"Please tell me this door leads outside," Shizuka said. "I can't stand running around this place much longer."

"KaiserLeomon said it was this way. Only one way to find out."

Daiki grabbed the handle and flung the door open to reveal the clear sky. Having found their destination after half an hour of searching, the trio hurried through the door and onto the wall. Leaning against the parapet, Daiki closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the cool breeze against his face. Shizuka jumped up to sit on the side opposite of Daiki, facing the open ocean.

"As nice as this place is, it's way too stuffy inside. Glad to have some fresh air."

"That's the truth." Shizuka rubbed her neck and watched the clouds drift past. "I can't believe how many Digimon were trying to talk to us today. It was worse than yesterday. I have no idea how Yoko and Judai put up with it. Actually, Yoko I can understand, but I'm surprised that Judai hasn't run out by now."

"Honestly, I think he just doesn't care."

"Do you think they've settled on a plan yet?" Mikami asked, kicking the door shut behind her. "I saw them heading back into the conference room earlier."

Daiki shrugged. "No idea. I thought they'd get done yesterday, but I guess they're still talking. I wouldn't be surprised if it's another day or two before they agree on anything."

"It's probably Tadashi dragging it on. I swear he's been wanting to make a plan for every possibility lately," Shizuka said, annoyed.

"That doesn't surprise me. They probably have a dozen plans for different scenarios by now."

Humming, Mikami sat on the parapet beside Daiki and tilted her head towards him. "I don't really blame him for wanting to be prepared. Every time we've gone into something without an actual plan, it didn't end well."

"True, but going overboard isn't going to help much. We don't really have time for them to take so long debating with each other. Laylamon is up to something. Who knows what she could be planning?"

"But if she is planning something big, maybe it's a good thing for them to take as much time as they can," Shizuka said. "We have to ready for whatever comes next."

"What if it's something that we can't be prepared for?"

"I don't know."

Daiki stepped back and put his hands behind his head. "Well, whatever comes our way, we'll stick together and deal with it. Unexpected stuff never stopped us before and it won't now."

With a playful smirk on her face, Shizuka jumped down and flung her arms outwards. In a rather dramatic voice she shouted, "Listen to the words of Daiki the Wise! What other pearls of wisdom will you impart on us, wise one?"

A deadpan expression on Daiki's face was the only reaction he had to her joke. Mikami, on the other hand, had to stifle a giggle.

The sound of the door opening and slamming shut, accompanied by a shout of "Ha! I told you they were up here!" caused the trio to jump and turn. A tall, lanky brown rabbit and a strange, green and white cyborg approached them. The green one waved with a pleased expression. The other one merely raised a hand. Shizuka, annoyed that their peace and quiet had been interrupted after such a short amount of time, glowered at them. Neither seemed fazed by her. Instead they continued forward until there was only a few feet between them and the humans.

"Daiki, Mikami! Long time no see!" The cyborg exclaimed.

Lips puckered, Mikami glanced at Daiki before looking at the cheerful Digimon. "Um, do we know you?"

"Yep! We met back in the Forest Zone."

"…Terriermon?"

"The name's Rapidmon now!" He stated. There was a grin akin to that of the Cheshire Cat on his face. "What d'ya think?"

"When did you guys Digivolve?" Daiki asked. "And when did you join the Resistance?"

"Well, when you all left File City, we started training. You know, so we could protect everyone. After all of us Digivolved, a Resistance member asked us to join, so we came here. Of course, it's been a couple of years, so we ended up as Ultimates. With all the fighting we've done, that shouldn't be too surprising," Rapidmon explained. "Oh! Before I forget, that's Antylamon! You knew her as Lopmon."

The lanky Digimon fixed her gaze on her friend. "Rapidmon, I am capable of introducing myself."

The expression on Rapidmon's face could be described with no word other than cheeky. "Jeez, Anty, there's no reason to be mad about that."

"How many times do I have to tell you now to call me that?"

