//------------------------------// // Chapter Four: True Beauty // Story: Digital Harmony // by Fallen Prime //------------------------------// “Ugh... are we there yet?” Palmon let out a groan as she stared up at the blue skies overhead, eyes narrowed to battle back the light from the sun. The scorching, merciless, evil sun that was cooking her alive. “Gonna burst into flames at this rate...” “Don’t worry, dear, we’re almost there,” Rarity’s voice chimed in, though it wasn’t as confident as it could be. She stammered a bit as she looked to Palmon resting on her back, shuddering as she felt vines coiling around her belly. Those vines. Like creeping worms ready to stick themselves into anything warm and wet and drag out as many nutrients as possible. Rarity’s eye twitched as she looked on ahead, walking behind the rest of the group as she shivered lightly again. Oh, thank goodness nopony can see me like this. Rarity kept a casual pace all the same, offering a swift, confident smile whenever one of her friends looked back to see if she was keeping up. She couldn’t stand the feeling of Palmon’s tendrils against her flesh, and she sincerely hoped her screaming stayed internal. Her mouth scrunched up to keep one particularly loud internal screech inside as the tendrils started to poke along her belly. Don’t panic her don’t panic her don’t panic it don’t scare the tentacles don’t don’t don’t. Palmon smiled lightly from her fluffy perch, finally taking hold of Rarity fully and keeping herself steady on the bed. She closed her eyes and prepped for a nap before a certain flyer’s voice caught her attention, forcing her smile right into a frown. “Darn it...” “There you are, Rainbow!” Twilight sighed. “What did you see?” “No shade,” Rainbow lamented, Ryudamon sitting on her back and holding onto her neck in a death grip, more than a little pale from just how fast they were flying around. “Just a bunch of sand and water.” Applejack raised her brow. “We’re walkin’ into a beach? From a canyon?” She looked to Labramon at her side, raising an eyebrow as the Digimon shrugged lightly. “Just how the world is, Applejack.” Labramon turned back to the path, ears flicking lightly. “Did you say water?” Palmon looked up from her perch, unable to see beyond the sea of purple in front of her eyes. “Actual fresh water?” “Well, uh, it’s the sea. I... guess?” Rainbow rubbed the back of her neck, looking off to the side in thought as she hovered in place. “Well, it’s water, it should be good for you if you purify it first.” “I can handle that, so let’s get moving.” Twilight nodded and carried on at the helm of the group, spying the end of the canyon a good distance away. “Which way once we’re out of the canyon?” “Literally right in front of you. This world’s weird.” Rainbow shook her head and flapped along beside Twilight, throwing her hooves out in frustration. “What kind of weather would carve out a mountain right next to a beach? Why’s the mountain even here?” “I don’t know, Rainbow, but if it’s anything like the forest being next to a desert, all I can assume is that the weather here is even stranger than the Everfree’s.” Twilight shook her head a bit, frowning. “We really should stock up on water while we’re there, but the purifying might take a while depending on what’s there.” “Why?” Rainbow furrowed her brow lightly, AJ looking over to Twilight along with Rainbow. “Can’t you just use your magic and... well, build something?” “If I used some other fields of magic, sure, but I’m not some magi-architect. I’m not well-versed in solid forms of magic, so I can’t just conjure a purifier out of nothing.” Twilight rolled her eyes at Rainbow’s loud groan, the pegasus flipping upside down and flying along like that. “Ugh, seriously? Your talent’s magic, Twilight, you should know this stuff!” Rainbow scoffed, closing her eyes and frowning. “Just like how you know how to make rainbow-colored lightning, Ms. ‘Perfect Flyer’?” AJ raised her eyebrow at the pegasus before reaching over and giving her tail a tug, flipping her back over. “Just ‘cause her talent’s magic, doesn’t mean she suddenly knows everything about everything. Give ‘er a break.” “Hey, I know everything about flying, and you know everything about apples!” Rainbow pouted at her friend, folding her forelegs. “Why can’t Twilight know everything about magic?” Applejack just blinked at her daft friend, deadpanning at her, with her voice just as flat as her gaze. “Sugarcube, you don’t even want me to start debunkin’ that.” “Oh yeah?” Rainbow deadpanned right back. “I guess studying weather for five years in school is nowhere neeeear as complex as magic, huh?” And with that, Twilight launched off into one of the many fields she could be given a Ph.D in: lectures. “Magic is the study of energy composed of numerous compounds generated by biological organs and components in the body, which then mix together with alicorn, a golden ichor-like substance in the horn which constitutes an exothermic reaction and the creation of manipulatable energy through the thought processes of the brain. Using formulaic components in scrolls, books, and the mind itself, one is able to create numerous effects through the modification of materials, energy, and DNA. So yes, magic is extremely complex.” DORUmon just stared blankly at his partner. “What?” Rainbow stared just as blankly at Twilight, furrowing her brow. “Huh?” Applejack just rolled her eyes and sighed a bit, shaking her head. “What? It ain’t that hard to understand.” “Shut up, AJ, you got none of that!” AJ smirked, raising her eyebrow as she saw a challenge. “Oh? Well lemme educate ya. Exothermic, means a reaction creates heat by releasin’ energy. Alicorn’s the liquid stuff inside a unicorn’s horn.” She pointed at Twilight’s horn as an example, then back at Rarity’s horn, causing Rainbow to see her fashionista pal shuddering up a storm and turning blue from stress. “Formulas are equations, like two plus two. Energy is the stuff that makes up the world, cooled down into matter. See?” Rainbow stared at AJ, eye twitching lightly, before she scoffed and looked off to the side, still flying backwards. “...Egghead.” “Jus’ because I know more than you, doesn’t mean I spend all day lookin’ in books, hun.” AJ shook her head, smiling. “Just means I paid more attention in class.” “Oh yeah? Tell me the minimum amount of mass contained in a rain cloud before it becomes a thundercloud then.” Rainbow smiled widely as AJ’s own smirk faded into a confused expression, and she looked off to the side, about to open her mouth for an answer. “Trick question!” A muffled voice shouted, Applejack, Twilight and Rainbow taking a moment to look around before Pinkie burst out of the ground beside AJ, Labramon yelping as he was launched into the air and onto Applejack’s back. Gaomon was clinging onto her pink tail like his final lifeline, wide-eyed in shock at just how much of a tunnel Pinkie dug out underground. “Thunderclouds are thunderclouds because they have a high electric charge in them, which creates lightning! That doesn’t have any correlation towards the weight or amount of water inside the cloud, it just needs lots of static electricity!” She smiled as Rainbow’s jaw dropped at the answer, before she reached into her mane after a moment of thought. “Oh, and I found this.” With a good pull, she revealed a gold coin, tossing it over to Rainbow. The coin bounced off Rainbow’s forehead before she regained her