//------------------------------// // A New Challenger Appears // Story: The Joke's on Equestria // by Grey Ghost //------------------------------// “The woodlums are back!” Isaac proclaimed, pointing at the timberwolves as they ran through town. “This is nuts,” Willy said, taking in the pandemonium. “I’ve never seen timberwolves running through a settlement unprovoked before.” “How the hell do you know what a timberwolf is?” Isaac questioned, looking up at him. “They were around back when I was fighting Lucemon back with the other warriors. AncientTroiamon liked the little guys.” “They only ever behaved when he was around...” Rico added, frowning. “Yeah, and they never liked me very much,” Willy said, rubbing the back of his head. “The things would whimper, growl, and snap at me whenever I was left alone with them.” “That's because you were a huge fire-dragon.” “Really?” Willy asked with an over-dramatic gasp. “And here I was thinking it was the cologne I was wearing.” “Willy, I will punch you.” “Guys, I hate to interrupt the bromance but…” Isaac interjected, waving a hand over to the rampaging timberwolves. “Right.” Rico nodded, putting Gagate down. “I feel disappointed that I won’t get to ride on your head more,” Gagate commented, slumping over slightly. “You will, I promise.” Rico smiled, patting his head. “For now, let’s just scare these things out of town,” Willy said, a tiny flame dancing between his fingertips. “We should avoid killing them if we can help it.” “Sounds good to me,” Lee agreed, tapping his fists together. “Those of us who have flame-based attacks should take the lead,” Willy offered. “We can lead them away from the town without ever actually hitting them.” “I can do that,” Isaac spoke, a wide grin on his face. “Let’s get the show on the road then,” Alex chirped, cracking his knuckles. “Ponies are a lot less likely to spend their money on magic shows if they’re too busy repairing the town.” “Try not to get reduced to eggs, will you?” Trixie asked, giving them a stern look. “You’re worrying too much Trix,” Alex waved off. “We’ve got this covered. You just worry about keeping Flint outta trouble.” “I will, you just go and do what you have to,” she told him, adjusting her hat. “And I better not be stuck raising two baby digimon when you get back.” “You know you’d love it,” Roger teased, flashing her a smile. “Not while I have to put a foal through school,” she said with a stern look. “So, you two are not to do anything reckless and stupid. Got it?” she asked, giving them a look that could make a soldier cry. “Of course,” Alex assured her, giving her a thumbs up. “Are we gonna spend all day yapping, or are we gonna go and stop the timberwolves?” Marty asked, watching as the wooden beasts ran through a flower shop. “Let’s do it!” Isaac grinned, starting to glow. “Veemon armor digivolve to! Flamedramon! The Fire of Courage!” “Spirit evolution!” Willy cried, his human spirit appearing in his hand. “Agunimon!” “GeoAgumon digivolve to! GeoGreymon!!” “Impmon digivolve to! Wizardmon!” “Gaomon digivolve to! Gaogamon!” “Guilmon digivolve to! Growlmon!” “Spirit evolution! Lobomon!” Rico cried his own spirit appearing in his hand as he transformed into Lobomon. The group finished changing, each of them rushing over to the rampaging timberwolves. “Hey ugly!” Isaac called out to one, throwing a fireball at it. The wolf jumped back, its body creaking as it landed in a crouch. Its glowing eyes regarded the flames on the ground, letting out a whimper. “Git!” he growled, tossing another one. The wolf took off, rushing out of the town as fast as it could. “Good work,” Willy complimented. “Now, Pyro Darts!” he shouted, shooting flames from his gauntlets at the feet of another wolf. It yelped, turning to look at them. “I’d run if I were you little guy. Your ancestors might remember me as AncientGreymon,” he said, fire forming around his gauntlets. It growled, baring its fangs at them. “Okay, it’s not responding to threats,” Willy said, the flames around his hands dying out as he scratched the side of his head. “Rico, you wanna try calming him down? You were always better with these things.” “Me?” Rico asked, raising his eyebrow. “Well, it’s either that or we build a time machine and bring AncientTroiamon over here,” Willy replied. “Come on, your name right now means Wolfmon. They’re wooden dogs, you’re a canine digimon, you’ve got plenty to relate to.” “That's like saying a human could talk down a gorilla.” “Uh, several of them have,” Isaac pointed out. “Gorillas are capable of communication.” “Alright, fine.” Rico rolled his eyes, moving closer to the wolves. They continued baring their fangs, but took no other actions as their eyes locked onto Rico. “Just relax.” he held his hands out, looking into its eyes. The wolf stopped baring its fangs, but it was still poised to attack or run away from Rico. “There we go...” he spoke in a soothing voice, stepping closer. The wolf sat down on its haunches, tilting its head as it regarded Rico. He smiled at it, reaching out to touch its muzzle. The wolf did nothing except sniff at his hand, looking into his eyes with its glowing orbs. “That’s a good boy...” He moved his hand up, scratching its ears. The wolf seemed to give him a flat look, letting out a low growl. “No?” he asked, frowning at it. The wolf stopped growling, though still gave him a flat look, like it was expecting something else. “What?” he asked, tilting his head. “Is it food?” he asked, offering a cupcake he had snatched back at the bakery. The wolf took one of its paws and laid it on its muzzle and shook its head. “You’re gonna have to help me out here.” He frowned, watching it closely. The wolf looked down, seeming to be in thought. It looked back up, seeming to have an idea. It started pointing at its stomach with a paw and moving it outward. “You ate something that doesn’t agree with you?” It shook its head, pointing at its stomach again and making a rounded out motion with its paw. “Are we really playing charades with a magic wooden wolf?” Lee asked, tilting his head. “Certainly seems that way,” Marty said with a nod. “Really wasn’t expecting that when I woke up today.” “What do you think it’s trying to say?” Roger asked, peering down at it quizzically. “Pretty sure it’s