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Glistening lights. Vibrant colours. A constant roaring mixed with a vivid pulse. Sensory overload, all around. And it was getting worse. “We’re going too fast!” “I know that, I’m trying to stop!” “If you stop we’re gonna fall off the stream!” “There is no stream!” Martin looked left and right, trying to gauge where they were as they powered through the jetstreams at the edge of the digital core. He held tightly to Manowarmon’s back, and Aardmon held on tightly to him, swearing repeatedly. The jellyfish was doing their best to ride the waves; all their fins were open and the back of their dome was billowing back and forth, buffeted by the horrendous ride. Either side of them, the others were clutched onto Chelydramon or Ophicleimon, who were faring little better despite their increased power and bulk. The children clung tightly to whoever they were riding, yelling into the void but unable to project or hear a thing. The three large Digimon jolted, and the stream fell away completely, lost in the swirling vortex all around. For a moment they hung in space, directionless and with no way to right themselves. Together the three large Digimon were dragged further into the storm. Vision dropped to zero. The atmosphere was oppressive and dense, almost like soup, but at the same time the constant rushing failed to stop. Martin closed his eyes, and placed his hands over his ears. “Please let this work...please let this work...” Time and space froze. Reversed. Spun around and did a handstand. Then, as if by magic, the stream disappeared, and the three Digimon found themselves out of the stream and hovering several feet above the ground. “WHAT!?” Scrabbling wildly, Manowarmon just about stayed floating, but biologically neither Chelydramon or Ophicleimon had the right equipment to do the same, and they both crashed to the ground, jettisoning their human cargo all over the place. Shrewmon had to scrabble away to avoid the mighty Chelydramon from rolling over and crushing her outright; she just managed it, turning around and squeaking indignantly. “You are a terrible driver!” Chelydramon’s eye flicked towards her, and she opened her maw. “I’m sorry, I’ve never been here before! I don’t really know the roads!” Shrewmon shut her mouth, and watched as the great terrapin lurched back and forth on her back, pressing her elbows against the ground, before sighing and falling limp. “I can’t get up...” “Here you go.” Manowarmon dropped off his own charges as Ophicleimon nudged Chelydramon over, allowing her to stand up. Martin let out a long breath (one laced with tiny particles of light of which he had swallowed several), and looked at the new world around them. “Bloody hell...” A vast structure stretched out above them, as big as a mountain and twice as imposing. It seemed to be composed of geometric shapes, all piled on top of each other like the building blocks of a manic child. Yet...they didn’t quite fit together even then; triangles turned into squares, and spheres into helixes, and the whole place seemed filled with impossible staircases and improbable voids. Large spikes stuck out between shapes, making wild loops before entering the next mysterious shape. The whole thing was incredibly loud in more ways than one; bright flashing lights, obnoxious sirens, large eyes and sets of teeth stuck all over every surface (that blinked and chattered in a very unsettling fashion), all topped off with a colour scheme that could be best described as ‘running over a clown car with a steamroller and spraying the contents all over town, before topping it off with extra neon green and orange’ Martin blinked, and looked away, rubbing beneath his glasses. “God, this guy’s annoying...” Aardmon walked up behind him, trying to straighten her hair after the immense battering it had taken in the surrounding storm. She tutted. “Well, someone’s been busy.” “I’m guessing it’s not supposed to look like this?” “You’d guess right.” She looked forwards, and wrung her hands out. “Oh come on, graffiti as well? This is the core of the Digital World; you’d think he’d treat it with a little respect.” “Well he has been holed up here at least since we’ve been here. Perhaps he just gets bored.” Callum wandered off to one side, scrutinising the insane scribbling over the wall. He turned a corner, and made a face. “Oh look. We’ve got ourselves an artist.” “Don’t tell me...” Ursula was closest, and she peered round hesitantly, before raising her hands and walking away from the crudely drawn appendage. Callum grinned after her. “You’ve gotta admit; he’s ambitious. The proportions are good.” Martin shuffled forwards, joining Callum in front of the viewing gallery and raising an eyebrow. “I don’t know what I expected...” There was an incredulous snort from Ursula as she folded her arms. “Seriously? Even here? Can somebody explain the male obsession with drawing knobs over everything?” Callum placed a hand on his hip. “Because they cause us nothing but pain and humiliation so we use them as tools of mockery. That’s all they’re good for.” Some distance away, Ophicleimon looked quizzingly at Manowarmon, who shrugged. Eleanor just shook her head. “Don’t ask. It is too much for innocent minds such as yours.” Callum walked a little further on, trying to peer inside the rough blocky walls. Martin side-eyed him. “I feel like we’re getting distracted.” “Come on, man,” said the other boy, placing his hand on one wall panel which glowed as he did so, “this place is awesome. We might as well enjoy it while we can, before anything leaps out to attack us from nowhere.” With a frightening squeal, and strangely enough the parp of an airhorn, a set of hooked, razor-sharp teeth lashed out from the alcove, launching themselves directly at Callum’s face. “YEET!” The boy jumped half a mile backwards and swung his arm in a panic, batting the thing away. It bounced on the ground and rolled to a stop, screeching indignantly. It was an odd thing; about the size of a terrier, but literally all jaws, snapping wildly like a little alligator. Two large eyes stuck out either side, moving independently of one another as the pupils expanded and dilated. Martin bit his lip. “Maybe you just scared it...” The creature rolled itself around, snarled, and leapt up again, snapping at Martin’s head. He barely dodged, but the thing recalibrated its efforts, clamping its jaws firmly around Callum’s D-Psyche. “AAAH! Get off get off get off!” 
The boy shook his arm wildly, flinging the creature off again. It roared, and spat a globule of data that exploded on the ground, taking a chunk out of the rock. “Toxic Shocker!” Manowarmon burst forwards, wrapping a tentacle around the little creature and frying it with pink energy. It dropped to the ground, shuddering and twitching, as the others gathered around it. “What the hell is that?” Shrewmon frowned, poking it with one claw. “Sure doesn’t look like any Digimon I’ve ever seen.” She peered up at the others. “You reckon there are more of them?” Aardmon coughed, and pointed behind them. “Uh...yeah. I reckon so.” Everybody turned, and saw a dozen more of the things gathered around the alcove, all snarling in offense at the downing of their pack member. Without warning they leapt, bouncing in all different directions and snapping and spitting as they went. The humans ran for cover as their partners took on the mini-army. Eleanor hissed as one flew past her shoulder, and booted it away from her. “Now look what you’ve done, Callum!” “Me? Oh I’m not allowed to touch anything now?” “No! It always goes very badly! Behind you!” The boy spun and slapped at a set of