DISCLAIMER: I don't own Digimon or any video games, books, films, TV shows or pieces of music referenced in this story. Original characters owned by me are stated in my profile.
Chapter Twenty-Two: Impact
Tuesday 9th November - 5:23pm Japanese Standard Time (8:23am GMT)
HYPNOS Command Centre, Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, Japan
"We have their signals," a red-haired woman wearing a complex headset shouted excitedly and began typing away at her keyboard at incredible speed. "Four humans and four Digimon have just entered the portal, calculate emergence into the Barrier Plane in five…four…three…two…one…we have emergence!"
"Excellent," Mitsuo Yamaki nodded and clicked his silver lighter open and closed. "Tally, are all eight signals normal?"
"That's affirmative," a blonde-haired woman wearing an identical headset replied. "Looks like the instability of the English portal had no effect on their physiology."
"Perfect. Riley, launch a high-resolution tracer program at the group. I want to gather as much data on the Digital World and its effects on the human body as possible."
"Aye, sir," the redhead replied and resumed her furious typing, hitting the 'Enter' key a few seconds later with a small flourish. "Tracer away!"
"That's it then," the blonde-haired man muttered to himself as he clicked his lighter repeatedly. "They're on their own from here on out. Good luck, Tamers…you're going to need it."
Digital Barrier Plane - 8:23am
"This is the Digital World?" Takato asked incredulously as he looked around at the emptiness surrounding him. The group was floating in a void of pure black that stretched as far as the eye could see, with bright green gridlines hovering in mid-air at regular intervals. The brown-haired boy reached out to touch one of the lines, only for his hand to pass through it with no resistance.
"No, this is what HYPNOS calls the Digital Barrier Plane," Rika explained in an impatient tone. "It's like a wall that's meant to stop things from travelling between the worlds."
"It obviously doesn't work too well if we're getting Bio-emergences," Terriermon pointed out as he started somersaulting in mid-air.
"Actually, it works very well," Gaomon contradicted the rabbit. "The Barrier Plane requires an enormous amount of energy to breach, making it impossible for many Digimon to ever reach the human world. The only places they can break through to are the areas on Earth that are close to a portal, and they can usually only get there by expending a ridiculous amount of time and effort."
"Fascinating…" Henry said in an awed tone as he reached out and grabbed his partner by the ear, stopping the small Digimon's aerial manoeuvres. "So, how do we get to the Digital World?"
"Uh, Yamaki said that we need to go down, but…" Rika replied with a confused frown. "Which way is down?"
It was a valid question. Every single member of the group had emerged from the portal at a different angle, meaning that Henry's down was Renamon's up, Gaomon's backwards, Takato's left and Rika's right.
"I think it's…that way!" Cam said and pointed to his right. "GAH!"
The rest of the group let out similar cries of surprise as they all suddenly began 'falling' in the direction Cam had pointed. They fell for almost a minute, accelerating constantly until a circle of white light over a dozen metres wide appeared below them. The humans and Digimon rocketed towards the circle at breakneck speed, a tingle running through each of them as they passed through the portal and were thrown into another world.
Oh, crap… Takato thought as he shook off his disorientation and realized two horrible truths. One: he was still falling incredibly quickly.
Two: now there was actually a piece of land for him to fall onto. And it was rushing up to meet him a lot faster than he would have liked.
"Everyone alright?" Henry asked as he pulled himself to his feet.
"Never better," Cam replied and coughed up a mouthful of dust.
"I am uninjured," Gaomon said calmly as he clapped his boxing gloves together.
"I'm okay and Takatomon and Guilmon are too. They landed on their heads so they didn't damage anything important."
"Terriermon…"
"Uh, where's Rika?" the goggle-wearing Tamer asked, looking around desperately for the girl.
"Up here, Gogglehead," a voice called out and the group of battered humans and Digimon looked up to see the redhead cradled in the arms of her partner, three pairs of glowing wings emerging from the kitsune's back.
