Last Time: Our characters were all over the place as Davis, Kazu, and Kenta found themselves in the middle of their latest initiation ritual: skydiving with a banner on their backs. It goes as well as could be expected, which is to say that things didn't go well at all. Kari's nervous, but still confident that she'll be a Delta Gamma. Rika's not as sure of herself and has even asked Takato and Guilmon to help her keep her temper in check. Tai found out about what happened between TK and Catherine and walked out, but not without taking Sora and Biyomon with him. Ken and Henry went to deal with Yolei and end the three-way madness, but got an urgent e-mail from the Digital World. It turns out to be from Tapirmon, who's been trying to hold back one Digitamamon from going over the edge. Ken, Henry, Yolei, Terriermon and Wormmon also meet Devitamamon, Digitamamon's new competition, and are about to check out just what makes him Digitamamon's stiffest competition ever. On the villains' side of things, Datamon has hired a freelance bounty hunter known as Mephistomon to go after Kari, but Puppetmon brings some bad news. Apparently…ChaosGallantmon is loose.


Digimon: The College Years

Episode 25: Wrong Place, Wrong Person


Puppetmon waited impatiently with his hammer in his hand for anything to come through that hangar door. Things were growing tense in the server base and it wasn't because of their lack of faith in Mephistomon. Things were getting bad because ChaosGallantmon was proving himself to be a very loose cannon. In fact, he had actually busted out of the Server base and was now on the rampage somewhere in the Digital World.

The Digimon Empress was the only one who seemed to have the power to control him. And these days, she had been ignoring every call they had made to her. But this time, Datamon was being persistent.

And it looked like persistence had paid off because the human had finally arrived. She walked through the hangar door, obviously miffed about this impromptu calling.

"This had better good. What is it?"

"We've got a big problem!" Puppetmon answered. "Your new toy ran away."

"ChaosGallantmon is on the loose!" Datamon added. "Puppetmon attempted to restrain him, but he won't obey us! For some reason, he'll only obey you!"

"This is NOT what I wanted," The Digimon Empress muttered. "I've got my own problems back home. After all, I AM human and I have a little something called SCHOOL!"

"Then you'd better find him quickly, shouldn't you?" Puppetmon sneered.

"It shouldn't be any problem," The Digimon Empress said. She pulled out a handheld organizer. "I found a tracker in Datamon's stash of discarded gadgets and placed it on ChaosGallantmon. He should be easy to find." She looked into the organizer and her eyes widened. "Uh…but don't hold me to that."

"Why not?" Datamon asked.

"Because he's apparently much farther away than I thought."

"How much farther away?" Puppetmon demanded.

The Digimon Empress gulped. "Uh…"

Ken could hardly hear himself think. To say that Devitamamon's eatery was a total clash to Digitamamon's restaurant would be a total understatement.

When Ken looked around, he saw Digimon of many shapes and sizes and of all ages running around having fun. This was a total party restaurant, much like in the tradition of Chuck E. Cheese's of the United States that Mimi once told him about. There were games all over the place and there was even a stage where a Monzaemon and Numemon were performing as mascots.

"As you can see, I not only offer the best all-around meals in the Digital World, but I also offer a chance for our customers to enjoy themselves," Devitamamon said proudly. "Primary Village can only WISH to have such a place."

"I'm sure they'd love to have you," Digitamamon sneered. "Maybe you should leave right now."

"Not on your life, Digitamamon," Devitamamon scoffed. "You're just jealous because I'm completely wiping the floor with you. In a few short months, I've made more money than you have in years."

"Well, OF COURSE you make money! This whole abomination is nothing more than a zoo! I can make money doing this, too! But I run a civilized eating establishment."

Henry tried to add his two cents. "I think Devitamamon's just offering customers an alternative. To the Digital World, this whole thing is a fresh concept. This is new and different and that kind of thing can make anybody curious. Right, Terriermon? Uh…Terriermon?"

Terriermon was busy getting into the spirit of things. He was hard at work pounding away at a Whack-A-Molemon game. He wasn't faring very well, as he had only gotten three successful whacks before the game ended.

"Dang!"

Wormmon chuckled. "I guess they're too fast for you."

Terriermon responded by whacking Wormmon over the head and turned to Henry. "Did you say something, Henry?"

Henry groaned. "Never mind. I think you just proved my point."

