Crossover Fan Fiction ❯ The Anime Margin: 108 Stars of Destiny ❯ Magic Story, part 2: Slayers Omnipotence ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Disclaimer:
This fic uses characters, places, themes from franchises that are the property of others. I do not own these franchises.

Special Thanks to:
Charles Xavier, Fanfiction.net author: For writing an awesome crossover with anime and Who Framed Roger Rabbit.

Suikosource website: for providing great information that made this fic possible.

The Anime Margin: 108 Stars of Destiny
By: RB3

Magic Story part 2: Slayers Omnipotence

The portal led the magical heroes to the northern fringes of a village somewhere in the middle of a vast desert. In the southwest was a great, glimmering oasis which also provided the villagers with life-giving water. The water allowed the grass and palm trees to grow in this harsh climate. Most importantly, it enabled the farmers to grow the crops their people needed for nourishment. The great village was constructed of mostly mortar and wood from the palm trees, but had been greatly damaged by an intense armed conflict. The signs of war were omnipresent from smashed dragon head ornaments to ruined buildings. This town was every bit like Clow Reed had described.

As a village in a low-technology world, there were no modern conveniences to be found. Despite the lack of technology, the people were a hard working lot who did their best to survive and now recover from the ravages of the war. For people who lived in the hot, sunny desert, they were surprisingly fair-skinned. Each individual was garbed in robes and hoods which shielded their skin from harmful sunlight. The most elegantly dressed among them were the leaders and the learned individuals of their people. In exchange for eschewing the scientific studies, they developed magic and magical practice. These learned ones were priests and priestesses in immaculate white robes and magicians in robes of other varying colours like their favoured elements.

Yolei clasped her hands to together in dreamy admiration of Shaoran Li. "You know, Shaoran, you're one of the cutest boys I've ever met. Maybe when this all over, we can go out some time, hmm?"

Shaoran, embarrassed by Yolei's romantic overtures, turned beet red. Sakura was irritated. "Ahem, looks like you're got a rival in love, Sakura," remarked Kero impishly. That remark made Sakura blush.

"Oh shut up, you stuffed animal!" cried Shaoran in response.

"Who are you calling a stuffed animal?" asked Kero with indignation.

Hawkmon just sighed. "Oh brother..."

The group continued on until they were stopped at the gates by local guards. After checking up the heroes, they let them enter the village. The heroes were taken aback by the sheer devastation of the place. They began to question the villagers to learn more about the village's situation. "What happened here?" Yolei asked to one of the priestesses.

"It was the outsiders," replied the priestess. "They've been attacking our village for days."

"Outsiders?" asked Koichi.

"Yes," replied the priestess. "They appeared about a month ago to the east. They came at us with armies of demons and machines to destroy our homes and desecrate our sacred temple. From then on, we've been fighting them ever since. We were barely able to hold out and would have been overrun had it not been for the aid of the Dragon Spooker and her companions."

"Dragon Spooker?" asked Koichi.

The priestess looked around warily as though in fear of being overheard. "Dragons step past her out of clear revulsion. That's Lina Inverse, a powerful sorceress. Don't tell me you haven't heard of her, have you?"

"No, we're not from around these parts," replied Shaoran.

"Where is she now?" asked Sakura.

"She's helping out at the Fire Dragon King's temple. You can find the temple by following the path south out of town. There's not much to see there, though. You're better off just staying here."

"Okay, thanks a lot," said Sakura.

The magical heroes followed the directions given by the priestess. The sandy stone path led to a great mountain rising prominently above the sandy wastes. On the side of the mountain jutted the effigy of a great dragon's head. This dragon head was like a guardian for the stone doorway below it. Before this doorway were rows of stone pillars that ran alongside the length of the road to the entrance. A pair of guards flanked this doorway that seemed intent on keeping unwanted individuals from entering the holy ground. The heroes approached the doorway and were stopped by the men as expected.

"Halt! Who goes there?" asked the lead guard.

"We're new people hired to defend the temple. Please let us in," said Yolei.

The guard chuckled. "Ha ha ha, yeah yeah... Go home. Come back when you're old enough to lift up a sword. Ha ha ha!"

The magical heroes withdrew from the entrance to rethink their course of action. "Well, that went well..." remarked Yolei sarcastically.

