21: Sorry about the delay between chapters, but some of us needed lunch.
Sponsor: You mean despite everything you ate before you were still hungry?
George: Silly Sponsor, that stuff we ate before was a mere snack.
Sponsor: A s-s-snack?
21: Yep.
Sponsor: HOW THE HECK CAN YOU IDIOTS EAT SO MUCH!
George: Dunno, we just get hungry...
21: Perhaps our metabolisms are faster than the speed of light...
Sponsor: Just tell me this is the last time I gotta get dragged out to deal with you and your shenanigans today.
21: Yeah, probably...
George: So, what happens in this episode?
21: You'll see, and you'll like it too.
George: Excellent! Then let's get rolling shall we?
(21 and George stare at the Sponsor, who is writing calculations on the wall.)
Sponsor: Let's see. In order to not gain any weight, a person's metabolism must be at least 2Qm/ht, where Q is the electrical constant, m is the mass of food consumed, h is Planck's constant, and t is time...thus if they consume 1000 tons of food per meal, their metabolism must be...
21: HEY!
George: Let's get a move on shall we?
(21 and George begin to poke the Sponsor repeatedly until he surrenders.)
Sponsor: FINE, The21stMartian doesn't own Digimon, so do not sue him.
21: Excellent. By the way, you do realize your whole equation was wrong.
Sponsor: What?
George: There is no known way to calculate metabolism, so don't even try it.
Sponsor: But, but I was going to prove once and for all that you two are a couple of freaks!
21: Your purpose for doing so would be...?
Sponsor: It would violate our contract if you two were freaks.
21: Hmmmm...I wonder what the X-Men would have to say about that...
(A flash of red light is seen as Cyclops, Wolverine, Colossus, Gambit, Magneto, Sabertooth, and Rogue appear.)
Colossus: Did I hear you desire to see mutant?
Wolverine: I don't care who you are bub, nobody insults me and gets away with it.
Cyclops: I don't take to kindly to your intolerant behavior
Gambit: Mon Ami, I tink maybe you've made a little...mistake
Rogue: Y'all need ta learn some manners!
Magneto: Insolent human! I shall make you pay for the crimes of your kind!
Sabertooth: (random growls)
(The Sponsor tries to run away, but gets buried under a pile of mad mutants.)
George: The21stMartian does not own the X-Men...
Sponsor: HELP!
21: My dear George, I believe we're due for another snack.
George: I think you are quite correct. We can check up on our dear Sponsor later...
(21 and George leave. The Sponsor is still being attacked.)
Episode 4: Power Unleashed
"George here, last time, I spoke with the Kamiyas with regard to Tai's injuries and was very lucky to escape with minor reprimanding from both them and the other Digidestined who were not pleased with my lack of action. Afterwards, I kept an eye on Tai while the others went to school. Tai woke up and wanted Sora, so I got to go to the Digital World instead of her, but just when I got there I was called away on urgent business. While I was gone, the new Digidestined fell under attack by the Emperor's Tyrannomon squad. Fortunately, Patamon and Gatomon were able to Armor Digivolve and saved the day, but now Cody suspects me of being the Digimon Emperor…I think I have some explaining to do."
Sora dropped Kari off at the hospital and drove off wondering about the parcel George had given the younger Kamiya sibling.
Kari meanwhile ran into the hospital to see her brother. Despite visiting hours nearly being over, she was allowed in because she was family.
As she entered room 365, she saw Tai propped up by a bunch of pillows. Concern etched her features as she noticed all of the bandages, but she tried to smile anyway, not wanting to let her brother see how much his pain was hurting her.
Tai, for his part, noticed the concern, and, not wanting his sister to worry about him, decided to act like his usual goofy self.
"So?" he asked eagerly, "what happened in the Digital World today?"
"It's nice to see you too," said Kari wryly, understanding what Tai was trying to do, and appreciating his concern.
"Yeah, yeah, just tell me what happened already!" exclaimed Tai feigning impatience.
Kari laughed and related the story of their arrival in the Digital World, the discovery of more Digieggs, the Emperor's trap, and finally Pegasusmon and Nefertimon. Tai's eyes grew wider and wider as the story unfolded.
"Awww no fair!" he gripped at the end, "why can your digimon Armor Digivolve and mine can't?!"
"I'm not sure…" replied Kari.
"…so, what's in the box?" asked Tai suddenly.
"The attention span of a gnat," thought Kari while aloud she said, "some special medicine from George."
"Really?" asked Tai making a pouting face, "no cookies?"
"Not so far as I know, sorry," said Kari handing him the box.
Tai quickly opened it and found a card with instructions and a vial full of a strange rainbow colored substance. It wasn't quite a liquid, nor a gas, but rather somewhere in between the two states.
Tai and Kari stared at the substance in a trance for a few moments before Kari recognized it.
"I don't believe it!" she exclaimed.
"What?" asked Tai.
"That's Magna Antidote," explained Kari, "but only MagnaAngemon can make that…how did George manage to procure some?"
"He has his connections," replied Tai opening the card, "remember, he's been around the digital block for a few thousand years or so."
Tai and Kari read the card to find George's barely legible scrawl.
Tai,
Enclosed I hope you find a vial of Magna Antidote (it wasn't easy to get, so read the instructions before use).
Get well soon!
George
Instructions:
1. Open vial by carefully unscrewing the cork.
2. Apply Antidote to the worst burns. ONE DROP PER BURN.
3. Mix the remaining Antidote (should be at least half the vial's worth) with a soda of your choice (this step is optional, but Magna Antidote tastes really bad).
4. Drink the soda as quickly as possible.
5. Sleep, the Magna Antidote will heal you while you rest.
If all goes well, you should be up and out of bed by tomorrow morning; otherwise I'll know you screwed up.
Tai quickly began the procedure (though he nearly forgot step 1, for which Kari corrected him). Within moments of consumption, the Antidote began its work and Tai was out cold. After making sure Tai was sleeping soundly and was comfortable, Kari called her parents and got a ride home. For the rest of the night she thought about Tai and the Antidote, hoping it would work.
Alone in the darkened computer lab, Cody and George sat in silence for a few minutes carefully observing each other, until George finally broke the silence.
"Well Cody," he said, "what would you like to know first?"
"Who exactly are you and how did you become a Digidestined?" asked Cody
."Well, until about eight human years ago I was a normal kid just like everybody else. The night after our middle school graduation, my friends and I were celebrating when suddenly the electronics started behaving bizarrely. As I investigated, five digivices flew out of my laptop. Next thing any of us knew, we were in a strange world with strange creatures following us," explained George fondly recalling his original adventure into the Digital World, "does that answer your question?"
Cody nodded and asked another question, "what happened during your first adventure?"
"That's another story for another day," sighed George, "but during my initial adventure I received a horrible revelation."
"Does this have anything to do with your not being fully human?" asked Cody.
"Sharp as a tack I see," chuckled George, "you are indeed correct. You see, I was the very first human to ever be transported into the Digital World, and there were…unforeseen complications with the transportation program."
The fallen warrior paused for a few moments, his demeanor darkening, as pain and sadness reflected behind his tinted sunglasses. He pulled out another beer before continuing sadly.
"A virus in the program attacked me and ate nearly half of my body before the program was paused…fortunately, none of the others were affected," he said.
What happened then?" asked Cody, "you couldn't have survived with only half a body."
"Quite correct," said George, "while in a state of stasis, I was transported to a medical facility where my missing pieces were replaced with digital replicas. Now, I'm the only human-digimon hybrid that exists."
"How did you discover this?" asked the 4th grader.
"I was accidentally transported back into the real world after our final battle on Upload Island. At the time, the data was unprocessed and came out blurry and pixilated, so it was clear something was amiss," replied George.
