Digimon Adventure Tamers

by DigimonAT0318

A retelling of 02 and a sequel to Tamers, set in the year 2003. The Digidestined and the Digimon Tamers, heroes of two worlds, join forces to face their greatest challenges yet. What's more, Davis has been to the Digital World before with Ryo and Ken to fight Millenniummon. Under the leadership of Tai, Davis and Takato, along with Ryo, can they prevail? Elements of tri. later on.

24. Chapter 24: Reliable Waters Flow!

Digimon Adventure Tamers

Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon

Brief note before we begin: If you go on Youtube, there's a channel called OSTDigimon, which will help you out faster in finding the music cues in the chapters.

(Play Digimon: The Biggest Dreamer: TV Size)

(Play Digimon Tamers: Avant)

Vowing to be more honest and sincere, Yolei was awarded the Digimental of Sincerity when she encountered a controlled Digitamamon, allowing Hawkmon to become Shurimon. Meanwhile, Cody's sparing of Asuramon allowed ShogunGekomon to be controlled and destroy most of his village. Though Asuramon was defeated and ShogunGekomon was freed, Cody has been left with doubt and worries, much to Millenniummon's delight…

(Play Digimon Tamers: Subtitle 2)

Reliable Waters Flow! Submarimon

"Men! Men! Dou! Kote!" Cody yelled, swinging his shinai at his grandfather. Night had fallen on Odaiba, and Cody was now in the middle of a kendo lesson with his grandfather. Normally, Cody would have been focused solely on the lesson, but everything that had happened today for him in the Digital World was still fresh in his mind. No matter how he tried, he couldn't get everybody's words out of his head.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Kuroi Inbou)

"How much more damage will be done until you realize some lives have to be taken to save others?! Your father was a police officer, so I thought you could understand that, but clearly I was wrong."

"Men!"

"Look, it's just…Cody's dad was a cop, and don't they usually kill people if there's no other choice left, and if it's to protect someone?"

"Kote!"

"Grow up and see reality, Cody!"

"If anybody dies here today, it's on you."

"He's too dangerous to be kept alive, Cody."

"Dou!"

"By sparing me, you have ensured the deaths of everybody here…as well as your own, boy."

"Remember, boy…mine are not the only hands covered in the blood of the fallen Digimon here today…"

"Kote!"

"You have to pull through, I know you can."

"The Digimon are counting on us to save them all, so we can't falter."

"Men!" Cody swung hard again for his grandfather's helmet, but Chikara sidestepped the swipe easily, causing Cody to stumble forward from his own momentum.

"Dou!" Chikara's shinai swung out and struck Cody in the chest. The young boy let out a grunt as he dropped to the ground, silently cursing himself for allowing himself to be distracted from his practice.

"That is enough. Let us end this lesson today," Chikara stated, sheathing his shinai and taking off his helmet.

"No! I can still go," Cody insisted, standing back up and getting back in position.

"I think it would be best if end the lesson Cody," Chikara said to his grandson. "I can see it in your posture and your eyes. You are unfocused, and it's affecting your performance." Cody said nothing and looked down at the floor, knowing his grandfather was telling the truth.

"All right then…" he muttered, sheathing his own shinai before removing his helmet. Chikara walked over to the side of the room, picking up a bag that he brought with him and walking back to the center of the room, sitting down near Cody.

"Come. Sit." Cody walked over and sat down next to Chikara on his knees. Chikara offered him a packet of Chu-Chu Juice, which Cody accepted and took a long drink from.

(Play Digimon Tamers: Shishunki)

"Is there something wrong, Cody?" Chikara asked after several minutes of drinking juice. "I've noticed that you've been distracted the last few days."

"I…I guess that I have been," Cody confessed. "I don't really know what to think anymore. My concern has been…well, very moral."

"Oh? Does it have something to do in the Digital World?"

"It does," Cody answered. "I've been in disagreements lately with Suzie and the others, over killing Digimon to save lives or not."

"Action versus inaction, then?" Chikara asked, receiving another nod from Cody.

"I just don't know if I can bring myself to do it," said Cody. "Even if I know that Digimon that die will be reborn, it doesn't feel right, but it's also not right to let said Digimon kill innocents. Early today…I stopped Suzie's partner from killing a Digimon that was working with Millenniummon of his own will, and Suzie wasn't happy about it, and neither were the rest of my group."

"Was this Digimon one that your friends felt had to be killed in order to save others?" Chikara inquired, taking a sip of his juice.

"He was, but…I didn't agree with them. The Digimon later returned with more Digimon, and they destroyed much of the village and killed many Digimon before they were finally killed," Cody said, looking guilty. "And I'm responsible for all of it."

"Are you?"

"That's what TK and Suzie are saying," Cody answered somberly. "That because I spared Asuramon, all the destruction he and the other Digimon that he returned with caused in the wake of it is on me. I don't know what to make of it." The young boy looked up to the elderly man, who could tell that Cody was turning to him for help on this matter.

"Maybe it is on you…and maybe it isn't," said Chikara. "Suzie is your age Cody, and though TK is older than you, he is still young, and they both have different views than you do. They do not understand where you are coming from Cody…"

"I don't think they do," said Cody. "Suzie is under the assumption that since my father was a police officer I would understand…but my father never killed anybody." Chikara said nothing after Cody spoke, only thinking about something before looking at Cody was a slight frown.

"Is that what you truly believe, Cody?"

"Yes," Cody replied, surprised slightly at his grandfather's question. "Why did you ask me that?"

"Because Cody…" Chikara paused before finishing his answer. "…your father did have to take another life to save another innocent life…one of the most innocent ever."

"What?!" Cody asked in shock. "When did this happen?"

"It was years ago," Chikara started his story. "Your mother was six months pregnant with you when it happened. There was a dangerous serial killer on the loose, and your father and everybody in the police force were looking for him. I even came out of retirement to aid the force in the search. Eventually, we managed to find the killer. In fact, your father was the one who caught and arrested him."

"But he didn't kill him, did he?"

"No, he didn't," Chikara continued. "However, the killer managed to escape from custody and he aimed to get back at your father."

"He went after Dad and attacked him?" asked Cody.

"No," Chikara said. "He went after someone else…"

---

FLASHBACK

"Step on it, Dad!" Hiroki Hida said to his father. Both men were in a police car with Chikara at the wheel. They were driving down the roads of Odaiba at fast speeds, the siren wailing loudly to warn any incoming vehicles and people.

"Just hold on Hiroki, we're almost there," Chikara said. Hiroki wore an expression of fear and worry on his face. In the middle of their search for the escaped killer, he had received a phone call from his wife at home. Fumiko sounded scared and talked fast, telling Hiroki of a madman that broke into their apartment before the line suddenly went dead. Having a feeling of dread build up in him and a sneaking suspicion, Hiroki immediately asked for a police car and was given it, his father driving so Hiroki wouldn't cause an accident in his anxious state.

"Fumiko…"

"We're here," Chikara said, pulling up to the apartment building. Hiroki didn't wait for the car to come to a complete stop. He undid his seatbelt and the door flew open, the cop bolting for the building entrance and up the stairs for his apartment, kicking the door in once he reached it.

"FUMIKO!"

(Play Digimon Tamers: Panic)

"That's far enough," a voice growled from the living room. Hiroki stopped short and his breath snagged at the sight before him. Fumiko stood right in front of him with the killer right behind her, one arm wrapped around her throat and the other hand holding a gun, the muzzle pressed right against her temple. Fumiko trembled in the man's grasp, a look of terror on her face with tears in her eyes.

"Back off, or your lady dies," the killer sneered, taking one step back and pulling Fumiko with him.

"Let her go," Hiroki said, slowly pulling his gun out and aiming it carefully at the man. "And drop the gun. You're under arrest."

"Hiroki…" Fumiko whimpered, choking slightly from the tight grip of the arm around her neck as she struggled.

"Fumiko, stop!" Hiroki called out to his wife. "Don't struggle, it will only make things worse. Don't worry, nobody has to get hurt. It's going to be okay"

"Big words, punk!" snarled the killer. "It's not going to be okay unless I say so!"

"Let her go!" Hiroki warned him again. "I'm not going to say it again!"

"The hell I will," the killer growled, moving his gun down slowly. "I'm going to take your lady from you, although…" his gun was now pointed right at Fumiko's stomach, which showed the clear signs of pregnancy in six months. "…perhaps I'll take something else from you."

"Damn it, get away from them!" Hiroki said, attempting to calm himself over seeing his unborn child being threatened. "My wife and child have nothing to do with all this. Your beef is with me, so…"

"Damn right it is," the killer said, his finger slowly pulling back on the trigger…"

"NO!" Hiroki roared, firing two shots from his gun. One bullet hit the hand holding the gun while the second bullet went into the killer's shoulder. The killer screamed in pain from the gunshots and staggered back, dropping his gun and releasing Fumiko, who immediately began running from the killer and towards Hiroki.

"Oh no you don't, bitch!" the killer yelled, grabbing his gun with his left hand and aiming it for Fumiko's stomach. Hiroki's eyes widened, realizing the killer was aiming for the baby in Fumiko's womb, and he quickly acted.

"Fumiko, watch out!" Hiroki fired his gun again. The bullet flew through the air and hit the killer right in the head as a second gunshot was fired and hit Fumiko in the shoulder.

"AGH!" Fumiko screamed in pain from the shot. Hiroki immediately dropped his gun and ran for Fumiko, throwing his arms around her and checking her wound.

"It's okay Fumiko…I've got you."

"Hiroki, my shoulder!" Fumiko cried, clutching her bleeding shoulder with her hand.

"Just hang on Fumiko, we're going to get you medical attention," Hiroki said, comforting his wife.

"What…what about the man?" Fumiko asked, looking down at the killer on the floor. The man lay flat on his back, a blank look on his face as a pool of blood grew around his head, where Hiroki's bullet struck him. The blood and the blank look meant only one thing: he was dead.

"It's okay," Hiroki continued comforting Fumiko, turning her sight away from the man's body. "He won't hurt you or the baby again."

