Digimon New Life

by Thechaosmaster

Devimon has been defeated, but, from his defeat came a new mission, head to the Continent of Server and collect our Tags and Crests. But now that I have finally confessed my feelings to Olette, I know that from now on, what ever danger may lurk, whatever evil we may face, I know that as long as I have Olette by my side. Nothing can stop me. (Now in second ark of the story)

9. Dorugamon Takes Flight

Thechaosmaster: Oh, hey guys! Welcome back to Digimon New Life, now I know I am a few days late, but I never promised that I would be uploading every other day, but now that this chapter is up, you might find it a bit longer then most.

Kurivlt: Yeah, boss has been working tierlessly trying to get this chapter uploaded, heck, he almost had a heart attack while writting it.

Chaos nods and says: Yeah, this writing app xWriter I went to thumbnail view by accident, and I saw the chapter that I was on, this chapter, was gone, erased, I thought I was going to have to write this entire chapter all over again, but I closed the app and the chapter was back, so, we're good.

Kurivlt: Well, time to do the disclaimer, Thechaosmaster does not own the rights to Digimon or Yugioh, but he does own himself and the OC Olette, everything belongs to their respectful owners, enjoy the chapter and leave your reviews.

Chaos: Yeah, please leave reviews, how am I supposed to know how I am doing without reviews, yuutojaden thank you for leaving your reviews since my return. ON WITH THE SHOW!

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Thechaosmaster: Yo, what up, my peeps, you ready to read what I have… Nope, no way, not doing that kind of intro.

Blossom: Honestly, Boss, can't you just focus on a single story already?

Chaos: Heh, trust me, I try. But, anyways, let me get onto why this has taken me so long. You see, first, I got a new Kindle Fire 10, so, I have to bring all my stories, and current works over from my other kindle, onto this new one, and let me tell you, it is a slow work. Another thing is, I really find this editing thing to be tedious, but I do it because I, for one thing, I just love this story, no joke, I feel like this story will become like, I don't know, Ashes of the Past, by Saphroneth or, I don't know, uh, Relics of the Past by Cyrro.

Blossom: Most of the stories he hasn't even been keeping up to date with.

Chaos: Yeah, but, another reason why I do this myself is, while I could just ask someone to give me a hand, and no doubt a fair number of you who knows Japanese honorifics would be more than willing to help me out. I, like to keep what I have close to my hand. I know, its a stupid reason, but, this story, unlike every other story I have ever written, is the one that I have the most planned out. No joke, even when I am not editing this story, I am always thinking about what to do with it.

Blossom: Indeed, and we know you want to get with the story, but,

Chaos: But I just wanted to talk to you guys for a moment, I write all these stories on m own, with some suggestions and tips given to me by the reviews or the rare PMs, which reminds me, Sonic245, thank you for pointing out a MAJOR error on my part. I somehow completely missed updating Brainiac and the New Friend, but, no worries, I put it up. The thing was, I somehow completely forgot to upload the edited version. It wasn't that I wasn't done with it, it was completely edited, the words were bolded when they needed to be, and so on, but, I must have missed updating that chapter, so, if you haven't already, go back and reread that chapter, than come back to this one.

Blossom: But, for now, we will get back to your irregularly scheduled program

Chaos: I'll do the disclaimer for once, I own no rights to Digimon, Yugioh, Fox, Disney, or any other material that exists in this series, I only own the OC's Luke and Olette, the characters and any likeness of other already existing, if any, are mere coincidence.

"Talking"

"Olette Talking"

'Thinking'

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Chapter 7: Dorugamon Takes Flight!

Quote of the Chapter: "Me? I'm dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly. It's the honest ones that you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly...stupid.'' Captain Jack Sparrow. Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse Of The Black Pearl.

After Togemon-San's epic boxing match against Monzaemon-San, and our friends were freed from whatever spell that Monzaemon-San had put on them, we all got to feel just how nice his Heart Attack, the hug version, was, it was, indescribable, even Olette-San had felt the joy that the hugs gave us, she even giggled, which made me feel warm in my heart for some reason.

But now we were continuing on our journey and we were now walking through yet another jungle, and it was getting late, and some of us were freezing, and Gomamon-San was talking down on to Joe-San, who was complaining yet again.

"I know that this is no day at the beach, Joe-San." I heard Gomamon-San say, "But that's no reason to be a worry wart about it and make all your friends unhappy. Pardon the pun, but chill out. Only you have a problem with the cold. Right, guys?"

While I tried to hold back a chuckle from that clever pun, I was also trying to keep a tight grip on my notebook. I was currently writing our current predicament, hopelessly lost on island, and starting to freeze.

I then looked over to the rest of my friends and saw that Mimi-San, Takeru-San, Palmon-San, and Patamon-San were all shivering. And all the while, Gomamon-San was smiling cheerfully, and he happily said, "Everyone just think warm."

Then I turned to my own partner, and saw that Dorumon-San was smiling brightly at me as he nodded and said, "Yeah, just think warm thoughts everybody."

I rolled my eyes in slightly annoyance and sarcastically said, "Yeah, sure, it's easy coming from Digimon covered in fur." Then I felt a sudden chill, and hugged myself, trying to keep warm and loudly said, "I hate the cold!" This earned me a giggle from Olette-San, which made me smile ever so slightly. Something that still confused me.

"I'm allergic to fur." Joe-San complained bitterly, which really annoyed me and ruined my good mood. I tell you, it may only have been a total of four days since we arrived here and all, but, I swear to the four Sovereigns, my patients with Joe-San is slowly running out. I was afraid that I was going to snap, go insane, and 'accidentally' kill Joe-Baka.

"That guy is skating on very thin ice right now." I softly said to myself, somewhere between seething in anger, and exploding into uncontrollable anger. If you have not noticed by now, I was not at all happy with Mister Negative's doom and gloomy attitude.

And it showed in my thoughts, which were turning dark, pretty fast. 'Maybe if he slips on ice or trips over his own shoe laces…No, that's very unlikely. Maybe if I… '

Then I saw where my thoughts were going and I shook my head rapidly, trying not to turn into a deranged villain. Then, once I got control of myself, I thought, 'Easy, Luke-San. Don't do anything stupid. Like it or not, you need him to help save the DigiWorld. No matter how annoying he can get, just try to ignore him.'

I told myself, trying to prevent myself from ending Joe-San and making it look like a violent Digimon was behind it.

I heard a slight chuckle from Olette-San, who said, "Come on, Lukas-San, there's no need to get violent. So Joe-San is being a little, troublesome, that's no reason to plan his demise. He's only being cautious around here, that's all." While she was being serious, she did giggle lightly, showing more of that playful nature of hers.

I lightly sighed, agreeing with Olette-San's reasoning, and I thought, 'I know that, Olette-San, trust me, I know. But sometimes, Joe-San just gets on my nerves. He is always complaining about something, and I can't help but want to punch him in the face.' I told her truthfully, even though we both knew that I wouldn't actually do so. Maybe. Depends on my mood.

Olette-San didn't say anything, but I could feel that she understood my reasoning. It's funny, we have only knew each other for a short time, I mean, it has only been a single day, maybe less, probably just a few hours. Six, at most. But I feel that me and Olette-San have gotten closer since we first met at the factory.

Then I heard my lovable, but also slightly annoying Nii-San, say, "Ah, come on you guys! The cold isn't that terrible."

Then, once again I shivered slightly, quickly moving my arms to hug myself once again, along with Mimi-San, TK-Chan, Palmon-San and Patamon-San. And then I heard Izzy-San said, "Perhaps not if you're a polar bear or penguin."

Then Tai-Nii lightly laughed and cheerfully said, "Yeah, but if it snows we'll throw some snowballs."

"And make snowmen." Mimi-San said cheerfully. I oh so wanted to enjoy this, but I was currently getting a tad bit cold to even bother making any remarks.

Then Gomamon-San turned to Gabumon-San and asked, "What do you think a Snowmon is?"

"A Digimon from their planet." Gabumon-San said, making his guess known. Even though he wasn't right, he wasn't really wrong either, just not entirely.

"I think Lukas-San had mentioned the snowman thing to me once, back during our stay in Yokomon village." Said Dorumon-San, getting the attentions of the other Digimon. "It was early in the morning and we both couldn't sleep. I believe that, if what Lukas-San said is true, then it is what humans make when it snows on their world." I smiled lightly at this, at least he paid attention during my crash course of human activities.

Then Izzy-San looked towards the Digimon and said, "It is difficult to explain."

"Well, if it's edible, count me in." Tentomon-San said a bit happily, believing that snowballs are for eating. Now, don't get me wrong, I eat snowballs as well, and who didn't when they were young?

Then Izzy-San looked to his partner with a more, scientific, expression on his face as he explained, "No, the best thing about snowballs is that you can throw them at other people. It's a really fun game to play in the winter."

"You throw food?" Tentomon-San asked, bewildered, not really understanding the concept that Izzy-San was trying to explain to him.

Then Matt-San waved his hand and, with a smile he said, "We could even build a snow fort."

Then my lovable Nii-San stomped up to Matt-San and boldly stated, "We don't need one!"

Before I could hear more of their conversation, Olette-San asked me, "Ano, Lukas-San?"

'Yes, Olette-San? What do you need?' I asked with a smile, as I said before, me and Olette-San have been getting closer since we first met. I don't know why, but, whenever I hear Olette-San's voice, it just fills me with joy and happiness.

But I can't explain why. Maybe it's just because I finally have someone to talk to, where I can just be me. Dorumon-San doesn't really count because he's my partner. But, Olette-San, she's different, I don't know how, but, she just feels, different. It's really hard to explain.

"Nothing, just wanting to talk for a bit." She said to me with a slight carefree tone, but had a hint of uncertainty in it, and it was obvious that she was lying to me.

I softly chuckled at the shy nature Olette-San would sometimes show. Sometimes she was curious asking about minut things, almost like a child learning new things.

And other times, she acted like a mother, telling me off about teasing my friends, it was quite, confusing sometimes. Olette-San was a mystery, it was like each minute I spent talking to her, the more mysterious she seemed to become.

I shook my head of my fleeting thoughts as I chuckled lightly and with a light smile, I thought, 'No, you were going to say something. So, what is it?'

Then she was silent for a while, then she said, "I really want to thank you for being my friend, Lukas-San. It really means a lot to me. I mean, you're the only friend that I have right now, and I guess," I could hear the tone of her voice start to change, it sounded like she was becoming depressed.

And, she also sounds lonely, "I just wish that…that I could meet your friends, like, in person. I just wish I could talk to your other friends. Even if it was just Dorumon-San, or even Tai-San I would be happy, just as long as I could have more friends."

I could feel the sorrow in her voice, and it really stung in my chest. I don't know why, but, every time Olette-San started to feel sad, I feel the urge to hug her tightly and tell her it's alright. And when she laughs, I just get this urge to laugh as well, like, her joy is my joy, and her pain is my pain.

It's very hard to explain, but, it was like, I was more worried about keeping Olette-San happy, or, at the very least, helping her feel comfortable, than I was worried about myself at the very moment.

And all of this confused me greatly, I looked down at my shoes solemnly, thinking about Olette-San's predicament, then, I had decided something, and with determination in my thoughts I thought, 'I know, Olette-San, I know. And I promise you, I don't know how, but I will find a way for you to converse with the others, even if I have to walk to the ends of the Earth in order to do so. You have my word. And you know that...'

"That you never go back on your word. I know Lukas-San, I know." Olette-San finished, then she giggled, hearing her giggle made me feel like there were butterflies in my chest, as she said, "And, thank you, Lukas-San."

I blinked several times, almost like a deer in the headlights kind of expression. Confused as to what I was being thanked for, I asked, 'For what, Olette-San?'

"For trying so hard to make me feel happy. It means a lot to me." She said to me with gratitude in her voice.

'Well, that's what friends are for, Olette-San.' I said to her truthfully. 'And please, call me Luke-San. Okay? How many times to I have to ask you this?' The question was just me joking, and I knew she knew it as well.

"Only a few more times, Lukas-San. Thank you." We both lightly chuckled at that response, I guess that it was becoming something of a game to us. And with that, Olette-San went silent, probably to sleep for a while.

And while Olette-San said that she doesn't really sleep, but she just likes how peaceful it is, I could understand her reasoning. Now, I will admit, at first I was a little weirded out by having Olette-San in my head, but now that I've had a day to get to know her, I have gotten used to it. Now, I can't even imagine what I would do without her. She's literally a true friend to me.

Then, snapping me back to the realms of reality, I heard Sora-San say, "I bet I could beat you both blindfolded!"

I looked over and saw that everyone was still arguing over who could beat who in a snowball fight, and I laughed and asked, "Oh? Really? This I have to see." I then looked at Joe-San, and saw a frown on his face.

Then I turned towards TK-San as he ran up to Matt-San and he happily said, "I want to build an Igloo."

Then Palmon-San turned towards the younger Takaishi-San and he cheerfully said, "I'll help, if you tell me what it is."

"An igloo sounds scrumptious to me." Stated Tentomon-San, which almost made me laugh out loud from the hysterics of said idea. I mean, you'd have to be denser than a boulder to want to eat an igloo.

Then Izzy-San decided to put a hole in Tentomon-San's, bizarre desire to eat ice, ship and stated, "Too bad their not edible."