"You swiped a Hyper Wing card? Quick thinking," Cam chuckled as he climbed wearily out of the massive crater he had been laid in.
"Guys - I have a quick question…" Takato said hesitantly and scratched his head. "How are we not dead?"
"The laws of physics work intermittently in the Digital World," Gaomon explained with a sigh. "As do the laws of nature and common sense. It will not be necessary to eat or drink regularly while in the Digital World - our bodies will be able to survive without food or water for as long as we need them to."
"So, remind me why I'm carrying a bag full of supplies," the brown-haired boy grumbled as he shifted the heavy backpack into a more comfortable position.
"We can still eat if we want to," Renamon replied as she deposited her Tamer gently on the ground. "Digimon are healed by eating, and it may also be useful as currency if we have to buy anything."
"Oh, there's something I've been wondering," Henry piped up as his rabbit-like partner retook his traditional place atop his head. "Are there any cities in the Digital World, or any governments?"
"I have heard rumours of a couple of cities, but my travels tended to keep me away from 'civilized' areas," Gaomon began, glancing at Renamon for her input.
"It is the same with me. I tended to keep to the forest region, where the only settlements were a few villages and a couple of secluded dojos."
"Government is a more complex issue," the blue-furred Digimon continued. "Most regions are neutral and have no rulers, but every so often a warlord will rise up and conquer a small area. Most of the time they only last a few weeks before they get crushed by a rival Digimon."
"What about Zhuqiaomon?" the canine's Tamer asked. "I thought he was the ruler of this whole chunk of the Digital World."
"Technically he is only the guardian of this quadrant of the Digital World, not it's ruler - though I think he needs that fact explaining to him…"
"You said that most of these Digi-warlords only last a few weeks…" Terriermon added with a thoughtful frown. "What about the rest of 'em?"
"I have heard of certain nations that have stood the test of time, such as the Dramon Kingdom or the New Olympus Republic, though I know nothing of them apart from their names. I do, however, know something of where we are now…"
Rika took a look around at their surroundings. They had landed in the middle of a desert, which stretched in every direction as far as the eye could see. The only features breaking up the monotonous expanse of sand were a number of scattered towers of rock, ranging in height from a few feet high to over forty metres tall.
"This is called the Desert Level, for obvious reasons," Gaomon continued. "It is the closest part of the Digital World to the human world, which also makes it the furthest from the Sovereign realms. Unfortunately, that is most likely where Sam, Steph and Suzie are being held."
"Great…at least we don't have to drink," the redhead muttered and shifted her shoulders in discomfort.
"Whoa, guys…look at the sky!" Takato gasped, his friends having a similar reaction as they followed his command.
Floating in the sky like some kind of cyberpunked moon was the Earth. The planet was surrounded by a transparent blue layer that hovered far above the surface. The layer grew thickest over areas with high population, such as cities, thinning over areas with a lower population and disappearing completely over the ocean. Over two dozen beams of pink light rose from the planet's surface, each one fading away into nothing as it soared away from the ground. On the side of the Earth facing towards them there was one coming from Japan, one from Australia, two from China and many others from countries the Tamers couldn't identify.
"No way…" Cam mumbled and stared at the breathtaking sight in open-mouthed awe.
"That's…whoa…" Henry sighed.
"Well, spank my ass and call me Judy!" Terriermon shouted in an awful American accent.
"That can be arranged…" Gaomon threatened the rabbit with a glare and returned to staring at the planet. "I had forgotten how…beautiful Earth looked from here. I think it's the only part of the Digital World I miss."
"Takatomon…" Guilmon whined and tugged at his Tamer's sleeve. "Where's the Sun gone?"
The little red dinosaur was right - there was no sun in the sky, yet somehow the area was still bathed in daylight.
"The Digital World has no sun," Renamon explained with a look that was so unreadable that only her Tamer recognized it as sadness. "It is simply light in the day and dark at night. The day cycle always begins at 6am and finishes at 6pm."
