View source for Exposition Epilogue (Gaonoir)

{{Cutscene Header
|Date of Scene=2016/04/05
|Location=Hikari Sea Port
|Synopsis=Gaonoir, Erika and Magnamon go over the previous events and analysis.
|Cast of Characters=765
}}
The barracks of Hikari Seaport were as sparing on decor as one would expect a military base would be, but they were hardly far from comfortable. Considering he had spent the first several months of his time in the Multiverse hiding out in the Oceanic Ruins or lurking around dark alleys, Gaonoir really wasn't going to complain.

As he laid back on the bunk and folded his paws behind his head, Gaonoir couldn't help but let that thought mull around in his head. It was hardly the first time he'd worked with a military operation, but things were... different around here. The Fleet Daughters were more closely knit of a unit, even with their outside members. Even with some of them being stubborn, confrontational assholes like Akebono. The Royal Knights rarely invested as much of their personal spirit into things like these girls did. It had always been just business as usual, remaining emotionally detatched from events so it didn't cloud their judgement. Or so they believed. You tried to shake the status quo or go against Yggdrassil's direct wishes, and you ended up like Dukemon had, stripped of your power and most of your memories. Or worse.

A roll to his side and he could see the wall Erika had claimed for her theories board. Gaonoir's own picture was still up there, but with a tag pinned to it for his new evolution, Umbra Gaogamon. Pins and strings connected it to pics of various other digimon they'd already seen. Alden, who was from a different Digital World but still has taken up the fight to protect this clustering of realities; and Magnamon, whom was their one connection back to his own Digital World right now. A string connected to Golden, represented by a scribbling of a yellow ball and cannon, from which connections were made to other digimon like the Beemon hive and the Octomon -- Digimon just trying to make a new life for themselves here. And a new chain had been strung off to another side now, linking to Cherubimon (Vice), pictures of the freak storm and his Wendimon henchies, and a big question mark as to if Leviamon was active or not. More question marks stood in for the other Digimon that have seemingly disappeared into the depths of the Multiverse and unheard from for some time.

Beelzebumon had his own little corner of the board to himself, unconnected. Because no one knew what was going on in that demon's mind.

"Okay, I think I've got it." Gaonoir rolled a bit farther to look over the edge of the bunk to where Erika was sitting on the floor with a laptop and her digivice. "The D-Port still has it's UBS port, so if we use it as hotspot hub," the young woman's fingers click-clacked across the keys as she entered a few final adjustments, "we should be able to link a network between the Internet and whatever digital infrastructure your world uses." When she hit the final ENTER key some scrolls of strange digital text flickers past the screen, before it finally staticed a bit then stabilized into showing an image of Magnamon. Erika pumped a fist at her side briefly. "Yes, it worked!"

"Good, good," Magnamon replied with a vage nod. "Because your Digivice doesn't show up on Master Yggdrassil's networks, this is a suitable means of executing more personal communications." The armored digimon shifted her arms, moving other floating screens around. One got the impression she was arranging them so no one could look over her shoulders without her noticing. "Cherubimon was destroyed?"

"His form and accumilated power was destroyed," Gaonoir answered as he sat up on the edge of the bunk, stout legs dangling over. "When he was flung away by the explosions he had devolved back to a Lopmon."

"... Still acceptable." Magnamon tipped her head a little to the side. "It will take him time to regenerate such power, if at all. Though should not be disregarded in threat level, even if his body is now only a Child his core is still wicked and greedy. He only cares for upsurping his brother, the Virtue Cherubimon; that is the Envy which Leviamon manipulated him by."

While they were talking Erika leaned over a bit and fiddled with the D-Port, taking her a few moments to find where it's interface apps where in the touch menus. It may still function like a phone but several of the options were undecipherable. Like something waiting to be unlocked, possibly. "Let's test the file sharing. I'm sending you the readouts from when Gaonoir became Umbra Gaogamon."

It took a few moments, as translating from normal data to whatever format the Digital World operated on wasn't a direct ratio, but finally Magnamon reached for one of her other screens as an inset window with the Ultimate evolution's readout blipped to life on Erika's laptop as well. "It is as I expected," Magnamon murmured after she looked the feed over. "Umbra Gaogaomon is a variation, likely due to his unique alterations in code, of Mirage Gaogamon."

Gaonoir slide down off the bunk and stepped over to look over Erika's shoulder. The second image Magnamon brings up looks much the same in form as his new evolution, but the armor was deep blue, grey and white instead of purple, black and gold. "Makes sense. My other evolutions are just Gaomon lineage altered by the Dark Digitron."

"Yes." Magnamon brought up more statistical analysis readouts. "Essentially you've balanced out. You were designed to be powerful enough to take on larger and higher evolution digimon, but Ultimate, baring special circumstances such as Omegamon's formation by Jorgess, is the highest possible stage."

