Grottomon staggered around, exulting in the power he felt. Ever
since he had seized Kouji's H-Spirit, his own powers had multiplied.
He was no longer angry about the loss of his own B-Spirit; he didn't
need it any more. And after the way he had mauled that kid with the
goggles, he was pretty sure the so-called 'digidestined' would not be
a threat. At this rate, even Cherubimon would not be a threat to him!

"I am INVINCIBLE!" Grottomon yelled this at the top of his voice,
waving his arms in the air. "No one can defeat me!"

"He's getting cocky." Ranamon whispered to Mercuremon.

"With reason." the mirrored warrior replied. "He doubtless believes
his power exceeds even that of our lord Cherubimon." The two watched
as Grottomon slide evolved to Garmmon, and proceeded to blow up a
small hill, scattering the Jagamon that called it their home.

Ranamon grimaced. "This could be trouble. What if he turns on us?"

Mercuremon smiled. "When he does, we shall deal with him. He is
only a brute, his power wielded like a club in the hands of a
Goblimon. It's those children that concern me."

"Why?" Ranamon blinked, confused. Their two strongest fighters had
lost their H-Spirits. The one B-Spirit they did have couldn't be
controlled. "They're the last thing we should be worried about."

"And if they reawaken Seraphimon, or convince Ophanimon to come out
of hiding? They're still nearing the Forest Terminal. That fool
Bokomon
is still leading those children around by their collective nose. We
should have eliminated him when we had the chance."

"You handled Seraphimon before." Ranamon replied flatly. She looked
at Grottomon again, and stopped. "What's happening?" she asked,
stunned. Grottomon was now glowing white!

"Is he digivolving?" Mercuremon wondered.

Still unaware of the other two hybrids, Grottomon screamed as the
three spirits in him (OK, two spirits and a digiegg. Happy? -ed)
reacted. Grottomon felt his body shifting, like he was slide
evolving, but the power this promised was beyond anything he had felt
before.

"Grottomon, digivolve to...ANCIENT GARURUMON!"

Digicross Frontier episode 4
'Reflections on Seraphimon.'

Sorcerimon touched Takuya again, using Aquarius Fill to heal the
rest of his wounds. After the last frightening battle, Takuya had
been near death, and only Sorcerimon's healing ability had prevented
Takuya from dying in Ryoko's arms. Even after that first treatment,
Takuya had remained unconscious. Rested now, with the other children
and digimon keeping a watch on him over the night, Takuya was able to
sit up and speak.

"What happened. The last thing I remember was fighting
Grottomon..." Takuya rubbed his head. He flinched, pulling his hand
down from his head.

Bokomon walked up to him. "Grottomon beat you, even when you used
Vritramon's Spirit. He also got Kouji's spirit." Bokomon sat down
beside Takuya. "You were badly hurt, but Sneasel was able to
digivolve to Sorcerimon and heal you before..." Bokomon broke off.

Takuya looked at Sorcerimon, who nodded. "Um...thanks?" Takuya
hazarded.

"THANKS?" Junpei yelled. "Sorcerimon saves your life and all you
can say is 'thanks'?"

"What, you want me to marry him or something?" Takuya snapped back
at Junpei.

Izumi sighed. "I guess he's all right." she said, relieved. "Hey,
where's Kouji?"

"I saw him go outside." Ryoko said. "I'll go check."

Tomoki ran over to Ryoko. "Be careful," he whispered to her, "he
looked really mad. I think it's because he lost his spirit." Ryoko
thanked Tomoki, and went outside.

Hiroki walked over to Tomoki. "Are you all right?" the trainer asked.

Tomoki nodded. "Yeah, I'm just a bit...I never knew that we could
get that badly hurt, that Takuya could..." Tomoki didn't want to
continue.

Hiroki was silent for a moment. "Dad and Mom are probably working
on a way to get us home. Why don't you come with us? Not forever or
anything, just for a while, like a holiday or something?"

==

Ryoko exited the cave, looking for Kouji. At times, the boy could
be stubborn, pigheaded, annoying, and a bit arrogant (or so Ryoko
thought), but she was a bit worried. With his spirit gone, he
couldn't digivolve, and was defenseless. "Just wait here." Ryoko
said to Sneasel. "I won't be long." Reluctantly, Sneasel nodded,
and waited.

Ryoko followed a small path, catching sight of Kouji a few minutes
after leaving the cave. Quietly, she approached the boy. "Are you
all right?" she asked.

Kouji looked at Ryoko, anger apparent in his expression. "This is
all your fault." he growled.

"Wh...what?"

"You come blundering in here, you lose your digiegg, and Grottomon
gets a massive power up from it. If you hadn't come here, none of
this would have happened and Takuya wouldn't have almost died!"
Ryoko stepped back, every word cutting into her. "I wish I'd never
even met you!"

That last statement make Ryoko snap. Without thinking, her hand
clenched into a fist, pulled back, and slammed into Kouji's head (It
was a good left hook; Kouji would have a deuce of a black eye the
next day -ed). Then, seeing what she had done, Ryoko ran off,
sobbing.