"I think the point Henry's trying to make is that this might not necessarily last forever," Yolei tried saying. "This looks like nothing more than a fad."

"A FAD?!" Devitamamon snapped.

"I didn't hear her stutter," Digitamamon said. "I'm suddenly feeling much better about my own restaurant. I guess it's true that every business goes through its occasional freefall. But I know my restaurant has a timeless quality to it."

"My restaurant has a timeless quality, too!" Devitamamon shot back. "Just ask your sidekick!"

Sure enough, even Tapirmon couldn't help but have a little fun here. He was playing at the air hockey table against a Frigimon…and losing. In fact, Frigimon had just scored the game-winner.

"That's game!" Frigimon said proudly.

"Oh darn," Tapirmon muttered. "I never was good at this game."

"And just what do you think you're doing?" Digitamamon asked dryly.

Tapirmon chuckled nervously. "Uh…next game, Digitamamon?"

Ken called a huddle among the humans. "I think this is going pretty well."

"Why are we here again?" Henry wondered.

"We came to keep Digitamamon from losing his mind," Yolei answered. "But from what he just said about that whole 'timeless quality' thing, I think he should be just fine. I think our work's just about done."

"Speaking of work, I've got a report I really should finish up back home," Henry noted.

"We might as well grab dinner before we head back," Ken pointed out.

"Good idea, but I think we should go back and eat with Digitamamon," Yolei suggested. "It may help boost his self-confidence that much more."

Ken nodded. "Let's do it."

The huddle broke and Ken was about to offer to buy dinner for five from Digitamamon, but he never got that chance. Everyone suddenly heard an explosion come from outside. Suddenly, the playful atmosphere came to a stop. A second later, the entire restaurant was rocked by another explosion. Everything began to rumble and loose items began to fall onto the floor.

"What was that?!" Devitamamon demanded.

Ken, Yolei, and Henry rushed outside to see what was causing all that commotion. They didn't see clearly what it was since it was out in the distance. They could only make out a shadow. Henry decided to reach out and see if his Digivice would reach that far. It did and they soon identified the perpetrator.

"ChaosGallantmon, Mega level! Dark Warrior Virus type! No other information available!"

Terriermon caught up to them and saw the rogue's entry on Henry's Digivice. "He looks just like Gallantmon! Where did he come from?"

From the distance, ChaosGallantmon fired a powerful shot in their direction, striking the restaurant again. By now, the Digimon inside were starting to flee.

"I don't know where he came from, but he's destroying my business!" Devitamamon shouted. "Somebody stop him!"

Wormmon timidly came out and stepped forward. "I can stop him, right Ken?"

Ken held out his Digivice. "Let's do it!"

**Wormmon…Digivolve to…Stingmon!**

As Wormmon Digivolved into the much more powerful Stingmon, everyone saw ChaosGallantmon charging out of the shadows and towards the restaurant.

The battle was about to begin.

Tai tossed another rock into the lake. When he rode out of the university, he didn't know where he would go. He wasn't exactly thinking completely when he headed out since he was so upset over finding out about TK and Catherine. He finally settled on riding out to the lake.

He wouldn't stay out there too long, since he had class at night and, upset or not, he still needed to go. But he also had to head back since he wasn't by himself. He had Sora and Biyomon with him and they were obviously worried about Tai and the state he was in. Even more so after he told them what happened.

"Tai…honestly, are you alright?" Sora asked.

"Do you think I'm alright?" Tai growled as he chucked another rock in the lake. "I can't believe this happened to me, Sora! I honestly thought I had a chance with her! I really thought I'd be with Catherine! But what happens? She's got it bad for TK! I can't believe it! It's like I'm always losing out to SOMEONE from that bloodline!"

Sora stayed silent and Tai knew exactly why. He used to have feelings for Sora before she eventually declared her feelings for Matt, TK's brother. With the way Tai's luck was going, he'd fall in love with another girl and find out Matt and TK had ANOTHER family member waiting to beat him out.

"Why are you letting this get to you, Tai?" Sora asked. "You never used to put yourself through so much grief over a girl."

"Except for you, Sora," Biyomon pointed out.

"Biyomon, you're not helping," Sora whispered to her partner.

"Oh, sorry."

Tai tossed another rock into the lake. "Sora…you don't understand. You wouldn't understand."

"We've been friends for so many years, Tai. Why don't you just try me?"