Shaoran examined the area around the temple and came up with another idea. "There might be another way in... This temple is inside the mountain isn't it? Maybe we can use the Through card?"

"Great idea! We can use it to create a hole into the temple!" remarked Sakura.

"Well, if we're going to sneak in, we should go somewhere less conspicuous," recommended Koichi. "We should make sure we're putting the hole in the right place."

"I can do that. Just leave it to me!" announced Yolei.

The magical heroes moved to the back of the temple, out of the way of prying eyes. Through the channelling of her power, Yolei formed the glowing green, teardrop-like Crest of Sincerity in her hands. Several vines took root in the ground and began to burrow through the sand. She continued to channel her powers, making the roots of the plants grow to ever greater lengths. After a few seconds, the roots came upon an area where it was surprisingly easy to move in. Since movement was so easy, it implied that they had entered into an empty space. Yolei continued to grow the roots to get a better idea of where space's boundaries were.

"Shaoran, don't move," ordered Yolei. "I think I've found a room under where you're standing. I don't know what's in there so we should scout it out before we go in."

"Kero, could you take a look before we go in?" asked Sakura.

"Sure," he replied.

The Clow Mistress invoked the Through card, which summoned a robed, female spirit carrying a black disk. The spirit placed the disk on the ground in front of Shaoran, opening a small entrance to a room below. From the hole, the heroes could see what looked like a sack of flour. Kero flew down into the hole and scouted the room out. It was merely a pantry where the temple's rations were stored. The shelves were filled with jars of sauces and seasonings as well as preserved meat and vegetables. There were racks with kitchen utensils and slabs of dried meat lined up in neat rows. Fortunately, no one was inside the room at the time.

Kero exited the hole. "Okay, the coast is clear."

Sakura widened the hole and everyone jumped in. For the next phase, the group was to make contact with a prominent person, such as the head priest or Lina Inverse, and tell them their story. Koichi summoned the powers of darkness and cloaked his group in a tar-like coating of darkness. It felt cool to the touch and protective in a somewhat eerie way. "Eew, what is this stuff?" asked Sakura.

"It's a special coating of darkness," replied Koichi. "It will hide you as long as you stay within the shadows."

In other words, the group would be invisible as long as they remained in the darkness and the shadows. The group snuck out of the pantry and through the kitchen. They snuck by a blond, armoured man and a red-head woman wolfing down food like slobs in the mess hall. The group traversed stony hallways, making sure to remain within the shadows for cover whenever possible. The group rounded the corner to another hallway where they heard footsteps approaching. The group scattered to hide within any set of shadows they could find.

The footsteps came closer came from a swordsman with turquoise, stony skin. The man was cloaked in a beige tunic, cloak, and pants. He didn't look like a typical human due to his skin, as well as his mussed grey hair and pointed ears. The man walked down the hallway casually, not noticing the presence of the group hiding within the shadows. Sakura shifted around and her shoe knocked a small stone out of the darkness. "Hmm?" asked the man upon hearing the sound.

He searched around, trying to figure out what had caused the noise, and found the stone on the ground near the edge of the shadow. The position of his head placed the direction of his gaze straight at Sakura's face. Sakura froze up and gazed back at him with bated breath. However, the man wasn’t able to see Sakura, nor what had moved the stone. The man looked around the area for a good ten seconds but still couldn't find anything out of the ordinary. He eventually gave up his search and continued on his way. Once he was out of the area, Sakura rested herself against the wall and breathed a sigh of relief.

"Oh, that was so scary!" she remarked.

"That guy looks very important," commented Shaoran. "I think we should follow him. He might lead us to the person in charge."

The group tailed the man, who was actually going to the mess hall they had passed by earlier. "Gourry, how long are you going to be?" asked the man.

"I'm almost done. Give me a few more seconds," replied the blond man as he continued to wolf down food.

"Well, could you hurry it up? You're making Filia wait."

"Sure," said the man. He cleaned out his current plate and reclined to give his bloated stomach some room. "Oh yeah, that hit the spot."

"Lina, Filia needs to see you about a half hour later. Don't keep her waiting!" informed Zel.

"Okay," replied the red head as she continued to wolf down her meal.

