Why does it always seem like summer time slows down my updates? That doesn't seem fair, but it is the truth. I tried to provide this chapter as swiftly as possible, but I hope that did not result in a drop in quality.

And, in case you were wondering, I was mildly inspired by the legend of King Arthur and Excalibur (of which there are about a million variations of the story anyway), so our Royal Knight is looking a little more "royal" in his new look. In fact, I drew heavily on details of the physical description of Excalibur (but not every single detail) since I think our Goggle-head deserves it. Enjoy.

It was so strange. As he hit the blue fog, the Guardian program began trying to sap away his strength. It tried to pull out every shred of power in his body. But, as the draining tried to kill him, a new strength rushed through him and overwhelmed the tiredness that the mist caused. He was growing weaker and more powerful in the same instant. It was a very unusual sensation. Still, the weirdness didn't last long. The power kept increasing as his weak and tired human body combined with his best friend. He shouldn't have the energy to Biomerge, but the crest was making all the difference. He wasn't just reaching his mega form or even his more impressive Crimson mode. It was something new and very powerful.

"Guilmon Crest Biomerge to…"

Feathered wings, a shining silver shade that almost made them appear metallic, launched the falling knight back into the sky. His armor, once white and later red, now shone like gold. The crimson hue wasn't completely absent; the individual plates of metal were edged by red trim, resulting in a reversal of their coloration in Crimson mode. Instead of the mark of the Hazard that graced his chest in his regular mega form, the triangular shape of the Crest of Belief was etched in red. No shield, no lance, and no spear rested in his hands. Instead, he held a sword. One with a thicker blade than the one he wielded in his Crimson mode. The hilt was golden with several small glimmering gems embedded, allowing flashes of red, blue, green, and white as the light struck them. The hilt itself was also shaped like twin dragons with piercing eyes. The length of the blade held dark lines that wrote out lines of Digi-code that the fan-boy tamer recognized as saying "one edge to defend" on one side and "one edge to defeat". Above his eyes was the strange circlet that resembled Guilmon, the one he wore in his normal mega form. Now, it was perched further up his head so that it seemed slightly more like a crown.

"…Gallantmon Belief Mode!"

A relieved laughter caught his attention as a grey-winged figure shouted towards the Biomerged knight, "Cutting it a little close, Pineapple-head. Don't do that again."

No longer in immediate danger of dying, the tamer's voice managed an uneasy joke, "Missed us already?"

"No," answered Fatemon, equally unserious. "I just don't want to explain to Jeri why her goggle-headed boyfriend ended up splattered across the ground."

Even within his mental orb, Takato blushed at the suggestion, "She's not my…"

"Catastrophic Meltdown!" shouted Ragnamon, forcing Gallantmon to dodge the attack and the other viral mega to alter his course towards his friend. "You should be destroyed."

"Not yet," the Biomerged knight replied. "Royal Claymore!"

The dark lines of writing along the sword glowed a deep red as he swung the blade through the air. The slicing movement left a crimson arc behind that quickly covered the distance to his target and struck Ragnamon's face.

"Trident Gaia!" announced the dual-voices of VictoryGreymon, launching himself upwards after the earlier bombardment. The impressive amount of energy gathered by the split-bladed sword surprised the upright-standing giant enough that Ragnamon took a step back. With confidence that only Takato's hero at his best could demonstrate, which left the fan-boy tamer grinning broadly, Tai's voice rang out clearly across the battlefield as he declared, "We aren't finished yet. We don't go down easily."

"Don't you?" Ragnamon hissed, his unsettling gaze passed over those struggling to recover from his previous attacks. Sakuyamon looked almost battle-ready and MetalGarurumon was shaking it off, but most of the others closest to the strike zone were still trying to gain their second wind. A couple digimon even seemed to be absent; though Takato hoped they had only dedigivolved instead of a more permanent loss. "I disagree. You've interfered once too often and your destruction is imminent. Your time in this life is over. Catastrophic Meltdown!"

"Victory Charge!" retaliated the orange reptile, twisting his sword and reflecting back the plasma-like attack. "Then I guess we're going into 'sudden-death overtime'."

