Digimon is owned by Toei Animation

Omnitrix and Aliens are owned by Man of Action and Cartoon Network

Chapter 7

The Icemon Cometh

It was an average day in the country of Japan - jobs and schools were being attended, but there was one worker at one particular job that seemed to be having a problem. "It's a wild one, but I've never seen anything like it." Riley a worker at H.Y.P.N.O.S. said to her boss while looking at one of their smaller monitors. Tally, fellow employee was tracking what he friend was seeing with the dome computer.

"It's trying to bio-emerge. I don't know what it's bringing along, but it's bigger than a bread box." Yamaki, who was standing behind his most loyal member all viewing the same feed as her.

"Unbelievable." The long haired beauty said back to him in pure awe over what she was seeing. A bright blue light came from the monitor, not as a distraction, but as a show of power. The sunglass wearing gentleman on the other hand stopped flipping his cigarette lighter after seeing that light.

'What ever this creature is, he's powerful.' Tally thought after gazing through her visor and saw that the tracer on the beast shattered without giving them an exact location. Back to the other two the light stopped and Riley only had bad news to the Digi-hater.

"Sir, it succeeded." She said to him and almost felt a cold shiver run down her spine when he looked at her. Outside of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building one of three tamers, the source of Yamaki's trouble, was walking on the sidewalk - trying not to think of one subject:

'Digivolving, I don't understand it.' Rika thought while listening to her music and recalled the dino's transformation.

"TAKATO!" The little one screamed out after seeing his partner taking a back to the wall before evolving, "Guilmon digivolve to…Growlmon." She also remembered how the fight ended, but skipped over that.

"I've seen hamsters with more battle experience then Guilmon, but still he could digivolve, and so could that weeny little rabbit." Present day Rika said aloud and then recalled that incident.

"NO!" Henry of old shouted after an explosion at the watch's burial site.

"Terriermon digivolve to…Gargomon." The long eared one announced after making the step up from runt to gun totter.

"And when it happened to Renamon…" The red haired Nonaka said aloud and then recalled the moment of her creature's level up.

"Please…go." The weakened warrior strained to say to her partner.

"RENAMON!" The younger by days Rika shouted to her partner and then it happened.

"Renamon digivolve to…Kyubimon." She changed from a warrior based yellow furred woman to a four legged power house.

"It's what I've wanted for the longest time. I should be satisfied." The Digi-Queen said to herself while stop walking all together. "Still…" She stressed as she recalled the incident with the painted Champion level and the two of them leaving them, sparing them the embarrassment of being absorbed. "I feel like there's something I'm missing." She said once returning to the present. She recalled some comments from the shape shifter.

"Then in that case you wouldn't mind if you failed with a different slaughter and Renamon was killed – you would feel nothing. You would just walk off, not caring of her." She recalled that is what he said to her after the Vilemon fight when he was in that big red alien body.

"In other words: Renamon takes a pounding while you sit on the sidelines, where it's safe." The flaming one said and added, "Face it, you don't care about Renamon. You care about all of that power." Admittedly she did get angry over what he said, but it got stranger from him later that day.

"Thanks for the save, Kyubimon. I can tell you're in good hands." His civilian said to them after the ride home when he transformed into that shrimp sized hero.

"Maybe that's what it boils down to - caring." She said after recalling those incidents, and was thinking that she may have been wrong all this time until an uneasy feeling came over her from behind. "What was that?" She questioned aloud after turning on her heels when she felt something cold on her back. 'That's weird. I could have sworn I felt something.' She thought s she looked at the empty sidewalk, but as soon as turned around she saw someone she knew.

"Hi." Calumon said to the female after her gasp of alarm, but added a laugh at the end. While the white colored Digimon was following her, since she passed him, and went on her way, Impmon was seeing what the third 'Digi-Pet' was doing.

"Some Digimon are so stupid it hurts." The purple clad creature said while looking through a sliding glass door to see Henry and Terriermon back to back on the couch reading books. "They hang out with humans so much they start actin like `em it makes my fur stand - HAVE THEY NO PRIDE!" The handkerchief wearer added before leaving the two without trying to convince the third of three to defect. Rika on the other hand was trying to keep that lone wolf vibe, but it was hard with a beanie baby like creature was following her.

"I don't have any food, so why are you following me?" She questioned the shorter creature after crossing the street. 'Is it an informant for that goggle head?' She thought and then added, 'No, not even he would trust a Digimon like this with that kind of mission.' She got her answer when the retractable eared one stopped behind her.

"Wanna play?" Calumon questioned after he saw that the girl was facing him again. "Huh?" The little one questioned with lowered ears. Once believing that her silence meant 'sure' he added, "Here I come." The Digimon leapt up, and out of human instinct Rika caught it, but not without being angry.

"What are you doing?" She questioned with anger since she did have a reputation to uphold.

"Eskimo kisses." Calumon answered with a big smile still on its white face. Soon though the owner of the body that was on the poster's to the girl's right side came up behind her.

"Rika." The voice said causing the redhead to turn in the direction of the noise and saw a familiar person in a white outfit coming over to her. Aside from the woman's laughter there were civilians talking over who that was.

"It's her.' One of the voices said and there were other comments, but right now the only thing on the woman's mind was the red haired one before her.

"Mom, what are you doing here?" The Digi-Queen questioned while taking a protective step back.

"What a day." Rumiko said to her daughter and then explained what she meant, "We had a photo shoot, but before we could start all these people showed up wanting my autograph, asking the secret of my youthful good looks they just wouldn't leave me alone. We couldn't get anything done all day. Being famous and popular can be a pain in the neck. You are so lucky that you don't know how that feels." The older, yet still attractive, woman vented to her child.

