The automatic door of Subang Jaya Medical Hospital spun open automatically as one man, dressed in white shirt and black pants, walked in the emergency department briskly. He was cradling an unconscious girl on his arms. Following closely behind the medical assistant was a nervous-looking teen with spiky dark hair in blue sleeveless jersey and black track bottoms.
A man donning the doctor's white coat over a light blue shirt, dark scarlet tie and black pants approached the medical assistant and the teen. He was followed by a woman in light green nurse uniform. The doctor immediately took out his stethoscope, which he had slung on his shoulders with one hand, while the other was used to assist the nurse pushing the movable hospital bed towards the medical assistant.
"Alright, what've we got?" he asked briskly, his eyes fixed at the medical assistant.
The medical assistant turned towards the movable hospital bed and placed the unconscious girl gently on it. Then, he looked up towards the doctor. "Name's Gayathri Nadarajah, age thirteen. This is her friend, he saw it happened."
Manny gulped, feeling the gazes of the doctor and the nurse beside him. He lowered his eyes and watched Gayathri's unconscious figure. "She was rollerblading…and she was crossing the road when a car came by. She managed to avoid the car barely, but lost her footings and was thrown onto the edge of the road. She hit her head really hard…"
"She's bleeding slightly," the medical assistant quipped as he looked at some traces of blood which smeared his right hand and the sleeves of his shirt. "I better go change…"
"How bad is it?" the nurse asked, as the doctor examined Gayathri's head. The medical assistant was right; the back part of Gayathri's head was bleeding.
"It doesn't look too serious," the doctor said as he helped pushing the bed towards an unoccupied corner at the emergency department. "But I won't be too sure unless I get a radiologist to run a scan of her head. She's still unconscious. Can you get her changed and clean up the wound first, Amy? Then we can take her vital signs and the works."
"Of course, Dr. Abu," the nurse replied, and drew the curtains to shield Gayathri's bed from being seen. The doctor and the medical assistant both walked out from the curtained area as the nurse began to clean up the wound. Her eyes, which looked warm and caring, fell onto Manny's anxious irises. She smiled. "You should step out too, young man. I'm going to change her clothes."
Manny nodded weakly. "Is she going to be ok?" he asked with a quivering tone.
"It's a good thing you managed to get her here as soon as possible. After we get all of the diagnostic tests we'll be sure to inform you, alright?" Nurse Amy assured. "Why don't you wait outside at the waiting area?"
Manny nodded obligingly and stepped out, as the nurse drew close the curtains all around Gayathri's bed. He stood glumly and his eyes saw the doctor who Nurse Amy referred as Dr. Abu over the counter, looking over some files. He approached the doctor, who seemed to be the only doctor on duty at the moment. The emergency department – white, sterile and somewhat empty – had few people bustling about, most of them were nurses. There was another female doctor looking over a child who seemed to have an attack of asthma, and a medical assistant and a nurse helping a young boy who seemed to have fractured his right leg. Not knowing what to do, he approached Dr. Abu.
"Excuse me, but can you tell me something about my friend?" he asked, in a pleading tone.
Dr. Abu looked up from the files and saw a nervous burly teen standing in front of him. He gave the teen a reassuring smile. "She's a very lucky girl as you've gotten her here just in time. We can't be sure until we get the test results, which we will begin to obtain as soon as Nurse Amy finishes changing your friend's clothes and clean up the wound on her head. Now, I understand that you are worried, but I need to ask you a few details about the accident. Will you be able to help me?"
"I'll do whatever I can, doctor," Manny said with determination. His face fell slightly as he added, in a very soft voice, "Actually it was all my fault…"
The doctor – a man who looked to be around his late twenties – caught Manny's guilt-ridden tone. "How so?"
"We…sorta got into an argument before the accident," Manny said, and clammed up soon after. He didn't want to divulge more than he should.
"It doesn't sound like it's your fault," Dr. Abu commented. "Now, did the car hit her?"
Manny shook his head. "She managed to avoid the car. She went to the sides of the road, but lost her footings and hit her head on stones lining the small drains…she wasn't wearing her helmet…the one who was driving the car was kind enough to send us to the hospital. He's outside looking for a place to park his car."
Dr. Abu nodded and jotted down Manny's explanation on a piece of paper. He then saw Nurse Amy stepping out from the curtains. His attention was then turned to Manny once again.
"What's your name?"
"Emmanuel Abah…Manny."
"Alright, Manny. I am Dr. Abu Ubaidah. Manny, I need another favor from you. Can you contact your friend's parents? Do they know about this?"
Manny shook his head. "Her parents are abroad right now, but I can contact her house. The house's caretaker and her son stay with Gayathri at that house."
"Very well. I need you to inform them while I check on your friend's condition, ok? While you're at it you might as well inform your family about you being here as well. As soon as I get the test results I'll inform you. You can sit at the family's waiting area over there; there's a phone that you can use," Dr. Abu said as he gestured towards an area with blue-cushioned chairs and a cabinet with a television. There were several people there as well, presumably waiting for their family members receiving treatments from the hospital's medical personnel.
Manny nodded weakly as the doctor walked over to Gayathri's bed. The emergency department was slightly chilly for him but he ignored the cold. He dragged himself towards the waiting area and took out his cell phone, and began to dial Gayathri's house number.
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Karatenmon opened his eyes from his meditation. Something felt off, he could sense it. His yellow eyes glinted in slight anger as he realized what was wrong.
Looking around the dark interiors of the Cave of Solitude, he could hear several footsteps approaching the main chamber. Waiting silently, the dark avian warrior observed as Shutumon and Sorcerymon stepped inside the main chamber. From the solemn light generated from the floating orb, he could see that both of them looked absolutely very pale. Well, Shutumon looked pale; Sorcerymon looked much paler than usual.
"That rotten brat!" Shutumon seethed; her voice sounded as if she was shivering greatly.
"Who were you referring to, Shutumon?" Karatenmon inquired with mild amusement.
"I believe she was talking about me!" a cocky male voice announced from out of nowhere. Shutumon and Sorcerymon looked around, but Karatenmon didn't move an inch.
The air in the middle of the dark cavern rippled and three figures stepped out. It was JD, Agumon and IceDevimon. The champion ice Digimon spread his wings wide, and all of a sudden the temperature inside the cavern dropped several degrees. The chilling air didn't faze Karatenmon, JD and Agumon, but rattled Shutumon and Sorcerymon ever so slightly.
Sorcerymon recoiled upon seeing the icy demon, while Shutumon's aquamarine eyes widened in rage as they landed on the demon.
"YOU!" she shrieked, and pointed an accusing finger towards IceDevimon. "You'll pay for that stunt!"
JD smirked upon seeing the bird-woman. "Took you guys long enough to escape," he said, drawing Shutumon's attention towards him. "Almost one whole day…I've to say that I'm surprised. Surely experienced Digimon such as you two could easily escape IceDevimon's icy prison in no time?"
