Chapter 9: Digi, It's Cold Outside
"So how are we gonna tell you guys apart again?" Jen wondered as KoKabuterimon carried the two Koromon.
"Well, maybe we could speak in different voices!" the Koromon in KoKabuterimon's left arm said. He cleared his throat and said in a deep voice, "How's this sound?"
The right Koromon started cracking up. "You sound like an Otamamon with a chest cold!"
The left Koromon grumbled.
The kids were wandering on a trail towards a chain of ice-capped mountains. The farther they walked on the snowy trail, the colder and windier it got.
Max was shivering. Seeing as he was wearing a muscle shirt and shorts, he was the least well prepared for where they were headed. Thus, he was naturally doing the most complaining. "Why are we going to the Cold Mountains again?"
"Well, I used a tracking device on my DigiCell," Jared explained, "and from the looks of it General Hankeru is hiding up their with Commandramon since File City's destroyed."
"How did you get a tracking device on there?" Jen wondered.
"Akira installed it for me!" Jared exclaimed. Akira kept quiet.
The kids began to cross their arms. They could see their own breath every time they exhaled. "Hey, Akira, you never told us exactly where you're from." Jen looked at the boy.
"Yeah," Max said, shivering. "H-how did you g-get here?"
"Well…" Akira was quiet for a moment. "It's hard to explain. Let me think about it a bit then I'll get back to you."
Max shrugged, but then quickly closed his arms again. "Wh-whatever…"
Candlemon looked up at Max, creating a greater fire on his wick. "This should keep you warmer, boss."
"Thanks."
The kids grew closer and closer to the mountains. "Wow, they look a lot taller the closer you get to them…" Jen said.
The kids noticed three small lizard Digimon at one of the mountain's bases. They appeared to be small dinosaurs, but their skin was snowy white. Jared pulled out his DigiCell and read their holo-display. "SnowAgumon. They're all Rookie Digimon. It's no surprise to see them here, since they enjoy cold weather and attack with a Frozen Wind blast!"
"Whoa!" the left Koromon exclaimed. "They look sort of familiar…"
KoKabuterimon adjusted the two Koromon in his arms. "They don't look like much of a threat. We should be okay passing them by."
The three SnowAgumon looked over at the kids. "Hey, watch this!" one exclaimed. The Digimon rolled up a ball of snow with his claw and tossed it at the group randomly, hitting Veemon in the head and caught him by surprise.
"Hey!" Veemon shouted, looking over at the lizards. "I'm gonna come get you!" Veemon began dashing through the snow, gaining speed the further he ran.
"Veemon, don't mess with them!" Jen said, sighing.
The SnowAgumon group looked scared, waving their claws for Veemon to stop. "Leap out of the way!" one of them shouted, strafing to the left to avoid Veemon. The other two did the same.
"Vee Head Bu--WHOA!" Veemon shouted, but was interrupted as he propelled himself into the air at what he thought was the SnowAgumon, but he just hit the mountain's side. "Ughhhh…" Snow fell from the top of the mountain due to the impact, and a loud, angry roar could be heard in the distance.
"Those little meanies!" one of the Koromon exclaimed, hopping out of KoKabuterimon's grip. The other Koromon did the same as the SnowAgumon began to run away into the mountain valley. The twin Digimon followed the SnowAgumon group into the valley.
KoKabuterimon stumbled. "Huh? Where are they going?"
"Go after them, I'm gonna go help Veemon out," Jen ordered, running through the snow to her Digimon. The others ran into the mountain valley.
- - -
"We're sorry! We're sorry!" the three SnowAgumon said in unison, worried that the two Rookie Digimon before them would hurt them.
"Well, be careful next time!" said a lizard Digimon, closely resembling SnowAgumon except for its orange skin and red bracers.
"Yeah! You could have really hurt one of us," said a beast Digimon with a Garurumon pelt on its back and a yellow horn on its head. It had yellow skin as well.
The others ran up behind these two. "Hey… where did the two Koromon go?" Max wondered.
The two Rookies turned around and looked at the group. "You're looking at them!"
Jared pulled out his Digivice and read a holo-display for the lizard Digimon. "Agumon, a small dinosaur Digimon with sharp claws. Its Pepper Breath attack could melt up all the ice in this area!"
Alexis read a holo-display for the other Rookie. "Gabumon, a reptilian beast Digimon with a horn on its head. His Blue Blaster power may look cold, but it can actually start fires!"
"We were just teaching these bad Digimon a lesson!" Agumon said innocently.
"We never meant to cause trouble," a SnowAgumon said. "We just get really lonely down here. Nobody comes around this area anymore."
Jen and Veemon came back over to join the group. "Where'd the Koromon go?" Agumon and Gabumon sighed, raising their hands.
"Wait, why doesn't anyone come around here?" KoKabuterimon asked.
"Well, it's a strong rumor around the Digital World that an evil beast Digimon lives high in the mountains," one of the SnowAgumon explained. "We're pretty much the only Digimon around here that are brave enough to stay."
Jen seemed interested. "What does this Digimon look like?"
One SnowAgumon sighed. "Nobody knows for sure. He doesn't normally come down to the base of the mountains, unless he knows something is threatening him here. At those times, we hide."
"Hey, Jen, I think we should investigate this! Maybe the Digimon is Kimeramon!" Veemon suggested.
