I found myself very happy upon finishing this chapter...but now I'm ahead by 2 episodes. So chapter 11 should be mostly filler, but there's nothing wrong with that. Read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 10: To Fight or Not To Fight

My thoughts weren't where they should have been; JP was proclaiming something to the effect of getting Zoe's Spirit back since Koji couldn't control his Beast Spirit well enough to do anything, which had led to Koji's vehement accusation against JP…and now there was a full-fledged squabble going on.

I was sitting under the shade of a tree with my back against the trunk; my eyes were closed as I was trying to replay the images in my head with the so-called 'Duskmon' striding out from the shadows. The image popped when Koji stepped on my ankle.

"Hey!" Robert barked protectively from his perch on my shoulder. I cast a glare in JP's direction.

"Knock it off—the whole forest can hear you."

"Speaking of you," JP gave me a despairing look as though I had ruined his entire day. "You never did tell us why you took off on us."

I closed my eyes to re-form the human Duskmon's face. "I wonder why."

"JP!" Tommy complained. "Don't…"

"We deserve to know," he pressed.

I opened my eyes to find all of them watching me. Robert made an unnerved sound in the back of his throat. "I don't think that's a good idea," he muttered so low that no one else could hear.

My D-Tector started beeping in my pocket; I pulled it out to find it flashing white before resuming a blank screen. "What's going on?" Robert asked.

I had a sinking suspicion in the bottom of my stomach. Kusoramon flashed on and off of the screen, ever patiently waiting.

"That's quite enough!" Bokomon interrupted, probably inferring that I was going to start maiming people. "I think it's about time that we do something productive: it involves a secret known only to a few Digimon. This secret will be able to tell us what to do next."

I ground my teeth together. That wasn't quite the answer I was looking for, and I certainly didn't want to be anywhere near JP right now what with his attitude-adjustment-problem. Takuya had been pretty quiet for the most part when it came down to my disappearance…I wasn't entirely sure about Koji either. He made me feel suspicious.

"All right, let's go," Takuya agreed.

"We just got here," Robert protested.

"We should keep moving," JP growled. What's your problem?

I was the last one to leave the clearing. Reluctantly I rose to my feet, and I would have made it all the way into the trees if I hadn't tripped when the voice spoke to me.

You're actually listening to the leader of the Brat Brigade? How touching, my foot connected with a tree root to bring me to the ground with a grunt. Startled, Robert jumped off of me.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," I hefted myself back up; he floated back up to my shoulder.

"We don't have to go with them you know. We could make a detour or something…"

"It's fine, Robert, really," I insisted. When I looked up, I found Koji watching me. He waited for me to approach him before he started walking again, an arm's length apart from each other.

The Poyomon sucked in a deep breath with his eyes closed before exhaling loudly. "I'll see you guys later; I'm on a mission." He floated up above the canopy of trees out of sight.

Silence filled the forest except for the crunching of dirt and leaves beneath our feet. I flinched when the voice shifted, debating on extending his short visitation or shortening it.

"Tell me what's going on," Koji said with finality. He must've been brooding on this for some time and despite my anticipation for it, it took me off guard.

"It's not of your concern," I brushed him off. I cut around a tree to try and put some space between us, but he caught up with me. "Besides, I didn't ask why you took off on the others." His eyebrows scrunched together.

As though I had treaded on an invisible line, he put space between us. His eyes didn't even drift in my direction while he did so. Some argument.

I mulled a few options over in my head before dismissing them. Out of everyone else I trusted Robert the most: he would take everything I told him to the grave. Yet Koji had heard the name Kyochrysaetosmon which gave him some type of foothold. He is the Warrior of Light; he's part of this legend too.

"Koji," I said his name at last. He paused to glance back at me before slowing down once more till we were closer. "I asked Saberdramon about the connection between Void, Sky, the Light…" Should I really say anything about the Darkness? Would it matter? "And Darkness."

He didn't respond, so I continued. "There were a lot of holes in the story, but he spoke of how Void and Sky, Light and Darkness—they're all connected."

"Which means what for us?" his eyes kept focused ahead.

"We have to make it to the Forest Terminal; there, I believe, we can understand why we're here. I've met Darkness, Koji, and I know this is going to sound really stupid, but…"

"Darkness?" he raised his eyebrows. "Is that who you went to see?"