Her first thought was that, by some miracle, they were alive. Somehow, that goofy, annoying, naïve, optimistic, overly helpful, frustratingly-nice pair of wonderful friends weren't dead. Instead, they were bright gold and apparently unharmed. Both of them were fine. The only thing worse than if they both ended up dead would be if only one had died. Takato would be destroyed without the playful dinosaur and it would be unimaginable to have Guilmon without his tamer. But they were both alive.

Her second thought was that she was going to murder both that Goggle-head and his childish partner. How dare they scare her like that? They were not allowed to act like they were about to die, to convince her that there was nothing to prevent that fate, and make her feel so… helpless. No one was allowed to make her feel like that and…

She shouldn't have to see someone she cared about almost…

They had come so close to…

She was going to kill them.

Rika's plans for murdering that stupid Goggle-head and rookie for almost dying, regardless of how twisted that logic may seem, would have to be put on hold until the giant monster looming overhead was crushed into tiny particles. Ragnamon would not know what hit him.

"Ow… Someone see what hit me?" moaned Terriermon's voice from somewhere.

Shifting her thoughts from vengeful violence to concern, Sakuyamon zeroed in on the sound. Right before Ragnamon stood up and blasted the area to pieces, she remembered the green mega being near a newly-arrived Lillymon that had tried to fire a few shots at their enemy. How well the smaller MegaGargomon weathered the attack, let alone the ultimate, was anyone's guess. She could only hope for the best and quietly pray that the still airborne figures would keep Ragnamon too distracted to attempt firing again at such a large scale.

Her sharp sight picked them out of the rubble. A rather battered floral fairy, an unhappy rabbit, and a dust-covered tamer were wedged between broken slabs of concrete. Terriermon was rubbing his head while Lillymon helped the dark-haired boy up. The shaman mega landed beside the group, producing a couple yelps of surprise from them.

"Is everyone all right?" she asked, giving them a quick look over.

The ultimate gave her a weak smile, "Your friend tried to block some of the blasts from hitting me. You'll have to tell me someday why I ended up with two heroes protecting me when he started as one."

"We're fine, Sakuyamon," Henry confirmed before coughing from the dust covering his body, giving him a grey tinge. "Just pounded. Everyone else?"

"Gallantmon and Fatemon are still airborne," described Renamon's voice swiftly before Rika could explain her intentions to murder their nearly-killed friends. "As is VictoryGreymon. We don't know about anyone else."

Tucking Terriermon under one arm and Henry under the other, Lillymon reassured, "I'll take them back to where the other humans are. The ground forces are essentially useless now, so I'll be back after I check on Mimi. You'll need all the help you can get after that attack."

With that statement, the fairy took flight. Her friends out of harm's way, Sakuyamon shot skywards once more to rejoin the fight.

"Elemental Kitsune!" she shouted, the quartet of summoned foxes racing forward.

"Wing Blade!" a new voice announced, bird-shaped flames joining her element-based creatures in the assault.

Before she could turn to identify the new arrival, Sakuyamon heard VictoryGreymon shout in surprise, "Garudamon! Sora! You came."

"Blast Rings!" another voice added, ring-like rays firing towards the giant.

Above the sounds of impact, Rika could swear she heard an enraged female asking, "Is it too much to ask to be called during an emergency? I was on a trip with my whole family. I was dying for an excuse to get away."

The tamer wondered if the Digidestined would ever run out of back-up.

First Sora and Garudamon show up. And now Yolei and Aquilamon had flow in. The first time they fought Diaboromon, it was all he could manage to get a couple of his friends to help. This time, people from an alternate reality, unpartnered digimon, and all the scattered Digidestined were appearing. If this didn't make the virus stay down, nothing would.

The only problem was that Ragnamon still refused to take damage. No matter how much power he threw at the giant, the creature wasn't harmed. He may flinch from impact or hiss in annoyance, but it was in no worse shape than it started in. And he was focused on killing either VictoryGreymon or Gallantmon immediately. The first because Tai and Agumon had apparently been a pain in the neck for too long and the second because he should have been destroyed already. The Digidestined of Courage didn't know whether to be flattered or concerned with the attention, but it did mean Ragnamon wasn't blasting the digimon still recovering from before.

"Catastrophic Meltdown!" snarled the giant virus.

"Victory Charge!" the Biomerged mega responded, taking advance of his ability to reflect attacks back using his sword.