jaws coming his way, which was quickly intercepted by Ophicleimon’s beak, knocking it even further away. The beasts were small and sturdy, and more than a little tenacious, but they were at least going down when they were hit, and for that at least the group were thankful. “Sand Lancer!” “Acid Splash!” “Kicherndes Feuer!” A group of creatures ran off screeching with their eyeballs on fire, with Hinkymon waving them goodbye enthusiastically. Aardmon and Shrewmon batted their own assailants away back to back, stabbing down with sand daggers and slicing the eyeballs with their claws. A group rushed towards them, ready to intercept them with their jaws chattering menacingly. “Everybody duck!” The two smaller Digimon leapt out the way as Chelydramon swung her ball-mace over her head. “Mangrove Mace!” She brought it down with a thud, sending two of the creatures rolling away and flattening one where it stood. It let out a moan, and exploded in a puff of data. The turtle raised her weapon back up, and held out her hand. “Who’s next?” Manowarmon looked around, confused. “Er...no-one. They seem to be running away. Rolling away.” The remaining beasts had clamped themselves all together into a big ball and were quietly making an exit. They hit the alcove, and the sphere collapsed, the creatures scampering back into the wall with a hollow chattering. The group was left standing around awkwardly, only a few bite marks to show off their encounter. Chelydramon huffed. “Well that was disappointing.” Martin raised an eyebrow. “Let’s make the most of it. I don’t think we’ve seen the last of them.” Ursula nodded. “I agree. They’re probably just spies. Though it means we know what we’re looking for when we go in and face the Funnyman.” Callum shuffled his feet. “Kinda...” The girl smiled in a deadpan fashion. “Where’s your sense of optimism? We’re here aren’t we? We can actually take the fight to him and stop this madness.” She turned, running a hand along the wall and peering left and right, before turning back towards the others. “So how do we get in...?” After walking a long way in one direction, and the same in the other, the total lack of an entrance pretty much killed any initial enthusiasm the group had for sticking it to the Funnyman once-and-for-all. The labyrinth looked impenetrable, and while Aardmon pointed out how rare it was for an evil overlord in a vast fortress to take such drastic measures as ‘barricading the front door’, it did seem like the most likely scenario. To make matters more irritating the core seemed to have its own compressed day and night cycle, which caused no end of confusion to the already frazzled members of the group. This – combined with the boundless examples of new rude graffiti, including a crude portrait of each of the tamers and Digimon boasting...less than flattering features – led Eleanor to make the executive decision that they weren’t going to get inside today. They returned to their point of entry, settling down around a hundred metres away from the looming fortress. It was a little exposed, but aside from the skirmish earlier, the place had seemed barren. If the Funnyman was to attack them, they’d at least see it coming. As the light dimmed and the dull roar of the storm outside grew even quieter, the group sat spread out on the crystalline floor. The Digimon, grateful for the chance to rest in the Rookie forms, lay spread out around them. The five children were gathered around Lorelie once more, as the little message icon flashed up on her screen. Aardmon sat close by, facing away. The girl looked up, and tapped at her keypad. “I think I’ve got them.” There was a burst of static, which slowly faded away. Then Skelton’s voice came up, quivering a little through the line. “Hi everyone. You’re at the core?” Callum held his teeth together. “It took a little while, but yeah. We’re here. The Funnyman’s up there somewhere; we’re gonna try and get inside tomorrow.” There was no response for a couple of minutes, only the dull static hum. The other kids leaned forwards, looking a little puzzled. “Skelton...?” “That’s good. You’ve done brilliantly to get this far.” Martin blinked. “Thanks...well, the world’s in danger, isn’t it?” “We...uh...look, we-“ The sound cut off. Lorelie tilted her head a little, and Ursula glanced sideways at Eleanor. “They are being more strange than usual.” “More unhelpful than usual, you mean.” There was a beep that made everyone jump, and Keble’s voice came through on the audio. “It’s taken us a little while, but we might be able to help. We’ve found out a bit about the Funnyman. Perez, send it through, will you?” There was a bit of chattering on the other side of the line, then Callum’s D-Psyche beeped. He looked at the screen, as the other gathered round. Martin made a face. “That’s nasty...” “It’s not much, I know. We don’t know how it works, or what it can do. But we do know how you can beat it. You do still have those antidotes, don’t you?” “We have three. Is that enough?” “That’s good. You should only need one, which you need to try and plug into the core itself.” “Question.” Eleanor raised her hand, before lowering it as she remembered it was a phone conversation. “How are we supposed to insert these things into the core anyway? It’s massive.” There was a muffled shuffling from the other end, as Eleanor tapped her foot. She turned towards the others. “It’s a valid question...” “The dimension sphere.” Everybody looked around; it was Aardmon who had answered. She tapped her fingers together, awkwardly. “It’s a...more manageable version of the core. Kind of like...a library...except that anything in the sphere is directly connected to the core...and vice versa.” There was a buzzing from Lorelie’s D-Psyche, and Keble’s voice came over again. “The Funnyman has the sphere. We’ve found that out. You need to try and get to it and insert the reset program, and then everything should go back to normal. The sphere should have a plugpoint somewhere.” “Well that’s convenient.” Eleanor frowned. “Very convenient, actually...” She turned towards Aardmon, who had her hands clasped in front of her. “How come you know about this dimension sphere whatsit? You don’t know anything. No offense.” Aardmon raised a finger and thumb. “I...know a little. I listen around...” “Whatever...” Eleanor sniffed. “And how do you expect us to get close to this thing? We’ve just had a run-in with what I guess are some of its babies, and they were annoying enough.” “I believe in you. We all do. You’ve done so well to get here. You’re in the best place to save the world right now.” There was a pause, as the children looked amongst themselves. Aardmon turned her head slightly, ears twitching. “That’s all we can give you. It’s hard enough to reach you right now anyway; the Funnyman is interfering with the signals. Just...good luck.” “Thank you.” “I know you can do it.” The line went dead, and Lorelie’s screen faded to black, before showing a quizzical emoticon. She let her keypad hang limp in her fingers for a moment, before typing. “That was weird.” Callum furrowed his brow. “I know. Something feels a little off here.” “Well, we got some new information at last.” Martin crossed his legs and smiled, looking among them all. “We know what we’re supposed to be doing.” Eleanor huffed. “We do definitely have three of those things left, don’t we?” One by one, Ursula, Martin and Callum pulled out their devices, holding them out in their palms. Martin bit his lip. “They look so small, don’t they? How can they beat something that’s done this much damage?” Callum shrugged. “I dunno. I guess we just put our trust in smart people?” He rubbed his chin. “The