"So there's no sunrise?" the begoggled Tamer asked with a frown.
"And no sunset…" Rika said in a soft voice. "Anyway, we'd better get moving. We only have two weeks until the Ark arrives at this spot to take us home."
"Uh…get moving to where, exactly?" Cam asked with a frown. "In case you hadn't noticed, we're in the middle of nowhere and we have no idea which way it is from to get from here to anywhere!"
"How about we head for those mountains?" Henry suggested, pointing to a mountain range that looked to be relatively nearby. "It's an easy landmark to spot so we shouldn't get lost."
"It is also likely that they conceal some form of portal to another Region of the Digital World," Renamon added.
"Yes, they always seem to be at the top of a mountain," Gaomon noted with a thoughtful look. "Or at the bottom of a cave…or hidden in some ancient ruins…"
"Sounds to me like the Monster Makers read too many bad fantasy books," Takato chuckled and shifted his backpack on his shoulders again as he set off at a steady pace, the rest of the group following behind him.
The Tamers swiftly discovered that they simply did not have the stamina needed for the long distance walking. Their Digimon partners, on the other hand, showed little sign of fatigue. The children quickly put two and two together and continued the journey riding on their Digivolved partners' backs.
Digital World, Desert Level - Day Cycle - 12:39pm
"Takatomon…I need a rest…" Growlmon groaned and slumped to the floor in the shadow of a large rock tower, nearly throwing his Tamer, Henry and Terriermon off of his back. "We've been walking for hours and my feet hurt."
"Oh, stop complaining," Gaogamon muttered in an annoyed tone. "We've all been walking just as far as you have and you don't hear me or Kyubimon whining about it!"
"To be fair, Growlmon has been carrying far more than we have," the kitsune pointed out as her Tamer chuckled darkly on her back.
"Yeah, Terriermon's ego has gotta weigh about a ton on its own," the redhead smirked, drawing a glare from the rabbit.
"This coming from someone who calls herself the Digimon Queen…"
"Terriermon…"
"Look, why don't Henry and Terriermon just swap round who they're riding every so often?" Cam suggested, earning himself an incredulous stare from Rika and Kyubimon.
"Whoa…Cam had another good idea…" the girl muttered and shook her head. "That's, what, two this year?"
"Hey, I'm on a roll!" the black-haired boy laughed. "Why don't we take a quick break then you guys can join me on Gaogamon?"
"Sounds like a plan," Henry replied and climbed off of the dinosaur's back just as he de-Digivolved. "I still think it'd be easier if I just rode Gargomon…"
"With my stubby legs? I move like a freaking turtle!" Terriermon complained from the boy's shoulder.
"Besides, we already went through this, Brainiac - we need at least one Digimon to stay de-Digivolved so they won't be exhausted from carrying their partner all the time and can fight properly if we get attacked," Rika explained as she slid gracefully off of her vulpine partner's back, only to make a rather awkward landing thanks to her bandaged knees.
"You okay, Rika?" Takato asked, noticing his friend's stumble.
"I'm fine. Stupid bandages…"
The other two Digimon de-Digivolved to their Rookie forms and joined their companions in the shade, though Renamon did not sit down like the rest of them. Instead, she climbed a few metres up the rock tower, finding a good vantage point and keeping an eye on the surrounding terrain. The group remained like this for about half an hour, with Gaomon replacing Renamon on watch after fifteen minutes so that she could have a rest herself. As the party was about to leave the shade, Renamon's ears suddenly pricked up and her fur stood on end.
"Renamon? What's wrong?" Rika asked in a concerned tone as she noticed her partner's sudden reaction.
"I sense…something…" the kitsune growled in reply, glancing around at her fellow Digimon and noticing that they were having similar reactions. "Something is coming…"
A sudden noise like a thunderclap made the children jump and they looked up to see a ragged circular tear in the sky that glowed with white light. A series of objects that looked like bright white comets streaked out of the hole and slammed into the ground about a mile away from the group, throwing up an enormous cloud of dust.
