Mimi was in a scramble trying to get Izzy’s place ready for everyone. She bought a large amount of flowers from Sora’s shop, setting them in vases on the coffee table and mantle. In the dining room, which was really just an offset from the living room, the table was immaculately laid out with silverware, and a table from the kitchen had been brought out and placed nearby. Not so much to seat anyone extra, just to hold more of the food. 
“Ok, let’s see. We have Tempura, Takoyaki, Calamari for that med hint!” Mimi wiggled with delight. “Salmon, garlic roasted chicken thighs, long grain rice and of course sparkling white wine!” 
“Half of which will be eaten by Agumon if we’re not careful!” Tentomon called out from the kitchen.
“Haha, he’s not wrong.” Palmon chuckled. 
“We didn’t really have to go all out like this.” Izzy nervously said, bringing out the pot of rice. 
“Nonsense, we’re hosting the team!” She winked with a wave of her finger. “Sides, you play your cards right I’ll make sure you get a nice big reward for playing along.” 
“Ahh!” Izzy went flustered and laughed nervously. “Oh boy, I can’t wait. What did you have in mind?” 
“There could be, outfits!” She giggled. “After all, I still fit into the one Sora made me back in high school. A girls gotta keep her figure.”
“If you keep that up, Izzy’s going to catch fire!” Tentomon exclaimed. “Better question though, where did I put the extinguisher?” Izzy rubbed the back of his head and nervously laughed as the doorbell rang.
”Oh! That’ll be them, come on come on!” Mimi snatched up his arm and opened the door with Izzy beside him. Matt, Sora, T.K and Kari had arrived along with their digimon and T.K even brought a small gift in the form of some extra wine. 
“Hey you guys!” Sora greeted happily. 
“Iz, the place looks great.” Matt complimented. “I’m guessing Mimi’s input?” 
“Wow!” Gabumon awed, walking in and looking around, taking in the amazing view. “I can see my house from here. If I had one.” 
“Silly Gabumon!” Biyomon playfully tugged on his arm.
“You should check out the patio!”Palmon offered, leading the way toward the door. “Mimi and I picked out the chairs, they’re super comfy!”  
“Here ya go, Mimi, you seemed to like my taste in wine so, I picked this one out for you.” T.K offered. 
“Oh wow, thanks! Yeah, go figure we have the best taste huh?” She chuckled. 
“Are we the first ones here?” Kari asked. 
“Yep, come on in!” 
“Wow, look at that view!” Gatomon praised, rushing over to the window with Patamon to join Biyomon, Palmon and Gabumon. 
“It’s pretty!” Patamon agreed. 
“I’ll go get the snacks.” Izzy offered, heading off to the kitchen. “Tentomon, are they ready?”
“Hors d’oeuveres babe, come on now.” Mimi corrected. 
“Well they’re not burnt so that’s a start.” Tentomon called out from the kitchen.
“You don’t have to go all out for us.” Sora waved off with a chuckle. 
“Everyone keeps saying that, but for me this is fun!” Mimi grabbed Sora and brought her over to the couch while Matt was about to join the digimon to enjoy the view, a knock came at the door. 
“I got it.” Matt offered, opening up the door. It was Davis, Ken and Yolei. But Davis didn’t seem to be all that happy. “Hey, come on in guys.” Matt said, holding the door for them.
“Thanks Matt, good to see ya.” Ken greeted. 
“Me too.” Wormmon bowed, wearing the golden ring over his neck. 
“So the rings are holding, that’s good.” Matt smiled, rubbing Wormmon’s head. 
“Yeah, whatever.” Davis huffed walking by. Veemon had his on his left arm and seemed to be awfully down himself. 
“Ya alright?” Matt asked. 
“There was a... Side-effect.” Veemon explained rubbing his head. 
“Huh, side effect? What happened?” Matt wondered. 
“Did something go wrong?” Izzy asked, setting the trey of meatballs down at the coffee table. 
“No, the ring worked.” Davis cut in. 