"What happened next?" asked Cody.
"As you can imagine, I didn't take the news well. I went berserk and nearly blew up the island and my friends…it's not a memory I look upon with pride," said George solemnly, finishing his beer in one gulp, and pulling out yet another, "nor is it something I talk about very often."
"How could you possibly blow up an island?" asked Cody incredulously.
"At the point in the adventure where I found out about the accident, we had just received our Crests," said George indicating the symbol, "we were unsure as to what exactly they were capable of, and I corrupted mine."
"I still don't understand," said Cody.
"Each Crest has a meaning behind it, for example, Tai's is the Crest of Courage and Izzy's is the Crest of Knowledge. In my case, my Crest happens to be the Crest of Power," explained George, "on my own, I am roughly as strong as a Champion level digimon like Tyrannomon, but, until recently, with the Crest of Power, I could utilize as much power as I felt like."
"That sounds like a rather dangerous Crest," said Cody, then something clicked, "and that's what Crocmon meant when he said he is a Warrior of Power right?"
"Yes, our title comes from the Crest we bear, and yes it is a most dangerous Crest," said George, "if it becomes too corrupted it can achieve its full evil potential as the Crest of Darkness, which is why it was entrusted to me."
"And yet," interjected Cody, "the first thing you did with your new found power was go on a rampage."
"I've learned a lot since then, and certain events during my initial journey have served as constant reminders to me of what my limits are," remarked George, "I only use as much power as I have direct control over."
"It sounds like you have an incredible amount of self-control," said Cody, "if what you're telling me is true of course."
George sighed. "You still suspect me of being the Emperor, don't you?" he asked.
The 4th grader nodded solemnly.
"What about me causes you to believe that?" asked George.
"You haven't been much of a help to us in the Digital World," replied Cody, "and I've never seen you and the Emperor in the same place at the same time. Furthermore, the Emperor seems to have superhuman powers, and you're the only one I know who fits that description. Additionally, the Emperor seems to think that he is the ultimate destiny of the Digidestined, a trait of arrogance that you happen to share. Lastly, when the Emperor was speaking about you today, he was a little too convincing in his hatred of you; if we believe the Emperor hates you, we will not think to accuse you of being him."
"A very astute analysis," said George, impressed with the 4th grader's deductive reasoning skills, "but I think I can answer your concerns."
The fallen warrior closed his eyes, took a deep gulp of his beverage, and calmly began.
"The reason I have not helped you in the Digital World is because I have been trying to teach you important lessons about the Digital World that you would not have learned if I was present, and the results of my absence today should be visible tomorrow. If I have come across as arrogant I apologize, but I am not the best mentor. The older Digidestined's digimon can vouch for me being in the same place as the Emperor at the same time. The Emperor's alleged 'superpowers' come from hacking capabilities whereas mine are from my Crest. As such his powers do not exist in this world, while mine do. Finally, as time goes on you will see that the Emperor really does hate me as much as he claims," he said.
"…wait," said Cody, raising an eyebrow, "you still have powers in the real world?"
"Yep," said George.
To prove his point, George began levitating and flew across the room.
"I'd like to see the Emperor try to do that," he scoffed.
For an encore, he charged up an energy ball in his palm and flicked it out the window. The ball impacted into a tree and knocked it over.
"…you have convinced me," said Cody, "for now."
"I'm happy to hear—" began George.
"But it wasn't because of your words," continued Cody, "it was your actions, or lack thereof, that convinced me. At any point during this conversation you could have killed me, but you didn't. The real Emperor would hasten at the chance to do so, our encounter with him today proved that to me."
"Is there anything else you'd like to know while we're here?" asked George sitting down on one of the desks.
"Yes," answered Cody, "how could you have defended the Digital World for thousands of years when you yourself are no older than 22?"
"I am 22 in human years," answered George, "you see, the Digital World was not always as in sync with the real world as it is today. For a while, a day in the Digital world was only equal to about a second in the real world. After my comrades left the Digital World after our first adventure, I opted to stay behind in the Digital World. Since my body was used to aging by human world standards, it has continued to age at the same rate as the passing time in this world, not the Digital World. In reality, I am almost 9000 years old."
"Why did you choose to stay in the Digital World?" asked Cody.
"I wouldn't have fit in back here," answered George, "remember that my data components were not as advanced back then as they are now. They'd have remained blurry and virtually unusable. Anyways, I stayed in the Digital World for a few thousand years before I was finally told to take a break, at which time I returned here to make a life for myself. Eventually I was informed that the Digital World was in trouble again and, four years ago, returned to the Digital World to help out. Since then, I've been spending most of my time in the Digital World, and when the Emperor came around I did my best to overthrow him."
"I see," said Cody, "and if I might ask when in this timeline you picked up your…interesting habit."
"During the first major battle since my friends left. I was alone and afraid. Day after day after day I would fight. Friends and comrades were dying and there appeared to be nothing I could do. I drank to forget my sorrows…" said George quietly, "it was a depressing period in my life…"
The conversation paused for a few minutes as George stared blankly into space. He downed another two beers, before Cody chose to break the silence.
"Why does the Emperor hate you so much?" he asked.
"There are a quite a few reasons," said George, recovering from his stupor, "first off, I remind him too much of his past. Second, he views me as everything he thinks he should be…the list goes on. We'll talk more about K-I mean the Emperor-later."
Cody nodded and turned to watch the digimon who were still eating. After a few moments of silence he turned back to George.
"Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, but now I think I should be heading home," said Cody, "my mother will be anxious if I am late."
With that, he picked up Upamon departed from the computer lab. George remained a little longer, staring into space and drinking. He sighed, picked up DemiCrocmon, and followed Cody out of the room.
The next morning found Tai Kamiya feeling better than he'd felt in ages. As soon as he woke up, he knew the antidote had worked. He got up, stretched, and told the doctors he was ready to go home.
This, of course, resulted in some skepticism on the doctors' part, and the elder Kamiya sibling was subject to multiple tests. A few hours later, when they couldn't find a thing wrong with him, Tai was released from the hospital, but still under medical supervision.
As he checked out, Tai heard the doctor congratulating the flummoxed specialist on the miracle she'd performed; there wasn't even a single scar!
Tai chuckled to himself as he thought of the real reason for his health and resolved to thank George at the earliest opportunity.
The school day had been a slow one, and Kari nervously glanced at the clock all day. She kept wondering whether or not the antidote had worked and how her brother was doing, but, as soon as her final class was finished, she got her answer.
"Hey sis," said Tai as Kari left the classroom, "I was just in the neighborhood trying to catch up on missed schoolwork and I thought I'd drop by. Perhaps I can join you in the Digital World this afternoon?"
"Don't you have soccer practice?" asked Kari.
"I'm not allowed to participate in sports until the doctors say so," grumbled Tai, "even though they couldn't find anything wrong with me."
As the two entered the computer lab, all eyes fell on Tai. Instantly, those assembled smiled joyfully.
"Coach!" exclaimed Davis as he ran towards his mentor.
"Good to see you back on your feet," remarked Izzy.
"How're you feeling?" asked Yolei.
"Welcome back," said Cody.
"How's it going Tai?" asked George, "you tell your girlfriend you're out yet?"
"Easy, easy," said Tai bemused as everyone's questions and comments bombarded him, "it's good to be back Izzy, I'm feeling fine Yolei, thanks Cody, she's at soccer practice George, and why aren't you at our soccer practice Davis?"
"Eh, well," stammered Davis, "I kinda figured this whole Digital World thing was a little more important, besides, you can coach me on weekends!"
Tai nodded, that was enough chit-chat; it was time to get busy.
