Reviews:

Clefeifei: Glad you thought so too. Yup.

Ackbarfan5556: Oh does it now? I can't wait to see that ;-)

ReR0547: Yes it was. Just a whole swarm of emotions going on there.

Greymon Leader Batx flashpoint: You are spot on, Greymon, but please let's try and keep political stuff out of this if you don't mind. You're free to express yourself how you want, but I want to keep this a good environment for all of us. Other than that, you were absolutely right on all your thoughts.

LightSpecter141: That could be a possibility. You'll have to see. Thanks for the review, I hadn't heard from you in a while.

Music Chick: Thank you.

Sweet Cari: Well, thank you so much for the review. I'm glad to know you love it. You were right in that everyone seemed basically dull throughout the whole entirety of Tri. Still, it's better compared to Kizuna, but that argument is for another day. I'm glad you wanted to come out and leave a review. Hopefully I get to see you more often over this last arc.

Guest: That will be sometime soon maybe. I promise. You'll love what happens going forward.


Wow, guys! Thank you for all the reviews last week. I loved and appreciated all of them. Now that the group is back in the real world, what will happen next? Find out right here.


The sky was pitch black as if the sun decided "I'm out of here" and went away, leaving the world to fend for itself with no light or warmth. There was no moon or stars in the black canvas as if one massive cloud covered the sky to spite the lunar star. Even with it being late July, the air was slightly cooler than normal, making it feel like April or May.

From the very moment they arrived back in the real world, the Destined Jedi didn't feel like they were walking back into a world they had known all their lives. It felt different, colder, darker, as if all the happiness had vanished and the earth were standing on the edge of a knife. No people were out in the streets as announcements were broadcast saying to stay indoors or evacuate.

Upon arrival at what used to be their old headquarters, they were pleasantly surprised to find that it had remained untouched during the two-year period that they abandoned it. The only difference was a much stronger smell of dust, which they could put up with for a while. There was no trace of either Nishijima's agency or the SDF in the area, letting the group of kids know it was safe and no one knew they were there. It would be the perfect hiding place to plan their next move.

The group sat in a circle on the floor, looking around the warehouse unnerved by the dead silence around them.

"It's so quiet," said Joe.

"It's the calm before the storm," replied Matt. "It's only a matter of time before Meiko reveals herself to the city and leads a path of destruction. I don't imagine many will survive it."

Mimi frowned. "That's if we don't do anything, which is not going to happen. No matter what it takes, we're going to bring Mei-Mei back and save our world."

"What are we going to do though?" Sora asked.

TK bit his lip and replied, "We have to do whatever we can to slow her down. Maybe there is a way we can bring her back from the infection."

"Unfortunately, it might be too late for that," Izzy said sadly. "Remember what Mr. Nishijima said? It would not be long before the infection became permanent and there's no chance to bring her back." He breathed sharply. "As much as I don't want to say it, we'll have to destroy her in order to save our world."

Matt gritted his teeth and pounded his thigh with his fist. "No!" he growled. "I won't let that happen!"

"I'm sorry, Matt, but there is no other way."

"There's always a way. We just have to–"

"Face it, Matt. It's over," Joe said with a sigh. "Tai and Mr. Nishijima are gone. We don't know where Himekawa is, and our world is on the brink of total annihilation if we don't do something. It's either Meiko dies or we die along with everyone else. We're between a rock and a hard place here."

Matt glared at him and was about to really let him have it when a case of the sniffles came from where Kari sat next to TK. From his position, her aura wavered. Something was wrong.

"Tai," the Jedi of Light whimpered, swaying around as if she was dizzy. She sniffled again. "Where are you? Why did you leave me?"

Matt's face fell in sadness, trying not to cry with her. Looking around, he saw everyone else was getting sadder by the second watching Kari mourn the loss of her brother. He tried focusing on ideas of how Meiko could be saved without killing her. If it even meant he'd die too, he would find a way to save Meiko and make sure she had a chance to live.

Thud!

