To Dev's surprise, Gesomon was right behind him as his drooling maw was about to bite into his flesh.
In a split-second, Dev lunged to the side as Gesomon closed his mouth at the spot, barely escaping the beast's jaws.
"Why didn't anybody tell me that thing was behind me?!" yelled Dev as BlackAgumon jumped in front of him and fired shots at Gesomon, knocking it back.
"Excuse me? I tried to warn you guys, but no! Nobody listens to me!" complained Liz as her Biyomon struggled to get up.
"Let me at him! Let me at him!" cried Biyomon before falling on one leg.
"Hush, Beebee. You're still hurt," said Liz as she picked her up.
"We can take that overgrown calamari!" cried Lopmon, "Right Sam?"
"Right. We should work as a team this time, since Biyomon is hurt and nobody can digivolve yet", proposed Sam.
Before Noah and Dev could agree, Gesomon opened his maw and gassed the area in a cloud of black smoke.
"What's going on?" yelled Noah as the entire street filled with smoke, causing fits of coughing for everyone in the area.
"Lopmon!" cried Sam.
"Right! Tiny Twister!" shouted Lopmon as she spun her ears like a propeller.
The tiny rabbit Digimon spun in a circle and generated a small twister that cleared most of the smoke around them.
To the group's surprise, Gesomon wasn't preparing for another attack. Rather, it was slowly making its way back into the large hole he and his comrade originated from.
Meanwhile, Minotarumon was pulling himself up from the crater he had caused after losing his Demon Arm in the previous battle. The giant Minotaur Digimon surprisingly didn't follow his comrade, but rushed down the street for the next block as he focused his attention less on the four Tamers, and more on knocking over everything in his path.
"We have to stop Gesomon from getting away!" yelled Liz.
"I agree", replied Sam, "Those two destroyed Liz's workplace and attacked us. We can't let them get away".
"I agree with you Sam", muttered Noah as he put his arm around her, "but let's think about this for a second. Those two attacked us like when Dokugumon and Wizardmon attacked you earlier this week. These Champion Digimon aren't attacking the city anymore like MadLeomon and Cyclomon—they are after us now."
"What are you saying?" asked Sam as she raised her big blue eyes at him.
"I'm saying it might be good for us to get to the bottom of who is trying to kill us. I say we split up to get both of them. Who's with me?" proposed Noah as he turned to his friends.
Both Liz and Dev nodded before Liz spoke her mind.
"I don't think now is a good time for us to split up. It's gonna be evening soon and it'll be dark. Not to mention it took everything we had to fight one of those monsters. What makes you think we can do it with two Digimon each?"
"Maybe we can," answered Devon as he scratched his head, "I know Biyomon is hurt, but so is Gesomon and Minotarumon. Plus, you have the most cards out of everyone here Liz."
"Then it is settled", replied Lopmon, "tonight we take the fight to them!"
"Hold on! There is no way I am jumping down that hole into God knows where. The sewers runs near there and you know what that means", yelled Liz before being calmed by a laughing Sam.
"Liz is right! Liz and I should go after Minotarumon and clean up things up here while Noah and Dev go after Gesomon".
"Whoa, why do I have to go in the sewers?" whined Dev before BlackAgumon jumped for joy.
"Because you have me!" cheered Black
"Yeah, and plus I need someone I can trust down there who can handle the dark and watch my back. No offense, Liz and Sam," added Noah.
"None taken", replied Sam and Liz gladly in unison. After all, they were the ones not about to jump into the sewers.
"You boys be careful down there and call us if you find something", said Liz before running after the runaway Minotarumon.
Sam and the boys made their goodbyes before splitting up. However, Dev felt like something needed to be said and turned back to Sam before she could leave.
"Uh, Sam?"
"Yes, Dev?"
"I'm sorry I fell on you earlier, I thought those flying rocks were closer than that and I just wanted to protect you and…"
"Oh, it was nothing. Better safe than sorry. I thought it was sweet", giggled Sam before blushing.
Dev took notice of the nearby people as they recovered from the battle and were staring back at him.
"Is there something else you wanted to tell me?" asked Sam as Dev suddenly forgot where he was and what he was doing.
"Uhh, nothing", stuttered Dev nervously, "just be safe out there and see you later".
"Okay, um, be careful down there. I don't want you to get hurt," said Sam as she and Dev blushed deep red.
"Me too, bye".
"Bye, be safe".
"Love you, I MEAN, ERR, you too, BYE!" shouted Dev with exasperation before he made a run for it into the tunnel with Noah, Betamon, and Black.
"Wait, did he just say he loves you?!" chuckled Lopmon as Sam smiled and giggled.
"What a funny boy, that Devon is", she said.
…
"Checkmate!" cheered Dillion as he beat his new friend in a game of Chess.
They had played many game together, all of which Dillion was winning. Mostly because Dillion's friend wasn't paying attention at all and also because he was a talking spider monster from who knows where.