'Great. She's at this again, and again she doesn't know she's making a crowd.' Rika thought as she wanted to leave since the people that were traveling down this same sidewalk took the time to look at the picture on the side of the building and then to the woman talking - now knowing who she was, and staying there. "Yeah, lucky me. Well, got to go." The Digi-Duelist said and was about to turn since she did not want ANYONE seeing her with this annoyance, but was stopped by her higher up.

"Wait." Rumiko, a pro model, said and when she saw the younger one turn she added, "Rika, I think your toy is just adorable." The duelist of the Digital World looked down at the creature in her arms, the one her mom was pointing to.

"You had to be cute, didn't you?" She said in anger, but only got a blink as her answer. After pushing through the crowd she thought to herself, 'luckily I have Renamon - beautiful but deadly.' As the learner was trying to find a place to dump the Digimon there was another who was taking a break on spying on the human trained creatures, and was just messing around.

"Bada-Boom!" Impmon shouted after launching a small fireball at a group of birds on a stone doorway. "Aw, fight back you cowards. I guess my fire power's just too much for you huh." The incompetent imp said to the birds while walking in while forgetting that when Growlmon fought back he fled. "I'll have to wreck havoc elsewhere." He finished while walking through the doorway he just blasted.

'This should be good enough.' Rika thought before setting the creature down, and squatted down almost too eye to eye level. "Listen you little squirt, I'm immune to you're ootsy-cutesy act, so scram." She informed the little one, at first Calumon started to turn around with sad eyes, but when the Digimon saw that she meant what she said he ran away bawling. "Keep going, shorty." She said once she saw that the creature was a good distance away. 'Perhaps that was a bit much.' She thought to herself before feeling the same sensation as with the sidewalk. "Renamon." She said before turning around and saw nothing, nothing but prayer ropes.

"You called." The canine asked casually to her partner after appearing near the redhead, but still hidden behind a tree.

"Where have you been?! What if I was in danger?" Rika questioned out of anger since that was often the main emotion on the top of her reaction pile.

"I was watching you from over there." She answered back while pointing with a tilted head over where she was, but she did not feel right holding back information, so she finished her comment. "But I began to think…" She did not have time to tell her partner the subject since the jumpy girl cut her off.

"THINKING?! You were thinking of what? That shape shifting goggle head?" Rika said in anger to her canine ally. Truth be told she was thinking of her other forms, but now that the human brought up the male human she began to picture them. The flaming one defending her, the boy petting her head when she was Kyubimon, and three other parts:

"I mean she may be a partner to a gorgeous Digimon, but she's doing it all wrong." The younger Takato said while thinking aloud over Rika's methods. The dog then recalled.

"Got a couple of things to say: first is why do you want to wale on Guilmon, but I guess a strong warrior is always looking for a challenge. The second is that are you okay? I mean after that scuffle with Dokugumon you had me really worried." He complimented and noted for her well being when he wanted answers over Digimon. And the final one had just happened recently.

"Yeah, a stunning vixen that wants to turn you into a leather jacket." He complimented her again and got ready to defend his partner. As she thought of those moments in time she was awoken from them when she heard a voice.

"Renamon, are-are you blushing?" Rika questioned since she could swear that she was seeing just the faintest signs of red on the fox's muzzle. "Don't tell me that you…" She started to say something, but this time it was Renamon who cut her off.

"Still though, you don't look well. Rika is there something troubling you?" The vixen questioned after getting out of her soft thoughts over the blue shirted boy, and back to her true concern - Rika Nonaka.

"N-nothing, I'm fine." She said back to her protective friend before walking off. 'I just have to shake off that feeling.' She thought, believing that she was a little jumpy since she hasn't had a fight in a while.

'There is something here.' Renamon thought and walked over to the prayer ropes, and could feel something. 'It's not a Digimon; it feels stronger than that.' She added to her first mental comment. 'Perhaps one of Takato's forms.' She thought before hearing a few pebbles move behind her. "Huh? Oh, it's just you." Renamon commented after turning and seeing that it was that annoying imp.

"Hey fine and foxy, so we meet again." The purple skinned creature said with a sickening smirk. Naturally her like the other two and one human decide that this Digimon is of no threat.

"Oh, it's just you." She said flatly before walking off. She knew that the evil that she sensed DID NOT come from Impmon, but rather something a lot more dangerous.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN: JUST ME!? Get back here!" He shouted in an insulted style while walking and standing in the spot she was at before she left. "Oh, check out miss high and mighty. Maybe a good fight will knock her off her perch." He said to himself while watching her tail sway while she walked. "Hey, I heard Terriermon call you a 'fat tail bully'. If I were you I'd teach that egg-shaped loud mouth a lesson." He informed the vixen which caused her to stop and hear him out.

'That's his best shot.' She thought after listening to the whole thing, and knew that he was only looking for a way to weaken either of them, so he could beat the victor up. "Ha." She said aloud, telling him that she did not believe him.

"What!? You're gonna let him get away with that." The dark themed one shouted out to her after hearing her.

"Terriermon won't fight." She informed her fellow Digimon while turning to face him better.

"Huh? Why not?" Impmon questioned while being blown by that bit of information.

"His tamer has forbidden it." She said back to the antagonizer before turning her back to him and walked off. As she walked a piece of her mind corrected what he said.

'Even if he did say that Takato would defend you from those sort of comments.' Her softer side said to the rest of her mind.

'Do not start that.' The logical side said back and added; 'Besides seeing why Rika seemed ill comes first.' As she had that discussion with herself Impmon was already coming up with a brilliant idea.

"What kind of Digimon doesn't fight? Those rotten humans, they've made him a pet - a Digi-poodle." The devil-like man said in a complaining style, but after saying that his devious side kicked in. "But if Terriermon can't fight back then I could whoop his doughy patooty, or steal his launch money, and get away without a scratch. Think of the possibilities." He said to himself and headed over to where he knew they would be, ignoring the logical side of his own mind.

