Digimon Tamers Zero Two

by MasterCaedus

Tasuke, or Taj, was raised by his 'Uncle' Henry Wong, ever since his parents left when he was very young. In that time, Taj has come to hate his parents and anything related to them. Especially Digimon, the fictional creatures his parents had loved when they were around. But when he gets a real Digimon, Taj must fight Digi-agents of other countries for a chance to find his parents.

41. Divide and Conquer:Preparing for Lucemon

AN: Hey everyone, sorry it's been so long. I had a couple really big projects pop up in my classes and some family stuff. I've been trucking along on it, and the chapter is finally finished and with it my original expectations for the length of this story. I expected it to be done either this chapter or the one before when I was around halfway done, but the calmer chapters meant to deal with character interaction tripped my estimations up. Chapters like this one, actually. Don't worry, next chapter has a big fight, and I'm sure you'll know what it is and what will happen when you get there.

To Guest: Omnimon and the Royal Knights really have some serious differences depending on the story. From what I can find on the Digimon Wiki, Omnimon did attack a city in the Real World along with the other Knights in Data Squad.

Honestly, Omnimon's morality seems pretty heavily dependent on who is in charge of him. Which really fits with the whole 'Knight' thing. In most literature about Knights, like Arthurian Legend, the issues arise from the nature of conflicting loyalty to chivalry and king. It's why Lancelot was in a tough place – he made an oath to Guinivere but Arthur was his king. It's also how a lot of Kings die, when those Oaths conflict and one Oath ends up being considered more important than the Oath of Fealty. Oaths in Mythology are kind of a mess. It's also how like 80% of heroes end up dying from Celtic myth to Hindu myth.

To Ironic-Chuckaboo: Well, ChaosGallantmon and Gallantmon... I have something in mind, but we'll see if I have time to get to what I want to get to. It feels like it'll be fun, so I hope that I can. I guess as a hint, why make Digimon mirror match without post-Mega Digivolutions/Burst Modes to mix thing up?

Episode 41: Divide and Conquer:Preparing for Lucemon

"Ah, a planning session with way too many people. It feels like our first trip to the Digital World all over again, Henry!" Terriermon shouted from Henry's shoulder as we sat around a small fire Renamon and Rika had made. I sat between Rika and Takato, who was just to Henry's right. May was beside Henry's other side, Davis to her other side. Our Digimon, unlike Terriermon and the small puffball 'Calumon,' were way too big to sit near us, and had to be given their own space. "Let's hope it doesn't end the same way, huh?"

It felt like what came next was becoming Henry's catchphrase: "Terriermon..."

Terriermon opened his mouth, then glanced down at Momentai sleeping at my feet. "Uh, don't worry about it, Henry! Ugh... We both know it won't, we've got five megas, and one of 'em is me!"

"Hasn't anyone ever told you not to jinx it?" BG wondered dryly.

Terriermon scoffed. "No wonder you're Tasuke's partner. You sound just like Renamon, Jerkmon."

"Enough," Renamon cut in from behind Rika, shutting down the brewing shouting match. "We need to come up with a plan, and this is not helping."

"Thanks, Renamon," Rika said, standing up and pocketing her hands in her long jacket. "So, Impmon, you're the only one here who's fought this Lucemon guy, right? How much trouble are we in?"

Impmon grimaced and leaned forward, no longer lounging against BG's side. "That bad?" Takato asked. He looked down at his fist. "Fighting you as Beelzemon... we were basically even."

"Well, the guy basically gave me a ba-boom and I's was out in one hit..." Impmon admitted. He shook his head. "Only thing that gave him a scare was a sucker punch by yer kiddo."

"Only for a second, though," Davis pointed out. "Whatever Digimon he Biomerged into, it surprised Lucemon and nothing more. We don't know how well they would have fared long term since they were unmerged before much else could happen."

"They looked a bit like youse and Goggles do, Pineapplehead," Impmon tossed in with a gesture at Guilmon. Impmon looked over at me and Takato next and cocked his head to the side. "Eh, guess I have to come up with a new nickname, huh?" We stared at him blankly for a moment, so Impmon sighed loudly and gestured at our foreheads.

"Oh! I... hadn't even noticed!" Takato exclaimed as he looked over at me. "Where did you even get those goggles? I thought I lost them months ago... your mother wasn't happy..."

