We're back! Sorry for leaving you hanging so long. Kyer, your questions should mostly be answered in this chapter. If there are any left, leave a review with your email address, the one I have right now doesn't seem to work. If anyone else is keeping track of this story, please review and let me know!

Ch. 3: Surprises

The next morning, Wizardmon and Spritemon left the village. According to Wizardmon, they were going to go visit the communications hub of the rebel network. As they walked, he told the Rookie more of his story, at her request.

"So…your friend Gatomon…is part of Myotismon's Nightmare Army? I don't get it. She sounds too nice to be part of all that. And I've never heard of any of Myotismon's minions rescuing anyone, even one of their own, let alone a complete stranger." Spritemon was puzzled by his explanation.

Wizardmon sighed. "I know. That's what first made me so curious. It seems she's been brainwashed somehow; when Myotismon gives her an order, it is carried out without question, no matter how cruel. At the same time, when she is more free to act, she is very kind. She doesn't even notice the difference."

The smaller Digimon's brow furrowed, "But if she's so nice…why does Myotismon keep her around?"

"I don't really know for sure. I think part of it is simply the idea of demonstrating how powerful he is by corrupting a Vaccine type. But there's more to it than that…Myotismon is smart enough to know that she might turn on him someday, and no matter how big his ego may be, he wouldn't let it get in the way of eliminating a potential threat. There's some benefit in keeping her by his side that I can't see, something that outweighs the risks. She could destroy him someday…I don't know how, but she could. I don't dare tell her so, of course, at least not yet. She wouldn't believe me, and if Myotismon found out…" He shuddered, "No, better to keep it a secret for now."

"I won't tell anyone," Spritemon promised.

He jumped a little, as if he'd completely forgotten that he wasn't alone, then smiled down at her. "I know you won't, little one. You have a pure heart; I hope you stay that way for a long time yet." He fell silent, lost in thought.

Spritemon was quiet, too, digesting the new information. Suddenly, she snapped to attentiveness as she heard a rustling in the bushes. Her fur bristled. "Wizardmon!" she hissed, "Someone's coming!"

His eyes widened as he was pulled back to reality, and he looked around wildly just as a group of Gazimon burst from the undergrowth. He shoved Spritemon hastily into the cover of a small shrub with a hurried, "Stay there!" Then he turned around and attacked the Gazimon. They were all on the same side of him at first, so it was easy enough to keep them at bay, until one of them had the presence of mind to slip behind him while he was distracted. It prepared to strike, but Spritemon leaped out of her hiding place and bit its leg.

"Yeow!" it cried, and Wizardmon spun around, surprised, to dispatch it. At the same time, Spritemon dashed to where the others were, to prevent them from taking advantage of his turned back. The pitched battle quickly degenerated into a melee.

They lost complete track of time as they fought, relying on each other to guard their backs. Eventually, Spritemon realized that there was nothing left attacking her, and collapsed, spent. She saw that Wizardmon was fighting off one last opponent.

That's odd, she thought vaguely, Gazimon usually turn and run when the numbers are even.

Suddenly, she noticed a pair of eyes in a bush behind Wizardmon. Her mind raced. She was too weak to fight any more. She could shout a warning, but one or the other would get to him, and he didn't look like he could take much more. She saw the bushes move. Decision time. Summoning the last of her strength, she prepared to leap, hoping to deflect the blow.

As she began her leap, she felt a surge of energy. That works, too, she thought with a burst of relief, recognizing the sensation. "Spritemon, digivolve to…" She began to change. Her fur separated from her body, becoming a cloak, tunic and leggings. Her limbs lengthened, and the toes on her front legs grew long and delicate, able to move individually. Her posture shifted from four-legged to upright. The fur on her head turned completely red, lengthening and becoming wavy. Her muzzle flattened, and her ears moved to the sides of her head, becoming more or less human, except that they remained pointed. In fact, she looked like nothing quite so much as a small, pointy-eared human female with pale white skin, green eyes and wavy red hair. The last vestige of digivolution energy ran down her arm and became a staff, held in her right hand. The entire change took about one second. "…Verdanamon!" she finished in a lower voice. The leap which she had already begun took her directly into the path of the Gazimon's attack as it drew back its paw and slashed. It sliced across her left eye and diagonally down her face. She cried out in pain and terror. Her flesh was still tender from her first digivolve to Champion level, and the pain was incredible. She lashed out blindly, both eyes squeezed shut, and felt her staff connect with something. The blow was followed by a thump, and then another. She sank to her knees, exhausted, and felt Wizardmon catch her before she collapsed completely.

