Disclaimer-I still don't own Digimon or any of its associated articles

Disclaimer-I still don't own Digimon or any of its associated articles. And if you are dumb enough to try and sell this for money, well, you're a lot dumber than I thought.

Author's Note: I know, it's long, and seems to go nowhere. Well, the kids will come back more when I continue this for real. Really, I promise.

"We have got to stop meeting like this." Andrel smiled as Amanda sat down next to him at a sidewalk café, looking at the cup of coffee that he had pre-ordered for her. His usual hot chocolate was already half drunk.

"How are things going?"

Amanda just looked up. Above them, visible in the crack of sky in the narrow streets, two mountains of flying metal and rock flew overhead, each half a kilometer long, floating like boats, except without water. From them a variety of gun emplacements and power jacks hung in a disorderly fashion, but each device was well placed to further the passage of the floating fortresses.

"That's the last two battleships. We start transiting the dreadnoughts any moment now."

"Well, at least that gives us two full squadrons of Fifth Wing within striking distance of the frontier. I hear that the Silverbolts were giving you some problems."

"Yeah. We had to stuff them into Leonidas instead of Falkenberg. At least we got them moving somewhere." Amanda took a deep gulp of coffee before smiling over at Andrel.

"Going back to Earth?" she asked.

"Yeah, and Jan's coming with me. But the rest of you look like you're needed here. Good luck trying to straighten everything out."

"I hate you." She growled into her coffee.

Andrel leaned over and kissed her on the cheek, grinned at her, and then faded into light.

Kari blinked and woke up. There were some memories from her dream still blowing around in her head, but other than that. She shook herself and blinked her eyes, scratching the head of Gatomon, who was curled up next to her in her bed. Gatomon blinked, looked at her sleepily, and then turned over and started snoring again. Kari smiled at her, and looked around. She was lying in the top bunk of her bed, in her usual place. The others were still there, Sora was sleeping in a sleeping bag by Tai's desk with Biyomon, Mimi was asleep in the bed beneath her with Palmon, and Yolei and Hawkmon had taken the other side of the floor. She looked over at the clock and checked the time. Seven thirty! And a Sunday no less! No wonder nobody else was up.

Quietly she got dressed and padded to the door, sneaking out and heading to the bathroom. As she approached it the door opened, and someone came out, leaning over and looking at the ground. Kari found herself looking into two round, impossible blue eyes and a brownish-orange nose.

"Good morning Kari!" Patamon greeted her cheerfully from her position on top of TK's head.

Beneath him TK groaned. "How can some people be so cheery so early in the morning?" he grumbled.

Patamon just grinned innocently. Kari grinned back, being used to rising earlier than her brother.

"Excuse me." she said giggling, slipping around them and heading into the bathroom.

When she got out TK was still there, looking more awake, and Patamon was looking around curiously.

"What are you doing up this early TK?" Kari asked.

"I couldn't sleep. I had one of those odd dreams."

Kari stopped dead. "I did too. Was it like the thing we were talking about with Izzy last night?"

TK stopped as well. "Yes. Should we talk to him about it?"

"Well, we could wait until he gets up."

"He's already up, him, Ken and Joe all together. They're out on the balcony. I guess those genius types are used to getting up with the sun and stealing a march on the rest of us." TK grinned, his school problems would decrease dramatically if he was able to wake himself up earlier.

Kari grinned back, and they walked through the living room, stepping over the still-sleeping bodies of the rest of the boys as they made their way over to the balcony. Out in the chill of the morning, and the growing dawn Joe was sitting, sipping a cup of coffee while reading a text and offering advice to Izzy and Ken, both of whom were engaged in what appeared to be an unnecessarily complicated game of chess. Kari looked at the board for a moment and then looked up puzzled. "Is it just me, or is white winning?"

Ken nodded absently. "Yes, and white does eventually win. We're re-enacting the championship game from last years Japanese championships. And trying to figure out how to beat both the players."

TK grinned at his seriousness. "Oh boy, such ambition. Does the boy know no bounds?"