I reached up and rubbed the goggles softly. "Yeah, um... Gethen – er, Lucemon. He took them and gave them to me." I hesitated for a moment, then pulled them off. "Uh, here."

Takato looked at me, surprised. After a moment, he and Rika laughed with one another. "Keep them," Takato said with a smile.

Rika nodded and added, "They look better on you."

"Ugh, don't be so mushy," BG growled, finally opening one eye. "What happened to figuring out the best way to fight?"

"He's right," Henry said, pulling Takato back into his seat. "Our first goal is to think about what he wants."

"Easy. Impmon and us," I said. "He calls me and BG 'the Hazard' and he tried to capture Impmon before we all got separated. So I think that makes it pretty clear." Takato and Guilmon flinched at the mention of 'Hazard.' Must be that 'Megidramon' monster Henry had talked about.

Davis nodded and put a hand on his chin. "You're right... then our best bet is to -"

"Don't say it..." Terriermon groaned. "Split up?"

"Ah, Momentai!" Dorumon remarked dryly. Momentai, sleeping at my feet, lifted his head up and yipped in reply. "Would you do it for a Scooby Snack?"

"I really have to cut down on your TV time," May mumbled when we heard that.

"I'm going to have to say no to that suggestion," Rika said. "Splitting up... you three are just kids."

Henry sighed. "Well, so were we," he pointed out. "And I've learned that they're going to do what we did regardless of how much we try to stop them. I really don't like it, but it might be our best option. " He smiled at the three of us and our Digimon. "And besides, they're the only reason we're all together in the first place."

"And we're clearly strong. Omnimon, Lucemon, Gankoomon – we've fought all of them one on one and walked away alive," Huckmon added. He looked around at all of us and grinned. "And as a team, we managed to handle some dangerous Mega Digimon when those two could barely manage getting to Champion."

"Still, it's not happening," Takato cut off the argument. "We all just got back together. This isn't a good idea."

"Look, we needs ta find some allies fer this fight," Impmon cut in. "My bike, Ryo – if he even cares ta show up, ba boom – and all the other weirdos youse two have met over the years. Splittin' up just makes it faster."

May frowned, hand on her chin. "Well, what if we don't split up in that way. We're all assuming us three and you three, because we work best with our own teams," May said. She looked over at Takato and Rika. "But what if Taj goes with you two?"

"It does solve a communication problem we might have had otherwise," Davis muttered, thinking it through tactically. "Taj can call us. We can call him. With May able to operate that Node, we'll be able to explore different places pretty quickly while you two can use your experience over the past few decades to get around instead. And then she can send Data Streams to get us all back together."

"... The plan does show promise," Renamon admitted quietly from behind Rika. "Keeping Impmon and Tasuke separate would give us a chance to warn the others should one group be attacked."

"It's either that or we shove Taj and BG into a portal to the Real World," Huckmon explained with a smirk. "Actually, that's not a bad idea..."

"No!" BG and me snapped. BG bared his fangs and added, "You're not keeping me from a fight, especially not when it's our fight!"

"Besides, there's nothing stopping him from going to the Real World to get him without anyone able to stop him," Henry said, making Takato and Rika – who had apparently been thinking that wasn't a bad idea – dismiss sending me home.

"Then we're going to have fun with Tasukemon?" Calumon asked, eyes wide. He jumped up and down on Guilmon's back. "Hooray! Hooray! We get to play!"

I glanced over at Henry, then back down at the ground.

Takato chuckled, not noticing the look on my face. "Well, if Calumon likes the idea, so do I," he said. He looked at Henry. "Take those kids and Impmon to Chuchidarumon village and see if you can find Beelzemon's bike."

"We'll go looking for... ugh... Ryo," Rika added, sounding really annoyed by the idea.

Terriermon snickered, "Twenty years and you're still sore about losing a card game..."

"Henry," Rika said simply.

Henry sighed and smacked Terriermon on the head. "Hey!"

"Better than what she wanted to do to you," Henry pointed out dryly.

"Why don't we just take the fight to him?" I asked, making everyone go quiet.

Takato and Rika looked at one another. "No, that's not happening," Rika stated, making it clear there was no room for discussion.

"There are five Mega Digimon here right now!" I exclaimed angrily.