"Kari!" Sora shrieked, snapping Matt out of his thoughts. The Jedi of Light had fainted and lay on the ground with TK beside her.

"What happened?" the older blonde asked, also freaked out by Kari's sudden collapse.

His younger brother touched her forehead and then instantly pulled away like he had touched a hot plate.

"She has a fever," TK reported. "Probably from all the stress and also the infection." He scooped her in his arms and stood up to his feet. "I'll take her over to the former computer room. I think I saw a mattress in there."

Matt nodded. "Okay."

As if things could not get any worse.


Matt stood outside taking in the night air as the others stayed inside. He needed some time to be alone. Joe was right. It was so quiet that he could probably hear things as far away as the ships in Yokohama Harbor. Never in his life had he heard Tokyo be this quiet before.

The blonde-haired Jedi of Friendship pulled the goggles off from around his neck and gazed at them. The sight of them in his possession was something he never imagined he would see, especially with how they came to him in the first place. It all still played in his head like a scene out of a movie. Why did Tai have to be the one to die? Why couldn't it have been him instead? Without Tai, they were lost.

"Why, Tai?" he whispered to the goggles, hoping that the leader could hear him from wherever he was. "Why'd you have to leave us like this? Why'd you have to put me in this position?"

Matt chuckled to himself. To think there was a time when he thought he could be a better team leader than Tai. During their first adventures, Matt was so desperate to prove to himself that he could take care of TK the way that Tai so easily took care of Kari and everyone else that he challenged Tai at every turn. Eventually, that whole attitude led him to be easily manipulated by Cherrymon, which culminated in him challenging Tai in a fight to the death. He touched the scar on his face. That worked out well.

"I don't know what to do," he said to the goggles. His lip trembled a little. "I can't be the leader you were."

Matt brought the goggles up to touch his forehead. Once the glass lenses touched him, the tears spilled out with a vengeance as he silently cried. Matt fell to his knees and sobbed.

"How can I do this when I'm all alone?" he whimpered. "I need help."

"You're not alone, Matt."

The blonde stopped crying. For a second, he worried one of the others had come out and heard him. He was about to pull out an excuse when he realized it was a different voice; one that he had not heard in ages. As he tried to gather himself, he looked up to see a symbol made of pink, blue, and yellow fill his vision. His eyes then glanced up to meet soft red eyes.

"Gabumon?" he gasped, surprised to see his Digimon guardian in front of him. The Digimon had a pelt of blue fur over its yellow body with a horn sticking out from its head.

"Hi," Gabumon greeted. "What troubles you, Matt? Why do you believe you're alone?"

Matt sighed sadly, struggling to figure out how to explain their situation to the Digimon. "I'm not sure if you know, Gabumon, but we lost Tai. Now, I'm the one in charge of everybody and I have no idea what to do."

The blonde's eyes went wide with horror. What Izzy said Tentomon told him in the hospital came to mind.

"If Tai's dead, does that mean Agumon has been erased already?" he asked. "Tentomon told Izzy that if a Destined Jedi died, then their guardian would die too. Is Agumon–?"

Gabumon hung its head sadly. "The Gennai that is with the Force can't sense him."

Matt's breath left his body. This was terrible.

"No," he gasped before looking down at the goggles. "Why did this have to fall to me? Why can't someone else do it? I'm not–"

A pair of claws rested on his shoulders, silencing him. Matt looked up and found Gabumon's eyes staring into his soul. Somehow, it brought him comfort.

"Matt, I can't tell you how to do this job, but I can tell you that your friends need you," Gabumon said. "They need someone to lead them right now, and that person is you."

"I can't do it."

"Why not?"

"Because I'm not–" Matt stopped before he could say it. Once he said the words, it would mean having to admit to himself that he wasn't strong enough to protect everyone.

"Not what?" Gabumon gently pressed. "Tell me."

The blonde took a shaky breath. Here it goes.

"Because I'm not strong like Tai was," he said with a defeated sigh. "I realize now how much I depended on Tai to always know what to do. Now that he's gone, I'm just as lost and scared as everyone else. He always had a plan for what to do next, even when things looked bad. I don't have that capability."