better question is, who should hold onto them? There are five of us; if one of us gets close and they don’t have one we’re gonna miss an opportunity.” Nobody answered. The boy rolled the device around in his hand, before holding it out to his right. “Eleanor, you take mine.” “Callum?” “Polypmon can fly; Martin should stay with them; he can probably get close. And Ursula hasn’t had a problem; she’s been taking Digimon down bare-handed.” He glanced between Eleanor and Lorelie, who was staying quiet, listening intently. Callum gestured towards Eleanor once again, “Of the rest of us, I think you’re the one we can count on most.” Martin tilted his head. “I don’t know, Callum; Empermon can reach Ultimate, can’t he? Maybe you should hang onto it.” “I don’t know if I can trust myself to keep going. Not after everything that’s happened.” The boy hung his head, as everybody looked at him. Eleanor sighed, and took the device from his hand, wrapping it around her wrist. “I hope you know what you’re doing.” Ursula stood up without warning, looking amongst them. “Why is everybody being so negative? We are nearly there, aren’t we? This is good news; we know how we can win.” Callum looked away. “I just don’t wanna call anything yet.” The girl stood up straight, folding her arms. “I can’t believe you all. We’ve gotten this far on blind hope and ignorance. Can’t we keep that up for just a little longer?” Eleanor looked up at her incredulously. “Since when were you the hopeful one?” “I don’t have a choice when you all start moaning.” Ursula smirked, and stuck her tongue out. “Come on. One more go at it, tomorrow? It won’t take long.” Lorelie let out a small burst of static, and stuck her thumb upwards. Martin leaned back, smiling. “God, I love being in a group of determined idiots.” Eleanor and Callum glanced at each other, neither of their expressions saying much. They sighed in unison. “Alright then. Let’s go for it.” “Sure. Let’s go twat this guy in the face.” “That’s your answer to everything.” “Tell me it hasn’t worked so far...” On the outskirts of the hopeful conversation, Aardmon stood up, and wandered away, cradling her arms in front of her. She glanced up at the geometric fortress above, and shivered, picking up the pace. Skelton’s knuckles clenched as she placed the microphone unit down in front of her, before looking up at Keble, a grave expression on her face. “That was cruel, James.” The tall man placed a hand on the desk beside him, clearly uncomfortable. “I...said what I thought was best.” “No, that was fucking cruel. What the hell?” Perez seemed to agree; she folded her arms, her eyes piercing beneath her glasses. “You had no right to do that...” “I’m sorry, what other choice did I have? I couldn’t just tell them...the other option?” Keble tensed, and struck the desk with his knuckles, before turning away from the others. “After all they’ve been through, that would destroy them...” Skelton sat back, holding her elbows. “What if they find out on their own? That’ll destroy them even more.” Keble held a hand over his mouth, just briefly, before turning back to his colleague, his eyes moist. “Then I’m willing to talk to them directly and tell them it was my fault. But at least this way they have a chance to finish what they started.” Skelton and Keble stared at one another for about a minute; the gaze of two friends who found themselves at odds with one another far too often. Finally Skelton relented, folding her arms. “I don’t like it. I haven’t liked it from the start, and neither have you. If this goes tits up, it’s your fucking fault.” Dominic raised his hand behind them, as his computer screen flashed behind him. “Someone else doesn’t like it either.” The others crowded round, looking at the new message which had just popped up. “Your incompetence is clear. Your assistance was of no value. I will deal with this myself. Goodbye.” Perez winced. “Ouch. Harsh.” Skelton forced a smile, and placed a hand on Keble’s shoulder. Hard. “Let’s hope this goes as well as you hope it will, huh?” James Keble didn’t answer. He just closed his eyes. The children sat together for a good hour, trying to make plans for the battle ahead; a difficult strategy when your battleground is an unknown labyrinth. Still, they did the best they could, pulling up as much optimism as they could for the day ahead. Tired and nervous, they eventually split apart, with nothing more to discuss but plenty to think about. The digital core twinkled faintly all around them as they went their separate ways, trying to gather their thoughts into somewhere more sensible. Callum knelt down, looking back through the wall of the core; part crystal and part ethereal. He squinted as he tried to make out the world beyond; the floating ocean and the many terrible islands they’d passed through. “You look lost in thought and worry. It’s probably not healthy.” Callum gave a half-smile, and glanced sideways. “Come on Empermon, you know me by now. I don’t do healthy coping mechanisms.” The penguin sat down. “Eeyup. I know firsthand, thank you very much.” He tapped the ground with his saxophone. “Though honestly, it felt better the second time. It’s kinda nice being that strong when you’re not just on a rampage.” “You really think it’ll be that simple?” “What, you don’t trust me?” “I don’t trust myself at the minute.” The boy reached across his chest and held his D-Psyche, which pulsed gently beneath the metal. “We really have only gotten this far due to blind luck and ignorance. But that doesn’t always work. I saw that.” He looked down at Empermon. “Motimon was willing to let us live. I don’t think the Funnyman’s gonna be that kind. Hell, I don’t know what the Funnyman’s gonna do. And...well...what if it goes wrong again?” Empermon’s eyes met his for a few moments. Then the penguin shrugged. “Isn’t that the risk you take? Regardless of how much you’ve screwed up in the past, they still need you. Us. They still need us.” Callum rolled his fingers. “I don’t think I can take the lead this time.” “You don’t need to take the lead. Just be there for them.” The penguin blinked. “That’s okay with you, isn’t it?” “I guess we can offer a helping hand.” “Good. ‘Cause I don’t wanna march at the head of the parade again; it does me no good. I’m happy to waddle at the back playing a war fanfare.” Callum laughed. “The Funnyman’s gonna be so confused.” He laughed together with his partner, and the two sat back, staring up at the pale storm outside. “Empermon?” “Yeah?” “Can you play something?” The penguin reached down, and ran his claws over his saxophone. “Sure. Anything in mind?” “I don’t know any jazz. So...anything you like, really.” “Well then,” said Empermon standing up and mock-clearing his throat, “I present to you the Ballad of Not-Caring. May its apathy inspire us all to Not Care in all events.” Callum lay back, placing his hand behind his head. “Sounds like just the thing.” Empermon grinned, before he pressed the reed to his beak and began to play. The ever-so-slightly off-key crooning of the apathetic penguin drifted across the courtyard and into the ears of the surrounding partners. With a huff, Eleanor folded her arms. “Honestly, doesn’t he know people are trying to sleep?” There was a rustling beside her as Terramon unfurled herself. “But we’re not sleeping...?” “That’s not the point.” “Too nervous?” The girl stretched her foot out, the screen glowing faintly and the wheels clicking round. “I don’t get nervous.” “Lucky you.” Terramon sighed, and pulled her head slightly further into her shell. “How the heck did I end up here? Over the past few weeks I’ve had some really weird turns in my life.” “You’re