Me: As usual, I don't own Digimon, nor do I own "One Last Breath" by Creed. And, yes, I plan on using one other song of theirs that wouldn't be recognizable unless you had the "Scream 3" soundtrack-
Rika: Whatever! Just get on with the story so I can find out what devious thing you have cooked up for Takato so I can kill you.
BlackTerriermon: Hey! (jumps in-between Rika and me) The only one who's gonna get a whooping is you if you don't step back!
Me: (smiles foolishly) That's the one main advantage of having a Digimon partner for yourself-he can be your own personal bodyguard! Now, to answer some questions that were directed solely at me-
Rika/BlackTerriermon: Aw, nuts!
Me: (raises eyebrow) Cute. Now, As to the question of how I got my ambitious partner in the first place, its simple, yet confusing-I was typing a story up a week or so ago while staring at the cards of BlackGargomon, BlackRapidmon and BlackMegaGargomon and wondered if there was ever going to be a BlackTerriermon card to complete this particular set. (smile grows broader) To my surprise, he pops out of my computer and says the first thing that came to mind-
BlackTerriermon: Momentai! And, what would "ambitious" mean, anyway?
Me: ...Yeah, that's exactly what he said. As for "ambitious," that simply means that you show ambition whenever you're around other people.
BlackTerriermon: Wow. "Ambitious?" So, that's what I do, huh?
Me: Yeah. Now, since I haven't checked every single one of my reviews, I may not get all of the
questions answered today. What's next? (flips through reviews) Ah-ha! The questions asked
by Digikittyo123. The reason why Takato had the ring on-as Gallantmon, then as Gallantmon:
Crimson Mode-and wasn't destroyed is something I'll have explained in this chapter. Also, the
Ice-Reaper's minions will show up in this chapter. There are gonna be two Digimon who show
up-one will be a Mega-from the card game, and he'll be in this chapter. The other one-who will
be beyond Mega-will be in the next one. As for Henry-he didn't want to risk Jeri's wrath, but
he'll be here for the next chapter. Now-onward to the next installment of "A Rukato Wedding!"
Digimon Tamers: A Rukato Wedding
Chapter XIII-The Hunt for the Ice-Reaper
"Time to fight!" -IceDevimon, The Icemon Cometh
"Now...I don't know if I want to fight at all, seeing all the pain it's caused..." -Rika Nonaka, The
D-Reaper's Disguise
The Tamers were flying through the portal as fast as they could in order to catch up with the
Ice-Reaper, when he suddenly vanished into thin air! When they finally did break through and
reenter into the Real World, the Digimon couldn't hold their Mega forms since they weren't in
the Ice-Reaper's realm anymore and they simply deDigivolved. As for Kazu, his singing career
was cut to a halt when people started panicking about the return of evil Digimon, so he, Kenta
and their partners left the guests to their own devices and went to help out the others. Now, the
team has been split up into four different groups in order to find the Ice-Reaper, but he not only
knows where they're all going, he plans to ambush them all at once! Talk about extremely bad
timing!
"It feels soooooooo good to be bad..."
The Ice-Reaper grinned maniacally to himself as he envisioned the destruction of the Real World as well as the Digital World. And through it all, he saw himself standing by Rika's side, her newest Digivice transformed into a cold device of power, power she would now use to control him. True, some of the humans would die from the extreme cold, but those who didn't were the ones he would eventually face and kill. But first things first-to carry out his ingenious plan. Raising his Spiritual Ring to the sky, it instantly glowed a dangerous golden color as he pointed it to the ground and this time, instead of envisioning his personal future, he envisioned Digimon of glorious power and within seconds, four of them appeared. They looked like Champions, but since they had all been created with the power of the ring, their normal attacks would feel like Mega Digimon's attacks!
"Go and destroy the Tamers and their partners, but leave the redhead and her goggle-wearing
friend alive! One is meant to have one final confrontation with me, whereas the other...is to be
my new Tamer, at last..."
"Henry, can't we slow down for at least a minute? It's getting late, and we haven't seen hide nor hair of that frozen eggplant!" Terriermon gasped as he rode on top of his Tamer's shoulder.
Rolling his eyes, Henry responded cynically, "Terriermon, it's only 10:55, and that isn't considered late at all."