telling us it’s a girl,” Willy commented. “I mean, you saw how it reacted when Rico called it ‘good boy’.” “So... wait...” Isaac frowned. “You're telling me that magic wolves made out of wood have genders, but we don’t?” “Technically plants do have male and female parts,” Willy said. “Remember high school bio? Pistils and stamens. And pollen is essentially plant splooge.” “...You could have kept that to yourself...” Isaac mumbled, shaking his head. “Sorry about them, girl,” Rico apologized, patting the wolf’s head, “They’re idiots.” The wolf let out a small, creaking bark, perking up at being addressed correctly. Rico smiled, patting her head. “What got you and your friends so riled up, huh?” The wolf’s ears pinned to the side of its head and she reached out with a paw and tapped the symbol on his shoulder. His expression got serious, looking into her eyes again. “Something with a symbol like mine right?” The wolf nodded, letting out a small whimper. “Guys, we have another spirit.” “I’m guessing something or someone’s disturbing the wood spirit,” Willy stated. “That’s probably what’s got all these timberwolves so crazy.” “Can you take us there?” Rico asked, looking at the wolf. The wolf looked between Rico and Willy, looking terrified for a few moments before giving a shaky nod. The wolf started walking, looking back at them to start to follow. He gave her a reassuring smile, walking after her. “Where do you think the wood spirits are?” Isaac asked, keeping his eyes on the wolf as the rest of the group followed her. “I think the wolf is leading us there,” Lee responded. “Do you think we should go back to rookie while we follow her?” Alex asked. “We might want to conserve energy depending on what’s disturbing the spirits.” “You guys can, we’ll be fine.” Rico nodded his head. The others nodded, reverting to their rookie forms and keeping up with the two warriors. “Let’s hope we don’t have to digivolve again,” Roger said. “I never digivolved in the first place,” Jethro pointed out. “Yeah, what was up with that?” Isaac asked. “Feeling lazy all of a sudden?” “I don’t have fire attacks.” “Fair enough,” Alex said with a shrug. “Plus I bet you got to eat more cupcakes while we did the heavy lifting.” “Nah, I was playing with the kids.” Jethro shook his head. “Aww, I wish I hadn’t digivolved now,” Roger pouted. “I’d have liked playing with the kids too.” “They’ll still be there,” Jethro assured with a smile. “Yeah, we’ll be back to see little Flint in no time,” Alex added. “We did tell Trixie we wouldn’t come back to her as eggs, and we meant it.” “I dunno,” Willy started with a sly grin, “I bet they’d like to try a digi-omelette.” “Not cool, bro,” Roger said with a pout, his ears flattening against his head. “Now I can’t get the image of Flint pouring ketchup on me and stabbing me with a fork out of my head.” “The only thing inside of a digi-egg is fractal code, so don’t worry about it,” Isaac assured. “Yeah, the bigger worry is being turned into one of their playthings,” Alex said with a chuckle. “I can picture them using one of us as a basketball or something.” “I doubt Twilight would let that happen,” Marty pointed out. “Yeah, but then we’d have to worry about her nerding out over our baby forms and the tests she’d want to run on us,” Isaac said. “True.” Jethro nodded. “Do you think we’ll run into that Devimon and those shadow digimon when we get to the wood spirits?” Rico asked, turning to Willy. “I say it’s a possibility.” Willy nodded, frowning. “Then it’s a good thing we’ve got these guys with us,” Rico said with a smile. “Though if there’s another shadow mega there, they should probably take cover.” “Let’s hope there isn’t one...” “Better to be safe than sorry,” Rico said. “Right.” Willy nodded, keeping an eye out. The timberwolf continued to lead them, taking them deep into the Everfree Forest. Every once in a while it would stop to sniff at the ground before continuing on its path. “How much longer, girl?” Rico asked, gazing at the wolf. The wolf barked in response, pointing a paw deeper into the dark woods. “I wish you could tell us what we-” He dove out of the way as angry black vines lashed out at him from the underbrush. The wolf started barking erratically, snapping its jaws at the black vines in an attempt to protect Rico. “Leave the forest, you don’t belong here,” a commanding voice instructed. They looked up, seeing an armored deer glaring at them from the branches of a tree. “Look, I don’t know who you are,” Willy started, walking over to the tree where the deer was standing. “But my friend and I are two of the ten warriors of the elements. We’re here to make sure the wood spirits aren't in danger of falling into evil hands.” “And how am I supposed to believe you?” the deer asked, narrowing his eyes. “Like this,” Rico said. “Slide evolution! Kendogarurumon!” he cried, becoming a quadrupedal, armored wolf. “Does this help convince you?” “Beast!” the deer growled, sending more vines at them. The timber wolf growled, jumping in front of the vines. It looked up at the deer and started barking. Rico rolled his eyes and reverted to Strabimon. “You’re not completely wrong,” he said, holding both his spirits in his hands. “That was my beast spirit.” “Y-you are one of them!” the deer stuttered, his eyes going wide, “Please!” he begged, jumping out of the tree, “Forgive me!” “Like I’m gonna stay angry at a guy for trying to defend his home,” Rico said, putting his spirits away and patting the timberwolf on the head. “Just try not to shoot first and ask questions later next time. That's how you wind up in trouble.” “O-of course!” the deer nodded eagerly. “So, what’s your name?” Willy asked, looking the deer over. “You look kinda young to be defending your people.” “I’m not young!” the deer protested with a frown. “Considering Rico and I are thousands of years old, you're young to us,” Willy shrugged. “But, I’m sorry if I offended you. So, your name please?” “My name is Bramble,” the deer responded, relaxing. “My name’s Willy, and judging by how you acted when I brought up the wood spirits, I’m guessing you know where they are. Could you take us to them?” “O-of course!” Bramble nodded. “Please, follow me!” The group all followed their deer guide, the timberwolf sticking close to