Fatemon, using the opportunity provided by the reptilian mega distracting the beast, added his own assault, "Chaos Destruction!"

Continuing the trend started by the viral mega and the Biomerged form of Agumon and Tai, MetalGarurumon leapt up from his location among the rubble and shouted, "Ice Wolf Claw!"

Each impact of the freezing missiles was aimed to hit the same location on the giant blue-shelled creature's chest, trying to force him back and possibly break through the digimon's defense. The first goal was succeeding mildly; Ragnamon took another step backwards due to the sheer force behind the strikes. Unfortunately, absolutely nothing seemed to harm the enormous beast. The best they ever seemed to manage was to annoy and anger him.

No one, however, was ready to admit defeat. Especially the females of the group.

"Wing Blast!" announced the humanoid avian, the Digidestined of Love clinging tightly to her partner.

"Blast Rings!" added the horned-eagle champion, the energetic bespectacled girl on his back throwing her fist into the air.

"Ring of Truth!" Sakuyamon shouted, sending the flaming-circle alongside the others' attacks.

Opening his fanged-mouth, Ragnamon shrugged off their attempts and growled, "Catastrophic…"

"Absolute Faith!" interrupted Gallantmon, his armor beginning to emit a golden light.

Glowing brightly, the figure charged forward. By the time the mega reached Ragnamon, he seemed more like light made solid than anything else. The impact itself was fairly impressive as well; the nearly-blinding golden glow engulfing Gallantmon exploded outwards. And, surprisingly, the giant creature took two steps backwards.

"Trident Gaia!" VictoryGreymon yelled, using his own powerful attack. "Keep it up. Don't give him a chance to retaliate."

"Tai?" asked Sora, confused by the double set of voices.

"Later," responded her long-time friend from within his orange orb. "I'll explain later."

Her fingers danced across the keyboard, manipulating and altering familiar lines of code. She'd been playing with computers for a large portion of her life and knew all of the tricks to make technology obey her. It wasn't a matter of ego or pride; she knew that it was a fact that she was a talented programmer. Tammy Mizutani knew this code better than anyone else. She wrote it originally, or thought she did before she found out how she was used, and thus could predict where to look for the hidden traps that turned Guardian from a defensive tool she hoped to use for protection against a dangerous threat into a weapon turned against the city, the innocent citizens, and… her fellow digidestined.

She couldn't let herself focus on her turbulent mind, the mixture of long-repressed memories returned and the thoughts and ideas maintained for years clashed against each other and tried to escape from the fragile shell she'd created to handle the opposing mindsets. She couldn't focus on it because she wouldn't be able to finish this. Computers all over were spewing her creation, the treasured Guardian program that became her shame, and she would stop it. Even if it meant suppressing her emotions for a time, something her therapist would have frowned upon. Not that she intended to ever follow that idiot's advice again.

Another thing she couldn't allow to distract her was the sounds of battle behind her. Darcmon, her partner and the biggest thing that had been missing in her life, was tearing through the low-leveled digimon and keeping the fog at bay. Each time she called an attack, Tammy had to resist the urge to smile at the sound of her voice. Even if she couldn't truly recall her partner's existence this morning, she never felt more complete. She never felt more right than with the winged humanoid swinging her twin swords somewhere behind her.

Locating the short lines of code, scattered throughout the program so she would not spot them unless she was looking for them, she mentally cursed Diaboromon for his cruel and sophisticated programming. It was a work of art, a masterpiece of coding that managed to camouflage itself among the rest and a perfect example of subtlety. Of course, these same lines were being revised to fulfill a new purpose. Her programming, admittedly, was not quite as elegant, but she'd like to think hers was also brilliant. She was reclaiming Guardian as she originally intended it; a tool to protect the innocent. Now, though, the innocent included humans and digimon both. With each keystroke, she was coming closer to changing the blue mist spewing from the computer screens within the building into something new and helpful.

"They're slowing down," called Darcmon. "There are fewer of them now."

"Good. I'm almost done," she responded, trying to type faster. She was so close to being complete. The constant tapping of keys filled her ears; an easier sound to focus on than the sporadic screams of the destroyed jellyfish digimon and mildly reassuring in its normality. It was a sound she'd heard so often for such a long time, a familiar one. She was doing her job, programming, and fulfilling her mission, to protect the world. "Just a few more minutes."