"No," I felt the blood leave my face. "Not at all—he's not on our side."

"Oh," he struggled to find his next question.

"We have to help him when we see him next," I told him. "As much as I know he wants to kill me, we have to help him."

Silence fell once again between us. He stopped to turn towards me, hesitating. There was a concern lingering in his thoughts that irritated him. His eyes went in the direction of the others who were already a considerable distance ahead. Then they returned to me.

"I'm not worried about the Warrior of Darkness," he told me. The confidence in the statement was a key factor to the truth in this. "Are there any other pieces in that legend that could explain anything?"

I paused. I hadn't been quite so sure what Koji had discussed with Ryuu back at the Karatsukinumemon Mountain, and I wasn't sure if I wanted to know all of it. On different accounts I had shared information with Robert, Ryuu, and Koji…just not the others of the group. Ryuu and I had a connection that we both felt; therefore I trusted him. Robert had given me a lot of advice, kept my spirits up, all those sorts of things. If he were human, we would have been a great match.

"I'm not going to lie," I spoke slowly to form the right words. "What Saberdramon told me didn't make very much sense. He spoke like the four Spirits were…I don't know…" I struggled to not set off his temper. "Ryuu said he could find me because of how we were connected; that's how he found me the first time, but…"

His eyes immediately glowered at me like I had been caught strangling his dog. What invisible line had I crossed? "I don't believe you."

"I'm not asking you to; I…"

"This discussion is over," he growled. I watched as he resumed following the others with anger burning through me. How I would like to bash him over the head and bury him in the woods.

I can arrange that, the voice hummed.

I'll pass…for now.

Suit yourself; I am here when you need me. He faded into the recesses of my mind.

When we left the forest, we came upon a village filled with tents of various sizes and colors like those to be found at a festival or a carnival (minus the food and plus about fifty different fortune tellers). Digimon of all sorts of shapes and sizes lined the main roads to listen to these tellers of fate.

I kept behind the others viewing the Digimon strewn about us with suspicion; I had never liked the idea of looking into the future. I preferred to stumble upon my life issues, not watch for them.

"I've never had my fortune told before," Tommy informed Bokomon, who was at the front of our company.

"I had my palm read once; it took a week to get the paint off," Neemon added. Robert, on Takuya's shoulder, gave him a despairing look.

"I don't even have palms; how are they supposed to tell my future if I don't have hands?"

"Come on, do you really think any of these weirdoes can tell the future?" JP criticized just before a praying mantis with a purple bag on its head grabbed hold of his arm. Or was that its brain? Its skin was the color of fat with it bearing five spindly legs and arms that made me think of Gollum from the Lord of the Rings. Its eyes were too bright with its mouth resembling a frog.

"Oh, yes round one, it is all so clear," the creature spouted.

"I don't believe in any of this mumbo jumbo," JP retracted his arm. I rolled my eyes and passed the others as they waited for JP to get rid of the clingy insect. I was not going to wait.

As I was passing a fluorescent blue tent, a grey-colored bird foot grabbed me by my ankle and drug me inside. The creature had closed the tent covering before I could even open my mouth.

"I have just what you need to hear," the Digimon proclaimed. Its height meandered to my shoulders with its head a pale, coconut-flesh white with green ferns growing from the top of its brown body. The legs were grey like the feet; its eyes were black like a Poyomon. It looked like a bird made out of a kiwi.

"Look, I'm really not interested…"

"It concerns the Dragon," it interrupted. I felt my body grow rigid; Ryuu's name translated to dragon. There was a card table with a scarlet red cloth covering it; the Digimon jumped upon it and began to speak. "I know well that you will not seek the advice of us, but I have something that you should take to heart. It is up to you to believe it or not."

I stood up, waiting.

"The Dragon is cunning and crafty, but he has taken more gold than his body can cover. His strength wanes as a beast of bone holds the key to his survival; he needs the key to release him from his prison. He needs you to find the key."

The curtain was flung open by Takuya. "Come on, Perry, we don't have all day." Robert stared behind me.

"There's no one in there, Taky," he spoke quietly, nervous. When I looked behind me, the bird Digimon was gone.

I followed them the rest of the way to a large building, a temple constructed of faded stone. The entrance was elaborate and held up by pillars…yet it seemed forgotten and old.

