The Crest of a Master

by PizzaSpino

When the Digital World is in peril it doesn't just turn to a regular group of kids. It turns to a group of kids raised in a world centralized around raising and battling monsters! Join Ash and Agumon as they make new friends, battle an army of monsters, and hopefully save both of their worlds from an ancient evil.

28. Many Meetings Part 2

Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys creature collector franchises. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri. Digimon is owned by Bandai, WiZ, Toei Animation, and Akiyoshi Hongo. If you want to support the official releases, worry not. Lord knows there is plenty of merchandise to choose from.

Listening to as I check you in: I Can Clown Around Anytime, But I'll Dance (Digimon Cyber Sleuth)

The Crest of a Master Chapter 28: Many Meetings Part 2

May (Checking In)

The inside of the inn matched the aesthetic of its exterior. The wooden lobby had an old fashion and pristine design that made May feel as though she was wasting money just standing there. The wooden architecture was smoothed down to the point where it looked like it was made of marble. Scattered around the area were seats of varying sizes which shined like newly purchased furniture accented by the exotic plants which sat nearby. Bringing the room together was a stone fountain in the center which gently trickled water across a number of carved ruins which resembled various shapes ranging from suns to hearts.

"You look happy," Biyomon commented to May who was practically bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"Can you smell that Biyomon?" May asked, barely containing the excitement in her voice.

Biyomon lifted her beak into the air to take a quick sniff. "Rotten eggs?"

"No! It's a hot spring!" May squealed. She took in a good whiff of the blessed rotten egg stench of relaxation. "I don't even care if an army of Digimon comes crashing through this place. I'm just happy to have some time off."

"First Misty's conspiracy theories and now you," Agumon muttered as he walked on by. "You humans can be really pessimistic, you know?"

By now all the Digimon had reverted to their rookie stages in order to fit into the building. Even Sorcermon, who was easily the shortest of the champions, changed into Penguinmon. The water fowl said it was to be fair, though May had a sneaking suspicion that he felt awkward being the only champion in the group.

Glancing around her, May took account of the other members of their group. Upon spotting the front desk, Misty took charge and rung the bell. Now she was leaning over that very same desk, fingers drumming while she waited for a response. At her feet, Betamon shooting nervous glances across the room. Following the amphibian's eyes, May could see Lillie and Serena studying an oil painting of a Digimon which resembled a blue skinned knight in golden armor. While their humans discussed the wall art, Lunamon and Renamon stood to the side talking about their travel experiences. Well, Renamon stood. Lunamon sat on top a shelf to stay eye level with the noticeably taller rookie.

Nearby, Brock and Gotsumon had taken over a couch. When it became apparent that they would be waiting for a bit, Brock had removed his vest and was now mending it with a needle and thread. Next to him, Gotsumon was laying down, head resting against the arm of the couch. May thought the rock monster was asleep until she caught one of his eyes cracking open to glance around. Goh was sitting on a couch adjacent from Brock's and was looking over some pages scanned into the Digivice. Meanwhile Terriermon was performing some kind of workout which could best be described as a handstand push-up using his powerful ears instead of his stubby arms.

Sitting in a pair of different chairs were Gary and Gabumon. Unlike Gotsumon, Gabumon was genuinely asleep as evidence by the occasional loud snore. Ever since Ash's challenge, Gary had oddly been subdued. He didn't talk to the rest of the team unless spoken to and would often ride off on Garurumon. If May had to venture a guess, seeing half the humans rant against him probably hurt Gary's feelings.

May felt a twinge of guilt for being the one to bring up the topic in that particular chat. Yes, Gary could be full of himself, but May didn't want to bring the guy down. She just wanted him to think a bit more before talking. Though, judging by the way Gary and Ash stared at one another, her mild grips were more than justified.

Turning her attention to capped boy, May could see that Ash was still hanging out on the lobby's patio. The boy couldn't stay still and would switch between starring off into the distance and pacing back and forth like a caged Persian. Agumon wasn't much better. The reptile wondered around the lobby, every so often giving some random object a sniff or letting out a dissatisfied snort.

Sighing, May wondered over to the front desk. Agumon's antsy wonderings were rubbing off on her. She had half a mind to just storm out of the lobby, grab a room, and head over to a bath or the cafeteria.

As May approached the front, she noticed Iris, Dawn, and their Digimon gathered around a small table.

"It kind of looks like a Glameow," Dawn observed thoughtfully.

"Or a white Purrloin," Iris said in agreement.

Her curiosity perked, May wondered over to see what the group was looking at. Much to May's surprise, she knew this creature. "It's a cat!"

Unlike the cat May saw at the Castle of the Royal Knights, this cat was pure white. It was laying down on a plushy cushion, unbothered by the sudden influx of strangers in its home. It looked up at the girls with dignified, blue eyes.

"What's a cat doing here?" May asked.

"If I had to venture a guess, I'd say it belongs to the hotel. That probably explains why it hasn't run away. It's used to Digimon," Penguinmon deduced. "My village never had pets. I considered getting a rabbit, but village's hutch always went empty during the colder months when everyone was starving."

"I don't think starving should be a problem for a resort," May muttered. She reached forward to pet the feline only to pause when she caught the cat's eye. Staring at her. Judging her.

"Eh, I probably should wait for someone from the staff to come along before petting it," May said, pulling her hand back.

"Smart," piped up Dracomon. "You should never pet a strange animal. For all you know, it could be unfriendly. Or diseased."

"Or unfriendly and diseased," Terriermon called from across the room. That comment caused the cat's eyes to narrow at the rabbit dog.

"Oh don't worry. She's not unfriendly or diseased. Though she doesn't like being pet," said a sleepy voice.

A new Digimon floated into the room behind the front desk. This Digimon looked like a pink pillow with stubby, hooved legs. Peeking out from one of the pillow's sides was a sleepy face with closed eyes framed by light pink fleece. A pair of curled horns grew from the side of the head and a purple night cap sat atop.

Finally! The concierge arrived so that we can scan her!

"Pillomon, rookie level," May read. "She eats other peoples' dreams and can put them to sleep using her Lullaby Bubble attack or give them nightmares with Nightmare Bubble."

"Checking in?" Pillomon asked. She looked around the room or at least May assumed she was looking. She never opened her eyes. "Hmm, this is a lot of trial goers. Please list your species, residence, and occupation for the logs."

"Didn't we just do that?" groaned Gotsumon.

Even though, yes they just got done with introductions, the group went ahead and answered the pillow's questions.

"And I don't have any profession yet, but I'm working on it," May said, finishing off the second round the horn. There was a pause while May waited for the concierge to say something. Worried, she gave the pillow Digimon a gentle poke which elicited a soft snore. The floating sheep then snorted awake.

"Huh? What?" yawned Pillomon. "Oh, I'm so sorry dears. I must have drifted off. Could you repeat yourselves?"

This time Gotsumon wasn't the only one who groaned.

Later on

Finally, check-in was complete and May could retreat to her assigned room. Each member of their group could have secured their own room due to the lack of guests, but for safety sake it was agreed that the humans should bunk with their Digimon partner. With a loud sigh, May tossed her travel pack to the side and flopped down onto the futon. She took a moment to savor the silky covers and plushy feeling of the bed.

"Comfortable?" Biyomon giggled from across the room. The bird decided to forgo the bed and instead took a bundle of covers and pillows to arrange on the floor like a large nest.

"It's been so long since I've taken a proper vacation," May sighed.

Biyomon's head tilted inquisitively. "Vacation?"

Right, Biyomon's life was either spent in an etiquette school or fighting for survival in the wilderness. "A vacation is when you take time off from working to go relax. A lot of people like to go and visit places or go to a hotel like this one to unwind."

"That sounds lovely," Biyomon commented, adjusting a pillow.

"It is," May rolled over to look up at the wooden ceiling. "The last time I went on a vacation was before my family moved. My family went to Snowpoint City in the Sinnoh region for my dad's job. He was supposed to evaluate a new gym leader, so we decided to use that as an excuse to go skiing and see the sites. Check out the ruins, look at one of those gorges that are all around that region, have some of the local food."

"Your dad is a professional battler, correct?" Biyomon politely asked. "How did the fight go?"

"I didn't watch," May grimaced. Pokémon weren't really her thing. Not that it mattered, her father usually kept her and her brother from watching live gym matches so that the trainers don't get distracted. The match against the new Snowpoint gym leader was an exception as the new gym leader in question insisted that it would have been a good learning opportunity.

Max jumped at the chance to watch his father battle. May opted out to do some shopping. Looking back, May really wished that she watched. In fact, she wished she joined her family to watch Pokémon League matches or visit her dad's job or help out caring for her father's Pokémon. Maybe then she would be a better trainer. The extra family time was also sounding really good right about now too.

Standing up from her bed, May wondered over to the window. Looking out she could see the crumbling buildings and craters engraved into the dirt. She wondered what this place looked like before the war. Probably a sprawling metropolis filled with all kinds of Digimon going about their lives. Shopping, gossiping, completely unready for the incoming danger.

"You're supposed to leave a vacation feeling refreshed and ready to get back to your normal life," May sighed wistfully. "As soon as we're done here, we're going to have to fight Digimon who can level cities. I'm not sure if I'll be much help."

There was a moment of silence before Biyomon spoke up. "Before coming to the Digital World, did you think you could take on a giant air ship?"

"No," May answered, not sure where Biyomon was going.

"What about surviving a dragon attack?" continued the bird.