The force of Ryoko's punch knocked Kouji to the ground. The pain
broke his anger, and he quickly realized how stupid he had been in
yelling at Ryoko. However, before he could get back up, Ryoko had
run off. Cursing, Kouji ran after her. Tyrogue, who had followed
Kouji and had seen the whole exchange, ran after him.

Heartbroken, Ryoko ran blindly through the forest. She had been
afraid that the current situation was her fault; Kouji's words had
confirmed those fears for her. It was her fault, and they all blamed
her for what had happened to Takuya. She kept running until, eyes
blinded with tears, she slammed into something. She fell over
backwards.

Ogremon stepped forward, looking down at the puny human that had run
into him. Human female, he remembered. Must be one of those
Legendary Warriors. "Hey, you a legendary warrior?" Ogremon asked.
Dazed, Ryoko looked up at Ogremon, unable to reply. "Eh, Cherubimon
said to get rid of any humans coming near here." Ogremon shrugged,
adding "nothing personal, just doing my job." he added, raising his
club.

==

Sneasel looked up. "Ryoko's in trouble." he muttered, standing. He
quickly dashed off in the direction he had seen his partner take.
Izumi saw Sneasel leave. "Tomoki, Hiroki, stay here with Takuya."
she snapped, exiting the cave.

"I'm fine!" Takuya snapped back, trying to stand up. He got as far
as sitting before Izumi's glare convinced him to lie back down.
"Armadillomon, you can sit on him if he misbehaves." Tomoki and
Hiroki nodded, and Izumi and Junpei went outside, evolved into
digimon, and left, looking for Ryoko and Kouji.

==

Ancient Garurumon tore through another set of trees, scattering the
digimon that lived there. He was completely drunk with power. With
a wave of his hand, he froze another tree, leaving it to shatter
under its own weight.

"Methinks you have become a bit full of yourself." Mercuremon said
calmly, appearing in a flash of light. The mega level digimon
swiveled around, locking his gaze on the steel hybrid. "Wouldn't
your powers be better used in finding and finishing off the humans
here?"

"They're unimportant." Ancient Garurumon snorted. "They are, you
are, and your precious leader Cherubimon is, too."

He IS cocky, Mercuremon thought. "Cherubimon is our leader."
Mercuremon reminded the other hybrid. "Mock him at your peril. You
know the power I wield."

"I do. But do you know mine?" With a snarl, Ancient Garurumon
summoned up a pair of triangular swords, and swung them at
Mercuremon. The attack was dodged, Mercuremon stepping back a few
paces, out of reach of those swords. "You may have defeated
Seraphimon, but my power is greater than any so called angel." There
were some clicking noises from his left arm. The mega digimon snapped
that arm up, and fired a laser at Mercuremon.

"Offset Reflector!" Mercuremon moved one of his arm shields into
position, and absorbed the bolt into the reflective barrier. A
moment later, the shot reappeared, black now, and impacted on Ancient
Garurumon. The digimon didn't even flinch.

"As I said, I know too well your power. But can you defend against
this? ABSOLUTE ZERO!" The mega digimon summoned an area of cold
around Mercuremon. The attack was such that he could not reflect it
back at Ancient Garurumon. Seconds later, Mercuremon was frozen
solid. "Too easy. Perhaps I should pay another visit to those
children. At least they promise some sport! After that, I shall pay
my respects to Cherubimon and his new lackey, Duskmon." Laughing
maniacally, Ancient Garurumon left the area. Heading in exactly the
wrong direction.

:Master: Mercuremon thought, willing his silent message to
Cherubimon. :It is as you predicted.:

:The fool is out of control. His mind is closed even to me:
Cherubimon's telepathic message echoed in Mercuremon's mind. :I
shall destroy him!:

:With respect, master,: Mercuremon replied, :the children are near
the shrine of Seraphimon. Perhaps we can take care of three problems
at once.: Mercuremon outlined the plan to Cherubimon.

:Clever.: Cherubimon replied. :Ranamon is already headed to your
area. I will send Arbormon to meet you.:

==

"RYOKO!" Kouji yelled, knocking her out of the way of the club. The
two rolled on the ground several feet before stopping. "Are you all
right?" Ryoko tried to squirm out of Kouji's grip. Looking behind
him, Kouji saw Ogremon pull his club up and advance on the two.
"Later! he snapped, looking around. He didn't have his spirit; fine,
he'd just improvise for now. A rock quickly sped towards Ogremon,
who blocked the attack with his arm. He looked around, but didn't
see much else.

"Cherubimon said you humans were smart. Said I had to make sure you
didn't have any way to fight back."

Kouji scowled. Maybe I can beat him to death with my digivice, he
thought sourly. "Ryoko, get out of here." he said to the girl.
"Find the others; I'll hold fang boy here until you get back."

"Are you nuts?" Ryoko half-shrieked.

"This is not a good time to argue!" Kouji replied.

"Says you! You think you can just play hero? You don't have any
way to fight him!"

"Oh, like YOU DO!"

"Umm..." Ogremon tried to say.

"SHUT UP!" Kouji and Ryoko yelled at Ogremon, who flinched.
Waitasec, Ogremon realized, they're fighting me! Roaring, Ogremon
raised his club and ran at the two. The two humans jumped clear of
the second attack. Ogremon turned, deeming Kouji to be the bigger
threat.