senses, snatching it out of the air with her hoof, looking over it curiously. “Uh... thanks?” “No problem!” With a quick nod, Pinkie dove back into the ground, Gaomon shouting at her as he was tugged back under from his place in her tail. Poor guy barely got a word out before they were six feet under again. Labramon looked down at the ground from his new position, utterly dumbfounded. “That’s literally rock.” “That’s... literally Pinkie, partner.” AJ sighed heavily, shaking her head. “Girl’s gonna get her head smashed harder ‘n I can hit a tree if she keeps diggin’ like that.” Twilight just stared right on ahead, eyes narrowing hard as she forced her brain to not consider just how Pinkie did all that. Don’t think about it, Twilight, it’ll only give you a migraine. Just like all the other stuff Pinkie does... Still, the group was nearing the end of the canyon, the scent of salty sea air reaching their nostrils and bringing pleasant sighs of relief from some of the Digimon, Terriermon in particular. “Finally, water! Could use a swim.” The moment the salty smell hit Rarity’s nose, her mind went into overdrive in a way she hadn’t once experienced in this place. The unorthodox juxtaposition of canyon and beach suddenly clicked with her, and the gradual transition from hard stone to grainy sand beneath her hooves only compounded it further. Nopony else can experience such wonders... just imagine how this could translate into a new fashion design! The images assaulted her in rapid succession. Soft, pale tans with fringes of aqua green. Sharp oranges and blues in stark contrast with each other. Long lace, ribbons, a flowing tail, a wavy sea design as natural ripples along the dress. The hard orange at the front, like the tough defenses of a mare’s heart, with the sea flowing off her back— Oh dear, I’m making dresses, not ‘that’ kind of equipment... inspiring all the same, though, and this place is perfect! The metaphor practically writes itself! The defenses of the heart, as strong and true as a canyon’s walls, but they always bear way to the swaying, open seas of love and affection... yes, I’ve got it! And just as the first few designs entered her head, she was consumed as her body made its way to the edge of the water. The questions of her friends and their partners fell on deaf ears as she took in the sparkling blue waters of the sea, breathed deep of its fresh, salty air, hooves digging lightly into the sand below as she sat down. Her eyes lost their focus as she found herself back at her desk, already drawing up the numerous designs she could drag away from this experience, this one, unique vista of Nature’s creation. Her pencil drew swiftly, creating long, flowing designs, gems along the chest and upper back, the canyon’s walls standing tall and true, denying all ponies undetermined or of untrue heart. Beyond the walls of ruby and polished sardonyx came the gentle, soft blues of the sea, flowing off the back of her model like a tidal wave. She grinned brightly as the rolling waves came in layers of silken cloth, like the breaks of whitewash on a white beach, against the walls of the canyon. She could feel the waves under her as she closed her eyes. She could really feel the waves. ...Wait a moment. She blinked a few times, soon frowning as she looked down at her chair in her mind, and found it to be made of sand. Creeping, rolling, squirming sand. Oh. She followed the squirming sand for only a few inches before the material was pushed out of the way, revealing green tendrils ending in purple tips. She could hear groaning as well, the moans of effort as someone tried to pull very hard at something. Oh... She slowly looked to her left to see Palmon, tendrils buried into the sand, face contorted with effort as she tried to drag something out of the ground. Some of her tendrils had reached out into the salt water, though swiftly retreated as the salt burned her. “Nnnngh, c’mon, there’s gotta be something in all this dirt! I haven’t eaten in so long!” Barely a thought passed through Rarity’s mind as her internal screaming started to rise in her head, ears slowly splaying back and eyes widening at the sight, before the internal screaming suddenly became external. She jumped to her hooves and launched a good ten feet into the air, squealing all the while as she flipped end over end, before crashing to the beach and scrambling away from Palmon. The moment she rose back to her hooves, she let out a frustrated growl. “That’s it! This is the final, ultimate, and very last straw!” “Rarity, are you—” Fluttershy started, the hoof she extended in comfort recoiling as the other mare growled again. “I am through with this world!” she bellowed to no one in particular. “For perhaps three seconds of my time here, so far and few in between, I have felt myself slip into a semi-pleasant state of mind where I could ponder and think, only to have myself ripped out by another bizarre creation of this world! I had something special, something I was so certain I could bring back with me! And this vista, this beach, was perhaps my strongest inspiration yet! I was back home, in my office, and all of a sudden the sand starts creeping under me like it's infested with the cadaverous worms of the damned!” Her friends just stared at the ranting unicorn, flabbergasted almost beyond words. “She really likes making a scene,” Rainbow offered, earning a few split-second scowls before they all turned back to Rarity. “I will be part of these otherworldly shenanigans no longer!” she screamed again, her gaze slowly starting to focus on one target in particular. "And I cannot stand one more waking, Celestia-forsaken moment with this tendril-bearing, petal-headed abomination!" The others could only gasp. Palmon, however, couldn’t even manage that. Her partner’s glare felt like a thousand tiny daggers piercing right through her, concentrated right on her heart. Eventually, she found her voice again, though it wavered. “R-Rarity... I—” “Go away!” Rarity shrieked, at the very top of her lungs. The words struck her like a bolt of searing lightning, leaving her stunned and shocked to her very core. She felt frozen under Rarity’s cold glare, the only expression of her betrayal being the tears streaming down her face. A small whimper left her as she stood there, looking on at her partner as someone raced over to her side, butterscotch-colored forelegs wrapping around her, a typically soft voice shouting above her head and sending Rarity onto her rear. It was hard to hear anything for Palmon, the words from Rarity still ringing in her ears like a recent bomb blast. The white mare spared one look at her before gritting her teeth and lighting up her horn, soon vanishing in a blast of light, another suddenly going off. Rarity... “Brilliant!” Trixie declared. “The white one and her plant partner are parting ways!” “For Yggdrasill’s sake, will you give it a rest!” Trixie’s voice bounced off the walls of the tight cavern as she bounced with joy, watching Rarity teleport away from the group, followed by Twilight. She grinned, cackling at the sight, Impmon rubbing his ears as Datamon rubbed his own. “Honestly, Miss Trixie, you’re going to break my ears with such shrill exclamations!” “Ah, c’mon, trashcan,” Impmon taunted, elbowing him in the rough area of his ribs. “Gotta get excited when we get a leg up on the competition!” “It’s your competition,” Datamon corrected. “I have no stake in the outcome of your war