Tai dropped the next rock he held in his hand. Although they were never officially a couple, Tai still confided in Sora more than anybody. He decided to come clean.

"Sora…I want to find someone I can settle down with."

Sora blinked. "Settle down? As in…more than a girlfriend?"

Tai nodded. "Someone I can marry."

Sora shook her head. "Is THAT what's bothering you? Tai, it's no big deal. You'll find someone eventually. I know you will."

"My time's running out," Tai sighed. "I'm growing older everyday…and I don't have much time left."

Sora groaned. "Somehow, I KNEW it was somehow leading to this. Tai, are you STILL feeling old?!"

"Why shouldn't I?"

"Ok, I've had enough! Tai Kamiya, I demand to know where you got this idea that you're too old! You tell me RIGHT NOW!"

Tai didn't even know where to start explaining. It felt like his epiphany came just yesterday. But it had been a while since he started to realize just how old he was getting. Of course, he never told anybody just why he was feeling like he was getting on in years.

"Sora…do you remember when we first went into the Digital World?"

"How can I forget? You think any of us could possibly forget that summer?"

"But how long ago was it?"

"We were pulled in when we were 11 years old."

"See? That just it! Do you know how long it's been? And do you realize just how many adventures we've had since then? Devimon? Etemon? Myotismon? The Dark Masters? Apocalymon? The Digimon Emperor? MaloMyotismon? And everything we've faced in the years since then? I've lived through so much! I've had the kind of life that so many people would kill for! It's been so exciting! But I can't go on like this forever. I can't take much more. I want…something different."

Sora paused before continuing. "I guess it has been a really long time. But Tai…do you really think that a girl will make that much of a difference in your life?"

"I'm sure Catherine would have made SOME difference in the way I live. She made me feel young."

"That's another thing we need to talk about," Sora frowned. "Tai, I guess I can understand why you've been feeling old. But you've gone overboard in trying to look young. You've got to remember that you're 21 years old. There's no need for you to check for wrinkles, use Just For Men, and there's especially no need for that…THING!"

"You mean my hog?"

Biyomon looked around curiously. "Where's a pig?"

"Yes, Tai, I mean your motorcycle," Sora clarified. "That thing's going to get you killed and for what? What does that thing give you back in return? A cheap thrill? A quick rush? It won't last. And it's not you. It's not who you are."

Tai knew what Sora was saying had some meaning. But then he looked at his beloved motorcycle and couldn't picture himself being without it. He loved riding it. He loved the thrill of feeling the winds and knowing that anything and everything that rode behind him was eating his dust. Yet he realized that his friend made a lot of sense.

"I'll think about it."

Sora nodded. "I guess that's the best I could hope for right now."

Tai walked over to his friend. "Matt's lucky to have a girl like you. I've always told him that. Thanks for being there for me today, Sora."

"Anytime, Tai. You're my friend."

Tai took this time to notice the hat on Sora's head. "You know, this whole thing was starting to remind me of those talks we had when we were kids. But you know what else reminds me of our childhood? That hat. You used to wear those all the time when we were kids."

Sora adjusted her hat nervously. "Well…I'm wearing this hat because my hair's not exactly growing back quickly. Frankly, I was afraid it would blow off on the way here."

"I wouldn't be surprised. I ride pretty fast. Let's see if it lasts the trip back. Let's go."

Biyomon gulped. "I survived the trip here. I guess I shouldn't worry about the trip back."

Tai walked over to his motorcycle and handed Sora his spare helmet. They both jumped on the bike and got ready to ride back to Odaiba U, with Tai feeling much better about himself.

Kari didn't want to be by herself at the university with the possibility of the alumni watching over her. Without Davis here to keep her calm, Kari wanted to head out. Since she was already out of her room, she thought it'd be best if she went off campus for a little while.

Taking her backpack, Kari started walking on a straight path out of the university, walking through the crowd of students that were just getting out of class. Not every student of the school had manners, so Kari found herself being nudged and occasionally shoved. Then she bumped into someone herself.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"Kari?"

Kari looked right in front of her to see she had bumped into her ex-boyfriend, TK. "Oh…hi."

"It's been a while. How have you been?"

"Uh…just fine."

TK smiled. "I heard you're going out for Delta Gamma."

"Yeah…it's not for sure yet. I'm not exactly in yet. I won't find out for another week."

