FicWad

Episode Nine: Garurumon strikes back

As it turned out, Ramus and Luna were thinking on the same wavelength as to where to go first. He was, at that very moment, situated at the counter, staring at the owner. And he was having an argument with the man. A man who, despite lacking any sort of courage, was managing not to flinch whenever the boy raised his fist to slam it back onto the desk.

“You don’t understand! This is a Dragon Diamond freshly minted from Quark’s might keister!” he shouted, waving his hands around wildly to punctuate his point. “He doesn’t give these away to just anyone, you know!”

Dross, a man who had a build that was the exact opposite of Ramus, folded his skinny arms across his chest. “How am I supposed to know if this is a genuine Dragon Diamond?” he asked calmly. “We’ve had a devil of a time with dragon zirconium lately. It seems like we’ve got a fool in here every day saying that he has a genuine Dragon Diamond.” He gave another glance at the Diamond. “But I’ll admit, this is the most beautiful gemstone I’ve ever seen.”

Ramus groaned, wanting to strangle the man. ‘Talk about stubborn!I hope the others get here soon.”

As if to answer his prayers, the door opened, and he heard Nall’s voice say, “Hi, Ramus!”

“Hey, guys!” Ramus walked over to them, sending a silent thank you to the Goddess. “Did you guys meet with Master Mel?” he asked.

Alex nodded, wincing as he did so. “I can still feel the bruises, too. How’re things here?”

Ramus sighed. “I’m still negotiating with this guy on a price for the Dragon Diamond, but…I might have to settle for a lot less than it’s worth. I’m sorry…”

Alex nodded. “I guessed as much,” he replied, before turning to Amy. “Do/ you/ have a computer like Izzy?”

Amy blinked, a little surprised. “Yes, I do…wait, you want me to try and determine whether or not it’s this dragon diamond?”

“Precisely. I mean, we all know, but you and Greg…well, maybe not Greg…don’t. If you could scan it, then we’ll have concrete proof. What do you say?”

“Good idea.” Amy pulled out a small palm-sized computer, and opened it. She looked up. “Advanced circuitry,” she replied to Izzy’s unspoken question.

“Ah.”

As Amy began scanning the Diamond in front of her, Greg sidled up to Tai. “So, what’s the Dragon Diamond made of? Alex is right, I do know it’s genuine, but even I can’t foretell where it really came from.”

Tai grinned. “Dragon Shit,” he whispered, after casting apartly terrified glance in Sora’s direction. He chuckled as he saw Greg’s face go pale.

“Hey!This diamond has organic components!” Amy exclaimed, her scan completed. She looked somewhat greener than before, which meant she had taken a good guess as to why that was.

“Well, that’s what you usually get when you have a Dragon Diamond!”

“Thank you for pointing that, Mister Nall.”

Mimi giggled as the two of them stared at each other, Nall in mirth, Amy with a slightly sickened expression on her face. She was about to comment on that when her eyes fell onto Amy’s computer. The laughter died out when she saw a symbol that was emblazoned on the back of the computer screen. She even recognized the symbol. ‘Is it even possible…yes, it is. I’m just surprised no one else has figured it out, even Izzy. Then again, what reason would they have to look? It's not as if she wants people to know./’/

“Hey!” Dross called out, getting their collective attention. “Like I’ve been telling you, this is a wonderful stone… but the Dragon Diamond? Sorry, no. And I don’t care if that thing says otherwise. I can tell these things just by looking at them.”

“Wanna bet?” Gabumon muttered, earning a grunt of approval from Gatomon.

“Besides,” Dross continued, “no one knows where to find the Dragons anymore, much less how to get Diamonds from them…”

“Sure we do,” Joe muttered darkly. “Wait until one of them takes a crap, and wait for it to dry.”

“Nice way to put it, Joe. Could you make it sound any grosser for those of us who have weak stomachs?”

“I’ll ignore that, Gomamon.”

“Alright, alright!” Ramus stated impatiently, wanting to get these proceedings over with. “How much will you give us for it?”

Dross examined the Diamond for a few seconds. “For a diamond of this caliber, I’ll give you twenty thousand silver. And that is my one and only offer.”

Izzy suddenly looked away from Mimi, who he had been staring at up until this moment, and fixed his gaze on Dross. There was something about that man that grated on the keeper of knowledge’s nerves.

Ramus looked at Alex. “It’s your decision too, Alex… should we accept it?” he asked.

Alex thought about it long and hard. He knew nothing of business, and wasn’t entirely confident on his own bargaining skills. Also, twenty thousand silver was a great deal of money, which they needed badly. Alex wasn’t greedy, but he knew that for a group of their size, they needed alarge amount of food, as well as supplies, new weapons and armor, and quite possibly a change of clothes. “It sounds good to me. Go with it.”

Dross’s eyes gleamed as he chuckled inaudibly. “Excellent!” he declared. “I’ll go into the back and get your money. Just give me the Diamond so I can put it in my safe.”

Izzy’s inner alarms started to go off the hook, as Ramus reluctantly gave the Diamond to Dross. He watched as the skinny man practically danced with joy as he headed into the back. He watched as Dross turned around for a second to say, “Wait here, please,” before disappearing from sight. His eyes narrowed into slits.

For close to half an hour, the group wandered the store, checking out the wares, and talking amongst themselves. Except Izzy, who was currently still at the counter, tapping against a display case impatiently, his eyes on the door to the back room.

Alex noticed this, and stepped over to him. He had a feeling that, if Izzy kept staring at the offending object, it was going to catch fire.“Something wrong?” he asked.

Izzy looked over at him, his expression grim. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this,” he replied darkly. “I mean, I know there is something wrong with that man. I saw it in his eyes.”

Alex began twitching a bit. “That was my thought as well. He did seem rather interested in the Diamond. And I've got a great idea to find out why it is.” Spying Greg, he walked over to him. “Do you have a minute?” he asked.

Greg nodded. “What do you need?” he asked, already having agood guess. He was already having the same thought.

Nall settled down on Mimi’s shoulder. He could only flutter around so long before he became too much of a nuisance. That was proven when Gatomon tried to claw him. “I didn’t realize that it took so long to count twenty thousand silver, guys.” He looked at the others. “Maybe it’s too heavy to carry out all at once.”

“Uh huh,” Alex replied, not really paying attention as he finished speaking to Greg.

Luna watched as Alex and Greg spoke about something, then Greg walk over to Izzy. “I wonder what is going on?” she asked Sora. Sora shrugged.

Seven minutes later, Nall finally lost patience, which was quite the accomplishment. Usually, he lost it a great deal earlier. “Guys, something’s wrong.” He flew over to the door, and knocked once. “Dross?” he called out. “Hello? Where are you?” He didn’t hear anything, which set off his own alarms. “Um, guys…we have a problem.”

Greg immediately jumped over the counter, ignoring the shop clerk's gasp as he did so, and reached the door. Finding it locked, he balled up his fist, reached way back, and asserted himself.

The door practically shattered into eight separate jagged pieces. Nall and Greg went in right after it. Nall took one look at the backroom, turned around, and rocketed out. Greg continued on, not even slowing down.

“Guys!” Nall roared, flying out through what remained of the door. “Dross is gone… and so is the Diamond! We’ve been had!”