“But it really hurt, like a lot when the countdown ended.” Veemon finished. 
“How so?” Izzy continued to press.
“We got drained.” Wormmon joined in. “It was like I could barely move.” 
“Wormmon didn’t disappear but something was sure trying to pull him apart. He was flashing off all these sparks and electricity before it blew him across the room.” Ken explained. 
“Good thing we didn’t wake our downstairs neighbors again.” Yolei added.
“Same thing happened to Veemon. All he needed after everything he’s been through, poor guy.” Davis comforted, patting Veemon’s head. 
“I’m ok Davis, just a little tired is all but I can handle it! Besides, we’ll figure out a way to fix this.” Veemon tried to encourage him, throwing in a quick hug. 
“Right, sure.” Davis submitted, embracing his friend for a moment before taking in the apartment. “Jeez though Izzy, how much did this place set ya back?” 
“I must say, the decor is immaculate.” Hawkmon praised, walking with Veemon and Wormmon toward the fireplace. 
“Good to know what we’re in for now.” T.K said, chomping a meatball quickly before turning to Kari. 
“Well, that’s assuming we aren’t successful today.” Kari reminded him, glancing to Gabumon, Patamon, Gatomon and Biyomon all cuddling up on the balcony outside. “But thanks to a certain someone, I’ve learned not to give up hope.” She winked. T.K cracked a cute little half smile and stole a kiss. “Mmm, and now I wanna try one of those meatballs. I can taste them on your lips.” The two laughed together. Another knock came at the door and Izzy went ahead and opened the door. Joe, Gomamon, Willis and the twins had arrived along with Cody and Armadillomon. 
“Hey you guys! Willis, how’s the head feeling?” Izzy greeted. 
“Rough but I’ve been managing.” He smiled. “Kinda fumbling with things here and there but, I think I’m outta the woods.” 
“Sides!” Terriermon spoke up. “He’s got us watching out for him!” 
“We can balance him out with our ears!” Lopmon informed them. “Check it out!” 
“No, that’s ok.” Willis played off as Cody bowed before coming inside. 
“Thanks for having us over, Izzy.” He greeted. 
“Glad to have you over.” Izzy bowed right back.
“I gotta check this out.” Joe smiled. “I helped ya move in, but that was the last time I came over.” 
“Sure, take a look around.” Izzy invited
“Wow! Mimi has great taste!” Gomamon exclaimed. 
“You know it!” Mimi called back. “Gomamon, Joe, you guys come on over! Pop a spot on the couch and have a snack! Just holler if you want a drink too! We got a great selection now thanks to T.K!” 
“Where’s Tai?” Cody asked as Izzy closed the door. 
“Probably on his way.” 
“Late as ever.” Matt joked. 
“Punctuality has never been his strong point.” Izzy laughed. 
“Or haircuts!” Tentomon threw in from the kitchen. Everyone laughed aloud before taking to spots around the house. Izzy went off to his study to set up his digital gate while Mimi went on entertaining. Tentomon dropped off a trey of wine glasses before flying off toward Izzy’s study. “Everything ready?” 
“Yeah, Gennai sent me the last known coordinates for Homeostasis, and Kari’s agreed to let it speak through her again so. It seems like everything is set.” Izzy surmised. 
“Well in that case why don’t we go and enjoy a nice dinner tonight then. Not that I don’t appreciate your computer work but I do worry you’re focusing on the wrong thing right now.” Tentomon explained. 
“Oh, how’s that?” Izzy wondered. 
“Everyone’s coming together again. I think I agree with what Joe said, we should really treasure these times.” Tentomon said, landing on Izzy’s desk. “Which is harder to do if you’re so focused on the computer tonight.” 
“Hah.” Izzy gave a quick laugh before pulling Tentomon in for a good hug. “Well, who’s to argue with you on that? After all, we didn’t work so hard to get you back just so that we could be apart again, right?” 
“Exactly.” Tentomon agreed. 
“Everything’s set here.” Izzy put the computer on standby and got up in time to hear the doorbell. “And there’s our ever punctual leader.” He quipped. 
