Man, it has been five years since I posted this story. Five. FIVE! Holy crap. I kept meaning to actually update the story and finish it, but never got around to it... for five years. I have finally taken a step to finishing this story, which is something I've thought about every year (for five years!). First, I'm going to be revising the chapters I did post, though nothing too serious. Just fixing some things here and there, not a complete and total rewrite. Then I'll work on finishing what I started five (FIVE!) years ago. I've finished revising this chapter and will work on the rest, soon. Enjoy.

Oh yeah, I DO NOT PERSONALLY OWN THE DIGIMON ANIME. Just wanted to make that clear. Don't wanna infringe on anybody's rights. Just want to make my own unique story involving situations and characters introduced by Toei Animation. Please Read & Review.

Prologue: Meeting

September, 21X6

In the cluster of various people pacing this way and that in an overpopulated district of Odaiba, Japan, one man stood out among the rest. He wore black pants and jacket with a white sleeved shirt underneath, the usual business attire, though that alone did not set him apart. Several men and women wore similar business suits on their way to work. But this man was more casual than the rest. His tie was so loose around his neck that it looked like it might fall off at any time. His shirt was casually untucked and the first few buttons on his shirt were undone. The sun lightly shone against his blonde hair and glared off his black sunglasses as he paced down the sidewalk to work.

The man's attire was notable as he was among a very organized society. The men and women traveling these streets put on their suits every morning to walk the sidewalks to their offices in the ever growing cityscape. White collar jobs spiked in the past decades as other jobs were extinguished by more advanced and self sufficient technology. The streets were full of prim and proper black suits with the occasional alternate color suits, khakis and greys, dotting the black ocean of business people.

But this man clashed with the status quo. Many passers by stared at this unusual man, wondering why he can be so casual walking to work. It had become very much like a tradition to these people, and this man was obviously not a follower. But instead of appearing offended by these stares, he just simply smiled at them as they passed by.

What fools, he thought to himself. Like ants, now. Drones. He looked down at his watch and realized that he was late. But this did not make him speed his pace. He was sure that the drones surrounding him would be utterly shocked if they knew this fact, though. After a few more blocks, he looked up at the towering office building in front of him. The word "DigiCorp" was displayed across the center. This was the place. He walked through the doors and made it to the elevator. The operator was surprised by the man's attire.

"Uhm, which floor, sir?" the elevator operator asked. Even he had on a black business suit; shirt tucked, tie tight around his neck.

"Top floor, please." He wrestled with his tie to take it off. Seeing the operator's tie reminded him of his own. He hated wearing them and hated the man who invented them. What better way to look formal than to strangle yourself with a pointless garment.

"Top... floor? I'm sorry, but not just anyone is allowed up there."

"Oh! Right. Terribly sorry..." He pulled out his wallet and fumbled through it, eventually pulling out an ID card. The ID had his face, sans sunglasses, printed on one side and was decorated with a blue dragon on the other side, coiling its long tail around. The tail went passed the edge of the card to the side with his face, the tip ending right before reaching the border of his picture. No words were printed on the card on either side.

The operator's eyes widened. " You're the Dragon? Oh God, I'm so sorry. I didn't recognize you."

"Well, it is my first day. Shame that the last Dragon met such an unfortunate fate. I do wish I could remember his name. Not that many people will remember mine, of course."

The operator took the card and swiped it through a panel by the button board for the elevator. A green light came on, telling the operator that his card was perfectly legit, not a fake. Then the elevator started rising to the very top floor of the building. "My apologies, sir. I... I didn't know."

"No, no, it's quite alright." The Dragon gave the operator a comforting smile. "There is no need for an apology. I can't blame you for not recognizing a face you've never seen, now can I?"

"Well... Of course not." The operator didn't really get thrown off by the Dragon's face, though. It was just the manner of which he presented himself. But who was he to judge? If this man was good enough to be a Sovereign, what did it matter how he dressed?

The elevator stopped and the doors slid open. "Ah, I do believe this is my stop," said the Dragon. "I shall see you soon, I'm sure." He walked out of the elevator and down the short highway to the Sovereign room at the very end. He swiped his card, opening the door, and walked through.