May shook her head. "Defiantly not."

"Well look where you are now!" Biyomon said. She got up from her makeshift nest and walked over to May's side. "You've traveled through an entire continent of perils and are still in one piece! Speaking as a former wild Digimon, that's no easy feat."

Her partner's words struck a chord in May. Back home, before she was carted off to the Digital World, May was worried about how long she'd last on a standard Pokémon journey. Now here she was, an adventurer who lived through situations most trainers never even dreamed of escaping.

"You know what? You're right!" May exclaimed. She pumped a fist in the air. "I'm not just some weak little girl! I'm May, survivor of the Digital World!"

"Every day you breathe is another victory!" cheered Biyomon.

"Slayer in the skies!" May continued.

"Amazing title!" Biyomon gushed.

"Trainer of a giant Moltres!"

"And a beautiful Moltres at that."

"Bring it on Digital World!" May yelled at the top of her lungs, now pumping both fists up high.

"Calm down. We're supposed to be taking it easy tonight," Gotsumon chimed in.

The sound of Gotsumon's dry deadpan caused May to freeze. Turning around, she could see that Brock and Gotsumon were standing at the door. A deep blush spread across May's face.

"How long have you guys been there?" May fidgeted.

"Since the beginning of the pep rally," Gotsumon replied causing May's blush to darken.

"I was just going to tell you that we found an infirmary on the first floor," Brock explained, mercifully ignoring the cheer he walked in on. "We kind of all figured it would be a good idea to get ourselves and the Digimon looked over before we eat."

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," May replied, trying to sound as casual as possible. She waited a bit for Brock and Gotsumon to leave before addressing Biyomon. "Thanks for cheering me up, Biyomon. You're the best Digimon a girl could ask for."

Biyomon beamed at May. From the moment they exited their room to when they caught up to Brock, the bird's crest feathers were proudly raised and there was a skip to her step.

Passing the white cat from earlier, May managed to catch up to Brock. May decided to put her high spirits to good use and talk to her new teammate. "So, what do you think the temple is going to be like?"

"Hmm, I overheard Misty asking the concierge that question," Brock said thoughtfully. "Pillomon didn't give away a lot, but she did say the trials tend to be broken up into three parts. Apparently each part has some challenge or puzzles that we'll need to solve before we reach the end."

"And that's when we get our crests?" May asked. It sounded like a nice change of pace. Instead of a fight for their lives, they'd be performing tests in a safe and controlled environment.

"Pretty much," Brock confirmed. "Apparently there will be proctor Digimon who will be watching us as we work our way through the temple to figure out which crests suit us best. Which would explain why we're not being given any more information. They probably want to see how we'll react to the tasks blind to get a good feel for our characters."

"That makes sense," May said thoughtfully. She looked ahead to see Biyomon was trying to chat up Gotsumon with varying success. "Hey, what do you think our Digimon will be like? When they reach the ultimate, that is."

A frown crossed Brock's face. "Hard to say, we haven't seen too many ultimate level Digimon yet. I'm just hoping that they'll get their ultimate forms right after we get our crests."

"That would be pretty convenient," May nodded in agreement.

"It's a bit more than that," Brock muttered. His brow furrowed and his frown deepened. "Honestly, I'm not really looking to fight in this war. My goal is to ask the Celestial Army if there's a way home. I'm just hoping my crest will give Gotsumon enough juice to evolve before I have to leave."

As Brock explained his plan, May recalled the conversation her team had about GranLocomon and about how angels had the ability to allow train Digimon to cross through realities. "Yeah…the Celestial Army might be able to help."

"I hope so," said Brock. "As much as I want to help the Digimon out, I've got my own family to look after."

May's own family began to flash through her head. Her mother, her father, her dorky brother, even her father's Pokémon, they were all waiting for her back home. May's throat began to feel dry. "Same."

Noticing the knot in May's voice, Brock gave the younger girl a comforting smile. "Do you want to go home as well?"

A part of May wanted to confirm and say yes. However, she stayed quiet. All May could do was watch Biyomon.

Brock (Medical Wing)

It was pretty odd to see a hotel with its own hospital wing. From what Brock gathered, this was added after the hotel was rebuilt to accommodate wounded travelers. A feature that was in dire need since the hospital was bombed to kingdom come.

The infirmary itself had the same walls and flooring as the rest of the hotel and even a few paintings on the wall depicting serene landscapes and heroic-looking Digimon. Unlike the rest of the hotel, the infirmary was filled with healthcare equipment and curtains to separate patients.

Sitting on the cots were the other children and their Digimon. Misty was standing behind Betamon petting her and keeping her calm while a Labramon peered inside Betamon's mouth. Lillie waited patiently as another Labramon inspected Lunamon's ears while every so often asking the dog for Digimon care instructions. On a neighboring cot, Goh had raised his shirt so that another Digimon could press its long ears against his chest.

The Digimon who was examining Goh wasn't a Labramon. This Digimon was smaller and looked more like a bunny rabbit. It was covered from head to foot with pink fur, wore tiny red boots, and had a long, dark pink scarf around its neck. Wrapped around the Digimon's head was a pair of white headphones decorated with purple clovers.

Well, that things probably going to be examining you. Might as well examine it.

"Cutemon, rookie level," Brock read off his Digivice. "The long ears on their heads are actually sensory organs that can be used to pick up incoming Digimon. They're able to heal other Digimon using their Healing Glow or fight off their enemies using their Ultrasonic Song."

Another Cutemon walked up to Brock and his group with a comedically large clipboard. "Are you ready for your check-ups?"

"Uh," May gave the cots a nervous glance. "Are you going to look at us in the open?"

"Don't be afraid," Cutemon offered May a smile and nodded towards several doors at the other end of the room. "Other members of your part have requested privacy and we were able to accommodate."

A third Cutemon strolled up to May and Biyomon. "If you would like, I can take you back there now."

After May and Biyomon disappeared into one of the exam rooms, Brock and Gotsumon made their way over to a free cot. Brock watched as a Labramon inspected Gotsumon's various joints while the dog asked him questions. Just as Labramon finished up her inspection, the Cutemon with a clipboard hopped up onto a stool and wheeled over to Brock.

"I apologize in advance," the Cutemon said in a professional voice. "We are not as familiar with human anatomy as we would like. I'll start out by asking some basic questions."

"Ask away," Brock nodded.

"Have you been getting enough sleep?" Cutemon asked, pen at the ready.

"Yes," Brock dutifully answered.

"He's the last to go to bed and the first to wake up," Gotsumon added on.

Cutemon took a couple notes. "I assume you're getting enough to eat?"

"I make sure that everyone is eating well-balanced nutritional meals. Including myself," Brock stated.

"He fainted from dehydration in the middle of the desert," Gotsumon threw in.

"Are you of sound mind?" Cutemon asked, peering at Brock over the clipboard.

Brock shrugged. "I'd like to think so."

Everyone paused to look over at Gotsumon.

"How should I know?" Gotsumon asked incredulously. "His species makes questionable decisions all the time."

Cutemon continued to ask Brock questions until Gotsumon's checkup was complete. When she was done, she read over her notes. "Hmm, you seem physically fit. Still, I'd like to give you a full physical examination just to be safe."

There was a loud click and Cutemon's ear sensors twitched and she hopped off her stool to lead Brock and Gotsumon over to the rooms. "Oh! Perfect timing!"

Coming out of the room was Ash and Agumon followed by another Cutemon whose face was scrunched up in a scowl. The little rabbit was barking out order after order to Ash with no remorse. "You shrug it off now, but at the rate you're going you're going to have enough cavities to turn your teeth into cheese! I don't care if you're in the middle of a road trip or a battlefield! If you don't take care of yourself, you won't be able to fight!"

"Is everything okay?" Brock asked Ash.

Ash winced and held up a bag containing floss and mouthwash. "I think I got the dentist of the group."

"Cutemon says that Ash doesn't floss enough," Agumon unhelpfully added on.

"I floss," Ash grumbled. He ran his tongue across his gum. "I'm just nowhere near as intense as Cutemon is."

"You're gums wouldn't bleed if you were flossing diligently," Ash's Cutemon argued, folding her tiny arms.

"If felt like you were trying to slice open my mouth!" Ash complained.

"I don't know, Ash. I think Cutemon may have a point," Agumon piped up. "I have noticed you skip brushing a couple night-mmm!"

Agumon's critic was cut short when Ash locked his arms around Agumon's snout. The two began to squirm and wrestle each other before another of the doors opened. This time a Labramon walked out, bumping into the pair and knocking them over.

"Terribly sorry," apologized the Labramon as he closed the door behind him. "Could you please not rough house in here?"

"Yeah, sorry," Ash said quickly. He stood up and dusted himself while watching the Labramon gather some equipment. "Need help?"

"Thank you, but I'm fine," replied the Labramon. He reared up on his hind legs and grabbed a book titled 'A Nightmare Soldiers Guide to Curses and the Dark Arts.' Satisfied, the Labramon wheeled the book and a cart of miscellaneous equipment inside the room.

Not sure what to make of a book like that sitting in a nurse's office, Brock looked back at the closed door. "Who's in there?"

"I think it's the Gabumon and his human," replied the dentist Cutemon. "They've been in there for a long time."

That comment caught Ash's attention. He wheeled around and stared at the door. "Why?"

"It might be the Gabumon," offered another Labramon as she escorted Lillie and Lunamon away from their station. "They are notoriously shy. Never let anyone see them without their pelts."

