I don't own Digimon.

It Saturday and its time for a new chapter, yay! In the last chapter, you all read the prophecy and everyone seems to think that Davis is coming back for sure. I've said that Davis's role in this story isn't done but that doesn't necessarily mean that he's coming back to life. But then again, anything is possible in DigiWorld so I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happens.

Also everything thinks that Tai and Matt are going to fight and I've kind of made that one obvious with the tension between the two friends. Now my job is to make sure that when they do fight that you won't see it coming. And by that I mean that I will have to make it so that even though you know its coming that when it does it will still surprise you.

Also the name of this chapter is a double meaning. I wondering how many of you will be able to figure it out by the end of this chapter. Enjoy!

Once A Leader…

Chapter 25: New Member

After his meeting with Beelzemon and WarGreymon, Piedmon had transported himself toward BlackWarGreymon's location. Piedmon hadn't heard from him in a while and he was curious as to why that was. When he arrived, Piedmon was surprised to see that BlackWarGreymon was facing off against another Digimon in a recently barren wasteland, courtesy of BlackWarGreymon no doubt.

BlackWarGreymon had been facing off against a Digimon that looked like a samurai version of himself with dark red and gold color throughout his armor. The Digimon was clearly a mega, that much was obvious but what intrigued Piedmon the most was his eyes, his eyes looked…familiar.

"What are you doing here, clown?" BlackWarGreymon asked, pausing his battle.

"My good fellow, I came here to tell you that we're taking a week off to celebrate." Piedmon said, his eyes staying on the other mega. "But it seems that you've found something interesting."

"I have been tracking this Digimon for some time now." BlackWarGreymon told him. "I first spotted him in a village not too far from here and he led me on this wild goose chase."

"You there, what's your name?" Piedmon asked.

But the Digimon didn't respond right away, it stared at Piedmon with a look of pure hatred and rage. It was look that Piedmon had seen several times before throughout his conquests but never like this. There was something underneath all of the emotions, something…primal.

"You don't remember me, do you?" The Digimon finally said. It voice was deep, similar to BlackWarGreymon's but it had a distinct underlying rumble to it. Each word spoken seemed to come out almost like a growl.

"No, should I?" Piedmon asked. But even as he did, a memory flashed in his mind, a blurry and brief memory that told him that they had met before.

This obviously was not the answer that the Digimon was expecting because his glare intensified before aiming a curved blade toward the Dark Master. "Years ago, before the Royal Knights fell, before your Dark Masters were even a team, you met me at the Dragon Temple. You had come seeking followers but none would join you so you destroyed the place and everyone in it. Everyone except me…"

The memory came back to him and Piedmon saw a small BlackAgumon standing before him, trembling and crying. Yet despite its obvious fear the rookie Digimon stood in defiance against him, a clearly more powerful Digimon.

"You're that sniveling little Digimon that I spared, aren't you?" Piedmon asked, knowing at once that it was true. "My you've grown."

"You told me that day that I wasn't worth your time…that I wasn't even worth killing. And you left me there in the ashes of my home. You destroyed everything that was dear to me and left me there to die." He had lowered his blades and glared at the Dark Master, trembling with anticipation. "Since then I have done nothing else except wait for the day that I could face you once again. I have thrown myself into countless battles and destroyed untold amounts of Digimon who thought they were a match for me. I absorbed their data and took their power as my own. I have Digivolved as far as I can and all so that I could face you and prove to you that I am worth your time."

"Wow…you did all that just so that you could prove you were worth my time?" Piedmon asked with a whistle. "And I thought I was obsessive."

"This isn't a joke!" The Digimon shouted. "That day you did the worst thing you could possibly do to a Dragon Digimon, you insulted our pride! By sparing me, you not only stole my honor but you also disgraced my pride. And for a Dragon Digimon, our pride is everything to us!"

The ground began to tremble as the Digimon let loose a rage that had been kept in check for countless years. "I have sacrificed everything that I was once was for this one chance! One chance to fight you and regain my pride!" He aimed a single blade toward Piedmon. "Only by destroying you will I take back my lost honor, only by destroying you will I regain my pride!"

"BlackWarGreymon, it seems that our mutual friend here wants to fight me," Piedmon said, turning to look at the mega. "Don't interfere."

"As you wish." BlackWarGreymon nodded before stepping back.

"Before we begin," Piedmon said as he took a several steps toward the samurai like Digimon. "Can you at least tell me your name?"