"Brat," Shutumon merely huffed.
"Birdbrain," JD retorted with a smirk.
"ENOUGH!" Karatenmon bellowed. "There will be no argument between all of you. We have a pressing matter in our hands. It concerns Emmanuel."
"Oh?" JD said inquiringly, and crossed his arms against his chest. His hazel eyes glinted with interest. "What about him?"
"He has strayed," Karatenmon stated coldly. "He has switched sides. He has betrayed us."
JD looked slightly perplexed. "How?" he demanded.
Karatenmon was silent; he was trying to sense the link he had bestowed between the ShadoWira and himself. The link he had with JD was still strong, but these past couple of days he had detected some weakness in his link with Manny – ever since they battled Lilymon. But that was not the only reason; Karatenmon believed that the attraction Manny had towards the girl with the Pink DigiSphere also played a strong role.
Whatever the reason was, his plan was foiled now. If Manny had switched sides, the DigiWira team would have an absolute advantage over his forces of evil.
"Never mind how; all that matters now that Emmanuel needs to be taught a lesson for his disloyalty," Karatenmon replied. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously towards JD.
"What's with the look? You think I'd stray too?" JD demanded hotly.
"Would you?" Karatenmon asked back with a small smile. He could sense that his power over the Red ShadoWira was still strong, but there was no harm in making sure. He waved his hand towards JD and Agumon, and a dark aura shot out from it towards JD. The aura entered JD and Agumon's eyes. "Would you stray?" Karatenmon reiterated as he propped his chin with one finger.
"Not in a million years," JD said darkly.
"Good. I have several tasks for you. I want them done before the digital solar eclipse comes," Karatenmon ordered.
JD smirked. "What would they be?"
"Emmanuel might have strayed…but his Digimon partner is still here in the Cave of Solitude. I am sure that with Emmanuel betraying us, Penguinmon will soon follow. As we speak, he might be trying to walk out from us. I want you to prevent him in doing so."
"Agumon can handle it," JD said confidently, and pointed his D-3 towards the orange T-rex.
"Agumon digivolve to…. Flarelizamon!"
The blazing fire from Flarelizamon's body enlightened the whole cavern with bright orange light. The champion Digimon's head nearly reached the narrow ceiling of the cave. With a small grunt and a brief flash of crimson from his eyes, Flarelizamon walked out from the cave.
"What's your other order?" JD asked.
Karatenmon turned his head towards IceDevimon, and saw the icy demon frowning as Flarelizamon walked past him. "I see you have garnered an acquaintance. He could be useful in my next diabolical plan." The dark avian warrior smiled sinisterly. "This task should be easy for you. We shall take someone who is dear to the DigiWira, and use him as bait to demand Emmanuel's return to our side. Should Emmanuel refuse, both his partner and this particular someone shall perish in my hands!"
"I like the sounds of that," JD nodded. "What if Manny agrees to rejoin us? What then?"
"I do not take betrayal kindly," Karatenmon answered. "Even though he agrees to join us…he shall perish as well!"
"That's brutal," JD commented. He shrugged, showing that he didn't care at all of what fate would befall his former teammate. "You mentioned of a 'someone' earlier. Who's this someone that you want us to retrieve?"
Karatenmon smirked. "It's…"
"What about us?" Sorcerymon suddenly interrupted. "We don't want to be pushed to the sidelines anymore."
"Yeah. In case you have forgotten, the master wants us to take part in this as much as you are," Shutumon added.
If Karatenmon was surprised of the duo's sudden boldness, it didn't show. Instead, he smiled menacingly towards the wizard Digimon and the avian woman Digimon. "Oh do not worry. Both of you shall have your moments to shine as well. That will happen very, very soon. Now, as I was saying, before I was rudely interrupted…"
xxx
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WIRA DIGITAL
- ShadoWira Unveiled, Part III –
Chapter 18 – Betrayal
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"I can't believe it!" Adam said excitedly to Liu Ying that Monday morning. It was ten minutes before the weekly assembly.
Liu Ying took note of Adam's white and black first aid uniform. "You're on first aid duty this week?" she guessed with a smile.
"Um…yeah! I just can't believe that I get to do this now," Adam said. "It's a big responsibility actually; I actually hoped that this week there will be nobody who needs first aid."
"I don't see why you should be so riled up. You still have several seniors to help you out, don't you?" Liu Ying asked.
"I do. There's Gary Wong from Form Five Alpha – he's the leader in this week's first aid duty group, and there's Shamini Palanisamy from Form Three Gamma – they're the more experienced ones and they have done this loads of time before. It's my first time on duty now. I'm excited and nervous as well."
"Which explains that first aid book you're carrying with you right now," Liu Ying said amused, as she pointed towards a thick red and white book in Adam's hand.
"Well, yeah, I need to be prepared!"
"Do you need to wear this uniform everyday?"
"Nope. Only on Monday and Friday. I can wear the normal school uniform on any other days."
"Good luck. I hope you'll do well. Now I know I'm in good hands should I need any first aid this week." Her expression then grew serious suddenly. "Adam, have you heard from Gayathri? I tried contacting her, but she didn't reply to her D-Terminal. I couldn't even reach her cell phone."
"No," Adam said. "I tried calling her home as well but nobody picked up. Nobody seems to be home all night – the last time I tried was at eleven o'clock."
"This is really weird," Liu Ying said. "And I didn't see her around her best friends too. I asked Dina and she's as in the dark as I am, if not more."
Adam's cheeks became slightly pink upon the mention of Dina's name. "Oh…" was all he managed to say. "Well, we can ask Manny. He's Gayathri's neighbor."
Liu Ying thought about it and nodded, but Adam noticed that the senior DigiWira seemed to hesitate slightly. "I suppose so…I can ask him in class. I also haven't seen him around today. Go in your class line now, the bell's about to ring anytime soon."
"What's your duty this week?" Adam inquired.
Liu Ying groaned. "Of all the duties I could get…it just have to be gate duty again!" she snorted.
"Oh…well, good luck to you too, then!" Adam chuckled and went towards the assembly ground after bidding his DigiWira teammate goodbye.
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Manny had woken up late today. He'd been having nightmares all night and couldn't get a decent night sleep. All of his nightmares resolved around Gayathri and his time of evil. He also sensed something was terribly wrong at the Digital World – he'd been hearing voices in his mind – and hadn't he woke up late he would have gone to the Digital World for a moment to retrieve Penguinmon. His mother had been pounding his door since 6.30, but Manny had locked the door and only woke up when it was 7.00.
Seven in the morning was quite early, but the traffic jam in the township was worse than any other day due to an accident. When he reached the school grounds, the bell had just ringed and the main gate was closed. The small gate was opened, but one female prefect standing by it. The students had just finished singing the national, the state and the school's anthems, and were currently listening to the principal's speech.