"I'm sure you're a shoo-in. I don't see any reason why they wouldn't want you."

"You really believe that?"

TK nodded. "Believe me, I know better than anybody what a wonderful person you really are."

Kari was feeling flattered. And this was coming from that same ex-boyfriend who refused to trust her almost six months ago. Suddenly, she started to recall memories of that day when she had dumped him for his lack of faith in her. She hadn't even talked to him at all until that distress call in Reedington. Since then, he had been that same sweetheart she had been with for so many years.

Then she shrugged those feelings off. That was all in the past. She had a future with someone else.

"I'd…better get going. It was nice seeing you again."

Kari started walking away, but stopped when she heard TK's voice.

"Kari…how's everything going with Davis?"

Kari smiled. "Better than I could ever ask for."

TK nodded. "…………I'm…happy for you."

Kari couldn't help but be thankful for that as she kept walking. From what she had seen this school year, it was obvious that TK was so much better at moving on than she was. Only now was she barely catching up.

She wished she could be more like TK.

"Riley, stop pulling me!"

Talley felt like a yo-yo. Following the Kamiya girl wasn't an easy task, since she and Riley had to remain inconspicuous. She thought the job would be easier after Yamaki got them all the fake documents they needed to verify they were Delta Gamma alumni. Of course, they were looked upon with a lot of suspicion by some of the current sisters.

"We can't make it OBVIOUS that we're following her," Riley muttered. "We have to be careful and you're walking too fast. You're giving us away."

"Well, excuse me! I may be a government agent, but I'm not exactly used to being in a position where I have to follow someone."

"Then just follow me and keep a lookout for anything suspicious. The minute we see anything like a wild Digimon come into the picture, we contact Yamaki and then we look around for any signs of our mole."

"Alright, fine! I'll just follow you. But aren't we supposed to keep our eye on the other one?"

"The sorority wants us to keep an eye on the Tamer, too. But we've got more important issues."

"Kinda sad. She won't get a fair chance to be a Delta Gamma."

"Talley!"

"It's true. Don't you remember OUR days as sorority girls?"

Talley had obviously struck something in her partner. And she didn't want her to forget. Some of Talley's fondest memories came from her days in her own sorority back when she attended college with Riley overseas in the United States.

"I wish we could be sorority girls again," Riley smiled. Then she shrugged that off. "Talley, stop distracting me! We're on a mission, remember?"

Talley nodded. She was there for a reason. Their purpose was to keep an eye on Kari Kamiya and watch out for any signs of the mole emerging. And of course, they were also supposed to keep Kari safe. Not only because the evil ones wanted for her a reason, but also…

…Talley was keeping her safe at Izzy's request.

Ken ran forward as Stingmon met up with ChaosGallantmon head on. Stingmon went to deliver the first blow, but ChaosGallantmon grabbed the champion bug by the wrist and tossed him aside like a bag of garbage. It wasn't often that Stingmon could get overpowered so easily.

Stingmon shook off that unexpected blow and got back into his fighting stance. He tried to rush in again and attack.

"Spiking Strike!"

ChaosGallantmon simply kept Stingmon at bay with mighty strength. He hoisted him up over his head and tossed him towards Devitamamon's restaurant. While Stingmon got to his feet, ChaosGallantmon was about to attack.

"Stingmon, look out!" Ken shouted.

ChaosGallantmon rushed forward. "Dark Saber!"

ChaosGallantmon aimed his large lance and fired a dark shot that would have neutralized any Digimon. But Stingmon got Ken's warning and flew out of harm's way. Unfortunately, ChaosGallantmon's shot hit Devitamamon's restaurant dead-on. The eating establishment went up in a great explosion and erupted into flames.

Yolei's eyes widened. "That guy packs a punch!"

"MY RESTAURANT!" Devitamamon cried. "That brute destroyed my meal ticket!"

Henry picked up Terriermon and started running off. "Keep him busy! We'll be right back!"

Ken wasn't focused on Henry. He was concerned with Stingmon, who wasn't faring very well. Stingmon tried to take on the rogue knight head-on again and once again got tossed aside like a sack of potatoes. ChaosGallantmon added more damage by swinging his lance and knocking Stingmon across the jaw, sending him tumbling.

At this rate, the fight wouldn't last long.

Amidst the rubble and remains of Devitamamon's restaurant, Henry managed to find a clear place to take cover. With the coast clear, he knew what had to be done.