"What's the mission of the day?" he asked.
"I was just telling everyone about a stadium the Emperor built not far from where they were yesterday," replied George, "I suggest we take it out."
"What about guards?" asked Izzy, "you can be sure the Emperor has plenty of them guarding that area."
"I'm not so sure," said George, "after yesterday, he may have decided to give up that small territory in order to better defend others, but he wouldn't have freed the prisoners."
"It sounds great!" exclaimed Davis, "our first chance to take the fight to him for a change!"
"Easy does it kid," said George smirking, "your enthusiasm is appreciated, but don't get carried away."
"Where're the digimon?" asked Tai.
"I sent them ahead to do a little recon," replied George, "they should be reporting soon."
A few seconds later, Crocmon's face appeared on the computer screen.
"All clear," he said, "there are still prisoners, but we haven't seen any guards yet."
"Fine, we're coming in," said Tai.
With that, the Digidestined (sans Izzy, who remained behind to keep an eye on them) transported to the Digital World.
A few moments later, Crocmon, Agumon, Patamon, Gatomon, Veemon, Armadillomon, Hawkmon, and Tentomon appeared.
"Tai you're all right!" exclaimed Agumon, "Gatomon told me you had been hurt badly when we fought against Birdramon!"
"I was," replied Tai as the orange dinosaur hugged him, "but George sent me a remedy that healed me much quicker."
"So that's where he was yesterday," thought Cody.
"Enough chat-chit!" exclaimed Davis, "we've got a prison to bust!"
It was a peaceful day for the citizens of Santa Geria, the Gazimon inhabitants and visitors had enjoyed a day of festivity celebrating the town's 100th anniversary.
Among the visitors was a Gabumon. He had fled File Island when the Emperor had threatened to capture him and his friends and gone into hiding here in this remote town. Thus far, his stay had been a pleasant one, but he had remained ignorant of new information as there were several small mountains surrounding the village and information traveled slowly (even though digimon do love to gossip). Thus, the Gabumon had no idea that the Digidestined had returned, otherwise he wouldn't have been in Santa Geria on this particular day, but he didn't know and he was there, so let us continue.
As the celebrations drew to a close, the town had gathered in the square for a speech by the mayor, an elderly Gazimon.
"My dear friends," began the mayor, and that's when all hell broke loose.
A black obelisk ripped through the ground mere feet from the mayor as a horde of Vegiemon charged in and began capturing the residents. Behind the Vegiemon stood the Digimon Emperor cracking his whip.
"This town now belongs to me!" he exclaimed, "anyone want to protest that claim?"
Gabumon broke free from his Vegiemon captor and pushed to the front of the crowd. Determination shone in his eyes.
"I do," shouted the horned digimon.
The Emperor glanced at the Gabumon and recognized him instantly.
"I know you!" said the Emperor quietly, "you are the partner of Matt Ishida, one of the Digidestined. Well, Gabumon, where are your friends now?"
"I'll never tell you," spat Gabumon, "Blue Blaster!"
A stream of blue fire (as cold as ice, but otherwise with the same properties as normal fire) was blown out of Gabumon's mouth directly at the Emperor.
Suddenly, the stream was blocked as a massive red plant-like digimon stepped in its path.
"Nobody harms the Emperor!" he exclaimed, "or you'll have to deal with me, RedVegiemon!"
"RedVegiemon here is the meanest and ripest of all the Vegiemon," explained the Emperor, "you don't want to mess with his Stink Jet attack."
RedVegiemon began whaling on Gabumon striking him with the clubbed and spiked green tips of his tentacles. The Rookie digimon tried to fight back, but he was no match for a Champion digimon, especially with the Emperor's power dampener in effect. He collapsed after a few blows, but RedVegiemon wasn't finished yet. He raised his tentacles for another blow.
"RedVegiemon stop!" commanded the Emperor.
"Yes, your highness!" said the red vegetable.
"Vegiemon, take the Gazimon and imprison them for my amusement; I've got plans for Gabumon here," said the Emperor, cracking his whip.
A Dark Ring appeared.
Too weak to resist, Gabumon could only watch as the evil device got closer and closer.
"Matt!" he thought frantically.
Matt, his band performing at a concert, could not hear his digivice as it attempted to alert him to the peril his partner was in.
"Pepper Breath!" exclaimed Agumon launching a fireball from his mouth.
The fireball collided against the jail bars melting some and breaking others.
"Vee Headbutt!" exclaimed Veemon charging at what remained of the bars and blasting through them towards the Gotsumon on the other side.
"C'mon guys!" he exclaimed, "let's rock!"
As the Digidestined and the former captives ran from the abandoned arena Davis exclaimed, "that was easy!"
"You guys are now officially fugitives!" said Agumon, as the Gotsumon collapsed on the grass (running wasn't their thing).
A few moments later, George and Crocmon ran from the prison, having stayed behind to triple check each cell and to see if they could find any information regarding the location of the Emperor's main base.
Seconds after they cleared the arena, it blew up.
"What the hell just happened?" asked Davis.
"Alarm system," said George, "I must've accidentally triggered it when I attempted to hack the controls on the throne."
"Even with the alarm system it bothers me how easy it was for us to break out of that prison. There wasn't a single guard anywhere. It's like he wanted us to do it. I think he's up to something," said TK.
"You're crazy!" exclaimed Davis, "he took one look at our awesome skills and hit the road. Isn't that right Kari?"
"Ummm," said Kari hesitantly, "actually Davis, I'm going to have to agree with TK. This guy is not going to let us get away that easy without some kind of reason."
"We'll worry about it later," said Tai thoughtfully, "Let's get back to the real world, I'm starving!"
As the rest of the Digidestined turned to leave, Cody saw George staring at a tall black obelisk not too far away.
"I'm going to stay here for a while," said the fallen warrior, "there's some stuff I need to get done. I'll be back later."
The other Digidestined nodded and continued on their way. Cody looked back just before they left and saw George still staring at the tower.
"They're gone," said Crocmon as the TV's light dimmed.
"You know what needs to be done," said George.
The reptilian digimon nodded, and George pulled out his digivice.
"DigiArmor Energize!"
"Crocmon Armor Digivolve to—Sobekmon, the Steel Soldier of Power!"
Gone was the pygmy crocodile, and in his place was a bipedal being covered completely in royal blue armor with yellow joints. The chest plate was painted to look like a gigantic crocodile head, and his leg armor contained rocket thrusters and accelerators. He wore a yellow belt that contained several pockets, and his gauntlet covered arms contained several hidden weapons. On his left hip was a holster that contained a nasty looking pistol, and on his back he wore a rifle over which he wore a tattered black cloak. His tail could turn into an electrified whip at will. His head was helmeted, but spiky blond hair stuck out the back. The helmet contained a pin laser and had a black visor that shielded Sobekmon's eyes and hid them from view. The visor could also calculate trajectories and project the images to Sobekmon.
George nodded, and the reptilian soldier charged at the tower knocking it down.
"Let's go! I have an early tea time," exclaimed the Emperor as he whipped his Vegiemon, twelve of which struggled to lift the litter the Emperor was on. As the litter was carried away, the Emperor's digivice gave a tiny beep prompting the Emperor to glance at it. As he suspected, his amplification device in the arena's sector had been destroyed, and he knew the prime suspect.
"Ah well," he thought, "it is of little consequence."
Watching the Emperor's litter from the jail was a young Gazimon. As soon as the litter had cleared the town, he jumped down from the window and nodded at the other Gazimon in the cell.
"Electric Stun Blast!"
The blue rabbits launched small bolts of blue electricity at the bars, knocking them over. As the other Gazimon began to break free as well, a weird howling was heard echoing throughout the town.