"Are you sure about this Bokomon?" Tommy asked.

"Yeah, all these fortune tellers seem fake," JP put in.

"Like my Grandmamon's teeth!" Neemon clarified proudly. As the doors were pulled open, I took another glance behind us. Something didn't feel right about this place.

"Have faith, please, I do know what I'm doing. Shamanmon is the real thing," Bokomon went ahead. I kept to the back; if this guy was the real thing, I didn't want him screwing with my future. "Shamanmon, we call upon your wisdom, insight, and well…just ask you for two cents of your advice."

"Who calls upon Shamanmon?" the creature had his back to us. His form looked distinctively familiar; his skin was dark green. Too small of a blue shirt and cut off black shorts were his clothes. His feet were huge while the club he held in his hand was even bigger. His voice was deep and monotonous.

"Weary travelers, in need of guidance from the universe," Bokomon answered him.

"Oh, you'll get guidance all right," he chuckled, turning to face us. He looked like a Goblimon with yellow hair and fangs.

"Wait a minute, I know you!" Takuya accused. I took three steps back towards the door.

"You're one of those nasty Goblimon from the Wind Factory," Zoe indicted with a hint of anger.

"Let's get 'em!" Tommy shouted.

"No, no, no! Shamanmon's one of the good guys," Bokomon waved his arms back and forth like he was trying to achieve lift-off. "He is a medium who does a dance and uses his ceremonial club to see into the future."

Shamanmon started to hop back and forth gallantly between his two humongous feet. "You should be very careful; you face much danger. You will come up against a foe you have faced before, but this foe has a friend that, in meeting him, will show you that your friend is your foe."

"Huh?" Tommy couldn't understand.

"I don't believe it," Takuya answered him.

"Then listen to this," Shamanmon jumped right in front of Tommy and Takuya, pointing his club at them. "The greatest test will be faced by you two! This test has the power to destroy you all if you aren't careful."

"But we don't want to get destroyed," Takuya protested.

"Then trust in who you are and trust in your friendship," Shamanmon retreated back to where he had been before, resuming his weird dance. Then his gaze fell upon me in the back of the room. "You, Cold Forest, listen to me."

"I don't want your help," I answered flatly. His eyes reduced to a glare that threatened me to say more against him.

"You will be torn between the three that Sky cares most about, and when you are wrong, the one who hates you will leave you scarred. The Dragon screams in the forest," at this he pointed in the direction of the literal forest outside, "where the key to his survival must be found. Yet when you help him, you will find that no one can save you from yourself. You must conquer the agony that brews within you, to defeat…"

The earth rumbled beneath our feet, and Shamanmon fell on his back like a turtle. I took hold of my D-Tector. "Everyone, out!"

They obeyed, but Robert came to place himself on my shoulder. "Kyochrysaetosmon is close; I can feel it! Grumblemon is going to set him off—we have to get out of here. We can recover Zoe's Spirit later, but we have to get out now!"

"The others won't understand what we are talking about; let's fight Grumblemon and get it over with," I argued.

I ran out of the temple to find Grumblemon perched on top of a giant Digimon made of rock. Its head was that of a turtle with a metal helmet attached by a belt. The rocks on his arms were held to his shoulders by a metallic binding. The being, what Bokomon called Golemon, was three times the height of Kendogarurumon (well, depending how big they drew him at the time).

"Holy rock!" Robert exclaimed. For once I agreed with him completely.

"Grumblemon came with angry surprise for little Spirit kids!" the Earth Warrior looked down upon us from between the shoulders of Golemon.

"One of these days I'm going to beat that jerk for good," Koji snarled.

"When are you going to learn? How about working with the rest of us, huh?" Zoe argued as Golemon loomed closer.

"Hey, guys, how about a little less talk and a lot more action?" I offered, planting my feet firmly. I hope Robert is wrong. Behind us the temple was bathed in a pure white light.

Golemon jumped up into the air with his fist held back, ready to pummel the others who stood in his way.

"Save me," Neemon whimpered, ears held down while clutching Bokomon.

"Just give me a minute," Takuya answered.

"We don't have a minute! Execute, Spirit Evolution…Kusoramon," I unfurled my wings as Golemon's fist met the ground, knocking the others back.

"Minute's over!" Takuya found his D-Tector, and the others Spirit Evolved. They stood at my sides as Koji prepared to Beast Spirit evolve.