"It's just a nickname! Lighten up."

Attempting to stop the two, Shizuka let out a loud cough. "So, where's Guilmon? Or whatever his name is now," she asked, adding the last part with a wave of her hand.

The duo fell silent the moment Guilmon was mentioned. Mikami knew something was wrong; the good mood the two had been in vanished, replaced by a gloom settling over them. She recognized the way they were acting. Looks of uncertainty were exchanged between the two Digimon, as if neither knew what to say. Rapidmon turned away, his gaze shifting to the ocean waves below.

"WarGrowlmon went missing a week ago," Antylamon said. "We tried to find him, but…well, we never able to. We have no idea what happened to him. For all we know, he could be—"

Knowing what she was going to say, Rapidmon interrupted by shouting, "No! He's still alive. I know he is."

"Rapidmon—"

"He's out there somewhere. We just have to find him."

A second of hesitation by Antylamon was followed by a quiet, "There is no way of knowing for certain that he is."

The only thing her words did was make him turn and kick the parapet. "How can you be so quick to give up on him? We've all been through worse!"

"I am not giving up on him! I am looking at this situation rationally."

"Well, it sure sounds like you're giving up hope."

"No. I just think we need to entertain the possibility that he may not come back. Keeping our hopes up will only lead to us hurting more if it turns out that he is gone for good."

"You shouldn't—"

"Are you two done?"

Daiki's interruption earned a confused look from Antylamon and an irritated expression from Rapidmon.

"Look, we know what it's like for a friend to go missing." A brief glance towards Mikami made her turn her head to the side. "Don't let it get the best of you. It's okay to be hopeful, but Antylamon is right. You'll end up feeling worse if things go south."

"I don't want to give up on him."

"No one is asking you to give up," Shizuka said. "Just…don't get your hopes up, alright? For your own sake. Just because we got lucky doesn't mean you guys will. I know that sounds harsh, but it's the truth."

Despite looking ready to start another argument, Rapidmon let his shoulders drop and nodded. "You're right. I just hate thinking about it."

"Trust me, we know how you feel. It's a pretty shitty feeling." Shizuka snorted and placed a hand on her hip. "So you staying out here with us? Seems like you could use a break."

Rapidmon tilted his head towards Antylamon, unsure. It was for the best. They had been on numerous missions the past week and had gotten lucky enough on that particular day to have some downtime. Both of them needed to take some time to themselves to relax, Rapidmon especially. As much as he wanted to find WarGrowlmon, pushing himself the way he had been was not going to end well for him.

"She is right," Antylamon said with a nod. "Of course, it is your choice."

"Ah…you've got a point. I guess I have been pushing myself."

"That is an understatement. You took on every mission that you could."

"Hey, you came with me."

"Who else was going to keep an eye on you?"

"You say that like I need someone to watch me." At that Antylamon crossed her arms. Rapidmon pouted. "Ok, maybe I've been a little crazy lately, but I'm not a kid!"

The following bout of laughter from Antylamon and the three humans made Rapidmon huff. He turned his back to them, folding his arms over his chest. It continued on for a few minutes before their laughs began to fade into soft chortles. When Rapidmon turned around to look at them, his mouth was firmly closed and his eyes were narrowed.

"Sorry, but in our defense, that was pretty funny," Daiki said.

"Okay, maybe it was a bit funny, but not enough to make you guys laugh that hard!"

Shizuka snickered. "It totally was."

"Was not."

"I have to agree with them," Antylamon said, smiling when Rapidmon turned to look at her. "You should avoid getting so worked up."

"This is revenge for calling you Anty, isn't it?"

"Perhaps."

"Fine, I won't call you Anty anymore. Can I still call you Ant?"

"Yes. That is much better."

"Do you feel better now?" Mikami asked.