"What do you suppose that was?" asked a spooked Gazimon.
"Whatever it was, we don't want to find out," answered another, shuddering.
With that, the Gazimon ran from the detention area through the city streets. It wasn't long however, before the source of the howling was made clear.
A large lupine digimon stood in front of the fleeing Gazimon blocking their path. He had white fur with blue stripes. He had a feather-like mane and several feather-like points above his front legs and smaller ones on either side of his long tufted tail. His feet ended in four purple claws, and his normally yellow eyes were red. A dark ring was attached to his front right leg.
"I am Garurumon, and if any of you attempt to get past me, I'll destroy you with my Howling Blaster attack!" said the digimon.
"Oh no," said the Gazimon mayor sadly, "poor Gabumon…"
"We don't have time to worry," said another, "quick let's go back the way we came!"
"I'm afraid you can't do that either," said RedVegiemon, as he and several Vegiemon appeared behind the terrified Gazimon.
"We're trapped!" exclaimed a Gazimon.
"What'd we do with them?" asked Garurumon.
"Perhaps a few hundred lashes are in order," said RedVegiemon as he began lashing out his roots viciously
The Vegiemon followed suit as Garurumon stood by and watched.
The agonized cries of the Gazimon pierced the silence of the evening.
"AAAAAAAAAIEEEEEEEEE!" screamed Izzy as several rock-like creatures fell out of the computer with the Digidestined.
He took a deep breath and stared Tai right in the eyes.
"Are you crazy bringing the Gotsumon back from the Digital World?!" he demanded.
"We didn't have a choice," defended Tai, "we couldn't just leave them there for the Digimon Emperor to make into slaves right?"
"Yep," affirmed his sister.
"How are we going to explain their presence should a teacher come in here?" Izzy wanted to know.
"In that unlikely event, I've developed an alibi," said Davis proudly, "I'll say that I'm taking a sculpting class and that these are some of my early masterpieces."
"Do you actually think anybody will believe you're taking a sculpting class?" Izzy asked incredulously.
"Hey!" said Davis, "stranger things have happened!"
Izzy sighed; he wasn't going to win this battle.
"Yolei," he said changing the subject, "I've got a big favor to ask. Would it be alright with you if I borrowed your digivice?"
"Of course Izzy," said Yolei dreamily fishing out the device, "but what for?"
"There are several programs on your digivice that do not appear to be in our model. I would like to see what the upgrades can do," replied the boy genius.
"I see," said Yolei, "what exactly would you be doing with it?"
"I wanted to try an experiment with the new digivices, if that's okay with you," replied Izzy.
"Fine, but it better be in working condition when I get it back," said Yolei.
"Don't worry," said Izzy, "I've run some tests on my own digivice before, and I'll be working with an expert."
At this, Izzy noticed the absence of the Warriors of Power.
"Where's George?" he asked.
"He said he had some business to take care of in the Digital World and told us all he'd catch up," said Cody.
"Fine," said Izzy heading for the door, "when he returns please inform him I have departed and can be found at my domicile."
With that Izzy left leaving a confused Tai and Davis.
"Anyone wanna translate?" asked the youngest gogglehead.
Cody sighed.
"He said, when George gets back we need to tell him that Izzy went home."
"Well why didn't he just say so?" asked Tai.
"Don't you have a girlfriend to pester?" asked Kari jokingly, poking her brother in the ribs.
"Omigosh I forgot!" yelped Tai, "Sora doesn't know I got out of the hospital yet!"
With that, the gogglehead ran out the door towards the soccer field.
"I hope she's still there," he thought desperately.
Upon George's return to the Izumi's a few hours later, he and Izzy promptly began work on the new digivice. As Izzy watched, George pulled out several tools from his backpack and carefully removed the outer cover. Inside could be seen several gears and wires looping around in a confusing manner that made no sense.
"Hmmm," said George, "this one's a little more complicated than the last one was. Let's see what we can find out from the computer."
Izzy took out a specially made adapter cable (provided to him by Gennai during his adventure four years ago) and connected the digivice to his old pineapple laptop. He opened the program he used for translating the code in the older digivice models and attempted to access the digivice's data from there using the same code he had previously used to research his own digivice. Unfortunately, he met with a minor problem; the device's security system would not allow him access.
"What'd we do now?" asked Izzy.
George cracked his knuckles and began typing like crazy.
"Leave it to me," was all he said.
"It may not always be that way!"
The blond haired singer looked around the crowded concert hall. Screaming fans had packed into the room and were waving light sticks.
"You can't take nothing for granted!"
The singer's eyes wandered to a particular person in the audience. This was the first time his little brother had come to see him and his band perform.
"You've gotta live life today!"
The fans got hyped as the band led up to the chorus.
"I turn around I can see what's behind me!"
The crowd began to sing along.
"I turn back around you can see what's ahead!"
The audience got even more excited as the song drew to a close.
"I've been here all along. Just turn around…"
The lead singer closed his eyes in anticipation of the song's end.
"Just turn around…just turn around…"
The last few words hung in the air for a moment before spontaneous cheering occurred. The lead singer smiled at his band-mates. The Teenage Wolves had another successful concert…but what else was new?
Something on the edge of his vision caught his attention, and he turned to find his brother waving at him.
"I'll see you guys later," said Matt Ishida (for of course that's who the singer was).
He caught up with his brother as he was leaving the concert hall.
"Nice concert bro," said TK casually.
"Thanks TK," said Matt smiling, "how've things been going in the Digital World?"
"Today we liberated prisoners from the Emperor's arena," said TK as an idea dawned on him, "by the way, could you hide about a dozen Gotsumon while we attempt to figure out how to free their home from the Emperor?"
Matt sighed as he remembered the Gotsumon from Myotismon's army…
"Listen TK," he said, "just because I have a rock band doesn't mean I can hide a band of rocks that happen to be digimon."
"But they could be your band's gimmick. Every band has a gimmick right?" asked TK.
"Sorry TK," sighed Matt, "I don't think the other guys would go along with it."
TK opened his mouth to protest when he was cut off by a loud shriek accompanied by a tall skinny girl with brown eyes and spiky reddish brown hair.
She ran up to Matt and held out a marker.
"Can I have your autograph?" she asked turning around.
"Sure," said Matt perfectly used to this behavior, "what's your name?"
"Just make it to Jun Motomiya," replied the girl as Matt began writing.
TK hadn't quite recovered from the shriek yet, so he asked, "did you say Motomiya?"
The girl nodded, a little confused.
"You wouldn't happen to be Davis's sister would you?" asked TK.
"Yeah that's right," replied Jun, "and who're you?"
"He's TK," replied Matt, "he's my little brother."
"It's nice to meet you Jun," said TK, "Davis and I are in the same class together."
"Will you sign my shirt too?" asked Jun, "I get all the cute boys to sign it."
TK lifted the marker to sign the shirt and noticed all the signatures already there, including some familiar names like Tai and even Izzy. He also noticed George's familiar, nearly illegible, scrawl towards the upper left corner despite the fact that he'd only been hanging around for a couple of days.
"There's not a lot of room," remarked the hat wearing boy as he signed next to Tai's signature.
"I know," explained Jun, "I think all boys are cute."
Suddenly, TK's mini computer beeped. He had received an email from Yolei.
Emergency! Hurry back to school, and bring Matt with you!
TK grabbed his brother and ran out the door.
"Something's come up; we've got to go," he said as he ran, leaving behind a slightly bewildered Jun.
The elder Motomiya sibling shrugged, it was probably a rock star thing…
"Back off Davis you're making me nervous!" shouted Yolei. Earlier, the Digidestined had sent the older kid's partners back into the Digital world to try to locate the other Digidestined's partners. Yolei had gotten a signal from Tentomon, but she was having trouble finding the sector it had come from.