“What?!” Alex ran over to the doorway, and looked in. He saw no one, not even Greg. He had had a bad feeling, but this wasn’t what he was expecting. “Let me guess, Izzy. A conman.”

“Yes. I knew he was one by just looking at him.” Izzy walked over to the salesclerk. “Do you know anything about this?” he asked gently. Alex joined him. Gatomon jumped onto the counter.

The salesclerk shrank back in fear. “Please don’t hurt me!” she cried out. “I just started working here! I don’t know anyone!”

Alex held up a hand, trying to sooth the young lady. It was obvious that she was someone honest, who had just learned that her employer wasn’t so much. “Don’t worry. We won’t hurt you. We’re just wondering if there was anything we could do to find Dross.”

The salesclerk calmed down after a few moments, after she was certain that they weren’t going to hurt her. “Umm… why don’t you go to Master Mel?” she suggested. “Maybe he can help you…”

“Leaving is out of the question.” Everyone turned around to see Greg walk back out into the main area, not looking too happy. “There’s a door back there leading to the sewer system, and the sewers are infested with monsters. None of Mel’s soldiers will go down there, even in force. And we can’t leave. Otherwise, Dross may get away with the diamond.”

Alex growled. Their day just kept getting better and better. “Then we have a bigger problem than we originally thought. Those sewers are going to be nearly as vast as the city, if not more. We won’t have a clue where to start looking.”

“Or maybe we will,” Mimi muttered thoughtfully, turning to Amy. An idea had begun percolating in her head, one that might just work, if her earlier suspicions were right. “Can your computer track people under the ground?”

Amy blinked, a little surprised by the abrupt question, not to mention the manner that it was asked. “What makes you think my computer has that kind of processing power?” she asked, managing to sound incredulous.

Mimi didn’t back down, didn’t even flinch. “Because Iknow who you are, Sailor Mercury,” she replied quite calmly.“And right now, we need your help to find this guy. Now, can you do it?”

The Digi-Destined stared at first Mimi, then Amy. “Mimi, what are you talking about?” Tai asked. “I mean, have you lost it?”

“Actually, she’s right on the mark.” Greg turned to Amy. “Go ahead, Amy. Transform. They do need your help.”

Amy was hesitant for a second, but slowly nodded, pulling out her transformation stick, and holding it up. “Mercury Star Power!”

An instant later, Sailor Mercury stood before the Digi-Destined, in the same place Amy had been. She watched them all serenely, waiting for their reaction.

The reaction was complete and utter shock. Tai and the others went slack jawed with shock. The Digimon, who had only heard about them from their partners, were only slightly less surprised.

The Lunarians looked Mimi. “Okay, we’re impressed,” Nall stated. “What’s so special about her?”

Mimi shrugged. “She’s only a member of one of the greatest superhero teams of all time, not to mention their resident genius. She’s also one of the most dangerous beings on the planet, and she’s not even out of school yet.”

Mercury looked at Mimi, a look of complete amusement on her face. “You never fail to surprise me, Mimi. How’d you know?”

“The symbol on your computer. I can be perceptive some times.”

“And I'm getting pissed!” Ramus yelled, hopping up and down. He was getting impatient, and for him, impatience had a way of becoming anger really fast. “So if you can find the cheating son of abitch, then do it already!”

“Okay, okay!” Mercury activated her computer, and began scanning underneath them. Several seconds later, she exclaimed, “Got him! He’s on the outer edge, near the reclamation area!”

“I’ll get the police!” The salesclerk made to run out, but then thought about it. “On second thought, sir, could you?” she asked one of the very few customers in the establishment. He nodded, running out of the store.

Ramus managed to calm down from borderline rage, and was now beside himself with guilt. “This is my fault, Alex. I should’ve known that Dross was a con from the start! I got cocky because I was able to catch Brett… I’m so sorry!”

Alex patted his shoulder, letting him know that an apology wasn’t necessary in the least. “Don’t worry, Ramus. He fooled all of us. If Izzy hadn’t been suspicious of him to begin with, then we may not even know this much.”

“And we are going to get that Diamond back, even if it is in the sewers!” Tai added.

“Disgusting to think about, but absolutely correct.” Sora cracked her knuckles. “We do have an advantage over the troops of Meribia. We have a Digimon that can become more powerful.”

“Well then!” Gatomon stated, flexing her claws. “Everyone follow the woman with the scanner!”

With that, they entered the back room, unaware that there were eyes watching them. Well, beyond the obvious eyes of the salesclerk.

----

“Sheesh, it stinks in here!”

“I hope you mean that literally, Mimi, because you’re absolutely right!”
“Can’t be helped! Tai, get your hand away from my butt!”
“That’s not my hand, Sora!”

“Sorry, that’s my wing, Sora!”

“You’re forgiven, Biyomon. Whose hand is on my chest?”
“Sorry,/that’s/ me. Can I get some room here?”
“There’s not enough room here for all of us, Tai. Not that-”

“Don’t even finish that sentence, and back up, Ramus! Everybody, single file! Give us all some room. Mercury, you and Alex, take point!”

“We’re already at point, Tai.”

“Hey!Off the flipper!”
“Sorry, Gomamon.”

This was the scene in the beginning of the sewer’s; complete and utter pandemonium. Feet, and other appendages were being stepped on, hands placed where they weren’t supposed to, and tempers fraying because of it.

Gabumon pulled a big wad of cotton from Joe’s backpack, and stuffed it into his nose. “Must…have…fresh…air,” he gasped.

“Mercury, can we move it along?” Biyomon asked pleadingly. “I don’t think Gabumon’s sense of smell is going to survive if we don’t get this done with soon.”

“Moving.” Mercury began walking forward, Tai next to her, his sword at the ready. The others followed quickly, the majority of them beginning to feel nauseous. With the exception of one of the fliers, of course.

“You know, it’s times like these that I’m glad I don’t have the sensory perception to get bad scents,” Tentomon noted.

“Good for you,” Agumon grumbled, his voice sounding strange because of his hands was trying to pinch his nostrils shut.

Matt pinched his own nose harder, but the smell still managed to get in.“How are we going to fight if we can’t breathe?”

“I think we’re going to have to ask Izzy that.”

Izzy activated his computer, having T.K. hold it while he typed. He ran the scanners he had, while he typed in his inquiry. “I’ve got the monsters that are in this vicinity,” he finally stated.“I also managed to find a spell that will reduce the smell.”

“Lemme see.” Mimi looked over Izzy’s shoulder, memorizing the incantation. “Should I give it a try?”

“/Yes!”/

“Okay.” Mimi pushed her sleeves back, figuratively speaking, closed her eyes, concentrated, then simply said, “Disperse.”

Instantly, Gabumon felt the smell drop considerably. It was still there, but barely noticeable now to him. “Nice job,” he said, bowing as best he could.

Mimi bowed her head in thanks. “Let’s hope none of us fall into the sewer water. Otherwise, we’ll all start smelling like Raremon. And no spell could save our sense of smell then.”

Alex chuckled. “I’m going to assume that Raremon is a Digimon with a bad case of BO?”

“Bulls eye.” Gabumon took another breath, coughing as he did so. “Is there a way to get rid of the smell permanently?” he asked.