Gourry followed Zel to wherever it was that Filia was waiting, leaving Lina all alone in the mess hall. After wolfing down one more plate of food, the young woman reclined on her chair to ease the pressure on her bloated belly. The magical heroes decided to let their female members do the talking to Lina. The boys hid in the shadows and watched as Yolei, Hawkmon, and Sakura approached the sorceress. The two prepare themselves to jump into battle at a moment's notice should things turn sour.

"Did you enjoy that meal?" asked Yolei as she stepped out of the shadows and approached Lina.

"Ahh!" gasped Lina as she nearly fell out of her seat. She put some distance from the girls and prepared to draw her short sword. "Who are you?"

"I'm Yolei Inoue, he's Hawkmon," introduced Yolei.

"I'm Sakura Avalon and my little friend is Kero."

"What are you doing here?" asked Lina.

"We're looking for Lina Inverse," replied Sakura. "Are you her?"

"Yeah that's right, what do you want with me?"

"We came here to help you," replied Sakura. "My master, Clow Reed, told us that a great evil is threatening to all of the anime worlds. He said we could learn more about it if we helped you protect this temple."

"It has already attacked my world and has even attacked Sakura," added Hawkmon. "We need to talk to the leader of this temple. Please take us to him or her. If we don't warn them, there will be big trouble."

"Well duh, haven't you seen the town," remarked Lina sarcastically before falling silent to think. Although she didn't realize it, Lina was able to see the sincerity within their eyes as they told her about their plight. "Hmm, Clow Reed, Clow Reed... I don't know, but something tells me I should believe you. Okay, follow me. As long as you stay by me, you'll be fine."

"Thank you very much," replied Yolei. "Koichi, Shaoran, you can come out now!"

Koichi emerged from the shadows and waved to his team mates and Lina. Shaoran followed moments later but merely nodded in affirmation. Lina led the children to the heart of the temple where many injured men and women laid on futons on the ground. A young blonde woman standing at the centre, tending to these soldiers. This slender, graceful woman was a priestess of this temple and carried herself with great dignity. She was clothed in a priestess' uniform, an ensemble consisting of an immaculate white robe, white boots, a pink bell dress, and a round, pointed white cap. Lina introduced her as Filia Ul Copt, a member of the golden dragon race and a priestess of the Fire Dragon King. The heroes introduced themselves to the priestess and narrated their story.

"So, you say this evil is the same one that's been attacking my temple?" asked Filia.

"Yes," replied Koichi. "We were sent here to help you defend this place and to find out more about it."

"I appreciate your help but what can you kids do to help us defend the temple?" asked Filia.

"We can do a lot," replied Yolei.

Shaoran was annoyed but managed to keep his cool. "All of us have great magical powers. Me and Sakura are masters of Clow magic and the others are associated with Digimon and the powers of the Digital World."

"We can fight the bad guys just as hard as you can!" proclaimed Yolei.

"Reed, Reed... Ah, now I remember!" exclaimed Lina as she had an epiphany. "Clow Reed toured around the world to study the workings of magic."

"You know Clow Reed?" asked Sakura.

"Well not personally, but I did bump into him for about a minute," replied Lina.

"We're his students. Master Reed taught us everything he knew about magic," repeated Shaoran.

"What's the situation right now?" asked Koichi. "What is the strength of the enemy and where are they coming from?"

"They come from the east," replied Filia. "From last count, they had two hundred soldiers equipped with modern weapons like assault rifles. They are supported by over five hundred demons of various kinds. So far, we've held them off, but our armies are fatigued. We can't keep this up for much longer. One of our people went to get help, but they won't be back for another week."

"Wow, that's a lot of force," remarked Koichi. "They must really want something to go to so much effort. Hmm... I might be able to get some help to defend the temple. Can you guys hold down the fort while I go ask?"

"Sure, we'll take care of things here, Koichi," replied Yolei.

"Okay," said Koichi. He pressed some buttons on a handheld device, a Digivice, before pointing it at an empty space. "Digiport open!"

A swirling vortex of data and light opened and dragged Koichi into the Digital World. After a wait of about two hours, a second portal opened in the temple courtyard. Koichi emerged from this portal, but did not come alone. Following him was a platoon consisting of about three dozen Digimon of various kinds transporting supplies in their hands. All of them were Beast-type Digimon of around the lower middle, or Champion level of strength. These creatures were a motley crew and included fierce dinosaurs, dragons, and other types of creatures.

"Okay move those crates over there," ordered the Warrior of Darkness.

