Author's Note: I'd like to take a moment and thank everyone who's reviewed this story. All the reviews I've read have been very encouraging, and have really gotten me going on this story.
Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon.
Chapter 4: The Team Assembles
Back at Arthur's mansion, T.K. and Kari were having lunch with Patamon and Gatomon. Things had been peaceful since the attack of Reapermon, but the four of them knew that an even greater threat on the horizon. The upcoming battle with the Seven Lords weighed heavily on their minds, especially Kari's. They were glad however that they would have Arthur's help in fighting them, as well as the help of the group of Digidestined that Arthur was part of Team Excalibur. Just as the group had finished eating, Arthur and Dorumon entered the room.
"Look alive everyone, the rest of my team is about to arrive." Arthur informed them. "I suggest you all come out front with me to meet them."
T.K. and Kari got up and followed Arthur and Dorumon outside. Gatomon got up and was about to follow them.
"Hey Gatomon, can I talk to you for a minute?" Patamon asked, causing Gatomon to stop in her tracks.
"What is it?" Gatomon asked as she turned to face Patamon.
"Well, it's about what we were talking about the other day before Reapermon interrupted us." Patamon began nervously. "You know, about how you said that you really cared about me. Well, I just want you to know that… I really care about you too Gatomon. In fact… I love you."
With that, Gatomon surprised Patamon with another kiss on the lips, causing the little mammal Digimon's face to go red and his batwing ears to go stiff.
"I love you too." Gatomon said after breaking the kiss. "Now c'mon, let's go meet Arthur and Dorumon's friends."
Moments later, Patamon and Gatomon rejoined the rest of the group out in front of the house. Already out there with the others was a tall, muscular young man who stood about seven feet tall. He had short brown hair and wore a black t-shirt that fit tightly against him, dark-green pants, and a pair of black wristbands. There was also a small red mammal with blue eyes, long pointed ears, and nine pointed tails with purple tips.
"Ah, there you two slowpokes are." Arthur said to Patamon and Gatomon. "Allow me to introduce one of my oldest friends, Johnny Little."
"What's up little guys?" Johnny greeted. "Nice to meet you."
"Hi, I'm Elecmon." The red mammal Digimon with Johnny greeted to Patamon and Gatomon. "You've probably figured this out already, but I'm Johnny's partner."
"It's nice to meet you." Patamon greeted. "You know, you look a little bigger than another Elecmon I know."
"Yeah, I like to work out." Elemon told them.
"So Johnny, when we talked last I forgot to ask you how things were in the world of mixed martial arts. Are you doing well?" Arthur asked.
"Yeah, I'm doing pretty good." Johnny informed him. "If I win the next tournament, I should have enough cash to open my own dojo."
"Marvelous!" Arthur replied. "Well, I hope we can wrap this business up before your tournament. But I'm glad you were able to come and help."
"Hey, anything for you bro." Johnny said as he patted Arthur on the shoulder. "Besides, we all promised that we'd get together to fight those Seven Lord jerks, so let's bust some heads!"
A moment later, a green Volkswagen Beetle pulled up next to the jeep that T.K. and Kari assumed was Johnny's. Stepping out of the car was a scrawny young man with red hair and thick glasses wearing a blue polo shirt and tan jeans. Following close behind was a floating mechanical Digimon with a body shaped like a dark-grey gear with gold cogs and two smaller silver gears for hands.
"Yo Jason, how's it going man?" Johnny greeted.
"Hey Johnny, hey Arthur." The young man known as Jason greeted back.
"Ah, T.K., Kari, this is another one of my oldest friends, Jason Swift." Arthur introduced. "Jason, these two are the ones I told you about over the phone."
"It's nice to meet you guys." Jason greeted as he shook T.K.'s hand.
"Hi, I'm Hagurumon." The mechanical Digimon with Jason greeted Patamon and Gatomon. "Boy, it sure is nice meeting new people, especially after the long ride here. Of course I'm not saying that I didn't enjoy the trip, I saw some wonderful scenery. You know the trees around here are beautiful at this time of year. I've never seen anything like them in the Digital World, of course there are some nice trees there too you know, like in this one place…"
"Um, it's nice to meet you too." Patamon interrupted.
"Sorry about Hagurumon." Elecmon said to Patamon and Gatomon. "He likes to talk a lot."
"We can see that." Gatomon replied.