game.” “You will,” Trixie asserted, “once Trixie has her victory. You will be compensated handsomely for your collaboration. It’s the least I can do, I suppose, for your services.” “I should hope so, I’m giving you a lot of resources.” Datamon scoffed, folding his arms as he watched the screen. “And a lot of channels,” Impmon interjected, feasting on some popcorn while watching a cluster of monitors. There were about five different channels on the monitors all playing at once, and each one contained a soap opera that was even worse than the last. “But enough of that,” Trixie asserted. “The group is weakening. Now is our time to strike!” “And how would you suggest doing that, O Great And Powerful Trixie?” Datamon looked over to the mare, brow lowered and eyes half-closed, a firm deadpan aimed at the side of her head. Trixie smirked, looking back to her snarking ally with a raise of her brow. “How else? The last use of your virus worked wonders, and you’ve had some time to work on it. Perhaps another test run is in order?” Datamon huffed a bit, his arms crossing again. “It’s about time you asked me to use the thing you made me work on.” “Sweet!” Impmon darted over to his partner, his soaps seemingly forgotten. “Who are we gonna hit?” “It depends on who is around their area,” Trixie replied. “Datamon, what other Digimon are near that beach?” “Let’s find out,” the robot answered, cracking his knuckles before returning to the console. His fingers rapped on the keyboard until a new visual appeared on the main screen. The shot was underwater, beneath the surface of the sea, and a fair quantity of creatures were swimming around in it. Trixie stared at the screen, somewhat dumbfounded. “You have cameras underwater.” Datamon just groaned in lieu of offering any meaningful reply. Suddenly, a larger figure on the screen caught the mare’s attention. A sizable yellow turtle with a green shell drifted idly through the camera’s view, the sunlight glistening on its metallic, bladed front flippers. It looked rather lax and docile, but perhaps, if her plan was a success... “That one,” Trixie declared, pointing directly at it. “The metal turtle. That one will be our guinea pig.” “Perfect!” Impmon announced, leaping on top of the console. “Archelomon’s gonna wreck ‘em!” “Assuming Trixie and I can work our respective magic,” Datamon reminded him. “And I assume.” Without another word, Trixie lit up her horn with an aura of pink magic as Datamon typed furiously away at his keyboard. She did not know she could do that. Rarity shakily stood a few hundred yards from her previous position, just far enough away to be out of her friends’ immediate view. She had no idea she had it in her to teleport, but it felt as if her body was completely drained of magic after doing so, not used to anything more extensive than her gem-tracking spell. Twilight must truly be gifted to have this ability... The strength promptly left her body, and she started to collapse. She briefly picked up the fluttering of wings before she fell against another form, saving her from a messy drop into the sand below. “Rarity! Are you alright?” Speak of the devil... She started to right herself against Twilight’s side, aided by the wing draping itself over her. “Just fine, dear. Just... exhausted, really.” “I can see that.” Twilight grunted as she slipped her wing under Rarity’s belly and pushed her upright, grimacing under her friend’s weight against her still-weak appendage. She guided the white unicorn over to a nearby boulder and sat her down there, settling her against it with her side so she’d stay upright. She then took a deep breath and rubbed the bridge of her nose, sitting down. “Alright... I’ve got two questions. One before the other.” Rarity quietly nodded, looking over to the Princess. Twilight closed her eyes tightly, trying to sort the words out in her head as she rubbed her face with her hooves. Finally, she opened her eyes and gestured openly to her friend, frowning. “...Why’d you do that?” “You’re going to have to clarify, Twilight...” “Why did you rip into Palmon like that?” Twilight’s brow furrowed as she set her hooves in the sand, trying to keep her voice level. “Why did you say all those things?” “...Panic, I suppose. I panicked, said one thing, then it all just rolled out.” Rarity looked down at the sand, more unable to lift her head due to weakness than any kind of regret. There was a growing pit in her stomach, however, as she felt Twilight’s glare get more intense. “Panic? Rainbow panics and lets off a string of swear words. Fluttershy panics and finds somewhere to hide. Pinkie panics and her mane straightens out. You panic and straight up emotionally destroy someone? What’s with that?” Twilight’s voice rose as her eyes widened, gesturing off towards the group in the distance. “It’s like you weren’t even thinking!” Rarity closed her eyes, sighing quietly. “I wasn’t.” “Why weren’t you!? This isn’t like you, Rarity!” Twilight shouted, gritting her teeth as she leered at Rarity, the unicorn flinching under the shout. “It isn’t like me to be around such... writhing life!” Rarity raised her voice as much as she could, which was essentially a little louder than her regular speaking voice. She coughed as a throb of pain raced through her head, a hoof raising and rubbing just under her horn. “It’s, s-she isn’t...” “I don’t care what she is or isn’t! She’s your friend, your partner! You don’t say any of that to a stranger on the street, let alone someone you work beside!” Twilight shouted back, Rarity curling slightly as she got to her hooves, wings splaying out. “We’ve been together for a year, supporting friendship all around Ponyville and Equestria. I thought you were better than this...” Rarity winced at the words, her frown deepening as she opened her eyes and stared at the ground. Her strength was slowly coming back, and she took a breath, raising her head to face Twilight. She couldn’t muster any words, simply wearing her regret on her sleeve as she pushed away from the rock she leaned on, and shakily walked over to Twilight. “Twilight...” “No... just, let’s go back. Everyone’s worried.” Twilight sighed, standing and crossing the gap between her and Rarity. She moved to the unicorn’s side and draped a wing over her back, and as her horn lit up, Rarity closed her eyes. This won’t be easy... With a bright flash of light, Twilight and Rarity vanished from sight, warping back towards the beach, and the wounded Palmon, still kneeling in the sand in shock. The same scene that Rarity returned to, looking on at Palmon as she stared out at the sea, hands in her lap and a quiet, pained look on her face. She wasn’t facing Rarity directly, but the unicorn didn’t need to see her expression clearly to know what must have been going through her mind right now. She was the only one among the friends she’d left behind that hadn’t started running to meet with her. Palmon did come running, however, when something massive leapt out of the water and straight for her partner, snapping her out of her daze. “Rarity!” Rarity’s scream was cut short as a turtle, a gigantic one at that, crashed into the sand in front of her, great blades scything forwards towards her. Twilight jumped to action, snatching Rarity up and lifting her out of the way of the knives as they carved deep trenches through the sand as she flew up and back away. Palmon gulped as she looked on at the beast, a tremendous roar quaking the air around it