Chapter 12: Renamon's debut (UPDATED)

Chapter 12: Renamon's debut

- Renamon –

"Diamond Storm," Renamon muttered as she hurled razor-sharp leaves at her opponents. To her dismay, her adversaries brushed off her attack as trivial, their unwarranted arrogance blinding them to the real threat.

Yet, Hekz, their temporary leader, saw through the deception and attempted to alert his dim-witted underlings who couldn't fathom the impending danger.

"Idiot! Move! It's more than just mere leaves!" Hekz yelled, frantically weaving a protective magic circle with his hands to counter the incoming foliage.

The most audacious of the stray devils couldn't resist ridiculing Hekz for his apparent fear of leaves. He had just begun to boast about his leadership qualities when Renamon's Diamond Storm descended upon him.

Leaves whirled around him, embedding themselves in his flesh, and his lifeless body crumpled to the ground. The remaining strays stood frozen, struck dumb by the sudden turn of events.

Strays: "!!!"

"Devils, fortify your shield!" Hekz bellowed as he spotted the second wave of leaves hurtling toward them. His subordinates, chastened by the fate of their fallen comrade, wasted no time in raising a protective circle shield to defend against the impending barrage.

Renamon, however, recognized the shift in tactics. While the lower-class devils were preoccupied with her Diamond Storm, she seized the opportunity to approach them unnoticed, setting her sights on eliminating them before dealing with their equally formidable leader.

Her paws pressed together as she whispered an incantation, "Kohenkyo" (Fox Switch Deception). With this transformation art, Renamon mimicked the appearance of one of her adversaries and seamlessly exchanged places with the devil's fallen comrade, who lay nearby. A chill of disbelief ran down the spines of the remaining devils as they witnessed the sudden movement.

"B-B-Braygth... how can y-y-you move?!" stammered a terrified devil, his shout echoing through the tense atmosphere.

"Idiot, your shield!" Hekz urgently reminded his subordinate. A sense of foreboding began to creep over him as he scanned the surroundings. Something was amiss; he couldn't locate his elusive opponent.

"What?!?" exclaimed the befuddled devil, losing focus, causing Renamon's leaves to slice through their weakened shield, injuring his left arm in the process.

"ARGHH, my arms!" he cried out, tears welling up in his eyes from the searing pain.

"Quick, find me that fox. She can't be far from here!" Hekz's anxiety mounted as he urged his subordinates to maintain their vigilance. He was well aware that their adversary was a formidable force beyond their usual prey this time, and he wasn't about to underestimate the danger she posed.

Hekz's unease deepened as he noticed a perplexing development—there were now two corpses of their fallen comrade. He couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss.

"Wait... how come there are two corpses of that guy? Quick, verify both of them for me!" Hekz commanded, his subordinates splitting into three teams. One devil examined the first corpse while the other two approached the new one. Simultaneously, Hekz and the injured devils closely monitored the proceedings.

The injured devil, trembling and with a ghostly white face, suddenly realized he had forgotten something crucial. He spoke up, his voice barely audible, "B-b-b-oss."

"Huh?! Don't waste my time, and say it already!" roared Hekz, his patience wearing thin as he faced his weak and cowardly subordinate.

The injured devil stuttered, his voice trembling as he continued, "W-w-well, I saw the corp-p-pse move! That's why I lost focus..."

Hekz's expression turned to one of shock, "!!!"

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?!" he shouted in utter disbelief, snapping his head toward one of his subordinates who had been inspecting the fallen comrade's body.

"Stop for me!" Hekz yelled to his allies, realizing he was already near the body. He also noticed movement from the body as it shrouded a hand in ghostly flame.

"What do you mean, boss?" said the oblivious devil, unaware of the ominous turn of events.

"Isn't it just a corpse? Don't be paranoid, boss. I also heard Tyhery's nonsense, so don't overthink about it. How can a corpse move again? Ridiculous," ranted the oblivious devil as he grumbled about his boss's peculiar order.

"IDIOT, MOVE!" Hekz exploded angrily, unable to fathom how he had so many dimwits in his team.

"Look, boss, this is just a corpse. Let me show you... ARGH!" The careless devil's sentence was cut short as a hand covered in ghostly flames pierced his heart.

The air grew heavy as another squad, drawn by the commotion, observed the gruesome turn of events.

"H-h-how..." muttered the unlucky devil, blood spurting from his mouth as he fell to his knees, succumbing to the pain and ultimately perishing on the ground.

The squad of devils looked on in horror at their 'dead' friend, who had just killed another comrade. The 'corpse killer' rose from the ground, white smoke emanating from his body, revealing the true identity of the deceiver—Renamon.

Hekz grasped the gravity of the situation as he examined the corpses and the trick that had unfolded before him.

"SHIT! We've been fooled! Quick, kill that bastard!" Hekz shouted as he readied a spell while two squad members slithered toward Renamon's position.

"Interesting. Let me accompany you," muttered Renamon as she dashed toward the two oncoming devils. They encircled her, and the first devil attempted to bite her with his venomous fangs from behind.

However, Renamon quickly identified a flaw and gracefully evaded the attack. She responded with a Fox Spin Kick, a series of roundhouse kicks aimed at the incapacitated devil's chest, causing him to cough up blood.

Renamon wasted no time, transitioning to her next opponent, who wielded his tail offensively. She deftly rolled away from his tail strikes, narrowly evading the deadly blows.

She sprang to her feet with fluid grace and executed a kick imbued with ghostly flames. The devil unleashed his tail, also infused with dark magic.