"That looks like…" Henry started to say.
"A portal!" Rika finished, drawing Digivolution and Speed cards and slashing them as Cam and Takato did the same. "Digi-modify! Digivolution activate! Hyper Speed activate!"
"Renamon Digivolve to…Kyubimon!"
"Guilmon Digivolve to…Growlmon!"
"Gaomon Digivolve to…Gaogamon!"
Rika and Cam leapt onto their respective partner's back as the Digimon set off towards the impact site at incredible speed while Takato, Henry and Terriermon climbed onto Growlmon's back. As soon as they were aboard, the dinosaur broke into a lumbering run and shouted after the two Champions.
"Wait for me!"
The two faster Digimon reached the impact site in under a minute, arriving before the dust had even settled, meaning that a large, thick cloud was obscuring the area quite thoroughly. Their Tamers climbed off of their backs as the Champions padded cautiously forward, sliding quietly down the walls of the crater and advancing deeper into the cloud.
"Ow, my head…I can't see a thing!" a voice called out loudly from the centre of the cloud, startling the two Tamers and their partners. "Hey, robo-buddy - would ya mind clearing this dust up for me?"
"With pleasure!" a polite voice with a metallic edge replied as an odd whining noise rang out, quickly turning into the unmistakable deafeningly-loud shriek of a jet engine.
Kyubimon and Gaogamon closed their eyes and planted their feet firmly against the ground as a gale-force wind tore towards them, creating a sandstorm that washed over them like a tidal wave. Rika and Cam let out twin yelps of surprise as the wind slammed into the walls of the crater, further weakening the already-loosened ground and causing a minor avalanche that sent them tumbling headfirst into the centre of the crater. After a few seconds the noise died down to be replaced by an annoyed voice that began complaining loudly.
"What the hell, Kazu? I nearly lost my glasses!"
"Well, excuse me for using my head…"
Did he say Kazu? Rika thought as she pulled herself to her feet. Oh, no…please, gods no…
"RIKA!" a girl's voice cheered and the redhead felt something slam into her from the left and embrace her in a tight hug. "Long time no see!"
"Jeri? Gah!" the pale-skinned Tamer yelped as she overbalanced and fell flat on her backside, taking the brown-haired girl with her.
"Oops, sorry…" Jeri apologized as she stood back up, helping Rika to her feet a second later.
"Jeri…what are you doing here?" the redhead asked with a bewildered face.
"Yamaki told us about what happened - he said your sister and a couple of your friends got kidnapped by Devas, so we all decided we'd come and help you out!" the eternally-cheerful girl replied with a smile. "Well, Ryo decided that he'd run off and go to the Digital World without telling anyone and we all kind of second-guessed him and decided to tag along…"
"Uh, Rika? Who are these people?" Cam asked, a look of recognition passing across his face as he spotted a familiar boy with a mop of dark green hair and square, wire-rimmed glasses. "Hey, I know you - you're Kenta, right?"
"Uh, yeah, have we…wait, you're one of Rika's friends - Cam?" the Tamer replied, continuing when the black-haired boy nodded and smiled. "Hey, you can understand me! Does this mean you became a Tamer too?"
"Yup - this is my partner, Gaogamon. Well, normally he's Gaomon, but…"
"Heh, yeah. The whole Digivolution thing gets pretty confusing. I'm lucky - MarineAngemon always stays at Mega level!"
"So, Wildcat - you finally took me up on my invitation!" a confident voice called and the Tamers turned to see an abnormally-tall Japanese boy with brown hair and tanned skin stood next to a ten-foot tall black-armoured bipedal dragon with four red wings and a dome shaped helmet.
"Ryo Akiyama…the one part of Japan I was happy to be rid of!" Rika growled with a glare at the older boy, then shot a quick glance at Kazu, who was grinning like an idiot. "Well, one of the two parts…"
"Hey!" the visor-wearing Tamer complained, then shrugged and shot a grin at his green-haired sidekick. "Meh, that means she missed you at least a little bit, Kenta…"
"Oh, Kenta's fine. You on the other hand, are a dick!"
