"You worse than greensie plum eater!" a Goblimon shouted as he charged at Yamato, club raised. With a resigned sigh, he reduced the green nuisance to particles with a few Pyro shots. Looking around the stadium, or whatever this giant tree was supposed to be, he couldn't see any other digimon. He looked at Sora who was next to him, her eyes showing the same regret he felt. When they had reached the giant tree, they both knew there would be some resistance, but surely defeating the Weed Killers would have at least inspired a few surrenders?

But, no. As far as Yamato could tell, none of them took the hint. He and Sora found themselves facing a repeat of the Weed Killers… only to then learn why it was just Ogremon, Grizzlymon, and Kuwagamon who attacked the camp. The digimon here were even weak enough for Gabumon and Piyomon to take, let alone Garurumon and Birdramon. Nothing compared to the Weed Killers but that didn't stop them from trying. Despite acting entirely in defense, looking around the empty stadium, Yamato felt like he was the bad guy.

"I'm just glad Mimi-san and TK-kun stayed back," Sora said. Yamato nodded. He really didn't like the idea of those two staying out of his sight but it was probably better than exposing TK to anymore violence, especially when it was him causing it. "I'll go get them." As she left, Yamato looked around, mostly to distract himself from the growing fear that the digimon were just a distraction. TK and Mimi were just outside and Yamato always made a point of looking back. Nothing would have happened without him noticing, right?

A giant bulb with a purple glow distracted him from his fears. It was right in the center of the stadium, looking like a big flower that had wrapped around something. "Yama!" TK's voice smashed through his fears. Most of them.

"Stay back!" he commanded, almost wincing at the expression on his little brother's face. He did it again. "There's a strange plant in the center," he quickly explained, "It might be dangerous. I'm going to investigate it." He looked at Sora who was just behind TK, her expression filled with a sympathy that only made him feel worse. Behind her, Mimi looked sick, no doubt thinking of that battle. He didn't blame her.

"Wait," Sora interrupted, "Let's look in these cages or whatever first." That was probably a good idea. While Yamato figured they were just for holding prisoners, they could also be some sort of trap for anyone who tampered with that big bulb.

"I'm taking point," he said. If something happened, well, Sora would be a lot more missed than him. She gave a visibly reluctant nod. He slowly started moving along the ledge, TK and Sora right behind with Mimi trailing at a slight distance.

The cages along the ledge were just small openings dug into the wood lined with thorny looking stems as bars. Obviously a prison. Empty, but given how digimon bodies never remained, it was hard not to imagine the prisoners the Order would have locked up. Arewe even the first kids to be pulled into this nightmare?

One cage had something. A green bulb lying on its side. It was hard to tell in the dark but it seemed almost familiar- "Tanemon!" Mimi blurted out. The bulb rolled over, exposing her face, and immediately hopped to her feet. "Are you okay?!"

"Get back!" Yamato ordered, raising his PhotoSaber. Once Mimi was out of the way, he sliced through the stems. They gave a little resistance but nothing compared to the treewall.

"Mimi!" Tanemon cried out the moment the stems were cut, barreling out of the cage and into the girl's arms. "It was so awful!"

"What'd they do to you?!" Mimi asked, visibly holding her own tears back.

"They tied me up and kept lecturing about plants," Tanemon complained, "Constantly! It was so boring! Do you know the full process of which this tree absorbs sunlight and feeds it to those colorful bulbs? I sure do!" Well, Yamato figured as Mimi hugged her partner, at least Tanemon wasn't hurt.

"U-Um…" TK trailed off, looking nervously at Mimi. A bit of Yamato's anger towards the girl returned but he forced it back down. This was hardly the time. "I-Is Purple Tokomon okay?"

"Aah!" Tanemon yelped and pulled back from Mimi a little. She pointed a leaf at the big bulb in the center. "That's right! It was hard to tell, I mean this was the worst seat, but I think Purple Tokomon and Jou are inside that big one!" TK immediately turned to the plant but Sora had her hands on his shoulders.

