A/N- Hello!!! I'm finally back! I hope you guys are enjoying this so far and I hope Kira got to read her chapter cause this just replaced it! Hehe. If you didn't read it, tell me and I'll put it up again. ;) Anywho, nothing else to say so…on with the show…er, I mean…story. ;D
Chapter 3
Digital Reunion
Rika sat staring at the blackboard. Her Physics teacher was explaining something about the reactions of metals with oxygen and water. Her gaze was becoming unfocused and she could feel herself drifting off. She shook her head and tried to concentrate. But all she could think of was her strange weekend. A card battle with Ryo (which she had one) and a fight with a real Digimon. How strange. Something poked her sharply in the side and Rika was snapped out of her daydream of the battle. She opened her eyes and saw a note on her desk. Her name was written on the front in a very untidy, yet very familiar handwriting. She looked up at Ryo who was pretending to listen to the teacher while he doodled in his book. Rika looked back down at the letter and took it. She opened it and read.
Hey Rika,
Takato and the others wanted to talk to us at the park today. You in?
Ryo
Rika raised an eyebrow at this. Well it was obvious what Takato wanted to talk about. Whoever or whatever this Digimon Murderer was and why the Digimon were looking for it in the real world. Rika glanced at Ryo again. He was looking up at the blackboard with a very bored look in his eyes. She frowned at this. How did he manage to get such high marks in this lesson if he hardly ever paid attention? Rika shook her head and took out her pen. She flipped over the note Ryo had given her and wrote:
Sure, I'm in. Meet me at the pond after school.
Then Rika folded the note, scribbled his name on it and sent it back. She watched as the students passed it around until it finally reached him. Rika grinned to herself.
The wonders of the classroom mailing service, she smirked. Ryo opened the note and read it to himself. He looked over at Rika and gave her a quick nod before he started doodling in his book again. Rika sighed in boredom and picked up her pencil. She pulled out a piece of paper on the pretext of looking for her notes. She looked down at her page and smiled. She had been spending a few days trying to draw this and it was almost done. All she had to do where the ears and the marking under the eyes and her picture of Renamon would be complete. It hadn't been hard to remember exactly what she had looked like. Rika could still remember everything. And to top it off, her feelings that Renamon was nearby were getting stronger. Just yesterday, she had thought she could almost hear her in her head. Like she was talking to her with the connection they shared. But the feeling had gone after her mother had yelled at her for ignoring her.
Rika traced her pencil carefully across the page in zigzagging lines as she drew the purple marks under Renamon's blue eyes. She paused for a moment to admire the effect and then carried on. She moved her hand to the top of the page and traced in the long ears. Finally, she added the zigzags that indicated the white marks on the tips of Renamon's ears. Rika smiled in satisfaction as she looked down at her work. It was a very good likeness and she had managed to get it in the right proportion. Now all she had to do was add the color and she would be done. Rika raised her arm and checked the time on her watch. The bell would go for the end of class in about five minutes.
No use starting now, she thought as she packed away her books. There was a sudden rustling for bags as the entire class followed Rika's example. The teacher, who had started explaining that Copper didn't react in either water or steam, sighed in defeat as the class packed away.
"Don't forget your test tomorrow! I have set the pass mark to ninety percent on this one. Don't groan at me Mitsuki!" He said, his eyes straying to a boy with black hair who had groaned loudly and dropped his head on his table. "Remember, for every one percent below ninety, you will write out the entire table on page one hundred and seventy seven. No excuses! It is simply memorizing so I shouldn't see anything less than the passing rate!" Rika sighed and stood up from her chair as the bell rung.
Great, she thought bitterly. I better get my paper ready cause there is no way I'm gonna pass this one. She looked up and saw Ryo walking over to her.
"I thought I said meet me at the pond," Rika said as she raised an eyebrow at him. Ryo just shrugged and smiled.
"I figured that I'd save us both the walk," he said simply, a grin overtaking his smile. Rika sighed and shook her head at him.
"By the way, do you mind if we go straight there?" She asked as they left the class. Ryo looked down at her curiously.
"Why? Don't you want to change first?" He asked.
