Okay, here's chapter 2! I have to be honest, this isn't my favourite chapter. Not that it sucks or anything, it was just REALLY hard to write and not make it sound totally awkward. For everyone on March Break, I hope you're having fun, because the first half of mine was ruined by a VERY bad cold.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Digimon.

CLAIMER: I own Juan, his parents, Kyousuke, Lexi, The Master, and the seven-headed freakazoid.

"Surely God does not reject a blameless man or strengthen the hands of evildoers. He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy. Your enemies will be clothed in shame, and the tents of the wicked will be no more." ~ Job 8:20-22


Juan felt sick to his stomach. That was partially because he was in a car with Takuya at the wheel, but also because of where they were heading. He didn't blame Lexi for wanting to leave; this whole business was scary. Back in his hometown, he lived in a very safe neighbourhood where no one could get hurt or anything. But in the Digital World, threats lurked everywhere. He knew he sounded paranoid, but it really was dangerous. His mother always warned him about the many dangers in everyday life, some of them a bit irrational. He still followed all the safety instructions that made sense: he buckled up, wore a lifejacket whenever he was near deep water, and only ate the one hundred percent nutritious lunches she made for him. How would she react to what he was doing now? He bet she would probably scream and beg him to get out of the car.

Juan wished he'd gone in one of the other cars. At least Junpei and Kouichi were sane drivers (Okay, Junpei was closer to sane than Takuya). It was a surprise Takuya didn't get pulled over already. Juan could only imagine what would happen if the officer who caught them was his own father. Now he understood why Shinya had insisted on going with the twins. Of course, it still bugged Juan that he had to be his replacement. Tomoki was up in the front passenger's seat, gripping the seat so hard he'd probably leave dents in the upholstery.

They reached Shibuya Station within the hour, and Juan felt himself wishing his parents had just said no. Kouichi pulled into a parking space halfway across the lot and clambered out with Kouji and Shinya. Looking at the condition of Takuya's front bumper, Juan figured he probably would've done the same. Junpei, Izumi, and Kyousuke arrived a couple minutes later in Junpei's truck, also parking far away.

"Come on," Takuya announced, "Time's a-wastin', let's go!" Kouji gave him a light shove as he passed, clearly annoyed.

They were all soon crammed in the elevator. Juan braced himself as they suddenly accelerated, going far down beneath the marked floors. He knew it was part of the trip, but it still made him nauseous. It wasn't his fault he got motion sickness easily. The ride on the Trailmon was fine; everyone just chatted amongst themselves, except for Juan, who just stared out the window. They were ready when the bumpy part came this time. Juan grabbed the side of the bench to keep himself from falling over. He took a look at his reflection in the window, and saw a lean creature made entirely out of vines, only a pair of deep green eyes peeking out. A second later, he was back to his normal self.

So that was what he would turn into. "What'll it be like to Spirit Evolve?" he wondered, "Will it be painful? Or is it more like a sugar rush? Granted, I've never eaten sugar in my life." He sidled over to Tomoki. "Hey, Tomoki?" he asked.

"Yeah?"

"What's Spirit Evolving like?"

Tomoki seemed stumped at the question. "Um, I don't really know how to answer that, dude. I guess it… it kind of makes you feel like you've suddenly become stronger than you used to be, like you can do anything."

Juan's eyes widened in surprise. "It sounds incredible."

"Well, you see, I was kind of the baby of the group last time. I was scared and alone without my mom and dad, but then I got my first Spirit, and soon I started depending more on myself than other people. Of course, I still had to rely on the others a lot. But I didn't mind. They needed me to watch their backs, too."

"You guys are all really good friends, aren't you?"

"Yeah. It's kinda funny, really. If you take a bunch of kids who wouldn't even talk to each other in the school hallway, and put them in charge of saving an entire world, they'll eventually become inseparable no matter what."

"Maybe, but I bet the six of you just clicked when you first met."

"What made you think that?"

"Well, you guys get along so well now, there couldn't have been any problems with you friendship before."

Tomoki actually burst out laughing. Juan could only stare at him. His guess wasn't that ridiculous, was it? "Are you kidding?" Tomoki stuttered as soon as he stopped laughing, "You have no idea how many issues we had. The worst was Kouji and Kouichi's problems with Dusk-" He stopped suddenly, growing serious. Juan noticed that the twins were both listening in, giving Tomoki a warning look. "No, I shouldn't be telling you about that."

"About what? Why not?"

"It was just a really hard time for us, especially those two, and I don't think they really want me blabbing about it. But I'm sure they'll tell you newer guys when they're ready to face it again."

"It was that bad?"

"You have no idea."