Just as Hagurumon was about to begin another long monologue, a red sports car pulled up behind Jason's, catching everyone's attention. Two women stepped out of the car; one of them had long black hair and wore a white t-shirt and blue slacks. T.K. and Kari were very surprised to see that this woman greatly resembled Arthur, only much more feminine and without the glasses. One could say that this woman was as beautiful as Arthur was handsome.
The other woman had shoulder length blond hair and wore a pink summer dress. The two women held hands as they headed towards the group. There were of course two Digimon with these young women. One was a small somewhat rabbit shaped creature with light pink skin and red eyes. A pair of large ears with blue stripes was on the sides of its head, with another slightly smaller pair on top. From its forehead dangled a long antenna with a blue tip, and it wore a silver medallion with a picture of a moon on it.
The other Digimon was a small plant-like creature with a green body and stubby arms and legs. It had a pink head that looked like an upturned flower, and on top of its head it had a green stem with two leaves. Its face consisted of two small black eyes and a tiny mouth.
"Hi guys, it's been awhile." Greeted the woman who looked like Arthur. "Hi little brother."
"I keep telling you Artemis that the fact you came out of our mother first does not make you the older sibling." Arthur said with a hint of irritation in his voice.
"You wouldn't be saying that if you were the one who came out first." Artemis retorted.
"T.K., Kari, allow me to introduce my twin sister, Artemis Pierce, and her wife, Cindy." Arthur introduced with a somewhat exasperated expression.
"It's nice to meet you both." Artemis greeted as she shook T.K.'s hand.
"Wait a minute, aren't you that tennis pro that won that tournament in Japan about a year ago?" Kari asked as Artemis shook her hand.
"Yeah, that's me." Artemis replied. "Are you a tennis fan?"
"Not really, I just remembered watching that game with a friend of mine." Kari replied. "So the two of you are married?"
"Since we graduated high school." Cindy replied, speaking up for the first time.
Meanwhile, the Digimon were all getting acquainted.
"Greetings, I am Artemis's partner, Lunamon." The rabbit-like Digimon greeted in a polite manner. "And this is Cindy's partner, Lalamon."
The plant Digimon that was Lalamon waved in greeting.
"It's nice to meet you both." Patamon greeted back.
"Well, now that we're all here, let's get down to business." Arthur suggested.
"Hold on little brother, what about Gwen?" Artemis suddenly asked. "Shouldn't we wait for her to show up?"
Artemis's question caused Arthur to cringe. A very insincere smile appeared on his face.
"Oh yes, I almost forgot about her." Arthur said though gritted teeth. "She should be along shortly…. Excuse me."
With that, Arthur went back into the house. Dorumon followed him after a moment.
"What was that about?" T.K. asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Our friend Gwen Whitmore." Cindy chuckled. "She's sort of the second in command of our team, and she and Arthur have an 'interesting' relationship."
"Do they not get along?" Kari asked.
"You'll see when she gets here." Artemis replied.
As if on cue, a long white limousine pulled up behind Artemis's car. Out of the back of the limo came a Digimon that looked like a small black knight with a gold visor. In its right hand it carried a gold shield, and a black spear in its left hand. The little knight stepped aside to allow a young woman to step out of the limo. This woman had long blond hair and wore a black summer dress and gloves. T.K. and Kari knew right away that the woman could only be the infamous Gwen Whitmore.
"Well, it looks like the gang's all here." Gwen sighed as she looked over the group.
"How've you been Gwen?" Cindy asked.
"Fine until I was asked to come here." Gwen replied. "How have you been Cindy?"
"Pretty good." Cindy answered. "Artemis and I actually just came back from a little vacation."
"Well, at least you two were able to finish your vacation, unlike me." Gwen said with a note of irritation before noticing T.K. and Kari. "Ah, the two of you must be Arthur's houseguests."
"Yeah, I'm T.K. and this is Kari." T.K. greeted. "It's nice to meet you."
"Yes, I'm sure." Gwen replied with a somewhat bored expression. "I'm sure you already know who I am, but it's only proper for me to introduce myself anyway. I'm Gwen Whitmore, eternal thorn in the side of Arthur Pierce."
"And I am PawnChessmon!" Gwen's Digimon announced in a high and somewhat effeminate voice. "Queen Gwen's personal champion!"
"Pawn, go play with the other Digimon while I talk to these two people." Gwen commanded. "I'll let you know if I need you for anything."