Then, almost as if our fun was never ment to last, we all heard Joe-San, aka the buzz kill cry out, "Come on, get serious. It'll be horrible if it started snowing right now."

Then Sora-San walked up to him and calmly said, "Lighten up a little, Joe-San. We're just trying to look on the positive side of things."

Then I looked over to our resident complainer and said, "Yeah, chill out. No need to be a buzz kill about it."

To which Joe-San responded by sticking out his tongue and saying, "Blah!"

TK-San then ran up to Tai-Nii and cheerfully asked, "Hey, Tai-San, when's it going to snow?"

To which my Nii-San smiled lightly and replied with, "Probably any second now."

And Matt-San, seeing a good moment to joke around, said, "Right on Joe-San's head!"

This caused Takaishi-San to laugh loudly then he happily said, "That would be so funny!"

I had to do my best not to laugh at that image that now played in my head. But Olette-San? She 'woke up' when we started talking about snow and when she saw the mental image of Joe-San getting buried under ten feet of snow, she was now rolling around on the floor.

"I can't wait to see his face." Tai-Nii exclaimed to everyone, and honestly, I wanted to see it happen as well. It just might cause Joe-San to lighten up a bit.

Then Joe-San, not really in the mood for jokes, said, "You know, if the temperature drops any lower than it is already we won't be able to camp out any more."

With a smile on my face, I walked up to Joe-San and slapped him on his back, knocking him off balance and on his face and I said, "Joe-San, do us all a favor, and take a chill pill, already. You need to learn to have fun. Live a little. Will ya?"

But Joe-San simply brushed himself off and said, "I'm just saying that we'll be frozen Digi-Treats." This made all of us laugh uncontrollably, then Joe-San said, "That's it. Go ahead and laugh. But when your tootsies freeze don't go crying to me. I'll just say I told you so. It is always better to be safe then sorry. Think first."

Then, during my laughing moment, I heard Olette-San ask, "Hey, Lukas-San?"

'Yes, Olette-San? What can I do for you?' I asked the girl in my mind.

"Is Joe-San always like this? Or is today just an off day for him?" She asked me, with a slight giggle.

I lightly chuckled and thought, 'No. This is how Joe-San always acts. Yes, he's sometimes annoying, but he really is looking out for us. He's just trying to be the voice of reason around here.'

"Then why does he whine about everything?" Olette-San asked me, obviously confused as to the reasoning behind Joe-San's weirdness.

I shrugged, not really having an answer myself. 'Honestly, I have no idea. It is one of the biggest mysteries that will most likely, never be solved.' I told her truthfully.

Then I heard Gomamon-San ask, "Hey, what's that white stuff?"

And then I heard Mimi-San say, "It's a field of snow!"

I looked up ahead and I saw the entire forest section ahead of us covered in snow, but the area behind us was still green. 'Strange. But probably some kind of Digital World logic going on here.'

Then Mimi-San looked around hopefully as she said, "There's bound to be a ski resort near by."

All of us DigiDestined were in total awe of the snow covered ground, well all except Joe-San, who was panicking right now. Which, that wasn't really much of a surprise any more. "Oh, man! This is much worse than even I thought it was."

Sora-San then looked around and asked, "What now, guys?"

I shrugged not really having a clue as to what to do, I mean, I can't solve every problem and said, "Don't look at me. I honestly wouldn't know what to do." I said truthfully while watching Mimi-San, Palmon-San, Takaishi-Kun and Patamon-San, all happily playing in the snow.

Then my Nii-San suggested, "I think we should keep going. We're not going to get anywhere by just standing here."

Then Matt-San folded his arms and he looked around and said, "If we walk across the field in our sneakers, our toes will go numb."

"It's impossible to continue." Joe-San stated in fear, which annoyed me to no end.

Tai-Nii then looked at Joe-San and with sarcasm leaking into his voice, he asked, "So what are we supposed to do? Just stand here like a bunch of dorks? We either go across the field or climb up that big mountain."

I looked to where Nii-San had pointed to and saw Infinity Mountain, then Agumon-San started sniffing the air, and he must have smelled something, because he said, "Whoa there. Wait a second."

Agumon-San then started sniffing the air more, and soon Dorumon-San had joined him, and then we all heard Dorumon-San say, "I think there's a weird odor in the air."

Biyomon-San sniffed the air as well and she said, "I do believe they're right."

Once Gabumon-San sniffed the air he asked, "What could it be?"

Me and Tai-Nii started sniffing the air, and Tai-Nii said, "I don't know, but it smells like..."

Then Izzy-San looked over to his right and said, "Very familiar."

We looked over to where Izzy-San was staring at, and Biyomon-San said, "It's steam."

"She's right! But what's it coming from?" Matt-San asked in surprise.

Then Joe-San went bug eyed and said, "A big geyser!"

Then TK-San and Mimi-San came to a single conclusion and they both said, "Wow! A hot spring!"

Mimi-San then jumped in the air with a fist pumping to the sky as she cheered and said, "Yippee! Now I can take a bath!"

"And we can get warm!" Cheered TK-San happily, his smile so bright, that it was almost blinding.

Then we all gleefully ran towards the geyser steam, until we reached said hot spring and saw that the water was boiling. Tai-Nii took one look at the hot spring and he said, "Uh-oh... this water's much too hot!"

I nodded in disappointment and said, "Agreed. The moment we even place our big toe in there, it would most likely be melted right off."

I could feel Olette-San agreeing with me, "Yes, at that temperature, you would most likely be melted into a puddle in seconds." She said, giving her estimated guess.

Tentomon-San flew close to the hot spring, but quickly backing away after feeling the heat, and he said, "We'd be cooked if we jumped in this." Unknowingly agreeing with Olette-San.

Izzy-San nodded in agreement to his partners evaluation and said, "Yes, boiled."

Mimi-San then dropped down to her knees and sadly said, "Well, there goes my big dreams of a nice warm bath."

But Palmon-San wasn't put off by the heat, and she said, "It looks so inviting!" Lightly tapping the water with her vines.

"Yeah, well it would be inviting if you were a vegetable." Matt-San said while looking to the trees.

"What's a little dirt compared to starving?" Do I even need to tell you who asked this question? "We need to find something to eat and there's nothing in sight." Said our traveling complainer.

Then TK-San, as if it was his single mission to disprove each and every one of Joe-Baka's depressing thought, pointed a head of us and cheerfully said, "Oh yes, there is."

We all looked at TK-San who was pointing in front of him and Joe-San asked, "What are you talking about? There's nothing here but a bunch of rocks and boiling water."

"Maybe Joe-San should have a cup of boiling water from that geyser, it might make him stop complaining for a while." Olette-San said to me. Obviously she was joking, but I kinda wish that Joe-San would either chill out, or jump in a lake.

'No, if anything, that would just make things worse.' I thought to Olette-San. Knowing very well that, no matter what, Joe-San will always find something to complain about. Hopefully this journey will get him to settle down a bit.

Then Takeru-San then pointed to his right and if it wasn't for the fact that he was like, eight, it would pretty much be like he was trying to make a fool out of Joe-San as he said, "Lookit!"

Joe-San then turned to where TK-San was pointing, and Joe-San's face turned shocked, and it looked like his glasses were gonna fall off of his face as he asked, "Wha? Please tell me I'm not imaging this."

We all looked to where Joe-San was staring at and Nii-San smiled wildly as he said, "Yeah! It's for real!"

Then Joe-San groaned in annoyance as he complained, "Aw, come on, that's just ridiculous." We all saw a freaking refrigerator laying against some rocks, and Joe-San asked, "What would a refrigerator be doing all the way out here?"

I looked at the future DigiDestined of Reliability and said, "The same reason why a trolleys car would be in the middle of nowhere, or why phone booths were on a beach. Because they just can. Just go with it, Joe-San."

Dorumon-San nodded cheerfully and he said, "He's right, you know. Just accept it and move on."

I lifted my finger to the air as I happily said, "That's my motto."

Then Matt-San happily said, "Where there's a fridge, there's grub!"

To which Joe-San, being the ever permanent downer replied with, "That's not possible. That doesn't make sense."

And I simply shrugged and in a serious tone, I said, "Joe-San, we are currently in a place filled with massive Digital Monsters, that have the power to potentially wipe a city off the map, and our Digimon can somehow access our energy, none of this makes sense. So, just go with it. All right? The worst is that it's empty, the best, well, we can eat."

Sora-San nodded, seeing the logic in my reasoning and she said, "Right. We won't know till we open it."

Then Joe-San lifted his finger, and he tried to object as he said, "I don't really think that's-"

But I had enough of Joe-Baka's complaining, so I went up to the fridge and said, "If there is food in here, we can eat, if I die, Doru-San will avenge my death, Tai-Nii can inform Kari-Chan, Tōsan, and Kāsan, and then, I'll haunt Joe-San until he quits being a cowered."

Everyone nodded with a few laughs here and there, then Nii-San smirked down at me and he asked, "So, forever, then." The laughter was barely restrained when he asked.

I smirked back and said, "You better believe it." At this everyone, minus Joe-San started laughing, then I opened the fridge, and saw eggs, lots and lots of eggs. "Good news, it's eggs!"

Dorumon-San then pushed through and took note of all the eggs and he said, "There must be a zillion of 'em, Luke-San!"

Tai-Nii then threw his fist into the air as he cheered and said, "Yeah! Grubs on! These will keep us fed for a month.."

Then Joe-San, being the ever annoying person who likes to ruin our fun said, "Wait a minute! You shouldn't even touch them! We don't even know if they're fit for human consumption!"

I was about to retort, but Nii-San beat me to the punch as Tai-Nii said, "Then I'll be the guinea pig. If I turn purple, you'll know they're inedible."

I chuckled and not one to resist poking fun of my Ani, I said, "Then I'll put it on your tombstone, 'Here lies Taichi 'Tai' Kamiya, he turned purple because he ate an egg for his friends.' It will definitely be one funny head stone."

Tai-Nii chuckled and he said, "Yeah it would." But then he realized what it was I had said and he looked towards me and yelled, "Hey! Wait a minute!"

Then I started laughing and said, "Take a joke, Nii-Chan, and eat the egg." I couldn't help myself, Nii-San just sets himself up to be made fun of.

Then Joe-San, who was trying to make us not eat the eggs then exclaimed, "There's more to it than that! Even if they were edible, they don't belong to us. That'll make us all thieves you gotta think about things like that."

I looked at everyone, then at Joe-San, then Matt-San said, "Unless you're into eating rocks, we don't have too much choice."

Then Sora-San nodded and she put her hands to her hips as she said, "I'm sure they'd say yes if they knew we were in trouble."

Izzy-San nodded and said, "Exatly - We'd tell 'em it's an emergency situation."

And Tentomon-San turned to his partner and said, "Rationalize away."

But Joe-San was still worried, but we took no interest in his depressing thoughts.

"It was either eating now, or going hungry. You made the right choice, Lukas-San." Olette-San told me.

'That is true, Olette-San, but, still. I just wish Joe-San would just relax for one day. He's gonna end up having a heart attack one day if he doesn't chill out.' I said to Olette-San, noticing that, while Joe-San is being annoying, he is just being worried about the others.

Then Sora-San decided to make the eggs. "Sunny side up eggs are my specialty!" Sora-San said to us as she was cracking the eggs. We had managed to find a nice flat stone large enough to cook on, and several smaller stones to hoist the flat stone on so we could cook on it. Biyomon-San was keeping the flame going.

While Agumon-San and Gabumon-San were crafting bowls, from fallen trees, and TK-San and Patamon-San were boiling some of the eggs. All the while, Joe-San was, be it, begrudgingly, slowly making chopsticks for us to eat said eggs, then Tai-Nii turned to Joe-San and asked, "Hey, come on, man. How are those chopsticks coming on?"

But Joe-San was slowly making progress, and Mimi-San was getting impatient, and she turned to Joe-San and said, "Hurry! We want to eat!"

But Joe-San looked up in surprise and he asked, "Huh? Oh." Then he looked down as he sadly said, "Sorry, this just makes me feel uncomfortable. We'd be in big trouble if someone got sick. No doctors, you know? I'm always the one to think about these things."

Then after everything was finished, we were able to eat. Then Mimi-San happily said, "Tres Gourmet!" In a decent fake French accent.

Then Biyomon-San flapped her wings and she happily said, "Go on, dig in."

And boy did we dig in. The food was cooked to perfection, then Tai-San said, "I haven't had a meal like this in a long time. Right, Luke-Chan?"

I nodded be it, with a slight twitch in my eye, 'I really hate that nickname.' Then I looked at Nii-San with a small glare, I said, "You said it, Tai-Nii. It feels like forever since I've had eggs."

Then Matt-San looked down at his eggs, said, "If we had some ketchup, it would be perfect."

Then TK-San smiled brightly, so brightly, in fact, that it was almost blinding. And then I heard him happily say, "I love Ketchup and eggs!"

I chuckled lightly and thought, 'This is one of the things that I like about Takaishi-San.' I thought to Olette-San. 'Yes, he may be young and Naïve, but he has that carefree attitude that just, makes me want to smile.'

I could pretty much feel Olette-San's smile as she said, "He is a pretty amazing kid, Lukas-San. He's so full of joy and cheer, it's hard to describe, but, it's like he's…"

I could feel what she was trying to say and thought, 'Like he's the embodiment of hope itself?'