"Now for the beast: execute, Beast Spirit!"

"Me no think so," Grumblemon took a cerulean shell and cast from it a pink substance that formed red lines upon the ground. When Koji's feet touched ground, he was immobilized. His D-Tector dropped to the ground.

"What's going on? I can't move," he glared at the red light coming up from the ground.

"Sorry, Kendogarurumon no play today, heh, heh," Grumblemon seemed quite proud of this accomplishment. I would have clapped for him, but I had a feeling that this wasn't going to be the day to beat him. "You no move till Grumblemon say so."

Kumamon leapt into the air sucking in a deep breath. "Crystal Freeze!" Grumblemon and Golemon separated; Golemon dodged with a leap into the air before smashing his fist into my ally.

"Kumamon! Aaargh! Thunder Fist!" Beetlemon started to bring his fists down on Golemon's head.

"What an idiot," Robert hissed from the ground; I hadn't moved since I had Spirit Evolved to store energy.

Beetlemon's fists slammed on top of Golemon's head without doing any damage. He retreated to stand by Kumamon as the giant rock opened its mouth.

"Sulfur Plume!" a wave of sulfur knocked the two of them back into a series of stone pillars. So it can attack; this ought to make things interesting.

"Heh, heh, heh, please no tell me this the best you can do," Grumblemon was watching from atop one of the remaining stone pillars behind Golemon. Coward.

"What do you have for me, Robert?" I asked.

"The construction is of stone and metal; he has good agility and moves fast for a pile of stones…" Robert trailed off when Agunimon charged forward.

"My turn: Pyro Punch!" he threw a wave of fire that had surrounded his fist at Golemon's head, knocking the tyrant back. His head snapped forward to deliver another Sulfur Plume attack to knock Agunimon away.

"You can do it! Just work together!" Zoe encouraged from a distance away.

I stretched my wings out as the ozone about me began to sizzle.

"Enough, you finished. You surrender Spirits now or be destroyed big time," Grumblemon warned.

"Boy, I'd like to shut that guy up," Beetlemon grumbled from somewhere behind me.

"There's got to be something I can do; any suggestions?" Koji demanded.

Air hissed out of my lungs as I felt the wave of energy growing stronger. Golemon leapt forward to slam his fists into the ground right in front of me, trying to intimidate me.

"Yeah, work together," Agunimon said.

"Hurry up," I focused on one point in front of me as the power transformed into a golden light in the shape of a bird. "Tell me where, Robert…"

"His head!"

"Luce Carentes—Light!" I fired at Golemon's head.

"Right! I'll chill him out: Blizzard Blaster!" Kumamon launched himself into the air firing snowballs at Golemon's face as he tried to recover from my attack.

"Thunder Blitz!" Beetlemon rammed into the beast, knocking it back.

"Pyro Tornado!" Agunimon finished him off with a fiery kick to the chest. Golemon collapsed in the dirt and didn't move so fast any more.

"No!" Grumblemon launched himself up into the air.

"Don't let him get away!" Agunimon snarled.

"Execute! Slide Evolution…Gigasmon," the Warrior of Earth glared at us with his topaz eyes. "Now myself may fix you."

"Blizzard Blaster!" Kumamon once again rained snowballs down on the opponent.

"Quagmire Twister!" as Gigasmon spun, the snowballs melted without damaging him. Kumamon was still headed straight for him, and he was going way too fast.

"Watch out!" I shouted.

"Tommy!" Agunimon was knocked back by the twister as it enveloped Kumamon, spitting him out when his Data was showing.

Gigasmon snapped up the Spirit in his mouth. "Mm, yummy bear!" He clenched his fists. "Me have two now."

"Get out of there you guys!" Zoe called out as Gigasmon leapt high in the air. I stood winded on the ground where I was. This wasn't working.

"Tectonic Slam!" his arms came down when a black shape rushed from out of nowhere to knock me out of the way.

I hit the ground with my wings tucked in against my sides; whatever had slammed into me was gone now. When I looked up, a huge, red Digimon had rammed his head into Gigasmon knocking him a good twenty feet backwards.

