"Ah! Look out!" Roan yelled from behind. He had managed to get a great view of the entire field from a slightly elevated position. "As your brilliant tactical advisor I recommend cutting those creepers. With lots of force!"

"What a brilliant deduction… Still, it's a good idea…"

"PRISMATIC SHARDS!" Prismmon twisted violently, facing Oncamon, and fired off seven glowing, and above all sharp, projectiles at the jaguar. A few of them sliced through the vines holding him, and a few more flew towards Oncamon. They didn't hit all the vines though, and those that remained began to tighten painfully.

Meanwhile, Roan was busy with the new arrivals, mainly Bansheemon. "Hey! Bansheemon, you're back!" He yelled out. "It's been quite a while hasn't it? I would invite you to tea, but we're a bit busy right now" He told her politely. "Would you like to come back another time? We might even be able to offer you some cake later. We're a bit busy crushing the forces of evil right now."

The foolhardy Oncamon had overestimated his surprise advantage in his surge towards eliminating Dazzlamon. As the hastily erected flame easily singed its outermost layering, the prepared attack greeted him fully in the face. Soon the once lush creature was assigned the same fate as his sister, although unable to even manage to get to the door. In its panic it slammed into the nearest wall, knocking it into a smoldering unconsciousness.

As Nekomatomon followed his twin shadow blades with his natural weaponry, Bansheemon displayed an amazing tenacity for self-preservation. She had weathered this onslaught before, and now her defense was rooted in neutralizing rather than merely weathering. An atonal din churned in the room as the shadows flying towards her halted in midair. With a quick glance to Sealdramon's location to make sure she was secure, Bansheemon's throat lit up as the din sharpened to a sonic point, the dark slices of her enemy returning to their source. Nekomatomon's pounce was interrupted as his former Shadow Slices slammed into him.

Quickly taking in the room, Bansheemon noted that the group's fighting was still haphazard, but it was reaching the ramshackle haphazardness that made fighting militias so unappealing. Sending in the uncoordinated Oncamon might have not been the wisest choice; the cats had become interested only in personal interests and grudges. She watched as Chiromon came after her, the shell of one of the Oncamon in his wake. Prismmon's shards, meanwhile, resulted in a flurry of grass clippings and a defeated opponent.

Taurusmon's adversary was a keener foe. As the chunk of earth tore itself from the ground and began its devastating glide towards the jaguar form, the Oncamon displayed an amazing agility in a testament to its genus, deftly hopping on top of the earth hunk and bounding off of it. However, the mobile and rocky nature of its foothold made the jump awkward, and instead of landing atop the bull it flew in between Bansheemon and Dobermon. The dog's cry had barely reached Oncamon's ears before the attack's beams finished their ensnaring.

Bansheemon stared at the functionally petrified cat and then to the group. Never one to let an opportunity pass, she quickly slung Oncamon's form forward at the bumrushing Chiromon before making motions to strike towards the back.

Joltmon, having been ignored entirely, pouted a bit, then returned to it's tamer in the midst of the fray.

"It's as if I'm just one cat too many to be included in things!" He whined a bit, as Jeremy used a convenient piece of rubble from the fighting to get the muck off his running shoes.

"I know how you feel. Like me at a bishounen leader convention, sitting to the right of Cloud Strife and to the left of Light Yagami!" Jeremy agreed, getting back to the fight. He surveyed who was down and who was up, and found that the banshee lady who stole his goggles (but he knew she didn't really have them, as Jamario would find himself finding himself found soon...Gonna getcha!) was a prime target, equally zooming in and out of the conflict.

What he knew he had to do was call her out into a duel, and with enough dynamic lighting and action shots he could assuredly both keep her from fleeing and keeping anyone else from interfering. OF course, then she could possibly destroy him and his digimon, but if there was one thing he knew from sitting in the midst of a bishounen leader convention was, is that long hair and a slim figure could destroy anything, especially women. That, and sexual tension between the guy on your right and left made for an uncomfortable seating position.

Jeremy caught Bansheemon dead in her tracks (not literally, figuratively) with a Wright-ian finger point. "Bansheemon! I am Jeremy Negem, the leader of these people who are possibly destined and have digimon, and former owner of the sacred main character goggles, which have only eluded me due to fickle fate and a prolonged cruel joke! I challenge you, here and now, to a fight to the finish, mano e digiwomon-o! You, as your team's leader vs me as mine! Winner take all! And when I mean me, I mean my digimon! With me shouting encouragement!"

