Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon. Characters; Asuka (Qinlongfei), Zoe (Thisistherealdeal), Jay (sonofthetrigod), Hannah (RazenX), Lexy, Benji and Tilly (KumoFuzei), Amelia (Somethingdictionaryrelated), John (tobiisagoodboy94), Kara (FallenAngel01) and Rocky (me)

A/N – Keeping things in the UK still – chapter 30 will be back in Canada!

A/N 2 – Check out the thread for the Tangled Web on the Digital Connections forum! Here's the link topic/22352/116003425/1/#116079252
Go on, you know you want to!

Without any more author notes, here is the next chapter, 28, from… Ka-ra Ham-mill-ton!

Chapter 28 – Kara Hamilton

MetalPhantomon turned to face me and its bony hands flexed and tighten around the metal rod of its scythe.

"Ha, ha, ha. You puny children cannot defeat me, not whilst the metal bands sit on your Digimon." The Digimon's raucous laugh filled the air. "The D, E, P, T can only aid Lord Pandemicamon so much, I'm here to make my mark and bring this world to its knees. First, I have to eliminate you and your pathetic excuses of Digimon."

"Lalamon, be careful!" I called out, hoping she would stay clear of the fight.

Rocky and Lexy stood to my left and Jay to my right. Unlike the other three, I was petrified of the Digimon in front of us.

"Come on. Iontramon- digivolve!" Lexy said, holding her wrist out and watching her little partner glow with a shining sapphire coloured light as angel wings emerged from his back.

"Iontramon digivolve to IceAngemon!" A bright light emanated from the angel's wings.

"Foolish…" MetalPhantomon spat with a venom in his voice which sent a shiver down my spine. "But let's take this someplace else, shall we?"

It looked as though the road was being ripped up, leaving a hole right in the middle before our very eyes. Gravel crumbled around the hole.

"Come on, let's go now children…" MetalPhantomon raised its arms to the sky with his scythe over his head.

A windy torrent began to pull at us and we were being pulled closer to the hole. Closer and closer. I tried to fight it, turning away and holding my arms in front of my face as loose leaves and gravel struck it.

"Rocky!" I called out, trying to open my eyes properly in order to see him.

IceAngemon dropped down to the pavement and put one hand around Lexy's waist, holding her close. "I'll get you out of here, Lexy!" he called out over the rushing winds.

"No- what about Rocky?" the girl protested, thumping IceAngemon's hand, whilst her cousin contradicted her and ordered IceAngemon to fly her away to safety.

There was a rattling sound as a dustbin was sent flying towards me. I barely had enough time to leap out of the way, but I cleared it with plenty of room. Staggering about in an attempt to avoid the obstacles MetalPhantomon was throwing about, I found myself getting dangerously close to the hole in the road. I believed this to be a digital portal, but I wasn't ready to go to the Digital World just yet. My foot slipped over the edge and I felt myself falling through the air, clawing for the edge of the hole in the hope of saving myself.

A hand found itself around my wrist and I looked up to see Rocky leaning over the edge of the hole, clinging tightly to me.

Whimpering, I desperately hoped he had the strength to pull me up, but I could see his elbows were cut and glistening with blood – an injury most likely endured by diving across the ground.

"Rocky!" I shouted.

"Don't panic, Kara! I've got you!" As soon as he said this, I watched him slip an inch or two further over the edge.

"But who's got you!?"

"Kara!" Lalamon took a hold of my other hand and tried to pull me up, but I screamed in agony through her efforts. "It's a portal to the Digital World!" my partner exclaimed.

"Come on, children. Don't worry about the Digital World – you'll appreciate it there. I know you will." MetalPhantomon dropped down into the hole.

I thought he had dropped past me, until a cold and metal hand grabbed my ankle. My scream echoed in the street as I kicked out trying to free myself. The grip Rocky had on my wrist was slipping, even with two hands around it. With the extra weight of MetalPhantomon trying to pull me down into the Digital World, it was excruciating for both of us.

Rocky growled as he tried to help me up, but he was growing weak and I dropped an extra foot. For a moment, I thought I was done for, but when I looked up, I saw Jay with his arms wrapped around Rocky's leg.

