The door opened and Impmon came running in. "What happened?" he asked. "I heard your scream..."

He took a step back when he saw Kei's face. Hatred and sorrow was turning her face into a horrible mask of misery. "Why?" she shouted through clenched teeth while tears were streaming down her face. "Why does he do that? Why my parents? They never did anything..."

"Hey, hey, settle down, kid, you're giving me the creeps here. What's going on? Who did anything to your parents?"

"H-him!" Kei stuttered and gestured at the computer screen. "He always targets me... he takes a perverse delight in tormenting me. And now... my parents are the ones that have to suffer..."

"Who the heck are you talking about, kid?" Impmon frowned.

"HIM!" Kei screamed, gesturing at the screen again. "He's behind all of this... he's destroying everything..." She curled up into a ball. "And everyone..."

Impmon was starting to get a clue. "You mean... that BioCalumon guy you told us about?" He frowned. "What did the creep do now? When I'm gonna put my hands on him, he's toast!"

"You can't do anything..." Kei mumbled. "I can't do anything... it's just so hopeless..."

"Hey! Don't give me that!" Impmon snapped. "You said you were the Game Master, right? Well, then sit down and take care of that problem! Sitting here and wailing in self-pity isn't going to help! Take some action, girl!"

Kei looked up at him. She didn't know Impmon as well as Takato and the others did, but what she heard from Takato made her think that this didn't seem to be something he would have said.

Impmon noticed her stare and flinched. "I did... a couple of awful things back then..." he murmured. "And it was all because I wanted to do everything by myself... I was always griping and complaining about how weak I was. And instead of taking some action by myself, I let myself being corrupted by those... those Deva! But now... I have realized that I can be strong when I think of my friends. My Tamers, and the other guys as well. And I might not have a good job while protecting Ai... but you heard her Mom, right? They are counting on me to do the job. And I won't let her or anyone else down! And you... you don't want to let your friends down either, do you?"

Kei uncurled from the fetal position she had taken and thought about Impmon's words. "But what if I can't do anything about it?" she whimpered. "What if he's gonna hurt them even more?"

"You just have to try, kid! Saying you can't do anything is easy as long as you haven't tried. At least when you tried you can tell yourself that you did your best. And I know you can find a way, kid! You managed to save those other kids as well. So sit down and find something to help your parents, all right?"

"A... all right..." Kei said. She swallowed her tears and gave him a weak smile. "I guess... I got carried away a little, huh?"

"Just a bit," Impmon smirked. "But I understand it's hard. You're lucky, kid! I never had any parents..." He sighed. "Oh well, time to get back to work. You have some friends to help, while I'm gonna try and see if I can find some traces of the bad guys around the house. And remember: You can do it, kid!"

He gave her the thumbs up, and Kei had to chuckle. She wiped away her tears and Impmon went outside. Just as he left, Mako came into the room.

"Did you... did you cry?" he asked.

"Just a little bit," Kei said. "But I'm better now, thanks to Impmon."

Mako smiled. "He's great, isn't he? I was gonna cry as well, since Ai is gone and all... but he told me that everything is gonna be all right, and that we would find a way to help everyone. So I wanna do my best and help too. I'm not as strong as Impmon, but I could help you."

Kei smiled back at him. "Okay, kiddo, sit down next to me! This is your Dad's computer, after all."

Mako fluttered up on a chair next to her and stared at the screen. Then he was disappointed. "Aw, it's broken... Should I get Dad and ask him to fix it?"

"It isn't broken," Kei explained. "You just can't see the program because you are not the Game Maker. But I'm still happy that you're here. So, now... are you good with video games?"

"Oh yeah!" Mako nodded enthusiastically. "I like to play Final Fantasy!"

"Great!" Kei said. "Now, if your heroes were in a situation where they were outnumbered by the enemy... and they couldn't escape either. What should they do?"

"Well, they have to beat them all up!" Mako said and pished his small fist into the air.

