Wira Digital

by Alforce Zero

The story of the Malaysian Digidestined, chosen by an ancient warrior to wield his mystical DigiSpheres to combat the forces of evil that transpired in the Digital World.

29. Of Bane and Blood

Jackie fidgeted nervously as he waited at the empty school compound. It was eight o'clock Monday night, and save for the guard on duty by the gate the secondary school was completely abandoned. He had been afraid it would come to this, but he thought that he no longer had a choice. He had done this before, he could do this again.

But that didn't mean that he liked resorting to this.

In fact, he loathed having to do this. But what else could be done?

Earlier, TobuCatmon had contacted him. The mentor of the DigiWira was terribly upset as the four DigiWira he'd sent to Zephyrus City were caught in a fix. Delegates from Zephyrus City had arrived at the Forest Sanctum around five in the afternoon, mentioning that their leader and all four Wira Digital had been attacked severely by unknown forces right after their victory against the invasion on the city. At the time of their arrival, the DigiWira and their partners were still unconscious and were held at the city's infirmary.

TobuCatmon and Jackie had decided to wait until dusk. Seven o'clock evening passed with no improvement of the DigiWira's conditions. Jackie had decided there and then to alert the DigiWira's families about their children, as they must have been worried by now with their children missing. He was forced to take this action once when Adam was kidnapped by the ShadoWira. Manny's kidnapping was fortunately covered by Adam later on. But this time around, that particular tactic couldn't be used again.

Jackie looked around the darkened school, trying to calm his nerves. The compound was fairly lit by the lights from the corridor, and a lamp pole nearby was emitting orange-yellow light. He stared towards the distance, seeing the twinkling lights of the city of Kuala Lumpur fairly visible despite the distance between the metropolis and the town of Subang Jaya. It was a clear twilight night, and the Petronas Twin Towers and the Kuala Lumpur Tower, as well as the other skyscrapers of the metropolis, could be seen clearly against the cobalt sky. It was also a quiet night; so quiet in fact that the soft hums of people from the adjacent mosque could be heard.

A car drove through the opened gates and parked near the podium. From the driver seat a woman in her late forties stepped out. She wore a pink headscarf that extended all the way under her bosom and was dressed in dark red baju kurung. Her face revealed her age, but it was evident that she had been pretty during her younger years.

"Mrs. Khadijah!" Jackie approached the lady in baju kurung. The lady returned his greeting with a confused look.

"Mr. Chan, what is the meaning of this? What is the emergency you mentioned in the telephone?" Mrs. Khadijah Basri, the school's principal, demanded.

"I'd like to explain as well, but I'm still waiting for others to come," Jackie said regretfully. "But please, have a seat." Jackie indicated a bench he had pulled from the canteen, now placed at the center of the assembly compound. There were three benches, placed in a triangular form, surrounding a small table and a chair. On top of the table was a state-of-the-art laptop, already switched on.

"Others?"

"Look, here they come now," Jackie beckoned towards the gate, where three cars drove in. On the walkway, three people were seen walking past the school's artificial fountain, heading towards the assembly hall.

"Who are they, Mr. Chan?" Mrs. Khadijah asked, watching as a young man exited the driver seat of a dark Mercedez Benz. Before he could open the door to the back seat, it swung open by itself and out stepped a couple the principal knew so well. "Mr. and Mrs. Nadarajah?" She eyed another car – a blue BMW, where a tall man and a beautiful woman stepped out. "Mr. Johan Awaludin and Mrs. Leeanna Abdullah?" Her dark eyes then fell on the third car, a black Honda Accord, where a couple she had met quite recently stepped out from. They were accompanied by a little girl with pigtails, looking about five to six years of age. "Mr. Abah Jintoni and Mrs. Kimberly Bhatt?" And finally, she observed as the three people that had walked in the gate approached the assembly compound, recognizing them as the family of the school's second assistant head prefect. "Mr. Chang… Mrs. Evelyn Chang…" She saw the woman with red hair holding the hand of a little boy of about five to six years of age.

All of them had anxious looks on their faces, but before they could demand an explanation Jackie quickly greeted them.

"Good evening, everyone. I'm sorry to have called you at this time of night, but this is very important. And like I've said in our telephone conversations earlier, it involves your children, whom I believe still have not returned… but please, have a seat on those benches. I apologize for the crudeness, but everything happened so quick, and…"

"Mr. Chan! I demand to know where my daughter is!" Mr. Nadarajah boomed when he took his seat. His wife looked equally anxious but didn't say anything. The young man who had drove them to the school stood silently behind the couple – the parents of Gayathri Nadarajah.

Jackie nodded, fully understanding their anxiousness.

"Ying has returned later from this time from the Digital World several times before, but from the way you sounded in the telephone, you made it sound like there is a problem," the man known as Mr. Chang addressed Jackie calmly as he beckoned for his daughter in law and grandson to take their seats beside him. This was Liu Ying's grandfather, and he was aware of his granddaughter's endeavor as a DigiWira. So was his daughter-in-law – Liu Ying's mother – and to certain extent so was the little boy, Liu Ying's younger brother.

"Digital World?" Mrs. Nadarajah asked, looking more confused. She exchanged a glance with her husband, then to the young man behind her. Her wide eyes narrowed when she saw the man fidgeting nervously upon the mention of the Digital World. "Anding! You know something about this?"

"Sir, ma'am…" Anding Zaidi looked at his employers nervously – he too had been made known about Gayathri being a DigiWira, but he and his mother alone. Gayathri's parents were oblivious about it for the past four months.

"I will explain everything, but please, calm down…" Jackie said. His blue eyes eyed the parents of JD and Manny, but they were in more control of themselves. JD's parents looked somewhat disgruntled, in fact – almost annoyed at each other's presence. They weren't looking at each other's faces, which suggested a fight…but Jackie supposed that it was not his business. His eyes fell on Manny's parents, which was a stark contrast to JD's. Mr. Abah had one arm slung around his wife's shoulder, and Mrs. Kimberly had their daughter on her lap. Manny's parents were affectionate towards each other as JD's parents were cold.

Jackie then stood in the middle of the assembled families of the DigiWira nervously, and decided that it was best to get on with it.

"Before I begin, I would like to ask you: How many of you have heard of the worldwide Digimon invasion taking place on Christmas year 2002?"

Aside from Liu Ying's family members, the others looked confounded.

"I thought they are just rumors!" Mr. Johan Awaludin spoke up. "And what's that got to do about Josh's disappearance? For all we know he could be playing truant…"

"I assure you, Mr. Johan, that your son is not playing truant," Jackie said coolly. "And I have a valid reason to alert all of you about the Digimon invasion."

"I have heard of it," Mrs. Kimberly Bhatt – Manny's mother – offered. Everyone turned their attentions towards the petite maroon-haired woman. "My cousin was on vacation at Tokyo when it happened – she mentioned seeing a lot of…monsters…battling each other out. And words had it that some of these monsters were friends of a group of local kids there…" She shook her head. "I wasn't sure whether she was telling the truth or not at the moment…she did have a lot of drink that time…"

Jackie nodded. Mrs. Kimberly's explanation would make it easier for him to proceed.

"Mrs. Kimberly, what your cousin has seen during her vacation was indeed real. Those monsters are Digital Monsters…or Digimon, in short. Similar to humans, there are good Digimon and evil Digimon. The invasion took place due to the works of several evil Digimon, and good Digimon, partners to a group of chosen children called DigiDestined, had taken it in their hands to put a stop to the invading Digimon. They succeeded, but that invasion marked the beginning of a new era for this world.

"Ever since that year, more and more people around the world, young and old but mostly preteens and adolescents, are being partnered with Digimon. There haven't been many threats – not to the level of MaloMyostismon whom the Japanese DigiDestined had fought in 2002. Some of the more serious threats were taken cared off by the DigiDestined selected to protect that region of the Digital World which fell under the threat.

"Half a year ago, the south-eastern part of the Digital World fell under threat of an evil who at the time, was beginning to resurface. Recognizing the threat, and the evil Digimon that was responsible to initiate such threat, the Digital World itself reacted by opening portals leading to the most accessible points in the Real World. However, fate has it that this time around, due to an ancient prophecy by a lost hero called Grademon, all five DigiDestined selected to combat this threat are pre-chosen by five mystical artifacts known as the DigiSpheres. All five of them are Malaysians, and they all are teenagers – the youngest being thirteen and eldest sixteen. They all live in this town at present, and they all attend this school."

"Are you saying…?" Mrs. Khadijah said, as realization dawned to her. The parents were all now bustling uneasily.

Jackie pressed several buttons on the laptop's keyboard, and instantly a ray of faint light emerged from the screen. He then pushed down the laptop screen so that it would lie on the table, adjacent to the keyboard attached to it. The ray of light then was pointed upwards, and several images began to take form.

