ZAFT: Updating on time today! XD It's also been raining by me quite often today.
DarkFoxKit: Let's just get this updated.
ZAFT: Have something going on today?
DarkFoxKit: Just don't have much to add. Didn't want to talk about the weather again. And people come here for the story, not our chit chatting
Andy: She's not in the best of moods right now, might be best to move on.
ZAFT: Okay, onto the chapter then.
(Two symbols, one red, and one blue, spin before colliding and flaring with light as they do so, showing the title)
Digital Phantom!
(Shows several forms in shadow before they are revealed to be Danny Fenton and Patamon, Sam Manson, Tucker Foley, Takuya Kanbara, Andy Fenton and Lopmon, and Jazz Fenton)
Falling into destiny
(A swirling green portal is shown, followed by the sky and cities of the living world before a computer monitor is zoomed in on, revealing another world of lush greenery through that)
Reaching across new boundaries
(Andy Fenton appears with Jazz beside him. Takuya Kanbara appears behind him as well, the form of Agunimon appearing behind Takuya himself)
Let our stories come together
(Andy is shown with the form of Phantom beside him, his twin brother Danny Fenton behind the ghost boy)
Growing stronger
(Andy looks on at Phantom fighting before running to help the ghost boy by taking out his Fenton Rod)
Our pasts intertwine
(Six glowing orbs of light are shown, each of a different color (red, teal, lavender, dark purple, white, and yellow) before the red orb speeds towards Takuya)
Showing our future
(Takuya holds up his D-Tector before fractal code surrounds him, dissipating as fire erupts from it, revealing him as Agunimon, lunging out from the fire as Plasmius fires off ecto-rays at him, only for a glowing orange orb to appear around Agunimon and deflect the beams)
As we evolve
(The blasts speed past the screen as Tucker is shown with a Fenton Wrist ray being fired at a ghost, Kokuwamon shown behind him)
Let's go… EVOLUTION
(Sam is shown with her Fenton Lipstick, firing it at a different ghost, with Biyomon shown behind her)
As our worlds collide
(Jazz is shown beside Andy, the form of Lopmon behind Andy while a shadowed form is behind Jazz)
We stand as one
(Jack and Maddie Fenton are shown, with the Fenton Works logo behind them as it glows green)
Growing strong
(Ghosts are shown flying all around Amity Park as the shadowy form of Walker is shown atop a building and sneering down)
As we move along
(Danny is shown walking down the street with those closest to him appearing one by one; Andy and Lopmon, Patamon, Tucker, Sam, Takuya, and Jazz)
CHOU… SHINKA!
(Fractal code is shown before it dissipates to reveal Agunimon lunging out of the dissipating data, fire around his left fist)
Let's go… EVOLUTION!
(The group is shown facing down Plasmius, who looms above them with hands outstretched as a dark form appears behind Plasmius himself)
Nothing will stand in our way!
(Andy, Lopmon, Danny, Tucker, Sam, Jazz, and Takuya all appear with ribbons of fractal code streaming out from behind them, a swirling green orb behind the ribbons of fractal code)
Digital Phantom!
Chapter 48: Worrying News
After Andy, Danny, and Takuya fixed up the door for the twins' room, while Maddie and Jack were doing something in the lab, they decided this was a good time to go to the Digital World. After all, they were still grounded from breaking curfew, and Andy would rather 'go missing' than to stick around for cleaning the lab and listening to those BS lessons his parents wanted to feed him about ghosts.
"Are you sure you want to come with us, Danny?" Andy asked. "Wouldn't you rather look for Patamon first?"
"Yeah. I would rather be distracted by the Digital World right now. And… I kinda get the feeling Patamon needs a bit more time to himself…" Danny admitted.
"But if we had to fight, how are you going to handle yourself? Your ghost form has the potential to glitch the Digital World," Andy warned.
"I can use a Fenton Rod or a wrist ray if I have to." Danny replied. "It may not be ideal, but it does help in some way."
"And I can protect him if I have to," Takuya volunteered.
"And me." Lopmon smiled. "I'm sure I'll be able to keep you and Danny safe."
"Heh, alright then," Andy chuckled. "Let's go before my parents decide to 'teach me' how to be around ghosts."
So Andy held up his D-Arc to the computer screen, the portal to the Digital World opened, sucking Andy, Lopmon, Danny, and Takuya in.
As they went through the vortex, Andy's outfit became that dark blue shirt and pants with white shoes, with Lopmon at his side. Danny's outfit became just like his hazmat suit, but in the form of a T-shirt, pants, and shoes. Takuya didn't have his clothes change at all.
The group then wound up being spit out of a monitor and landed in a pile of limbs and brush.
"Ow… I think this is kinda going to be our landing position when we emerge from the Digi-Port…" Takuya grumbled from beneath Andy and Danny.
"Great… Ending up in a pile of limbs is exactly how I want to land…" Danny groaned.
"What… are you… complaining about… Mr. Ghost Boy? I'm… the one… being crushed…" Andy groaned from under the pile. "Please… get off… me…"
Takuya and Danny rolled off of Andy and Lopmon.
"Sorry, bro…" Danny apologized. "The landing really needs some work…"
"Yeah… I didn't expect to land on top of you and Lopmon, Andy." Takuya added sheepishly.
"That's it, next time you're standing in front of the portal," Andy grumbled at Takuya.
"On the plus side, it looks like we made it to the Flame Terminal," Lopmon said.
They were in the village, and were surprised to see how so much of it had been rebuilt since they were last there. The village looked like a proper village now. There were more Bukamon and Poyomon running around. There were some Gazimon moving around too, carrying materials.
"I wonder how the station looks by now," Danny said after taking some time to look around.
Tucker and Sam suddenly came flying out of a screen, nearly piling on Andy, Danny, and Takuya. They quickly moved out of the way.
"Whoa! Didn't expect that!" Danny exclaimed as Sam and Tucker landed on top of each other.
"We really need to work on our landing…" Tucker grumbled.
"That's what I said when Andy, Lopmon, Takuya and I arrived here…" Danny sweatdropped.
"At least we made it," Sam said, rubbing her head too. "Wow… is this the same Flame Terminal village?"
"Yeah, looks like the Digimon have come quite a long way since we were here," Lopmon replied. "Some of the Pagumon seemed to have digivolved into Gazimon to help out more."
"Well, it's certainly changed then." Tucker noted with a small whistle of approval. "It looks much better than when we were here the last time."
"I'll say. It looks like a real village now." Takuya admitted.
"Tucker?"
"Sam!"
Tucker and Sam turned upon hearing familiar voices calling out to them.
"It is! Sam!" Biyomon smiled as she jumped at Sam.
"It's good to see you, Tucker!" Kokuwamon said cheerfully as he hurried over to Tucker.
"Whoa! Biyomon, settle down!" Sam chuckled as she caught her Digimon partner in her arms.
