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Flint fumbled about drenched in water trying to swim. He heard an all too familiar laughter and opened his eyes. He was in his bed dripping wet and beside him was Rex with a bucket. That didn't make it very hard for Flint to figure out what had just happened.\n\n\t\"You were oversleeping again,\" chuckled Rex. \"And you told me then next time you oversleep to throw a bucket of ice water on you.\"\n\n\t\"I didn't think you'd actually do it,\" replied Flint getting out of bed. \"Now I'm going to get you.\"\n\n\t\"You'll have to catch me first,\" he teased throwing the remaining water in the bucket at Flint making him jump. Before Flint could recover he was already running out the door, but Flint was hot on his heels. As they reached the stairs, Rex hopped onto the railing and slid down backwards and Flint did so facing forward.\n\n\t\"Can't catch me,\" teased Rex sticking his tongue out in childish delight.\n\n\t\"One of these days these jokes of yours is going to send you into a world of hurt,\" commented Flint.\n\n\t\"Yeah right,\" laughed Rex. \"When?\"\n\n\tNot looking where he was going, Rex reached the end of the railing and kept flying towards the wall head first. He let out a cry in fright only freeze in midair. Lucky for him, Flint grabbed his tail to stop his flight.\n\n\t\"Like right now,\" he answered. \"You're just lucky you have a hard head so the only thing that would get broken is the wall. But I guess that's why you're a knucklehead.\"\n\n\t\"Yeah, yeah,\" groaned Rex. \"I'm the wisecracking sidekick that everyone loves and you're Mr. Tough Guy. You could learn to loosen up a little more.\"\n\n\t\"I am loose enough,\" complained Flint. \"You could stand to grow up a little and cut out all these jokes. I have a feeling you won't find it so funny if you were being tormented by someone else.\"\n\n\t\"Oh, it's all in good fun,\" he argued. \"Don't you get a kick out of it?\"\n\n\t\"Sometimes,\" Flint stated with a smile. \"Other times it's like I have an annoying little monkey on my back.\"\n\n\t\"I'll show you a monkey,\" he growled as he jumped on Flint and tussled with him. The whole house shook with their horseplay and shouting, but the second they heard an elderly woman's voice they froze in place with Flint ready to chew on Rex's ear and Rex ready to kick Flint in the family jewels.\n\n\t\"What are you two up to?\" she asked in a rather deep and husky voice. The two of them looked at her with eyes full of fright. She was another Digimon, a Pixiemon named Bertha or Bertha the Barbarian as she was known in her youth. During those years she wandered the world with a lot of overzealous rage that could only be expelled by fighting the toughest of opponents and the fiercest of monsters. As the stories went she was never beaten and left all her foes in a full body cast if they were lucky. When she finally decided to settle down to live in peace it was still apparent she still wasn't done fighting, having settled down in Zip City, not to mention in the more violent area of the town. At first she came under the constant barrage from all the lowlife scum living there (including Rex and Flint), some knowing her reputation and others just seeing a poor, defenseless old lady. Needless to say, nobody dares mess with her anymore while her life has included even taking a few children to take care of and call her \"Grams.\"\n\n\t\"Flint, Dexter, are you two causing trouble again?\" she asked. \"Wrecking my home,\" she made a fist. \"Punching holes in my walls,\" she demonstrated it herself with a single punch, though she caused a lot more damager punching all the way through so they could see the kitchen from the hall.\n\n\t\"Forgive us, Grams,\" cried Flint bowing at her feet.\n\n\t\"We're sorry, Grams,\" sobbed Rex hugging her feet.\n\n\t\"Never!\" Bertha roared lifting them both up, though at her diminutive size they were still on the ground.\n\n\t\"I think they've learned their lesson, Grams,\" said a Biyomon named Sonja. Along with Flint and Rex she was living with Bertha, though she had been with her for far longer. \"Those numbskulls are already unconscious.\"\n\n\t\"Sorry, Sonja,\" she replied with a tender caring voice. \"I usually stop when they're about ready to pee, but they don't seem to want to wet themselves in fear anymore. Guess they're growing up.\"\n\n\t\"But they'll be the same two idiots they've always been,\" commented Sonja. \"Watch. Breakfast is ready.\"\n\n\tIn the blink of an eye they were gone and munching sounds were audible from the kitchen as they were happily eating their fill. Bertha and Sonja went in to join them.\n\n\t\"So you're looking particularly feathery today, Sonja,\" commented Flint.\n\n\t\"How can you tell?\" asked Rex. \"Did you count all her feathers or something?\" Flint kicked Rex under the table to stop him from saying any more.\n\n\t\"Forget it,\" she sighed. \"I'm not interested in joining you two on your hijinks.\"\n\n\t\"Are they still talking about joining the Treasure Hunter's Guild?\" asked Bertha. \"I've already told you boys you're setting foot out of this town over my dead body. And as my ticker is as good as it was since the day I was born you two are going to have to do it yourself. So who wants to take me or would you prefer to do it like last time?