Hello, all. What is this? Updates on back-to-back weekends? Yes indeed. This chapter was being written while chapter 18 was written, but it was getting too long so I wanted to split up the build up and action into two separate chapters.

Enjoy the action.

This was getting old really fast, Naomi thought to herself as she missed Digmon again. The Digimon drilled its way back down under the earth and vanished from sight. For such a big, bulky thing, it was surprisingly agile and quick. How were they expected to battle this thing together if they couldn't even locate it? Her frustration tipped over.

She craned her head around, desperately searching for where Digmon was going to come out. Naomi was still so frazzled by everything that she couldn't keep a clear head.

"Nomi, step away from there!" cried Keiko. "It'll be appearing right under where your right foot is."

Naomi looked at her curiously. "How do you know that?"

"Just trust me!"

Then her brother's voice came. "Something's moving under you, Nomi! I can hear it! Get away!"

The ground rumbled under her feet. Shiro had been right. Naomi seized the little time that she had to dodge. Luckily, she avoided Digmon before it could do any damage. Pebbles and dust rained down on her, covering her tunic and hair. She reactively swung her blue lightsaber at it and managed to hit what she believed to be its shoulder.

Digmon let out a cry of pain. The drill on its right limb turned as it tried to hit her in retaliation. Naomi blocked it with her saber. Before she could get another swipe at it, the Digimon disappeared beneath the ground once again. Naomi looked around calmly, trusting her partners to tell her where to go.

"Tell me where you see it coming next, Keiko," she said.

A few seconds passed, then Keiko said, "It's going to come up near Shiro."

Naomi looked over at her brother. She didn't have to say a word as she saw they were completely on the same page. She nodded to him. He nodded back.

Digmon reappeared as predicted, just a few feet from Shiro's left. The Izumi siblings were more than ready for it. Naomi's blue lightsaber and Shiro's green saber swung together at the same time, slashing Digmon's shell on its shoulder and chest. The creature reared back with a cry once again. Keiko then joined in as they delivered one final attack together. Digmon fell to the ground on its back.

Naomi took a deep breath. The adrenaline rush from that whole experience surged through her body. As far as she could tell, Digmon was not dead. It would have burst into data if it was. The Izumi girl retracted her lightsaber blade with a 'zip'. She wrapped her arm around Shiro's shoulder and pulled him in for a side hug. A chuckle escaped her lips. A moment later, he chuckled as well.

They had made it.

"Look out, Kazu!" Shun cried as a fireball came hurtling toward the blonde. He raised his hand and made a barrier appear around his friend, shielding him from the attack. The fireball evaporated on impact. He raised his green lightsaber to defend himself as the creature looked at him with an angry snarl on its face.

The Digimon looked like a large Tyrannosaurus Rex with a brown armor-like covering on its head. Its body was orange with blue stripes covering various parts of its body. Its stubby forelimbs swiped the air with its sharp claws. The creature's red eyes stared at him like it wanted to snatch him up in its jaws for lunch. Thanks a lot for not feeding it for three days, Master Gennai, Shun thought incredulously.

"Shunny!"

Shun broke out of his daze from the sound of Masato's voice. The Digimon fired a fireball towards him this time. He had been so lost in his thoughts that he couldn't get out of the way in time. Shun felt himself be forced to the ground as the ball of fire dashed over him. A surge of heat rushed past as it missed. That was too close.

Shun lifted his hand to put up another barrier around him and his brother. He paused it briefly when he saw Kazu was close enough to join them before putting it back up. The dinosaur hurled attack after attack toward the barrier, but it was stopped each time. As tempting as it was to stay like this, Shun knew that was not the point of the challenge that Master Gennai had given them. He tried to think of ideas.

"Guys," said Masato. "I have an idea."

Shun gritted his teeth as he concentrated on maintaining the barrier. "Whatever it is, let's hear it," he said.

"Shunny, you turn the barrier off for short segments. Just enough for Kazu and I to get closer to this guy," Masato explained. "It's the only way we can win since you like playing defense while Kazu and I can handle the attack."

Shun was surprised. That actually sounded really good. His brother was taking charge of the situation at last. He was happy to see that. The youngest Kido son and Kazuma locked eyes. The blonde did not hesitate to nod with a smile.

"I like it," he said. "Let's do it."

"I agree," added Shun. "Good thinking, Masato."

Masato reached up and grabbed Shun into an affectionate headlock. Shun let out a choked cry of surprise. His brother was affectionate to a fault most of the time, especially with him. He would not have minded it if it weren't for the fact that he felt the barrier waiver.