"Actually, yes I do. But my mom has been hinting at taking me for another camera test and knowing her, she'll be waiting when I get home," Rika explained. Ryo smiled at her knowingly.
"And you figure that if you get home late she'll have already left. Am I right?" Rika nodded and Ryo grinned.
"Alright Wildcat. If it'll get you out of it, then we'll go straight there." Rika grinned at Ryo and he could see the definite relief in her eyes.
"Thanks, you're a life saver. I've been stalling for a week. I'm hoping she gets the hint and drops it soon," Rika sighed. Ryo cocked an eyebrow at her.
"What have you been telling her all this time?" He asked.
"Well, after the battle with Tuzeremon, I pretty much just had to tell her my leg hurt and she would leave me alone, but the idea is wearing off on her. Yesterday she said that if I was embarrassed about the bandages she would just get me a longer dress," Rika shuddered slightly and Ryo laughed.
"You'll never change will you Rika," he grinned. Rika just shook her head.
"There is no way I'm putting on a dress ever again!" She said sharply. "And to make matters worse, the one she wants me to wear is pink!" Ryo shook his head at her and looked ahead of him again.
*~*~*~*~*~*
As Rika and Ryo walked into the park, they were met by a very disgruntled looking Takato. He was slightly red in the face and by the looks of it; Henry, Kazu and Kenta were trying to calm him down.
"What's the matter with him?" Rika asked as Henry walked over to her and Ryo.
"Something about Jeri," he said. "Apparently, they got in a fight and now she's not talking to him." Rika and Ryo looked at each other curiously. Jeri and Takato had always been best friends and had even started dating recently. Why on earth would they be fighting? Henry looked over at Takato who looked extremely dejected and upset.
"I'll go talk to Jeri," Rika whispered.
"Right, see if you can get her to talk. She won't tell me anything," Henry sighed. Ryo gave Rika a reassuring nod and she walked over to where Jeri was sitting against a tree with her legs pulled up to her chest. She seemed to be in a very bad mood, which was completely out of character for her. No matter how angry Jeri got, she would always hide it and put on a happy face. Whatever this was, it had to be bad.
Rika knelt down beside her.
"You okay?" She asked. Jeri looked up at Rika and sighed.
"No, I just had a fight with Takato and it's all my fault," she said sadly. Rika cocked an eyebrow at this.
"How do you mean?" She asked. Jeri sighed again.
"Well…I, I started my um…you know my…" she trailed off, her face going bright red. Rika however, understood what Jeri was trying to say.
"Oh…when did it happen?" She asked gently. Poor Jeri, this had to be tough on her, especially since she didn't have a mother to help her through it. When it had happened to Rika, her mother had been very sympathetic about the whole thing.
"It started this morning," she whimpered. Rika nodded in understanding.
"So what did you and Takato fight about?" She asked. Jeri sniffed and dropped her gaze.
"It was so stupid. Everything was just peachy at first. Takato was being really nice to me, but then he made a joke and I got all mad and…" She groaned sadly and looked away. Rika smiled at her kindly. She almost felt sorry for Takato.
"Don't worry about it Jeri. You're gonna feel a little moody for a while so try not to take Takato's tactless jokes to seriously. Okay?" Jeri looked up at Rika and smiled weakly.
"Thanks Rika, you're a real friend," she said. Suddenly she jumped and whimpered in pain. Rika looked at her concernedly.
"Does it hurt?" She asked. Jeri nodded quietly.
"Don't worry, it'll pass soon," Rika whispered, putting a comforting hand on Jeri's shoulder. Jeri looked up at Rika curiously.
"How do you know?" She asked.
"I'm a year older than you Jeri. Trust me, I've experienced this before," Rika gave Jeri a slight wink and then stood up. She offered Jeri her hand and when she accepted it, Rika pulled her to her feet.
"Hey," Jeri said, wiping her eyes. "I just noticed, how come you're still wearing your school uniform?" Rika looked down at her white blouse and grey skirt.
"Oh, she laughed. Ryo and I decided to come here straight from school. If I'd gone home first, my mom would've dragged me off for my fashion début." Jeri chuckled and smiled at Rika.