Joltmon's legs sparkled with ambient electricity. "You know, I was really pumped about halfwayy through that speech, but you lost me again halfway. Are there any other humans like you back home, or are you a minority even where you come from?"

"Joltmon, I choose you!" Jeremy ignored his giant feline and pushed him into battle with the Shee-woman.

Joltmon charged forwards but stopped quickly, releasing a wavy purple beam. "KICKSHOCKER!"

"Atta boy!" Jeremy cheered. "Teach her not to make Halo unfair! Friggin Banshees!"

"Maybe we should give them some room." Viola said, walking up behind Jeremy, "Or do you want that Banshee to have an easy target?" She would have helped with the sick digimon, but she decided the others had a good handle on it.

Besides, she had a feeling Jeremy was in more trouble.


Dazzlamon was hoping what Jeremy had done was meant to be a diversion. Hoping, but for some reason thinking that was a rather small chance. Even so, she wasn’t one to let an opportunity to slip by.

So, the red wearing digimon conjured more of her colourful fireballs. But instead of firing them off directly, she guided each one to surround Banshee. She made sure to keep them a safe distance back from their target of course.

If a simply frontal attack won't work, maybe an all direction fire based one would.

But they wouldn't be ready to strike, at least until Joltmon's attack backfire-finished. She of course had complete faith in her friend from the nursery's attack.

Knowing Jeremy, the kid likely didn't have a plan, besides for showing off and trying to make himself look impressive, despite overwhelming evidence that this Bansheemon could not be defeated by any of them one-on-one yet. But as much as Suimamon wanted to interject, he managed to hold back, if only because he figured there couldn't possibly be a complete lack of plan. Joltmon, at least, could have something in mind.

He noted Dazzlamon's preparation of her attacks, and decided to hang back as well. The problem was that no one was working together on this; a haphazard splash of attacks in separate directions. They needed to work together if they were to get anything done.

---

Jenna focused on getting as many of the Digimon out as possible, leading the smaller ones to where Rosetta and Lunamon were helping them to the air vent, and helping the larger ones as far away from the fighting as possible. With Bansheemon arrived, getting to the door unnoticed was an even less likely feat than when the Oncamon were fighting.

She waited until Joltmon launched the attack, before taking the opportunity to lead an Apemon to the doors; if Bansheemon was to be distracted at any point, it would be while she was being attacked.

"Kickshocker? Please." Bansheemon literally flew at Joltmon, the wave that kept her afloat and her hair unbound by gravity dispersing the attack's main force while she charged through the brunt, swiping at the enemy cat. A warning fireball warded her attack off, while Dazzlamon's other orbs crashed into her from their multitude of angles, singeing her but not sufficiently bringing harm.

"It's a pity to see that you haven't stepped up to be actual challengers yet. Are there any others who wish to see if they can stand up to me, or shall I just deal with you en mass-UFF!"

Bansheemon's admonitions were cut short by two black streaks that slammed into her and pinned her to the ceiling. The Roachmon brothers glanced back as Bansheemon looked aghast at her new attackers. "We'll hold her off, get everyone back to the room!"

"Death Knell!" Bansheemon's throat exploded in a red flash as the screech sounded out, a semi-visible wave coursing out and knocking the Roachmon back. She managed to buy only a few seconds as they regrouped, buzzing and bombing her body.

"GO!" They both screamed.

The group acknowledged the dire necessity implicit in the order and began movements out. As they breached the door the others who had escaped through the air vent tumbled out into the hallway. On both sides were signs of battle, the once pristine hallway now battle scarred. Spouts of flame and wooden shrapnel were barely visible around the corner, and the group made their way back to the lift room.

Inside the lift the monolith was repeating a single line of text, "How may I be of service?" It would have been displaying it on more than one of its faces, but the Meramon practice of scorching anything technologically unwilling had taken over. "Work damn you!"

The lift doors were still open and a number of digimon from the cafeteria were huddled inside the massive elevator. As the group deposited their injured digimon in the elevator, Tragyk walked over to the monitor, still holding the weakened Bokomon he had saved from the infirmary. "It's voice activated right? Can't we just ask it to move the lift?"

