Sorry for the long wait. This isn't even a very long chapter, haha. Well, I have a feeling that someone might get mad when reading this. I sure hope not, though. *sweat drop*

Four days had passed since they defeated Ginryumon. The battle against him had done more damage that any of them anticipated, and the fights between his followers and Arresterdramon's allies the first two days led to far too much clean-up work. In fact, the group worked so much that Renamon and Gabumon eventually passed out. With their partners exhausted to the point of collapsing, the humans settled for staying in the city to rest for a few more days.

Hence the reason why Mikami and Impmon were walking along the streets, heading for city hall. A random messenger dropped by the building they were staying in to tell them that a letter had arrived for the DigiDestined, so the others wanted her and her partner there as soon as possible. Impmon let out a long, heavy sigh, putting his hands behind his head. Mikami looked down at him, waiting for him to make a comment.

"What do ya think it is?" He asked.

"How would I know? This is the first time anyone has sent us a letter in the Digital World."

He shrugged. "Can't blame me for wondering."

"Whatever." She stopped in front of the door and swung it open. "Ladies first."

The brunette couldn't help but smirk as he glared at her. She followed him and closed the door behind her. In all honesty, she was just as curious as Impmon. Who would be sending them a letter and why? What reason could they have for not wanting to meet them in person? She swiped her bangs from her face and trotted up the stairs beside Impmon. Maybe it was someone they knew. Her eyes brightened at the thought that it could be Leomon. She hadn't heard anything about him since the Ice Zone incident. She desperately wanted to know if he was alive or not.

Not that she thought he couldn't protect himself.

Her thoughts were interrupted when Impmon said, "Oi, stop starin' off into space."

"Sorry. Thinking," she replied, waving her hand. "What's wrong? Too short to reach the handle?"

He scowled, a slight blush on his face. "You know I am," he hissed.

She snickered and opened the door to the conference room. Standing inside were the other ten members of their group, most of them turning their heads to look at the duo. Impmon trudged inside, still embarrassed. They took their spots at the table and focused their attention on Arresterdramon. The dragon handed the letter to Mikami.

"So, what does it say?" She asked.

"We haven't read it yet. We were waiting for you," Tadashi informed her. "If you would do the honors?"

Mikami rolled her eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Sure…

"Dear DigiDestined,

I'm afraid that I can't yet reveal my identity. However, I assure you that I am a friend. Though I was once against you, I have realized the error of my ways and wish to help. There are certain things that I cannot put in this letter, but there is information you must know now. The enemy you have been battling, the Master, is a Demon Lord. Her name is Laylamon. You most likely know that she plans on seizing control of the Digital World; she always wishes to control the human world as well. That is why I'm contacting you. Meet me on the top of Border Canyon, on the Mountain Zone side, at noon. I can tell you more there.

Thank you."

"Didn't even sign off," Shizuka said with a snort. "Well? What are we gonna do?"

Daiki frowned. "Can we trust this person? They said they were against us, which means they worked for Laylamon… They could still work for her."

"But what if they're telling the truth?" Judai wondered, worried.

Yoko paled slightly. "Our families would be in trouble…"

"…You two do have a point," Impmon grunted.

There was a soft outward breath from Renamon, who folded her arms. "It would be in our best interests to act least investigate. The possible consequences of ignoring this letter's warning are too dire for us not to."

"Then it's settled. We're going to meet up with whoever wrote this," Mikami stated, moving away from the table. "Come on."

"Are you sure about this?" Shizuka asked. "It could be a trap."

"Do you really want to risk ignoring it and having everyone we care about put in danger?"

Groaning, the purple-haired teenager looked away. "No…"

"Exactly."

The look on the brunette's face suddenly turned dark, making the two youngest of the group flinch. Even Impmon was surprised by the abrupt change in demeanor.

"I am not going to lose my family," she hissed.

Sighing quietly, Daiki slid away from the table to walk up to Mikami and wrap his arm around her shoulders. She leaned against him for a moment, and then stormed out of the room. Impmon jumped down and ran after her, leaving. The oldest ran a hand down his face while the others filed out, making Tadashi stop to look at him. Tadashi could tell from the expression on Daiki's face that the eighteen year-old knew what made Mikami's mood shift.

"We should go," Tadashi said.

