Once again they were in the Mountain Zone, navigating the terrain. The path they were taking was different from the one before. Unfortunately, the one they were walking along wasn't straightforward. It twisted and curved unexpectedly, making it hard to know where exactly they were going. At times it would become rather narrow, to where only one person could go at a time. Not only that, but when it was least expected, the ground would become rough and hard to cross. The journey was proving to be more bothersome than anything.
Of course, they were also somewhat slowed. Though she had recovered from the botched fight with Arbormon to some extent, Renamon was still hurt. Without at least a brief rest now and then, it was hard for her to keep going. She didn't admit it, of course, but everyone knew. Most of them took turns helping her despite the fact she wasn't happy about it.
Impmon, to no one's surprise, stayed at her side whenever he could. At that moment, Daiki was to the left of Renamon, with Impmon on her right and Mikami beside her partner. The imp was trying to look like his usual self by having his arms behind his head and a nonchalant look on his face.
"How're you holding up?" Daiki asked, looking at Renamon.
"I am doing better," Renamon answered.
"Sure you're gonna be okay?" Impmon asked, glancing up at her.
Chuckling, Renamon lowered her gaze to him. "Is there a particular reason as to why you are this concerned?"
A flustered look appeared on his face. "What, I can't be worried about my friend?"
"You know, it's okay to talk about your feelings," Mikami told him jokingly.
He stared at her. "I-I don't know what you're talkin' about!"
"Oh?" Daiki grunted. "Nuzzling up to Renamon when we came back?"
Blushing, the imp glared daggers at Daiki. "Shut up!"
"I would advise you to lower your voices," Leomon said, "in case any enemies are nearby."
The four of them looked toward the lion before exchanging glances. Impmon folded his arms, huffing in annoyance at the two humans. He had basically been scolded because they were taking the time to tease him. And they called him childish! At least he didn't take something and make it something else entirely! Well, he tried his best not to do that in most situations. Pushing the thought aside, he looked at Renamon. Her shoulders were drooping slightly, which he had figured out was a sign she was getting tired.
"Hey," he said, just loud enough for Leomon to hear, "we should probably take a break soon."
The lion rumbled. "Hmm, I suppose you are correct. We have been walking for some time."
"Impmon," Renamon sighed.
"Don't you 'Impmon' me," the imp replied.
She put her paw against her face with a groan.
"He's just worried," Mikami said, smiling. "Indulge him."
"Indulge me?" Impmon hissed. "Seriously?"
"Um," Yoko mumbled, appearing just behind Mikami, "we do need to rest, though."
Twisting around, Mikami looked at those who were behind her. While Shizuka was fine, Judai looked tired, and Tadashi was practically dragging himself. Out of all of them, the blue-haired boy was the least active, so it wasn't surprising. And the only reason he had done so well the day before was probably because of adrenaline. The brunette highly doubted that he would have been running around the way he had without it. With that in mind, it wasn't hard for her to accept the fact that he had lost his energy. Even Gabumon and Dorumon were showing signs of being tired. Impmon and Yoko were right after all. If they wanted to get any further, they at least needed a brief rest.
"Alright," she muttered. "Let's find a place to take a break."
"There is an indention in the rock wall farther along the path that we can rest in," Leomon said.
They made their way to the indention and settled down. Shizuka looked at Tadashi once they all were comfortable. He leaned away, frowning.
"So, you gonna tell us more about those crystals?" she asked.
"I already told you everything," Tadashi stated. "Do you think I would withhold information? As I said before, they are scattered throughout the Digital World, and they supply Digimon with additional power."
"But you have no idea where they are?" Judai asked, confused.
"Do I have to keep telling you that I don't?" Tadashi replied. "I am being honest when I say that I have no clue where one might be."
Daiki coughed. "He finally doesn't know something for once," he muttered.
"Really, Daiki? How mature of you," Tadashi said in an annoyed tone of voice. "At any rate, we should search as we go now that we're deeper in the mountains."
"Is it possible for the Digivices to pick up the energy signature of the crystals?" Renamon wondered, placing her paw against her chin.
