The parents, and siblings, of all the captured tamers gathered around the central command monitor, in the Hypnos base, that was directly linked to several live video feeds from Shinjuku Park where Ryan's battle with FlameWizardmon would soon take place. A five block radius around it had been cordoned off so that no innocent bystanders would be harmed and the damage could possibly be kept to a minimum.

"The area is secure. You can tell Ryan we're ready to proceed." Riley informed her boss who had started flicking the top of his zippo lighter open and shut due to the tension. "Perhaps you should say something. It might help them…and you."

"You're right." Closing the lighter for the last time, he walked in front of the group and removed his sunglasses in order to speak with them on a more personal level than just a man doing his job. "I know that this is a particularly difficult time for all of you, so I'll be brief. I'm confident that all of your children will all be returned home to you safe and sound. While I haven't known this Ryan Riley that long, I do know that if it weren't for him they wouldn't have survived the initial assault by Myotismon's shadow slayers several days ago. And if he saved their lives once, he can certainly do it again."

Yamaki placed the shades back on and made his way over to the work station where Henry's father was sitting. "That was nice of you. They all needed a little reassurance right now."

"Go sit with your wife and kids. I'll take it from here." Janyu silently thanked his colleague, got up from the chair and joined his family. I just gave that kid one chance to prove me wrong. He'd better not waste it.

Ryan's heart was beating faster than it ever had before. Adrenaline coursed through every vessel and vein in his body causing him to shake mildly. His breathing became increasing shallow with every footstep taken. The thought of not going through with the battle had crossed his mind but he knew that it was not nor ever an option. "I just want you guys to know that, win or lose, I'm going to give it my best. Just do me a favor. If something should happen to me…tell my family that I love them."

"You'll be able to tell them that yourself. I'm sure of it." Yin took his data sabre out of its sheath and presented it to the teen. "Here…FlaWizardmon has a staff, so it's only fair that you have a weapon as well. I trust you remember how to use it?"

The sunlight gleamed off the blade. A metallic sound could be heard as he waved it through the air to get reacquainted with its grip and weight. He quickly spun to his right, slicing through a semi-thick tree with one slash. "And I trust that answers your question?"

Both digimon become completely still, their fur standing on end. Yin held up his arm to stop the group before taking several steps forward. "We've got company."

"Nothing personal but why do you always speak so ominously? I mean, my stomach is already in knots as it is but do you have to add more pressure by talking like someone right out of a horror movie?" The ground began to shake violently nearly throwing them all off balance. Leaves fell from the surrounding trees by the dozens. "I'm willing to bet that's not an earthquake!"

Rika started to shiver while her breath became visible in the air. "Is it me or did it get cold all of a sudden?"

The temperature had indeed dropped to below normal. And what was once a mild summer day now felt like a frigid winter evening. Snowflakes fell from the sky. A cold, blustery wind picked up chilling both humans to the bone but having little to no effect on the digimon. The vibrations stopped without warning. Several yards away, a number of trees turned into solid blocks of ice and were shattered into millions of ice shards sent flying in their direction.

"Get down!" Yin's warning came not a moment too soon as all four of them hit the ground, avoiding serious injury in the process. "That's not good."

A Hyogamon, snarling fiendishly and clenching a club made out of ice in his oversized hand, was the only obstacle standing between them and saving their friends. "Hyogamon…champion level…special attack: Icy Cudgel. Do you think he's related to that Fugamon we fought two years ago?"

"If he is, he's going to be defeated just the same." Renamon turned to address the boys "You two go and find FlameWizardmon. Rika and I will join you after we take care of this."

Yin motioned for Ryan to come with him. He started to follow but stopped, unsure if this was the last time that he would see her or not. In a an instant there was a deep feeling of regret for being unable to finish explaining he wanted to on the rooftop. Although the circumstances were out of his control, he knew that the time for honesty was now or never. "I was hoping to tell you this when we were alone but if I don't tell you now I may not have a chance to later. Renamon, I…I…I love you."

Both tamer and digimon were equally taken aback by his statement. The vixen wanted to respond to such an emotional sentiment but could not as Ryan, glad to have expressed his true feelings yet filled with embarrassment, ran off to another inevitable encounter with destiny.

"The three of us are definitely talking later, so he'd better survive." Rika reached into her case and took out a single modification card. "But for now we've got bigger things to worry about. You ready?" Renamon nodded confidently and leapt into the air. "Digi-Modify...digivolution, activate!"