The creatures made a ruckus as they came in, prompting Filia and the others to go investigate. "Koichi! You're back!" said Yolei.

"Yep," he replied. "Cherubimon sent three dozen of his best soldiers to help us."

"Now that's a lot of troops," remarked Filia. "Is it alright to have these beasts walking around the temple like that?"

"It's alright, the Digimon won't bite," commented Yolei as she watched them set up camp in front of the temple. "They're house bred too."

Gourry and Zel came out of the temple to check on the commotion. "Whoa monsters!" cried Gourry as he reached for his sword.

"Don't worry, they're our reinforcements," corrected Filia.

"Did Amelia come back already?" asked Zel.

"No, they're with the children who came to us," replied Filia.

Zel, whose name was short for Zelgadiss, watched as these fearsome Digimon set up a camp near the temple. Koichi broke away from the working monsters to report to Filia. "With the help of Cherubimon's forces we should be able to hold out until the real reinforcements arrive."

"Good work!" remarked the dragon priestess. "I think the arrival of your forces will really boost morale. Once everyone sees how these strong monsters are fighting on our side, they'll think they can win the war."

---

A week had passed with no activity from the enemy camp. It was eerily quiet, like the moments of calm just before a great storm hit. It was at this moment that something important usually happened. Amelia's reinforcements were due to arrive at the temple any moment now. With them and the extra military force from the Digimon, the Fire Dragon King's guardians would be able to reverse their fortunes and go on the offensive. It was lunch time and the magical heroes gathered in the temple mess hall for their meal.

The main course was a dish of fried fish in batter served with a side of salad. Gourry and Lina were up to their usual high jinks, wolfing down plate after plate of food. Since their table manners were so atrocious, everyone else ate their meal at a different table to avoid being soiled by the food being scattered around. "Are they always like that?" asked Yolei.

"Yep, pretty much," replied Zelgadiss nonchalantly as he continued eating.

"How do you put up with them?" asked Hawkmon.

"Well, Lina, Gourry, and I tend to travel a lot together. We even filmed the Slayers anime together," replied Zelgadiss, who finished another bite. "I guess you can say that I've been around them so long, I've become accustomed to it."

"I'm still curious to know, what is so important about this temple?" asked Koichi. "Considering all the lengths they are going to get the temple, the enemy seems to want something very valuable."

"Well, there are a lot of magical artefacts here so it is a big target for thieves," replied Zelgadiss.

Koichi wasn't totally convinced by Zel's reason. Filia burst into the mess hall with urgent news. "Everybody, the enemy is moving out. Come to the congregation room immediately!" The magical heroes and Zelgadiss got up and left the room, leaving Lina and Gourry still pigging out on the food. "You too! The enemy isn't going to wait for you to finish eating!"

After Lina and Gourry cleaned out their current plate, everyone made their way to the prayer room as Filia commanded. She began a briefing on the movements of the invading army. The enemy had called in for some reinforcements and had almost doubled their total military power. They were sending about half of their army to attack the temple while the rest stayed back to defend their camp. The enemy was coming from the east as usual and would be in range of the temple and town in about twenty minutes. During these precious minutes, the temple's defenders prepared for battle.

A bell rang out in the town of the dragon worshippers, rallying the people to action. Soldiers and civilians fortified their homes, bunkers, and bulwarks in preparation for the great invasion. Priest, priestesses, and magicians chanted holy and arcane spells to fortify the town in barriers of magical energy. The people moved quickly, setting up their defences with enough time left over to catch their breath. It wasn't long before the lookouts spotted the great army advancing over the horizon. The lookouts sounded the alarm and the battle began.

The enemy army consisted of humanoid soldiers leading a much larger army of demonic creatures. There must have been almost a thousand demons advancing with nearly half that number in human soldiers behind them. While the soldiers looked and were equipped like typical soldiers, the demons were a motley bunch in comparison. They included the familiar bird demons that had stolen the Destiny Stone a while back. The second major type of demon was the oni; giant, ogre-like creatures brandishing massive clubs. The rest were less numerous and unique, from legions of undead creatures to other unholy monstrosities.