"Oh come now children. Come play in the Digital World," MetalPhantomon taunted us, hoping to get some kind of response. "Let go…"

Somehow, and I don't know how, the three of us were falling through the air as the hole slowly sealed itself. We went straight through the portal and were plunged into the darkness of the Digital World.

I crashed into a large body of water and flailed about on the surface like a fish out of water. The waves were strong and lapped up against a rocky coast.

"Help! Rocky! Where are you?" I called out helplessly, scanning the horizon for a sign of anyone else. My heart battered my ribcage as I thought about where Rocky would be. We had fallen through the portal together, so it was only logical that we ended up in the same place.

"Need a hand, Kara?"

I looked up to see Hannah clinging onto Angemon's back with Lalamon floating above her too. "Hannah- you don't know how pleased I am to see you – how did you know I was here?"

"Patamon and I were sure we detected a Digimon in the area, and it was a new one so we thought you guys might need a hand. Rather than stay in the human world, me and Patamon thought we'd give you a helping hand in the Digital World – Patamon had a feeling." Hannah helped me up on Angemon's back and I shivered at the thought of the cold water. "Go Angemon- take us to the island!"

"Right," Angemon replied as he soared over to the island.

"Kara?" Hannah asked, looking at me as I lay flattening Patamon into the sand.

"Patamon!" I squealed. I hadn't even noticed that Angemon had de-digivolved into Patamon. "I'm so sorry!"

The winged Digimon shook its head. "That's okay!" He grinned with a wide smile before flying into Hannah's arms and nuzzling her neck.

"Kara – I was worried when I couldn't find you." Lalamon hovered in front of me. "You really scared me for a moment."

"Lalamon!" I wrapped my arms around my partner, holding her close and never wanting to let go. "Where's that metal band, Lalamon?"

She looked down at her body and realised that the metal band had gone. "Yes! I can digivolve now – that's unbelievable!"

"It's a relief," I sighed quietly.

Standing up, I scanned the area. The beach we stood on was a beautifully pristine white sand. A row of palm trees ran parallel to the sea and blossomed overhead. There was a lone coconut which reminded me of the time that my family went on holiday to the Maldives. It's the only holiday abroad we had ever been on, but it was definitely the best one yet. Whilst in the Maldives, there was a load of palm trees on the beachfront and Dad used to hate the sun so he would seek shelter in the shade. One time, he was smacked on the head by a coconut which bruised his forehead for weeks after we got home. Me and Jenna even decided to rub a load of Mum's dark purple eyeshadow on our foreheads during the holiday so that Dad wouldn't be the only one.

"What's wrong Kara?"

I turned around to see Hannah staring right at me.

"It's nothing Hannah, I was just remembering a holiday to the Maldives when I was eleven. This beach reminded me of it."

"Oh- okay!" Hannah smiled. "What do you think we should do now, Kara?"

"Well, last I knew, Rocky and Jay had fallen through the portal to the Digital World, so I'm hoping that they are still here. What I can't seem to decide is whether or not we should go looking for them, or if we should just stay here, and hope that they find us. Somehow I don't think staying here is the best option."

Hannah began to laugh, which confused me a little. When I asked her what was wrong, she said something that opened my eyes a little.

"You used to be so quiet, the one that no one took much notice of. You've grown up, a lot!" Hannah grinned at me. "You're like the mother hen of our rag-tag group."

"She's right Kara, because when I first met you, you were shy and rarely said a word." Lalamon perched on my shoulder. "Now you're growing up and more vocal- I think it's changed you for the better having me and the Digital World choosing you as a Digidestined."

"Oh Lalamon," I whispered, feeling my eyes welling up. "Thank you."

It was true, I had grown a little louder lately, and it wasn't just the Digital World I had to thank. I had Rocky to thank as well. What I mean is that the more time we spent with one another, the more comfortable we were with the other. Whenever we were together, we able to reminisce about old times. However, between us, we had our arguments and that made me voice my opinion more forcefully. Even though it took time, it gave me the opportunity to understand Rocky and his views more – even if I didn't always agree with them.

"I guess it has, but I hope it's for the better."

"Can I ask you something, Kara- it's quite personal, yeah?" Hannah sat down on the sand and I stared at her. "Come on, sit down. We can, we can have a girly chat or something!" Her enthusiasm was certainly commendable. "Kara- sit down!"

