//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Welcome to the Jungle // Story: Digimon: A New Legacy of DigiDestined // by ShadowBolt96 //------------------------------// Scootaloo scurried back in an effort to get some distance between her and the small creature. Which was difficult given that she was digging her hooves into sand. “Wha-what are you?” Scootaloo said, fumbling with her words.  “And did...did you just talk?” The small creature stared at her. “Um, yes?” it replied. “What’s so weird about that? You're talking too.” Scootaloo didn’t respond to him. Instead she closed her eyes, put her hooves on her head and tried to keep herself from panicking. “This can’t be real, this has to be a dream!” she told herself. “Yeah, that’s right Scootaloo. You are not lost at some beach. And you are certainly NOT alone with some weird small monster!” The monster in question cocked it’s head slightly to the side. Me, weird? it thought.   “Now, just count to three, and you’ll wake up,” Scootaloo continued in her attempt to not freak out. “One, two, three!” She opened her eyes to see the surroundings had not changed, that she could still feel the sand beneath her, still smell the seawater. And of course, she could still see the small red monster slowly making it’s way towards her, a look of concern in its eyes. Ok, I’m not dreaming, she thought. The meaning behind that slowly began to dawn on her. She looked down to her left foreleg and saw that the strange red and black gadget which started this whole thing was still there. Her eyes went wide as her thoughts began to go a mile a minute. Oh Celestia, I'm not dreaming! If that's true, then where's Apple Bloom and the others? Did they make it here too? Are they alright? Where did they end up? Heck, where did I end up!  Her train of thought was interrupted when she felt something brush against her leg.   She looked down to see the small red creature looking up at her. “It’s okay, I’m not gonna hurt you,” it said as it looked up. “Don’t be scared.” Realizing that the creature wasn't going to attack her, Scootaloo took a few deep breaths.  Soon she got her breathing, as well as her thoughts, under control. She looked back down at the creature, giving it a small smile. “I’m okay now, thanks little guy,” she said.   The creature smiled back and nuzzled her leg. “You're welcome,” it said. “My name’s Gigimon, what’s yours?” “Scootaloo,” she replied. Gigimon tilted his head to the side. “Scootaloo...mon?” he asked. Scootaloo raised an eyebrow. “Wait, what? No, just Scootaloo.” Gigimon continued to stare at her. “Are you sure?” “...Yeah, I’m pretty sure.” “...That’s a weird name.” Scootaloo shook her head and gave a light chuckle. “Whatever.” Now that she had a chance to calm down, Scootaloo was able to get a better look at her surroundings. Aside from the beach, which stretched on for quite a bit, there was a large jungle behind her. “Um, Gigimon?  Where am I exactly?” “Uhh, the beach,” Gigimon stated.   Scootaloo face hoofed at this. “Ugh, I meant where in the world am I?” “Oh, well this is File Island,” Gigimon said.  “File Island?” Scootaloo asked. “Where in Equestria is that?”   “Equestria?” Gigimon asked. “I’ve heard that there are a lot of other lands out in the Digital World, but I’ve never heard of that place.” Scootaloo’s eyes went wide.  “Wait, Digital World!” She shouted. That thing sent us to a whole other world?  She shook her head. This was getting weirder and weirder. “Gigimon, did you happen to see anyone else like me?” she asked.   “Hmm...” Gigimon thought. “Nope, I was just looking for something to eat when I saw you taking a nap in the sand.” Scootaloo looked to the jungle in thought. Hopefully they're close by, she prayed. “Listen Gigimon, do you think you can help me find my friends? If they're not here, then they might be somewhere in the jungle.” Gigimon’s eyes sparkled with excitement. “Sure, if your friends are as awesome a Digimon as you, I wanna meet em.” Scootaloo leaned her head back slightly, “Wait, Digimon? What’s a Digimon?” Now it was Gigimon’s turn to look confused. “Uhh, I’m a Digimon. Aren't you a Digimon?” “Uh, no. I’m a pony.” “A Pony-mon?” “What? No.” “A Digi-pony?” “No! I'm just a pony,” Scootaloo said, her patience running thin. “Oohhhhh….Yeah, I don’t get it.” Scootaloo rolled her eyes and let out a sigh of exasperation. “Let’s just go. C'mon Gigimon,” And with that, Scootaloo ventured into the jungle, with a happy Gigimon bouncing beside her.         As Diamond Tiara slowly came too, the first thing she noticed was how warm it was. It was incredibly warm and humid, almost like she was in a sauna. She slowly opened her eyes to be greeted to the sight of sunlight being filtered through tall, dense trees. It must have finally stopped raining, that's why it's so humid, she thought to herself. Wait, I don’t remember the trees at camp being so...big. Then she remembered the events before she woke up.  The secret lab, the weird gadgets, the projector freezing everypony in place, Silver Spoon being…              Diamond Tiara’s eyes went wide.  “Silver Spoon!”              She quickly sat up and took stock of her surroundings. She was surrounded by dense foliage, thick trees and a few large flowers. It might have been beautiful, if it wasn't so unfamiliar.  “Hello? Is anypony out there?” she shouted. “Silver Spoon! Are you here? If you're out there say something!”               