Disclaimer: Digimon is a franchise owned jointly by Toei Animation and Bandai, and conceptualized by Akiyoshi Hongo. Doctor Who is a property owned by the British Broadcasting Company created by Sydney Newman. The concept of The Tamer v2.0: In His Name is a fanfiction idea. Please support the official properties.

The Tamer v2.0: In His Name

Chapter 26: The Hallowed Bastion

Rika walked along behind the rest of the group, leering at Ryo as he was bombarded with questions from both Kazu and Kenta. Partially because she was annoyed that he'd forgotten her, and partially because she couldn't believe this was where he'd been after all this time. More than that, she hadn't forgotten how Hagurumon and Clockmon addressed him. They called him The Digimon Tamer. She thought back to everything that had happened - everything from the books, everything from Ryo's disappearance. He insisted he wasn't, but the digimon they'd encountered identified him as such. And he seemed to fit the description from both Renamon and the book - a great warrior, someone who subverted expectations, could think quickly and creatively, and seemed to be more in control of situations than he was willing to let on.

She hated to think it, but it seemed that Ryo really was the one called The Digimon Tamer. And his partner - Cyberdramon. A digimon so strong, he was able to stay at the Ultimate level without slowing down or losing speed. Something that both Kazu and Kenta brought up with their constant questioning.

"So where did you meet Cyberdramon, anyway?" Kenta gestured towards the hulking dragon a few behind him, "He's not a digimon I've ever heard of. And he's kinda scary - sorta weird for a guy like you to have for a partner."

"That's because he's not your average digimon. He's one of a kind - a weaker form of a much more dangerous digimon called Milleniummon. He was tough, but I worked together with some…well…help to beat him. I've been stuck trying to rein him in ever since," Ryo answered with a bitter tone, quietly grumbling about having to explain, "Cyberdramon is okay when he's calm. It's when his bloodlust comes out that he becomes unbearable. All he wants to do is kill and destroy everything he sees. It's all I can do to just keep him in check, and even then I can't contain him from destroying stuff around him."

"But a digimon that strong took on Megadramon on his own! That's got to be worth it!" Kazu pointed out ecstatically, "Man, what I wouldn't give to have a partner like that."

"You really don't," Ryo frowned, gesturing ahead at his partner, "He's probably the strongest digimon at his level, but he's got the anger of ten digimon at his level. Besides, don't you guys have partners?"

"Nah, we're just here to help out the others," Kazu answered gleefully. Ryo raised an eyebrow, "Like carrying their stuff? Or are you acting like bait? Just asking because I'm not sure how you guys are helping."

Kazu was not prepared for that response, nor was he prepared for Rika to happily point out, "Yeah, and some help you've been. Renamon and I have done most of the work since we got separated from Juri and the others. But I like the idea of them carrying out stuff!"

She removed her backpack and thrust it into Kazu's hands, "Besides, Renamon and I have practically carried you guys since we got here anyway."

Kazu groaned and dropped the bag, "What's your deal with me? It's like you personally enjoy crapping on me!"

Rika put a hand on her hips and raised her eyebrows grumpily, and the boy quickly picked the bag back up in a panic.

"Well, you do make it easy for her," Kenta answered. Ryo stopped in his tracks to look at Rika, staring unblinkingly at her. She wished he would stop doing that, "What?"

"Sorry," Ryo averted his gaze and ran a hand through his hair nervously, ending at the back of his neck which he scratched nervously, "I just can't believe it's only been a few months. It's been years for me. I know. I counted the days. And…it's hard to find the right words…if I'm having a hard time talking to you, it's because I don't know what to say. I don't know what I'm going to say to my parents."

She understood that better than she wanted to admit - with her dad having been absent for a long time and her relationship with her mom not…in the best of places before he came back. Compared to him, her time gap hardly seemed to be worth mentioning. So she flicked his forehead, "I wouldn't think about it. Otherwise, you'll just make it weird. And stop staring at me, creep. It's freaking me out. How much further do we have to go? I'm sick of walking through desert. I bet the digidestined didn't have to walk through this much heat."