He was two and a half times the height of Kendogarurumon with heavy armor guarding his torso, arms, and legs. Scarlet colored his eyes and the main of his armor with his sternum and knees colored golden. Huge, orange wings extended from his back with a tail the length of his wingspan. Yellow rings rounded his tail: red and yellow kill a fellow, red and black was a friend of Jack. So I wasn't about to mess with him. Four metallic claws extended from the ends of his arms. He looked like an angry, fiery dragon.

The beast leaned back and roared in pure agony.

"What is that thing?" Agunimon demanded.

"You mean other than bad news?" Beetlemon took a wary step back as Tommy fled to where Zoe was.

"Now just hold on," Bokomon protested. "That thing may be on our side."

"Okay…but somehow, I don't think so," Takuya blatantly disagreed.

"Whatever he is, he seems very upset," Neemon added as the Digimon turned his howl into an evil-sounding cackle.

Golemon's arms erupted from under the earth, ensnaring the fiery being to drag him down.

"You go 'bye' now!" Gigasmon ordered. Instead, the beast flapped its huge fiery wings till it began to draw Golemon out of the ground.

"Quick, let's get out of here," Beetlemon urged.

The fiery Digimon revolved the golden extensions on his arms to fire flaming missiles at Golemon's head. Golemon could take no more, and releasing the Digimon's feet, he plummeted to earth where he dissolved into sand. Only the metal helmet hit the ground, where the fiery Digimon proceeded to crush it under his foot.

The fiery beast was quick to charge the Warrior of Earth.

"I go 'bye' now!" Gigasmon jumped at the ground, vanishing under the earth before the fiery beast could catch hold of him.

I watched the beast with a strange fascination. His appearance, although it made me wary, also made me strangely content.

BurningGreymon, the voice made my Human Spirit body twitch. A guardian of Flame; there are few who can match his strength. Fire feeds on other elements to keep it strong.

That means nothing to me, I dismissed him. He chuckled with good reasoning.

Oh, not right now, but wait for him to kick you into next week and see if you'll be laughing in that puny Human Spirit form. He parted with another pinch of pain; Kusoramon was resilient enough to ignore it completely.

"He's strong," Tommy observed in a shaky voice. I turned towards the others keeping one eye on the raging Digimon.

"Too strong," Koji growled in response.

"If he comes after us, there's no way we'll be able to take him out," Zoe took a step back.

"Right, time to go," Bokomon ushered the three further away.

"Agunimon, let's go," Beetlemon turned his back on BurningGreymon. What is he, ignorant?

"Yeah," Agunimon reluctantly drew back.

"H-help m-me!" a voice oddly familiar moaned from within the quaking Digimon. "I'm possessed by the Beast Spirit!"

"Shamanmon?" Agunimon turned round once more. We were twenty yards apart both with our attentions fixed on BurningGreymon.

His spine was fixated in an upright position as he spoke while the tremors fought him. "I was in the temple when the Beast Spirit was revealed…the instant I touched it, I was possessed. Please, help me!"

Agunimon took three or four steps forward before the others realized what he was doing. I drew all of the atmosphere that I could to me with my wings outstretched before letting the power sizzle down my arms to my fists.

BurningGreymon howled suddenly with fire jetting up from his torso as his own power fueled his body. Flame wreathed his tail which lashed out at Agunimon; he dodged, launching himself backward.

"Pyro Tornado!" he threw a ball of fire that was easily blocked by the golden cartridge-extensions on BurningGreymon's arms. The cartridges revolved to fire at Agunimon, blasting him with fire.

I charged the Beast and snared my talons in his wings till the monster was thrashing to loosen me. "Adamas Strike!" I pounded him in the back just when he backed into a huge stone pillar.

I landed on the ground with a groan. That wasn't what I was hoping for. He whipped his tail round him like a whip to knock Agunimon off his feet; I could see him towering above Agunimon with one of his huge feet pinning him to the ground.

All the while the others were rooted to where they were, unable to move. I struggled to rise up on my arms; was it worth it to continue? Or should I De-Digivolve? Takuya needs me…I have to fight.

BurningGreymon went rigid with his tremors fighting for control. "Strike now!"

Agunimon kicked him back and backed off to gain a little more ground. I watched as he slammed his fists together to summon all the power he had: "Pyro Tornado!" He threw two waves of fire at the monster's head. BurningGreymon fell on its back to the earth.

