"A Molehill Out of a Mountain"
Here is the next chapter. Please enjoy and review!
In a digimon village, the Warriors had gone into a restaurant for food while Daisuke stayed outside to look at the other digimon with Bokomon and Neemon.
"WHAT?! No money? OUT!" someone yelled.
The others were then thrown out, literally thrown, by a gold beetle looking digimon who stood in the doorway.
"Please come back…when you're not just a bunch of deadbeats!" he said.
"But we're really hungry and we do have money. See, right here." Zoe said as she pulled out her wallet and showed off her money, but he just scoffed and closed the paper door.
"You have money? Let me see it." Bokomon said as he came up to the whining girl.
She showed it to him and he took the coins, looking them over with a frown.
"You call this stuff money? Frankly, I would have thrown you out that restaurant too." Bokomon said as he threw them down.
The humans exclaimed as Zoe started gathering up her money.
"So what's money like in the Digital World? You're so smart, how do we get our hands on some huh?" JP asked.
"Ah, it's simple. Stop being so lazy and go to work." Bokomon said.
"How're we supposed to get jobs when we're saving the Digital World? We can't do the two at the same time." Daisuke stated.
"She's right, she's right." Neemon chirped in an annoying way that earned him getting his pants snapped by Bokomon.
"Can't you just lend us some?" Tommy asked.
"Yeah, hand it over." Takuya and JP smiled as they held their hands out for the digi dollars.
Bokomon dug into his waist band for his pouch making the humans all smile and laugh happily.
"Big bucks." Zoe smiled with her hands clasped to her cheek.
Sadly, Bokomon held it upside down to show that only dirt was in it.
"As you can see, I'm without funds as well." He said making the humans all whine sadly as their stomachs demanded food.
"Now come on you nincompoops, follow me." Bokomon said as he started walking, but stopped making Neemon smack into him when he heard the loud wailing and whining.
"It's time to go." Bokomon said.
"That's not going." Neemon said.
All five of the Warriors had fallen to their knees or bottoms looking worn out from lack of food and water.
"We're still hungry." Zoe said.
"Yeah, we gotta eat something." Takuya said.
"Anything." Tommy said.
JP stopped wailing when he spotted a sign up ahead of them.
"Hey you guys. Take a look at that." He said pointing at the sign and everyone looked over at it.
"Heroes wanted. All your meals for free? Rock solid!" JP said.
That gave them energy to jump back to their feet.
"I'm brave enough to eat." Takuya cheered.
"Wait, why would someone be offering free food?" Daisuke asked.
"Who cares? Let's eat!" Takuya cheered.
He then grabbed his sister as he, Tommy, Zoe and JP trampled over Bokomon and Neemon as they rushed over to the stand to find some snail looking digimon who looked a bit depressed.
"Hey there. We're heroes." Takuya said making the three snails smile happily as hope filled their red eyes.
(Later…)
"There is no way I'm getting in that thing." Daisuke said defiantly with her arms crossed.
"Come on D. Ya gotta be brave." Takuya said trying to coax her.
"There's brave and there's stupid. This is stupid!" the little girl said.
"Get in here, you twerp!" Takuya said, grabbing her and dragging her into the mining cart.
"There's the train." Takuya said when he heard the whistle.
"Duh." JP said.
"Shouldn't we hide?" Zoe asked as the train got closer.
They then ducked down from the bushes, hiding properly.
"I wish we knew what these guys wanted us to do." Takuya said, getting a glare from his sister.
"Relax; I'm sure they have a good plan." Zoe assured.
As she said this, the cart was pulled out of the bushes to reveal that the KaratsukiNumemon had tied the ropes from the cart to the train and it was going along the tracks now into the tunnel that had a few torches to light their way.
"I hope all their plans aren't as crazy as this one." Takuya said.
The Karatsukis then came over to them and started to tell them why they needed help.
"One day a mean creature named Grumblemon attacked. We're peaceful. We can't fight him by ourselves." KaratsukiNumemon1 said making Takuya nod in understanding.
"He demanded our mountain's Fractal Code and we told him we don't even know where it is but he thinks we're lying so that's why we need you heroes." KaratsukiNumemon2 said.