"Come on. I think Goggle-head has had enough torture for one day," Rika smiled. Jeri looked up at her and nodded. Rika walked back over to Ryo and Henry and they watched as Jeri apologized to Takato.
"So what was the problem?" Ryo asked.
"Yeah, what did Takato do this time?" Henry asked.
"I really don't think it's something you would understand," Rika smirked as she watched Jeri and Takato walk over to them.
"Right, now that we've sorted out today's argument, can we discuss what we're here for," Rika said. Takato looked up at Rika and Ryo.
"Well, I was wondering if we could talk about this Digimon Murderer thing," he said.
"I thought so," Ryo grinned. "What do you think it is?"
"That's just it. We haven't got a clue. We thought you guys might have an idea," Henry said.
"Sorry, but we're as clueless on this one as you are," Rika shrugged.
"Well, do you think it might be some kind of Digimon?" Kenta asked.
"Yeah! Like that freaky Tuzeremon!" Kazu grinned. Rika rolled her eyes at them.
"Don't be stupid. If it was a Digimon, then why would Tuzeremon be looking for it here?" She snapped.
"Well it could be," Kenta mumbled.
"I don't know Rika. I think Kazu and Kenta might be right on this one. After all, if one Digimon could come here, then what's to stop more from doing the same? How do we know that this Digimon Murderer isn't a Digimon after all?" Henry said as he cupped his chin in thought.
"No, I think Rika has a point," Ryo said. "If another Digimon Bio-emerged, then our D-tectors would pick up on it. So if there are anymore Digimon in the real world, we would know about them."
"Ryo's right," Takato said. "What if the Digimon Murderer is human?"
"What if it's an alien from outer-space that's come to suck up our brains and its killing Digimon to get stronger," Kazu said excitedly. The Tamers all looked at him incredulously.
"What?" He asked. Rika shook her head at him.
"Anyway, if it is human, then who could it be?" She asked.
"I dunno. Do you think maybe its Yamachi?" Takato suggested.
"No, Yamachi helped us and I'm pretty sure he wouldn't try and destroy the Digimon again," Henry said.
"Last I heard he was using Hypnose to monitor the Digital World. My dad's been working with him a lot lately. He says Yamachi is trying to repair the damage that the D-Reaper caused," Ryo explained.
"Your dad works with Yamachi?" Rika asked. "Why didn't you tell me?" Ryo flashed her his trademark smile.
"Cause you never asked Pumpkin," he grinned. Rika scowled at him.
"This isn't the time you two," Henry said before Rika could retaliate. "Look, we need to find out as much as we can about this Digimon Murderer thing. If it is a Digimon, then it's probably going to be really strong. We need to be prepared." Ryo looked over at Henry.
"If it threatens the Sovereign enough to send more Devas after it, then its probably gonna be to strong for us to handle it alone, even if it's human," he said.
"Ryo's right, we have to get the Digimon back," Rika said.
"How do propose we do that?" Kazu asked sarcastically.
"Yeah, after all, the portal is blocked now and there aren't any more in the city," Kenta said.
"Kazu and Kenta have a good point," Takato sighed. ("For once," Rika muttered.)
"We have no way of getting back into the Digital World and there isn't anyway of contacting the Digimon from here," Takato continued.
"But we still have to try right?" Jeri asked. "I mean, we can't just ignore it if a bunch of Digimon come and wreck the city again."
"Well at the moment there isn't anything we can do about it Jeri. Winning that battle with Tuzeremon was just luck. I don't think we'll be able to beat all the Devas, even if we manage to beat any more at all," Henry looked out of the park. The traffic was getting heavier, which meant it had to be near five-o-clock.
"It's getting late guys. Let's come back tomorrow and we'll talk about it again." Henry looked back at the Tamers who all nodded.
"Can I walk you home Wildcat?" Ryo asked as the others started leaving.
"Sure," Rika said with a shrug. "Hopefully my mom'll have dropped the camera test idea for today. Thanks for helping by the way."
"No problem Wildcat," Ryo smiled. He looked up at the sky, which now had a slight tint of pink to it. It would start getting dark soon. He looked down at Rika, who was staring at the floor as she walked.