"Yeah…"

Birdramon was sitting outside, a majority of the group already waiting on her. The two boys climbed onto her feet, grabbing hold. Once they were secure, she lifted off. Down below, Arresterdramon waved goodbye.

"Let's hope for the best," Yoko whispered.

Impmon didn't think that hoping would help them.

~0~

They arrived before noon.

It was a surprise to most of them that they were early. They took to lounging around while waiting for noon to come, basking in the sun. Mikami was impatient, pacing the area during the entire time; Judai slept with Dorumon; Tadashi and Renamon studied the blue-haired boy's Digivice; Biyomon watched Shizuka and Daiki spar; Yoko fixed Salamon's fur and smoothed out Gabumon's coat.

Impmon, on the other hand, was sitting on the tallest rock he could find and staring out into the distance. Usually Renamon was the one to sense danger, but she was too interested in the Digivice to notice much of anything. The imp could feel that something was off, so he kept an eye out for anything that might cause trouble for them. He knew that Mikami didn't want to take any chances with the letter, and neither did he. It could easily be a trap; that was why he was on the lookout.

There is no way I'm gettin' caught off guard, he thought with a nod. No way. He glanced over his shoulder, letting his gaze sweep over everyone. Confident that they were okay, he turned his attention back to where he had been looking. Besides, I can handle anything that might pop out and attack us.

"Impmon, what exactly are you doing?" Mikami asked, stopping her pacing. "Impy?"

"Don't call me that!" He snapped, eye twitching. She had started calling him that the past three days and it was annoying. "I'm just…chillin' out up here! Go back to wearin' a rut into the ground."

The purple Digimon could just imagine the smirk on her face when she said, "What's wrong, Impy? Don't like my nickname for you?"

"You know I don't," he groaned, covering his eyes. He honestly would've launched a fireball at her if he didn't know that she was just trying to make herself feel better.

"But it's such a cute nickname."

"Well, I don't care. Give someone else a cute nickname!"

"But you are cute." Now she was patronizing him.

A half laugh escaped his mouth as he leaned back to stare at her. "Fine, call me whatever you want Kami. Or should I say…Princess?"

She grinned at him, stepping up to the bottom of the rock. "You seem less tense."

"I could say the same to you."

"Yeah, I guess so. I'm just…anxious to get home. I wanna see my parents…make sure they're okay."

"Aw, heck, I don't blame ya." He waved his hand.

"Now, I'm gonna guess the reason you're up there is because you think this is a trap."

"Score one for Mikami. Any other guesses?"

"Ha, funny." She climbed up to sit beside him. "Why are you thinking it's a trap?"

"I gotta bad feeling. That's why. You know my gut isn't wrong very often."

"When it comes to danger. Directions? Not so much."

"Knock it off."

"Sorry." She kicked her legs. "I don't think the letter itself is a trap. Taking that into mind, I don't blame you for being a bit on edge. Someone could've got a hold of the letter before us."

"Just trust me. Something is definitely off."

"I'll take your word for it, considering last time—"

Her sentence was caught off by a massive boom as something slammed into the ground, followed by rocks bursting outwards from in front of the duo. The shockwave sent both of them flying off the rock, barely being caught by Daiki and Renamon. Daiki slid to a stop, holding Mikami tightly in his hands, while Renamon landed and placed Impmon down. Lowering his head, Daiki looked Mikami over, earning an annoyed look from the brunette. He blushed and set her on her feet, and she punched him roughly in the arm. The others joined them, looking at the duo who had just been launched through the air.

"Are you okay?" Yoko asked worriedly.

"I'm fine," Mikami answered with a smile. "Impmon?"

The imp gave her a thumbs up. "I'm alive!"

"Not for much longer."

Impmon jumped, looking into the cloud of dust. A shadowy figure began walking forward until a tall, dragon-like Digimon stepped out. The Digimon grinned widely, displaying his razor sharp teeth. As he drew closer, the humans' partners positioned themselves in front of their partners. Tadashi held up his Digivice as the screen brought up information. He sucked in a breath, drawing Shizuka's attention.

"What? What's wrong?"

"Cyberdramon. He's an Ultimate."

"Oh shit."