"Chang Liu Ying, Gayathri d/o Nadarajah, Mohammed Adam bin Ahmad Ariff, Emmanuel Abah and Joshua Daniel Kamaruzaman bin Johan Awaludin are the five chosen to wield the powers of the mystical five DigiSpheres created by Grademon three hundred digital years ago to combat the evil known as SkullSatamon…"

Images of the five DigiWira were shown in a rotating motion for all to see. They were all seen in their uniforms, and hovered in front of each of them were their respective DigiSpheres. The images shifted into an image of Grademon who was seen combating SkullSatamon.

"Chosen to be DigiDestined or DigiWira as they are codenamed, the DigiWira are partnered to five Digimon. Liu Ying, the first one chosen to become DigiWira, is partnered to a Labramon…"

The images shifted to show Liu Ying and Labramon. Liu Ying's family members watched calmly, having known of her being DigiWira for some time.

"The second chosen is Gayathri, who is partnered to a Floramon…"

The images changed to reveal Gayathri and Floramon. This elicited surprised gasps from the Nadarajah couple.

"The third, Adam, partnered to a Patamon…"

The images revealed Adam and Patamon. The parents all looked around, wondering amongst each other who could be the family members of the dark-haired boy.

"Then finally, the forth and fifth members are chosen simultaneously. Joshua and Manny, partnered to an Agumon and a Penguinmon respectively…"

Some whispers were heard when images of JD and Manny were shown. The first three DigiWira had gray uniforms, but the two latter ones wore black uniforms. And there was the fact that they had been chosen together, instead of gradually like the previous three members. However, they all didn't voice out their concerns, waiting for Jackie to tell the story instead.

Jackie had no intention to reveal that JD and Manny had been evil once; it'd require a lot of explanation and would make things more complicated. Furthermore, both teens were not at fault for that; it was best to keep the past in the past. He would just stick to the basic information, and that alone was as tough a job as it could be.

"Being DigiDestined, all of them are equipped with devices called Digivices, which enabled them to travel back and forth from this world to the world where Digimon live, known as the Digital World. With the Digivices, the DigiWira also are able to evolve…or Digivolve…their Digimon partners into higher and more powerful level."

The DigiWira were all shown pointing their Digivices towards their partners. The five Digimon were bathed in yellow, pink, white, blue and red lights, and emerged as bigger, stronger-looking Digimon in the forms of a midnight-blue nine-tailed fox, a skimpily-outfitted fairy, a white-armored centaur, an armored merman and a blazing bipedal lizard. This caused another round of surprised exclamations from the parents and the principal.

"This is usually as far as normal DigiDestined and their partners could go…but with the DigiSpheres, the DigiWira have access to more powers. They themselves receive special abilities, which only function while they are at the Digital World. Liu Ying is bestowed with telekinesis…the ability to move objects with her mind or a mere gesture of her hands. She also receives a complimentary ability in form of projecting force-fields to ward off attacks. Both of her abilities come from the Magical attribute that comes from her Yellow DigiSphere.

"Gayathri is given the ability to run at high-speed and the ability to emit a supersonic scream. These abilities stemmed from the power of the Wind that comes from her Pink DigiSphere.

"Adam is granted the power of teleportation in orbs of light. This power manifests into the ability to summon objects, and later, people. His abilities are derived from the power of Light from his White DigiSphere.

"Manny is blessed with the power to manipulate, and also generate, water. His hydrokinetic power is the direct result of the Water attribute of his Blue DigiSphere.

"And just as Manny controls the water, Joshua has power over fire. His pyrokinetic power stemmed from the Fire attribute of his Red DigiSphere."

With Jackie's explanation, the accompanying images of the said DigiWira were shown, demonstrating his or her powers. Some of the parents stared at the simulations, mouth-opened, dumbfounded. Looks of disbelieving crossed their faces, and Jackie didn't blame them. It was indeed hard to digest at one go.

"These are unbelievable," Mr. Abah breathed out, rubbing his temple.

"They have…powers?" Mrs. Nadarajah gasped.

"But that's not all…with the threats growing more dire and dangerous, the Digimon's current-achieved Digivolution level are insufficient to combat these threats. Most Digimon around the world have easily attained Champion levels, which usually would be enough to combat the threats that invaded the areas they have been chosen to protect. Some who gained Ultimate levels…the level above Champion…with aids of special artifacts and methods. The need for Mega level Digimon so far has only been true for the Japanese DigiDestined group, whom had faced threats from various evil Mega Digimon which necessitated their partners' Digivolution to Mega as well.

"For the DigiWira, the enemies they have faced, and are currently facing, are usually in Ultimate levels. To unlock the Ultimate-level powers for their Digimon, instead of the usual Digivolution for the Digimon, the DigiSpheres have a completely different method to empower the Digimon. The DigiWira and their respective partners are merged together, forming Ultimate Digimon with powers of above-average Ultimates…which in the Digital World, are considered as sufficiently powerful.

"Liu Ying and Labramon merge to form the elegant sorceress Xianamon, an Ultimate Digimon with magical powers and also the power of earth.

"Gayathri and Floramon merge to form the beautiful fairy Puspamon, an Ultimate Digimon with powers over wind and nature.

"Manny and Penguinmon merge to form the silent and strong merman Samudramon, an Ultimate Digimon who controls both water and thunder.

"And Joshua and Agumon merge to form the powerful warrior Satriamon, an Ultimate Digimon with the power of fire and darkness at his disposal."

With every explanation, the Digivolution sequences of the respective DigiWira and Digimon were shown. Looks of utmost shock were evident now in ALL the parents and the school principal. The initial shock of being made aware of their children's exploits in the Digimon matter still hadn't left them, now they were at loss. They didn't know how to react with the facts that their children were able to merge with Digimon to become protectors of an alternate world. There was also the fact that all four DigiWira looked absolutely imposing in their fused forms…their Wira Digital forms.

"Mama…is that Che-che and Shaomon…?" asked the little boy, Liu Meng, to his mother. He was staring at the images of the four fused warriors with rapt attention.

"Mummy, Daddy…Abang's a hero…?" Manny's sister Debbie asked her mother.

"Josh…" both of JD's parents said with quivering voices.

"That's our little girl there…" the Nadarajah couple said in awe.

Jackie let the family members of the DigiWira recover from their shocks first, while wondering on how exactly to tell of the DigiWira's current predicament.

"Wait a minute," Grandpa Chang spoke up. He was the one who appeared the least frazzled of all the revelations. Jackie suspected that it was because Liu Ying had always been truthful to him ever since the wise elderly man found out about Shaomon months ago. "What of the boy? Adam? There are only four of the fused DigiWira you have mentioned."

Everyone's attentions were all focused to Jackie and Grandpa Chang. The principal too cleared her throat.

"And come to think of it, where is Adam's family members? I don't see Alisha Ariff or their parents?"

Jackie exhaled a long breathe.

"Adam hasn't gained the ability to merge with his partner, but Patamon, as Sagittarimon, is already as strong as an Ultimate Digimon," Jackie explained, and hesitated.

"And what of his family? Surely they are worried about him too?"

"Adam is not missing; he's with…a family member at their home." Jackie was unsure why he didn't just refer to the family member as Adam's brother. "His current guardian…his sister, Alisha, she's been involved in a car accident and currently is under care and observation at Subang Jaya Medical Hospital. The accident took place last Friday, and right now she's in a coma."

"Oh…" the principal nodded, looking concerned. The others processed the information, but didn't say anything.

"I've talked to Abang Adam before…" Debbie murmured at her parents. "Abang spent a night at his place last week…remember?" Mr. Abah and Mrs. Kimberly merely nodded weakly.

"Poor boy," Grandpa Chang said softly. He'd met Adam once; the boy had wanted to use the telephone and Liu Ying had offered hers. The boy was so respectful; he couldn't help but to like him. His granddaughter had chosen her friend well.

Mr. Nadarajah cleared his throat. "What of our children's disappearances? Are they now at this…Digital World?"

"Yes, they are," Jackie confirmed. "But…there's a complication. Earlier, the DigiWira were called to battle a recent threat. They managed to deal with the said threats, but then…someone… attacked them and knocked all four of them out unconscious. We still had no idea of who or what that had attacked them. They are now hospitalized in an infirmary in the city they have protected from evil Digimon. According to…a doctor there…they are still unconscious, but there is nothing fatal. The injuries they have sustained have been healed, but they still remain unconscious. As of now, there's no sign of them waking up."

"Oh, God!!" Mr. Johan – JD's father – exclaimed. His stunned expression was mirrored by his wife. Jackie thought that for the first time, they actually looked horrified. Probably because they had thought that JD was simply playing truant at first. The couple slowly turned to each other, but there was awkwardness displayed between the two still. However, they no longer looked so cold between each other.