"It is if you've had to spend over half the day beating up ice sculptures of your friends'!"
"Wait a minute!" Jeri pulled her boyfriend to a stop, a concerned look on her face. "Isn't this around the time when Takato and Rika are supposed to be...?"
Henry gulped as it suddenly came to him. "Oh, no! You're right! We've spent so much time on trying to find Takato and getting him back here that we completely lost track of time!"
"Gee, how could things possibly get any worse?" Terriermon quipped sarcastically.
"Slamming Attack!!"
"Look out!" Leomon warned as he grabbed Henry and Jeri-which included Terriermon-and leaped into the air, barely dodging the Digimon's unexpected attack!
"Boarmon: A Champion level Digimon! His Nose Blaster and Slamming Attacks are considered to be lethal weapons!"
"'Nose Blaster?'" Terriermon couldn't help but laugh as Jeri lowered her Digivice a second later. "What's he gonna do-hit us with his snot?"
Narrowing his eyes, the Digimon rose his snout to the air and actually launched his attack! "Nose Blaster!!"
Terriermon and Leomon cried out as they were both blasted to the ground by a beam of pure light!
"That's pretty effective, for some snot." Terriermon groaned as Henry ran over to pick him up, a worried look on the Tamer's face.
"Now do you see how dangerous it is to mouth off to someone bigger than you?"
"That felt like a Mega Digimon's attack, but the Digivice clearly states him to be a Champion!" Leomon growled while getting back up to his feet.
"This might be one of the Ice-Reaper's creations. We have to stop him, but how? If we Biomerged now, we might not have enough energy to try again later." Henry warned.
"Leomon and I will handle this!" Jeri advised while holding up her Digivice again. "Unlike the rest of you, SaberLeomon can't fly, so I wouldn't be able to help you out later on."
Henry smiled gently while reaching over to Jeri and kissing her with pent-up passion before pulling away.
"Are you sure about this? You do have a knack for helping out at the last second."
"Mm-hmm."
Henry's smile grew as he noticed the tinge of pink that had appeared on Jeri's cheeks. "Then get in there and teach him a lesson!"
Biomerge Digivolution!
"Biomerge, activate!" Jeri yelled out as she transformed into data and merged with Leomon.
"Leomon Biomerge to...SABERLEOMON!!!"
Growling lightly, the Ancient Animal Digimon stepped forward, sizing up the prey before attacking it.
"I'll give you one chance to surrender. After that, I'll have no choice but to destroy you!"
In response, Boarmon rose his snout back up in the air and screamed, "Nose Blaster!!"
Dodging the attack, SaberLeomon responded, "So be it! Raaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!"
Terriermon grinned wickedly as SaberLeomon and Boarmon collided against each other and grappled for control. "Wow! Who knew Jeri had it in her to be brave and take chances like this?"
"Probably because she has Leomon for a partner, or..."
"Or, it's because she's been with you for the past decade or so, that she's picked up your courageous attributes!"
"Something like that."
Finally gaining the upper hand, SaberLeomon roared, "Howling Crusher!!" and used full power to eliminate the threat. The Digimon may have had the power of a Mega, but he was still a Champion through and through. Instantly, he burst into data, but this time, it wasn't absorbed.
"Way to go, guys! You sent that porker to Hog heaven, just like we did against Vikaralamon!"
Henry couldn't help but laugh at Terriermon's statement as SaberLeomon deDigivolved into Jeri and Leomon. "I've said this before, and I'll say it again-you are incorrigible!"
"That's me-the Rookie Digimon who doesn't know how to, and just won't shut up!" Terriermon laughed calmly.
"I wouldn't want you any other way, pal."
"Henry! Is-is that what I think it is?"
"Huh?" Amazed, Henry and Terriermon turned to see a beam of air-but from their point of view, it could be ice-shoot into the air and aim directly for the sun!
"That's coming from...the west end of the park! Come on-Takato and Rika might need our
help!"
"Personally, this is taking us way too long to find some frozen freak who wants revenge on redhead for something done how many years ago?"
