DISCLAIMER: I don't own Digimon, but I do own the OCs introduced in this story and my other stories (except where stated).

Thanks to Blazing Chaos for beta-reading.

UNITED

By TheMightyBlues

CHAPTER 3

Espionage, Discoveries and Doubts

UNKNOWN DATE

DIGITAL WORLD

Unknown Location, Second Plane

Unknown Time

A long crimson cape flowed freely with the wind from the neck of an Exalted Knight Digimon. His legs, head and torso were covered in pure white armour adorned with black, blue and yellow markings, with two arms of different colours, one mostly blue and the other mostly orange. The arms did not have hands or claws, as most Digimon had. In the place of a hand on the blue arm was the head of a MetalGarurumon, and on the orange arm was that of a WarGreymon. He was the result of a DNA Digivolution between both of those aforementioned Digimon, giving him the power of both Mega Digimon combined. He was a force to be reckoned with, and feared by many.

He looked out across the horizon of the desert, not actively searching for anything yet maintaining his concentration. The only sounds accompanying him were the soft and steady breaths he took, and the whirling of the wind around him. It was calm and peaceful, something which he savoured as much as he could whenever he could. The life he led was certainly not calm or peaceful, quite the opposite in fact. He was, in essence, a soldier. A soldier with a sworn oath to protect and obey his master until his very last breath. It was a great honour to be chosen for this task, one that he was fully prepared to fulfil whatever the cost.

He was a patient Digimon. Years of waiting on various different things had had a profound effect on him. And he was currently waiting, waiting for news of success, news which should have arrived by now. Yet he was patient, and would continue to be patient, for it was all he could do.

Footsteps.

He listened carefully as the sound of feet pushing their way through the sand towards him became louder, and stronger. He had very good hearing, for which he was thankful. The years he had spent hunting out his prey had served his hearing well. Most of his senses had benefited because of it in one form or another. A familiar scent found its way to him, and he silently sniffed at it. He smiled inwardly. He knew the smell well.

Another Digimon approached him. He was a blue skinned Digimon, whose body was mostly covered by Gold Digizoid armour. Only his thighs, lower torso, upper arms, tail and hands were exposed to the light. He was a Digimon of rare breed, the only one of his kind to be seen for many years. He was also an Exalted Knight Digimon, one known for his speed and strength in battle. Like the Digimon he was approaching, he too had sworn an oath to serve the same master until his death. While they were both good friends, their duties came first, a fact they had come to understand very well. He stood next to the caped Digimon and similarly looked out at the horizon.

"Omnimon," he greeted. "I thought I might find you here."

"You thought well then Magnamon," he replied. "Was the assault on Wolf Village successful?"

"Yes. I just received word that MetalGarurumon is being brought to headquarters as we speak."

Omnimon turned to face the golden armoured Digimon, a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

"And what exactly took them so long? It should have taken two hours at the most, not four," he stated sternly.

"It seems our friends felt the need to delete the entire village before they left," Magnamon explained with a monotonous tone to his voice, crossing his arms.

"Idiots. It seems they can't go anywhere without killing something," Omnimon sighed. "Let me know when they get back. I want a word with them."

"Of course."

Magnamon turned and headed off in the direction he came from, leaving Omnimon to mull over what to say to the late pair when they arrive.

30th OF MARCH 2009

REAL WORLD

Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku Ward

19:24 JST

The sun was setting, most of its rays blocked off by the tall buildings in the Nishi-Shinjuku area. Businessmen, parents and workers rushed around carrying briefcases, children and bags with them as they pushed their way through the dense crowds, searching for a clear way to where ever they were going. Birds were perched on top of trees, buildings and billboards as they watched cars and buses grind to a halt on the busy roads, some beeping their horns in frustration.