“Oh boy. I better get another trey of snacks ready before Agumon eats the couch.” 
“I’ll join you.” Izzy chuckled, letting Tentomon lead the way back out. Ken opened the door to see Tai and Meiko along with Agumon, Meicoomon and Dorumon. 
“Hey Ken! How ya doing buddy?” Tai happily greeted. 
“Not bad, all things considered. But uh..” Ken trailed off seeing Dorumon with Tai and Meiko. 
“Wait, what’s he doing here?” Yolei demanded.
“What is it, Ken?” Izzy asked as he turned the corner. In the doorway he could see who had arrived. “Ah, I see. It’s ok, you can let Dorumon in.” 
“I told you we shoulda left earlier.” Meiko said, lightly scolding Tai. 
“Your mate is right.” Dorumon spoke up. “Sides, weren’t they expecting me?” 
“Uh, yeah kind of.” Tai confessed. 
“Haha, silly Tai.” Meicoomon giggled, walking in with Agumon. 
“I smell delicious food!” Agumon announced. 
“Quick! Protect the kitchen!” Tentomon flew off toward the kitchen door. 
“Haha wait for me!” Agumon gave chase. Everyone laughed as Meicoomon followed Agumon into the kitchen. Even Dorumon found himself chuckling at the three of them. 
“Well, his tastes are simple.” Dorumon noted. Mimi cleared her throat and swished her glass of wine as she approached him.
“Dorumon, are you planning to behave yourself here?” 
“If it’ll spare you picking me up by my neck again, certainly.” He cringed. “I’m not here to cause trouble, if you’d prefer I can leave until you call me next.” 
“Come on Dorumon, don’t get so bent outta shape. You can hang with me or Agumon, alright?” Tai insisted, patting his back. 
“Agumon! Don’t touch the-“ Tentomon cried out from the kitchen as a large pan could be heard falling on the ground. “Well on the bright side we can now confirm egg rolls can actually roll.” 
“Perhaps I better assist with that.” Dorumon offered, heading off toward the kitchen. Tai sat down on the floor by the coffee table while Meiko took a spot next to Mimi and Sora. 
“So, you guys are friends now?” Sora questioned. 
“King Drasil disowned him, and after everything with Jesmon he’s been through a lot. I don’t know if we’re really friends yet but, I can feel that he’s trying to change.” Tai explained. 
“I believe in you, big bro.” Kari smiled and waved from across the room. 
“Thanks sis, how’s married life treating ya?” He devilishly grinned. 
“Oh stop!” She giggled. 
“Hey Mei-mei! I meant to tell you.” Mimi said after taking a sip of wine. “There’s an apartment opening up a few floors down. Nothing too crazy like this one but, you should check it out.” 
“Oh! Thanks Mimi, maybe I will.” Meiko smiled. “Hey Tai, maybe we should check it out together, hey?” Tai almost gagged on a meatball but found his composure after a few coughs. 
“Well, I wouldn’t be opposed to it, but let’s check it out first before we make any rush decisions.” He laughed, blushing like a tomato. 
“Hahaha! Mei-mei you’re starting to take after me, I love it!” Mimi cheered kissing Meiko’s cheek. “Oh I totally hope you get it! If we got to be neighbors we could visit all the time and have a wine night every week! It’d be a blast!” 
“Come on, Agumon. Let Tentomon finish making it before you start eating it!” Dorumon said, lugging Agumon from the kitchen as he snuck in another egg roll. 
“But I’m hungry!” 
“You’re always hungry.” Dorumon flattened his eyes. “Don’t think I didn’t notice you sneaking the last pudding cup last night, I hadn’t even gotten to try it yet.” 
“Come on Agumon.” Meicoomon soothed, rubbing his nose on hers. “Let’s go chit-chat with everyone on the balcony! I wanna see that pretty view!” 
“Oh! Ok yeah! That sounds fun!” Agumon complied, relieving himself of Dorumon and heading toward the balcony door. 
