Making Digi Magic

by Shirley Ann Burton

Rika and Renamon from Digimon join forces with Ace Cooper the Magician in this tale when Digimon destruction starts occurring in Electro City!

2. The Magician's First Digimon Confrontati...

Making Digi-Magic
Part 2: The Magician's First Digimon Confrontation

Rika waited patiently at the lobby of the Sinsun Hotel but was very anxious to get her Digivice back. "I'll be glad it's safe, but how does Miss Jacobs know so much information about Digimon?"
Sally the cabbie arrived at the door of the hotel. "Here you are, Angie."
Angie gave her a $20 electro-dollar note and a $10 bonus tip. "A job well done as usual. Thanks, Sally."
"Call me if ya need me again." She then sped away to continue her work for the evening.
Angie held the Digivice very close to her so no one else could try to steal it. "Now, I've got to find Rika."
When she reached the door, however, two very large men tried to block her.
One with glass eyes named Glare said, "Hey, no friends of Ace Cooper allowed in here. Now get out of here!"
"You don't understand," Angie said in trying to reason with them. "I'm supposed to meet someone in the lobby. I have something that belongs to her."
"Nice try," said the other man named Tiny, who was anything but with his huge muscular build. "You're not foolin' us, Jacobs. We know you're up to something. Now leave before we throw you out."
"You wouldn't try to hurt a lady, now would you?" Angie asked as she started becoming rather upset.
Rika walked around the lobby when she heard all the commotion near the door. She came up to the door. "Um, excuse me, but what's going on here?"
Tiny turned to her and said, "None of your business, little girl."
"Little girl!?" Rika shouted angrily. "I'll have you know I was last year's Digimon Game World Champion! My name is Rika Nonaka!"
"Rika?" said Angie.
Rika realized who the woman was. "You must be Angela Jacobs, right?"
"Yes, I am."
"I've been waiting for you here in the lobby, but since these two idiots won't let you in, I guess I'll just have to come out."
"Sorry, little girl," said Tiny, "but no guests are allowed to leave the hotel."
Up in the security central control room, Sonny Boy Surge, the wealthy owner of the Sinsun Hotel who also happened to be the son of prominent scientist Professor Jonathan Surge and himself a clever crime boss, noticed the commotion at the front door. He soon understood what was going on. "I think the little girl and Jacobs planned on meeting each other." He then spoke to Tiny and Glare through their wristwatch radios. "Boys, let Jacobs in."
"But…boss," said Glare, "Jacobs works for Cooper."
"I don't care! Let her in! I know Jacobs wouldn't come without a good reason. Now let her in or I'll have youse both fired immediately, got it!?"
"Yes, sir," they both said at the same time.
Rika then made a sarcastic remark. "I guess the man who owns this hotel knows a lot better than the two of you."
Angie then walked into the hotel and shook Rika's hand. "It's nice to meet you, Rika."
"The feeling is…mutual, Miss Jacobs."
"Please," the female magician blushed. "Just call me Angie. All my friends do."
"Anyway, you said you found my…device, right?"
"Yes, I did. I found it at Daedalus Park."
"That's where I was with Zelda earlier today. Must've fallen off my belt."
"I actually thought this was one of Professor Lars's prototypes for a new line of toys."
"No problem." Rika then became very serious. "Um, Angie, I need to talk to you about—"
"Just what I know so far, right?"
"Yes, but first I need to get away from Mom and Grandma. I really hate being in this dress."
"I have an idea. Since I'm already here, how about I meet your family? Save a little bit of trouble?"
Rika liked the plan. "Okay, come on."
As the two women came to the restaurant entrance, Rika said, "Sir, please add one more guest to the Nonaka table, please."
"Of course, Madam. Miss Jacobs, you may enter."
Angie smiled. "Thank you, sir."
Searching for the Nonaka table, Rika asked, "How did he know who you were?"
Rika, said Renamon's voice in her mind, that's Angela Jacobs, the training magician Terriermon mentioned before.
Are you serious!? I figured her to be a snobby celebrity, not a…wholesome individual.