"Manny…" Mrs. Kimberly choked out a sob. "Why did he do this?" She seemed to be lost of words. "We nearly lost him…when he almost drowned…why…?" Her husband, speechless, could only offer a comforting squeeze on the shoulder. Their hands intertwined, and were held by their daughter. Debbie hadn't fully grasped what was currently happening, but her instincts told her that her big brother and Gayathri (whom she'd regarded as a big sister figure), as well as their friends, were in danger.

"Ying…" Mrs. Evelyn Chang sobbed, burying her face in her palms. "I've told her that it's dangerous to go there. She's always been an obedient child; why wouldn't she listen to me this time?"

"It's her calling," Grandpa Chang said calmly. "I was not inclined to agree with her when she told me that, but I accepted it. Shaomon has always said that she'd protect Ying. I am sure that she has done her best to do so." He took the confused Liu Meng from his daughter-in-law, putting him on his lap instead.

"This is unacceptable!" Mr. Nadarajah boomed. "I want you to go…to this Digital World…and bring my daughter back!"

"Mr. Nadarajah…sir…" Anding tried to calm his employer down.

"You knew about her involvement, don't you?" Mrs. Nadarajah demanded from the young man. Her eyes were brimming with worried tears. Like her daughter, Mrs. Nadarajah also wore her emotions on her sleeve. She was immediately comforted by her husband. It was clear that both of them really doted on their only child.

"I do, ma'am," Anding admitted. "But Miss Gayathri has insisted that I never speak a word about it with you two. I'm sorry. She said that you'd stop her from doing this if you know…"

"Why would she think that?" Mr. Nadarajah asked.

"Sir…what would your reaction be if Miss Gayathri came to you and told you about all this?" Anding asked carefully.

The Nadarajah couple had no answer to that. As they comforted each other, their eyes were set on their neighbors, whose son was also involved in this matter. Mr. Nadarajah and Mr. Abah exchanged grim nods as they calmed their crying wives.

"Everyone, please calm down," Jackie said helplessly.

"Calm down?" Mrs. Leeanna – JD's mother – said with prim frostiness, rising up from her seat. "Our children are out there and you ask us to calm down?"

"Leeann, sit down…" Mr. Johan said exasperatedly, grasping his wife's hand and gently pulled her down. Immediately the brown-haired woman's prim façade dissolved into tear-stricken expression, laced with guilt. "Oh God, Joe….it's us, isn't it? We're at fault at this….if only we weren't fighting the whole time…no wonder all our children are so distant from us!"

JD's father could only frown and nod, somewhat realizing what his wife had just said. And for the first time, everyone saw him drawing his wife near to his body. The coldness he had displayed to his wife was gone. "We'll get help, Leeann, shh…for Jade, Jas and Josh's sakes…we'll make it work."

"So what do we do now?" Grandpa Chang asked with surprising calmness.

"How can you be so calm, father?" Mrs. Evelyn Chang asked.

"I trust Ying," the old man said simply. "And Mr. Chan has said that they are all healed. Besides…this is not the first time the children have faced with such dire predicament. Ying has told me many stories, which is why I trust her to be able to make it now, as she had been before. The same is true for her friends."

Jackie smiled. "What Mr. Chang has said is true. You have to trust your children. And…although it's not my place, I hope that you will not try to stop them. I have been watching out for them here, as TobuCatmon, their mentor at the Digital World, has been doing at the Digital World. Your children are very resourceful, as all DigiDestined have been. They are not chosen simply, they aren't picked randomly. The DigiSpheres chose them to be their wielders for a reason…you have to trust them, as without them, the part of the Digital World they are assigned to protect would crumble in the hands of evil."

"It's just a world of monsters!" Mrs. Leeanna exclaimed. "Why is it so important for our children to defend it? Why not have those…Digi…Digimon…defend their own world!"

Jackie's mouth was set thin. "The Digital World and our world are connected; both worlds existed in parallel with each other. The Digital World is created from computer data from this world, coupled with hopes and dreams of the people in this world…there are so many aspects that I myself do not understand yet, but I do know this…"

His hanging sentence drew the attentions of all the family of the DigiWira.

"Should the Digital World fall to the hands of evil, all telecommunications system in our world…all electronic items, everything that operates by computer…everything that is necessary for this world's development, ALL will cease to function." The revelation caused everyone to gasp in shock. "But that's not all…"

"What could be worse?" Mr. Nadarajah asked forebodingly; as if not wanting to know the answer, somehow knowing that it would be bad but hoping that Jackie would deny it. He owned a major telecommunications company – he knew what would happen if what Jackie had said come true.

Jackie heaved his breath slowly. "The evil Digimon will not be satisfied with only conquering the Digital World. For a brief time, they might, but soon their attentions will be set on OUR world. Digimon such as Myotismon, who had been a thorn on the Japanese DigiDestined's side for years, was a living proof of that. Luckily, what your children are facing right now is still not up to such level…for now. What they are doing now however is vital to keep the evil at bay. For this country, your children are the only line of defense to ensure that evil Digimon invasion would not take place here, as it had been two years ago in Japan."

Everyone was speechless; stunned beyond belief that such threat could happen to them and the peaceful country. They wanted so much to contradict it, but knew at the same time that Jackie was speaking the truth. It was too elaborate and too detailed to be considered as lies. And somehow, they were even believable now that all the proofs were shown. At the same time, they lamented the facts that there was nothing else they could do. They could only wish for the children's safety, as the muezzin's call of prayer from the mosque echoed rhythmically against the otherwise silent night.

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WIRA DIGITAL

Chapter 29 – Of Bane and Blood

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"Hey, sleepyhead."

Adam blinked twice, flinching slightly as lights invaded his eyes. The profile of his brother became clearer. The young man was grinning at him.

"It's about time you wake up, Adam. You're asleep for four hours straight," Aizad said, holding out his hand. Adam took it, and he pulled Adam up with seemingly no effort at all.

"That long…?" Adam frowned. "I don't know what's gotten into me…I don't usually sleep that long." He turned his body sideways and let his feet down, and Aizad plopped down on the farthest end of the three-sitter sofa.

"Take it easy, little brother…you're overtired," Aizad said with a relaxed tone. "I've been sleeping myself; but I've been up for a couple of hours."

Adam looked around the living room. He saw Tsukaimon at the one sitter sofa, idly looking through a magazine. But he didn't see Patamon around.

"Where's Patamon?"

Aizad shrugged. "He wasn't here when I woke up. But your Digivice is by the computer and the computer's switched on…maybe he's in the Digital World."

"That's odd…he doesn't go without me to the Digital World," Adam murmured.

"Oh, I'm sure he's hanging around somewhere." Seeing that Adam was still looking worried, Aizad chuckled. "Take it easy. Your partner's a big guy…despite his size. I'm sure that he probably has something to do, and he didn't want to wake you. Maybe he just thought of doing something at the Digital World. He'll probably be back soon, we'll just leave the computer on until he gets back, ok?" He shook his head, seeing that Adam was still looking unconvinced. "Patamon did leave a brief message for us though…it's in that word program in the computer, I didn't close it."

"Really?" Adam quickly went to the computer, seeing that the Microsoft Word program was open. He clicked on the tab at the taskbar, and saw a brief message.

Adam... I have something to do at the Digital World. I don't want to wake you up. Don't wait up for me. - Patamon.

"See?" Aizad said, already standing behind Adam now. He placed his hands on Adam's shoulders and steered the boy towards the kitchen. "Dinner time. I've heated up the instant lasagna we bought…I don't know how you eat this stuff…I've eaten two boxes of it already and still it's not as satisfying as eating rice. No wonder you're so thin."

"It's not bad, really," Adam said, his mind now focused on the cheese and tomato aroma coming from the lasagna. He grinned. "Mmm…"

Aizad smirked, and placed a full glass of orange juice by Adam's plate. "And don't forget to drink up."

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Around an hour later, at the Digital World, someone else began to stir from a deep sleep.

"Gah…damn it…" JD groaned as bright white light blazed into his weary eyes. Quickly he thrust an arm in front of his face to block out the lights. Slowly he got up from where he was lying and took a good look around. He was in a seemingly sterile room where everything was white and spotlessly clean. The window was open, and JD shivered slightly as he felt a cold draft on his body. Looking down, he saw bandages being wrapped diagonally from his left shoulder, to his chest, before ending at the right side of his waist. He saw two loose light green clothes folded neatly on the chair near to him. He snatched the clothes and hastily took the pants, struggling to put them on underneath the blankets.

He then looked around, and saw that Manny was still unconscious, on the bed beside him. Bandages could be seen on his body as well. Opposite their beds were two beds, with Agumon on the bed opposite JD's, and Penguinmon in front of Manny's bed. Both Digimon were still sleeping.

The sound of the door opening brought JD's attention to a green hulking figure with horns, long white hair, a pair of black pants, and a white medical coat walking in.