Ken swatted at his arm playfully. TK just grinned wider.

"Oh, Kari, a package arrived for you this morning. The guy who left it was off in a hurry. Your Dad left it on the table here." Izzy picked up a package wrapped in brown wrapping paper and let her have it.

"That's funny, no return address." Kari jerked on the brown packing tape and ripped off the cover. Inside was a plain cardboard box, which she quickly opened, revealing what looked like a flat computer monitor with a clear plastic cover and a few buttons. One the cover was a note, written in fine pen: To Kari, share this with TK, Joe, Izzy and Ken. There was no signature. Kari looked up suspiciously.

"All right you guys, are you up to something?"

A few minutes of protestations on the part of the guys convinced her that they were not, but she was still puzzled. She flipped open the plastic cover and examined the screen. All the buttons were unlabeled except for a single switch labeled ON/OFF. She thumbed it, shrugging while Ken and Izzy looked over her shoulder. The screen flashed once, and then settled down to a detailed image of black lines on a clear background. Off to one side there was a menu of options, including SCAN, OPTIONS, PARAMETERS, DATABASE, LOG, COMM, DISPLAY and a list of controls that looked like they belonged on a TV remote. The image quickly resolved itself into a map of the Kamiya apartment, and a few pieces of the nearby compartment. Kari blinked in amazement.

"I think it's one of those Global Positioning Systems. You know, those devices that tell you where you always are..." Ken paused. "But it doesn't look like anyone that I've ever seen before."

"Can I see?" asked Izzy. Kari handed it over wordlessly and he set it down on the table with everyone crowding over his shoulders. Even Patamon looked interested. Izzy studied the controls for a moment and then reached out and hit a spot on the screen labeled Z +/-. As soon as he touched the - sign the image shrunk and more images came in on the side. "Prodigious!" Izzy exclaimed with great pleasure. "A zoom function. And a very detailed map system. I haven't seen one of these before." Everyone smiled at his enthusiasm.

He kept zooming out until he had a street map of the entire city, labeling landmarks, streets and other items clearly, and then going farther. Kari was still puzzling over who would give this to her, and TK was enjoying the quality of the map. For a moment, Izzy looked at the other controls, and then hit the SCAN button.

The map blinked and a new menu replaced the old one. Izzy blinked and then pushed the screen again on an area marked LIMITED SCAN. He whistled, "This touch screen is very sophisticated, and it works wonderfully. I wish I had one of these Kari."

"Three flight, this is Base. We have scan from associated area. Prepare to initiate Arrowroot. Prepare to initiate Arrowroot." the silent transmission sped over space to a point a few kilometers out in the middle of Tokyo bay, to a clear point of sky amid the golden clouds of dawn. From that empty space came a reply:

"Roger base, this is three flight. Dropping screens now."

And then the space was not empty anymore.

On the screen in front of Izzy several dots appeared around the apartment area. But more importantly a set of dots appeared at the edge of the map, over Tokyo bay.

"What are those?" Kari asked pointing. Everyone else looked on curiously.

Izzy shrugged and pressed a finger down on the dots, the computer screen changed.

Multiple Contact-Enhancing Scan Parameters

Identity Confirmed

Three MegaKabuterimon-Enhanced Energy Signatures

Two Garudamon-Enhanced Energy Signatures

Associated other smaller contacts-Unable to resolve

Velocity: 150kmh, NNW

Will leave sensor range in thirty two minutes

Identification: Positive

Markings, Hammerhead squadron, Wellington, Fifth Wing

Analysis: Standard Patrol

Threat Level: Low

Further Data

Everyone stared at the screen for a moment. Kari was wide eyed, TK slack jawed, Ken looked like he was about to fall over, Joe was about to spill his coffee, and Izzy just stood still and stared. After a moment his hand, almost of its own volition moved over quietly and hit the square marked Further Data. Immediately other images popped up on the screen, pictures of a MegaKabuterimon and a Garudamon with accompanying data about strength and power levels and abilities. Notes were included on the formation, windspeed, environmental conditions and other pieces of data, but none of them truly noticed. All of them were coming to grips with the idea of such powerful Digimon in the real world. After all, there were only a handful of Digimon in the digital world that had been at that high level, and none of them had come over to the real world. Either the computer was lying or something had changed, but in either way, what in the world was going on?