"Renamon, digivolve to…" Her data was quickly rearranged, transforming the once rookie digimon into champion form which leveled the playing field. "…Kyubimon!"

Ryan and Yin, having circled around to avoid Hyogamon, made their way onto the field where FlaWizardmon was already waiting for them with the tamers and digimon suspended in mid-air, still confined within the cage of fire. "Dear, oh dear your friend is here. If you wish to survive, alone he must thrive."

"Uh…I do not like green eggs and ham. I do not like them, Sam I am. See? I can rhyme like Dr. Seuss just as good as you." Although there was hardly anything amusing about what was about to happen, it was the only thing he could do to take some of the pressure off. "Is everyone okay up there?"

"We're fine! Just get us out of here, four eyes!" Impmon yelled, agitated by his imprisonment.

"Hey! Call me one more name you purple push pop and I'll save everyone but you!" He then remembered that both of Impmon's tamers were present and didn't want to scare them into thinking he was really going to do so. "Ai, Mako, I didn't mean that by the way! I was only kidding! I'll have all of you out in a minute! I promise!"

FlaWizardmon immediately chuckled at his assurance. "Defeat me in battle, all by yourself? I think not you little whelp! You're only human and I sense your fear, knowing that your doom is near! Come now child and face the end! For when I'm done with you, I shall finish off your friends!"

All of the tamers, along with their partners, began cheering him on, hoping and praying for his victory despite the disadvantage. Yin felt helpless, unable to do anything but stand by and watch the ensuing battle. For if he interfered in any way, shape or form, FlaWizardmon would certainly barbecue the digidestined and digimon without hesitation. Ryan closed his eyes, drew in a deep breath and very slowly made his way out into the designated battle zone. The walk itself seemed to stretch on for an eternity, inflicting as much cruel torture on the teen as possible until, at last, he stood mere feet away from his enemy.

"Just to be sure that no one will interfere…" Using his powers, the wizard encircled them with a ring of fire, creating walls of flame nearly ten feet high. "…a little heat, that singes and sears!"

Kyubimon ran in, dodging Hyogamon's Throwing Ice attack while attempting to get in a good position to launch a counter offensive. "Fox Tail Inferno…!"

It looked as if the fire balls would hit their target but were deflected when Hyogamon used his defensive attack, Snow Barrier, creating a shield of ice that absorbed and extinguished them, creating a fog that allowed the ogre to hide in plain sight. "Rika, I can't find him! Keep your eyes open!"

"I'll do you one better." She pulled out another card and ran it through her d-ark. "Digi modify, Kazemon activate!"

"Tempest Twist…!" Using the powers imbued within her by the wind spirit, Kyubimon was able to blow away the haze by spinning faster than a tornado. However, it was too late to prevent the Icy Cudgel sneak attack that hit its target and sent the champion vulpine to the ground in front of her partner, conscious but injured.

FlameWizardmon conjured up the blue colored fire in his hand, formed it into a burning sphere and sent it straight at Ryan who sliced through it, using Yin's data sabre, with ease. "Impressive. Perhaps this will be more…entertaining…than I thought." Again he created an orb made from magical flames. Only now he had separated it into multiple smaller ones. "You managed one, but a dozen wait! A rain of fire shall seal your fate!"

"Don't forget, anything you can do I can do better: your face is ugly, your words are crass, and I'm going to stick this sword straight up your candy…" The golf ball sized meteors whizzed towards him just as he was about to finish the sentence. He barely managed to avoid them all but was grazed across the right shoulder in the process. "Ugh! That does it! You're going down you pyromaniac!"

The data sabre collided with both match staff's, which FlameWizardmon crossed in an "X" pattern to defend himself, creating a shower of sparks in the process. Ryan side kicked the digimon who stumbled backwards but was able to counter a side strike from the sword wielding teenager who tried for a front kick only to have that attempt countered as well.

FlameWizardmon spun the boy around and tried to hit him with the red tipped staff, blocked with the sabre, and then the blue one which Ryan ducked before jumping backwards to regroup.

"Fire Cloud…!" A black smog like cloud erupted forth from the two staff's combined power.

Ryan front flipped over it and connected with a flying kick right to the wizard's already horribly disfigured face, sending him flying backward onto the grass.

FlameWizardmon was quick to his feet, unleashing Magic Ignition, the most devastating attack in his entire arsenal. It caused a distraction long enough for the rookie to use his cheetah like speed to grab the teen by the throat, causing the data sabre to drop from his grasp, and then throwing him so close to the edge of the fire that another inch would have incinerated him entirely.