From a distance, squads of magicians chanted Fireball spells into the advancing army. The flaming spheres exploded on contact with whatever they struck, whether it was an enemy or the ground. The spells demolished some of the weaker demons, while the others dodged or resisted the spells and continued their advance. The sky rumbled as hundreds of dragons burst out of the town to greet the enemy's frontline. Gunshots filled the air as the enemy soldiers opened fired. Digimon troops advanced on the ground and pounced on unsuspecting enemy forces. The two groups clashed in the middle with bolts of energy soaring back and forth.

Velgamon took to the air and rained dark destruction upon the enemy forces. His Dark Vortex eye beams struck an oni, blowing a massive hole into his chest. Several of the bird demons flocked around the massive dark vulture as a challenge to his might. Through sheer power, his wings buffeted the birds away and into the ground like the pests they were. Sakura summoned the mighty Earthy card, bringing forth a female spirit of the earth which shook the earth. Her attack felled several of the land-based demons to the ground, leaving them disabled long enough for Velgamon to trace a massive circle on the ground around them. The Dark Obliteration attack formed a massive black hole which devoured them all.

Hawkmon Armour Digivolved into his Shurimon form, a ninja in white garb with vine-mounted shuriken for appendages. Shurimon spun his shuriken rapidly and tossed it into a demon. The ninja weapon sliced through the monster's body like a buzz saw, sawing it cleanly in half. This attack gave Lina the opening to start chanting a spell. "Wind, crimson flame. Grant the power of thunder to my hand! Digger Volt!" A massive lightning bolt erupted from the palm of her extended arm, annihilating every demon within its path.

Yolei summoned a towering funnel of swirling wind which unerringly hovered towards a group of demons. The fierce winds scooped the demons from the ground one after the other and whirled them around high in the air. Shaoran waved his sword about to calling upon the Firey card, bringing the flaming angel into the world. With the fearsome roar of flames, the Firey card swirling around in synchronization of the tornado's winds. These winds fanned the flames ever so greatly until it engulfed the tornado and incinerated all caught within its grasp.

Zelgadiss and Gourry fought their way past the enemy's demonic front lines towards the more vulnerable soldiers in the rear. The men turned their weapons on him and rained bullets endlessly to halt their advance. Unfazed, Zel raised a barrier of pure magic to protect them as they inched towards the soldiers. The bullets came to a dead halt upon striking the barrier, causing several sparks to burst in the air. Once in range Gourry slashed his Sword of Light in a wide arc which cut down nearly half a dozen soldiers. The soldiers scattered to avoid the wrath of the enraged swordsman.

"Earth below me, submit to my will! Dug Haut!" chanted Zel as he gathered magical energy in his hand. He plunged it to the ground, causing several spikes of stone to shoot out of the ground in a line which hurtled several of the enemy soldiers into the air.

At that moment, a second army appeared in the north headed by a pair of violet-haired princesses. "Aya hah hah hah hah!" laughed the first like a hyena. This elder sister was a tall woman who towered over her shorter sibling. She was a very buxom woman clad in a violet cloak, mystic jewellery, and a scandalous leather bikini. "Never fear! The great Naga the Serpent is here!"

"That's right! Run away evil doers 'cause Amelia Wil Tesla Saillune, champion of justice, is on the prowl!" boasted the second sister, who was clothed in white and perched at the top of a tall sand dune. She struck a triumphant pose as the emphasis of her point.

Amelia and Naga's Saillune army charged southwards and clashed with the sea of bodies that made the enemy forces. Naga chanted an Icicle Lance spell, which fatally wounded a demon as it was impaled by a spear of sharp, solid ice. The soldiers of Amelia's home country slashed at an oni while their archers pelted the monster with a hail of arrows. The oni whacked at the sea of soldiers with its club and kicked several more with tremendous force. The soldiers landed sprawled in piles scattered around the area. Amelia rushed to their aid, channelling positive energy through her being as Recovery spells to heal the wounded.

With the enemy army outnumbered and flanked from the north, their numbers and morale dwindled rapidly. The call for retreat came from deep within their ranks. As they fled across the eastern horizon, the temple's defenders cheered their great, decisive victory. "Yeah, we won!" cheered Yolei with the chorus of templar.

The magical heroes, Lina's mercenaries, and the princesses gathered in the mess hall to celebrate their major victory that day. "Amelia, you came after all," said Gourry.