END FLASHBACK

---

"My father killed somebody once to save me…before I was even born?" Cody asked, surprised at what his grandfather had just told him. He had never thought his father would kill somebody, but now he had just been proven wrong by one of the few people who knew Hiroki very well.

"Yes," Chikara nodded. "Your father was forced to choose which life to save…and he chose the one he felt was the more precious: the life that had yet to be born."

"But did he…did he make the right choice?" Cody asked with slight hesitation.

"Usually, there is no right or wrong in this type of decision, Cody," Chikara said. "Your father did regret killing the man slightly, as he wished to see the man be brought to justice. But he had spared him, he would not have stopped and you could have died."

"So, what you're saying is…I should make the decision to kill Millenniummon and the Digimon working for him willfully, lest they destroy the entire Digital World, and potentially the Human World," said Cody. "But how will I know if it's the right choice for me?"

"You won't unless you make it," answered his grandfather. "But sometimes Cody, you must make a decision that is right not just for yourself, but for those around you, those you care greatly about."

"Like you and Mom," Cody guessed, "as well as my friends and the Digimon."

"Yes," Chikara said with another nod. "But you do not have to make that decision now, Cody. You can only make that decision when the time is right, when your friends are counting on you to make a decision."

'When the time is right…' Those words stuck with Cody, along with the rest of his grandfather's advice, as well as the story about his father, which had left him confused about what to do now.

'What should my choice be, if I have to be the one that makes it, and will it be the right one?' Cody had that as his final thought before going to sleep.

---

The next morning it was back to the Digital World, as it was a Saturday, the children were able to perform their Digidestined duties right after breakfast. Cody found himself grouped up with Davis, Yolei, Kari, TK, Takato and Suzie, wandering on a hill near an oil rig that led to the ocean.

As Cody walked, his sight was on Suzie. The boy had not yet been able to say much to Suzie ever since the day begun, and neither has she said much to her. What exactly could he say to her right now? He did want to apologize to her and Lopmon for his actions yesterday, but would she accept it? And could he bring himself to saying that he was sorry?

"Are you sure the Digimental of Reliability is in this area, Takato?" Davis asked as the group walked down the oil rig.

"I'm positive," Takato answered. "It's inside that oil rig right in front of us."

"So who's the Digimental for anyway?" asked Yolei. "Me and Davis already have two Digimentals each. Is it for TK, Kari or Cody? You know who it's for, right?"

"We do know, but we're not going to tell you," said Suzie. "You guys have to figure it out for yourselves."

"Poop," Yolei pouted. The group walked for the bridge leading to the oil rig, but before they could set foot on the bridge, Guilmon and Lopmon suddenly stopped in their tracks, the former growling lowly and the latter's fur sticking up on end.

"Uh oh," Takato exclaimed, realizing danger was coming. "Everybody, get ready! When Guilmon gets like this, and enemy is nearby! Guilmon, where can you can Lopmon sense the enemy?"

"The enemy…" Guilmon said, turning around and looking at the sand in the distance. "They're behind us!" An instant later, the sand flew into the air and a massive figure came out of the ground, revealed to be a giant sea scorpion with a tan shell and a sharp bladed tail.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Arata na Teki)

"Ha, ha, ha! Snack time!" the scorpion laughed.

"Scorpiomon!" TK and Kari exclaimed, recognizing the Digimon instantly.

"Who?" Cody asked, getting an answer from Takato's D-Ark.

"Scorpiomon. Ultimate level Ancient Crustacean Digimon, Data attribute. His special attack is firing a shockwave from his forelimbs called Stinger Surprise."

"You know this guy?" Yolei asked TK and Kari.

"We do," said Kari. "A Scorpiomon that worked for MetalSeadramon trapped us in a beach hut four years ago. If it wasn't for Joe and Mimi, we'd be dead!"

"How nice of you to remember me!" Scorpiomon chuckled. "I've never forgotten about you either, Digidestined!"

"Wait, you're that same Scorpiomon?!" TK asked in surprise.

"Of course, I am," said Scorpiomon. "When I was reborn, Millenniummon came to me with an offer of getting back at you Digidestined. If it wasn't for your friends beating me and escaping with you, MetalSeadramon would never have dropped me to my death! But now I'm back, and I've got a better boss than that sea snake! Speaking of which…" Scorpiomon suddenly stood up on his hind legs and clicked his forelimbs together in a rhythmic pattern.

"What's he doing?" asked Yolei. Cody looked around and his eyes widened in horror when he saw water bubbling near them.

"I think he's calling for other Digimon!" Cody's suspicion was proven true moments later when a teal serpent-like Digimon burst out of the water, glaring at the Digidestined with red eyes, a Dark Spiral on his leg.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Aku no Shutsugen)

"IT'S SEADRAMON!" TK yelled in fear, remembering when Matt was nearly strangled by one on their first night in the Digital World.

"And he's not the only one!" said Scorpiomon. "Come on out, boys!" The sand around him burst into the sky as five more Digimon appeared. One was a grey crab-like Digimon with his left claw bigger than the right, the other was a green blob with yellow eyes in a pink seashell, both of them bearing Dark Rings. The other three all looked alike: blue and white Digimon with fins and gills, oxygen tanks on their backs, and harpoons in their hands. Like Scorpiomon, they lacked a Dark Ring or Spiral, indicating their willful loyalty to Millenniummon.

"Now what?!" asked Armadillomon.

"Who are these guys now?" Cody asked.

"The grey crab is Crabmon, and the green Digimon is Syakomon," said Suzie. "They're just Rookie level Digimon, so they don't pose a threat much. It's the other three that are the problem. They're Divermon, Ultimate levels like Scorpiomon."

"Any bet that they're also the same Divermon that served MetalSeadramon?" asked Patamon.

"ATTACK!" Scorpiomon said with a loud yell, and the assault began with Seadramon striking first.

"ICE BLAST!" The sharp icy barbs flew from Seadramon's open maw at the children, forcing them to scatter.

"STINGER SURPRISE!"

"STRIKING FISH!" Scorpiomon and the Divermon trio were the next to strike, the giant crustacean sending a blade of energy flying from his forelimbs and the three small Digimon throwing their harpoons.

"Takato!" Guilmon yelled to his partner, who nodded and quickly pulled out his D-Ark and a card with dragon wings.

(Play Digimon: SLASH!)

"DIGI-MODIFY! AERO WING ACTIVATE!" Guilmon took flight as soon as his new wings appeared, his first target being Seadramon, downing the sea snake with a massive headbutt, before flying for Scorpiomon.

"PYRO SPHERE!" Scorpiomon scuttled backwards to avoid the flaming projectile and quickly buried himself under the sand.

"Armadillomon, go after him!" Cody said to his partner. "DIGI-ARMOR ENERGIZE!"

"ARMADILLOMON ARMOR DIGIVOLVE TOOO…STEEL KNOWLEDGE, DIGMON!"

"Help him out, Lopmon!" Suzie grabbed a card of her own to use. "DIGI-MODIFY! IRON DRILL!" Digmon's drills appeared in place of Lopmon's paws, and the two Digimon drilled underground to go after Scorpiomon.

"VEEMON DIGIVOLVE TOOO…EXVEEMON!" Once Veemon Digivolved, he flew for the center Divermon and punched him into his other two comrades. Yolei used the Digimental of Sincerity to Armor Digivolve Hawkmon, and Shurimon was fast to force the Divermon back with the sharp edges of his shuriken, dodging the harpoons with ease and agility.

"Shurimon, do you think you can tangle them up with your vines like you did Digitamamon?!" Yolei called out to her partner.

"Unfortunately not," Shurimon said, throwing his Kusanagi at a Divermon that ducked to avoid decapitation. "I need to be on solid ground for my ability to work, and we're on sand right now!"

"SCISSORS ATTACK!" Crabmon scuttled towards Gatomon and leaped at her with his giant claw snapping, but he was foolishly attacking a Champion level Digimon, who knocked Crabmon away with her Lightning Paw.

"AIR SHOT!" Patamon's air attack soared and hit Syakomon, the slime Digimon hiding away in his shell for protection from outside attacks. Opening his shell, Syakomon fired his Black Pearl Blast, attempting to hit Patamon out of the sky, but the winged mammal dodged the attack easily.

"Kari, TK! Get to the oil rig and find the Digimental!" Davis yelled out to the bearers of Hope and Light, then turned to the inheritor of Knowledge. "Cody, go with them! The Digimental may be yours!"

"Okay!" Cody started for the oil rig with Kari and TK before stopping shortly. "Wait! I need Digmon!"

"Where is he, then?" Gatomon's question was answered a second later when a column of sand burst into the air, expelling Digmon and Lopmon with Scorpiomon coming out after them.

"STINGER SURPRISE!" Digmon and Lopmon were barely able to dodge Scorpiomon's incoming attack.

"Divermon, quit fooling around!" Scorpiomon yelled out to the wetsuit-wearing trio. "Show them what we can do!"

"Right, boss!" the Divermon chorused before taking aim with their harpoons. "STRIKING FISH!" The harpoons flew through the air and began raining down on ExVeemon and Shurimon. The Divermon were able to summon more harpoons into their hands immediately after throwing the ones they had in their hands.

"Too many harpoons – AGH!" ExVeemon began to take flight and dodge the flying projectiles, but three of the harpoons tore through his wings, making him fall to the ground.

"ExVeemon!" Shurimon yelled in worry, seeing his friend in pain. The brief distraction allowed some of the Divermon's harpoons to puncture his body, enough to hurt him but not enough to force him back to Hawkmon.

"Get out of there, you two!" Takato yelled out to ExVeemon and Shurimon, turning his sight to Guilmon, who was still airborne and attempting to hit Seadramon. The attacks were futile as Seadramon submerged in the water to protect himself from the fire attacks. "Guilmon, forget Seadramon for now! ExVeemon and Shurimon need help!"

"I see them, Takato!" Guilmon turned around in the air and flew for the Divermon, only to stop short when Scorpiomon scuttled in front of him, glaring at him with icy eyes.