"You know, I almost wish another Digimon would Bio-emerge tomorrow," he said. Rika looked up at him curiously.
"Why would you wish that?" She asked. Ryo grinned at her.
"To get us out of that test," he chuckled. Rika laughed and shook her head.
"Fat chance of that happening. Nice thought though…" she said thoughtfully. "I haven't even started learning yet." Ryo raised his eyebrows at her.
"You're nuts, you know that? Mr. Ryumi is gonna have you writing out that table until you're fifty," he exclaimed. Rika shrugged nonchalantly.
"So what, at least that way I'll learn it. Besides, the test really doesn't mean much to my grade anyway." She looked ahead of her and hitched her bag up a little. She suddenly paused for a second as if struck by a sudden thought.
"I have hockey tomorrow," Rika groaned as she started walking again. Ryo looked down at her again.
"What's so bad about that?" He asked.
"Nothing, I'm just not in the mood for it," she said.
"I'm sure you will be by tomorrow. Beside, your team needs you remember?" Rika looked up at Ryo, who was smiling cheekily.
"My team doesn't need that much work. I'll have you know that we're still undefeated this season," Rika said defiantly.
"Ha, that's all gonna change tomorrow," Ryo smirked.
"And why is that?" Rika asked shortly. Ryo grinned at her cheekily.
"Because, in case you've forgotten, tomorrow is the match between my team and yours," he chuckled. Rika's eyes widened.
"It's tomorrow? I thought it was scheduled for next week!" She said in shock. Ryo shrugged lightly at this.
"Change of plans," he said simply.
"Okay, so maybe I am in the mood for hockey," Rika smirked. "Cause I can't wait to wipe the floor with your team." Ryo laughed at this.
"You can try, but my team doesn't exactly play nice, if you know what I mean," he said as he grinned at her.
"And you think mine does?" Rika laughed.
"We'll see tomorrow then," Ryo said challengingly.
"Sure thing Hero-boy," Rika grinned as they stopped at her front gate. She pulled it open and stepped inside before shutting it again. "Just do one thing for me."
"What's that Wildcat?" Ryo asked. Rika grinned cheekily.
"Tell me what its like to find yourself on your back," she laughed and turned to walk into her house. Ryo chuckled and shook his head.
"Goodnight Rika," he called. She waved at him and stepped into her house. Ryo laughed quietly to himself and headed for his own house. The sky had become a little darker now, but the sun was still out and it had turned the once pale blue sky into a fiery pink. One or to stars dotted the dark blue that was looming threateningly over the pink and purple, but the lights in the city would drown out most of the others.
Rika sighed as she slipped of her school shoes and stepped onto the landing in her entrance hall.
"I'm home," she called.
"Your mother wants to speak to you Rika," said Rika's grandmother as she walked out of the kitchen.
"If it's about the camera test, then I have nothing to talk to her about," Rika said flatly. Her grandmother sighed in defeat.
"Okay, I'll tell her, but she's not going to like it," she said. Rika watched her grandmother walk away and then turned to go to her room. As she shut her bedroom door behind her, she was suddenly knocked back into it. Rika looked down in surprise to find Blizzard leaning up against her, her tail wagging furiously.
"What are you doing in my room?" Rika scowled. Blizzard cocked her head at Rika. Rika's eyes softened slightly.
"I guess you're kinda cute," she mumbled. Blizzard barked happily as Rika rubbed her head.
"Okay, okay. Now get off me," Rika said as she shoved the puppy away from her. Blizzard jumped around Rika's legs as she tired to get to her wardrobe. She changed into her jeans and blue-sleeved shirt and left her room, Blizzard bounding after her happily. Rika walked into the kitchen where her grandmother was busy making dinner. Rumiko was sitting at the table reading a magazine, a very irritated look on her face. She looked up as Rika walked over to her grandmother to see what she was cooking.
"I'd like to have a word with you young lady," she said sternly.
"About what?" Rika asked in annoyance, even though she knew perfectly well what is was her mother wanted to talk about.
