Rosemon flew into the sky, then hurled the thorn whip in her hand toward the ground, shouting, "Thorn Garden!"
The whip had been slender and small in Rosemon's hand, but by the time it hit the ground, it had become enormous. Its ends joined to form a vast circle enclosing the entire battlefield. Countless thorns sprouted from the whip and spread toward the center. In the blink of an eye, thorns covered the ground beneath everyone's feet.
Under Rosemon's control, all the thorns climbed up the chains. At first, they could only grasp the chains anchored in the earth. Higher up, they spread sideways, winding tightly around the chains anchored in the air as well. By then, Belphemon could no longer break free.
With the threat of annihilation looming, Mercurymon had set aside every duty and burden and begun wandering the Digimon World. In the past, enthroned high above everyone else, Mercurymon had overseen intelligence from across the Digimon World. Everything had been nothing more than numbers-and could only be numbers. Now, Mercurymon could finally do what he wanted.
Mercurymon was by the sea, helping a group of Gomamon drive off a Seadramon, when a voice suddenly sounded beside his ear.
"Who's there?" Mercurymon shouted, turning and looking around, but he could not find the source of the voice. Then inspiration struck, and he found a root of the World Tree beneath his feet. Sure enough, the call was being transmitted through the World Tree.
"Mercurymon, it's Apollomon. Can you come meet me?" A rough voice came from the root. Mercurymon decided to meet its owner.
Before long, Mercurymon arrived at the agreed location. Yet the Digimon before him was neither Apollomon nor any of Apollomon's forms. Instead, he appeared to be an evolution of Ogremon.
"Are you Apollomon?" Mercurymon