Kei chuckled. "Obviously. But it isn't going to be easy, you know? What if those enemies prove to be too much for our heroes?"

"But they won't!" Mako protested. "They can all help each other... and they can always buy enough items before the battle."

"Yes, but what if there wasn't a shop right before the battle?" Kei asked.

Mako thought about it. "Well, they could always make use of their enemies' weaknesses..."

Kei frowned. "Weaknesses?"

"Sure!" Mako nodded. "In those games, most enemies have a weakness that can help the heroes to beat them. Some are weak to fire, others to ice. Don't they have some magic spell to find out what would work good against those enemies?"

Kei thought about it. Well, they had their D-Powers... but did Digimon have weaknesses? Did the D-Powers show them those weaknesses?

Well, if they didn't, it was time to change that.

"You really had quite the idea there, Mako!" she told the TinyDevimon. "Great job!"

Mako smiled at the praise and watched how she used the mouse and keyboard to enter several things into the computer.

Kei opened the Item Creator of the program and took a look at the file of the D-Powers. From what she saw, they could detect other Digimons with this, and identify them, including their level, attribute, type and attacks. But it said nothing about detecting a weakness.

'Let's change that!' Kei thought and made the appropriate changes. 'Now almost every Digimon will have some sort of weakness the others just have to exploit. Okay, for now, only Rika and Renamon can fight, but at least they have it a bit easier. And they can use fire-type attacks, which is always good against insects. Now all I have to do is to find a cure for the others...'

"If only I knew why he did that..." she murmured.

"Who did what?" Mako asked curiously. For a while, she had forgotten that he was sitting there.

"Oh, well... I mean, there's this bad guy in the game, you see? And he did something... but I don't know why he did it."

"Hmmmm..." Mako really started to ponder now, as good as a young boy like him could. "I don't think you could just ask him, huh?"

Kei shook her head. "I'm afraid he wouldn't tell me," she smirked.

"Well, okay... but can't you just spy on him? Oh, wait, I have another idea! You need to have something to read his mind."

Keis sighed. "Something, I really wish I'd have such a thing..."

Mako nodded. "Yeah, me too. Especially when Mom doesn't want to tell me where she hid the cookies..."

Kei put her elbow on the table. "What we need... would be something on which we always could read the bad guy's next step..."

She looked back at the screen when a new window opened.

'1000 MAKER POINTS GAINED!' she read.

'Those things again?' she thought. 'I wonder what else I could buy with them...'

But when she looked at the corresponding menu, she was baffled: There, in front of her eyes was a special option, called 'Villain Scry'. According to the description, she could click on one of the main villains and see what his current thoughts were... but only once a day.

"And if I buy this thing with my Maker Points, it only works for one of our villains..." she murmured. "Well, it's better than nothing, I suppose... I guess I'll just buy one for Millenniummon, he's the most urgent problem. Still, I wonder if this could be a coincidence. I don't remember that option to be purchasable when I looked at the menu last time... could it have appeared because I need it? Well, whatever, I should be thankful, I guess. Sometimes, this nasty old program can be really useful..."

A small box with the words 'It was my pleasure.' appeared on screen.

Kei stared at the image. "What?" she whispered.

"What's wrong?" Mako asked curiously. To him, everything on screen was still static, of course.

"Um... it's nothing," Kei said. "Listen, Mako, can you ask your Mom if I could have something to drink? I'm rather thirsty. And maybe a small snack, too?"

"I'll ask her," Mako said and hopped off his chair, fluttering out of the room. "Moooooom!" he shouted.

Kei stood up and closed the door behind him, then she went back to the computer. She glared at the screen furiously. "All right, enough with the games! I know you can hear me, so spit it out: What do you want, BioCalumon?"

Another text box appeared. 'I am not BioCalumon. I am the Gremlin in the game.'

"Very funny!" Kei snorted. "Bio himself told me that half of his body, or soul, or whatever, is trapped in there. So if he is the real Gremlin, what does that make you?"