"Let me go!" he choked out.

The Digimon let out a ferocious growl. The sound was tremendous, a scream from another world. Shun felt Masato let him go as the dinosaur fired yet another attack. The three of them barely dodged before running around the pit as a group. The Digimon stayed with them every single step of the way.

Shun pointed to either side, signaling for his group mates to go in those directions. Kazu went to the left and Masato split right. He stayed put as the gigantic being eyed him hungrily. Shun raised his green lightsaber defensively. The light produced from the blade illuminated the side of his face, highlighting the determination in his brown eyes. A deep breath coursed through his diaphragm, keeping him steady. Almost.

"Run away!" he heard Naomi scream. "Shun!"

Almost.

"Just so you know, Greymon doesn't let go when he gets a hold of you!" echoed Master Gennai.

Almost.

"Now!" he cried.

A blur passed out of the corner of his eye. He barely had time to register it as the dinosaur roared out in pain. When he looked, he saw Kazu holding onto the creature's leg. Part of it was slashed thanks to Kazu's green lightsaber. Greymon tried to kick him off, but the blonde held tight like his life depended on it.

Wait, where was his brother?

Shun heard a loud cry coming from his right. He turned and saw Masato charging in with his saber raised over his head. Luckily Kazu had Greymon occupied, so the attack should work. Just as he thought that, he heard a shout near him, followed by a crash. A cloud of dust rose up. It then cleared, allowing him to see who it was.

"Kazu!" he cried, rushing over to help the blonde boy up.

"Look out, guys!" Masato cried.

Shun looked back. Greymon towered right above them, looking down at the two of them with hungry red eyes. Its maw opened wide. Fire built up, signaling that it was about to unleash another fireball on them. They didn't have time to get away. Shun shut his eyes.

A loud roar echoed across the pit. It sounded like it was of pain rather than of warning. Shun opened his eyes and saw his brother was now on the creature's shoulder. His saber was embedded in the dinosaur's thick neck. It stumbled back, trying to wave its stubby limbs to try and knock Masato off. The eldest of the group held on with dogged determination.

Shun tightened his grip on his saber. This was his and Kazu's chance.

"Let's do it," he said to Kazu.

The blonde boy nodded in return and gripped his saber. The two of them rushed forward. After a few steps, Shun leapt into the air with him. Everything seemed to pass by in slow motion as he reared his saber back to strike. He was completely in the zone. All those long-distance runs had built up his legs to pull that move off. It was all worth it.

Shun slowly let his breath out in a slow release as he swung his saber forward with Kazu. The green blades hit the top of Greymon's brown head covering. The Digimon roared out in pain as its head rolled back. As gravity carried him and Kazu down to earth, Shun managed to watch as Greymon fell back and hit the ground with a loud thud. The impact from its landing sent up a big cloud of dust that hung in the air for a few seconds.

Masato had jumped off Greymon's shoulder before the two landed their attack, so he hit the ground with them. Shun wiped off any dust that landed on him from his tunic and looked between his brother and best friend. They smiled at each other. The credit had to go to Masato because if he hadn't struck Greymon when he did, Shun and Kazu would have been walking yakiniku.

"Nice work, gentlemen," Kazu chuckled.

"Yeah," Shun added, looking at Masato. "Good job."

He didn't have a chance to say much else as Masato hugged him tightly.

"Okay, we're hugging now," he choked out in embarrassment.

But he did not force his way out. He decided to let Masato have his moment.

Yuki jumped back to avoid another one of the missiles that the creature he and his two cohorts were facing had fired from its horn. Their Digimon was covered in white fur and had the body of a walrus. Long, sharp tusks ran down the sides of its face past its chin. Its wide blue eyes narrowed in hunger. He believed that Master Gennai had called it Ikkakumon. Whatever its name was, it was proving to be one tough customer. He, Ichigo and Kenya could not get close to it since it kept firing missile after missile at them to keep them far away. Why hadn't he gotten the lightning speed that Kazu had? He could have used that out on the pitch.

Another reason for their lack of attack was Yuki was afraid to let Kenya out of his sight. He needed to make sure he could see Squirt at all times so that he could protect him from Ikkakumon. Being the leader was not easy. It was especially not easy when he had his own flesh and blood in the game with him.

"Ichigo, try coming from behind it!" he ordered.

"Got it, Yuki," Ichigo responded.