Their attacks collided with a tremendous force, sending shockwaves through the ground as it cracked under the impact.

They engaged in a heated exchange of blows, each lost in their world of combat. Meanwhile, Hekz watched the unfolding battle, feeling a surge of anticipation as his magic materialized, conjuring multiple flame lances above his head.

"HAHA, DIE!" Hekz bellowed, preparing to turn the tables and escape the humiliation he had endured at Renamon's hands. Never before had he felt so manipulated and outsmarted since his transformation into a devil.

Hekz's heart raced with anticipation, eagerly awaiting the sight of Renamon's lifeless body lying on the ground. But Renamon was far from foolish, and her experience on the battlefield had honed her awareness. She quickly detected the impending threat of Hekz's incoming magic and spared a moment to glance at it.

While Renamon kept an eye on the incoming danger, the devil she was engaged with fought recklessly, oblivious to his surroundings. He paid no attention to the imminent danger from his boss's reckless plan, consumed by the thrill of battle.

With adrenaline pumping through his veins, the devil leaped into the air, his tail charged with dark magic, ready to strike Renamon. The ground cracked beneath the force of his attack, leaving behind a small crater.

Renamon seized the opportunity and dashed toward the grounded devil. It wasn't long before the other devil noticed the approaching flame lances.

"BASTARD! HEKZ, HOW COULD YOU!" the frustrated devil cried out, unable to fathom that his leader would sacrifice him so callously.

"IT'S FOR THE GREATER GOOD, UUYYUL!" Hekz rejoiced, displaying a complete disregard for his subordinate's life.

"GREATER GOOD, MY ASS. HOW CAN YOU RESPOND TO ME WITH THIS NONSENSE WITH A STRAIGHT FACE?" Uuyuul protested, desperately trying to escape his impending doom.

The clash between Renamon and her adversaries was reaching its climax, and the fate of the devils hung in the balance.

However, Uuyuul's desperate plea was brushed aside. Renamon was ruthless in her pursuit of the enemy. She didn't hesitate by seizing Uuyuul by the tail and preparing to hurl him toward the incoming flames.

"W-w-wait a minute, fox, let's talk about it, alright?" Uuyuul's voice trembled as he desperately tried to negotiate. "How about using that guy over there, huh? You already smashed him to the ground. So, we might as well use him, yeah? Don't waste useful material like that; he's still capable of a few hits. I felt a connection between us as we fought. This is something we should preserve together. We might be linked by fate, and honestly, I think you are a pretty cute fox. I never dated a youkai before, but we might make this work…"

Renamon rolled her eyes at the absurdity of his words and threw Uuyuul toward the incoming flames. He cursed her shamelessly as his nonsense went unanswered.

"You fucking whore—DAMN!" Uuyuul's body erupted in a fiery explosion upon impact with the barrage of flame lances.

Hekz's shock was evident in his wide-eyed expression. He unleashed a flurry of spells toward Renamon in a last-ditch effort, his panic casting evident in their low potency and inaccuracy.

Renamon easily dodged the poorly aimed spells, her paws now wreathed in ghostly flames. With a swift and decisive kick, she struck the magic shield Hekz had hastily conjured.

"Y-y-you can't kill me! We have a lord backing us! He will find you, as we are his most loyal subordinates. He will hunt you down!" Hekz shouted, his fear evident as he faced his imminent demise.

"Useless. The Digimon Emperor will protect us and defeat your so-called patron," Renamon retorted coldly. She channelled more power into her fiery kick, causing the ghostly flames to intensify and consume Hekz's magic shield.

"Digimon Emperor? IS THAT YOUR MASTER? NEVER HEARD OF HIM! YOU SHOULD JOIN US! YOUR STRENGTH WILL GET YOU EVERYTHING; DON'T FOLLOW AN UNKNOWN WITH YOUR STRENGTH!" Hekz's desperation showed as he clung to the last shreds of hope.

Renamon's face tightened with anger as she abandoned her kick, opting for a decisive palm strike coated with ghostly flames. She sheerly shattered Hekz's magical shield, leaving him defenceless and sealing his fate.

Her hand passed through Hekz's body as his life ended, and the lifeless form fell to the ground. She looked at her bloodied hand momentarily, her expression remaining resolute. Her gaze then shifted to the two devils who had not been dealt yet, who pleaded for mercy in desperate voices.

"P-p-please don't kill us…."

"W-w-we can be useful, please…," the two devils implored as Renamon approached them, her intent clear. However, her lethal mission was unexpectedly interrupted when Wizardmon arrived and gently patted her shoulder.

Renamon glanced at Wizardmon, puzzled by his sudden intervention.

"They have someone behind them, so I intend to interrogate them slowly and learn about their background. I'll leave with them, so please inform Sora about it," Wizardmon explained as he summoned a crack to envelop the two fallen stray devils.

"Understood," Renamon acknowledged, visibly relaxing as the burden of executing the remaining devils was lifted from her shoulders.

With Wizardmon following them into the cracks, he waved Renamon goodbye. Not five minutes later, Sora appeared as his Agunimon transformation receded, leaving his human form.

"Well, looks like you took care of it, Renamon. Good job," Sora commended, offering her a warm smile as he stroked his general's head.

Renamon accepted the head pat with a degree of satisfaction, and her eyes closed, arms crossed.

Sora's attention shifted to Shizuka, who was approaching them with Sengoku in tow. He sighed with relief at the sight of his friends and, bidding Renamon farewell for now, joined Shizuka.

"Let's go, Renamon."

"Hmm," Renamon replied, her readiness to move evident as they regrouped with their companions.