'His other half,' the text box replied. 'But as long as he doesn't manage to reach me, I am a separate entity.'

"Okay, but even if I should believe you, why should I trust you?"

'Why shouldn't you?' This time, a little smiley face appeared behind the sentence. 'After all, I have provided you with Maker Points all the time. And that was not everything I did.'

"Oh, really?" Kei asked. "What else did you do? Lure your other self here so you can be whole again?"

'No,' said the response. 'But I made sure that your parents still remember you as their child, for example.'

Kei was taken aback. "Y-you're lying!" she then protested. "That happened because BioCalumon could never go against the rules of the game."

'And who do you think came up with these rules?' the next image box read. 'You have to trust me, Kei, I never wanted to harm you. I'm trying to keep you safe from everything my demented twin is throwing at you.'

Kei leaned back in her chair with a sigh. "I don't know what to believe anymore..."

'Maybe you will trust me more after I showed you everything I did after you and your cousin started to use this game,' the unknown entity replied. 'But first, couldn't you turn on the 'assistant' option? Communicating with you with these boxes is really tiring, I'd like to meet you face to face.'

Very hesitantly, Kei searched through the options, and true enough, she found a small point called the 'RPG Maker Assistant'. Right now, it was deactivated.

'C'mon, do it!' the next text boy pleaded. 'Nothing is going to happen to you. I'm not like my brother, I swear it!'

'God, please forgive me if what I'm doing now is a mistake...' Kei mentally winced while clicking on the image.

Almost instantly, a small window in the lower right corner appeared, with the smiling image of a small Digimon. It almost looked like Calumon, but it was a light pink instead of white. It also wore a cute little tiara around its triangle sign.

"Finally..." it sighed in a pleasant, female voice. "Do you know how tiring it is to keep up with these text boxes? I nearly fell asleep... Well, anyways, it's nice to finally see you eye to eye." She giggled. "Well, in a manner of speaking. Too bad I'm still trapped in here. It's a pleasure having worked with you, Kei. My name is HolyCalumon!"

Kei wondered if a facefault was appropriate right now...

"I don't believe you!" she finally shouted, while staring at the image of the small Digimon. "BioCalumon himself told me that he created his body as a shell to store his whole being, and that his soul was still inside the game. How can you have been created apart from him if you are his soul?"

"That's because I kept my existence secret from him," HolyCalumon explained in a sad voice. "After the body of 'BioCalumon' got created, my 'brother' left the prison he has been trapped in for so long in a hurry, eager to be united with a new body. He just felt that he left something behind, he couldn't tell that it was me, a new being, which is holding half of his original powers... and because his main control was over the body and not the program itself, he assumed it had to be his soul that was left behind... or something similar, at least. By the time I realized that I had gained self-awareness, I was able to cushion most of the changes he was doing to reality. Introducing the Maker Points was my first step on helping you. I supplied your friends with a vessel they could use to reach Okinawa, I made it so your parents would still remember you in some way..."

"But... but how can Bio still affect the game to a certain degree from where his new body is if all that's left behind is you? That's just crazy!" Kei blurted out.

"I know it sounds crazy, but there is still a link between us. It allows him to influence the game's effects. To my shame, I must admit that I didn't try to stop him every time he did that. I was... too afraid of what he would do to me when he finds out about me..."

"He certainly wouldn't want to get rid of you," Kei frowned. "After all, you are the last bit of power that he needs to regain his old strength..."

"And we must do everything to hinder him from reaching that goal!" HolyCalumon insisted. "You wouldn't believe just how dangerous he would be... please, let me help you!"

Kei groaned. She sounded really sincere... and desperate. But... could he really risk it?

"What about Eiko?" she finally asked with a deep frown. "You allowed those guys to take her with them... as well as you allowed them to take control over those kids. And you didn't stop Millenniummon from taking over Cyberdramon's mind!"