“Leaving the sewers,” Mercury replied, not taking her eyes off of her computer. Out of all of them, she seemed to be the one who was impervious to the stench.

“Oh.”

“Okay, what are those?” Tai suddenly asked, grimacing. “They look like giant slugs.” As if to emphasize his point, he pointed at two creatures to their right.

Izzy pulled up the snake’s bio. “It’s called a Grog snake. It’s one of the little critters that live down here. They are extremely poisonous, and are capable of doing some damage while they’re at it. However, they’re like ordinary snakes, and only attack, and eat, once a month. And you're right, Tai, they do look like giant slugs.”

“Guess we missed that time of the month.”

“Yes, we did. However, we have a bit of a problem.” Mercury looked up. “There’s no way to get across this part of the sewer.”

Gabumon looked over there as well. “Well, this is a fine pickle we find ourselves in,” he muttered. “So, there’s no way to get across. Now what?”

“We find a way.” Tai began looking around. “There,” he said, pointing at wall of metal. “That might be a drawbridge of some kind. See if you can find some way of bringing it down.”

“Good idea, my fellow leader. Ramus, keep a lookout.”

“Sure thing, Alex. Mercury, could you scan the area for incoming monsters?The light isn’t so good down here.”

“I’ll let you know if anything’s coming this way.” As Mercury set up her computer to detect incoming threats, the rest of the group split up into groups of two, all with the idea of finding something that could lower a drawbridge. However, how do you find something in a place with slightly better lighting than a black night? Simply put, you have to get down and dirty.

Matt and Gabumon headed over to a corner of the wall that they wouldn’t have given a second glance if they weren’t searching for something, and began running their hands, or paws, over the somewhat slimy surface, trying not to think what could be on the walls. They weren’t succeeding.

“Talk about stinking up the joint,” Gabumon muttered, feeling like he would have to clean his fur in a vat of acid. “If we get out of this alive, I’m never stepping into a sewer again for as long as I am not reformatted.”

“That makes two of us,” Matt replied sympathetically, resisting the urge to wipe his hands off on his pant legs. “I need a light, so at the very least, we can see the gunk on the walls.”

As if to answer his prayers, a gold light began to appear behind him, slowly gaining strength as it did so. It soon reached the edge of where they were conducting their search, causing shadows to flicker in the corner of their vision. Gabumon looked behind him, surprised.

T.K. had his hand raised in the air, and his eyes narrowed slightly in concentration. It took a moment for the little blue furred digimon to realize that the glow was coming from the little boy’s sword, and it was slowly growing brighter. Finally, when the entire area was bathed in a pale glow, the little boy let his concentration relax, shooting them all a wide grin.

Greg was impressed. “Nice trick.”

“Thanks. I just figured I’d try something.” T.K. looked around.“Gabumon, I think you found the switch.”

Gabumon turned to find his hand on a little green button. “Well, that’s something,” he muttered, pushing it in. “And here Ithought it was a monster’s ass.”

As if on cue, a deep rumbling sound issued in the general location of the drawbridge, and with the sound of rusting hinges, it slowly lowered, until it was suspended over the water, its end meeting the area they were trying to get to.

“Nice work, Gabumon!” Tai shouted. “I’d kiss you, but then I would have to kill myself.”

“No,/I’d/ kill you, and then soak my head in a vat of highly corrosive acid.”

“We’ll find you the acid, right after we take care of Dross.” Gatomon began walking to the bridge. “Shall we continue on?” she asked pleasantly.

“As long as we don’t disturb the snakes,” Kari replied, giving the ones in question a somewhat wary glance.

“I’ll agree with that.”

----

For several minutes, they walked in silence, trying to think of happy thoughts, mostly centered around what they were going to do to Dross when they found. Their thoughts all agreed with pain by bending his stick-like physique like a wishbone. There were several more groups of snakes, who ignored them. The only sounds made were the typing fingers of Sailor Mercury on her computer, and the occasional cough from one of them.

After a few moments, Joe asked, “Kari, can you do the same thing T.K. is doing? I mean, make your hand glow? It would be more helpful.”

Kari thought about it, nodding in agreement. “Maybe…” She held her own hand out, and concentrated. Then she gave a yelp of astonishment when her hand began to glow pink. “Wow… pretty,” she murmured, then blinked. “And bright.”

“It’s a light. What did you expect?” Ramus looked forward. “Not to repeat Biyomon’s statement, but can we move it along? I want that Diamond, or the money he promised us, right now!”

Tai and Alex looked at him. “He’s serious,” Tai noted,“and about ready to explode.”

“I’ll agree with you on that. I almost pity the fool. Almost.” Alex continued walking. “But I’ll just step back, and let him tear the little thief apart,” he added.

Tai chuckled.

As they continued, they came across a few more Grog snakes, who were in a similar predicament as the first group. In other words, they weren’t a threat to the lot of them. Matt also found another lever to a second drawbridge, which was also near their position. Their gazes were intent, and their noses looking like pig snouts. However, none of this deterred them one bit, as they continued walking.

Then they hit a dead end… literally.

“Everybody, turn around.” Matt mashed his teeth together. “We have just added five minutes to our mission.”

He barely got the last of those words out when a giant fish suddenly jumped out of the water, sailing over Kari’s head, just missing her hair. She gave a squeak of surprise as the thing fell back into the water, tail hitting the water.

Tai and Gatomon ran up to Kari. “Are you all right?” the furred digimon asked.

Kari simply nodded, looking at the water, as if waiting for the thing to make another pass. Gabumon asked the one question she wanted to.“What was that thing?”

Izzy pulled the file up. “Death Carrison. It’s a fish type monster that thrives in the dank areas of Lunar. It’s a cousin of the piranha, only faster, deadlier, and can survive for an extended period of time out of the water. I think we can assume that it’s dangerous to anything with flesh on it.”

“And clothes.” Mimi’s voice held a great deal of discomfort, and almost sounded like the Mimi of old. Izzy chuckled at hearing to this, causing her to look at him. “What’s so funny? I honestly don’t think any of us want to explain to the people up there why we’re almost in the buff.”

“On second thought, scratch that thought,” he muttered. She had once again surprised him, which was becoming a common occurrence for her. He returned to his computer, the thought of Mimi in the buff bringing back memories of the time he and Tai had accidentally walked in on her when she was taking a bath. Of course, they had, at the time, thought she was in trouble. This did not save them from her wrath, and Izzy recalled a blunt, heavy object being used, as well as a momentary lapse of consciousness.

However, as those thoughts were not conducive to their present predicament, he banished them from his mind, and concentrated. “It’s the next one over that we need to get to.”

“Let’s go. And Izzy, you really need to stop blushing,” Gabumon suggested, taking some time to tease the keeper of Knowledge.“Otherwise, people will wonder what you’re really thinking about when you stare off into space.”

Izzy glared at his computer, now seriously irritated with himself. ‘This is getting ridiculous. I’m starting to act like a love sick fool… which I am, of course!’

Gabumon walked over to the edge, looking across the murky water. “I think there’s another bridge over there,” he said. “And I think the lever is near there too.”

Matt checked as well. “There is just one problem. I think I see awhole lot of Carrison’s between us and our objective. Any ideas on how to get by them?”