"Now to free Shamanmon; my D-Tector should release him," he made a casting motion with his arm while holding on to his D-Tector. "Fractal Code, Digitize!"

The Beast Spirit rushed into Takuya's D-Tector while Shamanmon fell to the ground. Data swirled around Takuya: …he was transforming into BurningGreymon.

This is going to be a long day, I could only watch and struggle to get to my feet.

"No! Takuya, back off!" the others shouted to no avail. Takuya cried out in pain as he transformed to loom facing me, his back to the others as BurningGreymon.

I steadied myself. Let's see how this works out.

"Takuya Kanbara?" I called to him. His head whipped towards me; red, ominous, and full of hate watching me. "I know you're in there somewhere, right?"

He howled as fire screamed up from the ridges in his armor. I guess not. His body rushed forward to pivot on one foot as his lizard-like tail connected with my torso; pain rushed through me like a wildfire as I was thrown a good thirty feet to the ground.

I De-Spirit Evolved unwillingly with a grunt; I was drained of all my energy and felt like closing my eyes to take a long, long nap. Yet the pain was still sharp in my body to prevent any numbness to aid that sleep.

Robert appeared beside me in a puff of sandy dust. "Get up! He's not in control at all; he could kill you if you don't move!"

My body and brain weren't in sync; my right leg refused to loosen. "Don't worry about me…"

"But I'm worrying now!" he argued.

"Hey!" Beetlemon shouted out at BurningGreymon. "Takuya! We're your friends…"

The Beast Spirit took hold of his head with his silvery talons, hefting him over his shoulder like he was picking through a bargain bin. He threw his head back and howled once more as he fought for control.

Beetlemon landed ten feet away from me with a loud crunch of armor.

"What do you have for me, Robert?" I demanded of the Poyomon. "He's like a military assault vehicle."

"Just keep talking to him; Tommy was the same way when Bakumon used the Nightmare Syndrome on him. We have to get him to realize who we are, and who he is." The beast in the shadow of the forest? No wonder there were all the weird noises, but this isn't the time for asking questions.

"That's it!" Koji snarled with his D-Tector in his hand. "Beast Spirit Evolution! Kendogarurumon!" The wolf Digimon threw his head back and howled.

"We're doomed," Robert clarified. "It's hopeless now."

"What do you mean?" Beetlemon had gotten back up on his feet.

"Digimon get territorial when another big hunk of Digimon step on their turf; dogs do it, cats do it; heck, Poyomon do it too."

"So what do you suggest?" I asked.

"Well, I'm not going to stop fighting," Beetlemon flew over to where Kendogarurumon was holding his ground.

"He's dead," Robert stated matter-of-factly as he watched Beetlemon go. I forced myself to my feet as Robert addressed me. "If we're going to do this the hard way, we need more firepower than BurningGreymon. We need someone with more experience."

"Like…?" I ran for cover when BurningGreymon's head snapped in my direction. I dove behind a downed pillar; Robert followed with the precision of an army general.

"I was hoping you would have a plan, oh smart one," he made a clicking sound with his tongue. "Do I really have to think of something by myself?"

"I was hoping you would have thought of something earlier," I growled.

"Lupine Laser!" a blast of light sheared past Kendogarurumon's teeth way too low; BurningGreymon dodged, lashing out his tail to knock Beetlemon out of the air. The Warrior of Thunder smacked into the Beast of Light with another crunch of armor.

"Pyro Barrage!" BurningGreymon turned the golden cartridges on them; they fled for cover into the forest.

Flame licked at the trees, eating away at everything that it touched: limb, branch, root, and tree sap: the forest would burn to the ground if it continued like this.

"We have to stop him, Robert," I said as the beast vanished into the smoke. "That or protect the others."

"Howling Star!" the distant voice of Kendogarurumon sounded as trees fell to the ground under his power.

"Just be careful," Robert warned me as he floated up to my shoulder. When he was in place, I ran into the forest.

The main of the fire had been smothered by Koji's quick thinking, but evidence of a great fire remained behind him. Other than the crackling I could hear no sign of BurningGreymon. Takuya, what have you done?

"I wonder where Kyochrysaetosmon is," Robert wondered aloud. "I thought for sure that he was going to show up and beat the rock out of Golemon. Will Saberdramon be attracted to the smoke?"

"There's no reason for him to come here," I avoided several downed trees. "He's got better things to do."