"Well, I couldn't miss all the action now. Wherever evil rises up, I'm there to smack it back down," stated Amelia. Zel came into the mess hall to eat. "Oh hi Zel, I missed you so mu... uh... uh!" As the princess moved to greet him, she tripped over a log of firewood. Zel caught the girl in his arms, causing the two of them to blush.

Shaoran watched the whole ordeal as he ate a leg of chicken. "She's even clumsier than Sakura," he remarked mentally.

"Looks like somebody is in love..." remarked Naga impishly.

"Hey, we're just friends!" objected Amelia, still blushing. Naga merely laughed off her weak response like a hyena. Amelia made a weird face at that laugh and decided to switch the subject. "Ahem, does anyone know where those kids are? You know, the ones who helped us defend the temple? I'd like to talk to them."

"They're over at the table just across from me," replied Lina, wolfing down a plate of chicken and vegetables.

"Thanks Lina." Amelia fetched her meal and took it to the table where the magical heroes sat. "Hi kids, mind if I eat here with you?"

"Oh no, go right ahead," said Sakura.

"Thanks! It's great to be in the company of other champions of justice," began Amelia. "How did you get those monsters to help us?"

"You can thank Koichi for that," said Shaoran as he ate his dinner.

"I'm a Legendary Warrior from the Digital World, one of ten," replied Koichi. "I'm the Warrior of Darkness to be precise. I have a lot of influence with Cherubimon, who's one of the leaders of the Digital World."

"I'm surprised that a 'Warrior of Darkness' would come all the way out here just to fight evil doers," remarked Amelia. "I think that's pretty cool. You guys must have fought evil doers a lot back in the Digital World. In my book, you're all heroes, every one of you."

"Heroes? Well, that's probably more true of Yolei and Koichi. We're just magicians where we come from. We got dragged into this when they attacked Sakura," admitted Shaoran nonchalantly.

"...But you're trying to save the world too, right? You want to stop these evil doers, don't you? They've besieged this temple and you've done more than your share to help us to drive them away. You're champions of justice too!"

"Yeah, yeah whatever..." said Shaoran indifferently.

"So guys, what do you think? Do we have room for another?" asked Yolei.

"Are you saying what I think you're saying? If so, then I'd love to join you guys!" exclaimed Amelia. "That way, I can bring the light of justice to wherever evil chooses to hide!"

"Hmm, looks like a 'yes,'" observed Hawkmon. "It would be nice to bring someone along who is good at healing all those bumps and bruises we get."

"What about the rest of you?" asked Yolei. The others agreed to her request without any objections. Amelia was in.

"Welcome to the team, Amelia," said Koichi.

---

Two days passed before the group convened in the congregation room at the center of the temple. Filia gave a briefing on the situation at the current moment. After yesterday's great battle, the greatest danger to the Fire Dragon King's temple had passed. Now, it was time to go on the offensive and drive the enemy from the lands of the gold dragons permanently. As she described the strategy, Filia drew symbols on a clear sheet of film overlaid above a map of the area. Her first drawings were of the various armies and their positions on the proverbial chess board.

The enemy's base was constructed out of the side of a mountain like the Fire Dragon King's temple was. Along the outer perimeter ran several barbed wire fences which functioned as blockades to stall an enemy's advance. The inner perimeter had a series of electrified fences as a second barrier against infantry-based invasions. At strategic points around the compound were automated turrets which scanned around in search of enemies. If they detected anyone hostile, they would activate and mow down the offender. Due to all these defences, a frontal assault was not a sound strategy. Also, merely blowing up the entire camp with powerful magic was out of the question. The camp may contain vital information that could do even more damage to the enemy in the long run.

Filia drew a black arrow from the temple to the enemy base, indicating the route of Koichi, Yolei, Hawkmon and other aerial allies. They were to make the first strike in the form of an aerial bombardment campaign. She drew stick figures to the southeast of the compound, indicating the presence of a team of commandoes. This team was mostly land Digimon leading some of the temple's troops in a diversionary second strike. They were already in place and waiting for the cue to move. The final strikes were a pair of full frontal assaults by the temple on the enemy's western flank and the Saillune army on the north flank. In addition, the Saillune army was to send a detachment led by Amelia to burrow into the base and attack it from within with the help of Digimon sappers.