Not all celebrities are rich and snobby. Angela takes her celebrity status in stride and tries to be herself when she isn't performing.
Angie could hear Renamon's thoughts but knew she was communicating with Rika, so she opted not to listen in.
When the twosome approached the table, Rika said, "Mom, Grandma, do you mind if we have another guest at the table?"
"Another guest?" Rumiko asked curiously.
"Yeah, this person, Angela Jacobs."
Mishara reacted with some excitement. "I don't believe it…the female apprentice to Ace Cooper, the Magician!"
"Angie, my mother Rumiko and my grandmother Mishara."
Out of respect of the Japanese culture, Angie bowed before them. "An honor to meet you both."
Rumiko was pleasantly surprised. "You are the apprentice to Ace Cooper?"
"Well, I'm not the only one. There's his other and far more experienced apprentice Cosmo. He's been with Ace a lot longer than I have. I've been with them for about 3 ½ years now, but Cosmo's been with Ace for at least seven years."
"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just that…I'm surprised someone so young could be a part of it. Where are your parents?"
Mishara interrupted, "Rumiko, that's not polite. Miss Jacobs is about 25 or 26 years old. It doesn't matter about her parents."
"They're…gone," said Angie as she lowered her head. "They've been gone for about 9 years now."
"Um, Grandma, can I talk to Angie, alone?"
Mishara figured it could be for the best. "Sure, Rika, go ahead."
"No," interjected Rumiko. "You're not leaving my sight for a moment."
"Look, Mom, you've done enough damage as it is! First I have to wear this ridiculous dress, and then you treat Angie like she's still a teenager herself! Just forget it!" Rika then patted Angie's shoulder. "Come on, Angie. We'll talk…alone."
Rumiko was about to stand up and say something when Mishara grabbed her hand. "No. You're not going to create a scene. Just let her be right now. That was really rude, thinking that Miss Jacobs was just a teenager."
"Well…how was I supposed to know she was older?"
"Try judging someone by looking on the inside, not always on the surface."
Rika took Angie up to room 228, where they could talk by themselves.
"Angie, I'm sorry about my mother. She had no right to treat you that way."
"I…don't want to be the super snob celebrity," said the female magician trying to fight tears. "Mom and Dad always raised me to be a good person, no matter my status in life."
"What happened to your parents?"
"They were killed in a road-rage accident less than four weeks before I graduated from high school."
Just then, the golden fox that appeared in Angie's mind earlier suddenly appeared in the room. "Angela?"
She looked up and was very surprised. "Renamon? You're here?"
"Yes. I'm so sorry about your parents." The yellow fox then came up and gave her a consoling hug. "It must have been hard for you all these years."
"It…was," Angie tearfully stated. "I've kept their spirit alive in me. I could never forget their love."
"I understand. Rika hasn't exactly had it that simple either."
"Nope," the young tamer concurred. "My parents are divorced. I do hear from Dad once in a while, but not as often as I like. It's almost like Mom wants me to forget all about him. I just want to be a normal teenager, just plain ordinary Rika Nonaka instead of 'the daughter of fashion model Rumiko Nonaka.' At least I established a name for myself last year."
"Yeah, you yelled out that you were last year's Digimon Game Champion. I've never heard of it. I guess Digimon here is like soccer."
"Sure, the most popular sport in all the world…but here."
All three ladies chuckled at Rika's remark.
"True, Rika," stated Renamon. "Very true."
"Angie, um, just how did you know about Digimon?"
The female magician took the Digivice out of her right pocket. "I was able to see visions when I touched your Digivice. That's how I was able to meet Renamon."
"I found her in the mindscape. I thought she was trying to steal your Digivice, but I could somehow sense her sincere heart."
"You mean…her magic is…real?" asked a shocked Rika.
Angie made the Digivice float away from her hand and into Rika's hand. "Yes…I do have real magic. I've been learning to master my powers thanks to the one person who can understand this better than anyone…Ace Cooper himself."
"No wonder my grandmother wants to see Ace Cooper perform," Rika stated in awe. "She really believes in magic. I'm still a little skeptical, though."