"Three flight, resume patrol operations."

There was a flash, and then space was empty again as a group of invisible fliers suddenly turned and jetted in a different direction.

As they all stared at the computer, it blinked again and the dots disappeared. A new notice appeared:

Warning: Contacts have engaged stealth fields. Unable to track further.

Attempt to regain contact failed.

Then the image settled down, leaving only a few dots in the center of the image. Izzy recovered from his shock and quickly zoomed in on them, as they were displaced throughout the apartment. He quickly ran through them and found all their Digimon. After a moment he sat back and blinked up at them.

"It appears to be a Digimon detector. And an incredibly detailed one at that. I can't image the type of technology it would take to create this. In fact I have no idea how it is done. The standard electromagnetic spectrum scanners would be unable to provide such resolution and…" he let his voice drain off. Then Izzy looked up. "But I have no idea what it is for, or why those five Ultimates were prowling around the city, and what stealth fields really mean."

He paused for a moment and then hit the END button, and hit the OPTIONS button. A new menu appeared. Izzy read those buttons quickly and hit the INFO button. A message appeared:

Kari (and TK, Joe, Izzy and Ken if I'm not mistaken)

Greetings. I know this is a little confusing, but we think you might need the services of this device soon. That is Gennai thinks that you will need it, and none of us are stupid enough to contradict him. Anyway, we've been modifying this like crazy to give it to you, so here we go. This is a Citadel standard issue Field Scanner and Information Networking Device, known as a Scanner to those who have to use it in the field. It detects Digimon at different distances depending upon their power levels and their proximity. In addition it can trace the positions of your Digivices and any other Digi-accessory (since that is what you call them). It can interface as a communication device with the Mark IIs (you call them the D3s). It also serves as a standard computer, allowing you to type, program or do anything else you need. It takes a lot to break and never runs out of power. Read the instructions (if you can) if you need anything else. Good luck!

There was no signature. Everyone stared for a moment at the screen, and then Izzy hit another button, dissolving the message and returning to the scan mode. He looked up at Patamon, who was also wide eyed (like always) and peering down curiously.

"Patamon, fly off and see if there's a limit on this thing." Izzy pointed out to the horizon and Patamon obediently shuffled off and began flying.

As Izzy watched Patamon's golden dot fly off, he turned to the others. "I can't help but think that this is meant particularly for us, given what we discussed last night. Which means that somebody is watching us very closely."

"I think we had another dream last night." TK and Kari quickly exchanged glances. "But it was even more unclear."

"It supports the hypothesis. But I wonder, should we tell the others?"

Everyone looked puzzled, and then Kari spoke up. "We should warn them, but something tells me that we can't let them know directly what is going on."

Patamon's blip on the screen disappeared and Izzy blinked. "Well, for a rookie, it seems to have a range of about two blocks. I hope that's enough."

"You better keep it Izzy. I hope you can find out more about it."

Izzy shook his head, handing it back to Kari. "I can't keep it. It was sent to you, so it's yours. Given our experiences with the Digiworld, when things go wrong, they go wrong fast. You may need it on you."

"I hate Miracles." Jan grumbled as he fiddled with something invisible next to his breakfast plate. He looked up at Andrel with a pointed look that reminded Andrel that he was speaking of the crest and egg instead of the actual events.

"What's wrong?"

"You know how we had to mess with Fate in order to get the Digidestined back into action."

"Yeah, don't tell me, we had a spillover into the miracles section and the whole thing went into a tangle."

"Don't remind me. Cortell is probably spitting bullets."

Andrel rolled his eyes. The debate between himself and Cortell had been ongoing practically forever, and showed no signs of being over anytime soon. Everyone else just snickered up their sleeves at them whenever they fought.

"Doesn't matter. He'll fix it. Anyway, school starts in a few minutes, and I should get going to teach that class." Andrel sighed and headed for the door.