He scoffed.

"It's like I'm waiting for him to jump out from behind a corner at any moment like this was all a joke. Tai was our leader, one whom I would follow to the ends of the earth and to whatever end because I trusted him with my life. I followed him because I believed in him and knew that everything was going to be alright so long as he was our leader."

Tears fell from his eyes as he sniffled.

"How am I supposed to inspire that kind of confidence in everyone else when I can't even inspire it in myself?"

Without thinking, he pulled the Digimon against him and sobbed into its chest. The tears fell faster when he felt Gabumon wrap its arms around him, making Matt feel warm and safe in the embrace. Gabumon said nothing as he cried everything he was feeling out of him. Matt was glad no one was around to see him like this because not only would he not hear the end of it, but also probably make them question whether or not he was up to the task.

The tears eventually ran out. Once they did, Matt lifted his head from the Digimon's chest and wiped snot from his nose.

"Thanks," he sniffled.

Gabumon smiled. "You're being too hard on yourself, Matt. You have to stop thinking that way. Tai had a reason when he asked you to take care of everyone else. It's because he trusted you to know what to do in order to keep everyone safe."

"But I don't know what to do," Matt replied. This was too big for him. He was almost willing to let TK have another crack at being the leader. At least his brother had that experience, whereas he did not. "Having everyone's lives in my hands is probably the scariest thing ever."

He gasped. This was what Tai was talking about that time on the Ferris wheel. As the leader, he had to weigh all these different factors before making a decision. It was easy to be on the sidelines and say what should be done, but now that he had the responsibility of guarding the lives of six others, it was a whole different ball game. Sometimes the best decision was not the easiest one.

"I see what he was talking about now," Matt said. "I didn't want to listen at the time. I've been so easy to let my emotions get in the way of my decision-making that I couldn't see it. The ability to make hard decisions is what separates the leader from everyone else." He sucked in a big breath through his nose before finishing with, "I need to do what is right. If…"

He paused. There was still a part of him that did not want to acknowledge what might have to be done. He wanted to exhaust every other possible avenue before resorting to something drastic. If there was still a way that Meiko could be saved, then he was going to find it.

"I know, Matt," said Gabumon. "I can't tell you what you should do about the girl, but I can tell you to lead with your heart. You can never go wrong that way. Everyone believes in you. I believe in you."

A smile finally appeared on Matt's face as he wiped the tears away. He needed to hear that.

"Thank you, Gabumon."

The Digimon bowed its head and smiled back. "Believe in yourself, Matt," it said before disappearing in a subtle flash of blue light.

Matt was now alone, but he didn't feel like he was. He still felt Gabumon's warm arms wrap around him. After taking a deep breath, he mustered up his determination and stood to his feet. It was time to stop sucking his thumb and do what needed to be done.

Purple lightning flashed in the sky over the district. 'That's odd', Matt thought to himself. He had never seen anything like that before. He then remembered Tai's goggles had the ability to see distortion waves so he brought them up to wrap around his eyes. As he surveyed the sky near the Fuji TV station, a large cluster of red waves joined together in a blinding ball of light. He swept the goggles from his eyes and saw a large purple 'X' form above the station.

A chill shot through his body as he sensed Meiko's presence.

"So it begins," he said to himself before rushing into the warehouse.


Any people that were still on the streets saw the purple 'X' in the sky and ran from the scene. Several groups of Digimon flew out from the 'X' and headed toward the ground. This must have been what it was like to experience the plague of locusts in Egypt, a never-ending swarm that would destroy everything in its path. Rather than crops, this plague was coming to destroy everything from buildings to people until there was nothing left.

Dark Meiko surveyed the scene in front of her with sadistic delight as she stood on top of the Fuji TV station. The storm was being unleashed on the real world. It would not stop until the Destined Jedi were dead and the real world was brought under King Drasil's banner.

"Go. Bring it all down," she said as she watched the invading Digimon army wreak havoc.

The humans deserved it.