Yoko made a small noise. "Can they pick up any energy?"
"Yes, they can. That's how the devices can correctly identify Digimon," Salamon answered.
"I suppose it's possible, with some tinkering," Tadashi mumbled under his breath. "But I would have to know what the signature is for the crystals. I'll have to figure out how to…"
"Okay, well, that's enough listening to you ramble," Shizuka grumbled. She looked at Leomon. "How much farther to the next Zone?"
"There is still much ground to cover," Leomon answered. "At the rate we are going, it may not be until tomorrow that we arrive."
Shizuka quietly groaned. "If only we could have our partners Digivolve," she said, "but then that'd be shouting that we're here."
"Indeed. It is hard to determine whether or not there are enemy forces here, so we must not risk revealing ourselves."
"Yeah, yeah, I know," the girl replied.
"It's better to keep on the low anyways," Mikami pointed out. "We did a number on that fortress, you know. We're probably more of a priority now because of that, besides the fact that we're the DigiDestined."
"Which is pretty bad," Judai added, "because we've been in the Digital World for…I dunno, a week? And we've gotten a lot of attention from the Digimon or whatever that we're supposed to stop."
"Good point. Maybe we're drawing a little too much attention to ourselves," Impmon said.
"A little?" Renamon grunted. "The entire army has most likely been alerted to our actions."
"I get it, okay? Sheesh."
They sat there for some time before Leomon deemed them rested enough to resume. He took the lead once more as they continued on the path. It sloped downwards, and they carefully picked their way down as they walked. Mikami paid little attention to her surroundings as she mused over what Leomon had said. The group really couldn't afford to take so long trying to get through these mountains. Even though they had brought supplies, she didn't think it would last them that long. They needed to figure out a way to pick up the pace. Maybe there was some sort of shortcut through this place, or a cave system going under the mountains. Just something to help.
A faraway rumble caught her attention. The others noticed the sound as well. Yoko, surprised, tried to grab Daiki's hand without anyone noticing.
"What was that?" Judai asked.
"A volcano," Biyomon answered. "It tends to rumble and make noise, but it rarely ever erupts."
Shizuka snorted. "How often is 'rarely', Biyomon?"
"Once every few years."
"Sometimes with even longer periods between," Gabumon added to assure Yoko.
"Oh…okay," Yoko whispered.
Daiki gripped her hand with a grin.
A closer rumble caused Mikami to raise her head. A boulder rolled down not far from them and slammed into the ground below. Suspicious, she looked at Leomon.
"Do boulders just randomly fall down, too?" she asked, though it wasn't a serious question.
"Most definitely not," Renamon stated. "I can hear something close to where the boulder came from. We're not alone."
"Surprise, surprise," Impmon grumbled.
Leomon drew his sword, holding it tightly. "Let us move, now, while we still have time."
"You okay to run?" Impmon asked, looking at Renamon.
The fox nodded just as Leomon began to run. Everyone quickly dashed forward, following the lion, with Daiki falling in last. The sound of something thudding against the ground made Daiki turn his head. Behind them, several Digimon were rushing after them, a red demon-like Digimon in the lead. He wasn't sure of the level of all the Digimon, but judging by their confident expressions, he'd say most of them were Champions. He and his friends were fast, but he doubted they were fast enough to outrun all the Digimon chasing them. And then there was Renamon, who was still having troubles…
"Hey, we've got Digimon behind us!" he shouted.
"Biyomon!" Shizuka yelled.
The bird rose upwards, Digivolving as she did so. Soon enough Birdramon was hovering over the group, shooting off fireballs that rained down on their pursuers. She circled around, flying past the group and landing a short distance away. Renamon grabbed hold of Impmon and Salamon and jumped onto the bird's back as Leomon picked up Yoko and Judai and followed her. Daiki hopped onto one of the legs alongside Mikami. The twins climbed onto the other leg, and Leomon helped Gabumon and Dorumon up. Just as the Digimon chasing them were about to catch up, Birdramon launched herself into the air and took off.
"So much for being 'inconspicuous'," Dorumon remarked.
The comment caused Impmon to laugh. "It was bound to happen."