"Nah, it wasn't Gabumon being a prude for once," Terriermon said as he and Goh stepped out from their station. Terriermon raised his large ears. "I heard him asking the medic about the cursed injuries. He's probably still worried about the Daemon Virus."

"Daemon Virus?" Ash asked.

"I think I remember you guys mentioning it in one of the chats," Brock said in a subdued voice. He spared a look over his shoulder at the door and moved away. After the chat where Ash challenged Gary, Brock felt it was best that the boy in question didn't overhear them talking about him again. "That's the virus that caused Garurumon to go rabid, right?"

"Yes," Lillie confirmed giving the door a concerned look. "We almost lost those two that night."

"But we were able to get the vaccine and the cure!" Lunamon quickly put in before the mood could get too dower. "Neither Gabumon nor Gary have shown symptoms of demonic possession since. We should be in the clear!"

"I don't know about that," Goh muttered thoughtfully. "We made it out fine, but Datamon is still out there. And given what Terriermon has heard about the guy, I don't think he's just going keep a demon virus on ice."

"But Gary's going to be okay, right?" Ash asked.

"It's hard to say," piped up one of the Cutemon. "Scars left by demons are tricky. Even if they look benign there's always a chance of some lingering side effects."

"Side effects," Ash muttered. A dark scowl crossed his face.

"I don't think we have to worry too much," Lunamon said. "It was a sick Loogarmon who infected Gary, not Daemon himself."

"Y-you've got that right!" Agumon said, though his usual bravado seemed more forced. "No way some evil fossil's going to take Gabumon down!"

"And if something does happen, we'll be there to help him," Lillie added on optimistically. She smiled at Ash. "It's nice to see that even if you're at odds, you'll still look after your friends, Ash."

"Well, uh, yeah," Ash looked away bashfully. "We still have our match tomorrow. I can't fight him if he passes out from some demon curse."

The word "match" elected a small groan out of Goh which didn't go unnoticed by Ash. "You alright?"

"Do you really need to have this battle?" Goh sighed. "It kind of seems petty."

"Petty?!" Ash's voice rose in offense.

"Ah, what do you care," Agumon snorted. "It's not like you're going to fight!"

"No, but we are supposed to be working together," Goh responded with a guarded tone. "We've got a war, a mad scientist on the loose, and an ancient Digimon who is capable of bringing on the apocalypse. We don't have time for grudge matches!"

"You don't get it!" Ash snapped.

"I do get it!" Goh fired back. "I've been traveling with the guy for weeks! He gets on my nerves too! But you don't see me wasting time with pointless fights."

"Funny you should take that stance," Gotsumon muttered looking back and for the between the arguing boys.

"Maybe you're too afraid to fight him because you'd lose!" Ash growled.

"N-no!" Goh stuttered.

Before the argument could escalate, Terriermon leapt up onto Goh's shoulder. "Goh, Goh. Listen to your guardian Digimon. Let them fight."

"You just want to see them blast each other with fireballs," Goh scolded, breaking his glare away from Ash.

"Can you blame me? It's been ages since I've been to a proper gladiator match," Terriermon smiled. "Besides, we're supposed to be traveling with these guys. I say we sit back and watch them put their money where their mouth is. See what they can do."

Seeing this as a good time to intervene, Brock opened his mouth. However, before he could utter a word another voice cut in.

"Alright, one fight's enough. Let's get out of here and let the medics do their work," Misty snapped at the group, arms on her hips. Betamon stayed silent, nervously watching the other Digimon.

"That's a good idea," Lillie said politely. She grabbed Goh's wrist. "Let's go, Goh!"

Goh spared Ash a final glance before ripping his eyes away. "Just how long were you waiting to use that pun?"

"Too long!" Lillie merrily replied as the two disappeared down the hall with their Digimon.

"Eh, what does he know? He's just another one of those high and mighty bystanders. Thinks he gets to judge us from the sidelines," Agumon scowled. His expression drooped when a loud growl came from his stomach. Agumon looked up at Ash. "Want some food?"

Ash spared the door one last look before giving Agumon a "Yeah, let's go" and leaving.

Before Misty could follow, Brock reached out to grab her shoulder. "Thanks for stepping in back there."

"No problem," Misty replied with a small smile. "I thought you might be tired with breaking up all the fights."

"It's not a bother," Brock said modestly. "I'm used to breaking up fights back home. It's part of being an older brother."

"You do a good job at it," Betamon said in a little voice. Catching Brock's confused look, Betamon continued. "Being an older brother. Or at least that's what I think you've been doing with the cooking and cleaning and breaking up fights. Am I wrong? I'm still trying to understand this brother and sister thing."

"No, you're not wrong," Brock replied gently.

"Oi, this is getting mushy," Gotsumon grumbled.

"We just can't have any touchy moments between friends, can we?" Misty asked Gotsumon in a dry voice.

"Not if we don't want to make me hurl," Gotsumon said back in an equally dry tone. He then walked over to a chair and sat down to wait for Brock's check-up.

After Misty and Betamon left, Brock sat down on another chair. Mad scientists, demon curses, war, Millenniummon, and who knows what else. The team already had too many close calls in the so-called war-free zone. How much longer would these kids last when the fighting intensified? And that was just the big concerns. There were also little problems such as in fighting and Ash's dentistry issues.

"Sorry for the wait," squeaked a Cutemon who stuck her head out of the room Ash left earlier. "We're almost ready for your examination."

"Do you what you need to do," Brock said. A thought then crossed his mind. "Hey, do you mind if I borrow some pen and paper?"

"Go right ahead," Cutemon said pointing to a desk in the corner covered in papers. Sitting poised atop the pile of stationary was the white cat.

Walking over to the desk, Brock began to shift through the papers to find something without medical notes. "Pen and paper, pen and paper."

"Meow!"

Looking up, Brock could see the cat had gotten up from where it was sitting and was now standing next to some blank paper and a pen.

"Oh, thanks," Brock said to the cat, not sure how smart this non-Pokémon animal was. The cat didn't respond. It just continued to watch Brock as he wrote. "Alright, let's start with a simple recipe. How to prepare vegetable stew."

Serena (Rivals and Goals)

One by one, most of the trainers and their Digimon began to file into the dining area. Said area was just as polished as the rest of the inn, though it was a bit more stripped down. There weren't too many works of art to give the room the same grand feel as the rest of the hotel save for a few pictures and a vase that looked like it was broken and glued back together a dozen times. The furniture solely consisted of a buffet table, some regular tables and some scattered chairs and cushions.

Serena, having been one of the first travelers to visit the medics, was able to enjoy a bit of quiet before the rest popped in. Dawn was the first to arrive and immediately made a beeline to Serena to ask her about life in Kalos while Penguinmon inquired Renamon about school life. Soon the cafeteria was filled with different humans and Digimon, save for Gary and Gabumon who were getting extra special attention for the scar left by his Loogarmon encounter.

Speaking of the Oak boy, his soon to be opponent was being oddly quiet. Normally Ash would be very animated during meal time either chatting up a storm, stuffing his face, or prodding someone into a sparring match. Now he was just sitting next to Brock, leaning forward and resting his head on his folded arms. Agumon wasn't looking much better, chin rested on the counter and occasionally puffing small clouds of smoke through his nostrils.

"Word on the street is Diana's next movie is going to be period piece. Have you heard anything about that?" Dawn asked.

"That's about all I know," Serena said politely. She scooted her chair back and got up. "Excuse me, I need to talk to someone."

"Oh, sure," Dawn replied as she watched Serena walked over to Ash's table.

When Serena arrived at the table, she noticed the small pile of papers Brock was writing on. She gave Brock a curious look. "Recipes?"

"And some notes on first aide and sewing. Not that you need that last one," Brock said with a nod. He gave Serena a smile that looked apologetic. "I'm going to put them on the DigiFile app in case we get separated."

"That does sound pretty useful," Serena agreed. She then looked over at Ash. "How are you doing, Ash?"

Ash's head snapped up and he blinked in surprise, clearly snapped out of whatever funk he was in. Though he still sounded strangely subdued. "What? Uh, I'm fine."

"I'm hungry," Agumon mumbled.

"We have been in here for a bit," Brock noted thoughtfully. Putting down his pencil, Brock got up and began heading toward the kitchen. "It's probably been a while since they've had a crowd this big. I'll see if I can lend them a hand."

"Would it kill you to at least pretend you're taking a break?" Gotsumon remarked in exasperation.

"You should take it easy," Lunamon piped up from a neighboring table. "We are going to be taking the trials after the match tomorrow. This is the time to relax."

"I know this sounds strange, but cooking is how I relax," Brock replied. "Besides, I don't think Onix is going to fit in here. It'll probably be better if I prepare my own Pokémon's food."

Hmm. Baking tended to lift Serena's mood too.

"Can you make something for Staryu too?" Misty asked as she looked up from filing and maintaining Betamon's massive claws. "My hands are a little full at the moment."

"I can help," Iris offered. "You probably don't know what an Excadrill likes."

"Ash and I will help too," Serena volunteered grabbing Ash's hand.

"I will?" Ash asked before Serena yanked him away from the table and hauled him off to the kitchen.

Kitchen

In contrast to the rest of the hotel, the kitchen resembled a room one would find in an ancient European castle as oppose to a resort out of one of the Japanese regions. The walls were composed of cobblestone decked out in kitchen utensils and shelves filled with all manner of ingredients. There were multiple fires lit, some for boiling a pot others for stone ovens that were built into the wall. In the middle of the room were multiple tables serving as stations for the chiefs.