"Great," he muttered, and dragged himself towards the school gate. His heart skipped a beat when he saw Liu Ying being the prefect on duty.
"Manny?" Liu Ying inquired when she saw her classmate. "You've never been late before."
Manny lowered his gaze and mumbled, "Traffic jam."
"Unfortunately, I can't help you with that. A couple of students have also stated that as the reason for them being late. You'll have to join them," Liu Ying said simply, and gestured towards a wooden bench near the gate.
Manny saw that there were already several students there, and inhaled sharply when he saw a familiar blonde teen being one of the tardy students. JD Kamaruzaman was fixing him a very piercing glare, which sent a chill down his spine. He quickly turned to face Liu Ying. "Um…Liu Ying, I really need to tell you something…"
"I need to ask you something too, but you will have to sit there for a while," Liu Ying insisted calmly. She then groaned. "There's another late student, I need to take her details," she told Manny. "You can tell me what you want to tell me in class, or later, ok?"
Manny nodded glumly and chose to sit at an artificial toadstool instead of the bench, and ignored JD. Somehow, he knew why the older teen was shooting him with threatening looks.
When he dared to steal a glance towards the mixed-heritage teen, and saw that the older teen was staring at Liu Ying at the moment, he could see that JD seemed somewhat roughed up. It was as if he had been in a scuffle prior to going to school. His hair was messier than usual, there were cut signs on his arms and his skin looked a little bit pale. Now that he thought about it, did JD look that menacing before entering Karatenmon's service? Manny shuddered; did he himself look menacing when he was still under the spell's effect? How come Gayathri, Liu Ying and Adam didn't notice that, when he could see clearly that JD didn't look…normal?
Manny quickly averted his eyes away when JD turned his head to look at him once again. As the ground suddenly looked a whole lot more interesting, Manny could feel JD's piercing gaze boring against his head.
He wanted to alert Liu Ying and Adam about Gayathri's condition, and wanted to come out to them of him being the Blue ShadoWira. He could see clearly now that he had been under a spell, and had broken that spell. He didn't know how exactly, but he knew that he had been with the wrong side the whole time. He was feeling deep remorse for his past actions, and the fact that Gayathri being in the hospital right now had further fueled the guilt. He wanted to help the DigiWira team now.
The question is; would he be able to do so in time?
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Adam's class was interrupted by a knock at the door. Everyone turned their attention there and saw a small-framed male prefect standing there.
"Yes?" Mrs. Rohana Jalil, the Geography teacher, asked irritably. The elderly teacher absolutely hated having her class interrupted.
"I'm sorry, but I was sent by Mr. Gurmit Singh to retrieve Adam Ariff to the infirmary. He's on first aid duty, and he's needed right now," the prefect told the teacher nervously.
Mrs. Rohana nodded. "Very well. Adam, you're excused. I want you to get your homework assignment from any of your classmates, am I clear?"
"Yes, teacher," Adam nodded as he stood up promptly. He quickly went to the door and looked at the male prefect inquiringly – recognizing him as a Form One student. "Hazli, what's wrong?"
"There's a fight. Actually it was Chang Liu Ying who sent me to get you," Hazli, the prefect, answered. "Mr. Singh was busy reprimanding the two students who were involved in the fight. Liu Ying told me that you're on duty this week and you might have the key to the infirmary."
"I do." Adam took out a key from his trousers pocket as they made their way towards the school infirmary. "There's a fight? Between who?"
"JD Kamaruzaman and a Form two boy," Hazli replied. "According to Liu Ying, JD was the one who initiated the fight."
Adam frowned; JD had become his friend over the past one week and Adam could only wonder what would get JD to be so mad for him to initiate a fight.
"Are the injuries severe?" Adam inquired.
Hazli thought about Adam's question for a moment. "The Form Two boy's injuries are a nosebleed and a bruised eye…but from the way it looks like, he had fought JD back. I've to say that I'm rather impressed…not many students can stand up against JD. JD has nosebleed too, but no bruises. Both of them need to change to new school shirts, which Mr. Singh says are available inside the infirmary – their own shirts are somewhat dirty…and bloodied." The younger student made a face to emphasize his disgust. z
Adam merely shook his head and Hazli bid his farewell as he said that he needed to go to his own class. The dark-haired DigiWira then increased his pace and practically ran down the stairs to four storeys below, where the infirmary was. When he reached the infirmary, he nearly did a double-take when he saw that the other boy who got into a fight with JD was the somewhat introverted Manny. Liu Ying was standing by the infirmary's locked door, watching the two boys guardedly, while Mr. Gurmit Singh was lecturing them off for fighting at school grounds.
"Joshua, this isn't the first time you've gotten yourself in trouble! You've been given letters of warning twice! This time around, the principal might not be so lenient with you! You might face suspension! Do you know what suspension would look like in your school record when you finished school?!" Mr. Singh was heard bellowing at the blonde teen, who didn't look like he cared. JD was holding a balled up tissue paper against his nose. His white shirt had some dark red spots on them, some stains and tar marks. His arms seemed to have several scrape marks – it looked like the brawl between him and Manny had taken place on the tarred ground.
"And you! You are a new student to this school, and you're making trouble already?!" the disciplinary teacher barked towards Manny, who flinched upon hearing the man's booming voice. Hazli had been right – Manny was the unluckier one of the two fighters. Apart from a soiled shirt and a bloody nose, Manny's right eye was bruised.
Before Mr. Gurmit Singh could reprimand Manny any longer, his beady eyes fell onto Adam. "Good, a St. John Ambulance cadet is here. Are you the one on duty this week?"
"I am," Adam said, and unlocked the infirmary's door.
"Alright. Do something about their nosebleeds and the bruises. And give them new school shirts, there's no way I would allow them to continue the rest of the school day with those dirtied shirts they were wearing. Record it in your journal – their parents will be sent a letter to claim the payments for those new shirts. I believe you can handle that, Adam?" Mr. Gurmit Singh said.
Adam nodded. The burly teacher then ushered both Manny and JD inside the infirmary and beckoned them to sit at the beds while Adam went to get the first aid kit at the counter. Liu Ying stepped in the infirmary and sat down at the bench beside the door.
"Good. And you'll report to me if these boys make any trouble with you," Mr. Gurmit Singh continued. "I need to go now, but I shall see you two boys at my office after Adam has finished treating the both of you. Am I clear?"
"Crystal," JD said with a smirk. Manny merely nodded.
"It had better be," Mr. Gurmit Singh boomed, and turned to face Liu Ying. "Make sure that those two boys don't cause any trouble," he told Liu Ying. "And escort them to my office as soon as Adam's done treating them."
"I will, sir."
