The group held on Sparrowmon for a while. They continued to fly away from the battlefield until they were far away and safe to land.

Sparrowmon was tired a little from flying with everyone on her back and without any power increase by fusing with another Digimon, "Call me when you need me. I'll rest a little," she panted a little more before loading into the Xros Loader.

The group waited for a moment. They saw the wolf Digimon coming towards them. He joined them, "Cutemon?"

Cutemon was in the arms of Akari and jumped on his head, "I'm okay."

Dorulumon sighed in relief and smiled. He gazed at them, "I can't believe you managed to do it. You manage to break the barrier," he had trouble believing they managed to do it. He was certain they would retreat without any positive result. He underestimated them and Darkknightmon.

Taiki said, "We should keep going. We need to get away before he sent his army. We need to be sure everything is okay."

"W-wait," Troopmon said as he finally joined them. He put his hands on his knees and panted loudly, "Don't leave me behind," he quickly recovered, "I'm not as fast as any of you."

The group nodded.

"They we should go. I'm a little tired. We cannot fight NeoVamdemon right now," Shoutmon said in the Xros Loader.

"We need to be at top. This is the plan," Darkknightmon reminded them.

"Let's go," Nene said as she took the lead.

The others followed them and went as far away as they could from the castle.

Chapter 33: A New Soldier

It wasn't long before they reached the canyon. The group checked around if there were any soldiers of the Death General after them. No one was around them or above. It was safe to go down.

They climbed down and followed Nene. They reached the bottom of the canyon and returned to the village.

Lunamon saw them coming with the others, "You are alright!" she waved at them.

"We are," Akari replied. She was relieved everything went fine. Now, she could let out her stress as they were safe.

Taiki smiled and gave a thumbs up, "We managed to break the barrier. We finished the first part of the battle."

Troopmon nodded, "And I helped them. It was a really intense fight. Thankfully, we managed to escape NeoVamdemon and his reinforcements."

The Digimons load out of the Xros Loaders.

Shoutmon punched his palm, "Yeah! We showed them that we can fight them on their own turf!" he nervously chuckled, "We aren't ready for NeoVamdemon thought."

"We'll need to make a plan and find a way to avoid fighting his army," Sparrowmon commented.

They wanted to say more to Lunamon, but they were more Digimons near them.

Ballistamon chuckled, "We will be next time brother."

Shoutmon jumped before he was slapped on the back and stood on the shoulder of his brother, "You're right!" he tapped the beetle head with a smile, "We are only starting!"

"Careful. Do not get overconfident. It can go wrong at any moments," the dark knight commented inside the Xros Loader.

The others didn't let that get their mood.

Shoutmon jumped down and grabbed the hands of Taiki, "You choose the perfect spot to attack! We can always count on you!" he then bowed to the two girls, "You two!"

Nene nodded and let out a small smile, "I'll do everything to get more information about the castle and defeat them. The Monitamons are already doing reconnaissance… before I could order them."

Akari blushed a little, "I didn't do that much."

The boy replied, "We all did this together. I wouldn't be able to do everything on my own."

The group went on while the villagers got happy. On the side, Troopmon was crying a little on the inside as he was pushed on the side, until Lunamon picked his arm and told him how strong and brave he was.

Dorulumon listened to them with Cutemon. He crossed his paws and listened to them. He didn't know what to think. He let a small smile. He could feel hope coming from them. It felt true. It wasn't a faint hope or something ready to die out. He saw the Digimons with the humans with his spirit. The only one he didn't feel that was from Darkknightmon. He knew there was more to the dark knight than he let on. He noticed someone was missing. He searched for his pink companion and saw him with Akari. He sighed and watched the others celebrating and telling their version of how the battle went on. It was fresh in his mind and it was less epic that they made it out to be. He sighed as the young Digimons applauded joyfully.

"And that's how Darkknightmon broke the crystal!" Shoutmon concluded with the true as his finger passed under his nose. He chuckled and raised his chest, "He wouldn't have done it without us."

"Yeah. You were nice targets while I handle the strongest enemies and to destroy the crystal," Darkknightmon replied with a bit of amusement in his voice. He then seriously said, "The hardest part is yet to come. We have to defeat the Death General next and it won't be as easy as that crystal. He knows we are here; he knows we are coming and he knows that we aren't weak."

"We know he is strong. We will make a plan thanks to Taiki, Akari and Nene!" the red dragon waved his arms at them optimistically.

"That will ask some time," Nene replied.

"We need to know about the castle and who are protecting it first," Taiki replied.

It didn't damper the optimism of the dragon. The red dragon had no doubt they would win.

Dracomon was on the side and wasn't that certain. He was a little nervous. He wasn't sure what he could do to help them and what he couldn't do. He played with his claws a little nervously, "Anyway… I think we need to rest and eat too. I'm hungry," he pat his belly.