"Since you seem one of the most powerful here, I'll take you out first!" Scorpiomon stood up on his front legs so Guilmon was looking right into his maw. "SCORPION STORM!" A blast of sand flew from Scorpiomon's mouth and hit Guilmon head on, sending the red dinosaur out of the air and crashing into the sand.

"Oh no, Guilmon!" Takato cried, running to his partner, who was lying still on the ground. Takato shook him awake, but Guilmon didn't respond or stir to the shaking.

"That's not good at all," TK said grimly, looking at Takato and Guilmon. "Anyone that gets hit by Scorpiomon's Scorpion Storm gets put to sleep instantly!"

"Davis, I need to Digivolve!" ExVeemon called out, continuing to dodge the harpoons with Shurimon.

"Same with me, TK!" said Patamon.

"Me too, Kari!" Gatomon pitched in, throwing Crabmon on top of Syakomon.

"Do it!" Davis, Kari and TK prepared their Digimentals, but Scorpiomon immediately took notice and quickly broke away from fighting Lopmon and Digmon.

"Not so fast, children! STINGER SURPRISE!" The shockwave hit the sand in front of Davis, Kari, TK and Yolei, knocking them off their feet.

"Ow…" Yolei moaned in pain.

"Nice try, but I'm not going to let you perform your little trick," Scorpiomon said, "especially when we have our own trick that we wish to show. Lord Millenniummon!" The crustacean looked up into the sky. "Lord Millenniummon, give my soldiers the power now!"

"Of course, Scorpiomon," Millenniummon's voice echoed throughout the area as three beams of red light descended from the sky, two striking Crabmon and Syakomon, the third one going into the ocean.

"Crap!" Davis cursed, picking himself up out of the sand with Kari's help before offering TK and Yolei help up. "Not good!" The red lights faded away, revealing Crabmon's new form of Coelamon, a gray-scaled fish with strange fins that resembled hands, and Syakomon's new form of Octomon, an orange octopus with a brown helmet and horns, one tentacle holding a sword and the other holding a gun.

"Great, now they're Digivolved!" Suzie said, helping Takato and Lopmon pull Guilmon to safety.

"And I don't think they're the only ones," Cody said gravelly, looking out at the water. "One of the beams hit the ocean, and Seadramon was in there!"

"Then that means…" Takato started, and was cut off when a massive Digimon burst out of the water. The Digimon before them was bigger and longer than Seadramon, with a red and white body and a golden helmet that bore a jagged blade in the center.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Tatakai no Toki)

"…MegaSeadramon!" Takato finished.

"THUNDER JAVELIN!" Blue lightning crackled from MegaSeadramon's bladed helmet, flying down and striking ExVeemon and Shurimon, knocking them to the ground. Both Digimon struggled to get back up, but Scorpiomon struck again with his Scorpion Storm, the attack causing both Digimon to fall into a deep sleep like Guilmon while reverting to Veemon and Hawkmon.

"SPURTING INK!" Octomon fired his gun at Patamon, thick black ink splattering on the tan Digimon. Patamon yelled as the ink stung his eyes, and his yells increased when Octomon slashed him in the side with his sword, leaving a deep cut on his side. Gatomon attempted to run to Patamon's aide, only for Coelamon to leap up and strike her with his Variable Darts, energy daggers flung from his claws.

"We need to find cover now!" TK said, running towards Patamon and carrying him away from the enemy Digimon. "There's too many of them!"

"Any ideas?!" Davis asked, picking Veemon up in his arms. Lopmon and Digmon continued firing their attacks, but even with Suzie's cards, it was difficult for the two Digimon to fight off seven Digimon, and half of them Ultimate level.

"Give me a minute, I just need to get a Blue Card!" Suzie said, reaching for her deck.

"No, we have to get to the oil rig for cover!" Cody insisted. "Not even Antylamon can fight them all off!"

"But, Cody…!"

"No buts!" Cody interrupted Suzie, running for the oil rig with Armadillomon in tow. "We need that Digimental!" Realizing Cody was right, the other children ran after him.

"I don't think so!" said Scorpiomon, watching the children run on the bridge. "MegaSeadramon, destroy the bridge!"

"MEGA ICE BLAST!" A blast of cold air flew from MegaSeadramon's mouth, covering the bridge in ice. The freezing temperatures immediately took effect as the bridge began cracking apart.

"Move it, move it, move it!" Yolei screamed, reaching for the door first and throwing it open. The Digidestined managed to enter the rig right as the bridge finished breaking apart, the pieces falling into the ocean.

"STINGER SURPRISE!"

"VARIABLE DARTS!" Scorpiomon and Coelamon's attacks soared through the sky and hit the oil tower, making it fall to the ground and block the way out of the rig.

"Now for the final part!" Scorpiomon jumped into the ocean with the other Digimon, hitting the pipeline with their attacks. Deep cuts were sliced into the pipeline, causing water to pour in and replace the air.

"It's flooding now!" Kari yelled.

"What do we do now?!" asked Yolei.

"Don't ask me!" Davis yelled.

"There has to be an emergency button to close the shutters!" said Takato. "Someone find it, quickly!"

"I've got it!" Suzie found the button and slammed her fist on it, allowing the shutters above them to extend out and stop the water from flowing in.

"We're saved!" Yolei cried happily.

"Don't celebrate just yet," Gatomon said, looking up at the shutters with a grave expression on her face. "With the shutters closed, we can't go back up."

"Then that means we're trapped," Patamon groaned in TK's arms, Octomon's ink still stinging.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Hirogaru Fuan)

"Damn it!" Davis cursed, looking out the window to see the aquatic Digimon swimming outside the pipeline. "And Scorpiomon and his goon squad are circling around outside. If we tried to escape, we wouldn't be able to fight back against them."

"And even if we could fight back, we'd probably drown," TK added. "We're really deep down here."

"Hang on, let me call for help!" Yolei quickly grabbed her D-Terminal and began to type a message, but Takato stopped her.

"No good, we won't be able to get a signal down here."

"Then that means we're truly trapped," Kari said dejectedly, sitting down against a wall and holding Gatomon close to her. "Unless…Takato, do you and Suzie have any cards that can help us fight underwater?"

"Hold on…" Takato and Suzie quickly shuffled through the cards in their decks for a few minutes before looking up.

"Sorry guys, the cards we do have are back in the human world," Suzie said, causing everybody's spirits to go down more.

"Scorpiomon and the others are still out there," Yolei said, watching MegaSeadramon swim past her sight. "I don't get it. They've got us trapped, why don't they just keep attacking the pipeline until it's completely filled up with water?"

"They know they don't need to Yolei," TK answered. "Because the shutters are closed, our air supply has been cut off. We only have a few hours of air at best before…" he didn't say anything else, but it was clear to the group what would happen soon.

"It's all my fault…" The group turned to the voice, seeing that it came from Cody. The young boy had a look of guilt on his face as he sat on the floor, his knees drawn up to his chest. "Because of me, we're all going to die."

"What are you talking about, Cody?" Armadillomon asked his partner in worry.

"I was the one who made the choice that we come in here for cover," Cody explained. "And now, because of my choice, we're all trapped, and we could very well die!"

"Don't start beating yourself up over this," Armadillomon told Cody. "Yes, you had the idea of coming in here, but the rest of us chose to follow you."

"It's still my fault!" Cody insisted. "If I hadn't suggested this –"

"We'd be dead already," said Davis, walking over to the young boy. "You did what you thought was the right choice Cody, and we won't hold it against you."

"But we're still trapped."

"Not for long," Gatomon responded to Cody's answer, his sight on a nearby red object that bore a resemblance to a submersible. "According to the sign next to this object, it is an emergency escape pod."

"We're saved then!" Davis pumped his fist in the air. "All we have to do is wait for Scorpiomon and his goons to not have their eyes on us, and we can break out of here."

"But it can only fit two people," Patamon noted, looking at the escape pod himself. Everybody except Cody ran over to check out the pod. Sure enough, the small vehicle had enough room for two humans, and possibly their Digimon if they made enough room.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Iya na Yokan)

"That's all we need to get out of here," said Takato. "Two of us can escape from here, and they can come back with reinforcements, particularly Joe and Kenta. Their Digimon are perfect for this environment."

"But who will go?" asked Kari.

"I'll go," Suzie answered quickly, "and Cody will come with me as well." She walked over to the pod and climbed into the driver's seat, Lopmon settling into her lap.

"Okay Cody, you're next," said Davis. "Get in the pod."

"Wh-why me and Suzie? Is it because we're the youngest? I won't do it."

"Cody, this isn't the time to make a fuss about this, just get in!" Suzie called. "Don't you want to fix the mistake you're blaming yourself for?"

"Cody, please!" Kari pleaded. "We're putting all of our faith in you and Suzie!"

"I won't!" Cody insisted. "You can go on without me, Suzie! I refuse to escape because of my foolishness!"

"All right, that's it!" Davis stomped over to the young boy and grabbed his right arm. "Takato, TK! Help me out here!" The two boys ran over, TK grabbing Cody's left arm and Takato picking Cody's legs off the floor.

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Power of Earth ~Iori no Theme~)

"H-hey! Guys, let me go! Let me go!" Cody's pleas were ignored as the three boys carried him to the pod and placed him into the second seat of the pod. Armadillomon leapt in seconds later and placed himself firmly on Cody's lap to prevent him from escaping. Kari pressed a button that brought down a glass door, sealing the pod.

"Remember, get Joe and Kenta!" Kari advised.

"Guys, please! Let me out of here!" Cody pounded on the pod's cockpit, but to no avail. The chamber began filling up with water. "Why are you doing this to me?!"

"Because they believe in you Cody," Suzie answered, starting up the pod.

"Wait for it…" Yolei looked out the window intently before turning her gaze to the others. "Now! None of them are looking!"

"Launch!" Takato pressed another button and the pod shot out of the pipeline and into the ocean.

"Let's hurry!" Suzie took hold of the steering wheel and turned the craft to head straight for the surface. Fast as they moved, they were still spotted.

"Hey, we've got some escapees!" A Divermon saw the pod, and readied his harpoon. "STRIKING…!"