"NO!" Takato, Rika, and Henry snapped.

"... It's the smart move..."

"Taj... we don't know who else he's working with," May explained. "What if another Demon Lord shows up?"

I glared at her and let out a growl. "Never mind. I … I need to go for a walk." BG glanced at me and followed, running along behind me with Momentai at his side.

"Tasuke, come -"

"Give him a minute," Henry said, cutting off Takato.

I eventually found my way over to a cliff overlooking the forest. I sat down near the edge and Momentai scampered over to curl up in my lap. BG just moved over and plopped down beside me, ears straight up as he listened carefully for anyone who might sneak up on us. I pulled out my Digivice and stared at my reflection in the screen. I knew I was right. I knew we had to do something other than just waiting for him to come after us – we could go after these guys for help all we wanted, but that also means he'll be getting his own backup ready. And who knows what else that might make him stronger. They were so obsessed with safety...

"Huh, we really did find him first, Henry. I guess you know him better than the Breadbasket's nose!" Terriermon exclaimed. I turned my head to see Henry coming up with his partner.

"You weren't going to tell me they were getting close?" I growled at BG.

He opened his eye. "I like him," BG explained dryly.

"Well, if that isn't an indictment of your character," Terriermon chuckled, elbowing Henry in the side of the head.

Henry gave him a tired glare. "I think hanging around with you was indictment enough."

"I'm happy you guys are able to talk like no time has passed," I cut in before Terriermon could make another witty reply. "I can't imagine what it would be like to go that long without BG, and we've only been partners for a few months. You two were partners for more than a decade."

Henry sat beside me and moved Terriermon onto the ground, where he gave Momentai a glare and began poking at BG. Henry didn't say anything, so I guess either it would be okay or Terriermon had what would happen coming to him. After a few seconds, Henry looped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me in to a side hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Dad," I replied, hugging him back. He stiffened for a moment, but eventually just hugged me tighter. "I can't believe we have to split up again already."

"It's for the best, Tasuke," Henry replied. He let go of me. "I'm out of practice when it comes to fighting, but Takato and Rika have been doing it for decades now. If anyone can keep you safe from Lucemon, it's the two of them."

"But I still don't like it," I grumbled under my breath."I just want to go home, Henry."

"I know. And -"

I shook my head. "But this is all my fault. And you tried to teach me to fix what I messed up, so I guess that I have to keep going." BG snapped his jaws shut on Terriermon's ear when the little guy started poking his head. Terriermon yelped and was tossed to the side, bouncing through the dirt. "I have to do something, don't I?"

I turned after a moment to see Henry smiling at me. "What?"

He just chuckled and turned away. "You've grown a lot, recently. I'm proud of you," he simply said. Henry looked down at his own Digivice and held it next to mine. "But even if it is your responsibility, the right decision might just be to step aside and let someone else deal with it. Are you trying to help because you feel guilty, or because it's what's best?"

"We've hurt him before. We've taken down Reapmon. We've saved Digimon." I shook my head. "We might not be able to reach Mega again now, but we will. And even if we don't... BG and me, and the others, we've taken down serious monsters before."

After a moment, I tacked on, "I mean, I would be lying if I said I didn't feel guilty, too."

Henry studied my face for a few minutes. "If you're sure, then I trust you," he finally replied. "And you're definitely right that you're helpful. Your gift has already saved my life more than a few times." He pulled out a card, emblazoned with a golden box.

I smiled. "Yeah, well... I just had it lying around. And it's not like I can use it," I said, waving it off. "But... I'm glad. Hopefully it keeps keeping you safe."

Terriermon finally escaped BG, flying over to balance on Henry's head instead. "Oh, I wouldn't worry about us," Terriermon said, sounding a lot more confident now that BG couldn't get to him. "When Henry finally decides it's time to Biomerge, we'll be able to take more hits than anybody. I should know, we took hits from the D-Reaper and I came out better than fine!"

"On second thought, I'll avoid Biomerging," Henry joked. "Don't want to turn out like him."

Terriermon opened his mouth to say something, then turned and pointed at Momentai in my lap instead. "He's not coming with us, is he?"

"Well, if it keeps you quiet, I might have to bring him along," Henry joked.

"Henry!"

"Taj! Taj, where are you?"