telling me.” Eleanor went slightly red, and scratched behind her head. “Look...if you really don’t want to be here, there’s no shame in turning away. I’m sorry I kinda dragged you along; you don’t need to risk your life ‘cause of my issues.” Terramon sniggered. “What, so then you’ll just run inside and punch the Funnyman yourself?” “Probably.” “That’ll work.” “Probably.” Eleanor sighed, resting her chin on her forearms. “He needs to be stopped. No matter what. I can’t just sit by and let him laud himself over everyone. How many lives have been ruined thanks to him?” “It’s just how this world goes sometimes. You get arseholes in power who like to march around kicking things.” “How is that alright?” replied Eleanor, sitting up, “Why is this world just...okay to live with that? Yeah, it happens in mine too, but none of us actually like it. We do something about...it...” She huffed. “Oh, who am I kidding? No we don’t.” The turtle rolled onto her knees, placing her palms in her lap. “You sound like you’re taking this personally. You know none of us like this guy, right?” “Yeah, I know. You’re all good people. Even Aardmon. Even Callum.” She sighed. “Far better than me. You’re all fighting cause it’s the right thing to do.” “Aren’t you?” Eleanor‘s hand went to her head, running a finger around her temple. She winced. “I just can’t stand people who think it’s okay to shit on everyone else. Just ‘cause they think they’re better. But they keep coming back, and when the people around you just...stop caring, or trying, or even acknowledging that there’s a damn problem...I don’t know, it’s hard, y’know? So I just sort of hit back at everyone.” The girl tilted her D-Psyche back and forth in a contemplative manner. “I’m not doing this for justice. I just really hate people.” Terramon shuffled a bit closer, leaning against the girl. “Well, it’s thanks to that I was able to avenge Gizamon, so it can’t be all bad.” “Listen, you don’t want a piece of shit like me as a role model.” “Maybe it’s a bad idea.” Terramon shrugged. “Still, I’m full of bad ideas. At least together we might be able to turn out something good from them.” Eleanor smirked, and patted the turtle on the back of the shell. “How did I end up with a partner as stubborn as me?” Terramon raised a finger to her jaw. “Sssh...don’t question it. Just embrace the arsehollery.” “Amen to that.” “You’re a little quiet.” Polypmon hovered over their partner’s head, gently draping their tentacles over his shoulders while taking care not to sting him. Martin didn’t react, so Polypmon nudged him. “Hey? Earth to Martin?” “What? Oh...sorry. Yeah.” Polypmon shifted shoulders, frowning. “What’s wrong? You’re not scared, are you?” “A little. You’ve seen what this thing’s done to the world.” The jellyfish smiled. “Well yes, but that’s why we’re here, isn’t it? We’re gonna save the world.” They unravelled themselves and floated in front of the boy’s face, smiling wildly. “Coming with you was one of the best decisions I ever made. I’m a hero. An honest-to-god hero, fighting against the forces of chaos.” They fluttered back and forth, fanning themselves. “I would never have thought it. Then again, I never would have thought of anything, stuck where I was.” They paused, and tapped their head, as if thinking. “Did I ever thank you for that?” “For what?” “For kidnapping me that one time.” “Oh...erm...maybe? No?” “Thank you for stealing me from my home and pushing me into the path of heroism. I really appreciate it.” 
Martin gave in; he laughed heartily, before leaning back, moving his feet back and forth. “That was all you. I thought you seemed different from the others even back then. Although anyone can be a hero.” He smiled. “I admire people who can do that. Actually push forwards and become better versions of themselves.” Polypmon hovered, looking a little puzzled. They coiled their front tendrils together, twisting their dome. “I would have thought you’ve done the same...” “I wish. I still have a long way to go.” Martin pushed up his glasses, before looking at the palm of his hand. “My parents say I’m fine the way I am. But I’m not. Not yet. There’s still a lot I need to fix about myself; I just wish people would point me the way to go rather than trying to comfort me.” “You sure it’s comforting you?” Polypmon lowered themselves down, almost reaching out to hold the boy’s chin but stopping at the last minute. “Yeah, you can always get better. But don’t knock the person who you are now. He’s done a lot of good things.” Martin exhaled, looking down at the ground. “You really think we have a chance? All of us? As we are?” Polypmon sucked the end of one of their tendrils, thinking hard. “I’m willing to believe it. Isn’t that the only way we can win?” They pulled back. “We’re supposed to be heroes, after all. Shouldn’t we believe in what we’re trying to do?” The boy bit his lip, then nodded. “Yes. Yes we should.” The jellyfish stuck out a wad of tentacles in a crudely shaped hand. “Best of luck, Martin. I know we’ll be excellent out there.” The boy smiled sincerely, and gingerly shook his partner’s tentacles. He winced, shaking his hand as he pulled it away. Polypmon frowned. “Does it sting?” “Not at all,” lied Martin with a smile. Ursula smiled, staring up at the white void above as Empermon’s serenade washed over her. She closed her eyes, listening and feeling the energy of the area around her, just staying in the moment. “Big sis!” “Hey!” The girl sat up quickly, only just catching Hinkymon as he barrelled into her lap, embracing her with a sheepish grin. “Sorry miss, I overslept.” “That’s okay. We’re getting up again soon anyway.” She grinned, and tickled under his chin. “Are you ready for this?” The goblin sat down cross-legged in front of her, and flexed his arms. “I can take on anything!” “Nice to see you so full of energy as usual.” Ursula shook her head, and reached out to ruffle his hair. “Even if everyone else falls down, you’ll still get up and keep running at the bad guys, won’t you.” Hinkymon blushed. “It’s fun. I like it. I like fighting with you.” “Stop...” Ursula rubbed beneath her chin, before reaching down and holding the screen around her stomach. She felt the energy surging in her D-Psyche; fiery, yet safe. Hinkymon shuffled around behind her, and placed a hand on the metal. “I can feel it, big sis. More and more. A big warm wobbly feeling inside.” “Is it weird? I feel like I should be scared, but...I just feel alive. Is this just adrenaline?” The goblin hummed and swayed from side to side. “I dunno what that is. I just like to live and have fun.” He put his hands behind his back. “It’s gonna be fine, isn’t it?” Ursula ran a finger through her hair. “I’ve spent so long just holding back. On my feelings. On ever fitting in. It’s hard for me to say; I feel like I belong here for the first time. I like these people. I like you.” “You like the little miss?” Ursula blushed, and wrapped her arms around her knees. “I’d never talked to her before. I guess it’s not the right time.” “Why not?” “Well...we’re busy, aren’t we? Saving the world and everything.” The goblin sat down, placing his hands between his legs as he stared up at her. “If you’re having fun, you don’t need to care about where or when. What could go wrong?” The girl raised an eyebrow. “A lot?” Hinkymon cocked his head just a little, staring up at her with those wide purple eyes. For a moment Ursula thought she could see something a little more behind the innocence and the playfulness. Something far wiser. The goblin rubbed his toes together, looking thoughtful. “Well yeah, but...isn’t that one of the risks you take?” He giggled, and leapt up again, scampering