"Hold your fire!" Scorpiomon barked, swimming up to the Divermon. "Let them go."

"Sir?" asked the confused Divermon.

"Lord Millenniummon's orders are clear," said Scorpiomon. "He said that if a red escape pod is launched, we are to let them go."

"But why?" asked a second Divermon.

"I'm not sure myself, but I didn't bother asking," said Scorpiomon. "Lord Millenniummon's orders are never to be questioned. Whatever his intention is, it must mean something for him…"

---

"Finally!" Suzie breathed, climbing out of the pod once it reached land. Lopmon, Cody and Armadillomon followed out after her. "We'll have to split up once we get back Cody. You get Joe, and I'll go find Kenta."

"Why?" Cody asked, standing still near the pod. "Why did they send me with you? We're in this situation because of me, Suzie! Our friends are dying slowly because of the choice I made! I shouldn't be doing this!"

"You're absolutely right, Cody." The young boy stiffened at the sound of the dark voice and turned slowly, gasping at who he saw before him. Standing before him appeared to be Ken Ichijouji in appearance, but he knew who it really was.

(Play Digimon Tamers: Digital Field)

"Millenniummon!" Suzie gasped. The girl reached for her D-Ark, but Millenniummon's hand shot up fast, dark energy flying out of it and hitting Suzie, Lopmon and Armadillomon. The three fell to the ground, the black energy binding them.

"What is this?!" Suzie strained her arms to break the energy bindings, but it was futile. Lopmon and Armadillomon's respective struggles were met with no avail as well.

"A little something to keep you out of my hair for a while," Millenniummon answered, walking towards Cody.

"Stay away from me!" Cody warned Millenniummon, backing away as he searched for something to use against the advancing Digimon, but he found nothing of use.

"Come now Cody, I just wish to talk with you."

"I'm not interested," Cody said defiantly. "Yolei told me about her encounter with you!"

"Ah, so she did," Millenniummon chuckled. "I have to admit, Yolei was quite impressive to not let our encounter shake her much at all. But I highly doubt the same will be said for you."

"Cody, run for it!" Suzie said, pulling herself up as best she could with her arms bound. "Get back to the Digital Gate!"

"Be silent!" Another wave of Millenniummon's hand, and more black energy wrapped around Suzie from her mouth to her ankles, trapping her like a mummy. "Wait your turn Suzie." Suzie could only growl in annoyance, falling on her side.

"I've always been interested by you Cody, especially your motivations," Millenniummon said, looking down at the young boy. "I'm curious why you always insist on trying to spare my Digimon minions' lives so they can see 'justice' instead of taking their lives."

"Because it's the right thing to do!" Cody answered. "Why should a bunch of kids like myself and Suzie decide if a Digimon lives or dies? Your Digimon minions are evil and they need to answer for their crimes! And the same goes for you Millenniummon! If you're smart you'll give yourself up right now! You've lost before, and you'll lose again!"

"Foolish boy," Millenniummon laughed. "I will not lose this time around, and even if I do, I'll find a way to return. I always survive. Do you honestly think you can defeat me by handcuffing me and having a court of law judge me guilty, throwing me in a jail cell?"

"It's what my father would do," Cody said quietly to himself, though from Millenniummon's continued chuckling, it was obvious he had been overheard.

"Ah yes…your father, the policeman," Millenniummon mused. "It's sad what happened to him. You miss him, don't you?"

"What?" Cody asked in surprise.

"Your father," Millenniummon looked at Cody. "It's clear that you miss him, do you not?"

"Yes," Cody answered, his head down. "Very much."

"I'm curious Cody," Millenniummon said, looking out at the ocean. "Do you think defeating me will help you be at peace with your father's death? Because I can tell you that you're wrong in that assumption."

"What are you talking about?" Cody asked, his head snapping back up.

"Oh, you know what I'm talking about," Millenniummon smirked as he approached Cody slowly. "Let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we?" Cody attempted to get away, but more of Millenniummon's dark energy sprung forth from the ground and lashed around his ankles, immobilizing him.

"Now then, shall we stroll down memory lane?" Millenniummon placed his hand on Cody's head, and everything went dark for Cody. The young boy found himself in a dark void for several moments before it finally turned into a busy area of Japan filled with people.

"Where…where am I?" Cody looked around and stopped suddenly when he saw a hotel near him. A hotel that looked very familiar to him…

"Tell me Cody," a voice from behind him said, "does this place remind you of something?" Cody turned and gasped when he saw Millenniummon standing before him.

"What did you do to me?!" Cody demanded. "Where are we?"

"We're in the past," Millenniummon answered, "specifically…March of 1999." Cody froze at the words, his eyes widening. Millenniummon smiled evilly as he looked at the young boy. "Ah, you are being reminded."

"Why are you doing this?" Cody breathed.

"You'll find out," Millenniummon answered, looking at the hotel entrance. "Ah…look who's here on time." Cody looked to where Millenniummon was watching, and he felt his breathing hitch. At the entrance of the hotel were several men, one of them wearing a black business suit and the others all dressed in police officer outfits. Cody's eyes laid on one man in particular who was at the front of the group.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Hashiru Senritsu)

"Dad…" he breathed, watching his father and the other officers tend to the man. The inheritor of Knowledge could barely restrain himself as he ran towards the group. "Dad! It's me, Cody!" Cody ran in to hug his father, only to gasp as he ran right past Hiroki and the other men.

"What?!" he gasped and looked down at himself. "What was that?"

"These are memories of the past," Millenniummon answered, appearing next to Cody. "You cannot manipulate the events before you, or modify the outcome. What we shall see is how it happened."

"No…no!" Cody gasped, looking at the scene before him. Hiroki and the other cops were escorting the politician to his car when Hiroki saw something up high flash in the sunlight, and he looked up. Cody looked up as well, gasping when he saw a man in the distance with a gun aimed at the men.

"Oh, no!" Hiroki gasped, catching the attention of the other men.

"Hiroki, what is it?" asked one of the officers.

"SNIPER!" Hiroki yelled as a shot was fired and hit the politician in the shoulder.

"Sir, are you all right?!" one of the officers asked the politician, who held his bleeding shoulder.

"I'm not. Get me out of here, fast!" the politician said as Hiroki saw the sniper preparing to shoot again.

"Watch out!" he yelled, running for the man.

"Dad, no!" Cody yelled, but it was futile as he watched his father continue running.

"Say goodbye to Daddy, Cody," Millenniummon chuckled.

BLAM!

"Hiroki!" the first officer yelled in shock, seeing his fellow cop fall to the ground, a bloodstain on his shirt growing fast.

"Hida's down!" the second officer ran to Hiroki and picked his head off the ground. "Where's that damn sniper?!"

"Up…there…" Hiroki gasped, pointing up to the building he saw the man shoot from.

"All units, we have a sniper in our area, shots fired!" the third officer barked into his radio, pulling the politician back into the hotel for medical attention. "The candidate is hurt, and one of our men has been shot! We need immediate medical attention!"

"Hiroki, hang on man, we're going to get a doctor for you," the second officer assured Hiroki.

"Don't worry…about…me," Hiroki gasped, a trickle of blood coming out of his mouth. "Make sure he's safe…and get that sniper for me. Bring him to justice…" Hiroki's breathing began coming out much faster and more shallow as he began losing consciousness.

"Dad…no…" Cody whispered, shaking terribly at the scene before him. He felt his eyes water, but he didn't bother wiping them away. Another dark chuckle caused Cody to glare angrily at Millenniummon, who seemed to be taking a pleasure in watching Cody's misery.

"Stop this! Why are you doing this to me?! What is the point of all of this, if there is a point to this at all!"

"There is a point," said Millenniummon. "Tell me Cody, do you know what happened after your father died? What became of the sniper?"

"They searched for six months," Cody answered bitterly. "The sniper had committed suicide once they found him, he had been dead for two of those months. The police found evidence that exposed a corrupt politician who wanted the man my father protected dead. He was the one who hired the sniper. He was arrested…"

"But it didn't give you the satisfaction of seeing justice being done for your father, did it?" Millenniummon asked. "Though the mastermind of the assassination attempt was arrested, the sniper never was, and it left you unhappy that your father never got the justice you wanted for him?"

"N-no," Cody found himself saying.

"And thus we learn your reason," Millenniummon said. "You think bringing me in will be the same, will it?"

"Y…yes."

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Shizuka na Fuan)

"Your quest is pointless Cody," Millenniummon sneered at the boy. "Even if you do lock me away I'll continue escaping until you have to destroy me. But you don't have the strength to make that choice, do you?" Cody could not say anything else, prompting Millenniummon continue on. "That's what I thought. You'll never be relied on by anybody Cody, because for all your talk of doing good and bringing people to justice, you're just a naïve little boy constantly crying for Daddy. You make me laugh, because you look absolutely pathetic!" Millenniummon laughed loudly, and Cody gasped as he felt himself being pulled out of the vision of the city, and he found himself back in the Digital World, lying on the ground with Millenniummon standing over him, and Suzie, Armadillomon and Lopmon still struggling in their energy bonds.

"And I think my work here is done." Millenniummon vanished into a portal, the energy bonds disappearing from Suzie and the Digimon once he was gone.

"Cody, what happened?" Armadillomon asked, running over to his partner. "You and Millenniummon were sitting there for several minutes. What did he do to you?" There was no answer. Cody simply sat on his knees, looking shell-shocked.

"Cody, what's wrong?" asked Lopmon. Still no answer.

"Cody come on, say something!" Suzie yelled, and Cody answered.

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Seijaku)

"Millenniummon was right," Cody said softly. "All of my choices, my insistence on sparing the Digimon…all because I wanted to try and make peace with my father's death."

"Cody…" Armadillomon said sadly.

"How can I do this, Armadillomon?" Cody asked. "How can I make the hard decisions like the others and my father? How can I be someone to be relied on if I'm unable to make these choices?" Suzie looked at Cody with a look of pity and sadness before sighing.