A small rock bounced off of Ogremon's head. Tyrogue stood there,
daring the digimon to attack. He pulled out the club he carried with
him, holding it like a sword. He then charged forward, launching an
attack on Ogremon.

"Tyrogue, get out of there!" Ryoko yelled. She knew the small
pokemon was tough, but she doubted he could take on a champion
digimon and win. Not hearing, Tyrogue ran under Ogremon, delivering
a quick jab to the digimon's knee. As Ogremon knelt down, Tyrogue
clambered up Ogremon's back, then stabbed his club into the base of
Ogremon's skull. Roaring with pain, Ogremon reached back, grabbed
Tyrogue, and threw the small pokemon off. Tyrogue tumbled, rolled as
he hit the ground, and managed to roll into a crouching stance. He
readied his club again.

"Those are the moves I use as Wolfmon." Kouji said, surprised. As
the fight went on, he saw that Tyrogue's style did seem to be
influenced by Wolfmon's abilities. Although Kouji wished Tyrogue had
a laser. He looked back at Ryoko. "What did Hiroki teach him?"

Ryoko shrugged. "Nothing. Tyrogue just has a knack for fighting."
The two watched as Tyrogue made several more hit and run attacks.
Finally, Ogremon was so angry that he tried to smash Tyrogue into the
club with a wild downward swing. Timing his dodge, Tyrogue evaded
the blow, and struck Ogremon's wrist, forcing him to drop his wooden
club.

"Did I just see...electricity?" Kouji asked.

"Thunderpunch?" Ryoko gasped. She reminded herself to have a talk
with Hiroki about just how much he had trained Tyrogue.

Ogremon stepped back. He had been foolish in attacking this strange
creature at close range, he realized. He summoned his energy,
pulling his fist back. "Pummel Whack!" The bolt of purple energy
slammed into Tyrogue, sending the pokemon flying.

"No!" Kouji and Ryoko yelled.

Tyrogue staggered to his feet, using his club as a staff. He stared
at Ogremon defiantly, daring the monster to make a second attack.
Ogremon obliged him; Tyrogue managed to dodge this one. Then, with a
scream, he started to glow white!

"He's evolving!" Ryoko gasped.

"No," Kouji said a second later, as a familiar set of rings
appeared, "I think he's digivolving!" The two watched as Tyrogue's
form blurred. The club he held lengthened, his height increased.
The evolution finished.

"I am Kotemon." the new digimon introduced himself. "Defend
yourself." Kotemon brandished his shinai, waiting for the attack.

"Pummel Whack!" The bolt of energy shot towards Kotemon. The
rookie digimon dodged, ran forward, and stabbed the point of his
sword into Ogremon's gut. Ogremon doubled over, gasping.

"Fire mask!" Kotemon yelled, jumping high and swinging his sword at
Ogremon's head. There was a burst of flame, and Ogremon fell over,
digicode spiralling around him. Kouji darted forward and scanned the
ring, just before Ogremon reverted to a digiegg.

"That wasn't in the game." Kouji remarked, looking at Kotemon.

Kotemon looked back at the two humans. "You two done fighting?"
Ryoko and Kouji, not sure how to reply, nodded. "Good. Kiss and
make up already, the others are probably worried about you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Kouji tried not to shout.

"Whatever you want it to." Kotemon replied evenly. "I saw the whole
thing." Kotemon sheathed his sword and started picking his way back
to the cave.

Ryoko started to follow Kotemon, but Kouji put a hand on her arm,
stopping her. "Ryoko." Ryoko faced Kouji, face a mix of emotions.
"I...I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that." Not sure what to say
next, Kouji headed off after Kotemon, leaving Ryoko to stand there
for a full minute, not sure what to say or do. There were some
shouts from up ahead, breaking Ryoko's reverie.

==

Fairymon carried Ryoko back; ahead of them, Blitzmon carried Kouji,
while Kotemon met up with Sneasel. It had taken some explaining, but
Ryoko and Kouji managed to explain that this was Tyrogue, yes he did
evolve, no they didn't know why he had turned into a digimon.

Fairymon set Ryoko down a few yards from the cave, the switched back
to Izumi. "Are you all right? Sneasel said he thought he heard
shouting."

"Izumi..? Is it really my fault? What happened to Takuya?"

"Eh? Who said...Kouji." Izumi sighed. She placed a hand on Ryoko's
shoulder. "Look, Kouji can be a jerk sometimes. Everyone's just
shaken up over what happened to Takuya. And it's NOT your fault."

"But Grottomon took-"

Izumi cut Ryoko off. "Even if he hadn't taken Sneasel's digiegg, he
would still have clobbered us as Gigasmon." The two girls looked up
as some shouts came from the cave. "Great, there go the boys again.
Just wait here, all right?" Ryoko nodded, and Izumi headed back to
the cave, her voice joining the other shouts. Most of them seemed to
be aimed at Kouji; it sounded like Kotemon had told everyone exactly
what Kouji said earlier. A few minutes later, Takuya came out of the
cave, fuming.

"That...idiot!" He walked over to Ryoko, calming himself down.
"Look, I don't blame you, all right? I don't know where Kouji got
off saying this was your fault. If anything, it was my fault for
using the beast spirit; I couldn't control it."

