"I don't get this," Seth comments from where he's sitting on Seadramon's back, staring at the ocean surrounding them. "Making all of us come here just to split up and look around the different sectors... when there doesn't seem to be a problem? I think Luke's been alone too long, he's losing it."

The sea snake continues swimming forward sedately but he turns his head so he can see Seth easier. "I think it makes sense, Seth. We always do missions as a team, and it makes it hard to bond one-on-one when we're on earth and forced to stay in the Digivices so often. Considering how more and more Digimon are getting corrupted and there are missions more regularly, Luke's doing the best he can to make sure that we remain good partners. Especially with more and more of the team dropping to injury or whatever else. I know you're busy with your..." he hesitates, wanting to get the term correct, so as not to offend Seth. "... Money in the Bank briefcase, but this is important too, and we'll be done soon because the water is very quiet today."

"Good," Seth mumbles, shifting closer to wrap his arms around Seadramon's neck. "I don't mean to seem in a rush to get out of here and everything, I enjoy spending time with you, you're my partner... we kinda clicked from the first second I saw you, it's just... I get jittery sitting still for too long, you know that."

"Yes, I do," Seadramon chuckles, sending his tail up through the water and splashing Seth from behind, causing him to gasp in surprise and squeeze the Digimon harder while trying to regain his bearings.

"When did you and Ambrose meet and discuss how best to torment me?" he groans, shaking his hair of some of the water clinging to it. Seadramon doesn't respond and Seth frowns, peering up at his partner. "What's wro-" He's not finished asking when he sees it. The air surrounding them is turning cold, his breath turning into mist as soon as it slips past his lips.

"Se- Seth," Seadramon says and it's then that Seth also notices that the water surrounding them is turning into ice, freezing Seadramon into place.

"What the-?!" Seth exclaims. "Seadramon!" His partner's eyes are wide and horrified, his body slowly drifting into shock as his already low body temperature hits dangerous levels. Seth has only one option and he takes it, leaping from Seadramon's body and hitting the ice, amazed when it holds, despite cracking just a little under his feet. He holds his arms out and when Seadramon devolves back to a weak Betamon upon realizing that Seth is safe, he scoops him out of the water before the ever expanding ice can cover him as well and holds him close, desperate to figure out what's going on. They're not far from shore, but it's still more than a little daunting distance wise, especially with whoever's behind the ice out there who knows where...

"Hey! Digidestined," a small, child-like voice calls to him. "This way!"

Seth looks up to find a literal fireball talking to him, with bright blue eyes and what looks like strange staples for its mouth. He gapes at the creature as it floats in midair, staring anticipatingly at him. "DemiMeramon," Betamon somehow finds the strength to say. "He's harmless, and can help us warm up... go Seth, please. Before the ice shatters under our feet."

Confident in his partner's assumption, Seth listens and races across the ice, relieved when he arrives. DemiMeramon leads him to a small cave where a cheerful fire is flickering and Seth sighs, resting Betamon near it and outstretching his hands towards it as the amphibious Digimon responds, lifting his head and inching closer towards it, desperate for the warmth as well. Once they feel a little more comfortable, Seth stares at DemiMeramon. "Do you know what's going on out there?"

The Digimon looks sad, or at least as sad as a floating fireball can look, and glances out of the mouth of the cave. "It's IceLeomon," he explains vaguely. "There once were a number of fire type Digimon around this area but the ocean grew and grew, overwhelming more of the ocean, and scared most off. He was our guardian and he took this personally... I am the only one who remains, for him, but it's not enough. He has grown... angry... and attacks anyone who comes in sight of the caves. His need to protect has gone to the extreme but I'm unable to get through to him. Now if I try to talk to him, he tries to attack me as well... as if he doesn't recognize me either."

DemiMeramon looks close to tears by the end of it and Betamon whispers, "That explains a lot." He sits up, seeming a lot more like his old self, to Seth's utmost relief. "He's been corrupted by the loss of most of his charges. We need to help him, Seth."

Seth grimaces, remembering how fast the water had turned to ice around them. "I'm not sure how, Betamon. If he turns everything to ice again..."

"I'll be ok. I know what to expect this time," Betamon says, shaking his head. "Trust me, Seth. I'm not getting into a situation I can't get myself or you out of." Always unable to deny just how easily it is to do just that, Seth finally accepts this with a jerky nod of his head, watching Betamon leave the cave and dive into the water, which is once more free flowing, blue and warm. He splashes around, making a show of it, until things begin to grow cold again. He immediately Digivolves into Seadramon and casts his head around, looking for some hint of where IceLeomon perhaps might be. "Let me show you how it's done," he calls out. "Ice Blast!" In what he and Seth had discussed with DemiMeramon quickly before Betamon had put his plan into motion, he shoots out blue beams that cascade around the mouth of the cave and coat it with thick ice shards, slowly but surely blocking DemiMeramon inside.