"I wish I could say something to make you better Cody, but I have nothing," she said. "All I can say right now is that I'm really sorry about what I said to you yesterday about your father, but we have to get back to Odaiba now and get Joe and Kenta. Time is short for our friends."

"Come on Cody, don't be so down right now," said Armadillomon. "They need us!"

"R-right!" Cody took in a deep breath and began heading for the Digital Gate with the others, but in his head, he was still doubting himself.

---

Bang…bang…bang…bang…

"Oh, for god's sake!" Yolei groaned. "Davis, could you please stop hitting your head on the railing? It's annoying, and it's likely to give you a headache!"

"Well, I'm not doing it because I feel like doing it!" Davis said, looking up at her. "Just like with you and your foot-tapping!"

"Well, excuse me!"

"Stop this!" Takato interrupted the arguing. "I know being trapped in this oil rig isn't doing good things for us, but we can't be bickering with each other right now!"

It had been nearly a half-hour since Cody and Suzie had been sent up to the surface to get help, and in the time that had passed, Guilmon, Hawkmon and Veemon had finally woken up from Scorpiomon's attack, and TK was able to tend to Patamon's injuries. Unfortunately, the children had little to nothing much to do while they waited.

"You're right Takato," Davis sighed.

"We're sorry," said Yolei.

"In the meantime, maybe we can play a game," Takato pulled out his Digimon cards. "I have a few cards that we can use to play…"

"How can you think of playing games in a situation like this?" Hawkmon questioned Takato's idea.

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Sorosoro Yuuhan da ne)

"Because it's definitely better than worrying about dying right now," said Takato. "Besides, I believe in Cody and Suzie bringing back help. Just like I believe in Joe and Kenta getting us out of here."

"I believe in them too, but we do have a bit of a time limit," said Yolei.

"If they don't hurry back, we'll run out of air," said Kari. "Or worse, if Scorpiomon and the others get bored of waiting for our air supply to run out, they'll attack us again, and we'll drown in the flooding!"

'Drowning…' Takato thought suddenly, looking out the window to see the ocean outside as an idea came to him. It worked before when he first came to this world, so could it work again? And was it worth trying out before more help arrived?

"Hey guys, where are TK and Patamon?" Veemon asked suddenly, looking around the room. "And where's Guilmon?"

"Guilmon?" Takato looked around and saw his partner wasn't with them, nor were TK and Patamon. "Guilmon, where are you?"

"They couldn't have gotten far," said Gatomon. "There's not many places to go to right now in the oil rig." The sound of something clanging on something else from down below began filling everybody's ears, making Veemon look down at a lower level of the rig.

"Guys, I found them! It looks like they're digging for something!" Going down the stairs, the group saw TK striking the floor with a pickaxe in his hands. Guilmon was with him, using his Rock Breaker to break open the ground.

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Happy Friends ~Takeru no Theme~)

"TK, what are you and Guilmon doing?" asked Kari.

"We're trying to find the Digimental," Patamon answered, sitting on TK's hat. "TK thinks it's buried somewhere here."

"Is this really the right time to find the Digimental?" Yolei looked confused.

"Maybe not," TK continued striking the ground, "but it's better than just sitting around and waiting for Cody and Suzie to get back. Besides, if the Digimental is down here, and it's meant for either Kari or me, it could help us out a bit."

"TK's right," Davis ran over to a closet and found another pickaxe. "Everybody, grab a tool and start digging!"

"Right!" As Kari, Yolei and their partners went over with Veemon to get digging tools, Takato pulled Guilmon away from the group.

"Guilmon I need you to come with me," the goggled boy led his partner to the other side of the room.

"Are we going to look for the Digimental over here, Takato?"

"No, I'm pretty sure the Digimental of Reliability is over there," Takato gestured to where the Digidestined were digging. "I want to test something out. If it works, then maybe we can help out once our backup arrives."

"Okay, so what do you want me to do?" asked Guilmon.

"I want you to dig a hole big enough and deep enough for someone to swim in, and then we fill it up with water," Takato explained to Guilmon. "Can you do that?"

"Okay!" Guilmon slammed his claws into the ground and he began digging away, Takato using a card to give Guilmon extra speed in digging.

---

Cody and Suzie yelled out as they landed in the warehouse through the Digital Gate, looking up to see nobody else in with them.

"All right. Joe's probably at medical school right now. Cody, you get him. I'll go and find Kenta."

"School?" Cody voiced. "What school?"

"The Shinagawa cram school!" Suzie answered, running out of the warehouse, Cody following after her.

"Wait! What if I can't get Joe to leave his classes? What if they won't allow it?"

"Just tell them that a family emergency has come up and that Joe is needed."

"What?!" Cody yelled in indignation. "But Suzie, I can't just lie!"

"You won't be, trust me!" Suzie continued running. "Now hurry, there's not much time left!"

"We're counting on you Cody!" Lopmon called out before Suzie was far out of hearing distance. Cody simply looked at the direction Suzie ran off to in disbelief at what Suzie had just told him to do.

"Cody? Hey, Cody!" Armadillomon yelled. "Are we going or what?"

"Oh, right!" Cody quickly picked up Armadillomon and ran for the school Suzie told him to go to, though it was difficult owing to Armadillomon's weight. Finally, he made it to the right place and went in while Armadillomon hid outside in the bushes.

"Joe Kido, you say?" the school receptionist replied to Cody's request, looking through a clipboard. "Sorry son, but I'm afraid he's taking a test right now, and we have a policy not allowing anybody to be called out of a test."

"What?" a shocked Cody asked. "But…but you don't understand! I need Joe immediately! I'm being depended on to get him!"

"Is there some kind of emergency?" asked the receptionist. "If it's some kind of emergency that involves a family member in an accident, then that would be a different story and he would be allowed to leave early."

"Well…" Cody hesitated, wondering what to say. He never wanted to lie, as it was always a bad choice, but if he did nothing, then Davis and the others would perish.

"Son?" the receptionist asked. "Is something wrong?" In that moment, Cody finally acted.

"It is a family emergency! A couple of his relatives nearly drowned!"

"I see," said the receptionist, nodding in understanding. "Give me a moment to call him up."

---

Minutes later, Joe was bolting down the street with Cody and Armadillomon, Gomamon riding in his bag. The minute Cody explained the situation to him, the bearer of Reliability immediately ran out of the school.

"Man, this is just great!" Joe groaned, pulling out his cell phone and pressing some numbers. "At least I can retake the test tomorrow…"

"I'm really sorry Joe!" Cody panted from running. "If there's any way I can make it up…"

"Don't worry about it Cody," Joe replied. "You did what you had to."

"But…" Cody started, before seeing Joe with his phone. "Joe, what are you doing?"

"Calling Izzy," Joe held up the phone to his ear. "Kenta may be coming to help us, but if we're fighting Scorpiomon and MegaSeadramon, then we'll need as much help as we can get."

"But your partner and Kenta's partner are the only Digimon that can work well underwater without cards, right?"

"Yes, but we also have Digimon friends that can fit that criteria, one in particular," Joe said, finally getting an answer on his phone.

"Hello? Joe?" Izzy's voice asked through the phone.

"Izzy, Davis and his team are in trouble underwater. I need you to call an old friend of ours."

"What friend?"

---

CRACK!

(Play Digimon Adventure: Kanshou)

With one swing from Davis's pickaxe, a small rock formation broke away in the crater the Digidestined had created from several minutes of digging in the floor, revealing a purple and white object that looked like a bottle. A symbol resembling a cross with four triangles branded on the purple side of the object was seen by everyone.

"The Digimental of Reliability," Yolei breathed.

"Now let's see whose it is." Kari walked up to the Digimental and attempted to lift it. "No dice!"

"Is it mine, then?" TK tried to lift it as well, but was met with no success. Davis and Yolei also tried as well just in case, but were met with equal disappointment.

"So this is Cody's Digimental," said Gatomon.

"Which means all we can do now is wait," Davis said, wiping some sweat off his brow. "Hopefully Cody and Suzie have managed to get Joe and…Kenta." The burgundy-haired boy looked up to see Takato and Guilmon in a corner of the room, and judging from Guilmon digging into the ground, it seemed like they were searching for the Digimental themselves.

"Hey Takato, Guilmon!" he called out. "We already found the Digimental, you don't have to keep digging anymore!"

"We're not digging for the Digimental," Takato called back.

"What are you doing over there, then?" asked TK.

"Testing a theory," Takato answered shortly before turning back to the hole. "All right Guilmon, I think that's deep enough." Guilmon nodded and climbed out of the hole he dug, which was eight feet deep.

"Takato, what are you planning?"

"Hang on," Takato replied to Davis, feeling a spot on the wall. "All right Guilmon, right here."

"ROCK BREAKER!" Guilmon's claws slammed into the wall, creating a hole that caused some of the water to come into the rig and fill up the hole.

"Takato, what are you doing?!" Kari gasped, shocked at Guilmon's actions.

"Are you trying to kill us faster?!" asked Yolei.

"Relax guys, I'm not flooding the entire place, just the hole," Takato gestured to the hole, almost full with water.

"For what purpose?" Gatomon inquired.

"Hang on." Once he determined the hole was full enough, Takato swiped a card that gave Guilmon Frigimon's Subzero Ice Punch attack, allowing the red Digimon to freeze the hole shut. "Like I said before, I want to test a theory, and if it works, then it might help us out a lot."

"What theory?" asked Veemon.

"You'll see," Takato said, walking over to the hole and climbing down into it. "Watch!" The goggled boy submerged himself fully into the hole, leaving everybody but Guilmon confused.

"Okay, what's going on?" Davis asked with a bewildered look.

"I don't know, but I guess all we can do right now is watch and wait for Takato," TK replied, and everybody sat down on the floor, waiting for Takato to emerge from the hole again.

---

"I came as soon as Suzie told me!" Kenta said, running into the warehouse to meet up with Joe and Cody, Betamon resting in his arms. "Are we going now?"

"Yes, now that you're here," said Joe, bringing up the Digital Gate. Suzie ran into the warehouse with Lopmon, closing the door behind her.