"But that's the only one you have left now." Ryoko replied. "That's
worse than not having one, isn't it?"

Takuya shrugged. "Hey, I had a hard enough time figuring out how to
stay as Agnimon the first few times I evolved. Let's go back in and
get some rest, all right?"

"Could I just stay out here for a while?" Ryoko asked. Takuya
nodded, and reentered. Ryoko sat down, looked at the stars and the
moons in the sky, and dozed off. Half an hour later, the Patamon
following them came out and landed beside her, as did Sneasel. The
two monsters dozed off beside her.

==Next Day

Grottomon cursed vilely. He'd only just realized that he'd been
heading in the wrong direction. Now the Forest Terminal was a long
distance away; he transformed into Ancient Garurumon and began making
his way back to the forest.

==

"I am teling you, the Forest Terminal is over the next hill!"
Bokomon protested, as he and Junpei started to argue.

Junpei glared at Bokomon. "You said that five hills ago! Doesn't
that book of yours have a map in it?"

"I know exactly where I'm going!" Bokomon replied. Junpei's reply
of 'yeah, nuts' got scattered chuckles from Tomoki and Hiroki.
Kotemon walked beside Hiroki, wooden sword bouncing on the ground.

"I didn't know Tyrogue could evolve that way." Tomoki said. "That
looks a lot cooler than Hitmonchan did."

Hiroki shrugged. "Some pokemon do that if they stay in the digital
world for a long time. It has happened a few times, but only if the
trainer becomes their partner. Unless...?" Hiroki looked at Kotemon.

"No," Kotemon replied, "I am not your partner, though it would be an
honour to serve with you and Armadillomon. At least, it doesn't feel
like it. Maybe my partner awaits at home." The pokegear buzzed in
Hiroki's pocket. Ryoko hadn't felt like carrying it today. "Hello?
Hey dad!"

"Hiroki?" Cody's voice came over the pokegear. The other children
gathered around. "Hiroki? How is everything there?" Hiroki was
about to answer when Izumi shook her head. "Umm...nothing we can't
handle, dad. Takuya got a little banged up in a battle, but
Sorcerimon healed him!"

"You met a Sorcerimon?" Hiroki's mother, Noriko, replied.

"No. Sneasel digivolved! And Armadillomon digivolved into
Ankylomon. Just like your Armadillomon, dad!"

"I heard that!" Cody's partner called over the phone. "I'm not his!
If anything, he's mine!"

"Is Ryoko there?" Cody asked. Hiroki handed the pokegear over to
Ryoko. There was some clicks on the other end, and Kari's voice came
over the speaker. "I heard everything! How did it happen?" Kari
knew that most first time digivolutions happened when the human
partner was in serious danger.

Ryoko started to reply, but Kouji interrupted. "Takuya and I were
fighting a powerful digimon. We were hurt, so Sneasel digivolved to
save us. If it wasn't for Ryoko and Sorcerimon, we wouldn't be
talking to you." He looked up at Ryoko, a small smile on his face.
His left eye was swollen up, all black and blue. Ryoko blushed a bit.

"Who's this?" Kari asked.

"Kouji Minamoto." Kouji replied.

"I hope we meet someday," Kari replied, "I'd like to know you a bit
better. Listen, Izzy's working on the portal; we almost have it
ready to open to the digital world you're in. We just need a few
more days to iron out the problems."

"Is Hitomi back yet?" Hiroki asked, excited.

"I'm sorry, she isn't. But we're still looking, and Izzy's about
ready to try reaching her through her pokegear. I'll tell her you
asked about her." Hiroki blushed, causing Tomoki to hold back his
laughter.

Kari, Cody, and Noriko talked for a few more minutes before Izzy
came on the line. He congratulated the two trainers on their
partners' digivolutions, and wanted to have a look at Kotemon when
they got back; pokemon that evolved into digimon at the rookie level
were a rarity.

"We'll let you know when we have the portal ready; if we have this
set up right, it shouldn't matter where you are in the digital
world." Izzy talked with Ryoko for a few more minutes, then the two
hung up.

"So, you're going back home?" Junpei asked.

"Maybe." Ryoko replied. "I'd rather not jinx it by getting my hopes
too far up." She looked at the other children and digimon. "You're
welcome to come with us, if we can keep the portal stable."

"They have a duty to save the digital world!" Bokomon protested.

"How about a duty to eat some decent food?" Takuya replied. "If
Ryoko and Hiroki's world is anything like the TV series, I'm there!"

"Are there other Patamon there?" Patamon asked Hiroki.

Hiroki nodded. "Yep. My friend Asuka has one, and her father T.K.
has a Patamon as well." Patamon did a midair backflip, excited to
hear the news.

"Ryoko!" Sneasel's cry came. "You have to see this!" The group ran
forward, heading for the pokemon.

Sneasel and Armadillomon had gone on ahead to look for any trouble;
he had assumed that where there was one Ogremon, there may well be
another. Instead he found..."What is it?" Armadillomon muttered.

The rest of the group came to where Sneasel and Armadillomon were
standing. "We made it!" Bokomon yelled. "Children, digimon, I
present the Forest Terminal!"

"The Forest Terminal..." Takuya breathed.