"H-hey! Please don't jump on me, Kokuwamon! You're a machine Digimon, you're… kinda heavy…" Tucker groaned as he caught Kokuwamon. "Ugh… Yep… definitely heavy… I need to work out more…"
"It has been months since we saw you!" Biyomon said. "We've really missed you!"
"And we have been hard at work since then!" Kokuwamon added. "Would you like to see the fruits of our labor?"
"Does that mean you were able to finish rebuilding the Trailmon station?" Andy asked.
"Come on and see!" Kokuwamon quickly said.
Biyomon and Kokuwamon all but dragged Tucker and Sam with them, while Andy, Lopmon, Danny, and Takuya quickly followed after them.
The station itself looked to be in perfect condition, like it had never been in ruins or damaged before.
"Whoa… this place looks amazing!" Danny whistled in awe. "It looks great!"
"Yeah, it looks like a real Trailmon station now." Takuya agreed. "It's hard to believe this was in ruins before, but look at it now! It looks like it was never even destroyed!"
"This is awesome! I can't wait to see when the Trailmon get to come through here!" Tucker grinned.
"Yup, the station was finished about a week ago," Biyomon explained. "But… the station isn't open yet."
"Why not?" Lopmon asked. "It looks like it would be good to run now, isn't it?"
"We haven't heard from any Celestial Digimon if the Trailmon could start running ahead," Kokuwamon informed. "They're in hiding, but they usually have a way to let everyone know when the Trailmon should start running again. But we haven't heard from any of them."
"Well… one of them we can understand why…" Biyomon said, looking at Lopmon for a moment. "But Seraphimon and Ophanimon were usually good at keeping an eye on things and letting us know when it's okay to start up the Trailmon station."
"Speaking of which… where is Patamon?" Kokuwamon asked.
Andy frowned, he and Lopmon were likely the only ones in their group who knew about Patamon being Seraphimon. So not hearing from Seraphimon made sense as he wasn't even in the Digital World to begin with. And Cherubimon… was a complicated matter. But that still left Ophanimon.
"Patamon is taking care of his own thing right now," Danny answered.
"So we need to find Seraphimon and Ophanimon then." Sam frowned. "But where would they be? I know they're in hiding, but…"
"I think we should focus on finding Ophanimon," Andy suggested. "Seraphimon might be… busy right now."
"Yeah," Lopmon agreed. "Does… anyone know where Ophanimon might be?"
"Um… last we checked, she was…" Biyomon hestated. "Wait, you guys don't know, do you?"
Takuya frowned. "I… do remember when I met Valerie and Salamon… Salamon seemed… different… from any other Digimon… I don't know why, but… I just got that feeling…"
"Salamon?" Lopmon frowned.
"Oh, that reminds me… has anyone seen Valerie lately?" Andy asked. "I asked Jazz to look for her while she was here, but I haven't heard from her in a while, or Valerie."
"The last time we saw Valerie and Salamon was about a few weeks ago. They were checking in, and we were almost done with the station," Kokuwamon said. "But after they left to check out a strange anomaly appearing in the Digital World, they haven't come back. We assumed Valerie may have gone back to the real world for the time being."
"She wasn't there… we would've heard from her by now, especially with all the ghosts we had been dealing with," Andy stated. "That's why I'm worried."
"Then… where is Valerie…?" Takuya wondered. "Did… did something happen to her and Salamon?"
"This… is bad…" Sam muttered with a frown.
"Wait, where's Labramon? Shouldn't she be with you two?" Lopmon asked.
"She went to go look for Ophanimon," Biyomon answered. "She said that if we ever want to get the station open, we need at least one of the Celestial Digimon's permission to do so. She said that she had a good chance at finding them because she could sniff them out. But… I think Kokuwamon or I should've gone since we can fly."
"Though we can't fly for a long period of time, we'd run out of energy," Kokuwamon pointed out. "Unless you're Birdramon, but you can't hold your digivolved form for long yet."
"Sadly… that is an issue…" Biyomon sighed.
Everyone frowned at this.
"Then… What can we do?" Danny asked. "We need to find Valerie and Salamon, but we also need to find Ophanimon…"
"And Jazz and possibly Tommy…" Andy added.
"So… we have a lot of people to look for…" Lopmon frowned.
"And still no Trailmon to use either," Sam groaned.
"Is it really not possible to get the station open without a Celestial Digimon's permission?" Lopmon asked. "It would take too long to look for them on foot…"
"Sadly, we need the permission of one of the Celestial Digimon." Kokuwamon sadly informed the group.
"Then we need to split up." Takuya suggested. "We can cover more ground that way."
"But there are players out there, would we be alright traveling with our group split up?" Tucker asked.
"And where would we even start looking?" Danny asked. "They could be anywhere in the Digital World."
"Well… I'd say if we are splitting up, the group who are looking for Valerie and Salamon should go to the last known location of them before they went missing," Andy suggested. "While the group looking for Jazz and Tommy start at the Hamburger Village as that was where I last saw them."
"Sounds like a good idea." Danny agreed. "But who will go where? We have me, Andy and Lopmon, Sam and Biyomon, Tucker and Kokuwamon, and Takuya. So how will we split up?"
"At the very least, I think Takuya will be looking for Jazz and Tommy, I can tell he's been itching to check on Tommy for a while," Andy remarked.
Takuya nodded. "Yeah, I have been…" He admitted. "But while I am strong on my own, it's not fair if the rest of you go after Valerie and Salamon."
"I'll go with you," Danny decided. "I also want to make sure Jazz is alright. And… I kinda need a temporary Digimon partner while I'm here anyways."
"Tucker and I will look for Valerie and Salamon then," Sam said. "Since Valerie has that hoverboard of hers, she can fly. With Birdramon, it might be easier to look for her in the sky than on the ground."
"And I'd be able to send Kokuwamon as a scout if necessary," Tucker added.
"When did you two become such a team?" Andy chuckled.
"Hey, when you work with Team Phantom, you kinda get to know each other's skills and weaknesses." Sam replied as she rolled her eyes, but there was a smile on her face.
"So, what about you and Lopmon, Andy? Who will you be going with?" Danny asked. "Or rather, what will you be doing?"
"Since everyone's gonna be looking for our friends, Lopmon and I will look for Labramon," Andy decided. "Labramon's nose might come in handy to find them."
Danny nodded. "Okay, so I think that settles it. Takuya and I will look for Jazz and Tommy; Sam, Biyomon, Tucker and Kokuwamon will look for Valerie and Salamon; Andy and Lopmon will look for Labramon to help."
"We should return here after about 3 days," Andy said. "If one or none of you are back here in 3 days, the rest of us will go looking for you as well. So unless something happens, it would be best to try to come back here by the deadline."
The rest of the group nodded in agreement.
"That sounds reasonable." Tucker said. "It gives us some time to look around."
"Okay…" Sam looked at Biyomon. "How are you feeling?"
"I feel pumped and ready to fly!" Biyomon grinned.
"Then let's do it! Let's fly high in the sky again!" Sam shouted.