It did not take long to hear screams, booms, and the other sounds of mass destruction ring out across the entire Odaiba district. She turned to look behind her and saw a section of the Rainbow Bridge be destroyed, which brought a bigger smile to her face.

Dark Meiko soon grew tired of watching the destruction from on high and jumped down to the street, descending slowly until her feet touched the ground. A group of Airdramon fired balls of flame into various buildings, including Aqua City. Screams rang out as rubble fell and fires broke out across the rooftops. It was a scene straight out of hell. Digimon of the air terrorized the skies, sea Digimon attacked from the waters, and any in-between attacked on land.

As this all was happening, Dark Meiko strolled down the street as if enjoying a leisurely walk through a field of flowers. To add to it, she hummed to the tune of "Singin' in the Rain". The terrorized screams and sounds of destruction put her in such a good mood.

"Hey, you there!"

Dark Meiko snapped out of her happy mood and turned to glare at a salaryman just a few feet away from her.

"Get on home! It's not safe!" he ordered.

Dark Meiko's frown deepened as she stepped toward him. Her lightsaber shot out of its metal casing, sparking a glint of fear in the man's eyes. He stumbled over himself while trying to run away before tripping and falling to the ground. A dark smile then rose on her face as she pointed her saber between his eyes.

"You should feel happy," she hissed. "King Drasil has come to purify the world and build it better than before. In order for him to do that, everything must be destroyed."

The man squirmed under her gaze, which made Dark Meiko even happier. This was nothing more than a worthless little insect that needed to be eradicated, one small step toward pleasing her mistress and King Drasil.

"Please! Don't do this!" the man pleaded, tears forming in his eyes. This made it all the more delicious for Dark Meiko. She raised her saber.

"But first, insects like you must be squashed."

"NO!"

Dark Meiko felt something slam against her front and sent her flying back into the street. She growled before picking herself up to see what insolent little bug had done that. She would run her saber right through them and –

She stopped, then smirked. It was that Jedi of Friendship. The man got up from the ground and ran away from the scene. Dark Meiko no longer cared about him. Instead, her attention was on the new arrival.

"Well, well," Dark Meiko chuckled, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "One Destined Jedi came to die."

Matt snorted across from her. "You might want your eyes checked because it's not just me," he shot back.

Before Dark Meiko knew it, each of the other Destined Jedi appeared from various places. Izzy and Joe emerged out of alleyways on either side of the street, lightsabers primed and ready to strike. Mimi and Sora hit the ground, having presumably jumped down from buildings. They too had their lightsabers activated.

"You have all made a grave mistake showing yourselves here today," Dark Meiko said as they all stood together against her. "All those who stand in King Drasil's way will be destroyed."

"Snap out of this, Meiko!" Matt cried. "We know this isn't you. You've got to fight it!"

She scoffed. "The Destined Jedi are a threat to harmony. Homeostasis is more corrupt than you know." Dark Meiko then paced back and forth, keeping her gaze fixed on the five teenagers across from her. "I have seen through its lies, and I have seen through yours. None of you mean anything to me. The only way to redeem yourselves is if you denounce Homeostasis and pledge your loyalty to King Drasil."

"As if that will ever happen," Mimi said, pointing her saber at Dark Meiko.

"Meiko, stop! Please!" Matt repeated.

A cold breeze blew across the small strip of asphalt between the two sides. Dark Meiko saw that there was no way to convince these fools to join her. Homeostasis had already corrupted them beyond reproach. There was only one way to deal with it.

A large gathering of Force energy came from behind her. It was an entire army of relatively smaller Digimon––Bakemon, Gotsumon, Mushroomon, and many other creatures. Now feeling emboldened with backup at her disposal, Dark Meiko's evil smirk widened as she stared at the Jedi. Her eyes focused strictly on Matt.

"He's mine," she instructed the Digimon. "Kill the others." Her hand thrust forward. "Now go!"

The Digimon did as they were told and charged at the Destined Jedi. Dark Meiko's hair blew forward as if a mighty wind were carrying it.