\"\n\n\tFlint and Rex didn't stick around long enough for her to finish. The beating she gave them when they fought haunted them enough in their dreams that they didn't need her reminding them. They evacuated the house and ran out to the streets of Zip City.\n\n\n\tLike every day they were hit with a blast of sandy air as they opened the door followed they the blazing sun blaring down at them. As usual, the area around their home looked completely different than the day before as the winds spread the sand somewhere else. The sandy ground was hot to the touch under the soles of their feet, but much more manageable than the stone beneath it that was like a hot plate all set to fry an egg. To anybody crazy enough to come to Zip City they would have never made it without heat resistant footwear to get around, but like Rex and Flint, the citizens here had grown accustomed to daily hot foots. Flint and Rex, on multiple occasions pretended they were in a volcano running from lava. They'd run scream and laughing wholeheartedly into a sandbank. Even though they loved this game they knew deep down they would be terrified to be in such a situation in real life.\n\n\tBut just seeing this didn't give a full picture of Zip City. While the slums in the old part of town were ravished by the sun and barren of life save for the poor and the criminal Digimon who lived there the other part of town was a lot more lively and busy. Due to Zip City being surrounded on all sides by a vast desert and only the nearby lake, their only source of water, they rarely got visitors. It was also rare for Digimon in town to leave or even consider it. The town was prosperous on its own and the few that tried were either the desperate or the criminals growing tired of the business there and attempting to branch off. Most of the Digimon who left were never heard from again so it was impossible to tell if they made it across or perished. There was only one Digimon who ever made the trip frequently, a Nanimon named Butch. He drove a caravan through the desert and returned every once in a while to rest. It was unclear why he always braved the desert so much or if he had any news of the outside world, but most of the Digimon in town didn't bother as he seemed to have become somewhat crazy as a result of being out in the sun for so long.\n\n\tFlint and Rex rushed through the streets wondering what was in store for them today. They wandered around aimless, occasionally crossing streets, though they found it more fun to rush through cluttered allies and scale the sides of buildings. The way they moved it was almost like they flew, but even to them they knew they had to get stronger if they wanted to join the Treasure Hunter's Guild. They ran across a building that overlooked the police station, the head officer a Leomon named Carl watched their every move.\n\n\tAfter hopping across a few more buildings they entered an empty rundown one. Carefully, they maneuvered through the decayed and unmaintained stairwell sacrificing speed for caution knowing full well the boards could collapse beneath their feet with one misstep.\n\n\tOnce they reached the ground floor they were able to relax in their secret hideout. It wasn't anything fancy and hardly could be considered as comfortable as their home with Bertha, but here they could prepare for the day they'd finally join the guild. The reason for this was their goal to find The Infinity Zone. They dreamt of it even since they were only a Koramon and a DemiVeemon. In that time they had come up with dozens of theories they discussed, and filed away, though all of them were completely baseless, biased to their personal preferences and usually involved with the world's largest of some sort of food and only resulted in them getting hungry for a snack.\n\n\t\"Well I don't know about you,\" stated Rex excitedly. \"But I think we are finally ready to leave this sand pit and join the Treasure Hunter's Guild.\"\n\n\t\"I was born ready,\" replied Flint. \"And I agree. We're definitely the strongest and toughest Digimon in town.\"\n\n\t\"Excluding monsters of course,\" joked Rex making them both laugh though it didn't last long since they knew Bertha would send them flying for calling her that.\n\n\tFlint coughed to quiet them both down before returning to the subject at hand. \"Anyway let's leave tomorrow then. Let's just do one last check to make sure we have everything we need.\"\n\n\t\"Right,\" replied Rex grabbing a flyer about joining the Treasure Hunter's Guild. They had it for years and it was the very thing that inspired them to join in the first place. It was mostly faded from age, but for the most part it was legible; almost save for a section on the bottom that explained the requirements of an entry fee and a minimum requirement of three members. \"Looks like we got everything. The only thing remaining is what we haven't been able to decide upon since day one.\" Rex's face grew very serious.\n\n\t\"Right,\" agreed Flint equally serious.\n\n\t\"A name for our team!\" they shouted together.\n\n\t\"This time I have the perfect name,\" stated Flint. \"We can be called Team Data Squad.