as it turned and thrashed again with the two great knives that acted as its fore-fins, slashing up the area around it. Glowing pink occupied its eyes, the massive blades being more than enough warning for everyone to back far, far away from it. “What the heck is that thing!?” Rainbow shrieked, getting up above the turtle to avoid its blades. “I dunno, sugarcube! Maybe Tank took some self-defense lessons?!” AJ shouted back, jumping out of the way of a wild slash from the turtle as it started to ascertain who was on its beach. “Bad time for jokes, AJ!” Rainbow shouted, gritting her teeth as she tried to get a good angle of attack on it. Terriermon scoffed from his perch on Fluttershy’s head, the pegasus currently cowering behind a nearby boulder within earshot of the battle. “Psh! Always a time for jokes! Hey, Fluttershy!” He looked down at his partner, stomping on her mane lightly. “Why’re we back here?!” Fluttershy simply ignored the very bunny-like stomps on her head, looking up at her partner. “Um... it’s a big, green turtle with knives for forefins, glowing pink eyes, and looks like it’s trying to chop us up into little pieces...?” “Yeah, so why’re we back here? We can take it on!” Terriermon folded his arms, furrowing his brow at Fluttershy. “C’mon! Just get up above it, and it can’t hit you!” “W-Why do we have to fight, though? The last time you fought, you really hurt your brother!” Fluttershy creased her brow in worry as she looked at Terriermon, seeing him roll his eyes and groan. He eventually just looked up at the sky at Rainbow Dash while Twilight set Rarity down on the sand away from the battle. “Hey, Rainbow!” “What?!” Rainbow shouted back, looking towards the boulder. She had to squint her eyes to see Fluttershy’s mane slightly poking out from the side of it, though. “And why’re you all the way over there?!” Terriermon latched onto the boulder and scrambled up it, grunting with the effort as he went. He soon reached the top, waving to the blue pegasus as AJ and Labramon carried on their deadly dance with the giant turtle Digimon. “Fluttershy’s too scared! Gimme a ride, would ya?!” Better than circling around it for some opening... Rainbow nodded and tore through the air to the boulder, snatching Terriermon up in her hooves in a fly-by and launching back into the sky in a loop. She rolled and tossed Terriermon up onto her back, who latched onto her mane and settled on the back of her neck as she moved back towards the giant turtle. “Any idea who that is?!” “You’re the one with the know-it-all Digivice! Check it!” Terriermon pointed down towards the device on Rainbow’s hoof, the pegasus finally taking notice of it. “Oh, right.” Rainbow raised it, checking the screen as she spoke to it. “Digivice-thing, what is that?” “Archelomon,” the device responded. “Data-type Reptile Digimon. Armor level. A slow and laid-back creature with a nearly impenetrable shell. Signature move is Ocean Streamer.” Rainbow scoffed at her Digivice as she made another circling pass. “Laid-back, my flank! It leapt out and attacked us!” “Don’t worry about it, we’ll send ‘em packing!” Terriermon smiled as he leaned over, patting Rainbow on the neck. “Alright, so... how to attack him?” The scene below was a bit more gruesome than Rainbow would’ve enjoyed. Applejack and Labramon were doing all they could to jump and dodge out of the way of Archelomon’s slashing knives and snapping jaws, the others staying as far back as they could. Pinkie Pie had thrown on a pair of pom poms to try and cheer her friend on, probably thinking excitement could restore stamina. Terriermon hummed, trying to think of a way to attack it. “Impenetrable shell, so that means we’ll just have to aim for whatever’s exposed.” “Got a pretty obvious target down there. Why not hit ‘em on the head?” Terriermon patted Rainbow on the head, smiling. “Just go down and smash him with yours!” “Oy.” Rainbow frowned, leering up at Terriermon before looking back down at the giant turtle on the beach. “Well, he’s distracted... alright, pup, hold on tight!” “Hey! I’m a bunny, not a p-aah!” Terriermon was suddenly pulled down with Rainbow as she blasted off towards the tortoise, the bunny Digimon hanging on for dear life to her head. She tore through the air and crossed the gap in seconds, before slamming right down on Archelomon’s exposed head with her hooves. His neck was barely able to fight back against the force, his head slamming down into the beach and scattering sand all over from the impact. With a graceful flip, Rainbow sprang off his head and landed on the beach in front of him, laughing triumphantly. “That worked pretty well!” She grinned, chuckling as her enemy actually stayed motionless. Archelomon didn’t offer anything by way of retaliation, simply glaring up at his assailant. “Yeah, if yer plan was to make him mad!” Applejack retorted. The way Archelomon raised his head back up and roared killed Rainbow’s grin as she backed off, grimacing. “Ahhh, well crud. Anyone got any ideas?!” Terriermon blinked before bopping Rainbow on the head, deadpanning down at her. “I thought you were the fighter! Is that seriously the only plan you had?!” “It works first time usually!” Rainbow shouted back before blasting off into the air again, a knife scything through the air she occupied, and she took up another circling flight around Archelomon. “Just let me think!” “Gah...” Terriermon rose up on Rainbow’s head and lifted his paws to his mouth, shouting at the boulder Fluttershy was hiding behind. “Fluttershy! Evolve me again!” Fluttershy peeked out to respond, only to lock eyes with the massive knife-swinging turtle, and promptly retreated behind her boulder with a squeal. He shifted forward, roaring as he reared back a knife to swing at the hapless rock defense the mare had set up, only to get a swift kick in the jaw from AJ. “Hey, shell-fer-brains! Down ‘ere!” She shouted, slamming her hooves down into the ground and jumping up out of the way of Archelomon’s snapping jaws. She came down on his head and stomped hard, the turtle wincing from the hit before flicking his head back up, flinging her off towards the sea. “Gah!” And up in the air, Twilight was beginning to struggle with carrying her load away from the fight, eyes shut tight as she focused completely on bringing Rarity away to Fluttershy’s cover. Seeing Applejack get flung towards the sea, though, something just snapped in Rarity’s head, her horn lighting up. Twilight was jostled by a bright blast of light, the same appearing right behind Applejack as she flew. “What th—?!” She was cut off as Rarity snagged her out of the air with her hooves, and with a burst of strength from her magic, she flung AJ straight back towards the flying Rainbow Dash. The two collided in midair, Rainbow just managing to save herself from a dive towards the ground by rolling in the air and gripping AJ with her forelegs. She struggled against Rainbow’s grip all the same as Rarity fell towards Archelomon, the beast whirling around towards her. “Rarity!” With a powerful crunch that made the group cringe and Fluttershy dry heave, Archelomon’s head collided with the falling unicorn, sending her flying off into the sea, her flight ending a distance away with a mighty splash. And the massive turtle was right behind her, lunging into the water soon after. “Rarity!” Rainbow immediately turned and started flying towards the sea, only to feel a new passenger boarding her suddenly public