I sighed. "I guess if everyone is chasing us down, we should probably head back," I muttered. I buried my face in my hands and let out a long groan, voicing my annoyance with the universe one last time.

BG shrugged. "As much as I like annoying her, it's not worth the trouble right now..."

"Wow, he can be mature!" Terriermon remarked, pointing at BG and snickering as he did.

BG glowered at Terriermon. "You're one to talk, Flopsy."

I smiled at the Digimon for a moment before finally pushing up to my feet. "Well, let's get going, then. If we can hear her, Dorumon can sense BG." I reached down to help Henry up, who let out an aching groan as he stood. "Hey, you hurt yourself old man?"

"I haven't slept in a bed for days. It's torture on my back," Henry explained. He rubbed his back. "How do Rika and Takato handle it?"

I looked away at the mention of their names. "Henry... no matter what happens, you'll always... you know. You'll always be my dad, got it?"

He raised an eyebrow at the sudden statement. It took him a while to say anything, and it looked a bit like he was struggling with it in this new world with his old friends. "... And you'll always be my son," he admitted, still hunched slightly.

I turned away and wiped at my eyes. "Well, time to go, huh?"

X X X

First thing the next morning, I handed over my data on the cave from the day before. I'd forgotten all about it when everything had gone crazy, but she didn't even mind it was late – the idea of making pocket dimensions and building something from nothing was making her too excited. To be fair, it was making me pretty excited, too. "So, you have to have ideas, right?" she asked me as the data streamed between our Digivices.

"You already forgot I want a Zero Arms?" I asked dryly.

May rolled her eyes. "Oh, just want one of the strongest weapons in the Digital World, huh? What else can I do for you, build something to make us Digivolve past Biomerging?" She paused and we stared at each other. "You know, that sounds pretty damn cool..."

"Right!?" I echoed, grinning wide.

"Focus on getting us to Mega first," BG remarked angrily.

"Okay, calm down," I said, glaring at him. "It's a two way street, Partner."

He stared in silence for a moment. "I don't want to make sense, I want to whine."

"That sounds like you, Jerkmon," Dorumon mocked. He shot her a smoky snarl, but she just scoffed. "Oh, you're just angry you're gonna miss us."

"... I'm going over here," BG grumbled, turning and walking over towards our planned exit site.

I watched him leave with wide eyes. "Wow. He really will miss you guys." I looked down at Dorumon. "Even you, somehow."

"Hey now, that's my partner you're talking about," May said defensively. "Say sorry or no Orochi ripoff for you."

I rolled my eyes. "Sorry," I muttered sarcastically. "Besides, I was thinking something a little different, you know? More personal, huh?"

She stared at me, then gave me a sarcastic glare. "You just want to say you designed it, don't you?"

"Just give me my Power Rangers style Automatic Crossbow combiner," I ordered. "Uh... please?"

"Let it never be said you don't know how to ask for things politely," Dorumon said, rolling her eyes hard enough to make the world spin.

I rolled my eyes right back, but decided to ignore her. I'm the bigger person than the fuzzball... And it was time to go, anyway. "You ready?" Davis asked when we got close. He'd been going over the plan with Rika and Henry, mapping out where their half of the gang would be heading. Some place called the "Chuchidarumon Village" down on the first layer, then May suggested they try to find some of the Royal Knights and get them on board with the plan. Hopefully it didn't end with them trying to kill Impmon to keep him from being used by Lucemon, but it was better than nothing, right?

"As I'll ever be," I replied. I moved over to BG and scratched behind his ears.

Guilmon and Takato, having finally managed to catch Calumon who was trying to play a game of tag, came up beside us. "Don't worry, it'll get easier."

"Yeah, Tasukemon!" Guilmon agreed excitedly.

Calumon managed to get out of Takato's hands, floating over and landing on top of my head. He leaned over to look me right in the eyes. "Hi there, Tasukemon! You remember me? Do you? Come on, do you?"

I blinked. "You're, um... excitable," I supplied, hoping that was enough.

"You do remember!" Calumon exclaimed with a happy gasp. He leaped from my head and began to fly around me, chanting that over and over.

I shrugged at the crazy creampuff and turned to my friends and Henry instead. "Well... I guess this is see ya later, then?" I asked. I walked up to May and Davis... then yanked them into a hug. "I'm going to miss you guys."