Rico’s side and watching Bramble closely. “Easy girl, I don’t think he’s gonna try anything else,” Rico assured her, patting her back. She let out a bark, looking up at him. “Yeah, I wasn’t a fan of those vines either. You can keep an eye on him if you want.” “Heh, Rico’s the dog whisperer,” Isaac joked, watching the pair. “Be nice, Isaac,” Jethro commented from atop his head. “I’ve heard talking to plants is supposed to help keep them healthy.” “Yeah, but this one is magic.” “Yeah, and she seems to be really smart,” Rico commented. “I’m gonna have to see if Daring and Twilight will let me keep her.” The wolf let out a happy bark, wagging her tail. “Seems she likes the idea,” he chuckled. “Guess I should give her a name. Hmm, how does Juniper sound to you?” She tilted her head, before nodding. “Alright, Juniper it is,” he said with a grin, scratching behind her ear. “Now we just have to convince Daring and Twilight to keep you.” “That’ll be easy,” Isaac assured him. “I dunno, Daring was pretty dead set against us getting a pet when I brought up the idea,” Willy chimed in. “That’s because you wanted a two story tall wolf for a pet,” Rico deadpanned. “Hey man, don’t tell me you didn’t want to teach it how to use a greatsword!” “Of course I wanted to teach it how to use a greatsword!” Rico affirmed. “But neither of us are able to build a doghouse big enough for the thing.” “What are they arguing about?” Lee asked, looking a little lost. “Something about giant wolves and wanting to teach them how to use a greatsword,” Jethro replied. “I’m pretty confused about it too.” “So... they want to reenact Dark Souls?” Marty asked. “Sounds about right,” Isaac said. “Who hasn't wanted to reenact a video game at some point in their life?” “We’re almost to the Heart of The Forest,” Bramble commented. “I’ve noticed that the forest has been getting thicker as we’ve been following you,” Willy commented, pushing a branch out of the way. “Is that an effect of the spirits?” “We deer care for the forest, we live in a village called Thicket,” Bramble explained. “Sounds like an interesting place,” Jethro said. “I bet your plant magic makes it easy to care for the forest.” Brambe nodded. “Usually. Only recently, the forest has been... acting up.” “We think something or someone is disrupting the wood spirits,” Rico explained. “Juniper and other timberwolves were running through Ponyville unprovoked.” “What exactly has been happening?” Marty asked, glancing at Bramble. “Our magic will occasionally cause things to grow out of control. My own vines have wrapped around me once as well. The forest seems to be out of sorts.” Bramble frowned, looking back at them. “Not to mention, the strange purple machines.” “Uhh, strange purple machines?” Rico asked. “What have they been doing?” “They are building...something...” “Do you think these machines are related to whatever’s disturbing the spirits?” Rico asked, looking between Willy and Bramble. “Guys...” Isaac frowned, a look of terror spreading across his face. “What is it, Isaac?” Willy asked, turning and looking at the Veemon. “I only know of one purple machine related to digimon...” Isaac gulped. “Gizumon.” “Wait...” Jethro frowned. “Aren’t those the ones that...?” “Yeah, they can delete digimon and make it so they can’t be reborn as an egg,” Isaac confirmed, gulping and trembling. “That doesn’t sound all that nice...” Roger frowned. “We’ve got to take care of these Gizumon before they can become a threat,” Willy said. “We might even be able to figure out who’s behind all this.” “Yeah, but, they could delete us!!” Isaac protested. “It’s better to attack them now while we have the element of surprise than to let them catch us off guard later on,” Rico argued. “Not to mention what they could do to other digimon if we let them run rampant.” “That's... a good point,” Isaac admitted, scratching his cheek. “Alright, spirits first, Gizumon second,” Willy said. “How much longer ‘til we get there?” “We’ve just arrived.” Bramble smiled, gesturing to the large wall in front of them, along with a pair of big red doors. “Wow, seems like a really nice place,” Marty commented, looking the doors up and down. “Think we could visit more often?” “Blackthorn, open the gates!” Bramble called up, tapping on the door. The red doors started creaking open, slowly revealing the deer settlement. Willy let out a whistle, taking in the sight. “This is an impressive place.” “Please, this way,” Bramble spoke, leading them into the city. They followed him, noticing the looks that the other deer were giving them. “Guess you guys don’t get a lot of visitors,” Jethro commented. “We mostly keep to ourselves,” Bramble agreed, walking up to what had to be a palace. “Looks like we’re meeting some more royalty today,” Willy said, turning to Rico. “Fun.” “Hey, it could be worse,” Willy started with a chuckle. “They could break something out of a cheesy fantasy game and say, ‘Ancient warriors, in order to fulfill our people’s prophecy, one of you must marry our princess’.” “I don’t have a sister,” Bramble stated. “You’re the prince of the deer?” Roger asked, his eyes widening slightly. Bramble smirked, nodding. “Huh, why didn’t you tell us that sooner?” Isaac asked, scratching his head. “It didn’t come up,” Bramble shrugged. “Father!” Bramble called out as they walked into the foyer. “My son,” the older buck greeted, looking down at them from the stairs. His coat was mostly white, with his back and neck being brown, a crown of branches resting between his horns. “Who are these strangers that you’ve brought before me?” “Two of them are of the ancient warriors, father,” Bramble explained, gesturing to Willy and Rico. “Your majesty,” Willy greeted, bowing at the king. “Forgive our intrusion, but we came here because we believe that the spirits of wood are being disturbed by outside forces. Also, we may know what the purple machines that have been spotted in your woods are.” “Of course they are,” the king spoke, walking down the stairs, “Several moons ago, a strange tear appeared in the forest, and a being calling himself Kurata came through.” “And what has Kurata done with the wood spirits?” Rico asked, frowning. “That's... even worse!!” Isaac nearly shouted, reaching up to grab his tendrils. “Isaac, why are