"Time to Digivolve?" Terriermon suggested.

Henry shook his head. "Did you see that shot? He nearly cleared the entire restaurant with that one shot. We'll need to go a step further if we want to stop that guy!"

Terriermon smirked. "You mean…?"

Henry took out his Digivice. "That's right! Let's do it!"

Biomerge Digivolution

"Biomerge activate!"

**Terriermon…Biomerge to…MegaGargomon!**

Having Biomerged into MegaGargomon, a whole new battle was about to begin. Henry hadn't had this feeling in years and it was a thrill to feel it once again.

Once again, he was MegaGargomon.

Ken didn't know if Stingmon could possibly win this fight. This ChaosGallantmon seemingly wasn't even breaking a sweat. It was now to the point where ChaosGallantmon was throwing Stingmon around like a ragdoll. The dark knight was about to attack with his lance again, but was caught from behind.

A large Digimon, bigger than ChaosGallantmon, picked up the knight and tossed him away from Stingmon. This Digimon was a large, green metallic Digimon whose face looked rather familiar to Ken.

"Terriermon?"

"Close," two voices said in unison. The voices came from the Digimon. They sounded like Terriermon and Henry. "Just call me MegaGargomon!"

ChaosGallantmon quickly got to his feet. He didn't look pleased with the interference of MegaGargomon. He took out his lance and shield and looked to attack again, but MegaGargomon and Stingmon weren't about to back down.

"I don't know where you came from," MegaGargomon began. "But your rampage has to stop! You may look like Gallantmon, but you aren't anywhere near as heroic or honorable! And now I'll make you pay for your random destruction! Gargo Missiles!"

MegaGargomon shot two large missiles that resided on his shoulders. The missiles were on a straight path for ChaosGallantmon. He didn't even try to move out of the way. Ken looked on as a giant explosion erupted. It should have been enough to vaporize the rogue.

"No getting up from that!" Yolei piped up.

It took a few minutes, but the smoke eventually did clear. And to everyone's shock, ChaosGallantmon was still standing. It didn't take long to see why. He had kneeled down and defended himself with his shield, which was held in front of him.

"No way!" MegaGargomon shouted.

ChaosGallantmon got to his feet and held up his shield. The shield reflected a dark light and looked like it was about to burst in a ray of dark energy. Ken knew what was coming. Without giving it a second thought, he ran forward.

"Stingmon, watch out!"

Yolei gasped. "Ken, don't!"

ChaosGallantmon held his shield up. "Final Elysian!"

The shield did indeed burst and, in the blink of an eye, a ray of dark energy emerged from the shield. It enclosed MegaGargomon and Stingmon and created another explosion. But this time, Ken was also caught at the edge of the explosion. He wasn't caught at the center, but he was hit pretty hard.

And it was enough to knock him unconscious.

Takato couldn't believe he was still doing this. It was pretty obvious that Rika didn't want to risk getting caught by those Delta Gamma alumni on campus. They both knew they were around somewhere, but neither of them had any idea where. Finally, Rika had just decided that the best place to go would be off campus. Of course, she didn't want to go anywhere without Takato and Guilmon, so she definitely had them in tow.

"Just keep walking, Goggle Head," Rika muttered. "We're almost out."

Rika was obviously in a hurry, because she didn't even look back. Takato was starting to feel like he and Guilmon were being neglected. But for Rika's sake, and his own personal safety, he just kept walking along. But something ahead made Rika come to a stop. She stopped for a number of girls in pink sweaters. Takato recognized the logo on their sweaters. They were Delta Gamma sisters.

Takato and Guilmon stopped while Rika conversed with them, but someone tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around to see another friend had unexpectedly showed up.

"Glad I could catch you here, Takato."

"Hey, Izzy. What's up?"

"Remember back when we first met and I said I'd like to do some research on your Digimon? I'd like to take a look at Guilmon if you have time."

Takato didn't want to leave Rika behind, but it looked like Izzy was dead set on getting his research done as soon as possible. In fact, Takato already felt himself being pulled away by the arm by an overzealous Izzy.

"I think that's a yes," Guilmon noted.

Takato just shrugged. After all, Rika was almost off campus. What was the worst that could happen if he left?