He ran among some of the rocks for cover. Unfortunately, Ikkakumon's eyes seemed to follow him the whole time as it snuffed the attempt out right away. The furry creature swiped one of its clawed forelimbs at the rocks that Ichigo was working through. The rocks came apart like a hot knife through butter. Ichigo disappeared under them.

"Ichigo!" Yuki cried.

He rushed forward to help the Motomiya boy. Just before he could get to him, another missile exploded on the ground in front of him. The explosion was massive enough that Yuki fell back and hit the ground with a hard fall on his head. The world spun around as he struggled to regain his senses. Had he hit his head on a rock? It sure felt like he did. How he was not knocked out was a miracle.

Yuki gently lifted himself up. Ichigo was back on his feet, swinging his green lightsaber just in front of Ikkakumon to keep it back from him. Squirt…where was Squirt? He couldn't find him, and his senses were still too out of whack to try and sense him. His heart skipped a beat from fear. His fingers groped the ground in search of his lightsaber. After a few seconds, he felt the metal hilt and wrapped them around it before picking it up.

He could now think clearly. Yuki rolled up to his feet, only to be met with a wall of white in front of him. He activated his lightsaber and curled it in a defensive manner. His crimson eyes locked with Ikkakumon's blue ones that were full of bloodlust. The Digimon swiped its claws at him. Yuki ducked and swung his lightsaber, keeping it back. His breathing came out slow and steady, trying to keep his heart from exploding in his chest.

Ikakkumon took another swipe at him, and once more Yuki ducked and swung his lightsaber. He kept the glowing blue end pointed at the creature as he backed up. Where was Ichigo? Why wasn't he helping? More importantly, where was Kenya? Right now, Yuki's concern was more on his little brother.

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw someone hiding behind a boulder. Yuki took a quick glance to his right and saw that Kenya was the one behind it. The worry in his heart evaporated. He didn't look too long so as to not alert Ikkakumon to where Squirt was, but knowing he was okay made him feel better.

The standoff between him and Ikkakumon continued. Yuki tried to guess what the creature was going to do next, but everything was hard to read right now. Maybe his head wasn't as clear as he had thought. He took another glance toward Kenya and nudged his head toward the Digimon. Hopefully Squirt understood what he was trying to say. He didn't want to tip Ikkakumon off to what he wanted to have happen. When he glanced back at the rock, Squirt was gone.

Ikkakumon broke the stalemate by firing another barrage of missiles. Yuki was blown back as they exploded in front of him. Once more he found himself lying down on his back. This was hard. He looked around for his squad mates.

"Squirt!" he cried. The smoke surrounding him was so thick that he could not see a thing. He could feel Kenya and Ichigo were close by, but how close by he did not know. "Squirt! Ichigo!"

A low, deep snarl reached his ears. Yuki froze in fear as he stayed seated on the ground. Oh no. The growl came again. He was completely dead.

A deep cry of pain erupted. His eyes had been closed, so he didn't see what happened but it was clearly Ikkakumon crying out. Yuki ran straight through the smoke to see what was going on. The Digimon stumbled out of the cloud, looking dazed. Why was that? He looked around for any clues as to why. A large boulder lay not far behind him. That must have been what injured it.

"Yuki!"

The orange-haired boy turned around to see Kenya and Ichigo run up and join him at his side. He smiled. They were both okay. It was time to stop fooling around. Being conservative was not going to win them any points in this challenge. It was just like being in the final moments of added time and needing an equalizing goal to salvage something from the match.

"Okay, guys. Let's do this." Yuki raised his saber. "Get on my back and I'll take you guys to the promised land."

"Right with you, captain," replied Ichigo. He raised his green lightsaber with a grin like Yuki's. Yuki thought that grin made him look just like his dad when he was his age, based on the drawings from his uncle's manga.

Yuki looked down at his brother. "Ready, Squirt?"

Kenya nodded. "I'm right with you."

The three of them charged forward. Ikkakumon barely had a chance to get its bearings as the three boys were now on top of it. Yuki felt an unstoppable surge of power erupt through his body. He swung his saber forward, the blue blade a blur before his eyes as he unleashed strike after strike. No matter what Ikkakumon tried to do, it could not stop them as every attack hit its mark. Where did this come from? It was awesome!

Before long, Ikkakumon's white, furry body was covered in slashes all over. Its flanks were an art display of slashes. Yuki was in such a zone that he couldn't hear anything other than the beat of his heart. Kenya stayed with him the best he could, getting in attacks just after Yuki would draw Ikkakumon away. The creature swiped around, trying to stop them, but having to deal with the three boys was proving too much for it.