Biyomon's body glowed before she was surrounded by fractal code. "Biyomon, digivolve to…" The fractal code dissipated, revealing her Champion-level form. "Birdramon!"
"Wow, Sam, you were able to pull off the digivolution again!" Danny said, impressed. "And that's Birdramon? She's huge!"
"Yep! Pretty impressive, right?" Sam grinned, feeling proud of herself for getting Biyomon to digivolve again.
"So let's get going already!" Tucker exclaimed, more than eager to find Valerie and Salamon.
Birdramon laid down for Sam, Tucker, and Kokuwamon to get on her back.
"Be careful out there," Andy said. Don't end up like Airdramon.
"We will!" Sam called back. "We'll be back soon!"
"Hang on!" Birdramon instructed as she then began to flap her wings and take to the skies above. As she took off with her passengers hanging on, she looked like a fiery phoenix flying off into the sun.
"Wow… that was so awesome!" Danny said with sparkles in his eyes.
"Yeah! I hope I get to be able to fly one day too!" Lopmon said with sparkles in his own eyes. "And look cool while doing it!"
Takuya wondered if BurningGreymon would look that majestic once he could get it under control.
Andy chuckled as he looked at them. "Okay everyone, let's go find everyone. Good luck guys, and be safe."
Takuya and Danny nodded.
"Okay, Takuya, let's go find Jazz and Tommy." Danny said as he looked at the older boy.
"Right." Takuya nodded in agreement before looking back at Andy and Lopmon. "Be careful as well, Andy, Lopmon."
"We'll be fine!" Lopmon smiled.
Andy waved at them as they began going their separate ways.
As they were leaving the village, Lopmon looked at Andy. "I'm surprised you decided to look for Labramon instead of either Jazz or Valerie."
"I am worried about them," Andy admitted. "But I don't think Labramon should be out on her own, especially with players who might try to catch her with a Slave Collar. And Dash might be sad if his partner was taken away from him."
"You actually care about Dash?" Lopmon asked.
"He does seem to want to change, and I wouldn't want anything to happen to Labramon. I know I wouldn't want anything like that happening to you," Andy replied. "And I also meant what I said. Labramon might be able to help us find them easier."
"Well, then let's find her. I know I wouldn't want someone to put a Slave Collar on me if I had a partner." Lopmon shuddered. "Those things are nasty… I can't imagine how bad it must feel for the Digimon those are used on."
"Agreed," Andy said.
Meanwhile, Dash was looking at his virtual helmet. The ghost invasion had been a wild one. After he helped the mayor get out of the boiler room, he didn't see what happened to Andy, that Agunimon Digimon, Lopmon, and that ghost boy. But according to the news and TV, he had been apparently kidnapped by the ghost kid. Dash hadn't been sure what to make of it, since when he saw Andy with the ghost boy, they seemed pretty close friends. He couldn't imagine why the ghost boy would suddenly try to kidnap Andy. And Andy didn't seem inclined to talk about the experience. He threw an apple at someone when they asked.
There might be more to the story. And Dash had been wanting to go back to the Digital World for a while now, he wanted to see Labramon again. And… well, he wasn't sure what he was going to do about Calvin yet. Dash knew Labramon was strong, but… she certainly didn't look it, at least not as a Rookie level. Calvin would be less than impressed if he found out a cute dog like Labramon was his partner.
Dash decided he would figure this out once he got back to the Digital World. He was just glad the ghost invasion thing seemed to be calming down now. He put the virtual helmet on and turned the game on.
Dash blinked open his eyes, and looked around. He appeared to be in the middle of a forest.
"Dash!?"
Dash jumped at the sudden voice before something quickly approached him.
"It is you!" Labramon smiled when she saw Dash, then she jumped and pounced him.
"H-hey! I said I would be back, and I meant it!" Dash laughed as Labramon was licking his face. "Geez, you really are just like a dog! Settle down with the licking!"
"I can't help it! It's been 2 months since I last saw you! That's like… years!" Labramon whined as she continued to lick Dash's face.
"Really? 2 months have passed? Wow, and I thought the last few days were stressful." Dash remarked. "Then again, time does move faster here, so I can understand in a way."
After Labramon had her fill of licking Dash's face, she finally let Dash stand up, and began petting her.
"I'm glad you're here. I've been looking for Ophanimon since yesterday," Labramon said as she wagged her tail. "Honestly, I wasn't sure how far I'd get on my own, especially with players out there."
"Well, I'm here now." Dash reassured her before he processed her words. "Wait, you're looking for one of the Celestial Digimon?"
"Oh yeah, see, we've finished the Trailmon station at the Flame Terminal," Labramon explained. "But we still need permission from at least one of the Celestial Digimon to get it running. If we don't, it's just another closed station."
"Really? It's great that the station is fixed up!" Dash grinned before he frowned a little. "So we just need to find Ophanimon, huh? Any idea on where she may be?"
"No clue." Labramon frowned. "She… did come and check up on us a few weeks ago, but we haven't seen or heard from her since. We started getting worried, so we sent out some Digimon to look for her. But some of them never came back. We suspected they got caught by players or something. I've yet to see what would happen if a player tried catching a Digimon who's already partnered with another human though, so I was hoping maybe I might be immune to a Slave Collar if it came down to it."
Dash shivered. "While that would be nice, I don't think it's wise to risk it." He admitted before shaking his head. "So getting back on topic, do you have an idea of where Opahnimon was last seen? Maybe we could start looking there."
"I've heard that they were last seen heading to Ophanimon's Castle. It's on the Continent of Light in the Area of Light," Labramon answered. "It's… close to the Continent of Darkness, where Cherubimon's castle is… was… kinda still is?"
"You mean this Rose Morning Star I've been hearing about?" Dash asked.
"The players may have renamed the castle, but I don't know what it is. I don't think most Digimon and players in this area do either, so we've just been calling it the Rose Morning Star guild," Labramon explained. "It's really far from here though. You'd need to fly, be able to run really fast, or take a Trailmon to get there within a reasonable amount of time."
"I see. So we have to be careful if we are going to Ophanimon's castle…" Dash mused. "We'd have to avoid the players and Digimon from the other area if we go that route."
"If we had to walk all the way there, Dash… it'd take about 4 months, that's not taking into account rest stops and you having to go back to the real world," Labramon grimly explained.
Dash grimaced. "Yikes… No wonder you want to find Ophanimon so bad… The Trailmon would be a big help…"
"The Digital World is big… that's why we used to have Trailmon stations before they shut down to get anywhere," Labramon sighed. "Please tell me that you at least saw Patamon or Lopmon before you came here."
"Hmm? Why?" Dash asked. "How would they help?"
"They…" Labramon hesitated. "Well, I don't know about Lopmon… he doesn't seem to realize… who he is…"
Dash raised an eyebrow. "Is Lopmon special or something?"
"I guess you don't know either," Labramon said. "I'm not sure if I should be the one to tell you though, at least not here, you never know who could be listening. It would be dangerous if word got out, Lopmon would be targeted. So maybe it might be best if it remains a mystery until he remembers."