"As you wish my queen." PawnChessmon replied before going over to talk to Patamon and the rest of the Digimon.
"Ah, you just can't buy loyalty like that." Gwen commented. "Now, that windbag said over the phone that the two of you escaped form some kind of ocean before coming here?"
"Yeah, The Dark Ocean." T.K. replied darkly. "Kari was trapped there for a month. It's a place filled with darkness and despair where no happiness can exist."
"Sounds like a weekend visit to my Grandma Worthington's." Gwen commented with a wry expression. "And after all that you wind up here at the home of that ego maniac." At this point Arthur emerged from the house. "Ah, speak of the devil. How are you Arthur?"
"Hello Guinevere." Arthur greeted with a look of disgust. "I see you're doing well."
"Do you have any idea what plans I had to drop to come here?" Gwen asked with a tone of irritation.
"Oh, well I'm sorry if saving two worlds is interfering with your yacht trip, or whatever frivolous thing you had planned!" Arthur said sarcastically. "I suppose it involved going out with that buffoon Trevor, or whatever his name is!"
"If you must know, Troy and I, that's his name by the way, are no longer seeing each other!" Gwen shot back.
"Did he dump you?" Arthur asked. "Because if he did than it proves that he has a brain!"
"At least I do better in the dating department than you do Mr. Ego." Gwen retorted.
"Most women happen to find me charming!" Arthur shot back.
"Yeah, for about five minutes!" Gwen fired back. "Then they discover how big of a blowhard you are and can't stand to be in the same room with you!"
"Well I feel sorry for all of the men you have dated!" Arthur fired back as he and Gwen suddenly walked closer to each other. "They must be scarred for life after spending time with a venomous witch like you!"
"Pompous windbag!" Gwen spat.
"Contrary Wench!" Arthur shot back.
"Arrogant blowhard!" Gwen fired back.
"Harpy!" Arthur shot back.
"Ego maniac!" Gwen fired back.
"Shrew!" Arthur spat back.
At that point Arthur and Gwen suddenly became locked in a passionate kiss, their arms wrapped around one another. As they remained in their passionate embrace and their tongues began to explore each other's mouths, they somehow managed to go into the mansion and close the door behind them, leaving the rest of the group outside. T.K. and Kari stood there for a moment with their jaws hanging open in utter shock and amazement, as did most of the Digimon.
"Well it's about damn time." Artemis commented. "C'mon, let's go out to the backyard. I'm sure those two will be busy for awhile."
A few moments later, the group was in the vast backyard of the Pierce family estate. As the Digimon were talking, and Hagurumon was doing most of it, their human partners were engaged in their own conversation.
"So Jason, are you still doing work for NASA?" Cindy asked.
"Yeah, but they cut the funding for our project in half again." Jason replied. "How's life as a hospital nurse treating you?"
"It's been pretty busy lately." Cindy replied. "That's why Artemis and I just took a vacation before coming here."
"Hey, can I ask you guys something?" T.K. broke in. "Has Gwen always been such a bitch?"
"Oh, sorry about her." Cindy said apologetically. "Gwen may have a sharp tongue, but she's actually very nice. She probably didn't mean to make light of whatever it is you guys have been through. It's just that when Arthur is involved, she's a little difficult to be around."
"What's the deal with those two?" Kari asked. "And why did Arthur call Gwen Guinevere?"
"Well the Guinevere thing is kind of a joke." Artemis answered. "When Gwen insisted on being the second in command of our team, my brother asked her if she was attempting to become the Guinevere to his King Arthur. That question really irritated Gwen, so naturally Arthur started calling her Guinevere just to drive her nuts. As for Arthur and Gwen's relationship, that's a little more complicated. They irritate each other, but at the same time their attracted to one another. In fact I think they enjoy insulting each other like that. But hopefully now that they've finally given into their feelings for each other, they'll be easier to be around."
"That's just weird." Kari commented.
"Yeah, it is pretty messed up." Johnny agreed.
"True, but love is just twisted that was sometimes." Artemis retorted.
"At least your relationship with Cindy went a lot smoother." Jason commented.
"That it did." Artemis agreed as she put her arm around Cindy.
"So did you two become attracted to each other during your journey in the Digital World?" Kari asked Cindy and Artemis.