May hugged me back. "Yeah, what will you do without us?" she asked jokingly.

"I mean, I'm happy to get a break, but we'll see you soon," Davis said. He was only half-joking, it sounded like. "We'll keep him safe."

"Yeah," May whispered in agreement.

I grinned and pushed off. "Thanks guys. And May – I want my weapon."

"Kaykay. I'll be the one using it, though." She pulled out her computer and sat down, typing down the location data for us to fly.

"Don't even joke, May. Not cool," I shot back, smirking.

"They're a bit like us," Takato said, chuckling at the three of us. We turned, all feeling a little annoyed at the old people reliving their glory days when they looked at us.

"Well, I'll miss you guys as much as they miss each other," Henry supplied. He looked at Takato and Rika. "We just met up again after a decade and we're already splitting up."

"Don't worry, we can all catch up once we atomize Lucemon." Rika paused, then said, "You can make us legally alive again, right?"

"Well, you can actually thank Lucemon for that one," Henry supplied, scratching the back of his head nervously.

I let out a low whistle. "Wow. Building a pocket dimension for him really gave you a lot of stuff," I said. "Anything else I should know about? Did he buy our dog?"

"Well, technically he did get me my first job at the University," he replied after a moment. "And he had the house paid off before we moved in."

"Great, so we live in a house built by the Devil of the Digital World," I grumbled. I hooks my head and threw up my hands. "Well, think of any other bombshells to drop on me while we're split up, Henry. I'm looking forward to finding out he built my car with his own hands."

"His feet, actually," Henry mocked. "It's full of all sorts of bugs and evil curses."

"Henry..." Terriermon groaned. He flinched. "Ugh, that felt weird."

"Momentai, Terriermon," Henry said. He snapped his fingers. "Ah, that reminds me. Momentai!" He whistled and Momentai rushed over, yipping excitedly. Henry smiled and reached down to pick the dog up. He scratched him behind the ears a couple times, then handed him off to me. Momentai yipped again and began kissing my face. "He's always liked you more, Tasuke. So keep an eye on him for me?"

I smiled at the gesture. "Momentai, Henry. You know I can handle it," I said, grinning the entire time. I took Momentai off his hands and scratched behind his ears, earning an appreciative whine. "BG'll be happy to have him around again."

"Nuh uh!" BG protested hotly.

"That's... nice, Henry. But we have -" Rika, only for Takato to cut her off. "Well, I guess we can handle a dog, too."

"Yay! A doggy, a doggy, playing with a puppy!" Calumon began to sing, flying around us in a circle.

"Eh, don't want to hang out with us, Creampuff?" Impmon asked dryly. "Eh, fine, it'll be calmer without 'im."

May looked up from her computer a moment later. "So, are you guys ready?" she asked. "We've got you set for the cloud layer."

"We're ready," Takato replied. I nodded and stepped back with them, Calumon, BG, and their Digimon. He grinned at Henry. "We'll see you soon, got it? And for reals this time!"

Henry smiled sadly. "... Yeah. You better."

And then, we were gone.

X X X

Henry looked around the empty desert, feeling as lost as anyone would in a featureless desert that stretched forever in every direction. "Well, it really has been a long time. Data drift is this bad?" Henry asked. "The village should be right here."

"Nah, this is weird," Impmon agreed. "It's been a while, but nothin' had moved after all the years, ba boom."

"Then maybe something is different," Huckmon suggested.

"Great, you're saying we're lost? Come on, Henry, get that big brain going!" Terriermon began stamping on his partner's head. "Work... harder!"

"Ach! Terriermon!" Henry hissed. "Stop that!"

"Momentai, Henry, I was just trying to help!" Terriermon exclaimed. He grabbed Henry's arm with an ear and swung around to his shoulder, grinning the entire time. "Ah, how I missed that word..."

"I thought you'd be shouting it to the sky by now," Davis said. "It looked like it hurt every time you couldn't say it."

"And make it just another word!?" Terriermon exclaimed, horrified.

"Terriermon thinks of 'Momentai' as more of a way of life than just a word," Henry explained. He smirked up at his partner. "Isn't that right, Pumba?"

"Hey, now, if anyone's Pumba it's Guilmon. I'm Timon!"

"... What?" Huckmon asked, confused.