"Yes, but it is still bothersome," Renamon said. "We might as well fly to the Ice Zone."
"You okay?" Daiki asked, one arm wrapped around Birdramon's leg and the other gripping Mikami's shoulder.
She couldn't give him an exact answer. The sudden takeoff had jarred her and trying to hang on had pulled the shoulder he was holding out of place, but otherwise, she was fine.
"Need a moment," she said, shifting. "Pull on my arm, please."
He grabbed her wrist with his free hand. "Why?"
"Shoulder popped out and—hngh," she grunted.
He gave her an apologetic look as she cringed. She hadn't meant to make any noise, but it came out anyways.
"Better?"
She rolled her shoulder to double check it and nodded. "Thanks."
"Hey, lovebirds, break it up," Shizuka ordered with a slight laugh.
Annoyed by her, Daiki glowered and Mikami prepared to make a retort. Before she could, a flash caught her eye, followed by a shriek of pain from Birdramon. They began to drop as she struggled to keep herself in the air. Mikami did her best to hold on while the bird shook her legs, trying to fight off the pain. A second flash hit her in the back, barely missing those riding above and almost making Dorumon fall. Looking towards where they were heading, Mikami realized that it was going to be a rather rough landing.
Birdramon slammed into the ground, twisting as she did so. Mikami felt herself go flying, only to be grabbed by Daiki. With her pressed against his chest, he took the brunt of the fall when they hit the ground. Everyone else had been thrown off, scattered across the small area. Tucking in her arms, Mikami rolled off of Daiki and looked at him. Moans drew her attention, and when she looked up, she could see Tadashi and Shizuka picking themselves off the ground. The blue-haired boy swayed, but his sister caught him and held him up.
Were the others okay?
She turned her gaze towards Birdramon. The bird had gotten herself to a standing position. Her right wing was injured and somewhat twisted, the latter probably from the fall, and her back was also wounded. Mikami caught sight of everyone else as they began to stand up and stagger. Turning her attention back to Daiki, she dragged herself closer to him to look him over. Even though they hadn't fallen from a high height, they had hit the ground hard. The only reason why she was conscious was because he had broken her fall. Daiki, though, laid there unmoving.
"Daiki?" she whispered while placing her ear against his chest.
Well, his heart was beating, so that was a good sign.
Shizuka, supporting Tadashi, approached. When she noticed Daiki, she hurried and stopped beside him.
"Is he okay?" Tadashi asked.
"To be honest, I don't know. How is everyone else?"
Glancing to the side, Tadashi scanned the others as they slowly made their way over. Birdramon had yet to revert to her Rookie level and was dragging her injured wing as she walked. Yoko, seeing the unconscious teen, ran over with a panicked look. Leomon frowned when he began examining the surrounding area.
"We need to move," the lion stated. "Our pursuers will be here any moment."
"I know, but what about Daiki?" Mikami mumbled, pushing herself to her knees. She winced. "He broke my fall when Birdramon fell."
The bird made a small noise and lowered her head. Shizuka pushed Tadashi into Leomon's arms and walked up to her partner to pat her on the chest.
"Hey, it's not your fault. Those attacks came out of nowhere. Go ahead and de-Digivolve."
Nodding, Birdramon let herself revert to Biyomon. Shizuka scooped her up and held the reluctant bird in her arms.
"Mikami, I will carry Daiki," Leomon said. "We must go."
The brunette nodded, moving away from Daiki. Judai helped Tadashi while Leomon crouched and wrapped his arms around Daiki. Once the lion picked him up, they began their trek. Renamon ran ahead, disappearing behind several boulders. When they neared the rocks, she reappeared and motioned to her left. She led them to a cave with a tunnel hidden by stalagmites.
None of them knew where it went, but it was their best shot. With everyone feeling the effects of the crash, none of them could afford to jump into a fight. Taking a deep breath, Mikami strode into the tunnel. Blue light flooded the area around them, and she glanced back to see that Renamon's paws were engulfed in blue flames. Grateful for the light, Mikami nodded and continued forward. The flames lit up the tunnel several feet in front of them, allowing them to see when it curved and where smaller side tunnels began.
