A/N: Konichiwa peeps! Good ta see ya! Sorry about the ages, I keep forgetting to write about that. Gatomon's supposed to be age 11, and Agumon is 14, and blah blah blah. And as for Hawkmon and Wormmon's appearances… well, the damage has been done, and anyway, I tried drawing a pic and they really do look better that way. Oh, and cross out the 'find' in the prophesy, it's only supposed to be 'Destiny and Spirit must aid them all.' Um okay, I don't know what to write now.

Destiny: Wow, that's a record. Usually it takes you at least ten sentences.

Sam: Since Capri over there is speechless (for once) we'll fill you in. Last time Biyomon and Agumon ran into their first shadow demon and Embermon and Feelingmon crest digivolved into Firemon and Emotionmon. Meanwhile, Echthroi and Mortisha are watching, and begin to suspect that the new Digidestined aren't quite what they seem.

Destiny: Today we're moving on to our next supposed to be coupling, Tentomon and Palmon. They ended up in the desert. Palmon gets sick and the two of them run into their first shadow demon. There is a reunion between them and another group.

Capri: Thank you for sharing. Okay, time for the dreaded disclaimer. DUN DUN DUN!!!!!

Sam & Destiny: *stare*

Disclaimer: Digimon no mine. Destiny and story Capri's stuff.

Capri: *magically pops onto the page* One more thing. Sorry it took so long everyone!

Sincerity's Sickness

            The four of them stood silently at the edge of the desert. "Oh, no," said Palmon. "I'm not going in there." "It looks like a good place to start," pointed out Tentomon. "How many people would go through a desert, after all?" Palmon sighed. Being a plant digimon, she'd always hated the desert. "Let's get going," she said, shouldering her pack. About an hour later, they were both hot and tired. Tentomon had long ago taken off his jacket, and both of them had taken off their gloves. Palmon was especially grateful for her hat at the moment. Suddenly, she heard a soft moan from Plantmon. She looked over at the flowery digital monster in alarm. "Of course! You're a plant digimon! You can't take the sun!" Palmon gently picked up the wilting plant. "No need…" said Plantmon weakly. Palmon set Plantmon inside her backpack and placed her hat on top. "There, that should help." She could feel tears starting to form in her eyes as she thought of a time when Mimi had done something similar for her.

The four of them continued to keep going. Palmon stumbled slightly after a while. The heat was really getting to her. She was about to fall, when she felt a strong pair of arms catch her. Seeing as how we were all the exact same height as our partners, Palmon was instantly grateful that Izzy had had a sudden growth spurt, so she and Tentomon were nearly the same height. Tentomon was actually taller than her. She smiled faintly up at him. Staticmon sighed. "I don't think that they're here." "There's still a long way to go," pointed out Tentomon. Staticmon nodded. "It's not like we can turn back anyway," she said. It was an hour before dark when both their D-Terminals beeped. Tentomon took out his and looked at it while Palmon peered curiously over his shoulder. It was a message from Biyomon and Agumon. Tentomon quickly sent an email back, and the four trekking digimon continued on. Finally, when night had fallen, they set up camp. "How're we going to make a fire?" asked Palmon, trying desperately to stop her teeth from chattering. There was quite a difference between temperature in the night and the day. "I guess we can't," replied Tentomon, shivering as well. Staticmon and Plantmon were both already curled up asleep in Tentomon's pack, almost unseen among the blankets. Palmon pulled out two blankets from her own pack, tossing one to Tentomon and wrapping herself in the other. Tentomon caught his easily, but immediately turned his attention back to Izzy's laptop. He looked over at Palmon briefly, who was sitting straight up, not wanting to lie down on the cold sand.

Tentomon was looking for something on the Internet, though he wasn't quite sure what it was. He found some interesting stuff, each from one of the Digidestined, but nothing important. From Tai, he found a bunch of soccer tips. Sora had a tennis page on her website. Matt had stuff about his rock band. Mimi had put up some of her mother's more 'interesting' cooking ideas and listed about a million reasons for each one why they were physically impossible to either recreate, or be eaten. Izzy had a little just for fun site on How To Take Over The World Using Only A Pineapple Laptop. Joe had put up a medical site three years ago that had so many things on it, Tentomon wondered if the boy had been paranoid-delusional about germs when he was younger. TK had a site up that was dedicated to his hats, and it turned out that not only did he have those seven Gilligan hats, but many others as well. Kari had posted the pictures she took. For Ken, he had somehow managed to find his old Digimon Emperor files, but didn't look through them, since there were too many passwords. Davis had a weird list that contained 100 Ways To Kill Kimeramon. Yolei had hacker tips on her site. Cody's was all about kendo, and, for some strange reason, prune juice. Meanwhile, Palmon slept lightly, tossing and turning. With it being so dark out, the black mist that curled around her went unnoticed.