"It's beautiful." Izumi murmured. The entire building was made of
some kind of crystal, amethyst was Izumi's guess. How it had stayed
hidden this long was beyond her. "And Seraphimon is in there?"

Bokomon nodded. "Yes. Come, you must do what you came here to do!
We have to reawaken Seraphimon!"

"How come Chreubimon didn't destroy this place?" Tomoki asked.

"It's said that there are powerful forces that guard this place."
Patamon answered. "And this was the place Cherubimon, Seraphimon,
and Ophanimon called home for a long time."

"Kind of like attacking Primary Village." Armadillomon said
thoughtfully. "A lot of digimon won't attack it; it's where they
were born. 'Course, that never stops the really evil ones."

"This way!" Bokomon yelled, skipping down the hill to the Terminal.

==

"Why don't we take them now?" Arbormon asked, watching the children
head to the Terminal.

"Hmm...the little black cat looks interesting." Ranamon said, not
paying attention. "But those two girls just have to go."

"It is simple, Arbormon." Mercuremon replied, ignoring Ranamon.
"Even now, Grottomon, in his form of Ancient Garurumon, approaches
this place. He destroys Seraphimon, or Seraphimon destroys him.
Either way, whoever survives will be too weak to deal with the three
of us. Did you bring it, Arbormon?"

The wooden cyborg nodded. "Yup, one Beast Spirit. How do we split
up the humans?"

"I shall deal with the boy who holds the Beast Spirit of Fire.
Arbormon, you can take care of the three other hybrids. Ranamon, the
rest are yours."

==

"Sorcerimon? Sorcerimon!" Bokomon called. Confused, Sneasel looked
at the small white digimon. "No, not you, I mean a different one!"

"Another Sorcerimon?" Kouji asked.

"Yes. Wait here, I'll go see if I can find him." Bokomon ran off,
Neemon and Patamon following him. Kouji saw Ryoko move away, heading
to one of the spires. He followed her, wondering what she had seen.
Kotemon followed him.

He caught up with her a minute later. She was staring at a
crystalline fountain. The design was ingenious; the light was
refracted through both crystal and water creating dozens of rainbows
around the fountain. Entranced, he walked forward. The two stared
at the fountain for an unknown length of time.

"Kouji? Ryoko? Where...oh." Hiroki came to a stop, Junpei
following him.

"So, you two need some alone time?" Junpei teased. Ryoko glared at
Junpei, wondering what he was talking about, when she realized that
she was holding Kouji's hand. Kouji realized that at the same time,
and the two darted away from each other, both blushing. Hiroki was
on the edge of bursting into laughter when a sharp voice cut
everything else off. Kotemon nodded, deciding not to say anything.

"Who are you?" a white robed creature demanded. He held a staff
with a large crystal snowflake on the tip, pointed it at the children.

"You must be Sorcerimon." Hiroki replied. "Bokomon-"

"Bokomon! What have you done with him? Tell me or I shall freeze
your blood solid!" Hiroki backed up.

Junpei took out his digivice. "Hey, leave the kid alone!"

Sorcerimon's eyes widened. "A D-Scanner! Where did you get that?"
At that moment, Takuya, Izumi, and Tomoki caught up with the others.
Sorcerimon looked at the group. "Who...what are you?"

"Sorcerimon!" Bokomon yelled, running up to the wizard digimon.

"Bokomon!" Sorcerimon and Bokomon grabbed each other. "Why have
you returned? You said-" Sorcerimon stopped, looked again at the
humans. "They cannot be the Chosen ones, Bokomon! They are
children!"

"They are!" Bokomon replied. "They have been able to awaken five of
the Human Spirits, and Takuya here was able to use the Beast Spirit
of Fire. They must be the ones!"

"I'm one!" Neemon piped up. "One hungry digimon, anyway." Bokomon
sighed, snapping the waistband on Neemon's pants.

Sorcerimon rubbed his forehead. "I see you haven't changed. Come,
there is much to discuss."

==

It turned out that Bokomon and Neemon used to live here, being
instructed by Sorcerimon in the history of the digital world, what
Chreubimon had done, and how only a legend about the Chosen Ones
would save the digital world. It was also learned that Neemon
managed to find ways of getting out of every one of Sorcerimon's
lectures; some things just don't change, people.

Sorcerimon listened as Bokomon recounted the adventures he and the
others had been through (with several (dozen) editorial comments
added in by all of the children). He raised an eyebrow when he was
told about Grottomon's taking of the two light spirits, and Ryoko's
digiegg of light.

"Fascinating." Sorcerimon said when the tale was finished. "Please
forgive my earlier words; You truly must be the chosen ones. How
much has Bokomon told you about the troubles here?"

Takuya shrugged. "Cherubimon used to be one of the angels ruling
this world. Then he went nuts, took all the digicode, and managed to
get rid of the other two angels, Seraphimon and Ophanimon."

"And we know that Grottomon has the Earth spirit and both Light
spirits." Junpei added. "What about the others?" Junpei took out a
small notebook and handed it to Sorcerimon. On one of the pages were
copies of several symbols, some with checkmarks beside them. "I saw
these on a wall where a bunch of Candlemon lived."