The cooks in this room were all Digimon who resembled food. There was a Digimon in overalls with a spud head and Kalos fries hair chopping vegetables. Not too far away, a Digimon in a dressy vest and a head which resembled a cake slice with strawberries serving as ears and an icing tail kneaded dough.

Next to the fire, a pair of Digimon the size of short adults with chubby, tan bodies, feathered ears, slim tails, and hamburger bun caps tended to some sizzling meats. Several smaller versions of those Digimon scampered around the kitchen along with counterparts that had peach fur and Corphish tails. Carrying supplies from one station to another were tiny, brown birds who looked (and smelled) like Torchic nuggets.

Lightning Round! Scan!

"Let's see," Serena read off her Digivice. "The potato Digimon is Potamon, champion level. If you don't like his fries, he'll attack you with them using his Shubashuba Potato and Bashed Potato attacks. The guy with the cake head is Shortmon, also champion. He believes in polite costumer service, but will fight off rowdy Digimon with his Tastone and Sweet Berry attacks."

Serena then moved onto the burger Digimon. "These guys are Burgamon. They come in both rookie and champion forms, that's a first. They've got a passion for serving other Digimon delicious food but can turn their ingredients into weapons with attacks like Green Pickles, Spicy Onion, or Delicious Patty. The peach colored Burgamon are called EbiBurgamon, rookie level. They're like Burgamon, but like to add in more sea food. Special attacks are Fresh Shrimp and Hot Cutlets. And the little nuggets are TorikaraBallmon, In-Training level. If they're chased around by other Digimon, they'll make their environment slippery using their Vegetable Bubbles attack."

One of the rookie Burgamon spotted the humans and scampered on over. "Oh no! Have we been keeping you waiting too long? We're really sorry. It's been a long time since we've been able to cook for so many guests!"

"It's alright," Brock smiled down at the small Digimon. "We're not mad. We came back here to see if we could lend you a hand."

"You don't have to," insisted an EbiBurgamon. "We're the cooks! It's our sworn duty to make sure you go to bed with a full stomach from a delicious meal. We don't want to force you to work."

"But you're not forcing us," Serena insisted. "We want to help."

"Plus, we need to make food for our Pokémon," Iris put in. "You guys probably don't know what they like."

Despite being drafted for kitchen duty, Ash nodded in agreement. "Just tell us what you need. We're kitchen veterans."

"Uh, no offense, Ash, but I'm a kitchen veteran. You're cooking still needs some work," Brock said causing Ash to falter.

"Yeah, well, the only way I can get better is if I keep practicing. Right?" said Ash as he quickly straightened up.

"I like your sprite!" chuckled one of the champion level Burgamon. "Come on, everyone. You all know what it's like to have a hankering for the kitchen. I say let them have at it."

"Awesome! Which is our station?" asked Agumon.

Looking behind, the humans saw that their respective Digimon partners had followed them into the kitchen.

"What are you guys doing in here?" Iris asked.

"I want to see how Pokémon food is prepped," Dracomon declared.

Agumon held up a claw. "Gabumon is still in the infirmary. I'm here to help you guys while I wait."

"It wouldn't be right for me to sit to the side and do nothing while you work. And besides," Renamon stated before swatting at Agumon's claw. Said claw was slowly reaching for some fruit. "Someone needs to keep an eye on Agumon."

Brock turned his attention to his partner. "What about you, Gotsumon? I thought you were in vacation mood."

"If you really want to work on your day off, there's nothing I can do," Gotsumon responded.

"Does that mean you're helping us?" Ash asked.

Gotsumon folded his arms and leaned against the wall. "I'm supervising."

With that settled, everyone got to work. Brock and Iris cleared a table to start making the Pokémon food with Dracomon watching with vested interest. Agumon and Renamon had gone over to help Potamon chop vegetables while Ash and Serena went over to Shortmon's table. Gotsumon continued to supervise.

"Let's see," Iris said looking at the spread of ingredients she and Brock gathered. "Excadrill's favorite foods are sweet potatoes, carrots, and earthworms."

"That sounds about right. Ground Pokémon love root vegetables and subterranean bugs," Brock nodded. "Geodude and Onix are also part ground type. It would be easier to make a large ground type meal and split it between the three."

"Sounds good to me," Iris agreed. She then looked at the ingredients they gathered and frowned. "We'll need something to make up for the lack of earthworms."

"I can supplement my Pokémons' food with rocks," Brock thought aloud. "Is there anything else Excadrill likes to eat?"

Iris folded her arms. "Out in the wild, Excadrills like to eat bug types like Joltiks and Sewaddles. I doubt we're going to find those guys here."

"Maybe you can substitute worms with a different meat," Dracomon suggested. The dragon had been very quiet throughout Iris's and Brock's brainstorming session, drinking in as much information on Pokémon care as he could.

Before anyone could suggest a possible worm substitute, a group of TorikaraBallmon fluttered on over. The flying nuggets were working together to carry a large bowl. When they placed it on the counter, everyone was able to see the contents: worms.

"If you want an ingredient, all you have to do is ask," chirped one of the birds before they all fluttered away.

"Right, this is a kitchen run by Digimon for Digimon. They're probably not going to have standard human ingredients," mused Brock.

"No kidding," Ash threw in from his work station. He held up a fruit that looked like a brown, ridged cube. "What even is this?"

"That, good sir, is a quick fruit," explained the Shortmon who was now shaping some dough into a bread loaf. "Slice off a piece and give it a try."

Following Shortmon's suggestion, Ash cut off a corner of the fruit and tossed it in his mouth.

"Sweet," Ash observed.

"Exactly," Shortmon smiled. He walked away to put the bread in the oven. "Quick fruit are useful ingredients in barbeque and desserts."

"If this is good in barbeque, maybe it can be used in a sauce," Serena said thoughtfully. She picked up a quick fruit and tossed it over to Renamon who, without turning around, caught the fruit before it finished flying over her shoulder.

"Good idea," Ash agreed. He picked up another fruit and tossed it at Agumon. It ended up hitting him in the head.

"Ow!" Agumon exclaimed rubbing his scalp. He then spotted Dracomon laughing at him. Growling, Agumon proceeded to chuck a cabbage straight into the dragon's jaws.

In response, Dracomon spat out the vegetable and tossed a potato back at Agumon. The potato was snatched out of the air by Renamon who shot a warning glare at both reptiles. Agumon snorted and looked away while Dracomon gave Agumon his own growl before turning back to watch Iris and Brock.

Giggling, Serena turned back to Ash. "Who did you think would win in a food fight?"

"Agumon," Ash said without any hesitation. "With all training we've been doing I know he'll be ready to take on anyone anytime."

"Oh? And just who was it that was giving you that training?" Serena replied cheekily. "I think Renamon would totally win."

"Renamon wouldn't even participate," Ash said waving Serena off. He squinted his eyes and lowered his voice to a serious monotone. "Wasting food? This is beneath me."

Serena snorted out a laugh. She quickly stifled it before turning to her Digimon. "Sorry, Renamon."

"Ash's assessment was correct," Renamon said, once again without turning around. "Though his impressions could use some work."

Smiling, Serena turned back to mixing her dish. "Have you ever been in a food fight, Ash?"

"Only once," Ash grinned. "There was this bully at school who kept stealing other kid's desserts. So, Gary rounded up the other kids and…and we all threw our desserts at him at once."

The short story started out energetic. Serena was willing to bet that had Ash maintained that mood he would have stretched out the tale and even embellished it. However, the second Gary's name left his lips, Ash's enthusiasm drained. Though she wasn't fond of prodding the clearly open wound, a voice insider her told her that now was the best time to broach the Donphan in the room.

"Hey, Ash, about your fight tomorrow," Serena started slowly and gently. "You don't have to be so worried."

"I'm not worried!" Ash practically shouted.

"Hey! You don't have to snap!" Serena said more sternly. "I'm just concerned about you."

Ash blinked. "Why? I'm fine."

"I don't know about that," Serena looked Ash straight in the eye. "Ever since you challenged Gary you have either been staring off into space like you were in the cafeteria or training until you and Greymon were about to collapse. It's..well, I wouldn't say it's completely different from when we met up back at Shurimon's academy, you were pretty fired up there too. But you weren't this intense. Please talk to me."

At first it looked like Ash was going to clamp up, then he spoke. "Ever since we were kids, I've always been the weak link. Games, school, you name it. I was last and Gary was first. It was the same when we got into Pokémon."

"To be fair, you said Gary's last name is Oak, right? His family is pretty big in the Pokémon community," Serena offered.

"He's not the only one with family ties," Ash muttered under his breath.

"What did you say?" Serena asked.

Once again, Ash paused. For a moment it looked like he was mauling over something before he finally spoke. "Look, games and school doesn't matter anymore. The first time I saw a Pokémon battle, I knew what I wanted to do with my life. I love Pokémon. I want to be a master. I need to be better."

Remembering back to one of Ash's training sessions with Kyubimon, Serena recalled a conversation that she had with Misty. She remembered Misty's concerns with attaching to much self-worth to victory and how Misty's eventual victories against her sisters were ultimately hollow. "What if you don't win? Or what if you do, what then?"

That question caused Ash to give Serena a blank look. "I don't know. I've never won against Gary so I don't know how he'll take it. I guess we'll just go on to fight more Digimon and Millenniummon?"

"And if you lose?" Serena asked again.