flight. “Grrr, what now?!” “Sorry!” Palmon rocketed up onto Rainbow’s back, tentacles snapping back into her hands as she made her landing. Her eyes were fixed exactly where Rarity landed, the massive turtle’s shadow moving towards her partner. “Just fly me over!” Rainbow looked back at the plant on her back, raising her eyebrow as she shouted. “And do what?! You’re puny, you aren’t gonna do anything to him!” “Just trust me!” Palmon shouted back, loud enough to make Rainbow wince. She quieted down after that, simply arcing down towards the water to increase her speed. Terriermon held on for dear life, glancing back at Palmon with a frown. “You better know what you’re doing. Neither of us are good in the water...” “We don’t need to be good...” Palmon frowned, tensing up for a leap. “Just good enough to get Rarity out of trouble.” And as Rainbow made her fly-by, Palmon leaped, aiming down towards the water with her hands to pierce cleanly through the surface. The water barely shifted as she broke through, quickly swimming down towards Rarity’s barely conscious form, and the giant turtle hunting her. Red decorated the water in thin ribbons, coming from a clear wound in the mare’s side. Rarity... don’t worry, I’m coming. As long as you get out, Twilight can help...! Palmon grimaced and swam as quickly as she could, eyes quickly turning away from Rarity from time to time to check her distance from the turtle. It only took a few glances to tell the interception would be close, too close. A horrible thought crossed her mind of Archelomon opening his jaws, and clamping down on the both of them. But her body was already working on auto-pilot, sending her faster and faster towards her partner in a frantic swim. And just as Archelomon closed the gap, Rarity watching him come in, fear settling into her mind, Palmon slipped in between them, and drew back her right hand. Just for something. Anything. She’d swing in the barest hope to repel him. Get away from my friend!! And in that single moment of blind courage, she burst into light bright enough to stop Archelomon in his tracks. Rarity averted her gaze, the brilliance of the light too great to stare directly into. Palmon’s body began to change beneath that light, expanding and brightening between her partner and her foe. The mare eventually had to close her eyes as the change occurred because of just how much Palmon was growing and shining. Could this be it? Rarity wondered absently, consciousness now finding a new light to cling to. Is this the transition into beauty I hoped it would be? After a moment, the light faded, and she was able to open her eyes to gaze upon her partner. Palmon had taken new shape, now in the majestic form of— A cactus. A giant walking cactus with boxing gloves. Oh. “Togemon,” her Digivice chimed, the sound still audible but distorted beneath the water. “Data-type Plant Digimon. Champion level. Often lost in thought and impossible to calm when provoked. Signature move is Needle Spray.” No signature moves were needed here, however, as that same red boxing glove sliced through the water like it was nothing, slammed straight into Archelomon’s head, and sent him spinning through the water. She barely had time to react before the great cactus had whirled around and grabbed her, and quickly started swimming for the surface. Palmon... what in the world have you become? The thought drifted through Rarity’s mind as water raced past her, first down across her face. Then, as the water itself started to move, she realized that wasn’t the only direction she could feel it moving in. Darn it, not now! Togemon looked back as she made for the surface, seeing a massive whirling shell down below, water being kicked up around it as it spun faster and faster. Bubbles and clashing streams shifted from blue to white as froth was made, the beginnings of a whirlpool appearing and mercilessly dragging them back towards the depths. She just fought harder and harder for the surface, the wall of white reaching out towards her as the group on the shore watched on in horror. The pit in the water appeared, and swiftly grew wider and wider, the roar of the maelstrom alone enough to scare even Terriermon. He, AJ and Rainbow could only watch from the air as the others looked on from the beach, every prayer going out to see Rarity and her partner break the surface. Though, not quite in the form they’d been expecting, as Togemon broke through the wall of the whirlpool and started swimming up the wall, roaring as her powerful arms went to work. Rainbow just went wide-eyed at the sight of a giant cactus suddenly bursting out of the sea, carrying Rarity in a boxing glove of all things. She would’ve started laughing if things weren’t so dire. Though she didn’t have much time for a laugh anyways, as Togemon reared back and shouted. “Catch her!!” And before anyone could register what she even said over the chaos at sea, she hurled Rarity into the sky as hard as she could. Rainbow simply whimpered as the white unicorn was sent flying straight for her. “I got ‘er!” AJ nudged Rainbow with her elbow before opening her forelegs, watching Rarity fly in. “Jus’ brace for impact!” “I’m already carrying you and the pup!” Rainbow got a swift knock on the head as Terriermon shouted right back at her. “Bunny!” “Whatever!” Rainbow got the single word out before contact was made, AJ grunting as she grabbed Rarity out of the air. She had to pump her wings bloody hard to stay in the air, making her way back towards shore as AJ gave Rarity a once-over. “That’s a bad gash on her side... get us back t’ the beach, Dash! She needs help!” “What do ya think I’m doing!? Gah, you’re all too dang heavy...!” Rainbow grit her teeth as she flew back towards the beach. Leaving Togemon, and an emerging Archelomon, to their swirling boxing ring in the sea. “Alright, big guy... bring it.” Togemon rode the waves as best she could, staying on the surface. She used one arm to push against the waves and stop herself from getting dragged down towards the center, as the other was raised in defense, her invisible brow furrowing. “I’ll toss you onto land as soon as you get close.” Archelomon rode the waves on the opposite side of the whirlpool, simply showing her a sinister smirk before ducking down below the waters again. Rainbow looked back, spotting the shadow moving around with the waves, and at a much higher speed than what Togemon was moving. She shouted as hard as she could. “Hey, uh... cactus-lady! He’s coming! Left!” Togemon looked to her left, the white wall staying solid only for the next few moments before Archelomon broke the surface, reaching out with his jaws. He made it two feet before Togemon’s fist crashed into his chin, ripping him out of the water and sending him falling towards the center of the whirlpool. “Holy crud, that was fast...!” Rainbow’s jaw dropped as Terriermon sat up, cheering. “Get ‘em, Togemon! Kick his butt! Woo!” The bunny laughed as he hopped on Rainbow’s head, steadily frustrating her more and more before she whipped her head back, bumping him off onto her back. “Stop jumping on my head!” A glare was shot at Terriermon just before she managed to make landfall, AJ depositing Rarity softly on the ground before being suddenly dropped onto the beach herself. Rainbow crashed down beside her, panting as she fell onto her side, Terriermon rolling with the fall before jumping back up onto his feet. “Sorry, got excited.” Terriermon spared a