\"\n\n\t\"That sounds alright,\" replied Rex. \"But we're not even Data attributed Digimon. Also, if we're a team wouldn't calling ourselves a squad sound a bit redundant?\"\n\n\t\"Well, what's a valid point,\" commented Flint though he didn't sound like he enjoyed the feedback. \"What have you got?\"\n\n\t\"I'm glad you asked,\" he announced smugly. \"We will be called Team Awesome Dynamic Unbeatables or Team A.D.U. for short.\"\n\n\t\"No way!\" cried Flint. \"That's way worse than mine. First off, it is way too long and undefeatables is not even a word. Secondly, the short version sounds too much like tomato. Do you want us to be a bunch of laughingstocks on day one?\"\n\n\t\"You're just jealous because mine is better than yours,\" scoffed Rex.\n\n\tThe two stared one another down with fire in their eyes as they were once again stuck in a stalemate over their team name and never seemed to be able to get out of it. As a result they went through hundreds of names and were never able to agree on one.\n\n\t\"Team Data Squad!\" shouted Flint.\n\n\t\"Team A.D.U.!\" growled Rex.\n\n\t\"Team Data Squad!\"\n\n\t\"Team A.D.U.!\"\n\n\t\"Team Data Squad!\"\n\n\t\"Team A.D.U.!\"\n\n\t\"Team Data Squad!\"\n\n\t\"Tomato!\"\n\n\t\"See I told you that would happen!\" argued Flint.\n\n\t\"Take that back!\" spat Rex.\n\n\t\"Personally I think both names are equally lame,\" stated a voice that both Flint and Rex knew all too well. They turned to the boarded up window and saw Carl on the other side. \"On more pressing issues, you are trespassing on a condemned building and that is against the law. It could collapse on top of you and kill you both.\" He then rammed his way through the window to burst inside. \"Now I have to place you both in my custody!\"\n\n\t\"If this place is condemned,\" cried Flint. \"Isn't it a bad idea to smash through it like that?\"\n\n\t\"Yeah and aren't you technically trespassing too?\" added Rex, their whole conflict behind them with a common foe before them.\n\n\t\"I see you're both the same troublemakers you've always been,\" Carl declared. \"I'm going to take you both in by force if I have to.\"\n\n\t\"Just try it,\" taunted Rex as he turned around and slapped his butt before the officer.\n\n\t\"If we can't at least beat you when there's no way we'd be able to join the Treasure Hunter's Guild,\" added Flint.\n\n\tCarl rushed forward quickly, Flint and Rex responding by backing off at the same time. They had fought against Carl plenty before and while he initially seemed to just use his strength to power through a fight he had the eyes of a predator, never blinking, always ready to make his move when his opponents slipped up.\n\n\tFlint and Rex spread themselves out in the room hoping to surround him and attack him from both sides. As expected, he didn't deviate from his attack and chose to continue his assault on Flint. Rex watched carefully as Flint continued to move back, though he was quickly running out of space as Carl's massive size. The two of them divided their attention between Carl and each other to know when they were both ready to attack. With a slight nod from both they rushed their opponent at once confident that even if he did manage to stop one of them the other would land a hit. But as they leaped to attack he caught Flint's punch with ease. Rex was certain his attack would be successful, but Carl's ear twitch sensing the sneak attack. Without warning his tail struck, wrapping around Rex's leg and slamming him to the ground and putting him in a daze.\n\n\t\"You didn't think something like that would surprise me?\" he asked. \"Childish antics are useless against highly skilled members of the law.\" In response, Flint tried to kick at Carl's side, but his leg was caught. Then with a grin, Carl tossed Flint away and turned his attention to Rex, taking him in his hands and holding him up in the air. Strangely enough, he had a grin on his face too that puzzled him.\n\n\t\"Are you sure about that?\" he asked before pulling at the strands of hair on the big Lion Digimon's mane threatening to tear him a bald spot. He fought back the tears as he tried to pry Rex off of him, but he held on stubbornly.\n\n\t\"It is against the law to mess with the hair of an officer of the law!\" he growled. \"Not to mention it is very rude.\"\n\n\tRex continued to tangle and pull at Carl's hair forcing him to put all his efforts into getting him to stop. This gave Flint the chance to recover and follow up on Rex's attack. He turned his eyes towards Carl's tail wagging wildly in response to the pain he was feeling. Quickly, he snuck up on it and grabbed it between his claws before sinking his teeth into it sending a fresh shock of pain through 'body. He screeched like a really irritated house cat and stumbled about trying to shake them both off. Still, they held on tightly, Rex by his hair entangled fingers and Flint by his pearly whites.\n\n\tFinally, Carl saw no other way out, other than to smash them against the wall and that is what he did. He ran at the wall with all his might to smash through it. Before they got too close, Flint and Rex let go to let Carl run into the wall himself. He smashed right through leaving a hole in his shape behind. The collision left him dazed, causing him to tumble to the ground. Flint and Rex ran out and pinned him before he could recover to claim their victory.