The battle had now begun.

xXx

Amidst all the chaos surrounding him, Matt only had eyes for the young woman standing before him about four yards away. As leader, he had to believe that his team would hold up against the army of Digimon. Staring down the Host, he thought about igniting his lightsaber, but decided against it. Matt so desperately wanted to find a way to reach the real Meiko without a fight.

Dark Meiko and Meiko were complete opposites in every way, and the Meiko he knew would be appalled at the destruction that was occurring. She would shrink away from the violence. She would be scared fighting off evil, but would stand with them, like the brave and powerful warrior that she was.

Besides, promise or not, Matt Ishida, the Destined Jedi of Friendship, was determined to reach the real Meiko that he fiercely hoped was in a deep sleep instead of being lost for all time. He couldn't lose her to this King Drasil. Not the person he loved so dearly.

"Lost in your thoughts, as usual," Dark Meiko sneered as she circled Matt like a lioness studying her prey before pouncing. "What? No heroic speech? No lightsaber to kill me in hopes the 'other' Meiko will return?" Dark Meiko mocked rolling her eyes. "At least give me some kind of entertainment before I claim your soul in the name of King Drasil."

"Meiko," said Matt in a steadfast gaze, "when this is over let's join the Astronomy Club."

Dark Meiko ceased her circling with a confused, contorted expression. "Huh?"

"Isn't it dumb to like something so much, but not hang with others that share the same joy?"

The Dark Destined Jedi rolled her eyes once more and shook her head. "It's pointless. Take your saber out. Fight me."

"I'm not talking to you," Matt bit, crossing his arms. "I'm talking to the real Meiko you're suppressing. Meiko!" He took a step forward. "Look up. Mars is still shining bright." He turned his face towards the night sky and grinned. "Maybe one day I'll get to check it out."

"Meiko, Meiko, Meiko," she mocked in a kiddy, whiny voice. Aiming her red lightsaber at the Destined Jedi of Friendship, she declared, "She's dead!"

"No, she's not," he answered with just as much fervor. "Let her go!"

"Over her dead body." A sick smile rose over Dark Meiko, then feigned a shocked expression as she covered her mouth with a hand. "Oops! I'm already using her dead body."

His right eyebrow twitched. That couldn't be true, could it? Like the Chronic Wasting disease, more commonly known as the 'zombie' disease, that kills certain animals and insects, yet uses its host's body to move around?

It made sense with their current situation of the Host and the Parasite.

Matt shook the thought away. Dark Meiko was playing with his head. Meiko had to be somewhere inside. He had to believe that.

"When this is over, I have some more stories to share, even if they're not normally seen at this time of year. Constellations like Andromeda, The Chained Lady, and Cephus, The King –"

A white blur flashed before Matt's eyes. Before he had time to process the scene, his instincts took over. Green lightsaber met red lightsaber as he gritted his teeth while sparks hissed and flew.

"Let's play, Matty!" Dark Meiko laughed trying to overpower him. "I feel her inside. She's screaming in agony."

Matt's arms shook trying to hold off Dark Meiko. Just what he thought. Meiko wasn't gone yet!

Dark Meiko taunted some more. "I bet you want to kiss her. That sweet, caring act you've kept this whole time was to get some action, wasn't it?"

"Meiko," Matt spoke through gritted teeth even though Dark Meiko was becoming stronger by the second. He had to take a step back to support himself while pushing back. "Think back to all the times we sat outside. What about that wish you made on the full moon -"

The air around him felt thin. His eyes, unfocused. Where was he? Was he sitting on the ground? Faint shouts from his team faded away until his eyesight returned. There laid Meiko, her head on his lap, gasping for air. Matt dropped his lightsaber and cradled her head in his arms.

"Meiko!" he cried. "What happened? Meiko!"

Blood dripped from her ears. She struggled to swallow as dread overshadowed her. "M-Matt?"

How did they get in this position? Never mind that. He had to save her!

"Why are you bleeding?" he asked as he wiped the blood away. "I thought you were really gone this time."