With a loud huff, Mr. Gurmit Singh stalked away from the infirmary. There was a tensed silence inside the infirmary – the only thing that could be heard was Adam's distinct mumblings from the counter as he tried locating some spare school shirts, getting some icepacks and a healing ointment for the bruise. Manny and JD were shooting each other pointed looks, which baffled Liu Ying. Why would JD pick on Manny, or rather…why on earth would Manny fight JD?
"Umm…guys?" Adam asked, drawing the attentions of the other two male students to him. He gave them an icepack each. "Put those on your noses, that'll stop the bleeding quicker."
"Mine's stopped already," JD said with a smirk. He shot a look towards Manny, whose bleeding had not yet stopped.
"Oh. Ok," Adam nodded and held up a wet cloth. "Let's get your face cleaned up."
"Give me that. I can do that on my own." He snatched the wet cloth from Adam. He wiped the cloth against some dry blood on his face.
Adam frowned slightly as his gaze met JD's. "JD, why would you initiate a fight with Manny?" he asked.
The taller teen gave Adam a look that harbored a spiteful intention. His smirk no longer exuded the devil-may-care-ness that Adam had grown accustomed on seeing since the previous week. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough, Adam…" he murmured and chuckled lightly.
"Adam, Liu Ying…" Manny began. "There's something I…"
"Where's that new shirt?" JD interrupted and began unbuttoning his soiled shirt. "I want to get changed."
"…need to tell you," Manny continued. "Be careful; JD is…"
"I'm what, huh? WHAT?" JD demanded loudly, effectively silencing Manny. A challenging look was affixed on his face.
"Hey, you two, knock it off!!" Liu Ying said shrilly.
Adam turned around from the counter with a pristine white shirt and went over to JD to give him the new shirt, as he saw the blonde boy throwing his soiled shirt onto the floor. However, he was stopped short upon seeing a strange scar on JD's exposed right arm, which made his blood ran cold. His arms quivered as he recognized the mark immediately. It was a clean longitudinal mark along JD's toned triceps, which looked as if a sharp blade had been pierced through it. The mark was slightly reddish against JD's light-tan complexion, but looked fully healed. Something clicked in his mind all of a sudden, which elicited a soft gasp from him.
The gasp caught JD's attention, and he turned sideways towards Adam. A malevolent sneer was fixed on his face.
"JD, how did you get that scar on your right arm?" Adam asked nervously.
"What? This?" JD sneered as he flexed his right arm. A cold look was elicited from his hazel eyes. Adam's eyes widened upon seeing a green glow emanating from the blonde's eyes. "I suppose you should know about it, Adam…since YOU'RE the one who gave it to me!"
Liu Ying immediately stood up, and looked alarmed. "You?" she said shrilly. A look at Manny was all she needed to restrain herself from saying out that JD was the Red ShadoWira.
JD laughed loudly. "Yeah, I am! Surprised?"
Adam stood silently, transfixed of the sudden revelation.
"It's you?" he asked softly. "It's you all along…" he whispered disbelievingly.
JD approached the DigiWira leader and snatched the clean shirt roughly before putting it on. Adam merely stood in silence as he observed the older teen buttoning up the shirt all the way until the third button from the top, which exposed his dog-tags chain necklace.
"Why?" Adam demanded softly, trying to keep his voice out of Manny's earshot. "Why did you become my friend…when you're actually the Red ShadoWira? You tried to kill me three times at the Digital World. Why bother being my friend when you're actually an enemy?"
"Why? Well…it makes the whole revelation thing a whole lot sweeter," JD answered. He poked a finger on Adam's cheek and whispered sadistically as he loomed closer to the smaller boy, "You've hurt me with that teleportation stunt of yours back at Shadow Realm. To repay your favor, I've decided to hurt you back…emotionally. A betrayal is never sweeter than when it's done by someone close to you. It's all part of my plan when I got that birthday wish from you. It's a perfect opening I've got to approach you, and I've also done my homework. I know a lot about you than you'd expect any of your other friends to know. You can thank your best friend Hakim for that too."
"What does Hakim have to do with this?" Adam demanded, and swatted JD's hand away. Something dawned onto him. "Don't tell me…"
"That he's the Blue ShadoWira?" JD cut in, and cackled. "Oh, hell no! That friend of yours is merely a pawn. My pawn! Oh, this is really sweet! You really have no idea of who the Blue ShadoWira is? Well, you can stop trying to avoid Manny from listening to our digital-related conversation…'cause he's your blue guy!"
Adam tensed instantly, while Liu Ying shot an enraged look at Manny. "YOU?!" she demanded shrilly towards Manny.
"I've been trying to tell you about this earlier…" Manny mumbled guiltily.
Liu Ying immediately marched towards her classmate and slapped Manny hard on his left cheek. The bloodied ball of tissue he was holding was instantly thrown away onto the floor as Manny clutched his face. A burning red mark was seen on where he was slapped. The spiked-hair teen's expression was a mixture of shocked…and sorrow.
"I'm sorry…" he could be heard whispering.
"Gayathri likes you!" she shouted. "And you're actually the Blue ShadoWira! How do you think that will make her feel? Does she even know about this?!"
Manny didn't respond. His russet eyes, locked into Liu Ying's blazing onyx irises, looked unsure.
"Oh, this is just like a drama," JD cackled, and turned his gaze back to Adam, whom he had cornered against the counter. "Don't you think so, buddy?"
To JD's surprise, Adam's face no longer looked surprised, or crushed. The blonde frowned; Adam's gray eyes now harbored a steely quality and his face void of all emotion. He'd been expecting Adam to be appallingly astounded of the revelation – the information he'd gotten from Hakim had led him to that expectation – but he'd never anticipated this kind of reaction coming from Adam. The younger boy's eyes no longer reflected the innocent-gray which JD had seen time and time again – those irises now resembled a thunderstorm gray.
Physically, Adam looked harmless. However, there was something that unnerved JD about the younger boy's eyes.
'If looks could kill…' the blond teen mused silently.
"Don't call me buddy," Adam said coolly; his voice had dropped an octave, and gained an edge into it. Seeing that JD had been a little distracted, Adam used the opportunity to push his way out of the mildly stunned JD. He was holding the other clean shirt and was walking towards Manny. He glanced to the back from his shoulders and met JD's somewhat astonished stare. "I was never your buddy, it seems. It was all part of your plan," he said. There was no obvious anger or sadness in his low voice; it was as if he was merely stating a fact. But listen closely, and one could detect the hurt tone underneath the exterior uncaring one.
JD instantly recovered from his brief surprise. A familiar lopsided grin was elicited from his chiseled face as he shrugged. "Well, I better get going now. Don't bother escorting me, Liu Ying; I know my way to that old coot's office. I'll be seeing you in the Digital World soon. You might want to be prepared…I've some surprise in store for you!"
"What do you mean?" Liu Ying demanded.