Olette-San quickly responded and said, "Yeah. exactly. He is filled with so much joy, and so little doubt, that he could possibly fall into a pool of darkness, and somehow turn it into light." She then lightly giggled and said, "That would be quite an interesting sight to see."

I lightly chuckled at that, but just when I was going to respond, I heard Sora-San's voice say, "That sounds pretty gross!" Thus getting me back into the groups conversation.

We were all eating and having a good time just relaxing for the first time since we arrived here in the Digital World, sharing a few private conversations with Olette-San when I started to observe the others.

It was when I sneaked a peak at Joe-San, I noticed that he wasn't eating, then I heard Gomamon-San ask, "What's the matter, Joe-San? you haven't eaten anything?"

But it looked like Joe-San was completely out of it. Which was weird, mostly because Joe-San was always looking for something to either complain about, or something. "Huh?" Joe-San realized that he was being talked to, then he looked down and said, "I was just thinking that if we could go home, ketchup wouldn't be a problem. Oh well."

'Poor Joe, guy's probably home sick or something.' I thought to Olette-San. 'And I don't really blame him. All of us want to go home.'

"I might have to agree with you, Lukas-San. While I may not know Joe-San like you do, he seems really depressed. It's kind of sad, really." Olette-San said in a somber tone.

And now everyone became depressed, and Mimi-San gripped her dress as she said, "Now I'm homesick - how depressing."

TK-Kun looked down at his plate as he sadly said, "You're right - Now I want to go home."

Then Izzy-San looked up at the forest, and I noticed he had a thoughtful expression on his face as he said, "It's been four days since we've been here, and I wonder if anyone's tried to find out where we are."

Then Sora-San smiled, and wanting to get all of out of our little depressed moods, and said, "Cheer up! Tell me how you like your eggs! And I'll try to do my very best."

I looked up and with a smile I happily said, "I like my eggs scrambled, Sora-San."

"I prefer my eggs with salt and pepper, but I guess it doesn't matter." Joe-San said sadly. Man, doesn't this guy know how to smile?

I watched as Nii-San sat up straighter and happily said, "I like soy sauce."

"How about salsa?" Asked Matt-San in a almost jokester type of voice.

Then I heard Sora-San softly ask, "How about a reality check?"

'Hehe, trust me, fact can be stranger than fiction, Sora-San.' I thought to Olette-San. 'I mean, look at me. Sometimes, you just have to accept the world and all it's weirdness.'

To which Olette-San responded with, "That is true, Lukas-San. From what you have told me, the world is filled with weird and unexplainable things. It is up to us to decide to either ignore the weirdness, or embrace it."

I chuckled in agreement then we both heard Izzy-San politely ask, "I'll have mine with mustard and jellybeans. Please."

We all blinked at Izzy-San's strange request, and Tai-Nii started laughing nervously, "Ha ha ha."

And I watched as Matt-San lean back in disgust as he said, "How gross!"

"Jellybeans?" Asked an intrigued Takaishi-Kun. Then he smiled brightly and said, "That sounds good!"

Then Mimi-San blinked in confusion as she asked, "What? You're both weird. My favorite is eggs topped with maple syrup! Yummy! Sometimes I like them with cherries on top!" The way that Mimi-San stated that with joy was amusing, but kinda weird as well. Pancakes with maple syrup and cherries sounds delicious. But eggs? That just sounds, gross.

"That's weird." Sora-San stated, clearly I wasn't the only one who was thinking it.

But TK-San, the joyous little ball that he was, happily said, "But I bet it's good!"

And everyone was nervously laughing, but Joe-San was like, "What? You're making me completely lose my appetite. I just like plain eggs!" Then he grabbed his head and said, "I wish we could talk about something besides egg recipes."

Then Gomamon-San jumped onto Joe-San's shoulder and said, "Don't be so hard on yourself, we're just having fun."

Then Matt-San joyously said, "Come on! Join the party!"

To which Tai-Nii replied with, "I think it's too late for him. I think Joe-San thinks we've gone egg crazy."

Then Joe-San turned to Nii-San and asked, "Well, really? Jellybeans and cherries on eggs, that's crazy talk. Salt and Pepper is all we really need. Keep it simple, that's my motto."

But Gomamon-San simply shrugged his flippers and said, "I'm afraid Joe-San's not the kind of guy who can be adaptable."

Then Joe-San turned to Gomamon-San and asked, "Hey! Just what do you mean?"

Then Gomamon-San gave Joe-San a challenging glare as he said, "Let's face it Joe-San. You're a stick in the mud, if you get my drift."

Then Joe-San threw his hands in the air as he exclaimed, "I'm just practical!"

"You're stuffy!" Gomamon-San argued back.

Biyomon-San covered her face with her wing in slight annoyance as she said, "It never fails, here they go again."

I chuckled kinda amused at these two argue with no fail, then I stood up and said, "They almost act like an old married couple."

Olette-San chucked and we watched as Joe-San and Gomamon-San were about to start fighting. Then Matt-San walked between the two of them saying, "Hey, hey, hey. Calm down!" Matt-San then grabbed Joe-San's arm, in hopes to calm Joe-San down.

Then Joe-San pulled his arm free and exclaimed, "I am calm! He's the one who's dingy! Why'd you seem you squeeze my arm?"

Then Matt-San let his arms fell to his side, and looked at Joe-San with a concerned face and he said, "You don't seem to be yourself today, Joe-San. You're a basket case."

"I am just trying to be careful, unlike the rest of you weirdos." Joe-San exclaimed as he stomped his feet.

"Hey! Who are you calling weirdos?" Me and Dorumon-San said at the same time. "We prefer the term crazy. We're not weirdos!" We finished as we crossed our arms.

Everyone looked at the two of us with wide eyes, and Tai-San blinked in surprise, then he looked at us and asked, "Did… did you two… just talk in synch?"

Me and Dorumon both looked at one another, practically reading each others minds, then we both slowly started to develop an evil smirk on our faces, then we both turned to Nii-San and said, "Maybe so, maybe not. Why do you ask, Taichi?"

This caused Nii-San to develop that, 'My mind has stopped working' face, which caused me and Doru-San to wrap our arms around each other and laugh uncontrollably. With Olette-San silently giggling in my head.

This caused Joe-San to throw his arms up in the air in disbelief and exclaimed, "I don't believe it! You're all asking for trouble."

Then Joe-San walked off in annoyance. Once me and Doru-San caught our breath, I rubbed my eye and said, "Man, can't anyone take a joke?"

Sora-San shook her head and she said, "Someone better go and make sure he doesn't trip over his own shoelaces."

I lightly chuckled and said, "I'll go. Besides, I need the walk. I'll be back. Dorumon-San, stay here and keep watch."

My loyal partner nodded and said, "Stay outta trouble, Luke-San!"

I rolled my eyes and sarcastically said, "Yes, mom!" Then I started walking down the path that Joe-San had taken, and we had found Joe-San, he was sitting by a geyser, looking down into the hot boiling water, then he started throwing stones into the water.

I smiled, happy to see that he was safe, then I started walking up to him, but stopped when I heard Joe-San speak in a soft voice, "I've gotta be the cautious one around here." Then he threw another rock into the water, with a sad look spread across his face.

Both me and Olette-San looked down at Joe-San and saw just how sad he was. "I never saw Joe-San like this, concerned, yes. But depressed? Never. What about you, Lukas-San? Do you know why Joe-San is sad?" Olette-San asked me in curiosity.

I sighed and thought, 'I may make fun of Joe-San and call him a complainer, among other things, at times, but he's just concerned is all. But he's sometimes just a little to worried, he needs to learn how to calm down and just enjoy himself. That is all.' Truth be told, while I hate Joe-San's complaining, his loyalty to his friends and being there when we need him the most is his best trait.

Olette-San nodded in understanding, then we heard Joe-San softly say, "I have to be...the voice of reason. I have to."

Then I walked back to the others, with Joe-San right behind me, and we both heard Tai-San ask, "Why are you making such a big deal out of this?" I knew that tone, Nii-San was arguing again.

"Oi, vey." I said while rubbing my head. "Here's another problem to deal with." I said softly.

To which Matt-San replied to my Nii-San with, "Because it's way to dangerous!"

And Tai-Nii appeared to be wanting to do it without any fear as he yelled out, "There's no place else to go! We have no choice!"

And Matt-San got up closer to Nii-San and yelled back, "Before we do something foolish, we should think it over a little more!"

"You're just a big ol' chicken!" We all watched as Courage yelled at Friendship.

Then Joe-San decided to ask the question that we both were wondering, and he asked, "Hey, everybody. What's all the ruckus about?"

I nodded and asked, "Yeah. Why are Tai-Nii and Matt-San fighting this time?" Honestly, why must the older kids act like preschoolers?

Izzy-San then pointed up to Infinity Mountain, and he said, "They're debating whether or not we should climb Infinity Mountain which is way over there."

Me and Joe-San then looked at the mountain and Joe-San said, "That's practically up to the sky."

Then Tentomon-San nodded and said, "Infinity Mountain. It's a doozy, that's for sure."

Then Tai-Nii stomped up to Matt-San and he yelled out, "It's the perfect spot! We gotta climb up there, it's the best view of the island."

Then Joe-San, seeing the reasoning behind that nodded and said, "You gotta admit, he has a point."

Then Sora-San nodded, but she also said, "That's not how Matt-San sees it."

Then Matt-San decided to add his two cents as he yelled back, "Nobody would make it up that peak. It's much to big of a gamble!"

Biyomon-San then turned to us and said, "He might be right, guys. There could be lots of evil Digimon up that peak."

Then Dorumon-San rubbed his nose and boldly said, "Whatever, I bet I can take them on. I just might Digivolve if I go up there! So, that'll be a bonus."

I looked at my partner, and while I like his optimism, I also knew that the risks were too great, and I said, "I would actually have to agree with Matt-San on this one, Doru-San."

"What?! Why, Lukas-San?" Dorumon-San asked me shocked that I would side against him.

I looked at him and said, "Because, at this late at night, we might accidentally grab a loose piece of earth and fall, and that would be dangerous."

Joe-San got into a thinking pose and said, "That's not good, it wouldn't be worth the risk."

Then Tai-Nii raised his fists and said, "Come on, Matt-San! Don't be a wimp! We won't get anywhere if we just stand around talking."

But Matt-San wasn't moving. He folded his arms and said, "Put your fists down when you talk to me and stop acting like you can bully your way to bing leader."

"What are you saying?" My lovable, but annoying Goggle-Headed Ani asked Yamato-San.

Then Joe-San calmly walked up to Tai-Nii and Matt-San and calmly said, "Knock it off you guys and chill out!"

Then I walked up to the three and said, "Yeah. Let's be sensible about this, please?"

Then Matt-San turned to us and asked, "So what are your opinions about this, Joe-San? Lukas-San?"

I looked at the blond and I closed my eyes and entered my thinking pose, then I opened my eyes and looked at the elder Ishida and said, "I agree with both of you."

I could see the confusion on both boys faces, then I elaborated, "See, I agree with Tai-Nii, not because he's my Nii-San, because that would be a stupid reason. But because from that point, we could get a full view of the island."

"Hah! Take that Matt-San! Otouto sides with me!" Tai-Nii exclaimed, ignoring the fact that I had just said that I didn't side with him because of our blood.

But then I turned to Matt-San and said, "But, I also agree with you, Matt-San. It could be too dangerous to go up there, especially at night. If we were to go up that mountain, it has to be during the day, and we take our time."

Matt-San looked smugly at Nii-San, then he turned to Joe-San, seeing that he was the last one who we needed an answer from and asked, "What about you, Joe-San? What's your opinion?"

Joe-San looked at all three of us, Yamato-San and Nii-San looked at him with impatience, while I just gave Joe-San a simply nod, knowing that he'd make the right choice and he asked, "Huh?"

"Yeah, Joe-San. Tell us who's right, me or Matt-San?" Ani asked Joe-San with slight anger in his voice.

Then Joe-San looked at the three of us and he said, "Well, I think Tai-San's right about going up that peak. And I agree with Lukas-San's reasoning. If we went up there we'd be able to see the islands landscape a whole lot better."

And Tai-Nii smirked proudly as he turned to Matt-San and asked, "See, Matt-San?"

Then Joe-San raised his hands, letting the others know to hold on as he said, "Hold on, Luke-San and Matt-San both brought up good points about the danger. It'll be kind of dumb to lead everyone up to a place we don't know anything about. Especially at night. It wouldn't be safe."

Then we all folded our arms went, "Hmm." Trying to think about the safest choice to make.

And then Tai-Nii yelled out, "Aw, come on! Let's go as far as we can up the mountain!" No matter how much I remind myself that we're related, he still hurts my head.

"That's stupid!" Matt-San stated, knowing that going into things head first is dangerous, especially when he is probably thinking about Takaishi-Kun. "We can't protect ourselves out there!"

"Stop it, now! You're both making me a nervous wreak!" Joe-San exclaimed, obviously getting annoyed at the mindless arguments. "Just give me a chance to think. Don't be difficult."

Matt-San then looked up to Joe-San in an annoyed expression and said, "What?! You're the most difficult person I had ever met!"

"Hey, I am trying to make a decision here! So don't interrupt me!" Joe-San said, trying to keep things from escalating.