Dash frowned, but nodded. "I guess that makes sense. I'd rather be in the dark than have Lopmon get targeted because I knew something about him." He then looked down in thought. "But why Patamon? Isn't he the same as Lopmon?"
"No, Patamon seems to know who he is," Labramon answered. "But… if he's not here right now, then… let's just say Ophanimon is the only Celestial Digimon we can reasonably ask for permission to open the Trailmon station again."
"So we have to find her…" Dash groaned. "Great… and we don't know where she is, and we can't check her castle either because it would take too long to get there on foot."
There was some rustling, like footsteps approaching them. And what sounded like some kind of beeping.
"Someone's coming!" Labramon realized. "We should hide, it could be a player."
Dash nodded. "But where? We can't just hide in bushes, right?"
"That's what we should do." Labramon said. "Like now!"
Dash realized Labramon was right and the two of them dove into some bushes to hide from the approaching footsteps.
The footsteps, and the beeping sound got close, and then… the footsteps stopped.
"The D-Arc says Labramon should be around here," A familiar voice said.
"Then maybe she's hiding?" Another familiar voice questioned.
"Hey, Labramon!" The other familiar voice called. "It's okay, you don't have to hide from us! It's us, Andy and Lopmon! We were looking for you!"
Labramon poked her head out from the bushes, just as Dash fell out of his bush, covered in leaves and branches.
"D-Dash?" Andy blinked, surprised to see Dash was here. "When did you…? How did you…?"
"Uh… hey, Fenton…" Dash awkwardly said. "Apparently the helmet transports me directly to my Digimon partner…"
"... You got a little… uh… something stuck to your hair…" Andy pointed at his hair.
Dash reached up and felt the branch. "Aw c'mon!" He grumbled as he yanked the branch out of his hair. "Stupid branch…"
Lopmon was giggling to himself.
"Hey, Andy, Lopmon," Labramon greeted. "Sorry about hiding. We heard your device beeping and your footsteps. We weren't sure if you were a player."
"That makes sense," Andy admitted. "That's why I called out to you."
"Yeah, we wanted to look for you. We heard from Biyomon and Kokuwamon about the permission thing. Sam and Tucker are heading out to find Valerie and Salamon now since their Digimon can fly," Lopmon explained. "We thought we'd find you first since we were worried about you, and that your nose might help us find them."
"Sorry guys, my nose isn't that good," Labramon apologized. "If Ophanimon is too far, I'm not gonna be picking up her scent."
"Ophanimon? We said we'd be looking for Valerie and Salamon," Lopmon pointed out. "What does Ophanimon have to do with them?"
Dash frowned at this revelation. "Something tells me there's more to this than we're being told by someone…"
Labramon frowned. "Okay, well I don't mind going with you guys to look for your friends. But how are we going to find them? None of us can fly."
"No, but we can run pretty fast, right?" Lopmon asked. "I've heard that your digivolution is very fast, and as Turuiemon, I can move pretty quickly myself."
"Wait… are you saying that… we should ride on you guys?" Dash asked.
Lopmon chuckled sheepishly. "Um… yeah…? I mean, why not, right?"
"Hmm… actually, that may not be a bad idea," Labramon admitted. "I'm not sure how long I can hold my Champion form, but… with Dash here, it shouldn't be too hard to go back into it, right?"
Lopmon grinned. "See? It shouldn't be too much of a problem at all!"
Dash looked down in thought. "That… might work…" He agreed before looking back up. "Okay, we can give it a try."
"I know you were able to digivolve Labramon before, but do you think you can do it again?" Andy asked. "I know I had trouble digivolving Lopmon a second time for a while."
Dash nodded. "Yeah, I can do it. We've gotta find Valerie, right? You think she might be in trouble?"
"Not trying to sound rude, but… I'm actually surprised you care. I mean… you didn't hesitate to kick her out of your little popular club when she lost her wealth status," Andy pointed out.
Dash cringed a bit, and to his credit, he did look embarrassed and ashamed about that. "Yeah… that was not one of my best moments…" He admitted. "But looking back, it was mean, and I feel bad about it."
"But that's why you're trying hard to change," Labramon chuckled. "Caring about someone else, that's a good first step. And… let's just say I have a good feeling we might find Ophanimon if we find Valerie and Salamon."
Dash nodded. "Yeah… We can't rule out anything until we find Valerie and Salamon." He agreed. Dash then took a breath and let it out. "Let's see if we can get you to digivolve again, Labramon."
Labramon focused on the power, and for a moment, it looked like it was going to work. Labramon's body glowed, and fractal code was about to surround her… when another familiar voice spoke up.
"Hey! Who's up there!?"
Dash gasped, losing his inspiration and motivation, and this stopped Labramon's digivolution.
"What's wrong?" Andy asked. "Wait… was that Calvin's voice?"
"Oh crap…" Dash groaned. "Yeah… that's Calvin…" Wow… this will just get awkward fast…
Dash looked at Labramon. "Quick, hide!"
"Wah?" Labramon frowned.
"Please? I don't want him to see you," Dash begged.
"Oh… um, alright," Labramon replied before she jumped into the bushes.
Andy and Lopmon blinked, wondering why Dash had Labramon hide.
Calvin ran up to Dash, grinning. "There you are, Dash! I figured you might be near the Flame Terminal. I'm surprised that fiery Digimon didn't get you. I've heard rumors that new players just can't get past him because their avatars get destroyed if they spawn in the Flame Terminal."
"Um… yeah… Someone must've beaten that Digimon." Dash said, trying to act like he was not at all freaked out by those memories. "It's too bad. That would've been a strong Digimon for a partner." Sorry Labramon, I can't let Calvin find out you are my partner…
"Heck yeah that would! I was training Gotsumon to fight that fiery Digimon actually. We were planning to come to the Flame Terminal today to catch him," Calvin said before looking down at his rocky partner. "Right?"
"Yeah, I've become much stronger than any fire Digimon!" Gotsumon bragged.
Calvin then looked behind Dash, noticing Andy and Lopmon. "What are those two doing here?"
"Hello to you too," Andy sarcastically replied.
"Want a rematch now that your big, mighty Legendary Warrior isn't here to bail you out?" Gotsumon challenged, smacking his fists together.
"I would, but I'm not interested in taking on blowhards," Lopmon grumbled.
Dash actually had to bite his lower lip to keep from laughing at Andy and Lopmon being so sassy. Wow, who knew Fenton had such guts?
"Oh, I get it, you were just about to show them your Digimon's dominance over that In-Training bunny over there." Calvin smirked.
"I'm a Rookie level, you thick headed moron…" Lopmon hissed.
Dash really wanted to just let his laughter out now, but it would not look good in front of Calvin, but he could not deny it was amusing for Andy and Lopmon to just talk back like they were the masters of sass. I don't remember them being anywhere near this sassy before, or at least with Fenton.