She wasn't sure how long they had been walking for when they stumbled into a large, open cavern. The sound of water echoed through the cavern. When Renamon investigated, she found a small waterfall pouring out of a crack in the rock and into a tiny pool. It seemed like a good enough spot to rest. She turned to Leomon, who was still cradling Daiki.
"Do you think we will be safe in here?" she asked.
"We should be," he answered, gently placing Daiki down by the pool. "To be safe, we should move that boulder over there and block the way we came."
"That is probably our best option right now. Does anyone see anything that we could use for a fire?"
Gabumon and Dorumon took to exploring, but quickly came back, shaking their heads. Unless they went outside to search for wood or anything else flammable, Renamon would have to keep her flames going.
Impmon cleared his throat and flicked his finger, sending a fireball into the air. It stopped and hovered in the air instead of disappearing. Renamon let the fire around her paws go out. Folding his arms, Impmon looked at his partner.
"That should last us a little while," he said.
Yoko settled down beside Daiki, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs. Salamon laid by her side, and Renamon joined them. Shizuka splashed her face in the pool with a huff. After wiping off most of the water, she turned to Biyomon and looked at her wing. Scrunching up her face, she motioned Tadashi over. Gabumon joined them, squinting as he looked at the injuries. Leomon walked up to the boulder nearby and slowly pushed it until it sat directly in front of the entrance.
Judai sat down beside Mikami, Dorumon curling up against him.
"How're you feeling?" she asked, looking at the two.
"Uh…fine, I guess. I feel like a sumo wrestler tackled me, but I'll be okay," Judai mumbled.
"And I didn't get hurt too badly, so that's…good, right?" Dorumon told her with a smile.
She chuckled before letting her gaze drift to Impmon. He was flicking fireballs into the air around the one that was floating, a bored—and annoyed? —look on his face. Sliding her feet out of from underneath her, she stood up and strode towards him. She took a seat beside him, crossing her legs and looking at him expectantly. The two of them had talked with each other often since the humans had come to the Digital World. Maybe it was because they were partners, but who knew? She told him things that only Daiki and Yoko were privy to, and she wasn't entirely sure why she trusted him with the information. Then again, she did trust him with her life, so that was something.
"You okay?" she asked.
There it was, his signature pout. "If you're wonderin' if I got hurt, not really. I'm just mad."
"Mad about…?"
He let out a loud huff. "Just…this!" He let out a soft growl while flailing his arms dramatically. "Biyomon is hurt, Daiki's out..." Trailing off, he took a moment to rub his eyes.
"None of that is your fault."
"Yeah, but I feel like it is," he muttered with his head lowered and shoulders drooping.
"You're definitely not acting like your usual self," Mikami sighed, rubbing the back of her head. "Come on, where's that confident, hardheaded partner of mine?"
He grinned, somewhat half-heartedly, and lightly punched her arm. "Shut up."
"Oh, you've hurt me!" she whispered, faking a hurt expression as she looked at him while holding her arm.
"Alright, that's enough of that," he told her. "You being comforting is weird." He was smiling though, so she had succeeded in her efforts.
"When Daiki wakes up, we'll get out of here," Mikami decided, leaning back. "And if everyone starts feeling better, we'll surprise the jerks who attacked us."
Impmon smirked. "Yeah. That sounds nice."
They sat there for some time, waiting. Shizuka, Tadashi, and Gabumon took care of Biyomon, and Yoko had pulled off a ripped portion of her clothing that was near her ankles (as it was near the point of falling off anyways) to dip it into the pool and place on Daiki's forehead. She and Renamon took turns wringing out the old water off to the side, soaking it, and placing it back on Daiki's forehead. Judai and Dorumon took to talking, and soon the conversation turned to Judai explaining to his partners about video games. Leomon, ever the vigilant watcher, sat with his back against the boulder, arms and legs crossed. With his eyes closed, he almost appeared to be asleep, but every movement the group made caused his ears to twitch.