Rika had hit a roadblock on her way off campus. She wanted to get away as soon as possible. But she didn't expect to run into some of the sisters from Delta Gamma. And with Rika being one of the two final candidates for initiation, they couldn't help but stop and greet her. Rika was more than happy to say hello. She knew she was in no danger of messing up, especially with Takato helping her out.

"So have you run into any of the alumni, Rika?" one of the sisters asked.

"They're supposed to be hidden, remember?" Rika pointed out cheerfully.

"Glad you remember that. You know, if you've been this perky all week, then I don't see why you shouldn't make it."

"I don't know," the American sister said. "We just saw Kari a little while ago and she's just as good. If anything, this'll be a tough call."

Leezel, whom Rika recognized, concurred. "That's why we have the alumni around. They'll make that call for us. Uh…hey, Rika? Who's your cute friend?"

They must have been referring to Takato, whom Rika nearly forgot about. She owed him a big thanks for his help once this was all over. She was about to introduce him, but when she turned around, she nearly turned white…and beet red.

Takato wasn't there. Neither was Guilmon. Instead, they had been replaced…

"Yeah, Rika. Introduce me to your friends."

…by Ryo Akiyama.

Rika stammered. "Y-Y-You…"

The American girl stepped between them and offered a handshake. "You certainly are very cute. My name's Danielle. And you are…?"

Ryo stepped over and put his arm around Rika's shoulder. "I'll let Rika, here, introduce me."

Rika couldn't believe this. Takato had abandoned her. And out of nowhere, Ryo had arrived uninvited. She felt like bursting in a fireball of anger, yet she knew she couldn't do so without looking bad in front of the sisters.

"This is my good buddy, Ryo," Rika said, trying to break out a smile.

"Hey, a smile," Ryo grinned. "There's something I don't see very often. In fact, I almost never…"

"Hey, Ryo, aren't you late for some appointment?" Rika hastily interrupted.

"Nope. Can't think of anything I'm late for."

Rika honestly felt like throttling him. She knew Ryo wasn't dense and she knew he could take a hint. He was doing this to her on purpose.

"So how long have you two been friends?" Leezel asked.

"For years and years," Ryo answered.

"And you two never went out?" Danielle asked curiously.

"Nope. I guess she was too good for me."

Rika's eyes widened as she shot Ryo a cold stare. What she got in turn was a wry smirk.

"Or was it the other way around?"

This was the Ryo Akiyama that Rika had grown to dislike so much. The brashness, the cockiness, the sheer audacity. And when she coldly stared at his face, she saw the nonchalance in his eyes.

Rika tried everything to keep her cool. She counted to ten in her mind. She sang a happy tune in her mind. She thought pleasant thoughts…like throttling Takato once she got her hands on him for abandoning her. But none of it was working. Ryo was deliberately trying to bring out the worst in her and she wanted to kill him for it. He was going to blow her chance to get in this sorority.

Miraculously, Rika stayed calm. "We were victims of circumstance."

Ryo nodded. "Is that what we're calling it now?"

Rika was starting to crack. "Are you trying to blame ME…?"

She almost burst, but as soon as she saw the Delta Gamma sisters surrounding her, she controlled herself. One angry outburst would cost her dearly.

Ryo smirked. "You know, ladies, I didn't find out Rika was going out for Delta Gamma until a little while ago. I'm kinda curious, Rika. What made you want to be a sister?"

Rika's eyes widened. She looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She couldn't believe Ryo had the gall to ask that question IN FRONT OF THE SISTERS. She wanted to murder him.

"That's a pretty good question," Danielle smiled. "I'd like to know too."

"Yeah, me too," two other sisters added at once.

"Ladies, we don't have time," Leezel cut in. "We have to be going. Besides, we'll have plenty of time to get that answer in due time. Good luck, Rika. And don't forget…the alumni are watching."

Rika nodded. "I'll remember that, Leezel. I'll see you guys later."

The Delta Gamma sisters walked off leaving Rika alone with the one person she wanted to strangle more than anybody…except maybe Takato. Her first instinct told her to wring Ryo's neck, but she remembered that while on campus, she had to be on her best behavior. So she leaned in and whispered into his ear.

"When this is all over, I AM going to kill you, Ryo Akiyama."

Ryo, not surprisingly, stayed cool. "So…you never DID answer my question."

Rika shook her head. "Personal reasons. Right now, I'll just leave it at that. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to be anywhere but here."