"Andrel, you always do this?"

"It's my first time teaching at this level."

"You'll do fine." Jan's voice was level and so was his gaze.

"Thanks teacher." Jan just smiled at that and went back to fiddling with Fate and Destiny.

Kari brushed some dirt off of her gym clothes and looked over at TK and Ken. "So what's up with PE, why are we changing around?"

TK shrugged and Ken just looked puzzled. A row down Davis was as boisterous as ever and Yolei was arguing with another girl in the back row about something. All the students were standing around talking to each other on the floor of the gym. There was a moment of consternation, and then the gym coach came up from behind them.

"All right people. Due to some recent incidents," his gaze flickered to Kari, "the administration has suggested that we do a self-defense course in this class." He did not sound very pleased by the notion. "To teach it, we have Mr. Dantel. Mr. Dantel?"

A tall, well-built man with long brown hair and a plain face walked up to the front of the class, wearing a plain white two piece garment, loose and flowing without getting in the way. He got to the front of the class and took a look at the students, his expression grim, before smiling at them, looking carefully into the eyes of every person there.

"Good morning students." He spoke with an odd accent, yet a familiar one, similar to how Mimi now spoke Japanese. "I have been asked to be your self-defense instructor for the next few classes. I've checked through records to separate which ones of you have martial arts training and have formed you into a separate class under the instruction of my associate, Mr. Gidel." Another man, even taller, but with short cropped black hair and darker skin nodded amiably. He held up a piece of paper and called off a handful of names, and those students obediently went to stand with him. After a moment, he started to run off with them at a jog, heading outside.

TK, Kari, Yolei, Davis and, surprisingly, Ken were left behind. Mr. Dantrel took a quick look at his list and then walked past the line of students, stopping in front of Ken.

"Mr. Ichijouji?"

Ken started for a moment, but otherwise remained perfectly calm. "Yes sensei?"

"The recommendations I have from the last Judo tournament are impressive. The recommendations from your teachers at school even more so. As such, I was going to see if you would be willing to help teach the new students." Something passed between the two.

"Of course I would." Ken looked like he was being subtly attacked and was defending his territory, but his voice remained unruffled and calm.

"Have you streched out yet?" Mr. Dantrel was perfectly emotionless.

Ken nodded silently without losing eye contact. Even his posture was a challenge.

Dantrel smiled in response, but it was almost humorless. "I've watched your career with interest, and I did wonder how you were doing."

Ken returned the grin, that is, he pulled the corners of his mouth up without altering his face.

Dantrel waved to the rest of the class. "All the rest of you, strech out. Make sure that you're nice and limber, you'll need it later." And then, turning to Ken, he gestured to a wide blue mat in the middle of the floor, typical of most gym mats.

TK shrugged and launched into the routine he used to strech for Basketball, while Kari and Yolei went into their dance streches. Davis tried to touch his toes. All around them, kids started to strech as well, muttering to each other. TK caught Kari's eyes and shrugged minutely. Kari raised an eyebrow, but continued streching.

In the middle of the mat Ken and Dantrel has stopped, pausing, looking at each other. Both of them were standing, relaxed, calm, at ease, but somehow so tense that they gave the impression of a spring coiled to the breaking point. Between them, the air seemed to crackle with electricity, like lightning, blasting off each other, each person an island of calm in the middle of a tormented sea.

Slowly, carefully, the muttering, gossiping and whispering in various parts of the room slowly died down as people caught on to the incredible tension between them, so thick that you could have used it to cut bread.

"Come on," Davis whispered, as they continued to stare at each other, "do something already!" Now everyone was staring.

And then, suddenly, they were both moving. It would have been impossible to determine who moved first, because, as soon as one moved, the other moved to follow, almost like a mirror image. They rushed toward each other with abandon, and then the space between them dissolved into a whirling flurry of hands and feet as the two crashed together, striking, rebounding, hammering and dodging. For a handful of seconds they stood, bobbing, ducking and weaving around a common center, and then Ken fell, hitting the mat with a loud smack, while Dantrel jumped back almost three meters.