"It will just be back to the same old routine," Ash grumbled. He finished slicing up his quick fruit and dumped the tiny pieces in to a bowl and started mashing. "I'll always be several steps behind, he'll just keep gloating, nothing will change."

"I should hope that's not the case," Renamon's sharp voice cut through Serena's and Ash's conversation.

Looking around, Serena was reminded that the kitchen wasn't the best place for a private conversation. Everyone, even the cooks that they just met, were either sneaking a peak at the pair or had an ear perked in their direction. Unperturbed, Renamon continued.

"If one defeat is what it takes for you to give up and wallow in mediocrity, then you just wasted your time, my time, and your partner's time," Renamon said folding her arms. "I should hope I was training a warrior, not a quitter."

"Who are you calling a quitter?!" Ash fired back. "I don't care how many times I have to fight Gary, I'll beat him down and break my limits! Just you watch!"

"You've got that right! We're going to become the strongest pair the Digital World has ever seen! Not even you'll be able to take us on, Fluffy!" Agumon cheered. His cheer was cut short when Dracomon chucked a blob of mashed potatoes at his head.

"That's what I want to see!" Serena smiled. "I don't like it when you mope, Ash. It doesn't feel right."

"I don't think you'd want to see anyone down in the dumps," Ash pointed out. "You seemed pretty miserable back at the school when you and Renamon were fighting."

"I guess you're right," Serena said thoughtfully. "I think it's because of that time you helped me back a camp."

"Really?" Ash asked with a blank expression. "That was a long time ago."

"Maybe," Serena admitted. She then flashed a bright smile. "But that moment showed how important it is to keep looking forward and how wonderful it feels to have someone looking out for you. I want to do the same for you…and the rest of the group of course."

"Of course," Gotsumon said with an eye roll.

"If you don't mind, I have a little to add on as well," Brock spoke up, completely missing Dracomon almost getting hit with a pear. Dracomon stuck out his fork tongue at Agumon. "I know you're set on beating Gary, but even if you lose that doesn't mean you haven't improved."

"And if you want a new sparring partner, Dracomon and I are always up for a battle," Iris offered. "Believe me, I totally understand wanting to thrash Gary. I'm rooting for you tomorrow, no pressure."

"But didn't you say you kind of wanted Gary to win because he beat you and that it would be better to lose if he turned out to be the strongest trainer?" Dracomon asked with a head tilt. This time the pear didn't miss.

"Don't say that out loud!" Iris shouted turning to face Dracomon. As she did, a lone fish smacked her the face. "Hey!"

"Whoops," Agumon said bashfully scratching the back of his head with the second fish he was about to toss.

"That does it!" Dracomon jumped onto the table and grabbed some worms Brock had been mushing. "You can throw food at me all day. But I'm going to make you regret the day you messed with Iris!"

With that declaration of war, Dracomon began tossing worm guts right at Agumon. In retaliation, Agumon began hurling produce after produce back at the dragon. Ingredients went flying throughout the kitchen splashing the contents in bowls, shooting TorikaraBallmon out of the air, and even sending the hotel's cat scurrying away.

Brock ducked under his table. "Gotsumon! You were supposed to be supervising!"

"The second I call one of them out they would have turned on me. No thanks," Gotsumon stated, still leaning up against the wall. Suddenly, a tomato went flying into his face coating it in red. Gotsumon shot Brock and accusatory glare. "Now look at what you did."

Sighing, Renamon put down her knife and leapt over the table. She grabbed a plate and held in in front of Agumon to deflect the incoming ground meat. Agumon took advantage of the cover and tried to run away only for Renamon to grab a smashed fruit and toss it at his feet. The orange reptile slipped on the fruit landing flat on the ground.

Now that one troublemaker was taken care of, Renamon fixed her gaze on Dracomon. Seeing how fast Renamon was able to take down Agumon, Dracomon made a motion to flee. Quickly, Renamon tossed her plate to the side and dashed after Dracomon. She grabbed a spare rope of sausage links and used it to lasso Dracomon just as he was attempting to fly away.

Outside the Kitchen

Renamon tossed both Agumon and Dracomon out into the hallway before slamming the door behind her.

"And stay out of our kitchen!" shouted one of the Burgamon as the door closed.

Groaning, Agumon stood up and dusted himself off. He gave the door a snort. "The nerve."

"After all the help we gave them," Dracomon grumbled, fluttering his wings to shake off some mushed fruits.

"I know! Some people are just ungrateful," Agumon agreed. There was an awkward moment of silence while the two banished rookies stood next to one another. "...want to go hang out in the rec room?"

"Only for a bit. I want to feed Brock's and Misty's Pokémon when the food is ready," Dracomon said as he followed Agumon down the hallway that connected the kitchen to the dining area. "What are they like anyway?"

"Onix's alright, Geodude is a cool guy, Staryu is a stuck up jerk," Agumon replied, folding his arms behind his head.

"Cool guy?" Dracomon asked with a head tilt.

"It's the way he acts," Agumon explained. "Folding his arms, talking in a chilled voice, plus he has 'dude' in his name. That has to mean something."

Back with Serena and Ash

Meanwhile, in the kitchen Ash and Serena switched from helping to prepare food to helping clean up the food fight. While he mopped, Ash continued to speak to Serena. "Thanks for the talk, Serena."

"Well, I couldn't let you fight against your strongest rival in low spirits," Serena replied while she scrubbed the counter.

"Gary isn't my strongest rival," Ash said causing Serena to slow her scrubbing. "There's someone else I want to beat. Someone way stronger than Gary."

Serena waited for Ash to elaborate, but when the boy didn't go any further she just figured that was private information for now. Satisfied that she at least got Ash in a better mood, Serena let it go. Instead, she opted to pick back up on their previous conversation. "Told you Renamon would win."

Goh (Statistics)

"Penguinmon! Give me that book!" Dawn shouted.

"No! It's an antique!" Penguinmon exclaimed clutching his beloved tome to his chest as he scurried away.

Not long after the group split off, Dawn began chasing her partner around the cafeteria. One would think the girl with the long, human legs would have no problem catching up to the penguin with stubby feet. Penguinmon managed to defy expectations by taking advantage of his size and the terrain. The short penguin managed to escape his trainers grasp by barreling under the maze of tables creating multiple barriers between himself and his pursuer. It only stopped when Misty had enough of the comedic pursuit and stuck her leg out to halt the runaway penguin.

"Penguinmon," Dawn panted. She slowly approached the bird, readying herself to grab him if he decided to bolt again. "Please, let me scan you spell book into my Digivice."

While Dawn negotiated with her partner, Goh looked around the room. Iris, Brock, Serena, Ash, and their partners had left to help out in the kitchen while Gary and Gabumon still hadn't arrived. Misty, whose leg was still held out, was finishing up grooming Betamon. Biyomon watched Dawn and Penguinmon's argument in interest while May groaned in hunger. Lillie and Lunamon were also watching Penguinmon with mild amusement.

Hmm, Penguinmon. Goh looked down at his journal. Having just met Dawn and her arctic partner, Goh didn't have many notes on them. Though he gave Penguinmon's profile a quick read while he was on the road, Goh felt it was time for a quick refresher.

"Penguinmon, rookie level," Goh thumbed around Penguinmon's bio. "Also known as Penmon. These guys thrive in the cold and are extremely friendly. Though they can't walk fast, they have been known to slide up to 40 mph. Special attacks include Super Slap, Slide Attack, and Ice Prism."

"You don't have to worry," Lunamon said floating down to give Penguinmon some comforting pats. "The DigiFile app doesn't harm the book. It just sucks the words into the Digivice."

"Ah ha!" Penguinmon shouted. He clutched his tome even closer to his belly. "You say this won't harm my book but does stripping it of its contents not leave it an empty husk? That sounds harmful to me!"

"Look, Penguinmon, you keep telling me that we're headed to places even more dangerous than your home. We can't afford to keep lugging around a heavy book," Dawn reasoned.

"Plus, you book might get lost or destroyed in the heat of battle," Misty pointed out. "This way you'll at least make sure the book's contents are saved."

Despite well-reasoned arguments and words of comfort, the corners of Penguinmon's beak trembled. Finally, he relented and placed the spell book on the ground. Seconds later, the words flew off the pages and into Dawn's Digivice. When the Digivice finished, the spell book was reduced to an ancient, falling part tome with blank pages. As though he was at a funeral, Penguinmon folded his claws and bowed his head. Out of respect, the rest of the group joined him though they didn't nearly as dejected.

Meanwhile, Goh used the moment of silence to continue updating his notes. Let's see, Dawn was from Sinnoh, partnered with Penguinmon…hold on a second. Goh looked over toward Dawn. "Excuse me, Dawn, what are the Sinnoh starters?"

"Hmm?" Dawn broke out of her head bow and stared at Goh in confusion. Nevertheless, she answered the seemingly out of nowhere question. "Let's see, there's Turtwig the grass turtle, Chimchar the fire ape, and Piplup the water penguin."

"That's it!" Goh exclaimed loudly. So loudly that the cat that had just left the kitchen jolted to the other side of the room where it proceeded to glare at Goh for making such a ruckus.

May slowly lifted her head to stare at Goh with her blinking, unfocused, hungry eyes. "What's what?"

"I found a pattern in the humans sent to the Digital World and the partners they ended up with!" Goh explained, unperturbed by the bewildered looks he was getting.