Then Tai-Nii yelled out, "You're just a big old chicken, Matt-San!" I started losing my patience, and so was Joe-San.

"Tai-San, you better take that back!" Matt-San said, wanting to just rest for the night and think of a better plan tomorrow, most likely.

Then me and Joe-San both had enough, we were trying to get a plan formulated, and these two are acting like kids on a playground. Then we both snapped and we exclaimed, ""ENOUGH ALL READY! YOU'RE BOTH GIVING ME A HEADACHE!""

Then Sora-San yelled, "Put a cork in it, you four!" Causing us to stop our arguing.

We all looked to Sora-San and said, "Huh?"

Then Sora-San put her hands to her hips as she said, "Now grow up, you four, we have to decide what to do."

Then Biyomon-San flapped her wings as she said, "Besides, it's gonna get dark soon!"

"I think we should all get a little shut eye." Agumon-San said, as he started heading for a nearby cave.

And Gabumon-San replied with, "There will always be plenty of time to argue later." He then followed after the orange dino.

"As of right now, we need to sleep." Dorumon-San stated clearly walking beside me. "Right, Luke-San?" To which I silently nodded, agreeing with my partner, knowing that the lack of sleep could potentially be dangerous in any situation.

Sora-San nodded, seeing how we all agreed with the idea of rest and she said, "First, we need to find a good place to sleep. Let's head for the cave."

Sora-San then started pushing Tai-Nii and Matt-San to the cave and Biyomon-San said, "I want the top rock!"

Joe-San looked completely lost, and I stayed with him, wanting to keep him company, then I patted Joe-San on the back and said, "Come on, Joe-San. Let's catch up to the others."

Joe-San then softly said, "Ok." And he slowly walked to where the others were.

Soon enough everyone went to sleep, I decided to stay up and take watch for the night. Looking around I saw that almost everyone was sleeping, everyone but Joe, that is. "I have to admit, Lukas-San. I can see why you enjoy watching the night sky. It looks beautiful."

I smiled at the remark, and looked to where Dorumon-San was sleeping, then I thought, 'Yeah, it truly is. And I told you, you can just call me Luke-San, Olette-San.'

Olette-San lightly giggled as she said, "I know, that, Lukas-San." I swear, I am starting to think that she does it on purpose. Then Olette-San asked, "By the way, why did you get involved with Matt-San and Tai-San's fight? Shouldn't you have stayed out of it?" Olette-San asked me in a confused voice.

Then I looked up to the moon and thought, 'I just don't like it when my friends fight, I just want them to get along. That is all. And they are both right, I just...' "Huh?" Before I could finish my thought, I saw Joe-San walking out of the cave. Then I said, "A little late for a stroll, isn't it, Joe-San?" I asked, almost scaring the ever living daylights out of him.

"Oh, Lukas-San. I forgot that you were on night watch." Joe-San replied, getting over his shock at me scaring the ever loving bejesus out of him.

I nodded, while trying to keep myself from laughing at him and I walked up to him and said, "Yeah, only for another hour, then I was going to wake you up to finish the night. But I can see that you aren't going to stay here tonight."

Joe-San looked down at me and said, "I don't want to see everyone get hurt because of foolishness."

I chuckled, knowing that he at least wanted to do something that didn't involve hiding under a rock and said, "And you going out on your own to investigate Infinity Mountain without Gomamon-San or backup is any better?"

Joe-San blushed in embarrassment, then he asked, "Yeah, I guess, but, can you not tell the others, I don't want to worry them?"

I smiled softly at the older kid and said, "I won't be able to tell them if I'm with you, Joe-San."

Joe-San gave me a confused look and asked, "Wha? What do you mean by that, Luke-San?"

I looked at Joe-San and sighed, dropping all of my legendary 'jokester' persona and truthfully said, "A true friend would never let their friends go off and do something stupid on their own, they first try to get them not to do something stupid, and if that fails, well, the old saying goes, 'If you can't beat them, join them.' So yeah. I'll have your back, Joe-San." And I gave him an honest smile.

Joe-San gave me a sincere smile, happy to know that I had his back for this and said, "Thanks, Luke-San."

I nodded and we started heading out for Infinity Mountain, but before we left, I left a note in the dirt for the others, just in case they came looking for us.

During our hike, Joe-San and I started a conversation, and Joe-San said, "I have always been good at climbing, I have the best chance of making it to the top. What about you? How good are you at climbing, Luke-San?"

I smiled and climbed up a rock with little to no effort and said, "Back at home, Okāsan would take me and Tai-Nii to the park, there we would challenge each other to see who could climb a tree the highest. I am better at Nii-San at climbing, mostly because I have fallen off so many times that I learned how not to fall flat on my butt. Tai-Nii still has a lot to learn."

I lightly chuckled at that, it's not about how many times you fall, it's about how many times you get back up. Never give up, never surrender, that's the way.

Kido-San nodded with a chuckle and then we continued walking to the mountain, when we heard a familiar voice call out, "Whoa, there!"

"What are you two up to?" Another familiar voice called out.

We looked back and saw Dorumon-San and Gomamon-San catching up to us. Dorumon-San walked next to me then asked, "You guys aren't gonna climb that mountain by yourselves, are you?"

"Gomamon-San?" Joe-San asked, surprised that his partner had followed him all the way up here.

"Dorumon-San? What are you doing here?" I asked my friend, a little surprised that he had followed us. I wasn't that I was angry at him. In fact, I was happy to see him. I was just surprised that he and Gomamon-San had been able to find us.

Dorumon-San simply smirked at me, and that smirk, unlike his other smirks, I felt comfort in. Because it was like him telling me that he'd always be by my side, without ever saying it. Then he looked at me and he said, "Us crazy guys must stick together, right, Luke-San?"

I chuckled, and lightly shook my head at my partners antics, then I looked at him with a grateful smile and said, "Dorumon-San, thanks. It's nice to know that'd I have your back on this." And Doru-San simply extended his fist, and I mimicked him, and we fist bumped.

"Why don't you go get some sleep." Joe-San suggested to his partner. It seemed that he wasn't as thrilled as I was to see his partner. Shame.

'That guy either needs to relax or something.' I thought to Olette-San. 'Because if he doesn't, he could end up popping a blood vessel.'

"You know, it's not nice to make fun of Joe-San, Lukas-San. You should try to keep it to yourself." Olette-San told me with a cute giggle.

I swear, whatever it is that is causing me to think this way about Olette-San, whether I really am falling for her, or it's just her nature that just makes me all soft, I found that I was enjoying that warm feeling in my heart. No matter how confused I become.

Then Gomamon-San smirked at Joe-San, and I knew that they were going to start arguing, "Not happening." Gomamon-San stated first, and I can tell that he wanted to get under Joe-San's skin.

And by the looks of things, he was succeeding. "Yes it is." Joe-San argued back. Yeash, does this guy just not know how to appreciate people helping him, or what?

"I don't think so." Gomamon-San counter argued. I rubbed my eyes, not really in the mood to deal with this headache right now.

"I swear, Lukas-San, these two argue more then anyone else. Are you sure that they are real partners. I mean, Tai-San and Matt-San get along better than these two." Olette-San told me, concern clear in her voice.

I sighed in defeat as I thought, 'Unfortunately, they are partners. But not all partners get along like me and Doru-San. But if we just ignore them, we'd be fine. For a while, that it.'

"If you say so, Lukas-San." Olette-San said, but I could feel the doubt in her voice as she spoke. "It seems to me that all those two do is argue about the smallest things."

And Olette-San wasn't wrong. Joe-San and Gomamon-San fought a lot. Joe-San is constantly complaining about something, while Gomamon-San seems to find new ways of driving Joe-San up the walls. No matter what anyone tries to do, Joe-San and Gomamon-San will always find something to fight about.

Joe-San then folded his arms and turned his back to Gomamon-San and said, "Look, you're not going, so quit following me around."

Then I decided that it was time for me to put my foot down. I looked at the squibbing duo and said, "Look, we're all here now, and if we head back now, we might as well go bact to sleep. But, seeing how I can tell that neither one of us will turn back, we might as well head up Infinity Mountain together. It is better to have our partners with us, Joe-San. That way we don't get turned to scrap data if we get attacked. Does that seem logical?"

Joe-San didn't say anything, but I knew that he agreed with me, be it, a bit begrudgingly, that is. "Fine." Was his only resond, but from his folded up arms, and him not looking at me, I knew that he wasn't exactly happy with the decision.

Then Gomamon-San turned away from Joe-San and with a smirk, he said, "And I'm not turning back, I have some business to take care of up there."

Me, Joe-San, and Dorumon-San, even Olette-San all blinked our eyes at Gomamon-San's response. Then Gomamon-San turned to us and said, "Everything doesn't revolve around the two of you. You know?"

I was silent for a few moments, before I shook my head and lightly chuckled, then I said, "You know, you're right. Welcome aboard, guys."

But Joe-San wasn't so happy about that decision as I was, he then turned around in annoyance and he said, "Fine then. Just keep up."

Then I heard Gomamon-San and Doru-San chuckle to each other and Gomamon-San whispered, "Sometimes I just have to trick him."

But it appeared that it wasn't silent enough, 'cause Joe-San turned to him and asked, "Did you just say something?"

Then Gomamon-San looked to his side, trying not to look guilty as he said, "Uh, yeah, nice night for a walk."

Joe-San, for obvious reasons, wasn't believing anything that Gomamon-San has said, so he looked over to Dorumon-San and asked, "Is that true, Dorumon-San?"

Then Dorumon-San, who looked like he wasn't even aware of what was happening, he was instead looking up at the stars, he then looked at Joe-San and asked, "Huh? Did you say something, Joe-San?"

"Forget it." Responded Joe-San, obviously annoyed at the fact that he was not getting anything from Doru-San, and he kept on walking.

I looked at Gomamon-San and Dorumon-San and saw them both wink at each other, 'Great. Dorumon-San is picking up Gomamon-San's bad habits.'

"Hehe, c'mon, Lukas-San, they're just messing around, it's not like they're being ruthless about it, or anything, right?" Olette-San asked me with a cheerful voice.

I knew that she was right, those two just loved to drive anyone nuts, not that I don't do the same thing, so I chose to ignore Gomamon-San and Joe-San's conversation and just enjoy the peaceful tranquility. But then I felt something, almost like something was off. It felt like I was being watched.

I turned around and saw something in the shadows. Two glowing bright yellow orbs, piercing through the darkness, and right at me. But before I could do anything, the eyes disappeared into the shadows, and I thought, 'Olette-San, did you see that as well?'

I got a mental nod from said girl, who said, "Yes, whoever it was is gone for now, but I have a bad feeling about this. Who do you think it was?"

I couldn't give her a solid answer, mostly because I couldn't figure out who could be lurking in the darkness, then I gave her a mental shrug and thought, 'I have no idea. But I have the feeling that we will find out soon enough.' I looked up and saw that Joe-San, Gomamon-San, and Doru-San were almost out of sight. So, I ran to catch up with them.

Once I was standing next to Dorumon-San he looked at me and wispered, "Jeremy-San, I think someone is following us."

I looked at my partner and nodded, agreeing with him wholeheartedly as I said, "I agree, Doru-San. And don't call me Jeremy!"

Dorumon-San simply gave me a foxy grin and continued on walking. I placed my right hand on my head in an annoyed motion and said, "He's gonna be the death of me one of these days, I just know it."

This caused Olette-San to giggle lightly and she said, "Oh, c'mon, Lukas-San, lighten up. You're too serious sometimes, he's just trying to lighten the mood a bit." I knew that she was right, but still… shaking my head, I decided to follow after him.

The four of us continued up this mountain, and I was sstarting to enjoy the peace and quite of the night when Joe-San climbed up on a rock and he said, "Infinity Mountain is a lot bigger than I thought."

I nodded, agreeing with Joe-San, Infinity Mountain was really living up to its namesake, and after I climbed up over the rock, I wiped my forehead and said, "Well, I guess that's why they call it Infinity Mountain, Joe-San."

After a few more steps, Gomamon-San asked, "Are you ready to quit? We can turn around."

As Joe-San was walking, he looked up at Gomamon-San and said, "Of course not." But his sudden distaction caused him to trip over a rock and fell to his feet and he cried out in surprise, "Ooh!"

I quickly walked up to Joe-San to help him up and I said, "Take it easy, Joe-San, don't push yourself. If you want to, we can just turn around now and head back, and come back up here tomorrow with the others."

But Joe-San ignored my suggestion and in a sudden moment of stubborness, he pushed my hand away and said, "No. I can do this." He then proceeded to try to get up on his own.

Seeing that Joe-San was having trouble, I was going to give him a boost, but noticed taht Gomamon-San beath me to the punch as he went behind Joe-San and said, "I can give you a hand." Then Gomamon-San started to push Joe-San up the mountain.

While I seemed to be enjoying this, I kept getting that nagging feeling, that someone was following us. I looked behind me, and I saw the same yellow glowing eyes, then I thought, 'Who is that?' Then the eyes disappeared yet again.

Then I decided to do something about it. I turned to the duo and in a calm voice, I didn't want to worry these two, after all, and said, "Joe-San, Gomamon-San, you guys go on ahead. Me and Doru-San are going to take care of something."

"Huh? Where are you going?" Joe-San asked me in surprise. And, honestly, I didn't blame him.