"Let's just say that since we've lost something from our part…it's only fair that we get something from your part to compensate our loss," JD said with a smirk. "Of course, Karatenmon's always up for a bargain. Here!" The tallest teen in the room then pocketed his trousers and produced out a folded yellowish parchment. He threw it towards Liu Ying – who caught it with precision – before walking out of the infirmary.
Liu Ying unfolded the parchment and read the cursive handwriting imprinted on it as Adam handed Manny the clean shirt.
"I was under Karatenmon's spell," Manny began as he changed into the new shirt. "I would never harm you guys intentionally, you have to trust me."
"Why should we?" Adam asked; his eyes still harbored the coldness which he had earlier exhibited to JD. Liu Ying even looked up from the parchment momentarily; she had never heard Adam speaking in such a manner, although she understood completely why her friend was acting that way. She would, too, if her friend betrayed her trust.
"Adam," Liu Ying said gently, drawing the DigiWira leader's attention. "I think Manny's speaking the truth. This parchment proves it all."
"What does it say?" Adam asked. The cold tone vanished instantly when it was directed towards the raven-haired girl.
Liu Ying's expression turned grim as she held up the yellow parchment – the imprinted cursive scripts in black ink were clear enough for both Adam and Manny to read. Despite that, Liu Ying decided to summarize out the parchment's content for the two boys anyway.
"It's from Karatenmon. Apparently JD has abducted TobuCatmon earlier this morning. It says that if we don't surrender Manny to them by the end of this day, Penguinmon and TobuCatmon will be destroyed."
Both Adam and Manny looked stunned. Adam shot Manny a suspicious look as the larger boy finished buttoning up his shirt.
"I swear, I don't know anything about this," Manny insisted, holding both of his hands up. Without waiting for Adam's or Liu Ying's reply, he continued urgently, "And there's something else you should know…it's about Gayathri."
Both Liu Ying and Adam tensed; they had been wondering about their teammate. She was absent from school today. There were no news from her at all since the previous evening.
"What about Gayathri?" Liu Ying asked bracingly.
Manny gulped. "Yesterday, Gayathri had an accident. She's been hospitalized…"
xxx
xxx
"The plan is set," Karatenmon whispered. "And the cat is in the bag…literally."
The dark avian warrior glanced towards IceDevimon, who was holding a bag with something moving kept within it.
"LET ME OUT OF HERE!"
The shout, despite muffled, was still loud and clear enough to be heard.
"TobuCatmon, mentor of the DigiWira…" Karatenmon said, knowing that the one inside the bag could hear him. "I did not expect that Joshua manage to capture you at all. Apparently, I have underestimated him. My enhanced spell fueled the boy with such dark dynamism that he becomes so easily twisted around my fingers. I can get him to do anything for me now."
"YOU WILL NOT GET AWAY WITH THIS, KARATENMON! The Blue ShadoWira has returned to the side of light, it will be only a matter of time when the Red ShadoWira realize that he too has been hoodwinked by your dark powers! I'm eagerly waiting for that time to come!" TobuCatmon shouted defiantly.
"Oh, TobuCatmon, you can wait for the next one thousand years for all I care…but that time will never come," Karatenmon said wickedly.
"It doesn't matter if I fall. If the Red ShadoWira joins the DigiWira, they will be an unbreakable team and you will lose the battle forever!"
"Unfortunately, TobuCatmon… the spell I have placed in Joshua is a lot stronger than the one placed in Emmanuel. The one on Emmanuel was rather weak in comparison; this time around you can have that Lilymon shower him and his partner with thousands of her Flower Wreaths and it will not affect Joshua at all. I have taken extra measures to ensure that the spell will remain unbreakable for as long as I live."
TobuCatmon was silent.
"What's the matter? Another TobuCatmon got your tongue?" Karatenmon asked sarcastically. "Well, you see I am feeling rather generous today. Perhaps I shall tell you about what I have in store for you? Yes, yes, I suppose I can tell you… as you will be destroyed come midnight, along with that treacherous Emmanuel Abah and his Digimon partner!"
"You're delusional! Emmanuel has joined the DigiWira's side!" TobuCatmon retorted.
"He has, but Penguinmon is still imprisoned here. The DigiWira have been given an ultimatum; if they do not surrender Emmanuel back to me, I will destroy you and Penguinmon."
"The DigiWira won't agree with your plan!"
"They might not…but bound by his sense of righteousness, Emmanuel will want to surrender himself in order to have you returned to the DigiWira. It is rather unfortunate though that should he do so, he will only join you and his partner. Nobody will be rescued today." Karatenmon cackled maniacally. "Then come tomorrow, I shall acquire my fullest power with the appearance of the digital solar eclipse, and I will aid Satriamon in destroying your precious DigiWira and claim their DigiSpheres! When Satriamon has done the deed…I shall destroy him myself and claim his Red DigiSphere as well. The master will be set free and the Digital World will once again bow in the name of SkullSatamon!"
"YOU'LL NEVER SUCCEED!!" TobuCatmon shouted defiantly.
"Why not? I already have the White DigiSphere in my hands. Joshua can be really surprising sometimes. I have no idea that he has stolen Adam's White DigiSphere. It was rather lucky that I have thought to scan his mind earlier to see whether he has any malicious intention to turn against me. One can never be too careful; Emmanuel has betrayed me, I would not want Joshua to do so as well…at least, not until he has done what I have intended for him to do! You know what? Perhaps I shall release him from the spell after he has disposed the traitor and the three DigiWira. That will overwhelm him with guilt so great that the only way to rid of it is by taking his own life!"
"YOU FIEND! YOU'LL NEVER SUCCEED, KARATENMON! EVIL NEVER WINS!"
Karatenmon chose not to reply. Instead, the Mage General's yellow eyes lingered over the corner of the cavern, where a column of dark purple light stood by. Inside the column of light there hovered a silver-pale blue D-Terminal and a sparkling white sphere: the White DigiSphere.
"I will succeed, and evil will win this battle!" Karatenmon declared. He shifted his eyes towards IceDevimon. "And if you are smart, you will know of who you need to answer to."
IceDevimon smirked. "I know who the bigger boss is when I see one."
"Good. I shall need you and Satriamon in my plan to recapture Emmanuel. Failing is not an option."
"I won't disappoint you, general Karatenmon."
"Excellent. Now, go to the lower dungeons and see to it that the White DigiSphere and that D-Terminal are kept secured. Take that felonious feline along with you and imprison him with Penguinmon. And then we shall wait for Joshua to finish school before executing our plan."
xxx
xxx
Later that day, after school, the DigiWira and Manny went to Subang Jaya Medical Hospital with Jackie to visit Gayathri.
Earlier, during recess time, Liu Ying had arranged a short meeting between Manny, herself, Adam and Jackie at the computer classroom. Manny explained briefly to the DigiWira and the mentor of how he'd gotten into the whole ShadoWira mess in the first place, and about Gayathri's accident in more detail. Jackie then, noting the visible tenseness between the DigiWira and the former villainous ShadoWira, advised them to set aside their differences for a moment as they had a much more pressing issue to address upon – TobuCatmon's capture. Nobody could come up with a solution by the time the bell rang.