Mortisha looked on in satisfaction. "These two will get a harder test. Let's see if the boy can find the amulet in time." Echthroi was still staring intently at the Digidestined, then slowly began walking toward two of them, the brunette girl and an indigo haired boy. "There's something wrong with these two," he said. "The spell isn't taking hold. I can feel it." "You say it like it's a bad thing," Mortisha said, smirking. "I always like it when I have some toys to play with." Echthroi rolled his eyes. "You enjoy your games too much, dear sister." "As do you, my brother, as do you."

            Palmon woke up feeling terrible. Her head was pounding, her throat was sore, and she had about a million other things wrong with her. "Sal?" She looked down to see the tiny figure of Plantmon. "You don't look so good. Are you sure you'll be all right to continue?" "I'll be fine," she said, sounding more reassuring than she felt. A hacking cough contradicted her. Tentomon looked concerned. "Maybe we should stay here a while." "I said that I'm fine," said Palmon crossly. She stood up to prove her point, and promptly fell back down. Tentomon raised an eyebrow. Palmon rolled her eyes. "Okay, you win. I'll stay. But at least you guys keep searching." Staticmon looked between the both of them. "Plantmon had better stay with you. It'll be safer that way, okay?" Tentomon and Plantmon nodded. "Okay." Tentomon got up. "C'mon, Stat." "Don't call me that," said Staticmon tolerantly. The two of them set off.

            Tentomon looked around. The duo had been searching for quite some time now. It was a long while past noon, but at least it hadn't started to get dark yet. After being out in the scorching sun so long, he was surprised that he hadn't already been burned to a crisp. He felt worse for Staticmon, however, with her long fur. The poor digimon panted heavily, her fur wet with perspiration. Tentomon frowned. "C'mon, let's find some shade." "And where do you propose we find that shade?" asked Staticmon in a halting manner. He was about to answer, when he felt a draft of cold. Under normal circumstances he would have been happy, but it was more like an inner chill, of evil. "Whoa," said the electric digimon beside him. "Did ya feel that?" Tentomon nodded, and that was when a soft and cruel voice filled his head. Hello, Digidestined of Knowledge. How are you faring? He stiffened. "Who, who are you?" The voice laughed. I should think that that would be obvious. You know, you and your friends have been proving great entertainment for my brother and I. Both boy and digimon gave a gasp. "Mortisha!" Indeed. I just wish for you to know, Knowledge, that the two of us know very well that you are more than what you seem. It will be quite a lot of fun for the both of us when we find out what it is that you are hiding. Tentomon winced. He'd have to make sure that that wouldn't happen. Oh, and one more thing. We are quite aware that your little friend is sick. She gave a mock sigh. A pity indeed. He glared. "You leave Sally out of this!" Mortisha laughed again, more mockingly than before. Oh yes, we are quite aware that she is sick. In fact, she could even die in a few hours. "Don't be ridiculous," snapped Tentomon. It's true. I should know, I caused the sickness. Oh, and there's a shadow servant of ours heading that way as well. But I'll have you know that we are merely testing you right now. The other Digidestined that you seem to so intently be searching for are not located in this area, but the amulet that is causing your friend's sickness is. Destroy it and she will live. Fail to find it in time… She let the prospect hang. Neither Tentomon nor Staticmon said anything back to her, and simply ran off in the direction they had came in. Mortisha laughed softly to herself. Oh, this would be fun. Fun indeed.