"Alright – alright…" I said, sitting down on the sand, and hating the fact that, despite a new coloured polo shirt, I was still wearing a short white skirt. Though I didn't like to show it, I hated the feeling of sand on my bare skin.

"How can you take Rocky back after all that he's done?"

Bam! It felt like I had hit a brick wall, I blinked rapidly and tried to process what had caused her to ask me that. It was a question I didn't want to answer because I was still running from it. My chest tightened just thinking about how I would answer the question. In my head, I was praying for a break that would prevent me from answering the question.

"Wizardmon- watch out!"

Out of the palm trees, flew a Digimon wearing a cape and a wizard's hat. It must have been this so-called Wizardmon and if I remembered correctly, this was Rocky's champion level Digimon, which leapt back onto its feet in the shallows of the water.

"Electro Squall!" he called out, raising his hands skywards.

Before I met Digimon, I would not have believed what I was seeing, but now, I believed the thundercloud that was appearing in the clear blue sky. The mere presence of the thundercloud tarnished the pristine sky.

With a masculine grunt, the Digimon sent a lightning strike into the jungle it had been thrown from.

"Wizard!" Out burst MetalPhantomon, brandishing his scythe and shouting abuse at the Digimon. "You don't stand a chance against me!"

"Come on Lalamon – let's help them out," I said, nodding at my partner. "Lalamon, digivolve!"

"Lalamon digivolve to, Sunflowmon!"

It had been so long since I had seen my champion level partner, so it made my heart warm when I saw her.

"Sunshine beam!"

My partner knew exactly what to do, and that felt unbelievable.

It would have been better if the attack had caused more damage though, MetalPhantomon didn't seem to budge one bit.

"No," I gasped, hopelessly. "Sunflowmon, be careful please!"

"It's alright Kara, I won't let him get me."

Sunflowmon rose up higher, MetalPhantomon looked up and chuckled.

"Soul Predator!"

As if by magic, the Digimon's scythe grew in size, enlarged by energy. There was a moment where he decided whether he would attack Angemon, Wizardmon or Sunflowmon- and the decision was close to being made.

"No- leave them alone!" I called out, running to one side of the beach and away from everyone else. "I won't let you hurt my friends, leave them alone."

"Will you sacrifice yourself for their benefit?" MetalPhantomon asked, energy sparking off his weapon.

Of course I would, I care too much for them to let them get hurt.

I nodded, making him decide the direction of his attack.

Right for me. Knowing there wasn't enough time to outrun it, I rose my hands up in front of my face.

A scream filled my ears and I was knocked off my feet. When I opened my eyes, I could see a shield around me- a transparent like bubble that encased itself around me.

"What?!" MetalPhantomon stuttered a little. "What is this black magic?"

Looking down at my wrist, I could see the transparent bubble leaking out from it. "What is that?"

The fourth section button rose a little and then slid away underneath the screen of my Digivice.

"O-kay…" I murmured.

There was a sudden clash as all three of our champion level Digimon threw a string of attacks at the ultimate level Digimon. If it was one on one, then MetalPhantomon would have won, but not with three on one.

MetalPhantomon was gone.

"No!" I shouted when I realised the ruthlessness of our actions. "You, you erased him…" My head snapped to look at Wizardmon, Angemon and Sunflowmon. "How could you?"

The three champions returned to their rookie forms.

"Kara," Rocky said, walking towards me. "Come on, we couldn't just let MetalPhantomon destroy us. It had to be done. What if he got away and told Pandemicamon that we were all here?"

"But MetalPhantomon was a living Digimon. A living and breathing lifeform. It's not fair that we should be the ones to decide who is erased and who is not."

Lalamon was next to try and help cheer me up. "That's not the case, Kara, I promise. MetalPhantomon isn't gone forever. He will return to the RAM Island- it's said to be the place that Digimon are restored at, but from what I've heard, the process of restoration is long."

"Really?" I murmured, wiping my gloved hand across my face, taking the tears with it. "You really mean that?"

"Of course – I would never lie to you, Kara. We've all seen how lies can entangle us in a sticky web."

I nodded in agreement, before turning to Rocky. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing – I'm just ready to bring down DEPT once and for all," he said boldly. There was no way that he was changing his mind. "We have to bring the general to his knees."

This isn't the Rocky I know. Something's changed.

"Rocky, what are you talking about?" I asked, putting a hand flat on his chest, feeling his hard hammering his chest. "Talk to me."