Mercury thought about it for a second, observing the problem from every possible angle. “Izzy, could I get a second opinion on this, and to see if my plan has any possible setbacks?”

Izzy nodded, and the two clustered, muttering about the details. After afew minutes, they broke apart. “Mercury’s plan is simple,” Izzy stated. “Matt, you and Gabumon are going to have to go over the water to the other side. Biyomon, you and Patamon are going to be their method of transportation. You should be high enough to avoid the Carrison’s teeth.”

“And what does that make us?” Gabumon grumbled. “Cannon Fodder?” However, he knew that the plan was the only one that was doable. And if he and his friends weren’t the ones at risk, he would have given it considerable thought. As it was though, there was very little that they could that didn't have a degree of risk to it.

Then he had an idea. “Don’t we have a certain someone who can become bigger” he suggested pleasantly.

Agumon was confused by that, then realized what it meant. “Tai, Ialmost forgot! I can digi-volve now!”

Tai almost smacked himself on the head. They had chosen the wrong time to blank out. “You’re right!” He looked up. “I think there’s enough room for your head, so go for it.”

Mercury looked at Greg. “What do they mean?” she asked.

“Haven’t a clue. Just because I have precognitive abilities doesn’t mean I use them like /Royce/.” Amy giggled at the look of distaste on Greg’s face when he uttered that word.

Tai and the other’s back away as Agumon prepared himself. “Everyone out of the way?” A chorus of yeses sounded off behind him.“Good. AGUMON DIGI-VOLVE TO… GREYMON!”

Sailor Mercury, who had never seen a digivolution before, stared in amazement as Agumon went from small and cuddly to large and vicious in the course of ten seconds. She turned her computer on the now massive creature. “I don’t believe it! His power increased tenfold, and his digital matrix became several times more complex than before!”

“Yeah.” The seer was only slightly less surprised. “Wow, you’re… big.”

“Thank you.” Greymon looked at Tai. “Shall I barbeque the fishies?”

“Hold on a second.” Kari and the others ducked. “Okay, barbeque away.”

“Thanks for the permission, Kari. NOVA BLAST!”

The Carrison’s never saw it coming. Nor could they get out of the way. At least, not as living, breathing creatures. Rather, they were fish food for, well, the fishes.

“Ewww!They eat their wounded!” Kari groaned, as the other Carrison’s suddenly swarmed the area.

“Well, what did you expect? Oliver and Company?” Greymon asked, surveying his handiwork. “You guys better get going. They’re pretty fast with their mouths.”

“Right.” Gently, Patamon grasped Matt’s arm, and lifted him off the ground about five feet. It wasn’t much, but it was something considering that the little pig was lifting about a hundred pounds. Biyomon did the same with Gabumon. ‘This is going to be interesting,’ he thought.

Moving swiftly, even though they were hindered slightly by the people they were carrying, the two flying digimon moved rapidly across the water to the other side. Once there, they set them down gently. Patamon had a rather final expression on his face as he did so. “Looks like we’re all probably going to get super strength here. And here Ithought it was just a fluke.”

“Guess not.” Gabumon shifted his gaze. “There’s the lever, but so is a problem. The bridge simply leads to another switch, and adead end. So what now?”

Matt thought about it. “Let’s just get this bridge down, and see what that lever does.” He added, under his breath,” Let’s just hope it doesn’t flood the sewer.”

“Amen, brother.” Gabumon pulled it down, watching as the bridge dropped. “Let’s go, before I change my mind.”

Moving swiftly, the four of them crossed the bridge to the other side. Then, following Gabumon, they headed for the mystery lever.

“This is too easy. I mean, so far we have seen a few satisfied snakes, and a couple of the piranha’s distant family. I know there are more monsters than that.”

“Hey, I don’t know.” His partner looked around. “But I’m not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. I actually enjoy having something not try to kill me at this particular moment.”

“Good point.” Gabumon’s head went up. “Matt, could you pull that lever please?” he asked.

Matt did so… and the reaction was instantaneous.

“Bingo!” The Digimon of Hope’s shout reverberated throughout the sewer’s when yet another drawbridge dropped down into a vertical position.“Matt, Gabumon, you two are the best!”

“Aw shucks, Patamon.” The blue furred digimon tried to look modest, though he didn’t succeed. “Patamon, Biyomon, please go back and get the others. Let ‘em know what we found.”

The two flyers did just that, with all deliberate speed. Matt and Gabumon began walking down the stone path, Matt whistling as they did so. They felt that nothing could go wrong.

They had the just reached the middle of the stone pathway when something almost did go wrong for them. An up close and personal meeting with agroup of Death Carrison’s can do that to a guy.

“Whoa!” Matt dropped as several of them flew over head, snapping their jaws as they did so. Five of them jumped up again, and promptly landed on the small ramp, looking at the two hungrily.

“BLUE BLASTER!” Gabumon shouted, releasing a jet of blue ice at one of them. It hit, throwing it about five feet from their position, which also included knocking it back into the water. Matt swiped at another one, cutting it in half. The other two backed off. “In the water, they’re fast!”

“Gee, Gabumon. Ya think? And speaking of which!”

At that precise moment, several more appeared, jumping high into the sky… and were immediately electrocuted because of it. Then the two remaining ones on land met the same fate. They all were well-cooked, though no one would want to eat them. Unsurprisingly, cooked meat and sewer scent did not go well together.

For a second, Matt and Gabumon stayed in their defensive position, before slowly realizing that there were no more enemies for them to worry about. Then they turned around… and stared up in surprise.

“Oh, so that’s how it’s done,” Mimi said, satisfied, residual lightning flickering at her fingertips. It wouldn’t have surprised them too much, except for the fact that she was floating about seven feet above the ground while doing so.

“Uh, Mimi? How are you doing that?”

“Doing what, Gabumon?”
“That! Floating!”

“Levitation Charm.”

“Ah.”

Mimi giggled. “The others wanted me to inform you that they are on their way to the other bridge, and wanted me to come get you guys.” Her eyes twinkled. “Also gave me an excuse to learn how to fly.”

“Okay, it’s official. You’re scaring me, Mimi.”

“Good to know, Matt.”

----

They rendezvoused with the rest of the group, all of them really starting to hate the sewers for an ungodly number of reasons. However, they also had a job to finish, so they pressed on.

“I wish I had a book to read at this particular moment,” Mimi muttered quietly, earning an equally quiet glance of confusion from those who were in range of her. None of them deemed it necessary to comment, though. At this point, they were beginning to agree with her.

As they passed through a doorway to another part, with Greymon inevitably crawling through it, and cracking the doorway because of it, they noted the smell was starting to get stronger. “Where is that coming from?” Luna asked, starting to gag once again.

Mercury took a cautious sniff, and coughed. “The smell is coming from this direction,” she gasped, pointing in one direction.

“Well, let’s get going.” Gabumon started walking in that particular direction.

Greymon looked down at him. “And here I thought I was one that rushed in where angels feared to tread.”

“I’ve been around you for far too long.”

“Good point.”

“Ahem.” Tai spoke for everyone present, all who were clearly amused by this.“Shall we?”

----

Almost two hours later, Ramus grumbled, “Why didn’t anybody tell me that ammonites enjoy clinging to people, and trying to suck their guts out?”