Suddenly she heard a loud roar which had her hair standing on end. Instinctively, she ran the opposite direction, and into the foliage. Diamond Tiara took cover behind a patch of large leaves, peering through the brush to make sure she was safe. What was that? A timberwolf? A hydra? she thought. She kept her eyes trained on the outside while slowly backing up into the safety of the foliage. So focused she was on what may be coming from the front that she was unaware of what may be behind her, until she bumped right into it. Yelping in surprise, she spun around to find herself face to face with an equally startled… “Apple Bloom?” Diamond Tiara said. “Diamond Tiara!” Apple Bloom exclaimed, relieved that she bumped into a familiar face. They embraced each other in a quick hug. “Are you alright?” “Yeah, I’m fine,” Diamond Tiara replied. “But there's something out there, did you hear it?”   “Hard not to,” Apple Bloom replied, shaking a little. “It sounded like it was quite a ways away though, so hopefully it stays over there.”   “Still, the farther away I am from it, the safer I'll feel.” “Can't argue with that, let's get movin,” Apple Bloom motioned for Diamond Tiara to follow. After a minute of trotting through the jungle in silence, Apple Bloom asked, “Did ya happen to see anypony else out there?” “No, I woke up a few minutes ago,” said Diamond Tiara. “You're the first pony I bumped into.” “Well, you were the second one that got sucked in by that machine, and I was last. So the others have gotta be here too,” Apple Bloom reasoned. “Yeah, about that…” Diamond Tiara started. “Do you have any idea what that was about? I mean, that thing seemed to focus on these doohickeys,” referring to the red and white device on her foreleg.   Apple Bloom stopped and looked down at her device, which was tan with blue buttons.  “I don't know,” she sighed. “Look, we can worry about that later. Right now we have to focus on findin’ our friends. Just keep your eyes peeled and let me know if you see any—” she suddenly stopped, her eyes focused on something to her left. “Back! Get back!” she whispered.   Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara quickly ducked behind a tree. “What, what is it?” Diamond Tiara whispered. Apple Bloom motioned for her to look around the corner. They looked to see a small, round cream-colored creature trying to get fruit off of a branch. The creature didn't seem to have any feet and had two large ears that looked like small wings. The creature continued jumping up and down, trying to reach the fruit, but to no avail. Apple Bloom looked at the creature with pity and slowly began to step out from behind the tree. “What are you doing?” whispered Diamond Tiara. “We don't know what that thing is. It could be dangerous.” “But, look at the little guy,” said Apple Bloom. “He doesn't seem that bad.” With that, she trotted towards the small creature, who looked on the verge of giving up. The creature, having heard her approach, quickly turned to see Apple Bloom looking at him with a small smile. “Hey there lil’ fella,” she said. “Ya need some help?”   Apple Bloom looked up at the fruit dangling from the branches, which she could see were mangoes. She remembered trying one once, when Applejack brought one home from the market. But that felt like years ago. Putting aside her trip down memory lane, she focused on the just out-of-reach fruit. The fruit itself looked ripe and ready to eat, but it was well secured in its branches. Fortunately, if there was anything that Apple Bloom learned from her big sister, it was how to get fruit out of a tree. Taking position at the base of the tree trunk, she put her weight on her forelegs, raised both hindlegs and gave the tree a good solid kick. She stepped back and watched as a few of the mangoes fell out of the tree. She nudged one of them towards the small creature. “Here ya go little guy,” she said with a smile. The creature looked down at the mango then back up at Apple Bloom. He then smiled and said, “Thank you so much. I thought I'd never get those things down.” Apple Bloom stared back, eyes wide. “Uh...you're welcome,” she said. While the creature munched on the tropical fruit, Apple Bloom looked back to Diamond Tiara, who was still behind the tree and bearing a similar expression of shock. Apple Bloom pointed to the creature, silently conveying "You saw that too, right?", to which Diamond Tiara nodded her head. “Hey,” said the creature, getting Apple Bloom’s attention. “You want some too?  You did help me get them after all," Apple Bloom was about to decline, but a quiet grumble from her stomach betrayed her. She sat down, picked up one of the mangoes and took a bite. She paused as the juices hit her taste buds. It was delicious! It was very juicy, sweet and firm. This was the perfect time to pick them. After taking a moment to savor the flavor, she dove in for another bite. “Diamond Tiara, come on out. You gotta try this!” she said after swallowing. Seeing how the strange creature wasn't attacking Apple Bloom, Diamond Tiara slowly came out from behind the tree. She sat down near Apple Bloom, who hoofed her a mango. After seeing how much Apple Bloom and the small creature were enjoying the tropical fruit, she took a small bite and was taken aback by the flavor.  It tasted like something straight out of a smoothie. She smiled and took another bite. After snacking on the fruit for a bit, the cream-colored creature spoke up. “Hey uh, I don't think I caught your names yet. My name’s Upamon, what’re yours?” he asked. Apple Bloom stopped herself from taking another bite of mango to answer him. “Oh uh, I'm Apple Bloom. And this is Diamond Tiara.” Diamond Tiara, who had just finished her mango, looked up at Upamon. “Um...hi,” she said while giving a weak wave.  “Nice ta meet ya,” Upamon said. Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara looked at each other. They needed some answers. “Excuse me uh, Upamon was it?” Apple Bloom asked, to which Upamon nodded. “Where are we?”   “File Island,” Upamon said.   Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow at that, but before she could ask more about their location, Diamond Tiara asked, “And what exactly are you, if you don't mind me asking?” Upamon chuckled, “I’m a Digimon, of course.” “A Digimon? What's a Digimon?” asked Apple Bloom. “What’s a Digimon?”  Upamon chuckled. “You’re joking right? Right?” He noticed Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara’s faces hadn't changed. “You're uh… not from around here are you?” he said in a more serious tone.   “Wow, you're quick,” Diamond Tiara said with sarcasm. Apple Bloom shot her a glare.   “Gee, I'm awful sorry girls,” Upamon apologized. “I didn't know, I just thought—”. “It's alright," Apple Bloom interrupted. “But maybe now you can answer our questions, maybe you can help us out here.” “Right,” Upamon shot back up. “Well to answer your question, we Digimon are the ones who call the Digital World our home.” “Digital...World?”  Apple Bloom asked. “You mean to tell me we're in a whole other world!” Diamond Tiara exclaimed, panic starting to leech into her voice.   Before he could ask them any questions of his own, Upamon’s ears perked up. “Uh oh. Um, listen girls. Maybe we should continue this someplace else. Like, anywhere else!”   “Why, what’s buggin you?” Apple Bloom asked. She heard something coming from the trees.  Her ears were erect, trying to locate the sound. It sounded like a rapidly beating set of wings. As it began to get louder, Apple Bloom wondered Is that...insect wings? She turned around just in time to see a giant monster that resembled a praying mantis burst through the trees. “What is that thing!” Apple Bloom screamed, eyes wide. “It’s Snimon! Run!” yelled Upamon. The two earth ponies took the advice and galloped after Upamon, screaming as the giant green praying mantis flew after them.   Diamond Tiara chanced a look back and immediately wished she hadn't. She could see Snimon quickly closing the distance between them. She also noticed the large metal sickles on the end of it's arms glow purple.  Before she could ask what that meant, Snimon swung his arms forward yelling “TWIN SICKLES!” Two crescents of pink energy flew over their heads, destroying the ground in front of them. The group turned right, going further into the dense jungle in attempt to lose him. “What’s his problem?” Diamond Tiara yelled. “What did we do that got him so mad?” “Nothing!” Upamon yelled back. “He’s probably just hungry!” They all heard Snimon roar somewhere further behind them. “Keep moving, I think I know somewhere we can hide!”  Upamon continued hopping further into the jungle, with Diamond Tiara and Apple Bloom close behind him. Within a few moments Upamon stopped in front of a large tree, Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara were only a few paces behind. “Quick, in here!”  Before they could ask where ‘here’ was, Upamon jumped into the tree, passing right through the trunk. Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara skidded to a stop and stared at where Upamon was a moment ago.  “Did he really just…?” Apple Bloom started, but was interrupted by a distant sound of buzzing wings. Apple Bloom and Diamond looked at each other for a moment before jumping into the tree themselves.   The inside of the tree was hollow, and appeared to have some kind of metallic surface. Before they could ask any questions, Upamon whispered, “Get down, stay quiet!” Both fillies quickly got down and put their hooves over their heads, praying that Snimon wouldn't find them. They could hear the steady beating of the Digimon’s wings getting closer and closer. Diamond Tiara began to shake with fear, eyes closed and ears plastered against her head. She snuck a peak towards Apple Bloom and Upamon to see they were both in a similar state. The constant buzzing was getting louder, That thing is going to find us! We're dead, we are so dead! she thought as she squeezed her eyes shut.   Several tense moments passed before the sound began to grow faint. Everyone stayed absolutely still for a whole minute until they dared to open their eyes; Snimon had left. Everyone in the tree let out a collective sigh of relief. “Thank goodness,” Diamond Tiara said, trying to slow her rapidly beating heart. “For a moment there, I thought we were bug food.” Apple Bloom could only nod in agreement as she tried to catch her breath. After a few moments of silence, she looked to Upamon. “Thanks Upamon, ya really saved our necks back there.” Upamon looked to Apple Bloom with a smile. “Hey, no problem Apple Bloom.” Apple Bloom returned the smile. But before she could ask why he helped them, she heard movement outside. “Somethin’ else is comin’, stay quiet,” she whispered. Everyone went still, only taking shallow breaths as they listened. Sure enough, they heard the sound of footsteps just outside the tree, followed by voices. “Are you sure it came from this way?” said a high-pitched male voice.   “Yeah, I'm pretty sure,” a slightly raspy female voice responded.   Apple Bloom stepped closer to the edge of the tree, pressing her ear close to the metallic surface. Wait, is that…? “Keep your eyes peeled, okay?” she continued. “It sounded like they were in trouble.  I just hope they're alright.” “Scootaloo?” Apple Bloom asked. “Scoots, is that you?” “Apple Bloom? Where are you?” Apple Bloom stepped out of the tree to see Scootaloo looking in the opposite direction.  “Scootaloo!” she yelled, taking Scootaloo by surprise as she galloped towards her. Scootaloo quickly recovered from the shock upon seeing her friend safe, and caught her in a hug. “Apple Bloom! Thank Celestia you're okay,” said Scootaloo. “I was looking for you guys when I heard screaming. I came as quick as I could. What were you—”. She glanced behind Apple Bloom in time to see Diamond Tiara trot out of the tree. “Diamond Tiara, glad too see you’re alright too. Wait, hold on a minute,” she said as she let go of Apple Bloom. “Did...did you really just come out of a tree?” “Um...yes?” Diamond Tiara said. Scootaloo stared at her. Before she could ask them how that was even remotely possible, Upamon hopped out of the tree and made his way towards the group. “Who’s this?” she asked.   