***DISCLAIMER***

***READ THIS, DAMMIT!!***

Ok, gotta do one of these disclaimer things. First off, I don't own Digimon. Yeah, like you didn't see that one coming. Digimon is owned by Toei, Bandai, Disney, maybe some others, I don't know. All I know is that Digimon kicks ass. Plain and simple. Secondly, I apologize ahead of time if any of the ideas/storylines/twists-and-turns in this story resemble and/or are exactly like any other author's. I'm not plagarizing (or however you spell it); the ideas contained herein come from my brain alone. Ok, I was influenced by a couple of video games and TV shows, but other than that, they're mine, all mine!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Sorry. I'm better now.

I've seen summaries of other stories that look to have the same basic storyline as this one, but I have deliberately not read them so that I may write this story without influence from those, even subconciously. Thank you all for taking the time to listen to my ramblings.

Oh, by the way, if this story sucks bad, don't flame me too much, please? This is actually my first attempt at writing ANYTHING, except term papers, that is. Ok, on with the show! That means you can start reading it! Anytime now!

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Chapter 1 --- PAINFUL MEMORIES

One more mark. One more day. Izzy put the small knife back into his pocket and leaned back against the stone wall of his cell. Twenty-four days he had been in here, twenty-four days since those living tanks had found him hiding in an abandoned building. Not that there was such a thing as an occupied building, at least not anymore.

He closed his eyes, trying not to remember what had happened to the real world. Trying not to remember the day when the sky ripped open, the day when he had seen… Tried, but failed.

The warmth of the sun lifted his spirits. Today was the day. Today he'd tell Sora just how he felt about her. He'd tell her how his stomach would always feel full of butterflies when she was around, and how his mouth went dry each time her beautiful brown eyes looked his way. She would listen, then laugh and tell him that she felt the same way about him. They would hold each other, kiss each other, and live happily ever after like in fairy tales. Just knowing what was about to happen made Izzy feel like dancing a jig.

The red hand became a walking man, and Izzy crossed over to the next block. Sora's mom had said she was at the park playing tennis with some friends. This would be the perfect setting for a perfect day: the green grass, the breeze blowing through the trees, the happy sounds of children playing. Perfect.

He made his way underneath the arch that proclaimed this the entry to the park, and turned to the direction of the tennis courts. He was so happy, so ecstatic that a few times he had to stop himself from skipping. No need to ruin this day by embarrassing himself in front of complete strangers.

Izzy started to jog as the tennis courts came into view up ahead, but stopped when he realized there was no one in sight. Maybe they packed up early, he thought. No big deal, I'll just catch her back at her place. Heading back the way he came, he heard a voice come from the trees to his left.

"And you thought you weren't gonna have any fun."

Izzy recognized the voice. It was Tai, his best friend ever since elementary school. When this bully named Matt had started picking on him, Tai had stepped in and Matt had stepped down. Since then, he and Tai had been almost inseparable. Izzy decided he would just say hello before going to see Sora; he had plenty of time. He walked into the trees and stopped. A blanket had been laid down on the leaf-strewn ground and on it was Tai. He had his back turned to Izzy, but it was obvious that he was making out with a girl. She was wearing a tennis skirt; Tai was rubbing her thigh as they kissed, but his shaggy brown hair was blocking Izzy's view of her face.

Bright red in the face, Izzy backed up to leave. A twig snapped under his foot. Tai turned his head to look at the intruder and Izzy saw who was with him. Like the hand to the man, Izzy's face went from red to white. The sound of his heart shattering was deafening to him; he was surprised that the two lovers weren't covering their ears.

"What's wrong, Izzy?" Sora asked, worry causing her brow to furrow.

The words just would not come. How could he tell her that his world had just been turned upside-down? That he wanted to run his finger through her gorgeous red hair, the same hair that was now matted from her 'playtime' with his best friend? Izzy turned and ran, ran as fast as he could, ran to get away from their penetrating stares.

A faint buzzing noise made him stop at the edge of the park. Wiping the tears from his eyes, he listened closely, trying to find the source of the buzzing. That was when the sky ripped open. With a deafening sound like a thunderclap, the light blue above him became darkest night. Izzy was knocked flat on the ground with the force of the blast. Staring up with bewilderment, he watched as a blood-red fissure opened up above him. Things emerged from the hole in the sky, things he could not put a name to. There was one that looked like a flying candle. Another had the appearance of a walking potato. Ghosts and demons, fish and fowl, all shapes and sizes. Thousands poured from this monstrous gate like a flood.

Izzy picked himself up and rushed off towards home, trying not to think about the monstrosities coming down from the sky, burning and destroying the buildings around him. His front door was ajar when he got there. He dashed in to the apartment, praying that no harm had come to his parents. In the living room, his mother and father were confronting what seemed to be several white ghosts with another hooded ghost carrying a large scythe leading them.

"You will come with us now," the scythe-bearer commanded in a harsh, raspy voice.

"You will come with me now."

Startled out of his painful memories, Izzy looked up to see a large ape-like creature standing in the doorway to his cell. With stripes of red in it's yellow fur and a large bone strapped to it's back, it looked quite fearsome. At least to anyone who hadn't seen what Izzy had. He stared at it blankly.

"Get to your feet! The master is waiting for you," it roared.

"Blow it out your ass," Izzy replied defiantly. The ape was taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered with a furious howl.

"Do you realize who you are talking to?" the ape bellowed.

Izzy laughed softly. "Yes, I'm talking to a big yellow monkey who--how can I put this delicately?--smells like something that has been pushed out the back end of a cow and left in the summer sunshine for several weeks."

Bristling with anger, the fair-furred simian cried out, "You dare mock me?! Know this, human! I am Apemon! I was made Warden of this prison by Lord Infermon himself! I am the most powerful of his generals, and I can crush you where you stand!"

"Really? Well, that's nice. If you're done blowing your own horn, would you mine getting started on that whole 'crushing' thing? I really don't like being made to wait."

With that the ape charged, swinging his bone-club over his head. Izzy closed his eyes and waited for the death and release he so longed for. But the head-crushing blow he expected never came. Izzy opened his eyes again as the yellow ape screamed out in pain and disentegrated in a cloud of small red particles. As the particles dissappeared, he saw a dark-haired boy wearing glasses standing in his cell. The boy extended his hand.

"I didn't see anyone out in the hall, but I bet someone heard Apemon's scream. C'mon, let's get out of here before they show up."

Izzy was frozen with shock. "H-how did you do that? Kill him, I mean."

"No time to explain. I'll tell you when we get out of here. By the way, my name's Joe."

"Izzy."

"Nice to meet you. Now have you taken root, or do you want to leave this place?"

"Sorry," Izzy said as he jumped up. "Lead the way."

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So, how was it? See anything you like? Don't like? I encourage feedback.

Next chapter, Tai wakes up in the middle of a desert with a group of kids who need his courage to stay alive!