The others fumbled to get their Digivices. Cyberdramon lunged. Impmon Digivolved into Dobermon in time to intercept the dragon, giving everyone else enough time to Digivolve. Cyberdramon delivered a nasty uppercut to Dobermon's chin, sending the dog sailing over the group. Garurumon and Kyubimon ran at him from opposite sides. He slammed his fist into Garurumon's snout and then spun around to kick the fox in the side of the head. The canines stumbled back. Gatomon jumped up and swung her extended claws at him. Smirking, Cyberdramon grabbed the cat and threw her to the ground. A metal ball shot from Dorugamon's mouth was smacked back at him, causing the winged mammal to be hit and fall to the ground.

Birdramon rose up into the air and let out a stream of fire. Cyberdramon crossed his arms, the fire sweeping over him. The humans watched in anticipation, only for the dragon to jump out of the flames straight at the bird above. He elbowed her in the head, sending her crashing into the ground.

"Did you seriously think that a group of Champions could defeat me?" He questioned, landing on the ground.

"Not particularly, no," Tadashi stated. Shizuka roughly punched him. "What?!"

"How disappointing," Cyberdramon sighed. "Here I was thinking I would be getting a challenge."

Dobermon staggered up to the group, wincing. "He packs a punch."

"That is putting it lightly," Kyubimon muttered.

"Don't have much a choice but to keep fighting. He'd probably catch us if we ran."

"No kidding," Gatomon hissed.

"Hellfire!" Dobermon barked, black fireballs firing from his mouth. Cyberdramon smacked the fireballs aside, racing forward. He lashed out at the dog, leaving an opening for Gatomon to kick the dragon in the side. The attack did nothing to him as he swung with his other arm, hitting the cat in the stomach with one hand and punching Dobermon with the other. Garurumon attempted to jump on Cyberdramon's back, only to be rammed into the ground and kicked away. A moment later Gabumon laid still several feet away.

Kyubimon leaped up and spun, blue flames surrounding her. Soon a dragon made of cerulean fire shot towards Cyberdramon. Grinning, he sidestepped it and dashed towards the fox, grabbing her by the throat. She let out a howl of pain as he slammed her into a boulder, leaving an indent in the rock when he pulled her back out. He dropped her, pleased at the crumpled form laying at his feet.

Daiki shouted a rather choice expletive when she changed back to Renamon.

"Meteor Wing!"

Cyberdramon looked upwards as the meteors came down. He dodged them, weaving in and out before shooting into the air, disappearing. He reappeared above Birdramon, catching her by surprise. His heel hit her directly in the center of her back. The force of the hit sent her crashing into the ground. The bird attempted to get up, only for Cyberdramon to drop down onto her. She cried out, returning to her Rookie stage.

"Pathetic."

He positioned his foot over her.

"Biyomon!"

Dorugamon successfully tackled Cyberdramon away from the bird. Shizuka ran over, scooping up her partner and holding her tightly. She looked up when Daiki ran past to kneel beside Renamon, who was slowly pushing herself up. Meanwhile, Cyberdramon kicked Dorugamon off and hopped to his feet. Annoyed, he walked up to where Dorugamon was laying. Wincing, the purple Digimon raised his head to look at Cyberdramon. Before the dragon could attack him, Gatomon slid in between them and was able to claw Cyberdramon's cheek. Sneering, he struck her face with his fist. The cat landed on the ground and slid to a stop. Within moments she had turned back to Salamon. With a loud huff Cyberdramon stepped on Dorugamon hard enough to crack the ground beneath him. Judai shouted as his partner shrunk.

"I can't believe these are the so-called DigiDestined that everyone has been having trouble with," Cyberdramon said.

He pressed down, making Dorumon cry out.

"Oh, well. I should delete you all and return to my master."

"Leave him alone!" Dobermon roared, slamming his side against the dragon. Cyberdramon stumbled to his right, barely catching his balance. "I won't let you hurt any of them!"

"What exactly do you think you can do? You're just a Champion," Cyberdramon pointed out in a pleased tone, "and you're alone."

Dobermon lowered his body, staying between the dragon and Dorumon. Cyberdramon smirked and shifted his position.

"And now I'm going to kill you."

He lunged. Mikami tightened her grip on her Digivice, the screen erupting into a bright amethyst color that seemed to spread to surround the girl.