The screen's face blanked out for a second, then reappeared with a new list of options. Lift to Train Tracks was first on the list, since it had been sorted as the most relevant choice.

From the doorway to the monolith room a burst of flame signaled the arrival of the elder Meramon as he carried the body of one of his brethren into the berth. He barely made it down the steps before slipping and spilling over in front of the group. "We need to get going." He said gravely, a few of his mouth stitches undone in the fury of battle.

After piling into the elevator, Tragyk called out the command. As the doors began to close they watched as the station room was overrun with Oncamon and new wooden Digimon, Bansheemon gliding over them all, a snide look on her face as she watched her enemies slide out of reach.

In the calm, everyone had a chance to catch some rest. Tragyk looked over the Bokomon, it's stubby leg wrapped in a rough cast. Everyone else's digimon took the respite as a chance to de-digivolve.

The place where a floor counter would have been was instead replaced with a series of symbols. In the middle of the symbol board, between a representation of what looked like a swan and another that was vaguely mecha-ish, was a set of parallel train tracks.

Once the train symbol lit up the humans readied themselves, which caused the other digimon to react in kind. Before the doors could fully open, a violent jarring of the entire car disoriented the entire group, scattering their feet and sending a few tumbling. Bokomon's eyes expanded in fear, and before Tragyk could follow their source he could feel Dorumon's anxiety. The little reptile acted to protect his master, clamping down on the vine that had snaked its way in from the overhead hatch. More vines joined in, entangling Dorumon and lifting him out of the lift, much to Tragyk's dismay. The human laid down Bokomon and attempted to beat off the iron grip of the plants but found no release. His attempts at pulling his digimon free only succeeded in getting him pulled up, and the few in the group who had attained balance watched his sneakers get hoisted above the hatch and out of sight.

Before they could think about going to the rescue, another violent quake hit the lift, although the aftermath of this latest disaster was an eerie sense of weightlessness. Two cables fell into the elevator, sliced at the tip. There was no time for a third elevator shaking, as the last of the supporting cables audibly snapped.

"-to Fluxiomon!" The light of the digivolution had barely faded before Fluxiomon shot out a number of arrows, anchoring the lift to the wall, for the time being. The strain of keeping the lift maintained with gravity was evident, even Durran looking uncomfortable. "Get out of here, we can hold it steady." Fluxiomon's controller managed to eke out between grunts.

The elder Meramon nodded, immediately recognizing the gravity of the situation. He managed the crowd out, boosting any who needed it onto the train floor. When everyone was out, he turned back and offered his hand to Durran and Fluxiomon. His call for help was drowned out by a harmonic drill, a battering wall of sound that slammed into the elevator, throwing back Meramon and inflicting deep cracks onto the wall surrounding the lift. The elevator quickly dropped, followed by a free falling Bansheemon in pursuit.

The horrid silence that followed, as the realization that two of their number had just been dispatched, was crushing. It was only outdone by the raucous cacophony that heralded the elevator's crash. The original cracks began to spread deeper into the new building area, chunks loosing and falling around the group. Meramon quickly noticed that there were no signs that they were letting up. "Run!"

Everyone bolted for the lone exit, a small arched hallway, the chunks descending behind them growing into rubble and then blockages. They spilled out into a new circular hub room, their path caved in. A large map, the same as the monolith's offering, was in the center, a small dot helpfully informing the group that "You Are Here".

Dazzlamon wasn't anyway near happy about Bansheemon almost totally ignoring her attack. Although, the actual marks from the fire did make her desire to run over and slap a certain flying silver haired bimbo upside the head slightly more manageable.

Manageable enough that when the Roachmon started fighting Bansheemon and yelled at them to leave, she listened. Of course, her first priority was Viola's safety. Much to her satisfaction, her brown haired partner was already moving toward the door. She followed swiftly; she wouldn't allow the Roachmon's efforts to be wasted by standing behind and getting caught.


The next few moments went by in a blur for the blue dressed girl, she was running with her Digimon just behind her. She felt a pang of guilt that she hadn't helped the injured digimon, she knew now wasn't the best time to consider it.