Calvin chose to ignore Lopmon and kept his attention on Dash, besides, he knew Dash wouldn't let that weak bunny get away with his back talk. "So… where is your partner? Gotsumon had been eager to meet you and your partner for a while."
"Yeah. You seem to be stronger, and Calvin admires you. You must have a strong Digimon as your partner, right?" Gotsumon asked.
Dash hesitated. "Um…" Aw man! This is getting really uncomfortable really fast! What do I do?!
Calvin raised an eyebrow at Dash's heistance. "What's wrong? Don't tell me you never actually met with your partner."
"Well, it's not that, I just…" Dash frowned.
"Oh, I see, you want to surprise me, right?" Calvin grinned. "Or maybe you want Gotsumon to see if he can find your partner?"
"N-no, not at all," Dash quickly said.
"Don't you have a Digimon you wanted to look for?" Andy asked. "Why are you bothering Dash?"
"Oh, did I hear something? Was that the wind blowing?" Calvin questioned.
Dash frowned. This was getting really awkward, and he wanted to just have Calvin leave, but his fellow jock didn't seem so inclined to leave, not until he met Dash's partner Digimon. Crud… How can I get Calvin to leave? This can't go on…
In the bushes, Labramon was watching everything unfolding and she had a frown on her face. She didn't like this new boy with Dash, and it was clear Dash was uncomfortable talking to him.
"Besides, Dash, I have to know what your Digimon is before I can let you be a part of my party," Calvin said. "It's… a slow process, but I am recruiting anyone who's worthy enough to be a part of the Calvin guild! This 'Sir Michael' player who's been dominating most of the continent will be dethroned as the strongest player in the area soon, especially without that Legendary Warrior of his."
"Sir Michael…? He had a Legendary Warrior?" Andy frowned. He had only seen Sir Michael once, but he used a PawnChessmon, not a Legendary Warrior. Aren't Legendary Warriors also human? At least the non-rogue ones. I doubt a rogue Legendary Warrior would've been willing to listen to a human.
Dash frowned. "I… don't know… This 'Sir Michael' might be as strong as he claims, even without his Legendary Warrior. I'm just a new player, like you."
"Oh, c'mon, Dash! Don't be a wimp! You're strong, so this Sir Michael should be a pushover!" Calvin exclaimed.
"But isn't this supposed to be a battle between Digimon, not the players themselves?" Dash asked. "I'd have to raise my partner first."
"You're strong, so your partner should be strong by extension," Calvin said. "Now are you going to show me your Digimon or not?"
"Hey!" Andy spoke up. "If you're serious about taking on this Sir Michael, how about we make things a little more interesting? I've fought with him before, and he took me and Lopmon out pretty easily. If you can defeat us in battle with Gotsumon, then you're free to do whatever you want. But if Lopmon and I win, I suggest you leave and train Gotsumon more. Because if you can't defeat us, what chance do you have against the strongest player in the Flame Continent?"
Calvin frowned as he looked back at Andy. "You know what? You are really pushing it, Fentoenail! But, I think I could use a warm up with Gotsumon, show off how strong we are. Besides, without your Legendary Warrior bailing you out, you and that little rabbit will be easy pickings!"
Gotsumon gave a cocky grin. "Yeah, I can defeat you without your precious Legendary Warrior!"
"Watch this, Dash, this is how you easily take out someone who doesn't understand their place here," Calvin grinned.
Dash frowned, but he didn't say anything. He had a feeling Andy only challenged Calvin was so Calvin would leave him alone.
Andy and Lopmon stood facing Calvin and Gotsumon.
"I'm ready to beat this wimp so bad, he goes crying to his Legendary Warrior!" Gotsumon snickered.
"I'd like to see you try." Lopmon challenged calmly.
"Come on, Gotusmon, finish this rabbit off quickly," Calvin ordered.
"Rock Fist!" Gotsumon summoned rocks from his head and hurled them at Lopmon.
Lopmon moved around, dodging the rocks with ease.
"No way! I won't let you defeat me or Gotsumon so easily!" Calvin exclaimed, not at all happy with what he was seeing.
Lopmon just jumped up into the air and readied his Blazing Ice attack to unleash at Andy's command.
"Hardest Punch!" Gotsumon jumped at Lopmon with his fists, trying to punch Lopmon.
"Now!" Andy called.
"Blazing Ice!"
When Gotsumon got up close to Lopmon, Lopmon unleashed his icy cold breath at Gotsumon's face. Gotsumon yelped as his eyes were covered in ice, not only did he completely miss Lopmon, he fell back down to the ground.
"When was the last time you trained Gotsumon?" Andy asked. "He doesn't seem to be all that stronger since the last time we fought."
Calvin growled. "You little pest… You'll pay for that! Gotsumon and I have trained for a long time since we last fought!"
"Are you sure? It doesn't feel like it," Lopmon questioned.
Calvin looked angrily at Andy. "Did you somehow boost your Digimon's level quickly?! You have to have used some kind of cheat mod or something!"
"I don't think we have," Andy replied. But we have been fighting against a lot of really powerful opponents. There were all those ghosts in Amity Park, Megadramon, and BurningGreymon we had to deal with. A lot has happened since Lopmon had to fight with Calvin's Gotsumon. So… maybe that's why this fight feels too easy? "But why don't you prove us wrong? Your Gotsumon can digivolve, right? Let's not waste anymore time."
Calvin grinned. "You'll regret it now, nerd!" He declared as fractal code began to surround Gotsumon. "Time to rock and roll!"
The fractal code dissipated, revealing Monochromon again. "Ready for round two?" Monochromon grinned.
Lopmon smiled. "With pleasure." He said as he began to glow as well as Andy's D-Arc began to glow in his pocket. Fractal code surrounded Lopmon. "Lopmon, digivolve to…" Lopmon began to lose his own skin, on his face, and then his legs lost their skin as well. His ears also lost their skin before his skin began to come back, but on his legs and feet first. Lopmon's legs gained shoes and yellow pants with a belt and yellow top that matched, two blades appeared as his hands regained their skin and red gloves, grasping the blades in both hands. The skin on Lopmon's head and face came back, just as a blue bandanna appeared around his neck as well. "Turuiemon!"
"When could your Digimon digivolve!?" Calvin yelled.
"Is that against the rules?" Andy frowned.
Dash was surprised when he saw the two Digimon digivolve. It was his first time seeing Turuiemon, and Monochromon. Though both of them looked cool, Monochromon definitely looked like a monster. Turuiemon looked more like an anthro rabbit fighter.
"You're not the only one who can digivolve." Turuiemon said as he readied his fists for the fight. He began to move around a bit in place. "I'm ready when you are."
"Volcanic Strike!" Monochromon shouted as he shot out fire balls at Turuiemon.
Turuiemon hopped around, avoiding the fire balls. Monochromon may be strong, and hard to hit due to his tough hide, but he was slow. It was easy for Turuiemon to dodge.