One swipe of its claws, however, managed to hit its mark. That stopped their assault right in its tracks. Yuki fell back but he quickly shot up to his feet.

"Yuki, help! I'm stuck!"

The boy turned, hearing his brother's cry. Blackness crept in around his vision as he saw Ikkakumon turn its gaze on his brother. Kenya's foot was trapped between two rocks, making him completely helpless for the Digimon. Was this what it felt like to have tunnel vision? Desperation spread through his chest. Over his dead body.

Yuki reached Kenya in time to cover him with his body. The creature's missiles exploded right at the same time he got there. Yuki cradled his brother close to him as they were sent flying. He turned his body in mid-air to absorb most of the landing when they hit the ground.

He took a moment to look Squirt over before reaching for his lightsaber. He'd have to check on his brother's foot when this whole thing was over, but that was far from his mind. Ikkakumon seemed to have shaken off its dizzy spell because it charged right for the two of them with steady, determined legs. Yuki swallowed.

"Ichigo!" he cried. "Do it! Now!"

When he looked at the Motomiya boy, something was visibly different about him. It looked like he was…glowing. A yellow light surrounded his body, like he had become Super Saiyan or something. His hair didn't become blonde like what would normally happen in the show, but it was still amazing to watch. The light was brighter down near his left pant leg. Yuki gazed at him in amazement. What power did he have? Ikkakumon had ceased its charge to also see this new phenomenon.

Ichigo charged forward with such speed that Yuki wondered if the boy was possibly the real life embodiment of Goku or any other Saiyan – he was that fast. His green lightsaber also moved with such speed that it was hard to keep up with him. Ikkakumon let out growls of annoyance as it swiped desperately at Ichigo, but it missed the boy every single time.

Ichigo did not stop until Ikkakumon collapsed to the ground, defeated. A small bit of dust went up into the air. The whole pit went quiet as the light surrounding Ichigo faded and he was back to his normal self. He turned back to look at Yuki and Kenya and briefly exchanged smiles with the elder Kamiya brother.

"We did it!" Squirt cried, throwing his arms around Yuki's neck.

Yuki happily returned the embrace, hugging his little brother tight. He let out a cry of celebration, swinging Kenya back and forth. They had done it! They had survived this task together! He ran up to Ichigo and did their usual celebration for whenever they connected on a goal.

"What was that, Ichi?" he asked. "That was incredible!"

"I don't know," Ichigo replied shyly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I saw you guys were in trouble and was worried we were about to lose. Something just…came over me."

Yuki smiled at his friend and ruffled the boy's hair. "Whatever it is, make sure it keeps happening. That really helped us out of a jam."

"Hopefully it doesn't happen too often though."

Yuki looked back up to see the rest of the group. He quickly spotted Miya and Ryuji. Miya had a relieved smile on her face when they locked eyes, but he could see there was some foreboding in her eyes. She and Ryuji were up next – last, but certainly not least.

He hoped that they were up to the task. If only he could join them, then he would ensure their safety.

Even so, he believed in her. Ryuji as well, but mostly her.

Miya was terrified.

No, scratch that.

Completely and utterly terrified.

After watching everyone else take their turns and observing them, she did not know how she was going to do this and take care of her little brother at the same time. It seemed impossible. That word kept echoing in her head as she and Ryuji waited for their creature to emerge. The suspense was killing her. She had the intense desire to go to the bathroom as her whole body shook in fear. Anywhere was better than here. Miya slowly inhaled and exhaled through her mouth, trying to fight off the urge to bite her fingernails – they were still covered.

Ryuji tried to smile at her, but she saw just how scared he was too. As his big sister, it was her job to protect him and ensure his safety. Her lips forced a smile to try and assure him and make it seem like she had it together. It seemed to work. Even if she did not believe in her smile, she was going to fake it for him.

"No pressure, you two," said Master Gennai. "All you have to do is not die and you'll be fine."

Miya looked up and glared at him as he chuckled. He had really touched a nerve this time. He loved picking on her the most because she had proven to be an easy target this whole time. Well, no more.

"Understood, Master," she said through gritted teeth. She wasn't going to let him get to her and distract her from this test.

The gate raised on the final opening in the cliff. It seemed to go by slower than the other ones – could that have been a dread-induced hallucination? It didn't matter because the gate was now open. Miya felt a dark anger that lusted for sustenance. She reached down for her saber and brought the green blade inside to life. She heard Ryuji's buzz to life along with hers.