"Dobermon Digivolve to…!" The dog grew in size considerably. Three long blades appeared on each of his paws, stopping an inch above the ground. What looked to be the top halves of dogs' heads formed on each of his shoulders. He narrowed his golden eyes, snarling. "Cerberumon!"

"Hmph…I'm surprised." He grinned. "At least now I'll have a bit of a challenge."

"Don't think for a moment I'll let you win," the dog growled, "because I'm gonna rip you apart for hurting my friends."

"Just try."

Cerberumon lunged, sending the dragon backwards with his hind paws. Judai grabbed Dorumon while Yoko picked up Salamon, and they dashed back to the others. Tadashi was the last to rejoin them, holding Gabumon.

"Um, am I the only one seeing this?" Shizuka asked, pointing to Mikami.

"No. She's glowing."

"What the hell?"

"Shh!"

Cerberumon turned to land on his feet, watching Cyberdramon catch himself. Glowering, the dragon dug his feet into the ground. He bent over, placing one hand on the ground. The dog watched carefully, his eyes tracking every movement. Cyberdramon pushed off, flying forward with his fist pulled back. Cerberumon noticed in time to leap out of the way, the punch missing him by a hair. As soon as his paws touched the ground he jumped at the dragon. Cyberdramon twisted out of the way, his other hand hitting the dog's jaw. Cerberumon's head snapped to the side, allowing the dragon to deliver another punch that made the dog slide across the ground.

"Come on! Is that all you've got?"

Cerberumon caught himself and ran forward. Cyberdramon smirked, swinging his leg in order to kick the dog. His foot met with nothing, surprising him. Cerberumon appeared to his left and rammed his shoulder into Cyberdramon, sending the dragon skidding away. While Cyberdramon regained his balance, Cerberumon dashed forward to slice his claws through his opponent's side. Letting out a roar of pain, Cyberdramon whipped around and kneed Cerberumon in the stomach. The dog hit the ground and rolled until he was able to stop himself. When he looked up, Cyberdramon had taken hold of the injury.

"How was that?"

"Barely a scratch."

"Really?"

With an annoyed look on his face, Cyberdramon raised his hand. A large spear formed in it and he spun it around to point at Cerberumon. The dog grinned, energy swirling around him.

"Mode change activated," Mikami's Digivice blurted.

His body began to rearrange itself until he took a more humanoid form, two massive head-shaped blasters forming where his hands would be. "Cerberumon Jinrou Mode!"

Shizuka raised her eyebrows. "Here I thought things couldn't get any weirder…"

"Interesting, but it won't help you."

"Says you."

Cyberdramon sprang forward, swinging at the spear at Cerberumon. The bipedal dog jumped up over the weapon and kicked the dragon in the face. He landed, one of the mouths closing, and followed the kick by hitting Cyberdramon in the stomach. The dragon staggered back, leaving an opening for a third strike. He fell, landing on his back. Cerberumon attempted to grab him, but Cyberdramon rolled out of the way and stabbed his spear into Cerberumon's shoulder. The dog let out a pained bark and grabbed the weapon, pulling it out of Cyberdramon's grasp while stepping back. He yanked it out, snapping it as soon as he did. Cyberdramon shoved himself up and jumped up to his feet.

Growling, Cerberumon tossed the pieces of the spear onto the ground. Cyberdramon lunged, kicking Cerberumon hard enough to make him hit a nearby rock. The dragon followed the attack by delivering an onslaught that slowly pushed Cerberumon closer to the group of humans and Digimon. Realizing what he was doing, Cerberumon found an opening to grab hold of Cyberdramon's arm. He swung the dragon over his shoulder in order to slam him into the ground, and then spun and threw him away. Cyberdramon twisted and landed on his feet. An uppercut sent him into the air, and Cerberumon jumped up and kicked the dragon in the stomach. Cyberdramon slammed into the ground while the dog moved back. The dragon got to his knees and looked up to see Cerberumon with both of the massive dog heads raised.

With an energy blast from the heads' jaws, Cerberumon sent Cyberdramon crashing into the rock wall. Boulders rained down on him, burying him. When there was no movement, Cerberumon sat down on the ground heavily and de-Digivolved. Breathing out heavily, Impmon slowly stood and turned to look at where his friends were. Mikami smiled at him, and he raised his hand to give him a thumbs-up. She returned it with a soft chuckle. Everyone looked relieved, especially the Digimon partners who had been beaten during the fight.