Within nearly an hour, the temple finished its preparations and made its move. Koichi transformed into the great dark vulture, Velgamon, while Hawkmon Digivolved into his Champion form of Aquilamon, a great eagle. Aquilamon picked up his partner before he and Velgamon took off with two flying Digimon, and a dozen golden dragons following their lead. After a nearly fifteen minute flight, they were able to see the base in the distance. The squadron broke formation to begin their bombing runs. The base sounded the alarm, an air raid siren which blared deafeningly. Gunfire soared like streaks of light filling the night sky as the soldiers turned their weapons on the bombers.

Velgamon turned his gaze to the soldiers below and unleashed a Dark Vortex on them. The eye beams destroyed everything they struck in massive, billowing explosions. The explosions burst randomly around the base as Velgamon fired at anything that entered his sight. Several bullets struck him in the body, which did nothing to significantly harm him. Velgamon gazed at the turret, releasing a Dark Vortex to blow it to pieces. The ensuing explosion ripped open a section of the electrified fence and left it sparking dangerously on the ground.

Aquilamon came under attack by a guard tower but took evasive manoeuvres to dodge enemy fire. He lined himself up for an attack run and blew away the base of the tower with energy rings emitted from his mouth. The tower toppled over, causing one of the soldiers to fall out and crash to the ground below. Another hung desperately to the edge for dear life. It crashed to the ground with an earth-shattering thud that smashed it into pieces. From the southeast, Yolei spotted the enemy firing into her allies advancing from behind some distant sand dunes. She fired seeds which cut into one of the enemy soldiers painfully.

With the base's main defences ruined and in flames, the armies marched forward to capture it. Underground, the mole-like Drimogemon, the insect-like Digmon, and the dinosaur-like Guilmon worked diligently to finish their secret entry. They scooped away mounds and mounds of dirt until rays of artificial light shone through a crack in the earth. The Drimogemon tore down the last obstacle in their path to create an opening into the base. Dozens and dozens of Saillune soldiers, knights, priests, and magicians stormed into the now vulnerable base. Working in six person teams, the troops cleaned the base out. A solder squad accosted Amelia's team to which she responded by raising a magical barrier.

The enemy bullets bounced off the shield scattering sparks uselessly. One of her magicians began casting an Icicle Lance spell, which burst out of his hand and impaled his target fatally. Restoring her shield, her troupe advanced into enemy fire in safety. Once in range, one of the knights slashed the gun out of his enemy's hand. The knight plunged the sword into his enemy and pulled it out as the foe fell to the ground. One by one, enemy soldiers and demons fell to flashing blades and dazzling magic. Within minutes, the temple's allies had gained control of the battle and the fighting died down.

The temple's defenders and the Saillune army occupied the base as a valuable informational asset. Within their computers would be critical information on the enemy's movements and possibly the location of the Destiny Stone. Yolei began to fiddle with the computer terminal in the command centre of the base. She perused the non-encrypted data but found nothing that would reveal anything of value. After cracking a password, she found herself in the area where the sensitive files were stored. However, they were encrypted. With the VIPs dead, they were unable to tell any tales that would shed light on the encryption method.

Yolei tried to decrypt the files, but was not having any luck. "I can't do this. I need Izzy's help." Yolei sent a message for her friend through a handheld device known as a D-Terminal.

Within seconds, her friend emerged from a portal opened right in the computer's monitor. Izzy was a young, brown-haired boy in his early teens. He wore a simple brown T-shirt that had black stripes and a pair of khaki shorts. The boy had an aura of intelligence around him that went beyond the natural. It was suitable for someone who represented the Crest of Knowledge. His Digimon partner was a small beetle creature with large, expressive eyes. His chitin was a rose, almost violet colour and had spikes on his back. He was Tentomon, the lightning-shooting ladybug.

"Hi Yolei, you need help getting into a computer?" asked Izzy.

"Yeah, this computer has encrypted files. It's military grade encryption, so I need your help," replied Yolei.

"Prodigious! Military encryption is a nice challenge, but we can get through it no problem," boasted the Digidestined of Knowledge.

As the two Digidestined worked on the files, the others took a tour of the facility. The enemy base was a marvel of high technology indeed, with walls of silvery metal and humming circuitry. Its top three floors had quarters for guards, strategy planning rooms, and a lounge for off duty soldiers. Beneath these two floors was a fortified underground complex with facilities for the day-to-day operations of a paramilitary force. There was a storage room lined with gun-filled racks and ammunition. There were chambers filled with a yellow, urine-like liquid with soldiers recuperating in them. There was a massive hatchery filled with misshapen, spiky black eggs likely from the demons that assisted the army. Whoever these people were, they were well funded and meant business.