Trailmon gave off a loud sound as they came out of the tunnel.
"Don't worry; we'll take care of him, right guys?" Takuya asked.
"Right." Zoe said.
"I guess." Tommy said.
"Whatever." JP said.
"I still think something is weird here." Daisuke said.
"Boys, I'm not sure I understand this, why can't he just take the Fractal Code?" Zoe asked the snails.
"We already talked about this. As I said, the source of all energy in the Digital World is data. Everything; mountains, rivers, villages. Everything that is solid matter is made of energy so it has Fractal Code. Only in some places the Code is out in the open and in some places it's hidden. Try to remember that." Bokomon lectured.
"I'm afraid there's more of our story to tell. Grumblemon took all of our women to trade for the mountain's Fractal Code." KaratsukiNumemon1 said.
"That's horrible." Tommy said.
"Man, guys can sure be jerks sometimes. So that's why you wanted our help? To save your women?" Zoe asked.
"Yes." KarastsukiNumemon1 nodded.
"Just leave everything to us." JP said.
"We are in your dept. heroes." The snails bowed.
"All right, now about that chow…" JP said.
"Uh oh." Neemon whimpered.
"Hold on. You want us to ride through that in this?" Takuya asked.
Up ahead the tracks had turned into those that a rollercoaster would have with many loops and swerves.
"ARE YOU SNAILS INSANE?!" Takuya yelled as everyone screamed when the ride started.
Screaming was heard and echoed all around the area as the group held onto the cart or digimon and people inside so they didn't fall out through the different loops and such.
"At least this track is slowing down!" Takuya yelled when they went up hill.
"No, we're speeding up!" Tommy yelled back.
"How's this thing on the tracks?" Takuya asked.
"Actually, I don't think it is." KaratsukiNumemon1 said.
This made them all scream louder.
The cart then titled off the track and they all fell out, grabbing hold of the wooden fence that was upside down on the mountain along with a village so the group wouldn't plummet to their death.
"I told you it was a stupid idea!" Daisuke yelled.
"That wasn't so bad." Zoe said.
"What's your definition of bad?" JP asked.
"Falling off of this cliff." Zoe yelled.
"CLIFF?!" JP yelped.
"Come on heroes, what are you all waiting for?" KaratsukiNumemon1 asked.
"Are you kidding me?! Sticking to the side of a mountain may be easy for you guys, but one slip and we're gravel pancakes." JP said making them all look down at the death drop below them, Tommy and Daisuke grabbing hold of each other.
"Just how do you propose we get up to you? We can't cling to walls." Zoe called up to the snails.
A rope ladder was then tossed down to them, the snails holding the other end.
"Climb up you guys. It's fun." KaratsukiNumemon1 said.
"Oh, I'm learning a bunch of new definitions of." JP whined as Takuya started going up first.
"Come on." He said as Tommy followed him, then it was Daisuke, Bokomon and Neemon.
While they were going up, Daisuke heard arguing and everyone paused to see JP and Zoe arguing.
"SICKO!" the blonde yelled as she slapped the male across the face making him yell.
Sharing confused looks, the others just kept on going.
"You're almost there." KaratsukiNumemon encouraged from inside the house they were supposed to climb to.
"That's great." Takuya forced a smile as he went up.
"Huh? Who's that? Hey, wait!" Tommy called when he saw the shadow of a figure from the window that had the curtains closed.
"Yes!" Takuya cheered, but then yelped as he was hit over the head.
"OW! Hey, what the-? Huh, you're here?" he asked looking at his assailant.
Curious to whom her brother was speaking to, Daisuke crawled up to look, but yelped as she fell through the paper curtains, only to be caught by the person on the other side.
Chocolate then met sapphire making the girl smile.
"Hey Koji." She greeted.
He gave a crooked grin, but lost it when the others all piled up on Takuya to look inside the house.
"You're the people these guys found to help out?" Koji asked.
"Koji." JP said.
"Yeah, none of us could find any food either." Takuya said.
"Hey, don't lump me in with you guys. These kids aren't going to be able to help you out at all." Koji said to the snails.