“We did.” Greymon looked nauseous. “Remind me never to swallow another one ever again,” he groaned.

“And I’m going on a shopping spree the minute we get out of here!” Mimi roared, sounding like she used, and for good reason. Half of her skirt was now gone, exposing a good portion of her legs. Also, her dress’s midriff was gone, thanks to a slashing tentacle that came close to slashing through her. Thankfully, Izzy was not looking in her direction, so she could avoid blushing.

Greg fingered the tear in his coat, grimacing. “Looks like we’re all going to be going shopping. Our clothes just aren’t designed for this kind of wear and tear.”

“Lucky us.” Sora looked at Mercury. “You still look unflappable. What’s your secret?”

Mercury smiled. “Good personal hygiene,” was her answer.

Gabumon chuckled as they walked into the abnormally large door, and started down the stairwell.

----

Dross chuckled to himself, surprised with how well he had pulled his little scam off. He couldn’t believe it. A real life Dragon Diamond!And that poor sap fell for his sale pitch! Now all he had to do was wait for them to leave, and he was home free. After all, he knew for a fact that no one was brave enough to enter the sewer without abackup plan. He was safe.

“There you are, thief!”

He was in trouble, and confused. How’d they do it?

He looked up, stunned beyond reckoning, at the assembled group before them, clothes with rips in them, and all of them looking rather annoyed. Behind them was a very large lizard of some kind, who was also staring at him like he was lunch.

“You,” a dark blue haired boy growled, “have something that doesn’t belong to you.”

“Give us back our diamond now!” the little cat-like creature shrieked.

“Cause if you don’t…” the kid he knew as Ramus gestured to the giant lizard behind them. “We’ll let him‘persuade’ you.”

Dross was a little unnerved, but he wasn’t afraid. In fact, he was extremely confident that he could get rid of them with very little effort. “I don’t know how you kids found me, but it doesn’t matter.” He grinned maliciously. “Because you won’t be around long enough to find your way out!”

The blue-black haired girl instantly began looking around, as if she heard something approaching. Which, of course, there was.

Gabumon was confused. This guy was way too cocky for someone facing incredible odds. “Ummm, we do kind of outnumber you, ten to one,” he said. “And he is kind of bigger than you. So unless you have some very good back-up plan that you’re planning on implementing-”

“You mean, like that?” Luna said, pointing in the general direction of the water, her eyes wide. Everyone else turned around to stare as well.

Dross shouted gleefully, “Here, boy! That’s it! Over here!” as a dark shadow approached their position. He was extremely giddy about it, whatever it was. Curious, Kari lifted her hand up, and immediately wished that she hadn’t.

What approached was a dragon around the same size as Greymon, moving slowly through the water. It was gray in color, and instead of hands and feet, it had four large flippers. Unlike Greymon, whose eyes could show rage or happiness, it’s eyes were cold and fathomless. A cold pit of darkness.

“Alex, what is it?” Ramus shouted.

Alex kept his eyes on it. “A Water Dragon,” he whispered. “One of the foot soldiers of the sea.” Then a thought occurred to him. “How did you-?”

“Surprised, kids?” Dross looked very proud. “I’m pretty amazed myself! I never knew my pet would grow so quickly…” His smile grew even more malicious, “or would be good for getting rid of annoyances like you!”

Izzy activated the boss scanner, and analyzed the beast in front of them with an alert gaze. His blood ran cold when he saw the profile. “Uh oh…”

Water Dragon: Normally a subordinate of the Blue Dragon, the Water Dragon is ruthless in battle, and completely without remorse. Unable to comprehend concepts such as compassion, the Water Dragon is considered the perfect soldier of the sea. Normally the size of sharks, there are those that almost reach the size of the Blue Dragon himself. They also possess a powerful fire attack.

“Well, better get ready, guys,” Nall suggested. “This ‘pet’ looks hungry!”

As if to punctuate his warning, the dragon reared its head back, and released a plume of fire. Its purpose was painfully obvious to all concerned.

“NOVA BLAST!” Greymon released his most powerful attack, aiming at the Dragon itself as he stepped in front of the monster.

Sailor Mercury brought her hands up over her head. “Shine Aqua Illusion!” she chanted, bringing all the water molecules around her to her, and chilling it to sub-zero temperatures. Thankfully, due to the nature of the place they were in, there were alot of water molecules for her to use. Flinging her hands back down to her sides, she hurtled the ice water at the fire attack.

Mercury’s attack struck the plume of fire, stopping it half way to its target, and extinguishing it. Greymon’s attack struck the dragon head-on, forcing it back several feet, but not seriously hurting it.“Okay, so it’s not invulnerable, just tough as hell!”

“What I wouldn’t give for Nash right now,” Gabumon muttered, preparing to attack. Behind him, he heard Luna begin singing. Curious, he turned around to ask what she was doing.

It became apparent a second later, a feeling of strength went through him, making him feel like Hercules. ‘Some kind of strengthening song,’ he thought, silently thanking the blue haired woman.

Luna did the same thing to every other person, including herself, before notching an arrow in her bow. “Izzy, Ramus! Let’s let him know that we’re here!”

Instantly, Izzy and Ramus raised their own bows, and the three released at their target, targeting the creature neck. They connected, though not getting any response from it. But they knew that cumulative damage could be just as effective, and damn distracting. And they noted with relief that it didn’t have any form of healing power like the Saline Slimer.

Greymon had, of course, charged their attacker head on. He collided with the Dragon while it was distracted, releasing Nova Blast after Nova Blast at it. The first one struck it again, then the Dragon retaliated with its own fire attack, seeing a being who matched it in power. The two attacks collided time and time again.

Mercury scanned the Dragon while he and Greymon were deciding who had the better breath. “Hmm…the fire attack appears to emanate from its chest, and is directed just behind the larynx through some kind of tube. It can sustain the attack for a set amount of time before being forced to stop.”

“So, we find a way to crush his windpipe.” Gabumon looked at the water. “And I think the first thing we have to do is keep that thing in one place. BLUE BLASTER!”

Gabumon’s attack struck the water next to the Dragon, and instantly began freezing around it. It realized this, though, and flexed its flippers, shattering the thin layer of ice that was beginning to form. Then, instead of trying to burn any of them, it waited until Greymon came in range again, then bit down. Hard.

Greymon let out a roar that shook the rafter’s as the Dragon’s poison entered his bloodstream, and from the tendons that were torn apart by the Dragon’s teeth with the initial penetration. With a powerful uppercut, he detached the Dragon rudely from his person, knocking it back several feet. “I need an antidote, now!” he roared, swaying unsteadily as he retreated out of range, the venom from its teeth flowing through his veins.

“Nall!”Palmon shouted./ “Get over to him now!” /If they couldn’t get Greymon back into the battle, they were going to be in a great deal of trouble. For a brief moment, she understood how Mimi felt when Izzy had been poisoned.

Nall moved to comply, Matt right behind him, but the Dragon saw this, and let another plume of fire loose. Matt dodged, but the attack hit his arm just the same, almost vaporizing it. The young man shrieked in agony, and fell to his knees, clutching his now crippled arm in supreme agony.