"It's okay, Rika. I don't expect everyone to believe in the existence of real magic, and neither does Ace."
Renamon admired the young woman's spirit. "Angela, how is it you can be so humble despite your celebrity status here?"
"If there's one thing I'll never do in my lifetime, it's forget where I came from. My parents weren't exactly the wealthiest in the world, but their unconditional love was worth far more than all the fame and fortune in the world. I know their love is still with me spiritually."
Just then, a beeping sound was heard in the room.
Rika was first to react by checking her Digivice. "It's not mine."
"Then it must be my watch," said Angie, realizing she was late coming home. She then spoke into her watch. "Yes?"
"Angie, it's Ace. Where are you?"
"At the Sinsun Hotel. I found something in the park and had to return it to the owner."
"Okay. You had us worried for a while."
"Sorry, Ace, didn't mean to do that. I'll see you back at the Magic in about 20."
"Right. See you at home." The radio communication ended there.
"I wish I didn't have to call Sally again, but—"
Rika and Renamon looked at each other.
Then, Renamon smiled at the female magician. "Angela, you won't have to take a cab home. I could drop you off."
"But, you can't carry me on two legs, Renamon. That would be too much for you."
"Not if I digivolve."
"Digi…volve?"
Rika walked to the nightstand and took a card from an unusual deck in her belt. "It's something Renamon can do. She could get you back to where you belong quickly. We can't do it from in this room, though."
"Right. That would cause a lot of damage. I'll hold on to you, and we'll land on the ground together. I'll digivolve then."
Angie was slightly confused but opted to try their plan. "Okay, if you say so."
Renamon carried Angie and said, "Hang on tight and don't let go." She then jumped three from the three-story window with Angie safe in her arms. Landing safely, Renamon said, "That's it for the first part. Okay, Rika, your turn!"
"You got it, Renamon!" Rika then took the card, spun it around, and caught it between her thumb and forefinger. She then crossed her arms, card in right hand and Digivice in left hand. As she slashed the card through the side of her Digivice, she screamed, "Digi-modify!" When she finished the process, she shouted out, "Digivolution activate!"
Angie watched Renamon undergo an incredible metamorphosis right before her very eyes!
"Renamon digivolve to…" The fox instantaneously transformed into a four-pawed, eight-tailed creature closely resembling a horse, but she had red-and-white-striped ribbons and the yin-yang symbol on her forehead. "…Kyubimon!"
The female magician said, "Oh…my…goodness!" Her eyes widened in absolute disbelief. "You…can do that?"
"That's right. Now, hop on my back, and I'll get you to where you need to go."
"Thanks for the lift, Kyubimon. I'll give you the directions."
In less than 10 minutes, the digivolved being got Angie back to the tunnel which lead to the Magic Express.
"You'd better stop here, Kyubimon. Angel could pick you up on her sensors and think you're an intruder."
"Angel? Who's Angel?"
"The supercomputer system that keeps the Magic Express in order. I'm the only person here who's seen you, and I'm worried how the others would react."
Kyubimon nodded. "I understand, Angela."
"Please, Kyubimon, Angie's enough for me. Now, um, how will you get back to the hotel without anyone spotting you?"
"Speed's my best attribute. I can make it without being seen. What about your friends, though?"
"It may be best not to say anything about you for now. Like I said before, though, keeping this from Ace will not be easy. The bond between us is that strong."
"I understand. Good luck to you, Angie. I hope we'll meet face-to-face again." She then disappeared into the night.
"So do I, Renamon…so do I." She then walked through the tunnel and made her way to the front door of the Magic Express.
As she arrived at the front door, a different female voice was heard. "Please identify yourself."
Angie put her hand on the handprint pad and announced herself. "Angela Jacobs."
"Welcome back, Angie."
"Thanks, Angel."
The moment she entered and walked into the living room, she noticed Ace, Cosmo, and Zina trying to fake their sleep. "Okay, drop the act, guys. It's only 9:00."