She was careful to leave out the part about her parents being digidestined, and shot a death glare at both Kenta and Kazu when they tried to open their mouths. Ryo pointed across miles of desert to a cloud of fog in the distance, "Over there. Once we get into the fog, we're probably another day's walk away. Then we can use the computers there to find your friends."

"What's up with all that fog? I thought this was a desert!" Kazu groaned, already cramping under the weight of the second backpack he had to carry.

Kenta patted his shoulder, "It snowed on us a couple of nights ago. Why should the fog be any weirder?"

"I don't know, man. This place is just messing with my head," Kazu grunted, struggling to keep up with them.

Kenta added, "Kazu, basic math messes with your head! I mean, you don't even do your own homework!"

"We've all been avoiding our homework! Right, Rika?" Kazu looked to her for support only to be shot down, "What are you talking about? I've been doing it while you guys are sleeping!"

It was a bold lie but she knew it would annoy him.

"What!? Dude, let me copy off you!" Kazu shouted, failing to see the obvious flaw with that. Kenta had to pull him back and explain, "Kazu, she doesn't go to our school."

"I miss school. And homework. Never thought I'd say that," Ryo laughed from ahead of them, not noticing that they were now silent. Kazu was the first to ask, "You're not serious right? I mean, who misses homework?"

"Well, when you spend years fighting for your life in another world, it's amazing what you start to miss," Ryo explained with a half smile, "I mean, if you told me I would miss doing my chores one day, I'd think you were crazy too. But it's not just my chores or my homework. I miss my parents, my family, my bed, home cooked meals, TV, internet, computers, school, my friends. Everything. You know what I mean, right Rika?"

Rika looked away when he looked at her, "I don't know what you're talking about."

She did, but she wasn't going to admit to anything in front of Kazu or Kenta. Renamon looked like she was about to add something but stopped instead to laugh. Which was good because she could've said any number of embarrassing things right then. Rika didn't want to think about Kenta and Kazu knowing anything about her that they didn't need to know.

They continued on straight into the fog, which was so thick that they could barely see more than an arm's length ahead of them. On Ryo's insistence, they walked along with one arm on each other's shoulders so that they wouldn't get separated. In this dense fog, it was a surprise anyone could navigate. But Ryo would stop on occasion to look at his digivice before pressing on. The Digital World became deathly silent, marked only by the sound of their feet shuffling along the sand. Even the wind seemed to die in this thick fog.

Eventually, they heard noises echoing around them. Faint whispers that were indiscernible and what sounded like sobs mixed with moaning. But all of that was nothing compared to the overwhelming sense of dread she got. Every time a noise passed, Ryo would stop in his tracks and change his course slightly before pressing on. Eventually, it became too much for Rika, "Hey Ryo! What is this fog? It's giving me the creeps."

It took a long time to give his answer, "It's better not to think about it. The Digital World is a terrible place and not everything that dies comes back. And it doesn't get absorbed either. Sometimes, the data just…gets stuck."

"What? No way! We've seen digimon turn to data and this is way too thick to be that," Kazu said disbelievingly. Ryo was quiet a little while longer before adding, "If you want to sleep tonight, you won't think on it any more than you just did. But…this is why I don't like The Digimon Tamer and I wish digimon would stop calling me that name. Because this…was partially him."

Rika looked around at this fog, the weight of everything Ryo said now beginning to make sense in her head. This was the result of the war she'd read about in the book and…if it was true…this was the result of the Digimon Tamer. These were dead digimon. And goggle head…Takato…caused it. And if the book was also right, the murmurs she was hearing was also the half deleted remains of some digimon in unbelievable agony begging for a death that wasn't going to come. Because The Digimon Tamer refused to give them the mercy. She shivered.

They proceeded further into the fog until they saw the distant shape of a barren old castle atop a craggy rock face appear in the distance. It ascended just high enough to escape the fog of digimon data and, looking out on the plains from above. The sheer size gave context for just how expansive the fog was, and they could finally see how far the fog went. It reached out for miles in every direction, disappearing into the horizon. Whatever this war was, it seemed the books really gave no context for just how devastating the scale was. How many digimon must've died here…at this place…to make such a wide cloud of data. And the castle itself was hardly inviting. It was almost evil to look at, marked by the statues of Devidramon leering down at the courtyard below.