Apple Bloom looked back at Upamon. “Oh, this is Upamon,” she said. “We bumped into him while he was trying to get some fruit. He saved us from some big monster called Snimon by leading us to this tree.” “Hiya.” Upamon said. “Anyway, what happened to you?” Apple Bloom asked. “I woke up on a beach a few minutes ago. That’s where I met Gigimon over here.” Scootaloo said, gesturing to the small red Digimon beside her. “Gigimon, these are my friends Apple Bloom and Diamond Tiara.” “Hi there.” Gigimon said as he waddled towards them. “Great, so now that introductions are out of the way, does anypony have any idea where we can find the others?” Scootaloo said.   “Wait, others?” Upamon asked. “How many of you are there?” “Hopefully, seven," said Apple Bloom. “Besides us three there’s Babs Seed, Silver Spoon, Rumble, and—” As if on cue, an ear-splitting scream came from somewhere in the jungle, interrupting Apple Bloom. “Wow," said Upamon. “Someone’s got a nice set of lungs." Gigimon nodded in agreement. Apple Bloom, Diamond Tiara, and Scootaloo looked at each other with wide eyes. They all had a pretty good idea of who that was. “SWEETIE BELLE!” Alright, I know I have to be dreaming because I swear I’ve had this nightmare before! Sweetie Belle thought. At the moment, she was being chased by what she could only describe as ferocious clumps of vegetation. After waking up a few moments ago, she had spotted a couple of large colorful flowers. After trying to get a closer look at them, she had found that they were on top of two monsters with thin red eyes, sharp teeth, and two vines for arms. The only major difference between the two, as far as she could tell, was that one was slightly bigger than the other. They had tried to grab her, but she managed to get a decent heads start before they began to pursue her. Trying her best to not look back, Sweetie Belle galloped deeper into the jungle. Despite making a few sharp turns and moving in a sporadic path in an effort to throw off her pursuers, she could still hear them behind her. She glanced behind her to try and gauge how close they were, but she couldn't see them. Unfortunately, she chose the wrong time to ignore her instincts as she tripped on a large root and landed face first into the dirt. She propped herself up on a foreleg and tried to catch her breath. The sound of rustling leaves reminded her of the things chasing her. Sweetie Belle rolled onto her back and tried shuffling away from the noise as it grew closer. Paralyzed by fear and exhaustion, Sweetie Belle could only try to assure herself, “This isn't real, it's just a dream." As the rustling got ever closer, she kept repeating this mantra. “This isn't real, it's just a dream. This isn't real, it's just a dream. This isn't real, it's just a—”. All of a sudden, she felt several vines wrap around her. She could only let out a short gasp as she was pulled into a patch of thick vegetation. Before she could let out a scream, a leafy hand covered her mouth. “Shh. Stay still or they'll hear you,” a female voice whispered. She was about to squirm in protest when she heard a voice shout, “Come on, it went this way!” Realizing the alternative, Sweetie Belle did as she was told and stopped moving. The two monsters that were chasing her bounced into view a few moments later. Sweetie Belle watched as they looked around in confusion. “Well, where did it go uber-tracker?” the bigger one asked with a hint of sarcasm. “I don’t know,” the other replied. “But I know it came this way. I'm certain of it." “Oh sure, sure. Just like you were so ‘certain’ that you were hot on the trail of that Upamon we were after the other day." “Oh for the love of…” the other one started, before turning to the bigger one in anger. “Look, I don't know how he gave us the slip, but I was certain he was heading towards the beach treeline." “Yeah? Well I'm certain that we went hungry that day, because we spent hours looking for that little runt." “Hey, do you wanna keep yappin’, or do you wanna help me look for… whatever that white thing was?” “I want to eat!” the bigger one shouted. “But it’s pretty hard to get a decent meal when ‘someone’ isn’t patient enough to let prey get close enough to grab it." “Oh, well maybe that wouldn't be a problem if said prey didn't run away whenever they come within seven feet of your ugly face!” the other one retaliated.   “You know what? Forget it. I’m not gonna have this argument again,” the big one said before turning in the direction they came in. “Hey! What are you doing?” “What I should have done days ago, ditch the dead weight.” “Oh, look who's talkin’. You know what? Fine, go!” the other one shouted. “Good luck trying to catch food if it doesn't sit still for more than ten seconds." “Yeah, well good luck trying to keep prey in your sight for more than ten seconds,” the bigger one retaliated, before bouncing away. The other one shook a vine towards him before storming off in the opposite direction. After a few more tense seconds of silence, Sweetie Belle felt the grip of her captor/rescuer loosen enough so that she could get free. She bolted from the patch of vegetation they were hiding in and managed to get a few feet away before collapsing from exhaustion again. She turned around to see a small figure emerge from the vegetation. Still shaken by the whole ordeal, Sweetie Belle tried to keep her distance from it. “Hey there, take it easy,” it spoke with a female voice. “They're