"You've been avoiding me for three days Rika. I just want you to try being a model. This is your one chance to be as famous and successful as I am and your not even giving it a chance," Rumiko said in exasperation. Rika turned to her and crossed her arms.
"I don't want to be a model mother. You know I don't, but you keep pressing me. And frankly I couldn't care about being famous or successful. I don't want to be like you," she said hotly. Rumiko looked slightly dazed at this. But she recovered enough to glare furiously at Rika.
"I just want you to try it Rika. It won't kill you!" She shouted.
"Well I don't want to try it! And if you ever make me stand in front of those stupid camera's again, I'll do more than just give the camera-man a black eye!" She yelled back. Blizzard cowered under the table at Rika's harsh tone. Rumiko was about to retaliate when her mother stepped in.
"That's enough! Both of you are acting like children!" She said sharply. Rika back off a little and crossed her arms angrily. She turned away from her mother and stared at the floor. Rumiko stood up and promptly left the room. Rika's grandmother sighed heavily and turned back to the stove.
"I told you she'd get angry Rika," she said as Rika sat down at the table.
"I know, but I just wish she would just leave me alone about it," Rika sighed. "I'm not like her grandma, I don't want to be a model and she knows it. She's trying to turn me into her." Rika's grandmother turned around and looked at Rika.
"She just wants you to have something in common with her sweetheart. But you're so different. I think the only thing you have in common with her is your hot temper…and your eyes," she said softly.
"And it's going to stay that way, cause I'm never going to be a model," Rika said as she looked up at her grandmother. "Not even for her."
*~*~*~*~*~*
Rika stood on the hockey field in her annoyingly short, grey hockey skirt and her white sleeveless cotton shirt. Her Surridge hockey stick twirled absently in her hands as she waited for the whistle to blow, signaling the start of the match. She could almost feel the eyes of all the boys on Ryo's team as they stared at her. If it weren't for the fact that she was having a staring contest with Ryo and that she was wearing black ski-pants, she would have found this really annoying. Ryo was grinning at her, willing her to blink, but Rika was stubborn and she refused to give in. Her eyes were watering now as the wind blew into them. Suddenly, she blinked and Ryo laughed in triumph.
"Ha! I win Wildcat!" Hew said teasingly. Rika scowled at him and looked around her. All the boys were still staring at her. She grinned to herself.
Perfect, she thought. They'll be so busy trying to look up our skirts; they won't pay much attention to the match. She chuckled lightly to herself. She looked up at the crowd. Her grandmother was standing at the side of the field…alone.
Typical, mom's probably at another stupid fashion show, Rika thought bitterly. She looked back at Ryo. He was standing directly in front of her. They were both captains and both centers. It was up to them to start the game and claim possession of the ball for their teams. The small white ball was placed in between them and as the referee backed away, she blew a short blast on her whistle. Rika immediately swung her stick low and hard. The ball shot to her side and a girl with a long blonde braid stopped it and ran forward. Rika moved as fast as she could to the other end of the field. Ryo was tailing her; ready to stop her if the ball got to close to her. The blonde girl passed the ball to a girl with lots of freckles, but one of the boys picked it up and ran back to the goals. The teams were shouting encouragement and orders to their teammates as they fought for possession of the ball. Rika swiped her stick viciously at the boy who had the ball, aiming directly for his ankles and he jumped out of the way. Rika took her chance and claimed the ball. Hitting it as hard as she could, she watched as it shot passed four boys before one of her teammates picked it up.
"Cover her!" One of the boys shouted. Rika ran out of the way of one of the boys who had moved to block her. She was now standing near the goals, waiting for the ball. The path was open, her teammate hit the ball and Rika claimed it. She ran closer to the goals, swung back her stick and flung it back at the ball. Just before she made contact, she was thrown backwards as a body flew head on into her. She fell back, sprawled on the grass. The boy who had tackled her was lying on top of her and his head was lying high up on her chest, pressing hard on the bulge under her shirt. They were both winded and had both lost their sticks. Rika looked up to see that the ball had swung wildly away from the goal box. Breathing heavily, she looked at who had knocked her over. And there, staring at her with a stupid grin on his face…was Ryo. His team was cheering him on for his daring and very stupid act.