Izzy immediately released yet another arrow at the Dragon, but it was single-minded in its pursuit of Matt. It stretched its neck, opened its mouth, and prepared to bite down.

Then Matt got the briefest of reprieves.

“Lightning Strike!”

From Mimi’s hand, a bolt of lightning issued, enough power to run acity for a year, striking the Water Dragon just as it was ready to chomp down on Matt. The Dragon, unsurprisingly, roared in excruciating pain. While it was distracted, Luna ran up and dragged the Digi-Destined of Friendship out of danger. Then she began singing again, this time a little deeper.

Everybody in the immediate vicinity felt a sudden surge of health go through them, including Greymon, though the poison still ran through his system. Matt felt his arm re-knit itself, and the pain diminish to adull ache. He saw that the flesh was now a light pink instead of almost completely gone, and thanked whatever all powerful being was out there for magic.

T.K. ran forward, his new sword unsheathed and ready, When he got in range, he swung upward into the Dragon’s still open mouth. The sword sliced through one of the front teeth, all the way to the nerves. Another ear splitting roar issued from the Dragon, almost destroying T.K.’s hearing. He was also hurtled back several feet because of the sheer wind factor.

The Water Dragon turned around, and launched another fire attack at Mimi. She jumped up, and flew around the attack. It managed to singe her skirt. The Dragon followed her slight form, and simply attacked again with its flame. This time, she was too slow to evade, seeing as how she was still getting used to being in mid air, and was engulfed. The Dragon brought his flipper up, and slammed the sphere of fire into the water.

“/Mimi!”/

Greg was already moving as Izzy cried out, his hand stiff like a board. Izzy released another arrow at the Dragon, just as Greg roared,/“Lightning Blade!” /bringing his hand down at near light speed.

A coruscating shockwave flew through the air, striking the tooth that T.K. had sliced open. It almost let out another roar, which was cut off when Izzy’s arrow penetrated its throat, right where its larynx was situated. It didn’t cut off its breathing, but it did temporarily cut off its fire breathing capability. The battle was starting to go in their favor.

Greymon finally managed to get an antidote from Nall, and now unhindered by the poison, charged back into the fray. He decided to pay the Water Dragon back, and bit down on the Dragon’s neck when it came in range to attack Matt again. Hard.

At the same time, Matt buried his sword into the other side, drawing yet another roar out of it.

“BLUE BLASTER!”

“Shine Aqua Illusion!”

The inside of the Dragon’s mouth became colder than the Artic Tundra as Mercury and Gabumon pumped all of their ice power into their attacks, Mercury more so that Gabumon. It closed its mouth so the ice would melt from the extreme temperature. However, this also proved problematic, as its fractured tooth shattered into pieces the minute its mouth closed the entire way, and it let out another roar of pain. Gabumon smirked at this. ‘We’ve got it on the ropes!’

The Dragon suddenly shook its head, forcing Matt’s feet from underneath him, and dislodging Greymon from his neck. Then, without even turning around to use his teeth, he simply used his head like aclub, slamming into the champion Digimon with enough force to topple him. Greymon dropped, almost squashing Gatomon in the process.

Alex leaped, preparing to do an Explosion Point on the Dragon’s head. At the same exact time, Patamon, Biyomon and Tentomon attacked.

“BOOM BUBBLE!”

“SUPER SHOCKER!”

“SPIRAL TWISTER!”

“Explosion Point!”

The Dragon reared back away from the attacks, forcing Alex to strike the concrete. He then had to get out of the way as the three digimon attacks hit his former position. He looked up, preparing to perform aSword Dance, then stopped, concern entering his system. “Uh…guys?” he called out. “We have a problem.”

Gabumon looked up, confused, and saw Matt’s sword was still embedded in the side of the Dragon’s neck. Not a real biggie, except for one detail.

Matt was still holding onto the sword handle, and was now hanging about fifteen feet up in the air. He couldn’t let go, unless he didn’t want to live. “Nobody attack!” Gabumon shouted. “We might hit him!” He looked up. “Hang on, Matt!” he shouted.

“Oh, I’m hanging! I’m hanging!” Matt returned, readjusting his grip. “If you guys have a plan, I would reallylove you to act upon it now!”

Mercury thought fast. “Greymon!” she shouted. “Aim a Nova Blast at the water!” She heard Dross laughing in the background, and wanted nothing more than to knock him ten ways to Sunday. But seeing as how she had far more important matter to deal with, she let it go.

Greymon was perplexed. Aim at the water? Did Mercury go crazy? Not knowing why he should, he did so anyways. A moment later, he saw the reason.

The Nova Blast created thick curtain of vapor to rise from the sewer water. It blinded the Water Dragon, who, unable to see properly, began moving closer to the shore.

“Palmon, use your vines to tow this sucker in!”

Palmon did so, wrapping one set of vines around the Dragon’s throat. She wrapped the other set around a pillar not far from their present position. Then she began pulling. A few seconds later, Tai joined in, adding his own strength to it.

The plan was simple; to pull in the Water Dragon, and then attack with everything they had. It would also allow Matt to let go safely. All in all, a sound plan. And under any other circumstances, it would have worked too.

However, Mercury had not taken into account on how long the arrow had been in. And the Dragon’s power could no longer be contained.

Biyomon let out a bird shriek of terror when the Dragon finally fired an extremely large plume of fire at Palmon.

Matt was also afraid for the plant type digimon. “Palmon, let go!” he shouted. “It’s not worth it!”

Palmon did so, shooting backwards using the other set. Tai also got out of the way, though he was forced to drop his sword.

Sailor Mercury and the others also got of the way, each in their own fashion. Still, the sheer heat of the attack was enough to crisp their clothing. The attack decimated a large area, leaving a giant crater in its wake. Pieces of concrete rained down on the lot of them, cutting clothing and burning skin alike. It also melted Tai’s sword into a super heated puddle of metal.

Matt began to sweat a little. His grip on his sword was beginning to weaken, and he was still too far up to let go. Desperately, he tried to readjusted, but it didn’t help any. He began praying for amiracle.

Slowly, due to the lull in the battle, the Dragon began to realize that there was something sticking out of its neck. It began to vigorously shake itself, trying remove whatever it was. In doing so, it weakened Matt’s already precarious grip even further. He held on for dear life, but it wouldn’t be long before he fell. ‘Just one miracle, Althena,’ he thought. ‘If you can hear me, and are capable of performing them, give me just one miracle. That’s all I ask!’

Unbeknownst to him, his Digi-vice began pulsing a light blue.

Gabumon noticed this, and knew what he had to do. ‘Hang on, Matt!I’m coming!’

“GABUMON DIGI-VOLVE TO… GARURUMON!”

Slowly, while Greymon and the three archers surrounded him, Gabumon began growing. The horn on his head disappeared as his snout grew longer, and more feral like. He fell down on all four limbs as they, and his torso grew longer and more muscular. His tail grew out, and thinned, until it was more like a dogs. Finally, his eyes obtained a more feral look to them, although tempered with his intelligence. He completed his digivolution in record time, grinning as only a dog could. He was going to enjoy this.

And it was just in the nick of time, as Matt lost his grip on his sword, and fell. He closed his eyes.

The Dragon, perhaps sensing that there was easy prey near him, turned his head around to snap at the young person.