off into the courtyard. Ursula lay back, her hands behind her head as she stared upwards. “Could this actually work? Could we actually beat the Funnyman? Can I make a difference?” She held her breath. “Could I...actually do it...?” “It feels like a long time, doesn’t it...” Lorelie clenched her fingers as Shrewmon sat beside her, and nodded, her screen showing just faint static fuzz. Shrewmon tapped her claws on the ground. “You don’t wanna stay behind, do you?” Lorelie shook her head vigorously, reaching for her keypad. “I’ve come this far. I’m coming with everyone else. We’re gonna finish this.” Shrewmon smiled. “You’re a strong girl.” “I try. I’m not very good at it though.” “Me neither. But I’m willing to try if you are.” The shrew kept tapping, staring ahead of her and taking deep breaths. “Lorelie, I know this isn’t gone...brilliantly...so far, but I really do want to fight with you. I wanna be strong again and protect you. You know, right?” The girl flinched just slightly, before steeling herself and nodding. The shrew chuckled. “Imagine how that would look? I could carry you into battle and we can be heroes together.” “I’ll do my best. We’re partners, aren’t we?” “Can you promise me?” Lorelie turned to her partner, who smiled, her big blue eyes reflecting off the girl’s screen. “We’ll make a promise. We’ll get strong together. We’ll beat the Funnyman together.” She held out a tentative paw, holding her claws back. “That’s alright, isn’t it? As partners. Right? We’ll fight together. We’ll be strong.” Lorelie paused for a moment. Then she nodded, and held her hand out, clasping the shrew’s paw and shaking. Shrewmon grinned, and held her claws out in front of her, flexing them in and out. “I can’t wait to see what we can do together. I can’t wait to be big and strong again.” Lorelie’s hand hovered over her keypad, hesitating for a moment. Shrewmon noticed, and gestured, waiting expectantly. “Go on? What is it?” Lorelie typed slowly, before holding her keypad out. “Good luck, Shrewmon. Stay safe.” The shrew blinked, before chuckling. “I don’t need luck, Lorelie. I have you. I know you won’t let me down.” Far from the comforting words and soothing sounds just outside the gate, Aardmon trudged forwards, staring down at her feet. Her paws were clasped at her chest, pressed tightly enough for her to feel her own racing heartbeat. She turned around, and trudged back for a few metres. Back and forth, edging ever so slightly further into the shadow, then back towards the light. “I...I need to tell them. I should tell them.” She turned, taking another few steps. “But I believe in them. They can win...” She stopped, and stared up at the colossus above. The vibrant colours and distant sirens seemed muted, although she definitely had the feeling that it was watching her. A window here, a parapet there; hiding in the shadows, the Funnyman’s fortress seemed to be staring down at her. It knew everything. Of course it did. “Can they win...?” There was a flash, and she saw something slithering down from the top ramparts, disappearing from sight before she could make out what it was. She braced herself, and took a step forwards, yelling up towards the top of the tower. “You listening to me? We will beat you! Right here!” Her words rang out, hollow and empty as they bounced amongst the buildings above. The aardvark stood alone, only the sound of her own breathing in the cold atmosphere around her. She clenched her fists, and shook her head. “They don’t need to know. All they need to do is win. They can win. This...this whole thing will all be...over...” Aardmon started, and stared up at the fortress above. The thing slithered past her vision again, closer this time. Far up in the highest block, she could make out the material shifting, forming one vast tubular eye that split wide open, staring down at her. Aardmon stared up, frozen, as a large part of the fortress began to disassemble itself, the mysterious creature slithering ever closer with a low rumble. The colours began to flash brighter, and the sirens grew louder, mixed with the distorted warble of something very big and very bad laughing like a maniac. The aardvark jumped out of her stupor, and ran back in the direction she’d come as the fortress began to awaken behind her. “He’s coming! The Funnyman’s coming!” Aardmon yelled out hoarsely as she stumbled towards the others, her breathing wild. But she needn’t have bothered; the intense rumbling had already reached the courtyard and everybody was already congregating, spurred into action by the oncoming threat. Aardmon skidded to a halt, and pointed at the fortress above. “It’s moving! What are we gonna do?” Martin clutched the side of his glasses as Polypmon hovered just behind him, looking very worried. The boy squinted, looking all over the shifting blocks all over the core. “They’re all moving positions.” “I can see that, Columbo!” “Don’t you see? This means we could sneak inside.” The boy rubbed his cheek. “I mean...possibly. We might get crushed to death first.” Eleanor sighed, and planted one fist in the other. “Alrighty then, this is an abrupt plan and a stupid plan. I like it.” She turned to the others, as the fortress threatened to implode behind her. “Okay, as we discussed. You see an opening, you go for it. Try and buddy up if you can. And more importantly, you see the Funnyman, fuck him up.” There was a cheer from many of the surrounding group. Empermon whistled, and leaned towards Callum. “She’s really getting into this.” “Well, one of us needs to.” The boy closed his free hand. “Look out. It’s coming.” BOOM The group ducked as splinters of crystal and polymer burst out from the wall, threatening to take their eyes out. On looking again, they saw the wall had been ripped apart, dropping shards and rods down to the ground with jingles and clangs. Through the wall they could see the fortress beyond, or at least parts of it, whipping past as the geometric shapes shifted, cracked and rotated their way around before them. A living labyrinth, where the slightest wrong move could cause them to get infinitely lost, or worse. Not that it was even going to be that easy, as stretching upwards from either side of the break in the wall were two biomechanical appendages, each one tipped with a mockery of a human hand. The bones were metal and the muscles were wires...mostly, aside from the few scraps of fabric, wood and what appeared to be actual flesh dotted around them. The hands were remarkably anatomically correct, save for the fact that each finger looked like it had decided on in a hurry. Amidst the shuffling wires the tamers could make out penknives, tentacles, USB connectors, corkscrews, one finger balancing a large colourful three-pronged thing that made an unbearably annoying noise, a houseplant, a fishing line, and an actual human baby hand on the end of a vacuum hose. It was completely and utterly bizarre, and each appendage seemed to change and be replaced in an instant; the metal swallowing up one set before spitting out some brand new horrifying torture implement. In this case a paintbrush. With wires sticking out the end. In actual fact, wires really seemed to be the Funnyman’s aesthetic. That and large, round eyes that occasionally bobbed up between the metal plates, blinking and staring round. The hands hovered above, flexing each muscle in turn and facing(?) towards the tamers below. They shuddered, the arms seeming too spindly to hold them up. But then again the whole thing was improbable, to put it mildly. Terramon groaned, raising her fists as she glanced up at Eleanor. “God this thing is a massive tryhard.” “I don’t care what it says!” growled Eleanor as she stood up straight, her D-Psyche glowing intensely, “It’s fucking wrecked everything and I want it gone!” Aardmon watched as the five tamers stepped forwards in front of her, each of them glowing with new power. All except for Lorelie, but she stood up among them all the same, with Shrewmon sharpening her claws in front of her and grinning. Aardmon held her paws to her chest, shutting her eyes tightly. “Please be careful...” “Psyche Synchronise!” “Evolution Activate!” The Funnyman’s proxy raised both palms as four small creatures glowed intensely, enshrouded in cocoons as they swelled in size and power. Suddenly four new warriors stood before the wall; defiant, determined, and already thinking of ways to show the Funnyman what for. “Saxophmon!” “Chelydramon!” “Manowarmon!” “Kobolmon!” Shrewmon marched forwards, pointing at her own chest. “And I’m here too!” The hands trembled sarcastically as they surveyed their mostly grown up opponents. 