"Nice one Ryo!" One of them called.
"You having fun with our captain darling?" Another laughed. The boys broke into heavy laughter. Rika's face went bright red and she shoved Ryo off her. She got up and looked around for her stick.
"Here." Rika looked up and saw Ryo holding out her stick. She snatched it, adjusted her skirt and furiously shoved past him. One of the girls gave the ball to Rika. The referee had ordered a penalty shot to the girls for an obstruction. Rika put the ball down in front of the goals. The goalie wasn't allowed to move until Rika had hit the ball. She took a step back and in one fluid motion, she went down on one knee and swiped her stick at the ball. The side of her stick connected with the hard surface of the ball and it shot forward. The goalie dived at it as it flew for the goals. He missed and the ball hit the back of the goal with a loud bang. It bounced back and landed on the ground behind Rika. She turned and glared at Ryo.
Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time, he thought. He watched as Rika stalked past him, her furious glare still in place. The faced each other again at the center of the filed. The ball was placed in between them. They were staring at each other. Rika furiously and Ryo apologetically. The sparks were flying. The tension was building. The whistle rang across the field and Ryo took the ball. He passed it to his right half. The boy ran with it for a few feet then shot it one of his teammates. In a blast of newfound energy, born from her rage, Rika intercepted the ball less than a foot away from the boy who had meant to get the ball and turned three hundred and sixty degrees to avoid him. Then she hit the ball as hard as she could and it flew across the field. Ryo stopped it and sent it to another boy. Rika growled at him and waited as the rest of the two teams battled for control. Suddenly, the ground shook and there was a loud bang. Rika stumbled and had to lean on her hockey stick to stop herself from falling. She looked up and her eyes widened with horror. A giant digital field was forming on the soccer field and it was getting bigger with every passing second. Rika looked over at Ryo and they both nodded. Anger and guilt aside, they both sprinted off the hockey field. Rika ran at top speed to her backpack and grabbed her D-Tector from inside it. Ryo snatched his own and the two of them ran to the soccer field. The soccer boys were running back towards the school and Rika and Ryo had a hard time getting through the crowd they had formed. AS they got nearer the cloud, Rika abruptly stopped. Her eyes were wide and she looked slightly out of breath. Ryo looked at her worriedly.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"It's Renamon!" Rika said in a kind of breathless whisper. "I can feel her!" Without another word, Rika ran into the digital field. Ryo watched her, slightly shocked at her words, but he regained his composure and followed Rika into the Digital Field. He looked around and saw Rika standing just a little way away from her. He ran over to her and looked around. There didn't seem to be anything there. Rika was holding up her D-Tector and the info display was revolving with an odd whirring beep.
"I don't get it. There's nothing here," she said as she looked up. Ryo lifted his own D-Tector and held it out as the round info display appeared. Suddenly, a blur shot past him and he stumbled back. A picture formed on his D-Tector and he looked down at it eagerly.
"Ghiuramon," he read aloud. Rika looked over to him. "A Virus Beast type. His special attacks are Hell Fire and Meteor Strike. Oh great, he's an Ultimate!" Rika moved closer to Ryo as the blur dashed past her.
"This could be bad," Rika muttered. They stood there in anticipation, when a voice suddenly boomed across the field.
"Pitiful humans! Did you really think that you could defeat me alone?" Rika and Ryo turned towards the voice. A giant form loomed out of the hazy cloud. Rika and Ryo both stepped back as the Digimon advanced on them. He was even taller than Tuzeremon had been and he looked much stronger. His body was humanoid, but his face was that of an eagle. His arms were long and muscular and long strips of green fabric were tied around them, the loose ends hanging down to his hands. His fur-covered skin was deep crimson and his long eagle wings were a darkish brown. His legs were long and human-like but he had eagles claws for feet and long black talons tipped his long toes. His face was the same crimson as his body and his beak was yellow tipped with black. His most striking features were his deep green eyes that seemed to radiate hatred and fire.