"What kind of guys are they?" asked Filia as she examined the technological nature of the base.

Lina explored the gun room and gazed at the racks and racks lining the walls. The guns were packed into these holders like sardines in a can. "So many guns..." remarked Lina as she looked down the rows of firearms.

Amelia plugged her nose at the foul smell from the demon hatchery. "Eew, what kind of monsters were they growing in here? Thank the gods we took this place when we did," said Amelia as she watched her soldiers smash the demonic eggs.

Meanwhile, Izzy and Yolei continued cracking the enemy's encryption. Across the screen the blurbs and blurb of data changed as they adjusted the code of their decryption program. At this point, the two programmers were placing the final touches on their code. They had pinned down the enemy's exact encryption method. All they had to do now as to tweak a few numbers until they found the right one. After a few more minutes the blurbs of data turned into readable text. What they saw fascinated them to no end.

This base was not the only one in existence. There were others like it in other places in the Slayers world. They weren't just limited to the Slayers world either. In fact, there was a huge number of these bases spread out in almost every single anime world imaginable. Each had the very same facilities to allow for functioning as a beachhead for invasion. From the communications logs of the base, Yolei and Izzy found that other bases like this one were in the Digital and Real World as well! After sifting through more data, they learned the true name of this dark force. Its name was the word which meant having limitless power; Omnipotence.

END OF CHAPTER

New Stars of Heaven/Heavenly Leaders:
#13 Tenko, The Lone Star: Amelia Wil Tesla Saillune (Slayers)
#14 Tensyo, The Wounded Star: Gracia Ul Naga Saillune, aka Naga the Serpent (Slayers)
#26 Tenjyu, The Star of Longevity: Lina Inverse (Slayers)

New Stars of Earth/Earthly Warriors:
#40 Chiketsu, The Star of Noble Wisdom: Zelgadiss Graywords (Slayers)
#47 Chisei, The Guileless Star: Filia Ul Copt (Slayers)
#97 Chisatsu, The Searching Star: Gourry Gabriev (Slayers)

Spotlight: Digimon, Yolei, Hawkmon, & Koichi


Digimon is an anime series about various groups of children who come into contact with a parallel world known as the Digital World. They interact with the inhabitants of the Digital World, the Digimon or Digital Monsters, and go on adventures to save it and their home world from hostile forces. The powers used within the Digimon anime, including Digital World technology, are magical in origin. However, the children were all originally from the scientifically based Real World, an anime interpretation of our own world. The Digital and Real Worlds of each Digimon season are united and considered one nation amongst its peoples. Origins:
Yolei is a Digidestined from the second season and Hawkmon is her Digimon partner. Koichi is a Legendary Warrior of the fourth season, Frontier. While Hawkmon was born with his powers, Koichi and Yolei gained their powers from items found within their Digital Worlds. Koichi's origin is particularly interesting. He was an enemy to his brethren at first, due to spiritual corruption by his benefactor, Cherubimon. In the anime, his brother purified his power source, the Spirits of Darkness, causing them to take on a new form. However, the anime was an embellished retelling of the Warriors' experiences, so the true Spirits of Darkness were and have always been Duskmon and Velgamon.

Powers:
Hawkmon can Digivolve, or transform, into various new forms. Each of these forms have varying powers, strengths, and resistances. Among his varied abilities include flight and elemental blasts. His nature makes him resistant to polymorphic effects and he can counter them through Digivolutionary power. His Digimon mind is quite different and difficult to attack.

Yolei has merged with the Digieggs of Sincerity and of Love and has gained their powers as a result. Her Love powers gives her power over the wind and the ability to charm people and instil them with feelings of love. Her Sincerity powers gives her power over plants as well as the ability to sense illusions. Her powers are generally supportive in nature, as Hawkmon does the bulk of the fighting.

Koichi has merged with the Spirits of Darkness, which allow him to transform into Digimon. They also give him the ability to create and control darkness and negative energy. These dark powers also cause him to radiate an aura that nullifies hostile telekinetic and mental attack powers used around or against him. As such, he is the worst opponent a psionics user could ever encounter.