grin before looking back to the stunned Fluttershy and Twilight. Pinkie had disappeared behind one of the rocks, preparing something. “Oy! You two! Rarity’s hurt!” “She’s h— r-right, coming!” Twilight quickly sprinted for the group, Fluttershy peeking out from her cover before finally summoning up the bravery to move towards the sea, eyes constantly glancing towards the massive whirlpool in the distance. “AJ, help me move her!” Twilight winced heavily as she came upon the scene, finally seeing Rarity’s injury up close. “...Actually, moving her would be a bad idea.” The gash had opened wider, a large red tear in her otherwise pristine coat. Twilight bit her lip as she called up whatever medical experience she had that could apply to the situation, eyes darting over the injury, and the sand, as she sought out her knowledge. “Um... a-alright, uh...” “I can help!” The actual pup in the group raced over to the group from his place behind one of the rocks, giving up on dragging Pinkie away from her project. Gaomon carried right on trying, his shouting growing louder as Labramon ran over to them. He skidded to a halt, going wide-eyed at the sight of Rarity on the sand. “Oh—” “You said you can heal her, right?” AJ cut in, glancing to Labramon before looking back to Rarity, Twilight falling on her rear as she held her head, starting to panic. Thankfully, the worry in the group ebbed as Labramon quickly nodded and focused on Rarity, his form starting to shimmer in a faint rainbow light. The same light appeared around Rarity, flashing data and code surrounding her in its comforting embrace, and just like magic, her wound started to close itself, pushing out the water that had gotten into the gash while healing. “I-It’ll take me a bit, though... she’s hurt bad.” Labramon grit his teeth, focusing on the painfully slow process of mending the wound. “No worries, partner.” AJ nodded and looked back to the whirlpool, Rainbow and Fluttershy turning their eyes towards the water as well. “I think that turtle guy’s in trouble anyways.” “Raaaah!” Togemon roared before crushing Archelomon’s face with another devastating punch, sending him sliding back down towards the center of the whirlpool. “I thought you were good at fighting in the water?! Whatcha got, punk, huh!?” She shook her fist at him before starting her trip back up the wall, trying to break away from the maelstrom’s pull. The beating had been going on for a while, but the massive turtle just wouldn’t give up, and Togemon’s punching arm was starting to get tired. She glanced back towards the beach, the anger in her calming just slightly as she saw Rarity being tended to. Still, it put all the more strength into her arms and legs as she fought to get back to shore. The maelstrom blasted against her in a torrent of water, sending her spiralling up as she fought up the wall. Archelomon crashed down through the bottom of the whirlpool, spinning as he retreated into his shell to recover from this renewed, crippling blow. Dazed for the moment, he couldn’t release himself from his spin, shutting his eyes as he focused on himself. And after her glove shot through the lip of the whirlpool, Togemon ripped herself from the grip of the maelstrom. And without that whirlpool holding her down, she quickly showed off her strength by setting into a front crawl, and rocketing towards the shore, a wake blasting up behind her after every powerful stroke of her arms. Rainbow went wide-eyed at the incoming green missile, glancing to her friends before starting to back up. “Uhhh, guys? Back up.” “What do ya me—” AJ cut herself off as she looked out towards the sea, eyes going wide at Togemon roaring as loud as the whirlpool itself as she flew towards the beach. “Oh. Twi, Twi, land t’ Twi! We need t’ move!” She quickly started backing away, Twilight snapping out of her panic just in time for Togemon to close the last bit of distance. And she reached back with her fist and slammed it into the beach like a pole vaulter, flying up into the air in a massive flip. Rainbow’s jaw dropped as the cactus took flight, flipping gracefully through the air as water flew off her form. Before she ungracefully slammed down on the beach a distance away, sending a quake through the sand. She turned and marched back towards the shore, each footstep sending a small shock through the sand before she put herself between the group and the sea, and raised her fists. One lightning-fast punch forward sent a shock back through her, blasting the water off her body. Terriermon could not be grinning wider if he tried. “So cool!” “Hey, fanboy, less gawkin’, more walkin’!” AJ quickly looked over to Labramon, wincing at the visible strain on his face. “Labramon, think we can move ‘er?” “Y-Yeah, she should be fine... I’ve got the wound healed up... enough that it’s not threatening.” Labramon cut the healing stream on Rarity, panting as he fell onto his rear. “I-It’s gonna take more time to heal her completely, though.” “It’s enough... we’ll move ‘er behind Shy’s rock, carry on there. And, uh...” AJ looked over to Togemon, quietly tipping her hat to the cactus. “Thanks for the assistance.” Togemon simply made a throwaway motion with a fist, not responding. AJ nodded and looked over to Twilight, opening her mouth before realizing Rainbow was already shaking her out of her daze. “Twilight!” Rainbow shouted, Twilight squealing during the rattling of her shoulders. “I-I-I-I’m f-i-i-i-i-ne!” Twilight quickly pushed Rainbow off her before firing up her magic, gently, very gently, lifting Rarity up into the air. “Okay, okay, just... y-you’re gonna be fine, Rarity!” Rarity simply looked to her partner as she was slowly carried back towards the rock, the sun pouring light down on her like a massive skylight in an arena. “...G-Good luck... Togemon...” “...I don’t need luck.” Togemon’s fists tightened, eyes fixed on the sea, and the massive shadow approaching the beach as the maelstrom lost its strength. “I just need power... and the power I got from you is more than enough.” She braced herself as the water started to rise and break, cocked her fist back, and as Archelomon launched out of the sea... She let the barrage fly. “Trixie cannot believe what she is seeing right now.” Trixie and Impmon just visibly winced, the crushing blows happening on screen playing out in their heads with the most awful sounds of bone crunching against bone, Archelomon having the literal daylights beat out of him. Just hovering there in the air as Togemon unleashed a savage barrage of accurate strikes, each one colliding like a train with his cheeks, chin, neck, any exposed area of flesh on him that would create the worst pain response possible. The display was breathtaking. The cactus’s retaliation was gorgeously fluid despite her bulky stature. Every movement Togemon made was controlled and precise, every blow swift and deliberate. Each punch, each block and parry, carried a sort of grace and elegance the likes of which Trixie had seldom seen in motion. Impmon simply blinked before he looked over to his partner, a cautious smile on his face as he shrugged. “I dunno, this seems pretty normal for the Digital World.” Trixie took only a moment to whirl on her partner, shouting right into his face. “Normal!? A giant cactus with boxing gloves is beating the stuffing out of a giant turtle with knives instead of fins!” “Hey.” Impmon wiped the saliva off his face as Trixie turned back to the monitor. “Gotta