gone, you're safe now." She tried to take a few steps closer to Sweetie Belle, which only caused Sweetie Belle to scurry further back. “Stay back!” Sweetie Belle shouted. “Don't come any closer." The creature saw her foreleg shaking, heard the quiver in her voice. She was terrified. “Alright, okay,” the creature gently relented. “I'm not moving, not gonna hurt you." As the creature stood where it was, Sweetie Belle was able to get a better look at it. Much like the monsters from before, this one looked like it was made of the surrounding vegetation. Unlike the ones from before though, this one had two small legs, and two small leaf-like arms, each with three purple fingers. It had small dark green eyes, and a large pink flower atop its head. She also noticed the creature was about as big as her. For a few minutes, they looked at each other until Sweetie Belle broke the silence. “Who...who are you? And why did you help me?” she asked. “I'm Palmon,” the creature replied. “And I helped you because, well…you were in trouble and looked like you needed help. Those Vegiemon would've made a meal out of you if I didn't do something." Sweetie Belle stared at Palmon, reflecting on everything that happened to her in the last ten minutes. Those things were actually gonna…eat me? she thought. She closed her eyes and shook her head to rid herself of those thoughts. It was then that another more terrifying realization took their place. “I'm not dreaming, am I?” “Uhh...no, this isn’t a dream.” Palmon said. Sweetie Belle’s pupils shrunk to pinpricks. “Wait, then where am I? What’s going on? Where are my friends?” She gasped as she remembered what almost happened to her a few moments ago. “Apple Bloom! Scootaloo! Where are you?” she shouted. “Oh no. What if something happened to them? What if one of those things got to them? What if they're not here? What do I do!” Palmon’s concern grew as Sweetie Belle went from pacing around the clearing, to hyperventilating. “Whoa there, slow down," she said as she got up. “Take a deep breath, try to calm down." Amidst Sweetie Belle’s maelstrom of thoughts, Palmon’s words somehow made themselves known. She tried to take a few deep breaths while moving back and forth. “Yeah, there you go,” Palmon said. “Just focus on your breathing." Sweetie Belle thought back to the moments where she saw Rarity like this. Moments where she was falling behind on an order, or there was an overwhelming amount of work to do. She would use a breathing technique similar to what Twilight used, or so she had been told. Closing her eyes, Sweetie Belle sat down on the grass and put a hoof to her chest. She took a breath and then exhaled, lowering her hoof to the ground as she did. She brought it back up to her chest as she inhaled, and brought it back down as she slowly exhaled. After repeating this exercise a few times, she was able to breath a bit easier. Sweetie Belle opened her eyes to see Palmon had gotten closer to her. “Better now?” Palmon asked. Sweetie Belle used a foreleg to wipe some stray tears away. “A little," she sniffled. Palmon nodded and gave a small smile. “That's good." Seeing that she had calmed down a bit, Palmon tried to continue the conversation. “So, do you have a name?” Sweetie Belle nodded. “I'm Sweetie Belle." She realized that Palmon really was concerned for her. This creature didn’t have to save her, but she did. “Um...I'm sorry for pushing you back like that. Thanks for saving me back there." Palmon giggled. “It's okay, I probably would have reacted a similar way if I was in your place." Sweetie Belle gave a brief smile before turning her thoughts back to her friends. “Hey Palmon, did you see anyone else like me around here?” “Hmm…”, Palmon tilted her head in thought. “No, I don't think so." Hearing this, Sweetie Belle started to worry again. Are the others alright? Am I the only one here? The thought started to bring tears to her eyes again. She shook her head clear. No. They're here somewhere. They've gotta be. “Well then, I guess have to go find them,” Sweetie Belle said as she started off into the jungle. “Huh, find who?” Palmon asked, causing Sweetie Belle to stop. “My friends,” Sweetie Belle replied. “We somehow got separated when we ended up…here." “Okay, but do you know where they are?” “Well...uh,” Sweetie Belle hesitated before looking down, ears folded. “No. I have no idea where they could be." “Well, I do know this jungle fairly well. Maybe I can help,” Palmon offered. Sweetie Belle looked up, her eyes sparkling with hope. “Really? You’d really do that?” Palmon smiled and nodded to her. Sweetie Belle was about to run up and give her a hug when a thought occurred to her. “Wait, why are you helping me? Don't get me wrong I’m grateful but, we just met a few minutes ago." “Why not? The way I see it, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet." Sweetie Belle smiled. “Well, thank you Palmon." Palmon returned the smile. “Hey, no problem. So uh...should we start looking?” “Alright,” Sweetie Belle nodded, following Palmon into the jungle. After a few minutes of searching, Sweetie Belle asked, “So, how big is this place anyway?” Palmon looked up in thought. “Fairly big, but it doesn't cover the whole island. Don't worry though, if your friends are in here I’m sure we'll find them sooner or—”. “Sweetie Belle!” a voice called out. Sweetie Belle’s ears perked up, recognizing a sweet country accent. “Apple Bloom? Apple Bloom is that you?” she shouted. “Sweetie Belle? Where are you?” Before she could reply, she saw Diamond Tiara come around a tree. “She’s over here! She’s okay!” she shouted. “Diamond Tiara?” Sweetie Belle asked excitedly. She then saw two familiar faces that brought a smile to her face. “Scootaloo! Apple Bloom!” She ran up to her two friends and nearly