'Have you forgotten that the blue shirted one called Takato is often always near either of the humans, and he does have all those forms?' The sane side of the brain said to the rest.

'Shove it, I can take on any of them, and walk out without a scratch.' The cocky side said back and then shut down the logical side while still heading to the big park. Rika on the other hand got to her home without incident - no Calumon, no fan-boys, and no creepy vibes, but that only put her on the spot for something truly horrific.

"Oh, how about this dress with the lace and loopy sleeves. Or this dress one; try it, it'll make you look more like a girl." Rumiko commented after dragging her daughter to one of their various rooms. The model looked at the tri-mirror beside her daughter while holding up a teddy bear themed dress. 'She'll look so adorable in this one.' She thought while ignoring the ticked vibes from her flesh and blood.

"Am I being punished for something?" The preteen questioned, mainly to the creator of all and to her grandmother since she knew that out of the four in the room only they knew what she liked. "I told you before I can't stand cute things like this." She told her mother for the umpteenth time. The dark blonde haired one heard that and decided to ask an important question.

"Well, what about that stuffed toy I saw you holding?" She questioned since seeing the two of them she couldn't help but recall how her daughter always wanted the cutest plush toys at the toy stores.

"That was for our Science Project. We had to measure the effects of gravity on small objects, so I threw it off a bridge." Rika answered back, and as she did her face went from thinking of an excuse to angry since she knew her mother often wanted her to be as she was.

"Oh, I really liked it." The mother of the Digimon Queen said, but her comment went unheard by the younger party.

"I'm outta here." Rika said while getting off the one step stepping stool and headed to her room after closing the door behind her.

"Well, I guess she's into tomboy chic." The second oldest woman said to herself which her comment was heard from her own mother who was enjoying some Jasmine tea, but it was instant, and she preferred to make it herself.

"Rika just has her own style, that's all. Honestly dear there are more important things in life than looking pretty." Seiko said to her daughter, defending her own granddaughter while eating a strawberry with her tea.

"Really? Like what?" Rumiko asked her mother over what she meant since as she told Rika once she was already thinking of her career, so she had little knowledge over what had happened around her. Rika was walking over to her room, still steamed over her mother and cuteness, over Calumon ruining her tough girl image, over Takato's meddling in her fights, over the uneasiness of Renamon's post ascension, but what bugged her the most was the creepy cold feeling that she had felt off and on all day.

'Here it is again.' She thought after feeling that sensation again. The female then rushed to her room and closed the door as fast as she could. "Renamon?" Rika said after a set of heavy breathing.

"Yes, Rika?" Renamon questioned appearing in the corner of her partner's room like she always does. Again she saw the panic in the bold redhead's eye, and grew concerned.

"Go and see what's out there, okay?" She suggested to her canine while kneeling down, and resting her arms and a placed table.

"As you wish." The blue eyed beauty answered back while heading to the door. Since neither of the parents of her partner knew of her the vixen stuck her head out, looked both ways of the hall, pulled it back in, and closed the door.

"Well, who was it?" The human questioned in a rushed tone since this strange feeling was starting to get to her.

"No one." Renamon answered back with an honest tone. She prayed that her statement would ease the young one's troubled mind, but it didn't.

"Don't lie to me. I know something's out there." Rika shouted back to the dog behind her. That's when the Digi-Duelist saw an unknown look in the Digital Monster's eyes. "What's that look for?" She questioned in defense while thinking; 'I bet this mutt thinks I'm crazy.' Renamon saw that her friend still needed consoling, so she tried something else.

"Don't worry. I'll do everything I can to protect you." She said and once again hoped that her truthful comment would help her with this problem she's been having all day, and again her words went the wrong way.

"You don't need to protect me." Rika said to her with an angered tone while standing up. "I don't even know why you say stuff like that." She added while glaring at her Digimon.

"Because Rika I'm your partner." The other female answered plainly back, thinking that for the first time the card shark was making a funny, but what was said next proved her wrong.

"Let's get this straight - I don't buy all this stuff about partners and feelings." Rika shouted back up at her partner while a part of her was shouting as high as it could:

'What are you doing? Take that comment back.' The logical side said to the angered side of her mind and then added, "if you don't then take a good look into her eyes.' Outside the mind the girl did just that and saw the stunned, almost hurt, look on her face which scared her a bit.

"I don't need you." The girl said while opening the door but added, "I don't need anybody." Before she left to get some air leaving her partner behind.

'Rika is that what you truly believe.' The prideful side of her mind thought since she wondered if the vixen made the right call.

'Perhaps when you viewed at all of the possible candidates you should have chosen Takato.' The softer side of her thought, and was expecting to be silenced but was surprised when there was no angered feed back. As for Takato, he along with Terriermon, Henry, and Guilmon were in the park.

"Before I show you my card stance I want to show you one of my latest heroes." Takato said to Henry after taking out his digivice and one card. "I saw the icon last night, but I didn't want to use him just yet." The goggle-wearer said while then activating the watch, turned it, but this time threw his digivice up before slamming down the head.

"Well, what do you think?" The new hero said with pride as he saw his fellow tamer and partner's stunned expression. Naturally it was the long eared one that found his voice first.

"So, what can this guy do?" Terriermon questioned and the group could admit that it was a good question, and at first the white faced creature could only rub his chin with his index finger and thumb - wondering what he could do.

"We'll figure that out after I catch my digivice." The latest alien said while extending its white hand up and caught the device, but then he saw that the card was drifting off the beaten path. "I better go get it." The new guy said to the others and chased after it.

"But…Takato, are you sure you can get it before someone else grabs it." Henry said since he knew that the wind had a habit of blowing personal items into unneeded territory such as his 1990's X-Men Banshee action figure glided right into Suzie's room, and was never seen from again.

"Yes, I…can?" The creature said but strained and questioned after feeling a strange pulling from the body, and then saw that he was staring at him self.