"You lie! Chess not food!" hissed Bitsy.
"I never lied, best buddy. I said Chess was fun, not food" replied Dillion matter of factly.
"You still lie! Chess not fun! Me want something to eat now!"
Dillion's dad was still at work, and so the two new friends had the T.V. room to watch Dillion's favorite shows and play Dillion's favorite games.
"Okay, but you already ate the last of the meat left in the freezer so it looks like I'm gonna have to go shopping", spoke Dillion as he suddenly realized something, "but I have no money, so I'm gonna have to visit my grandpa to go get some".
"Grandpa? Grandpa food?" asked Bitsy
"No, Grandpa isn't food. Grandpa is our friend and he can get us more meat."
"Grandpa friend, grandpa get meat, friends get meat?" asked Bitsy.
"Uh, sure buddy", answered Dillion with a chuckle as he went to get his shoes. Noticing Ein hiding under the sofa again, Dillion realized that he couldn't leave his father's dog alone with a hungry spider.
"I forgot you two don't get along. I can't just leave Ein here, so I guess I should…take you with me? What do you say, Bitsy?"
"Me go outside? Will there be meat there?" asked Bitsy.
"Sure! All the meat you can imagine," replied Dillion as he reached for the ceiling, "I can't believe I never thought of showing you to the world before. This is the greatest day of my life! I have a friend and I feel great! I mean, what can possibly go wrong?"
…
"Man, a lot of things can go wrong down here", said an observant Dev as he and Noah and their Digimon made their way into the dark tunnel.
They certainly had to be careful, as their feet slid down the steep tunnel at a snail's pace.
"Yeah", said Noah nervously, "there is no telling how deep it goes. If someone fell, it could be disastrous".
As if on cue, Betamon leaped off of Noah's head and made a swan dive with his little fins.
"Betamon! Wait!" yelled Noah as his Digimon disappeared. Seconds later, they heard a splash.
"Well, at least we know how deep it goes", groaned Dev. Beside him, BlackAgumon was resting in the form of Dev's shadow as the two Tamers slowly caught up with Betamon.
"I think it's cool that BlackAgumon can turn into shadows like that", said Noah, "do you mind telling me how it works?"
"Well, I don't really understand it either", mentioned Dev as he scratched his head, "I mean it's kind of a long story. He wasn't always like that, especially when we first met. We fought something strange before my mom and I moved here and he just kind of became a living shadow afterwards."
Noticing that Dev was uncomfortable about the subject, Noah quickly changed the subject.
"I see, well we better get moving if we want to catch up with Betamon", he said.
"Hey, Noah? I got to ask you something," replied Dev as if something was on his mind, "did you mean what you said earlier? About watching each other's back?"
"Of course, man", answered Noah with a smile, "I can't fight Gesomon alone and besides, it's fun hanging out with you. We couldn't have defeated Minotarumon without you and I can say you're one of the only guys I would trust around Sam."
"Why is that?" asked Dev nervously, "I mean, it's not like I like her or anything".
"Right", Noah said sarcastically before letting out a cough.
"Man, it stinks down here", added Noah as they continued down the tunnel. It looked like Gesomon and Minotarumon breached the sewer pipes and water lines when they dug the tunnel.
"Don't start complaining, dude", laughed Dev, "this whole thing was your idea".
"Don't remind me", replied Noah with a sad chuckle as he stepped onto something foul and kicked his shoe to get it off.
"Do you think Sam and Liz will be alright on their own?" asked Dev as he tried to keep the conversation going.
"Of course man," said Noah as he wiped falling sludge out of his hair, "I've known Sam for a long time, and she wouldn't put herself into harm's way unless she knew what she was doing. Plus, Liz seems okay."
"I've been meaning to ask you about that," said Dev as they were about twenty more feet from the bottom of the slope, "What do you think about Liz?"
"What do you mean? Do you think she's cute or something?" joked Noah.
"No! I mean, I guess so for a redhead but that's not the point", responded Dev with a nervous laugh before continuing, "I mean, do you think she belongs on this team?"
As Dev finished talking, Noah stopped in his tracks and turned to face him as if he was about to make a profound speech.
"Look man", answered Noah, "before we even met you, this was not a team. It was just me and Sam doing what we thought was right as Digimon kept falling from the sky. It wouldn't stop, and we tried to help in any way we could with our Digimon. Eventually, we had to fight the nastier ones and I think Liz probably did this too when she got her Digimon. I'm saying that she probably thought fighting these things made sense and that is why she is so gung ho about everything. We don't know what kind of life she has, and to be honest, you and me barely know each other as it is."
"You're right man", muttered Dev, "I didn't mean to sound like a jerk or anything."
"Neither did I", chuckled Noah as they continued down the hill, "It's been fun hanging out this week and Sam and I both appreciate what you did for her when Dokugumon attacked. We both trust you and I think part of that is how open you are about your feelings. Liz, on the other hand, doesn't seem to be the type to talk about her feelings".