"Can't you go any faster," whined Davis.
TK and Matt ran in.
"What's going on?" demanded Matt.
"Tentomon's found Gabumon," replied Cody, "but unfortunately he has been enslaved by the Emperor."
Matt's eyes narrowed, "who does that punk think he is?" he growled.
"Relax Matt," said TK, "we'll get him back."
"Okay!" exclaimed Yolei, "I found the sector Tentomon's message emanated from!"
"What're we waiting for?! Let's go!" exclaimed Davis holding up his digivice.
One bright flash of light later, and the Digidestined found themselves in a rocky plain…well except one.
"Oops!" exclaimed Yolei, "I forgot that Izzy has my digivice!"
The lavender haired girl bolted from the computer lab, and Poromon came into view on the TV portal.
"Have no fear while Yolei's gone," said the pink blob, "for this place shall be guarded by Poromon."
"Keep in touch," said Davis, giving the tiny bird a thumbs up.
George cackled manically as the security system collapsed. He pushed the newly appeared "Download" button on the screen as he and Izzy sat back to wait.
In the interim, George began poking around the new digivice's innards with a tiny flashlight in one hand, and a small pair of tweezers in the other, making sure to leave the hard drive and its connections alone.
"I've got to say, Izzy," said George offhandedly as he tinkered, "I'm impressed with the program you created to analyze digivices. The coding is solid, and it functions perfectly."
"High praise indeed coming from you," remarked Izzy, genuinely touched at the compliment.
Suddenly, someone knocked on the guest room door.
"Izzy? Are you in there?" came Yoshie Izumi's voice, "there's someone here to see you."
George poked his head out of the room suspiciously; when he saw Yolei he opened the door fully.
"It's a little messy in there," he warned, "Izzy and I are conducting an experiment."
"What kind of experiment?" asked Yoshie, "may I see?"
She poked her head into the room and saw a bunch of gears and wires. She also saw a strange device jacked into her son's old pineapple laptop.
"What sort of experiment is this?" she asked suspiciously.
"Well," said George smoothly, "one of my new game systems isn't working properly. We're trying to find what the problem is, and since we're not sure if it's a virus we're using Izzy's old computer."
"It's kind of complicated mom," said Izzy, "can we have some quiet please?"
As soon as she left, the two younger teens breathed a sigh of relief.
"You're an excellent liar," remarked Izzy in clear admiration, "I'm not even sure a detector could catch you."
"You get good at it when you've been trying to hide the existence of another world for as long as I have," said George shrugging.
Yolei looked at her disassembled digivice and groaned.
"How soon can you piece this thing back together again?" she asked, "we've got a digital emergency."
"Awwww," whined George, "and I had finally managed to crack the security encryption. That wasn't easy I'll have you know; the security in these models is much more advanced than in the older models."
"I'll take your word for it," said Yolei quickly, "but we're needed in the Digital World ASAP, so stop complaining and get back to work!"
George looked around at the mess of gears and wires, and at the download bar which was just passing 1%.
"You CAN put it back together right?" said Yolei threateningly.
George smirked.
"Of course I can," he said smugly, "who exactly do you think you're dealing with here, an amateur?"
Before Yolei could yell at him again, the Warrior of Power picked up his tools and started fitting the pieces back together. He looked up from his work.
"Five minutes, tops" he said as he looked back down.
"There you are!" exclaimed Tentomon in his perpetually worried tone, "I thought something happened to you."
"What's the situation Tentomon?" asked Matt evenly.
"It's terrible," exclaimed the red bug, "the Emperor has captured the nearby town of Santa Geria. From what I'd heard, Gabumon hid there after the Emperor found us on File Island. He tried to stand up to the Emperor and was captured."
"What about the rest of the town?" asked TK.
"The Emperor's minions are holding the Gazimon inhabitants prisoner. Last night, they tried to stage a jailbreak…it didn't end well," said Tentomon, "most of them were deleted by the Emperor's goons."
"That dishonorable fiend," exclaimed Cody.
"What're we waiting for then?" asked Davis, "let's go kick some butt!"
The gogglehead started heading towards the town, but Matt grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Wait!" exclaimed the rock star, "We can't just rush in there. For all we know this could be some sort of trap!"
"All we have to do is armor digivolve and blow them away," said Davis cockily.
Matt sighed.
"I can see why George was mad at these guys," he thought, "Davis is really starting to get on my nerves."
"It's not that simple Davis," said TK, "the Emperor could be using some of the hostages as a shield to protect himself."
"TK's right," said Kari, "we need to find a way to rescue the hostages and make sure that none of them get hurt."
Davis groaned. "Man, she's agreeing with TE again," he thought.
"From what I saw, it appears as though most of the guards are Vegiemon," Tentomon said, "although Garurumon and RedVegiemon significantly boost their ranks."
As Tentomon continued to explain the situation, Davis, Cody, and their digimon were standing somewhat apart from the rest of the group.
"Hmph," said Davis, "I can see we're not needed around here. Let's go off and do things our own way."
"Since when do I act as recklessly as you?" demanded Cody stiffly as he walked over to the rest of the group.
"Shit," Davis swore under his breath, "what's gotten into everyone?"
"Okay," said Matt noticing some obsidian layers nearby, "I've got a plan to sneak us into the prison."
As the four Digidestined and the digimon moved towards the city, Davis was left behind.
"Wait a minute!" the gogglehead explained, "it's too dangerous! We can't take the chance that any of us, especially Kari, gets captured."
"It's the fastest way to the prison," remarked Cody.
"And we've been through a lot worse than being captured right Kari?" asked TK.
"Yeah!" agreed the younger Kamiya sibling.
"Argh," groaned Davis, "I can't believe you're not worried about Kari's well being TA!"
"TA?" asked Matt incredulously, "is it possible you forgot how to spell TK?"
Everyone except Davis and Cody chuckled. (Davis fumed, and Cody really didn't think the joke was that funny.)
"Alright," said Matt, "we're going to need some of that obsidian. Tentomon, do you think you could make it look like the Dark Rings?"
"I'll give it a try," said the insectoid digimon.
A few moments later, Matt's plan was in progress, and the Digidestined and their digimon were marching towards the town's gateway. As they approached, Gatomon noticed another tall black tower within the town.
"Those things have been popping up a lot lately," she mused.
"I hear that the Emperor calls them Control Spires," said Tentomon, "I'm not sure what they do, but with a name like that it can't be good!"
"So we'll just have to destroy it!" exclaimed Davis.
Cody remembered George's mysterious obsession earlier with a similar tower.
"For once I agree with Davis," he thought, "if that tower was made by the Emperor it must be destroyed."
At this point, the procession was approaching the gate and was within eyesight of the Vegiemon guards.
"Stop right there!" exclaimed Vegiemon guard number 1.
"Identify yourselves!" demanded Vegiemon guard number 2.
"It's okay," said Gatomon raising her paw to reveal a black ring, "we're one of you. We've just captured these digimon and their friends."
"Where're you taking us?" demanded TK.
"Pipe down," drawled Armadillomon, "y'all are goin' to jail where you belong!"
The Vegiemon guards laughed evilly.
As they passed through the gate, they saw pink blobs dripping down on either side of them. Instinctively, everyone knew what they were…digimon excrement.
Davis inwardly shuddered at the thought of that stuff touching Kari, but that doesn't really matter in the overall scheme now does it?
As the procession continued deeper into enemy territory, they saw more evidence of the Vegiemon occupation. There was pink sludge everywhere, in the streets, on the houses, on the trees, dripping down statues…everywhere.