"We've been in the Digital World less than two minutes and Rika has already started an argument…" a ten-foot tall anthropomorphic lion wearing a pair of tattered blue jeans sighed with a weary grin. "Hello, Kyubimon. It has been too long."
"Likewise, Leomon," the kitsune replied with a nod.
The chance for any further conversation was interrupted by a rapid series of loud 'STOMPs' followed by a chorus of cries of surprise. About a second later, the enormous red form of Growlmon slid snout-first down the rim of the crater, skidding to a halt mere metres away from a growling Cyberdramon.
"Hi!" the massive dinosaur greeted the near-feral dragon cheerfully as his passengers climbed shakily off of his back.
"You really need to watch where you're going, boy…" Takato grumbled and then blinked in surprise when he noticed the four additional humans and Digimon. "Uh, who are these guys?"
"Don't tell me your memory's that bad Gogglehead…" Rika sighed and waved her hand impatiently at Kenta and then Ryo.
"Oh, yeah! Hey, Kenta, Ryo - almost didn't recognize you with the big guy," the begoggled Tamer chuckled and nodded at Cyberdramon, who snarled angrily in reply.
"Oh, don't mind him," the older boy grinned and rolled his eyes. "He just gets a little cranky…"
"Oh, okay. So, I guess that makes you two Kazu and Jeri, right?"
"Shioda Kazu, Digimon Tamer extraordinaire at your service!" the visor-wearing boy announced with an exaggerated bow. "And this is my trusty sidekick, squire and ride home - Guardromon."
"Rika warned us you'd do that…" Terriermon sighed, drawing a glare from the overly-dramatic Tamer.
"Anyway…I'm Katou Jeri and this is Leomon," Jeri giggled and waved a hand at her leonine partner. "You're Takato, right?"
"Yeah, how did you know?"
"Rika told me about you," the brown-haired girl replied innocently, provoking identical dirty grins on the faces of Cam, Kazu and Terriermon.
"Did she now…" they said as one and exchanged conspiratorial glances.
"Don't even think about it…" the redhead warned them, cracking her knuckles menacingly. "Unless you want me to kick all your asses. Again."
"So…why don't we get moving?" Kenta suggested nervously.
"Great idea!" Jeri cheered as Leomon bent down and gently lifted her onto his right shoulder. "Hey, Rika - wanna join me up here for a bit so we can catch up?"
"Sure," the girl shrugged, sensing the urgency in her friend's tone and suppressing a laugh as she saw the dejected look that flashed briefly across Kenta's face. Jealous, are we? Hmmm… she chuckled mentally as the lion scooped her up onto his left shoulder.
"So, Yamaki said that one of the people who got kidnapped was your sister…" Jeri said after she and Rika had been riding Leomon for about ten minutes. "I thought you were an only child."
"It's…complicated," the redhead sighed and gazed off into the distance. "Look, I was gonna go on that IM program and tell you about all this stuff, but the last few weeks have been a little…crazy and I never got the chance."
"It's okay, I understand," the cheerful Tamer smiled and nodded for her friend to continue.
"I'll never get how she does that…" Kazu complained from his perch atop his partner's shoulder as he glanced back at the two girls and Leomon, who was lagging slightly behind the rest of the group to give them some privacy.
"Uh, does what?" Takato asked the boy in confusion as Growlmon pulled alongside Guardromon.
"How she gets Rika to act like a normal person!"
"Because she is a normal person," the goggle-wearing Tamer replied with a hint of irritation. "She talks to me, Cam, Henry - hell, even Terriermon! She's not some weird psycho like you seem to think."
"Yeah, right…"
"It's true!" Kenta protested from Guardromon's other shoulder. "She was fine with me when I ended up in England. To be honest, I think it's just you and Ryo that she hates."