At this point, Rika wanted to rush off campus. But it was still quite a distance to get out of the university. And besides that, she wanted to vent to someone. That's when she got an idea.

She turned around and made a beeline for the freshman dorms.

Once the smoke all cleared, there was hardly anything left. Yolei looked in front of her and saw all the destruction that had been caused. The impact of the blast had left Stingmon back into his devolved state. Henry and Terriermon had separated from the blast. And ChaosGallantmon looked to deliver the killing blow. Yolei couldn't bear to watch. She wished she had Hawkmon here.

ChaosGallantmon held up his lance, but before he struck…

"ChaosGallantmon, STOP!"

ChaosGallantmon stopped just short of attacking. A feminine voice had called out to him.

"Return to me, NOW!"

ChaosGallantmon had dropped everything he was doing and obeyed the call. He left Ken, Henry, Wormmon, and Terriermon for dead and started walking away from the battle. Then Yolei realized who was still unconscious on the ground.

Without wasting another moment, she rushed over to Ken's side. After getting caught in the explosion, Ken was brutally beaten and bruised. Yolei never wanted to see him like this.

"Ken Ichijouji, you wake up RIGHT NOW!"

Ken was barely moving. Yolei frantically shook him. Finally, he started to move.

"What hit me?" Ken asked groggily.

Yolei wrapped her arms around Ken. "Ken, I almost thought I lost you!"

Ken looked around. "We lost ChaosGallantmon. Where's Wormmon?"

"I'm over here, Ken," Wormmon said dizzily. He had been knocked loopy.

"Anybody get the license number of that truck?" Terriermon moaned.

"I've never been hit that hard before," Henry groaned. "Where did he come from?"

"I've got a better question," Yolei pointed out. "Why did he stop? He could have finished us all. What stopped him?"

Ken looked around. "Where's Digitamamon?"

Yolei also looked around and suddenly realized that her friend was gone. He was nowhere to be seen. She carefully stood Ken up and they both walked over to find him, right after Ken picked the battered Wormmon onto his shoulder. Henry and Terriermon gingerly got to their feet and started following Yolei and Ken.

There was only one place where Digitamamon could possibly be and that was his restaurant. So that's where they all headed. But to everyone's shock, when they got there, they only saw a pile of rubble. The restaurant had been obliterated. And there stood Digitamamon.

"That monster destroyed my restaurant! MY WAY OF LIFE! He'll pay for that!"

"Get in line, Digitamamon," Devitamamon grumbled. "My way of life's gone too. I can't believe that after all this time, I have to start over."

"But you haven't been in the game as long as I have," Digitamamon pointed out. "I can't believe it's going to end like this."

"It doesn't have to end," Tapirmon suggested. "We can rebuild."

"That'll take a long time," Digitamamon sighed. "Maybe months."

"Maybe years," Devitamamon added.

Yolei wished there was something she could do. This whole day seemingly ended with Digitamamon and Devitamamon ready to resume their rivalry. Now they were both out of work.

But Yolei suddenly got an idea.

"You know, I may have a way to fix everything. You two don't have to be out for long."

"What do you mean?" Digitamamon asked.

"Look, you two may have different methods, but it's pretty obvious that you have the same philosophy. You want to give customers the best food and service in the Digital World. Why don't you two work together?"

"Me and him?" Devitamamon thought.

"You know…I may be bullheaded and stubborn, but that doesn't sound like such a bad idea," Digitamamon said. "We could really clean up with my sense of business and your knowledge of what the world wants. What do you say? Put our differences aside for the common goal?"

"Uh…you mean our common goal being lots and lots of money?"

"Exactly."

Devitamamon jumped up and down. "I like that idea! You've got yourself a deal, Digitamamon!"

"A new era begins today!" Digitamamon said cheerfully.

"If I had a glass, I'd toast to that," Devitamamon said.

"We don't really have much of ANYTHING at this point," Terriermon pointed out.

Digitamamon and Devitamamon stood side-by-side. "To a new future!"

Ken smiled. "That's great to see. They've put aside their differences for one common goal."

Wormmon nodded. "Yeah...to get filthy rich."

"I think we can finally go home," Yolei added.

Yolei was all set to leave, but she noticed Henry was tapping Ken on the shoulder. Ken looked at him and nodded.

"Yolei…before all this started…I wanted to talk to you about something…"

Davis knocked again. "Come on, guys! We're gonna be late!"