"What'd ya think?" The imp asked with a laugh, walking towards them. "Impressive or what?"

Renamon smirked. "You did a good job."

"Thanks, babe," he said, winking at her.

There were a few groans from Shizuka, Renamon, and Daiki, but the others laughed. Impmon rubbed the back of his head with a large grin.

Renamon's ear twitched as she raised her head.

The sound of rocks moving was the only warning. One boulder from the pile went flying as a dark energy wave shot out. The fox shouted a warning, but Impmon was too slow to avoid it. The energy tore through his side, leaving a large hole. He collapsed, gasping, while everyone ran forward. Cyberdramon pulled himself out of the rocks and fell to the ground, his lower body gone. Mikami gathered Impmon into her arms, cradling him carefully.

"Heh…looks like…I have the last laugh," Cyberdramon said, grinning maliciously at the DigiDestined.

Daiki grit his teeth and prepared to retort when the dragon disappeared. He kneeled beside Mikami, grabbing her shoulder. Impmon grimaced, one hand wrapped around his injured side.

"Hey, hang on. We'll go to the Village of Beginnings and get you healed—"

"I don't…think that's gonna…work," the imp hissed, cutting Daiki off. "Damn, this hurts…"

Renamon laid her paw on top of Impmon's hand, her ears lowering.

"Don't say that," Mikami whispered. "You'll be okay."

Mikami's eyes glistened as tears formed in the corner of her eyes. "D-don't start crying," Impmon told her. "It's not like we're g-gonna be saying goodbye for good. I'm a…Digimon, r-remember?"

His attempt to comfort did nothing as tears slid down her cheeks. "Shut up, you jerk. You can't go."

The imp snorted out a half laugh and winced. Most of his lower body was gone. "Take care of them, okay?" He whispered. "It's hard tellin' when I'll be back. Wouldn't want any of them gettin' into trouble, would we?"

"You can't…"

She stared as he dissipated, leaving her arms empty. Her breath hitched, prompting Daiki to pull her into his arms gently. Even the others were crying while Daiki and Renamon barely held back their tears.

"Wait, shouldn't he have…why isn't there a Digi-Egg?" Judai asked quietly, confused.

"There's always a slight chance that a Digimon won't reform when they're destroyed," Renamon explained. Mikami gazed at her in disbelief. "But I never thought…I never…" She lowered her head.

Shizuka kicked a rock, growling. "Bullshit!"

They sat there in silence until something caught Renamon's attention. She looked up just as a blue blur shot past them. Everyone but Mikami spun around to see what it was. A large metal bird landed, folding in his wings. Two figures jumped off his back, earning a few surprised words when they saw who they were. Angela and Devimon stood there staring at the group. The blonde looked at the metal bird and motioned upwards. Nodding, he flew back into the sky and headed off.

"What the hell do you two want?" Shizuka demanded.

"Here to beat us while we're down?" Daiki asked, frowning.

Angela let out a long, heavy sigh. "No, we're not."

"I told you they wouldn't like it," Devimon mumbled.

Renamon stood with help from Shizuka. "Then why are you here?"

"I'll explain, just—Mikami?" Angela asked, noticing the girl. She walked up to the group, Devimon trailing behind her. Shizuka prepared to step into the blonde's path, but Renamon shook her head. Angela circled around and kneeled in front of Mikami. "…Mikami?"

The brunette turned to look at Angela, tears still streaming down her face. Angela's eyes widened, finally noticing that the little imp that was always with Mikami wasn't there.

"…I'm so sorry," she whispered, reaching a hand out. Daiki pulled Mikami away from the blonde while glaring, making Angela wince.

"Sure you are," Daiki hissed. "This is probably your fault."

"What? No!" She gasped. "I wrote you the letter, but I swear I never meant for anything to happen to you. That Hawkmon that delivered my message to you must've let one of Laylamon's goons see it." Her shoulders drooped. "I wish we had gotten here sooner."

No one said a word. Most of them glared at her; Mikami, Yoko, Salamon, and Dorumon were the only exceptions.