“You need a hand in there?” Dorumon called to Tentomon. 
“Thanks Dorumon but if you can just keep him distracted I’ll have everything ready in a jiffy!” He replied peeking through the door. 
“Sure, no problem.” 
“Hey Dorumon.” T.K called over. 
“Hmm?” 
“Try one of the meat balls on the table there. They’re pretty good. It’s Sora’s recipe.” He suggested. 
“I’m not all that hungry but.” Dorumon answered, but seeing everyone in the room keeping their attention on him he conceded and sat beside Tai. “I guess I don’t wanna be rude.” 
“So, should we get business outta the way first, or just relax for a bit.” Tai proposed to everyone. 
“Perhaps business before pleasure.” Izzy proposed. 
“Sure, not like there’s all that much to cover.” Joe joined in. 
“Right. Two pronged plan here. We’re gonna talk with Homeostasis, together. All of us. Show it that we’re ready and willing to take on whatever King Drasil has planned.” Tai stated. 
“Anything you can tell us about that, Dorumon?” Yolei questioned. 
“Aside from the fact that Gennai has redirected the quantum data to my mast- ugh.. To King Drasil in the server tree, I’m not sure. I can only guess.” 
“Anything might help.” Izzy opened the floor to him. 
“Well, the original plan for me was to gain access to the vault and to capture enough data to resurrect a digimon the like of Kimeramon. Except this time with parts chosen by King Drasil. The second part still held true, we planned to use it to destroy the primal digimon and to act as backup for me.” Dorumon continued to explain. “But now, I can’t say for sure what it plans to do. It knows that I know about that plan, and will likely either change or abandon it. Perhaps it might resurrect Megaseadramon, just tainted with dark energy. Or maybe to study the code to create his own quantum based digimon.” 
“Any of these scenarios could be disastrous.” Izzy pondered, rubbing his chin. 
“Are you up to fighting whatever comes as Alphamon?” Sora asked. 
“Yes. I’ve decided to follow in my brother’s footsteps and serve the digital world in my own way. Which means stopping it from being overrun by whatever monster King Drasil is making. But.” 
“But what?” Cody asked. 
“I just can’t beat it alone.” Dorumon shook his head. “Meicoomon has offered to help going for her mega form, but that’s dangerous. I know what she would have to do to attain it. Even then, as strong as the two of us would be. I don’t think it’ll be enough.” 
“I have a last resort option.” Izzy said, snaring everyone’s attention.
“Oh boy, this can’t be good.” Davis chirped from the back of the room. 
“When this digimon appears, I can send out a massive encryption protocol to seal off the digital world and ours. It would likely impact our devices for a brief while, but our overall network infrastructure should remain intact and nothing would need to shut down. But.”
“But what?” Tai asked. 
“The digital world would be sealed off completely. Only I’d know the codes to break down the firewalls that closed it off. Homeostasis, King Drasil, they’d never get through. But no one else would either.” 
“Sealing off the digital world.” Dorumon scowled. “Leaving it to its fate, huh?” 
“Dorumon, I don’t want to do that. It’s the absolute last resort if nothing else will work. Basically if you and Meicoomon are defeated and there’s nothing we can do to stop whatever monster King Drasil is making. We’ll portal out and seal it off.”
“I really don’t like that idea.” Mimi moaned. “I mean, think of all our friends in the digi-world we’d be leaving behind. That’s just awful, I could never do that to them.” 
“I’m not going to lose this next fight. I’ll die defending the digital world if I have to.” Dorumon countered. 
“Hopefully it won’t come to that. Homeostasis felt Jesmon’s loss. Gennai told me himself. It’s possible it’ll have a change of heart.” Tai explained. 
“Is that why we’re having this extravagant last meal?” Dorumon perked up his brow. 
“No, this is just Mimi being Mimi.” Matt cut in. 
“What’s that supposed to mean, buster!?” Mimi leapt up, reaching over the table. 
“Eee! I mean, well, when was the last time you went modest or thrifty on something?” Matt tried to say, trying his best to compose himself.