"YOu've been there?" Sorcerimon asked. "Then you know a bit more
than you think. All these symbols represent the ten legendary
warriors. These ones here," Sorcerimon pointed out several symbols
that weren't checked off yet, "are Water, Darkness, Steel, and Wood.
Cherubimon has control of the Water, Steel, and Wood spirits; I do
not know what has happened to the spirit of Darkness."

"Darkness?" Ryoko asked.

"A powerful one. If Cherubimon does have it, you must be extra
careful."

"So we've got at least three more evil hybrids to go through, in
addition to Grottomon. Just great." Kouji said sourly.

"Once we awaken Seraphimon, the battle should shift in our favour.
Come!" Sorcerimon stood up, beckoning everyone to follow.

Kotemon stiffened. "Something's coming." he said.

Izumi and Ryoko ran over to a window. They quickly spotted an
incoming digimon. "What is that?" Ryoko gasped. The attacker was
busy tearing through a swath of trees, and was making a beeline for
the terminal.

Sorcerimon looked out the window. "A...Ancient Garurumon?"

"Ancient WHO?" everyone asked.

"He was the digimon who's power created the two Spirits of Light."

"Grottomon." Kouji snarled. "How powerful is he like this?"

"We must revive Seraphimon. It is the only way to beat him!"

"There's no time." Tomoki said. "He'll be here any second! Hey,
where are you going?" he asked as Hiroki, Ryoko, Sneasel,
Armadillomon, and Kotemon left the room.

"We'll stall him until you get Seraphimon!" Ryoko called.

"Are you nuts?" Kouji yelled at them. "He'll tear you apart!"

"Then you'd better work fast!" Was Ryoko's reply. Kouji tried to
say something more, but was distracted when Patamon flew past him.
Then Sorcerimon dragged him away, towards the place where Seraphimon
rested.

==

"We've got about a minute before he gets here. What do we do?"
Hiroki asked Ryoko.

"You wait here." Sheasel answered. "We digivolve and hold off
Ancient Garurumon for as long as possible. Kotemon, Patamon, are you
sure you want to be here?"

Patamon nodded. "I've gained my strength back; let me se if I can
evolve to Airdramon." Patamon closed his eyes, deep in
concentration. He glowed bluish-white, then evolved!

"I think our chances improved a bit!" Armadillomon said. "Hiroki?
Ryoko?" The two children nodded, digivices out.

"Armadillomon, digivolve to...Ankylomon!"

"Sneasel, digivolve to...Sorcerimon!" Sorcerimon felt the power
flow through him, still adjusting to his new form. "Kotemon, keep an
eye on Ryoko and Hiroki." Kotemon nodded. A second later, the wall
exploded, and Ancient Garurumon stepped through. "GET HIM!"
Sorcerimon yelled. The three Champion digimon charged the mega
digimon.

==

Kouji looked back, hearing the explosions in the courtyard.

"She'll be fine." Izumi whispered. Kouji started to object, then
just gave up. In front of the chosen children was a large door.
Sorcerimon stepped up, holding his staff out. He uttered a few
words, and the doors began to open.

Tomoki shivered a bit. "Why is it so cold?"

"After the last fight, Seraphimon was badly wounded." Sorcerimon
explained. "I placed him in a case of ice to preserve him until the
time that the chosen ones came to revive him. Now that you are here,
we can wake him."

Everyone's digivice began to glow. "Legendary Warriors."
Ophanimon's voice said over the D-Scanners. "Only you can revive
Seraphimon. Let the light within you shine through." The voice
faded.

"What does that mean?" Junpei asked.

On instinct, Takuya pointed his D-Scanner at the block of ice
holding Seraphimon. Instantly, a beam of light shot out, enveloping
the block. "This, I guess. Everyone, point your digivices at the
ice!"

Everyone did so. As they did, the saw that some of the ice began to
melt. The room shook as another explosion was heard outside. Hurry
up, Kouji thought to himself.

==

Ankylomon was slammed into the fountain Ryoko and Kouji had seen
earlier, shattering the object into countless shards. Airdramon and
Sorcerimon unleashed waves of wind and ice, hoping to give the
dinosaur digimon time to recover.

"Where are your friends?" Ancient Garurumon taunted them. "Have
they fled and left you to do their fighting for you?" He csually
launched a wave of ice at Airdramon, not even paying attention to the
spray of needles hitting him. "I thought I'd have some fun here!"

Sorcerimon climbed up one of the walls of a shattered building, then
jumped at Ancient Garurumon, staff pointed at the mega. As he
closed, ice formed around the end of the staff. "Hyoretsuzan!" he
yelled, stabbing the ice spear at the mega digimon. The attack hit,
splintering against Ancient Garurumon's armour.

"That...tickled." The mega grabbed Sorcerimon and hurled him away.
The digimon hit the ground, rolled, and did not get up.

"Sorcerimon!" Ryoko ran over to her partner. Ancient Garurumon saw
this, grinned, and drew one of his swords, walking towards the girl.

"No!" Ankylomon got up, tried to attack the mega, and got knocked
away, flying into Airdramon. Both were knocked out, and reverted to
their rookie forms.

"Sorcerimon! Sorcerimon, wake up!" Ryoko half-yelled, shaking her
partner. A loud crash made her turn around. Ancient Garurumon stood
over her, sword out. Cradling her partner in her arms, she waited
for the mega to finish them off.