"Do you fear me so much?" He asked with a slight chuckle as he watched them back away. "It is wise to fear what you know will defeat you." Ghiuramon laughed out loud and raised his arms. A huge ball of blackish fire formed in between his hands. In the midst of the flames was a massive boulder.
"Meteor Strike!" He shouted. He threw the meteor through the air and it flew at Rika and Ryo. Rika shut her eyes as she waited for her definite death. Suddenly, she felt to arms close around her and then she was flying through the air. She felt herself land hard on the ground, with something covering her body. Rika opened her eyes and looked up. Her eyes widened slightly. She was being shielded by a thick mass of yellow and white fur.
"Are you alright?" Asked a very familiar voice; one Rika hadn't heard in over one and a half years. She nodded numbly and accepted the hand that was offered to her to help her stand. Rika stared at Renamon wide-eyed. Before she could stop herself, Rika had thrown her arms around Renamon's neck and was hugging her tightly. Renamon smiled lightly and hugged Rika back.
"I knew I could feel your presence Renamon. It's so good to see you again!"
"It is good to see you too Rika, but we have a battle to fight now." She released Rika and turned to Ghiuramon. He was fending off another form that was moving very quickly and with incredible skill. The form jumped out of the way of an attack and swiped its claws through the air.
"Desolation Claw!" Rika watched as Cyberdramon's hands glowed green. He brought them together and hundreds of blasts erupted from them. Ryo moved over to Rika.
"You okay?" He asked, not taking his eyes off of his Digimon partner.
"Yeah," Rika said. Renamon had joined in the fray now and was using her 'Diamond Storm' attack on Ghiuramon.
"Hell Fire!" A massive explosion engulfed the entire area. Rika and Ryo covered their eyes and turned away from the bright light. The dust settled and Rika looked back at the battlefield. Renamon was nowhere in sight and neither was Cyberdramon.
No, Rika thought in distress. She can't be gone. Not so soon!
"Rika, I'm still here," said a strained voice. Rika looked down and found Renamon at her feet. Rika dropped to her knees and knelt beside her friend.
"He's too strong," Renamon whispered.
"Then we'll just have to fight him together," Rika said determinately. Renamon looked up at her and nodded. She struggled to her feet and turned to Rika. Rika looked over at Ryo, who was helping Cyberdramon to his feet. He turned to her and nodded. Rika looked down at her D-Tector and took a deep breath.
"Bio-merge activate!" A bright blue light burst from Rika's D-Tector and devoured her body. She was raised off the ground as the blue light disintegrated all that she wore. Her body floated down to Renamon's and they merged into one life force.
"Renamon Bio-merge to…" Images of Renamon's different digivolutions flashed in front of her as her form changed into a humanoid like state. Her hair became long and it tied itself back. A mask formed over her face and clothes covered her majestic body. She jumped into the air and flipped over. As she landed, she spun on the spot and swung her staff to her back.
"…Sakuyamon!" Rika sighed happily as she felt Renamon's strength flow through her. She felt free and totally content. She opened her eyes and looked over to where Ryo had Bio-merged with Cyberdramon to form Justimon.
"You ready pumpkin?" Ryo asked teasingly.
"When have I ever not been?" Rika grinned. "And stop calling me that!"
"Whatever you say princess," Ryo chuckled and as Justimon, he turned to face Ghiuramon.
"All right firebrand, I think it's time you cooled off." Justimon raised his arm and it changed into a flat palm with four widespread fingers.
"Thunder Clap!" He shouted and he smacked his hand to the ground. A streak of lightning sped towards Ghiuramon.
"This pigeon's sung his last tune," Sakuyamon said. She raised herself up in the air and spread her arms.
"Amethyst wind!" Hundreds of light purple petals swirled through the air in a wind that seemed oddly calm. Both attacks hit Ghiuramon full on and he stumbled backwards.
"Filthy beasts. How dare you attack me!" He straightened himself and raised his arms again. Another meteor started forming in his hands.
"Quick!" Ryo called. "Attack him while he's still charging up!"
"Right!" Sakuyamon flew up higher in the air. "Amethyst Madonna!" Another wave of lilac petals whirled through the air, this time in a stronger gust f wind. Justimon twisted in the air and came down in a blaze of light.