"A little over seven years ago, if what Henry told me was right." Ryo responded grimly as Cyberdramon grumbled under his breath, eager to get into or start another fight. The Ultimate Digimon had seen firsthand how powerful Impmon could be in his Mega form, and a big part of him was wondering how would he and Ryo, Biomerged as Justimon, fare in a battle against Beelzemon, or against Beelzemon in his Blast Mode.
Ryo would've told Impmon how things had gone and ended in the first place, but he'd just happened to glance at his watch and smirked slightly.
"It's almost 11:00. Technically, Takato and Rika are supposed to be getting married at this very minute, and as of now, they aren't. Guess that's the price you pay for having to save the world, isn't it?" Ryo pointedly asked Ai and Mako that question, but since neither one of them had actually listened to him, they didn't know how to respond back.
A second later, Cyberdramon growled loudly, and crouched down low, his senses heightened as he hissed, "Ryo, something's coming our way, and it's powerful!"
"Where is it, Cyberdramon? And how close is it-?"
"Power Slapping!!"
Growling even louder than before, Cyberdramon took to the sky and grabbed Ryo, Ai and Mako, sending the three of them to the ground, and saving them from the Digimon's attack! Instantly, the Legendary Tamer whipped out his Digivice and scanned the intruder.
"Talk about a major bug problem! Kongoumon is an Insectoid Digimon at the Champion level. His Multiple Arm Bombs and Power Slapping attacks are what really get people going buggy!"
Grinning, Cyberdramon flexed his muscles before stepping forward. "This shouldn't take me too long, Ryo. I'll have finished him before they have time to cut the cake."
"Whadda ya mean, 'me?' I'm in this, too, and you have a lot more to lose than I do!" Impmon retorted irritably as he changed into Beelzemon and pulled out his guns. "Except for Ai, Mako and everyone else, I wouldn't be missed, so get on over to where that freak is messing with the sun and stop him already!"
"What about you?" Ryo asked in amazement as Cyberdramon reluctantly stepped back.
"You'll thank me later, after you've helped Pineapple head stop that frozen popsicle from freezing the sun. Now, get outta here! Ai, Mako, go with 'em!"
"We're staying!" Mako insisted as he and Ai ran up to their partner, who gawked at them in shock.
"If you're gonna stay and fight, then we're gonna help you out!" Ai added.
Beelzemon smiled lightly and fought back the wave of tears threatening to flow down his cheeks. Nodding, the Mega Digimon cocked his guns and motioned for his Tamers to cover their ears.
"You heard 'em. Now get going!"
"Ryo, look!"
"Huh-?" In amazement, Ryo looked up to where Cyberdramon was pointing at, just in time to see a beam of light-or what Cyberdramon considered a beam of ice-shooting directly up toward the sun!
"Okay, but if you don't come back, that'll just give Rika another reason to hate me!"
"Trust me, kid-I'll come back. Okay, you cockroach-time to taste cold steel! DOUBLE IMPACT!!!"
Beelzemon roared loudly as Ryo held out his Digivice and prepared to merge with his partner one last time.
Biomerge Digivolution!
"Biomerge, activate!" Ryo screamed as he transformed into data and merged with Cyberdramon.
"Cyberdramon Biomerge to...JUSTIMON!!!"
"Hang on, Rika...I'm coming!" Ryo grunted lightly inside his sphere as Justimon flew up into the
air, hoping that leaving Beelzemon and his Tamers behind was the right thing to do.
"Kazu, how much longer do we have to walk? My joints are almost rusted!" Guardromon groaned as, on the south end of the Shinjuku Park, Kazu, Kenta, Susie and their partners had searched high and low for the Ice-Reaper, but hadn't found him at all.
"Until around 11. Then, we can start heading for Guilmon's old home and after that, Chumly and his Queenie can get married and leave me alone to hunt down any girl I would want!"
"Speaking of 11, isn't it almost that time of day, Kazu?" Kenta piped up.
"Last time I checked, it was 10:50." Susie responded.
"Well, let's see-AHHHHHHHHHH!!! It's 10:55! Rika's supposed to be walking down the aisle now!" Kazu shrieked worriedly.
"Does that mean there's no wedding?" MarineAngemon asked calmly.
"Unless Takato and Rika both use Speed cards to get themselves to the church and get changed, I don't think so." Kenta muttered.