\n\n\t\"Looks like we win this time,\" they declared proudly. As Carl came to his senses he looked at them sternly before he cracked a smile and burst into laughter that infected the other two to laugh as well.\n\n\t\"I've never seen a bigger pair of knuckleheads in my life,\" he chortled. \"Anybody who fights you two is going to live to regret it. That much for certain is true. Still, I'm surprised you didn't use any of your special moves in this fight.\"\n\n\t\"We agreed to not use them for a while,\" explained Rex. \"Not until we make it to Rank 2 anyway.\"\n\n\t\"Quiet,\" whispered Flint, thought he already said too much.\n\n\t\"I wouldn't be much of an officer of the law if I didn't keep tabs on what the delinquents of this city were up to now would I?\" he asked them. \"After all I wouldn't want you two getting into any real trouble again or getting involved with any bad influences again.\"\n\n\t\"So it's about that again,\" groaned Flint. \"I already told you we don't know where they went and I couldn't care less if I ever see them again. Now if you'll excuse us we have important preparations to make before we are finally ready to leave here and join the Treasure Hunter's Guild.\"\n\n\tFlint and Rex started to walk away, but Carl called out to them. \"Uh, about that,\" he began to draw back their attention. \"I heard you're still debating over a name to call your team.\"\n\n\t\"Yeah,\" admitted Rex. \"Though I still think Tomato was pretty good.\"\n\n\t\"That wasn't even the name you pitched,\" groaned Flint.\n\n\t\"Well it was better than yours,\" shouted Rex.\n\n\t\"Was not!\"\n\n\t\"Was so!\"\n\n\t\"Not!!!\"\n\n\t\"So!!!\"\n\n\t\"Quiet up now!\" roared Carl with all his might. This quickly silenced them both and made them shake in fear a bit. He may have been good-natured most of the time, but when one of his buttons was pushed they knew he could be quite a monster. \"Now listen to my idea.\" He paused for a moment before speaking again. \"Team Matrix.\"\n\n\t\"Matrix?\" asked Flint.\n\n\t\"Yeah it is simple and cool, not to mention it is a lot better than most of the names you've both come up with,\" he explained. He looked at their faces waiting to see what they thought of it, but they were quiet for longer than he had hoped. \"You hate it don't you?\"\n\n\t\"We love it!\" they cheered excitedly then locked arms and danced around in a circle. \"We're Team Matrix! We're Team Matrix!\"\n\n\t\"That's enough of that behavior you two. Are you going to act like that around the other teams?\" he asked. They stopped dancing and looked back at him. \"You need a cool pose to show off whenever you succeed in a mission or whenever you are announcing your team. This must be something original and unique to show your pride as a man and a Digimon. At least this is what my old partner used to tell me before I transferred over here.\"\n\n\t\"So do you have a pose?\" asked Flint curiously.\n\n\t\"Do I?\" he replied with a grin. \"Check this out.\" With that he bent his legs at a ninety degree angle and did that same with his arms. He then made an \"L\" shape with his thumb and index finger in both hands. Rex and Flint watched him silently not sure if he was done, but then he shot his arms straight up and roared so loud it echoed through the streets. When it became quiet again he returned to standing normally. \"Well, what did you think?\"\n\n\t\"So cool!\" they cried. \"Make one for us too!\"\n\n\tCarl chuckled for bit then answered them. \"Well my old partner did it for me and he was a lot better at it then me, but I have an idea.\"\n\n\t\"Tell us please!\" stated Rex jumping for joy.\n\n\t\"Well when I count to three, pretend your arm is a sword and draw it from your left side. Then cross them in the air and shout your team name. Now one... two... three!\"\n\n\tRight on cue they repeated the actions he described and crossed their arms in the air and shouted, \"Team Matrix!\" They were overcome with joy over the feeling of doing it.\n\n\t\"Great job,\" he applauded crossing his arms and closing his eyes feeling prideful. \"Keep practicing it so you don't get rusty. I practice half an hour in the morning in front of a mirror every day. What do you think of that?\" They didn't answer him and after a while he opened his eyes to find they were both gone save for their footprints in the sand. \"Still a bunch of numbskulls, but at least they have a cool pose now.\"\n\n\tFlint and Rex started chuckling after they were a few blocks away from Carl feeling elated about their new pose. They didn't think anything could ruin their mood now, but a Digimon calling out to them from an alley did.\n\n\t\"Looks like you two have been seizing the day,\" commented the Divermon with a snide grin.\n\n\tThey stopped to see a Divermon standing there that they knew all too well. He had a few of his cohorts with him, but that was no surprise since he always wanted to seem more intimidating than he was. To Flint and Rex he was a big pain in the butt and somebody they couldn't wait to get away from as soon as possible.\n\n\t\"Oh great,\" groaned Flint.\n\n\t\"It's Squid,\" moaned Rex.", "writing_bbcode_parsed": "Chapter 17


