gotten it.