BlackAgumon and his Tamer walked silently along a sidewalk, passing numerous shop windows and office buildings, paying no attention to them or the people around them. BlackAgumon got some wary looks from uneasy civilians, who were unused to seeing such a large Digimon walking the streets, but they diverted their attention away from him when he glared at them with gritted teeth. His Tamer simply walked on, as if oblivious to everything. He pushed his sunglasses higher up on the bridge of his nose before turning around a corner off the main road and into a side street.

Unbeknownst to him and his Digimon, they were being followed, followed by another Digimon, this one much smaller and lighter in colour than BlackAgumon. His name was Terriermon, and his long ears aided him greatly as he glided from treetop to buildings to treetops, using the considerable height as a shield, cutting him off from the view of those he was tailing. He had a reputation for being a bit of a trouble maker, and would have liked nothing more than to cause trouble right at that moment, yet he wouldn't for he had strict orders to stay out of sight. He knew that he would be seen if he were to do anything out of the ordinary, which could potentially blow his cover. He landed on a window ledge, his eyes following the distinct form of BlackAgumon as the Digimon wandered through the crowd.

"Do these people ever go home?" Terriermon exasperatedly asked, despite the fact that he was alone on the ledge, putting his paws on his waist in annoyance.

As if answered Terriermon's prayers, the Tamer and BlackAgumon walked up the stairs to an apartment complex and walked through the doors, disappearing inside. Terriermon pondered for a moment, unable to decide whether or not to follow them inside the building. On one hand he could follow them and find out what number they live at, but by doing that he would risk being caught in an unfamiliar building and would be unable to make a quick escape if he did so. On the other hand he could go home and tell Henry were the apartment complex is, which would be risk free compared to the first option.

"I suppose I'd better go home. If I were to get caught now Henry would kill me, providing BlackAgumon spares me of course," he thought.

Suddenly there was a knock on the window behind him, causing him to stumble forward in alarm. He slammed his ears down on the ledge, securing his hold on it and preventing him for falling. He turned his neck to face the window, and saw the face of a small child smiling at him. The little girl waved at him through the glass and jumped up and down merrily. Breathing a sigh of relief he grinned back, waving an ear at the girl.

REAL WORLD

Shioda Residence, Shinjuku Ward

19:49 JST

Two boys, one wearing a dark blue visor, a light black t-shirt with a bright yellow cross endowed on it and cream three quarter length trousers and the other wearing a pair of glasses, a cream t-shirt with an underlying orange vest and dark brown three quarter length trousers were sat opposite each other around a small coffee table, each one eyeing the other suspiciously while glancing at the several cards they held in their hands. On the table was a square mat which had several rectangular spots on it, some covered by cards and others not. The visor wearing boy slammed a card down on the table, the sound upon impact suddenly breaking the silence and causing the other boy to flinch slightly, almost dropping his cards.

"And with that card, my dear friend Kenta, Guardromon Digivolves to Andromon, which makes me the winner!" the boy shouted gleefully.

Kenta let his cards fall out of his grip as he hung his head in disappointment, not for the first time that evening. That game was the third they'd played since Kenta arrived over an hour earlier, and so far the overall score was three to nil in Kazu's favour. The score line did nothing to Kazu's ego except enlarge it; something which Kenta and several other people would argue did not need boosting. He sighed, running one hand through his thick swampy green hair while gathering his cards up with the other. He sorted them out so they were all facing downwards before placing them carefully in a neat stack on the table.

"Hey, don't look so down! You'd think by now you'd be used to losing to me, right?" Kazu said, shuffling his share of the cards thoroughly. "So how about another game?"

"What's the point? I'd only end up losing to you...again," Kenta whined sadly.

"Come on dude, cheer up! It's only a game after all. Look, I'll go easy on you this time, and I'll even give you my Guardromon card. Now is that a good deal or is that a good deal?"

Kenta raised his head, a half smile creeping its way onto his mouth as he massaged his cards, mentally preparing himself for the game. Kazu grinned, smugly pleased with himself.

"Now that's more like it!" he cheered. "Game on!"

MarineAngemon popped up from under the table, looking as cheerful as ever as he flew onto Kenta's shoulder to offer some moral support.