The gentlemen woke up laughing while Zina slithered her way to Angie's legs.
"Sorry, Ang," said Cosmo. "We were gonna keep it up until you got home 10 minutes later. How'd you get back here from the Sinsun so fast?"
Angie did the best she could to cover up how she really returned very quickly. "Someone was nice enough to give me a lift."
Ace had a suspicious feeling about her movements in the past hour, but he decided to wait until everyone was asleep to speak to her telepathically.
Later in the night, Ace could not stop thinking about what Angie had done but would not tell. Angie…Angie…
In her room, she was sleeping soundly until she heard Ace's voice in her mind. Ace?
I know you're hiding something from me. Please, you don't have to be afraid.
I don't know if I can explain that hour. I'm scared you won't believe me.
Hmm, perhaps you need a little time to figure out what you want to say? he thought to her calmly.
You…don't mind this?
Of course not. Sometimes the truth may be harder to tell than a lie. I know you're trying not to lie, but you're having trouble telling the truth. Just let me know when you're ready, okay?
Thanks, Ace. I'll talk to Mom and Dad in the morning. Good night, Ace.
Sweet dreams, Angie.
The two magicians slept comfortably for the remainder of the night.

Back at the Sinsun Hotel, Rumiko grew very suspicious of her daughter's activities.
While Rika slept soundly, Rumiko had a serious discussion with her mother. "Mother, I don't know why Rika won't listen to me. She just runs off doing who knows what while we sit here. And you defend all her actions instead of reprimanding her."
Mishara crossed her arms. "That's because I know Rika's at the point in her life where angst is easy to come by. After all, weren't you like that when I was raising you?"
"That's different!"
"No, it's not! I have always believed that a child should pursue her own dreams and her own ambitions. Rika's sick and tired of being in your shadow. I'm almost grateful she took part in that Digimon tournament so she could establish a name for herself. I guess Rika had no problems speaking with Angie because she felt she could open herself a little to—"
"A total stranger!?"
"Angela Jacobs has a reputation of being open-minded and open-hearted. If someone needs help, Angie will not hesitate to lend a hand. Now you and I both know about her Digimon friend Renamon, but I wouldn't be surprised if Angie now knows, too."
"No…if anyone found out about the Digimon here…"
Renamon appeared in front of them. "Relax, Mrs. Nonaka. Angela does know of me, but she has not told anyone. She isn't sure if she should tell her closest friends."
"Rika brought that…thing, didn't she? I told her not to!"
"Mrs. Nonaka, Rika figured she would be completely bored about the photo shoot, but then, Angela and Zelda have made her stay more pleasant because they are giving her a chance to be herself, not something she doesn't want to be."
"Just go away, Renamon! The whole photo shoot is in jeopardy because of her bringing that device here!"
Renamon bowed in front of her. "Very well, Mrs. Nonaka." She then vanished completely.
Mishara looked at her daughter angrily. "Rumiko, when are you ever going to stop thinking about what you want for Rika and start thinking about what Rika wants for herself?" She then went back to her part of the room. "I'm going to sleep. Good night."
Rumiko was not very pleased with what had happened as she went to bed. There's going to be nothing but trouble here with Renamon's presence. Next thing you know there's going to be a Digimon somewhere here in Electro City.

At about 4 a.m., something strange started to happen at Daedalus Park. A mysterious cloud appeared right in the middle of the park, suddenly creating an area of brightness.
Rika slept soundly until she heard Renamon's voice in her mind. Rika…a Digimon is here in Electro City.
Her Digivice also went off with a bright red light. "Wha…? What's going on at this hour?" She grabbed her Digivice and noticed the compass tracker. "Seems to be in the direction of…Daedalus Park." Renamon, meet me on the ground ASAP.
I will catch you, Rika.
The teenager quickly got into her regular outfit and placed a stuffed pillow at the top to fool her relatives. She then opened the window and jumped from three stories!
However, Renamon quickly appeared and caught the girl before she could seriously get hurt. "Are you ready, Rika?"
"Yeah. It's showtime."