"Please believe me," she whispered.

Mikami pulled away from Daiki to look at Angela. Hopeful, older girl held out her hand. After a moment of uncertainty, Mikami moved up to her and wrapped her arms around Angela. The blonde held her close, avoiding eye contact with the others.

"You're really with us?"

"I'm with you," Angela answered. "Ever since you came here, I've been trying to beat you. I want all of you to know that I didn't fight you because I wanted to. It's true that I resent a lot of people, but I would never want anyone to die. Laylamon was using me, just like she has many others. I want to make up for what I did when I was under her. That is…if all of you will give me the chance to fight alongside you."

Yoko fidgeted. "I trust you."

"We do too," Judai and Dorumon said.

"You do not appear to be lying," Renamon grunted. "…I will put my trust in you as well."

Gabumon and Biyomon glanced at each other before looking at the anxious young woman. "Us too."

"Yoko trusts you, so I will," Salamon stated.

"I hate the idea," Shizuka muttered, "but Mikami is okay with you, so…"

A feeling of happiness swept over her as she looked at all of them. Her gaze moved to Daiki, who was still glowering at her. He let out a frustrated breath and turned away from her.

"Fine," he spat. "But if you do anything to cross us, I'll make sure you hurt."

"That's fair," she replied with a small smile. "Thank you."

She pulled away from Mikami, causing the brunette to make a disappointed noise. Angela reached up to pull the goggles off of her neck and hold it out to Mikami.

"I want you to have this."

Her hand hovering over the object, Mikami stared in astonishment. "You…you kept them?"

"Tried to keep them in good condition, too," Angela said. "Hard to avoid scratches."

She grabbed Mikami's hand to turn it over and place the goggles in her palm. "Even after everything that happened, after we went our separate ways…I kept them because they reminded me of a happy time in my life." She folded Mikami's fingers over the goggles. "Every time you look down at these goggles, you better think of me."

"What do you mean?" Mikami asked.

"You all have to go home," she told the group, her eyes scanning everyone, "because you have to protect it."

"But you're coming with us, aren't you?"

"I'm not. I've done a lot against our world. I just don't think I'm ready to go back. Besides," she said, "there's a lot of work to be done here. I'm going to do everything I can to stop Laylamon here."

The flapping of wings made the blonde turn. MailBirdramon landed beside Devimon, a serious look on his face.

"A good number of Digimon are on their way here. You have ten minutes."

Daiki narrowed his eyes.

"Great," Angela muttered as she stood. "You should leave now, before they get here. The portal back to the human world will be at Divermon's Lake. It'll become unstable once you go through, so you don't have to worry about anyone following after you, but you do have to get their first. If any of Laylamon's goons got through first, you wouldn't be able to get back home."

"What about you? Won't you be in danger?" Yoko asked.

"I've always been in danger. Comes with being in the Digital World," Angela stated with a laugh, shrugging her shoulders. "At least I'm fighting the good fight now."

"Alright. How are you gonna get there though?" Shizuka asked. "Our partners are too tired to Digivolve."

Angela pointed at the metal bird behind her. "He'll take all of you there."

Daiki goaded Mikami to her feet. She stared at Angela, who pulled the brunette into another hug.

"Stay safe, little sis. I love you."

Mikami swallowed. "You too, sis."

"Enough of the mushy shit!" MailBirdramon exclaimed. "We gotta go now, so climb on before I decide to leave without you! We don't have a lot of time to get to the portal thanks to all the blabbering."

Shizuka glared. "Shut up," she snapped as she trailed over.

Everyone climbed on one by one until it was just Mikami and Angela. The blonde ruffled Mikami's hair affectionately.

"I'll see you after all of this is over. That much I can promise you," Angela whispered.

"Good, because we have a lot of catching up to do," Mikami told her, squeezing her tightly.

They let go of each other so that Mikami could climb onto MailBirdramon's back. Angela waved as MailBirdramon took off. When he disappeared into the distance, she lowered her hand and attempted to calm herself.

"This is your last chance to reconsider," Devimon said.

"We both know it's too late for that. Don't tell me you're having second thoughts."

"As if."

"Are you ready? We'll be here in a couple of minutes."

"Does an Agumon breathe fire?"

Angela smirked. "Guess it's time then."