"Pipipi!" he squealed, bouncing a few times on Kenta's shoulder.

Kenta nodded his head in agreement. "I'll do my best MarineAngemon."

Kazu crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes and glowering disapprovingly at the pink Digimon, despite not having a clue what he had said.

"If only Guardromon could fit through the front door," he said enviously.

REAL WORLD

Wong Residence, Shinjuku Ward

20:01 JST

Henry Wong sat on his bed, fiddling with his D-Arc as he waited for Terriermon to arrive back home. He should have been home a while ago, and Henry couldn't shake the thought of his partner being caught and beaten. The only positive he could take from the situation was that he knew Terriermon was still alive. His D-Arc wouldn't work if that were the case, something he knew all too much about from his experiences in the Digital World when Jeri had lost Leomon.

With his patience wearing thin quickly, he got up and began pacing the length of his room from wall to wall, which wasn't much of a distance, making the action seem even more pointless. He clipped his D-Arc onto his belt and buried his hands in his pockets.

The door burst open, the sudden and surprising action snapping Henry out of his own little world and back into the real one, albeit while nearly sending him crashing backwards onto his computer desk. He stumbled backwards, swinging wildly for his bed with one hand to keep his balance. To his relief his hand found its way onto the cold bar of steel at the end of his bed, and he grabbed onto it halting his body's movement and shifting his feet to regain his balance.

"Fear not mere mortals, for your saviour has arrived!"

Standing in the frame of the door looking extremely pleased and triumphant with a huge grin on his face was Terriermon. The Digimon walked in, swinging the door shut behind him and jumping onto the bed. He lay flat on the soft duvet, stretching his arms and legs out as far as they could. Henry breathed out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding, and promptly sat down in the chair by his desk, turning it so it faced away from the computer and towards Terriermon.

"Terriermon! What on Earth took you so long?" he asked.

The cream coloured Digimon reluctantly sat up, arms crossed in disappointment.

"What? No comment on my entrance?" Terriermon pouted. "I was practising it all the way home you know."

"Terriermon!" Henry cried.

"Alright, alright! Sheesh, you have really got to learn to chill out Henry."

"Maybe I would chill out if you didn't worry me senseless by staying out so late."

"You wanted me to find out where those two idiots live, didn't you?" Terriermon challenged.

"Well, yeah-"

"And that is exactly what I did," he said coolly.

Henry's expression softened, his frown turning into a victorious smile.

"So, just to confirm, you did get their address?" Henry questioned.

"Oh yeah!" Terriermon exclaimed, jumping up onto his feet as he began punching the air as if he were a champion boxer. "I am the mon!"

Henry sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose as he shook his lowered head. Terriermon sat back down again, evidently bored and effectively ending any chance of a professional boxing career for the time being.

"Are you going to enlighten me as to the location of their home any time soon?" Henry asked.

"Oh, yeah, that. You know that electronics store in Nishi-Shinjuku, the one you bought your recent PC upgrade from?"

"I remember it, yes."

"Well, I followed them as they rounded that corner and walked about a hundred yards forwards before going up some steps into an apartment block," Terriermon explained. "You know it?"

"Yeah, I know it," Henry confirmed. "Great work Terriermon, that address could come in handy if ever we need to find them again."

Terriermon raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"Whoa, whoa, back it up a second. Why would we need to find them again?" he asked bluntly.

"Heh, you never know Terriermon, they might be helpful in the future."

"You know, forgive me for being a tad judgemental here, but those guys don't exactly strike me as the helpful type," the Rookie level Digimon noted.

"That's true, but you shouldn't judge a book by its cover."

"Huh? What the hell does a book have to do with anything?"

Henry buried his head in his hands, while Terriermon looked at his Tamer in bewilderment.

"What?" he asked innocently.