When they got to the center of town however, this was a different story. The area around the black tower was perfectly clean, and the tower itself was spotless as it gleamed in the late afternoon sun. Scores of Vegiemon soldiers stood guard over the tower, but there was no sign of RedVegiemon or Garurumon.
Finally, they reached the prison. There were more Vegiemon guards nearby watching over the remaining Gazimon. The Digidestined and Tentomon were unceremoniously dumped into the nearest cell.
"Thanks for bringing the prisoners in. The Emperor will be pleased. We could have caught them ourselves you know, but I guess you beat us to the punch," said Vegiemon guard number 3.
"Speaking of punch," said Gatomon as she and the others pulled of their 'Dark Rings', "Lightning Paw!"
Her fist crackled with electricity as it impacted Vegiemon guard number 3, who slammed into the cell bars.
Vegiemon guard number 4 was dispatched by Veemon, who pummeled it into unconsciousness. Vegiemon guards 5 and 6 had the unfortunate fate of being sat on by Armadillomon.
With all the guards in la la land, the Digidestined broke down the bars once again.
As they stepped out of the cell, a severely scarred Gazimon stepped forward.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he warned, "we tried, and look what happened to us."
The Gazimon indicated his dozen or so brethren that lay beaten and bruised across the cell.
"There used to be about a hundred or so of us, but after our attempted escape, we few are the only survivors, and we were beaten within an inch of our lives," continued the Gazimon.
"Don't worry," said Davis, "we're the Digidestined; we can handle anything the Emperor dishes out."
"The Digidestined?" asked the Gazimon skeptically.
"Yes," replied Kari, "we're here to protect you, so you can come with us."
"How do we know you're really the Digidestined?" asked another Gazimon.
Davis opened his mouth to reply, but Matt beat him to the punch.
"I'm Matt Ishida. My partner is Gabumon, the same Gabumon that the Emperor has enslaved. If I was working for the Emperor, he wouldn't have had to enslave Gabumon because Gabumon obeys my every command…even if that means hurting friends," replied Matt, lowering his voice sadly at the end as he recalled Cherrymon's deception and his subsequent actions.
The Gazimon mayor nodded.
"I believe him. He looks slightly different than how Gabumon described him, but that's to be expected. After all, Gabumon hadn't seen him for a while," said the mayor.
With that, the Digidestined and the Gazimon ran out of the cell and into the town.
Tai nervously rang the doorbell to the Takenouchi apartment; Sora had left by the time he made it to the soccer field.
Toshiko Takenouchi was slightly shocked when she answered the door.
"Tai!" she exclaimed, "I thought you were in the hospital."
"I got better Mrs. Takenouchi," said Tai hurriedly, "is Sora home?"
"Yes," replied Toshiko, "come in."
As soon as Tai stepped in, Mrs. Takenouchi yelled, "Sora!"
The redhead peeked out from her room, "what is it mother?" she asked.
"Someone's here to see you," replied Toshiko.
Sora stepped into the entryway wondering who could be visiting her; she was pleasantly surprised.
"Tai!" she exclaimed happily jumping into her boyfriend's arms and giving him a peck on the cheek, "when did you get out of the hospital?"
"This morning," replied Tai, "but I'm still under observation, so I wasn't allowed to go to school or soccer practice today, even though there's nothing wrong with me…"
"Awwww poor Taichi," said Sora, "I'll get my jacket and we can go for a walk. How does that sound?"
"Like music to my ears," replied Tai, his goofy grin plastered across his face.
A few moments later, Sora returned wearing a light jacket and the two teens stepped out for their walk.
As the Digidestined continued navigating towards the town square, Patamon and Tentomon flew ahead to look out for enemies.
As Patamon rounded the next corner, he quickly ducked back; a group of Vegiemon guards were chatting below.
"Now what?" asked Veemon.
"I'm tired of hiding," said Davis, "let's fight!"
"Hold on a second junior," said Matt tiredly, "we're still too deep in enemy territory to provoke an incident."
"What the hell does that mean?!" demanded Davis, annoyed with the elder blond's interference.
"It means that if we were to armor digivolve here, we'd attract too much attention and get attacked from all directions," translated Cody.
"Why can't anyone here just speak in plain, simple Japanese?" thought Davis.
"Granted, fighting is out," said TK, "so what do we do now?"
"Quick this way!" exclaimed the Gazimon mayor, leading the Digidestined down another winding street.
"Why won't anyone listen to me?" muttered Davis grumpily.
Nobody answered.
The gogglehead trailed behind the others as they walked down the surprisingly deserted streets.
"Hey Davis," said TK suddenly, "I almost forgot. I saw your sister today."
"Yeah," said Davis angrily, "so what?"
"So nothing," replied TK casually.
"She probably had a lot of bad things to say about me didn't she?" demanded Davis as he gave a detailed list (including such things as biting nails, bed wetting, and thumb sucking).
"Well she talks too much," exclaimed Davis, "and when I see her I'll teach her a lesson!"
"Thanks for sharing," said Matt icily, "but she didn't mention any of that!"
"Huh?" said Davis stupidly.
"Your sister didn't say anything bad about you, in fact she didn't even mention you" said Matt, "you're the one with the big mouth!"
"If you've got a problem with me Mr. Rockstar, why don't we settle it right now?" taunted Davis as he spat at Matt's feet. He was sick and tired of everyone ignoring him and listening to that blonde idiot! Tai had left him in charge. Him, not Matt!
Matt glared at the gogglehead as he put up his dukes. He was going to knock this idiot down a peg or two. He wouldn't be replaced by this moron, or anyone else for that matter. He was Matt Ishida, a Digidestined, and nobody had the right to take that away from him! Heaven help anyone who got in his way.
Davis meanwhile got into a fighting stance and prepared to exhibit his authority by taking out the competition.
"Hold it Matt," said TK holding Matt back, "don't fight! He's younger than you are!"
Cody rushed to restrain Davis, but had difficulty due to the size difference.
"I don't care how young he is," said Matt through clenched teeth, "I'll teach him to respect his elders!"
"Respect this asshole!" said Davis as he broke free and punched the restrained Matt in the face.
Shocked silence followed as Matt spat out blood. TK quickly let go of his brother and stepped away.
"That," said Matt in a tone as chilling as ice, "was the last mistake you will ever make!"
The elder Digidestined charged.
"Five minutes ha!" scoffed Yolei, it had been a half hour and George still hadn't managed to put the digivice back together yet.
"It's not my fault a piece is missing!" exclaimed George as he and Izzy frantically turned the room upside down looking for the missing wire.
Matt's charge was cut short as Cody swung his shinai in between the two combatants.
"As justified as your retaliation would be," he said looking at Matt.
"and as cowardly as your assault was," he said looking at Davis, "need I remind you two that we are in the middle of hostile territory attempting to escort hostages to safety?"
Matt folded his arms.
"At least one of you is sensible," he said, "but as soon as we get back to the real world, I'm going to trash you Davis!"
"Bring it Blondie!" taunted Davis.
Unfortunately, the sounds of the scuffle had carried far enough to alert the Vegiemon of their presence. Within moments, the Digidestined and the Gazimon were surrounded.
"Found it!" exclaimed George, as he triumphantly pulled the missing wire out from under the bed, "…now where does this go again?"
Yolei and Izzy sweatdropped, for a genius, George could be a total moron at times…
Tai and Sora had sat down on a park bench across the street from Izzy's house. They heard George's exclamation and decided to pay the resident genius a visit to see how their research was going.
As Davis attempted to pull out his digivice, his arms were ensnared by a pair of Vegiemon. The others were similarly restrained, and they were led into the town square.