"Whoa. Freaky." The two said together and then they remembered of the card. "We better go get that card." They said as one and then chased after it.

"Quick jump onto my shoulders." The further alien said to the one trailing.

"You got it." The tagalong said and jumped up and the two were able to get it; the problem was that the two of them went for a tumble which forced them into a bush.

"That could have gone better." The one that did the running said in a complaining matter while dusting himself off.

"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" The one standing on the shoulders said as he also brushed off. As they both started to walk off they ignored a strange pain feeling and a tiny black and white winged butterfly.

"Well…Takatos, you said you wanted to show us something on the phone." Henry said while trying to get back on task. The two heard him and headed back over to the pacifistic tamer.

"Right, I…we wanted to show you a card slashing stance." The two said before meeting back with the other two. The dual action creatures stood shoulder.

"Okay, here we go…" The one to the left lifted up the digivice and shouted out, "Digi-modify -…" That was when the second one stepped in.

"Activate." He said that while grazing the thin gap on the side so it wouldn't activate.

"Well, how do you like it?" The digivice holder questioned to their friend and prayed for a good answer.

"Well, it wasn't bad…" Henry said back to his friend, not wanting to insult the newbie.

"Not bad?" The device holder questioned after hearing a certain tone in the answer.

"He means that we suck dweeb." The card holding one said to the other in anger.

"Who are you calling a dweeb, elf lips?" The digivice handler countered also in anger, and soon the two of them were at one anothers throats. The orange vested tamer decided to cut in.

"Guys, hey guys. You can calm down now." Henry started to say, but when he saw his calm voice wasn't catching on the rabbit/dog holder decided to be direct. 'ENOUGH!" That one worded yell was all it took to stop the bickering.

'Ooh, pretty bug.' Guilmon thought as he spotted the bug that the new guy woke up. The lizard, much like the bug, was sleeping but after seeing the flyer the red skinned one started to follow it.

"Card stances isn't important. Let's concentrate strategies." Henry said in a calmer voice and then added, "Have you heard of combos?" The somewhat wiser tamer questioned praying that the new guy knew that much about the game.

"Of course we do. That's when you use two or more cards at a time, right?" The duo said and questioned to the other.

"Yeah, and if you use them in succession you can get some pretty potent results." Henry said back to the unknown before him. "It's a good thing to keep in mind." He added to his first comment while putting two cards that he used as an example back in his pocket.

"Yeah, that and all the other stuff you told us about." The one to the left said in annoyance since the pacifist tamer has been giving him tips since the business with Gorillamon. Right when the mood of the area was calm and nice a familiar voice and body made itself known to a nearby tree.

"Well, if it isn't the dumb, dumb club." The voice said causing the three of them to see who it was, but they really didn't feel threatened. "Did ya miss me boys?" The imp questioned to them while hanging upside down from the tree.

"Just ignore him." Henry requested to the others since he would peg that Vilemon back at the school a stronger opponent than the devil child.

"Easy for you to say, you can't smell him." Terriermon said back to his human pal since he caught a foul whiff in the air a while back.

"Yeah, let's go." The creature to the right said in a board tone.

"Guilmon, come on." The creature to the left said to the red dino. Said creature was on his back with his tail up, and the butterfly resting on his tail tip.

"Aw, but I wasn't done with my friend Mister Butterfly. I was going to ask if he knew where a squirrel might be." The red one complained, but followed his orders, and rejoined the others.

"I just want to have a friendly fight; give you all nice, friendly butt kicking." The Rookie level threat said to them while stomping with one foot on the tree limb he was now standing on. The five of them ignored his words and just decided to hang out at Guilmon's home.

'Geez, what is that Digimon trying to prove with all of those empty threats.' Henry thought while looking through the corner of his eye at the yelling Digimon.

'Renamon was right. They won't fight. Well, here's my chance to blast some sense into them, and eliminate the competition while I'm at it.' Impmon thought with a toothy smirk.

"Hmm." The rabbit/dog fuzor said aloud while looking back at his fellow Digimon brother.

"Terriermon, don't touch him." Henry ordered since he knew how his partner likes to think sometimes.

"I know." The small-boned Digital monster answered back since he knew how his human thought too. Henry looked over at one of the two Takato's who were also looking back at the pain in the shell.

"You don't touch him either." Henry ordered to his fellow man.

"Sure, I can totally do that." The clone answered back with a devilish smile since he knew the perfect loophole.

"Bada-Boom!" Impmon announced after creating a fireball on his finger and threw it at them. As a counter attack the second Takato grabbed Terriermon by the ear, spun around on his heel, threw the Digimon, and halfway through the good monster put his plan into action.

"Terrier Tornado." The green and white one announced white creating a small twister around himself, launched it at the fireball - which was smothered, slammed Impmon which sent the creature flying, but there was a flaw.

"Great going Takato, but how are we going to get him down." Henry said and informed since his creature was on the tree branch.

"Don't sweat it Mac, we got this." The thrower said and then he and the other Takato ran to the tree, stood on one another's shoulders.

"Sorry, but that's still not enough." Henry informed and then he watched as just like last time more of the same creature began to be pulled out of the two that were there. The process continued until he…they formed a ladder which the Digimon used to come back down.

'Okay, this guy is good.' One of the clones thought and knew what to call this form, but the other tamer had something to say.

"Terriermon, what did I tell you a little while ago?" He questioned to the smaller one.

"I didn't actually touch him you know, and neither did Takato." Terriermon said while defending himself and Takato.

"You are incorrigible." Henry said while giving him a playful thump on the head with the back of his hand. Takato on the other hand was enjoying the view from the tree branch he was resting on while the other hims were keeping him up there, but when he moved his hand on the limb a sharp pain came over him.

"OW!" They all screamed causing the whole lot to fall on one another, holding their right hands.