"It's Samudramon," the mega said. "Remember it well because it's the last name you will ever hear!"

"We'll see about that…" Piedmon said as he pulled out two of his club swords. It was clear that this Digimon was powerful, perhaps as powerful as BlackWarGreymon. Yet, despite knowing that he was even stronger than this Digimon, Piedmon couldn't help but feel excited. All Digimon craved battle and the look in Samudramon's eye told him that this would be one to remember.

/\(-\/-)/\

Gennai sighed for the hundredth time that day. It was getting late and the DigiDestined had already returned home since they had school the next day. With Piedmon promising them a week off, their next battle wouldn't take place until next Sunday.

But now that they were gone, Gennai had other matters to take care of. With the attack on the Temple of Judgment, no one was stationed there to guard against evil Digimon seeking to return to the Digital World. With Anubismon dead, no one was regulating the rebirthing process or keeping the gate sealed.

It had only been a day since the attack and Piedmon had effectively crippled their only chance at keeping evil Digimon from returning right away. While they couldn't return right away, they wouldn't have to revert back into DigiEggs in order to return to the Digital World. Unless their Digicores were destroyed, there was no way to stop them from coming back unless someone sealed the gate.

Unfortunately the only one who could seal the gate was dead and it would take Anubismon a long time to reborn and reach his mega form once again. Still, Gennai had sent word to Elecmon to locate Anubismon's DigiEgg and to keep it safe until it hatched. They could help him Warp Digivolve with the help from the DigiDestined but even so it would take time, time that they didn't really have.

The only choice now was to send a team of Digimon that could keep evil Digimon from returning. Looking over at his desk, Gennai had the profiles of several powerful Digimon that could hold their own against most of what lurked inside the Dark Area. The first was obviously Leomon. Leomon would be leading the first team with Meramon, Andromon, and Ogremon as his team members. It had surprised Gennai that Ogremon had volunteered at first but it seemed that even he realized the seriousness of the situation.

The second team would be led by an Angemon from File Island. He was relatively new Digimon to the island that took residence in the Ice Temple for some reason. His teammates were Frigimon, Centaromon, and Unimon. They would be acting as the secondary team to swap out when the first team needed a rest. With Angemon there, Gennai was certain that most of the evil Digimon would think twice before trying to break out.

The third team was led by a Digimon that Gennai was glad to see again. Piximon had volunteered to lead the third team after he sense a disturbance in the balance of the Digital World. After his defeat at the hands of Piedmon, Piximon had been even more vigilant and had trained several Digimon to become even stronger. The next few teams were actually trained by Piximon. The three members of his team were Starmon, Flarerizamon, and Sunflowmon. All three of these Digimon had been trained by Piximon since they were rookies and they all volunteered to fight alongside their master.

The next team was led by Monzaemon, who wasn't trained by Piximon, but he still led a team trained by him. The team members were KnightChessmon (White and Black) and Sorcermon. The KnightChessmon were each powerful Digimon in their own right but together they had one of the best tag team attacks around. As for Sorcermon, he was a wizard Digimon that specialized in ice magic.

And the final team was probably their strongest. It was the first team that Piximon trained and the only team that would be authorized to go into the Dark Area if necessary. The leader of Team Five was a Digimon called AegioChusmon, a Digimon that Digivolved from Aegiomon. In his champion form, Aegiomon looked like a young child with goat legs and horns on his head. This Digimon was found by Piximon a few years ago and ever since then, Piximon had sang nothing but praises about the Digimon. AegioChusmon, now an ultimate, was a powerful god man Digimon. It was easily the strongest Digimon apart from the DigiDestined's partners and he was the best chance they had at keeping the evil Digimon at bay.

The next Digimon was Grademon and he was the second Digimon that Piximon trained. Together with AegioChusmon, the two of them were a powerful duo. Grademon was a golden knight Digimon that Piximon was sure had great things in store for him. The next Digimon was SaviorHuckmon and he was dragon man Digimon. When Piximon first found him, SaviorHuckmon was a Huckmon that had been wondering the desert lost and on the brink of death. Piximon nursed him back to health and ever since then Huckmon has served and trained under Piximon.