"Wow, you are slow. Even my most recent opponents were faster than you." Turuiemon commented. Granted, those opponents were ghosts, a Beast Legendary Warrior, and a mix of a ghost, human, and Digimon, but still…
Taking the chance to attack, Turuiemon brandished his metal gauntlet claws. "Gauntlet Claw!"
Turuiemon's claws slashed at Monochromon's hide, and while Turuiemon was able to leave a scratch, he wasn't able to pierce through. Monochromon was still tough to get any damage in.
"Nice try, bunny, but even as fast as you are, you're still just a bunny!" Monochromon snickered. "Tomahawk Slash!"
Monochromon used his horn to slash at Turuiemon, who held up his hands to block the attack the best he could.
"Come on, Monochromon! You can tear that bunny apart! You are my partner, so you're bred to be the stronger one!" Calvin shouted.
Dash continued to watch the battle, seeing a difference between Andy's battle style and Calvin's. Calvin was relying mostly on brute strength to defeat Andy's partner. While Andy was relying more on strategy, and also trusting that his partner could handle this.
"Don't use your hard hitting attack," Andy stated. "Hit him fast and move away."
Turuiemon jumped around Monochromon, using Ninja Fist to get some pot shots in before jumping away to avoid Monochromon's next attack.
Turuiemon found the advice from Andy was working well, as he was doing more damage slowly over a longer period of time instead of just attacking with brute force.
"Speed can be a great weapon if used right. Too bad you don't seem to realize that~" Turuiemon taunted, feeling a bit cheeky.
"Keep aiming for the same spot," Andy instructed.
"What are you trying to do?" Dash asked Andy. "I know it's hard for him to hit Turuiemon, but it doesn't look like Turuiemon is doing much damage."
"He's just a weakling trying to prolong his defeat!" Calvin snapped, growing more and more impatient.
Turuiemon kept hitting Monochromon's back with his Ninja Fist, leaping away before Monochromon could throw him off. Monochromon was getting rather impatient as well. "Fiery Breath!"
Instead of shooting out fire balls, Monochromon let out a steam of fire at Turuiemon. He was also charging at the rabbit.
Turuiemon yelped as he had to leap away from the flames. He jumped onto Monochromon's head, causing Monochromon to flinch as Turuiemon punched the top of his back again. There was a crack on Monochromon's back.
"Finish him! He's tiring out!" Calvin shouted.
"Hit that spot with everything you've got!" Andy called out.
Monochromon was charging at Turuiemon, intending to stab through Turuiemon with his horn. Turuiemon stood in front of a tree before he hopped over the charging Monochromon. Monochromon's horn ended up impaling the tree's trunk, getting stuck. Turuiemon was flying over Monochromon's cracked back. "Gauntlet Claw!"
Just like with BurningGreymon before, Turuiemon stabbed through the armor-like hide with his claws.
Monochromon cried out in agony when the claws penetrated his armor-like hide. He fell to the ground as Turuiemon jumped off of Monochromon.
Calvin was staring in disbelief. "No way! That can't have happened! It's not possible, not after all the training we did!"
Fractal code surrounded Monochromon, turning him back into Gotsumon. "Ugh…"
Calvin not only couldn't believe he lost to this inferior pest, but he lost in front of Dash. How was he ever going to convince Dash to join him if this inferior pest just defeated him in battle? It had to be a fluke. There was no other explanation. The stupid rabbit had just been hopping all over the place, and he only won because Monochromon hadn't been at his best.
Dash blinked, surprised Andy's strategy had worked so well. Then again, it made sense, given how Turuiemon was faster. It also showed that power wasn't all that was needed to win the fight; a fight needed to be won by using brains as well. Dash wanted to congratulate Andy on his win, but he held back because he didn't want Calvin to be pissed at the 'King of Casper High' being nice to a loser nerd.
So Dash dawned his 'King of Casper High' persona as he faced Calvin. "Why would I join up with a loser like you? Maybe you and your Digimon should go hit the gym or something before asking me to join you. You couldn't even beat Fenton and his little rabbit."
Calvin winced at the tone from Dash. "Uh… right…" He muttered. "I'll get stronger, you'll see!"
Calvin glared at Andy. "And I'll be sure to show you who's truly the stronger one here!"
"Until then, you should leave, that was part of the deal," Andy replied back.
Calvin gritted his teeth, he couldn't just let this nerd talk back at him. "Why you little…"
Calvin grabbed Andy's shirt, looking ready to pummel him. Turuiemon stood behind Calvin. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."
The jock froze, realizing Turuiemon was right behind him. Calvin glared at Andy again before pushing Andy away in disgust. "Whatever, I'm out of here. We will fight again, you can count on it!"
Calvin ran over to Gotsumon, grabbing the little rocky Digimon's arm and forced him up to his feet. "On your feet, now! We're leaving, and you better not expect me to carry your weak butt!"
Gotsumon groaned, but got to his feet. "Alright…" He muttered before Calvin began to walk off, following behind the jock.
"I can't help but worry about Gotsumon with how his partner's treating him…" Turuiemon frowned before he looked at Dash. "He's surprisingly different from you, even though you seem to be someone he looks up to."
"No two people are alike, and as I have said, I am trying to change from who I used to be." Dash admitted. "Although, I will admit, that was a clever way to win, Andy, Turuiemon."
"Calvin is more brawn than brains. It was easy to… Wait…" Andy looked at Dash in surprise. "You just said my first name."
"Yeah, so? Got a problem with that?" Dash grumbled. "You call me by my first name all the time."
Andy sheepishly grinned. "You usually don't like calling people you don't like by their first names."
"Well, if I'm gonna be less, well… like my old self, I need to start addressing people properly, and that means calling them by their proper names." Dash replied. "Oh, Labramon, you can come out of hiding now."
Labramon walked out of the bushes and looked at Dash. "Why didn't you let me challenge him? The way he was acting, it was clear he was disrespecting you and what you wanted. I'm sure I could've handled Monochromon a lot easier since my attack as Dobermon can shoot through even the toughest of hides, at least for Champion Digimon."
"I… didn't really want to have Calvin make fun of you, or me." Dash admitted. "I know you could've handled Gotsumon… But…"
Labramon frowned. "Dash… are you… ashamed of me?"
"No! No, no! Not at all! I wouldn't trade you in for any other Digimon, Labramon, I swear on my leather jacket and winning tournament football," Dash quickly reassured.
Andy whistled. "That's sacred to Dash."
"I just… I'm not sure how to act around my… peers," Dash admitted. "I… have a lot of reputation built up, and… everyone thinks I'm gonna have some big, tough, scary looking Digimon as my partner. And… uh… well, Labramon, you don't exactly look like a big, tough, scary Digimon. And that's okay! Really, I like you just the way you are. If you were tough and scary looking, we probably wouldn't have bonded."
Labramon blinked. She hadn't really thought of the fact Dash had a reputation to uphold. But she did feel touched that Dash didn't want another Digimon partner. The reputation thing did make things a bit complicated, but Labramon had a feeling things would work out eventually.
"While this reputation thing may make things complicated, I am touched that you like me that much~" Labramon said with a smile as she wagged her tail.