"Here we are! This is the Hallowed Bastion!" Ryo said with arms outstretched for them - as if he expected them to marvel at how outright terrifying this place was, "Stick close to me and try not to get lost. This place will mess with your head."

"Whoa sweet! Check out the Devidramon!" Kazu said excitedly, pointing out the chipped statues lining the courtyard. Ryo ushered them forward, "Don't get too close. They shoot lasers from their eyes. And Stick together guys! Come on!"

He led them past the entryway and further into the castle. It lived up to its evil exterior. Inside was dim and drab, illuminated only by dying candles and flickering lights. What little they could see revealed dusty hallways, thick cobwebs, and tattered decorations scattered everywhere. In spite of that Renamon craned her neck at every possible sight as she took it all in, "To think we'd ever stand in the home of the Guardians of Destiny themselves."

That marvel turned to surprise when they entered a nonsensically large room with what looked like a single walkway bridging an infinite void of twisting corridors and stairs. Just looking out on the empty space around them made Rika sick to her stomach and her head spin. At least at first. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw multiple staircases and walkways spiraling and twisting into the void. Occasionally, they would disappear and reappear without warning. Kenta gasped at the sight of it, excitedly asking, "Is this an Escher maze?"

"I don't know what that is but if you mean this mess, then sure!" Ryo said, "It took me forever to figure out my way around this place and I don't want have to figure out how to find any of you guys if we get separated. Just hang on and don't let go until we're on the other side. And...uh...sorry if this next part is weird. We're going to have to go over the edge. And then some other stuff."

"What?" was all Rika managed to get out before Ryo grabbed her arm, pulling her towards the guard rail and over the edge. She felt like she was falling, but only for a second before she felt herself standing upright. They were still on the bridge. But that couldn't be right. That shouldn't even have been possible. They walked right over the edge of the walkway. They should've been falling. Instead, they were still on the walkway. Behind her, she heard Kazu and Kenta groaning like they were sick. Kenta was the first to manage to speak, "Oh man, what the hell was that? I think my stomach's in my mouth."

"At least it's still in you. My stomach feels like it's back wherever we were," Kazu groaned. She was glad her stomach was stronger than theirs, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for them as she was left to wonder just what they were experiencing to feel like this. Ryo was quick to apologize, "Sorry guys. I know it sucks."

"Why aren't you messed up by this?" Kazu groaned.

"Because he's been here long enough and he's done this enough that it doesn't affect him as much," Renamon answered for him. Cyberdramon grunted his approval of her answer before growling impatiently. Ryo sighed, "Just try to power through. We've got a lot more of these to go."

"Oh man!" was all either of them managed to get out before they were dragged along by Ryo through more jumps and odd sidesteps that made the world around them shift and change even though it seemed like they were staying on the same walkway they had been before. At some point, it became too much for even Rika as her stomach started to turn with unease. It wasn't until they were suddenly on the other end of the walkway that Ryo finally stopped dragging them along and said, "Okay, we're on the other side. You guys rest up before we carry on. It should be safe now, as long as we don't go back."

"Please...tell us...we don't have to do that again," Rika groaned, before going to the edge of the walkway to puke uncontrollably. Kazu and Kenta joined her in puking over the edge, only to watch their puke disappear from existence and reappear on some stairs on the other end of the room. Kenta was the first to look up, "Why did we have to do that?"

"This room is a defense mechanism. It's made so that you can only go through it a certain way. If you don't follow the only path through, you could end up falling for eternity or worse," Ryo answered. Rika would've raised an eyebrow if she wasn't so busy puking her guts out, looking at him in disbelief, "What could be worse than what we just went through?"

Ryo opened his mouth to answer, before pausing and picking up a stone from the ground. He cast it over the edge and they watched it fall for some distance. It only fell for a few seconds before several beams of light shot out of the room at different angles and vaporized the rock. Then Ryo finally answered, "That's the bastion's defense mechanism. It was designed to keep this place safe from any invaders. Invaders would get trapped in this room trying to find their way to the other side, and anyone straying too far from the safe paths gets vaporized."