you freaking out?” Roger asked, tilting his head. “Kurata’s the guy who made the damn Gizumon and tried to genocide all digimon!” Isaac explained, looking up at him. “Yeah, guess that explains the Gizumon now,” Lee said, crossing his arms over his chest. “We’ve gotta take him down along with all the Gizumon he’s making, otherwise he’ll come back and try to make them again.” “You don’t think it’s the Kurata, do you?” Marty asked, looking over at Isaac. “Who can say?” Jethro commented. “If the world we’re in is based off a show, then that does raise the possibility of other shows having their own world.” “The last time Kurata was seen, he was in the space between the human world and the digital world...” Isaac muttered, pacing around. “And you think he found a way out and into this world?” Willy asked. “How do you think he pulled that off?” “How the hell should I know?” Isaac asked, scowling at him. “Isaac, there's no need to snap at anyone,” Alex admonished. “We came here to deal with the Gizumon and to keep the spirits safe. Kurata being here just adds another step to the plan.” “I’d rather not be deleted,” Isaac grumbled, looking away. “Isaac, we’ve been over this,” Jethro said. “We need to stop Kurata now before he becomes an even bigger threat. Now, what would the real Digidestined do?” “Risk death...” Isaac admitted, taking in a deep breath. “You’re worrying too much,” Willy assured him. “We’ve all got each others’ backs. We can beat Kurata and anything else that tries to stop us,” he said, holding his fist out to Isaac. Isaac nodded, giving a smile, tapping his fist against Willy’s. “Alright Digidestined, let’s stop a mad scientist from killing all digimon!” Roger cheered, throwing a claw in the air. “We aren’t gonna... kill the guy, are we?” Jethro asked, frowning. “No way,” Alex said. “We’re just gonna knock him out and tie him up. Purple Smart can figure out what to do with him when we get back to Ponyville.” “Then let’s get going,” Isaac said, grinning. “Your majesty, can you or your son take us to the last known location of Kurata?” Rico asked, bowing. “I will take you myself,” the king nodded, “It is far too dangerous for Bramble.” “Father, I can take care of myself,” Bramble protested. “My nature magic has progressed greatly.” “Bramble, I need you to stay here, to watch over the kingdom in my absence,” the king spoke, putting a hoof on Bramble’s shoulder. “Very well, father,” Bramble replied with a sigh. “I shall honor your wishes and take care of the kingdom while you help the ancient warriors.” “Excellent.” The king smiled, turning to the digimon. “Let us make haste then!” “Lead the way, your majesty,” Willy said, falling in behind the older deer. “We’re ready to protect your woods.” “Please, you may call me Aspen,” the king responded, leading them out of the palace. “Thanks, Aspen,” Isaac said, following him out of the city. “We’re gonna beat Kurata before you can say Bambi!” “What?” Aspen asked, raising his eyebrow. “It’s a reference where we’re from. Bambi is the name of a deer,” Isaac explained. “Was this ‘Bambi’ a great warrior?” Aspen asked, the forest parting for him. “Uh... yeah,” Isaac replied. “He even defended his home against a giant forest fire one time.” “He sounds like someone I’d have liked to meet.” Aspen smirked. “Unfortunately Bambi has long since passed away,” Alex chimed in. “Only stories remain of him and his great deeds.” “Perhaps you could tell me of these stories? It will take us some time to reach our destination,” Aspen spoke, looking down at Alex. “Sure thing,” Alex replied with a smile as he cleared his throat. “To truly understand the legend that is Bambi, we must first start at his childhood…” Twilight and the girls were being led by Princesses Celestia and Luna through Canterlot Castle, though it was a part that none of them had ever been to before, not even Twilight. “I wish your companions could have been here with us, but,” Celestia spoke, looking back at them, “I suppose it could not be helped.” “Yeah, they went off to stop the crazy timberwolves and the next thing we know, they’re following one of them off into the woods,” Rainbow Dash explained. “There is something we should talk about first,” Luna spoke, “About that changeling they managed to capture.” “Did something happen with the changeling?” Twilight asked. “Did you two learn why it wanted the earth spirits?” “We did.” Celestia nodded. “The news is very unsettling.” “Did that big bug Chrysalis somehow hear about the spirits and want to use them to try and take over Canterlot again?” Rainbow Dash asked, letting out a snort. “Chrysalis has not been in control of the changelings for some time,” Celestia informed. “Wh-what happened to her?” Fluttershy asked, trembling. “The changeling informed us that a demonic clown by the name of Piedmon invaded their home,” Celestia began, her voice growing serious, “He easily dethroned Chrysalis and has enslaved the entire race.” “I can’t believe I’m about to say this but... we have to help her,” Twilight said, her wings twitching at her sides. “Once they’re back from finding out why the timberwolves are going crazy, we should head out and stop this Piedmon.” “The changeling also informed us that Piedmon was holding their young captive. If they disobey, he will have no qualms...” Luna frowned, letting the implication linger. “That’s awful,” Fluttershy spoke up, her voice rising. “Whoever this Piedmon is, he’s truly a no-good, awful person! Threatening babies and young children like that!” “We will have to proceed very carefully,” Celestia spoke, letting out a long sigh, “Any misstep could lead to the extinction of an entire race.” “We won’t let that happen,” Twilight said. “I don’t know how we’ll pull it off yet, but we will free the changelings from Piedmon’s grasp.” “I’ll hold you to that,” Celestia smiled, trying to lighten the mood. “Alright, now that we got that outta the way, why dontcha show us what’s in that there vault, Princess?” Applejack asked, sensing Celestia’s intention. “Of course,” Celestia agreed, slowing her pace as they reached their destination. In front of them was a huge vault, sealed with pair of horn locks. Celestia and Luna lowered their horns into the locks, sending a spark of magic out that caused the locks to