Once arrived at the hospital, they learned from the doctor on duty that Gayathri had been transferred to the hospital's ward earlier that morning. They got the number of the ward and went to the floor where the ward was. Sat behind the counter typing something over the computer, they saw a young male doctor who had slicked back, short semi-curly black hair, with a pleasant clean-shaven face with the exception of a sparse amount of beard, which was neatly trimmed. Manny recognized the doctor instantly.
"That's the doctor who assessed Gayathri's condition yesterday," he informed, and led the DigiWira and Jackie towards the doctor, who was aware of their arrival.
"Manny," Dr. Abu Ubaidah greeted the teen, recognizing him from the previous day. He smiled as he stood up. "I have good news for you. Gayathri has woken up."
Manny's face lit up. "Will she be alright?"
"There's no permanent damage. She'll be back on her feet in no time. She'll be kept here until tomorrow for observation purposes, and then she can go home," Dr. Abu assured.
"Thank goodness!" Liu Ying said happily.
"That's great!" Adam enthused.
"Can we see her?" Jackie asked.
The doctor nodded. "Sure. Her driver and cook have just left earlier, and it's still visiting hours until five. She could use some company." He paused, but from the way he stood and the way he had left his mouth open ever-so-slightly, there was something more that he needed to address upon. The DigiWira, Manny and Jackie didn't ask anything, and the doctor took that as his cue to continue. "Actually, there's a rule for two people per visit for one patient, and there are four of you. However that rule is usually meant for patients with serious cases. Gayathri's condition however is very good, so I can allow all of you to go at once. But do take care not to make noises."
"We won't, don't worry. Thank you," Liu Ying promised with a smile. Inside her head, she thought, 'Maybe there are times that rules could be relaxed a bit…' She looked away when she noticed her cheeks becoming slightly warm, only to met Adam's somewhat-knowing gaze. The boy let out a mild simper her way.
"I'll look out for them," Jackie assured the doctor. "I'm their teacher, by the way."
Dr. Abu nodded, and eyed Adam and Liu Ying's rather bulging schoolbags. "Alright then. I hope you're not smuggling any outside foods inside your bags. She just had her lunch."
"You mean these? Uh… these are her homework for the day!" Adam said quickly. "We thought that we'd keep her up to date with her missed subjects, so that she won't actually miss anything when she starts school."
"Very well. Gayathri's in Room 16. It's down that way," the doctor pointed towards a hallway. He watched the three teens go along with the teacher. "Kids sure have lots of homework these days…"
The DigiWira, Manny and Jackie came upon Room 16, and Liu Ying knocked on the door before coming inside the room. "Hi, Gayathri!"
"Liu Ying! Adam! Oh my gosh, you guys came!" Gayathri said in delight, practically jumping from her bed. She was dressed normally – in a pink shirt and a pair of loose-fitting purple sweatpants. Her head was bandaged. "Jackie! You're here too…and…oh…"
She became silent upon noticing a fourth figure entering the room. Her face paled, her doe eyes widened in shock, her mouth hung half-opened and she visibly tensed. Liu Ying immediately sat beside her teammate and gave the curly-haired DigiWira a reassuring smile.
"Hi, Gayathri," Manny greeted softly.
"Manny?" she said, somewhat confused. Memories of the previous afternoon's event came back to her. "Dr. Abu told me that you were the one who brought me here…"
Manny nodded. "Yes…I was," he admitted.
"I'd thank you…but I don't understand," Gayathri said, looking at Liu Ying, Adam and Jackie questioningly. No one looked threatened by Manny's presence, which caused her to wonder. 'Do they know about Manny being the Blue ShadoWira?'
"Manny is on our side now," Liu Ying supplied, unaware that she had inadvertently answered Gayathri's silent question. "He has something that he wants to say to you."
Gayathri returned her gaze towards Manny, and nodded. The spiky-haired teenage boy took that as his cue to begin.
"Gayathri…I'm sorry for what I've said to you when I was…well, bad. I saw you getting tired so easily since Saturday and knew that you've taken my words to heart. And furthermore, I'm so sorry about my stunts to prevent you from helping out Adam and Liu Ying whenever there are battles at the Digital World," Manny apologized profusely, standing nervously at the center of the single room where Gayathri was staying. He looked down at the floor, seeing from the corners of his eyes as Adam let out Patamon and Shaomon from the DigiWira's schoolbags. "I didn't mean any of those…and I didn't mean to hurt your feelings…" Manny became silent and looked at Gayathri hopefully.
Gayathri turned to face Liu Ying, who gave her an encouraging smile. She then turned to look at Adam, who mirrored Liu Ying's smile to her. Gayathri thought that there was something slightly odd from the way Adam's eyes shone – they didn't match his smiling face. There was something more that had happened, and Gayathri wanted to find out. Looking back at Manny, Gayathri felt that there was something more Manny wished to say to her – he looked rather fidgety, and kept casting nervous glances towards the other two DigiWira, the Digimon and Jackie. Tints of red were somewhat evident on his cheeks, and it looked like Manny was trying to suppress the urge to blush.
Nevertheless, after observing him silently for a couple of minutes, no more words were elicited from the reformed ShadoWira. Gayathri wished that he would just say out what was on his mind, but thought that given his shy nature he might be feeling uncomfortable with what he had to say. Perhaps this was something that he'd wanted to address to Gayathri alone.
Whatever it was, she planned to find out soon. Now, however, she was really glad that Manny had joined their side.
"You have no control of that spell placed on you," Gayathri said finally. "Trust me, I've been there. And of course I'll forgive you."
A look of absolute relief washed over Manny's face as he nodded, cracking a timid smile as he said earnestly, "Thank you."
Gayathri nodded, and turned her attention towards her fellow DigiWira. "So…what else did I miss in school today?" she asked, changing the topic quickly.
"Nothing much, really," Adam quickly answered before Liu Ying could open her mouth. His tone was kept exceptionally neutral. "Mrs. Rohana Jalil gave us two pages full of text to read by tomorrow. We started with trigonometry today in math and Mrs. Elena Kwan gave us, as usual, thirty questions for homework. And…oh, I nearly forgot – we found out that JD Kamaruzaman is the Red ShadoWira."
"Huh? JD? As in…your friend JD?" Gayathri asked, perplexed.
"Ex-friend," Adam corrected. A glint sparked from his eyes.
"Adam…JD and I were both placed under Karatenmon's spell," Manny said, noticing Adam's dark mood. "Please don't blame him.."
"How come you snapped out of it and he didn't?" Adam inquired.
Manny glanced briefly at Gayathri and Liu Ying before shifting his gaze back to Adam. "I guess I've had help remembering who my friends are." As he said that, his eyes turned to catch Gayathri's brown irises.