"Verdanamon," he said, "are you all right?" She turned her face aside to hide the hideous wound. "Verdanamon, look at me." A gloved hand caught her chin and turned it upward. She heard a soft gasp as he observed the damage.

"H-how bad is it?" she asked softly, her voice breaking. I've never hurt so much in all my life…

He didn't answer. "We need to stop the bleeding first," he said instead. "Can you open your eyes?"

She did so, though the pain sharpened intensely. But the pain was suddenly a lesser worry. "Wizardmon," she choked out, "my left eye…I can't see! Oh, Gods, it hurts, it hurts!" Salty tears burned in the cuts; she could do little except curl up and whimper, the combined pain was so intense.

He took something out of his hat (which she had come to realize had a storage spell on it to hold whatever was placed inside until it was needed). This item turned out to be a gauze bandage, which he applied carefully. "There, that should hold for now, but it's more important than ever that we get where we are going soon. Can you walk?"

"I…don't know…" She struggled to her feet with Wizardmon's help. Leaning heavily on both him and her staff, she managed a few halting steps. Then, her knees gave out. "I can't…I can't do it." She bit her lip to keep from crying again.

"Hmm…" he said, "That's not good. I don't want us to stay here any longer than we have to. Here, let me try something." He crouched beside her and muttered a few words under his breath. His hands glowed blue, and she began to feel stronger. When he finished waving his hands, he looked at her expectantly. "Well?"

"That feels much better," she said, "What did you do? I don't really feel healed…just stronger."

He nodded. "Rejuvenation spell," he explained. "I've never been much of a healer, but I replaced some of your energy. Try to get up now."

She complied, and found that she could stand more easily, though she was still tired. "Thank you," she told him sincerely.

"Don't, please. It's my fault you got dragged into this in the first place. The least I can do is try to fix it. Come on, let's get you to the Guardian's home." He led the way, checking constantly to make sure that Verdanamon was keeping up. They walked along in silence. Verdanamon tried to come up with something to say, but walking took up too much of her concentration. Finally, she gave up and focused on staying upright and putting one foot in front of the other.

They plodded on; she couldn't tell how long they walked, or how far. Suddenly, as if waking from a dream, she realized that there was a lake in front of her, the edge of which lapped at her boots.

"Finally, we're here," Wizardmon sighed in relief.

"We're where? There's nothing here but this lake," Verdanamon replied in confusion.

"Exactly. This is where the Guardian lives." And before she could say another word, he had stepped forward into the water. As his boot was about to hit the surface, however, the water seemed to shy away from it, and his foot landed on a white stone staircase instead. Verdanamon gaped.

"Oh," she said.

With a smile, Wizardmon reached out his arm. "Shall we?" She took it gratefully, glad for the support, and the pair slowly descended the stairs, winding up in a garden outside a small house. A stream ran through the garden, and there was a bridge which spanned across it. As they crossed over the bridge, a voice called out to them from the house.

"Hello? Who's there?" A young man in cream-colored robes stepped out. Spotting them, he waved. "Hey, Wizardmon! What brings you here? And who's your lovely companion?"

"Hello, Gennai. This is Verdanamon. We ran into a group of Gazimon a ways back, and she's injured." Wizardmon cut straight to the point.

Instantly, the young man grew serious. "Right. Let me see it." A little reluctantly, Verdanamon lifted her face and pulled back her hood. Gennai removed the bandages, as she fought to keep from crying out. "Sweet Goddess," he breathed, upon seeing the wounds.

Verdanamon could stand no longer. She collapsed like a deflated balloon. Wizardmon caught her, and Gennai lifted her up. The last thing she remembered was a pair of strong arms carrying her inside.

So, what'cha think? I know, I know, I'm awful at writing battle scenes. Emotional stuff is really my forte, and there'll be plenty of that shortly. Oh, and yes, I'm using the younger version of Gennai for this fic. I should probably make him older, I know, but I like the young one better. He's cute.

Ok, so as far as timeline goes, in case anyone's still confused, this is set somewhere between Gatomon rescuing Wizardmon and the invasion of the Material World. I figure no one can completely keep track of Wizardmon's whereabouts at all times, and since it never really states how much time passed during that interval (as far as I know; I'm a little rusty on those episodes), I figured I could play around with it a little. So it may be a little bit AU, but I tried my best to make it fit into the storyline as much as possible.

Anyway, please review!