glow. The vault doors responded to their magic, slowly opening to reveal what was inside. “Oh boy, this is so exciting!” Pinkie beamed. “What kind of digimon do you think are in there?” “I hope they're nice...” Fluttershy muttered, hanging her head low. The doors opened up to a dark room, lined with shelves. As they stepped inside, torches lining the walls roared to life, illuminating their path. “Wow, there’s a ton of shelves here,” Rainbow Dash commented, flapping her wings to get a better view of the upper shelves. “Please Lady Dash, stay close,” Luna implored, “This vault contains some of the most dangerous objects on the planet.” “Alright, whatever you say, Princess,” Rainbow replied, dropping down to a hover at the back of the group. “So, what are we doing in here again?” “Digieggs!” Pinkie exclaimed, pointing to a case on the other side of the room. Inside were at least a dozen eggs, each sporting an exotic look. “Ah feel sorry fer whatever had to lay those things,” Applejack commented, letting out a whistle at the sight of the eggs. “From what Isaac and his friends have told me, digieggs appear in a place called ‘Primary Village’,” Twilight explained, “They don’t actually get laid.” “Huh, these things are pretty cool looking,” Dash chimed in, tapping a hoof against the case. “Do you know if any of these will be able to fly?” “Not in the slightest,” Celestia chuckled, “But, I do plan on each of you taking an egg.” “Really?!” Pinkie cheered. “That’s great! I’m gonna teach my little digimon about how great parties are!” “Does this mean I get one?” Spike asked, looking up at Celestia. “I don’t see why not,” Celestia replied with a chuckle, patting his head with her wing. “Twilight told me that you took good care of that phoenix hatchling.” “Darn right I did!” Spike smirked, puffing his chest out. “Just keep in mind that a digimon is an even bigger responsibility than a phoenix chick,” Luna told him with a smile. “Now,” she said, opening the case with her magic, “who would like to pick their egg first?” “I will!” Pinkie threw her arm up, bouncing up and down. “Then go right ahead,” Celestia said with a chuckle at her antics. Pinkie nodded, hopping over to the case and studying the eggs intently. She pressed her ear against each of them and nodded to herself a few times. “I’ll pick this one!” she beamed, picking up an egg that had splotches of red coloring along it. She cradled it close to her chest, moving back to the group. “I’ll go next,” Dash said, going over to the case and rubbing her head as she looked over the eggs. “Eh, best not to think about this,” she said with a shrug as she covered her eyes with a hoof and blindly reached into the case and pulled out an egg. This one was orange with pink swirls scattered over its surface. “Huh, not bad,” she commented as she carefully held onto the egg and moved back over to the group. “I wanna go!” Spike waved his hand, looking up at them. “Go right ahead,” Twilight encouraged, nudging him toward the case. “Is there any kind of digimon that you’re hoping for?” “I dunno...” Spike frowned, too short to reach into it. “Uh, a little help?” Twilight smiled, using her magic to hold him up to the case. “Just pick the one that feels right!” Pinkie offered, rocking her egg like a baby. “That’s what I did!” Spike tapped his chin before grabbing one with an alternating red and white stripe pattern. “That’s a very interesting egg you chose, darling,” Rarity commented, walking over to the case. “Hmm, let’s see what I can find now,” she said, studying the eggs closely. “I suppose I could pick this one,” she concluded picking a white egg that had green splotches. “Ah like this one,” Applejack commented, grabbing an off white egg that sported green rings. “And I’ll take this one,” Twilight concluded, taking an egg that had orange rings. “I guess it’s my turn...” Fluttershy hovered over to the case, looking the eggs over. “I like this one,” she said with a soft smile, gently picking up a white egg with yellow splotches. “I guess that just leaves me...” Starlight muttered, gazing at the remaining eggs. She reached out, picking up an egg that was grey with red rings. “I like this one.” “Only four left,” Celestia muttered, looking at the case. “What do you think we should do about that?” Luna asked, regarding the case as well. “Take two for ourselves of course.” Celestia grinned. “And the other two?” Luna inquired, grinning as well. “Do you know of anyone Twilight?” Celestia asked, gazing at her student “Well, since you two are getting one, it would only be fair to offer Cadance an egg too,” Twilight offered. “I was gonna suggest Trixie and Flint,” Spike spoke up. “That could work,” Twilight admitted. “Alright Princesses, you two take your eggs and then I’ll let Trixie and Flint pick from the last two when we get back to Ponyville.” “Excellent.” Celestia smiled, swiping an orange and red egg. “And I shall take this one,” Luna chirped, picking up a dark blue egg with a light blue swirling pattern. “So... how long until these hatch?” Dash asked, looking up at Celestia. “I do not know, Isaac and the others would be better to ask,” the solar princess replied. “Though I’m sure that it will not be long.” “We should probably get back and see what they’re up to,” Twilight spoke, putting her egg in her saddlebag. “Ah’m sure they’re fine,” Applejack commented, putting her own egg away. “Ah mean, they’re dealin’ with timberwolves and a ton of ‘em have fire attacks. “They’re probably roastin’ marshmallows over a bonfire by now,” she joked with a chuckle. “You’re probably right,” Twilight agreed, smiling at her. “I hope they weren’t too rough with those poor timberwolves,” Fluttershy commented, carefully placing her egg in her saddlebag. “They seemed to be scared of something.” “All the more reason to get back,” Rarity spoke, heading toward the door. “We shall lead you back to the exit of the castle,” Celestia said with a nod, walking out of the vault. Hopefully Isaac and the others have dealt with this issue already.” “That almost hit me!” Isaac shouted, as he dove behind a log, barely avoiding a blast from a Gizumon. “So much for the element of surprise!” Willy boomed, reverting to Flamemon and taking cover behind a rock. He held out his hands, both his spirits