\tSplash!  Flint fumbled about drenched in water trying to swim.  He heard an all too familiar laughter and opened his eyes.  He was in his bed dripping wet and beside him was Rex with a bucket.  That didn't make it very hard for Flint to figure out what had just happened.

\t"You were oversleeping again," chuckled Rex.  "And you told me then next time you oversleep to throw a bucket of ice water on you."

\t"I didn't think you'd actually do it," replied Flint getting out of bed.  "Now I'm going to get you."

\t"You'll have to catch me first," he teased throwing the remaining water in the bucket at Flint making him jump.  Before Flint could recover he was already running out the door, but Flint was hot on his heels.  As they reached the stairs, Rex hopped onto the railing and slid down backwards and Flint did so facing forward.

\t"Can't catch me," teased Rex sticking his tongue out in childish delight.

\t"One of these days these jokes of yours is going to send you into a world of hurt," commented Flint.

\t"Yeah right," laughed Rex.  "When?"

\tNot looking where he was going, Rex reached the end of the railing and kept flying towards the wall head first.  He let out a cry in fright only freeze in midair.  Lucky for him, Flint grabbed his tail to stop his flight.

\t"Like right now," he answered.  "You're just lucky you have a hard head so the only thing that would get broken is the wall.  But I guess that's why you're a knucklehead."

\t"Yeah, yeah," groaned Rex.  "I'm the wisecracking sidekick that everyone loves and you're Mr. Tough Guy.  You could learn to loosen up a little more."

\t"I am loose enough," complained Flint.  "You could stand to grow up a little and cut out all these jokes.  I have a feeling you won't find it so funny if you were being tormented by someone else."

\t"Oh, it's all in good fun," he argued.  "Don't you get a kick out of it?"

\t"Sometimes," Flint stated with a smile.  "Other times it's like I have an annoying little monkey on my back."

\t"I'll show you a monkey," he growled as he jumped on Flint and tussled with him.  The whole house shook with their horseplay and shouting, but the second they heard an elderly woman's voice they froze in place with Flint ready to chew on Rex's ear and Rex ready to kick Flint in the family jewels.

\t"What are you two up to?" she asked in a rather deep and husky voice.  The two of them looked at her with eyes full of fright.  She was another Digimon, a Pixiemon named Bertha or Bertha the Barbarian as she was known in her youth.  During those years she wandered the world with a lot of overzealous rage that could only be expelled by fighting the toughest of opponents and the fiercest of monsters.  As the stories went she was never beaten and left all her foes in a full body cast if they were lucky.  When she finally decided to settle down to live in peace it was still apparent she still wasn't done fighting, having settled down in Zip City, not to mention in the more violent area of the town.  At first she came under the constant barrage from all the lowlife scum living there (including Rex and Flint), some knowing her reputation and others just seeing a poor, defenseless old lady.  Needless to say, nobody dares mess with her anymore while her life has included even taking a few children to take care of and call her "Grams."

\t"Flint, Dexter, are you two causing trouble again?" she asked.  "Wrecking my home," she made a fist.  "Punching holes in my walls," she demonstrated it herself with a single punch, though she caused a lot more damager punching all the way through so they could see the kitchen from the hall.

\t"Forgive us, Grams," cried Flint bowing at her feet.

\t"We're sorry, Grams," sobbed Rex hugging her feet.

\t"Never!" Bertha roared lifting them both up, though at her diminutive size they were still on the ground.

\t"I think they've learned their lesson, Grams," said a Biyomon named Sonja.  Along with Flint and Rex she was living with Bertha, though she had been with her for far longer.  "Those numbskulls are already unconscious."

\t"Sorry, Sonja," she replied with a tender caring voice.  "I usually stop when they're about ready to pee, but they don't seem to want to wet themselves in fear anymore.  Guess they're growing up."

\t"But they'll be the same two idiots they've always been," commented Sonja.  "Watch.  Breakfast is ready."

\tIn the blink of an eye they were gone and munching sounds were audible from the kitchen as they were happily eating their fill.  Bertha and Sonja went in to join them.

\t"So you're looking particularly feathery today, Sonja," commented Flint.

\t"How can you tell?" asked Rex.  "Did you count all her feathers or something?"  Flint kicked Rex under the table to stop him from saying any more.