Davis, again clad in his gorilla suit, was in a rush. Alpha Zeta had called once again and he didn't want to be late for their next initiation ritual. He couldn't be delayed anymore.

"Hurry up!"

Finally, the door opened. A serious Kazu stuck his head out of the door. Neither he nor Kenta were dressed in their costumes.

"What's taking you guys so long? Why aren't you ready?"

"Davis, we're done," Kazu said matter-of-factly. "We give. We can't take anymore."

"What?! Why?!"

Kenta stuck his head out of the door. "You obviously haven't noticed the kind of initiation we've been doing. Davis, we just got back from SKYDIVING!! That's too much! We can't take it anymore! Especially so soon!"

Davis shook his head. "I can't believe you guys are giving up so easily. I told you guys! This'll be worth it when it's all over."

"You can let us know how it goes," Kazu growled.

He slammed the door in Davis's face. Davis couldn't believe his two friends were abandoning him. He just angrily put his gorilla head on.

"Alright, you'll see what you're missing! I know this is worth it!"

With that, Davis headed off for his next ritual.

Kari was glad to be off campus right now. She felt relieved knowing that she didn't have to worry about the alumni watching over her. As she took a sip of her coffee from the coffee shop as she sat at the table outside, she thought about how much more pressure she would have to face in the next week. She wished she would have brought Gatomon along with her. But there was no way they could talk to each other in public. Besides, Gatomon still felt embarrassed with the way Renamon had shaved her and wasn't ready to leave the dorm.

As she took another sip of her coffee, she couldn't help but think about TK. She was starting to wonder why she had even broke up with him to begin with. But she quickly shrugged that thought off. This breakup was meant to be. She believed that. At least…she wanted to. After all, Davis was a great guy. He had always proven himself to her and he would always be there for her. She couldn't find a thing wrong with him.

She didn't know how she got into thinking about the guys in her life. TK and Davis were both wonderful, but she had already made her decision. There was nothing more to think about.

So why couldn't she get them off her mind?

Kari finally tried to think about something else. She started to wonder just how long she would stay out here? She had plenty of time to kill since her classes were over for the day. She didn't need to head back to the pressures of the university right away. And she knew that the sooner she got back, the sooner the alumni could watch over her. She didn't need that pressure. She would stay another while longer.

"Can I have another coffee?"

Talley took a sip from her coffee. She and Riley were sitting across the street from where the Kamiya girl was sitting. The coffee tasted bland and she didn't want to take another sip, but she had to act totally natural as she didn't want to blow her cover.

"Just another surveillance assignment. Are you surprised?" Riley sighed.

"Yamaki always finds the most exciting jobs for us," Talley noted sarcastically.

Kari Kamiya was going about her life as usual. There didn't look to be anything unusual happening. Talley started to drift off into random thoughts.

"I wonder how she would look in Delta Gamma colors?" Talley mused. "What do you think, Riley? Wouldn't she look good as a Gamma?"

"I wouldn't know."

"But then again, it wouldn't be fair to count out the Tamer. I mean, we've seen the type of person she is. She's always proven herself to be courageous and selfless. I still think it's too bad she's not getting a fair chance. You'd think Yamaki would find a more honest way for us to spy on someone."

Riley started to stand up and remove her sunglasses while Talley kept rambling.

"But then again, isn't 'honest' and 'spying' an oxymoron? I mean, how can we be totally honest if we're spying on someone? I wish we could just go one way or the other. Then again, I don't think Yamaki will understand that. I guess I should be used to the way that man operates by now. What do you think, Riley?"

Riley pointed towards a skyscraper. "THERE!"

"There what?"

Talley didn't notice what her partner was seeing. It wasn't until Riley pulled her up by her ear and pointed her in the right direction that Talley started to see what was going on.

Talley pulled out her binoculars. "Oh…no…"

She finally saw it, perched up on the skyscraper, ready to come down.

It was a Digimon.


Next Week: Mephistomon has arrived and he's ready to make his presence felt. Will Kari even see him coming? And is anybody else around to save the day? Meanwhile, Izzy's looking over Guilmon and a couple of others. What does he find? And what's Davis's next step in his initiation? How much worse can it get? Find out on the next Digimon: The College Years!


Any comments? Then mail me at AmericanCaptor@hotmail.com and don't forget to review below!