"Give the boy a prize." Mocked the clown digimon as he toyed with the small degger he held pressed to the boy's troath. "Tought you had gotten ridden of me that day, didn't you? You and that spoil sport Magnaangemon ruined my keychain collection!"
"With pleasure." Hissed Patamon and he beared his ground, wanting to attack piedmon but not wanting to hurt Takeru.
"You were locked away!" Protested Izzy."We all saw it! How did you escape!"
"I see some things never change." Loughed the clown. "Your curiosity, which even now you value over the life of a friend, always irked me."
"Let go of Takeru!" Bellowed Matt.
"Oh relax, I'm not going to kill the boy. Well, not yet anyway. That would be too easy. I want him to suffer like I did in that blasted realm."
Whether that was good news or bad news Takeru wasn't sure.
"You still haven't answered Izzy." He carefully articulated, not wanting to provoke Piedmon.
"It's an interesting story. A great story! One worthy of some form of literary prize and it's all thanks to you meddling kids,or, the younger children anyway. You know those holy stones Blackwargreymon destroyed? Well it wasn't just that old bat azulongmon you released with their destruction. Your incompatance lead to my release. I must really thank the younger lot for that. I'll go introduce myself to them after I bury you all. Maybe make them the stars of my next show, who knows?"
"Peidmon let Takeru go. I was there too, rememeber?" This time it was Hikri who spoke, gone was the fear in her face replaced by a newly founded determination.
"Oh I haven't forgetton you dearie. You lot are sounding like a broken record." Chided Peidmon "I don't like broken records."
Takeru then did something that shocked even himself. He elbowed the Dark Master in the stomach. He had not idea if something like that would phase a digimon, he hadn't actually ever hit a digimon before but to much of his surprise it did the trick. Caught unawares by the young digidestined's attack, with a loud "Uff!" Piedmon lowered his degger just enough for Takeru to squirm out and rejoin his comrades.
"Takeru!" Mimi squealed, tears running down her cheeks. She made to hug him but the stone hard look on his face told her it wasn't the time.
"Takeru!" Chirped Patmon as he landed into his partner's slightly shaking hand. Matt put a hand in-front of his brother as if such a futile act could protect him like it did when he was younger. The digidestined now formed a tight cluster, their digimon lined infront of them. They hadn't digivolved, not yet anyway.
"Looks like the little one has a little foolish courage in him too. You must be rubbing off on him Tai." Joked the Dark Master.
"What do you want with us, Piedmon?" Yelled Tai.
Trough all the commotion Takeru was vaguely aware that he and Hikari had been pushed to the very back of the group.
"Are you alright?" mouthed Hikari seeing the faint pink line that had formed where the dagger had been pressed.
He nodded his head keeping his eyes on the dark digimon. He wasn't going to let piedmon take anyone, especially Hikari, hostage.
"Tai, just say it. I haven't turned into to greymon for too long." Pleaded Agumon.
"Yes Matt. Pleasem can i?" agreed Gabumon.
"Do you really think that a couple of champions will defeat me? I'd save your energy, I'm not your apponent."
"Wait, if we aren't fighting you, who are we fighting?" called Joe.
"Why do we always have to fight." Murmered Mimi, shaking her head sadly.
"well yourselves of coarse." Loughed Piedmon.
"Not sure if you remember," said Matt smugly, "you tried making us fight each other and it didn't really work in your favour."
Peidmon gave another hysterical lough. "No , but you will be fighting these little fellows." And with a bombastic action piedmon pulled out a collection of keychains then sent a chill down Hikari's spine. Tiny replicas of her friends and family, exactly like those they had been turned into all those years agoe. To make matters worse there were even minitue figurines of herself, Takeru, Mimi, Palmon and Patamon.
"So what? you have a couple of keychains that look like us, the same trick won't work on us again." Said Sora folding her arms.
"Well little ms sceptical I have you and Datamon for my next trick." With yet another bombastic movement peidmon let go of the 16 little keychains but instead of clattering to the ground as expected, they simply levitated in an orderly line in front of piedmon.
The dark master waved his hands and a dark glow began to radiate out of the figures. It began to increase in intensity until the digidestined and their digimon had no choice but to avert their gave. When the glow finally vanished 16 beings stood before them. The same 16 figures that had stood before Peidmon during that last battle. The digidestined, or a younger version of them and their digimon, now stood before them. They looked identical to how they had looked during their last confrontation with the dark master- Taichi still with his googles, Mimi in her sunhat, Joe carring his overfilled supply bag while izzy, slightly shorter then he was now, carrying his now out-of-date laptop on his back, Matt with his oversized gloves and sora in her helmit-hat,Tk and Hikari still so short that hobbits were their only competition.
"Digital copies!" exclaimed Izzy being the first to comprehend what had just happened.
"But how?" exclaimed tentomon as he inspected his doppleganger from this safe distance.
"It doesn't mater how." Exclaimed Gomomon. "But the why."
"Mimi does my hair always look so wilthing?"whispered Palmon.
"Your hair is fine. Altoguh i can't understand why I ever wore such an outfit." Observed Mimi.
"Girls get your prioritties right." Scodled Biyomon.
"why you say?" said peidmon tilting his head to the side. "For the show! Yes modern television these day has made the 'fight yourself' scenario true a cliché but it never fails to entertain."
"But the copy Datamon had made was only a dummy! It couldn't do anything!" said Matt.
"who are you calling a dummy, blondie?!" shouted the doppleganger Tai.
"Oh these are much more advanced then Datamon's initial primitive copy. These digital copies have been induced with darker versions of your own personalities. I call them the digidestined version 2.0. Impressive, don't you think?" explained Peidmon.
"You still haven't told us why!" yelled Tai.
"oh for the crests of coarse."
"I don't know if you've been updated but we no longer have the crests."
"oh I know you don't have them, they've simply been misplaced. waiting to be found, poor dears."
"Wait, are you saying the crests have taken a physical form again?" gasped Izzy.
"yes, and my digidestined are going to find them and with the power of the crets on my side I will be unstoppable!"
"not if we can help it!" countered tai.
"brave words. But empty. You won't survive for long."
"oh Tai let me at him!" growled Agumon.
"I'm itching to teach this clown a thing or two." Agreed Gatomon.
"oh it wouldn't be fun if we killed you all now. the fun is in dragging it out."
"you sick digimon!" yelled Mimi.
"ta ta for now." loughed Peidmon. "Let the best version win!"
And in apuff of thick purple smoke peidmon and his copies vanished.
"that was totally freaky." Exclaimed Gomomon.
"Takeru are you alright?" asked Matt.
"yeah I'll live." Answer Takeru rubbing his neck, the pink line had all but vanished. "I'm more worried about those copies.
"These… V2s… I wish I knew how they worked, then maybe I could calculate the best way to counter-attack." Said Izzy.
"I think I've had enough of the digital world for one day." Sighed Joe.
"let's get out of here and regroup." Agreed Tai.
The digidestined, clearly weary, left the island and cautiously made their way to thte closest television. They pointed their digivices towords it. There was a beep but nothing else. The gate wouldn't open.
"What's going on?" exclaimed Sora.
"the gate isn't opening!" exclaimed Hikari.
"Izzy?" promoted Tai.
He sadly looked down at his feet. "I left my laptop at the lab."
"we don't need your laptop to figure out what happened." SiadcTakeru kneeing infront of the television. "We've been locked in the didgital world!"