tackled Apple Bloom in her excitement. “Thank goodness you're okay." “Took the words right outta my mouth," Apple Bloom giggled as she hugged her. It was only after releasing Apple Bloom that Sweetie Belle noticed the small creature riding on her back. She noticed another one on Scootaloo's back. “Who are these guys?” Sweetie Belle asked. Apple Bloom looked back to the Digimon on her back. “Oh, this is Upamon. And the one on Scootaloo is Gigimon." “Aww, these little guys are kinda cute,” Sweetie Belle said, scratching Upamon behind the ear. “Hehehe, stop. You're embarrassing me.” Upamon blushed. Palmon walked up to the reunion with a smile. “So, I take it these are your friends Sweetie Belle?” Sweetie Belle turned around, having forgotten that Palmon was even there. “Oh, yeah. These are my friends Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Diamond Tiara," she said, gesturing to everyone as they were introduced. “Everyone, this is Palmon." “Hello there,” Palmon said with a wave. “She saved my life from a couple of...uh, what were they called?” Sweetie Belle asked herself. “Vegiemon?” Palmon offered. “Yes, thank you Palmon,” Sweetie Belle said. “A couple Vegiemon? Probably wasn’t too hard to fool them.” Upamon chuckled. Apple Bloom looked back with a raised eyebrow. Before she could ask him what he meant, a rustling noise drew everyone's attention. Everyone turned in time to see Silver Spoon, Babs Seed, and Rumble tumble out from the treeline, gasping for breath. “Did we lose it?” asked Rumble. “Yeah, I think so," said Babs Seed between breaths. She looked up to see her cousin staring back at her. “Apple Bloom!” “Babs!” said Apple Bloom, running up to Babs. “You okay?” Babs Seed gave a small chuckle. “All things considered, yeah I'm good." Her eyes widened upon seeing the small Digimon on Apple Bloom’s back. “Um, cuz? You got somethin’ on your back." “What?” Apple Bloom asked, looking behind her. “Oh, you talkin’ about Upamon here? Don’t worry about him, he’s a friend." Babs Seed looked at her with a raised eyebrow. “You sure? ‘Cause we were just—” “Silver Spoon!” Diamond Tiara shouted. In an instant, she was by her friend’s side trying to help her up. “Are you okay? What happened to you?” “Big...red...beetle...chase…” Silver Spoon said between breaths before collapsing onto Diamond Tiara. Babs Seed and Rumble stared at Silver Spoon. “Seriously? We didn't run that far," said Rumble. “Yeah. You really need to work out a bit more,” Babs Seed agreed. Silver Spoon shot them a glare. “Shut…up." “So, what happened to you Babs?” asked Apple Bloom. “Well, we all woke up not far from each other,” Babs Seed began. “We all met up near a big tree and were trying to get our bearings. Rumble flew up to the top of the tree to get a bird’s eye view. He was telling us what he saw when all of the sudden he spotted some kind of giant red beetle flying towards us. We ran deeper into the jungle in order to lose it, then we bumped into you girls. Glad to see you're alright by the way." “Likewise," Apple Bloom smiled. Scootaloo, who was standing a few feet away from the scene, felt Gigimon shift a little on her back. She looked back to see Gigimon staring at a certain point in the treeline, his eyes darting from tree to tree. “What is it?” Scootaloo asked. “Something's coming this way.” Gigimon replied. A low buzzing noise caused Scootaloo to look around, thinking it was mosquitos. As the buzzing grew in intensity, she turned her gaze to where Gigimon was looking. “Hey uh, Babs? Are you sure you lost whatever was chasing you?” Scootaloo asked. “Fairly sure. Why?” Babs replied. Suddenly, a large monster resembling a red stag beetle burst through the trees. “That’s why!” Scootaloo shouted. Everyone watched in horror as the giant beetle soared overhead, cutting through trees as if its pincers were made of steel. “Oh no. It’s a Kuwagamon!” Gigimon shouted. Suddenly a tree fell to the right of them, blocking the way that Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Diamond Tiara came in. “Run for it!” Sweetie Belle shouted. The group tried to run out of the clearing, but was quickly blocked by Kuwagamon. They all looked in horror at the giant red Digimon. His large body towering over the little ponies. His four arms poised to strike at a moment’s notice, and his pincers ready to cut them down to size. Suddenly, Kuwagamon threw his head back, letting out a loud roar. Everypony stumbled back in fear, until they noticed that the Digimon seemed to be in pain. Scootaloo noticed that her back felt lighter. Looking back, she saw that Gigimon wasn’t there anymore. She looked back to see that Gigimon was biting down on one of Kuwagamon’s arms. She could only watch as Kuwagamon flailed him off, throwing him into a tree. “Gigimon!” Scootaloo shouted, running over to Gigimon’s side. She gently picked him up. “You okay little guy?” Gigimon groaned, but still managed to give a smile. “I’m okay, but that Digimon has one mean throw." Scootaloo looked back at the massive insect. She noticed that the arm where Gigimon bit down had burn marks on it. She also could see that it was not to happy that it was bitten in the first place. Kuwagamon gave off a loud roar, taking a massive step towards the group. Before it could take another step however, several vines wrapped around his other leg, causing him to tumble forward. Everypony quickly ran out of the way just as Kuwagamon hit the ground. Sweetie Belle looked behind Kuwagamon, tracing the vines back to their source: Palmon’s hands. “Sweetie Belle, run!” Palmon shouted, holding Kuwagamon back. Before anypony could make a move, Kuwagamon opened his wings and took off, flying over the group, and dragging Palmon with him. Palmon managed to untie herself from Kuwagamon before he got to