"Ken!" Davis yelled. Yolei gasped.

Ken's back suddenly bent like the water in a wave and, rolling first forward and than backwards, he shot up into the position he originally started in. Other than a slight increase in his breathing he looked completely the same. For a moment everyone in the room struggled with the feeling that they had imagined the storm that had just passed, that nothing had happened.

Dantrel grinned ferally at Ken. "I thought you were a Judo person."

Ken shrugged, but he bared his teeth. "I've learned a few tricks."

Suddenly, they were moving again, rushing at each other like mighty rivers, trying to wash away everything between them, with a kind of grim unstopability and wild pleasure mirrored in their features. There was another crash in the center, and they suddenly flowed like water, twisting in around, out and down, each trying to grab the other, each shifting away in turn. For a handful of seconds they stood in that position, each circling the other at tremendous speed. Then suddenly Ken twisted around, grabbed Dantrel's tunic for a quick throw, and then gasped as the man dropped his weight, shifting one hip over and catching Ken momentarily off balance. There was a moment while everyone realized that something was going on, and a sudden look of surprise appeared on Ken's face, and then he was down, flipped on his back and Dantrel's hand whipped out like a freight train. A moment of screaming tension ended abruptly when the hand halted a mere handful of centimeters away from Ken's throat.

"So," Dantrel asked "I think I get to claim victory. But you're getting better Ken, a lot better. Watch what you do with that front leg though, you're still trying to muscle through."

Ken nodded and bowed low. Then he extended his hand, "Glad to see you approve Mr. Dantrel." "Good to see you learning Mr. Ichijouji."

For a moment they stood locked, and then Dantrel clapped Ken on the back and gestured over to where the rest of the students were now watching open-mouthed. "All right you lot, I hope that you're nice and warmed up, because you're going to need it."

Everbody winced back.

"As a top student, Ken here gets to be the dummy I practice these things on, right Ken?" Ken rolled his eyes. "I want you to watch carefully what we're doing, and then you're going to do the same thing in partners, all right?"

There was a chorus of assents from the audience.

"All right, let's get going."

The next hour was a grueling series of drills, as Mr. Dantrel demonstrated a series of basic evasions and counters to common holds. Everyone moved through them as they worked it out with partners. TK ended up working with Ken, who taught him a lot of things that he had never known the black-haired genius to have known. At the end he was bruised, battered and strangely refreshed.

Jan watched the whole thing from affar, through the gym windows from a nearby building, sitting next to an Agumon and a Floramon who had decided to accompany him.

"So, if you taught him everything he knows, why aren't you down there teaching the kids?" the Agumon wanted to know.

Jan sighed and smiled at the same time. "Two reasons, I taught him everything I know, which is not everything he knows. He picks up tricks every time he leaves Citadel. I wouldn't be surprised if he is vastly superior to me by now. Two, I teach the matrial arts as just that, martial arts. If I was down there I would be teaching them the basis for moves that they would never have to do. I still think like I was trained, that the martial arts are a weapon, and as such you need to master every nuance of the art in order to use it correctly."

"Isn't the martial arts a weapon."

"For some people, something Andrel insists cripples people."

"He thinks it isn't a weapon."

"For him martial arts is merely a useful tool that he uses to accomplish his goals. I suspect that it seems to him to be a special tool, but nonetheless it is just a tool, something to be learned. He is the weapon. Everything else just helps him demolish his target." Jan's brow creased. Andrel was indeed the most dangerous man he kenw.

He watched them go through their exercises, and then watched as the students were dismissed to their next class, after cleaning up. Andrel met his eyes for a moment, and then breezed on, preparing for a second, less vital class as more students began to come in.

"Come on." Jan gestured tiredly. "Let's keep those hooligans out of trouble."

TK and Kari rushed into the room with the other Digidestined, only to see them all gathered there, waiting for the last two arrivals. They smiled at each other, and began the walk home.

"…and if I had another company or so I could do a world of good."