Rapidmon paused. In truth his thoughts were still rather negative at that moment, but they definitely weren't as bad as they had been. Once WarGrowlmon was found things would be better. Until then, getting his mind off it was the best thing that could be done. They had managed to do that for a few minutes, and it had made him feel better…

"Yeah. Sorry about that, uh, outburst earlier," he mumbled, his eyes moving to Antylamon. "I didn't mean to imply that you didn't care anymore, Ant. I know you've been just as worried as me. It was wrong of me to say that."

"I understand why you came to that conclusion. I have acted rather…cold when talking about it. It was a way to keep calm and stop myself from having an emotional breakdown. If anyone should apologize, it is me. I was never considerate of your feelings," Antylamon said with a sigh.

The corner of Rapidmon's mouth tugged upwards. "Thanks, Ant. That means a lot."

Unfortunately, the tender moment was cut short. Everyone found themselves startled when the door opened yet again to reveal Renamon. Shizuka prepared to complain and was shushed by Daiki before she could. He recognized the urgency in the fox's eyes. Despite being miffed at the interruption, Shizuka was quick to catch on and merely huffed.

"What's wrong?" Daiki asked.

"Emergency meeting in the foyer."

That was all it took for them to hurry through the door. Renamon led them through the castle to the foyer, where they found nearly every Digimon within the castle gathered there. A path opened up as Digimon moved to let the DigiDestined through to the center, where BanchoLeomon and their friends stood. The lion tiled his head to acknowledge that they had joined the group. The worried voices around them whispering in hushed tones were a cause for concern. Everyone in the room was on edge.

"I understand that all of you are concerned. You have every right to be. After all, this place was chosen because we could offer safety to those who needed it." BanchoLeomon paused and closed his eyes, taking in a slow breath while he gathered his thoughts. "At this moment, however, we cannot allow ourselves to panic. If we do, we will put ourselves in further jeopardy and risk ruining the efforts we have made these past few years. The first thing we must do is make sure those who cannot defend themselves are protected. They will be moved further into the castle. Team Sigma will be in charge of guarding them. As for everyone else, we will be preparing for a full frontal assault. Teams Alpha, Gamma and Omega will be on the front line. Beta and Iota will be stationed along the battlements. Delta and Zeta will provide aerial support."

More whispering followed, only to fade into silence. The words BanchoLeomon spoke next were in a low, guttural tone filled with vitriol.

"They will not show us mercy. We will return the favor."

Cheers erupted from the Digimon, though the moment was brief. A quick order from BanchoLeomon for the teams to move to their stations caused them to disperse. In the span of a few minutes, only the DigiDestined a handful of Digimon remained.

"Silphymon," Angela called. The Digimon in question paused to face her. "Take Mikami with you."

After a second, Silphymon nodded and motioned for Mikami. Mikami held up a hand and looked at Angela.

"Be careful."

"Don't worry. I'll even keep an eye on them for you," Angela said, using her thumb to point over her shoulder to the others. "Everyone will come out of this battle okay. Promise."

"Thanks."

Impatient, Silphymon began to walk off, forcing Mikami to hurry after her. Angela turned around in time to see an irritated Daiki press his palm against his forehead.

"Okay, let me take a guess. Laylamon managed to figure out where this place is?"

"Yes," BanchoLeomon answered, "though we do not know how."

"Most likely someone followed us here and reported Laylamon about the location," Tadashi said, shaking his head. "Which means that it's our fault everyone is in danger."

"That's fantastic," Daiki muttered.

"We can find out for certain later. Right now, it's important for us to focus on the fight. Yoko and Angewomon will be stationed along the wall with the other long-ranged attackers. The rest of us will be on the frontline. Stick close to your partners. We all have to work together." At this he made sure to give his sister a pointed look, though she simply shrugged. "One misstep could lead to a major loss. This won't the kind of defeat that we can come back from easily."

"Then we'll just have to win," Devimon said.

Shizuka was the first to cast an uncertain glance at Devimon. Soon each of the humans and their partners were staring. Each of them had their doubts; Devimon was only a Champion, after all, and wouldn't be of much use in a battle against Ultimates. Not to mention how if there were any Mega Digimon in the battle, he would be rather useless.