If Goh's volume didn't grab everyone's attention, that assertion did. Whether tired, hungry, or morning, all of the room's occupants were now giving Goh their undivided attention. Seeing all the eyes now on him, Goh became more subdued as he spoke. "Most of the trainers here are at the age when they'd receive their first Pokémon and leave on a Pokémon journey. What's more, there are a lot of parallels between the reincarnated Digimon and the starters of their trainer's home region."

As Goh spoke, he thumbed through his notes on the different trainers and their Digimon. "The Kanto fire starter is Charmander, a fire breathing reptile just like Agumon and Gabumon. May's family just moved to the Hoenn region which has Torchic, a fire type bird kind of like Biyomon. Then you've got Serena's partner: Renamon. She's a fox which matches up with the Kalos starter Fennekin. And Dawn's partner, Penguinmon, is, uh, a penguin. Which pairs with the water starter of Sinnoh: Piplup."

His thought process finished, Goh looked back up at the rest of the room. He wasn't expecting everyone to pat him on the back, but neither did he think he would be getting the skeptical looks he was receiving right now. Misty was the first to speak.

"I see where you're going, but Brock, Iris, I aren't beginner trainers," Misty said slowly. "Three out of ten is too many people for it just to be an exception to the rule."

"There's also a problem with your starter rule," Lillie gently pitched in. "Our starters on Melemele Island are an owl, a cat, and a sea lion. No rabbits."

"Didn't you also say that you are from the Kanto region yourself?" Lunamon inquired. "Terriermons have an affinity for fire and they aren't reptiles."

"Dragons aren't the standard starters for Unova," Dracomon casually mentioned as he made his way through the cafeteria with Agumon in tow. "Too bad."

"Why were those two covered in food?" May asked once the two reptiles exited the room.

Groaning, Goh let his face fall into his notebook. It didn't take long for him to feel a hand tenderly grasp his shoulder. Looking up, he could see Lillie smiling down at him.

"It was a good guess," Lillie congratulated. "I know I've been pondering about the subject from time to time, though I haven't had much luck coming up with a plausible theory either."

"Same," Dawn sighed. "Maybe it's just random?"

"No, I don't think it's random," Goh flipped back through his notes. "We'd have a wider range of ages if it was random. That and most of us are from Kanto, which may not mean anything since the other regions are kind of scattered. I don't know. Every time there seems to be a pattern, it gets disrupted."

"Maybe we can ask the temple guards or the Celestials," Biyomon offered.

"Maybe," Goh muttered. He didn't want to say it out loud, but he didn't want to rely on outside sources. Not so much as an issue of pride (though figuring out the mysteries of the Digital World would be an ego boost) as a concern that they wouldn't be able to get the answers. Their group's luck was abysmal like that.

"How about we take a break from this topic and work on something else?" Lillie suggested. She pulled out her Digivice and brought up a projection of the logs on the first human.

"Ah, the other mystery," Lunamon noted looking up at the holographic notes.

"Speaking of which, I've been meaning to thank your group for doing all that decoding," Misty said walking over to give the hologram a better look. Betamon stayed put on the table, giving the group nervous looks.

"We still have a ways to go," Lillie humbly replied. "So far, we've only made progress on the entries from the Metal Empire and a lot of that was thanks to the notes Professor Labramon left us."

Lillie then brought up some immaculately typed pages. "This is our current project. We think this report is on the human's first official job."

"The first human was employed?" Dawn asked wondering over to give the document a better look.

"Kind of, sort of," Lunamon said. She jumped up into the air and floated next to the hologram. She pointed at a line. "This is a list of mercenaries that were enlisted to help protect the Metal Empire's border from a squad of Nightmare Soldier spies. Amongst the names listed here we found mention of an odd creature."

"They didn't list his name?" May asked.

"Given that most of the Digimon we've met refer to each other by species, I'd say it'd weird if they did list the human's name," Goh surmised. "We can't find any mention of his Pokémon. I'm guessing he probably kept them to himself unless he needed them."

"Makes you wonder what kind of team he had," Dawn muttered thoughtfully.

"So far the best clues we have for that question is some sketches in the first human's journal," Goh said unenthusiastically. He picked fished out his copy of the journal in question and zoomed through the pages until he found what he was looking for. "Or at least we think they're sketches of his Pokémon."

Dawn leaned over to look. She narrowed her eyes. "You know, I remember these pictures from when I thumbed through the copy scanned into the Digivice. I thought they were just the human scribbling his pen on the page to get out some ink."

"They're not the worst," May, who had come over to get a better look, tilted her head at a picture. It was a mess of lines and smeared blue, brown, and cream-colored ink which resembled a cross between a preschooler's doodle and a Rorschach test. "I think I saw this Pokémon while my family was moving to Hoenn. Wailmer?"

"No, look at the back," Misty pointed at some lines jetting out from the scribbles shoulders. Or at least they looked like shoulders. "I think these are spikes. Maybe it's a Lapras?"

"If we're talking about blue Pokémon with spikes, Nidoqueen is also a contender," Lillie guessed.

While the girls continued their fruitless interpretation game, Goh brought another hologram of the first human's journal. Handwriting aside, the first human must have been a genius in battles and survival in order to last in the Digital World. As far as Goh could tell, the human didn't even have a Digimon partner when he first arrived and he still signed up to fight this world's inhabitants. The guy must have had a lot of confidence in his Pokémon team.

Looking down at a hologram projecting a blue scribble of a creature with wide wings and a long tail (or at least that's what Goh assumed it was of) Goh thought back to his own journey with Terriermon. Would their adventures have gone differently if Goh had his own Pokémon party? Maybe they could have helped Terriermon track down food or serve as look out while they rested. If Goh played his cards right, they may have even been able to help in battle.

Goh could see it now. There they were, back in the abandoned city. The small army of Mekanorimon were gaining on Goh and Gargomon. Luckily, Goh had an ace up his sleeve. He brought a white Premier Ball and tossed it into the air.

The ball snapped open to reveal a floating Pokémon that looked like a cross between a feline and a human embryo. It had short, pink fur and wide blue eyes. The Pokémon's long tail ending in a bulge flickered playfully while its blunt ears twitched and its long back legs kicked.

"Mew!" declared the Pokémon.

"Mew, we need a vantage point!" Goh pointed up at the sky. "Use your psychic powers to lift Gargomon into the air!"

"Mew mew!" meowed Mew. It held it its stubby arms and a pink glow engulfed Gargomon. Now fixed at a good sniping point, Gargomon was able to rain down his laser bullets on the kill bots below. The Mekanorimon tried to fire back, but Mew was able to use its psychic powers to deflect the lasers leaving Gargomon untouched.

"We did it!" Goh cheered. The Mekanorimon were now reduced to scrap metal and began dissolving. Their work finished, Mew let Gargomon down. "Great teamwork, guys!"

"Hey, Goh. Do you know where Terriermon is?" Gargomon asked.

"Huh?" Goh asked. Blinking, Goh broke out of his daydream and was now back at the hotel. The smell of food wafted through the air signaling dinner was ready.

"I asked if you know where Terriermon is," Biyomon stated. "The food is finally here and I don't think it would do him any good to go hungry before our trials tomorrow."

"Terriermon said he wanted some alone time," Goh explained. Before they entered the cafeteria, Terriermon hopped off of Goh's shoulder and scampered off saying there was something he wanted to see by himself.

"That's odd. He seemed fairly sociable," Penguinmon mused.

"He is," Goh confirmed. Remembering back to the dismissive non-answer Goh got when he asked Terriermon about his age, Goh frowned. "But he also likes to be difficult."

"Well, duty calls," Misty noted. She closed a holographic message and made her way back to the kitchen.

"Don't you want to eat?" May asked.

"I've got to make sure Staryu is taken care of," Misty explained. "How do you think he would feel if he was sitting back in his Poke ball, hungry while I stuffed my face?"

Though Goh's stomach grumbled, he sighed and got up. Wherever Terriermon was right now, he was probably hungry too. Better grab him before the food got cold.

Iris (Feeding Time)

Thanks to the efficiency of Brock and the chief Digimon, the Pokémon food was ready right around the same time as the human and Digimon meals. Now all that was left was to feed the Pokémon which couldn't be done inside as the concierge stated she didn't want pets inside the hotel (someone should let her know a cat was wondering around). Fortunately, there was a side door out of the kitchen that lead the group outside. Dracomon and Misty were messaged and the group was now ready to feed their Pokémon.

"Onix, Geodude, dinner time!" Brock called out.

"Staryu, come on out!" Misty ordered.

"You too, Excadrill!" Iris threw her Poke ball into the air.

All four Poke balls opened unleashing their tenants. Onix, being the largest, coiled around the rest. Geodude stretched out his arms before floating over to Brock. Staryu managed to stand proud despite missing a few limbs. Excadrill was folded into his tunneling mode, as usual.

"Alright, who's hungry?" Brock asked earning a collective cheer from the Pokémon save Excadrill.

"Oh! Oh! Can I feed them!? Can I? Please!" Dracomon asked. The dragon hopped up and down by Brock waving his hand in the air like an eager kid trying to get called on in class.

"Dracomon, settle down!" Iris scolded her partner.

"Don't worry. He's not harming anyone," Brock laughed. He handed Dracomon a couple bowls and began filling them for the enthusiastic dragon.

One by one the Pokémon were fed. Onix was given the largest bowl. At first Iris thought that the rock snake was going to finish his bowl in one gulp. She was surprised to see the snake take a couple of dainty bites of his freshly made Pokémon food before turning his attention to a decent sized, nearby boulder.

