As I'm sure the majority of you know, I haven't been able to update because of a computer problem. Well, it's fixed now, and while I DO promise everyone several chapters for every story, I haven't been able to work on the stories much yet. (ducks thrown tomatoes) Look, I'm really sorry, but between Scholastic Bowl, typing an essay that was due today (which I did complete), writing 'responses' to short stories for homework in preparation for ISAT's, and a book report I'm going to have to do soon, I haven't had much freetime. I promise I will work my butt off on Monday to make up for it, provided I'm not shipped off to my grandparents' house. Don't you just love Casmir Pulaski day? So, expect more updates of this, AotD, and TDE2 on Monday!

Chapter Nine

The first Digimon to emerge was a Garmon, beady red eyes staring at Jenn and Gomamon. They stared back. With an excited hiss, it disappeared again.

"That didn't sound good," Gomamon muttered. In seconds, hundreds of the tiny snakes appeared, lunging at the crouching duo. Jenn noticed a thick branch by her right had, grasped it, and swung. With a hard thunk, the first wave of Garmon were thrown backwards. Some hit tree trunks, dissolving into data, but the luck few that didn't were lost in the undergrowth. Still, there were more, coming around them at all sides.

"Can't you do something?" Jenn asked desperately, pummeling black snakes left and right with her makeshift bat.

"I can't use Marching Fishes," Gomamon replied with despair, slashing at the Garmon with his claws. "There's no water around. No water means no fishes."

"There's just way to many of them," Jenn mumbled. Then, a ball of flame came flying through the woods, blasting a Garmon that had been going for Jenn's neck. The Digimon it had come from appeared not far behind it.

"Draimon!" Both Jenn and Gomamon exclaimed. A black streak flew down from the treetop, tackling a Garmon.

"Me, too," Ravmon replied. "Brian and Leslie are looking around. The sensors in the Digivices showed that there was a DigiDestined's Digimon circling the scene.

"Stupid birdbrain," one Garmon said with a delighted hiss. "That's Arachnimon, and HE'S got the heavy duty fighters. We're just here for starters. You've walked the other humans…" The black snake paused, then flew through the air, lunging at Ravmon. "Into a trap!" With an angry and startled caw, Ravmon grabbed the creature out of the air and tossed it away to hit a tree. It dissolved into data.

"Are you sure we're on the right track?" Brian asked, stepping over a fallen log. Leslie had hold of the Digivice, so she was the navigator.

"We should intercept them right about… Here." She stopped and looked around. "In a few minutes, it should fly around this way, and we'll see it…" The last part of her statement was drowned out by a buzzing noise. At first, it sounded hardly menacing, more like a fly, but it steadily flew in volume and ferocity. Both DigiDestined clapped their hands over their ears.

"What IS that!" Brian tried to shout over the roar. And that was when they showed themselves. There were hundreds of bug Digimon, giant in Earth standards. They looked like some horrid cross between a hornet an a lobster, with six legs, a long, vicious stinger in it's abdomen, and an extra set of arms with giant pincers. Each had four wings that flitted through the air, causing the noise, and had four stalks on its head. At the tip of each was an eye, varying in color from red to blue and green to yellow. Leading them was a spider with dragonfly wings.

"Well, well, well, what have we found here," the spider said nastily when his companions had landed in the surrounding trees. "A couple of humans kept unattended."

"You work for Gervartitymon," Brian stated without feeling.

"Good job at stating the obvious," the spider replied. "Okay, boys, time to bring out master a little gift." In one gigantic swarm, the hornets attacked. In a split second decision, Leslie pulled Brian and herself to the ground, barely dodging a barrage of stinger missiles. Once they had whizzed over their heads harmlessly, the two climbed to their feet and ran for their lives.

Shinji blankly looked out the window of his room in Gervartitymon's tower. The door behind him was locked, that much he knew. Apparently, his answer to joining forces with Gervartitymon wasn't the one they'd been expecting. Upon meeting him, Shinji knew he wasn't going to go along with anything he said. There was a sort of ruthless vibe, which he'd learned to pick up from his father. He was supposed to take over the family business, and this was essential in knowing whom you could trust and whom you couldn't. Even if Gervartitymon hadn't been a monster, Shinji wouldn't have trusted him.

Then why did I trust Arachnimon? Shinji thought. That was a big mistake, and I don't think I'll be able to bounce back from it…

The door opened quite suddenly, and Shinji turned. A boy was shoved inside, and the door slammed swiftly behind him.

He was human, that much Shinji could tell. At first, he mistook him for the blonde haired boy he'd seen with the dragon Digimon, but quickly realized it wasn't him. The hair style was very different, the blonde more yellowy, and his clothes weren't at all the same. He wore baggy khaki shorts, a large long sleeve white and green shirt. He did have the green eyes like the other boy, though.

Okay, I brought out the new character a little earlier than I had planned. I'm not doing much with him for now, though. Thanks, theferretmenace! If anything seemed wrong in the way I described him, let me know! Oh, and R&R, everyone! For further reference, I do accept anonymous reviews, but keep in mind that I can't reply to them.