"Remember what Yamato-kun said?" she asked. TK slumped a little and looked at Yamato with pleading eyes.

"Y-Yama-" he started but Yamato cut him off.

"We're not leaving without Purple Tokomon," he assured. He looked at the large bulb.

"I think it's safe to cut it," Tanemon said, "The Order uses them to hold the tougher prisoners. I have no idea why Jou and Purple Tokomon would be in there."

"You know some things about the Order?" Sora asked. Yamato figured she was talking about those bits of knowledge each of the digimon just had. Tanemon gave a little nod.

"A little. But I do know I don't like them. I feel like they did something real bad and when I try to guess what it was, I get real mad."

"Well, I'm going to check out the bulb," Yamato said, "Sora, you stay back in case something happens." She gave a visibly reluctant nod. Slowly, he turned and headed for the green ramp leading to the center platform. It surprised him how stone like the ramp was. And now for the plant. Each step he took came slower than the last as he held his breath, waiting for the bulb to spit some sort of seed at him or something.

It remained perfectly still, though he could barely see movement from inside. The purple light was more of a thick haze; he could barely make out the silhouette he was seeing. Or, silhouettes if Tanemon was right. And looking at the pod, he wasn't sure he wanted her to be. Purple was not a good color for air to be.

He reached the pod. No reaction. He raised his PhotoSaber, aiming at the side of the pod to minimize his chance of hitting whoever was in there. He slowly brought the glowing blade down, making a slight cut and stopped as the purple gas began seeping out. He used the DigiScanner. It was… Tsukaimon poison! Fear for Jou's safety turned his cut into a full slash. As soon as the chunk of plant was down, a projectile rocketed out, colliding into TK.

"TK! TK! TK!"

"Purple Tokomon!" Yamato just stared as TK practically crushed his partner with a hug. And Tsukaimon looked to be trying to do the same. Yamato couldn't help but smile at the scene. A rustling caught his attention. Jou! He quickly turned his attention back to the pod, now just a pile of planty rags and someone trying to push them off. Yamato quickly pulled one off, revealing a distraught Jou.

"Yamato-san?! Uh, thank you!" he exclaimed, "It was so disgusting in there!"

"Y-You're okay?" Yamato asked, a bit dumbfounded. That thing was filled with Tsukaimon's poison. And for that matter, why was Tsukaimon poisoning it?

"Um, yes," Jou answered, "It's surprising but I was able to activate my digivice."

"Can we go now?!" Mimi interrupted, "It's creepy here and we found everyone and-"

"Okay, okay!" Yamato held a hand up and looked at Jou. "Let's talk when we get back."

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Leaning against the nearest tree, Taichi made sure to take slow and careful breaths. His entire body was screaming for him to lie down and pass out but he couldn't. Not yet. Sora and Ishida hadn't returned from rescuing the others and Taichi was not going to rest until he knew they were all safe. Besides, with how red his bandages were now, he wasn't sure he wanted to risk sleeping. Not until Jou looked at him. At least this time it really wasn't my fault.

"Um, Taichi-san?" Taichi looked down at the boy sitting next to him. His legs began to tremble with envy at the sight of Koushiro not standing. Get over it. If I go down, I'm not getting back up. "I really wish I could apologize for leaving the battle like that."

"Me too," Tentomon said. The bug next to Koushiro, looking more than a little sullen. "I intended to find a safe spot for Koushiro-han but-" Taichi cut him off.

"You did the right thing. I couldn't protect Koushiro and, now that I think about it…" he took a breath. This little realization absolutely sickened him. "I should've gone with you. I couldn't do anything. I was just a weak point for Greymon." He hated admitting that. Abandoning his partner like that felt completely wrong. It was wrong. I have to get stronger somehow. But how?

"To be honest, Tentomon, there was little you could've done," Koushiro added, putting a hand on Tentomon's head, "Your metal shard just didn't carry the necessary impact."

"But maybe if you risked the Electro Core?" Tentomon asked. Koushiro shook his head.