Callum took his place beside his partner, who was already warming up the area around him with a series of little fractals “Has anyone ever told you that you’re not funny?” “Fuck you too!” “Fuck you more!” The Funnyman twisted both hands up, and stuck both middle fingers smartly into the air. The fingers morphed, both of them changing into long, smooth and highly suggestive canisters; one yellow and one green. They began to vibrate, steam building beneath them and liquid seeping down from the top. Riding atop Kobolmon’s back, Ursula made a face. “That is not right...” The canisters burst open with a small explosion, and a series of small orbs clattered to the floor. The children watched, briefly bemused, as the orbs began to roll around, letting off little squeals and snorts and unfurling into very unfriendly – and very familiar – looking shapes. Manowarmon sighed. “Ah dangit, it’s these things again...” The toothy creatures from before swivelled to face the kids, and without warning all of them rushed forwards at once with a furious battlecry. One of them was unpleasant. A few dozen was a pain. But here – a good hundred-and-twenty of the toothy little shites – they suddenly became very dangerous indeed. Not that that discouraged any of the assembled throng of makeshift heroes whatsoever. (Well, once you’ve pissed off a biomechanical hell-beast which births worm segments from its fingers and laughs at its own jokes, you really might as well commit.) “Loderndes Leuchtfeuer!” “Midnight Blues!” The little critters scattered; some of them struck by the beam of fire and some separated by swirling icicles. Yet still more kept barrelling forwards, and Saxophmon and Kobolmon suddenly found themselves on the defensive as dozens of jaws snapped at them from every direction. Up above, Manowarmon was firing bolts of energy to try and carve up the swarm even more, with Martin clutching their back and shouting directions. Chelydramon was having a whale of a time as she barrelled through the crowds, swinging her great arms from side to side like wrecking balls. One of the grubs came flying upwards and took a passing lunge at Martin’s head, who ducked in the nick of time, shaking his fist. “Watch where you’re throwing those things!” Manowarmon swerved. “Ah, it’s no big deal. At least they can’t reach us up heOW!” They stopped, shaking a bottom tentacle and sending several hundred volts into a critter that hung below with its vice-like jaws. It squealed, and popped into little ones and zeroes, but even so it still managed to take a chunk of the tentacle with it. Down below the critters were swarming, growling and chattering. Manowarmon’s eyes darted back and forth, their sides glittering nervously. “Um...correct me if I’m wrong but does it seem like there are more of them than before?” Martin adjusted his glasses as he stared down. “Honestly, that’s not what I’m worried about. They’re moving in patterns.” He pointed down, and Manowarmon slowed as they scrutinised the swarming crowds. From this high up, the chaotic movements and snapping of jaws seemed to be slowly giving way to a long slithering conga of teeth and bad moods. A snap here. The glimmer of an eye here. It was hard enough to watch with every little critter looking exactly the same, like staring at a magic eye painting after dropping something funky. So much so that when the conga reared up and turned its maw on the jellyfish, they didn’t react until the very last second. “Crap!” Manowarmon rolled to one side as the critter-wyrm lunged forwards, dropping yellow bile on the ground below. A hundred eyes rolled around along the length of its body; a body made up of each critter clamping onto the back of another, to make a long chain of maddened teeth. The wyrm growled, and snapped again, lunging with an incredible speed. “Watch out!” “Toxic Shocker!” Manowarmon didn’t have time to aim; they just released a burst of lightning into the wyrm’s face. It ducked to one side, mumbling grumpily, but its attack had done its job as the tips of several smaller tentacles floated to the ground, complete with a chunk of the jellyfish’s dome. Manowarmon’s screech caught the attention of the warriors below, and they looked up to see the new horror they were dealing with. On top of Chelydramon’s shoulders, Eleanor spluttered. “Are you taking the fucking – that’s not fair!” She turned towards the Funnyman’s arms and threw several rude gestures at them, nearly knocking herself off her perch. “Fight with a little honour you wanker!” Eleanor turned scarlet, and very nearly overbalanced, but the turtle shifted beneath her feet and just kept her standing upright as she threw further breathless obscenities at the overly crude fingers. Chelydramon lunged forwards, throwing a punch at another wyrm which was rising up in front of her and making the top half explode into data bits. “Be honest, did you really expect him to play fair?” “Down!” “Deadlock Jaw!” The vast turtle ducked as a wyrm whipped towards her eye, instead just running its teeth over her snout. She responded in kind; snapping off the head and letting it drop to the ground. But the body merely jettisoned the remains of the neck and reared up again, while the head section skittered away to join an additional conga. Said conga was busy spiralling around Saxophmon and Callum, who were finding themselves trapped in an ever decreasing circle of teeth and icicles. Callum gritted his teeth, and swatted at a lone critter that tried to sneak inside. “Isn’t this a problem?” Saxophmon grinned, and played a little faster, the sphere of ice expanding. The coil slowed a little, and one side reared up just slightly. Callum saw it, and pointed. “There!” “Harmony Frost!” The blast hit the critters square in the face, freezing them instantly. The rest of the conga thrashed, but Saxophmon slid forwards, holding Selma two-handed as he brought her up into the beast’s head. Two of the segments shattered, and the others lay frozen at their feet, but it didn’t do much to the larger conga other than really piss it off. It lashed out three times at the penguin, each time narrowly missing him, but finally it got lucky, striking him dead in the chest with a yellow bile shot and knocking him down. In seconds the creature was rearing up, jaws wide open and ready to take one of the penguin’s limbs. The penguin could see the mechanisms whirring inside the wyrm’s impossible anatomy, and took in a breath. “Acid Splash!” Shrewmon leapt forwards from behind Saxophmon, spraying the new head with steaming liquid. It shook its head, the eyes rolling all along its body, but the shrew wasn’t finished yet; she scratched and wrestled the head to the