“You just lost desert privileges mister!” Mimi scolded. 
“Tai.” Dorumon whispered. 
“Yeah?” He replied, leaning a little closer. 
“I think Mimi’s the actual leader, look how easy she whipped Matt into obedience. Maybe you should try that on her if you’re supposed to be in charge.” Tai just covered his mouth, barely able to contain his laughter. 
“That’s right up there on a long list of bad ideas buddy.” Tai laughed.

After their delicious meals, the digimon all gathered up on the patio while the digi-destined remained inside. Most of the group on the patio were sat together, but Dorumon kept himself a little more distant. Meicoomon was in Agumon’s lap, while Biyomon and Gabumon were cuddled close together the same as Gatomon and Patamon. Palmon, Gomamon, Hawkmon and Tentomon were enjoying a nice little chat while Veemon, Wormmon and Armadillomon were showcasing their rings and explaining to Armadillomon what to expect. 
“Hey.” Lopmon spoke, alongside Terriermon as they approached Dorumon. 
“Hm?” 
“Aren’t you gonna join the group?” Terriermon posed to him. Dorumon shrugged and kept to his usual indifferent demeanor. 
“If they need me for anything, they’ll ask.”
“Why the sour puss?” Lopmon questioned, tipping his head. “Brother, I think he feels left out.” 
“Mmm, or he’s still recovering from that fight.” Terriermon agreed. 
“That was a toughy for sure!” Lopmon chimed in. 
“You were, Cherubimon in that fight, right?” Dorumon posed to Lopmon. 
“Yeah, I hit Megaseadramon with everything I had, but boy could he take it.” 
“I’d rather not talk about that fight right now.” Dorumon sighed. 
“Why not!?” Agumon called out, waving for Dorumon. “Dorumon, I think you should tell us about it. A lot of us didn’t really get to fight him; we don’t know what we’re in for if it happens again.” 
“If you insist.” Dorumon submitted, joining the cluster of digimon. “What do you wish to know?” 
“Tell us about it.” Gomamon requested. 
“Yeah, we know he was really tough right?” Palmon asked while Tentomon followed it up with. 
“Tough is putting it mildly, Megaseadramon was winning that fight.” 
“I’ve fought a lot of digimon.” Dorumon said, lowering his head. “Some of you, included. Won many battles and never before had any digimon reduced me back to rookie like Megaseadramon did. I had to revert to save my life, but it barely worked. I felt that lightning javelin shoot right through me.” Dorumon recalled. 
“Whoa.” The digimon collectively awed. 
“Combat wise, he wasn’t much different than any typical digimon. Which was something to be expected. He was just stronger, more resilient. It was like trying to fight a champion digimon as a rookie. There may be ways to win, especially if you know your opponent, but you are always at a disadvantage. That’s what the fight was like.” 
“I’m really sad about Jesmon.” Agumon hung his head. 
“What he did was really brave.” Gatomon noted. “I’ll never forget him for it.” 
“Please don’t speak about Jesmon.” Dorumon shied away. Biyomon however leapt up and put a wing on his back. 
“We’re sorry. We know that must have been tough to see.” She said, trying to console him. 
“I’m trying to stay focused on what to do next.” Dorumon stated. “What exactly are we hoping to accomplish by confronting Homeostasis this time?” 
“Good question, uh.” Veemon thought aloud before Hawkmon offered his response. 
“We are going to ascertain whether or not it will allow us to assist fully in future combat against King Drasil. But we must approach the situation delicately.” 
“Meiko and Tai are really good at that.” Meicoomon said, wiggling her ears. “I hope they let Agumon digivolve. He’s really handsome as Wargreymon.” She cooed. Everyone laughed for a little bit as Agumon blushed trying to hide his embarrassment. 
“You two are in love. A rare thing among digimon.” Dorumon stated. 
“Not all that rare.” Gabumon spoke up. 