"All right, I just need to punch in some new coordinates that Izzy gave me," said Joe. "We're meeting up with an old Digidestined ally that can help us out here, and…there we go!" The bespectacled boy looked up from the computer. "Everything's ready to go. Cody, do you want to open the gate?" He received no answer. "Cody?" Joe looked up to see Cody sitting in a chair nearby, his eyes pointing down to the floor.

"Cody, what is it?" asked Kenta.

"You guys can go ahead aleady," Cody said in a soft voice. "I-I can't go."

"What?!" gasped everybody.

"Don't be ridiculous Cody, you can't stay here!" insisted Joe. "Everybody's counting on us to save them."

"No Joe," Cody answered. "They're counting on you. You're the one with the Crest of Reliability."

"Yeah, I do have that trait, but it's not always just me," Joe countered. "They're counting on you to be there with the help you've brought."

"That's not what Millenniummon says," Cody replied, surprising Joe and Kenta.

"Millenniummon?! What are you saying, Cody?"

(Play Digimon Tamers: Omoi ~The Biggest Dreamer~)

"Millenniummon came to me once I escaped the oil rig with Suzie, and he showed me the day my father dies, while mocking me and telling me how I was unreliable, not thinking of everybody and just my desire to be at peace with my father, and always making the wrong choices. And he was right!" Cody breathed heavily, feeling his eyes watering and stinging slightly. "Because I spared Ninjamon, many Digimon died yesterday. I was the one who made the decision for our group to hide in the oil rig, but it only caused us to get trapped! And now Davis and the others are going to die because of me. I'm not a Digidestined that can be counted on at all. I'm just a kid. A stupid little kid!" The dam finally burst and the tears began going down hard on his cheeks. The others could only watch Cody with expressions of sadness and pity.

"Cody." The young boy's crying slowed down as he felt someone's hands on his shoulders. Judging from the sound of the voice, the hands belonged to Joe.

"You may still be a kid, but you're certainly not stupid," the older boy reassured him. "You just have a lot to learn."

"W-what?"

"Yeah, you did make some bad choices," Kenta said, walking forward. "But it's not too late to make up for your mistakes and do better."

"But how can I do that?" Cody asked, wiping his tears away.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Tomodachi ~Tatakai no Theme~)

"Well, you should really stop trying to put all the responsibility on yourself for starters," Joe said. "I can see what you're trying to do Cody, but it won't work. Being the oldest, I thought at first that I had to have all that on myself, and Sora tried as well, but the thing is we're all in this together, and we each have our own responsibility to the team."

"But…the choice I made today, the oil rig…"

"Cody, we didn't go in that rig because of your choice," said Suzie. "You didn't make us go in with you, we decided to follow you ourselves."

"But why did you do that?"

"Because we made the choice to go after you," said Lopmon. "We weren't going to let you go in there alone."

"Yeah!" said Kenta. "You didn't force them Cody."

"And you made the right choice coming for me," said Joe. "You could have chosen to not come after you met Millenniummon, but you chose to still come back and get me. You didn't give up on yourself."

"Y-yeah, I did," said Cody. "And…and that means the others aren't giving up on me?"

"No, they aren't," Kenta reassured the boy. "They know you'll be back Cody." The inheritor of Knowledge was quiet and let the words simmer, realizing they were right. Even after Millenniummon's mental torture of him, he was still able to muster enough to return and find Joe, believing he could find him in time.

"I…I guess you're right," said Cody. "But what about my other choices, everything I've done up to now?"

"From what you've told us, you've been making these choices based on your past and your father's death," said Lopmon. "But you shouldn't let that rule your life entirely Cody, nor should you let it influence your decisions."

"Sometime you just have to act on instinct," said Kenta, "and decide what's best not just for you, but for the team."

"But I still lied," Cody said sadly. "I said that there was a family emergency that required Joe, but there wasn't."

"Technically Cody…you weren't lying," Joe said, much to Cody's surprise.

"Huh?!"

"As Digidestined and Tamers, we're not just friends," said Kenta. "We're family. We leave no one behind."

"So you were telling the truth when you said it was a family emergency," said Joe. "The only question is, what's your choice? Come back with us and help the family that's relying on you, or stay here?" Cody thought long and hard before the answer finally came to him.

"I'm coming. I can't leave them behind now, especially when I have people counting on me! It's time I showed my own reliability!" Cody walked over to the computer and held up his D-3. Moments later, the group found themselves on a hill near the ocean.

"Wait, where are we?" Armadillomon asked, looking around. "I don't see the oil rig!"

"That's because if we headed to the oil rig right away, we'd be raising the alarm," said Joe. "Izzy sent us here so we could get a better drop on Scorpiomon, as well as meet up with an old friend."

"What old friend?" Cody's question was answered almost immediately when a massive whale Digimon emerged from the water and next to the team.

(Play Digimon Adventure 02: Tanomoshii Nakamatachi)

"Hey, Whamon!" Joe called out to the Digimon, waving with a big smile on his face. "It's great to see you again!"

"It's great to see you as well Joe, Gomamon," Whamon said to the duo of Reliability.

"Hey, you look smaller since we last saw you," Gomamon noted, looking over Whamon. "Did you lose weight?"

"Sort of," Whamon answered with a slight chuckle at Gomamon's joke. "When I died helping you fight MetalSeadramon, I was in my Ultimate form. After being reborn, I've been in my Champion level since then."

"But you'll still be big enough to help us out, right?" asked Joe.

"Yes," Whamon answered. "Izzy told me about your troubles, and I'll be more than happy to help out. By the way, who are the others with you? I don't think I've ever seen them before."

"They're new friends," Joe introduced the three kids with him. "This is Cody, one of the new Digidestined. And Suzie and Kenta here are part of their own group called the Digimon Tamers."

"Well, any friends of the Digidestined's are friends of mine!" Whamon said happily.

"H-hi there," Kenta walked up to the edge of the hill so he could be closer to Whamon. "I'm Kenta, and my partner Betamon here," he gestured to the green amphibian Digimon, "can also Digivolve into a Whamon as well!"

"Really?" Whamon asked with interest. "That doesn't sound much surprising, considering what type he is. Champion or Ultimate?"

"Oh, he Digivolves to the Ultimate variation," Kenta answered. "And I think that could help us out here."

"How so?" Cody asked.

"Well, let me explain, and let me make it quick. We've already wasted enough time."

---

Back at the oil rig, the Digidestined and Guilmon continued sitting in front of the water hole, waiting for Takato to emerge.

"Uh, guys…" Yolei said nervously. "How long has Takato been in that hole again?"

"Ten minutes," TK answered with a frown. "Something's not right here. There's no way Takato can hold his breath for that long."

"Should we do something?" Hawkmon inquired.

"Just hang on!" Guilmon said, looking at the hole closely. "I think I can see Takato coming back!"

Sure enough, Takato's head broke the surface and he climbed out of the hole, looking relatively none the worse for wear.

"Takato, are you all right?!" Kari ran over with Davis and Gatomon.

"I'm fine," Takato said with a small laugh. "In fact, I'm more than fine! Feel my hair!"

"What?!" Davis asked, surprised at Takato's request.

"Feel my hair," Takao repeated and bent his head down. "Do it, come on!" Davis did as Takato asked, and to his great surprise, the mane of brown hair before him was not damp in the slightest, but…

"Dry!" Davis exclaimed. "His hair is dry!"

(Play Digimon Tamers: Yukikau Hitobito)

"And so are his clothes!" Kari said, touching Takato's sweatshirt.

"What? There's no way that's possible." Yolei and TK walked over to feel, and to their great surprise, Takato was dry as a bone. "Then again…"

"Takato, how are you dry?" TK asked, equally astonished.

"It's something I learned with Henry in our Digital World," Takato explained. "You see, water in the Digital World isn't real. Since we're in the water, we think we'll get wet, but if we dive in without thinking about drowning…"

"Woah, woah, woah! Hold on a minute!" said Davis. "Are you saying that if we think that we can breathe underwater in the Digital World, then it will happen?" Takato nodded.

"Then why the hell didn't you tell us this from the beginning?!" Yolei yelled, annoyed that they were stuck down here when they could have gotten out at any time.

"A couple of reasons," Takato said, holding up his fingers so he could count. "One: Our Digimon were hurt badly from the fight, so if we tried to get out right away, Scorpiomon and his forces would kill us with no problem. And two, there are differences between your Digital World and our Digital World, so there was no telling if it would work here."

"But now we know that it does," said Gatomon. "So, will we be able to get out of here now?"

"Not yet," Takato gestured to the object behind them. "We still need Cody to pull out the Digimetal of Reliability."

"Where is Cody anyway?" Yolei said, looking out the viewport. "I don't see…wait!"

"What is it, Yolei?" asked Hawkmon.

"I hope I'm not seeing things but…I think Zudomon and Whamon are coming!"

"Let me see!" Kari ran over and saw to her delight, Zudomon swimming towards them with Whamon behind him. "It is them!"

"Sorry to keep you wai-!" Zudomon was suddenly cut off when a blast of energy hit him in the side, knocking him to the ground. Groaning and standing back up on the ocean floor, Zudomon glared at his attacker.

(Play Digimon Adventure: Shuugeki! Soshite…)

"Ready for round two, Zudomon?" Scorpimono cackled, landing in front of his old rival.

"Anytime, clam head!" Zudomon charged forward with a yell and swung his hammer down, only for Scorpiomon to dodge the attack. Whamon swam down to aid his friend but was swatted away by MegaSeadramon, aided by the Divermon.

"THUNDER JAVELIN!" Whamon rolled to dodge the attack before delivering his own.

"JET ARROW!" The jet stream hit MegaSeadramon, but it had no affect on him and the Divermon threw their harpoons at him. Fortunately for Whamon, the projectiles barely hurt him and he swatted the trio away with his massive tail.

"Come on guys! You got this!" Davis called out to the two Digimon. Zudomon threw his hammer at Scorpimon at it hit a rock instead. Scorpiomon counterattacked quickly with his Stinger Surprise, hitting Zudomon in the chest.