"Kei, you must understand that I am not omnipotent," HolyCalumon said. "And I can't see the future. Had I known that something like that happened, I would have tried everything to prevent it. Every time BioCalumon makes some changes, I can't hinder him. I can just try to change the current situation to your friends' advantage. And don't worry! We'll find a way to save Eiko and Monodramon, together! I promise!"

Kei still wasn't too sure about this. Then she noticed something. "Shouldn't Mako have returned by now?" she murmured.

HolyCalumon smiled. "Not for a while. I paused the game for the duration of our conversation. You and me are the only one that notice."

"You can do that?" Kei was amazed. "Wouldn't Bio notice?"

"Only if I keep it up for too long, and if I use it repeatedly. It also takes a lot out of me, so I can't do this too often..."

Kei scratched her head. It was true that HolyCalumon could have done much worse things if she wanted to... and there had to be a reason why those positive changes had happened. Kei had already guessed that there was some sort of balancing power in the game that stopped Bio from becoming too powerful... he just didn't expect something like this.

"Fine..." she reluctantly agreed. "I believe you!"

"Oh, thank you!" HolyCalumon's eyes sparkled with joy. "You won't regret it! I'll go to work immediately. Just tell me what to do, and I'll do it. You'll see, having me as an assistant will save you much time. You won't even have to enter the changes, I can do everything for you."

"Okay, okay, for the moment, let's figure something out how we can help my friends on Okinawa... and my parents!"

----

"FOR THE KING AND QUEEN!" the Flymon yelled as they buzzed out of their hive, one giant swarm that darkened the sun. Behind them, the smaller swarm of the Honeybeemon was following. On the ground, even the Kunemon fought bravely to defend their home.

Their hearts were filled with bravery and confidence, as they knew that cowardice was not only dishonorable, but also a distraction. They knew their king had given their new allies the order to attack their enemies' base from the inside, so all they had to do was to hold off the enemy until they were defeated from within.

Which doesn't mean it was going to be an easy job. On the other side of the battlefield, Snimon and Mothmon were flying into battle, supported by Dokunemon and the Ebidramon of the pirate crew. It would be a fierce battle, but the Yellow Syndicate had one advantage: They just had to defend their hive until the Hybrid Tamers were successful with their own mission.

"Give them no quarter!" KingFlymon commanded as his troops came buzzing past him. "Show them that we'll defend our home until the end!"

"Honey, do you really think it was a good choice to let these three kids go by themselves?" QueenBeemon wondered. "I mean, they are only three of them, and they plan on sneaking into a hideout filled to the brim with hostile Digimon... not to mention their powerful leader."

"I know the odds are against them, my love," the king said. "But somehow, when I looked at them, I was confident that they would be victorious. They are filled with the enthusiasm of youth and connected by the power of friendship. Add their obvious experience with Digimon battles, and they are a force to be reckoned with. Most of the Green Syndicate ruffians have never left this island before, therefore they are unfamiliar with such heroic youngsters. They won't take them serious, and that gives our young friends an advantage. Besides, they really seem to know quite a bit about that Millenniummon, especially Ryo... I have faith in them, honey! Maybe they will even help us free from the Green Syndicate's terror reign forever."

"That would too good to be true, dear..." the queen sighed.

----

Kitsunemon, Brawlmon and Ryo were sneaking through the woods. In the distance, they could already hear the sounds of battle.

"I feel bad, leaving them to fend off the enemy by themselves," Brawlmon frowned.

"I know, but this might be the only chance we have," Kitsunemon insisted. "The king told us about a rogue member of the Green Syndicate that might help us enter their hive through a secret entrance. With his help, we might even reach Millenniummon's command center with no problem."

"I hope you're right," Ryo muttered. "I fear that the longer we wait, the more will Millenniummon be able to block Monodramon from his thoughts... and if that happens, I don't know if he'd ever be able to come back..."