"Then how did you figure it out?" Kazu asked, looking up briefly before puking over the edge again. Kazu rubbed his back to help him get it out before answering, "I've been stuck here for years Kazu. Believe me, I've had nothing but time to figure it out. Mostly by trial and error. But I was here once before and that time, I had the Digimon Tamer to help guide me around. And believe me, I'm as eager to find him again as you guys are."

"I don't think you ever said, what's your deal with Takato anyway?" Kazu wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and slid down the back of his guard rail. Ryo massaged the back of his neck, "I guess I didn't say, did I? Well, we've got nothing but time now. The truth is he's the reason I'm stuck here. One day I was on my computer talking about digimon, and the next thing I know I'm getting pulled into the screen. Then I woke up here in the Digital World. Wandered around for a few days before I ran into this Kuwagamon that started chasing me. That was when I met The Digimon Tamer, Agumon, Ken, and Wormmon. He said he would help us get home until we got to this place and he found out why we were in this world. That digimon I told you about before, Milleniummon, tore a hole open in reality that broke the Digital World. He said he couldn't send either of us back until we fixed it. And we did. But that was before I got sucked into this weird...other world. It took forever to find my way back. I've been trapped here ever since trying to figure out a way back to our world."

"So why the anger for The Tamer?" Renamon asked seriously. Ryo's eyes narrowed, "Because he's the reason I'm in this mess. It took me a while to understand but that guy always knows more than he lets on. He always knows more than he lets on! He will keep things from you if it means fulfilling your destiny, even if it means trapping you in another world for years against your will. I've said it before and I'll say it again. If I meet him again, I'm decking him! Hell, I'll kill him."

"Dude, harsh," was all Kazu managed to say. That was the understatement of the century. The goggle head was the reason Ryo was gone for so long. She wanted to be mad, to be angry and hate him for it. But part of her was also sure that he had no memory of any of it. Then again, with how messed up his memory was, it'd be a miracle if he remembered anything. The guy could barely keep his own head straight. Odds were, Ryo would punch him across the face and he'd just stare in confusion. All that frustration did do one thing: it settled her stomach enough for her to stand up. She looked over at Ryo who seemed genuinely angry, a sight she'd never seen before on a normally calm guy. After a few moment and deep breaths, he calmed down enough to sigh and stare at Rika. Again with that creepy, off putting stare of his, "What?"

"Nothing," He shook his head. It took a bit longer for everyone to feel okay enough to move on and they proceeded further into the castle. Now, instead of that mind-twist of a labyrinth, they were in a normal labyrinth of endlessly twisting halls that seemed to continue on forever with no sign of stopping. Once again, Rika found herself in awe of how calmly Ryo was handling the absurdity of their situation - mostly because it reminded her of the fact that he'd been trapped here for what seemed like years to him.

At the end of their long walk, Ryo guided them into a large chamber marked by computer screens on every inch of wall with several keyboards and terminals set up around it. Of the screens, only one appeared to be in any working order though and it displayed what appeared to be a map. Rika looked around the room, certain her dad would have a heart attack to see so many computers treated with such disregard. If anything, he'd probably disappear again to start fixing these. She smiled at the thought before asking, "What is this?"

Ryo blew a layer of dust off the nearest keyboard and started typing away on it. Strange characters appeared on the screen, a language she'd only seen on the ring around her digivice's screen. It further solidified the fact that whoever made these digivices was from this world, "This is The Network. At least, that's what it was the first time I was here. It was the Tamer's pet project at the time - a reality wide system to monitor the different worlds and everything going on in them. If I had to guess, someone didn't like the idea and shut it down. I don't blame them. Thankfully, they weren't thorough and I was able to savage this one. It should still tell us where your friends are."

"How can you read any of that?" Kenta asked, adjusting glasses to better view the screen and the strange characters that were displayed on it. Kazu pointed at some of the letters, "What's with the fake sci-fi language?"