"Ah, good…finally you're awake," the Ogremon said pleasantly, completely contrasting his imposing features. Suddenly piercing shrieks could be heard coming from outside, presumably from the room next door. The shrieks were soon followed by a loud sound of something being slammed out of the door and onto the wall. The wall inside the ward shook slightly, and the picture frame that hung on it fell onto the floor. Echoes of the shriek could still be heard, and JD thought he recognized the shriek.

From the door, a yellow-furred ape crawled inside their ward. His arms soon gave way and he plopped onto the blue-white tile floor of the ward, muttering, "I'm…not…pervert…"

JD sweatdropped, and heard a groan from the bed beside him and from the Digimon. He saw Manny waking up.

"Hey. Put something on before you get up…it seemed like someone felt like doing a full-body checkup without our permission," JD muttered, indicating to the folded clothes.

Manny blinked, looking confused, before his cheeks flushed bright red. He snatched both clothes and quickly put it on.

"You humans are clothed way too much," Dr. Ogremon said, shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm happy to announce that other than the superficial wounds, it looks like you're in a good condition. But I'd advise against fighting…or fusing with your partners…or moving a lot…at least, until we can get the chief doctor Lobomon back. He's looking for herbal remedies to quicken the process of healing for your wounds and to remove the scars, somewhere around the mountain sides in this city. He was also in charge to treat the leader…MachGaogamon…the poor old dog…Whoever attacked you all was definitely brutal..."

JD nodded. He looked around for any indication of the time. The only clue he got was the darkness outside the window. "What time is it?" JD asked.

"Ten past nine, according to your world's time," Dr. Ogremon answered. The door suddenly slammed open and in walked two rather harassed-looking girls.

"What's the big idea leaving us wearing absolutely nothing just now?!" Gayathri demanded angrily. She eyed the ape that was lying on the floor and snorted with disgust. She was now wearing a similar set of loose clothes that Manny was wearing. The same was true for Liu Ying. Behind them were their Digimon partners.

"It was for treatment purposes. And don't worry, a female doctor was assigned to care for you; I'm only in charge of the guys," Dr. Ogremon explained with a placating tone. He bent down and pulled the ear of the yellow ape. "Apemon here…he's always confused the male and female wards. Can't say this is the first time he's been in this kind of situation…"

"Confused, as if!" Liu Ying scoffed. There were tints of blush on her fair face.

"He didn't look confused when he walked in the girls' ward," Labramon snorted.

Dr. Ogremon eyed the Apemon, who looked somewhat bruised up. "Uhh…what did you girls do to him?"

Floramon snickered. "An accidental telekinetic combined with super scream is not something you want to experience…"

"Hey, you guys ok?" JD inquired to the girls. The girls saw that the boys had woken up and strode past the whimpering Apemon and the doctor.

"If you can say, bandaged all over, is ok…then yes, I'm fine," Liu Ying said dryly. She eyed the shirt on the chair. "Put it on, why don't you?"

JD shrugged and took the shirt. Liu Ying took a seat at the now-vacant chair, while Gayathri sat at the chair beside Manny's bed. The door swung open again and a female Digimon in red dress and red magician hat entered. She was also wearing a doctor's medical coat.

"Greetings. I'm Dr. Witchmon, the girls' doctor. It's good to see you four up and about," the female said with a girlish voice. The two doctors stood in front of the beds. "I'm glad to say that you four, and your partners, are all in a satisfactory condition. Nothing is broken, and the only things you have to worry about are scars…" Gayathri flinched upon hearing this; even Manny and Liu Ying looked aghast, while JD shrugged uncaringly. "But do not fret; the chief doctor Lobomon is also our best cosmetic doctor…he knows all kinds of herbs and remedies necessary to remove scars."

"Thank you for treating us," Liu Ying said politely.

The doctors smiled. "No…thank you, all of you. You've saved our city. This is the least we could do for you," Dr. Witchmon said.

"Don't worry about payments, it's on the house," Dr. Ogremon said.

The DigiWira nodded. Manny glanced at the darkness outside the window. "We better head back," he said slowly. "Our parents must be wondering about us by now…"

The doctors exchanged dark looks amongst themselves.

"Usually, we'd require our patients to stay overnight at least, for observations purposes," Dr. Witchmon said with a cautious tone. "But, even if we let you go…I'm afraid that's not an option you all have for the time being." She observed the DigiWira grimly, as if holding out much grimmer information from them.

"What do you mean?" Gayathri asked, perplexed.

"Come to the window," Dr. Ogremon said. The DigiWira, their partners, and the doctors all strode towards the window. They all were surprised to see what was outside.

A dark blue-black energy dome surrounded Zephyrus City, from the gates to the mountains. The dome crackled with mild electricity. It looked opaque, somewhat impenetrable. The barrier was the main reason why Zephyrus City was abnormally dark – usually with the Digital World having three moons instead of one; it seldom became so dark during nighttime.

"A barrier has been placed around our city after Peckmon and Swanmon stepped out from the city to inform your mentor about your conditions," Dr. Witchmon informed. "Nobody is able to pass through the barrier, in or out."

The DigiWira were stunned. They stared at the energy dome.

"Why would someone raise an energy dome around this city?" Gayathri wondered.

"To block people from getting in the city…or from getting out…" Liu Ying's voice trailed off as she eyed her fellow DigiWira one by one as a horrible suspicion crossed her mind. "Or to keep us in!"

"What? Why?" Manny asked. He looked at the other DigiWira nervously.

"Adam…" JD realized, his eyes widening. "He's the only one not here. He's still outside. That means…"

"Whoever's doing this…" Liu Ying continued.

"Is trying to separate us from him, I bet that's it," JD finished. He slammed his fist against the wall. "Shit! Jetsilphymon and Mystimon being here was a trap to lure us all in!" As he thought about that, his mind raced, making quick links between everything that had taken place these past few days. It still didn't make enough sense for him, although he believed that he was in the right track. Knowing that the other DigiWira would only contradict him because he had no evidence to support his theory, JD bit his lip and refrained from speaking up. He scowled and folded his arms across his chest, wincing slightly as his body was still injured.

"The real target is Adam?" Manny asked forebodingly. "But…he's still back in our world…"

"Wait a minute!" Gayathri said, her tone brightening ever so slightly. "If Adam's still out there…he can get us out here. As far as I can recall, his teleportation power has improved ever since you two got back from the Dark Ocean," she said, gesturing to JD who nodded. "If we can contact him, he can come here and get us all out."

"Of course," Liu Ying nodded. "Good thinking, Gayathri."

'That is, if his brother doesn't keep him out from helping us,' JD thought sourly as he stared towards the distance. Seeing that his teammates rejoicing at the idea, JD refrained from voicing out his grim suspicion that somehow Adam wouldn't come. 'Wouldn't be able to come…' he amended silently. 'But I hope I'm wrong.'

But still JD couldn't shake off the sinking feeling that his friend was in danger.

xxx

xxx

The clock struck past midnight, and Adam lifted his head from the Science report he was doing. He hadn't been able to concentrate to work on the report on his own because of his anxiety of Patamon's whereabouts, and he needed to submit it the next day, so he'd decided to just copy what Gayathri had written, occasionally altering the sentence sequences and using his wider thesaurus to find synonyms for certain words. As he reread the report, he was sure that the teacher wouldn't be able to say that he'd copied a friend's work.

"If you go through all the work just to copy, then it's not copying," Aizad commented from across the table. He grinned. "Copying is when you spend only a few minutes or so rewriting what your friend has written, and then forget about it. You on the other hand, have reread everything, replaced certain words, alter sentences…I don't think it's called copying."

"The teacher's dead-strict," Adam deadpanned as he traced a diagram from the science textbook. "I don't want to mess up, that's all."

"That's my boy," Aizad snickered. "Are you almost done?"

"Yeah," Adam said, and yawned. He eyed the cup of Milo by the table, frowning. "Hmm…the color's a bit odd, I think," Adam murmured.

"Hmm?" Aizad stood up and eyed the cup. "Maybe I've added a few things…" he said with a mock-serious tone.

Adam laughed. "Maybe it's just my imagination," he decided, and finished the Milo. He yawned again. "I'm going to bed."

"You better. It's way past your bedtime. Go ahead; I'll join you in a minute."

Watching Adam's retreating figure, Aizad exchanged a smirk with Tsukaimon, who'd been watching the whole exchange between the brothers. Tsukaimon was holding Adam's D-Terminal.

"There's a message for Adam actually, from the other DigiWira," Tsukaimon said in a hushed tone. "They're calling for his help. Luckily I've put this in silent mode."

"You know what to do," Aizad said. The man's dark brown eyes flickered towards the computer. "Should we leave it on the whole night?"

Tsukaimon nodded. "It's not like he can come back here anyway."

xxx

xxx

"Diamond World Mandala!!"