            Palmon fell into a tortured sleep once again, Plantmon hovering worriedly at her side. The girl's condition had been getting steadily worse throughout the day. The digimon was on the verge of panic. This couldn't possibly be fatal, could it? She wondered and suddenly found that the idea could be quite possible at the moment. "Hey, Plantmon!" She turned around to see Tentomon and Staticmon running toward her. She stared at the two of them. "Geeze, you guys look like you got run over by a Monochromon." "Can't be much worse than a bus," shrugged Tentomon. Early in the summer such a thing had nearly happened to him. Both digimon stared at him. "Trent, what's a bus?" He sighed. "Never mind. We have a problem." Plantmon nodded. "Yeah, she really doesn't seem to be getting any better. I think something is seriously wrong. This is more than just your typical digiflu." Tentomon nodded grimly. "Indeed. It's a shadow demon spell. Not to mention that we have a shadow demon heading our way right now." She gasped. "How do you know?" "Mortisha told us," replied Staticmon. "And since she said that they weren't really aiming to kill us just yet, we believe her." Plantmon snorted. "Oh please. NEVER trust a shadow demon. Or shadow demoness either, at that." The other two nodded. Just then, Palmon stirred slightly. All three of them turned to look at her. She opened an eye. "When'd you guys get back?" she asked hoarsely. Tentomon looked concernedly at her. She stared back. "What's up?" He stood up. "We have to get a move on." "Why?" "Because a shadow demon is coming this way." "Oh. Okay." She tried to get up, but her legs collapsed beneath her. Tentomon frowned. "I'll try and help you out, but I doubt I could carry you the whole way." The group set off once again, the two digimon leading and Tentomon half carrying Palmon in the sand. "What, leaving so soon?" They turned around to see a female figure. She was almost spectral looking, and humanoid. Her hair was silver, the same as her skin and dress. But her eyes… her eyes were pitch black, and seemed to want to suck all warmth and life out of you. They were depthless and like dark holes, drawing you in. She bowed mockingly. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am DarkArtemis. And you are dead."

            The two of them rode on Firemon in silence. "Don't get down now, you two!" said Feelingmon cheerfully from her perch on the lion-like digimon. Biyomon raised her blue eyes for a moment to stare at the catlike creature. "How can you stay so cheerful, Feelingmon?" She gave something that was her equivalent to a shrug. "It's easy. Just expect the best, and if you don't get it, think of what you have as second best. Works well enough." Agumon smiled. "It probably does." The four of them had been walking—no, rather, three of them had been riding Firemon—for about an hour, with no sign of anyone. Firemon's stride was confident now; he had regained his strength. Feelingmon sat facing Biyomon and Agumon, trying to get them out of their gloom. Biyomon sat in front, Agumon leaning heavily on her. Between that whole Biyomon falling on him thing and the beating he had taken from Deimos, he still needed more than a little support. The sights that they had been seeing troubled them, though. Since the arrival of the shadow demons, both Agumon and Biyomon had known that troubles were stirring, but now, without the Digidestined, things were falling into disrepair. Whole towns were getting agitated, and it had only been two days. All the digimon knew that when trouble arose, the Digidestined were there to stop it. It was like some sort of real life Superman thing. Evil was about, so where were the Digidestined? The foursome had stopped in a few towns to help out, but now they were trying to find some of the others, having finished searching their area. Biyomon sighed. "You don't think that something happened to the others, do you? Tentomon and Palmon failed to answer as well, this time." Agumon tried to smile at her. Despite what Feelingmon had said, they all needed a confidence booster. "They're probably all just fine." He didn't add the last part to his sentence. At least, I hope they are…

            Staticmon's eyes narrowed. The odds were definitely against them. Four Rookies, and two without attacks and with the ability to die. Not to mention, one of them was sick. Just that against a formidably powerful shadow demoness? Could they win? Not bloody likely. Arg, if only I knew how to crest digivolve! Then I could beat her, I just know it! But I'll need Tentomon for that. Hope he's up to it, or else it looks like we are royally screwed. She grinned. Even if he doesn't activate the crest, I'm gonna fight to the bitter end. I swear it. Staticmon had always been a true warrior inside, though a bit cocky and more than a little cynical. She began to summon her electricity, and heard the static energy crackle in her fur. Plantmon's neon green eyes widened. She knew her friend well. "Stat, no!" she cried. "Static Jolt!" Staticmon cried, sending the bolt at DarkArtemis, who rolled her eyes and simply waved a hand. The attack deflected off of an invisible shield, and soared through the great beyond. She smiled sweetly at them. "And the saddest part is, I think that that really is the best you can do." Staticmon's amber eyes stared with unbelievable hatred at the shadow creature. She's mocking us! She means to kill us, and she knows that we're defenseless, and she's having fun! Of all the nerve… Meanwhile, Tentomon was trying to help Palmon away from the scene. Of course, that only got DarkArtemis' attention. "Oh, don't tell me that you're running from this, are you? Not exactly honorable, don't you think? I thought that the moral code was what you people lived by." From the glare that Tentomon gave her, she knew that she was getting to him. "After all, you may only be humans, but I thought that humans could fight too. Sure, most likely you'll be killed within the minute, but hey, an honorable death is an honorable death, right? So let go of that stupid girl—she's going to die in any case—and fight me." She batted her eyelashes at him. "After all, it'll make things a lot quicker and more painless for the both of us." The boy's eyes flashed, and he started toward her. "Wait." He stopped. It was Palmon. She'd woken up. Her eyes flickered over to the shadow demoness. "You're scared of us, aren't you?" DarkArtemis stared at her for a moment, then realized that she wasn't joking. "Don't be silly. I'm not afraid of you. I'm not scared at all." "Oh, but you are. You're afraid of what we're capable of." DarkArtemis frowned, unsure of where the conversation was going. "And you should be," continued Palmon, now visibly as angry as Tentomon was, "Because frankly, I'm fed up already. Five minutes and I already know what you shadow demons are like. You spin lies, manipulate, trick. You go for the mind before the body; it's so much easier like that, isn't it? Why bother with anything physical, when you can just shatter the soul, huh? Well guess what. Your lies aren't going anywhere anymore. I'm not standing for this. The quickest way to trust is through sincerity!" She yelled the last part on impulse, and for a moment she felt perfectly fine, as a bright green aura burst from the crest. She closed her eyes, and waited for what she knew would come next.