Impmon nodded, "Yeah, Pumba's the smart one," he supplied, drawing surprised looks from Henry and Terriermon. "My partners were twin toddlers. Youse guys know how many times I saw that movie?"

"Well, then let's see if I can deal with this problem," May cut in, smiling arrogantly. She pulled out her computer and sat down, looking through the map. "Data drift, huh? What is that?"

"The Digital World feeds off the human digital landscape," Henry explained as he crouched down over her shoulder. "Before we cut off the Digital World, HYPNOS came up with an estimation algorithm to note how things were changing. I can't exactly write the entire thing by memory... I wish I had my computer now..."

"Well, we copied a bunch of stuff of of your computer and onto our Digivices," Davis pointed out. "Maybe the algorithm is on there?"

"Smart! It'll need an update either way – I'm betting the Digital World's drift is accelerated since it's a decade behind," May exclaimed. She pulled out her Digivice and plugged it into her computer. "Let's see... Henry, I'm going to be honest, I don't know most of these file names."

"... That one. Pangaea." He pointed at a file she was browsing past. "Open that... here, if we change this to an input with the standard value of one. For how long it's been... Fifteen years in seconds?"

Davis pulled out the calculator app on his Digivice. "473,364,000."

"We'll input that and your map file – okay, that should work. Run it," Henry said.

May nodded and dragged the map off her Digivice for the update. "Okay, adjusting for drift now... Kaykay!"

"Is it not far?" Huckmon asked hopefully.

"After 40 years of instantaneous Data drift? Yeah, it's pretty far," May replied, probably a little more condescending than she meant. "No, no, we... uh, no, we aren't walking. Pretty funny, Huckmon."

"Davis..." Huckmon grumbled, turning up to his partner.

"I just have to send a different Data Stream to Taj's location. Wait, maybe I should have texted him I was doing that, first. Ah, well, better to ask forgiveness, right?" May asked with a shrug before hitting the send button. Somewhere, far away, Davis was certain that asking permission would have been appreciated.

"Kaykay, and now for us," May exclaimed.

"Wait, let me -!" Davis shouted, stomach still reeling from their last trip. He was living the experience of preferring asking permission over asking forgiveness now!?

He fell face first into the dirt once the Data Stream had transported them, stomach roiling yet again. "... May... a little warning, please!?"

May looked over, a little green herself. "Yup... sorry..."

"They really don't like those things," Terriermon told Henry.

Henry shrugged. "Neither did we, at first," Henry pointed out. He crossed his arms. "It got us where we were trying to go, though."

Impmon hurried over. "Well, it's still a dump. But at least it's a familiar one, heh?" he asked Henry.

Henry didn't want to agree, but... well, the Chuchidarumon lived in a village of loose, random data. It wasn't exactly a five star hotel, even if its denizens were incredibly hospitable. "I hope that they've heard something about Behemoth," Henry said instead. "I'm not sure where we'll head if it isn't here."

"Eh, I gotta couple ideas, Einstein," Impmon responded dismissively. He jumped ahead. "So let's just get this over with, ba boom!" The others followed after Impmon, letting the one who had spent the longest amount of time in the Digital World take the lead for now.

While the village seemed desolate from a distance, the closer the group got the more Digimon began to appear. Chuchidarumon, just as the village's name had implied. May got a little confused as they showed up, seeing that some were smaller and others bigger – though they were all staring with unblinking eyes at the group with every step they took. She wanted to ask about it, but realized that it probably wasn't important right then. They had more important things to ask these guys about; if Behemoth was here, maybe Impmon could Digivolve again.

An old looking Chuchidarumon eventually hobbled towards them in the center of the village, his staff supporting his hunched body. "Greetings and salutations – Goodness me, Henry! I cannot believe you are here again!" the Chuchidarumon exclaimed. His gaze fixed on Impmon, standing in front of everyone, and he grew less excited. "Ah. Impmon. Then we should expect another set of attacks, hm?"

"Hey now, it ain't my fault 'tis time, Gingerbread Mon," Impmon protested, throwing his hands up and shaking them. "I swear!"

"After such a long respite, I had hoped you would never dedigivolve again," the old Chuchidarumon sighed. "Then I suppose you must have brought Henry and these new humans here in order to rectify that issue?"