A wild yell, got Ancient Garurumon's attention. Kotemon jumped in,
shinai rippling with flame. The mega let the rookie hammer away for
a few seconds, then froze the warrior in a block of ice. "Now, where
were we?" the mega asked, returning her attention to Ryoko and
Sorcerimon, who was just starting to come to. He raised his sword,
got ready to strike, then was distracted by a flash of bluish white
light. "Now what?" the mega asked, irritated.

The ice that held Kotemon glowed, then shattered. Kotemon was
surrounded by a ring of digicode. His form grew, equalling Vritramon
in size. His body was reptilian, with a small feather on the back of
his head, held in place by a headband. There were two short blades
buckled to the back of the digimon's belt, and an oversized sword
strapped to his back.

Teeth bared, Dino Humon pulled out his short swords and attacked.

==

There was a loud thump as another piece of ice hit the floor.
Seraphimon was almost free of the ice, but his body was dark, almost
lifeless. The chosen children began to feel the energy leaving them.

"Hold on just a little longer!" Sorcerimon urged.

"You're doing it!" Bokomon cheered them. "Once Seraphimon is awake,
we can take care of that monster once and for all!"

There was another blast from outside. Tomoki looked back. "Keep
going!" Takuya yelled, trying not to stagger. "We can do more good
if we wake Seraphimon up first! We have to trust that Ryoko and
Hiroki can take care of themselves!"

"I think I see something moving!" Junpei yelled. He was sure he saw
a hand twitch...

==

One of Dinohumon's swords was knocked away, landing point down near
Armadillomon. Hiroki ran out, grabbed the two rookie digimon, and
carried them to safety. "Pathetic." Ancient Garurumon taunted. The
mega turned his back on Dino Humon, walking slowly over to Ryoko and
Sorcerimon.

"inohumon pulled out his oversized blade, summoning up his energy.
"MAGNUM BLADE!" he yelled, slashing at the mega. There was an
explosion, knocking everyone away. Energy spent, Dino Humon
collapsed, and reverted to Kotemon.

"Did he get him?" Ryoko looked up, hoping. Her spirits fell as the
mega digimon emerged from the dust cloud, still grinning. Ancient
Garurumon stepped forward, blade raised, ready to strike.

"Testament!" A bolt of energy slammed into the mega digimon.
Following it were streams of ice, wind, thunder, and fire. Ancient
Garurumon was hurled away from Ryoko and Sorcerimon. The mega looked
up, wondering what had hit him with such power.

Seraphimon stood there, equalling Ancient Garurumon's size. Beside
him, Fairymon, Blitzmon, Chakmon, and Vritramon also stood, ready to
launch another combined strike. "No... it can't be." Ancient
Garurumon gasped.

"It is." Seraphimon said, voice low and rolling. "You have done
enough to these children. Surrender now or fall."

The insane mega yelled "NEVER!" at the top of his lungs.
Brandishing his swords, he charged Seraphimon. The angel also
charged, and the two megas fought, unleashing energies that would
tear any lesser digimon apart.

Kouji ran over to Ryoko, the other Sorcerimon beside him. "Ryoko!"
he yelled, helping her up.

Sorcerimon looked over Ryoko's partner, checking the digimon.
"Handsome chap." he remarked. "He will be fine. Aquarius...Fill!"
Hiroki, Armadillomon and Kotemon came over. "You did well; I did not
think you would have survived." The Sorcerimon in Ryoko's arms
reverted to Sneasel.

"Gee..thanks." Sneasel muttered, struggling to sit up. "What
happened?"

"We managed to ressurect Seraphimon." Kouji said. "He's fighting
Ancient Garurumon with the other hybrids."

"Still think waking him up was a waste of time?" Ryoko asked,
managing a smirk. Kouji looked at Ryoko, puzzled, then remembered
that conversation, only a day or two ago. "Now what do we do?"

"If we could just get my digiegg out of him..." Sneasel said,
thinking out loud. "If that is what's allowing him to maintain that
form."

"Yeah..." Kouji said. "If he's a hybrid, then we just have to hit
him enough to make the digicode ring appear." The group watched as
the fight between Ancient Garurumon and Seraphimon went upwards. The
other hybrids were holding back, the angel digimon having waved them
away so he could unleash his full power on Ancient Garurumon.

However, Seraphimon was still not back to his full power. He was
able to keep up with Ancient Garurumon, but little more. Now, it was
more a question of who would be first to run out of energy.

:Lord Seraphimon.: Sorcerimon's voice echoed in the angel's mind.

:Little busy here.: Seraphimon replied.

:My lord, remember, he is a hybrid. If we can get the digiegg out
of him, he will lose his increased power.:

Seraphimon nodded. :Vritramon, I need your help. The rest of you,
prepare to strike.: Seraphimon moved to distract the other mega from
seeing the children get into position. :Vritramon, attack!:

"Corona Destroyer!" Vritramon's flame attack smacked into Ancient
Garurumon's unprotected side. Growling, Ancient Garurumon turned to
face the beast hybrid. "Back for more?" the mega growled. He
launched a wave of cold at Vritramon, which missed. The beast hybrid
opened up with his arm cannons, doing no damage but enraging Ancient
Garurumon further.