\t"Forget it," she sighed.  "I'm not interested in joining you two on your hijinks."

\t"Are they still talking about joining the Treasure Hunter's Guild?" asked Bertha.  "I've already told you boys you're setting foot out of this town over my dead body.  And as my ticker is as good as it was since the day I was born you two are going to have to do it yourself.  So who wants to take me or would you prefer to do it like last time?"

\tFlint and Rex didn't stick around long enough for her to finish.  The beating she gave them when they fought haunted them enough in their dreams that they didn't need her reminding them.  They evacuated the house and ran out to the streets of Zip City.


\tLike every day they were hit with a blast of sandy air as they opened the door followed they the blazing sun blaring down at them.  As usual, the area around their home looked completely different than the day before as the winds spread the sand somewhere else.  The sandy ground was hot to the touch under the soles of their feet, but much more manageable than the stone beneath it that was like a hot plate all set to fry an egg.  To anybody crazy enough to come to Zip City they would have never made it without heat resistant footwear to get around, but like Rex and Flint, the citizens here had grown accustomed to daily hot foots.  Flint and Rex, on multiple occasions pretended they were in a volcano running from lava.  They'd run scream and laughing wholeheartedly into a sandbank.  Even though they loved this game they knew deep down they would be terrified to be in such a situation in real life.

\tBut just seeing this didn't give a full picture of Zip City.  While the slums in the old part of town were ravished by the sun and barren of life save for the poor and the criminal Digimon who lived there the other part of town was a lot more lively and busy.  Due to Zip City being surrounded on all sides by a vast desert and only the nearby lake, their only source of water, they rarely got visitors.  It was also rare for Digimon in town to leave or even consider it.  The town was prosperous on its own and the few that tried were either the desperate or the criminals growing tired of the business there and attempting to branch off.  Most of the Digimon who left were never heard from again so it was impossible to tell if they made it across or perished.  There was only one Digimon who ever made the trip frequently, a Nanimon named Butch.  He drove a caravan through the desert and returned every once in a while to rest.  It was unclear why he always braved the desert so much or if he had any news of the outside world, but most of the Digimon in town didn't bother as he seemed to have become somewhat crazy as a result of being out in the sun for so long.

\tFlint and Rex rushed through the streets wondering what was in store for them today.  They wandered around aimless, occasionally crossing streets, though they found it more fun to rush through cluttered allies and scale the sides of buildings.  The way they moved it was almost like they flew, but even to them they knew they had to get stronger if they wanted to join the Treasure Hunter's Guild.  They ran across a building that overlooked the police station, the head officer a Leomon named Carl watched their every move.

\tAfter hopping across a few more buildings they entered an empty rundown one.  Carefully, they maneuvered through the decayed and unmaintained stairwell sacrificing speed for caution knowing full well the boards could collapse beneath their feet with one misstep.

\tOnce they reached the ground floor they were able to relax in their secret hideout.  It wasn't anything fancy and hardly could be considered as comfortable as their home with Bertha, but here they could prepare for the day they'd finally join the guild.  The reason for this was their goal to find The Infinity Zone.  They dreamt of it even since they were only a Koramon and a DemiVeemon.  In that time they had come up with dozens of theories they discussed, and filed away, though all of them were completely baseless, biased to their personal preferences and usually involved with the world's largest of some sort of food and only resulted in them getting hungry for a snack.

\t"Well I don't know about you," stated Rex excitedly.  "But I think we are finally ready to leave this sand pit and join the Treasure Hunter's Guild."

\t"I was born ready," replied Flint.  "And I agree.  We're definitely the strongest and toughest Digimon in town."

\t"Excluding monsters of course," joked Rex making them both laugh though it didn't last long since they knew Bertha would send them flying for calling her that.

\tFlint coughed to quiet them both down before returning to the subject at hand.  "Anyway let's leave tomorrow then.  Let's just do one last check to make sure we have everything we need."

\t"Right," replied Rex grabbing a flyer about joining the Treasure Hunter's Guild.  They had it for years and it was the very thing that inspired them to join in the first place.  It was mostly faded from age, but for the most part it was legible; almost save for a section on the bottom that explained the requirements of an entry fee and a minimum requirement of three members.  "Looks like we got everything.  The only thing remaining is what we haven't been able to decide upon since day one."  Rex's face grew very serious.

\t"Right," agreed Flint equally serious.

\t"A name for our team!" they shouted together.

\t"This time I have the perfect name," stated Flint.  "We can be called Team Data Squad."

\t"That sounds alright," replied Rex.  "But we're not even Data attributed Digimon.  Also, if we're a team wouldn't calling ourselves a squad sound a bit redundant?"