It was going to be fine. It was going to be fine. It was going to be…

The creature charged out of the darkness with a growl that tore through the air. When she got a look at it, she almost wet herself.

It was not going to be fine.

What stood before her was the biggest wolf Miya had ever seen in her entire life. She had heard about dire wolves and how they had existed, but that was thousands of years ago; this was now. It was covered in dark and light blue, and blue-tinted white fur. Dark blue markings covered its body and legs like the stripes of a tiger. A long, rugged tail swung behind its rear, also striped. Its claws were magenta and looked sharp enough to tear through flesh in one swipe. The wolf's eyes were golden brown, but to Miya they were glowing blood red as it looked at them hungrily. Drool flowed out the sides of its powerful jaws. A chain was wrapped around its neck but Miya did not think that would be enough to stop it from hunting food – her and Ryuji.

The wolf reared its head back and howled into the air. The sound sent shivers down Miya's spine. She looked over and saw her brother covering his ears. It was getting harder to stay calm by the second. This was scary. She tried to calm herself as the wolf Digimon circled them slowly, sizing them up like a real wolf would probably do. Miya raised her saber and pointed it at the Digimon, hoping that would keep it at bay for now. It didn't.

The creature zeroed its gaze on her. She summoned enough nerve to stare right back at it, but it did not last long as its primal instincts took over after being denied food for three days.

It charged with the speed and relentlessness of a real wolf chasing a caribou. Miya screamed as she dove to the side to avoid the attack. The wolf was relentless as it made another lunge for her. Its jaws opened wide, revealing two sets of sharp, white fangs that could easily tear flesh off without even trying too hard. Miya swung her saber out of her natural human survival instinct, hitting the side of its muzzle. The wolf reared back in surprise, but quickly came back.

It then yelped in surprise. Miya saw a rock land near where she was. The wolf Digimon stopped its attack on her and snarled as it looked over to where the rock had come from. Miya followed where it looked.

To her surprise, Ryuji stood a few feet away, his eyes narrowed with anger. He held another rock in his other hand.

"Leave her alone!" he cried. "Come at me instead, you mean doggy."

Miya opened her mouth to yell for him to stay out of this and hide where he could be safe. Even if she got a chance to say anything, the wolf already beat her to the punch. It charged right at him. Miya's fear shot up.

"Run away, Ryu-Ryu!" she cried.

To her horror, he didn't seem to hear her. She almost closed her eyes, unable to watch what would happen next. Ryuji dove under the wolf's body as it took a snap at him. Miya's eyes widened in awe. When did he learn to do that? The surprises didn't end there as her little brother then slashed the wolf's leg. It let out an annoyed snarl as it swiftly turned in search of him.

Miya decided to get in on the action too. If her little brother could do something like that, then she could join in as well. She rushed in to help him. The wolf's tail lashed out and swatted her away like a common housefly. It had the strength of a truck that it easily sent her flying to the side. Miya landed four feet away from where she had stood. A cloud of dust went up into the air from her hard landing.

The girl quickly picked herself up, then grabbed her lightsaber. The creature continued after her brother, but he kept moving around the pit, dodging every snap of the wolf's jaws. The fear in his eyes was evident but unlike her, he seemed to use it to his advantage. Now she liked the fact that he didn't like being touched without permission. Why couldn't she be like that?

To her dismay, Ryuji turned the corner and brought the creature right toward her. She saw him frantically wave at her to move away, but tunnel vision took hold as she stared at the large wolf behind him.

"MIya! Move!" Ryuji cried. "Get out of the way!"

She tried to, but her feet refused to turn and run away. What was wrong with her? Why couldn't she listen to her body's natural instinct to survive? It was as if her brain had stopped working as that fear from earlier took over. Why had she been chosen to be a Destined Jedi? She had no talent for it, and now Miya was worried her brother was going to suffer the consequences for her cowardice.

It was hopeless. They were both going to die here, just as she feared.

"There's always hope when things seem hopeless!"

Miya's eyes widened. Where had she heard that? Why was it coming in now? She didn't remember either of her parents telling her that. Neither had Uncle Cody. They certainly would have told her something like that, but she did not remember any of them saying it.

"Miya, come on!"

She jolted out of her catatonic state. That voice again. She looked up and saw Yuki looking down at her.

"Remember!" the orange-haired boy shouted. "There's always hope when things seem hopeless!"