high. Unfortunately, the momentum from the take off caused her to fly right into Sweetie Belle, sending them both tumbling to the ground. Sweetie Belle got up and shook herself off before going to Palmon. “You alright their Palmon?” Sweetie Belle asked as she helped her up. “I’m alright,” Palmon groaned. “Sorry about that though.” Apple Bloom looked up to see Kuwagamon starting to bank right. “I think he’s circling around,” she said pointing at Kuwagamon. “We need to move now!” Everypony galloped deeper into the jungle, with Palmon running beside Sweetie Belle, and Gigimon and Upamon riding on Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, respectively. Everypony picked up speed as they heard Kuwagamon get closer. All of a sudden, Apple Bloom felt Upamon hop off her back. She looked back to see Upamon on a collision course with Kuwagamon. Right before they crashed however, Upamon let out a loud yelp, sending a small shockwave right at Kuwagamon’s face. The force of the shockwave knocked Kuwagamon off course, sending him crashing into the treeline. Apple Bloom skidded to a stop, giving Upamon a chance to catch up. “Haha, got him!” Upamon said. “You think you can warn me before ya do somethin’ like that again?” Apple Bloom said as he climbed atop her back. “I thought you fell off or somethin’!” “Sorry,” Upamon replied. As soon as Upamon was secured on her back, Apple Bloom took off to catch up with the others. She  managed to catch up with Scootaloo, who was a few feet behind the group. “Everything okay, Apple Bloom?” she asked as she galloped alongside her. “Yeah, I’m fine,” Apple Bloom said. “Come on, we’re losing the others.” And with that she picked up her pace, along with Scootaloo. As they began to close the distance between themselves and the rest of the group however, Kuwagamon came flying out of the treeline, cutting through the trees like a knife through warm butter. A large tree came crashing down right in front of Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, forcing them to stop dead in their tracks. They turned around to run in the opposite direction, only to find Kuwagamon had landed behind them. Between the fallen tree, and the debris that was created in the wake of Kuwagamon’s entrance, they were cornered. Babs Seed, having heard the commotion from behind the group, glanced behind her to see Kuwagamon towering over a fallen tree, with Apple Bloom and Scootaloo nowhere in sight. “Everypony, stop!” she shouted while bringing herself to a stop. “What, what is it?” Rumble asked from the front of the group. “Wait a second, where’s Scootaloo and Apple Bloom?” “I think they're stuck back there!” Babs Seed said, pointing to the fallen tree. “What!” Sweetie Belle shouted. “We gotta do something. Come on!” Sweetie Belle and Palmon began running towards the tree. “What do you think you’re doing?” Rumble shouted. “We can’t just leave them,” Sweetie Belle shouted back. Realizing that she was right, the rest of the group followed her. Meanwhile, Scootaloo and Apple Bloom had their backs pressed to the tree, and were holding onto Upamon and Gigimon. “Uh, Scoots,” Apple Bloom said, her voice quivering. “I don’t suppose you have any ideas to get us outta this do ya? Cause’ I’m drawing blanks here.” Scootaloo quickly shook her head. “Sorry, I’m too scared to think right now.” “I was afraid you’d say that,” Apple Bloom said as Kuwagamon snapped his big red pincers at them. “We can fight him,” Upamon said. Apple Bloom looked down at him. “Huh?” “Me and Gigimon, we can fight him.” “What, are you nuts? Look at him, he’ll crush you two like grapes!” “It’s your best chance to get outta here,” Upamon looked over at Gigimon. “Come on Gigimon, we gotta protect our friends!” And with that, Upamon struggled to get out of Apple Bloom’s grip. “Gigimon, stop squirming!” Scootaloo said as Gigimon tried to free himself from her forelegs. “Upamon, please don’t do this!” Apple Bloom pleaded. Upamon stopped squirming and looked Apple Bloom in the eye. He gave her a small smile and said, “It was nice meeting you Apple Bloom.” In a burst of strength, Upamon broke free. Gigimon wriggled his way out of Scootaloo’s grip shortly after and hopped after Upamon. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo could only watch as Gigimon and Upamon charged towards Kuwagamon. “UPAMON!” Apple Bloom shouted. “GIGIMON, STOP!” Scootaloo shouted as she reached out to him. Suddenly, the screens on Apple Bloom and Scootaloo’s devices lit up. Scootaloo looked at her device as it began emitting a brilliant blue light. Apple Bloom watched as her’s gave a similar reaction. The rest of the group came around from the tree just in time to see Upamon and Gigimon become enveloped by a mysterious light. Gigimon Digivolve to… GUILMON Upamon Digivolve to… ARMADILLOMON As the light faded away, everypony stared slack-jawed at the Digimon that now stood before Kuwagamon. Even Kuwagamon had taken a small step backwards in shock. Gigimon, now Guilmon, was taller now and had arms sporting three sharp claws. His two remaining legs had grown stronger and also now had two claws on each foot. His mouth was filled with razor sharp teeth, his tail now longer. And a strange black symbol now was emblazoned across his white belly. Whereas Upamon previously had no legs, Armadillomon now had four. Most of his body was covered in a hard shell, save for his paws, tail, and some of his head. Each one of his paws possessed three sharp looking claws. “Whoa…” Scootaloo said, breaking the silence. “What...how did they…?” Apple Bloom stuttered, struggling to form a coherent sentence. Guilmon looked down at his new claws. “Did...did we just digivolve?” he asked. Armadillomon inspected his new shell covered legs. “I think so,” he said, speaking with a slightly