\t"Well, what's a valid point," commented Flint though he didn't sound like he enjoyed the feedback.  "What have you got?"

\t"I'm glad you asked," he announced smugly.  "We will be called Team Awesome Dynamic Unbeatables or Team A.D.U. for short."

\t"No way!" cried Flint.  "That's way worse than mine.  First off, it is way too long and undefeatables is not even a word.  Secondly, the short version sounds too much like tomato.  Do you want us to be a bunch of laughingstocks on day one?"

\t"You're just jealous because mine is better than yours," scoffed Rex.

\tThe two stared one another down with fire in their eyes as they were once again stuck in a stalemate over their team name and never seemed to be able to get out of it.  As a result they went through hundreds of names and were never able to agree on one.

\t"Team Data Squad!" shouted Flint.

\t"Team A.D.U.!" growled Rex.

\t"Team Data Squad!"

\t"Team A.D.U.!"

\t"Team Data Squad!"

\t"Team A.D.U.!"

\t"Team Data Squad!"

\t"Tomato!"

\t"See I told you that would happen!" argued Flint.

\t"Take that back!" spat Rex.

\t"Personally I think both names are equally lame," stated a voice that both Flint and Rex knew all too well.  They turned to the boarded up window and saw Carl on the other side.  "On more pressing issues, you are trespassing on a condemned building and that is against the law.  It could collapse on top of you and kill you both."  He then rammed his way through the window to burst inside.  "Now I have to place you both in my custody!"

\t"If this place is condemned," cried Flint.  "Isn't it a bad idea to smash through it like that?"

\t"Yeah and aren't you technically trespassing too?" added Rex, their whole conflict behind them with a common foe before them.

\t"I see you're both the same troublemakers you've always been," Carl declared.  "I'm going to take you both in by force if I have to."

\t"Just try it," taunted Rex as he turned around and slapped his butt before the officer.

\t"If we can't at least beat you when there's no way we'd be able to join the Treasure Hunter's Guild," added Flint.

\tCarl rushed forward quickly, Flint and Rex responding by backing off at the same time.  They had fought against Carl plenty before and while he initially seemed to just use his strength to power through a fight he had the eyes of a predator, never blinking, always ready to make his move when his opponents slipped up.

\tFlint and Rex spread themselves out in the room hoping to surround him and attack him from both sides.  As expected, he didn't deviate from his attack and chose to continue his assault on Flint.  Rex watched carefully as Flint continued to move back, though he was quickly running out of space as Carl's massive size.  The two of them divided their attention between Carl and each other to know when they were both ready to attack.  With a slight nod from both they rushed their opponent at once confident that even if he did manage to stop one of them the other would land a hit.  But as they leaped to attack he caught Flint's punch with ease.  Rex was certain his attack would be successful, but Carl's ear twitch sensing the sneak attack.  Without warning his tail struck, wrapping around Rex's leg and slamming him to the ground and putting him in a daze.

\t"You didn't think something like that would surprise me?" he asked.  "Childish antics are useless against highly skilled members of the law."  In response, Flint tried to kick at Carl's side, but his leg was caught.  Then with a grin, Carl tossed Flint away and turned his attention to Rex, taking him in his hands and holding him up in the air.  Strangely enough, he had a grin on his face too that puzzled him.

\t"Are you sure about that?" he asked before pulling at the strands of hair on the big Lion Digimon's mane threatening to tear him a bald spot.  He fought back the tears as he tried to pry Rex off of him, but he held on stubbornly.

\t"It is against the law to mess with the hair of an officer of the law!" he growled.  "Not to mention it is very rude."

\tRex continued to tangle and pull at Carl's hair forcing him to put all his efforts into getting him to stop.  This gave Flint the chance to recover and follow up on Rex's attack.  He turned his eyes towards Carl's tail wagging wildly in response to the pain he was feeling.  Quickly, he snuck up on it and grabbed it between his claws before sinking his teeth into it sending a fresh shock of pain through 'body.  He screeched like a really irritated house cat and stumbled about trying to shake them both off.  Still, they held on tightly, Rex by his hair entangled fingers and Flint by his pearly whites.

\tFinally, Carl saw no other way out, other than to smash them against the wall and that is what he did.  He ran at the wall with all his might to smash through it.  Before they got too close, Flint and Rex let go to let Carl run into the wall himself. He smashed right through leaving a hole in his shape behind.  The collision left him dazed, causing him to tumble to the ground.  Flint and Rex ran out and pinned him before he could recover to claim their victory.

\t"Looks like we win this time," they declared proudly.  As Carl came to his senses he looked at them sternly before he cracked a smile and burst into laughter that infected the other two to laugh as well.