"Ordinance, can we handle that?" Gennai leaned back in his cushioned chair and watched the world spin for a moment before the answer came.

A shining Andromon sat back in his chair, eyes searching the ceiling as if looking for answers. After a moment, he spoke. "I can give you fifteen units of fire for your ground units, as well as transport to and from operational zones. We can scrape up five units or so for the artillery, but I only have four for the anti-air. Will that be enough?"

Two people, on a tall, black skinned human, the other a short Wizardmon shook their heads. "It's way too risky." The human objected. "We could get sliced up out there. I don't think we could pull that off."

"Wait a moment. We go in with Gallipoli Two, right?" Andrel sat up from where he had been staring at a map.

"Currently that's the idea." Gennai looked over, his long hair flashing. When Andrel talked like that he usually had an idea.

"Well, I'll be doing long range sniping with my carrier units. I'll need all the flights I can get, but some of those novices aren't used to Digivolving yet. They simply don't have the range for what I need them to do. I was going to hold them over for air defense, but I can lend them to Pharsalus for air cover and ground support. I can cover my carriers with the battle line if I need to, and that will offset our shortages in artillery and air support."

"Right." Gennai exchanged a look with the powerful Leomon sitting next to him. "I say that StratCom and TacCom both tentatively approve Operation Pharsalus with respect to the changes that were made here."

"Agreed." Leomon rumbled deep in his chest. "Now, if we could get an update on the Sentinel program."

Gennai and Andrel stood up, crossing over to the front of the room, replacing the two presenters who had been standing in front of a holographic display. As they moved the display changed, now showing twenty four different faces.

"The Digidestined pose an interesting dilemma." Andrel pointed at the screen. "Our entire purpose in their creation was to sow the seeds of a program that would allow worlds to protect themselves from the Darkness. As such, if we interfere, we wreck the program and in some way make them dependent on us. At the same time, given the powers we have invested in them, they have become prime targets for the Darkness. Specifically I am referring to the kind of mental attacks that destroy self-confidence."

Gennai took over smoothly. "We believe that agents of Darkness have managed to attack their internal confidence, and the faith they have in each other. Although they are significantly above the level they were at when they entered the Digital World for the first time, they are not yet ready to confront evil of the magnitude that they will soon be required to face. We have temporarily rebalanced the two miniature seals that we have invested Takeru and Hikari with, but they will have to see to the rest themselves. Our Paradox now works against us. We cannot interfere and save them without reducing their self-confidence and their independence. At the same time, leaving them to fend for themselves seems a poor second option."

"What can we expect to happen to them?" Vona was sitting close to that end of the table, and, having been out in the field, she was out of the loop on this particular project.

"We anticipate an assassination attempt on D-Day, probably on H-Hour itself." Andrel paused. "I have taken steps to prevent this, but I believe that the Dark will respond by hurling some of them into the void. Our current plan is to take the ones thrown into the void to another world, Parsifal to be specific. We have contingency plans for this, and it will allow us to give the Digidestined time to prepare for the confrontations ahead."

"Any specific contingencies that we should be aware of?" Leomon asked.

"Perhaps." Andrel and Gennai exchanged significant glances. "We cannot offer overt aide without taking effort from critical battlegrounds, something we dare not do considering how many worlds are at stake. However, there are possibilities. At the moment though, they remain the sole concern of TacCom, StratCom and SpecOps."

"Understandable." Leomon rumbled. "I suppose it is necessary to give those children the chance to prove themselves. And I no we cannot afford to offer them full military support. I just wanted to know, what kind of chances are we giving them?"

"I don't know. Whatever they do is up to them." Andrel's voice was quiet.

"I suppose we have to give our approval. Consider it done. Now, we need a full shakedown report on Fourth Wing's Order of Battle."

The voices continued for many long hours.

Tai balanced a pencil on its tip, trying to concentrate on his math homework through the glow of the light on his desk. He pushed his chair back a few times and then, his tenuous focus broken, he stood up and walked around. After looking at the posters adorning the walls and the photographs on the table in front of him he sighed and stretched, turning at a thought. Carefully, with a rare display of the precision he usually never exhibited in daily life, he crossed the room on tiptoes, creeping silently. Then, with one gentle hand, unlike anything he did during the day, he ran one gentle finger over his sister's smooth cheek as she slept, and a smile creased his face.