"Uh, group of Takatos, what's the problem." Henry said to them after hearing the scream.

"My hand hurts." The closest clone said to him while holding his hand, but when the tamer looked down he saw nothing wrong.

"My hand hurts too." Another said, but when the short haired human looked again there was no damage. The same process came about until the last one, and that was when Henry saw something.

"There's a splinter in your hand." Henry informed and then took out a pair of tweezers from his back pocket, since his mom often told him to be prepared, but he didn't know that tweezers would actually be helpful today. As soon as the obstacle was taken out the black and white Takatos were feeling fine.

"That was weird I felt the splinter, too." One of the clones said and the others agreed which made Henry think of the problem.

"That's it! This guy can clone himself, but all of them seem to feel the others pain." Henry said to the other.

"That's why we're going to call this form - Ditto." The group said while going into a dog pile. The whole lot of them went back with their original plan of going to Guilmon's home. Around the hour of sunset the team was still in the park, with a powered down Takato, but there was also Renamon on her homes roof - thinking.

'Guilmon and his tamer…their relationship is so different from mine and Rika's. I wonder if I acted more human would she accept me - would she finally let me get close to her.' Renamon thought to herself since she really wanted the same kind of friendship Guilmon and Terriermon had with their partners. Rika was at a train station, wanting just to be left alone so she could think, but for some reason she knew that wasn't going to happen.

'Okay, maybe what I told Renamon was a tad jerk-ish.' Rika thought, mentally confessing what she said earlier was a little out of line, but as soon as she thought that the cold feeling came over her. 'Not again.' She thought wile wrapping her arms around her and began to shiver.

'So, your finally alone, and your finally mine.' The specter thought while descending from the ceiling.

"What do you want?!" Rika shouted, wanting answers, but only saw a pair of human males behind her.

"Uh…"The closer of the two said since he was at a lose of words why the young woman would be shouting at them.

"Nothing." The balding man further from her said to her in an honest tone. The two men looked at one another in a curios fashion not noticing the girl was now looking at a flight of stairs a ways down on the other side of the hall.

'That has to be what's been following me.' She thought since she knew that it wasn't an illusion, but an actual Digimon. "Get out of the way." She ordered while pushing the two away from her before running up the stairs. She ran up to the second landing and looked up since she didn't want to go any further without a plan, but her mouth beat her brain to the punch. "Hey. I saw you, you creep. Now come out." She shouted while looking around her.

'Get a grip, Rika, your getting a little too jumpy.' The lighter side thought while the body took a breather, but something bad happened the nanosecond she let down her guard. A pair of white arms shot from the wall she was near and latched onto around her face and torso before pulling her in.

"It's so cold." She said when the hands vanished from her and all she saw was an ice blue floor and darkness everywhere else. With her guard still down she didn't notice the Digimon that came from the ice themed floor behind her and wrapped his tattered wings around her. "Huh?!" She said in alarm after feeling the wings on her shoulders.

"Welcome to my humble abode." The creature said to her while having his wings lift the young woman's feet off the ground; up to his knees at least.

"Are you…a Digimon?" She questioned since she NEVER let any Digimon get the drop on her before.

"Yes!" He said back to her, believing that his plan will be simple if he answered her questions truthfully.

"So, this is a Digital Field?" She asked the white clad man, still feeling a little out of it for the moment.

"Exactly. Beautiful, isn't it? It suits you perfectly." He said to her and knew that she would accept the compliment.

"It suits me?" She questioned back to him since as far as she knew she didn't have a specific style.

"The way you treat people: how you think - your cold as ice, have no time for warm, weak relationships." He informed her, practically telling her that he had been stalking her for a while now.

"Yes." She answered back since the past few hours that described her quite well.

"You always expect perfection from yourself and others. You demand it." He informed her again, and to his pleasure he got a nod out of the girl. "I am the ONLY one who understands you Rika Nonaka. That is why we are destined to be partners." He informed her of the reason he stole her from her true partner.

"Partners? Us?" Rika questioned to the ice demon behind her that was still holding her above the floor.

"Yes." He said slowly to her; knowing that he was really winning her over.

"No, I can't. I-I already have a partner." Rika said back while still feeling drained, but she was able to say a familiar name. "Renamon." Despite the distance the creature in question sensed her name being mentioned, and this time it was her partner.

"Rika. Where are you?" The vixen said and questioned while jumping to the tallest part of her adopted home's roof. She was about to do what a partner and a friend is supposed to do when a friend is in danger - go after her, but a vocal memory played in her mind.

"I don't need you. I don't need anybody." Rika's mental words replayed in the mind of the canine which caused her to just stand on the roof.

"Rika." She whispered while looking at the ceiling tiles wondering if she should go and save or stay and not care if she made it out alive.

"What have I done?" Rika whispered to herself after realizing her critical bad call in judgment right at this moment. She was about to reach for her digivice and provide a distress beacon to her teammate, but a big white hand was gently placed over her own.

"I want to show you something." He confessed to her after holding her hand.

"What is it?" She questioned back almost sounding as though she had given into him.

"To prove I'm worthy of being your partner I set up a little show and tell, so you can see my power for yourself." He said to her before wrapping his fingers around the human's frame, and then opened his wings. The wings being opened somehow illuminated the whole area, but as he did that he officially made his base noticeable by all other Digimon in the area.

"Oh." Calumon said after seeing the chunk of digital ice on top of a building. For some reason or another the young one did not like the feel of that place.

"Looks like you were right boy." Takato said to his dino as they and two others ran for the Digital Field. 'It's a good thing I haven't called it a night yet.' He thought since he and Henry were still at Guilmon's home when the two sensed it.

"Hi, guys." The retractable eared one said after seeing four of his friends heading for the strange structure. "Whatcha doin?" He questioned and then after seeing them run under him, since he was hovering, he added, "Wait for me."