"Oh, no, he's in trouble!" Jeri yelled, holding onto Calumon tightly. "We've got to get out of here and help him somehow!"

"We can't. This cage's magic is stopping our d-arks from letting us modify or digivolve our digimon." Henry replied, not wanting to make everything seem hopeless while trying to remain realistic. "Wait! That's it! It's made up of a magical flame. And those staffs he carries are the wands."

"Yeah, what's your point dude?" Kazu asked, just as confused as everyone was if not more so.

Takato intervened upon realizing what Henry was thinking and talking about. "What he means is if we can get our hands on just one of those wands, we might be able to use it to get ourselves out of here."

"That's a great plan, guys. One problem…we're in here. The wands are down there." Kenta was not the least bit optimistic about their plan. "How are we supposed to get one of them?"

Yin, thanks to his ability to hear from long distances, heard the proposed plan. Leave that to me.

"Kyubimon, talk to me! Are you alright!?" Rika gently cradled the champions head in her arms.

"I'm fine. But he's too powerful for me to defeat in champion form." Kyubimon's reply hinted to the tamer just what she had in mind in order to finish Hyogamon off once and for all.

Rika smiled, nodded and held her digivice up as Kyubimon de-digivolved back into Renamon. "Ready when you are!" The d-ark began to glow with a blue colored aura before the computer voice spoke the words "Bio-Merge Digivolution". "Bio-Merge, activate…!"

"Renamon, Bio Merge to…" Human and digimon became one in an incredible transformation that ends with the creation of a Mega. "…Sakuyamon!"

Ryan groaned, holding his chest as he tried to recover from being tossed around like a weathered baseball. FlameWizardmon seized him by the hair, drawing a grunt of pain from the adolescent, and moving closer to the surrounding fire. "I'll give credit where it is due, you fought valiantly but now you're through! All good fun must come to an end, so must you and all your friends!"

"You'll never learn will you?" Ryan asked, laughing during the entire sentence. "Your wrong again, your rhymes still suck, and if I were you…" The data cycle smashed into the rookie digimon's side, launching him through the fire and into the woods. "…I would've ducked!"

"Ryan, can you hear me? There's no time for you to answer me, so I hope that you're listening: you need to procure one of FlameWizardmon's match staffs. They double as magic wands and can be used to free the others. We have but one shot at this. Good luck." Understanding what he had to do Ryan got onto the bike and drove it to the center of the field, retrieving Yin's data sabre along the way, waiting patiently for his enemy to come back for another round.

Indeed he returned and more enraged than before, with all of his appendages set ablaze. "No more rhymes! I'm just going to annihilate you, human!"

Revving the engine, he released the brake and drove forward like a medieval knight on his steed. FlameWizardmon, wielding both weapons, raced forth, scorching the Earth beneath his feet. Just a little close…a bit more…now! Purposely skidding the data cycle out, Ryan tripped the virus type up and snatched one of his wands as he went tumbling. "Yin, heads up!"

With all of his might, Ryan threw it through the air towards the cage. Yin intercepted it mid-air and sliced through the bars, which dissipated into mere particles of harmless energy, freeing all of the prisoners. "No!" FlameWizardmon yelled, having lost his hostages and only leverage. "No matter…they may have escaped with their lives…but you won't!"

The flames surrounding them burned stronger and higher, creating the closest approximation of hell that anyone could have possibly imagined.

From across the park, Sakuyamon could see the blaze reaching into the sky then taking a dome shape. "Oh, no…! We've got to finish this guy off and go help Ryan!" The Shakujou glowed brightly with a yellow aura as did the Mega's body. Hyogamon senselessly tried once more to destroy her using Throwing Ice. "Vile creature of darkness, feel the power of my Twin Blades of Beauty…" One swipe unleashed an energy wave that broke up the incoming attack. "And Truth…!"

In a brilliant display of light, leaving behind pink flower petals made out of pure energy floating through the air, the ice clad ogre was deleted into nothing but bits and pieces of data.

Because they had expended so much power during the battle, Sakuyamon de-digivolved back into Rika and Renamon. Neither took the time to celebrate their victory, instead opting to locate the others as fast as they possibly could.

Meanwhile, Yin, along with the other digimon, tried relentlessly to pierce the force field that was keeping the wizard and his prey trapped together.

"We've got to get in there!" Henry yelled, thrusting his shoulder into the barrier. "He'll die if we don't!"