While she wasn't sure how much time had passed, Mikami knew it had been quite a while when there was a rather loud groan that echoed against the rock. She was greeted by the sight of Daiki shifting when she turned to investigate. Legs stiff from sitting, she opted to crawl over to him, despite the teasing from Impmon as he walked beside her. Blinking open his eyes slowly, Daiki grunted, letting his eyes adjust to the soft light. He glanced around while everyone, aside from Leomon, turned to look at him. The mixture of surprised and relieved looks he received was confusing.
"What…?" he muttered, raising a hand to place against his forehead. When he felt the wet cloth, he pulled it off to hold it up. "Huh?"
"Feel okay?" Mikami asked him as she leaned over him, taking the cloth from him.
His voice was rather hoarse when he mumbled, "Someone hit me in the head…?"
"The ground sure did," Impmon joked, receiving a sharp look from Renamon. "Sorry."
Grunting, Daiki turned on his side, wincing. His head sure hurt as hell.
"Where are we?" he asked quietly.
"We found a suitable cave to rest in," Renamon stated.
He groaned again, putting his hand against his head and using his other hand to push himself halfway up. Though Yoko protested, Mikami helped him to sit up. He leaned against her with a slight pout, not liking the treatment but not feeling well enough to openly complain. And, despite himself, he was enjoying being so close to Mikami. Having her dote on him was rather nice.
"What do you remember?" Yoko questioned him, concerned.
With the way his head felt, he wasn't surprised. He didn't think he had a concussion, though, so that was good news.
"We were…chased, I think? Got on Birdramon, then…she was hit. Everyone okay?"
"No one got hurt too badly, besides Biyomon," Mikami told him, "and even hers isn't quite as bad as we thought."
"Yeah, you were the worst of it," Impmon said, once again receiving a disappointed look from Renamon. "Hey, he's the one who broke Mikami's fall. Don't look at me like that!"
Daiki mumbled under his breath and glared for a second before closing his eyes tightly, hissing in pain. Rubbing his back, Mikami sighed. He was awake, but still feeling the effects of the fall. Not that the fact was particularly surprising, but it still set them back even longer. They really did need to get out of the Mountain Zone before those Digimon showed up again and found them. Maybe she could convince Impmon to Digivolve and carry Daiki, in case Renamon couldn't…
Voices outside of the rocky room made them fall silent.
"Anything?"
"No sir, it's a dead end."
"Bah! The boss is going to kill us when this is over."
"Not as bad as what the Master is going to do if we don't…"
The voices slowly faded until all they could hear was faint echoes they couldn't make out. Leomon stood by the boulder for a few minutes afterwards, listening carefully to make sure the intruders had left. Once he was sure, he turned to the humans and their partners with a serious look on his face.
"We must leave immediately."
This time, Mikami agreed completely. They couldn't afford to waste any time. She looked at Impmon, who nodded. After he Digivolved and stood in front of her as Dobermon, Tadashi and Judai had their partners do the same. Daiki, with some convincing, allowed Renamon to Digivolve into Kyubimon.
"Are you sure?" he asked the fox.
"I am well enough to carry you," she said.
Leomon helped Daiki onto her back before coaxing Yoko to sit behind him. Mikami jumped onto Dobermon's back, dragging Salamon up with her. Tadashi and Shizuka climbed onto Garurumon, Judai situated himself onto Dorugamon, and Biyomon settled onto Leomon's shoulder. Garurumon took the lead, heading down another tunnel on the far side of the cavern with everyone falling in behind him. Mikami, holding onto Salamon with one hand and Dobermon's collar with the other, twisted around to make sure all her friends were safely behind them.
Luckily it was easier to see in this tunnel than the previous one.
It wasn't long after heading off when they burst out of the tunnel. Garurumon skid to a stop, barely avoiding falling off the edge of the cliff they came out on. Tadashi's eyes were wide as the wolf backed away to stand near the center. Once everyone was out, Leomon ran to take the lead, finding a path down. From the top of the cliff, they could see what looked like white in the far distance. Mikami hoped that it was the Ice Zone.
They more or less slid down the slope leading away from the cliff, stopping at the bottom roughly.
"Which way now?" Kyubimon asked.