"Uh, no offense, but how can you help?"

Devimon turned to look at Angela. With a smirk on her face, Angela held up her black Digivice. Dark light came from the screen, surrounding Devimon and engulfing him. When it faded, a pale humanoid Digimon stood before them. He snapped the whip in his hand and grinned widely, showing off his fangs.

"Don't worry. Myotismon can hold his own."

"Shizuka, I want you and Garudamon to be near the rear," BanchoLeomon said. "Her size will make it easy to cover the entrance and deal with those who make it through our forces."

Biyomon nodded. "I'll do my best."

"I would ask you humans to stay away from the fight, but…I have a feeling that you would all refuse to do so. All I ask is that you care to leave this battle alive. We cannot afford to lose a single one of you."

"We know," Dorumon said, looking up at Judai. "It wouldn't be the first time we've protected our partners."

"Would you all be willing to stay atop the wall?"

After a brief few seconds of whispering, Daiki nodded. "Alright."

BanchoLeomon acknowledged the decision a grunt and made his way outside. Everyone followed after him out and through the Digimon gathered in front of the castle to stand just at the beginning of the bridge. Shizuka hung back near the entrance, with Biyomon Digivolving to Garudamon. The bird positioned herself directly in front of the door, towering above most of those below her. Once the other partners Digivolved, Angewomon scooped Yoko up into her arms and flew up to the wall, where she placed the redhead down. The others were brought up to the wall by DoruGreymon.

Nocking an arrow, Angewomon raised her bow.

When the first foe appeared, she fired.

The enemy forces charged.

It was chaos the moment the two groups collided.

BanchoLeomon was the first to throw himself into the fray, charging at a group of Volcamon. He skewered one of his sword and then pulled it out when a second one threw a punch. He pivoted on his heel and slashed upwards, cutting the arm off. The third came from behind, but before BanchoLeomon could turn, WereGarurumon lunged and kicked the Volcamon in the face. In retaliation, Volcamon punched WereGarurumon in the stomach and threw him down to the ground. Still focused on WereGarurumon, the Volcamon didn't notice BanchoLeomon swinging his sword until it was too late. A heartbeat after its head was cut off, it disappeared.

Just as WereGarurumon got to his feet, a missile came speeding through the air.

A barrier formed around them. The missile hit it and exploded, knocking a few of the enemies off balance. More hit the barrier and detonated.

BanchoLeomon raised his head to look at Taomon. The fox was hovering near the top of the dome.

"What's firing those missiles?"

"A group of MetalTyranomon. Five of them, from the looks of it."

"If this keeps up, the bridge will be damaged."

"They're primarily long-range attackers. If we can get close, we can deal with them."

"Do you have a suggestion on how to do that?"

The answer came when the dome they were in suddenly moved up into the air.

"Position us directly over them."

"You're going to be in the midst of the enemy forces," she warned as they sped through the air. "If necessary, I can reform the barrier around them."

"Only if we begin to be overwhelmed."

More missiles were fired at them, shaking the dome as they exploded. A thick plume of smoke billowed around the dome, obscuring them. It was then that Taomon dropped it, allowing BanchoLeomon and WereGarurumon to fall. Thanks to the smoke, neither were seen until they were right on top of their targets. BanchoLeomon stabbed his sword into the weak spot on its shoulder. While holding onto the handle with his right paw, he pulled his left back. The fiery energy around it burst outwards when his fist collided with the MetalTyranomon's head. He pulled his sword out and jumped back as the dinosaur faded.