"Far too dangerous with all the water, but even without, wood is a poor conductor. I don't believe it was particularly vulnerable to electricity."

"Or fire," Taichi added, "Or ice. Or wind. Or anything." He waited for Gomamon to bring up how well his attacks worked. Nothing. The seal was staring into the forest, waiting for Jou's return. With PetriWoodmon's death, the treewall and giant trees were gone but the normal sized trees remained. Or maybe the big trees were all used to make the clones. Taichi really didn't care. The fact was, the forest was much more ordinary now with a nice clean view of that creepy sky he really tried to not look at. Good thing the building the children all slept in was untouched by the battle with how exposed the clearing was now. He was not looking forward to seeing that sky at night.

He spared a quick glance to his other side and exhaled in relief. Yokomon and Tsunomon were still there. Along with Koromon, of course, all three of them having gone from unconscious to sleeping, but Yokomon and Tsunomon meant Sora and Ishida were still okay. Now if only Tsukaimon and Tanemon were here. Or better yet, TK and Mimi. A throb from his legs warned him not to get any ideas about hunting down that Ogremon himself.

"Looks like everyone's just about here," Koushiro said. Taichi blinked and looked around. No sign of them anywhere. How did Koushiro know? "I'm using the map, Taichi." Koushiro sounded a little amused.

"Uh, right," Taichi absently responded. It would make sense that with PetriWoodmon gone the digivices would work again. Or maybe it was the trees? After all, Phantomon couldn't block the digivice. Just interfere with it a little. And of course Koushiro would go for the map first chance he got. Wait, map? Map! His face heating from embarrassment, Taichi brought up the map. Five digivice icons, one a light gray, one white, one blue, and two darkened. And they were all approaching the forest border. He'd be able to see them soon enough.

The seconds crawled by before he could finally see the figures emerging from the forest. "Jou!" Gomamon suddenly cried out and took off. Uh, oh. Incoming Pukamon! He sent the Tmail to everyone; no time to pick targets. How was Gomamon able to move so fast?! Probably should tell them about Piyomon and Gabumon too. Just so you guys know, we went through a major against some tree monster called PetriWoodmon. Agumon, Piyomon, and Gabumon used up everything they had and turned back to Koromon, Yokomon, and Tsunomon. So don't freak and wake them. That last bit was more directed at Jou and Mimi, though he imagined Sora might overreact too.

He sagged against the tree, finally allowing himself to relax a little. Just a little, otherwise he'd pass right out, which was sounding better and better. Just a little longer. Then I'm out until Jou says I'm better. The thought of actually listening to Jou for once made his body throb in agreement.

At the sight of Sora, he straightened with a sharp gasp at the sight of the bloody marks on her body. And she wore an expression of defeat that he never imagined she'd have. She looked at him with a weak smile. "T-Taichi… i-is Piyo… uh, Yoko…" she started to choke out. He looked over at the sleeping trio.

"Just fine," he assured, looking back. Ishida looked as messed up as she was, though he didn't seem so depressed. He did seem very on guard but a glance in Tsunomon's direction seemed to relax him a little. "They were a big help with PetriWoodmon."

"Petri… was that the big… green head?" Sora asked. Taichi nodded as he looked over the others. Jou looked perfectly fine, just a little unsteady, probably due to Gomamon hugging his leg. TK, on the other hand, looked like he'd gone through a terrible experience, not even seeming to notice how Tsukaimon was in his arms and nuzzling him. In fact, the only time Taichi could remember TK looking worse was when… Don't even go there! Mimi a bit further back from the group, holding Tanemon, and looking almost afraid to come closer. She didn't look hurt at least, but what happened?

"Was it that 'Judgment of Woodsiemon' thing?" he ventured, not sure what else to say.

"The what?!" Tanemon suddenly asked, "Did you say 'Judgment of Woodsiemon'?!" Taichi put his full attention on her. "I can't believe the Order would, oh wait, of course I do."

"Um Tanemon?" Mimi's voice was barely audible, "We don't know what you're talking about." Tanemon's face reddened.