The last Digimon was Gokuwmon and this man beast Digimon was a master marital artist. Trained by two masters, Gokuwmon's ability matched those of mega level Digimon. Together, the four of them were a powerful team and they could match the power of most mega level Digimon. Gennai knew that the five teams could hold their own against the Demon Lords one at a time. But team five was their first line of defense now aside from the DigiDestined. Should they fall, it would be unlikely that the other teams would be of much help.

Sadly, most of the Digimon that volunteered were Digimon that the DigiDestined had met during their first adventure. There were plenty of Digimon that were powerful in their own right that were too afraid to stand against Piedmon and the Demon Lords. They preferred to wait it out and see which side would win. And Gennai couldn't blame them, they were too afraid to fight. The memory of Piedmon's last war was still fresh on everyone's mind and with Ken's short reign as Digimon Emperor, many of the Digimon just wanted to live in peace. Even if it meant ignoring a very real threat like Piedmon.

Gennai looked over at the screen mounted on the wall behind his desk. It showed him a live stream of a battle that was taking place on the other side of the Digital World. Piedmon was battling against another mega by the name of Samudramon. The battle had been going on for almost an hour now and it seemed like Piedmon was merely toying with him. Every now and then, Piedmon look toward his direction and smile, almost as if he could see Gennai through the screen.

It was frightening to watch, Piedmon's power seemed to have only grown in his absence and Gennai was left to wonder if there was a force in this world that could stop him.

Just then the door opened to his office and two young men entered. Gennai greeted them with a nod and motioned them to sit down. Turning the screen off, Gennai sat back down at his desk and looked at the two young men before him.

"So what news do you have for me, Ryo, Daisuke?"

/\(-\/-)/\

Piedmon grinned as he leapt back and dodged Samudramon's twin strikes. With each swipe of his blades, Samudramon would leave behind eerie tracks of green light. And Piedmon found out the hard way that the light could cut through virtually anything as it sliced thru his own swords and almost took his head off.

Tossing his broken blades aside, Piedmon reached behind him and pulled out his newly remade swords. "You're clearly more powerful than you let on…" Piedmon said, brandishing his newly made swords. "My swords can only handle so much against your blades. So let me show you another trick that I learned from Jupitermon." With a twist of his grip, the two swords crackled with sparks and an electric aura surrounded the blades. "This might come as a shock but now my swords are reinforced by the powers of the thunder god."

"I don't care if they're being reinforced by the god of immortality!" Samudramon growled. "I'm still going to destroy you!"

The two charged once more and Piedmon's coated blades sparked with life each time they came into contact with Samudramon's. Bolts of lightning would lash out and strike Samudramon but the mega Digimon's armor provided enough protection.

Blow for blow, Piedmon was able to match Samudramon's speed and strength. But as the battle continued on, Piedmon was slowly starting to come to the conclusion that dragon man Digimon had the ability to become stronger as the battle raged on. During his fight against BlackWarGreymon, Piedmon had seen the mega go berserk after dealing a seemingly fatal blow. He would have to recreate that scenario to see if Samudramon was capable of the same thing.

"Lightning Joust!" Piedmon leapt back and aimed his right sword toward Samudramon, firing a bolt of lightning from the tip of the blade.

Samudramon blocked the blast of electrical energy with his twin swords, deflecting most of it into the sky above. But that had been his first mistake as Piedmon closed the distance between them while his arms were held up. With his blade poised to strike, Piedmon stabbed his sword into Samudramon's gut and unleashed a powerful electric blast all throughout his body.

Samudramon roared in pain, dropping his twin swords on the ground. His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fell to his knees as the electricity died down. The sword was still lodged inside of his gut and Piedmon was standing in front of the downed Digimon. Smoke trailed off of the dragon man Digimon and Piedmon idly wondered if he had gone too far.

After several moments of waiting, Piedmon turned around and began to walk away. "Looks like you weren't worth my time after all…"

But this seemed to have awoken something inside of Samudramon because Piedmon heard him growling with pure anger. The growl quickly grew into a full-fledged roar and when Piedmon looked into the eyes of the mega, Samudramon was gone and in his place was something else, something…primal.

Piedmon prepared himself for the onslaught but to his surprise Samudramon moved at even greater speeds than even BlackWarGreymon. But his blows weren't as strong and Piedmon was able to quickly recover. He blocked the incoming punches and jabs and countered with his own but it didn't seem like he even felt a damn thing.

Both of the dragon man Digimon could go into a berserker mode and it seemed like each was unique to the Digimon. BlackWarGreymon gained an increase of speed but his power rose to devastating levels. Samudramon power increased but it was his speed that reached near impossible levels. If he was still wielding his blades, Piedmon was sure that Samudramon would've have been able to fatally wound him.