"Jelita Shocker!!"

"Double-Edged Thunderblades!!"

"Dragonforce Striker!!"

The black-indigo force field crackled ferociously with onyx lightning when the four attacks collided upon it. Four lightning bolts of dark blue appeared and struck all four Wira Digital squarely on their chests, sending them crashing against the nearest building to the gate with one explosion. Due to the forces and combined weights of all four of them, the walls gave way almost instantly, causing the roof to crash over the fallen Wira Digital.

A loud growl was heard and a golden gauntlet emerged, sending stones and rubbles flying.

"DAMN!!" Satriamon swore and got back up on his feet. He kicked away some bricks furiously. Beside him, Xianamon stood up, relatively unharmed.

"That went well…" Puspamon grunted, accepting Samudramon's proffered hand.

Samudramon cast a look towards MachGaogamon, who was standing nearby with crutches. Behind him was a number of citizens of the city, some of them were familiar faces such as the doctors, and the ones who'd joined in the battle the previous day. The leader of Zephyrus City had visibly winced. "Sorry about that," Samudramon said apologetically.

The blue bipedal canine Digimon hesitated for a brief while before shaking his head. "Uh…that's fine."

"How are we going to get out of here?" Puspamon wondered, wincing as she rubbed her back. "Ow, ow, ow…my back hurts."

"It's already morning and still no reply from Adam," Xianamon said, looking up at the dome-shaped force-field. It was really hard to tell whether day had come by or that it was still night, as the barrier had blanketed the whole city in permanent darkness. It was, in fact, nearly eleven in the morning. "By now, Adam should have known that something odd has happened to us since we all do not appear at school," the sorceress said. "I wonder why he did not reply to our messages."

"I've got a theory, but no one listens to me," Satriamon grunted. JD was utterly convinced that Adam's brother had something to do with this. His theory however was debunked by almost everyone, except for Manny – but everyone knew that the boy was just too polite to contradict JD.

"For all we know, the force-field might be the reason our messages did not reach Adam," Xianamon pointed out.

"The messages were delivered," Satriamon snapped. "All of you saw the status reports on your D-Terminals."

"Still…why would Adam's brother try to keep him out from us?" Samudramon asked.

"He doesn't like us that much, remember?" Satriamon said grimly.

"Us, yes…but what about the girls?" Samudramon returned. At that, Satriamon grunted in annoyance and didn't reply. "That's why I think there's another explanation," the merman finished.

"What are we going to do?" Puspamon said despairingly.

"We'll keep trying. Flaming Torch!!" Satriamon turned his whole body into magma and propelled himself towards the force-field, intending to ram it heads-on. Upon collision, the barrier electrocuted him with black thunderbolt and sent him back flying. "AGGHH!!"

Xianamon shook her head and extended her arm, steadying Satriamon's fall with her telekinetic power. When the red knight was a meter away from the brick road, she let go of him, causing him to crash onto the ground with a thud.

"HEY!!" Satriamon got up and rubbed the back of his head. "You could've at least land me in one piece."

Xianamon ignored Satriamon and cast a look towards the force-field. "It looks like all we can do now is wait."

"Looks like we don't have to do that." Puspamon pointed upwards. There was a ripple there. "Somebody's coming in."

"Scratch that; make that somebodies," Satriamon said forebodingly, as pairs of foot were seen descending from the dome.

Four demonic figures came through the force field and into the city, despite the force-field having proved to be impenetrable earlier. The Wira Digital tensed; each one of them looked equally dangerous. They immediately suspected that the demons probably had something to do with the force-field's appearance as they watched the demonic quartet stepped foot on the brick roads of the medieval city.

The largest of the four had thick arms and legs draped in purple fur. His body was dark gray, and had a five-point star tattooed on his chest. His legs ended with horse-like hooves. Large leathery wings jutted out from his back. His ivory head bore a resemblance to an Oryx - the ears were spread out horizontally and his brown horns grew vertically upwards before curving backwards at the tips. Dark purple hair framed his emotionless face, which was thin, smooth and hairless. Red eyes sparkled with intelligence stared towards the DigiWira. He set an imposing figure with his 9-feet height.

The second was a scarlet demon with a human shape. He was lightly armored with gray steel around his lower extremities and forearms. High black collars were fastened around his neck with a golden bat ornament, and the collars loomed over his head. He had yellow eyes, short ebony hair, elf-like ears and small horns jutting out from the head. Held in his left hand was a red trident. This Digimon was also tall at 8-feet height.

The third was an aristocratic-looking figure wearing a dark blue suit and a black cape with the inner part being scarlet. He wore black gloves and boots. His burnished blonde locks were tied back, with some bangs framing his gaunt, pale face. Crimson bat mask totally offset his ice blue eyes. Despite his noble appearance, a closer look on him would reveal that he had vampiric qualities; one that was prominent was his white fangs which escaped his blood-red lips. His bat-theme appearance would also be a dead-giveaway, with his bat mask and the bat ornament that fixed the cape he was wearing on his suit.

And finally, the fourth demon was dressed unconventionally in flowing silken robes of dark red and pink. Golden bat wings were folded around his very thin waist, while a pair of red bat wings was spread out from his back. His face was obscured by the blade-shaped facemask he wore. He stood at a slight hunched posture, making him as tall as the vampire demon beside him at 7-feet tall.

"We've been watching you trying all morning to break through the force-field, unfortunately to no avail," the vampire said with a deep, pompous voice. "And so we thought, perhaps the mighty Wira Digital are in some dire need for entertainment."

"Who the hell are you?" Satriamon growled.

The aristocrat bowed in a gentlemanly way. "Myotismon, the handsomer of the Blood Brothers, that's me…" He then gestured towards the demon in flowing robes. "And this is Matadormon, the brasher one. Both of us are renowned vampires, while these two…" Myotismon beckoned for the tallest two of the group. "The biggest one here is Mephistomon, and this red devil is called Phelesmon. They are the Bane Brothers – demonic brothers, masters of darkness, antithesis to all that is light and pure, so they claimed."

"We're here to see to the Puaka Generals' order that all of you are…taken cared of," Mephistomon said with silky, groveling voice. The way he talked suggested slyness.

"Typical," Xianamon snorted.

"Handsome? HIM?" Puspamon said incredulously, looking at Myotismon. "Someone hasn't been looking at the mirror lately."

"Maybe he's an acquired taste," Satriamon snickered.

"Ah, I'll let you know that I have had many females falling heads-over-heals when I graced them with my presence," Myotismon said pompously. He leered at the fairy Wira Digital.

"I fail to see what's so attractive about guys wearing lipstick!" Puspamon retorted, annoyed of Myotismon's snobbish demeanor. She pointed a finger towards the four demons accusingly. "You're the one who set up the force-field!"

"Not all of us, although I'd love to take credit for such an ingenious creation," Myotismon said. "You can thank the Bane Brothers for they were the ones who have set up the force-field."

"Such a beauty, isn't it? Everyone can get in, but nobody's getting out," Mephistomon chuckled darkly.

"Everyone gets in but nobody gets out?" Satriamon smirked, flexing his golden claw-gauntlet. "Then you've made a big mistake, coming in here. Because whether it's you or some other sick friends of yours who set up this force field, it's seriously pissing me off." Satriamon's green eyes flashed dangerously. "And I'm bad as hell when I'm pissed off."

The red dragon-man warrior leaped towards the four demons after enveloping his body with raging flames. However, the demon with the flowing robes streaked past his companions and began to move faster. Matadormon skillfully and speedily spun around Satriamon before delivering a kick onto the dragon-man's chest. The kick sent Satriamon flailing towards the brick gate, and the force that came with the crash had caused a big crack on it.

Satriamon got up quickly and flexed his golden gauntlet. "Now you've made me mad," he growled.

Matadormon snickered and raised his arms. The flowing pink sleeves fell to his elbows, revealing glistening metal rapiers as fingers. Matadormon then brandished each finger-rapier, and had them grazing against each other.

"Holy shit…" Satriamon gulped.

As Satriamon and Matadormon began to fight it out, Myotismon laughed. He eyed Xianamon and Puspamon alternately. "Now, which one of you ladies want to dance with me? Come now, don't be scared…I don't bite." He laughed again and revealed his vampiric fangs. "Although, it is not such a bad idea…I am looking for a queen by my side…"

"Ugh, he's so full of himself!" Puspamon seethed, annoyed at the vampire demon's snobbish behavior. She fluttered towards the domed sky. "I'll take you on, vampire!"

"Impatient, aren't we?" Myotismon flew after Puspamon and raised his cape. "Grisly Wings!!"