The tamer and her Digimon partner ran off for Daedalus Park to confront the situation.

Meanwhile, Angie slept soundly until she started having a strong feeling. She awakened with a jolt. "Something's going on…at Daedalus Park. I can feel it very strongly. Maybe I should tell Ace, but then I don't know if he'll believe me. I need to see for myself first before I say anything."
Angie sneaked from her room to the garage to reach Ace's turbocycle, the Magic Bike. Putting the helmet on, she softly said, "Angel, open the door please, and try to keep it quiet."
"Very well, Angie, but Ace will not be pleased."
"This is why I need to do it. How else can I explain to Ace about last night?"
"Wait, my sensors are picking up a strange electrical anomaly."
"What's the location?" asked Angie frantically.
"Daedalus Park."
"That confirms this feeling I've got. Angel, open the door right now. I think I know what's going on."
Angie revved the engine on the turbocycle and quickly exited from the Magic Express to get to Daedalus Park.
Ace, in the meantime, sensed something was wrong with Angie, so he ran to her room to check on her. "Angie, are you all right?" He turned the light on and went into shock. "Angie!? Where are you?" He then tried to find her telepathically through their bond. Angie, where are you going?
I have to get to Daedalus Park. I've a feeling something weird's going on around here. Besides, this may be the only way I can explain my situation to you.
But, why are you going alone? It may be too dangerous for you.
Please, Ace, for now just trust me.
All right, but you know I'll be worried about you. If you get into danger—
I know, I know. Don't worry about me.
Please…be careful.
Just then, Angel appeared in the form of a holographic dodecahedron. "Ace, a strange disturbance is occurring in Daedalus Park as we speak. Angie is going to investigate."
"I just hope she'll be all right."

Rika and Renamon arrived quickly at the park and ran right into the mysterious fog.
"I don't believe it!" exclaimed Rika. "It's a digital field, here in Electro City!"
"Looks as though I'll have action around here after all," said Renamon, ready to tackle anything at this point.
Just then, a mysterious woman appeared. She was very ugly, pale-skinned with deathly pale white hair, and looked like a reject from a heavy-metal music video. She had chains all around her, wore seemingly badly-stitched black leather which included a frightening mask, displayed a skull on her right side, had black wings, and had a miniature monster extend from her left side. She also had scary red eyes on her face, her leg, the extension, and both feet while her left hand was far longer and more dangerous than her right hand.
Rika took out her Digivice, which soon showed an image of the woman along with what proved to be very useful information. "Let's see…LadyDevimon, an ultimate virus-type Digimon. Her special attack is Darkness Wave. We may have our hands full on this one, Renamon."
"You could be right. Time for me to digivolve!"
Rika slashed her card through her Digivice. "Digi-modify! Digivolution activate!"
The golden fox felt herself changing again. "Renamon digivolve to…Kyubimon!"
The strange woman just scoffed at them. "My goodness, I'm going to be challenged by a mere champion level and a little girl? This should be a piece of cake! I'll absorb your data in no time!"
"I wouldn't bet on that," said an angry Kyubimon. "For an ultimate, you look more like a champion."
"You'll pay for that remark, Digimon!" Spinning around and putting her left arm up, LadyDevimon shouted, "Darkness Wave!"
Suddenly, a series of deadly bats made their way toward Kyubimon and Rika.
At almost the same time, Angie stopped in front of Daedalus Park and quickly ran into the digital field. "The feeling is strongest right here, but what's going on? It's only about four in the morning, yet it looks like noon right here."
Kyubimon was ready to defend her tamer and friend. The far ends of her eight tails then started glowing as they spread out at equal distances. "Try this on for size…Foxtail Inferno!" Eight sets of small flames shot away from the tails as they started wiping out bats one row at a time. "Is that all you got, LadyDevimon?"
"Not a chance, pathetic excuse!"
Angie heard all the commotion not too far away. "I know that was Kyubimon's voice. I'd better see if she needs some help!"
When she came up to a point where everything was visible, she saw Kyubimon and Rika, but then she noticed the larger and more dangerous Digimon. "What in heaven's name is…that?"