I turned to him and gave him a simple smile and said, "Like I just said, there's just something we have to take care of. Don't worry about us, we'll be fine. Come on Doru-San." Then me and Doru-San started to walk off in the direction where I saw the glowing eyes.

Joe-San tried to stop us as he said, "Wait! It's to dangerous to go in alone!" And his fears were well deserved, but I wasn't too worried. I had Doru-San with me.

I turned to him and smirked as I said, "No need to worry. We'll be fine." I gave him a simple thumbs up, before turning back to the forest.

"Yeah, we'll be fine, Joe-San. Take care, Gomamon-San." Dorumon-San said with a smirk matching my own.

And before Joe-San could stop us, me and Dorumon-San ran off into the forest, the same direction where I saw the eyes, then Dorumon-San asked, "So, why the sudden change in direction, Luke-San? Tired of Joe-San already?"

I couldn't resist chuckling at that remark, I shook my head at Doru-San's question, but I looked at him and replied, "Hehe, no, Dorumon-San. Not that." I closed my eyes as I shook my head, then I took a deep breath before opening my eyes once more, and got into a more serious persona and said, "There has been someone following us for a while now. I don't know who it is, but it's making me uncomfortable."

The air between us suddenly got cold, almost as if all the joy just evaporated. This was not the time for fun and games. Now, was the time for business.

And I wasn't kidding. It seemed like every step we took in this forest, made me feel uncomfortable. It was like the forest itself was alive, and something was after us. Which, if the eyes from before were any indication, there most likely was something in this forest after us.

Dorumon-San's eyes closed to look like he was glaring, then he looked at me and asked in a serious voice, "Any ideas as to who has been following us?"

I shook my head, I really couldn't put my finger on it, but, there was something in this forest, and it wasn't friendly. I finally decided to answer my partner and said, "No. But I know they headed in this direction."

Doru-San nodded, but while he seemed calm, but I knew that he was serious, and so was I, then he said, "Well, then Luke-San, what do you say we give our stalker a little, greeting then?" The wild look on Doru-San's smiling face told me everything. I said that he was serious, I never actually said that he had lost his mischievous side.

*SNAP*

Then we heard a twig snap, and we jumped in surprise and stopped in our tracks, and we searching for the direction of where that sound came from, our bodies went ridged, the hairs on the back of my neck were standing on end, as was Doru-San's fur. Me and Dorumon-San were then on edge. "You think that was our little follower, Luke-San?" Dorumon-San asked me.

I looked to Dorumon-San my hand already slowly reaching for my D-Ark and I nodded and said, "It's a possibility. Let's find out. You know where it came from?" Dorumon-San nodded then I said, "Lead the way."

Then we both ran in the direction of where we heard the twig snap, and I thought that maybe we made a wrong turn, when…

*SNAP*

Once again we both heard the sound of another twig snap, Dorumon-San looked in the direction that it came from and said, "This way! Follow me, Luke-San!" Then we both ran in the direction of the sound.

After a while, I started to get the feeling that something was off, and I wasn't the only one. "Somethings not right, Luke-San." Doru-San told me, suspicion evident in his voice.

I nodded, knowing that there was something wrong about this as well, I kept glancing to the right and the left, keeping my guard up, thinking that something's gonna jump out of the shadows and attack us, which even I knew was a high possibility right about now and I said, "Yeah. I know what you mean, Doru-San. It feels like whoever this is, is herding us somewhere. But why?"

Dorumon-San looked low to the ground and asked, "Could it be a trap?"

I didn't say anything, but I was thinking the same thing. "Lukas-San, please be careful. I don't like this." Olette-San told me, with concern in her voice.

'I'll try to be, Olette-San, but I will make no promises.' I told her, already knowing that whoever it is that is leading us, they are leading us into a trap.

It was five minutes of chasing the sounds of snapping twigs, and I was completely on edge, but that was when we came upon a wide open clearing, it was obvious now, if it wasn't already before, that what me and Dorumon-San had just walked into, was a trap.

Then we heard a voice call out from the darkness. "Well, look at what we have here. A boy and his pet, following the sounds of snapping twigs, and falling right into my trap. How, wonderful. You're making this a way too easy."

The voice was definitely female. But it also sounded, luring, almost sweet, a sickeningly sweet, like so sweet that it was almost hypnotic. Key word here, is almost. I looked around for the source of the voice, then I looked at Dorumon-San and seriously said, "Get ready, bud. We're about to engage in combat."

Doru-San nodded and said in a serious voice, "I'm ready, Lukas-San. Let's show 'em what we're made of!" And if it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation, I am certain that Doru-San would have smirked, but his face was calm and filled with determination.

Then we heard the feminine voice call out in that sickly sweet voice, "Oohh, I love it when they fight back. It's much more entertaining when they resist, it makes their cries of mercy and pain all the more better."

I felt a sudden chill run down my spine as I heard that, then, in a burst of bravery, I yelled out, "Come on out! Show yourself!"

At first I got no response, but then I heard a dark chuckle, then we heard the voice say, "Very well, then. I don't often give my prey what they wish for, but, because you asked nicely, I'll let you see me before you meet your end."

Me and Dorumon-San both took a defensive stance. Dorumon-San was ready to fight, glancing back and forth, keeping an eye out for a surprise attack, while I hadd my D-Ark in my left hand, and my Power Modify Card in my right, ready to give Dorumon-San a power boost if needed.

Then I saw a flash of yellow, and I turned to where the eyes were, and not taking any chance for a sneak attack, I turned towards my partner and pointed towards my left and shouted, "Dorumon-San! Eleven 'O Clock! Now!"

Dorumon-San looked in the direction I was pointing, and fired a Metal Cannon, we saw the trees explode, and the forest was silent for several long seconds, but we kept our guards up. Both of us knew that nothing was ever this easy.

And, just to prove that point, the voice from before said, "Oh, how rude, attacking a lady like that. Hehehe. You need to be taught some manners, boy." We both head the sounds of rustling leaves coming from behind us, causing us to turn around and saw a shadow.

We watched in baited breath as a figure walked out of the shadows, once the figure was visible, I was shocked at who was in the shadows, it was a purple and black cat, about as tall as Agumon-San, she had golden yellow eyes, a long black tail with purple stripes and a purple three pointed tip, three purple points of fur on the tips of her cat ears, and purple and black gloves.

Of all the Digimon that could have walked out, this Digimon was not what I was expecting, instead it was, "Gatomon-San!?" I asked in shock. No, this can't be her. It can't be Hikari-Chan's future partner.

Then Dorumon-San turned to me, and in a serious voice he said, "No, Luke-San, that is Shadow Gatomon. Unlike her vaccine attributed counterpart, she's a true menace. She's the reason why black cats are believed to be bad luck, because once you cross paths with her, you will have terrible luck, surviving, that is. Her Phantom Claw attack will leave you in shreds and her Dark Lightning Kick will leave you paralyzed in pain. Be very careful, Luke-San."

Shadow Gatomon-San looked at us, those eyes, I swear, looking into her eyes was like staring into the abyss, I saw no light, so it was impossible to tell if this Digimon was really evil, or effected by a Black Gear. Just looking into her bright yellow eyes sent shivers down my spine. But, despite the fear I was feeling, I stood my ground, ready to help my partner in any situation. And Doru-San was right behind me, his fangs barring like a true wolf, ready for the hunt to begin.

Shadow Gatomon-San must have noticed our determination to fight, then she darkly chuckled and said, "Oh, goody. Looks like you're both ready to dance. Let's get this started, ladies first. Phantom Claw!"

Shadow Gatomon-San's right claw was enveloped in darkness and she charged at both of us, Dorumon-San made quick work getting me out of harms way, and getting himself out of the way, by kicking me in the back. He pushed me forward and dodging Shadow Gatomon-San's attack and he pushed himself off of me to get out of the way.

Once I got my bearings, I stood up and brushed myself off and turned to my partner and I asked, "You okay, Dorumon-San?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Luke-San." I heard Dorumon-San respond. Obvious he was still in one piece.

I sighed in relief at knowing my partner was still in one piece, but then I heard Shadow Gatomon-San chuckle darkly and say, "Oh, yeah. I am going to enjoy this fight. Please try to last, I don't get to go out all that often. Heheh." I was really starting to become unnerved by how callous this feline can be to others. There was definitely something wrong with her.

I shivered at her lack of compassion, it was almost like she enjoyed battles. Then I glared and asked, "Why are you attacking us? What did we do to you?" I ignored the fact that we, in fact attacked her first, but everyone knew that, had she gotten the opportunity, she would have attacked us first.

Shadow Gatomon-San chuckled darkly and said, "Simple, I just want to." That one answer sent another unnerving chill down my spine. "Is there any other reason besides that? No, there isn't." She then outstretched her arms, as if she was explaining this to an unseen audience. "Fighting is the greatest experience one could have. And I live for the thrill of the fight." As she said those final words, she looked me dead in the eyes and had the most sinister smile on her face. "And the joy I get after snuffing out the last of their will to live, is like a rush of pure adrenaline."

My stomach churned and I felt like I was gonna vomit, I glared at her, disgusted by the lack of empathy this Digimon had for others lives. Then I pulled out my Power Modify Card and said, "So, you attack us just because? Well then, you want a fight? Fine, you got one!" I threw up my Power Modify Card and then I grabbed and swiped it through my D-Ark and shouted, "Digimodify, Power Activate! Dorumon-San, now!"

"Power Metal!" Dorumon-San then launched a large ball of iron at Shadow Gatomon-San, but she was faster than anticipated, which was to be expected from a Champion level Digimon, and she was able to dodge out of the way.

Then she landed gracefully three feet on my right and said, "Not bad, not bad at all. But not good enough." That dark grin that was on her face turned into a sinister sneer as she said, "My turn. Dark Lightning Kick." Her left foot was encased in dark purple lightning, then she stuck at Dorumon-San's stomach, who fell down, writhing on the ground, but then the strangest thing happened, I felt massive amounts of pain in my gut, and I fell on the ground in pain.

I was confused by this, 'What is this? This pain. It feels like I was the one who got kicked, not Dorumon-San. But, why?' I asked myself, it was like my whole body was being shocked, but, how? I never felt Doru-San's pain before, so, why now?'

I opened my eyes and I saw that Shadow Gatomon-San was somehow standing right in front of me, that dark look of glee shining in her eyes, then she asked in that sickly sweet voice, "You ready to give up, Gem Head? Because, if you do, I'll let your owner over go free. Maybe…"

Something about that insult surprised me, and I thought, 'Gem Head?' I thought, 'But I don't...'

Then I heard Dorumon-San's voice call out, but it felt like I was saying it, "My name…is not…Gem Head. It's Dorumon."

My eyes widened in surprise, then I felt myself turn my head, but I wasn't moving, then what happened next truly shocked me. I was now staring at myself, looking to be in a whole lot of pain, and I could see the confusion in my own face, then my vision turned back onto Shadow Gatomon-San, and I heard Dorumon say, "And I am no one's pet. Lukas-San is not my owner. And he's more then just my partner, he's my friend."

I could feel a warmth in my chest build up from hearing those words, pride and gratitude filling my chest, then I thought, 'Doru-San, thank you.'

But what shocked me the most was Dorumon-San's next words, "Anytime, Luke-San, anytime." I could feel his smile on my own face.

I was beyond shocked that Dorumon-San heard my thoughts, that I almost missed Shadow Gatomon-San's next words, "Pathetic. But if you care so much about him, then I will send him to the same place where you're going. That way the two of you can be together." Then I noticed the sadistic glee that Shadow Gatomon-San had on her face, and it really creeped me out. Then she said, "In the afterlife! Phantom Punch! Hah!"

Then Shadow Gatomon-San unleashed a barrage of punches at Dorumon-San, and each hit, I felt. It felt horrible, each hit was indescribable, each hit felt like I was being set on fire, I couldn't even tell if Olette-San was trying to call out to me or not because the pain was to great.

I have no idea how I could feel each hit that Dorumon-San was feeling, but I couldn't even think straight to even grab a modify card to get Dorumon-San out of this situation, I was in so much pain, then, after feeling several spectral blows to my stomach, legs, and arms, each blow made my heart hurt, I could feel it beating faster and faster like it was gonna explode, then I felt a phantom blow to my head, and for one single moment, I thought I felt my heart stop, then everything went black.

I woke up with a painful headache, and in pure confusion I found myself inside a strange place. It looked like a school. 'Where am I?' I asked myself while sitting up. 'Or better yet, who am I? And how did I get there?' I slowly started to stand on my feet, then I grabbed my head in pain and thought, 'Ouch! What hit me?'

Whatever happened to me to get here, I couldn't remember anything, it was all a blur. Then I started to look around the building and noticed that all the lights were flickering, almost as if they were dying. The walls of the building looked like they were crumbling, almost as if the building itself has begun to decay from years of abandonment.

Deciding that sitting around would get me nowhere, I slowly picked a random direction, and started to walk. As I walked down the hauntingly empty hallways, I felt a chill in the air, but then I noticed something, it looked like a purple wolf like creature with two large wings sprouting from it's back, and I also noticed that it was running away from me. Now, I don't know why, but something compelled me to run after the wolf, and so I did.

As I was running, I started hearing a woman's voice call out, "Lukas-San! Lukas-San! C'mon, Lukas-San, wake up!"