Puspamon used her super speed and soared towards the sky with unrivalled swiftness, easily avoiding the barrages of dark bats that flowed out of Myotismon's cape. To her horror, the bats simply veered from their original course, chasing her instead. It was as if they had their target locked, and would follow her all the way to the end of the Digital World if needed be. She sped upwards and spun around. She crossed her arms and her body glimmered with shining pink aura. She then unfolded her arms, thrusting them wide apart and released a raging fuchsia hurricane with flowers within it. "Hibiscus Hurricane!!"

The hurricane enveloped the bats and destroyed them before it itself degenerated. Myotismon saw this and realized that Puspamon wasn't as easy a challenge as he had assumed. He quickly spread his capes wide and began giving chase to the fairy Wira Digital.

This left Xianamon and Samudramon to battle the Bane Brothers. Samudramon glanced sideways at the sorceress Wira Digital.

"Did you notice how Matadormon attacked Satriamon?"

Xianamon nodded grimly. "No doubt he's responsible for attacking us yesterday."

Mephistomon and Phelesmon observed their enemies without much thought. The larger of the two then pointed one arm towards both Wira Digital and released a black energy orb covered with purple smog. "Death Cloud!!"

Xianamon countered immediately with her magical powers. "Diamond World Mandala!!"

Seeing Mephistomon had chosen Xianamon as his opponent, the other demon eyed Samudramon with a smirk. He then launched himself towards the merman, his scarlet trident crackling madly with obsidian thunderbolts. Samudramon grasped onto his own metallic trident tight and waited for the right moment to strike. When Phelesmon was drawing near Samudramon immediately blasted him with focused pressurized water with his left hand. His right hand was spinning the trident, energizing it with the power of thunder.

"Double-Edged Thunderblades!!"

xxx

xxx

Adam thought it was weird that he hadn't seen any of the DigiWira that Tuesday. Gayathri was absent the whole day, and from what he'd gathered, so were Liu Ying and Manny. He assumed that JD wasn't at school as well, and that was confirmed when he didn't spot any blonde-haired student at all during recess time.

"This is really odd," he murmured as he packed his stuff. School had ended and he was feeling glum. 'Where is everyone?'

Patamon hadn't returned home at all that night. And now, all the DigiWira were absent at school at the same time. Had something happened in the Digital World?

"Hey, Adam!" a prefect classmate of his called from outside the classroom. "The principal wants to see you now."

"The principal?" Adam frowned; he couldn't remember if he'd done any mistake that would merit a trip to the principal office.

"Don't look so worried; she wasn't mad at all when I saw her," the prefect said to him. "In fact, I think she looks worried. There are a lot of people inside her office; I've never seen the principal office so crowded before."

"Oh…" Adam nodded and picked up his bag, noting how lightweight it was without Patamon. "I'll go there now. Thanks, Shah."

"See you tomorrow!" The prefect waved him goodbye and walked away.

Adam had a lot of questions in his mind as he made his way to the principal's office. His prefect classmate Shah had been right; there were a lot of people there. Even though the windows of the office were closed, Adam could see distinct shapes of people there, as well as exchanges of conversation between them. He knocked at the door, which was left slightly ajar. To his surprise, it was Jackie who'd opened the door.

"Adam, come in," Jackie said, and locked the door after Adam stepped in. Adam froze upon seeing eleven sets of eyes staring at him – nine adults and two small kids.

"Good afternoon," Adam managed to say, his tone quivering.

"Good afternoon to you too. Adam, take a seat," the principal instructed towards a vacant chair near the door. "These are the family members of your missing friends."

"Missing?" Adam's eyes then took in all the other people inside the office, and it dawned to him that they were the family members of his fellow DigiWira. He recognized Liu Ying's family, and it wasn't that hard to connect the others to the other DigiWira. There was one plump woman who looked like Gayathri, and two men who looked like JD and Manny should they lost twenty or so years of age. His eyes then shot up wide, realizing that with his friends missing, and their parents here…

"Adam," Jackie said, laying a comforting hand on Adam's shoulder. "It's alright. When Liu Ying, Gayathri, Manny and JD did not return from the Digital World last night, I talked to TobuCatmon and we've decided to tell the parents and the principal the truth about the five of you." He leaned closer to Adam, adding in a whisper, "I did the same thing when you were kidnapped by the ShadoWira last time."

"Oh…" Adam said, leaning against the back of the chair.

"Boy…" A large man with an ample belly, a very dark complexion and a booming voice, said. Looking at him, Adam recognized that this must be Gayathri's father. "Have you any news about Gayathri?"

"And Manny?" A man with brown skin, spiked black hair and prominent cheekbones, continued. Evidently Manny had inherited most of his features from his father.

"And my granddaughter," Grandpa Chang continued. Adam had met Liu Ying's family before; Grandpa Chang and Liu Ying's little brother were the only ones he'd recognized.

"Josh…JD, whatever all of you are calling him," a woman with sleek, layered brown-blonde hair, said.

Adam's face fell. "I'm sorry…I didn't know about them being missing until now," he said softly. "I…I wasn't with them at the Digital World yesterday. I was at the hospital, visiting my sister."

"But you can go to the Digital World, right? Mr. Chan told us you have a device…a Digivice…which can be used to open portals to the Digital World via a computer?" A broad-shouldered man with dark brown hair asked. Looking at the man, Adam had no doubt that this was JD's father – the similarities between father and son were striking. Adam nodded and took out his silver-pale blue D3-Digivice. This prompted Mr. Johan Awaludin to continue, "So this means you can go there and look for Josh and the other kids."

"Will you go there now?" A plump woman with curly brown hair asked. "My little girl's there somewhere…something wrong must've happened…" She flustered, her eyes shone with tears.

"Vee…" Mr. Nadarajah said softly to his wife, addressing her by her shortened given birth name, Vanitha.

"I'll go now," Adam said, his eyes set on the principal's computer.

"Can any of us come with you?" Mr. Abah asked.

"I'm afraid that's not possible," Jackie intercepted with an apologetic tone.

"Here, Adam," the principal turned the monitor on her table so that the screen was facing Adam. "You can use my computer…Jackie has already done something to it…"

"I've set up the coordinates so that it would lead you to Zephyrus City, where the others have gone to yesterday," Jackie clarified. He eyed Adam's bag. "Where is Patamon?"

"He…hasn't returned home too since yesterday," Adam answered, obviously worried. First Patamon was missing, and now he learned that his friends were missing as well. Something was seriously wrong here. He strode past the parents, bowing his body ever so slightly, before reaching the table. Feeling unnerved, as if the stares of all the family members of his friends were like arrows going through his body, Adam pointed his Digivice towards the screen, and called: "DIGIPORT OPEN!!"

A simultaneous gasp of wonder and awestruck was heard as the parents and the principal watched Adam being bathed by white light that erupted from the screen. They saw Adam slowly diminishing within the light. When the light was gone, the dark-haired boy was no longer around.

xxx

xxx

Adam arrived on a green pasture that was quite similar to Green Meadow. The TV set he'd used as a way out from the intermediate digital plane that connected his world and the Digital World was conveniently placed right in the middle of the paddock, surrounded by some round purple bushes that Adam had never seen before. Across the distance, from the higher ground, Adam could see a wide dark blue dome which crackled with black electricity. The dome was as large as a city.

"That's Zephyrus City?" Adam wondered. It wasn't what he had expected to see for a city. The domed city appeared to be about a mile away. "I wish Patamon's here," he said to himself, still wondering where his Digimon partner was at the moment. 'It's really unlike him to be off without telling me…but then again, I had him worried when I came to the Digital World alone, and was gone for more than half a day…that was the day I met Abang Zad.' The memory made him smile as he thought fondly of his older brother. 'I hope Abang Zad doesn't get too worried that I don't go straight home…I forgot to call him, I hope Jackie will do that for me…'

'Maybe I can try summoning Patamon back,' Adam thought. He held out one hand, palm facing the sky. "Patamon!!"

Nothing happened. Patamon didn't appear. Adam supposed that Patamon must be somewhere out of range of his teleportation power. Sighing, he cast a long look at the domed city. With the blink of the eye, Adam teleported right in front of the dome. He could hear screams, sounds of fighting, explosions, but he could see nothing other than dark blue opaqueness that was in front of him. He could see an outline of what looked like an entrance…a gate, no doubt. The closer he walked to the barrier, the clearer the outline of what he had perceived as gates became. It was indeed a gate, somewhat similar to a castle's gate he had seen in medieval stories on TV.

"How do I get in?" Adam tentatively reached out for the barrier, fully expecting a reaction. However, the barrier did nothing. Extending a quivering index finger, Adam let the tip of his finger graze the barrier ever so slightly. To his surprise, his finger went into the barrier harmlessly. Nothing unfavorable happened. "Here goes…" Adam closed his eyes and crossed the energy barrier, arriving underneath a short tunnel which connected the world outside to a city behind the gates. He winced upon hearing crashing sounds, explosions, screams, battle cries and the sounds of gusts of wind all intertwined into one. It was chaotic! Adam pressed his temples as he walked further carefully.