"For years I have hunted hundreds of Digimon and have absorbed their data. They were friends to some; maybe even partners." The devil figure explained to her while not telling her that his style was weaken them to the point of almost deletion, freeze them, and absorb their data through the ice; that way he had their physical forms.

'Oh, man, is this what Takato warned me about back with Vilemon and Allomon battles.' Rika thought after hearing his comment while a piece of her wondered if the partner part meant that he planned to do this sort of thing with her partner: Renamon.

"But as you once said: 'they are merely stepping stones'." He said to her, quoting to her what she said to Takato at the watch's burial site.

"I never said that." She defended herself to the fiend that was still holding her. Mentally she knew that she did, but now seeing the frozen one's fearful faces she saw the truth.

"Ah, but you did. I fight to digivolve; you make your Digimon do the exact same thing." He corrected to her, proving to her that he had been watching her in the human world for a while now.

"No, I couldn't see it before, but there's more to Digimon than fighting. I would eat dirt before I EVER let Renamon become what you are: a monster." She countered to him, finishing with an angry glare.

"Better a powerful monster than a weak nobody." The horned one commented back to her since to him the dog was nothing compared to what he could offer her. "Is that what you really want? To be a nobody?" He questioned knowing that she preferred to be feared than to be held back.

"I'll tell you what I DON'T want to be - the partner to some freak show Digimon." She shouted out and struggled out of his grip. Seeing that his partner wanted to stand on her own legs he let her go and placed his own feet on the ice as well. "You think you know everything about who I really am; well, you don't, so just spit it out, horn-head. What do you want?" She demanded with balled fists.

"You have no idea how exquisite you are when your angry." He said to her after her statement, but the girl had a feeling it translated to: 'seeing you angry is a real turn on for me.' "I've been searching so long for someone like you with a heart of ice, a will of stone, and now my search is over. I want you to be my tamer." He said to her and the last part totally threw her for a loop.

"In your dreams, pal." She shouted back, but was caught off guard when the Champion level threat grabbed her left arm.

"Don't play hard to get." He said back to her even though he was getting excited about her strategy of having him as her partner. "You want to be the strongest Digimon Tamer. I want to be the strongest Digimon. We're practically perfect for each other." He said to her while still keeping a firm grip on her arm.

"Never." She shouted back to him while thinking, 'Heck, I'd prefer to have Calumon as a partner over you.' He knew that there was one wall that was keeping her from being with him, but he knew how to break that obstacle.

"Hmm! Are you thinking of that pitiful excuse of a Digimon of yours? Renamon is it?" He questioned to the human even though he knew that he was right, but he still didn't understand why.

'Time to call in a partner.' She thought after breaking free and gripped her digivice, which was on the back of her belt.

"You've NEVER settled for second best before. Why start now? Why waste your time with beauty when you can tame the beast?" He stated and questioned to her, praying that she did not catch the hidden meaning of the second question. He saw that she was glaring at him so he goaded her, "But go ahead. Summon her. Perhaps you'd prefer a live demonstration of who's the superior Digimon is." He said knowing that she would like that but he was wrong.

"No way!" She said back to him meaning it since she not wish to see the vixen frozen like the others.

"Then I'll just have to call her myself." The ice demon said back to her with a smile before his expression changed to serious, and with that serious expression he looked at the ceiling of his ice home and fired a blue beam from the upside down home base symbol on his head. Unknown to either of them there was a cavalry of four coming up a stairwell, but stopped right before the door that went to the ceiling.

"This is it! Does anyone have any bright ideas?" Takato questioned to the other three.

"Just one, let's try not to get ourselves creamed." Henry said to the asker since he had a feeling that only a high level Digimon could manifest a Digital Field this big.

'Personally I was hoping for a better plan.' The goggle wearer thought before he and the other put on their eye gear then walked into the latest battle zone. The group opened the doors, walked in and none of them were expecting an ice field. "Looks like someone left the freezer on." The dino Digimon holder said to lighten the tension, but it didn't work after the other tamer spotted their target along with one other.

"Look, it's Rika." Henry informed while pointing in the necessary direction. Takato adjusted his eyewear to the top of his head, and saw what he meant. Terriermon looked at the white clad monster, so they knew what they were dealing with. "IceDevimon - whoa, Champion level: fallen angel Digimon." The tamer of the fuzor said after reading the info. His voice was heard by the enemy.

"And I thought you didn't have any friends." He said in anger since he had a feeling that they were going to ruin her to be with him.

"Let her go now!" Takato shouted while suppressing his anger. The new tamer knew that he could take him on with his creatures in the watch, but not when there was a hostage.

"My new tamer and I were just getting acquainted." The ice themed man said while pulling the young lady closer to him.

"Forget it you, hypothermic Hades, she already has a partner - Renamon." Takato said back to him, and wanted to add that she didn't deserve her, but he didn't want others to know that he had a crush on her…and that the human had this guy to deal with.

'Stupid kid, that's who I'm wanting her to forget.' The devil thought and then looked down at her and knew that she couldn't resist this battle. "I think it's time for a little upgrade, don't you?" He questioned to her while bending his torso to her level.

"Let me go, you frozen freak." She shouted over at the Digi-Ice Cream man since his hands on her person were starting to get annoying.

"What do we do?" Takato questioned to the other since he knew that Henry often always had some form of plan.

"This is NOT going to be easy." Henry said since that was the first thing that came to mind. He then added, "He's much stronger than any other Digimon we've ever defeated before." The strategist looked away from the field, and back to the others. "What we need is an effective strategy to deal with him." He spoke aloud and got a nod from both Digital Monsters.

"Like a kick in the pants." Terriermon suggested to the taller human.

"I wish it were that easy." Henry said back, accepting the comical comment just the same.

"Ready, Guilmon?" Takato questioned while the other male was thinking of the problem right now.