CRACK!

The snake's lower jaw split apart and moved down its neck widening the reptile's jaw. Onix grabbed onto the boulder and slowly began to swallow. There was a loud grinding noise indicating the rock was being broken up while it made its way down Onix's throat.

Catching Iris's wide eyed look, Brock explained. "The Pokémon food works as a good substitute for plants and meat, but Onix's main diet consists of rocks. About every two or three weeks he'll need to eat a large rock like that one."

"I know that. We have rock types back in Unova too," Iris huffed. She was no newbie thank you very much. "I've just never seen a Pokémon as big as that eat before."

"Cool," Dracomon breathed watching the snake eat. He then placed down a bowl of food for Staryu. At first it didn't look like the starfish wanted his meal. He slowly turned around, facing away from the dish. Then he fell backwards on top of the food.

"I didn't knock him over I swear!" Dracomon yelped earning a laugh out of Geodude.

"That's how Staryu eats," Misty explained. "He has a mouth on the back of his head so he has to lie down on this back."

"Oh, like a real starfish," Dracomon observed. He then handed a bowl to Geodude earning himself a thumbs up from the floating rock. "Can he also turn his stomach inside out?"

Over with Excadrill, the mole slowly opened up from his tunneling form to give the air a sniff. Spotting this, Dracomon scampered over to Excadrill to present him with his food. Excadrill eyed Dracomon before finally taking the food. He then began to toss pellets of the meal into his mouth only to stop when he saw the dragon was still watching him.

Sighing, Excadrill turned away. Dracomon then ran around to keep watch him. Once again, Excadrill turned away. Dracomon still followed him. Finally, Excadrill reached over, grabbed Dracomon, turned him around, and pushed him away.

"Fine! I can take a hint!" Dracomon pouted before stomping back over to Iris's side.

Used to Excadrill's standoffish behavior, Iris turned back to Brock. "I see your Onix is covered in scratches. Is that natural?"

"No, he was banged up during that battle with Kyukimon," Brock admitted. "If you look over at Geodude, there's a nick over one of his brows."

"Sorry to hear about that. I know Misty said her Staryu can regrow his arms, any chance your Pokémon could recover too?" Iris asked.

"Not completely. The scars might fade when they evolve or shed their skin, but cuts those deep will probably stick," Brock explained.

"Rock Pokémon can shed skin?" Dracomon asked, eyes still fixed on Onix who was about half way through swallowing the boulder.

"Some do. It's not like how other reptiles do it though. While Ekans and Charmanders flake their skin off or slither out of it in one go, Onix and Geodude skins crumble into dust and get shifted off the body as they move through the dirt."

Now Dracomon was confused for a different reason. "Geodude's a reptile."

"His final form is a tortoise," Brock replied.

"Ah," Dracomon said in understanding. "It's all starting to come together."

"How about you and Excadrill?" Misty asked Iris.

"What about me and Excadrill?" Iris asked nervously.

"You said in a chat that the two of you were at odds. Is there anything we can do to help?" Misty offered.

Brock decided to throw in his two cents. "I'm not familiar with his species, but I think he can use some up keeping. His claws seem like they can use some filing and his fur has patches of loose clumps. Even if you're still having problems with him in battle, you should still make sure he's getting proper grooming."

"You can tell all that at a glance?" Iris asked, both ashamed and interested.

"Pokémon breeding is a bit of a passion of mine," Brock admitted.

Dracomon cocked his head curiously. "What does making babies have to do with grooming?"

"The term 'breeder' is a bit of a misnomer. It's more about raising a Pokémon through care as appose to just battling and," Brock began explaining before pausing and giving Dracomon a question look. "How do you know about where babies come from?"

"I'm a ranger. I know about animals and where they come from," Dracomon said smugly.

"You know I've actually been wondering about that. Where do animals come from if they don't reincarnate?" Gotsumon asked. There was a slight tone of genuine curiosity to his usual dry deadpan.

Dracomon's grin grew wide. "Weeeell, I supposed I could impart some super-secret ranger knowledge if you give me all your desserts, do my chores…"

Gotsumon turned away. "And just like that I stopped caring."

"I think we're getting off topic," Misty cut in. "What we're trying to say is that if you are having a hard time with Excadrill it's going to affect both of you in the long run and we don't want that."

"If there's anything you need, just let us know," Betamon quietly put in.

Iris scowled. "I've got it handled," she said defensively causing Betamon to scuttle behind Misty.

Misty returned Iris's scowl. "I'm just trying to help."

"I get that, but I know what I have to do," Iris said looking back over at her Pokémon. "I just need to help Excadrill rediscover his fighting spirit!"

From his spot sitting on the ground, Excadrill shook his head and muttered something.

"I wonder what he's saying," said Dracomon.

"Something about you still not getting it," Gotsumon translated.

"You can understand him!?" Iris asked in surprise.

"Sort of," Gotsumon explained. "You see, not all civilized Digimon can talk normally. Some of them have a speech impediment that causes them to only talk in simple limited animal sounds like grunts and growls."

"I think we met a Kunemon like that," Misty recalled. "It must be difficult not to communicate with everyone."

"There's a work around. Digimon like that sort of have their own language. Even though their dialogue sounds basic and repetitive, you can understand it if you key in on certain inflections and verbalizations. It's a tricky skill to hone since different species use different sounds, but if you know what you're looking for you can understand them fine," Gotsumon elaborated. "Turns out the same principle applies to Pokémon."

"Let me get this straight," Misty said, annoyance evident in her voice. "You could have been acting as an interpreter this whole time?!"

"I already said I got the jest of what Geodude was saying back at the mine," Gotsumon shrugged.

"That's still a pretty important skill! You could have elaborated!" Misty said exasperatedly.

"See, if I did that you guys would not leave me alone," Gotsumon said folding his arms. "In fact I'm regretting bringing it up again now."

Iris seized Gotsumon's shoulders. "Can you tell me what Excadrill is saying? Please!"

At first it looked like Gotsumon was going to turn Iris down. He then sighed and relaxed his stiff shoulders. "Sure."

The rock Digimon walked over to Excadrill. "Alright, what's your problem with the girl?"

Taking a deep breath, Excadrill put down his food and began grunting. As he spoke he would wave his massive claws around to illustrate his points. His face shifted from happy, to sober, to frustration until finally his story was complete.

"So, what did he say?" Iris asked urgently.

"Something about a village and a fight with another Pokémon," Gotsumon translated.

"I know about that! What else did he say?" Iris snapped.

"Beats me," Gotsumon simply said. "I told you I only get the jest. I can pick up on a few words I'm not at the point where I'm going to understand a complete monologue."

Groaning in frustration, Iris addressed Excadrill. "Excadrill, I'm upset that we lost too-"

"DRILL! EXCADRILL, CA DRILL!" Excadrill roared. He then clamped back up in his tunneling form refusing to say anything else no matter how much Dracomon poked him.

Iris's lip trembled and her eyes began to tear up. Seeing this, Brock reached around her and gently gripped her shoulder. Misty followed suite and rubbed Iris's back. As the two of them lead Iris away, Dracomon leaned over to Gotsumon.

"Did you get what Excadrill was yelling about?" Dracomon asked.

"Something about her thick head," Gotsumon muttered. He watched the retreating form of the crying girl. "I don't think she needed me to interpret that."

"I wish we could all understand them," Betamon mumbled. "That would be very helpful."

Hm. That would be a useful skill. But alas, the linguistics of Pokémon are complex and take years and years to even begin to grasp. If only there was a quick and easy way to peak into their world.

Pokémon Translator On!

"Wow, that was harsh," Geodude remarked as he watched the trio of humans walk away followed by their Digimon.

"You try dealing with her!" Excadrill growled. He sprang out of his tunneling form and glared at the rock. "After all this time she's still thinking about losing that match. As if we had a chance in the first place! That Haxorous was clearly above my skill level and she didn't care! She just wanted to keep pushing her dumb victory streak!"

"Well, yeah. That's a mistake," Geodude admitted scratching at his scalp. "But everyone makes mistakes. Why not reconcile?"

"You want me to take orders from someone who doesn't realize that she was in over her head while trapped on an alien planet inhabited by monsters who can blast holes in mountains?" Excadrill asked pointedly.

Geodude blinked. "Holes in mountains?"

"Cannon-Beedrill-mon or whatever its name was," Excadrill explained. "It's basically what you would get if a bug type had a love affair with and an aircraft."

Excadrill shook his head. "No way I'd be able to win against something like that. I took one look at that thing and went back into my Poke ball. I was able to hear the battle from inside. Sounded intense."

"You should be ashamed of yourself!" Staryu spoke up in a stern tone. "Cowering while your human was fighting a fierce opponent. A true Pokémon would stand by his partner's side to the bitter end!"

"And end up like you, Stubby?" Excadrill snorted.

"Enough," Onix, having finished his boulder, was now slithering to rejoin the group. Despite the deep bellow his voice natural made, he spoke gently. "What's done is done. Berating one another will solve nothing."

"If it makes you guys feel better, it's probably going to be the Digimon who will be doing the majority of the work," Geodude pointed out. "Like, even if by some miracle I was able to evolve into a Golem here, there's not much I'd be able to do against a giant bee cannon. And it sounds like there are even tougher Digimon on the horizon."

Excadrill shook his head. "I doubt it's going to be that simple. You felt the earth after that massive earthquake, right?"

"Meh, that was concerning," Geodude admitted.

"Care to elaborate for those of us who lack the ground typing?" Staryu asked.