ground, slashing at as many soft looking points as she could find. “Scrape Nail! Now! Take it down!” “Midnight Blues!” “Torpedo Coil!” Saxophmon struck from below and Manowarmon from above, cleaving the wyrm into a dozen different pieces, which all scuttled off, disorientated and chaotic. Shrewmon giggled, and leapt off from her current charge towards the next target, fighting like an utter demon. Callum and Saxophmon caught their breath, taking note of their surroundings. “All in all this could be going worse.” “I agree.” “Will you bastards stop making more of them?” Callum frowned, and looked up at Eleanor, who was batting away creatures of her own as they tried to scale her mammoth of a partner. He pointed. “They’re not that tough though...” “They’re growing new ones!” Manowarmon hovered above, with Martin sticking his head over the side. “She’s right! Look!” Some of the critters were beginning to regroup, becoming full-length wyrms again. One of them reared up, and shook some loose teeth from its front-most mouth. It shuddered, and retched, before a shaft burst from its mouth, opening up to reveal a brand new set of teeth. It wriggled forwards, its eyes popping out into view, until it made a brand new head on the front of the original worm. Callum’s jaw dropped open, and he thrust an accusatory finger out towards the Funnyman, which was looking far more smug than should have been legal for a pair of disembodied hands. “Whu...that’s cheating!” “This is why nobody fucking loves you!” “Fuck off, no we didn’t!” Callum raised a finger again to try and think up any sort of a decent retort, but he was stopped by Chelydramon rushing up beside him to punch away another batch of grubs. Eleanor glanced down at him. “Don’t rise to it, Callum. We have other things to worry about.” She was right; the whole thing was already beginning to take its toll. For as many critters as the Digimon popped, even more were sprouting up, and they were disassembling and reassembling themselves with such rapidity that they were beginning to flood the courtyard; one-hundred and twenty having blossomed to at least two-hundred and fifty. Chelydramon was swinging her mace, but with each creature she carried it became harder to move, and there were only so many she could bite. Eleanor was spinning around on top, trying her best to kick away wyrms that reared up beside her, their eyes lolling lazily. “We need to hit them all at once! Find some way to knock them out- SHIT!” A particularly aggressive wyrm made a lunge for her, and she swung her right arm out, trying desperately to strike it beneath the snout. It dodged. She missed. And the wyrm’s jaws clamped themselves firmly over her forearm. “FUCK!” “Eleanor!” Chelydramon swerved and landed a punch on the wyrm, causing most of it to collapse...but the frontmost head remained latched tightly onto her arm. The girl screamed, hooking her other hand under the beast’s jaw and pulling with all her might, but the critter snarled up at her and fought her every move. Blood rolled down her forearm, splashing onto her partner’s shell beneath her. So focused was she on her current situation, she didn’t notice the wyrm rising up once again behind her, shaking debris from its mouth and leering back to take a more lethal bite. “Get away from her! Scrape Nail!” Shrewmon had bounded up in an instant, leaping from the top of Chelydramon’s shell and latching herself around the wyrm’s head. It shook vigorously, but Shrewmon could only see the red rage of battle, and she skirted around her adversary, slashing and biting with every opportunity she got. “Fuck the fuck off you fucking toothy FUCK!” Eleanor yelled as she finally wrenched the critter off her, tossing it away into the sprawling mess below. She crouched, suddenly out of breath as Chelydramon barrelled forwards, kicking the wyrms from under her feet and trying her best to keep Eleanor out of harm’s way. She crouched on the outskirts of the horde, her eyes swivelling backwards. “Eleanor...?” The girl held herself low, gripping the base of her forearm and holding her teeth together. “Shit...shit shit shit...” Another wyrm sprung forwards, slithering towards the two at breakneck pace. Chelydramon held her breath, and flexed her arms, green energy coursing through her veins. “Just hang on. I won’t let them get to you.” “I’m...I’m fine...” SKREEE “FUCK OFF!” Chelydramon reared up and threw a massive right hook at the wyrm, so strong that the first five heads pretty much disintegrated on impact. The turtle wasn’t done; she swung her arms round, gathering first one, then two boluses of energy, one in each hand. One step at a time, she swung them around, building momentum. “I won’t let you near her! MANGROVE MACE!” “Ansturm der Flamme!” The ground rocked from Chelydramon’s onslaught as Kobolmon grappled with the snake in his grasp, with nearly his entire body aflame, except for the very top where Ursula clung onto his back. She kept her arms in, feeling the heat from her partner as he slammed the wyrm’s head into the ground, and backhanded another. But more and more kept coming. Ursula pushed herself up, holding onto her hoodie as she tried to see over the seething mass of critters. There didn’t seem to be many more, but there certainly weren’t any fewer, and the four Champions were taking the brunt of the onslaught. Shrewmon was still as energetic as ever, and even Aardmon was rushing around the edges, slashing at the beasts where appropriate. Manowarmon flew above, blasting bolts from the sky, while Saxophmon stepped around as he tried to keep the shield of ice around both Callum and Lorelie. Ursula gritted her teeth, and looked further up, at the gap in the wall where the vast hands waited, still twisting as if they were manipulating the hundreds of little creatures. “He’s trying to keep us out. If we’re inside...if we can just get through...” She steeled herself, and leant forward, yelling into her partner’s ear over the commotion. “Ignore these things! “Really?” “Run to the wall; we need to break in!” Kobolmon’s face split open in a big wide grin, and he adjusted his main headlamp, his wheels squealing against the ground. “Hold on tight; I’m coming through! Loderndes Leuchtfeuer!” His lamps burst with pure white light as he barrelled forwards, pawing at the ground and stomping the critters beneath his feet. He lurched from one side to the other, avoiding one wyrm as it reached up to snag Manowarmon from the sky, and Chelydramon with her maces pounding at the ground. Wyrms snapped at his wheels and arms, and at Ursula still clutched to his back. He burst through the last wall of creatures, aiming directly for the gate with both arms aflame. “Above you!” The troll reared up, his own momentum carrying him forwards as the Funnyman’s hand pushed against him. Several of the hand’s circuits caught fire, but it didn’t seem to affect it much as its fingers flicked and poked and slashed at the trolls attempts to pass. “Loderndes Leuchtfeuer!” The hand spun around, the blast just glancing off the side, and it reared back to punch Kobolmon. The troll was sent backwards several feet, but he held on, steam coming off his shoulders as he strained. Ursula leapt from his back and rushed forwards towards the gate herself, only for the other hand to slam itself down in front of her. The girl jumped. Then she gritted her teeth, placed her own palms on the great appendage, and pushed with all her might. Ursula smiled, and pushed back, her D-Psyche letting off spurts of orange light as she shoved against the Funnyman. “You still don’t understand us, do you? We are stupid, and we are crazy. That’s why we don’t give up. Ever!” She