'Lukas-San?' I thought to myself in wonder. 'Whose that? And whose voice was that?' I looked around, but I couldn't see where that purple wolf went. 'Great. Just great. My only lead to finding out where I am is gone. What else can go wrong?' I thought to myself bitterly.

Then I heard a noise coming from behind me, and I stopped dead in my tracks and roboticly turned around slowly and saw that the building I was in was crumbling away, falling into darkness, and a sudden dread of fear took over me. Then I started running away from the decaying building.

I had so much adrenaline running through my veins that I thought I was hearing voices. Two voices, one was a deep male's voice that said, "Don't stop, Luke-San! Keep running! WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T STOP RUNNING! NOW! MOVE!" The force of that voice caused me to snap back and started to run away from the crumbling floors. But then I heard the first voice again, the woman's voice from before.

"-ukas-San. Lu-."

'Wait a minute.' I thought to myself while I was running. 'I am hearing voices.'

"Lu-! kas-San!" The voice kept getting louder and louder until I heard a voice yell out, "LUKAS-SAN GET UP!"

Hearing the women's voice yell out my name caused me to stop and from something inside of me to snap. Then, like a fog clearing from my mind, everything came back to, 'Olette-San!' I thought in shock.

"LUKAS-SAN GET UP! DORUMON-SAN NEEDS YOU!" I heard Olette-San's voice echo through the building, causing it to shake, almost, as if her voice held some kind of power.

'Dorumon-San! NO!' I thought in shock. Then I turned to the decaying school and glared hard at it, then I raised my right arm and in a voice of pure determination, I said, "This is my mind, and I am not returning to the darkness just yet. I have a promise to keep, and a friend to help, so be gone! Leave this place forever! And never return! I command you!"

Then the building started glowing in a bright light and in a blinding flash, it had returned to how it used to be. I sighed in relief but turned to where I was running to and in a determined mental voice I thought, 'I know where Doru-San is. Time to get to him. My mind, my rules.' Was my last thought before I started levitating off of the ground, then I stared at my destination.

And then I flew off into my mind, after a minute of flying, I had arrived at the door that I was looking for, the very same door that I was led to by that mysterious girl who led me here before meeting Olette-Chan. 'Wait! Did I just call her Chan?' I shook my head, focusing on what was more important. Then I opened the door and light soon escaped from it, and then I took a deep breath, and I walked in.

Once the light died down, I was once again in my old bedroom, only this time, Olette-San wasn't sleeping on my bed, it was, "DORUMON-SAN!" I yelled at seeing my best friend sleeping, or at least, I hopped he was sleeping, on my old bed.

I ran up to him and started shaking him, while saying, "Doru-San? Doru-San? Hey, can you hear me? I want you to wake up, please." But Dorumon-San wasn't moving, then I assumed the worst, and I started crying on top of Dorumon-San, thinking I had just lost my best friend, then I said, "Doru-San, please don't leave me. I can't do this without you. Please, Doru-San, please, don't leave me. I need you."

Then I heard someone groaning in pain, then a weak voice say, "Lukas-San?"

I looked up with tears in my eyes to see Dorumon-San up and about, relieved that Doru-San wasn't dead, I hugged him as tightly as I possibly could, crying at seeing my best friend awake. "I was so worried about you." The pain of losing, or even the fear of losing your best friend is like having your heart torn from your chest, ripped to shreds and set ablaze, it's just, indescribable, it is something that no one should have to feel.

I thought I heard some gargled voice, but I ignored it and just hugged my partner, until I heard someone clear their throat. I looked up in surprise and saw, "Olette-Chan!" I smiled brightly at her, happy to see her face. Then I realized what it was that I called her and blushed brightly in embarrassment.

But then she giggled, and I also noticed the light red tint on her cheeks, showing that she too was embarrassed as well, then she said, "It's good to see you too, Lukas-San, but I think that you're hugging Dorumon-San a little too tight. And I think he can't breath. He's starting to turn green."

"Huh?" I asked, then she pointed towards Doru-San, and I looked up and saw that Dorumon-San was struggling to breath, "Oh, my! Doru-San!" I quickly let go of my partner, who started breathing again. He then lightly glared at me and I awkwardly chuckled and said, "Gomen."

After he caught his breath, he looked at me and asked, "Lukas-San?" He then noticed the room he was in and asked, "Where are we?" Then he finally noticed Olette-San floating behind me and asked, "And whose the girl?"

I looked at Dorumon-San wide eyed and asked, "Wait! You can see her?"

Dorumon-San nodded, with a curious expression on he face as he asked, "Yes. Is there a reason why I shouldn't be able to?"

I looked at Olette-San, my eyes asking for permission, even though I knew she would say yes, I wanted to show her the proper respect that she deserves. She smiled and nodded, then I returned the smile ad looked over to Dorumon-Sam and said, "Doru-San, we are currently inside my mind. How we got here?"

I shrugged my shoulders, not really able to come up with a good solution, so I just said, "I can only take a guess that because of the fight, we had somehow became linked, whereas I could feel the pain you felt, and see through your eyes, our minds became linked, and when we both passed out during the fight because of all the pain, we were dragged into my mind, and now we are here."

I explained the how and where we were, but now was the time for the who. I looked at Dorumon-San and said, "This is Olette-San, I had met her back at the factory."

Dorumon-San looked at me in confusion and tilted his head and asked, "So, you met her in the factory and allowed her inside your mind? Is that something that humans can do, Luke-San?"

Olette-San put her fist to her mouth as she giggled lightly, then she said, "No, not quite, Dorumon-San. What Lukas-San meant it that he had met me when one of the DigiCodes turned into the Zero Unit. He pressed the symbol and was somehow dragged into his mind. This very room, to be precise. But the question on how I got here, I can't remember. I don't even know anything about my past, not even my name. Lukas-San was the one who gave me the name Olette."

Dorumon-San looked between me and Olette-San, then he once again turned to me and asked, "Why didn't you tell me about her earlier, Jeremy-San?"

I gave him an annoyed look and said, "Because, you wouldn't have believed me. Heck, I am still having a hard time believing it. And how many times do I have to tell you, don't call me Jeremy."

Dorumon-San nodded, while at the same time ignoring my last statement and casually said, "Okay, that's fine and all, but what about our fight? Shadow Gatomon is just going to delete us while we are just sitting around here knitting quilts."

I blinked at Dorumon-San several times, then I asked, "How do you know what a quilt even is? In fact, how do you know so much about things on earth?"

Dorumon-San simply looked at me and said, "You have your secrets, Luke-San, and I have mine." He then gave me that iconic foxy smirk.

Then I groaned and placed my hand on my head and said, "This must be what Tai-Nii feels every time I give him that same smirk. Note to self, never, ever, EVER, introduce you to Jake-San, I don't think I have the willpower to keep what little sanity I have if I do." Honestly, between Olette-San still calling me Lukas-San, trying to wrap my head around me insane life, and Doru-San still calling me Jeremy, I don't know what'll kill me first.

Now I knew how my Nii-San feels when I act the same way. I shook my head, deciding that the fact that I don't have any aspirin or Ibuprofen for the monster of all headaches that I know this would cause, thinking about any of this is not worth the pain.

I rubbed my eyes and said, "Anyways, for whatever reason, time inside my mind moves a whole lot faster then outside in the real world, but you are right, we have a fight to finish." As I said that, a small smile started to grow on my face, until it became a blinding smirk. Then I asked Doru-San, "What do you say, bud? Up for another round?" I held out my fist to him and gave him a knowing smirk, already knowing his answer.

Dorumon-San smirked back at me and said, "With you, Luke-San, I am ready for another twenty rounds. Besides, she's just one Champion, we can take her." Dorumon-San's cocky nature and smirk brought a simular smirk to my face, then he placed his fist in front of mine smirking all the way.

I smiled at Dorumon-San's attitude, but I looked down when I felt a second fist placed against mine, I looked up to see Olette-San smiling at me, then she said, "I won't let you boys have all the fun, I want in on the action as well."

I looked at her in wonder and asked, "And what can you do, Olette-San? Not that I doubt you, but, just how can you help us?"

Olette-San simply smiled at me and said, "By being a second pair of eyes, if she gets behind you, you can bet that I will let you know where she attacks from."

I smiled at my two best friends, then I said, "Thanks, guys, that means a lot to me, now then, let's go declaw this cat!"

And both friends gave me a beaming smile, as they agreed and soon, from our connected fists, came a green, red, and purple light that spiraled around each of us, and I could feel unknown energy flow through my being, then the world was enveloped in bright lights of red, green, and purple.

But those lights, soon turned to darkness, and that was my first clue that I was starting to regain consciousness, then, as I slowly started to open my eyes and push myself to my knees when I heard Shadow Gatomon say, "Now, time to finish the boy's pet, then the boy himself."

Hearing that made me realize just how bad the situation is, and I began to think of a way to hep my friend. Then I felt a large amount of energy flow through me and a sudden, and extremely crazy idea came to mind. 'It's crazy, and down right impossible for it to work, but, it's the only thing I can think of.' I thought to myself, already thinking of the unlikely, to down right impossibility of this actually working.

Then I took the Power Modify Card that was now resting on the ground, and put it away and took out Recharge and I threw it at Shadow Gatomon, as it flew I silently preyed to Kami-Sama, Susanoo-Sama, the Sovereigns, and any other higher power that would listen, 'Please let this work. Sovereigns, guide me.' Then, at that last thought, I watched in surprise and shock as the Modify Card suddenly began to glow a light green color, and it seemed like it sped up, then the card struck Shadow Gatomon, causing her to halt, and look at me.

And then, to my surprise, the Modify Card did a U-Turn and was heading back to me, deciding to go with it, I quickly jumped to my feet and caught the flying card back in between my fingers, then I raised my hand holding the card in the air and said, "Time for round two! DigiModify: Recharge, Activate! Dorumon, NOW!"

Shadow Gatomon's looked down and saw Dorumon-San's golden glowing eyes as he had a large iron ball in his mouth, then he yelled, "Metal Cannon!"

To which Shadow Gatomon's eyes widened and she said, "Oh, kuso." And then she was blasted away by the large metal ball.

I watched in joy at seeing Dorumon-San taking out Shadow Gatomon, only to frown when I heard the dark laughter of Shadow Gatomon, "Oh, yeah! Now this is what I like to see." Something wasn't right. I know that Shadow Gatomon is a Champion level Digimon, but, it's like she's, holding back or, just toying with us. Then I heard her say, "Yes, bring it on, show me more of your power! Phantom Punch!"

Shadow Gatomon then launched a shadowy fist at Dorumon-San and then I felt my own instincts tell me what to do, and I said, "Doru-San, slide to the left! NOW!"

Then me and Dorumon-San, almost like were one, moved at the same exact time, dodging Shadow Gatomon's attack. Said Digimon looked at me with a hard glare but a vicious smile to go with it, then she said, "So, you think you can play hero, boy? Well then, let's see if you have what it takes to play with the Champions, shall we? Dark Lightning Kick!"

Then Shadow Gatomon charged at me with her foot encased in dark purple lightning, and I could see time start to slow down as Shadow Gatomon approached me I closed my eyes and ready to accept my fate, until I heard Dorumon-San yell out, "Lukas-San!"

I opened my eyes and saw Dorumon-San standing in front of me, ready to take the hit, then I yelled out, "DORUMON!" I was in such a shock, I forgot to add an honorific to his name.

Then, fearing for my partners safety, I want to do something, ANYTHING for my friend, then I felt a massive amount of energy build up inside me, it was then that I knew what to do, and it thought, 'It's now or never. I either fly now, or we all die. But no matter what, I won't run from this fight!' And with that final thought, something happened.

To me, it was like time was moving in slow motion, I slowly grabbed my D-Ark from my pocket and, placing it right in front of me, holding it with both hands, and with all the strength I could muster, I yelled out, "DIGIVOLUTION, ACTIVATE!"

Then a huge beam of energy erupted from my D-Ark and shot into Dorumon-San, causing the gem on his forehead to glow a bright red for a single moment. And then, it happened.

D-I-G-I-V-O-L-U-T-I-O-N

"Dorumon, Digivolve to..." Then I watched as Dorumon-San's body was converted into data, and watched as his data body began to grow to new heights, then his fur started returning, when the Digivolution was completed, Dorumon-San was now his Champion level form.

The new Champion was roughly around the height of Matt-San's Garurumon, the wings on his back have more then doubled in size, his fur has become darker, almost looking dark blue, instead of the usual light purple that Dorumon-San was, there were also several blue markings all along his fur.

The tip of his tail, along with the insides of his wings, feet, hands and snout, were white, he still had that old red gem on his head, but it appeared to be smaller then before. I noticed that my partners ears have become more longer and pointer. The claws on both his hands and feet have become longer and sharper, and were now colored red. Then my parter yelled out, "Dorugamon!"

I grabbed my D-Ark and I suddenly remembered that the D-Ark can display information for Digimon. I looked down and saw the charts for Dorugamon-San. "Dorugamon is an animal Digimon and a carrier of the X antibody. This ferocious Digimon is as intelligent as it is powerful. It's fighting spirit is unmatched in terms of raw power. His Cannonball attack can knock down even the toughest of fortresses, and his Power Metal could sink the most durable ships."

Then Dorugamon-San glared at Shadow Gatomon and said, "You will not harm my friends. Power Metal!" Then Dorugamon-San charged up a massive ball of iron and fired it at Shadow Gatomon, launching her several feet away.