The Destined Jedi of Friendship watched as she glanced over to where random citizens ran off in terror while the rest of their team fought the army of dark Digimon. She struggled to swallow again. "I'm dying. It's going to be oka-"

"What? No, you're not dying," he shouted. "You have to fight against that virus! Leomon said you have a lion's heart, yeah? Show that to me. Stand up!"

She looked towards the night sky as blood trickled out of the corners of her eye. Energy and the color from her face were draining fast. "I always wondered what it would be like to touch moon dust."

"Stand up!" Matt yelled with authority as he shook her shoulders. "You have too much to live for!"

Blood poured from her nostrils as she coughed blood. It couldn't end like this! This wasn't fair!

'Matt! Watch out!'

Who said that? Before Matt could turn around, he felt the Alternative Chosen One turn his face to her once more. Oh, that's right. He had to stay here. On the ground. Focusing on Meiko.

'Matt! Move, damn it! MOVE!'

"Kiss me, Matty."

Matt's right eyebrow rose again. Matty? Meiko never called him Matty.

A sinister smirk appeared as blood gushed from all orifices. She shot up and grabbed his collar with fists. Her voice turned demonic spewing blood as she demanded, "KISS ME, MATTY!"

'Snap out of it!'

Matt's body jerked and instantly pushed Dark Meiko away while gasping for air clutching his chest. He found himself standing as if he had never moved, his green lightsaber on the ground next to his feet. He couldn't believe it. Dark Meiko used a mind trick on him! It must have happened when his eyesight blurred from before.

Joe jumped in front of Matt and activated his force shield. "I said, snap out of it! That's not Meiko anymore! She's gone!"

The blonde bit his lip, not able to hold back a tear that fell as he watched Dark Meiko laugh. He couldn't bring her back. He was too late. If only he had acted faster in the desert. If only he had stopped her from leaving the Digital World. He could have saved some part of her humanity.

Joe turned his back on Dark Meiko while she tried to attack the barrier with all her strength. "Matt, I get you want to keep rooting for her, but this is the end. You're our leader, and we need you to see that thing isn't her. Meiko is gone."

Matt kept watching Dark Meiko attack the barrier in between shouts of joy. The skin on her face was turning wrinkly with deep cracks, enough to see muscle, as if it was severely dried out.

Red eyes. Cracked, wrinkly skin. Blood poured from her ears.

Meiko was gone.

Joe winced as if the attacks that were being brought about were wearing on him. "I can't imagine what it would be like if I was in your shoes watching my girlfriend do the same. I know you two weren't dating, but I got the sense you liked her. I'm sorry, man."

The Destined Jedi of Reliability turned around to face Dark Meiko as he rested an arm around Matt's shoulders. "I don't mean to sound cruel. She's dead, right? At least this isn't her anymore. This is a monster, not Meiko. Meiko is at peace."

Matt wiped his eyes as he nodded. Yeah. At least she was at peace. She had to be. It was better than thinking she was being suppressed and forced to watch everything happen. But what if she was being suppressed?

"I can't hold her back much longer, Matt. You're our leader now, but you're not alone. When this is over, let's go somewhere to drown our sorrows together. Let's win this for Tai and Meiko."

When he looked up, Matt saw the army of Digimon overrunning his entire team. They were all struggling to defend against the swarm of creatures. The new leader of the Destined Jedi found new strength and gripped his lightsaber. He stood in a fighting stance and activated it. All the hesitation he felt a moment ago was nowhere to be found. This was a fight for everything he knew and loved. If he failed, all of it would be gone in a flash. He couldn't let that happen.

"I'm going to hold you to that, Joe," he said. "Let down the barrier. We're going to kill this monster together."

"You've got it, boss," Joe said.

The barrier disappeared. Matt let out a ferocious cry and charged forward, swinging his lightsaber back before throwing it forward to slam against Dark Meiko's. The two blades hissed and buzzed as they clashed against each other. Dark Meiko broke the lock first, but Matt made sure he did not draw last. Using his super speed, he was able to duck and dodge her saber strikes with ease. Her frustrated growls became louder with each miss.