"Well, well, well," said RedVegiemon, "what do we have here? More escaped prisoners?"
The Vegiemon soldiers nodded.
"Tsk Tsk," said RedVegiemon, "we'll have to punish you. A few thousand lashes should do the trick!"
The Gazimon cringed in terror as the thoughts of their previous punishment overwhelmed them.
"Now then," said RedVegiemon, "who's first?"
Veemon broke out of his restraining Vegiemon and charged at the red vegetable.
"Vee Headbutt!"
Before he could finish his attack, a lupine digimon jumped out of a nearby street and knocked the blue reptilian digimon backwards.
"…Garurumon," said Matt sadly.
"It looks like we have our first victim…I mean volunteer," sneered RedVegiemon, as he lashed out with his tentacles and punched Veemon.
As Veemon clumsily stood up, Garurumon obediently moved to stand to the red vegetable's right side and watched the prisoners carefully. His purpose was to prevent escape.
"And now for a side dish," said RedVegiemon, "Chili Pepper Pummel!"
Dozens of jalapeno peppers flew out of his mouth and hit Veemon, each leaving a small burn on impact, but still Veemon would not back down.
"The key to good cooking is to always tenderize thoroughly, like so," said RedVegiemon as he whacked Veemon again and again.
"Is that your best shot?" demanded Veemon.
"Are you kidding? I'm just getting warmed up," said RedVegiemon as he began reciting a recipe while whaling on Veemon.
"Combine all your ingredients into a bowl. Next, stir, blend, mix, frappe, and voilá the first course!" he said.
"I can't watch this!" exclaimed Tentomon.
"Veemon doesn't stand a chance him," said Matt.
"VEEMON!" exclaimed Davis, helpless to help as his partner got beaten to a pulp.
Davis's cry echoed and was heard a few miles away by a group of humans and digimon who were hiking towards the town.
"Yep," said George casually, "it sounds to me like we're in the right place."
"That sure didn't sound good to me," said Sora, "we should hurry."
Yolei nodded and pulled out her reconstructed digivice.
"This had better work George!" she exclaimed.
"It will don't worry," said George confidently.
"DigiArmor Energize!"
"Hawkmon Armor Digivolve to—Halsemon, the Wings of Love!"
"Climb on!" shouted Yolei as she, Tai, Sora, and Izzy scrambled onto the gryphon.
They glanced at George, who was standing there.
"Go on without me, I'll catch up," said the Warrior of Power smirking.
After Halsemon took off, George pulled out his digivice.
"DigiArmor Energize!"
"Crocmon Armor Digivolve to—Sobekmon, the Steel Soldier of Power!"
Tai thought he heard a whooshing noise and looked behind him to see the mechanical soldier advancing with George flying next to it.
Within seconds they were level with Halsemon.
"See you slowpokes later," said George flashing the 'V' sign as they passed the gryphon.
"What was that?" asked Tai.
"…I'm not sure," said Izzy not daring to believe his theory.
"Now for the entrée!" said RedVegiemon raising his spiked clubs.
"No matter what you do I'll never give up," said Veemon defiantly standing up once again despite his numerous bruises. RedVegiemon thrashed him again.
"Leave him alone now," exclaimed Davis, "he's had enough!"
"I don't doubt he's feeling a little full," said RedVegiemon, "but he must have saved room for dessert, and I have a sweet surprise…a double helping of Spiked Punch!"
"VEEMON!" exclaimed Davis as RedVegiemon's clubbed tentacled flew towards the battered digimon.
A shot rang out across the town square halting RedVegiemon in his tracks. All eyes turned towards the source, Sobekmon's smoking pistol.
"That was just to get your attention," said the crocodilian warrior.
"Who's that?" asked TK.
"That would be Sobekmon," said George descending into the fray, "don't get on his nerves or he'll rip you to pieces with his Shotgun Blaster or his Neutron Bullet attacks."
Garurumon charged at the newcomers, but Sobekmon was too fast.
"Neutron Bullet!"
With careful aim (as guided by his helmet) Sobekmon fired a single bullet that shattered the lupine digimon's Dark Ring, causing him to dedigivolve into an exhausted Gabumon.
George meanwhile, was juggling Vegiemon as he pulled them off of his companions. As RedVegiemon prepared to counterattack, George threw a Vegiemon at him causing them to tumble backwards.
"Shotgun Blaster!"
Having holstered his pistol, Sobekmon had drawn his rifle, a nice double-barreled shotgun. Reaching into one of his belt's many pockets, he pulled out a single shell. The shell exploded from the weapon and multiplied. The projectiles hit the Control Spire with such force that they went clean through leaving several gaping holes in the structure. The Spire began to spark, but it still stood…barely.
Not going down without a fight, RedVegiemon and his soldiers launched one final assault, only to be picked off by red lasers descending from the sky.
"Hey!" shouted Yolei as Halsemon came into view, "did we miss anything?"
George glanced at his watch.
"What took you so long?" he asked grinning.
The Warrior of Power walked over to the Control Spire and poked it. The evil tower crashed to the ground, destroyed at last. The Gazimon cheered.
RedVegiemon woke up confused and took off his Dark Ring.
"Whoa!" he said, "did I get married while I was asleep?"
The other Vegiemon followed suit, each pulling off their Dark Rings and wondering how they got to Santa Geria.
"Oh, now I see how it works," said Yolei.
"May I inquire as to what you are talking about?" said Hawkmon, as he dedigivolved from Halsemon.
"The Spire," she said, "it acted like an electricity rod. The Digimon Emperor set it up to send out power to the Dark Rings making it possible for him to control all the digimon throughout the area. Isn't that right George?"
Caught off guard by Yolei's deduction, George just nodded.
"I'm impressed Yolei," said Izzy.
Yolei inwardly blushed, happy to receive praise from her mentor.
"I wonder how many spires there are," said Tai.
"No matter what the number they all must be destroyed," said Matt.
"Quite a job for the new Digidestined," said Sora.
"Hmph," said Matt still fuming over Davis's punch, "buncha rookies!"
The rock star folded his arms and walked away aggressively.
Izzy was admiring Sobekmon.
"If my hypothesis is correct, then we may be able to help the new Digidestined," said the boy genius.
"How do you figure?" asked Tai.
Izzy walked over to George.
"Sobekmon is the armor digivolution of Crocmon, am I correct?" he asked.
George nodded calmly.
There was a sharp intake of breath.
"Something else you neglected to inform us of?" asked Cody accusingly.
"I only found out yesterday," said George, "and I had wanted to prevent the Emperor from finding out about our new secret weapon, but then I realized it's not much use having the ability to armor digivolve if you're not going to do it…"
"That's not my point," said Izzy, "my point is if Crocmon can armor digivolve and so can Patamon and Gatomon, our digimon must be able to armor digivolve as well!"
George shook his head, "I'm afraid that's not how it works," he said.
"…and how exactly does it work Mr. Killjoy?" demanded Matt.
"Logically," replied George as Sobekmon dedigivolved.
"…so we still can't help?" asked Tai dejectedly.
"I didn't say that," said George, "if you'll check your digivices you'll see that your digimon are now permitted to digivolve. They can protect areas we have reclaimed in their Champion forms, and if a Control Spire is damaged enough, it will stop sending out the dampening signal. Even if it still sends power to the rings, your digimon may still be able to digivolve."
Tai smiled, it wasn't much, but it was certainly better than nothing. Agumon tugged at his pants leg.
"Someone should take the Gotsumon back to their homes now," he said.
"Oh, yeah," said Tai, "…where'd we leave 'em again?"
Principal Toyama was walking down junction HM. As he passed the computer lab on the middle school side, he noticed the door was open.
"Strange," he thought as he poked his head inside.