REAL WORLD

Nonaka Residence, Shinjuku Ward

21:31 JST

Rika sat on some grass, overlooking a light blue lake overrun by various different species of fish, swimming in a swarm of directions. She closed her eyes, listening to the sweet sound of the flowing water as it lapped up against the banks, and taking in the scent of the roses in full bloom all around her. It was peaceful here, wherever here was. She didn't care about that, it wasn't important. She was perfectly at ease, a feeling too good to waste on thoughts that weren't worth thinking.

The bird's chirped as they gracefully flew overhead in the sky, all the sounds combined creating a strange but smooth melody. Rika smiled, taking a deep breath and leaning back in the grass. She pulled the hair band that kept her hair held high out, letting her bright fiery hair loose, and placed her hands behind her head as she settled into the lying position she was in.

She opened her eyes to the sight of one Takato Matsuki approaching her. He walked over to her, his radiating grin causing her to raise a curious brow. He held out a hand to her, which she hesitantly accepted. She got up, wiping any blades of grass off her clothes and straightening out any creases. Takato reached out and grabbed her hands gently, stopping her from continuing. She looked up into his eyes, annoyed at the interruption. He simply smiled back at her, her frustration fading into uneasiness the longer they maintained eye contact. She felt her heart rate quickening, her throat and lips turning dry as she felt heat gathering in her cheeks.

"Gogglehead, what are you doing here?"

"Uh...I don't know," he admitted lamely, as she took a curious glance around, still wondering why on earth he was holding her hands like this, and more so, why she hadn't complained yet. An anomaly caught her eye, as she tilted her head at him.

"Oh, so you didn't bring the bread-stuffing doofus with you then?

"You mean Guilmon?"

"Well d..."

Takato suddenly jarred, cutting her off by taking a step forward and pressing his lips against hers, pushing her into a kiss. He wasted no time in letting go of her hands and wrapping his arms around her waist, pulling her closer towards him. Rika's eyes widened in shock, shock that Takato would even dare to hug her, and shock that he would ever be brave enough to. She froze up - her body was so tense it simply refused to move. She mentally screamed at herself, anger and confusion dominating her emotions as she tried to contemplate what was going on, yet for some reason she returned what he was doing, her hands finding themselves at his sides as she pressed her tongue against his and....

Rika bolted upright on the sofa, breath ragged and hair gone wild. She swung her legs over the side and she buried her head in her hands with her elbows resting on her knees. She took a few deep breaths in an attempt to relax her breathing, a feat proving rather troublesome.

"What the hell?" she thought. "Why am I dreaming about Gogglehead? Did I eat something bad?"

She curled one hand into a fist in irritation and slammed it into the sofa. The kiss replayed itself in her mind over and over again, as if she had set a particular scene on a DVD to repeat. Each time it did she could see it in more detail, so much so she could almost feel Takato's lips upon hers.

"Ha, as if Gogglehead would have the guts to even startle me like that, never mind kiss me. Stupid Gogglehead," she thought. "I wonder where Renamon is. She knows how much I hate sleeping on the sofa."

She got up, stretching out her arms in the air and yawning, before walking off in search of the Kitsune Digimon.

REAL WORLD

Matsuki Residence, Shinjuku Ward

23:37 JST

Takato Matsuki settled down in his bed, his D-Arc on his bedside table. He was exhausted. After all, chasing Calumon through Shinjuku Central Park and through the streets of West Shinjuku was no easy feat to accomplish. He could hear Guilmon's rhythmic breathing and his clock ticking away, the latter quite annoying for someone so tired. As he thought about everything that had happened earlier on in the day, he began mulling over the conversation he had with Guilmon in Shinjuku Central Park.

He recalled how he answered Guilmon's probing questions, and mentally slapped himself over it. It was no wonder Guilmon suspected he liked Rika, what with the way he stumbled over his words and constantly contradicted himself. Takato knew that he would think the same were the shoe on the other foot. Guilmon's words bugged him. When did he learn to be so inquisitive?

"Does that mean you love Rika?"

"No!"

"But you're always nervous around Rika, you stare at her a lot and you care about her a lot."