"Stay still so I can kill you, lover boy!"

Matt dodged another strike and blasted Dark Meiko away with the Force. She skidded down the road several yards but got back up quickly. This was going nowhere fast. The plan that they had before was now out the window. Like that famous fighter who said that everyone had a plan until they got punched in the face. This was the metaphorical punch to the face.

Looking back behind him, he saw that the dark army of Digimon was still overwhelming the other Jedi. Izzy destroyed a pair of Bakemon before a fair amount of Gotsumon surrounded him and blasted rocks. Sora was plucked out off the ground by an Airdramon's claws and dropped. Mimi tried to help Izzy, but was kept at bay by the Mushroomon. They were getting overrun fast. There was only one thing left to do.

"Retreat!" he cried. "Retreat!"

As he ran the other way, Matt sliced through a swarm of Bakemon surrounding him. It bared repeating, but he really hated Bakemon. The ghosts were more of an annoyance than any actual threat, but that didn't mean they were easy. He sensed Dark Meiko chase after him, but his mind was set on getting out of here while he could. The others were already running out ahead of him.

"Come back here, coward!" Dark Meiko roared.

Matt pushed forward, focusing on nothing but getting out. Fighting another day with a better plan was better than doing what they were doing now.


The Destined Jedi hid in a collection of trees on the edge of Odaiba Beach. For extra security, they cloaked themselves in the Force so that neither Dark Meiko or a Digimon could find them. Upon reaching the cluster of trees, almost all of them collapsed to their backsides or knees in exhaustion. Matt peeked out at the road behind them to watch out for anything that would come to do them harm. So far, he saw nothing but knew that could change in an instant. Dark Meiko's presence had moved further down the district.

"Unstoppable," Joe heaved as he caught his breath. "They're...unstoppable."

"VenomMyotismon never gave us this much trouble," said Sora. "I don't know what we're going to do about this one. We're in trouble, guys."

"You can say that again, Sora," Mimi agreed, kneeling beside Izzy. The computer genius had his arm wrapped around her and was covered in bruises. "It's hopeless. Mei-Mei is gone, Tai and Mr. Nishijima are gone, and Yolei and the others aren't here. It's hopeless."

Matt had heard enough. "Hey!" he chastised. "Enough of that, everyone. Get yourselves together. We just need the right plan. All is not lost yet."

"Any bright ideas, dear leader?" Mimi shot.

Matt's mind drew a blank, but he wanted it to seem like he had something. He felt everyone losing the will to keep fighting after that botched attack. The sounds of destruction rang all around them. His façade dropped like a rock.

"Okay, I've got nothing," he sighed. "But we can't hide forever. We'd be dishonoring Tai and Mr. Nishijima if we did. Doing nothing is not going to save everything and everyone we know." He then growled in frustration. "Damn it all!" He then punched the trunk of a tree. "Ow! Shit!" he cried, shaking his hand out.

Sora stood up and grabbed his hand. "You okay?" she asked.

Matt looked over his hand. There were red marks on his knuckles, but no blood. He shrugged. "Yeah, I'm fine." The blonde then looked up at the dark sky.

'Tai, help me. Give me strength from wherever you are.'


Things look pretty bad for the Destined Jedi, but what do they have up their sleeves to deal with this threat? Find out next time on Revenge of the Infected.

Hope that was a good first taste of the epic final arc that is coming your guys' way. Trust me, this is not going to be the boring and dragged on snoozefest that was the battle in the movie. I guarantee it. For Agumon, if you all remember, Tentomon told Izzy that when a Destined Jedi dies, their Digimon guardian is erased forever. We'll have to see if that's true though.

Big thanks to Music Chick for helping out with the scene with Matt and Meiko.

Chapter 31 is already done, so that will be here for you guys right on time next week. Have a great week and I will see you all next time. Make sure to leave a review and subscribe as always.

P.S. Mark your calendars for this: my version of Kizuna should come out on March 13, 353 days from the day that it was supposed to play in theaters last year, but for obvious reasons did not. Can't wait to share that with you all.

Tootles.