"Eh... ya got me," Impmon admitted, chuckling. His hands dropped to his side. "Look, Gingie, we's got big problems, so if youse could point us in the right direction?"

"Later, perhaps," the Chuchidarumon responded. He turned away, ignoring Impmon's annoyed protests, to greet the others. "Now, any friend of Henry and Terriermon is of course welcome in our home, humble as it may be. I am the elder of this village, and you are our guests!"

"Finally, getting treated like the heroes we are!" Dorumon exclaimed, letting loose a goofy grin.

"Sorry about her," May said, reaching over and shutting her partner's mouth with her hand. "Dorumon's a... special mon." Dorumon's eyes widened and she began letting out muffled protests. "I'm her partner, May. Henry's actually my uncle!"

"Ah... what's an uncle?" the Chuchidarumon wondered, cocking his head to the side in confusion.

"Right, no families..." Davis said, scratching his chin.

"It's uh... a human thing," May finally said after a struggle to come up with a more exact answer.

"Of course, that would explain my lack of clarity on the matter," the Chuchidarumon remarked. He turned next to Huckmon and Davis. "Are you also part of this human thing?"

Dorumon nipped at May's hand, causing her to yelp and let go of the mon's mouth. Dorumon chuckled, "Yeah! A different one!"

May turned a nice shade of red. "D-Dorumon, stop it!"

Davis coughed, blushing too, and looked away slightly. "I, uhm... My name is, uh, Davis. I'm May's f- um, friend," he explained, the blush only deepening as Dorumon laughed at his reaction. "My partner here is Huckmon."

"I'm the one who gets him out of trouble," Huckmon said, gesturing at himself with a claw. "So by extension, I get everyone out of trouble."

Davis gave him a look, then shrugged. "Well, he isn't not right," he suggested when May raised her eyebrow.

"Great, great, we all knows each other. Now, can youse help us find my ba bike," Impmon grumbled. He tapped his foot on the ground. "I been waitin' forever!"

"I suppose that working on this posthaste would be a good idea," the elder Chuchidarumon agreed. "We would prefer to not be forced to repair the destruction your bike causes for a twelfth time..."

"Er... Foxface and Pineapplehead told you 'bout the four times you forgot, ba boom?" Impmon asked anxiously.

"Oh, Renamon has been quite enlightening about events we have forgotten. We can discuss that later, though. For now, let us adjourn to my home. We can come up with a plan there," Chuchidarumon explained. He looked over at two small Chuchidarumon looking to jump on May's and Davis' backs. "And avoid your fans, young Tamers."

X X X

"So, is this wandering off thing going to be a habit?" I looked up from my Cards at Rika as she walked up, hands in her jacket pockets. "Don't care much for Clockmon and BlueMeramon?"

you

I folded the cards back together into a deck and put it down beside me, growing slightly surprised at how they did not fall through the clouds simply because I decided deep down that nothing would. But, hey, if clock cogs could float in the sky on their own power, why couldn't cards? "Needed a few minutes to calm my stomach after May double tapped us with Data Streams and I couldn't really contribute much to looking for this 'Ryo' guy. Besides, they were a little..."

"Energetic? Yeah, Digimon out here in the Digital World have all sorts of quirks,"Rika agreed. She sat down beside me, leaving me between her and BG. Momentai glanced up from his place curled up in BG's tail and yipped happily. He rushed over and curled up to get scratches from someone behind Rika. Which meant...

"... You had Renamon follow us, huh?"

"Well, she's better at hiding from Digimon than Guilmon. And Calumon is... Well, I think Calumon would have gotten too wrapped up in trying to play with you to remember to come back," Rika admitted. She nodded her head and Renamon appeared behind us, crouching slightly to pet Momentai. It probably should have been weird having her follow me, but I guess having her be my babysitter all those years ago made the stoic Digimon a comforting presence instead. "And Takato... I realized last night, we were looking for you, that I understand you better."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, confused why she'd say that.

She didn't answer me for a little while, instead pulling out her own cards and setting them up. I looked on in confusion for a moment before realizing what she was doing. I shrugged and set up my own deck to play. We hadn't been playing for two minutes before: "You wish Henry was here."

I held the cards in my hand tighter and glanced up at Rika. "Yeah." I began working on a strategy to win. "I wish Henry was here."