It was its first error. It would be its last one too, for it set off aseries of events.

Garurumon leaped forward into the water, heedless of the smell, and got underneath Matt. At the same time Greymon, Izzy, Ramus, and Luna all attacked at once. Greymon’s Nova Blast knocked the Dragon’s head off course, while Izzy’s and Luna’s arrows embedded themselves into the side of its head. Ramus’s arrow, however, struck like a viper at the Water Dragon’s eye. A bellow of pain echoed through the sewer as the Dragon thrashed back and forth, now permanently blind on one side.

Dross’s smirk began fading a little, and he suddenly felt a spurt of fear go through him. This was not how he was expecting his day to go. ‘Uh oh…’

Matt landed on the giant dog’s back, surprised to still be alive, and opened his eyes. “Thanks,” was all he managed to get out, amazed at the close call.

Garurumon nodded. “Are you all right, my friend?”

“I’ve had better days, but yeah, I’m fine.”

Garurumon swam to shore, and got back onto the platform. When Matt jumped off, he turned back around to stare at the Dragon. “So, you want to try and eat my friend?” he asked threateningly. “Let me return the favor.”

“Let’s kick some Dragon ass!” Greymon crowed.

Sora didn’t even try to berate him. In fact, she found herself agreeing with him. She turned just in time to see a wonderful sight.

Dross realized that he was in trouble. Big trouble. The Dragon’s aim was off by a great margin, now that he had only one good eye to use. What’s more, those kids now had /two /large monsters, as opposed to his one, which threw everything out of proportion. He made a quick business decision, and decided to run for it.

“Not so fast, maggot!” Ramus and Sora shouted at the same time, grabbing one of his arms and swinging their fists.

Before Dross realized it, both Ramus and the Digi-Destined of Love had punched, kicked, and kneed him in every single part of his body, especially that certain part of him that he was so proud of. He found himself on the ground in a daze, and in pain. He heard Ramus say, “We still need to talk to you, so don’t go anywhere,” while he writhed a little.

The Dragon was reeling closer and closer to shore, unable to judge distance properly with only one optic fiber working. It bumped into the berth…

…and Palmon struck again.

“POISON IVY!” She roared, once again wrapping her vines around the Dragon’s neck, and pulling back. This time, Greymon wrapped his hands around them, and pulled extremely hard. Roaring, the Dragon soon found itself in a position that every sea creature feared. It was grounded, and vulnerable to the rest of them.

The group went in swinging.

Matt was able to remove his sword from the creature’s throat, and began slashing at it. The three archers launched almost every arrow they had, striking in various regions of its body. The rookie level Digimon used their appendages or powers to great effect. Alex and T.K. sliced into the Dragon, both showing a great deal of control and mastery over their weapons. Kari used her scepter like a club, bashing it into its ribcage, cracking a rib every single time. Greg and Mercury just used their fists. Biyomon’s and Tentomon’s attacks did little more than leave scorch marks, but Patamon’s attack practically deformed the Dragon’s skull when it hit. Tai simply stepped back to stand next to Joe.

Greymon and Garurumon tore into the Water Dragon with a ferocity that was frightening. They both bit down on the monster’s neck, finally causing the thing to bleed, their claws leaving deep gouge marks in its back. Greymon almost tore off a flipper. Then he used his tail like a bat, slamming the Dragon back closer to the edge.

Despite its situation, the Dragon tried to fight back. It spewed fire all over the place, causing a great deal of structural damage to the sewers. It couldn’t hit them though, as they were all on its blind side, and Greymon was a fire creature unto himself.

Tentomon got a grand idea. “Guys, get him back into the water! I want to cook him!”

Greymon nodded, understanding the plan. “Gatomon, would you do the honors?” he asked pleasantly.

“Of course. LIGHTNING CLAW!” Gatomon used her attack in an uppercut formation, slamming into its jaw with enough force to crush an iron can into a plate. The Dragon was lifted off the ground a few feet before hitting the water with a splash, head down in the water. It struggled to right itself with only three good flippers, and didn’t seem to know what was going on.

Tentomon shouted, “SUPER SHOCKER!” unleashing a lightning bolt at the water, striking near to where the Dragon had come to rest. The Dragon roared as the electricity coursed through its system. However, it wasn’t enough power to even stop it from attacking, and it was starting to get angry.

It turned its head, opened its mouth, preparing to fry the insect…and the water began churning next to it. It grew far more insistent, more violent as it continued, until a large jet of water rose up from the sewer water, slamming into the Water Dragon, and hurtling it into the far side of the wall. It looked surprised for the first time since their fight began, if such a thing was even possible.

Tai was amazed. “Did you do that?” he asked Mercury.

“No.”

“Then who-?”
A second later, they had their answer as the reason shot out of the water.

‘/Mimi!”/

There, now floating in mid air, barely clothed in the remains of what used to be her dress, was Mimi, looking like an avenging angel. Energy was crackling from her fingertips

Izzy was amazed by her abrupt appearance. “She looks…really annoyed.”

Mimi looked at the Dragon, brown eye’s flashing with fury. “Payback time,” she growled. “Lightning Strike!”

The Water Dragon’s roar was much louder now, shaking the streets of Meribia with subsonic vibrations. The citizens of the city looked downward in fear, sure that the creature was having dinner.

All the Digi-Destined and their friends agreed on, once again, was that cooked dragon meat did not smell good, especially when combined with whatever odors were in the sewers.

But still, the Water Dragon fought back with a zeal that was surprising. In fact, it seemed to be getting stronger.

“Oh no! Guys, it’s going into a berserker rage!” Izzy shouted, backing off quickly.

“Kari!”Mimi roared, not saying anything else, because nothing else was needed.

“Light Scepter Activation!”

Kari’s attack shot to the Dragon, just as the Dragon countered with its own attack. The two collided in mid air, and not exploding, pushed against each other in a display of power.

Greymon, Mercury, and Garurumon decided to help.

“NOVA BLAST!”

“HOWLING BLASTER!”

“Shine Aqua Illusion!”

Their aid came right in the nick of time, because the Dragon’s power was still growing. Mimi redirected her lightning attack, but that only seemed to entice it even further into the rage that possessed it.

“We can’t keep this up!” Greymon roared before unleashing another Nova Blast. “We need one more attack to break through!”

T.K. started looking at the sword that he held, something bugging him in the back corner of his mind, something…

“Takeru!” Urawa shouted, ducking underneath a particularly vicious slash, then smoothly slicing the guy a new naval. “Break down the gate!Just, don’t do too much collateral damage. Althena knows we don’t want any unnecessary deaths!”

Takeru saluted him. “Don’t worry. I have just the right strategy for this!” With that, he leaped into the air, the shorter of his two swords glistening in the sunlight. Reaching the apex of his jump, he pointed the blade down, and said…

T.K. had it.

Some of the flame managed to get through, and would hit T.K. if he didn’t move. The Digi-Destined of Hope, however, was already moving, leaping into the air. As the fire struck the spot where he had previously occupied, the young boy waited until he had reached the apex of his jump, the pointed his sword straight downward. He roared,/“Hope…Sword…Blaster!”/ and brought it down.