"You're late." The Phoenix stared him down as he entered the room. Inside the top floor room sat two men and a woman around a square table. There were panels, buttons, and keyboards on each side of the table. All but one chair was filled with a Sovereign. The empty chair belonged to the Dragon. "What kept you?" The Phoenix was the oldest among the Sovereign, appearing to be in his fifties with a bald head.

"Oh, come on," the Dragon said after glancing at his watch. "Five minutes. What could you guys have possibly gone over in five minutes?"

"Your watch must be a bit slow," the Turtle said. He was at most a decade younger than the Phoenix. "You are almost twelve minutes late, Dragon."

"You can't be late for our meetings, Dragon," Phoenix said. "And look at how you are dressed."

The Dragon sat down in his chair, propping his feet up on the table. "Why does it matter? We're just here to discuss the interests of the company. Can I not be comfortable while we do talk?"

"I don't think you are taking this seriously," said the Phoenix.

"Well, Dragon does have a point," the Tiger spoke up. She was the only female of the group. And she appeared to be closer to Dragon's age, around her early to mid thirties. "Is it really that important to dress up for our meetings?"

The Phoenix sighed. "Let's just get started with our business." He pressed a button on his side of the table. In the middle of the table, a holographic projector displayed a large sphere that appeared to be a world, but the landmasses did not resemble Earth at all. In order to see the display, Dragon pulled his feet back to the floor and sat up. "Due to our former Dragon's untimely end, we... welcome our new sovereign." He shot Dragon a simple, unemotional look. Then he pressed another button on the table and a segment of the world was highlighted blue. "Your job as Dragon is to look over the Eastern Continents, highlighted here."

"Yeah, I kind of got the memo," Dragon stated. "Not only that, but the Sovereign aren't necessarily a secret to the public. Now when do I go down there? To the Digital World, I mean."

"What?" Phoenix asked. The three other Sovereign looked a bit puzzled by his statement. "We handle everything from here in the Real World. That's what the top ten floors of this building are for. As well as several buildings in the surrounding area. Everything can be managed from right here in Odaiba."

"I'm aware. But there is nothing saying I can't go down there."

"Why would you want to?" Turtle asked. "It's a dreadful place. The Digimon are savage and dangerous."

"I would assume you've been there yourself, Turtle?"

"Yes, unfortunately. I've been there on a few occasions and regretted them. Yessir. Not a pleasant place to be."

"Ever thought that maybe it is an unpleasant place because we are just not doing our jobs?" The Dragon's playful attitude seemed to be replaced by a more serious one. His face grew a bit more stern, his smile gone. "My fellow Sovereign, we cannot understand their problems if we don't go down there ourselves."

"I don't see this as a terrible idea," Tiger chimed in. She spoke very little compared to her other Sovereign in these meetings. Rather, she preferred to keep to herself more, biding her time and collecting her thoughts. She spoke only when she thought it was necessary to convey a point. "Having a representative down there would really bring a new perspective to the Sovereign."

"We have representatives down there," Phoenix said. "Hundreds of ambassadors doing their job down there as we do our job here in the Real World. We don't need to risk sending someone as important as Dragon there just so he can see what it's like to live with the savages."

"I find it a horrible idea as well," Turtle said. "But nothing says that he can't go down there. It's not like he won't have proper protection. And we are all equals here. We can't limit each other, Phoenix."

"I know this," Phoenix stated. "Just letting our new Dragon know how we usually work around here. We are Sovereign, kings among the Digimon. Our job is not to live with them but to rule them."

The Dragon's grin returned to his face. "You are very firm about your beliefs, Phoenix. I respect that. I truly do. And thanks for your concern but I will be just fine down there. Now, how about we go on to other business that need our attention?"

"Fine with me," Turtle said, sliding his glasses further up his nose. Tiger nodded in agreement while Phoenix said nothing, waiting for the next words to come out of their new Sovereign's mouth.

"It has come to my attention that the Server region is under a bit of distress." The pointed looks of the other Sovereign and their continued silence clarified his statement. "Apparently, the last Dragon didn't do his job properly, now did he?" He clicked a few buttons on his side of the table, taking control of the holographic monitor. The blue highlighted Eastern Continents were zoomed in on, becoming the focus of the display, and black dots started appearing across the regions. "These are the areas taken over by the resistance group, Sincerity. I'm sure you've heard of them."