This, as planned, brings IceLeomon out of hiding. He's a tall, pure white beast who stands on two legs despite his clearly lion-like features. "FROZEN FURY!" He moves quickly, Seth barely registers the yell before he's sideswiping Seadramon with a punch that sends his head shooting backwards as ice forms around the armor surrounding his face. The sound Seth's partner makes following this terrifies him, Seadramon shaking his head desperately and trying to reorient himself, but it's too late. IceLeomon continues again and again, punching him and sending the ice over more of his body until very little of Seadramon is actually visible.

Seth panics and turns to look at DemiMeramon as he watches their only chance at stopping IceLeomon dies before their very eyes. "No!" the little Digimon cries, flying out of the small space between ice chards and flies towards IceLeomon, who barely seems to notice him until he's clinging to his mane. "Stop hurting him!"

IceLeomon shakes his head wildly, tossing DemiMeramon off, and turning to shoot a blast of ice at him in his berserked rage. Seth, however, had been inching forward in a blind hope that DemiMeramon would be enough of a distraction that he could somehow help Seadramon, lunges forward and catches the Digimon, saving him from certain deletion as he collapses against the ground, the ice blast instead striking him and eating at his leg. It's so cold, it burns but he doesn't cry out, forcing himself back to his feet to watch Seadramon. "No," he breathes, still holding onto DemiMeramon as they watch on in terror. "Please... Seadramon, not like this. We can't... WE WON'T LOSE LIKE THIS!"

There's a sudden, simultaneous sound of ice cracking from two different places and Seth gapes, confused, as first something shoots through the ice coating DemiMeramon's cave, and Seadramon is abruptly lit by fresh light, familiar and beautiful in its subtle differences from what Seth's used to. His Digivice is thrumming and he instinctively pulls it out of his pocket, holding it up as the light from it strengthens, stabilizes... shoots through a small, brown square with a strange symbol in the middle before impacting with a rotating Seadramon. "Seadramon Digivolve to..." He grows, his blue and white serpent-like body becoming red with a white underbelly and even more fins flapping around his body. His eyes glow a cool blue, with a strange lighting bolt like fin forming out of his head, the armor covering his face growing to fit his new features. "MegaSeadramon!" he roars out, slapping his massive tail against the water with renewed vigor, shattering the bits of ice remaining as though they're nothing.

IceLeomon seems unconcerned, however, and slams forward with another punch... but his ice attacks seem meaningless to MegaSeadramon now. "Lightning Javelin!" It's massive, lights up the entire area as a bolt of lightning shoots off from the bolt protuding from his forehead, slamming straight through IceLeomon and leaving him motionless as his body crackles from the impact of so much electricity. "Let me show you how it's done," the vicious looking creature tells him calmly. This time, when he throws his head back and then forward, it's a monstrous ice beam that covers all of IceLeomon from head to toe, leaving him unable to move for a multitude of reasons. MegaSeadramon says nothing else as he lifts his tail, which Seth realizes has a golden tip with sharp prongs at the end now, and crashes it down upon the wayward Digimon, shattering him into hundreds of pieces of ice and data, which scatters in the wind as warmth once more returns to the area.

MegaSeadramon pants and collapses onto shore, once more Betamon, and Seth rushes forward, scooping first him, and then the bizarre brown square out of the sand, holding his partner close as he analyzes it. "What is this thing?" It almost looks like a child's attempt of the sun has been chiseled into the stone, with a circle inside of another and triangles of different sizes surrounding it, but something tells him this is much more important than that.

Betamon finally confirms when he stirs slightly, staring at the item in Seth's palm. "It's your, your crest," he explains, his claws resting against the surface of the thing. "A physical representation of your strongest attribute... they help us Digimon partners gain the strength to Digivolve past the Champion level..." He smiles and releases a soft chuckle. "Yours is... courage..."

As Seth stares at him in shock, his energy fades and he collapses once more, though he's still breathing steadily so Seth assumes he'd just fallen asleep in his arms... though Seth decides once he somehow makes his way back to Luke's, he'll make sure to have Betamon checked out just to make sure. "A Crest, hm?" he whispers, staring down at the thing. "Well, something tells me you're going to come quite in handy in the future..." He pockets it, careful to make sure it won't fall out, and then turns to look back the way they'd come. "Now really... how am I going to get back to Luke's?" He groans and stares down at Betamon, wishing that the Digimon could've remained MegaSeadramon for a little longer. "It's ok, I'll figure it out," he promises, knowing that it's not his partner's fault. He'd fought long and hard enough, he deserves this rest.

-x

"One of them has achieved Ultimate Digivolution," a voice muses. "Fascinating... Soon, I will know exactly who shows the most promise... perhaps it is you, Seth Rollins..."