WereGarurumon landed and rolled out of the way of an energy beam. He stopped in a crouch and then lunged. His fist hit the side of the MetalTyranomon's head. It swung in retaliation, forcing him to jump upwards. Spinning mid-air, he delivered a sharp kick to the dinosaur. He jumped back, only to see it raise its hand. Before it could shoot the laser at him, Knightmon dropped down out of nowhere, swinging his sword downwards. The blade cut through the shoulder, detaching the arm. He spun on his heel when he landed shoved his sword into the open wound. The MetalTyranomon shattered when he twisted the weapon and pulled it out.

"Let's go get rid of the other three. BanchoLeomon is surrounded by them."

"Right."

As the two dashed over to where the lion was battling, WereGarurumon glanced upwards to watch as Taomon threw down talismans to drive back any enemies that tried to get to close. Satisfied, he focused his gaze on the rest of the MetalTyranomon.

A distance away, DoruGreymon dove into a swarm of Cannonbeemon. He crushed one in his jaws and skewered another with his tail. As he shook the bee off, another moved in front of him and fired an energy beam from its stinger-like cannon. He rose up, the beam going under him to hit another Cannonbeemon, and rammed his horn through the one in front of him. Sharp pain spread across his back as a heavy weight dropped down onto him. Looking over his shoulder confirmed that it was a Parrotmon. He tried to shake it off, but the bird tightened its grip, making him roar in pain.

Antylamon shoved a Mummymon away and cut through its head with her axe-hand. From the edge of her vision she spotted DoruGreymon and looked up to see what was happening.

"DoruGreymon needs help!" Antylamon shouted at Rapidmon.

Rapidmon threw a Cannonbeemon to the ground and stared down at Antylamon. "But Ant—"

"Go help him!"

"Alright. Just…be safe, okay?"

He sped through the air and slammed into the Parrotmon. The hit forced the bird let go of DoruGreymon. Rapidmon pushed off and moved away, firing homing missiles from the revolver on his back. A bolt of blue electricity shot off from between the feathery tufts on Parrotmon's head. The electricity detonated the missiles, and through the resulting smoke, a second bolt shot out. Rapidmon dodged and yelped when Parrotmon charged at him. DoruGreymon tackled the bird and the two grappled with each other as they spun through the air.

"DoruGreymon, move!"

The furred dragon backed away in time to avoid a green beam of energy. It tore through the Parrotmon, shattering it.

"Thanks, Rapidmon."

"No problem. There's another one coming at us, though."

DoruGreymon glanced at Rapidmon and grinned. "Let's take care of it."

Together the two charged.

Vritramon bowled into a group of Mummymon, setting many aflame with the fiery aura surrounding him. A couple were crushed under his feet while he mowed down the others with his Rudriya Darpana.

He came to a sudden stop, his head snapping to the side. His eyes widened.

"Oh, shit."

KendoGarurumon sliced through the chest of a Mummymon and looked at the dragon. "What's wrong?"

"There's a Mega attacking Antylamon."

"We should get Bancho—" KendoGarurumon cut himself short as he watched his friend speed off to help Antylamon. "Vritramon, wait!"

With a roar Vritramon rammed into Boltmon, only to find himself flung off. He righted himself midair and landed on his feet. As Boltmon turned, Vritramon lunged again. The fist that hit him in the stomach sent him falling to the ground with a gasp. Boltmon stepped forward and stomped on Vritramon's chest, causing the dragon to groan. Without turning to look, Boltmon swung his arm upwards and hit KendoGarurumon's chin. The force caused the wolf to flip backwards. In a swift motion, Boltmon grabbed KendoGarurumon's tail and slammed him into the ground. He stomped on KendoGarurumon's stomach several times, eliciting pained howls from the wolf. Turning his attention back to Vritramon, Boltmon pulled his axe off his back and raised it.

"I'll make this quick."

Scrambling to her feet, Antylamon ran towards Boltmon. Having heard her, he spun around and swung his axe at her. She came to a stop and though she stepped back in time to avoid a serious injury, the weapon caught her arm and left a noticeable cut. A hand wrapped around her face and smashed her head into the rocky surface below her.

With her vision swimming and her head throbbing, she could barely think; there was one thought that crossed her mind, however.