"That fake sci-fi language is the language of the Ancients. And don't ask me what any of it means. I can't read it. The only reason I know what I'm doing is because I've had time to figure it out. Twenty years of being trapped here is enough time to figure out some basics. It's not like I had anything better to do besides keeping Cyberdramon in check," Ryo answered, smacking their hands away from the screen, "And don't touch that. The screen is touch sensitive. You might do something."

All it took was a few more button presses to blow up the map of the Digital World. On that map were several dots - two of them were together, three were in another part of the Digital World, and there was a sixth and seventh by themselves. Ryo gestured at the dots, "These signals are digivices. Those two are us here in the Hallowed Bastion. I'm guessing the others are your friends?"

Rika pointed, "Those three are! Right there! That's gotta be Henry, Juri, and Takato."

"But what is the other two?" Renamon asked, pointing at the lone dots. Kazu jumped, "That's got to be Andromon! He drifted down the river by himself! I hope that guy is okay."

"If that's Andromon, then who's the seventh?" Kenta gestured at it. Ryo examined it more carefully and frowned, "Its at the bottom of a lake. If your friend Andromon got carried off by a river, that's probably where he ended up."

Rika crowned, "They can't both be Andromon. So which is it?"

"Hang on," Ryo produced a marker from his pocket and started copying the map onto his sleeve. Suddenly, the dingy state of his clothes made a lot more sense. They must've been the clothes he wore when he first arrived and they'd become worn from the years. He finished his scribbles and explained, "Okay. So this one is closer than the one under the lake. We can head there first. Then go to the other one."

"What about getting back to the others?" Rika asked. Ryo pointed at their three dots and traced their movement, "It looks like they're already going to the one under the lake anyway. We can meet them there. Now we should hurry up and go."

He put his marker away and sat up, "If we hurry, we can get to the second spot before we catch up with the others when they get to the lake. Sound good to you?"

"Does that mean more walking?" Kenta asked sheepishly. Rika rolled her eyes, "No one asked you to come."

Yamaki led the exceptionally large entourage into the Tokyo Metropolitan Building, which took longer than it should've because he had to stop security from checking every single one of them before letting them through. It also didn't help that neither the 'chosen children', the 'monster maker', and the parents of the assorted kids wouldn't stop leering at him from the back. Security must have thought he was bringing his own personal execution squad with him. Once he'd convinced the guards they were harmless, he took them upstairs to the office space set aside for them if they ever decided to cooperate. And he was sure they'd be surprised by what he already he had there waiting them.

He could hear their gasps of surprise as they made their way up the glass elevator and past the different levels of the organization. One laboratory level where they had been experimenting with the technology used to create the Juggernaut, another level where they had been containing the digimon that came through for study, several offices and barracks. Finally, the elevator came to a stop at a near empty office space complete with desks and computer terminals. On the far side of the office was a large screen being attended by the others - the ones Yamaki and his team had been able to track down. They ones they'd convinced to join them.

Naturally, Zhenyu Li recognized them all right away, "Are those who I think they are?"

"After the incident with the three digimon in downtown, it was hard to keep everything secret. You and Shibumi were the last hold outs," Yamaki explained to him, watching Zhenyu quickly meet with the rest of his old team. They were the 'Founders' or 'Monster Makers' as they preferred. The team that was responsible for the creation of the digimon. And as always, they referred to each other by their nicknames which worked for him because it would save them time on code names.

First was Babel, an African-American specializing in theoretical physics and who had a thing for wearing shades at all times. Then there was Daisy, a robotics specialist currently working at MIT to develop some kind of autonomous robot. Curly was an Indian woman working for Miscatina University in India, where she taught quantum theory. And finally, there was Dolphin, a red haired American teaching as a professor at Palo Alto University who developed an odd fascination with the occult. Once introductions were out of the way, Yamaki began to explain Project Hypnos to them, "We've been monitoring the situation since the Odaiba Incident as well as the incident at Christmas several years ago. There's a subtle pattern in our world's electromagnetic spectrum that sometimes presents itself as static if observed through a radio or a television. However, if you pass it through a machine able to read the pattern like a computer or radar, the end result is clear."