"Oh! Um, okay. The Order of the Green is some sort of nature cult," she informed, "and they're very technophobic."

"We've noticed," Koushiro said, "PetriWoodmon became very agitated by my laptop. And it claimed our digivices were, ah, evil." Yeah, that probably the best interpretation of the tree's rambling.

"Yeah, they're all like that," Tanemon agreed, "Anyways, The Trial of Woodsiemon pits you against your heart or something like that and makes you super emotional so you react with total honesty." She hesitated, looking like she was concentrating. "It's also based off some kind of evil power. This is just my, uh, ingrown knowledge, but none of the Green should ever use it but it the Grand Vines do anyhow."

"Grand Vines?" Taichi repeated, his heart starting to beat faster. He really didn't like the direction this conversation was going.

"The top ranking members," Tanemon said, and then, again, went quiet for a moment, "That's… about all I know, actually. It feels like there should be more, though. A lot more but the only other thing I have is that they once did something very bad. Something I will never forgive them for."

"It wasn't the Judgment," Ishida said, looking pained, "though the Judgment was bad." Now that Taichi noticed, they were all looking pained. Except for Jou; he just looked sympathetic. "It was the Weed Killers," Ishida continued, "It happened after were separated from Garurumon and Birdramon."

"But Yamato-san and Sora-san kept me and TK-chan safe," Mimi quietly added. Her voice turned glum. "But after that…"

"We tried to warn them," Sora said, her voice cracking, "We just wanted to save Jou-kun, Tanemon, and Tsukaimon." TK didn't seem to notice Sora forgetting to say Purple Tokomon. He was looking completely lost in his thoughts.

"The other members of the Order," Jou filled in, "I couldn't really see in the plant I was trapped in, but Yamato-san and Sora-san were attacked by all of them."

"Even Gabumon could've taken them," Ishida growled, "And we'd beaten the Weed Killers! That should've been enough!"

"Okay, let's move from the sleeping digimon," Taichi suggested. This was going to get heated and the digimon more than earned their sleep.

"TK-kun, could you stay with the digimon?" Sora asked, "In case they wake up?" Taichi expected a protest but TK simply nodded and sat down. Taichi felt a flash of anger over the Trial but it quickly faded. He was just too worn out.

"I-I'll stay with TK-chan," Mimi said, sitting down too. Why isn't she next to TK and bugging him? From how depressed she was acting, Taichi expected to just grab TK again. In fact, TK looked at her, like he wanted to say something, but then he looked away. Slowing shaking his head Taichi looked back at the others. Jou looked confused but Sora and Ishida almost looked guilty. If it involves Sora and Mimi, there's probably no point in me knowing.

Wordlessly, the group started to move. It looked like Ishida had picked a spot and Taichi was too tired to find a better spot. His eye caught Gomamon who was now crawling next to Jou and glaring at Taichi. What did he do? "This should be far enough," Ishida said, "I don't want the digimon out of sight. The spot was just out in the field but looking around, there weren't really any trees close enough for Taichi's taste. He slowly sat down, legs whimpering in relief. And then his back started grumbling.

He looked at Gomamon. "What is it?" he asked.

"You spoiled the surprise," the seal growled, "I could've made Jou jump fifty in the air." What?

"He jumped at me!" Jou complained.

"While saying 'booga booga'," Sora added with a giggle, then she looked at Gomamon with a more serious expression, "But that was dangerous. Yamato-kun and I had just fought the entire Order of the Green and we're still on edge. If it wasn't for Taichi's warning, we might have attacked you too." Gomamon's eyes widened and then his face turned sheepish.

"Oh! Uh, oops?"

"Okay, let's get the big question taken care of," Taichi said and he looked at Jou, "How did you awaken your digivice?"

"Oh, right, well," Jou went into an explanation of how he and Tsukaimon ended up trapped inside a big flower, "When I was inside, I felt amazing but my mind was getting hazy. It was hard to concentrate but that was the same energy that cured my allergies." He took a deep breath.