"Considering what you did to Cherubimon with that slash," Erika mused, stroking her chin. "Balanced just means your abilities are better attuned to fighting foes on the same level. Or something that's outside the normal structure."

"Gaonoir was augmented specifically for fighting the Demon Army, and many of their higher ranks do not follow standard evolutions," Magnamon concured. "Mirage Gaogamon's affinities are of Wind and Light, moving with blinding speed and precision strikes. He personifies the mystique and supernatural associated with the Moon. Gaonoir is an embodiment of Shadows instead, moving through the darkness of the Night as a whole. Instead of Chrome Digizoid alloy, Umbra Gaogamon's armor appears to be a fully physical manifestation of the Dark Digitron itself. Like many of your forms, Gaonoir, you are likely not as outright fast as your counterpart, but more durable."

"An 'umbra' is the darkest part of a shadow!" Erika blurted out abruptly. "Like the shadow cast by an eclipse. This is Gaonoir's strongest form. The 'darkest' shadow." She turned to poke Gaonoir in the nose lightly with a finger. "If Mirage Gaogamon is connected to the Moon, you are the shadow cast when it eclipses the sun.. Or the shadow cast on it when the moon itself is eclipsed!"

"Great, I'm surrounded by two nerds now." Gaonoir playfully swatted her finger away. "But you might have a point. Would make sense that my final attack was called Lunar Eclipse Cannon. And the power I used while evolving to wrench myself out of Cherubimon's mouth was like a shadow based Sonic Move." He made a face. "That's a lame name. I need a better name for it... Wait about the evisceration? That literally ripped into his code. 'Divide By Zero'?" Gaonoir just looked confused as Erika started giggling. "What?" Even Magnamon chuckled just faintly, Gaonoir only heard it because of his sharp ears. "What's so goddamn funny?!"

"You tore his digital code apart," Erika explained once she got her giggling down. " 'Divide by zero' is a computing phrase from older programming code. Computer processing couldn't handle mathmatical calculations that return non-realistic answers, such as dividing by zero. Zero has no value to divide by, so it returns an undefined answer which code chokes on, usually resulting in crashing the system."

Magnamon, you would never guess she had snickered at all, as her usual stoic manner is back before anyone can really notice. "My assumption would be it is the final stage of the ability Yggdrassil gave you for defeating a Digimon but keeping it's core intact.... Speaking of which, do you still have that Wendimon digicore?"

"It's in my bag, yeah. Why?" Erika replied, reach over for her satchel.

"I can transmit a code that will consolidate it into a digitama. Put it somewhere safe and it will eventually hatch into whatever digimon Cherubimon corrupted to evolve into that Wendimon. Usually the Child stages of his own evolution changes, Lopmon or Terriermon."

"I'll have it sent to the Beemon hive," Gaonoir muses. "They can watch after it." He held up a paw to Erika's pouting expression before she could object. "If we keep it, Yggdrassil may notice it. You say I'm not connected to his network anymore, but that doesn't mean he can't find some way to check on me. I am his creation, after all."

"He actually has a good point," Magnamon agreed, nodding. "Besides, leaving it in a more nuturing environment means it can be raised without Cherubimon's corrupt influence."

Erika sighed softly, but conceded the point over the brief daydream of having two digimon helping her. "It would be dangerous to keep at hand, I suppose."

"I will also send you the datafiles we have for Vice Cherubimon. You shouldn't see him at power again for a while, but be prepared for it."

"Will you tell his brother? Since he's his primary target... If he really can accumilate enough power to open a way back."

Magnamon was quiet for a moment before replying. "... It would be prudent, being family, though I doubt Virtue Cherubimon will be bothered much. There is a reason he was picked over his brother... I should also warn ClavisAngemon. He is the keeper of the digital gates and boundries. I do not know if just gathering power is enough to breech between realms, but it would be prudent to have him watching for it. Yggdrassil intended for our Digital World to be sealed off entirely... but the Multiverse changes that. Both ClavisAngemon and Duftmon have been searching for any of these 'warp gates', but whatever means the digimon initially escaped the X-Program have not been located yet."

"But that doesn't mean there aren't any," Gaonoir snorted.

"Exactly," Magnamon agreed. "If I discover any more prudent information I will let you know." A pause. "The other Knights may not be concerned much with worlds other than our own, but this is an issue that can come back to ruin us if Cherubimon or one of the Demon Lords succeeds. I would rather be proactive on that matter. Magnamon, out."

As the communication ended the digimon and human looked at each other. Then Gaonoir leaned back against the bunk, folding his hands behind his head. "Looks like you solved my mystery, only to find an even bigger conspiration to unravel...."