"That's different! I'm nervous around her because she might just decide to hit me or shout at me for no reason, I rarely stare at her after a battle in awe, and I only care about her as a friend!"

He had been telling the truth, and yet Guilmon didn't believe him. A year ago Guilmon would have taken his word as gospel, never challenging or refuting it. Too much time with Terriermon had certainly had a bad effect on him.

"So, by staring at her in awe you mean you admire her?"

"Yes. Wait! No! Not in the way you mean anyway. I admire her bravery, her never giving up attitude and her skills in battle."

"And her good looks?"

"Yes. No! Well, I'm not saying she's ugly or anything. I mean, she's far from ugly. She has fantastic features, especially her eyes - God what am I saying? I – she – Guilmon! I do not love Rika!"

Had he not been so irritated by his lack of sleep he might have chuckled at his antics, and Guilmon's sly questions. Takato made a mental note to ask Henry to tone done Terriermon's behaviour around Guilmon. He certainly didn't want a carbon copy of Terriermon running around Shinjuku. No, one Terriermon was more than enough. Any more of them and Rika would go on a murderous rampage.

"I'd mention that to Guilmon but he'd probably just tease me for talking about Rika too much. But seriously, I don't understand him sometimes. Surely after nearly four years he must know that Rika and I are not going to happen. It'd be like sticking another Vikaralamon loose in Shinjuku! A complete and utter disaster."

DIGITAL WORLD

Woodland, Fourth Plane

Unknown Time

A boy sat on the grass, his back leaning up against a tree deep in the forest of the Digital World. A few feet in front of him lay his Ultimate level Digimon partner, Cyberdramon. His red wings hugged his blue-grey armoured body as best they could as he slept peacefully, his breathing quiet yet retaining some of the harshness his voice had. The boy, known in the real world as Ryo Akiyama, had to admit that Cyberdramon's breathing made a pleasant change from the low growls he was used to hearing from the volatile Digimon.

Ryo's bones and joints ached with exhaustion after hours of hunting down various Digimon with Cyberdramon. It wasn't the way he would have liked to have spent the day, but Cyberdramon just would not let his "prey" escape. Ryo had even tried utilising the whip on his D-Arc to control him, only to fail when Cyberdramon broke loose. He had no choice but to follow and watch as a group of Champion level Digimon were deleted.

That being said, it seemed like Cyberdramon was getting tired. Over the last couple of days the amount of Digimon Cyberdramon had insisted on chasing had slimmed significantly, much to Ryo's delight. It was Cyberdramon's rage that forced Ryo to stay with him in the Digital World. There was no way he could ever be allowed to wander around the real world with his personality. It would be a lot easier if Cyberdramon reverted to his rookie form of Monodramon, who was a far nicer and more tolerant Digimon. The two were almost polar opposites, the difference between their personalities was quite astonishing. Yet Monodramon had a habit of spontaneously Digivolving into Cyberdramon, something which would be a total disaster in the real world.

"It would mean taking a risk, but I really should go back home some time soon. I've missed out on loads lately, and hopefully Cyberdramon won't be able to hold his form for much longer and de-Digivole to Monodramon. It would still have to be a quick visit, but it's a visit that is long overdue," he thought. "It'd be nice to go back home. No doubt Wildcat will be pleased to see me!"

Author's Note: A lot of smaller scenes in this chapter, and the introduction of a few of the other Tamers as promised. I think it went rather well, but let me know what you think by submitting a review. Constructive criticism is welcome.

What do Omnimon and Magnamon want with MetalGarurumon? What will Henry do after his run in with the mysterious Tamer? Will Takato work through his emotions to discover what he truly wants? Find out in Chapter Four of United.

Extra Note: This is an edited version of the original chapter three. After a few discussions with Blazing Chaos, Frozen Twins, Crazyeight and Pyro the Harbringer of Chaos I decided to cut down and edit this chapter. I think this version is much better. My thanks go to those guys for being so honest and helpful!