"I'll help you right upside the head." Takuya growled.
"Well, at least give us a chance." Tommy said.
"Thanks, but no thanks, I mean, look at you. The only thing you guys would do is get in my way. Can I help it if you're not up to my level? The only one of you who would be of any help is Daisuke while the rest of you are useless." Koji said nonchalantly making the girl in his arms blush.
"Watch it stick boy or I'll-"Takuya was cut off.
"Gentlemen, please, my thanks to all of you for coming to help, and now it's time to eat." the snail looking digimon with a mustache told them.
"All right, time to chow down!" Takuya and the others cheered.
They then all fell in the house in a dog-pile, crying out in shock and pain.
Koji looked at the young girl he set down beside him.
"Remind me again why you're with them?" he asked.
"Takuya's my brother and my mom would kill him if he lost me." she responded.
"Little too late for that." Koji muttered.
(Later…)
They were given colorful cabbages to eat which stunned them.
"Is that what I think it is?" Takuya asked.
"I don't know. Looks like rabbit food." JP whined.
"Well, at least rabbits get to eat." Zoe said as she took a red cabbage to the boys' surprise.
"Here goes nothing." She then took a bite and smiled.
"Moto bono, dig in. Tastes like steak." She said confusing everyone as they took a cabbage and tried it too.
"Fried shrimp, yum." Daisuke smiled.
"Mine tastes like chicken." JP said.
"Mine's like a potato." Tommy said.
"Mine's just like asparagus." Takuya said making everyone exclaim in disgust.
"I like asparagus." He pouted at them all, then looked over to Koji who was sitting alone in the corner.
Daisuke looked at him sadly as he sat there with his back to them all.
"How'd he get here anyway?" Takuya asked.
"Oh, he fell from the sky." The leader said.
"He what?!" Takuya asked.
"He fell." The leader repeated.
Standing up, Daisuke walked over to Koji as everyone watched silently, the Warrior of Light looking at her as she sat down beside him and sent him a smile before she started eating again.
Seeing that she wasn't going to bother him, Koji went back to eating as well.
(Later on…)
"Grumblemon has the captives in a cave. It's right about…here. We'll have to get in and out quickly." Koji said as everyone sat around the map of the mountain.
The Karatsukis all whined in despair.
"Just relax." JP smiled at them making the snails calm down and smiled.
"Have no fear, leave everything to us Legendary Warriors." He gloated making the snails cry out in fear and back away from the confused group.
"What's the matter?" Zoe asked.
"You mean all of you…are Legendary Warriors?" the leader asked.
"Yeah, in the flesh." Takuya smiled.
The snails all gathered around to talk which confused the group.
"Hey, what got them so worked up?" Tommy asked.
"Believe me; I had trouble believing you're Legendary Warriors too." Bokomon said.
"I bet they're in awe of us." JP said.
"Ah hem. It's time to go to bed." The leader said as all of the snails looked to be sweating as they gave nervous smiles.
"And I say it's time for us to rescue the girls." Takuya said standing.
"Uh, no, no. Get some rest first and then you can tackle the job in the morning." The leader insisted.
"Huh? Uh, OK." Takuya said.
The group were offered the beds, but they were on the wall, so the Warriors and their digimon friends slept on a pile of leaves on the floor, Koji and Takuya sleeping with Daisuke between them.
Hours later, Daisuke was woken up by the sound of yelling and opened her eyes to see that she was tied to the side of a mountain with the others while the Karatsukis were above them where their ropes were tied.
"What's going on here?" Zoe asked.
"You don't wanna know." JP said.
"What are you doing?" Koji demanded.
"We'll give you back to your partner in exchange for our women." The leader said as the snails glared down at them.
"You dirty sneaks! Is that why you brought us here?" Takuya demanded.
"Humph. I think it is you who are the dirty sneaks pretending to be caring, helpful strangers when you're really Legendary Warriors." The leader said.
"I don't understand. What's wrong with that?" Zoe asked.
"The time for your games and lies is over. Soon you'll be back with your ally." The leader said.
"Ally? What are you talking about?" Koji asked.