I looked up at my new Champion level partner in amazement, then I let a few tears fall to the ground as I said, "Dorugamon-San, thank you."

He simply smiled at me and said, "Anytime, my friend. Anytime."

But before we could have our moment, I hard Olette-San's voice say, "Not to be a stickler or anything boys, but we're not done yet."

We both looked a head of us and saw that Shadow Gatomon was still standing, but seemed to have a deranged smile on her face, but for a split second I thought I saw something on her forehead, it was glowing green and, it looked like a strange symbol, I couldn't describe what it as, but I thought that I saw four or five circles connected by lines, but it was gone before I could verify what it was.

Then Shadow Gatomon darkly chuckled and said in now twisted and almost sadistic voice, "Now THAT was an attack. And while I am just starting to enjoy this game we're playing, and would love nothing more then to keep playing, I think I played with you boys for too long, maybe once I defeat you two, I can make you into my own personal slaves. And training dummies…if you survive, that it."

She then began to chuckle darkly, which soon became an all out psychotic laugh, causing a chill run down my spine, like death itself ran a cold, bone-chilling, finger down the center of my spine.

But I wasn't gonna let my fear control me in this fight. Me, Dorugamon-San and Olette-San all glared at her, then Dorugamon-San knelt in front of me and said, "Hop on, Luke-San, we're finishing her, together."

I smiled at Dorugamon-San, then I jumped on him, and held on tightly to his back, being careful not to accidentally pull out any of his fur, then he said, "Hold on tight, we're going for a ride."

I followed his orders as Dorugamon-San started flapping his wings and soon enough, we were in the air, we both looked at one another, and we both had the same thought, I grabbed my D-Ark and pulled one of my Modify Cards out and I swiped it through the card reader, "DigiModify, Hyper Chip, ACTIVATE!"

I called out as Dorugamon-San glowed a bright green light, then he opened his mouth and another large iron sphere formed within it, then knowing what was going to happen, I gripped down on Dorugamon-San as he flew down to Shadow Gatomon, and started spinning, then almost as one, me, Dorugamon-San and Olette-Cha- I mean Olette-SAN, I really need to stop doing that, anyways, we all shouted, """CANNONBALL!"""

Then Dorugamon-San struck Shadow Gatomon with a massive iron ball, knocking Shadow Gatomon several feet back, and skidding across the field, but then we all watched as a Black Gear slowly left Shadow Gatomon's body and flew off into the air, but it didn't disperse.

'So, she was just another victim from Devimon-Baka after all.' I glanced down at the knocked out Shadow Gatomon, then, deciding to give this feline a second chance, I pointed towards the Black Gear and said, "Dorugamon-San, Power Metal! Destroy that gear!"

Dorugamon-San didn't need any other motivation to do so, as he nodded and charged up another iron ball in his mouth, this one much more larger then before, and fired it at the Black Gear, destroying it. Once we were certain that the battle was over, we quickly headed to Shadow Gatomon-San, now knowing that she was yet another victim to Devimon-Baka's Black Gears.

So, being who I am, and deciding to give her the benefit of a doubt, I quickly got off of Dorugamon-San and ran to the black cat and slowly picked up Shadow Gatomon, and rested her on my legs and softly asked, "Hey, you okay? Please tell me that you're still alive."

Shadow Gatomon's eyes slowly opened, then I breathed a sigh of relief, even though this cat had almost killed me and my best friend, I can't find it in myself to blame her as I said, "Thank Goodness, I thought we had taken things a little too far."

Shadow Gatomon then slowly spoke in a soft voice, "Who, who are you?"

I noticed, that unlike when she was controlled by the Black Gear, her normal voice was calm, and innocent, in a way, and while her voice was soft, I can tell that she was in a bit of pain, then I decided to answer her question and said, "My name is Kamiya Lukas, but my friends call me Luke-San, this here is my partner, Dorugamon-San."

She looked at both of us, she slowly closed her eyes and said, "You have a weird way of speaking, kid." Then she seemed to relax a bit, only for her eyes to went wide open in panic as she asked, "Wait! How did I get here? Last thing I remember was walking through the forest when I was struck by something, then everything went black. What happened to me? And why am I in so much pain right now?"

Me and Dorugamon-San both shared a look, determining to whether or not to tell her the truth, then we nodded, and I turned to Shadow Gatomon-San and said, "You were possessed by a Black Gear, that's this thing that causes Digimon to give into the darkness and forces their deepest buried evil out from them, but it also takes away their free will. Me and Dorugamon-San were able to free you, but we had to beat you down in order to do it, then once that Black Gear had left your body, I had Dorugamon-San destroy it."

Shadow Gatomon's eyes widened in shock, then she asked, "Did I hurt any of you?"

I saw the fear in her eyes, then I sadly sighed and said, "I won't lie to you and say that you didn't hurt us, you truly did a number on us, it was a miracle that we were able to get out of that fight in one piece." Shadow Gatomon looked down in sadness, then I gently placed a comforting hand on her head as I said, "But, it would be foolish and arrogant of me to blame you for all of those things."

Then Shadow Gatomon-San started to argue as she said, "But I..."

But I interrupted her and said, "As I said, the Black Gear takes away the hosts free will and forces them to do things against their will. You were just a victim, you were not the villain, right, Dorugamon-San?"

Dorugamon-San nodded and said "Lukas-San is right, you didn't do anything wrong, you were just the victim of bad luck, we don't blame you."

Shadow Gatomon-San then knelt down on her right foot, while her left knee was resting on the ground, her head was down, and she had her left arm behind her back, clenched in a fist, as her right fist was lying on the dirt, almost like an old soldier or samurai and she said in a soldier like voice that shocked me, "I am indebted to you, Lukas Kamiya."

I raised an eyebrow at this, while her position shocked me, it was the way she spoke that left me most surprised. In all honesty, I was just expecting a few words of gratitude, before she left and went her own way. But this? Having her be indebted to me?

Not what I was expecting. Then I decided that, as who I was, I decided to hear her out. It's the very least that I could do. So I decided to mimic her, and looked at her and asked, "Why? I just said that I don't blame you for this, so, why are you indebted to me?"

Shadow Gatomon then looked up at me, and our eyes met, and I could see pain, and self loathing, and self hatred that she held. Sometimes I curse myself for being able to take notice of someone's innermost painful thoughts. But the only reason why I can recognise those thoughts, was because when I look in my own reflection, I see that same emotions in my own eyes.

Then, in a strictly military voice, she said, "For freeing me from that Black Gear and preventing me from hurting others. So, now I must pay you back for gratitude."

I was about to argue against her when Sora-San and the others can running into the clearing, "Guys? What's up?" I asked slightly confused.

Tai-San ran up to me at a speed that looked like he was powered by Yami itself, and he grabbed me in a strong chock hold and said, "'What's up?' 'What's up?' That's all you have to say to us after giving us a huge scare like that? What were you thinking? Going up to Infinity Mountain on your own? You could have been killed!"

I would have argued, but I was having a hard time breathing, and my vision was blurring, then I had a sudden thought, 'Wait, he was able to hear my thoughts during that battle, so, maybe…' I then began to, hopefully reach out to my partner and thought, 'Dorugamon-San, I have no idea if, ack, if you can hear me, but can you, ack, can you kindly get Tai-Nii off me? Ack.'

Nii-San was still yelling at me, but because of the lack of oxygen in my head, I couldn't make out what he was saying, then he suddenly let me go and I almost fell to the ground when I was caught by something covered in fur. "Easy, Lukas-San, easy. Take deep breaths, and you'll be fine." A deep voice said to me.

Then after a few deep breaths, my vision started to return and I saw that Dorugamon-San was holding me, "Feel better, now, Luke-San?"

I smiled lightly, as my world was no longer spinning, nor was I seeing dark circles in my vision, and I gratefully said, "Yeah, thanks for that, bud." I stood up and once I wasn't in danger of falling on my face, I brushed myself off and said, "Look, I know you guys are angry at me, but Joe-San was the one who left on his own, and when he puts his mind to it, he can be as stubborn as Tai-Nii, so I decided to leave you guys that message and went after him, then Dorumon-San and Gomamon followed us."

Matt-San then looked to Dorugamon-San and asked, "And I'm guessing that's Dorumon-San, now, Luke-San?"

I looked to Dorugamon-San with a smile and said, "Yep, he's Dorugamon-San, now."

Izzy-San then looked down at my legs and asked, "And whose that Digimon behind you, Luke-San?"

Everyone looked towards Shadow Gatomon, who was hiding behind me, obviously she was shy at seeing new people, and I wasn't positive if it was because she was naturally shy, or if she was still on edge after being freed from the Black Gears control. I lightly chuckled at the personality differences between how she acted before the Black Gear was destroyed and after, then I said, "She's Shadow Gatomon, and we had a little, tussle, earlier, but we're good now."

Matt-San then folded his arms with a roll of his eyes at the destruction and said, "Well, that's good and all, but what about Joe-San? Where's he?"

Just before I could say anything, we all felt the ground shake and we all saw an explosion on top of Infinity Mountain, then I joked, "Twenty yen says that he's up there right now."

Then Sora-San looked towards Biyomon-San and the two nodded. Then Sora-San grabbed her Digivice and it started glowing, then Biyomon-San Digivolved into Birdramon-San, then Sora-San said, "Let's go save Joe-San!" She then grabbed Birdramon-San's left leg while Tai and Agumon-San grabbed her right.

I nodded then I jumped on Dorugamon-San's back, but I felt someone else jump on behind me, "Shadow Gatomon-San? What are you doing?"

Shadow Gatomon-San then calmly said, "As I said before, I'm indebted to you two, so to pay my debt, I'm gonna help you guys save this Joe-San fellow."

I smiled at this, happy to know that we had some extra hands on deck. Then I brought my sunglasses down over my eyes and said, "Thanks. Alright then. Guys, lets save the complainer!"

Then both Dorugamon-San and Birdramon-San took to the skies, and headed to Infinity Mountain, then Tai-Nii said, "Whoa. Whose that Digimon?"

I looked at my D-Ark and said, "According to my Digivice, it says that's Unimon, and it looks like he's about to turn Joe and Gomamon-San into dust!"

"Not if we have anything to say about it. Get 'em, Birdramon-San!" Sora-San said with confidence in her voice.

Then the flaming Phoenix charged at the unicorn, crashing into the mountain. We heard Joe shout out, "Birdramon-San!"

And then Dorugamon-San landed and Joe turned and whimpered and asked, "Who, whose that?"

I popped up and cheerfully said, "Yo, Joe-San. What's up?"

Joe-San blinked several times in surprise then he asked, "What are you guys doing here?"

Tai-Nii waved his hand and he said, "What else? We've come to save you."

Joe-San, obviously happy to know that his friends were here for him, he smiled and said, "Just in time, I'd say. And I'm guessing that that's Dorumon-San, Luke-San? But whose that behind you?"

But before we can do any introductions, Unimon-Teme dislodged himself out of the mountain and shouted, "Aerial Attack!" Then he created a bright ball of light and fired it at Birdramon-San, sending her crashing down below. And Sora yelled out, "Birdramon-San!" Then she slid down the mountain to tend to her partner.

I looked at my lovable Ani and asked, "You ready to go, Nii-San?"

Tai-San smirked as he nodded and he turned towards Agumon-San and asked, "Well?"

Then Tai-Nii's Digivice began glowing and Agumon-San Digivolved into Greymon-San. Greymon-San tried to attack Unimon-Baka, but the flying Teme had the aerial advantage, and avoided him, and then crushed him into the wall, then me and Dorugamon-San nodded and I jumped on him and placed my sunglasses over my eyes and said, "Let's take the fight to him, bud. Shadow Gatomon-San, take care of the others, and if you see an opportunity, take it!"

Shadow Gatomon-San gave me a salute, then me and Dorugamon-San charged after Unimon-Baka, Dorugamon-San, "Power Metal!"

Dorugamon-San nodded and charged up a large iron sphere in his mouth, then fired it at Unimon-Baka, but he was too fast, I then said, "Well, how about a little speed boost? Digimodify: Speed Activate!"

Then Dorugamon-San glowed, and then, he charged at Unimon-San, with another iron ball in his mouth, then he shouted, "Cannonball!"

But Unimon-San somehow dodged out of the way, and I saw Greymon-San's Nova Blast attack coming right at us, then Dorugamon-San managed to turn right in the nick of time and got us out of Greymon-San's attack, but we crashed into the mountain wall, and because of our earlier battle, we were exhausted, and Dorugamon-San reverted back to Dorumon-San, who said, "Sorry, Luke-San, I couldn't hold the form any longer."

I chuckled and shook my head, telling him that it was alright, and I said, "Forget about it, Doru-San, we did good."

Then our little breather was interrupted by, "Lukas-Otouto! Get out of there!" I heard Tai-Nii yell out.

I looked up and remembered that we were still in a fight, I then grabbed Doru-San and quickly got out of there, while Greymon-San launched another Nova Flame at Unimon-San. But Unimon-Teme dodged out of the way, and returned the favor by launching another Aerial Attack at the mountain, which started to fall on us, then I yelled out, "JOE-SAN! HE'S GOING AFTER SORA-SAN NOW! YOU HAVE TO HELP HER!"