"She used to hate Takatomon and the others, too!" Growlmon chipped in excitedly. "But then me and Takatomon saved scary Rika from a big bad Digimon and she stopped being as scary."
"Rika needed saving?" Kenta asked in disbelief. "This is the same Rika we're talking about, right? What happened?"
"Oh, nothing much," Takato lied with a sheepish grin. "Rika got taken by surprise by an IceDevimon. Renamon got knocked out and Guilmon Digivolved to Growlmon for the first time. We took him down - it was no big deal."
"Huh…" Kazu mumbled, not quite sure if he believed the boy's story. In a rare burst of common sense, he decided that even if there was more to the story than Takato was letting on, there was probably a reason he was keeping it from them. And since that reason probably involved Rika murdering anybody who ever found out about it, he wisely opted for dropping the subject.
The Tamers continued travelling for several more hours, stopping a few minutes before 6pm when they found a decent-sized, uninhabited cave that was a perfect place to spend the night. No sooner had their partners (where appropriate) de-Digivolved to their Rookie forms than the world was pitched into darkness as the sky abruptly turned black. The instant nightfall was quite unsettling to all of the children with the notable exception of Ryo, who was used to the quirks of the Digital World thanks to his frequent visits.
"I'll never get used to that…" Jeri mumbled and shivered, yawning as she leaned back against Leomon's soft chest fur. "I feel like I could sleep for a week…"
"Yeah, me too," Ryo agreed as he tried to talk through a yawn. "It's gotta be, what, 3am back in Japan?"
"Yeah," Kenta agreed as he fought to keep his eyes open. "We need to stay awake…until we'd…got to try…adjust to the…"
The green-haired boy trailed off as he gradually nodded off, slumping gently to one side until his head was resting against Leomon's stomach right next to Jeri.
"Two down…" the leonine warrior noted with a tired grin and pointed at the softly-snoring Kazu, who was using his partner's metal chassis like a pillow.
"That can't be comfortable…" Rika chuckled as she wandered into the cave and sat down next to Jeri, Renamon materializing beside her in a sitting position. The pale Tamer pulled off her fingerless gloves and flexed her bandaged hands with a sigh. "That's better…"
"Ouch…what happened to your hands?" the brunette asked as she looked at her friend's injured hands in concern.
"My hands? When Majiramon attacked us me and Renamon got sent flying by one of his attacks. I scraped my hands and knees a bit when I landed."
"So that's why you were walking weird…" Ryo chuckled, finally realizing what the slight bulk around the knees of her jeans was. "You should have said something…here."
The redhead frowned as her nemesis passed her a loaf of bread. "And what am I supposed to do with this?"
"Eat it," Jeri pointed out with a small giggle.
"In the Digital World, humans and Digimon can help themselves to heal faster by eating something," the brown-haired boy explained. "Doing it takes a lot of energy, though. You can't heal anything life-threatening, or the energy you used would kill you."
"How odd. I never knew that humans were capable of that as well," Renamon noted with a small frown.
"Most Digimon don't know - I guess they've not got any reason to know, really. It's not every day that a human wanders into the Digital World," Ryo pointed out with an easy grin. "Even I only found out by accident."
"So…what do I do?"
"Eat it and concentrate as hard as you can on getting better," the boy replied.
"Okay…" Rika sighed and wolfed down the loaf of bread in record time. As she swallowed the last mouthful, she began concentrating hard on her hands and knees.
Heal…heal…heal…whoa! she gasped mentally as an intense tingling flowed across her wounds, replacing the dull pain that she had blocked out hours ago. When the feeling subsided, she tore the bandages from her hands and was shocked to see that the skin was completely healthy and unmarked.
"What…how?" she mumbled as she pulled up her jeans, removing the bandages on her knees to reveal that they, too had been healed.
"The magic of the digital age," Ryo chuckled. "The energy drain will kick in soon. You should start to feel pretty tired any second now."