"Justice Kick!" His outstretched foot connected sharply with the side Of Ghiuramon's eagle-like head. He roared in pain and his attack disappeared. Justimon jumped out of the way as Sakuyamon's attack exploded as it hit Ghiuramon. Justimon landed neatly beside Sakuyamon, his two red capes fluttering in the wind of Sakuyamon's attack. Ghiuramon dropped to his knees. He was breathing heavily and he was badly hurt. He looked up at Justimon and Sakuyamon hatefully. In one last burst of energy he pulled back his head and opened his mouth wide.
"Hell Fire!" His attack exploded from his mouth in a fiery blaze. Sakuyamon and Justimon were thrown back, but Ghiuramon was so weak that his attack did very little damage. He fell back and screeched in pain.
"You may have defeated me, but my brothers will avenge me. We shall defeat the Digimon Murderer and do our master's bidding!" As he spoke, his body started disintegrating. Sakuyamon and Justimon de-digivolved in a flash of light and watched Ghiuramon disappear. Rika walked over to Renamon and grinned.
"How did you get here?" She asked.
"When we heard that the Sovereign were sending out another Deva to the real world, Cyberdramon and I decided to follow him," Renamon explained.
"We used the portal he created to travel back here," Cyberdramon added with a growl.
"Good thinking buddy," Ryo laughed as he patted Cyberdramon's arm. The Digital field disappeared and Rika and Ryo looked around. The entire sports field was devoid of people, except for a small group of children who had been watching the fight. They ran over to Rika and Ryo. Rika watched as Takato and the rest of the Tamers stared at them.
"Renamon…Cyberdramon," Takato looked between them and grinned. "Nice to see ya."
"Did any of the other Digimon come back with you?" Jeri asked. Renamon smiled at her.
"Just one," she looked back as a small white digimon with big green eyes and oversized purple-tipped ears ran over to them. It jumped into Jeri's arms and hugged her happily.
"Hi there Jeri! Did you miss me?"
"Calumon!" Jeri said happily. She hugged him back and laughed.
"What about Giulmon and the others?" Takato asked.
"Yeah, where's MarineAngemon?" Kenta asked.
"And Guardromon too?" Kazu added. Renamon and Cyberdramon looked at each other grimly.
"I'm afraid we all got separated after we returned to the Digital world. It was merely chance that Cyberdramon and I found each other," Renamon said as she dropped her head. Cyberdramon growled at Calumon.
"I would rather we had not found this annoying pest," he said in annoyance.
"Hey! You're a big meany-weany! I am not a pest!" Calumon said defiantly. The Tamers all laughed at this.
"Come on guys, we should get you somewhere out of the open," Henry said to the two Digimon.
"How about we go to my house?" Takato offered. "We can all have something to eat there." Calumon's eyes widened excitedly.
"Ooh, can we have creampuffs?" He said eagerly. Takato chuckled at him.
"You can have all the creampuffs you want Calumon." Calumon jumped out of Jeri's arms and hopped onto Rika's head.
"Oh happy day for Calumon, he gets creampuffs and big buns!" He sang happily. The Tamers chuckled at him and left the field, being careful not to be seen. Even though everyone knew about Digimon, it would probably cause mass hysteria if anymore were seen.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Rika lay on her mattress, her arms behind her head, staring at the ceiling.
"Renamon?" She called softly. Renamon appeared in the corner of the room, near the door that led to the back yard.
"Yes Rika?" She said quietly. Rika turned in her bed to look at her. She smiled at Renamon happily.
"I'm really glad your back," she said truthfully. Renamon smiled at Rika warmly.
"I am too Rika. I am too."
*~*~*~*~*~*
A/N- So what did you guys think? Did you like it? I think this is my longest chapter so far! (^_^) Anywho, I hope you guys like my story so far. I've generally been getting a good response so I take you do. ; ) Thanks for all your reviews and about the last chapter…I would have emailed it to you, Kira, but like I said before, the only time I get to go onto the internet is if I do something really good, when my mother bribes me with it or when I update my stories. And that isn't very often. ^_^
Luv you guys! I'll start the next chapter soon!