It was over.

"I suppose I'll kill you first, then," Boltmon said, hefting up his axe once again.

At least she would die fighting for those she cared about.

"Lightning Joust!"

Antylamon found herself blinded for a moment when blue energy engulfed Boltmon. A blur of white and red zipped between her and Boltmon. Gaping, she could only stare at the red-caped Digimon standing before her. There was a brief, surreal moment during which time seemed to slow; those around them fell silent at the sight of the Royal Knight who the world had believed to be dead. Yet there he was, his lance and shield raised in preparation for a battle. Where had he come from?

The fighting began again.

When he turned to look at her, she swallowed, overwhelmed.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes."

"And you two?"

Vritramon and KendoGarurumon, realizing that he was talking to them, could only nod.

"Good."

Boltmon, having recovered, lunged. Gallantmon moved his shield, causing Boltmon to recoil when his axe bounced off. As the knight fended off the assailant, Rapidmon landed beside Antylamon. He was momentarily distracted by the skirmish, but tore his eyes away to help her to her feet. Both were startled when Gallantmon was sent skidding in their direction, though he stopped short of them.

"All of you need to get to safety."

Rapidmon immediately grabbed hold of Antylamon despite a few meek protests from her, then flew off into the air. Vritramon hefted KendoGarurumon up into his arms and hurried towards entrance. Once he was sure all four were out of the way, Gallantmon leveled his lance at Boltmon.

"Didn't think there'd be any of you knights left," Boltmon sneered.

"Then you thought wrong."

"It doesn't matter. You won't change a thing. Laylamon is still going to win."

"Feel free to think that, but no matter what, we will defeat her."

Boltmon swung his axe at the knight again and repeated the action when it was blocked. Moving the shield to intercept the attacks, Gallantmon kept himself protected against the onslaught. As the hulking cyborg brought the axe down for yet another strike, Gallantmon lowered himself and raised his shield. The axe slammed against the shield. Using quite a bit of force, Gallantmon stood up, shoving the axe upwards in the process.

With all of his weight having been put into the swing, Boltmon was thrown off balance. He stumbled back, giving Gallantmon an opening to thrust his lance forward. Boltmon recovered his footing in time to step the side. The lance left a cut along his left side.

Another swing forced Gallantmon to hastily bring up his shield. Though he was able to block the attack, he had no time to brace himself and skidded backwards as a result.

He miscalculated the next swing. The axe hooked onto the edge of his shield and dragged it down. Boltmon held his weapon with one hand and swung the other at Gallantmon. Ducking, Gallantmon avoided the punch and aimed his lance at Boltmon. Boltmon let go of his axe and shoved the lance so that it missed its mark. Gallantmon used his shield to throw the axe to the side. He then brought the shield around to hit Boltmon. Boltmon jumped back and then rolled, grabbing his axe as he did so. When he came to a stop, he stood and spun around.

Gallantmon let go of the shield and let it slide down his arm before grabbing it by the side. While Boltmon brought up his axe for another swing, Gallantmon threw the shield. Boltmon swung his axe and knocked the shield aside. Dashing forward, Gallantmon stabbed his lance straight into Boltmon's chest.

Amongst the crowd of enemies, someone shouted, "He—he defeated Boltmon!"

Calmly he picked up his shield and turned to glare at the one who shouted.

There was a brief moment of confusion among some of the fighters as they watched those they were battling turn tail and run, only to see Gallantmon. The knight, surrounded by electrical energy, was tearing through them one by one. Apparently the fury of a Royal Knight was enough to send them scurrying off for safety.

"He's…frightening," KaiserLeomon commented.

As he crushed the head of a Mummymon in his hand, Asuramon muttered, "I think that's an understatement."

On the bridge, BanchoLeomon and the others were busy fighting when they noticed the sudden shift.

"What the—yikes!" WereGarurumon shouted, jumping back when a whole herd of Triceramon ran past him. "They're retreating en masse and heading straight towards us!"