As they drew closer, it became easier to tell that the screen on the far end displayed a world map brimming with moving dots. But it wasn't their world. It was different. Miss Kamiya pointed at it, "So you've got a map that's been monitoring the Digital World from here? How?"

"A lot of our equipment was reverse engineered thanks to Mister Izumi here," Yamaki gestured at the wheel chair bound man wheeling his way to the computer, "His help, coupled with what we've learned about digimon over the last few years, means that we've been readying our defenses against them. At least, that was the plan. The explosion a few nights back was the result of a power surge in our main weapon: the Juggernaut Program."

It was hard to miss their glares - why wouldn't they be? They were just told that their government had been creating weapons and forced one of their friends to make it. Thankfully, he was spared the embarrassment of talking more when Izumi decided to explain for him. His voice was hoarse, as if he were ready to break down, "It's a worm hole. It forces open a gate between our world and the Digital World. Only the gate isn't stable. Weaker digimon forms…don't survive the trip back. It rips them apart."

Izumi's wife placed a hand on his shoulders and squeezed, "Whatever you did, you had your reasons. None of this is your fault, understand?"

"I…I'm sorry," was all he managed to get out, turning his head away from the rest of them, "But I want to make it right. I think if we put our heads together, we can figure out how to get the gate to the Digital World open. But this time, we use it to save our kids."

Zhenyu Li agreed, "There's a lot of work for us to do but we need to save our kids. It's hard to believe the Digital World started off as a simulation on a computer. This…all this is just ones and zeroes on a computer! It's a kid's game based on a college project! I haven't felt this excited in a while."

"To be fair, there's a lot of this that we don't understand," Izumi offered to the confused man, "And we've been going there since we've been kids."

"Yeah, even after all of our trips, we still don't know what exactly is going on there," Ichijouji's wife added. Yamaki sighed, adjusting his glasses to massage the bridge of his nose. If they were going to work together, there was going to be a lot of information he would have to declassify - a lot he would have to fill them in on, "Our top scientists have been studying this since we captured the first ones during the Odaiba Incident. The fog that interferes with electronics whenever digimon appear isn't just normal atmospheric moisture. It's energy from across the electromagnetic spectrum modifying free molecules in the air, bringing them together and coalescing them into proteins, carbohydrates, and fats to create a physical form for the digital creatures. However, their electromagnetic signature still allows them to interfere with electronic equipment: radios, telephone signals, internet access points, traffic lights…I'm sure you've all experienced this."

"Okay, and what does any of this have to do with finding my daughter and helping her?" Izumi's wife demanded angrily. The scientist named Dolphin spoke up, "With your expertise on the subject of the Digital World and our knowledge of its base code, we should be able to pinpoint their location in the Digital World and pull them out."

"Who are you again?" she asked, a little lost on his identity. Yamaki sighed, "We can introduce ourselves again later. Right now, we have six kids lost in another world and we're going to pull them out before things get any worse."

As he said that, Mimi's device beeped again. This time, she opened it to read, "Met another boy in the Digital World. He can help us. We're going to stick with him for a while. We'll keep you updated. Updated? Another boy? Who are they talking about?"

"You don't think there's another Tamer running around, do you?" Sora asked. The disgust and horror on their faces was impossible to miss. Yamaki had no idea what this Tamer had done to them in the past, but he had a few ideas from the few times he talked to the kid. And he was sure none of it was good. And that just made time more pressing. Time was moving faster in the other world compared to this one. They didn't have a second to lose, "I'll get some coffee going. We've got a lot of work ahead of us if we're going to pull those kids out."

"Right now, I'm giving all of you unlimited access to all the resources Hypnos has at its disposal," Yamaki added, gesturing to the many computers around them, "Whatever you need, you have a blank check."

Makuramon knelt down before his lord and master Zhuqiaomon to present the caged Calumon for him, "I apologize for the delay, m'lord. This little buggar was more trouble than he was worth. But he's here now for you to do with as you please! The Catalyst of the Ancients!"

He looked up slightly to see the large crimson bird staring down at him, expecting some reward for his service. Instead Zhuqiaomon kept his gaze fixed on Calumon, completely ignoring him, "Are you sure? It's…kinda pathetic."