The instant the tip of the sword embedded itself slightly into the concrete, energy, was released from it, heading forward. As soon as it reached the Dragon, it broke through, revealing itself to be asphere of gold.

It was enough.

The combined power of the six beings broke the stalemate, slamming into the Dragon with enough force to vaporize steel. It roared as the power chewed away at its chest, thrashing about madly in a futile attempt to stop it. Until it finally hit the fire sac…and detonated.

The Dragon’s head blew like it was the Fourth of July, the rest of its body following it in an explosion that shook the entire sewer system. An expanding sphere of fire headed for where they were standing.

Mimi dropped in front of them, her hand raised. “Reflection Shield!” A field of power surrounded everybody as she shouted this, as well as the oxygen around them. And it was just in the nick of time, as the blast engulfed them.

For several minutes, the immovable object and the irresistible force did battle. Mimi’s face scrunched in concentration, struggling to keep the immovable object in place. Sweat beaded her forehead as she pumped more and more of power against the irresistible force. ‘I will not stop!’ she thought viciously.

Izzy noticed something flicker near Mimi, but discounted it as a figment of his imagination. And he had far more important things to worry about.

Finally, the inferno died down, having exhausted the oxygen supply in the area. Soon, it was as if nothing had ever happened, save for all of the structural damage the battle had caused.

With a sigh of relief, Mimi extinguished her shield, then dropped to her knees, exhausted. “I’m pooped. I think I used every last erg of magic in that.” She looked up. “And would the boys put their jaws back up already!” she snapped, her voice full of fire.

“Um, Greg?” Izzy asked, motioning to Greg’s coat. “Could she have your coat?”

“Huh?Oh!” Greg hurriedly removed his coat, and handed it to Izzy.“Here you go.”

Izzy gave it to Mimi, who slipped it on gratefully. “Thank you. Talk about showing some skin,” she muttered. “Why were you staring at me?”

Izzy thought fast. “You are…extremely well figured,” he said. A half truth. After all, he could never tell a lie.

“Now then…” Greymon turned around to stare at Dross, letting him know that none of them had forgotten him. “Dross? We have to discuss some things. Like their payment.”

“Uh…” Dross looked at the assembled group before him, all giving him adeadly look. “We can talk about this.”

“No, we can’t,” Alex countered pleasantly. The circle began clinching.

Dross backed up until his aching backside hit the wall. “Hey, you kids are coming dangerously close to invading my personal space!”

“Oh, really?” Mimi asked, trying to sound sympathetic. The circle closed in. Greymon opened his mouth.

“Okay, okay!” Dross threw a money pouch at their feet. “This is all the money I have! Take it!”

Ramus picked it up, and felt it. “Five Hundred Silver? We agreed to far more than that…” Ramus trailed off, a thoughtful look on his face. “Hey, I have an idea! You own your shop, don’t you?”

“Of course I do! So what?”

Ramus grinned. “Because now I own it, Dross, in exchange for the Diamond. That’s a fair deal, right?”

Dross couldn’t believe it. He had been given a way out of the situation. “Uh…sure it is,” he stuttered, starting to inch around Ramus. “So I guess I’ll be leaving with the Diamond now…”

Ramus didn’t move. “What do you mean?” he asked cheerfully. “I sold the Dragon Diamond to the shop. And since Iown the shop, I own the Diamond! If you don’t agree with my logic, we can keep you down here until you realize how much sense it makes!”

“And please!” Garurumon bared his teeth. “Don’t make us stay down here any longer than necessary! Otherwise, I will be forced to take a ‘bite’ out of my frustrations!”

Dross looked like adrowned cat, unable to believe it. He had outmaneuvered by a bunch of kids. And what’s worse, he couldn’t do a thing about it!

Nall looked at his pudgy friend with a smile on his face. “Ramus, Iknow you’ve never heard these words before, so I’ll be gentle… You are the /man!/”

“You… you…” Dross couldn’t articulate a single sentence, so he gave a strangled shout.

Ramus chuckled at the expression on Dross’s face. “However, because I believe that everyone deserves a second chance, I’ll give you a job.” He stepped directly in front of Dross. “But if I ever, /ever/, catch you trying to scam someone again,” he growled. “…you are /so /fired!”

Dross grinned, relieved. “Thank you so much!” he stated, bowing. “I’m turning over a new leaf…nothing but hard, honest work for me from now on!” He shoved past them, heading for the stairwell. “I’ll return to my… your shop and start waxing the floor!” He sped away, his footsteps echoing in the stairwell.

Ramus watched him with a speculative gaze. “I know that I can’t trust him,” he said quietly, “but he can teach me everything he knows about business.” His eye glinted merrily.“/Then/ I’ll fire him.”

Nall chuckled. “Ramus, you are totally ruthless… you’re going to a great businessman.”

“Why thank you, Nall.”

Luna walked up and gave him a hug. “I’m proud of you. Now let’s get out of here, and take a look around your new store!”

“And buy new clothes, and shoes.” Mimi looked down. “I want to be wearing more than a coat and rags.”

Izzy looked at her. “Oh, I don’t know,” he said, completely straight faced. “I think you look kind of sexy with barely anything on.” He resisted the urge to chuckle as Mimi blushed crimson.

Everybody began walking over to Alex, laughing at the expression on Mimi’s face, while the young man pulled out a pair of Dragon Wings… except one. Ramus was still standing where he been when he told Dross about the change in management, looking very thoughtful.

“Hey, Ramus!” Nall shouted. “Don’t tell me you’re starting to like it down here!”

Ramus looked up at them. “Guys… I… uh…” He shook his head. “You can keep my half of the money, Alex. Having the store is more than enough.”

“Oh, okay. Thanks Ramus.”

Garurumon noted something was off with Ramus, but he didn’t press the issue.

“Let’s continue this discussion above ground.” Nall was starting to become green. “I need fresh air… and I need it now!”

The two digi-volved warriors quickly shrank back to their rookie level, and crowded in with the rest of them. Alex raised the Dragon Wings up into the air, and closed his eyes.

They vanished in a burst of light.

----

Royce and the shadow behind her observed the space the adventurers had occupied for another moment. “Impressive,” the shadow finally stated. “Very few can survive an encounter with a Water Dragon, let alone defeat it. And young Luna was truly impressive with her songs.”

“Yes, there is no doubt about it now, is there? She is the one…”

The shadow nodded. “Yes, she is. But what about this ‘Mimi?’” he asked, looking very thoughtful. “Shall I dispose of her and the other Digi-Destined?”

Royce paused in her thoughts, giving the suggestion careful consideration. Mimi’s power was already formidable, and she had barely begun to tap them. Also, when she had activated her shield, she had seen, for a few seconds, a series of lines going down the young ladies exposed sides, as well as a different eye color. Maybe her eyes were deceiving her, but she had seen young Izumi react in the same exact manner. ‘If they are what I think they are, then Sheyra’s child has returned home. That also means Isildor’s heir will be found soon. And can I really order the death of Sheyra's heir?' “No,” she said aloud, “no, we must know if the prophecy surrounding her is true or not. Also, our allies will want to know if those six are who we think they are.” She turned to the shadow. “Continue your surveillance on them,” she ordered.

The shadow bowed. “As you command. I will have my brothers assist me on this manner.”