"Of course we have," Turtle stated. "It's obviously on our database, as you can see." He pointed to the holographic display "But... I'm wondering how you've heard of them."

"I was an agent for DigiCorp, though of course none of you would have known that." Each Sovereign had a life before becoming one of the big four. But their pasts were not normally discussed between them. When one became a Sovereign, it was accepted to leave the past behind. "I've seen the conflicts firsthand, my fellow Sovereign."

"But Sincerity is just a fringe rebel group," Turtle chimed in. "I mean, aren't they?" He turned toward Phoenix, arguably the wisest of the four.

"I wouldn't worry too much about them, Dragon," Phoenix said. "They'll be fazed out soon, you'll see. We have well over the necessary manpower to take care of this problem."

"Ah, but that is not what worries me, Phoenix," Dragon stated. "This strife is caused by negligence. We are not doing our jobs to keep the inhabitants of the Digital World happy. Foolish rulers plant the seeds of rebellion. Sincerity is looking for freedom, not for destruction."

"We can't please everyone," Phoenix stated. "The rebels are delusional, Dragon. They don't understand what is good for them. And they don't understand what they are fighting for. You see, for Digimon, fighting is in their very nature. It is how they mature and become stronger. They grow tired of fighting amongst themselves so they lay their sights on us. We have the power to contain these creatures and to create order in the Digital World. So, DigiCorp is their chosen enemy. And since we are run by humans, they generalize that all humans are wrong. This is why they go across the regions taking control of settlements with higher human demographics. Sincerity sees humans as evil, Dragon. Only because we are, in essence, superior."

"A little naïve, aren't we?" Dragon smirked. "Do you understand where the name Sincerity comes from?"

"Sincerity is one of the eight heroic attributes," Turtle stated. "A crest. Belonging to..."

"Mimi Tachikawa," Tiger finished for him. She clicked a few buttons on her own table side keyboard. The hologram projected a four sided picture of a young brown haired youth wearing a pink hat. "The Pure and Sincere. Also of note, Miyako Inoue, also known as Yolie." She clicked another button, displaying a picture of a purple haired girl wearing a helmet beside Mimi. "Substitute carrier of the Sincerity trait during the events of the Second Conflict. Both were Digidestined, of course. But other than their status as Digidestined, I don't see why Sincerity would honor these two women."

Dragon took back control of the holographic display. He slid a portable drive into the table, pulling his own data onto the display. Walls of text appeared, whole paragraphs highlighted yellow. "This is a copy of the logs found in the DigiCorp database. Including my notes on the matter."

"You shouldn't be carrying such fragile information on your person," Phoenix stated. "That needs to stay in the database." It was against procedure to copy anything from the database. Most people have no access to the database at all. However, a Sovereign can do as he pleases with the data.

"Oh don't be a nervous ass, Phoenix. It's completely safe. I only saved the locations of the lines that are highlighted. The characters themselves were not copied onto my portable drive. Just the position of the highlights." His fingers moved over the slider on the table, adjusting what the hologram displayed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to go over all this data. If you guys really want, you can just read it yourself. Anyway, according to the database, Mimi Tachikawa led a resistance group during the Digidestined's second trip to the Digital World, First Conflict, against the last Dark Master. Among the group were an Andromon, an Ogremon, several Gekomon and Otamamon as well as many others. Most of them were Digimon the Digidestined had met on their travels. Mimi was the one that brought them all together against the tyrannical Dark Master. So she became a symbol for the Digimon."

"And you find a parallel between that and our situation?" Turtle asked.

"Definitely."

"Preposterous."

"Why do you say that, Phoenix?"

"You are comparing us to the Dark Masters?"

"No, they are comparing us to the Dark Masters. And to be perfectly honest, it is not far from the truth. The Dark Masters set out to control the Digital World. Is DigiCorp not doing the same?" There was silence in the room after Dragon's statement.

"If what you say is true," Phoenix said after some time, "then do you truly believe you can change that?"

"I guess I'll see when I go down there, won't I?"

Prologue End