appearing in them. “Fusion spirit evolution!” he called out, slamming his two spirits together and becoming surrounded by fractal code. “Aldamon!” “How are we supposed to get a hit in?” Lee asked, currently behind a large boulder. “We’ve gotta be quick!” Alex suggested. “The fastest one of us should run distraction while the rest of us focus our firepower on one of these things!” “Go then, who’s the fastest?” Marty asked, rolling out of the way of an attack. “I think I am,” Jethro commented. “I’ll be the distraction! Wormmon digivolve to! Stingmon!” he called out, buzzing into the air in front of one of the Gizumon. “Hey, look at all this data to delete!” He waved his arms, hovering in place. The mechanical spider turned to him, firing off a beam. Jet zipped to the side, narrowly avoiding the beam. “You’re gonna have to do better than that! Come on, give me your best shot!” It said nothing, unleashing yet another one. Jethro moved out of the way again, taking in a sharp breath as the beam passed right by his face. “Nope, still can’t hit me!” he taunted, looking back at Gizumon. “I’m starting to think you’re not even aiming for me!” “You realize it has no personality, right?” Isaac called, watching the spectacle. “I’m taunting it so I don’t scream like a little girl!” Jethro called back. “This is singlehandedly the most terrifying moment of my life!” “Right.” Isaac took a breath, steeling himself. “Veemon digivolve to! Ex-Veemon!” He let out a roared, firing a laser at the Gizumon. “Atomic Inferno!” Willy called out, his cannons flipping forward and firing red hot bursts at the Gizumon. The champion digimon didn’t last long, quickly shattering and reforming into a purple and green digiegg. “Let’s purify this thing,” Willy said, pulling out his d-tector. A ring of fractal code appeared around the egg and he ran the top of his d-tector along it, taking in the code. “Be cleansed by the fire,” he concluded, putting his d-tector away. “...I’m not sure why you did that...” Isaac commented, rubbing his head. “Part of it’s force of habit,” Willy commented. “And the other part is to just to see what’ll happen if we purify a Gizumon.” “It... you realize that it was a mindless program, right?” Isaac questioned. “Yeah, I guess you’re right.” Willy shrugged. “Oh well, not like we lost anything by doing that.” “What do we do with the egg?” Alex asked, lifting it up. “I dunno,” Jethro said with a shrug. “Maybe we should put it in that vault that Celestia mentioned before?” he suggested. “That's probably for the best,” Rico agreed. “You alright, Aspen?” “I am fine,” the king answered with a nod. “This is not the first time I have seen battle. Though, the three of you were rather impressive,” he said, looking between Jethro, Isaac and Willy. “Why, thank you.” Willy grinned, nearly striking a pose. “Heh, it was no big deal,” Isaac waved off, actually striking a pose. "Let’s just get going,” Rico sighed, nodding to Aspen. “Yes, we still have to deal with Kurata,” the king commented, leading them further into the forest. “It shouldn’t be much longer.” “Where exactly are the spirits kept?” Lee asked, cracking his knuckles. “They are kept within the oldest tree in this forest,” Aspen explained, the forest continuing to part before him. “It is said that the spirits are what have kept that tree alive for all these years. It is an important place for my kind.” “You realize we’ll have to take them, right?” Rico asked, eyeing him carefully. “I am aware,” Aspen nodded, “the legends said as much. The tree may die from such an action, but its passing will lead to new life within the forest. Such is the way of life.” “A very poetic way to look at it.” “One learns a certain outlook on the world after they have mastered nature magic,” Aspen replied with a chuckle. “I could teach you all more about it if you would like.” “I’m not exactly sure we use magic like you do, if at all,” Lee explained. “I might take you up on that,” Alex chimed in. “I was able to pick up teleportation after Twilight explained it. Maybe I can learn a bit of nature stuff too.” Aspen nodded before coming to a halt. Sounds of construction filled the air, seeming to enrage the monarch. “Seems like we’ve come to the right place,” Willy commented, taking a look at the area. “It’s even worse than I imagined,” he said with a frown. Before them was a small clearing, its center taken up by a huge tree. Various forms of Gizumon moved around it, some drilling into its bark, hooking up some hoses. “Kurata’s using the spirits as a power source,” Jethro commented with a look of realization. “Yeah but for what?” Alex asked, setting the egg down. “I say we don’t wait to find out,” Rico said, holding out both of his spirits in his hand. “I think we should engage in some industrial sabotage. What about you guys?” “I agree.” Lee smirked, punching his hand. “Alright Digidestined, digivolve and roll out!” Isaac beamed, throwing a fist in the air. “Gaomon digivolve to! Gaogamon!” “Guilmon digivolve to! Growlmon!” “Impmon digivolve to! Wizardmon!” “GeoAgumon digivolve to! GeoGreymon!” “Fusion spirit evolution! Beowolfmon!” “Aspen, you stay here with the egg,” Isaac instructed, spreading his wings. “I will make sure nothing happens to the egg,” Aspen assured with a nod. “And I have a request for all of you. Make Kurata pay for disrespecting my forest.” “You got it!” Isaac gave him a thumbs up before bursting into the clearing, unleashing a Vee-Laser. The Gizumon looked up at the disturbance, only for one of them to be reverted to an egg from the blast. Willy and Rico followed after him, Willy firing from his arm cannons and Rico firing missiles into the clearing at the Gizumon. The machine digimon immediately dropped their tasks, opening fire on the attacking group. The three of them dodged the oncoming attacks and returned fire, the clearing becoming obscured by explosions and shifting dirt. “You guys get the ultimates!” Isaac roared, rolling out of the way of a deletion beam. “Yeah, and you take the champions and rookies!” Rico called out, dodging a beam of his own. “Pyro Sphere!” Roger shouted, blasting a Gizumon in the face. “Electro Squall!” Alex called out, a bolt of lightning striking another Gizumon. “What is all that noise?” a male voice asked. Stepping