It was a fearsome battlefield inside the gates; a site of mass destruction. Nobody had noticed him coming, and with all the noises, they wouldn't. Adam crept near the wall, and walked along it, careful not to make his presence known until he reached the end of the tunnel. He peered outside, and saw several familiar figures.

Satriamon was battling a Digimon with flowing robes. They were exchanging blows one after another, and Adam noticed that the Digimon Satriamon was battling had very long, sharp rapier-like claws. Satriamon's armor was chipped in various parts. The other Digimon's flowing robes were scorched. Adam grimaced slightly upon hearing flows of colorful languages escaping Satriamon, who was evidently frustrated by his enemy. The enemy Digimon however didn't reply; he merely leaped towards Satriamon and his claw-rapiers clanked against Satriamon's larger gauntlet. The sound of metals grazing each other echoed the area as the two Digimon began forcing each other backward, with little success. It looked like the two of them were at even standing, but Satriamon's foe was as calm as Satriamon was infuriated. Adam hoped that Satriamon would be able to keep his head; one wrong move and it would give the other Digimon the chance to totally best him out.

Xianamon was seen firing waves of indigo and golden lights towards a hulking, purple-furred Digimon with thick arms and legs, black leathery wings and ivory head. The satyr Digimon countered by firing a focused blast of black energy waves which nullified Xianamon's attacks. Similar to Satriamon's condition, Xianamon appeared to have seen better days. Her cream yellow robe was torn over the edges. Her movement was slightly slow – she seemed to be tired. Retreating towards a pile of rubbles, where it looked like a building had been on that place once, Xianamon began flicking her arms towards her ghastly enemy, who easily knocked away the stones by slapping them with his thick arms. Adam saw that this was a battle that would prove difficult for Xianamon to win. While the sorceress was seen flustered, her enemy didn't look the least perturbed, nor had he sustained any injury at all. In fact, Adam somehow suspected that the monster actually looked like he was toying with Xianamon, and Adam knew how powerful Xianamon could be.

Earsplitting screams were heard, and Adam's attention was brought to the sky where a beautiful fairy in pink was involved in a scuffle with a very humanly Digimon in blue patrician outfit and black cape. Adam hadn't seen Gayathri's fused form before, but her screams were very familiar so he easily concluded that this must be Puspamon. The enemy Digimon released a crimson energy whip and lashed it towards Puspamon. Puspamon countered it by waving her black staff forward, and shrieked in surprise when the whip grazed her hands. This forced her to release her staff. The staff spun across the midair before finally landing on a pile of stones that looked like they had once formed a building. Infuriated, Puspamon retreated several foot away from the enemy and crossed her arms over her chest as her whole being began to glow bright pink. Adam then saw multiple flowers erupted from her body and sailed towards the enemy at rapid speed, but they were nullified by torrents of bats that were released by the enemies. The bats persevered and flew towards Puspamon, but were driven away when Puspamon thrust both arms forward and released a pink whirlwind of flowers. Adam was amazed to see how Puspamon was able to handle herself; the aristocratic Digimon looked strong and evil.

And finally, all the way to his left Adam saw Samudramon and a scarlet demon battling each other. Both wielded tridents and were seen lashing out their weapons against each other. From all the battles he'd seen, this had to be the bloodiest of all. Samudramon's body had slash marks all over, with clear liquids flowing out from the wounds. The X-shaped armor that Adam knew Samudramon should be having on his body was not visible, and Adam soon saw it somewhere on the ground, slashed in half. The demonic enemy seemed to be suffering a lot less. There were faint tear marks on the demon's sleek collars, but that was all. Similar to Xianamon's situation, Samudramon too looked like he was being overpowered.

'Oh no…what should I do?' Adam wondered. 'I'm no good around here without Patamon…'

At loss, Adam was forced to remain at the sidelines and he observed the battle his friends were having with the demonic Digimon. He prayed for their safeties, and kept a sharp lookout for any opportunity for him to lend his assistance. Nobody had known of his presence yet.

His chance came when the purple satyr Xianamon was fighting released a focused of dark energy which throttled Xianamon who had been blocking it by raising her telekinetic barrier. Xianamon was slammed against a sturdy pillar, and slid down the pillar onto the ground. She was attempting to stand up, but Adam knew that she wouldn't be able to make it in time – the demon satyr had already released three dark energy spheres towards the sorceress. Taking a deep breath, Adam whispered, "Xianamon," and focused his mind so that she would end up at a distance away from the satyr. Just as the energy spheres from the dark satyr were about to hit Xianamon, she vanished in swirls of bright orbs, and reappeared safely on a rooftop of a two storey building. The satyr looked momentarily stunned, but to Adam's slight dismay a wry smirk escaped the demon's mouth.

That phenomenon immediately caused a brief standstill – ALL the Wira Digital knew who exactly could've generated such phenomenon. The demons too ceased attacking momentarily. Adam chose to remain in hiding, despite hearing his friends murmuring his name. He was perturbed, somehow feeling that the satyr demon was now searching for him. He retreated all the way towards the energy barrier, and let out a gasp when the barrier electrocuted him mildly when his fingers grazed the barrier.

'Oh no! I can get in, but can't get out?'

'Adam…thank you,' Xianamon thought. She looked around, and saw Mephistomon seemingly trying to figure out where Adam was. She needed to distract him before he found Adam, although she herself had no idea where Adam could have been in the midst of the battlefield. She however, had a suspicion. 'He must've come here using the main entrance…he might be hiding within the tunnels. I cannot let Mephistomon get to him, but I am not strong enough to fight him…' Xianamon's eyes lurked to a different opponent instead, and an idea came to her. 'However, judging by how Puspamon is handling Myotismon, I think all she needs now is a helping hand to finish off that vampire once and for all. Together, we may then battle Mephistomon.'

Myotismon currently had his back on Xianamon, which was exactly what she needed. Xianamon pointed her arm and fly whisk towards the back of the caped Digimon and cried out, "Diamond World Mandala!!" The waves of magical powers slammed against the caped Digimon's back, catching him completely off-guard. The waves sent Myotismon sailing towards her fairy friend.

Puspamon saw her opportunity and crossed her arms, letting her body glow bright pink. "Jelita Shocker!!" She then thrust her arms forward and showered the flying Myotismon with rains of flowers which then released pink laser beams all over the vampire's body. Myotismon shrieked agonizingly, writhing in pain in midair as his body was overwhelmed by Puspamon's finisher. The pink aura that was glowing all around him was tearing him apart. He couldn't stand it any longer.

With a loud, parting cry Myotismon was the first of the demons to fall. He exploded into data particles and his data scattered all over Zephyrus City.

Xianamon heaved a breath of grief satisfaction, but panicked as she felt her power left her wholly. The battle with Mephistomon had taxed her greatly; the demonic satyr was very strong and durable. Hadn't it been for Adam's interference she would have been finished off by Mephistomon. With a flash of gold light she was Liu Ying and Labramon once again. Puspamon flew over them and picked both of them, landing on the ground safely before she too de-digivolved.

'Oh no…we've devolved,' Liu Ying thought despairingly. 'Now how can we fight Mephistomon?'

A loud shattering sound was heard and the girls saw Samudramon being thrown through a window of a one-storey square building. Phelesmon sneered and sent a black thunderbolt towards the door, destroying it with an explosion. The demon then sauntered into the building, but was slammed away by torrents of pressurized water which knocked him over the brick gate. Samudramon emerged from within the waters and sailed not to the demon, but all the way towards Matadormon who was fighting Satriamon. He had seen how Xianamon and Puspamon teamed up to finish off Myotismon, and that had given him an idea. He knew he was no match for Phelesmon; somehow the scarlet demon had proven to be much more powerful than he'd appeared to be. He'd need Satriamon at his side if he wanted to defeat Phelesmon for good. But before that, he figured that he would help Satriamon delete Matadormon off first. With that in mind the marine-based Wira Digital summoned a cloud over Matadormon which then let out a mystical downpour all over the robed demon.

"Satriamon!" Samudramon spun his trident, generating thunderbolts on both tips of the weapon. He then threw the spinning Double-Edged Thunderblades towards Matadormon, watching as it sailed all the way to the demon's back.

With a loud clang of metal to metal, Matadormon howled as he felt the Thunderblades singed his demonic wings as well as eroding his metallic body. The demon attempted to escape the rains, but felt his body became gradually weakened that his knees had started to buckle. He then fell on his knees, fully at Satriamon's mercy. Seeing a shadow looming at him, the demon looked up at the tall, foreboding figure of his opponent – a look of deep hate crossed his green eyes. He knew he was defeated, but he wouldn't show any sign of fear.