Rika was suddenly caught off-guard by Angie's appearance. "Angie, what are you doing here? It's way too dangerous!"
"Rika's right, Angie!" shouted Kyubimon. "You must get out of here!"
"Darkness Wave!" Another series of bats suddenly attacked the pair, and one of the bats actually knocked the Digivice from Rika's hand!
"My Digivice!" Rika shouted as she and Kyubimon fell to the ground.
"Kyubimon, Rika…NOOOOOOOOO!" Angie shouted angrily. She then faced the evil Digimon. "You're going to pay for hurting my friends!" Glowing brightly in her light-blue aura, she went into a spin and shouted, "Magic Force, reveal the power within!" In a matter of seconds, the clothing Angie had worn had suddenly transformed into a unique costume with a dark cape and a dark-grey costume with miniskirt, along with red tights, black boots with yellow trim, and a yellow belt with a black-and-red buckle. Using her left hand, she made a red half-face and yellow eye appear on her right side.
LadyDevimon was surprised by what she had just seen. "Well, well. A small human who can digivolve herself. How interesting."
Angie looked angrily at her newfound enemy. "I don't…whatever it's called. I only use this when it's necessary, and I'm not going to let you get away with what you've done!"
"Oooh, I'm so scared," mocked LadyDevimon, not realizing just how powerful a magician Angie really was, especially when she was angered. "Give me your best shot, little girl."
"You asked for it!" Angie concentrated her power into the palms of her hands, creating a large ball of light. She then threw it while shouting, "Take this!"
LadyDevimon just stood there, thinking this was not going to do any damage. When the ball hit her, however, she fell backwards and landed on her knees. "This cannot be possible! I cannot be defeated by a mere human!" She then got back to her feet and tried her attack on Angie herself!
"Lady, you'll have to do better than that! Let my heart guide my power!" Extending her arms to the sides, Angie quickly created a safety barrier of light around herself to deflect LadyDevimon's attack.
Kyubimon, despite her slightly weakened condition, saw everything. Angie's magic is truly powerful, especially when her emotions become involved. She actually got LadyDevimon down to her knees.
Angie then noticed the Digivice right next to her foot. "Hmm, I wonder if I can do something with this."
Picking up the Digivice, Angie saw the most important vision yet: a card that had the words "card game" on the back. She then magically made a card appear in her right hand. Looking at it, though, it was all in Japanese. "Great. How do I tell what this is?"
She then closed her eyes to concentrate. "Wait…I may not be able to read this card, but I can feel its energy. This feels like…a hyperspeed card!"
Rika realized about Angie's magical powers. She then yelled, "Angie, listen to me! Slash the card down and then up on the Digivice!"
"Are you sure?"
"Yes! Just do it!"
Angie used her telemetric powers to see what Rika did in her card-slashing method. Then, she magically made the card and Digivice float in front of her.
She had to drop her shield, though, giving LadyDevimon a chance to attack her again. "You'll pay for that, little one!"
Angie noticed the Digimon ready to attack her and quickly got the card through the Digivice. "I believe the word used is…digi-modify!" When the card came back to her hand, she shouted out, "Hyperspeed activate!"
At that same moment, LadyDevimon shouted, "Darkness Wave!"
Kyubimon felt herself getting stronger and quickly got on all four feet. She started running towards LadyDevimon at full speed.
Angie tried to pass the Digivice and card back to Rika when Rika suddenly screamed, "Angie, watch out!"
The female magician looked and saw too late the bats coming at her. When they struck, she fell hard to the ground.
At the Magic Express, Ace sat quietly in Angie's room when he felt her horrific pain. "Ahhhhh!"
Cosmo heard the scream and went to where Ace was. "Dude, what's goin' on? Where's Angie?"
"She's in serious trouble at Daedalus Park. We've got to move!"
Ace, Cosmo, and Zina all quickly ran to the garage and went into the Magic Racer to reach Angie before it was too late for her.