Soon she was standing in the lift with the others, watching helpless as that flying witch of a digimon and her army of trees overran this place. It made her surprisingly mad, a feeling she wasn't used to knowing.

Her partner shifted back to its bird form moments later. "Star," she whispered fiercely, "we'll get her. Next time, she'll burn."

The bird nodded, "Dazzlamon. That's what my third, er fourth form is called."

Viola nodded in turn, whatever number of forms her partner had; it made no difference to her. "Then we


Shock was a good way to describe what she felt now.

Standing before that ever so useful sign, Viola felt as though a rug had been ripped out from under her. She couldn't say she knew either of their group terribly well, but they had been in the same boat as her. To see them just...disappear so suddenly was hard for her to take.

"So..." she said without enthusiasm as she turned back toward the group, "what's next?"

Starlemon noted her skin was paler then before.

Jeremy sighed. Yet again, he lacked his goggles, and his moment to shine had been a failure. The danger was averted, two people were (not very likely) dead, and now was the time to recollect, to think, to build one's resolve.

Sadly, since he had already built it up only for it to crumble like a Origamimon under pressure, he went back to curling up in the fetal position again, except this time around the hedgehog/cat thing that he was still pretty sure was a demon.

That Banshee-wo-mon seemed to be one hell of a buzzkiller, or at least a sheep herder, considering how fast everyone got on the train, but there were some unanswered questions that racked Jeremy's mind. For instance, if this train is so technologialisticfantismo, what had the strength to mess it up so? And when they met that thing again, would he see it well enough to run away from it?

And furthermore, why did fate keep putting him and his 'mon in closed spaces, where their attacks and abilities were next to useless? A Joltmon with room to gallop would have had a far more effective kickshocker to kick ass with.

Chisokumon was equally bummed, but moreso for being hugged so. It was comforting on one hand, yet by the other human's averse reaction to Jeremy's touch, Chisokumon also assumed there was something dangerous to feeling his tamer's warm embrace. The digimon hadn't felt it yet, but made ready to bolt at the earliest notice.

Before the running for the lives...

Taurusmon quickly de-digivolved after his last attack, his remaining energy finally spent. "Sorry Lee, guess this digivolving really takes it out of ya if you're new to it."

"Then let's get out of here, quick!" They were, after all, still standing in the middle of a battlefield. But it seemed the fight was soon to end anyway, as the Roachmon brothers attempted to take on Bansheemon themselves. Lee didn't suppose that was really a very good idea, but he wasn't about to waste the oppurtunity.

"Can you run?"

"Just about."

"Good because you're too heavy to carry, now let's go." Side by side, the two joined the general exodus with the others...

----------------------------------------

The next few moments were a blur. The only part of it Lee would remember later would be the thought of, damn I really hate running all around this damn place! He also paused momentarily to look back at the aptly dubbed Monolith computer system, unable to shake the feeling that it might contain vital info. If only he had more time to nab the hardrive or something (assuming it had one), but it was too late now, as even more hostiles invaded the room. Then came the horror of the lift attack, ending with two of their number beoming Not-Dead, as the rest scrambled and ran (yay, more running) for safety.

And then all became calm again, with their pursuers at least temporaily left in their dust... and debri... and fallen masonry... oh and a fallen lift. Lee and Buffalomon sank to the floor momentarily, to catch their breath and rest.


"So... what's next?"

Lee looked up at Violas question, realising that they probably weren't out of the woods yet. "We need to get out of this place, obviously. Doesn't this level have a train platform? Maybe it still runs."

"Hey just so long as we don't have to anymore I'm all for it!" Buffalomon had had enough exercise for one day.

Lunamon had thought things looked bleak when she was knocked unconscious. Never had she expected to wake up to something even worse. The first sanctuary they had found after leaving the nursery, and it was already in ruins, with some of their number already left behind.

It was, quite honestly, a surprise that things weren't even worse. That is, if they could be.

Rosetta didn't want to even think about it. If she did, she would have probably thrown up whatever lunch she didn't have. Instead she stood up, not even realizing she had sat down to rest, and walked over to the map.

With one hand on the back of her head, the other pressed against the dot as she looked down on it.

"We are here," she said, before beginning to trace her finger down a path. "And we came from here. In that case, we should probably go in another direction."

She looked at the map, wondering if there was any area that had also taken damage.