"Plantmon, crest digivolve tooooo… Earthmon!"

            Earthmon was basically Mother Nature brought to life. Her face was equine-like, looking rather like a deer's. She was a dark brownish color, with the same neon green eyes, and vines wrapped around her were wrapped around her four legs and neck. (A/N For anyone who's seen Princess Mononoke, she looks a lot like the Forest Spirit did at the end of the movie, just before Lady Eboshi blew his head off, except with a way shorter neck.) Staticmon smirked at DarkArtemis. "Oooh, you are soooo dead. That's Earthmon, and she's got all the living creatures in the Digital World on her side. Her 'Wrathful Earth' attack will wipe the floor with ya!" Earthmon smiled at her friend. "Colorful, but true." DarkArtemis looked bored. "Oh great. Another one." She sighed. "Mmkay, gimme the best you've got and I'll go along with it so you can die with honor and all that sentimental crap." "No need to act. You're underestimating me," replied Earthmon. DarkArtemis shrugged. "Whatever." "Make her sorry!" shouted Palmon, before tumbling backward into Tentomon. He stumbled from her unexpected weight, then sat down hard on the ground, with her sitting in his lap, now next to unconscious. We're running out of time… "Hurry up Earthmon," he shouted to the crest level digimon. She nodded. "Wrathful Earth!" The two conscious digimons' mouths dropped in shock at the attack's effect. The entire ground around DarkArtemis was ripped up, and beat at her relentlessly. Out of the chaos of the attack came flying a slim silver arrow. Earthmon tried to dodge the weapon, but was too slow. It hit her in the shoulder. Meanwhile, the attacking earth around the shadow demoness was dispelled in a wave of silver energy, revealing a bruised, battered, and extremely pissed off DarkArtemis. "All right, you little twerp," she snarled, abandoning her calm and mocking demeanor, "say good night." More silver colored energy flew at Earthmon, this in the form of a large snake, its huge jaws gaping wide as it came toward the four of them. "Garden Wall!" called the new digimon of Sincerity hastily. A wall of vines grew quickly in front of them, absorbing the shock of the moon snake's attack. Staticmon stared up at her long time companion, a shadow of doubt stirring in her eyes for the first time. Man Earthmon, I hope you can pull this off…

            Agumon peered anxiously over Biyomon's shoulder. "Anything yet?" She shook her head. "No, nothing. From either of them." Biyomon bit her lip, looking worried. Agumon noticed this and gave the girl a quick, comforting hug. "It's okay." He grinned in a cocky manner that reminded her strongly of either Tai or Davis. "And if they're in trouble, we'll be there in time to save the day!" he added, making the V for victory sign and waving it around in the air. "Mm hmm!" agreed Firemon enthusiastically. Biyomon gave a slight smile and shook her head. "Boys…" "Can't live with 'em, could live without 'em except then they'd get themselves killed," giggled Feelingmon. Both boy digimon sweatdropped heavily. "Why do they always do that?" whined Firemon. Agumon sighed. "Who knows." "We do!" said the two girls in unison, then burst out laughing as the boys groaned at their statement. Suddenly, Feelingmon's expression grew serious. Her ears pricked up and she narrowed her eyes, staring west of their current location. Agumon frowned. "What is it?" "A shadow servant," she whispered. "WHAT?!" exclaimed the other three. "How do you know?" asked Biyomon, now looking tense. The cat looked grim. "No one else can project such negative emotions as strongly as that." "The shadow demon is probably attacking our friends! Head westward, Firemon!" commanded Agumon. "Yes sir, general sir!" the lion-like digimon barked. Agumon sweatdropped.