"Sorry," Rocky replied shaking his head. "I just need to do something. Lexy's my family, you're my girlfriend, and the others are my friends. It's just, I feel I have to do something to protect them. Especially you. I couldn't bear it if something happened to you or Lexy, because the Digimon were what brought us together, and if the DEPT has the capability of deleting Digimon, then I must eliminate this."

My lips quivered before I took a small breath. In the bottom of my sight, I could see water building up. "Rocky-" Rather than say anything, I put my arms around him whilst tip-toeing so that I could hug him over his shoulders.

He had always told me that he liked this hug.

"Thank you," he mumbled calmly.

"Oh you guys are so cute!" squealed Hannah making us move apart and see her clasp her hand over her mouth. "I said that out loud, didn't I?"

Patamon nudged his partner's shoulder. "You sure did!"

"So what now guys?" Rocky asked, looking between me and Hannah.

"Well, first-" Hannah started, but I had to interrupt her.

"What about Jay?" I asked.

Rocky rolled his eyes a little. "What about him? I know you don't think so, but there's something wrong with him. Whether you do or not, I don't like him."

"Rocky!" I gasped, shocked by his sudden behaviour switch.

"Kara – he knows too much. It's too easy. He's came into our group so quickly that it's like the DEPT put him there to stop us from intervening in anything the DEPT did. And that metal spanner thing- he had that and that got rid of those metal bands." Rocky was so certain that I was beginning to see that maybe there was some truth in what he was saying.

"Say that to my face!" another voice shouted.

I looked up the beach to see Jay standing further up it, like us, he was in another outfit. "Jay?"

"Come on Rocky, let's fight this out!" Jay screamed. "I'm sick and tired of you having something against me, when you should have nothing against me!"

He was so angry, that if he were a cartoon, steam would be erupting from his ears.

"Growlmon – digivolve!" Jay shouted, doing something to his Digivice and activating something unusual with it.

But a dark shadow was around his Digivice which really started to scare me, it didn't look right.

"Growlmon d-di-digivolve into DarkWarGrowlmon!"

Growing above the palm trees behind Jay, was what I assumed to be this 'DarkWarGrowlmon' and he looked big and mean. The Digimon had a rugged appearance, it was like everything had turned mechanical and blackened by darkness. I could see exposed wires over its body which sparked occasionally.

"Oh my- what is that?" I gripped Rocky's hand tightly.

"It'll be okay – if it's a fight that Jay wants, it's a fight he will get." He pulled away from my hand. "Candlemon – are you okay to fight?"

Candlemon looked weak and tired, but he nodded. "Ready."

"Rocky – please don't fight him," Hannah pleaded, squeezing Patamon in her arms. "Candlemon has only just recovered from one champion digivolution today, he's not strong enough- and even then you're not strong enough to fight that thing…"

"Come on Rocky," taunted Jay, shaking his fists. "This is what you wanted, isn't it? You want to challenge me to be some kind of leader, don't you?"

"Candlemon – digivolve!" Rocky started walking towards Jay, scattering a trail of sand behind him.

"Candlemon digivolve to Wizardmon!" The champion Digimon held a golden glistening staff in his hand as he chased after his partner. "I won't let him hurt you, Rocky."

I watched helplessly as Wizardmon darted towards DarkWarGrowlmon who was now crashing his way onto the beach, bringing down a few palms trees effortlessly making the group shudder.

"Shouldn't we do something, Kara?" Lalamon asked.

I thought for a moment. "Lalamon, what do we do? I don't want Rocky to get hurt. And Jay is a friend."

"If Patamon's strong enough, we can help mediate." Lalamon turned to look at Patamon, but her possible partner was sound asleep. "Looks like it's down to you and me, Kara. We can do this, and we can do this together."

I nodded- she made me feel like it was completely possible to be a team with Jay. "Lalamon digivolve!"

"Lalamon digivolve to Sunflowmon!"

I ran across the beach as Sunflowmon tore through the air towards Wizardmon and DarkWarGrowlmon. Wizardmon was thrown across the beach like a ragdoll.

"Wizardmon!" Rocky called out, sprinting towards Jay with a hateful vengeance.

"Rocky!" I squealed.