"This world feels so much different from our own," Onix answered. He shifted the ground around with his massive tail. "The soil feels odd. Less like the hard packed ground in a cave or a forest where you could tell the dirt was the way it was because it was shaped by natural causes like the weather or the roots of the trees. The ground here feels more like the soil of a city. Deliberately placed here and arranged by someone else. Furthermore, whenever I dig into it, the earth doesn't feel whole. It feels hollow. It's as if I would fall through it should I tunnel in too deep."

"We are on an alien planet," Staryu said.

"Perhaps," Onix hummed. "But during the quake the world didn't feel natural or artificial. It felt sick."

Geodude nodded in agreement. "I've felt earthquakes before, both natural and Pokémon induced. You can always tell the difference. But his quake felt less like a shake up and more like the planet was dying."

"I was in my ball during the earthquake, but standing on the ground right now it feels less sturdy. It's like the earth is barely holding itself together," Excadrill added on.

"Do you suppose the infamous Millenniummon is involved?" Staryu inquired.

"Don't know," Excadrill scratched at the ground. Spotting an unearthed worm, the mole picked it up and watched it wiggle around in his claws. "But whatever it is, it's not going to wait around for the "chosen Digimon" to get stronger. It's just going to crush them and us along with it." With that, Excadrill's claws pinched at the worm, slicing it in half.

Onix watched as Excadrill picked at his meal. "Are you going to let that happen?"

"Huh?" Excadrill looked up at the snake.

"Are you going to allow a Digimon crush Iris?" Onix asked. He didn't sound accusatory, just curious.

Excadrill grew quiet. He looked over at the inn. There were a couple of windows lite up in a dim glow while a white cat walked across the shingled roof of one of the lower floors giving the scenery an oddly quaint appearance. Almost made it easy to forget they were all as good as dead. "She has Coredramon. He's a dope, but he's strong. She doesn't need me.

Onix gave Excadrill a low hum, but didn't press him any further. The group of Pokémon returned to quietly eating their meals and enjoying the serenity of night. Might as well take in the beauty of this world before Excadrill's prediction proved true.

AN: At first our heroes thought they were going to have a nice rest, just for the night. Then as they claimed their rooms they heard voices from down the corridor. Those voices said "Welcome to the Hotel California! Such a lovely place (such a lovely place), such a lovely face."

Okay, you know how I said that the two chapters a month wasn't a hard and fast rule? This is looking to be one of those months. This has been a very busy month with not enough weekends. Bible study, python study, dungeon master study, so much studying. Hopefully the length of this chapter will make it up to you guys. I'll see you in March!

Shoot, Ash and Goh aren't off to a good start in this timeline. Quick! Somebody throw a Lugia at them!

The Pokémon Translator is going to be left off a majority of the time, but every so often I'll give you guys a glimpse into their conversations.

Holy snap! The trailer for Digimon Story Time Stranger looks promising! Here's hoping we get some new Digimon. I'm also hyped for the next Pokémon Legends game!

Reader Response Recess!

Ashpoke55: We have 10 chosen humans because I don't know when to quit.

Legoguy67: Yo! It's been a while! Don't worry, I know how life gets. I'm a busy person too. It's good to hear from you again!

You hit the nail on the head. The main reason I had the kids split up into two groups was so that I wouldn't have to deal with too many characters at once. As such, don't expect them to always be together from here on out. Paradoxily, anticipate the cast size to swell once we reach the next arc.

The purple domes are inspired from the space time rifts in Pokémon Legends: Arceus. In that game they were caused by machinations in the Pokémon world. In this story, they are brought about by the final boss Digimon himself.

The Forces of Chaos will act against the children, though each of the generals will have a different approach. MetalSeadramon is the most straight forward of the bunch: if something stands in his way, it must die.

I like to mix optimism and bleak atmospheres. I find that they both highlight one another while making it so that the mood isn't too over bearing. The light hearted portions can serve as a break from the darker parts while also making the darker parts seem worse by giving them something to compare to. Meanwhile the darker moments add stakes to the narrative while making the happy moments feel like something worth fighting for.

Mr. Navit: OHH YEAH! NEW DIGIMON GAME BABY! This time with rideable Digimon and more environment variety! Between that and the Pokémon Legends game on the horizon I'm feeling spoiled this year.

Look on the bright side, at least Dawn's sleep paralysis demon let's her get some shut eye. My sleep demons wake me up in the unholy early hours of the morning. And by sleep demons I mean my pets.

Admittedly, I just couldn't think of a way to incorporate Fire Wall into that fight in a way that would have been helpful against a wind weasel. I wanted both Greymon and Garurumon to have new moves before their fight, but I couldn't find a good moment to give Greymon his new move. Mostly because I'd imagine that Kamaitachis, being wind demons, would have aerial movements and thus a fire wall wouldn't be much of a game changer. Plus, as I try to get these chapters out in a timely manner I don't always get events to look as smooth as I'd like. Still, I am the author and it is my duty to make the story flow in a way that is both satisfying and makes sense. I hope to improve in the future.

Thank you for the video recommendation, I'll have to check it out.

Hmm, interesting. Since it's probably not cannon and I want to be careful with the multiverse aspects of this story, I won't do a deep dive on the Demon Lord karma curse. However, our heroes are going to be in constant danger. So you can chalk that up to the karma curse if you'd like.

Thanks for the Digimon recommendation. Angels would be the logical choice for a demon fight.

Now I have an image of Ms. Frizzle in a ski mask with a gun in my head. It is pretty funny.

How brave and noble. Santa and Yodewtwo/YodArceus heard the children screaming and have come to save them!

The One Who Reads and Writes: You'll see some issues getting solved faster than others. Some problems will be solved this arc, while others will stick with the characters going forward into other adventures.

I wouldn't say Greymon would go full yandere (a yandere dinosaur, yikes), but he has been looking forward to having his own human for years and isn't ready to share just yet. Or worse, be replaced.

Cendrillmon is alive and fighting on the battlefield. You'll also be seeing her in future flashbacks.

To be honest, I think the Pokémon Company is making up the lore as they go along so I don't believe they put as much thought into how humans came to be in the Pokémon timeline as the fans did. As for the texts in the Gen 4 games, I'm not sure if they're supposed to be taken literally or not. While it could be the case that humans and Pokémon had a common ancestor, those stories could also be trying to emulate real world mythologies such as Chinese mythology where humans were originally Pangu's fleas or Greek mythology where humans started as mud dolls created by Promethus.

Going back to the Pokémon Company making up the lore as they go, the gen 1 anime did have instances of real animals such as non-Pokémon fish in the Cerulean City gym. Granted a lot of stuff has been retconned since then, for example no one in Kanto knew about Pokémon from other regions, so maybe real animals have been memory holed? I like to stick to there are some real animals like the fish, but only the ones that fill natural niches Pokémon don't fill.

Thanks for the vote of confidence on how many characters I can handle. I'll do my best not to let you down!

Dawn won't get a chance to give the other trainers her sermon on Pokémon Contests in the hotel, but she's going to show them the light.

As for May not knowing stuff, I think that she was ignorant for the same reasons a Pokémon geek like Ash didn't initially know about the Pokémon League, the writers needed someone to be ignorant so that the world can be explained to her and the audience. In world, I'm just going to say she was so disinterested in Pokémon that she didn't look into even some of the more well-known aspects of the Pokémon community such as Contests and its celebrities.

Elemental affinities for Digimon tends to, like other aspects of this franchise, differ depending on the series. The two series that I can think of were elemental powers have the most impact are Frontier and the Digimon Story RPGs. Though there are some slight differences in what elements Digimon can use, they both utilize the earth element as appose to Pokémon (and Bionicle) which decided to split earth up into two different types.

While I don't think Excadrill is ready to be 100% cooperative, he's not going to let Iris die.

Sorry to say, but part three is going to be some more down time at the hotel. Next month is when we'll see Ash and Gary finally have their battle.

Ah yes, Pikachu's and Agumon's relationship…let's just say that, as per usual, Ash is going to have a bit of an uphill battle.

I'm not going to give these kids legendries off the bat, but I would totally give Nebby to Lillie. As for what the final form would be, I haven't decided yet.

The scrambled nature of Digimon lore is a mixed bag. It can serve as a barrier for newcomers who are trying to figure out what's going on while others will keep coming back to the franchise because they know Digimon isn't afraid to try something new. Speaking from a writing standpoint, I enjoy the flexibility.

As for Pokémon introductions, let us pull back out the roadmap. So we'll be taking a break here at the hotel for a bit then Ash and Gary can have their rematch. Afterwards we'll spend some time going through the trials before the characters get a massive lore dump and their crests. Then they'll be off to meet the Celestials. The climax of the arc will happen, things get real, we figure out what's up with Dawn's dreams, then Pokémon.

To everyone tuning in, thank you for reading my story! God loves you and so do I! See ya all next time!

Pokémon Introduced

Mew: Psychic, The New Species Pokémon

Digimon Introduced

Pillomon: Rookie, Vaccine, Mammal

Cutemon: Rookie, Vaccine, Pixie

Burgamon: Rookie, Vaccine, Food
EbiBurgamon: Rookie, Data, Food

Burgamon: Champion, Vaccine, Food

TorikaraBallmon: In-Training, None, Food

Potamon: Champion, Vaccine, Food

Shortmon: Champion, Data, Food

Next Time: Okay, one more short chapter of fooling around before we get back to the main plot. I promise.