"We'll find a way, Ryo!" Kitsunemon said. "Remember that Kei is still sitting at the computer. I'm sure she already has a solution to our problem."

"I wish I could be as confident as you, Rika..." Ryo sighed.

"I had my doubts about Kei as well," Kitsunemon admitted. "But she's a smart and witty girl, and I'm sure she'll find a way... FLARE BLASTER!"

The flames came shooting out of her muzzle and scorched the pair of Dokunemon that had been hiding among the leaves. The two green worms squirmed around in pain as the flames singed their carapaces.

"I'll finish them off," Brawlmon shouted. "Twirling Fox Kick!"

With a multitude of kicks, Brawlmon sent the Dokunemon flying and they exploded in a shower of digital fragments. Both fox sisters closed their eyes and absorbed the streams of data.

Ryo watched them with a thoughtful expression. "Must be weird, being able to absorb a Digimon's data just like your partner does..." he muttered to himself, quiet enough that the sisters didn't hear him.

"Quick!" Kitsunemon said. "I don't want to know how many scouts are still nearby. We can't let them know we're here, so remember to take out every guard you see."

"I know that, Rika. Who's the more experienced Digimon Battler anyway? You or me?"

Kitsunemon smirked. "Point for you, sis! C'mon, I can smell that this path is being heavily used by insect Digimon... we must be on the right way."

"Well, as long as we can trust that huge snout of yours..." Ryo grumbled.

Rika gave him an angry bark before sniffing the ground and following the path. Ryo and Brawlmon followed her.

A few minutes later, they arrived at a steep ravine. Its walls were plastered with a thick, slippery layer of loam. They could also see several, round holes.

"This must be it," Brawlmon whispered. "I suppose those holes are where they fly out when they're leaving for battle."

"Well, that's definitely no entrance we can take," Kitsunemon frowned. "If this is the hive's entrance, how could we get in there?"

"Only if you strictly follow my instructions," a cold voice above them exclaimed.

Surprised, the three Tamers jumped to their feet. Above them, a tall figure was standing, a humanoid insect Digimon with a green carapace and two long wings.

"No need for aggressions," the stranger explained. "I am the Yellow Syndicate's double agent. Call me Stingmon!" In a fluid motion that filled even Brawlmon with envy, Stingmon leapt off the branch he was standing on. "The king informed me you would come," he said.

"How could he do that?" Ryo still was a bit on edge. "Don't tell me insect Digimon have cellphones..."

"No, but the Minomon network spreads all over the island," Stingmon explained. "The green leaders have yet to learn about their role as our little spies. Of course, their new leader knows even less about us... In spite of everything, he turned out to be a great adversary and a tactical genius. His tactics are unlike everything I've seen before."

"That's just like Millenniummon..." Ryo growled. "Control is everything..."

"Does anyone know you're here?" Kitsunemon asked.

Stingmon shook his head. "No, the hive's chieftain has assigned me to scout the southern woods for any reserve troops the Yellow Syndicate might have."

"Well, I guess he just has to do without that information," Brawlmon assumed.

Stingmon nodded. "Precisely. We have to hurry, though. I know the exact times when the guards are being changed, but I also know that a few of them are slackers that never are on time. I'll just pretend to be the previous guard's replacement, and he'll never suspect a thing."

"And I guess we just have to trust you because we have no other choice, right?" Ryo asked.

Stingmon frowned. "Is your friend always so mistrustful?" he asked the girls.

"No, only when his best friend is in danger," Kitsunemon replied. "And we are just on our way to save him."

"Well, whatever. I am here to do my job and that is to help you free us from that tyrant. Follow me, and I'll guide you to the entrance fur the supply caravans. It's at the bottom of the ravine."

"I figured as much..." Kitsunemon groaned, dreading the upcoming climbing tour.

----

Kei blinked as she saw the character model of the sleek, armored insect. "Did you come up with Stingmon?" she asked.