\t"I've never seen a bigger pair of knuckleheads in my life," he chortled.  "Anybody who fights you two is going to live to regret it.  That much for certain is true.  Still, I'm surprised you didn't use any of your special moves in this fight."

\t"We agreed to not use them for a while," explained Rex.  "Not until we make it to Rank 2 anyway."

\t"Quiet," whispered Flint, thought he already said too much.

\t"I wouldn't be much of an officer of the law if I didn't keep tabs on what the delinquents of this city were up to now would I?" he asked them.  "After all I wouldn't want you two getting into any real trouble again or getting involved with any bad influences again."

\t"So it's about that again," groaned Flint.  "I already told you we don't know where they went and I couldn't care less if I ever see them again.  Now if you'll excuse us we have important preparations to make before we are finally ready to leave here and join the Treasure Hunter's Guild."

\tFlint and Rex started to walk away, but Carl called out to them.  "Uh, about that," he began to draw back their attention.  "I heard you're still debating over a name to call your team."

\t"Yeah," admitted Rex.  "Though I still think Tomato was pretty good."

\t"That wasn't even the name you pitched," groaned Flint.

\t"Well it was better than yours," shouted Rex.

\t"Was not!"

\t"Was so!"

\t"Not!!!"

\t"So!!!"

\t"Quiet up now!" roared Carl with all his might.  This quickly silenced them both and made them shake in fear a bit.  He may have been good-natured most of the time, but when one of his buttons was pushed they knew he could be quite a monster.  "Now listen to my idea."  He paused for a moment before speaking again.  "Team Matrix."

\t"Matrix?" asked Flint.

\t"Yeah it is simple and cool, not to mention it is a lot better than most of the names you've both come up with," he explained.  He looked at their faces waiting to see what they thought of it, but they were quiet for longer than he had hoped.  "You hate it don't you?"

\t"We love it!" they cheered excitedly then locked arms and danced around in a circle.  "We're Team Matrix!  We're Team Matrix!"

\t"That's enough of that behavior you two.  Are you going to act like that around the other teams?" he asked.  They stopped dancing and looked back at him.  "You need a cool pose to show off whenever you succeed in a mission or whenever you are announcing your team.  This must be something original and unique to show your pride as a man and a Digimon.  At least this is what my old partner used to tell me before I transferred over here."

\t"So do you have a pose?" asked Flint curiously.

\t"Do I?" he replied with a grin.  "Check this out."  With that he bent his legs at a ninety degree angle and did that same with his arms.  He then made an "L" shape with his thumb and index finger in both hands.  Rex and Flint watched him silently not sure if he was done, but then he shot his arms straight up and roared so loud it echoed through the streets.  When it became quiet again he returned to standing normally.  "Well, what did you think?"

\t"So cool!" they cried.  "Make one for us too!"

\tCarl chuckled for bit then answered them.  "Well my old partner did it for me and he was a lot better at it then me, but I have an idea."

\t"Tell us please!" stated Rex jumping for joy.

\t"Well when I count to three, pretend your arm is a sword and draw it from your left side.  Then cross them in the air and shout your team name.  Now one... two... three!"

\tRight on cue they repeated the actions he described and crossed their arms in the air and shouted, "Team Matrix!"  They were overcome with joy over the feeling of doing it.

\t"Great job," he applauded crossing his arms and closing his eyes feeling prideful.  "Keep practicing it so you don't get rusty.  I practice half an hour in the morning in front of a mirror every day.  What do you think of that?"  They didn't answer him and after a while he opened his eyes to find they were both gone save for their footprints in the sand.  "Still a bunch of numbskulls, but at least they have a cool pose now."

\tFlint and Rex started chuckling after they were a few blocks away from Carl feeling elated about their new pose.  They didn't think anything could ruin their mood now, but a Digimon calling out to them from an alley did.

\t"Looks like you two have been seizing the day," commented the Divermon with a snide grin.

\tThey stopped to see a Divermon standing there that they knew all too well.  He had a few of his cohorts with him, but that was no surprise since he always wanted to seem more intimidating than he was.  To Flint and Rex he was a big pain in the butt and somebody they couldn't wait to get away from as soon as possible.

\t"Oh great," groaned Flint.

\t"It's Squid," moaned Rex.", "pools_count": 1, "title": "Digimon Treasure Quest R2 - Ch.17", "deleted": "f", "public": "t", "mimetype": "text/plain", "pagecount": "1", "rating_id": "0", "rating_name": "General", "ratings": [], "submission_type_id": "12", "type_name": "Writing - Document", "guest_block": "f", "friends_only": "f", "comments_count": "0", "views": "26" }