The three DigiWira – even Adam – beamed at Manny's statement. However, their smiles faltered upon noticing that Manny's expression remained serious. They looked at him intently.
"Is there something more that you'd like to share with us, Manny?" Jackie asked.
The tan-brown-skinned boy nodded. "I've thought about it throughout the whole school day, and I've made a decision," Manny began. He looked at the DigiWira one by one.
"About what?" Liu Ying asked.
"I've decided that you guys have no other choice," Manny continued. "You have to trade me for your friend TobuCatmon."
Both Adam and Liu Ying flinched, while Gayathri looked like she had no idea of what Manny had just said. Patamon fluttered down from Adam's head and landed by her side. He began filling the girl of the whole story, while at the same time keeping alert of the ensuing conversation between Manny and the other DigiWira.
"Manny…hello?" Liu Ying said, flailing her hands exasperatedly. "I thought you knew Karatenmon? He won't exactly throw you a welcome-home party."
"I realize that," Manny said. "But after everything I've done, I feel like it's my responsibility to set things right. I want you to trade me for your friend."
"We can't do that, Manny. Forget it," Adam quickly said.
"But I don't see any other way," Manny said desperately.
"It is a decision which is impossible to make," Shaomon quipped.
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!
The familiar new message alert was then heard. Gayathri groaned as Liu Ying took out her D-Terminal and read the message displayed on the device's screen.
Come with Manny to the Digital World if you want your precious mentor back! NOW! I'll wait for you at the Megalith Coliseum where we can resume our first battle. This time around I intend to be the winner. See ya! – Signed, JD a.k.a. the Red ShadoWira.
"He does sound cocky," Gayathri murmured. She stretched her legs to reach for her slippers. "Come on, let's get going."
"Not so fast, Gayathri; you stay right where you are," Liu Ying implored, kicking Gayathri's slippers towards the chair Adam was sitting on. Adam further pushed the slippers down the chair he was sitting on with his feet. Then, Liu Ying pushed Gayathri gently back onto the bed. "We got this. You need your rest."
"But…but…" Gayathri sputtered. "You'll need me! There'll only be two of you."
"I'll go with them," Manny decided promptly to assure Gayathri.
"Are you kidding?" Liu Ying asked, looking at her classmate pointedly. "That's exactly what JD and Karatenmon want you to do."
"Yeah, it'd be like walking into a dragon's den," Adam pointed out, and then winced of the unintended pun. Satriamon was a dragon-man Digimon.
"But you still need my help. I have my Blue DigiSphere so I still retain my water powers," Manny insisted. "Besides, Adam…you don't have your teleportation power."
Adam's face fell instantly as he was reminded of that hard fact. "Yeah, no thanks to JD," he muttered.
"Huh? JD has your White DigiSphere?" Manny looked visibly stunned; he didn't know that it was JD who had taken Adam's DigiSphere. However, he shrugged that thought off because there was a more urgent matter that needed his attention. "Anyway, I can help you guys fight Satriamon, or help convince him to join you guys. Either way, I'm going."
Adam and Liu Ying considered Manny's logical reasoning as they collected Patamon and Shaomon. There seemed to be no stopping Manny to go along with them – there was a look of determination radiating from his face. Besides, the former villain had his own Digivice; he could easily access the Digital World anytime he wanted, as long as there was a computer around.
"But, JD wants you to come. You're going to head directly towards a trap," Liu Ying reasoned back.
Manny lowered his gaze towards the floor. "I'll…try not to get caught. Besides, my power can neutralize JD's fire. I've got nothing to be afraid of. But JD usually goes for you, Adam, so at least with me around I can make sure that you're not harmed."
Adam couldn't come out with anything to refute Manny's point, and begrudgingly nodded. Liu Ying seconded his motion.
"It's a long way back to the school or any of the houses," Patamon said.
"There's a computer over Dr. Abu's table," Manny suggested. "We can wait until he leaves his computer and open a DigiPort from there. It'll be faster than going back to school or home."
The DigiWira agreed with their new ally's suggestion and looked at Jackie.
"I'll stay here and watch over Gayathri," Jackie quickly assured the teens.
"You guys; be careful," Gayathri said empathically. She hated the fact that she couldn't be of help to her friends.
"Don't worry. We will," Liu Ying replied.
The DigiWira and the reformed ShadoWira then quietly exited Gayathri's bedroom with Patamon and Shaomon. They trudged along the empty hallway quietly and peered at the doctor-on-duty's table from the corner of the hallway's wall. To their relief, Dr. Abu Ubaidah was nowhere around the table. The computer however remained operable, but unoccupied. It looked like the doctor had taken a short break from his duty, which was what the DigiWira need at that moment.
"Come on, hurry," Adam said. The three teens went to the computer quickly and Adam took out his D-3. "DigiPort Open!"
Unbeknownst to the teens, at that precise moment before they were sucked into the digital portal, Dr. Abu Ubaidah appeared from the other side of the hallway. The bright flash of light emitted by the DigiPort blinded his sight momentarily, forcing him to cover his eyes with his arms. When the lights died out, the young doctor didn't see anyone around the table – but he could've sworn that he had seen Manny and his two friends flocking around his computer earlier.
'Am I seeing things?' The doctor blinked his coffee-brown eyes several times. 'I'm overworked, that's what I am,' he thought silently, and shook his head. 'Better get some more coffee…'
xxx
xxx
The DigiPort opened from the doctor's computer had taken the DigiWira and Manny to a spot merely a mile away from the Megalith Coliseum. They could even see the magnificent monument from the distance they were at; they just had to go down the hill and across the semi-bare paddock before reaching there.
Manny looked down at his black, blue-accented uniform. He no longer wore the hooded cape and mask. To his delight, the metallic bat insignia on his belt was no longer there. In its place was his D-3 Digivice; the belt now had similar designs to the DigiWira's uniforms. In fact, apart from the main black color, his uniform was exactly identical to Adam's uniform.
"Your uniform changes a bit," Adam noted quietly.
Manny nodded. "I guess…since I'm now with the right team." He tried smiling at Adam, noting his irritability after discovering that JD was the Red ShadoWira. To his relief, Adam returned the friendly gesture, albeit somewhat strained. 'It's a start…'
"Come on," Liu Ying gestured, noticing the strain between the two boys and decided it was best to make haste.
To cover the remaining distance, they digivolved their partners into their champion forms. Liu Ying mounted on Youkomon while Adam and Manny rode on Centarumon's back. They arrived at the coliseum and saw that everything was quiet at the monument.
"Everyone stay alert," Centarumon cautioned. "We're going in."
"Wait," Youkomon stopped him. "I have a plan. We might be able to get back TobuCatmon without surrendering Manny, but in order for this plan to work we need to make JD think that we are going to surrender Manny."
Manny looked slightly baffled. "Hmm?"