"That's true," HolyCalumon nodded out of her window. "I figured your friends could use all help they get. And now that the others are out of the action, Stingmon can back them up instead... as soon as the others are back to normal, he'll leave the group again, of course."

"So he's supposed to be a temporary party member?" Kei asked and rubbed her chin. "Not too bad... but the bad thing is that the insect enemies in the Green Hive will most likely be resistant against his attacks. Maybe we shouldn't use him as an additional fighter... at least not in the usual way."

"You have an idea?" HolyCalumon asked. "What do you have in mind?"

Kei smirked when she looked at Stingmon's extendable wrist stinger. "You know, that part reminds me of something..."

----

Ryo, Kitsunemon and Brawlmon followed Stingmon, carefully climbing down the steep slope, while he flew ahead of them.

"You'd think Kei would give us some floating platform or something like that to get to the bottom of the ravine..." Ryo frowned.

"You can talk," Kitsunemon grumbled. "Have you ever tried climbing when you're on four legs?"

"Be quiet!" Stingmon whispered. "We're getting close to the entrance... stay here, I'll take care of the Mothmon guard."

"A Mothmon?" Brawlmon asked. "I think we can take care of one of these guys."

"Maybe, but you don't want him to inform the other guards, do you?" Stingmon asked. "I didn't think so. We need to take him out quickly, silently and efficiently. Wait here, I'll be right back..." And he buzzed towards the entrance.

Brawlmon sat down on the ground and frowned. "Who does he think he is?" she muttered. She didn't like it if her fighting abilities were put down.

Stingmon landed in front of the entrance, a round hole in the high canyon wall, at bottom level. A Mothmon was standing there, not looking particularly happy about its job.

Knowing that most members of the Green Syndicate were feral and therefore not very intelligent, Stingmon gave him a very simple order, one that he would understand.

"You are dismissed. I will take over."

The Mothmon nodded and clicked its mandibles. Stingmon waited until it was gone, then he hid in the shadows next to the entrance. He had to wait for the Mothmon's true replacement.

He didn't have to wait long before another Mothmon was coming along the corridor. Stingmon stayed hidden until the Mothmon had come close to his hiding place.

And then hue struck.

As fast as a flash, he darted behind the surprised Mothmon's back and grabbed its neck in a choke-hold, so it couldn't warn its hivemates. Pulling his struggling enemy out into the open, Stingmon raised his right hand and extended the stinger. And then...

Kitsunemon closed her eyes when Stingmon impaled the Mothmon's neck with his stinger. "Oh god..."

Bralmon paled. "I know it was just a feral Digimon, but... seeing how he just killed it somehow worries me."

"Well, I am glad that he's on our side, that's for sure," Ryo exclaimed.

Dropping the limp body to the ground, Stingmon waved them to come over. When they arrived at the entrance, he whispered: "Now hurry! The next change of the guard won't be within the next half hour, but if somebody finds him, we should be far away by then."

"All right... but the next time we need to take a guard out, we do it my way," Ryo told him.

----

HolyCalumon was baffled. "That... wherever did you get that idea?" she finally stuttered.

"Only from one of the best games ever created," Kei grinned smugly. "A game full of tactical espionage action... starring the coolest of spies, Solid Snake!"

"Snake? SNAKE?" HolyCalumon shook her head. "You took inspiration from THAT game? Kei, we wanted to improve your friends' situation, not worsen them! I seriously hope you haven't planned on involving a nuclear-weapon-armed mecha..."

"Don't worry, I won't go that far," Kei quickly said. "I just felt... inspired, that's all. And if we are going to help our friends, why not do it in the fastest and most efficient way? Battles would only attract attention they do not want... and after all, these Green Syndicate members are all feral Digimon."

"Not all of them," HolyCalumon reminded him. "And they also work together with the South Pirates, all of which have been human before the change."

"Well, we'll just be careful not to delete those that are more intelligent than those Mothmon," Kei sighed. Maybe HolyCalumon was right and an assassin-like Solid Snake impersonator wasn't really what they needed. But at least it got them inside.