deeper voice with a country accent. He looked over at Gigimon and smiled. “I don’t know about you, but I think our odds just got better.” Guilmon’s only response was to growl at Kuwagamon, who responded by letting out a low chittering noise, followed by a couple snaps of his pincers. He then charged towards the group letting out a loud roar. “PYRO SPHERE!” Guilmon shouted, launching a fireball from his mouth. The fireball hit Kuwagamon square in the head, causing him to halt his charge. Seeing him falter, Armadillomon seized the opportunity. “DIAMOND SHELL!” Armadillomon shouted as he curled himself into a ball, and launched himself at Kuwagamon. Armadillomon slammed right into Kuwagamon’s chest, sending him tumbling back onto the ground. Armadillomon landed back on the ground right next to Guilmon. “Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, get to cover!” Armadillomon shouted. Shaking themselves out of their stupor, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo ran behind the log to rejoin the rest of their friends. “You two alright?” Rumble asked. “Yeah, I think so,” Scootaloo replied. She looked to see Apple Bloom watching the fight just around the corner. “Darn, this guy is persistent I’ll give im’ that,” Armadillomon said as Kuwagamon slowly got up. Armadillomon’s eyes were drawn to a large tree off to the left behind Kuwagamon, and an idea began to form. “Hey, Guilmon,” he said. “Huh?” Guimon replied. Armadillomon quickly motioned for Guilmon to come closer. He lowered his head down to Armadillomon’s level. Armadillomon quickly whispered into Guilmon’s ear, keeping his eyes on Kuwagamon. As soon as Armadillomon finished, Guilmon nodded his head and turned to the recovered Kuwagamon. “PYRO SPHERE!” he shouted, launching another fireball at Kuwagamon’s chest. The force of the impact caused him to stumble a bit. While he was stunned Guilmon quickly ran to the left, heading around Kuwagamon. As soon as he recovered, Kuwagamon let out an angry roar, and chased after Guilmon. Guilmon had stopped in front of a large tree, his back to the trunk. He waited as Kuwagamon quickly closed the distance between them. Right before he could hit him though, Guilmon dove out of the way, causing him to slam right into the base of the tree trunk.   Kuwagamon slowly turned around, still dazed from the impact in time to see Armadillomon charging right at him. “DIAMOND SHELL!” he shouted, slamming himself into Kuwagamon’s chest and sending him back into the tree with the sound of splintering wood. Kuwagamon slowly got up, anger fueling his every move. He could see the two Digimon off to the right. He stayed focussed on them as he recovered, oblivious to what was happening behind him. He had just enough time to give one more angry roar before the tree fell down on top of him. A few moments of silence passed before Apple Bloom and the others began to step out from behind their cover. She looked at the massive red insect laying still under the tree. “Is it...dead?” Apple Bloom asked. “Nah,” Armadillomon replied. “Just knocked out. How bout’ you? Are ya’ll okay?” “Yeah, we’re fine,” Apple Bloom said with a smile. “Thanks to you two.” “Yeah, you were awesome out their Gigimon!” Scootaloo said, now having to look up at the slightly taller red Digimon. Guilmon smiled back and said, “Thanks, but it’s Guilmon now.” Scootaloo tilted her head the side. “Can somepony please explain what the heck just happened?” Silver Spoon yelled, causing everyone to look at her. Before anyone could respond, a loud rustling noise drew their attention back to the battlefield. Everyone could see Kuwagamon slowly moving. “Maybe we should get out of here,” Rumble said. The rest of the group murmered in agreement, and ran into the treeline. After a few more minutes of running, the group sat down on a cliff that overlooked the ocean. For a few moments, the only sounds that they could hear were that of the waves, and everyone catching their breath. That is, until Diamond Tiara broke the silence. “So, what were you asking about Silver?” she asked. Silver Spoon looked up and said, “Uh, how did they just transform like that? Am I really the only one who’s at least a little curious about that?” “Nah, I’m pretty curious about that too,” Apple Bloom replied before turning to Armadillomon. “What was that?” Armadillomon looked up at Apple Bloom. “Well, we digivolved from our In-Training forms to our Rookie forms.” “Digivolve?” “It’s a process that Digimon use to become more powerful,” said Palmon. “Since we are all made of data, we can download more data in order to make ourselves stronger.” “Data? You mean, like information?” Silver Spoon asked. “Yeah, sort of,” Palmon answered. “If we can download enough data, we can digivolve into our next form. In this case, Gigimon digivolved to Guilmon, and Upamon digivolved to Armadillomon.” Apple Bloom looked at Armadillomon. “So, you’re a different Digimon now?” Armadillomon took a moment to think about that. “Well...yes and no. I look different and sound different, I’m also a bit stronger than when I was Upamon. But I’m still the same Digimon that you helped when I was tryin’ to get those mangoes.” Apple Bloom smiled. “Well I don’t care what you look like. Ya saved our necks, again. I can’t thank you enough.” “Yeah,” Scootaloo said, looking up at Guilmon. “You really got us out of a jam there uh...Guilmon.” Guilmon smiled back. “I mean, did you all see how he blasted that thing? KABOOM! That was awesome! And how Armadillomon knocked him back into that tree?” “I’ll be honest,” Armadillomon said. “Part of me wanted to yell, ‘Timber!’” Apple Bloom gave a light chuckle and shook her head. “Hey uh, guys?” Rumble spoke up. “I really hate to be a buzzkill but...does anypony have any ideas on how we get home?”