Dash blushed. "Yeah, well… I mean you did save my life, and we went through a lot together when Firamon was going on a rampage. I can't say that anyone else I know would've stuck by me to try to keep me safe."
"But you know, I don't look all that strong either," Turuiemon replied. "At least as Lopmon."
"Yeah, and that's probably why Dash wanted to avoid others making fun of him and Labramon," Andy sighed. "A lot of them love calling you 'chocolate bunny'."
Turuiemon groaned. "I can't help it, that's my color as Lopmon! But look, I'm mostly pink and white!"
"... You're not helping…" Andy sighed.
"Wah? Is pink and white really not that much better?" Turuiemon frowned.
Dash was trying not to laugh at the two of them.
"If this reputation is that important to you, Dash, maybe you can dress me up to look more intimidating?" Labramon suggested.
"Maybe. I don't think it should be a problem when you're Dobermon though. You look nice and intimidating with the red eyes, spiked collar, and you look like a dog breed that's bred to be intimidating for people," Dash explained.
"Ah, so maybe when one of your peers is nearby, I should digivolve, right?" Labramon smiled.
Dash chuckled. "That wouldn't be a bad idea, I will admit. It would certainly make them think twice about messing with me, and you. What do you think, Andy? Would it work?"
"Uh… well…" Andy awkwardly replied. "I mean you two do what you think you should. But if you really want my opinion, then I'd say if you really care about your partner, and want to change, Dash, you should learn to show them the real you. If they can't accept you or your partner for who you really are, then is it worth it to keep them around?"
Dash paused at Andy's words before he sighed. "You do raise a good point." He admitted. "I'll consider it at least."
Andy was surprised Dash would even consider it. After all, Andy himself already had the 'reputation' of a loser among his peers, so he didn't have much to lose with them. Dash, on the other hand, was at the top at Casper High. He had everything to lose if he took a chance to show himself with Labramon as his partner. Dash was truly trying to change, but Andy wouldn't hold it against him if Dash stuck with the disguise route for Labramon.
"For now, we should make our way to the Continent of Light," Andy said. "We've wasted enough time here."
Dash nodded. "Let's see if I can get Labramon to digivolve now that we have no more interruptions."
Labramon smiled as she already felt the power flowing through her from Dash's desires. He still wanted to change, and he was doing a good job since he was talking to Andy more like a person instead of a nerd he liked to wail on when he got angry, or just for the heck of it. Labramon's body glowed as fractal code surrounded her body.
"Labramon, digivolve to…" The fractal code cocoon dissipated, revealing Dobermon again. "Dobermon!"
"Wow, so this is Labramon's Champion form," Andy commented. "Impressive." Though she really looks close to like a real doberman.
"Thank you." Dobermon smiled. "Now hop on, Dash, and hold on. I run really fast, and I don't want you falling off."
Dash climbed on as soon as he was able to, grabbing onto Dobermon's collar. "Alright, I'm all set." He replied.
Turuiemon picked up Andy into his arms. "Okay, Andy, we're going to be heading off."
I really hope Danny doesn't see this. He'll make fun of me for weeks. Andy thought to himself.
Dobermon took off like a bullet, with Turuiemon not far behind. They both had a limited time they could stay in their Champion forms, they wanted to make the most of it while they could.
Tucker, Sam, and Kokuwamon had been riding on Birdramon for the past hour and a half. Birdramon was flying over a snowy area.
"Where are we?" Tucker shivered. "I didn't wear anything warm…"
"We're over what is known as the Autumn Leaf Fair." Birdramon explained. "The area around it is cold, so that is why you feel chilly."
"Oh jeez… I didn't think to wear anything warm either…" Sam shivered, she had it worse than Tucker as she didn't have any long sleeves, and she wore a mini-skirt.
"Don't worry, we will soon get to the Autumn Leaf Fair where it will be a lot warmer," Kokuwamon assured.
"Remind me again why we're heading to Autumn Leaf Fair," Tucker asked.
"It's where we heard Valerie said she was going last time we saw her," Birdramon answered. "So someone there must know where she and Salamon went."
"It's not like we have much else to do." Sam grumbled. "But I do know that our mission is just as important as the others."
"Anything, even if it's small, can make a big difference." Kokuwamon admitted.
"Yeah… we learned that lesson a little while ago," Tucker admitted.
"Let's hope we can help make a big difference again," Sam said.
"There's the town," Birdramon said. "Brace yourselves, I'll be going in for a landing."
Everyone hung on as Birdramon came in and landed. She landed on the very outskirts of the town, touching the ground with her feet. "We've landed. Thanks for flying Air Birdramon!"
"She definitely has your sense of humor," Sam grumbled at Tucker.
"What? I think that was brilliant!" Tucker grinned.
Fractal code surrounded Birdramon as she shrunk back down into Biyomon. "Whew… that was exhausting…"
"Hey, at least we made great time getting here." Sam admitted. "That was a great flight you made."
Biyomon blushed beneath her pink feathers. "I just did what I had to do…" She muttered, not exactly sure what else to say.
"Now we'll have to start asking around," Kokuwamon said.
"Wait… why is it so warm here?" Tucker asked before he spotted the giant heater that was keeping the entire town warm. "Is… that… a heater?"
Biyomon nodded. "Yep. It is. That's how the Autumn Leaf Fair is able to prosper in the cold here."
Sam smiled. "Well, that's pretty nifty."
"I wonder how that big heater got here, and how it works…" Tucker muttered.
"Worry about that later, you techno brainiac… we've got more important things to do," Sam sighed.
The group began to wander around Autumn Leaf Fair. There were markets all over the place. Digimon seemed to have no issues spending money here, or selling off their own items to the markets to get money in return.
"The Autumn Leaf Fair is usually a place to go when you want to trade items in for new items, or for money," Biyomon explained. "My brother and my parents often talked about this place as they usually liked to come here when it's time to clean out the nest."
"So where do we start?" Sam asked as she looked around. "There are so many stalls here."
"I think we should just pick one and hope for the best." Tucker admitted. "I mean, with how many there are, we may get lucky."
"Just don't go spending money," Sam warned.
"Come on, do you think I have any money to bring with me anyways?" Tucker chuckled.
"Not to worry, I will keep an eye on him," Kokuwamon promised.
"Okay, then let's split up and start asking around," Sam said.
"We should meet back here at the entrance once we're done," Biyomon suggested.
Tucker and Sam ended up splitting up with their partner Digimon following them. The Digimon in the area had a few other humans in the town as well, much to Tucker and Sam's surprise. The players didn't seem to be bothering the Digimon, however, and just seemed interested in selling off their items for some extra cash, then spending the cash on items they actually wanted. It was likely the players treated the town… like an actual town instead of an area to raid, which Tucker and Sam were thankful for. That meant the Digimon weren't going to get hostile towards them because they were humans.
I wonder if Valerie and Salamon had anything to do with this? This seems like a neutral ground between Digimon and players. Sam noted with interest.