"Defiant to the last. Dragonforce Striker!!" Satriamon slashed his golden gauntlet onto Matadormon. The sound of broken metal permeated the air, followed by a defeated shriek. Matadormon's neck had been severed, his body burnt in harsh flames, and he burst into data particles almost as soon as his head slid off from his body. Satriamon was seen looking anywhere but at the place where Matadormon had been kneeling – even he didn't dare watch himself performing the deed up close. But it had to be done.

Samudramon blinked, trying to suppress his uneasiness. What mattered now was Matadormon had gone. Two demons were defeated, leaving two demons left. Unfortunately for Samudramon, his plan wouldn't come to being, as there and then he felt the Digital Access power leaving him. He devolved immediately into his composite selves. Satriamon followed suit immediately.

They saw the girls and their Digimon approaching them; their eyes trailed over Mephistomon's looming figure completely. The satyr was not attacking them. He was merely standing over where he had been at before Xianamon vanished in front of his eyes, and he was now observing the DigiWira and their Digimon impassively. He seemed to be waiting for something.

"AHA! I've found the meddler!" Phelesmon's shout was clear and sent dread to the DigiWira. However, just as an explosion was heard at the gates, a burst of light orbs appeared in between of JD and Manny, and Adam's rolling body materialized. His sudden appearance had nearly knocked Manny down hadn't it been for the other boy's sturdier figure. Adam's eyes were widened in fear and his breath haggard – he'd experienced a close brush to doom when Phelesmon attacked him, and had escaped. Seeing that he was safe he coughed out dust, looking relieved at the same time as JD and Manny helped him up.

"Ah…the five DigiWira, together again," Mephistomon simpered. He eyed Adam intently. "Your interference has cost us greatly, and for that, young one, you shall pay! Death Cloud!!"

A great ball of smoke and dark energy erupted from Mephistomon's arm, the yellow star on his chest shone menacingly as the dark sphere went sailing towards the five DigiWira and four Digimon. JD and Manny immediately sent torrents of flames and water but they bounced harmlessly against the incoming sphere. Gayathri attempted to add up to the force with her super scream, but that didn't help much as well. Liu Ying sent some stones and rubbles flying towards the sphere, but they combusted into smithereens upon contact with Mephistomon's attack. The Death Cloud attack was now a mere two hundred meters away from the DigiWira, and Adam saw one by one the other DigiWira was forced to stop attacking – the battle they had with the demons had weakened them a whole lot more than they had expected. Their legs gave way and the four DigiWira dropped to their knees. They were quickly supported by their equally drained Digimon partners.

It was now up to him. He hadn't been involved in battle; his power was still in near-full strength. 'I can do this.'

Adam focused his mind and raised both hands right in front of his chest, with the palms facing the front, willing his teleportation power to teleport the black sphere away. His dark brows knitted tight as he concentrated hard on the arduous task that lay before him – he had never attempted to teleport an Ultimate Digimon's attack before. The black sphere was a hundred meters away from them now…and Adam held his breath when white orbs began to surround Mephistomon's energy sphere. The smaller white orbs began to envelop the larger black orb, before fully coating it with bluish-white light. Mephistomon's attack vanished but reappeared again right smack in front of them…but in the form of a glittering white orb of energy. The sphere of light hung in midair momentarily in front of the DigiWira. The purple smokes were gone as well, replaced by silvery wisps of blue glitters.

It was beautiful, and it radiated with power. For a while, all DigiWira stared at it with awe. Trusting his instincts, Adam swung his hands full-force towards the white sphere.

"Go back to that demon!" he said with hope. The sphere responded by sailing back towards Mephistomon and slammed against the satyr.

Mephistomon hadn't expected this to happen. He didn't expect the boy to be able to purify the dark sphere into an orb of pure light. Had he deflected the dark sphere back Mephistomon was able to absorb it back without harm. But this…this was a sphere of light. He could not stand the light. The orb slammed onto him with such harshness and brutal force that Mephistomon fell on his back, screaming and writhing wildly in agony as the white sphere burned against his skin.

"AGGGGGHHHHH!!! The light!!"

'What's going on…?' Adam wondered, feeling his knees buckling again. Something didn't quite add up. He lamented himself silently for becoming so weak that quickly. Just before his knees gave way, JD and Manny supported him from each side.

Phelesmon saw what was happening to his comrade, and quickly flew towards him. He pointed his trident towards the fallen Mephistomon, calling out, "Black Statue!!"

A black beam of light was shot out from the trident towards the white sphere, turning it into massive pound of rock. Then Phelesmon proceeded by shooting a focused thunderbolt which shattered the rock into data particles. He glanced victoriously towards the DigiWira, menace reflected from his yellow eyes.

Mephistomon evaporated into wisps of dark purple smokes and soared towards the sky. The domed energy barrier that surrounded Zephyrus City crackled with electricity before it vanished, revealing the clear sky outside. The purple smokes that had once been Mephistomon swirled around and a pair of red eyes emanated from it.

"This isn't over yet, DigiWira. We'll be back! Come, brother." An ominous chuckle was heard from the clouds. "We still have a bigger fish to fry."

Laughter echoed as the purple smokes floated away. Phelesmon glared at the DigiWira for a brief few seconds before he too turned himself into scarlet smokes and joined Mephistomon without a word. The red smokes intertwined with the purple ones and they vanished within a ripple in the sky.

"Yeah! Go away, cowards!" JD exclaimed gleefully. "When you come back, we'll be ready for you!"

"Don't tempt fate!" Manny said, his eyes widened, knocking his fist lightly against JD's arm. "We could barely hold out against them just now. The last thing we need is for them to come back and attack us," he said with a worried tone.

"Ok, ok!" JD said, his left arm still supporting Adam. "Hey, Adam…what did you do?" His voice barely holding out his awe.

Adam shook his head. "I…I don't know. I just wanted to teleport the sphere back to him."

"It looks like your power of light has purified Mephistomon's attack before deflecting it back to him," Labramon analyzed. "However, Mephistomon is an Ultimate Digimon. As Xianamon, we had a tough time fighting him. His power far surpassed ours, I can sense it. You were able to drive an Ultimate Digimon away with your power…that is amazing."

"It's not really my power…I just gave him back what he'd tried to give us," Adam considered, looking unhappy. The DigiWira then noticed that Adam was alone. Patamon was not with him.

"Adam, where's Patamon?" Liu Ying asked.

"And what's with the long face," JD asked.

"It's Patamon," Adam said glumly. "He's missing."

"Missing?" The other DigiWira asked, confused.

"I think so…he hasn't come back since yesterday afternoon. He did leave a message though, but…I can't help worrying." Adam told the DigiWira about the note Patamon had left him.

"I'm sure his fine," Gayathri consoled. "Besides, if you really need him in a battle you can just summon him back with your power, right?"

"Already tried that. It didn't work."

A loud bang was heard from the distance, followed by an explosion of light which was visible from Zephyrus City. That prompted all the DigiWira to head towards the gate. The barrier had been lifted, they could see everything clearly. They saw a figure flying over the sky at rapid speed, escaping crackles of purple and red thunderbolts which seemed to come from the ground. The assailants of the flying figure couldn't be seen due to the high slopes of the paddock nearby the city, but Adam gasped when he recognized the flying figure. He'd know the angel Digimon anywhere, and by narrowing his eyes, he could see that the angel was not alone. He was carrying someone who was familiar to him.

Raging thunderbolts followed the angel and one struck the regal Digimon on the back. Cries of pain were heard and Adam saw both figures limped and began plummeting towards the paddock.

"Abang Zad!! Piddomon!!" he cried in panic, eyes transfixed on the falling figures. His brother and the angel Digimon were instantly enveloped by white light and vanished.

They reappeared on the ground right by the gates. Piddomon writhed in pain and devolved back into an unconscious Tsukaimon. Aizad rolled over, choking out blood. His dark brown eyes were transfixed on Adam, who was kneeling by his body. He clutched his chest, and was about to say something, but choked out blood again before managing to gather up strength to say something.

"You're…not back…Jackie…called…Digital World…worried…came here…attacked," the dark-haired man wheezed weakly and closed his eyes. His head fell limp near Adam's knees, staining the gray material of his pants with dark red blood that came from his mouth.

"No…" Adam whispered. "Please, no…"

Gayathri knelt beside him and immediately ran two fingers over the young man's neck. She then placed a hand on his left chest, before inspecting his wrist. "He's alive, Adam," she said soothingly, placing a hand on Adam's quivering shoulder. "Your brother's alive. I can feel his pulses…they're weak, but they're there…it's a good sign."

Adam grabbed hold on Tsukaimon with one hand and placed another on his brother's chest. His stricken face calmed slightly as he felt Aizad's faint heartbeat. "Infirmary," he said raggedly, and the three of them vanished. The other DigiWira realized in horror that the danger was not yet over.

From the distance, two figures could be seen. Two humanoid demons clad in black leathers and wings. One male and one female.

The Puaka Generals had arrived.