FlameWizardmon advanced on the boy, grinning frighteningly with his Scarecrow like mouth. Ryan spun around, trying to run though there was no place to go, but was no match for the speed of his foe who appeared in front of and grabbed the teen by the throat again, lifting him into the air. "It would be so easy to turn you into nothing but ash. But I feel it would be more satisfying to just choke the life from you instead!"

Impmon took Ai and Mako away from the scene so they would not have to witness such an atrocious act being committed at such a young age. Jeri, visibly disturbed by what was happening, turned away, tears streaming down her face. "Hurry, he's killing him! Please!"

Despite his struggle to break the grip around his neck, Ryan felt himself slowly fading. His body started to become limp from the lack of oxygen. This…is…it. Goodbye…Renamon…

Just before losing consciousness, the D-Ark in his jacket pocket slipped out and fell to the ground. At that moment, a tower of light exploded from the device which temporarily blinded everyone including FlameWizardmon, forced to release the teen to shield his own eyes. It broke through the top of the dome, destroying it and extinguishing the original fire it had been created from, coating the entire field in steam.

"What…happened?" Takato inquired, coughing due to the degraded air quality. "Can anybody see anything?"

"Takato, I hear something!" Guilmon exclaimed, with his ears perked up all the way. "Listen!"

Once the group of tamers and digimon quieted down they were barely able to make out what sounded like fighting, in particular punches and kicks landing, in the background.

Rika and Renamon emerged from the trail and hurried over; happy to see that their friends were safe but wondering why they were all just standing around.

The opportunity to ask never came as FlameWizardmon came flying out of nowhere, slamming into the ground. "Impossible…where did he…come from?" It was a rhetorical question, and made little to no sense, though it became apparent that someone or something had weakened him as he struggled to stand. "I…must…destroy you…all! My master…commands it!"

"Pyro-Sphere…!"

"Bunny Blast…!"

"Diamond Storm…!"

"Badda-Boom…!"

"Guardian Barrage…!"

"Kahuna Waves…!"

"No…No…NO!" A barrage of attacks put an end to his last feeble, yet defiant, attempt at destroying them.

Still watching from inside Hypnos, all of the tamers parents cheered at the villains destruction and celebrated the fact that they would be able to see their children again. Riley and Tally joined in while Yamaki sat back into the chair, removed his sunglasses and sighed, relieved that this long ordeal was finally over. "I need a new career."

Suzie jumped up and down, squealing with delight that her brother was safe. "Henry's okay! Terriermon too!

Lopmon, who was being squeezed in her arms groaned, and replied, "Lucky for them."

With FlameWizardmon out of the way, all attention turned back to Ryan who was still missing in the field of steam. It had been too dangerous to use any attack or modify card to clear it, so Yin and Renamon went in, alone, to look for him. "Ryan! Ryan, where are you!? It's Renamon, if you can hear me please answer!"

"Renamon, look…!" Through the thick haze, a silhouetted figure stood there looking at the two foxes before hastily retreating. "Ryan! Where are you going!? Wait!" They left the field and made their way into the woods, desperately looking around for any sign of the teenager. "Over there!"

Underneath a nearby tree lie Ryan, motionless but unharmed at first glance. "He's still breathing. Ryan? Ryan, wake up. Wake up."

Her attempts to revive him yielded no immediate response. She was on the cusp of getting truly worried until he slowly stirred. "Mm…Renamon? What's going on?" It took another second or two until he was able to recall what had happened. "FlameWizardmon…he tried to…where…?"

"Relax. He's been taken care of." Yin interjected to help keep his friend calm. "Is that why you ran away from us? You thought we were him?"

"What are you talking about? I didn't run anywhere. The last thing I remember is being unable to breathe…" He massaged his neck to loosen up his airway which continued to feel constricted. "Oh, and Renamon carrying me out of there…thank you…"

The vixen made eye contact with the male vulpine before turning her attention back to the dazed and confused boy. "Ryan, what are you talking about? I didn't carry you out of there. Rika and I were busy fighting Hyogamon the entire time you were battling with FlameWizardmon. We only got here afterwards."

"Are you sure? Because I could've sworn…oh, my God…it was him. He saved me!"

"What are you talking about? Who saved you?" Yin asked, trying to get to the bottom of things.

"Wait…I didn't tell you guys? This morning, when I told you I was chasing after my partner…I originally thought it was you." Referring to Renamon who tilted her head, trying to understand what he meant. "Don't you get it? My digimon is another Renamon!"