out from the side of the tree, a man wearing a lab coat came into view, adjusting his glasses. “Atomic Inferno!” Willy cried out, sending a barrage of blasts against the Gizumon, one of them crashing into the ground near the man. He let out a yelp falling back on his ass. “D-damnit! I thought I had more time!” “Frozen Hunter!” Rico yelled, swinging his sword and sending out an aura of a wolf that ran through several Gizumon. “Get them!” Kurata hissed, sending his Gizumon forward. “Vee Laser!” Isaac shouted, attacking any and all rookie and champion Gizumon that he could see. Kurata growled, taking a few steps backward. “Mega Flame!” Marty called out, sending a giant fireball in the center of the clearing, the flames engulfing several Gizumon. “Damnit!” Kurata moved over to his machine, furiously working the controls, sending it into overdrive. “Oh no you don’t!” Alex called out, catching what the mad scientist was doing from the corner of his eye. “Electro Squall!” A bolt of lightning then crashed down on the controls, frying them. “You filthy creature!” Kurata growled, glaring at him hatefully. “I’m not filthy!” Alex shot back. “I shower once a week!” he concluded with a cheeky grin. Kurata just growled, pulling out his digivice. He used a DNA charge, causing all the weaker Gizumon to digivolve to Gizumon XT. “Oh, that’s not good,” Lee commented, dodging a slew of deletion beams. “Guys… how are we gonna deal with all these ultimates?!” he asked, looking between his friends with worry plastered all over his face. “Solar Wind Inferno!” Willy responded, hurling the solar energy at a group of them. “Cleansing Light!” Rico continued, firing missiles into a few more groups of the mindless digimon. “Hey jackass!” Isaac shouted, swooping down at Kurata. “Stay away from me, you filthy beast!” Kurata screamed, trying to run away from the descending Isaac. “Nope!” Isaac grinned, pinning him down. “You will not get away with laying hands on me!” Kurata cried, struggling against Isaac. “Gizumon squadron! Defend me from this dirty animal!” “Ah, crap.” Isaac jumped back into the sky, dodging more beams. “Cleansing Light!” Rico boomed, sending missiles right into the Gizumon that were preoccupied with Isaac. “Atomic Inferno!” Willy thundered, firing away at them as well. “Looks like this is a loss...” Kurata grumbled, pulling out a small sphere. “He’s not going to be happy about this...” “Going somewhere?” Alex asked, his staff poking the back of Kurata’s head. “We haven’t even gotten to the best part of the fight yet. You screaming and crying like a little girl while you tell us all about your plan.” “I think not.” Kurata activated the sphere, a rift appearing behind him. “But don’t worry, I’ll be back soon.” He smirked, taking a step backward. “No!” Alex cried, trying to stop Kurata, only for the portal to close just as he reached it. “Dammit! That snake got away!” “Worry about him later!” Rico chastised, flashing a Gizumon before it could delete him. “Alright, let’s do this!” Alex growled, clutching his staff tighter. He thrust it out towards a group of Gizumon, shouting, “Thunder Ball!” An orb of electricity shot out towards the Gizumon, exploding once it reached the center of them. “Spiral Blow!” Lee shouted, sending a whirlwind at them. The Gizumon seemed unphased by the champions’ attack, one of them backhanding Alex through several trees. “Ugh, what I wouldn’t give to be able to digivolve right now,” Alex groaned, putting a shaky hand to his head in an attempt to stop everything from spinning. The Gizumon leaped over to him, slamming its fist into his prone form. Alex let out a pained cry, clutching at his stomach. “Ya know… for a mindless digimon, you sure know how to toy with someone,” he gurgled, weakly looking up at the Gizumon. It wrapped its hand around him, lifting him up to eye level. Alex groaned, feeling the air being cut off from his lungs. His mind drifted back to what he had said to Trixie as his hands went limp at his sides. ‘Sorry Trix… but it looks like I’m not even coming back to you as an egg,’ he thought. “Pyro Sphere!” Roger screamed, his fireball slamming into Gizumon. He charged forward, ramming into it, and forcing it to drop Alex. Alex sputtered, clutching at his throat as he gulped in greedy lungfuls of air. “Thanks man,” he wheezed, standing up on shaky feet and picking up his staff. “No one hurts my friends!” Roger bellowed, snarling at the Gizumon. “Don’t go too crazy, dude,” Alex warned, putting a hand on his side. “We don’t want you to dark digivolve into something nasty.” “You guys okay?” Isaac asked, landing beside them and panting heavily. “Aside from me letting Kurata get away and nearly getting deleted? Peachy,” Alex replied, huffing a little. “Damn, that thing beat you up and took your lunch money didn’t it?” “And gave me a swirly to top it all off,” Alex grumbled, straightening his hat with a deep frown that went unnoticed. “We really need to get to ultimate...” Isaac groaned, slouching over. “And how do you propose we do that?” Alex asked. “Have you tried doing the fusion dance with Jethro?” he asked sarcastically. “Hahaha,” Isaac rolled his eyes, watching as Rico and Willy swept up the rest of the Gizumon. “Look at them go,” Alex said. “Makes me feel useless in comparison. All I could do was fry the controls of Kurata’s weird machine.” “They got a ton of experience over us.” Lee moved over to them, laying down. “Don’t worry guys, we’ll be able to do a bunch of cool stuff once we reach mega too,” Roger assured them. “I mean, I’ll be one of the Royal Knights!” “And I’ll be one of the demon lords...” Alex muttered, looking down. “Don’t worry about that Alex, you’ll still be you,” Roger assured. “Even if you do become a demon lord.” “Impmon proved otherwise,” Alex countered. “Yeah, but he was one of the good guys at the end,” Roger rebutted. “I know you won’t make a heel turn and become evil.” “Thanks for the vote of confidence.” Alex smiled wearily. “It’s what best friends are for,” Roger offered. “Besides, just imagine how Flint would feel if you turned evil.” “I don’t even want to imagine that.” Alex shuddered, shaking his head. “And that’s why I know you’ll keep being you,” Roger commented with a big smile. “You’ve got plenty of motivation.” “That's