"Actually we were attracted to each other long before that." Cindy answered. "We had met through Gwen and Arthur during our first year of high school. It was love at first sight for both of us, though for obvious reasons we had trouble telling each other how we felt. But then during our journey we got separated from the rest of the team and during that time we finally admitted our love. I think you can guess the rest of the story from there."
"Well, it's good to see that all of you are getting along so well." A voice suddenly said.
They all turned to see Arthur standing near by.
"So little brother, what have you and Gwen been doing for the last half hour?" Artemis asked with a wry expression.
"I don't see how it's any of your business!" Arthur replied, looking flustered. "In any case we have more important matters to attend to. If you will all join me inside."
The team and their Digimon followed Arthur inside the mansion. They found Gwen waiting for them in the sitting room, along with a young man with short brown hair wearing a white robe. Immediately T.K. and Kari recognized whom the man was.
"I believe you all remember old Gennai." Arthur said, referring to the robed individual. "He's here to give us an update."
"I have good news and bad news." Gennai began. "The good news is that Tai and the other Digidestined in Japan have destroyed most of the Seven Lords. Now there are only three left, Daemon, Lilithmon, and their leader… Lucemon."
Dorumon growled at the mention of Lucemon's name.
"So what's the bad news?" T.K. asked hesitantly.
"The Harmonious Ones believe that Lucemon has found a way to escape from The Dark Ocean." Gennai answered grimly.
"So just how bad is this Lucemon?" Jason asked.
"Originally, Lucemon was an Angel Digimon created by Yggdrasill to keep peace and order in the Digital World." Gennai explained. "But the only way Lucemon thought that could be done was to rule over the world with an iron fist. Of course Yggdrasill and the Harmonious Ones disagreed with this, so Lucemon rebelled against them. His first act was to seal away the fifth Harmonious One, Fanglongmon. Not long after that Lucemon formed the Seven Lords and the war began. Alphamon was created by Yggdrasill to fight Lucemon, but even Alphamon had trouble dealing with him."
"Is Lucemon really that powerful?" Kari asked.
"In his Rookie form, Lucemon could take down even the strongest Mega level Digimon." Gennai replied. "So you can imagine how powerful he is in his evolved state."
This news caused Kari to tremble, but T.K. took her hand and gave her a reassuring smile, which calmed her down a bit.
"No matter how powerful Lucemon is we will defeat him!" Arthur proclaimed. "We were brought together for that reason, and I believe in our strength. It is a strength that has allowed us to win the hardest battles and survive the harshest environments. So there is no doubt in my mind that together we can win."
"We're all with you bro!" Johnny chimed in. "Let's get out there and bash his skull!"
"Thank you, but first there is one important thing I need to take care of." Arthur replied.
"What's that?" Jason asked.
"I need to hand out the team jackets." Arthur answered as he produced a box from behind the couch.
After setting the box on the table, Arthur passed out to the rest of the team blue jackets with the words "Team Excalibur" embroidered on the back in big white letters.
"Team jackets?" Gwen asked in an annoyed tone. "Don't you think you're taking this who team thing a little too far you windbag?"
"I want people to remember who we are." Arthur replied sounding a bit irritated.
"What's next? Action figures?" Gwen asked sarcastically. "Just how much did this piece of self promotion cost you?"
"If you must know, old Gennai made them, so they cost nothing." Arthur answered in a slightly more irritated tone.
"You made these Gennai?" Kari asked sounding a bit surprised.
"It was the least I could do." Gennai answered modestly.
"Wow, so do these jackets have some kind of special powers or something?" Johnny asked as he put his jacket on.
"Nah, they just make you look cool." Gennai replied. "I wish all of you the best of luck."
With that, Gennai suddenly vanished.
"Hey Arthur, how come Kari and I also got Jackets?" T.K. asked.
"Because my friend, the two of you were brought here to help us fight the Seven Lords." Arthur replied. "It's only fair that you become full fledged members of the team as well."
"Sounds like a good enough reason to me." Kari said as she put on her jacket.
"Right then, I've already sent word for the Pierce family jet to be made ready, so let's head for Japan!" Arthur announced. "There we shall put an end to the terror of the Seven Lords once and for all!"
Author's Note: I had actually come up with the Team Excalibur characters back when I was writing Home by the Sea. One of my intentions was to make sure that the team had an equal ratio of boys and girls. One of the things that irritated me about the Digimon franchise is that they had all these male dominated teams. I mean there was only one girl in Frontier.
Please review and let me know what you think.