“Right, I don’t think we’re in love yet.” Biyomon joined in. “But I’m really enjoying courting Gabumon right now. He’s a great digimon.” She smiled, nuzzling his side. 
“Besides.” Gabumon spoke up. “Gatomon and Patamon are in love, and it’s worked to their benefit, not only to each other, but to their partners as well.” 
“I guess I better put myself on the market.” Gomamon suggested, brushing his hair.  
“Me too! After all I’m the most handsome digimon here.” Veemon touted.
“That ego will go a long way.” Gatomon giggled, cuddling Patamon a little closer. 
“Perhaps Izzy knows a good dating service.” Tentomon pondered, rubbing his chin. 
“Mimi and I could develop one! Digimon dating deluxe! The perfect site to meet your future Palmon! Haha!” Palmon playfully rubbed her hands together. 
“You guys are way too obsessed with dating.” Lopmon shook his head. 
“Hey come on bro-bro, I’ll be your wing mon!” Terriermon offered his brother. 
“Great, my best shot is to find an early bird.” Wormmon sighed as Armadillomon pat his back with a laugh. 
“You could kill them all, right now.” A voice wisped through Dorumon’s ear. Dorumon looked around but couldn’t see where it was coming from. “You could regain the master’s favor.” It continued to tease. “Just think. One quick digivolve. A sudden swing of that sword, and all those digimon blown apart, their ashes falling to the ground.” 
“Stop it!” Dorumon cried out, covering his ears. 
“Dorumon, we weren’t picking on you. You’ll find a girl some day.” Veemon said, tipping his head. 
“You can do it. Just one swing, think of the relief of knowing you’re back in his favor. Never alone again.” The voice deviously laughed. “Unless, of course; you’d rather deal with him.”
“No, stop it!” Dorumon cried out, falling to the ground. 
“That stink!!” Meicoomon growled, flexing her eyes to their X shape and leaping toward Dorumon. Furiously she sniffed around. “I know that smell. That dark energy, where is he Dorumon!?” 
“It’s in my head!” He cried out. A swirl of black mist seemed to rip up from the ground, coalescing on the lip of the balcony and taking the shape of Dark Gennai. 
“It’s never too late Dorumon, think about it!” He offered. Meicoomon growled and threw an X scratch at Dark Gennai as he vanished. 
“Jerk!” 
“Dorumon, are you ok?” Agumon asked as he and Gabumon rushed over. 
“Guys!” Tai swung open the door and checked on them. “Is everything alright, Dorumon, what’s wrong?” 
“Dark Gennai attacked his mind.” Agumon replied, helping Dorumon to his feet. 
“Dorumon.” Tai spoke softly, leaning down and placing a hand on his back. 
“It’s not real. It’s just a nightmare he put in there. Right?” Dorumon whimpered glancing up to Tai. 
“Why, what did you see?” 
“I couldn’t see it, just sense it. Deep, so dark. So powerful. It felt like an abyss about to swallow me up, but it was alive.” Dorumon shuddered. “He offered me a chance to go back if I destroyed you all.” 
“Dorumon, you wouldn’t.” Biyomon fumed. 
“No, he wouldn’t.” Meicoomon shook her head. “But he’s scared of that big darkness for a good reason. Tai?” 
“Huh?” 
“We should go, right now.” Meicoomon advised. 
“We were just getting everyone ready.” Tai informed her. “Let’s get the lead out then.” 

Tai led the way through with Agumon and Dorumon beside him. However this time as everyone came through with their partners, they found themselves in a rather familiar place. This time they had arrived not far from the Koromon village that Tai and Agumon had rescued way back when they were kids. 
“I don’t understand, this isn’t where we met Homesotasis before.” Meiko said as she surveyed the area. 
“No, it’s not, but I know this place.” Tai agreed.
“You’re right, it’s the Koromon village!” Agumon exclaimed. Dorumon began searching around, the usual huts and terrain didn’t seem to have anything stand out. Taking a good whiff from the air, he could smell fresh water not far from where they were.
“Hmm, water?” He thought aloud. Sora perked up and answered.