Cody rolled uncomfortably in his sleep, beset by odd dreams of his father with him in the Digital World. But the beauty of the Digital World dissolved in ugliness and war, and his father changed to Oikawa, who was trying frantically to tell him something...but Cody could not hear the words...

Mimi finished talking on the phone, the usual activity that dominated her life leaving her feeling somehow unfulfilled. For a moment she thought back to when life was simpler, if much more difficult, back in the Digital World, and instead of horrifying her, the memory strangely comforted her. She went to sleep dreaming of a world under a fair sun and drowning in incandescent glory.

Davis, worn out from a long day of activity, soccer, basketball, running, and other things, watched the ceiling of his dark room as his eyes slowly dropped toward sleep. His thoughts remained on his day, on how lucky he was to have friends and companions and adventures, and on what tomorrow would bring.

Joe, realizing that he had an early morning class, and that he was tired and ready for some sleep collapsed onto his bed with a grateful sigh. He took a glance out his window where he could see the tide lapping the shore, and absently wished that his life could be important once more. As he drifted off into slumber he thought he could feel a strong, familiar grip holding his hand.

Yolei rolled over on her bed, feeling wistful. She did not really mind Hawkmon going back to the Digital World, but sometimes she missed his company and his confidence. As she prepared to sleep she looked over to where a single solitary picture graced her nightstand. It was one of Kari's, a picture taken by a boy she did not even know of the twelve Digidestined and their Digimon as the light from Oikawa's sacrifice brightened the skies. They looked tired, grubby, careworn and absolutely wonderful. She sighed carefully and fell asleep dreaming of friends, victory and peace.

Sora absently stroked the petals of a flower as she prepared to go to sleep. She was taking her last reading assignment carefully, reading the papers in front of her carefully and fully before giving up for the night. Every time she touched the papers, memories of happier times seemed to flow out, distracting her. In the end she smiled ruefully, falling asleep in her bed with the light still on, floating in a dream where good and evil fought each other to a standstill in the darkness.

Matt waited for sleep with a patient air. He was thinking of a song, something more musical than the sound of wind rushing through the trees on a summer day, a sound that he and Gabumon had listened to long ago in another world. As the words tried to form in his head, he fell into a deep slumber, and a dream where a man took a song and used it to change the world.

Izzy waited by his computer. He had been upgrading his computer, trying to build programs that would tell him if trouble was brewing, but he had so far not achieved anything. For the hundredth time he wished that Tentomon was here with him, but the Digital World needed protectors too. And he still could not shake the feeling that evil was once again at work. As night fell further on, his thoughts were filled with foreboding.

Ken lay sleepless, listening to the steady rumble or traffic and the dulled roar of city life as it ground onward. He was tired, but unable to sleep, mind resonating with implications he wished to avoid. Something out there was calling, calling to him, to that dark part that he had thought buried long ago. He set his teeth and braced himself, feeling in himself the strength that flowed from his friends and their kindness, and felt the tension lessen briefly. Yet still he could feel Darkness, calling, marching, as clouds hit the stars from view.

And last of all, TK lay on his bed deep in thought. He could feel the peaceable calm that had settled around himself, his friends and the world. And in his mind, faintly so that he could only hear as he was on the verge of dreaming, he could hear a voice say The Calm Before the Storm. And he braced to meet the hurricane.

"Andrel?"

"Yes dear?"

"How was class?"

"Fine."

"How long do we have?"

"Days maybe."

"Will it be enough."

"It better be…" a whisper, "It better be."

Author's Note: For the purpose of actuallys separating things out, I'll continue this under another title, which will make it easier to keep everything separate. If you're actually still reading this, I congratulate you on your stamina. And if you're actually intrigued enough to read the next part, I'm flattered. I think I'll call it The Hammer Falls.