"What else could go wrong today?" Kazu whined sadly. In all honesty, he shouldn't have said that.
"Matador Dash!!"
"Kazu, watch out!" Guardromon warned as he used his jet packs and pushed his Tamer out of harm's way! In amazement and shock, Kazu pulled away from his partner and yanked out his Digivice.
"Hey, Kenta-look at this! It's Bullmon, a Mammal Digimon, Champion level! His Matador Dash and Tail Whipping attacks are considered a 'dangerous commodity' in the Digital World!"
"Uh, Kazu, there's probably a reason why that saying was in the D-Power-"
Kenta's saying was interrupted as Bullmon started forward at Susie and Lopmon!
"Hey-leave her alone! It's us you want!" Kazu cried out.
"Don't you dare try to hurt Susie!" Lopmon demanded angrily as, not only did she start glowing, but so did Susie's Digivice!
Digivolution!
"Lopmon Digivolve to...TURUIEMON!!!"
"Lopmon...is that your Champion form?" Susie was astounded. Ever since receiving Lopmon as her partner, Susie had only seen her in her Ultimate form. The Champion Digimon nodded, prepared for action.
"Kazu, this is amazing! That's Turuiemon, Lopmon's Champion form. And they said Endigomon was Lopmon's real Champion level in the movie. Ha! Her Lightning Kung-Fu and Gauntlet Claw attacks really leave her enemies grasping the point!"
"Matador Dash!!"
Smirking, Turuiemon leaped over Bullmon before preparing herself to fight. "You gotta be a little quicker than that to stop me, buddy! Gauntlet Claw!!"
Bullmon roared angrily as he was stabbed, but wasn't deleted! Guardromon rose his arms up and prepared to help.
"I'll help out, too! Guardian Barrage!!"
"Kahuna Waves!!"
The two attacks caused some damage, but it wasn't enough. When Bullmon focused his attention on the other Digimon, he noticed that only Guardromon was close enough, so he launched his own attack at him!
"MATADOR DASH!!!"
"Oh, no! Guardromon-look out!" Kazu pleaded, but his warning came too late! Guardromon cried out as he wasn't only hit, but was sent flying to the ground and forced to deDigivolve to his Rookie level!
"That would be Kokuwamon, Guardromon's Rookie level. His Mini-Scissor Claws and Mini-Electro Shocker get the point across, but not in this case."
"Are you okay, buddy? You're not broken again, right?" This time, Kazu couldn't control his emotions and allowed his tears to fall down his face and splash onto Kokuwamon's body.
"His power level was like a Mega Digimon, but Kazu...I can still fight, if you're willing to do two things for me-"
"What are they, buddy?"
"I need you to fight with me! Together, no adversary in the world would stop us!" Kokuwamon rose his metallic arm up, and Kazu responded with grabbing it tightly and holding onto it.
"And the second thing?"
"Could you please stop crying on me? You'll make me rust!"
"Deal, pal! Let's show this guy what we can do!" Kazu pulled out his Digivice and held it up to the sky, Susie, Turuiemon, Kenta and MarineAngemon watching in awe.
Biomerge Digivolution!
"Biomerge, activate!" Kazu yelled excitedly as, for the first time ever, he transformed into data and merged with his partner.
"Kokuwamon Biomerge to...HIANDROMON!!!"
"Wow!"
"Isn't that amazing, Turuiemon?"
"Very."
The four of them-five, if you added Bullmon-looked up at the latest Mega Digimon, who seemed to be just as tall as Gallantmon, Sakuyamon and Justimon. Kenta was barely able to pull out his Digivice once more and scan him.
"HiAndromon, a Vaccine-type Digimon! Mega level, obviously. His Pasting Copy and Atomic Ray attacks, like I said before, will really get the point across!"
Inside his sphere, which had a brownish like background, Kazu looked down at himself and had to laugh. "I don't believe it! Guardromon, we merged! Is this what Takato, Ryo and, heck, even Rika felt like when they first Biomerged?!"
"Probably. Are you ready, Kazu?"
"You bet, buddy! Okay, you reject from the running bull races-prepare to face my wrath!"
Grunting in surprise, Bullmon raced forward, hoping to catch the newest arrival by surprise.