Dodging a kneed to the gut, Piedmon waved his hands in front of him and shouted. "Clown Trick!" Different colored handkerchiefs appeared out of nowhere and wrapped themselves around Samudramon, binding him in place. But the mega Digimon began to radiate a power from within himself that Piedmon was forced to teleport away in order to escape harm.

"Terra Reactor!" A large explosion consumed the area around them and BlackWarGreymon had to fly high into the air in order to avoid it.

When the explosion settled down, Piedmon looked around as he hovered high above the sky, waiting to see of Samudramon would appear. But to his surprise, Samudramon had somehow appeared above him and he had his twin blades raised and primed to strike. Twisting in midair, Piedmon raised his left arm and instinctively called upon the data of a foe he had defeated long ago.

"Shield of the Just!" Gallantmon's shield manifested itself around Piedmon's left arm and it began to glow as it powered up to attack. But it was a second too slow as Samudramon struck with both of his swords, sending Piedmon crashing down with a vengeance.

Piedmon hit the ground with such force that a large column of smoke rose up high into the air, leaving Piedmon in a huge crater. As he picked himself up off the rubble, Piedmon heard Samudramon's next attack before he ever saw it. The blades missed his by millimeters and Piedmon was forced to roll out of the way to avoid the secondary light slash that the blades left behind in their wake.

Not letting up, Piedmon was forced into the defensive once again as Samudramon closed the distance between them and struck with a ferocity that only a wild animal could have. The shield on his left arm was the only thing that was keeping Piedmon alive and he idly wondered if he had gone too far. As powerful as he was, it was moments like this where he underestimated his opponents that could lead to his downfall.

Clenching his right fist, a blue wolf's head manifested itself on his arm and Piedmon aimed the powerful cannon right at the incoming mega. "Supreme Cannon!"

Samudramon slashed through the incoming projectile and continued on his way but before he could close the distance between them, the two halves of the shot detonated right behind him. The shockwaves of the twin blasts threw him off balance and Piedmon appeared right in front of him and delivered a powerful blow to his head.

Samudramon's head snapped back and his body soon followed as he was sent flying backwards, tearing up the ground in his wake. When he finally stopped, Samudramon was lying over a hundred feet away with his body half buried in dirt.

Sensing that the fight was over, Piedmon dispelled the shield on his left arm and slowly made his way over to the downed Digimon. This fight had given the Dark Master plenty to think about and he was starting to wonder if maybe there was more to dragon type Digimon that met the eye.

BlackWarGreymon landed beside the downed Digimon and waited for Piedmon to near. He had been watching the entire fight and he knew that Piedmon had gotten careless. But even so, he never doubted that Piedmon would win. He was clearly stronger.

"Well, I must admit, for a moment there I actually thought he had me." Piedmon said as he stopped a few feet away from Samudramon's dirt mound.

"Hmmp, don't play games, clown. I know that you were clearly toying with him." BlackWarGreymon said. But even as he said it, he knew that Piedmon had come close to defeat. It was proof to him that Piedmon wasn't invincible but he was pretty damn close. "What will you do with him?" He nodded toward the unconscious Digimon.

"I think we'll take him with us." Piedmon said without pause. "We can ask him to join our group and if he does, the Dark Masters will be whole once more."

"Do you know if he'll even wake up?" BlackWarGreymon said, his eyes lingering over the inward dent that Piedmon had left in Samudramon's helm. "You did hit him pretty hard."

"I wasn't using my full strength," Piedmon told him. "He should wake up in a matter of days if not hours." He then looked over at the black mega. "When it comes to dragon Digimon, I beginning to see their worth more and more with each passing day. Your species is a powerful one, there is no doubt that he'll wake up."

"If you say so." BlackWarGreymon said before picking up Samudramon and slinging over his shoulder. "Where to now?"

"Let's go home." Piedmon said. "It's been a long day and I need to check up on Lucemon. I'm sure that he's missed me while I've been away."

"You should just destroy that runt and be done with it."

"He may be a runt now but trust me, my friend, when I'm through with him, his power will rival that of your own." Piedmon promised. "You'll see…"

End of chapter.

Well guys, I think you all have a ton of questions for me now. I'll leave this short and sweet by telling you all that I'll see you next time.