At the park, Rika ran up to Angie to see if she were all right while Kyubimon continued her attack. The Digimon started spinning like a wheel and shouted, "Dragon Wheel!" Kyubimon quickly became a pure blue flame with the face of a dragon coming forward.
The flame soon made a direct hit on LadyDevimon. "No! I can't believe I lost to just a champion-level Digimon!" That was LadyDevimon's last sentence before she completely disappeared.
Rika was very worried about Angie's life. "Angie, Angie! C'mon, wake up, Angie!"
Kyubimon de-digivolved back into Renamon and ran up to the unconscious magician. "Angie…she was willing to risk her own life to protect us. She was not going to allow us to get hurt."
The mysterious cloud disappeared, causing the darkness of night to return to the area.
Just then, Renamon heard sirens. "We must leave. The authorities will wonder what has happened here."
"What about Angie, though?"
Renamon closed her eyes. "Angie is alive, just unconscious. I can feel her heart beating. Let me carry her. We need to go now."
Rika then picked up her Digivice and ran with Renamon, carrying Angie in her arms out of the sight of the approaching police cars.
The first car to arrive was a relic from the late 20th century, spruced up to meet with the 21st century methods. Out of that car came Lieutenant Derek Vega from the Electro City Police Department. He immediately cordoned off the entire area in the park. "Something happened here, but what was it?"
He then heard the sound of a rather loud engine. "It's Ace. I'd know that sound anywhere."
Ace, Cosmo, and Zina soon arrived at Daedalus Park and noticed the situation.
"Vega," said Ace, "have you seen Angie?"
"No, I haven't. Friedrichs wanted me to check out a report of a strange light seen here at Daedalus Park, but I don't see anything now. I think someone was trying to shoot a movie here without a permit."
Ace shook his head. "No, Derek. Something did happen out here. Angel reported a strange electrical disturbance right here at the park. Whatever happened…Angie was involved."
"Then, where is she?"
"I'm tracking her telepathically now, but her energy is still strong. She must be very close."
Meanwhile, Rika and Renamon, still carrying Angie, had to stop at a nearby alley.
"Whew," said Rika in relief. "That was too close. But…now what do we do?"
Renamon shook her head. "I'm not sure. We have to get Angie somewhere safe."
Renamon…
"Angie?"
Rika looked at her Digimon friend. "Huh? I don't understand. I didn't hear her say anything."
"You don't have to. I can hear Angie's thoughts." What do you need, Angie?
Please…take me home.
Where is your home?
Tunnel…go through the tunnel.
"The tunnel…of course! The tunnel that leads to the Magic Express. I know where it is."
"You do?" asked a curious Rika.
"Yes. I took her up to the tunnel just hours ago."
"Then let's move!"
In a matter of minutes, Rika, Renamon, and Angie went through the tunnel.
Rika was in awe. "Holy cow! This is the Magic Express?"
"Yes. We need to get her inside, quickly."
Angie was still very weak but opened her eyes to see if she were at the front door. "I'll…get this part, Renamon. Put my hand to the handprint plate."
The Digimon helped her with that task.
"Please identify yourself," said the female voice of Angel.
"Angela…Jacobs. And I have…two friends here with me."
"Please enter."
When the front door opened, Renamon carried Angie into the living room where she could rest. "There, she should be all right now."
"I hope so," said a worried Rika.
The dodecahedral hologram soon appeared in front of Rika. "Hello."
Rika jumped in slight fear. "What is that?"
"Wait," said Renamon. "I think this is Angel. Am I right?"
"Yes. I am Angel, central computer system for the Magic Express."
Rika calmed herself down. "I've never seen anything like this."
Suddenly, Ace, Cosmo, and Zina entered the living room and saw Rika and Renamon.
Zina growled angrily while Cosmo shouted, "We've got intruders!"
Renamon tried to quell the situation. "No, wait, we didn't—"
Ace went into a spin and glowed in violet while screaming, "Magic Force, reveal the power within!" He soon emerged in a very similar costume to Angie's, the only exception being a complete dark-grey bodysuit. "What have you done to her!? I'm going to make you tell—"
No, Ace, stop! Angie screamed in thought. Please…don't hurt them. They saved my life.