Rika gave me a surprised look. "Not going to dance around it, huh? You have the bluntness I pretended to have as a kid," Rika muttered before making her next move.

"It's a recently acquired skill," BG piped up from beside me.

I shot him a glare, but nodded in agreement. "Ran into trouble holding things back. Not risking that again. Not now, when I'm so close."

Rika paused before making her next move. She warp digivolved her Renamon to Taomon, putting me at a serious disadvantage. "I nearly made a similar mistake, if I understand you right. It nearly cost me my partner, my friends, and maybe even my family. And it all stemmed from how I felt after my father left me. But we didn't leave you, Tasuke. We didn't want to go."

I shook my head and made my move, launching my Gargomon to MegaGargomon with a series of modifications and digivolutions. The game was over, just like that. "You went for a good reason. I get that, I really do," I said after a moment. I reached out and began to pull my cards together. "But you did leave me. It doesn't matter how much you can empathize, or how much Takato thinks everything can go back to the way it was if he smiles wide and calls me his son... it just can't. Henry was there for me when I learned to ride a bike. When I broke my arm. When I got in fights." I felt uncomfortable at the sadness growing in her eyes with every memory she had to only imagine. But it was the truth. I took a breath. "Look, I came here to find him, and now it's like I -"

I was cut off by the sound of an explosion ringing out in the distance. Rika was on her feet before I could even respond, sprinting towards the source of the noise. "Stay here!" she ordered. "Renamon, Biomerge!"

"Yes," Renamon agreed. There was a bright flash of light and the newly formed Sakuyamon blasted away.

"... We're not listening, are we?" BG demanded angrily.

I scoffed, annoyed he'd even think we would. "And miss the action? Never." I shuffled through my deck, grabbing hold of my usual subdeck for BG. Five seconds later, I was rocketing after Sakuyamon on the shoulders of a giant, cybernetic dinosaur. Momentai was held tight in my zipped up jacket, held up by one hand and being pushed into me by the wind and zipper.

"You smell anything!?" I shouted to my partner over the roar of his verniers.

"Good news, it's a challenge!" BG replied after taking a deep breath. "Bad news -" His head swiveled and he pulled us back as hard as he could.

"Magna Blast!"

A gleaming, golden rocket blasted right in front of us. The air around it crackled with energy that seemed to superheat the air around us. I turned towards where it had come from and clenched my hand in BG's hair. Magnamon in his golden armor adorned with the Crest of Miracles hovered a short distance away, the rockets in his shoulder armor keeping him easily aloft. And, unfortunately, much faster than us. "Yeah, that's bad news," I agreed, matching eyes with the Royal Knight of Miracles not far off. I let out a groan and slapped my forehead. "This is like the fourth Veemon to attack me! What, do they just hate me!?"

"I am glad you dodged my warning shot," Magnamon shouted over to us. He narrowed his red eyes and aimed at us with one of his three-fingered hands. "Return the human to the ground and De-Digivolve. If you do so, my compatriots Crusadermon and Dynasmon will retreat from their duels."

Crusadermon and Dynasmon? Well, that could go either way on the Lucemon chart. Pro Lucemon or Anti? Since it sounded like Frontier was real... probably Anti. Which meant they were here to kill me and BG, not capture us. Especially given Goldilocks here launching a 'warning shot' at us.

"Thoughts?" I asked my partner dryly.

"One," BG explained. The reactor on his chest began to shine with blistering, red energy. "Get behind my head."

I leaped into his hair and grabbed on tight, barely able to prepare before the massive jolt of BG's "ATOMIC BLASTER!" shot its massive energy bolt towards the Royal Knight. Momentai yipped and began to cry and shiver into me, trying desperately to escape whatever was happening.

"Well, I guess that's one way to answer," Magnamon muttered before readying himself for the fight, charging energy up to deflect BG's attack. He threw his hands forward, glowing a bright gold as he did. "MAGNA..."

X X X

Dang, I can't believe Rika opened up to even her own kid like that. I guess time and Chumley really do melt an Ice Queen's heart! Ha – eh, don't tell her I said that.

Anyway, I hope Chumley Jr. can figure out a way to survive a fight with Magnamon until Takato and Rika can get there on the next Digimon: Digital Monsters! Wait, and he has to save the dog!?