Makuramon wasn't expecting that response but raised the cage up so that his lord could get a better look, "I am sure, m'lord. The humans went through great pains to make sure we didn't acquire him!"

"What great pains, exactly?" Zhuqiaomon asked.

"They left him in the care of a little girl at their home," Makuramon said, slowly realizing how absurd he must've sounded. He quickly added, "But worry not my lord! I know this is the Catalyst because I saw it for myself. Inside this weak, pathetic thing that can barely protect itself and - I am sounding insane."

Makuramon paused to clear his throat, "Anyway, the point is: this creature holds the light of digivolution inside of it! With its power, we can finally strengthen ourselves and prepare to battle the foe."

"It's just…so small. And it looks weak," Zhuqiaomon noted, looking at it more closely. The small digimon was cowering against the back of his cage fearfully now. Makuramon wanted to join the little digimon in shaking, but did his best to keep a brave face. His master may have been tough but he was fair. He would surely be willing to show mercy if there had been a mistake. Even if it had cost the lives of half the devas at this point. After a long and drawn out silence, Zhuqiaomon eventually asked, "Can it at least release the power within so we can be sure?"

"Of course," Makuramon bowed. He jabbed the digimon in the cage, shouting, "Let out your power, little one. Show it to our lord in all his splendor that we may bathe in your power!"

Calumon shook, "That doesn't sound very hygienic and I think I want to go home now."

Zhuqiaomon grunted his disapproval and Makuramon scrambled for words, "Worry not, my master! I can take care of this! Listen you! We didn't go through all this trouble just so you could hold out on us! Let out your power! NOW!"

He shook the cage more furiously, trying to get some kind of reaction out of the little creature who could only wail in terror. Lord Zhuqiaomon groaned and turned to him, "Are you sure you're okay, Makuramon? Because I doubt this creature is it!"

Makuramon became desperate, "I swear my lord! I saw it for myself! We just have to trigger it! LET OUT YOUR POWER!"

He shook the cage and slammed it against the ground, causing a trickle of light to start streaming around the cage. He breathed a sigh of relief and held it up for Zhuqiaomon to see, "All it needed was a little gentle persuasion, see? Now, let us bathe in its li…what are you doing?"

It took him a few seconds too long to notice, but Lord Zhuqiaomon noticed the lights weren't coming from the cage right away. In fact, it was dancing around the cage. And there was more than one. Calumon stopped panicking and began playfully speaking to the lights as they continued dancing around the cage. All at once, the lights came together to pull at the cage and yank it away from him. Makuramon tightened his grip, intent on keeping it close only to find himself being lifted into the air. Or rather, the cage was being lifted and he was just along for the ride. Calumon looked down at him and smiled, "Bye bye!"

"What?"

Before he got an answer, the cage jolted so hard that Makuramon's grip slipped and he fell back to the ground. Then the cage was carried off by the lights into the distance. Makuramon's eyes widened in horrible realization as he looked form the lights to Zhuqiaomon. He expected the full wrath of the sovereign upon him. Instead, he heard the mega level digimon remark, "Well, that's new. Is it supposed to do that?"

Author's Notes: Where is Calumon going? Will the digidestined and the monster makers be able to save the kids? Will the kids reunite with each other? Find out all this in the next chapter of The Tamer v2.0 on Friday, September 27th at 5 PM CDT. Let me know what you guys think in the reviews section! And hey, don't forget to favorite the story to show support and follow to stay current with all the updates! Now let's see some previews for next time:

"I think he's making fun of your fur," the Palmon said to Gabumon. The Biyomon sighed, "Guys! Focus! We're looking bad in front of the intruders!"

"Intruders?" Takato scoffed in disbelief, "THIS IS MY HOUSE!"

Palmon answered by shaking Takato in place. Juri gasped and tried pleading while Leomon drew his sword, "Put them down!"

The threat of violence put the digimon on their guard and they readied themselves to attack, "We don't listen to you! Who are you and how did you find this place?"

"I lived here!" Takato spat out. The digimon looked between each other and then at Takato, "What do you mean you lived here?"