"Matador Dash!!"
"I don't think so! Pasting Copy!!" Instantly, about two or three extra HiAndromon appeared beside the original. That brought Bullmon to a screeching halt.
"Now let me see-could I be the real one? Or could it be this one? You tell me!"
In utter shock, Bullmon couldn't figure out which one was the real one-until it was too late.
"Go for it, Kazu! Take him down like yesterday's roasted liver at the short-lived bachelor party!" Kenta yelled bravely. Nodding, HiAndromon prepared to launch his most powerful attack.
"You got it, Chumly! ATOMIC RAY!!!"
Bullmon roared as he was hit full force by the beam and turned into data. HiAndromon would've deDigivolved back into Kazu and Guardromon, since Biomerging had healed the Champion Digimon's wounds, but a beam of ice was suddenly fired up in the air and headed toward the sun!
"Guys, we have trouble with a capital 'T!' Climb on!" Kazu demanded inside his sphere.
"Can you really carry us like this, Kazu?" Kenta asked doubtfully as he picked up MarineAngemon, then waited for Susie and Lopmon-who'd deDigivolved from Turuiemon-to get onboard.
"Of course, unless you want to watch the end of the world from here. Now, come on-less lip,
more zip!"
Takato, Rika, Guilmon, Renamon and Calumon hadn't fared any better than the rest of them-mainly because the Ice-Reaper had remained invisible ever since he'd summoned his minions. So far, only two of them had been defeated. One of them was still giving a Digimon some trouble, but eventually, that one would be defeated as well. What was surprising was the fact that while he was invisible, he was directly above Takato and his group the entire time!
"This is getting us nowhere! We should take a quick break and then just continue on." Rika grumbled irately, dropping down to her knees, apparently tired. Takato sighed lightly while sitting down next to his fiancee in the grass. Calumon, however, had other plans.
"I'm not tired, guys! I'll keep looking for you!" At that statement, the In-Training Digimon took off. Guilmon moaned sadly as he got back up and ran after him.
"Calumon, wait! It's not safe for you to be out there alone!"
Irritated already because of the day's events, Renamon closed her eyes briefly before running after the two of them.
"Technically, it isn't safe for either one of you to be out here alone!"
Takato and Rika grinned lightly while finding time to relax. As if on instinct, Rika reached inside her pocket and pulled out her tape player and collapsable headphones.
"Whoa! You had that on you the entire time and never even told me?"
"I forgot it was in there!"
Takato accepted Rika's answer, not wanting to start an argument with her on this special day. He reached over to turn on the tape player, but Rika, one step ahead of him, had already turned it on, turned the volume up very high, plugged her headphones up and pulled herself-and Takato-back up to their feet.
"Uh, Rika? What are you doing?"
"Do me a favor, and don't ruin the moment for me-got it, Gogglehead?"
Takato nodded in agreement, blushing and cautiously placing his arms around her waist. "Got it,
Rika!"
"Please come down...I think I'm falling, holding onto what I think is safe...
"It seems I've found the road to nowhere, and I'm trying to escape...
"I am back when I heard thunder...(thunder...) but I'm down to one last breath...
"And with it, let me say...let me say..."
Takato felt Rika tense up against his chest, obviously concerned about the upcoming battle. When he asked what was troubling her, he found out he couldn't have been more wrong in his entire life!
"It's past 11:00, Takato...we were supposed to be married right now...!"
Immediately, Takato felt his heart clench up. The biggest day of their lives, ruined because they had to save the world from complete destruction.
"Rika...I'm so..."
"Just hold me..." It was obvious to Takato that Rika didn't want to talk, so he grew silent and
just held her close, stroking her hair and tempted to pull out her ponytail, but decided against it.
In this case, chivalry would be the better way to go.
Chorus: "Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Maybe six feet ain't so far down..."
It hadn't taken Guilmon that long to find Calumon-he'd come to a full stop after running for at least three minutes, even less for Renamon to find the both of them. Eventually, the three Digimon found themselves looking at a Champion Digimon, who, unbeknownst to them, had the powers of a Mega.
"What kind of Digimon is this, Renamon?"