Kouji and Kouichi both had dark looks on their faces as they stared out the window, suddenly very quiet.


"That sure is a long way down," Juan commented, looking over the edge of the gorge, "We're not really climbing down there, are we?"

Takuya was a little concerned over that kid's reluctance to do anything that involved a tiny bit of risk. But they'd fix that in time. After all, they'd already convinced Kyousuke to be a little more open-minded. "Don't worry," he teased, "If you fall, there's a river you can land in at the bottom."

Juan just got even more nervous. "B-but I can't swim!" he whimpered.

"Quit scaring the guy, Takky," Kouji said threateningly, heading for the trail, "Now are we going or what?"

They reached the bottom of the gorge in no time, and were greeted by a swarm of Candlemon.

"The Legendary Warriors have returned!" the Elder Candlemon announced to his cheering people.

"Much better reception than last time, huh?" Takuya whispered to Izumi, who nodded enthusiastically. This was a huge improvement compared to that surprise attack.

"Nice to see you guys too," Tomoki greeted them, "But we could really use some help."

"There are some new evil Digimon popping up,"Izumi explained, "and we need to get all the Spirits back in order to stop them. They've all returned to their old hiding places. So, we thought it'd be great if we could visit some our friends and still get our jobs done at the same time."

"My Ice Spirit hasn't shown up here, hasn't it?"

The Elder grinned. "Why yes, actually. It reappeared just last week, along with another one much like it." The teens exchanged glances. Another Spirit? Whose was it? Juan, Shinya, Lexi, or maybe Kouchi?

"Well then," Takuya announced, "Let's get Tomoki's Spirit back and figure out who gets the other one."

The others shrugged nonchalantly. Izumi, however, turned and headed back up the trail. "Good luck, then," she called over her shoulder, "I'll go on to Breezy Village to grab my Spirit and meet you guys back at Flame Terminal, okay? Seeya!" She winked and started running up to where Angler sat waiting somewhat patiently.

"Hey, wait up!" Kyousuke shouted, chasing after her and waving goodbye to the others. "I'll come with you!"

"Now what are we waiting for?" Tomoki insisted, hurrying over to where the Candlemon had pointed. Takuya and everyone else laughed and started to follow him across the river on stepping stones.

It was unnaturally cold in that nearby ice cave, but, just like the Candlemon had said, there were – not one – but two Spirits floating side-by-side. Tomoki quickly claimed his own, but there was still the question of whom the other Spirit belonged to. The only thing Takuya could determine was that it was neither of Kouichi's Spirits of Darkness. "So how do we tell?" Junpei asked the room in general. Everyone looked at Takuya, clearly expecting him to come with a brilliant answer. He racked his brains for a solution, but came up with nothing. 'Crap.'

Luckily, Shinya came to his brother's rescue. "When Kyousuke found his Spirit yesterday," he recalled, "his D-Scannr reacted, remember? Maybe that's how we know whose Spirit it is." He and Juan both pulled out their D-Scanners and held them up, but nothing happened.

"So that leaves only one person – Lexi."


Yellow eyes darted around, taking in the surroundings. She was in some sort of canyon with a deep river. It was rather annoyingly cramped, swimming up the shallow, narrow stream, not like the ocean she was used to. A group of Gomamon swam by. Each of her seven tongues nearly darted out to grab one, but she resisted the impulse. An even bigger meal awaited her if she stayed on task.

Then she saw them. Ten humans, just waiting to be – no, wait. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven… where were the others? The Warriors of Wind, Earth, and Water were nowhere in sight. Oh, well. The three of them had no chance of thwarting The Master's plans alone. As long as the other humans were destroyed, The Master would be pleased. To her delight, three of the humans possessed a Spirit each, and a fourth was nearby, unclaimed. Excellent, plenty of power to offer the Master.

Eventually, the remaining humans began to cross the river. Perfect. And there was a bunch of smaller Digimon tagging along with them. They would make quite a tasty side dish.

She rose from beneath the surface, wailing. The Warrior of Wood screamed the loudest as she grabbed him and his friends – all but one; the Warrior of Light had jumped out of reach. He pulled out his strange device, the ones the Warriors used to summon their full power. Quick as a whip, one of her tongues darted out and grabbed it. It tasted awful as it slid down her throat. The Spirit of Water was next; it had a much better flavour. She turned, dove back under, and swam downstream, making sure to keep the humans' heads above the surface. The Master had insisted they were still alive when she brought them to him.

And besides, meat always tastes so much better so fresh, it's still screaming as she eats it.


Ooh, cliffhanger! Next chapter coming March 27th!

"Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing." ~ Lucy Maud Montgomery.