She read and reread the lines of code, unwilling to allow even a single trap or trick of Diaboromon's to remain behind. Once she activated the revised version of her program, she might not have a chance to try again. It would have to be perfect. A single mistake could keep her from success and might even make things worse. She wouldn't allow such a clumsy error, however. Just as he turned her creation into his own weapon to harm others and give him strength, she would turn it back into her own tool to protect others and weaken him.

She would repair the damage her creation had caused when it fell into the hands of a real monster. But she couldn't forget that her original intention for the program would have cause harm as well. It might have been intended as a weapon to protect, but it was still a weapon. She would have to take responsibility for that fact. Any weapon could be turned against its creator and used in ways never intended. And she would take care of that and weed out any remaining trace of Diaboromon's corruption with a single act.

With a final keystroke, she whispered, "Initiate Guardian program: Version Omega."

The Digidestined of Reliability was trying to convince himself that things couldn't get much worse, so they would have to start improving any second now. After all, once things hit rock bottom, the only direction left was up. And it was almost certainly rock bottom.

First the rumbling and shaking started shortly after the arrival of Sora and Garudamon and they moved away from the water edge. Then, some monstrously huge digimon had risen up against the skyline like a terrifying nightmare. Not that his own partner, Zudomon, wasn't large, but the blue-shelled beast that loomed in the distance was overwhelming. Only the fact that the creepy creature was still far away was a comfort. The digimon, Ragnamon if the name he bellowed was to be believed, was battling something apparently, but it was taking time for Joe and Sora's partners to plow through the blue fog so they could reach him. They were still facing some of the smaller viral digimon, even if they were fewer now, so there was at least a distraction from him. But when the giant monster stood up, somehow managing to look even bigger and scarier, and blasted away at who-know-what. The look of absolute worry for their friends on Sora's face convinced the bespectacled young man to urge her and Garudamon to fly ahead. Even if Zudomon was stuck traveling slowly by land, there was no reason the flying ultimate and girl couldn't see if they could help out.

Now, he was alone again with Zudomon while surrounded by the deadly mist and aggressive digimon. The huge blue-shelled entity was still present and attacking flitting figures. And mostly, Joe was wondering if there was any way for the situation to become bleaker.

A series of frantic shriek abruptly erupted from all the visible Kuramon and Chrysalimon, even those not even close to the hammer-swinging ultimate. The bespectacled Digidestined clamped his hands over his ears against the noise, the sounds emerging from within the blue fogbank as well. Apparently, all the creepy digimon were making the shrill sounds, even those not yet visible to the pair. The college-age youth didn't know if the noise was a sign of some new horror about to be unleashed or that there was a glimmer of hope finally.

"What's going wrong now?" Joe asked, not certain who he was expecting to have an answer.

"They look like they're in pain," responded his partner, equally confused.

As Joe glanced over the shrieking and now cringing creatures, he noticed another oddity. The blue shade that was on every stage of the digimon, a color that perfectly matched the ominous mist that engulfed the city, was different now. They had gained a slight purple tinge. Looking closer, the Digidestined saw that the fog had gained the same hint of color difference. And the alteration to the hue was subtly becoming more pronounced. The blue was definitely turning purple and the shrieking continued to increase in volume.

"Something's happening. I think something important is going on and it might actually be good for us this time," the dark-haired youth stated slowly.

Rika, Rika, Rika… Planning murder against her friends is how she shows that she cares. And Takato and Guilmon scared her to death with their near-death experience. They will not be hearing the last of this for quite some time.

And yes, I added Yolei. I doubt she would forgive me if she missed the entire thing. Perhaps Cody will manage a cameo before the end too. They may not be my favorite digimon characters ever (or my least favorite…), but they deserve some attention anyway.

Tammy Mizutani has been a busy little programmer and her actions will have some rather helpful results. The near-invulnerability that the Guardian program was providing Ragnamon has just been tampered with. Maybe that'll teach him the dangers of integrating a powerful piece of programming into the very data of his army of drones and his newest body and deciding the woman he used to activate that program alone because he has more important targets. Well, he does have his back-up plan copy of himself hiding in the computer systems. Maybe he'll get lucky and she won't find it…

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