Eyeing Guilmon with a cautious tone in her voice, Renamon responded, "That would be Rhinomon, a Champion Digimon who is said to have died out quite a while back. His Atomic Burst attack is said to have taken down even Ultimate Digimon. Against a Mega Digimon, I have no clue on if he can successfully defeat that high a level."
"Come on, you crazy rhino! Just try and beat us! We can take him, right, guys?" Calumon asked while balling up his paws and throwing fake punches in the air. In response, Rhinomon opened up his mouth and fired a beam of light from it!
"Atomic Burst!!"
"Whoaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!!" Calumon cried out as the ground in front of him was hit, sending him in the air and onto Guilmon's back!
"Maybe we should handle this, Renamon." Guilmon advised grimly. Narrowing her eyes, Renamon had to agree.
"There is something you can do for us, Calumon. Then, you can go find Rika and Takato and get them over here."
"Really, Renamon? Goody, goody! What can I do?"
"You can help us to Digivolve to at least the Champion level."
Calumon smiled broadly as he tapped into his hidden power before the triangle glowed brightly and fired a beam of light into the air. "I can do better than that...! I think."
Matrix Digivolution!
"Guilmon Digivolve to...GROWLMON!!! Growlmon Matrix Digivolve to...WARGROWLMON!!!"
"Renamon Digivolve to...KYUBIMON!!! Kyubimon Matrix Digivolve to...TAOMON!!!"
Within seconds, Rhinomon found himself staring up at two Ultimate Digimon, while Calumon was running off as fast as possible.
"Time for us to do a little rhino hunting."
"Mm-hmm. Atomic Blaster!!"
"Talisman of Light!!"
"Atomic Burst!!"
"I'm looking down...now that it's over, I'm reflecting over all of my mistakes...
"I thought I found the road to somewhere...somewhere in history...
"I cried out, 'heaven, save me...!' (save me...!) but, I'm down to one last breath...
"And with it, let me say...let me say..."
After a few minutes of hearing Rika's steady breathing, Takato wondered if she'd fallen asleep against his chest. It wasn't something he would mind, but it would make for a difficult thing to explain to the others, if they'd decided to look for them. That's when, as usual, Rika proved him wrong.
"Takato...I saw that ring appear on your finger, so why didn't you leave me...?"
"Huh?" Takato's eyes widened in amazement. That hadn't been a question he would expect Rika to ask!
"It's not that I want you to leave me. It's just that Renamon told me that if a Mega Digimon put on a ring like that one, or like the one that frozen Ice-Reaper has on, they would be destroyed...So, why weren't you and Guilmon destroyed?"
For a while, Takato stood there in silence, hearing the music blare out of Rika's headphones as well as Rika's steady breathing. It comforted him, for some reason he knew why not. Eventually, he came up with a satisfactory answer.
"The only thing I can tell you, Rika, is that its probably because I didn't actually activate the ring's power. I may have had it appear on my hand when I was Gallantmon, but I never used its powers, only my own, as well as Guilmon's."
Smiling, and blushing, under Takato's gaze of contentment, Rika had to look away. Confused, Takato leaned down in order to kiss her, but recieved a finger holding his lips away from their intended target.
"To get this, you have to keep your promise and come back to me when this is all over."
"I will, Rika..."
Chorus: "Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Maybe six feet ain't so far down...
"Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Maybe six feet ain't so far down...I'm so far down..."
Takato broke his gaze from Rika, with a forlorn look plastered on his face. Rika took notice of this, however and eyed him with a calculating look.
"Gogglehead, you're planning something. What is it?"
"I'm not planning anything! Why would I be planning something?"
"Trust me-I know you better than you know yourself, and if you weren't planning anything, you would be aiming to snatch a kiss from me right now!"
Takato winced. Rika did know him that well! But, how to cover up the truth...?
"I was wondering how the others were doing on their search, that's all."
Knowing that this wasn't the truth, Rika decided that, for now, she'd give him the benefit of the doubt.
"Fine. But later on, I do expect to hear the entire truth from your lips, Takato!"
Takato absentmindedly nodded, trying to pull Rika closer to him, but grimaced in pain as she
pulled away, showing him the hurt and silent torment in her violet eyes before pulling him back
into a much needed embrace.