"Uh huh," I could feel him rolling his eyes. "It sounds like he really cares about you."

"He just wants his family to be safe," I cast looks about me as I entered a hazy portion of the forest; we were nearly through to the next clearing.

"Pyro Barrage!" his voice penetrated through to my ears before the fire did.

"Takuya, no!" I ordered in the voice I would have used on a disobedient puppy.

"Don't talk back to him, run!" Robert ordered.

I made it out to the clearing; a hundred yards away was a steep dirt hill that led up to several rock formations. A lake was stretched out further behind it with forest on the other three sides of it. The earth was the color of liquid silver with boulders sticking out of it like bushes.

An angry, roaring came from somewhere close by, a sound that was hardly human.

"Someone's not a happy camper," Robert observed. My eyes fixed on half of our group.

Zoe, Tommy, Bokomon, and Neemon were further up the hill; they were safe. The other two I wasn't so sure about. Rocks shattered down the hill as BurningGreymon stomped forward; Beetlemon zoomed around and head-butted him back. The four figures ran back towards me, and I gripped my D-Tector.

I have to help.

"Robert, keep them safe; I'm going in," I growled. He launched himself to the ground. "Execute, Spirit Evolution! Kusoramon!"

I curled my wings inward and ran up the hill digging my talons into the soft earth. I immediately found myself placed between BurningGreymon and Tommy, who had changed direction to run towards the fiery out-of-control Digimon.

I hope he knows what he's doing, I kept myself still as Tommy took another step towards BurningGreymon.

"Takuya! Please, you've got to stop this. Fight it, Takuya! I know you don't want to hurt any of us," he relaxed his clenched fists so that his palms lay open on either side of his body. He took one last step forward. "This isn't really you; you're just out of control and afraid."

BurningGreymon glared at his with crimson eyes, jerking his head back and taking his own precautionary step back. He roared that same, in-human sound that we had heard before. A silent alarm went off in my head.

"Come on, Takuya, listen to him!" Kendogarurumon and Beetlemon were at a safer distance than Tommy and me yet they were encouraging the beast to focus. "Come on, Taky, it's us!"

"Takuya Kanbara," his name felt funny on my mouth; it was like I was trying to get around a giant roadblock with spikes sticking out of it. The next phrase drove one of the spikes into my arm. "Do you remember Rin Morti?"

He hissed at me, straightening his back till he was extended at his full height. With the swiftness of a hawk he snatched Tommy up in his hand before I could react.

"No!" Beetlemon rushed forward to be knocked out of the air by BurningGreymon's tail. Kendogarurumon turned towards me with a snarl.

"How could you?"

BurningGreymon knocked me on my back with his foot, crushing me under it. My wings were extended on the ground at an awkward angle that hurt my back; my lungs burned as air refused to return to my lungs. An agony came over me that made my blood burn in my veins, and I un-willingly De-Spirit Evolved.

"Takuya, wait a minute!" Tommy protested. "Don't you remember what happened? I learned that true courage isn't paying bullies back; it's standing up to them. Being scared is just as bad as being a bully; you have to fight it. Don't let fear control you…I know you won't hurt me if you remember we're friends."

A single tear fell from Tommy's face and hit BurningGreymon right in the eye. His eyes glowed luminescent white before turning sky blue. He set Tommy on the ground and stopped crushing me.

"Hey!" Tommy exclaimed. "You did…" He stopped speaking as BurningGreymon ran from him, smashing his head on a giant boulder till his head broke through it. The Beast of Flame crushed the other rocks in front of him with his fists; he threw his head back in finality to howl his agony before he De-Spirit Evolved to a human, reduced to tears and sobs.

I stood up and turned immediately towards Kendogarurumon as he returned to human form. I did not glare nor give a pleading glance; I had the feeling that Saberdramon harbored against every living being other than his kin. Instead I descended the hill towards Robert.

"Take care of Takuya," I instructed the Poyomon without a pause in my footsteps. Each step brought me closer and closer to the charred forest. I didn't know where I was going and honestly didn't care. Gigasmon and Kyochrysaetosmon didn't frighten me…Duskmon was another story. Yet I had to conquer that fear eventually, didn't I?

"Maybe you shouldn't…" I interrupted Robert, internally hating to interfere with his harmless words.

"I have to be alone, Robert."