"Yeah, plus if the General is around here, he might be in trouble!" Jen adjusted her goggles. "Let's get a move on it!" The kids began to walk around the side of the mountain.
"Good lu—" one of the SnowAgumon began to wave goodbye. He, as well as his two brethren, were then suddenly struck frozen in a facial expression as if they'd seen a ghost.
Jen turned around to look at the gang and noticed their eyes were glowing red. Each of them slowly began to brightly glow as they each took a different new shape.
"Erm…" Candlemon wondered, "if they're not evil, why are they… digivolving?"
Each SnowAgumon was now a different Champion Digimon. One resembled a Yeti, another a large snowman-bear, and the last one a frozen ogre.
Akira pulled out his Digivice. "Mojyamon… Frigimon… and Hyogamon! Each of them are icy Digimon of the Champion level… I think Kimeramon's taken control of them now."
"Not so fast!" Veemon exclaimed. Gabumon and Agumon hid behind the kids. "Jen, we can take them, right?"
"I'm not sure," Akira chimed in. "Digimon under Kimeramon's control are normally stronger than their counterparts…"
"We can take them anyway, Veemon!" Jen exclaimed, pulling out her Digivice. "Initiate Digivolution Matrix!"
"Veemon digivolve to… Veedramon!" Veedramon began to charge at Hyogamon, as the already digivolved Starmon began to attack Frigimon.
"V-Nova Blast!" Veedramon sent a V-shaped blast of flame at Hyogamon. Hitting him, Hyogamon fell to the ground pretty quickly. He was greatly effected by this attack, being an ice Digimon.
Starmon pulled back his fist and smacked Frigimon in the gut. It didn't harm him too much, though, and he simply lifted Starmon up by his upper point. He then tossed him into the side of the mountain and he fell to the ground.
"Candlemon, get in there!" Max commanded his Digimon.
"You too, KoKabuterimon!" Jared did the same.
"Go get them, Penguinmo—" Alexis was embarrassed to see her Digimon sliding along the ice on her stomach. "Penguinmon, get in there -now-!"
"Initiate Digivolution Matrix!"
"Candlemon digivolve to… Meramon!"
"KoKabuterimon digivolve to… BladeKuwagamon!"
"Penguinmon digivolve to… Dolphmon!"
Each of the ice Digimon noticed Meramon's flaming figure and began to back away and run. It was useless, though, as Meramon charged up a flaming fireball. He quickly tossed it at the group of Digimon, melting Frigimon into data and knocking Mojyamon and Hyogamon forward. A red DigiCore was left where Frigimon stood.
BladeKuwagamon hopped into the fight. "Spark Blade!" he shouted as he glowed with energy, swiftly slashing through Hyogamon and Mojyamon's stomachs. As Mojyamon dematerialized and left another crimson DigiCore, Hyogamon was still standing.
Starmon got up, apparently weakened but still able to fight. Dolphmon floated over to him. "Combined attack, now!" Both Dolphmon and Starmon rushed toward Hyogamon.
"Meteor Stream!" Starmon shouted, raining meteors from the sky upon Hyogamon. Each of the meteors missed, though, and Hyogamon smacked Starmon to the side with an icy spear.
"Shaking Pulse!" Dolphmon shouted, sending a sonic blast at the mountainside. Several pieces of rock began to tumble off the ledge.
Meramon leaped into the air. "Fireball!" He sent a flaming sphere at the tumbling rocks as Starmon also leaped into the air.
"Stunning Kick!" Starmon yelled, quickly kicking each of the molten rocks directly at Hyogamon's face. Veedramon leaped forward at Hyogamon and smacking him in the stomach, causing him to quickly dematerialize and form another red DigiCore. Meramon and Starmon landed safely on the ground. Veedramon, Meramon, Dolphmon and BladeKuwagamon de-digivolved back into their Rookie forms.
Veemon smiled. "Wow, guys, we're really getting the hang of this!"
KoKabuterimon chuckled. "Yeah, I've never been so comfortable with fighting."
Starmon and Veemon began to gather the three DigiCores. Jen studied Agumon and Gabumon for a moment. "Well, I'm assuming the blue one is the Drimogemon?" Gabumon nodded.
"Psh, so what?" Agumon scoffed. "I can change into, like, 50 different Champion forms, including, but not limited tooooo…" Agumon jumped up to Jared's pocket and snatched his Digivice, flipping it open and reading his database entry. "Greymon, GeoGreymon, ExVeemon, Tyrannomon, Monochromon, Golemon, Hookmon…" The kids sighed at the babbling Agumon as they heard a long, loud howl from the top of the mountain.
"They got wolves around here?" Max asked tongue-in-cheek.
"I don't think we're in a good position either way," Jared stated. "Maybe we should go."
"No way!" Jen exclaimed as the howl sounded once again. "We have to find the General, remember?"
Another howl was heard, this time even longer and growing louder. As it sounded, a growling could be heard from behind the group. A Digimon resembling Leomon was behind them!
"Ice Beast Fist!" the Digimon shouted as he punched the air, sending a freezing lion insignia at the team. It hit Starmon, who froze into a block of ice from the impact.
Akira, in fear of the Digimon, stumbled to find his DigiCell but was interrupted as the Leomon-like Digimon grabbed him around the waist and quickly leaped into the air and from ledge to ledge on the mountainside, climbed to the top.
"AKIRA!" Jen shouted after him, but it was too late. Akira had been kidnapped!