Bridge: "Sad eyes follow me...But, I still believe there's something left for me...
"So, please God-stay with me...!
'Cause I still believe there's something left for you and me...for you and me...for you and me..."
"Did I do something wrong, Rika? Whatever it is, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do whatever it is I did-"
Rika put her hand up to Takato's mouth, effectively shutting him up. Because of what Takato had just done, she couldn't even listen to his voice. All she wanted to do was to know that he would always be there for her.
"Just hold me..."
Takato felt Rika's pain for the simple reason that it was his own pain. He'd hurt her by not
telling her the truth, but he couldn't! If he did, she would just try to stop him from doing what he
had to do. The only other problem was this-how was he going to do what he had to do?
Chorus: "Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Maybe six feet ain't so far down...
"Hold me now...I'm six feet from the edge, and I'm thinking...
"Maybe six feet ain't so far down...
"Please come down...I think I'm falling, holding onto what I think is safe..." (song ends)
The second the song ended, Takato pulled away from Rika, stifling a cry of despair. Confused, Rika watched her fiance curl up into a ball on the grassy ground, seeing tears roll down his cheeks.
"I'm sorry, Rika...! I know you're hurting, 'cause I'm hurting, too! But, if I told you what I was going to do, you would try to stop me, and I can't let you do that. I don't even know how I'm gonna pull this off in the first place! I just...I just want you to forgive me, Rika...!"
Rika felt her heart go out to the Tamer who had become a young man in such a short amount of time, but who still had the capability to make her heart skip a beat by occasionally acting like that same boy she'd fallen in love with all those years ago. She smiled lightly as she walked over to Takato's fetal position and hugged him gently.
"Takato, I forgive you. No matter what foolish act you try to pull when we do face that creep, I'll forgive you. Okay? Now, come on-let's go find Renamon and Dinoboy and get out of here."
Sniffling, Takato wiped his tears away and nodded while getting back up. It was at this moment that Calumon had finally found the two of them after losing his way more than once!
"Come on, guys-Guilmon and Renamon need you! They're fighting some kind of rhino Digimon, and they need your help!"
"A what?!" Takato gaped in shock, his mouth hanging open. Rika rolled her eyes while pushing Takato's chin back up to its correct spot.
"We can grill him for info later."
"Right! Now it's onward to stop-what?!"
Takato stopped speaking and just looked up at what he considered to be the impossible-a beam of ice, not that far from their position, fired up into the air and aiming for the sun! Seconds later, Guilmon and Renamon reappeared, still in their Ultimate forms and hardly scratched.
"What happened?" Rika asked in astonishment. "How'd you two-?"
"We'll ask 'em later, Rika! We have to go now!" Takato pulled Rika toward that beam of ice, with a frantic look in his eyes.
"Takato, what are you talking about-?!"
A second later, Takato pointed straight up, and Calumon, Rika, Taomon and WarGrowlmon looked to where Takato was pointing. The beam of ice had finally struck the sun, and the entire team of Tamers saw it.
"We're too late..." Calumon whimpered sadly, his ears drooping in defeat. Turning to eye each other briefly, Takato and Rika shook their heads.
"Not yet, we aren't!"
Biomerge Digivolution!
"Biomerge, activate!" Takato and Rika chorused as they transformed into data and merged with Guilmon and Renamon, who'd deDigivolved from their Ultimate forms.
"Guilmon Biomerge to...GALLANTMON!!!"
"Renamon Biomerge to...SAKUYAMON!!!"
"Yay! Now we have a chance to win!" Calumon cheered as he rode on top of Gallantmon's back as the two Mega Digimon flew straight to the source of the beam of ice.
"Guilmon, did you and Renamon actually beat a rhino-like Digimon?"
"Almost, but the Ice-Reaper came in and deleted him just as our attacks collided. He let us go so we could find you guys, but I don't know what for."
"Undoubtedly, it was so we wouldn't distract him from this plan of his. And we fell for it, hook, line and sinker!"
"Don't worry, Renamon-we've got at least one more chance to stop this guy-once and for all!"
I hope Rika is as true to her word as her fiance is! But, what could Takato mean by him doing what needs to be done? We'll all find out next time on Digimon: Digital Monsters!