admit, the show is awesome.” He looked back to the screen before folding his arms, frowning. “Wonder if we’ve got any popcorn...?” “Oh, save the humor for Datamon, maybe he’d actually find it funny.” Trixie grit her teeth as she watched, unable to stop imagining each blow. All she could do was think of alternate options, maybe some way to infect the cactus Digimon with the virus instead. The difference in strength, at least on land, was as clear as the sun in the sky. And as Archelomon was grabbed, spun around, and slammed onto the sand like a massive sack of hammers, Trixie couldn’t watch anymore. The fight was over, as far as she was concerned. “Is there any other Digimon near the sea? Anyone at all we could use our new virus on?” Impmon shrugged. “I’m not the one with the globe-spanning surveillance network.” “Gah... useless.” Trixie got up and trotted off, deeper into the base as she left her partner to watch the monitors. “Keep your eyes on them! I’m going to visit Datamon, see if he has any suggestions. Helpful ones!” “Yeah, yeah...” Impmon frowned as he watched her go, and as the door closed behind her, he let out a soft sigh before turning back to the monitors. “...I can be useful, too.” The display was brutal, majestic, and just plain jaw-dropping. And it ended with a flip of the turtle over Togemon’s head, and a crater left in the sand as the cactus hopped up onto Archelomon’s belly, sat down, and pushed his head down into the dirt with her fist. She was glimmering with pride. Well, it was that or the water that had been splashed onto her from beating the snot out of Archelomon. The group had retreated to a safe distance, Pinkie having come over with a makeshift bell made from a rock and a small stone tied to a string inside, ringing it in celebration. “We have a winner!” She giggled, grinning as she wished she had confetti to throw for the occasion. Togemon simply let out a sigh and looked over to her partner, now conscious as she was being healed. The red was all but gone, the blood having been cleaned up by Twilight as she marvelled at Labramon’s healing abilities. “Well?” Togemon asked, leaning over as much as she could to look at her partner. “Do I look any prettier?” Rarity let out an awkward chuckle in response, rubbing the back of her neck and darting her eyes away from her partner. Even though moving her leg sent a rather bad shock of pain up through her side. She took it like a champ, not letting it show through her expression. “U-um... how do I put this politely...” “Oh...” Togemon’s hollow mouth twisted into a frown, and she turned away from the unicorn, grinding her fist harder into Archelomon’s chin in an attempt to make herself feel better. Am I still too ugly for her? Am I even uglier now? I t-tried so hard to make her happy... it was an awful idea to throw her like that... Her breath hitched softly, the start of what would quickly spiral into a sobbing fit. Or it would have, had she not felt a hoof on her back, risking an unwanted puncture to comfort her, and an unwanted opening of her own wound. She turned as well as she could, lifting her arm to see behind her, and to her surprise, there stood Rarity. Her partner looked upon her with a genuine smile, meeting her eyes without any regard for the multitude of needles slipping into her mane. Labramon was right there by her side, stressing over healing her wound properly, holding back all the words he had prepared for Rarity getting up in the middle of treatment. “It does not matter if you’re beautiful,” she assured her, still gently rubbing her back. “What you have done for me, for all of us, is what truly matters.” “You mean... you don’t think I’m some tendril-bearing, petal-headed abomination?” Rarity shook her head. “I think you are a bright and cheerful young lady who cares deeply for those important to her. Not unlike another dear friend of mine, I might add. And I also think you are the Digimon who just now saved my life, for which I am eternally grateful.” And once the wound had closed, Rarity received a good swat on the head from the hopping pup. “Not to mention getting up in the middle of healing, and nearly reopening your wound! Sappy moment or not, when the doctor says stay still, you stay still!” Rarity recovered rather quickly from the hit, grinning gently as she rubbed the back of her head where she was hit. “Many apologies, my good doctor! I just...” She looked back to Togemon, smiling brightly. “I couldn’t let my friend here wallow in sadness, just because I was hurt. Rather... selfish of me to not offer some support.” Labramon simply groaned, covering his face with his paws as Rainbow laughed. “And I thought I was the stubborn one!” “Oh be silent! I am hardly that stubborn!” Rarity pouted as she folded her forelegs, sending a bright chorus of laughter through her friends. After everything they’d been through, it was a well-deserved celebration. At least, until Archelomon’s eyes opened again. The laughter was cut off as Archelomon quickly started to shift, Togemon quickly picking Rarity and Labramon up before jumping off his stomach, setting them down behind her and raising her fists again. Archelomon snarled as he quickly rolled over, and spun around to face the group, a sick grin worn on his rather bruised, mauled face. “What the heck was that beating for!?” “To put you down on the ground for good! But I guess I’m just gonna have to send you properly flying this time!” Togemon snarled back, glaring at her opponent as she dared to throw the first punch. “Wait!” came a cry from behind the boxer. Fluttershy darted between them as quickly as her wings would carry her, approaching Archelomon directly before anyone could stop her. “His eyes... they aren’t glowing anymore! I don’t think he’s going to attack us!” Rainbow scoffed, glaring at the armored reptile. “What makes you think that means he’s not just gonna come at us again?” “Because I don’t want to,” Archelomon replied, quickly silencing the rowdier mare. “In fact, since you knocked out whatever was controlling me, I wanted to thank you!” Archelomon rolled his jaw, cringing a bit. “Even if you did... I think you dislocated it...” Togemon sighed, lowering her fists. “Labramon...?” “On it.” Labramon nodded and headed on over to Fluttershy’s side, taking pause before she turned and made the first move. Fluttershy smiled, rubbing the giant turtle’s head. “You’re very welcome, Mr. Archelomon. It’s the least we could do.” “Aw, stop it.” Archelomon chuckled, playfully swatting towards her with a flipper. “If there’s any way I can repay you...” Fluttershy winced as the knife was moved, ears splaying back. “M-Maybe start with... not gesturing with your super sharp limbs?” “Oh.” Archelomon blinked, looking over to his forefin as Labramon got to work with healing. “Sorry.” “It’s okay. I gesture with my forehooves all the time, so I can’t really blame you...” Fluttershy smiled lightly, lightly petting Archelomon on the nose as Labramon continued his work. And Togemon finally took a seat, leaning back and basking in the sun as she relaxed for the first time since the fight started. Togemon winced at a sudden declaration from behind her, Twilight jumping into action. “We need supplies,” Twilight announced. “We came through expecting to be among friends for three days, and we didn’t pack nearly enough for a wilderness sabbatical. We don’t have enough food to sustain the six of us for much longer, let alone twelve.” “Not a