"Is that why you let Liz and Sam go together? So as girls, they could talk about their feelings?"
"No, that was their decision. Like I said, we aren't actually a team yet and I'm sure I do not want to be the leader", answered Noah.
'Yeah, well maybe someone has to', thought Dev to as the conversation went on.
"Now that I told you what I think about Liz, please try to be nicer to her. She just lost her business and she barely likes us as it is. She would be a powerhouse on our future team", begged Noah calmly as Dev nodded.
Noah turned his attention to something else as streams of foul liquid continued to pour out of the holes of the tunnel walls and down the hill. One wrong step and someone could slip.
The two heroes (and Dev's shadow), made their way to the bottom of the hill and finally caught up with the patient Betamon. The green Digimon was paddling his little fins as he swam around in the puddles of goop that was slowly accumulating on the tunnel's floor.
"Ew, gross! It smells worse down here than it did up there!" cried Dev as he pinched his nose".
"It seems like Minotarumon had broken a very full sewer line before the attack. Let's keep moving before we lose Gesomon's trail", replied Noah as he appeared to be unaffected by the awful stench.
"Doesn't this bother you?" asked Dev as he tried not to barf, "I don't think we should keep going; what if we run out of oxygen?"
"I'm getting used to it. We will be okay with plenty of air. Minotarumon and Gesomon are alive too, right? So they had to have had air to dig this tunnel. Gesomon will suffocate down here before we do because he has a bigger mouth," answered Noah through some made-up logic, "besides, Betamon can see down here better than anyone with his dorsal fin and fish senses. He said Gesomon is up ahead and he is still moving."
"I guess that makes sense", replied Dev with a sigh, "you must really want to end this, right?"
"I'm tired of being attacked by these monsters, man. It's time we find out where they keep coming from", answered Noah as they began their trek through the dark tunnel.
"Yay! Can I go swimming too, Dev?" asked a solidified BlackAgumon as he was now waist deep in the water with Betamon.
"Knock yourself out buddy but don't light any fires, it might be a bad idea" answered Dev as BlackAgumon began dogpaddling through the sludge as if it was the ocean.
Now that they were down the steep hole, it was apparent that the rest of the tunnel was parallel with the ground and went a possible straight line to its point of origin.
Betamon led the way as he swam through the tunnel. Knee-deep in brown water, the two Tamers followed their Digimon for about a minute before they ran out of the entrance's light.
"I don't suppose you have a flashlight?" asked Dev as they stood in blackness.
"No, but Betamon can still lead the way and our Digimon can sense danger. I think we should follow each other's voices and continue on", replied Noah.
"This is literally, the worst idea I have ever been a part of" muttered Dev as they went on.
"Now you're starting to sound like Liz" teased Noah as they trudged through the water. To Dev's right, he could hear squeaks echoing through the tunnel. BlackAgumon sniffed the air in response.
"Noah! Did you hear that?!" whimpered Dev as he wrapped around his Digimon for protection.
"It's just a bunch of rats, man. Don't be so scared."
"No worries I'll just scare them away!" cheered BlackAgumon, who wasn't scared of such familiar creatures but nonetheless wanted to make his partner proud.
"Please do, but remember, no fire!" commanded Dev weakly.
"Don't worry Dev, I got this", said Black before letting out a massive roar.
"Rawwwrrrrrghhhh!"
The squeaks continued and they were getting closer as rats by the dozens swam their way over to them as if the two humans were islands.
"I don't think his roar did anything. Try using one of the modify cards I lent you", suggested Noah.
"Good idea", replied Dev as he struggled to take out his friend's cards and swipe one in the dark.
With a beep, whatever card Devon had slashed worked and BlackAgumon surged with power.
"Please be something good!" begged Dev, unaware that he had swiped a speed card.
"I feel funny", remarked BlackAgumon before taking off further into the tunnel like a cheetah with a dose of lightning, "I gotta run!"
"Black! Come back here now!" cried Dev before they lost the Digimon. Unfortunately for the rats and for the two, BlackAgumon had run so fast through the water that he sent ripples of water splashing over everyone.
Noah and Dev were now chest-deep in water for a moment as the other waves pushed the rats back against the other side of the wall. Noah was calm the entire time unlike Dev, who spat and cursed during the ten second ordeal. The rats were now visible as they climbed up the wall and out of the water.
The water soon calmed, and the heroes took in their surroundings as a bright light filled the tunnel around them.
"You know what I just realized?" said Dev as he held his D-Power.
"I think we both know what it is", sighed Noah as he wiped himself off.
"We could have used the lights on our D-Powers this whole time", answered Dev as he hit himself in the forehead.
"It's okay, I forgot too. You know what I just realized though?" asked Noah.
"What?"
"You also dropped my cards in the water when you Digimodified BlackAgumon."
Devon looked around him and sure enough, he had missed his pocket in the dark when he meant to put the cards back.
"Oops"…
TO BE CONTINUED... Right Now :)