A roar filled the as black mist spewed out of the large Digimon's body, shrudding the once clear sky in a thick musky darkness. It was like the scene from a horror film, a horror film that I wouldn't even consider going to see in the cinema – I can't stomach them.

"Sunflowmon be careful!" I looked to my partner who was hopelessly dodging the firey rocks that were being thrown her way.

"Kara!" Hannah called out, warning me and pointing towards Rocky just as he landed a punch on Jay.

Jay dropped to the sand and lay there for a moment. Rocky was down on top of him and holding him by the collar of his black t-shirt.

"Rocky- stop it!" I begged, running across the sand to try and intervene.

The two boys grappled with one another – but they were being so aggressive with one another that I didn't stand a chance of separating them.

"Please!" I shouted, crying like I had no control. "Don't do it, this isn't you."

"Kara!" Sunflowmon called out.

A firey molten rock was hurtling towards me and I froze.

Someone crashed into me and almost pinned me to the ground protectively.

"Kara- you okay?" Rocky asked, dusting the sand from his hair.

"Thank you," I whispered, throwing my arms around him.

He put a hand on my back and this simple hug made me feel so warm, and thankful for the relationship we had.

A bright light emanated from my Digivice making Rocky and I gasp. A grin plastered itself across my face. Out of my body came a bright pink orb, an orb which morphed into the shape of a small stick.

"What is this?" I asked, looking down at my Digivice.

"Sunflowmon – watch out!" Wizardmon called out, cautioning her of another impending attack.

"This goes here…" I smiled, placing the orb into the slot that had been revealed earlier on in the beach. Looking up, I saw Sunflowmon begin to glow. "She's digivolving!" I exclaimed joyfully.

"That's amazing Kara," Rocky said, grabbing my hand and pulling me to my feet.

"Sunflowmon digivolve to-" Overwhelmed by the fact my parner was about to digivolve, I watched in anticipation as two additional pointy wings sprung out of Sunflowmon's back. Her cactus like arms grew narrower and I was sure that slender tiny hands flexed at the end of them. A rosy flower bloomed from her waist and a pink light shot up skywards. "Lillymon!"

"She's beautiful…" I whispered in adoration and admiration of Lillymon's style and definitely her outfit.

"And I'm sure she'll kick butt too," Rocky added.

"Flower Wreath!" Lillymon flew around the head of DarkWarGrowlmon's head, releasing a floral necklace for him to wear.

It tightened and we watched as DarkWarGrowlmon shrunk down into a small red creature lying on the sand.

"Oh yeah, that showed him!" Lillymon winked before flying down to the beach.

"Oh my goodness…" I gasped, running past Jay towards the Digimon. "Who are you little guy?"

Dropping to my knees, I picked up the little Digimon in my arms.

"Gigimon?" I said, looking at the name that was on the screen of my Digivice. "Gigimon?" My hands trembled as I tried to get a response, but it seem useless. The little guy was out cold.

"Is he okay?" Hannah had come across the beach to see what was going on.

Budmon, my partner's in-training form, decided to explain the situation. "This little guy is tired and seems physically drained – I'm surprised he didn't return to a Digi-Egg."

"Jay…" I turned to see him with his head resting on his knees. "Gigimon's your Digimon, isn't he?"

"Yes," he murmured.

"Jay, how could you be so reckless?" I replied calmly.

"I don't know – I was just angry."

Rocky was far less forgiving than I was. "I sure hope you learnt your lesson."

"Be quiet Rocky, you're not helping at all." I moved towards Jay, carrying Gigimon in my arms. "This is your partner, Jay. He's not a possession that you can call on when things get tough. Gigimon is going to need a lot of care and attention to nurse him back to health, and you're the only one who can do that. Please take Gigimon and look after him. He's your Digimon partner. And we are your Digidestined friends – Rocky included."

"You accept me as part of your Digidestined group?" he mumbled, rubbing his nose with the back of his hand. "Really?"

"I do, and I'm sure the others will to. Won't you?"

Hannah smiled cheerfully. "Of course."

We both looked at Rocky.

"Fine."

Thoughts from AspiringWriterGirl = A first ever ultimate Digimon and it was Lillymon (I chose Lillymon because I didn't really like Lilamon- she bugged me a little, but I don't know why) and Jay's a Digidestined too, hope you didn't mind his slightly negative and angry light sonofthetrigod :S