the last of em!” Willy called, reverting the final Gizumon into an egg. He devolved back to Flamemon, panting. Rico followed suit, reverting to Strabimon and catching his breath. “All that’s left is to get the spirits out of that tree,” he said, turning his head to look at the massive tree. “Then I’m up.” Willy cracked his fingers, moving up to it. He took in a deep breath, holding his hands out. “Wood into Flame.” Something inside the tree started to glow, slowly getting brighter. After a few moments, two figurines slipped out from the bark, hovering in front of Willy’s hand. He grabbed them, absorbing them into himself, shuddering. “Alright, now I just need the ice and wind spirits,” he said, looking down at his hands. “Well, now that that’s done, let’s get back to Aspen and start getting these digieggs taken care of,” Isaac said, grabbing an armful of the eggs. “These go right to the vault,” Lee commented, looking at them. “Yeah, I really don’t want these things to hatch again,” Alex commented, picking up eggs as well. “At least none of us got hit,” Marty added, reverting to GeoAgumon. “Yeah, we really got lucky there,” Rico commented. “I don’t want to think about what would’ve happened if one of us had been deleted.” “None of us do,” Willy sighed, rubbing his head. “Come on guys, we can’t think about depressing stuff like that,” Roger chimed in. “We won, let’s just go home and give Celestia these eggs.” They shared a nod, heading back toward Aspen. “I wasn’t expecting to see those ‘digidestined’ so soon,” Kurata explained, wiping his glasses, “I had hoped to finish up my work smoothly, but.” he reached into his pocket, pulling out a glowing cube. “I managed to get it done.” Kurata grinned. “This should make him happy enough. My mission wasn’t a complete failure after all.” “They are quite troublesome,” Piedmon agreed, looking down at Kurata with barely restrained contempt. “Now, do be a good human and give me that.” “As if I’d give something so precious to a creature like you,” Kurata spat, holding the cube close to his chest. “You’ll just muck things up like you have been. The Light and Fire warriors were allowed to awaken because of you.” “You are trying my patience, little man,” Piedmon growled, leaning forward, “Give me that data!” “And what do you plan on doing with my data?” Kurata asked, an unamused look on his face. “I doubt an unsophisticated mind such as yours could even begin to comprehend my work.” “I twisted the very digital world to my whims!” Piedmon snarled, rising to his feet. “Do not treat me like a simpleton!” “A program altering the nature of another program is nothing impressive,” Kurata scoffed. “But I suppose I can stop poking a sleeping bear as it were. We are supposed to share a goal after all.” Piedmon glared him at before a smirk spread across his face. “I’ll take that,” Simon spoke, reaching around from behind Kurata and stealing the cube away. “Damn you!” Kurata growled, watching Simon drop the cube in Piedmon’s hand. “You will not get away with that you impudent little worm!” “Just keep barking like the little dog you are,” Piedmon chuckled, looking at Simon. “Excellent work. I assume you were successful?” “Getting the metal spirits was a piece of cake with those digi-dorks being distracted by windbag over there,” Simon replied with a grin, a figurine appearing in his hand. “Even if I did have to rough up a few troublesome taurs that tried to keep these from me.” “Good, give them to me,” Piedmon instructed, holding his hand out. Simon complied, putting the spirits in the dark master’s hand. “Thank you.” Piedmon nodded. He set the cube down, pulling out a damaged Seraphimon helmet. “Now, let's make us a minion.” Piedmon grinned, pushing the spirits into the helmet, then adding the data. “You took my data to do that?!” Kurata screeched, fuming. “Do be quiet,” Piedmon snorted, glaring at him. “At least explain what you are trying to make over there,” Kurata requested, taking a calming breath. “I am turning one of those warriors to our side, what does it look like?” “I understood that,” Kurata replied with an edge to his voice. “I meant what are you trying to turn it into? The Seraphimon helmet makes things rather interesting. “I think he’s making a ShadowSeraphimon,” Simon spoke, watching closely. “That’s exactly right!” Piedmon cheered with a manic grin. “I do so enjoy turning a symbol of justice on its head and making it do my bidding.” Kurata just pouted like a petulant child, crossing his arms. The helmet started to glow, Piedmon’s grin widening as he tossed it away as a figure started to form. The digimon was a green and purple, twisted version of Seraphimon with several bat-like wings. “Lord Piedmon,” he spoke, kneeling down before him. “ShadowSeraphimon,” Piedmon said. “What is your purpose?” he asked, a knowing grin on his face as he leaned back on his throne. “To serve you, my lord,” ShadowSeraphimon responded. “Good, and I expect you to search for the other spirits. I don’t want even one more winding up in those brats’ hands again. Am I understood?” “Of course, master.” He nodded, standing up. “Simon, you are to go with ShadowSeraphimon and search for another set of spirits,” Piedmon ordered. “And you will be following his orders. Do I make myself clear?” “Of course.” Simon nodded, looking at the new digimon. “I will begin my search at once, master,” ShadowSeraphimon said, turning to leave. “Come Simon, we cannot have master waiting too long.” Simon followed, staying silent. “This should make things go so much smoother,” Piedmon commented, turning to smile down at Kurata. “Do be sure to bring me more data like that the next time you visit. I could use more competent minions like ShadowSeraphimon.” “I believe this concludes our business,” Kurata replied, starting to walk away. “Don’t be a stranger.” Piedmon waved. “And try not to let those digimon brats trounce you so thoroughly the next time you run into them.” “You should take your own advice,” Kurata shot back, walking out of the throne room “Oh, those little digimon won’t be so lucky the next time they cross my path,” Piedmon said to himself. “Things are going to pick up around here. Now, where’s a good changeling for me to entertain myself with?” he asked, rubbing his hands together.