Then we all heard Unimon-Teme yell out, "What do we have here? Another uninvited guest?"

Birdramon-San then took to the skies again and shouted, "Meteor Wing!" Then a burst of fireballs were fired from Birdramon-San's wings, but Unimon-Baka just plowed right through the attack and right into Birdramon-San. And we were forced to watch as both her, and Sora-San fell further down the mountain.

Me and Joe-San both cried out in shock, "SORA-SAN!"

Then I heard Joe-San gasp in shock as he said, "The Gear!"

Shadow Gatomon-San's ears twitched and asked, "Another one?"

Then Joe-San had a look on his face that was nothing like the fearful, frightened wimp that he had not three seconds ago, this one was, dare I say it, being insanely bold and reckless, not at all what I would have expected him to be while he said, "I'll get it!"

We all looked at Joe-San in shock, but I turned to him and asked,, "Are you crazy, Joe-San? You'll never make it!"

But Joe-San shook his head and stated, "I have to. I can't keep running from fights forever. So, for this one moment, I need to be fearless." Hearing this shocked me to the core, I just wasn't used to Joe-San being this, bold. Then I watched in silence as Joe-San jumped on Unimon's back, and he almost fell off, but he grabbed the Black Gear. Then I decided to put some kind of faith in Joe-San and said, "Come on, Joe-San, get that Gear out of him!"

But Joe was struggling, it looked like he was someone trying to pull Excalibur from a stone slab, and I heard him say, "Oh, no! It won't budge!"

And then Unimon-San screeched in pain, and flew up higher in the sky, and Joe-San was crying out in fear, and I heard Gomamon-San shout out, "Joe-San, stop! Don't try to be a hero!"

I knew that I am hard on Joe-San for being a coward, but I didn't want him to get hurt. Would I like to smack him around a bit? Absolutely, but only on solid ground where the only thing he'd fall on is his face, he'd be fine. But this? This is something that Joe-San doesn't deserve. Then Joe-San said, "I know, but I just have to do this one thing. I'm not gonna stop until it's done"

We all watched in amazement, "I have never seen Joe act this bravely, it's incredible." Olette-San said to me. She was completely surprised at how fearless Joe-San was being.

'Yeah, she's right, Luke-San, I haven't seen Joe-San so bold before.' I heard Dorumon-San say. Which I silently nodded in agreement, before turning to Doru-San in surprise.

But before we could react to the fact that Dorumon-San just heard Olette-San's voice, we all heard Joe shout out, "I have to think positive! I'm responsible, I've gotta do it!" But then Joe-San was launched off of Unimon-San, plummeting towards the rocks below.

"OH, NO! JOE-SAN!" We all shouted in shock.

But just as he was about to hit the rocks below, we all saw Gomamon-San glowing in a bright light, and he then said, "Gomamon Digivolve to..."

D-I-G-I-V-O-L-U-T-I-O-N

And soon he was a large fluffy walrus with long, white fur, red claws, and a large grey horn on his forehead, and two large tusks. Then he shouted, "Ikkakumon!"

Then Ikkakumon-San caught the falling Joe-San, right on his back, allowing the rest of us to breath a sigh of relief. Then Ikkakumon-San spoke in a deep, gruff, voice and said, "Hold on tight, Joe-San, we're going for a ride!"

Then they stared at Unimon-Baka who had moved to be right in front of them, and then they both fell to the bottom of the mountain, but as they fell, Unimon gripped the mountain and shouted, "Aerial Attack!"

And launched a large white sphere at them, but Ikkakumon dodged the attack and leaned forward and shouted, "Harpoon Torpedo!" Then the horn on his head literally flew off of his head, and another suddenly appeared, and then that one was launched, both right at Unimon-San, one right after the other, but each one missed.

Then I heard Joe-San say, "You missed him, he's much to fast for us!" Heh, it only seemed that way, but Ikkakumon almost never misses.

Then the horns turned round and broke apart and released real torpedoes, that stuck at Unimon, then Unimon-San ran away, and we all saw the Black Gear fall to the ground and shatter. Then Joe-San said, "The Black Gear just dissolved! Yeah! You saved the day!"

Me, Dorumon-San and Shadow Gatomon-San then all slid down the mountain and soon saw Tai-Nii and Sora-San were okay, I heard Greymon-San ask, "I hope I didn't shake you too much, Tai-San."

Tai-San looked up at his partner and gave him a thumbs up and said, "Naah!"

We all ran up to Joe-San as Sora-San said, "That was a really close call!"

I smiled then I looked to Shadow Gatomon-San, who was looking at where the Black Gear was, then she said, "I wasn't the only one effected by the Black Gear?"

I could see a sea of emotions raging in her eyes. It was like, she was remembering something terrible, but was trying to bury it. I don't know what her past was like, but because of my own experience in the past, I decided to respect her own past, and let it rest.

Then, deciding to help her overcome what she had just went through, and let her know of the current events, I knelt down to her and placed my hand on her in a comforting motion and sadly said, "No, you weren't you are actually the fourth one to be effected by the Black Gear, and Unimon-San was the fifth."

Shadow Gatomon-San's eyes widen in shock at that revelation, then she asked, "I'm the fourth? Where are these Black Gears coming from? And who's behind them?" From the sound of her voice, it sounded like she was more concerned about who was responsible then even I was.

I shook my head, not ready to reveal too much to this young cat, not that I didn't trust her, just that, with my friends so close, I didn't want to reveal anything just yet. So, instead, I decided to play clueless, and I said, "I really don't know, but is your debt paid off, Shadow Gatomon-San? Or is there more you want to do?"

Shadow Gatomon-San didn't say anything, she just looked to where Unimon-San flew off too, then after a moment of silence, she looked up to me and with determination in her eyes, she said, "Until these Black Gears, and the ones behind them are no longer causing trouble, I will stay and help you out. That is what I'll do. I am honor bound, you have my word, I will help you put an end to these Black Gears." She then knelt down in front of me in the same manner as before, like a warrior, or soldier waiting for orders.

I smiled at Shadow Gatomon-San, and, sensing the seriousness of her voice, and the determination to do what is right, I knew that she was telling truth. So, I stood at a military attention, and in a captain's voice, I said, "Shadow Gatomon, I hear by accept your offer to help us deal with these Black Gears, and the one who is behind them."

I saw a light smile appear on the black cats face, then she said, "Thank you, Lukas. I won't let you down." I noticed that she didn't use any honorifics, strange, but, nothing to worry about.

I quickly noticed that she was a little weak, she was starting to breath heavily, and her legs were shaking I knelt down with my back facing her and said, "Here, rest on my back, I'll carry you for a while."

Shadow Gatomon didn't say anything, then she slowly climbed on my back and stayed there, "Comfortable?" I asked her, hoping that she is at least not in any kind of pain.

"Yeah, I am, thanks, Luke." She told me, I heard her voice, and it was soothing, she seemed to be so relaxed now. And, even though I knew that she was being manipulated by Devimon, there was something that kept bothering me.

'That symbol on her head, I felt like I've seen it somewhere before, but I can't put my finger on where.' It was concerning me. I didn't want to ask her, not after what she had just been through, I'll give her some time, maybe she'll want to talk about it.

Then I heard Tai-Nii's voice call out, "Hey, Otouto! We're continuing our way to the top, want to join us?"

I looked at my friends and nodded, and said, "Sure, we'll be right there! Come on, Dorumon-San." Then the two of us, three if you count Shadow Gatomon-San on my back, and four if you also count Olette-San, all caught up to the others, and Sora-San quickly noticed Shadow Gatomon-San and asked, "Hey, Luke-San, why is Shadow Gatomon-San on your back?"

I looked at her and said, "When we freed her from the Black Gear, she said that she's indebted to me, and at first I asked her to help save Joe-San, but now, she said that she will help pay her debt by helping us put a stop to these Black Gears."

Tai-Nii raised an eyebrow at that response and asked, "Isn't that a bit much, you could have told her that you were just doing the right thing."

I nodded, understanding what he was getting at, but I said, "That may be true, but I get the feeling that she would still repay for my help. In fact, she said that she was honor bound. And, I refuse to insult someone's honor by refusing her. Besides, I won't turn away someone who is just trying to pay someone back, the best way to show gratitude for someone wanting to pay someone back, is to let them help."

Tai-Nii just looked at me and shrugged and said, "Whatever, it's your decision. Meaning that you are responsible for her."

I rolled my eyes and said, "Nii-San, she's not a child. This cat, while under control of a Black Gear, mopped the floor with our faces, I don't think I'll have any trouble taking care of her. Right, Shadow Gatomon-San?"

Said black cat simply said, "If it's alright with you, Luke, just call me Shadow Gatomon, I don't do honorifics. No offense."

And I wasn't offended, but I simply chuckled and said, "Nonetaken. And if that is what you wish, then, so be it, Shadow Gatomon."

Then after a few minutes of climbing, we were finally at the top of the mountain and Tai-Nii cheered, "All right! I knew we could do it!"

When we finally reached the peak we were st first, amazed by the sight, but soon Tai-Nii said, "Not much out there." We all agreed, but it was a nice view still.

So me, Dorumon-San, Gomamon-San, and Joe-San all fought all the way to the top to see what was there, and we found, well, nothing. But I think we discovered quite a bit on the way up. Plus, we made a new ally in Shadow Gatomon, so, I guess it wasn't for waste. But, this is only the dawn, I can feel that there is a storm of shadows closing in on us, can we stand through it, or be blown away?

And so, another chapter ends, and another journey reaches it's peak, but this was just the calm before the storm, next time, we meet true evil, but tune in next time for Digimon New Life!

---

Thechaosmaster: Woohoo! Oh yeah! Now how about that? Me and Joe both got our Digimon to Digivolve. Now, before many of you get upset that I didn't use your ideas for Dorumon's Digivolution, please note that the story is still young, and we got some more to get through. Now then, as for the questions that I know many of you will ask is this, "How can Lukas and Dorumon speak telepathically?" And my answer is quite simple, Lukas and Dorumon are close, closer then even the other Digimon, it is almost like they already share the same mind, but when they actually started fighting for real, their minds started to synch up.

Hence why Lukas could feel Dorumon's pain, another thing, Shadow Gatomon, yes, she will become a traveling companion for the group, could be until Devimon, or could be permanent. Now, if you guys haven't seen it, go back to Shadow Gatomon's fight with Dorugamon and really look at it, a hint of what my crazy mind is planning. But yeah, and I also made the reason why Dorugamon doesn't just walk all over Unimon very clear, both he and Luke were still worn out from their fight with Shadow Gatomon, so yeah. Now, yes, my quote of the chapter is returning, but this time, it will be from any genera, any movie, video game, whatever, and I want you guys to give me a few.

For one, I would like proof that you guys, and girls, are still reading this, and it helps me out to see that you guys want to see your quotes on this story. Well, I would keep talking, but I think you guys have reviews to write.

CHAOS CONTROL!

Edited September 4th, 2020

Thechaosmaster: Well, then, that was fun. Took way longer than I would have liked, but, I got it done. Again, I am sorry this took so long, My ADHD is, by far, a worse enemy that Writers Block. Now, this has nothing to do with the story, yet, but, has anyone been watching the 'reboot' of Digimon, yet? I haven't and won't watch it for a long time. The reason why is because, I don't want that to effect the nature of this story, while some might think that is a good thing, I want to add my OWN twists to this series, and while I may get ideas from other content, or stories, I don't want to get tied to the new series.

Blossom: Meaning, you want to keep yourself from being disappointed by the new series if you don't like it. And want to keep the classical feel to this story, right?

Chaos: Precisely. Also, I have question, what DO you guys think of Olette and Rouge? Olette is a character who I have her entire backstory planned out, and, boy, I would love to tell you all about it, but, that will come in time.

Blossom: And Rouge, hehe, she is a real feisty feline, Chaos.

Chaos: Well, for you older readers who are reading this to see what small or major changes I have made, just know that, she is by far one of my most favorite characters whose personality I have created. Also, because I want to keep her nicknames for the others, should they remain as is, or, do you guys have any Japanese insulting nicknames for her to use. I chuckle to myself when I think of Rouge calling Luke Emo-Sama, but, that's just me. You lot have anything funnier, or should the insults remain as it? Let me know.

Blossom: Now, as Chaos has stated up top, he recently gotten a new Kindle, meaning that he has to bring all of his current work onto this new one.

Chaos: Right, and so far, I have all of my DigiHearts stories, as well as The Hero and the Dragon, cause I was really thinking of getting back to that ancient story. Which, no doubt, I will, eventually, and, well, obvious, this story. And, I have been thinking long and hard about what to do for it. Oh, another question, because of my constant use of 'Kuso' Watashi o fakku, should I just bump this to rated M? I mean, I really don't think I should, after all, with the way the world is these days, I think swearing is becoming a part of the human language at a younger age.

Blossom: But, enough of that, Chaos is going to let his fingers rest now.

Chaos: Yeah, this story already took too long to update, and while I would love nothing more than to just keep updating these chapters like crazy, I need to let my fingers rest, just so I don't cramp up, or worse, have my fingers lock up. Well, good day, evening, afternoon, night, morning, or whenever it is that you lot are reading this, please don't forget to leave reviews for how this story is, and don't forget to go back and reread Brainiac and The New Friend if you haven't already.

Blossom: See you all next time.

CHAOS CONTROL!