"Mm-hmm." The Godzilla-like Rookie said with a nod.

"Go get him." Takato told his friend.

"Ah, ready, set, and go." The reptile said childishly and ran straight ahead,

"Here's your chance, Terriermon." Henry said as he saw the red Digimon run off.

"It's about time." The rabbit hybrid commented before running off.

"Goody. Goody. Time to fight." The enemy target comment before firing a freezing beam from his eyes which froze them both in one sold block of ice.

"Guilmon!" Takato shouted in surprise.

"Terriermon, no." Henry added to his friend's comment. Their partners did not, could not speak, so the only thing they heard was IceDevimon's cruel laughter.

"This doesn't look good. Not good at all." Calumon said after getting out of his hiding spot and walked over to the ledge of the roof over the door. Rika watched as Takato and Henry were able to find an old pipe and a chunk of ceiling to try to free their partners.

"Got to…get them…outta there." Takato demanded while he and Henry started pounding on the ice. The cause of the glacier saw their plight and decided to add to their misery.

"I hear one becomes quite warm right before freezing." He said to them which seemed to hit a nerve from Henry since he stopped hammering and glared at the villain of the day.

"You're so twisted it's scary!" He shouted before pulling out his digivice and a card he knew would turn this around. "Digi-Modify: heat activate." He said while slashing the card, but all it did was give a nanosecond worth of a red aura. 'It didn't work.' He thought with a gasp of worry after falling to his knees to get a better view.

'Fourarms could handle this ice, but with Guilmon and Terriermon inside, I better not.' Takato thought while sticking with pounding the ice with the stone slab.

"I don't get it? Where's Renamon?" Henry questioned after getting off his knees and looked at the other two. The devil chuckled a bit and then looked at the girl in his big hand.

"Renamon's gone." She said to them in a defeated tone. She recalled her words just like Renamon did, but unlike the vixen the girl also saw the look in the Digi-damsel's eyes.

"I don't need you. I don't need anybody." She said a few hours ago, but was brought back to the present with her head still away from the others.

"Even if I called her, she wouldn't come." She admitted to the three functioning men in the field. The two humans could tell that she REALLY was troubled over something.

"But Rika, why not?" The baker's son questioned in concern since he knew that all Digimon care for their partners.

"Come on, Rika, fess up - did you two have a fight just proves she's too weak to handle a special tamer like you." IceDevimon said to the girl while enjoying how she couldn't get out of his one hand, but he soon let her go so she could get a better view over all the creatures that were now his trophies. "You need a partner who understands you. Who appreciates you, and who craves your cold strength." He informed her after he let her go.

'Geez, this guy's obsessed with me.' Rika thought while looking up at him with a glare.

"Embrace the future I offer you." He announced to her with his arms raised to the heavens.

"Renamon." Rika said her partner's name under a whisper since for once in a long time she was starting to get scared. As soon as the name was said there was an explosion on the roof of the Digital Field, and when the smoke cleared they all saw the Rookie of the hour. "I don't believe it." Rika said since she did not expect someone that she yelled at to come to her aid.

"Ah, the infamous Renamon, I'd love to sit and chat, but I have to destroy you." IceDevimon said to her, letting his past victories, and his Digi-rank get to him. The warrior heard the threat, so she leapt from her doorway, and was ready to start the fight.

"Diamond-" Renamon started to say, but she was stopped when the devil of the arctic grabbed her mid-section, sending a surge of damage through her whole body.

"FROZEN CLAW!" He shouted back with her in his hand before pulling his right arm, the one with the opponent, to his left shoulder, and then flung the dog onto his hard Digital Field floor.

"Diamond Storm." She announced after bouncing back to her feet from her fall.

'FROZEN CLAW!" The Champion announced back, not wanting the old partner a second to attack, so with that attack he struck her neck, down her back, and a chop going up the right side of her face all while laughing.

"Rika she has to digivolve - now." Takato said to the partner, wondering why she was doing diddly squat to help.

'I can't let her digivolve, she might end up like IceDevimon.' The redhead one thought while still being confused over what was going on right now.

'What is she waiting for?' Renamon thought after letting a soft groan of pain.

'Forgive me.' Rika thought while looking away at her, but unfortunately her moved gaze caught the attention of the challenger of partner.

"Why do you look at her like that? A Digimon is only useful if it can fight." He informed her and then with a pointed finger added, "Tell me! Why do you care for this pathetic creature?" He wanted to know since she was not acting as his Ice Princess should be acting.

"She's my friend." Rika said softly, but soon felt her nerve come back so she said it again, "I care cause Renamon's my friend." That was when the light of her digivice was activated, along with a glowing triangle for the spectator.

"Digivolution." The voice of the device said and bathed the fox in a powerful light.

"Renamon digivolve to…" Renamon shouted once the light filled her, and then finished with, "Kyubimon." The light faded and all of them saw the four legged version of the canine.

"Why did you digivolve?" Rika asked her partner, but didn't get an answer since the vixen went back to trying to deal with IceDevimon.

"Fox-tail Inferno." She announced and started to create the same individual fireballs that defeated Dokugumon.

'I don't think so.' The opponent thought and took flight, causing the flaming spheres to hit each other.

"Where are you going, frosty?" The ribbon wearing canine questioned before striking again. "Dragon Wheel." She launched her blue dragon right at him, but he was ready.

"Tundra freeze." He said and shot a freeze beam from his eyes, the same that he used on Guilmon and Terriermon, but this time it froze and shattered her dragon. "AVALANCH CLAW!" He shouted out and hit her with a barrage of ice crystals while flapping his wings.

"Kyubimon." Rika said in awe as she saw the attack hit her partner hard. Takato had seen enough, the boy got off of the ice sculpture of his friends, and decided to deal with this.

"We've got to do something." Henry said while looking through his cards, and that was when he spotted Takato storming over to Rika. 'Wonder what he's going to do?' The passive tamer thought before going back to the cards.