Several ugly rock-like figures stared back at him as he glanced around the room, each in a different pose.
"Sculptures," he thought, "really rather ugly ones at that…must be Davis's work."
The principal sighed as he continued his rounds.
Davis sneezed as he walked over to the comatose Veemon.
"Veemon…" he said softly picking up his blue friend.
George walked over to the gogglehead and put his hand on the younger boy's shoulder.
"He'll be alright," said the fallen warrior comfortingly, "he just needs rest and plenty of food."
George glanced at Matt who was complaining loudly to Sora about her boyfriend's protégé.
"I had a little talk with Matt," he said.
"What'd that jerk tell you?" demanded the gogglehead.
"Enough," replied George in a voice of steel, "and if you EVER hit another Digidestined like that again, I will personally see to it that your life is a living hell. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal," said Davis shrinking back a little.
"Excellent," said George smiling, "now let's get Veemon cleaned up while we wait for the others to return the Gotsumon."
As they worked on makeshift bandages, George looked over to Matt, who was still complaining.
"Hey Wonderboy," shouted the fallen warrior, "instead of griping why don't you make yourself useful and see if Gabumon can digivolve."
Matt bit his tongue to prevent his scathing remarks from escaping and merely nodded as he pulled out his digivice. Sure enough, the signal wasn't jammed.
"Gabumon digivolve to—Garurumon!"
Once again, the lupine digimon stood before the Digidestined, but this time, his eyes were yellow, and he was much friendlier.
The remaining Gazimon looked on in awe.
"Garurumon should stay here," said George.
"What and be captured again?" asked Matt incredulously, "have you lost your mind?!"
"Ages ago," replied George casually, "but with Garurumon around, the Emperor should think twice about trying to reclaim this territory."
The fallen warrior pulled out his mini computer and began typing.
"What're you up to?" asked Cody.
"I'm e-mailing Kari," replied George as he finished typing, "to let Tai know about the digivolutions and that he should leave Greymon with the Gotsumon."
Tai, Kari, and the Gotsumon decided to make a few pit stops on the way back to the former arena's sector. They wanted to make sure the Emperor wouldn't return, so they were destroying neighboring Control Spires. This was their last stop.
"Rock Fist!"
The Gotsumon launched a barrage of stones at the Control Spire causing severe cracking and sparking. Tai glanced at his digivice. Sure enough, the jam was no longer in effect. He nodded at Agumon.
"Agumon digivolve to—Greymon!"
Greymon growled and lashed out with his tail knocking down the tower of evil.
"They don't make Control Spires like they used to," quipped the orange dinosaur.
"Ha!" laughed Tai pulling off his goggles (which he had put on in case of flying debris) and giving a 'thumbs up', "way to go Greymon, you're a one mon wrecking crew!"
"Hmmmm," said the Emperor, as he watched the day's events for the third time on his base's monitors, "so the other fools have finally discovered my amplification devices…unfortunate, but not a big deal in the grand scheme…the bigger problem, is him."
The Emperor paused the image as Sobekmon toppled Santa Geria's spire.
"I should have figured Helltower would join the group of hackers who undermine my digivice's power. I really must find out what loophole they extorted and seal it off…" the Emperor mused.
"Master," said Wormmon crawling towards the boy, "shouldn't you be getting home? It's getting late."
The Emperor set his security systems and exited his control room, aiming a kick at the insectoid digimon as he left.
"Hey everyone, I really think you should take a look at this," said Izzy.
The Digidestined had returned to the real world and were now gathered around Izzy's old pineapple laptop, which was displaying a series of black, gray, and white grid squares.
"What is that?" asked Yolei.
"George and I found it while we were examining your digivice," replied Izzy.
"Then it must have been part of the 5% we actually managed to download," mused George.
"Do you recognize the patterns?" asked Izzy.
"The gray squares are shaped just like the Digital World's oceans and seas, and the white and gray squares form the continents," replied George yawning.
"As I thought," said Izzy nodding, "it seems to be a map of the Digital World."
"…so what do the white squares and black squares mean?" asked Tai.
"I was just getting to that," said Izzy, "do you see this white square?"
Izzy pointed at a square with a pen.
"It used to be black," he continued, "as did these."
"So?" asked Patamon, "get to the point already!"
"What he's trying to say is that the former black squares used to have Control Spires," said Matt irritably, "but now that they don't they're white."
Even Davis understood now.
"But there are so many black squares," remarked Cody, "it's going to take a lot of time to change them all to white ones…"
"and how do we know the Emperor won't build new ones?" demanded Davis.
"Oh he will," said George matter-of-factly, "you can count on it."
"Then how're we supposed to beat him?" asked Kari.
The Martian Digidestined smiled.
"We just have to knock 'em down faster than he can put 'em up," he said enthusiastically pumping his fist.
Cody shook his head; he may understand who George is better now, but he still doesn't quite grasp what George is.
"Sometimes he's as strict and serious as grandpa, and at other times he's just as goofy and wacky as Tai…I really don't understand his behavior at all," thought the 4th grader solemnly.
As the Digidestined began filing out of the computer lab, George put a hand up to stop Davis.
"Just a moment there Mr. Motomiya," said George sternly.
"Uh-oh," thought Davis, "the only time people use my last name is when I'm about to get detention…"
"What have we learned today?" asked George to the stunned gogglehead.
Davis looked at the still injured DemiVeemon. Dedigivolving had helped speed up the recovery, but even so it would be a while before the tiny digimon regained his full strength. Davis sighed.
"The Digimon Emperor is not a pushover. We can't win just by straight out fighting," he said reluctantly.
George nodded.
"What else have you learned?" he asked.
"I've learned that you older Digidestined have more experience and that I should trust your decisions even if I don't agree with them," replied Davis.
"Good," said George, "in life one makes many mistakes, heck I've made too many to count. To make mistakes is to be human, but you are expected to learn from your mistakes and make new ones next time. Do you understand?"
"Yes," said Davis, as he thought, "finally someone who speaks clearly."
"Good," replied the fallen warrior, "dismissed."
Davis left the room and hurried to catch up to Kari, as George pulled out his cell phone and began dialing.
"Oh yes," he thought as he dialed, "I've made far too many mistakes in my lifetime…"
Izzy's cell phone rang. He picked it up.
"Hello?" he said.
The person on the other end said something as Izzy nodded.
"I understand," said Izzy, "I will alert the others."
With that, the boy genius hung up, and did an abrupt about face toward Tai and Kari's apartment complex.
Narrator: What is Izzy up to, and will the Emperor finally succeed in preventing Armor Digivolution? Find out next time on Digimon: Digital Monsters!
(21 and George return, each holding a massive Slurpy)
Sponsor: It's about time you idiots got back! Now get these lunatics offa me!
21: Alright guys, I think he's had enough.
(The pissed off mutants reluctantly stop attacking their prey, and begin to leave.)
George: It was nice of you guys to swing by and say 'Hi' though.
Wolverine: If this guy gives you anymore trouble (extends Adamantium claws) just leave him to me.
(Gambit flicks one last charged card at the Sponsor before the X-Men are gone.)
Sponsor: You no good, low life, idiotic-
(The card blows up leaving the Sponsor speechless as he continues to grumble.)
George: Whatever you say Mr. Sponsor.
21: We're leaving now, see you next time!
(21 and George leave. The Sponsor is stranded in the building.)
Sponsor: HEY! DON'T JUST LEAVE ME HERE! COME BACK YOU INGRATES!
PS: Bonus points to anyone who finds the reference to another anime. It's a line from one of the episodes and is disguised to look like a typo. Just reply to this chapter with the name of the anime and the quote from it, and I'll give you the bonus points.