“Oh! There’s a waterfall not far from here where we rescued the villagers.”
“I remember that, the Gazimon were holding them hostage there.” Biyomon joined in. 
“Worth investigating.” Dorumon agreed. 
“Tai.” Matt nodded off toward the river. “Lead the way.” 
“Right!” He acknowledged, as everyone followed suit behind him down along the river. Rounding the falls and heading in behind them in a straight line, there was only the cave wall backing it. Very little had changed from before, but this time no sign of any cages. Davis took the lead and started patting down the wall. 
“How much you wanna bet there’s a hidden rock you gotta push, or a lever or something.” He suggested. 
“You’re not wrong.” Dorumon joined him alongside Veemon as they scoured the wall. Sure enough on accident, Veemon ended up depressing a small circular rock that clunked into the back cave wall. After a few more loud and ominous cracks from the rocks shot out, a large square door descended and revealed behind it an iron laid hallway descending down.
“Great job Veemon! You rock!” Davis cheered. 
“Haha, it was nothin!” He bashfully waved off.
“Come on, let’s head inside.” Tai insisted, leading the way with Agumon and Dorumon at his side. As they edged their way through the even darkening and descending hall, Willis accidentally fumbled his footing and nearly fell into the wall. Joe caught him and got him back upright. 
“I warned ya.” Joe cautioned with a smile. 
“Always listen to doctor Kido!” Gomamon advised playfully, while Joe took Willis’s arm over his shoulder. 
“Thanks Joe. I just don’t wanna miss this.” Willis said softly. 
“We’ll help ya too!” Lopmon offered, raising an ear to Willis’s left leg while Terreirmon supported his back. 
“Something’s off.” Dorumon said, turning to Agumon. 
“Huh? What do ya mean?” Agumon questioned while Meicoomon rushed up to join the conversation. 
“These halls shouldn’t be getting darker. Homeostasis is a light entity, so why is it the further we go, the darker the hall?” 
“You think there could be trouble?” Meicoomon asked. 
“Be ready to digivolve.” He nodded. 
“I think after what happened.” Tai began to say, stepping up his pace to see further down the hall. “With everything going on, being ready for anything is wise.” Through the doorway at the end was a reasonably large room with several tiles laid out in a grid like fashion, with every fourth bearing one of the digi-destined’s crests.
“What do you think, Tai?” Matt asked. 
“Yeah, it looks like all of your crests are here.” Meiko chimed in. 
“You’d be correct.” Gennai appeared before them. 
“Was wondering when you’d show up.” T.K greeted with a smile. 
“The Kernel itself has prepared something of a test for you.” Gennai began to explain but was cut off by Mimi. 
“A test, really!? We came here to talk!” 
“I didn’t bring a No.2 pencil!” Tentomon interjected. 
“I agree with you to an extent; however there is a reward for completing each of your trials.” Gennai carried on. “The only advice I can give you, is that for the elder team, don’t chase your own crests once your inside. For the younger ones, pursue your own and be ready to have your traits really put to the test.” 
“So how do we start?” Tai asked. 
“Step onto the square with your crests with your digimon. The rest will take care of itself. I truly believe in all of you, have faith in each other.” He reassured them. 
“But, Gennai!” Meiko spoke up. “I don’t have a crest.” 
“Don’t you?” He smiled, pointing to the center symbol. Shaped somewhat like a tree, surrounding a droplet of water she stepped onto it and it began to emit a warm dark green glow. 
“The crest of, life?” She whispered, as each of the digi-destined stepped onto theirs and spoke.
“Courage, Friendship, love, knowledge, reliability, sincerity, light, hope, tenacity, fate, loyalty, honesty, kindness.” One by one, they began to resonate and then much to their surprise they started to interconnect to another crest. Tai and Matt, Sora and Mimi, Joe and Izzy, T.K and Kari, Ken and Davis, Yolei and Cody and lastly Willis and Meiko were paired off by the lights as the multicolored beams shot up into the roof, the digi-destined vanished as their trials began.