"What the shell's wrong with you?!" Takato shouted in anger to Rika when he was close enough. The redhead saw the boy walking over, and saw by the 'silted' eyes that he was not fine. "That's your partner out there." He informed her while grabbing her by the collar of her shirt. "So, why are you just standing here!" He shouted in anger while slamming her into a frozen stalagmite. "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!" He shouted in rage, but saw that she was too scared to speak.

'Normally, I'd poke fun at him, but with everything going on, and the anger in his eyes - I better not.' She thought and felt him let go of her shirt. She then watched as he looked at the fight.

"Your not worth it, but he is." Takato said while activating the only hero that can handle this. "When it's fire against ice…" Takato started to say after doing the prep work before slamming it down.

"Fire always wins." Heatblast finished before walking onto the battlefield. As he did he saw the smoke from the avalanche attack fade and saw that the nine tailed one was still in it which he like to see.

"Fox-tail Inferno." She said weakly after raising one tail and firing one fireball.

"I think it's time to put the wittle puppy down, but don't worry I'll make sure to make these others fear Rika and her new partner." The devil said and started to dive-bomb her, but was interrupted by a simple fireball to the face.

"Creeps like you really burn me up." The pyro creature said to the ice prince before forming a fireball in his hands. "So, I'm going to return the favor." He added and shot off a flamethrower at him, but the fallen one flew around it, but that was a bad move.

"Now where did he go?" The arctic antagonist questioned/demanded when he no longer saw the soon to be dead man on the ground anymore.

"You might want to look up." A voice above him said, but as soon as IceDevimon looked up he was hit by a barrage of fireballs, and then a column of pure fire. "I call that move Armageddon." The flaming man said before walking off of the defeated ice monster. "Better see if she's okay." The transformed tamer said while kneeling down before the fox.

'Now that was power.' Henry thought as he saw the action before him. He soon went back to his search and in the last three cards of his deck he saw what he wanted.

"Are you okay, Kyubimon." The pyrotechnic said to her, and she could hear the worry in his voice.

"I…am fine Takato." She answered back to him. She stalled because she tried to stand, but quickly fell back to her belly.

"Don't worry, I got this." The hero said to her. He wanted to pet her, to assure her that he meant what he said, but he had a feeling that the form he was in could not do that.

"You see, Rika, only a WEAK Digimon would want help from a creature as repulsive as that." IceDevimon said while standing back on his feet, despite the damage.

"Okay, guess this requires a different tactic." Heatblast said before racing back over to his target, and created a fire tornado which also caused serious damage to the ice themed one.

"That was nothing. Rika WILL BE MINE!" IceDevimon shouted since he was getting annoyed.

"I've got it." Henry announced and then went to work of making it happen. "Digi-Modify: expansion activate." He shouted while slashing which caused the long eared one to expand so much he broke the ice. Guilmon was confused over what happened and Terriermon shrunk back to his old self.

"Hope your right you, frost bitten fiend, cause there's a lot more where…" Heatblast began to say, but a familiar beeping and red flash stopped him.

"That came from." Takato, himself, finished his comment.

"Now I can kill you both with ease." IceDevimon proclaimed meaning Takato and Kyubimon since he didn't notice the other two.

"I don't think so." The goggle-head started to say and added, "Let's do it Guilmon. Digi-Modify: Speed - activate." Takato said while slashing a card, and the dino sped from where he was all the way over to his enemy.

"Back for more already." The arctic devil said when he saw the speedy reptile. Despite being frozen over he could still see and hear, so he wasn't in a good mood either.

"Pyro-Sphere!" The young Rookie shouted out and fired a fireball at the enemy, but he dodged and tried a counter attack.

"Frozen Claw!" He shouted but this time stretched his arm out to the new threat for Rika acceptance, but the reptilian one grabbed the hand with both of his - stopping it instantly.

"Digi-Modify: Hyper Wing - activate!" Takato announced while slashing another card after he saw his partner had a firm grip on IceDevimon.

"That's it!" Henry said in praise over what was just played, and Rika could only gasp in amazement, but back on the field the Rookie gained said wings, grabbed the devil's mid-section , flew up, and slammed his head into his own Digital Field.

"Pyro-Sphere." Guilmon shouted while gliding back down, since the wings were starting to fade. The fireball hit, destroying him instantly, and Guilmon then absorbed him.

'I would have told him no, but after that fight I say: good riddance.' Takato thought while the field of digital energy faded away.

"Rika, are you okay?" Henry questioned after the field was completely gone from the human world.

"I hate him." Rika said darkly as her answer. The other humans believed that she was referring to her kidnapper which caused Takato to say:

"Well, he's gone now. All thanks to Heatblast and Guilmon." Takato said with a bit of pride in his voice, and not a trace of anger anywhere.

"Not him." She told the wearer of the watch which confused him, so she said it more simply, "I HATE DIGIMON - ALL OF THEM!" Then the others got the message pretty quickly.

'Looks like what she said in her room was true.' Kyubimon thought after a sigh, but while standing up.

"Rika, you don't mean that." The heir to the bakery said, and he was about to go after her until he heard nails on the stone roof behind him causing the guys to turn and see the other that was leaving. "Kyubimon, hang on a sec. I know we can straighten this whole thing out." He said to the other female even though he knew his words fell on deaf ears.

'IceDevimon may not be my partner, but at least I now know what the monster within me looks like.' Rika thought as she headed for the stairs.

'I suppose this is as high as I'll go.' The canine thought with her hind legs on an AC unit and her front paws on a fence guardrail. She then vanished from sight once she jumped.

"Hey, what's wrong with you? Aren't you guys supposed to be friends?" Takato shouted out once both girls were gone. With nothing else to do they too decided to go home, and Henry decided to ask an important question in the morning.