Glancing back up at the cliff, Leomon let his eyes trail to where he had seen what appeared to be snow. He turned and headed the opposite direction the slope went, running along the rock wall.
"That'll be quite enough of that," a voice declared.
Head snapping upwards, Leomon growled, placing a hand on his sword. Standing on top of one of the smaller mountains was a tall, human-like Digimon. Four gold and white wings were flared out behind her. In one hand she held a scepter while the other held a long sword. She jumped down and flew straight for Leomon with her sword raised. He drew his own sword in time to block the attack as Biyomon jumped off his shoulder, startled.
"Darcmon!" Leomon muttered, somewhat surprised.
He pushed, forcing her to move back and land on the ground. She kept her sword pointed at him, an intense look on her face.
"Leomon."
"So the rumors were true," the lion said. "You joined the Master."
"Yes, I did. There was no longer a point in fighting a losing battle," Darcmon replied.
"Leave, now!" he shouted, looking at the DigiDestined. "While you still can!"
For a moment, Mikami hesitated, and then she nodded. She urged Dobermon forward, and he ran, the others following after her as she heading for a path in the direction they had been going. Darcmon spun around to attack them, but Leomon slid in front of her, swinging his sword. She blocked it, angry.
"Why do you continue attempting to resist the Master?" Darcmon demanded, shoving against him.
"Because it is the right thing to do!" he roared.
He stepped back before jumping and slamming into her. Crying out, she stumbled backwards, only to be kicked as Leomon lashed out with his foot.
A shout of surprise caught his attention. Spinning around, he watched as several Digimon jumped down and cut off the DigiDestined. With his focus now on them, Darcmon lunged, stabbing her sword forward. The reflection of sunlight off the blade gave Leomon enough warning to move so that the sword went through his shoulder instead of his chest. He jumped backwards, the sword pulling out of him. He grabbed the wounded shoulder as Darcmon shook her head.
Mikami jumped off of Dobermon with Salamon in her arms. When she hit the ground she rolled out of the way. The dog ran forward, digging his teeth into a pink rabbit-like Digimon. More than one replaced it, leaping at Dobermon. He struggled to shake them off, snapping at them. One latched onto his back, digging its claws in. A second kicked him in the face, making him yelp.
"Salamon!" Yoko shouted, jumping off of Kyubimon with Daiki.
The pup wriggled out of Mikami's arms and ran over to her partner. She shifted into Gatomon in time to punch a Digimon that looked like a scarecrow. The cat landed and ran at it once more, her foot slamming into its face. Kyubimon finished off the Digimon by biting the bird perched on its arm and making it disappear.
Tadashi and Shizuka, safely off Garurumon, watched as the wolf shot out a stream of flames that engulfed a goat Digimon. Another soon came, though, and rammed its horns into Garurumon's side, causing him to fall onto his side. He scrambled to his feet, jumping onto the horned menace and ripping at it with his claws.
"Rabbitmon, Nohemon, Oryxmon, Pipismon… Just how many of these freaks are there?" Mikami shouted.
Biyomon frantically looked at Shizuka. "Let me help!"
"You're injured!" Shizuka snapped.
"Trust me! Please!"
Shizuka let out a heavy breath and nodded. Biyomon took off into the air, shifting and becoming Birdramon. The bird wheeled around, diving down at Dobermon. Her claws wrapped around one of the Rabbitmon and tossed it into the side of a mountain. Pain shot through her injured wing and she dropped slightly, wincing. A Pipismon took advantage of the situation, aiming to attack her. Dorugamon cut off the large bat, shooting several metal balls at it.
Another Nohemon pulled out its bow, aiming for Gatomon as the cat dealt with an Oryxmon. Kyubimon tackled the scarecrow before it shot off an arrow, pinning it to the ground. After she dispatched the Nohemon, she stretched her tails out.
"Fox Tail Inferno!"
The flames lit the Oryxmon on fire, and Gatomon finished it off by stabbing her claws into its face.
"We can't keep this up forever," Dobermon growled, moving in front of Mikami.