"Don't play dumb, we know you're in league with Grumblemon!" he yelled down at them.
"WHAT?" the Warriors cried.
When the KaratsukiNumemon finished his sentence, something blasted a hole in the side of the mountain.
"Give me fractal code, or bad things be happen." said whatever blasted the hole in the mountain side.
"Oh yeah, says who?" Takuya yelled, making his sister glare at him.
"Moron, we're about to find out." she said.
"Be me, and you say me too, once you know who I am. You call me Grumblemon." it answered Takuya, revealing a troll-like creature with a large nose.
"Look at that symbol." Zoe told her friends, once she saw the mark on his armor.
"He's also a Legendary Warrior!" Takuya exclaimed in surprise.
"Give fractal code, or else, you no wanna see what or else see!" Grumblemon told the KaratsukiNumemon.
"I didn't realize there were bad Legendary Warriors." Bokomon stated from beside Neemon.
"Why for human yo-yo's?" Grumblemon asked.
"Grumblemon, if you want to save your allies, give us back our women now!" the KaratsukiNumemon demanded, bringing knives close to the ropes everyone was hanging from.
"Those knives are a little close there!" JP said in fright, causing everyone to look up and scream out in panic, all except for Koji and Daisuke.
"What so? Me no care what happen to weak human things." Grumblemon pointed at everyone as he said this, causing the KaratsukiNumemon to bring the knives closer to the ropes, causing everyone to panic, except for Koji, who looked like he was thinking.
"Wait, you mean you really don't care about them? But they're Legendary Warriors too!" the KaratsukiNumemon questioned Grumblemon, who was rubbing his nose.
"Huh, this weakling be Legendary Warriors? Me think somebody got their hands on some Spirits and took them when they shouldn't have. Now me put my hands on you and take them right back, so..." Grumblemon stated, taking a hammer out.
"Where'd that come from?" Daisuke asked.
"Wait, what's going on here, you mean you aren't allies?" the KaratsukiNumemon asked in shock.
"That's what we've been trying to tell you!" Tommy cried.
Grumblemon slammed the hammer against the mountain side, making everyone dodge it, but it still freaked all of them quake it made caused the snails to drop the knives and Koji took this as an advantage. He pushed himself off of the wall and his rope cut.
He started falling, then quickly pulled out his D-Tector.
"EXECUTE! SPIRIT EVOLUTION!" he yelled.
"LOBOMON!"
Lobomon grabbed his rope and then swung at Grumblemon, kicking him away and broke into a house where they started fighting.
Feeling a tug on their ropes, the others saw the snails pull them up and then untied them.
"I'm sorry, I have made a grave mistake." The leader said.
"Look, there's no time for that now, but later…" Takuya stopped when they saw Grumblemon and Lobomon falling and broke through another house, then Lobomon ended up hanging onto it so he wouldn't drop to his death.
Daisuke watched in worry as she saw Grumblemon was stomping on the wolf's hands, trying to get him to let go.
"Lobomon!" Zoe called.
"We have to Spirit Evolve too." Takuya said.
"Execute: Spirit Evolution!"
"AGUNIMON!"
"SAKUYAMON!"
"BEETLEMON!"
"KAZEMON!"
"KUMAMON!"
As Grumblemon was about to hit Lobomon with his hammer, Beetlemon grabbed it.
"Careful, you could hurt someone with this." Beetlemon said.
He then flew up; dragging the Warrior of Earth with him as Sakuyamon quickly went down into the house with Kazemon and Kumamon following her.
"Lobomon, hurry, take my hand." The fox said.
His red eyes looked up at her mask that covered her eyes, but he swore he saw sky blue eyes there.
"Lobomon, please." She said making him lift his arm up and take her hand as she pulled him up.
"Thanks." He said making her smile.
"OK guys, here's the plan. While Sakuyamon and I are fighting Grumblemon, you free the captives and get all the KaratsukiNumemon someplace safe. Got it?" Lobomon asked.
"You bet." Kumamon said as Kazemon nodded.