"I'm pretty sure that's just your lack of stamina, 'cause I…I feel…fine…" the redhead replied, trailing off as her eyes drifted closed and she slumped sideways, her head landing in Renamon's lap. The vulpine Digimon's eyes widened in concern before she let out a small chuckle as she realized that her Tamer was merely asleep.
"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" she asked the boy with a small smirk.
"Maybe…"
"She is going to kill you."
"I know, but she always looks so peaceful when she's asleep," Ryo replied with a wry grin that quickly turned into a yawn, lying back and using his backpack as a pillow. "That's it…screw adjusting to the time zone, I need some sleep."
She does look peaceful… Renamon thought as she looked down at her sleeping Tamer, gently stroking her head with one paw. The kitsune suppressed a yawn as she looked around to see that Ryo and Jeri were both on the edge of falling asleep. I may have to join them…Sovereigns only know how many miles I ran today…
Wednesday 10th November - 8:02am
"So, we're just waiting on Takato, Guilmon, Kazu and Rika," Cam noted as he glanced around at the group of Tamers and Digimon assembled outside the entrance to the cave.
"Rika should be waking up soon," Jeri reassured the tall boy with a smile.
"As for Kazu…" Kenta chuckled and rolled his eyes with a smirk.
"Heh, he a heavy sleeper? Takato's the same. The Mighty Matsuki would sleep through the Apocalypse if it happened before 10am."
"Please, Cam, be realistic," Gaomon sighed with a small grin. "If anything short of his mother were to get Takato out of bed that early, it would be a minor miracle…actually, scratch the 'minor' part…"
"In that case, call me the Messiah!" Ryo joked as he climbed to his feet and strode towards the cave.
"This won't end well…" Kenta predicted with a wince - a prediction that was proven true within seconds as Rika's furious voice erupted from the cave.
"GODS DAMN IT AKIYAMA, YOU ARE A DEAD MAN!"
The lean boy leapt out of the cave and started to run as fast as his legs could carry him, the livid redhead hot on his heels and still shouting death threats. Ryo's longer legs soon proved to be too much of an advantage for Rika to overcome and she quickly fell behind, panting in exhaustion.
"Don't you think she's overreacting just a little?" Cam asked.
"I think it was the 'Sleeping Beauty' comment that did it…" Terriermon noted from his Tamer's shoulder and flapped his oversized ears as he received a series of puzzled looks. "These ain't just for show, ya know!"
"Hey, what's all the noise?" Takato asked as he poked his head groggily out of the mouth of the cave.
"Yeah," Kazu added and stumbled out into the sunlight. "I was having this awesome dream about…anyway…"
"Whoa…" Terriermon breathed as he saw the goggle-wearing Tamer.
"It's a miracle! Let us start the First Church of Ryoism!" Cam declared and fell to his knees melodramatically, drawing a snort of amusement from his partner.
"I think Kazu already beat you to it…"
Digital World, Sovereign Level - 9am
"It is confirmed, lord," Caturamon said hesitantly as he bowed his head before Zhuqiaomon's terrifying form. "All eight of the known Tamers have entered the Digital World and are currently traversing the Great Desert."
"I had predicted as much," the enormous phoenix replied. "Keep me informed."
"Lord, should we not attack while we still have the chance? We have very few spies in most of the other regions - there is a very real chance that if they leave the Great Desert, w-"
"And what would you suggest? An attack on a united enemy?" the Sovereign snarled, his heat-aura flaring with energy. "Thanks to your incompetence as head of my Devas, our forces are severely depleted. We no longer have the advantage of numbers - a weakness that is made even more crippling by the fact that we would likely be facing six Ultimates, a Champion and a Mega, thanks to the two recent Digivolutions. We must wait until Project NOSFERATU has reached completion. Until then, any attack would be suicide."
"Lord, at least let me send a small raiding squad against them. It sickens me to think of such…abominations walking the surface of this world unchallenged."
"Very well…but use expendable forces only! No Digimon of value are to be risked on this…charade."
"You are most gracious, my Lord Sovereign."