"Zudomon!" TK and Patamon called out before the oil rig began shaking, and to the shock of the group, the wall began cracking apart, water pouring in.

"Get back, get back!" Takato pushed the others away from the wall, knowing what would happen next. In the next moment, the wall broke apart completely and to everybody's surprise Whamon burst into the room.

"Whamon?!" Veemon asked in surprise. "How did you get past MegaSeadramon?" His question was answered when the whale Digimon opened his mouth, revealing Joe, Cody, Armadillomon, Suzie and Lopmon.

"The Whamon out there is Kenta's partner," Joe explained. "This Whamon is an old friend."

"Kari, TK," Whamon greeted the two kids he was most familiar with. "It is good to see you again. You're looking very well."

"You too, Whamon," TK replied. "If that's Kenta's partner out there, then where's Kenta?"

"He's inside his partner," said Cody. "Kenta had the idea that since his partner could become a Whamon as well, he and Zudomon would fight Scorpiomon's forces…"

"…allowing us to sneak in undetected and pick you guys up!" said Joe. "Now hurry and get inside-!"

"ARGH!" Whamon suddenly yelled out in pain.

"Whamon, what's wrong?!" asked Lopmon.

"Somebody's attacking me from behind!" Gatomon quickly ran over to the viewport, looking out of it to see Octomon stabbing Whamon in the back with his sword, and Coelamon biting on his tail.

"I forgot about those two!" she said. "Someone has to take care of them!"

"Right," Davis nodded. "Cody, get down here! We found the Digimental, and we think it's yours!"

"Mine?" Cody sounded surprised.

"Yes, yours!" called out Veemon. "Now get down here!"

"Well, okay then," Cody said, reluctantly climbing out of Whamon and Armadillomon and Joe. Whamon moved his tail up and down in an attempt to shake off Octomon and Coelamon, but the two Digimon were persistent in attacking him.

"Is this truly my Digimental?" Cody asked, looking down at the crater the item lay in.

"It is yours Cody, and you deserve it," said Joe. "Even after everything Millenniummon had done to you, and your past choices, you were able to pull through and help out everybody here when they needed you, and you believed you could do it as well. That's what it means to be reliable.

"Joe…" Cody sounded touched at the older boy's words before his face dropped down into an expression of determination. "All right then…here it goes!"

Taking a deep breath, Cody placed his hands on the Digimental and pulled. A second later and the object popped out of the hole and rested in his hands, suddenly glowing a soft purple light.

(Play Digimon: Break Up!)

"Cody!" The young boy looked over to Armadillomon upon hearing his partner call out to him. The duo locked eyes for a moment and nodded to each other, knowing what was to happen.

"DIGI-ARMOR ENERGIZE!" Cody's yell echoed through the oil rig and the Digimental's glowing light grew brighter, floating out of his hands and merging with Armadillomon, who was bathed in the purple light.

"ARMADILLOMON ARMOR DIGIVOLVE TOOO…!" The light faded and standing in Armadillomon's place was a white Digimon with a long spiked nose similar to a swordfish. White fins and two small legs propped him up, and a glass dome rested on top of him.

"…WHIRLING RELIABILITY, SUBMARIMON!"

"Wow, Reliability is definitely something!" Davis said in awe.

"Is he a swordfish?" asked Yolei. Takato answered with his D-Arc.

"Submarimon. Armor level Aquatic type Digimon, Vaccine attribute. Shaped like a submarine, he's said to be one of the fastest Digimon underwater. His special attacks are Oxygen Torpedo and Submarine Attack."

"Cody, get in!" SUbmarimon said, the glass dome sliding back to reveal a flat surface for someone to lie on, with two handles in front. Getting the message, Cody ran over and climbed into his partner, lying on his stomach and taking the handles in hand.

"Everybody, get into Whamon!" Cody looked to his friends. "Submarimon and I will divert their attention to us!"

"Let's do what he says guys!" Davis said, leading everybody into Whamon. However, Takato and Suzie ran over to Submarimon, jumping on his left side with Guilmon and Lopmon jumping on his right side.

"What the – guys, what are you doing?!" Cody asked, taken aback at what they were doing.

"Just go!" said Takato. "Trust me on this, Cody." Cody looked hesitant, but seeing the sincerity in Takato's eyes, Cody nodded and pushed the handles forward.

"Let's move on out!" Submarimon charged forward, tearing through the pipeline walls and into the water, where Zudomon and Kenta's Whamon continued having difficulty fighting Scorpiomon, MegaSeadramon and the Divermon.

"Guilmon and I are going to help Kenta!" Takato declared, Cody looking surprised that Takato was able to talk underwater. "Once you take care of Octomon and Coelamon, help Zudomon!"

"Good luck," Suzie nodded, and Takato kicked off of Submarimon and swam for MegaSeadramon with Guilmon.

"How are you able to talk underwater?!" Cody asked, finally getting his voice back.

"This is the Digital World Cody, everything here is not like Earth!" said Suzie. "Now let's get going!"

"R-right!" Cody acknowledged and guided Submarimon to where Octomon and Coelamon were.

"OXYGEN TORPEDO!" Once within range, Submarimon fired giant shots of pressurized air from the ports on the sides of his spiked nose. The shots connected with Coelamon, making him release the grip his jaw had on Whamon's tail. Turning at his attacker, Coelamon fired his Variable Darts, Submarimon easily dodging the energy blades.

"SPURTING INK!" Octomon diverted his attention from attacking Whamon and fired his ink at Submarimon, but thanks to Suzie using a card that gave Lopmon Seadramon's Ice Blast, the attack was stopped in mid-flight and froze solid.

"Come and get us, fish-bait!" Submarimon taunted, swimming away from the oil rig. Octomon and Coelamon followed. Once they were a considerable distance away, Whamon back out of the oil rig and swam up for the surface with Joe and the rescued team in his mouth.

---

"Hey, there's another Whamon!" one of the Divermon said, taking notice of the escape.

"What?!" The other two Divermon noticed the escaping aquatic Digimon.

"Wait a minute! This whole thing was a distraction!" the second Divermon looked from the departing Whamon and the Whamon they were fighting, the latter suddenly glowing bright yellow and shrinking. The light faded and the second Whamon was suddenly replaced with a small pink Digimon with wings, and a human boy with glasses.

"Surprise!" Kenta taunted the four Digimon and MarineAngemon chirped at them, small chirpings being the only noises he could make to talk with anybody in his Mega form.

"That's it!" the third Divermon said, gripping his harpoon tightly. "Nobody gets the drop on us like that! MegaSeadramon, go after that Whamon! We're going to stick this kid and his little fairy! STRIKING FISH!"

"OCEAN LOVE!" MarineAngemon acted quickly, his heart-shaped bubbles stopping the harpoons in their tracks. It mattered little to the Divermon trio as they easily made new harpoons appear in their hands.

"Your little hearts won't protect you forever, boy!" a Divermon yelled, pulling back and throwing his harpoon again.

"Then it's a good thing he's not alone!" Swimming up to the fight, Takato managed to grab the harpoon and tossed it back at its owner. The projectile made contact with him, imbedding itself in his shoulder.

"GYYAHH!" The Divermon leader made to pull out the harpoon, but was suddenly incinerated by Growlmon's Exhaust Flame.

"Kenta, stop MegaSeadramon! Leave the Divermon to us!"

"Be careful!" Kenta cautioned Takato and swam to MegaSeadramon with MarineAngemon. The red sea serpent was almost to Whamon, but was stopped suddenly by the small Digimon.

"OCEAN LOVE!" The hearts flew out and hit MegaSeadramon in the face, making him back away. More hearts were created, and the feeling they produced kept MegaSeadramon from pursuing Whamon aggressively, as well as fighting.

"Now's our chance!" Kenta acted quickly with a card to give MarineAngemon an attack that could actually do damage. "DIGI-MODIFY! KABUTERIMON ACTIVATE!" MarineAngemon acted fast, flying down to MegaSeadramon's tail and firing Kabuterimon's Electro Shocker at the Spiral. The electric-based move reacted violently in the water, overloading the Dark Spiral in a matter of seconds and blowing it apart, leaving no trace behind.

"Good job buddy!" Kenta praised his partner, stroking his cheek with one finger and looking up at Whamon's retreating form, glad that he was able to help today. "It's smooth sailing from here for our friends."

"Pii-pii pu!"

---

"SPURTING INK!"

"VARIABLE DARTS!"

Submarimon weaved through the ocean to dodge Octomon and Coelamon's repeated attacks, Suzie and Lopmon clinging on tightly. The plan was simple: Lead Octomon and Coelamon away from the oil rig, and then attack them once they were far enough away.

"How much further, Cody?" asked Submarimon. "I can't keep dodging this forever!"

"It depends," Cody answered. "Suzie, has Whamon made it to safety?"

"Yeah, he's made it out with the others."

"Then let's turn around!" Submarimon stopped and turned around, now heading for Coelamon and Octomon.

"Cody, you and Submarimon take care of Coelamon! We've got Octomon handled!" Suzie and Lopmon detached themselves from the white Digimon and swam for the cephalopod Digimon, who brandished his gun and sword.

"SPURTING INK!" Lopmon swatted the ink away with her ears and pelted him in the face with her Blazing Ice. Snarling at the irritating feeling the attack caused, Octomon swung his sword at Lopmon, nearly cutting her open.

"No, you don't!" Putting to use the Tai Chi she learned from her father and Henry, Suzie swam for Octomon and lifted her foot up, kicking the sword out of Octomon's tentacle. Catching the blade, the girl swung it at the tentacle Octomon was holding his gun in. The octopus screamed from the cut left by the sword and dropped his gun, leaving him defenseless. Suzie was not done yet. Releasing the sword, Suzie grabbed Octomon by the horns and swam down with him, slamming the Digimon into the rocks.

"Now's your chance Lopmon! DIGI-MODIFY! POWER CHARGER ACTIVATE!" Suzie's card swipe charged up Lopmon's next Blazing Ice, the barbs freezing the Dark Ring on Octomon's head solid and breaking it apart.

"All right Lopmon!"