The two dodged around each other for a few seconds. then, "Hey,
ugly!" Vritramon called. "Aren't you forgetting someone?" Ancient
Garurumon, confused, turned around...

And received Seraphimon's Seven Heavens. The blast managed to
injure Ancient Garurumon, driving him to the ground. "NOW!"
Vritramon yelled.

At Vritramon's command, the other hybrids used their attacks at
Ancient Garurumon fell past them. Fairymon used her wind powers to
increase the speed of Ancient Garurumon's fall, while Blitzmon and
Chakmon fired a combination of lightning and ice (odd sight; Chakmon
was perched on Blitzmon's shoulder. The little guy nearly fell off,
to boot. -ed). The mega slammed into the ground, making everyone down
there fall over. The last of the Forest Terminal collapsed in on
itself, having received too much damage from the battle.

Ancient Garurumon staggered up, barely conscious. "Remember us?" a
voice got his attention. Armadillomon had, after being healed, re-
digivolved to Ankylomon. Beside him, Sneasel and Sorcerimon stood
there, ready to strike.

"No... this can't be... I'm invincible!"

"You're a loon." Hiroki replied. "Ankylomon, Tail Hammer attack!"
Ankylomon obeyed, slamming his tail into Ancient Garurumon's head.
The mega -bounced- falling over when he landed. "Sneasel?"

The pokemon grinned. "Ice beam!" Ice slammed into Ancient
Garurumon, draining what little strength was left. Sorcerimon added
his own attack, worsening the damage. Ancient Garurumon got up,
staggered near Ryoko and Kouji, and fell to one knee, digicode ring
spiralling around him.

"Now!" Kouji and Ryoko yelled. The two ran at the mega digimon.
Kouji grabbed one spirit, while Ryoko grabbed a second one. Ancient
Garurumon scremed as he felt the power leave him. His form shrank,
twisted, and switched back to Wolfmon. Ryoko held up the H-Spirit of
Earth, while Kouji held up the B-Spirit of Light. There was a flash,
and Kouji's newly acquired spirit entered his digivice.

"You sure about this?" Ryoko whispered to Kouji.

Kouji nodded. "I'll be fine. Spirit Evolution...GARMMON!" Ryoko
stepped back as Kouji yelled in pain. A second later, Kouji was
replaced by the metallic wolf, Garmmon!

"Kouji?" Ryoko asked, a bit worried. Did the wolf grin at her?

"I've been waiting for this for a while." Garmmon growled, wings
snapping open, wheels locking into place. "Speed Star!" Garmmon
shot forward, razor sharp wings tearing into Wolfmon. The beast
skidded to a halt, aimed himself at Wolfmon. "This one's for Takuya!
SOLAR LASER!" A bolt of light slammed into Wolfmon, sending the
hybrid flying. Garmmon ran over, covering the distance in seconds.

Wolfmon looked around, terrified. He couldn't slide evolve into
Grottomon and dig an escape, and the other hybrids were there, making
sure he couldn't get away above ground. He couldn't use Takuya's
Spirit; only the light spirits could be used by him. Fear drove him
now. Panicking, he raised his arm, trying to activate his laser.
Garmmon's teeth clamped around the arm, and tossed Wolfmon back to
the other hybrids. Chakmon, carried to the ground by Blitzmon,
hopped off and ran over. "Digicode scan!" Chakmon's digivice hummed
as the last two spirits were released. Wolfmon collapsed in on
himself, revealling a digiegg, which flew away. The remaining
Spirits and digiegg hovered for a second, then fell to the ground.

Garmmon stared at the two items on the ground, still growling.
Ryoko walked over to the hybrid. "Kouji?" she said gently, trying
not to startle the beast. Garmmon looked at Ryoko, bowed his head,
and reverted to Kouji.

"What just happened?" Hiroki asked.

"I think beauty just tamed the beast." Blitzmon remarked absently,
casuing Vritramon and Fairymon to crack up. Chakmon and Hiroki
looked at each other, not getting the reference (They've been through
a lot. Give them a break! -ed). The hybrids switched back to their
human forms, and started cheering. Ryoko got her digiegg back, and
Takuya and Kouji got their spirits back.

"You have done well, Chosen Children." Seaphimon said. "However,
the fight is not yet over."

"I could not agree more." Another voice answered, interrupting
everyone. The whole group looked at the source of the voice. The
speaker was tall, green, metallic, and had large circular shields.
Beside him were what looked like a wooden robot and a small green
humanoid girl in a blue swimsuit.

"Mercuremon." Seraphimon growled.

"So good to see you are awake, Seraphimon. May I present Arbormon,"
the wooden robot bowed, "and Ranamon." The girl nodded her head,
grinning evilly. "Are you feeling up to a rematch?"

Next Episode -
The Chosen Children must face Mercuremon, Ranamon, and Arbormon;
during the battle, Seraphimon is tricked, and is struck down by the
treacharous Mercuremon. Even if the kids do survive, they must
still deal with Grottomon's new form, Wendimon, and his last bid to
redeem himself to Cherubimon. It's the final battle to get home, on
the next episode of Digicross Frontier -
'Wild Trailmon ride. Meet the rest of the gang!'