Another Digimon caught him off guard by throwing a pitchfork that landed just centimeters away from his face. A demon-like Digimon dropped down, grabbing the pitchfork and spinning it around. Dobermon dodged and shot out a black fireball. The red Digimon used the pitchfork to knock the fireball away, a wry grin on his face.
"Boogiemon, really?!" Mikami exclaimed, looking at her Digivice.
Boogiemon chuckled, stabbing at Dobermon with his pitchfork. The dog growled in frustration before he was able to bite down on the Digimon's arm. He swung his head, sending Boogiemon flying. By the time the red demon recovered, Dobermon was in front of him and shooting a black beam through him.
Turning, Mikami spotted Leomon as he struggled against Darcmon. There had to be a way they could get out of here, but how? They weren't going to leave the lion, not when there were so many enemies around now.
A Rabbitmon jumped towards her, but Dorugamon appeared out of the sky, hitting the rabbit and crushing it underneath his feet. She nodded gratefully to him as he flew upwards, heading for a swarm of Pipismon. Birdramon joined him as she blasted the swarm with fire.
"Dobermon, come on!" Mikami shouted, running towards Leomon.
The dog fell in beside her and soon passed her. Before she was even halfway there, he slammed into Darcmon's side. The hit caused her to fall onto her back. He landed, looking at Leomon. The lion frowned but nodded. Darcmon pushed herself to her feet and swung her sword at Dobermon, who ducked. Leomon blocked her sword with his while Dobermon clawed her arm. She stumbled back, looking towards her forces.
"How?" she muttered, eyebrows furrowing. "How could possibly hold off such a large number of Digimon?"
"What can I say?" Dobermon grunted. "Having a real purpose to fight for gives us more strength than you can ever hope for."
The winged Digimon stepped away from Dobermon and Leomon, breathing heavily. "Your purpose is for that of a lost cause. Sooner or later you will be defeated by the Master, and then you will regret the choices you have made."
Growling, Dobermon lowered himself to the ground. "Maybe. But I can tell you with confidence that it won't be today."
With a furious look on her face, Darcmon shouted, "All forces retreat!" With that, she jumped up and disappeared within moments into the mountains surrounding them. Soon enough all the Digimon were following her, confused and disappointed by the order. Mikami reached Dobermon, placing a hand on his back. She turned to Leomon, who was still nursing his injured shoulder.
"Are you alright?" Mikami asked. She winced when she looked at the wound.
"With time," he answered, shaking his head. "I apologize."
"Oh, please. Don't be stupid," she replied, waving him off. "Come on. Let's find a way through the rest of the mountains, huh?"
Mumbling under his breath, Leomon followed Dobermon and Mikami towards the others. Birdramon landed, turning back into Biyomon and collapsing. Shizuka ran over to her and picked her up with a slight smile on her face.
"Take it easy now, birdbrain," she said, earning a pout. "Wouldn't want you to get hurt more, would we?"
Though she rolled her eyes, Mikami chuckled at Shizuka. The group resumed their walking, finding a path halfway hidden by the curving rocks. After they passed over the top of the path it began to descend. IT was then that she realized she could hear the roar of water. As they went farther, she spotted what appeared to be a waterfall. When it was in full sight, she saw the small body of water it was pouring into. A small island was at its center, and on that island was a dark purple and grey crystal.
"I think that's one of those Dark Crystals we were looking for," Judai joked with a laugh.
"I do believe so," Tadashi said. "We should destroy it now."
Dobermon snorted, trotting down the path and heading for the island. "I got this."
"He's letting his head swell," Daiki said before he fully understood what he had said. When Yoko giggled, he mumbled, "Shut up."
Leaping over the water, Dobermon locked his gaze onto the crystal. He landed and crouched, building up energy inside his mouth. When he opened his maw, the energy shot out, slicing through the crystal. It shattered, the pieces turning into data before they hit the ground. Head held high, Dobermon rejoined his friends with a smug look.
"All done," he said.
"Let's go before his ego gets any bigger," Shizuka suggested.
"Hey!"
As they began to walk, Kyubimon grunted. "How is it that there is always at least one of us that receives an injury?"
Mikami laughed.