            "Wrathful Earth!" screamed Earthmon for about the fourth time. She was seriously drained now. On the other hand, DarkArtemis was as bloodied and tired as she was. However, she showed no signs of quitting, and refused to let the three Rookies leave the battle field. With an angry shriek, she swept her right arm around in an arc. The burst sent Earthmon crashing to the ground. DarkArtemis stood over the fallen digimon, smirking in sinister satisfaction as she wiped some of her own mercury colored blood off her face. "Well, it ends here for you, Sincerity." "Vine Snake!" shouted Earthmon in what obviously was a last ditch effort. The vines around her neck and legs started to whip at DarkArtemis, beating her back. Unfortunately, that was it for Earthmon. Her eyes closed, and she was motionless. "All it would have taken was one more shot," said Staticmon quietly. "One more shot and she would have gone down. Oh, I wish that someone would just come over here and do that for me so this could end!" she yelled angrily. Meanwhile, the shadow demoness herself had gotten up, swaying almost drunkenly as she did so. A dark gray aura surrounded her hand and—"Fire Blaze!" She didn't even have time to scream. Tentomon and Staticmon just stared at their rescuers, mouths hanging open. "Uh… I also wish for unlimited power!" said Staticmon hopefully, looking at the sky. Nothing happened. "Ah, well, worth a shot," she muttered to herself. To her left, Earthmon devolved back into Plantmon. Biyomon and Agumon jumped off of Firemon and ran toward Tentomon (who'd gotten over his shock) and the unconscious Palmon. "Trent! How are you--" Biyomon stopped. "What happened to Sally?" Tentomon stood up. "We have to find the amulet," he said simply, picking up Palmon and carrying her toward Firemon. "The amulet? What—what's going on here?" asked Agumon, going after him. "I can't explain right now," Tentomon replied as Agumon and Biyomon helped him get their friend on to Firemon. "All you need to know is that I have to find the amulet and destroy it or she'll die." "Amulet…?" asked Biyomon. Her eyes lit up. "The Poromon village! They had some necklace sort of thing that appeared out of nowhere!" "Sounds like it," said Staticmon, jumping up on to Firemon and dragging Plantmon on with her. "Wait!" protested Biyomon. "You don't understand, it's almost half a day away! We'll never make it in time!" All of their shoulders slumped in defeat, when all of a sudden, Palmon's crest lit up. The amulet blinked into view and was destroyed in a flash of sudden green light which left an after scent of wild flowers. Those conscious just stared in baffled amazement. "…Well there's something you don't see everyday," commented Staticmon. Agumon blinked. "Well, the way thing are going, it will soon." The others nodded, still silent. Suddenly, Palmon woke up. "What just happened?" she asked the others. "…That's a very good question," replied Firemon. Staticmon suddenly created a giant flash that blinded everyone, but also shook them out of their dazed state. "C'mon, let's get going!" she said. "We gotta find the Digidestined!" Agumon nodded. "Right." He grinned at Firemon. "Onward!" he exclaimed, pointing toward the sky for no reason. Firemon trotted along, starting to sing as he did. "He's Andrew, General Andrew, he's the leader of our digi team. And he's, always the-ere when a shadow demon thing gets creamed…" "FIREMON!!!" yelled everyone else, then they all started laughing, as they headed toward the next group of unfortunates that were getting their butts kicked by a shadow demon too strong for th—hey, wait a second, I was part of that group! CAPRI!!!!!!!!

Capri: *grins and sweatdrops* Great, now Gatomon is gonna be after my sorry behind. Er, this took a really really long time, but, uh, I'm trying, so hopefully I'll get the next one out soon! In a few days or something… 'Nyways, the powers of the crests were just some random unoriginal idea I had, but some of the actual powers that I gave them are weird and make little sense when you think about the crest, but please go along with it. Thanks to Gatomon, you already know who's going to be covered in the next chapter, which will be out very soon. (I hope…) BTW, the tune to the song Firemon was singing is the Flintstones' theme song. Ciao!