"You weren't too bad yourself Suzie," Lopmon noted to her partner with a small smile, impressed with Suzie's skills against Lopmon.

"VARIABLE DARTS!"

"OXYGEN TORPEDO!" Coelamon and Submarimon's attacks collided and the two Digimon swam past the explosion caused by the collision to engage each other physically, Coelamon slashing Submarimon in the side.

"Agh!" Submarimon groaned from the scratches. "Coelamon is moving better than me in the water Cody. Do you have any suggestions?"

"I might have one," said Cody. "See if you can dig underneath the ocean floor and get Coelamon to follow us!"

"Okay!" Spinning his nose like he would Digmon's drills, Submarimon dropped down to the ocean floor, drilling into it and going under. Seeing his opponent attempting to escape, Coelamon followed them into the tunnel which ended several feet away when Submarimon burst out of the sandy floor and stop near the hole.

"Wait for it…" Cody cautioned his partner, gripping the handles tightly. The wait ended when Coelamon came out of the tunnel looking for Submarimon, whose gaze was locked on the Dark Ring.

"Now!"

"SUBMARINE ATTACK!" Coelamon turned and his eyes widened in surprise seeing Submarimon charge for him. The fish attempted to move but was unsuccessful as the sharp nose hit the Dark Ring on the mark, shattering it to pieces and freeing Coelamon from its spell.

"You did it, Submarimon!" Cody exclaimed happily. "Now let's go and help Zudomon."

"Wait, how are we supposed to fight Scorpiomon?" Submarimon asked, swimming back to the oil rig where Zudomon and Scorpiomon continued their fight. "He's not being controlled, right?"

"No…he isn't," Cody said, looking down before turning his gaze back up. He had been debating this for the last few days, but after everything that had happened to him and to everybody else yesterday and today, the young boy finally realized that there were no other options left.

"Cody, what do you think we should do against Scorpiomon?" Submarimon asked, bringing Cody back to reality.

"We give Scorpiomon one chance to surrender," Cody answered with a steely expression. "If he doesn't comply and decides to keep attacking us, then…"

"Wait," Submarimon said, having an idea where this was going. "Are you saying we may have to kill him if he doesn't just give up?"

"I am," Cody answered with resolve. "I've been a complete fool this entire time, but no more! We have to end this fight, and Millenniummon, by any means necessary!"

---

(Play Digimon: EVO)

"You might as well give it up, Zudomon!" Scorpiomon said, tussling with his opponent and tossing him back into a rock formation on the ocean floor. "You're not getting the Digidestined this time!"

"Actually Scorpiomon, I didn't need to get my friends out," Zudomon corrected him. "Another friend of mine already did that!"

"Impossible!" Scorpiomon looked up at the oil rig, and to his shock he saw a gaping hole in the rig, indicating someone had broken into it. "I don't believe it, we've been tricked!"

"Believe it, Scorpiomon!" Takato's yell, mixed with two pained yells, caused Scorpiomon to turn his gaze to the left, where he was greeted with the sight of his Divermon allies being sliced in half by Growlmon. Submarimon and the newly-Digivolved Turuiemon suddenly arrived, surrounding him completely.

"Scorpiomon, it's over," Cody called out to the giant crustacean. "I'm going to give you a choice: Surrender now to us, or we will be forced to destroy you."

"NEVER!" Scorpiomon bellowed. "I shall destroy you and everybody else here for my master Millenniummon! I will not fail him in terminating the Digidestined as I failed MetalSeadramon!"

"Please consider!"

"Consider this! STINGER SURPRISE!" Scorpiomon's attack flew at Submarimon and Turuiemon, the two Digimon dodging the deadly attack just in time.

"All right then," Cody sighed, looking down at Scorpiomon with a grim expression of pity. "Nobody hold back!"

"EXHAUST FLAME!" Scorpiomon yelled out from getting hit in the back with Growlmon's fire and turned to attack him, only to be rammed by Zudomon. Turuiemon swam down and sliced at Scorpiomon with her claw, leaving deep cuts around his body.

"SUBMARINE ATTACK!" Submarimon was the next to attack, drilling into Scorpiomon's underside with his nose, leaving a hole in his body. Scorpiomon knocked Submarimon to the side, but Cody was able to help his partner regain balance.

"You must be kidding me…" Scorpiomon gasped and coughed from the brutal onslaught brought on to his body. "You miserable brats!"

"Zudomon, finish it!" At Cody's call, Zudomon charged at Scorpiomon, his hammer held high above his head.

"VULCAN'S HAMMER!" The hammer swung down and collided with Scorpiomon, the crustacean Digimon screaming in agony as the electricity arced through his already-damaged body, utterly finishing it.

"LORD MILLENNIUMMON…PLEASE, FORGIVE ME FOR MY FAILURRRRRRREEEEEEE!" Scorpiomon let out one last plea to his master before his body finished disintegrating, finishing him off for good.

"Don't come back any time soon Scorpiomon," Zudomon said, looking at the place where he destroyed his rival. Cody looked at the spot as well with mixed feelings over Scorpiomon's destruction.

"Cody, were you okay with this?" asked Submarimon, sensing his partner's distress.

"…Yes, I guess so," Cody said after a long pause. As the team swam back up to the surface, Cody looked over at Suzie and Turuiemon, thinking again about his fight yesterday with her and his talk with his grandfather. He knew what he had to do next once they reunited with the others.

---

(Play Digimon: Himawari)

"Hey, there you guys are!" Kenta said, standing on the beach with Joe and Davis's team, MarineAngemon floating next to him and Whamon nearby in the water. "Did you get them?"

"All of Millenniummon's slaves have been freed," said Gomamon, running over to Joe.

"And Scorpiomon and the Divermon?" questioned Gatomon.

"Done for," said Takato.

"You guys did good today then," said Davis. "Especially Kenta and Cody."

"Us?" Cody and Kenta both questioned.

"Yeah," Joe said with a nod and smile. "It was Kenta's idea that allowed Whamon to get everybody out, and Cody was able to lead away any other Digimon that was trying to attack him. You guys were really reliable in planning and fighting off the Digimon."

"Th-thanks Joe!" Kenta said, his face turning bright red with embarrassment. "That really means a lot from you!"

"Yes, thank you," Cody said with a small bow. As Kari and TK talked with Whamon and Kenta continued talking with Joe, Takato, Davis and Yolei joining in the talk, Cody looked over at Suzie. The young girl had broken away from the group and was sitting on a rock sticking out of the sand, looking out at the ocean. Deciding to talk with her now, Cody walked over to Suzie and sat down next to her.

"Hey…Suzie," he said slowly. "Um…can we talk?"

"I guess so," said Suzie. "What is it you want to talk about, exactly?"

(Play Digimon Tamers: Kage no Yasashisa)

"I want to apologize for yesterday," Cody said, gazing out at the ocean with Suzie as Lopmon and Armadillomon came over, sitting down next to their partners. "I'm sorry for getting involved in Lopmon's fight with Ninjamon and spare him. I realize that it was wrong. It was wrong for me to try and spare Ninjamon, and it was wrong for me to continuously argue with you and the others on how to fight evil Digimon. I didn't understand it at all, but now I think I finally do."

"Huh?" Suzie asked.

"I realize now that you do what you have to as Digidestined and Digimon Tamers in order to keep both worlds safe, and I also realize I have to do the same thing as well," Cody explained. "Personally…I still think killing another life form is wrong, but if we don't put a permanent end to Millenniummon he'll destroy everything we hold dear. I'm willing to do what needs to be done, and I'm also willing to accept responsibility for any of my actions."

"I could tell from when we fought Scorpiomon and you gave him a chance to surrender, and how you told us not to hold back when he refused to give up," Suzie acknowledged today's events. "I'm glad we're all on the same page now…and for what it's worth, I'm sorry as well. It was wrong for me to talk about you and your father like I did yesterday. I didn't think enough in the moment, and I know it may be a sensitive subject…"

"There's no need to apologize," Cody cut in. "Because I realize now as well that if my father was here, he would have done the same thing as well if it meant protecting everything and everyone around him. I just hope I can make him proud."

"You already are Cody," Armadillomon said, climbing up and snuggling into Cody's lap. The inheritor of Knowledge and Reliability showed a quick look of surprise before smiling softly and rubbing his partner's head, touched at his words.

"Thanks, Armadillomon." Cody continued sitting on the beach and looked up at the blue sky of the Digital World, his thoughts on his father.

'Dad…I promise I'll make you proud of me once Millenniummon is defeated.'

---

(Play Digimon Adventure: Taiketsu)

"So…Scorpiomon has fallen," Millenniummon said, watching the screens showing the death of his latest servant. "It hardly matters now." His fingers pressed a button and the video screens were replaced with two screens: one showing two Digimon, and the other showing a map of the Digital World's oceans.

"Thanks to the children's activities in the oceans today, I finally have a clear path to what I seek. It will not be long now. Just you wait children." Millenniummon stood up from his chair and let out a loud evil laugh that echoed through the surveillance room. His plan was nearing the final phase, and once it was completed, nobody would stop him. Not even Ryo.

(Play Digimon Tamers: Days: Aijou to Nichijou TV Size)

END

Wow! Finally, I am back! I'm terribly sorry about the delay, but the last two months have been brutal for me. My grandfather passed away after Memorial Day, so I took a long break from this chapter so I could attend the funeral and deal with the aftershock. Also, this chapter for me was a little difficult. Cody's always been a complicated character for me, and I'm pretty sure there are other people who will agree with me. Nevertheless, I hope I did all right all things considered. Also, it's been crazy hot the last few days here and it's put me in the feeling of just sitting around and trying to stay cool while ignoring everything else around me. Which unfortunately has included this story.

Next time, the Digidestined and the Digimon Tamers set up shop in the Digital World, ready to take the fight to Millenniummon, who is on the verge of completing his plan. Fortunately, an unexpected source alerts Ryo to Millenniummon's plan and helps him escape. Can Ryo reach his friends in time to warn them, or will Millenniummon succeed?

Next chapter: Move Out to the Digital World!