problem,” Archelomon assured her. “There’s plenty to forage for on this island. In fact, if you turn around and cross the plateau connected to this beach, you can hit the jungle!” He beamed from his supposed helpful hint, oblivious to the exasperated groans of the gathered travelers. Suddenly, Togemon burst into light once more, shifting right back into Palmon before everyone’s eyes. Her arms lost strength as she flopped back onto the sand, suddenly drained from the transformation stealing away all the extra energy she had. Rarity came rushing to her side in an instant, sliding in behind her to use her unwounded side to help her right herself. “Palmon!” she shouted, her worry evident in her tone. “Are you alright? What happened?” Palmon giggled slightly as she leaned against her partner. “I’m fine... I’m just out of energy, is all...” Twilight sighed. “All the more reason we need to stock up on supplies.” “Let me,” Labramon insisted as he rushed over to Palmon. The canine creature helped anchor his friend as she regained her footing, earning a grateful smile from her. Suddenly, Labramon took on the same rainbow shimmer has he had before, and a similarly colored swirl of data began to spiral around Palmon, giving her a faint glow as the strength returned to her body. By the time Labramon’s concentration broke and everything went back away, the peppy plant was standing up on her own once more, her injuries and fatigue long gone. “...Y’know, I still have no idea how you can do that.” Applejack mumbled, still dumbfounded by the technique. But now that the adrenaline from the fight had worn off, it all seemed so much stranger to her. “How’d ya even know you do that, Labramon?” “I don’t know,” Labramon admitted. “Digimon don’t tend to question how they know their moves when they evolve. This is just one of mine.” “Cure Liqueur...” Applejack mused, recalling her Digivice’s chime the day before. “Ain’t what the name made me think it’d look like, but... that’s what it was s’posed to do, right? Restore and optimize weakened data? Or somethin’.” “Looks like it!” Palmon exclaimed as she had herself a merry twirl. Twilight chuckled softly at the display, gesturing towards her bandaged injury. “Since it clearly works on us...” “Oh, right! Of course!” Labramon chimed, bounding over to the princess and creating the data swirl again. Sure enough, she could feel the burn left from Veedramon’s stray attack mending itself rapidly, and in just a moment, she could no longer feel it at all. She unraveled the bandage with her magic once the technique finished, and there was no sign of the wound. “Wow... thank you, Labramon. But how are you able to heal organic tissue with a data optimizer?” Labramon just shrugged. “Maybe you turned to data when you came to the Digital World.” “We turned into our in-game avatars!” Pinkie exclaimed. Gaomon just groaned, having long since given up on correcting or understanding her. The prospect horrified Twilight slightly, ears drooping, though she didn’t get much of a chance to ruminate on the issue before Rainbow patted her on the shoulder. “So, uh, the food thing?” “Y-Yeah! Food, supplies, water, right.” Twilight quickly nodded before spinning around and quickly trotting in the direction of the forest! Don’t think about it don’t think about it don’t think about us just being data now... Pinkie grinned as she got to her hooves and dropped her makeshift boxing bell on the ground, bouncing off after her. “Wait for me! I can help!” “Thanks, Pinkie! Uh, t-the rest of you, just... l-look for where we can go next! Pinkie and I will be back soon!” Twilight quickly increased her speed to a run, heading off towards the jungle with Pinkie in hot pursuit. Archelomon just stared at the retreating alicorn before looking over to Fluttershy. “Did someone say something wrong?” “She’s... well, she’s a little more, um...” Fluttershy tapped her hooves together, looking off to the side as she thought of how to put it softly. “Things tend to worry her more than they... should.” “So she’s neurotic.” Archelomon blinked, furrowing his brow a bit as Rainbow nodded. “Crazy.” Rainbow added. “Pretty loopy sometimes, yeah.” AJ nodded as well. DORUmon was vacant and couldn’t offer his opinion, running off after Twilight alongside Gaomon to make sure their partners didn’t get into trouble. “So, um... is there anywhere we can go from here?” Fluttershy looked to her friends, speaking softly as she settled her hooves back on the sand. Terriermon lounged on her mane, lying on his back as he stared at the sky. “Anywhere that’s exciting. Lotta fighting! Lots of fun!” Terriermon grinned as he made a few play punches at the air, Archelomon just deadpanning at him before pondering on the issue himself. “Well, there might be a few places. It’s a bit of a swim to most of them. Lemme think...” Archelomon looked off to the side as he thought about the places available by sea. “If we go West from here, we’ll eventually hit the savannah area. There’s a huge factory right off the shore. Big industrial site, run by a security team of Machine Digimon.” “That sounds pretty cool. Buzzing build sites sounds like a lotta fun!” Rainbow giggled, grinning as her partner groaned beside her. “At least think a bit about the danger, Rainbow...” Ryudamon rubbed his face lightly as the pegasus pulled him in for a hug with her wing, still grinning. “Well, if you say so... dangerous build sites are even more fun!” Rainbow smiled brightly, almost smugly, at the frowning Ryudamon at her side. He simply looked back at her, exhausted from her antics. Suddenly, Twilight teleported back into the heart of the group with her friend and their partners in tow, each of them carrying newly-filled packs of supplies. “Alright! We’re set to survive for the next few whatevers!” “Hopefully those ‘whatevers’ don’t involve more knife-swinging turtles...” DORUmon sighed, speaking quietly enough for Archelomon to not hear. Last thing to do right now would be to offend him and start another fight. “That was really easy!” Pinkie giggled, smiling brightly as she hopped along beside Twilight, Gaomon sitting backwards on her back. “There was so much food on the trees!” Fluttershy tilted her head quizzically at them. “It took us most of a day just to cross the canyon, and we stopped overnight. How did you get there so—” “Did you not see how we got back,” DORUmon replied flatly. Applejack cleared her throat, getting their attention. “Right. So while y’all were out resupplyin’, we figured out what we’re doin’ next. Archelomon’s takin’ us to the savannah on the west side of this here island—” “Seriously, though, what is with this island!?” Rainbow shrieked, earning a sideways glance from the mare she’d just interrupted. “Oh no, don’t tell me something new happened...” Twilight moaned with worry, looking over at Rainbow. “All that’s happened,” AJ assured her, “is that we got a ride. And a good place to look for answers, what with the big factory that’s s’posed to be there.” “A factory...” Twilight pondered the possibility for a minute. An industrial facility, something technological and sophisticated... surely there would be something there that could tell them what happened to her portal to send them here. Maybe there was even another portal they could use to escape and go back home! She beamed at her friends before turning and nodding to Archelomon. “It’s decided, then. Archelomon, you can repay us by ferrying us to that factory!”