"Trust her," Centarumon supplied, glancing over his shoulder to address the now-good ShadoWira. "She knows what she's doing."
Ten minutes later, Centarumon entered the doorway which led them towards the center arena, with Adam and Manny on board his palomino body. They saw JD and Flarelizamon standing there, both looking smug. JD had his arms crossed against their chest while Flarelizamon was carrying a brown sack with something unmoving inside it. Similar to Manny, JD too no longer bothered with his mask, which had formerly obscured his face. It didn't have any purpose anymore now that his identity was known to the DigiWira. However he still retained his cape and the metallic bat insignia was still pinned on his belt, signifying his allegiance to the dark side.
Manny quickly jumped down Centarumon. "I'm here."
"One powerless DigiWira and a washed-up ShadoWira?" JD asked with a sneer. "This has turned up to be a great day!"
"Afraid we're gonna have to spoil it," Adam retorted, narrowing his eyes as he looked at the older teen whom he had once considered his friend.
JD smirked confidently. "Oh but you won't, kiddo."
Adam glared at JD, annoyed of the nonchalant attitude exhibited by the Red ShadoWira and the fact that the older teen had just called him 'kiddo'. He frowned ever so slightly, but the frown vanished just as soon as it had appeared.
"Let's get this over with," Adam finally said.
The Red ShadoWira nodded. "Good idea, Adam. Now give us Manny."
"First, tell us where TobuCatmon is," Adam demanded. JD pointed towards the sack with his finger. "Put him down!"
"You're not exactly in the position to make orders around here, Adam. But, oh well… whatever makes you happy," JD replied with a shrug, and beckoned for Flarelizamon to drop the sack down. The champion Digimon obeyed his human partner.
"That had to hurt!" Flarelizamon declared gleefully.
"Now back away," Adam motioned, and saw something moving from the corner of his eyes. His heart thumped faster. 'God, I hope this works…'
"Not until you give us what we came for!" JD shot back.
Adam looked at Manny, and the bigger boy nodded grimly in return. He stepped forward with a defeated look on his face.
"This is too easy," JD sneered and began approaching Manny.
"SACK!!" suddenly Adam bellowed and thrust his hand forward. Glitters of white orbs emanated from the sack containing TobuCatmon and it vanished, and reappeared in Adam's hand. Adam then pointed his hand towards Manny when JD was merely inches away from the said boy. He shouted, "MANNY!"
Manny too was enveloped with white orbs of light and was teleported away from JD as the blonde boy was about to grab him. He reappeared behind Adam, staggering slightly but managed to regain his balance. Adam too was disoriented slightly; he had no problem summoning the sack, but apparently he was not prepared enough to teleport another human. It had failed once when he attempted to teleport himself and his fellow DigiWira. Apparently while his power worked for a single-man teleportation it still drained him when it was done on another human other than him.
"You still have your powers?" JD asked Adam incredulously. "How?"
"Not for you to find out," Adam snapped.
The DigiWira smiled faintly and recalled Liu Ying's plan. Prior to entering the Megalith Coliseum, Liu Ying had decided to recharge Adam's power once again with her Yellow DigiSphere. The recharging process was rather slow without Gayathri, so Manny decided to try filling in for her. The Blue DigiSphere's power worked the same way as the Pink DigiSphere's, so Manny was able to use it to aid the recharging process.
Adam opened the sack. His face fell upon seeing the contents of the sack…which was actually a large, lumpy old pillow. "It's a trick!" he gasped. "TobuCatmon's not in here."
"Heh, heh….you really think that you're gonna outsmart me? Not a chance, kiddo!" JD barked, and cackled. He took out his red and black Digivice, and shouted, "Shadow…"
Yet before he was finished with the power call, his Digivice flew away from his grasp. Cursing, JD glanced sideways and saw Liu Ying standing at the corner of the coliseum. Her arm was thrust forward. She had used her telekinetic powers to push the Digivice away from JD, thus effectively preventing JD from initiating the Shadow Access power.
"Damn it." JD's face turned ugly as he thrust his hand towards Adam. A raging fireball materialized from his outstretched hand and was thrown towards the DigiWira.
"Duck!" Adam felt someone pushing his back down forcefully, bending his body to a ninety-degree posture. He saw Manny stepping by his side and launched a jet of high-pressured water from his hand. The water jet drowned the fireball away easily, thus saving Adam's life. Manny turned to face Adam. "Get to safety, Adam. I can handle JD."
"No way, I can help," Adam insisted. "I…" Before he could continue, a frightening chill suddenly was felt coming from the sky as a dark shadow loomed over them.
"LOOK OUT!!" Liu Ying's scream was heard.
"You mean, look up," JD sneered.
"Heads up, fools!!" a voice taunted.
Both Adam and Manny looked up at the same time and saw IceDevimon plummeting down towards them. His crimson eyes glinted maliciously as his long upper limbs closed in around Manny's body. Manny struggled to break free but IceDevimon's hold on him was secure and tight. The former villain gasped as IceDevimon lifted him off the ground; his legs flailed helplessly as he attempted his hardest to break free, as IceDevimon flew towards JD and Flarelizamon.
"Lose something, Adam?" JD mocked as he picked up his Digivice. IceDevimon landed behind JD with Manny in his hold. "Adios, you Digi-ninnies! We've got what we wanted. Heh, heh!!"
"You won't get away with this, JD!" Adam cried out, as the air behind the villains rippled. A portal was opening. "We'll get Manny and TobuCatmon back, somehow!"
"Ooh, really?" JD taunted. "All the best, then. Good luck trying." He waved his hand smugly and entered the portal, followed closely by IceDevimon, the struggling Manny, and finally Flarelizamon brought up the rear. The portal closed rapidly after that.
"Oh, no…" Adam said dejectedly as Liu Ying approached him. "I should've teleported Manny farther away."
"Don't blame yourself, Adam. There's no way we could see this happening," Liu Ying replied. "Our plan would've worked if TobuCatmon really is in that sack." She kicked away the sack in disgust. "We should've known that the bad guys won't play fair."
"What should we do now?" Adam asked. "Gayathri won't like this one bit."
"Neither of us does," Centarumon said, placing a reassuring hand on his partner's shoulder. "We should regroup and think of a plan. They now have TobuCatmon, Manny and his partner. Maybe they'll attempt to brainwash Manny once more, and if that happens we're going to have our hands full fighting Satriamon, Samudramon and IceDevimon. Not to mention, Karatenmon would probably want to make his appearance as well. He's been staying at the background for too long."
"But what about Manny?" Adam said, not ready to admit defeat. His eyes blazed. "He's...on our side now."
"There is nothing we can do right now," Youkomon pointed out. "If we charge towards Karatenmon's lair we will all end up getting caught, and that will benefit no one. Come on."
The DigiWira nodded weakly, and went back to the spot where they had arrived from their home world.