Taomon threw up a shield to protect herself and the Resistance members around her against the stampede. The moment they were in the air, a thundering burst of energy shot across the bridge. Many scrambled off the sides and jumped into the water to save themselves. Those unable to do so met their end.

"…Well, I suppose that takes care of that," Knightmon said, dumbfounded.

After counting to make sure everyone was inside the dome, BanchoLeomon asked, "Is everyone okay?"

Positive mutters assured him that they were unscathed.

"Should we go after them?" WereGarurumon asked.

"No. We should focus on treating the wounded."

Taomon sat them down at the end of the bridge and turned to BanchoLeomon. "Perhaps you should have a word with Gallantmon."

"Yes, I should." He folded his arms and shook his head. "I think he needs to calm down first."

KaiserLeomon sprinted towards them while Asuramon followed at a more leisure pace. Garudamon did so as well, lowering her hand to the ground so the Daiki and the others could jump to the ground. Angewomon and DoruGreymon joined them,

"Knightmon, you, KaiserLeomon, and Asuramon are to help anyone who needs it." He turned his gaze to the DigiDestined. "If all of you could help as well, that would be appreciated."

He watched them spread out and sighed. He was not looking forward to talking to Gallantmon.

The Royal Knight in question had made his way inside while looking for two Digimon in particular. The moment his eyes landed on Rapidmon and Antylamon, his lance and shield fell to the floor. The two were pulled into an embrace by Gallantmon, who held onto them as if they would disappear at any moment.

"I am so happy to see both of you again," he whispered. "I am sorry that it took me so long to come back."

Surprisingly enough, Rapidmon was the first one to connect the dots. He moved back to stare at Gallantmon, eyes widened in surprise.

"No way." A wide grin spread across Rapidmon's face as he turned towards Antylamon. "We're best friends with a Royal Knight."

It took Antylamon a few seconds to process the information, her gaze locked on Gallantmon. "You're really…?"

He said nothing. The glint in his eyes was the only answer she needed. The trio embraced once again, deciding to enjoy each other's presence in silence.

Eventually Gallantmon pulled away, turning around to watch BanchoLeomon entering the room. He approached the lion, who noticed and turned his attention to the knight.

"Who here gathered the chosen Digimon?"

"I did."

Much to the surprise of everyone around, Gallantmon bowed to the lion. Speculative murmurs spread through the crowd, everyone curious as to why a Royal Knight would bow to anyone. The voices died down when he began to speak.

"I want you to know how appreciative I am for you doing what I could not," he said, eliciting astonished gasps from several Digimon. "For bringing them together and guiding them when they needed it. And, most importantly, for choosing to continue fighting for what is right. You have prevailed in the face of hardship, and for that I am eternally grateful. Your efforts and the efforts of everyone here have gotten us this far. Thank you."

"There is no need to thank me for doing the right thing," BanchoLeomon said, waving his paw in front of him. "I would like to have a word with you, though."

Gallantmon straightened and blinked when he saw the frown on the lion's face.

"What you did was reckless. Attacking without a second thought could have led to injuries. Even worse, you could have caught one of the DigiDestined in your attack."

"You are right," Gallantmon said. "I am afraid I let my anger get the best of me. I will not lose my temper like that again."

"Do I have your word?" BanchoLeomon asked, narrowing his eyes. "Because you could put others at risk if there was a repeat of today."

"Yes. I give you my word."

Satisfied, BanchoLeomon nodded and walked past him. "Good."

Once the lion had disappeared, Rapidmon walked up to Gallantmon and scowled. "You're a Royal Knight. Why are you listening to him?"

"What he said was true. It is as simple as that. Besides, my position is irrelevant. As a member of the Resistance, it is only natural that I listen to the leader."

"But—" Rapidmon stopped himself and folded his arms with a huff. "Fine."

Under his breath, Gallantmon mumbled, "It is for the best."