reared back and punched the palm of the huge hand, causing it to flinch as orange lights flew everywhere. Her D-Psyche groaned and span, giving her a new fire with every movement. Back in the sea of wyrms, Lorelie caught the barrage of orange through the icy dome. She tugged at Callum’s arm, and pointed, her face showing wide eyes. The boy turned towards her. “You want out?” Saxophmon turned, grimacing. “I think that will be extraordinarily dangerous.” “Isn’t everything?” Callum shook out his D-Psyche arm, and pointed with his free one. “Let’s make a path!” “Harmony Frost!” Saxophmon blew the loudest note he could muster, shuddering through the critters in front of them and freezing them solid. He and Callum burst through the dome, with Lorelie following close behind. Daylight struck her face, but she kept running, her focus on the girl still standing at the far end of the courtyard, her and Kobolmon holding back the Funnyman together. Lorelie raised her hands to her own D-Psyche, and concentrated hard, feeling the tiniest bit of energy swirling within. She cried out, the device boosting her voice as it struck the ears all the other tamers. “....the gate!...” Ursula gasped as the wave hit her, and she glanced backwards, watching as Lorelie rushed forwards, breaking through the wall of critters even as Callum and Saxophmon were surrounded again. The German girl grinned, and pushed harder, refocusing all of her strength on the abomination before her. “Noneof us...EVER...give up!” A shadow passed over her, and all of a sudden she was joined by the vast bulk of her partner; standing tall, standing strong, and smiling down at her with his great big sappy grin. He winked, and they pressed back against the Funnyman even further. “You’re really good at this!” “Thank you!” The Funnyman strained and struggled, but the hands were mere projections of its true self. They could twist cities and spawn wyrms, but against the full, direct and determined power of the tamers? They didn’t stand a chance. With a crack, they snapped back on themselves, sending bits and pieces everywhere. Both partners were glowing brightly at this point, shining a bright orange against the blue hue from all around. Kobolmon shook out each arm in turn, flexing his muscles as he looked down at his partner. “Am I going in?” “We’re all going in! All together!” Ursula stepped back, her D-Psyche expanding even more until she stood firm and sturdy; an engine of determination to take down the wall between them and the Funnyman. The true Funnyman. “Loderndes Leuchtfeuer!” Bright light erupted from Kobolmon’s body like a fireworks display, shooting outwards and exploding in bright yellows, oranges and reds. The troll pawed at the ground, laughing heartily throughout the entire pyrotechnic display. The wyrms reacted instantly, coiling up, squirming and squealing. Amidst the chaos, Callum, Martin and Eleanor heard a voice emanating from the D-Psyches. Lorelie’s true voice. “...get to the door...” Callum looked at his partner, and nodded. “Time to get out of here.” “Midnight Blues!” “Toxic Shocker!” “Mangrove Mace!” The three champions powered their way through the writhing horde, even as the teeth snapped at their feet. Chelydramon held one hand above her partner as she swung her bolus left and right, disintegrating the wyrms everywhere. Martin clutched onto his partner’s torso as the jellyfish swung left and right, pulling their remaining tentacles up out of harm’s reach. Saxophmon held Callum’s wrist tightly as they rushed past the stunned critters, fractals dancing around them. They reached the door together as Sindrimon held a palm against it, feeling the smooth crystal and metal. Saxophmon stared around, then looked up at the ultimate. “I take it you’re gonna get us in?” “Ansturm der Flamme!” Kobolmon raised his forearms and struck the gates, causing cracks to blossom through the smooth surface. Again and again he hit it, each blow causing more damage, until finally it blew, revealing the interior of the core. Sort of. As the space kept shifting, so did the insides. Rooms and corridors and great valleys shuffled past as if it was a clip show, some showing horrifying creatures, and others deadly environments. The group stared in, trying to make out what was going on in the swirling portals within. Manowarmon held their tentacles together. “Where the heck is this gonna take us? Aren’t we gonna get split up?” “Who cares?” yelled Eleanor, pushing herself up on her partner’s shell and pointing with her wounded arm. “It’s open! Let’s go before we’re mobbed again. Chelydramon, go!” The turtle rolled her shoulders and rushed forwards, holding her arms up as she passed through the doorway and was promptly swallowed up. “Eleanor!” Martin held out an arm, but it was too late to do anything now. He looked down at Callum, who shrugged. “I guess we just hold on tight and hope for the best?” Both boys steeled themselves, and their partners rushed in at the same time, also being taken by the torrent of space. Kobolmon looked back, watching as Ursula ran back to reach Lorelie. The troll called out. “We have to go now!” “Aardmon’s still out there!” “I’m coming too!” The aardvark was running as the wyrms slowly recovered around her, all beginning to converge and morph into one large entity that snapped at her from every direction. She turned, throwing sand dagger after sand dagger, but it was clear that there was no stopping this thing. “Help!” “Acid Splash!” Shrewmon leapt forwards as she sprayed the frontmost head, causing it to flinch just a little. Still high on the adrenaline of the front she grabbed Aardmon and yanked her past the writhing snakes, reaching the girls as they prepared to board Kobolmon. Ursula grinned, and held her firmly, holding onto her partner’s arm as her hair blew in the wind. “We’re all here! Let’s go!” Lorelie tingled, and held Ursula’s wrist, typing furiously with a smile on her face. “We’re winning! We’re winning!” “We’re not stopping here!” “Never!” “We’re not stopping until we finish the job and kick the Funnyman out!” “Yes!” As the fortress roared and the wyrms rushed forwards and the adrenaline reached a critical level, Ursula reached down and hoisted the other girl up onto Kobolmon’s back. “This is a very bad moment, but when we get back do you think we could possibly go on a date sometime?” 
The girl felt the words leaving her mouth before she could do anything to stop them. There was a little squeak, and Lorelie’s screen switched off for a second. Ursula blinked, her own brain refusing to work properly as she acknowledged what she had just said. Everything went still. Even the rushing of the portals and the rumbling and squealing from the advancing wyrms seemed dull and silent. “...” “...I mean...” Aardmon leapt up and down on Kobolmon’s back as she pointed at the oncoming beast. “WE’RE GONNA GET EATEN CAN WE PLEASE MOVE!?” Kobolmon revved his wheels, letting off steam and laughing maniacally. “Onwards to adventure!” He rushed forwards, and they all vanished through the gate, just as the last wyrm’s jaws snapped shut behind them. Deep within the core, the Funnyman swung lazily, running three of his hands across a variety of panels and symbols at breakneck speed. His fourth hand hung off to one side temporarily, still fixing itself after Kobolmon’s rude attack. He watched as his adversaries were taken by the internal storm, and paid attention to where they had all ended up. Closer than he would have liked. Ah well. He giggled; a cacophony of whispers that echoed around the central chamber, followed by a constant murmuring from every single one of his faces. TO BE CONTINUED... |