That's right! Now she remembered. That was from their conversation a few nights ago. How could she have forgotten? She felt so foolish. He was absolutely right. There was always hope, even in the darkest of situations. A new wave of determination flooded her body. She was going to prove to both Yuki and Master Gennai, as well as herself, that she was capable of being a strong Destined Jedi.

Miya tightened her grip on her saber and brought the green blade to life. She was done running away. Knowing she had Yuki's full support, along with everyone else's, destroyed any fears that remained in her heart. Her eyes narrowed and glowed with a new fire that had never been there.

She rushed forward toward her brother. Her heartbeat echoed in her ears as she saw Ryuji stop. No, don't stop! The wolf was going to get him! Turn around, Ryu-Ryu!

Everything froze as if time had stopped. Miya saw that she was still moving at a normal pace. Even her brother didn't seem to freeze with the rest of their surroundings. The wolf had stopped in mid-lunge. It looked like one of those slow-moving pictures that first introduced the idea of moving pictures in the early twentieth century.

A bright yellow light came down from under her pant leg. As tempting as it was to stop and look, she knew there was no time. Somehow, this whole sensation felt familiar. It was; she had done this very same thing back at the courtyard of the Kamiya family's apartment. Gosh, that felt like a lifetime ago.

She smiled at her brother. "Let's do this, Ryu-Ryu."

He nodded back. "Yeah."

Miya did not wait a second longer. She didn't know how long she could keep this time suspension thing going, so it was better to get while the getting was good. As she and Ryuji ran to the wolf, its legs slowly picked up to a normal speed. The two of them had only one shot.

Miya raised her arms and saber above her head. A slow deep breath coursed through her body as she slashed at one of the wolf's ankles just as time resumed normally. The beast yelped in pain and stumbled to the ground. Miya managed to avoid being crushed under its massive form by sliding out to the side. The sight of it down on the ground after the whole encounter sent a massive thrill through her body.

She lost all sense of the world around her as she poured every ounce of fear in her body into slashing its flank. It yelped and whined from the pain, but this only egged her on. She wanted it to know what it was like to feel helpless and terrified for a change. The world around her went completely silent.

Die!

Die!

Die!

Where was Ryuji?

Die!

Die!

Die!

Why wasn't he joining her?

Die!

Die!

"Hey, come on! That's enough!"

Miya felt a pair of arms wrap around her and wrestle her lightsaber out of her grip, sending it to the ground. She fought against the hold, not wanting to stop until the beast was obliterated.

"Miya!"

That voice was familiar on a much deeper level that it snapped her out of it. The blind anger vanished when she realized it was Yuki's voice. The orange-haired boy stood beside her, but he was not the one with his arms wrapped around her. Who was it?

Miya looked up and saw Master Gennai's eyes looking down at her with annoyance. She also saw what she believed to be a twinge of fear in them. Why was that? What happened?

"You did not have to go nuts like that," said Master Gennai. "Jeez! I only told you to defeat Garurumon, not cut up his body like a slab of meat."

Miya panted softly as the adrenaline flushed out of her system. She looked at the wounded Digimon with wide eyes, noticing all the slashes on its flank. She did that? The wolf gingerly stood up and walked back to its enclosure with its tail between its legs. A brief second of silence passed before she smiled nervously.

"Sorry, Master. I guess I got carried away," she said.

"I'll say you did."

Master Gennai let her go. Ryuji rushed up to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She smiled and stroked his head affectionately. They had survived! They had passed!

She and Yuki then locked eyes. Her heart skipped a beat when he flashed his famous goofy grin at her. That goofy, stupid grin that always made her feel warm inside when she saw it. She gave him a silent thanks. The urge to hug him was strong.

Miya took a step toward him, but then she felt someone else hug her. It was Masato. Darn it! Then the rest of the group came down to join them. Even with all these new faces, she kept her eyes on the orange-haired boy.

It was because of him that she made it through this.

It was because of him that she now had the confidence to be the best Destined Jedi she could be.

It was because of him that she was not going to give up hope of getting out of here alive and somehow help him see that they both could be better people if she was with him instead of Naomi.

What awaits the kids next as they continue their journey towards becoming full Destined Jedi? Find out next time on Destined Jedi: Next Generations.

That was exciting, wasn't it? Each group fought differently and with their own ways of working together. How will that serve them all in the field? Only time will tell.

Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. As always, I'd love to hear your comments so don't hesitate to leave one. Next time, we will return back to the real world for the first time in...a very long time.

Have a nice weekend. Tootles.