"In hindsight, this was crazy but I was desperate. And since Koushiro-kun survived the digivice, I figured I could too with the life energy. And then I remembered how all of you said it started right where the digivice was closest. I put mine on my head so I'd be spared the pain." Taichi's mouth dropped open. That's actually really smart!

"How did it work?!" Koushiro asked before he could. Jou merely shook his head.

"Not well at all. Even though my senses were out, I was still conscious. All I could do was lie in darkness while remembering Taichi-san's and Yamato-san's convulsions. I think I would have been hurt very badly if it wasn't for the healing energy." Oh, so much that idea. Unless…

"What about tying them down," Taichi suggested, hoping Jou knew who he was talking about. He didn't dare mention their names with this plan. "You know, so they can't hurt themselves, and making sure they knew we would be there the entire time?" It made him sick suggesting doing that to TK and Mimi but they needed their digivices' protection. Jou merely shook his head.

"I'm positive I felt my heart stop at least three times," he answered quietly, "The life energy saved me, of course, but now it's gone."

"And then you evolved me, right?" Gomamon chirped. Jou nodded.

"Watching all of you made figuring out evolution pretty easy," he said, "Element Cores weren't hard either. Since Pukamon looked like a little like a sea monster, I figured Hydro was the most likely Element for the strongest effect. I didn't try weapons, not with all those digimon there." Taichi needed a moment to process that. Just like that, he turned Gomamon into the only one of us who could actually harm PetriWoodmon! Taichi's respect for the older boy increased ten fold.

"And then you used Tsukaimon's poison gas?" Ishida asked. Jou nodded.

"Once I got the DigiScanner working, and you weren't kidding about it being a headache, it told me that the flower converts organic matter into that life energy. The energy is spread around through the really big trees. They can amplify energy, so they amplify the life energy and feed it to PetriWoodmon. That's when I had the idea of using Tsukaimon's poison. The poison itself didn't do anything at first but then I had him fire his dark energy too. The life energy couldn't completely fight both off and the poison and darkness, little by little, got mixed in."

"You contaminated it," Koushiro said, sounding as awed as Taichi felt. Jou nodded.

"it was a long shot, I mean, the DigiScanner said the big trees amplify energy, not poison,but I think the poison got mixed with the dark energy. Anyways, I just had Tsukaimon keep doing that over and over and eventually the poison leaked back in." Taichi fell into a stunned silence. Did Jou have any idea what he did? Going by the growing nervousness in his expression said he didn't.

"Are you serious?!" Tentomon blurted out, "We hitting that guy with blades and fire and ice and-" Koushiro clamped a hand down on the bug's head.

"What Tentomon is saying is that you saved us. We never would've beaten PetriWoodmon without you."

"No kidding," Taichi said, "That guy was practically invincible! I mean, it was made of a wood that couldn't be burned! We couldn't do a thing!" His tenfold respect for Jou instantly grew to a hundredfold.

"Speak for yourself!" Gomamon piped up, "I was turning it into drift wood!" His voice lowered to a growl. "At least until it turned into a real tree. Jerk."

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Tailmon stared at the forest, her jaw practically reaching the rooftop she was standing on. Those bigger trees were gone. And the Warden of Life's symbol was dark. That could only one thing: PetriWoodmon was dead. Those brats actually beat him! Maybe they really can stand up to the Metal King.

She shook her head. This was really going to complicate things. For one thing, none of the Wardens were going to just sit by and wait. Those kids had just established themselves as the strongest force in File. The Wardens were not going to let that stand and Tailmon wasn't sure what she could do to control the outcome. You brats better get ready. The other Wardens may not be as strong as PetriWoodmon, but they can do a hell of a lot more than spit plants.

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Afterword: Finally done! Seriously, this story was meant to be simple, mostly to introduce the Order of the Green and have a big PetriWoodmon fight. Oh, and give Jou a good moment. Can't believe how much trouble this one gave me.

Anyways, the next arc is still a ways off. Its planned out but it's been very difficult to draft out, though at least its hard for the right reasons.