Sam and Biyomon went up to some of the shop owners. One of the shop owners was an egg Digimon with green legs and feet. It had a pair of yellow beady eyes inside the cracked egg. Biyomon told Sam this Digimon was called 'Digitamamon', apparently despite looking like a Digimon being too stubborn to hatch fully out of the egg, it was an Ultimate level Digimon. So Sam needed to be careful not to get this Digimon angry.
"Excuse me?" Sam spoke up.
"Welcome to my shop. Please take a look around and let me know if something catches your interest," Digitamamon stated in a polite tone.
Sam smiled. "These items of yours do look interesting, but I'm actually looking for something else. I'm looking for some information on a player if you will."
"Information?" Digitamamon replied. "I might have the information, but you must know, information doesn't come for free around these parts."
Sam frowned a little, but decided to play it safe and ask. "So what would I have to do to get this information from you?"
"You can pay me in cash, sweetheart, I accept cards and credits too," Digitamamon replied.
"Sounds like he just wants cold, hard cash." Biyomon sighed. "Maybe we should try someone else."
Sam sighed, "Maybe." She agreed. So much for a good chance to get some information…
Sam and Biyomon decided to try other Digimon. They asked a Monzaemon, a Unimon, a few Goborimon, and some other shopkeepers who wouldn't charge them information about a player wearing a red suit, likely riding on a hoverboard, and had a Salamon with her. Many of them shook their heads. Some shopkeepers seemed to recognize Valerie, but they hadn't seen her in a while.
Sam sighed. "I hope Tucker's having better luck than us…"
Titanic X: ZAFT: The pinecones was funny, but I hope you liked everything else as well~ :3
pokemon fan 1991: ZAFT: Thanks for the compliment on the emotional stuff! That is high praise we like to hear!
DarkFoxKit: I always liked how light hearted Danny was in the show. But since I like to be more angsty with my characters, I had him take it a lot more seriously here. I also enjoy having the characters go through stuff most human beings probably would in those situations, not just anime stuff.
ZAFT: Tommy and Takuya will be interacting differently after this, that's for sure. XD And we will get to what made Jack and Maddie hate ghosts more as the story goes along. :3 And yeah, I watched Ghost Game, so I know what you're getting at. XD But this is Frontier mechanics for the Digital World, so it won't be like Ghost Game.
And as for your 02 crossover, that sounds about right with the ages being aged up for the Digimon human characters.
DarkFoxKit: The crossover definitely sounds interesting. I wish you the best of luck with it. You can ask us for advice if you'd like. Just be sure not to be the only thing you talk about in the review. It might be better to PM one of us for advice.
kittylover05: ZAFT: And here we are for Kitty's review! Always look forward to these. XD First off, yes, Walker was a good antagonist here. I figured Walker would have more of a plan and a back up one in case his first didn't work, and boy, did that idea pay off in spades. XD Not only did Walker make Danny look bad, it also made things sketchy with Agunimon as well! X3
DarkFoxKit: Yeah, I like how clever Walker was with his scheme in the show. And I figured he'd had to be more devious since the characters in our story is a lot smarter than their show counterparts, especially with Andy added into the mix. There is one major flaw Andy has when it comes to his planning, and that's his inability to see how dangerous he can be himself. So he often thinks he's not a variable worth thinking about if things go south, and he ends up being used by the villain's scheme, which is why Walker succeeded when he overshadowed Andy.
It is rather funny how people don't often talk about these episodes, then again, it's rare to find people really talking about Danny Phantom, so it's not like it's that surprising. But that makes it all the more fun when we get to it, because it's not overused, we have plenty of freedom and originality to add.
ZAFT: Yeah, and it gives us room to twist the episodes as we like, within reason of course. :3 And I didn't think of this as a transition between halves for the story. Good way to look at it! XD And yeah, everyone has something to work on, so this will be fun to see how it plays out and what you readers think of it! :3
DarkFoxKit: We like to set things up for the future, see how bad they could get, then find a way for the characters to overcome all of that. It's always very satisfying. Heh, yeah, it's about time Andy's the one comforting Danny. We don't get enough Danny angst. And of course, it was nice showing off how resourceful Andy could be when it comes to competing with Danny's ghost powers. Andy's gonna make one heck of a ghost boy, that is, if he does get ghost powers in this story. It also helps that Andy's a lot more stable, mentally, in this version of the story. Also, love how you compared the brothers to the 'unstoppable force and immovable object' thing.
ZAFT: Andy comforting Danny… The best part of the chapter~ X3 I do like that Andy and Danny were like opposing sides here, but Andy was persistent. That boy never quits. XD The Christmas tree comparisons continue as well~! X3
As for Jack and Maddie, yeah, they have some changes to go through, but you will see how that goes. It's not unusual for other authors to have them change like overnight, but a few well-done and thought out fics have them slowly changing over time from bigots to loving, accepting parents, and even fewer have them do so in a believable manner. We're trying to show that changes are not instant, and it starts with certain people, in this case, Andy snapping at Jack and Maddie. The history buff in me likes the comparison too. :3
But Jack and Maddie will be changing, don't worry about that! XD It will take a while, but you will like how it goes. :3
DarkFoxKit: Yeah, Andy didn't appreciate getting shut down like that. But there isn't much he can do at the moment. The change will be subtle and slow, as with anything, changing minds overnight is near impossible to do, especially when the mindset has been there for years. But they can do it, and they'll definitely try. One of the things I think what Mortified Danny did wrong was not really trying to change his parents' minds about ghosts, and opt to just sabotage their inventions instead. Andy will make sure Danny doesn't slack on that when they actually have time to do it of course, they do still have a lot on their plates after all.
As for why Andy has visions, you could say what MBaG Andy did may have spread out to other Andys in the multiverse. But that's not why I gave Andy his visions here. The reason is actually quite funny and wholesome, but not something that we'll reveal until later. The whole symbolism is just something I did for fun, no need to look too deep into it. And we don't use his visions too often, because I didn't want it to be the crutch that gave him the advantage over his enemies. They're supposed to serve as warnings or guidance, but could also be seen as 'cheating', so we try not to use it too much. I prefer what he does is more relatable to humans in real life, even if what he does isn't always realistic, the motives at least are understandable, not just because 'oh, I saw it in a vision'.
ZAFT: Million Dollar Ghost and Maternal Instincts you will like. That is all I can say without going too deep into it, other than the character development you will get a kick out of. :3 And more angst is always fun! XD
And as for Sir Michael, it's been a long time coming, but we're getting there! X3
DarkFoxKit: I won't give too much away about Sir Michael, but you'll start to learn more about him and his relationship with Kumamon/Tommy as the story goes on. You'll probably understand Sir Michael more… and maybe hate him more. XD But anyways, we hope you look forward to when things come to a boiling point between Tommy and the rest of the Legendary Warriors. It was definitely one of my favorite scenes in the story.
ZAFT: I can't wait for your reviews for the next chapters either! It's always great to get reviews from you! X3