Kazemon grabbed Kumamon and flew out to rescue the captives while Lobomon and Sakuyamon jumped out to go join Agunimon and Beetlemon who were looking around.
"What's wrong now?" Lobomon asked.
"We don't know where Grumblemon is." Agunimon answered.
"You don't know?" Lobomon demanded.
Above them, Grumblemon came out of the mountain and Agunimon jumped up to get him while Lobomon pointed his laser at him.
"You trying to get shot?" the wolf asked as the salamander got in his way.
Grumblemon then hit Agunimon, sending him down.
"You should've just let me handle it." Lobomon said.
"Agunimon!" Sakuyamon called to her brother, who grabbed onto the rope ladder, only to have Grumblemon poke out of the mountain and try to hit Agunimon.
Growling, Sakuyamon jumped down and punched Grumblemon in the face before her flower petals appeared around her as he tried to hit her with his hammer.
"Maybe flowers aren't so useless after all." Agunimon said as Grumblemon ducked away.
Beetlemon also flew down and grabbed Agunimon to fly back up with him while Sakuyamon floated up with her flower petals.
"Now where are you?" Lobomon asked.
"You want guess?" Grumblemon asked making the wolf look behind him and got hit and sent down, but was caught by Sakuyamon and joined Agunimon on the ladder as the rain started to come down.
"Careful, it's slick." Neemon said from the wooden fence with Bokomon.
"You don't need to tell us." Agunimon said.
"Whoa, look at that." Beetlemon said as he flew over to see waves of mud falling down the mountain.
The three flightless Warriors clung to the ladder as they watched the Warrior of Thunder as he flew off, then Grumblemon came out of the mountain to hit him, but Beetlemon dodged and used his Thunder Fist on the mountain.
"Nice shot, dorkus." Grumblemon laughed.
The mountain shook making him look up at the boulders that started to fall down on him in a landslide making him fall down.
"Nice job." Agunimon praised.
"It was, wasn't it? But what about the captives?" Beetlemon asked as Kazemon flew over holding Kumamon.
"Over there." Kumamon pointed over to the mountain far off to where the snails were located.
"Boy, it sure must be nice to be back to your family. Hey, what's that?" Beetlemon said.
The eruption he caused had revealed the data that was hidden in the mountain making them all stare at it.
"It must be the mountain's Fractal Code." Kazemon said.
Grumblemon then poked out of the mountain where the Code was making them all gasp.
"Oh no, Grumblemon." Kazemon gasped.
"Oh, looks like I find what I want anyway." Grumblemon chuckled as he jumped out and landed on the ledge.
"Thank you. I'd never find without you. Now get rid you." he said as he held out a totem that made them all gasp since it was a Spirit.
"Execute: Beast Spirit Evolution!"
"GIGASMON!"
Everyone gasped again at the sight of the large beast with spikes on his nose and back.
Gigasmon then used his Quagmire Twister to hit the good Warriors, Kazemon and Beetlemon flying out of the way but Kumamon was dropped while Lobomon, Agunimon and Sakuyamon were hit sending them falling.
"Hey, grab on to me." Kumamon said as he melted and then froze to a large icicle to the side of the mountain, the three Warriors grabbing on to him.
Beetlemon charged at Gigasmon, but was hit away and slammed into the mountain where Bokomon and Neemon were, the two Rookies falling but were caught by the winged Warriors.
"Phew, that was close." Bokomon said.
"Execute: Slide Evolution!"
"GRUMBLEMON!"
"That it? This what can do with your Spirit? You pathetic. Even make pathetic look good." Grumblemon said.
"Execute: Beast Spirit Evolution!"
"You joke." Gigasmon said.
"Wait a minute, what's going on?" Agunimon asked.
"Rhino boy has two evolutions." Bokomon said.
"Now I take Fractal Code in name of Cherubimon." Gigasmon said as he then sucked the Code into his mouth making the mountain shake.
Kumamon lost his grip on the mountain and then fell with Agunimon, Sakuyamon and Lobomon down a dark tunnel that was below them, all four reverting back to their human forms as the older kids tried to grab hold of the younger ones, then the other two Warriors and Rookies all fell down a different part of the area.
To be continued…