Ace suddenly calmed himself. "Angie…I believe you." He then walked up and kneeled down to her.
Rika became more confused. "There it goes again, her not saying anything."
"Rika," said Renamon, "remember that little rumor Terriermon mentioned about a bond?"
"Yeah, I—no. You mean it's true?"
"Yes. They share the power of the Magic Force, bonding them in mind, heart, soul, and spirit."
Ace then put both his hands on the temples of Angie's head. Angie, please show me what happened to you.
She sent the images of the battle into Ace's mind, showing him everything that happened, including Rika and Renamon taking her home after she got hurt.
After seeing enough, he stood up and looked at the girl and her friend. "Please…accept my apologies for almost attacking you with practically no reason. I didn't know you helped her."
"Actually, sir," said Renamon, "she came to help us. She saw us fighting LadyDevimon in the digital field. When we both went down, Angie fought valiantly against her. Unfortunately, LadyDevimon's Darkness Wave got to her before she could set up a barrier to shield herself."
"LadyDevi-who?" Cosmo asked angrily. "C'mon, you expect us to believe that garbage?"
Zina then came up to Renamon, who opened her left paw. Zina was satisfied and started licking the paw.
"There's your answer, Cosmo," said Ace. "Besides, if they were intruders, would Angel have allowed them access to the Magic?"
"No, but I still don't trust 'em."
"You don't, but I do." He then looked at them. "I guess that monstrous lady I saw in Angie's mind was LadyDevimon. In any case, I want to thank you both for getting her back here safely."
Renamon spoke, "It was the least we could do, after she came to our aid."
"Yeah, right," said Cosmo. "And why don't you take off that stupid costume, lady? I'm almost certain that's Faceless in that thing!"
"You'd better watch it, buddy boy," said Rika angrily. "She's not wearing a costume! This is who she is!"
"And just who are you supposed to be, her accomplice?"
"The name is Rika…Rika Nonaka."
"You? You're the daughter of Rumiko Nonaka? You couldn't be, not with that attitude of yours."
"Wanna try me, spike-head?"
"Stop it!" yelled Renamon. "We have something more important to deal with, like making sure Angie is all right."
"Yeah," said Cosmo, "and we can do it without help from the likes of you!"
"That's enough, Cosmo," Ace said sternly.
"Dude, you're not buying this story, are ya? I mean, that…thing can't be real!"
"That 'thing,'" said Rika, "is called a Digimon, and her name is Renamon."
"Digimon?" asked Ace. "I have heard of something called Digimon, but very vaguely."
Angel then appeared in front of Ace. "The card game Digimon is highly popular in Japan but has not really attracted much attention here in the United States. Miss Nonaka was last year's world tournament champion in Tokyo."
"I see. Well, since I'm the only one who hasn't made introductions, I may as well. I'm Ace Cooper, and this is Cosmo."
Cosmo was completely dismayed by Ace's actions. "I don't believe this! If you're gonna believe this pair of criminals, I am outta here!" He then stormed out of the Magic Express.
Renamon was a little concerned. "Will your friend be all right?"
"Yes, he'll be fine," said Ace sadly. "He just needs time to cool off. He's never seen anything like you…and neither have I for that matter. The last time I had to deal with some dangerous data was Raptor XII." Seeing that Angie was still resting and recovering, he suggested, "Let's go to my practice and training room and talk there."
Ace, Zina, Rika, and Renamon left Angie in the living room to recuperate herself.

Back at the Sinsun Hotel, Rumiko and Mishara awakened at the rising sun.
"Ah," said Rumiko, "the fresh air of the morning. It's wonderful. Don't you think so, Rika?" When her daughter failed to answer, she ran to her bed and pulled on the sheets. "Oh, no, she's gone!"
Mishara was surprised. "She's not here?"
"No, and I know for a fact that Renamon's the cause of this. If Rika hadn't taken that Digivice with her, this would have been a peaceful trip and an easy photo shoot! Now I have to find her before she gets hurt!"