"Of course," Lunamon replied.

The three humans couldn't form a plan yet, so they agreed to eat something. They were hungry too.

The Digimons had a large appetite as they quickly ate what they could. They didn't want to eat too much as they had to leave for the little ones under the watch of Lunamon.

Lunamon smiled, "You are brave to face all the dangers to free our world. It's hard to believe what you already accomplished together. I know it's true and it gives everyone's hope. Those who are hiding around the kingdom might be aware that something is going on."

"For sure," Dorulumon replied as he finished his lunch and watched Cutemon with Akari, talking together about everything and nothing. He gazed at the boy who made the plan that worked.

"What is it?" Taiki asked.

"I've been thinking a little since we escaped them. You are a talented tactician, despite showing many signs of youth. Just like that Shoutmon," he pointed at the red dragon who began to sing a happy song for the young Digimons.

"Yeah. He really wants to save the world. He fought hard to save the Dragon Kingdom from Dorbickmon and almost died. Then, we met," the boy thought back. He still didn't know how it was possible to meet with a dying Digimon. That was a question that he might never know the answer.

"I also know that I won't be able to run away from the Bagramon army forever. Bagramon control the world and it's not sure how long Dragon Kingdom will remain safe without a master to control it. You have defeated a Death General, but another one will eventually replace him. You can be certain of it," Dorulumon closed his eyes after he spoke of those dreadful words.

"Even so, we can't stop. If we manage to defeat the Death General until the last one, we will have a chance to unite with many Digimons and fight back. Then, we will be able to return home… Our families are surely worried for us," he gazed down and sighed.

"That's why… I want to join you. I believe that… fighting back is the best option against Bagramon. You will need all the help you can get. You can count on me," the wolf Digimon concluded his words as he stopped up.

Akari stopped and observed them, with Cutemon on her head, "You're really going to join us?"

"Yes. We cannot run away forever, as I said. If we can't run, the only option is to fight back. I will fight by your side," Dorulumon concluded as he showed his paw, "As long as you stand against Bagramon and you don't try to betray us, I will fight by your side."

Taiki smiled and grabbed his paw, "Of course. It is the only way to return home."

"We got a new ally!" Shoutmon jumped in the air to celebrate.

The others nodded as one more soldier was by their side.

The wolf Digimon connected to the Xros Loader, finalising it. He was now one of them.

"What about me?" Cutemon asked. He waved his hands, "I want to help too."

"You cannot fight the army of Bagramon. You aren't a warrior," Dorulumon replied.

"I don't want to leave you," he replied with his protector.

"Y-yeah, but-" he was cut when the small pink Digimon jumped and was suspended as he grabbed his cheeks.

"We are friends and I know no one else."

"H-hum…"

"Still, if he needs to get in a Xros Loader quickly," Taiki reminded him.

Dorulumon sighed in defeat. It was the best way to keep him safe, "Fine. You can help us, but don't put yourself in danger."

"Of course," Cutemon said before joining Taiki troop.

"And we got another one," Shoutmon sounded a little less excited at the thought of letting a small Digimon fighting by their side. He was a little worried too.

Ballistamon raised his fist, "We are getting more and more powerful brother!"

"Yes. We are," the red dragon admitted.

Dracomon wondered what they would think when they saw Dorbickmon in the Xros Loader. That was something they would need to explain soon or they will ask questions in front of everyone. He pulled the shirt of Taiki, "Taiki… You know…"

"I know. We will explain soon," he replied.

Nene nodded, "We cannot do a lot for now. I'll try and see if there is anything from the Monitamons."

Akari stood up, "I'll come with you," she followed the other girl.

The boy watched the two girls walking away. He let out a small smile, "Looks like she finally made a girl as a friend," he whispered quietly. He reminded that she was friends with her, but never saw her being close to another girl. Maybe he didn't know the girls she was friends with or she didn't have one. Now, it was the first time he met one. He gazed at the side and saw Dracomon sharing his worries with Shoutmon.

"Don't worry. I'm sure everything will be okay. Dorulumon is obviously going to understand it. Cutemon too," the red dragon pat his head with a reassuring smile.

It wasn't working, "But he was a Death General. He doesn't know that he is a friend now. He needs to wake up soon."

"His snoring is less painful. I'm sure he will soon," the other Digimon didn't deter from the bad mood. He chuckled and jumped back, "We will explain everything when we can. We are in this together and we have to be honest. You know who you friend really is."

"I-I hope so," the blue dragon whined a little. He gazed down as he played with his claws.

Taiki watched them and wondered if it would be fine. He thought about it and knew he had to plan a way to explain everything.

AC: This is the end of this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it.

Next: Knowledge Is Power.

Nene and Akari talked together as they waited for intel. Once they got some, they returned to the group and prepared the plan.