----

Cyberdramon opened his eyes. "He's here..." he murmured. "Ryo..." A wide grin appeared on his face. "I knew he'd come to me... I just didn't expect it to be so soon."

A bulky, heavily armored figured stepped up next to him. "What's the matter, 'big leader'?" it hissed. "Having second thoughts about our invasion? Someone as powerful as you shouldn't be afraid of a bunch of weakling Digimons and humans."

"By no means, Lord Antlermon," Cyberdramon said while opening his eyes. He looked carefully at the upright walking beetle with the deep purple carapace and the two huge antlers that were protruding from his mouth. "I have just thought about what I am going to do with this place when I'm the sole ruler of all."

"A true leader would be out there, leading his troops on to victory!" Antlermon shouted, trusting two of his deadly-looking scimitars up into the air. "When I was still the king, I would lead every single storm on those pathetic, yellow human-lovers..."

"You seem to forget that I am your king now!" Cyberdramon growled as he stood up from the seat that once belonged to Antlermon himself. "I challenged you for your throne, and you failed to even graze me. I let you live as my servants, but keep in mind that I can always change my mind about that. You are a strong warrior, but I don't need your help with ruling these feral insects."

Antlermon glowered at his new leader, but he then reluctantly sheathed his weapons again. He might not agree with the way this guy was leading his own swarm, but at least he was doing it efficiently... and he certainly wanted to live to finally see their victory over the accursed Yellow Syndicate.

"You may want to prepare yourself for the arrival of some guests," Cyberdramon then spoke up.

"What kind of guests?" Antlermon grumbled. "I never welcome anybody in my hive..."

"In MY hive, you mean. And they are not just guests, they are allies of the Yellow Syndicate you hate so much."

"Intruders?" Antlermon instantly reached for his scimitars again. "I will drive them out, one by one!"

"You will do nothing like that," Cyberdramon snarled. "I need them alive... at least one of them. You will tell your mindless little drones to impede their progress a bit, so they won't get suspicious. But in the end, I want them to reach this place. The boy will be mine... you can take care of his little friends. I don't care about them. Ryo always tended to surround himself with too many friends... while he only needs me..."

"Oh, I will take care of them..." the bulky insect commander grumbled. "But will they at least put up a challenge? It's boring when my prey goes down too early..."

"Oh, you will find that they are quite formidable opponents," Cyberdramon said.

Antlermon chuckled. "Excellent..." he hissed. "There's nothing like a good battle... but in the end, I will stand victorious! I, Antlermon, leader of the Green Syndicate... um, I mean... second-in-command..."

"I see you're starting to learn your place," Cyberdramon smirked. "Now don't bother me again until they have arrived... I have many things to ponder..."

Antlermon would have liked to strangle that impudent usurper, but he just nodded and went back to his post.

His post... like he was just a regular soldier... how degrading...

Cyberdramon, for his part, was enjoying this game immensely. Not only wouldn't the other Tamers bother him, he and Ryo would already be the rulers over a whole island for themselves. It was disappointing that those two girls didn't get the injection, but at least he managed to diminish their numbers.

He chuckled. "Oh yes... and with the digital field I put up around the whole island, nobody on here will be able to digivolve until I take it down again... meaning their little friends are stuck as babies! Now Ryo can see how big of a help they can be..."

'Ryo has a great heart, that's why he has so many friends,' a tiny voice from inside his head exclaimed. 'That's something you would never understand, or you wouldn't try to force Ryo into being your partner...'

"Quiet, you irritating little pest!" Millenniummon grumbled as he tried to ignore Monodramon's omnipresent voice.

----

Kei frowned when she looked at the screen. She didn't like what she saw. "What do you say, Holy?"

HolyCalumon tilted her head. "I say that it was about time you used that 'Villain Scry' option. Seems like we are just in time to prevent our friends from stepping into his trap."