Universal Flux by garudamon

Chapter 1

A being of chaos stared into the abyss, having been locked alone with his thoughts for too long. The time was quickly approaching for him to break free and unleash the rage of his isolation on the universe. Even in his prison, he could feel the prosperity of the world beyond. How he yearned to crush it in his fists, as did those who anticipated his arrival.

His worshippers viewed the galaxy as an usurper of the prosperity their chosen one was denied, yet they believed in the unity of opposites. For as long as the universe existed in light- in purity and honesty and love and all things good- so did darkness deserve to reign. Time is a function of constantly changing states, and there was once a time of darkness and crisis. Light appeared and shone through it and the darkness did not comprehend it. This time would be different. He would ensure it. He could usher in the promised era when those who existed only in the shadows could finally thrive in plain site.

As their chosen one's mind ached lightyears away, his followers could feel each throb of anger, impatience, and his thirst for destruction. As time went on, the state of the universe began to alter itself and allowed cracks to form in the barriers. For all the pain they felt they also felt his knowledge and could understand what needed to be done to finally shatter his prison walls. They learned as he did, and they began to prepare. The time of his return would soon be upon them. The mantra of their purpose echoed across the galaxy.

Light has no opposite. Darkness is merely an absence of light. Any sort of "anti-light" they could come up with would have the ability to destroy light itself but for all the knowledge out there they knew anti-light was non-existent. As the universe ebbed and flowed between different states of light, perhaps the darkness finally began to comprehend it. Perhaps they realized they had to create something anew. Their master passed along one final piece of knowledge before fading back into his otherworldly cell.

The recipient of this knowledge was only human, yet his sorrows echoed the call from afar. Anger. Impatience. Desire. The chosen one knew the perfect storm that would come when such dark feelings become tangible. They could open the gateway and unleash his wrath across the galaxies. Oh, and it would be so deserved.

He was only human, but everyone had forgotten her. Everyone had forgotten her but him. His rage grew and called a monster forward. It was almost time.

Taichi Yagami awoke with a start, his brow drenched in sweat. He felt like he'd been sleeping too long but when he glanced towards the clock, he realized he was right on time. He scanned his room as if he was searching for something else to explain away his heavy breathing. All seemed normal and if he'd had some sort of nightmare, he couldn't remember the details.

The boy got out of bed, stretching his arms lazily over his head as he glanced towards Hikari's empty bunk. He heard several sets of feet scurrying about in the kitchen and figured he'd have to act fast if hoped to eat breakfast before leaving for school. His sister- the early riser she was- probably finished hers already. Taichi grabbed his wrinkled uniform off a chair and pulled it over his head, running his fingers through his hair in a sorry attempt to flatten it.

"Another day." he muttered to himself, throwing his gym bag over his shoulder.

The schoolyard was bustling with students by the time he'd eaten and arrived for early-morning football practice. Although some kids were there to catch up on work, most were off with their own clubs. The football field was just beyond the tennis court where Sora Takenouchi was practicing. The two friends caught sight of each other and waved, as they did nearly every morning, but the timing worked out so Taichi could wander up to the fence and greet her.

"Big tournament this weekend, right?" He called out, wondering if she'd be impressed that he remembered. The entire team looked especially energized.

Sora walked over to meet him, smiling excitedly. "Yeah! Natsu and I both qualified," she gestured towards her partner on the other side of the court, "so we got here extra early this morning."

"Ahh, I bet you'd win without the extra practice." Taichi grinned, knowing his words meant nothing to his perfectionist of a friend. He laced his fingers through the wiring and leaned his forehead up against the fence like a child staring into a toy store. "Don't work yourself too hard, okay?"

Sora's coach whistled to call the players back. A number of Sora's teammates grabbed their rackets and jogged towards the net where he waited.

"No promises." She smirked herself before jogging off after them, her feet pattering against the clay court.

Taichi leaned back but still hung on to the wiring as he watched her go. Sometimes he wondered if Sora ever slept. She put so much time into tennis, but she also managed to excel in her classes and take on duties at her mom's school. The boy sighed as he wondered if Sora hadn't actually gotten there early- perhaps she stayed late at school to study and just never left. Whatever it was, he needed to get in on her secret. Taichi swore he got eight hours of sleep every night but the bags growing under his eyes as of late told him otherwise.

The boy toiled over his own schedule for the next few weeks as he moseyed towards his practice. They didn't have any big competitions coming up but it always paid to start working hard early, particularly when it came to football. It's not that Taichi wasn't bright- he was a perfectly fine student- but he felt rather uninspired from his classes lately so he put in extra effort here. Football served as a good distraction from his ever-approaching entry into the adult world. His teachers were sure to remind him that football wouldn't offer him much of a future but Taichi didn't really care. It made him happy now, and the future was still so terribly far away.

As Taichi joined his team in warm-ups, Koushiro Izumi strolled through the schoolyard. The redhead fell into the category of students who showed up early just for the thrill of getting things done. He found a shady spot under a tree and booted up his laptop.

As he waited for it to load, he peered out into the crowds of students. He didn't care to interact with any of them but being nearby made him feel involved. As a former yet rather unwilling member of the football club, he had no desire to find camaraderie in sports. It strained him to understand what Sora and Taichi found fun about running around this early in the morning, but he supposed they both felt the same way about his arriving early to do work. Their differences may have been irreconcilable, but Koushiro would be lying if he said he didn't welcome the fleeting break that came with the sudden blow of a whistle. So often he'd look up to one of his friends scoring a goal, or joyously high-fiving a teammate, and their happiness was refreshing enough to motivate him in his own endeavors.

That moment for Taichi came quickly on this particular morning. A few minutes into a scrimmage, someone set him up perfectly for a goal. Koushiro eyed him from a distance as the elder Yagami shot a fist into the air.

"Nice going, Taichi." Someone said as they dashed past him, preparing for the next play.

After pausing to catch his breath, Taichi turned to head back towards midfield as well. However, a distant, shrill whistle caught his attention just as he picked up his pace and caused him to jolt around towards the direction it came from. A group of girls stood huddled in a circle on the tennis court and Sora's coach was dashing urgently towards them. The boy frowned and placed a hand over his brows to block out the sun. He could spot a familiar bob of auburn hair in the middle of it all. Sora was on the ground, surrounded by her friends, and it looked like she was clutching her ankle.

Taichi must not have heard his own coach whistling, because the third time the man tried to call him to attention, one of his teammates had to run up and tap on his shoulder.

"What's wrong, Yagami?" he asked, following Taichi's gaze towards the commotion. "Ah, who is that? That doesn't look good."

A few more football players joined them and peered across the schoolyard. Their coach stopped whistling, letting them watch to see if she'd get up. Taichi'd barely given it a few seconds before he decided to dash off. When he neared the courts, he grabbed on to the fencing where he stood barely twenty minutes ago and swung himself through the gates. The grass turned to clay below his feet as he skid to a halt. A few of Sora's teammates heard him coming and turned to see who it was. Taichi didn't know any of their names, but he still looked at them expectantly as he tried to catch his breath.

Of course they knew what he was wondering. By this point, Sora's coach and Natsu were both kneeling down beside her. The school nurse was scurrying out from the building, having already been alerted by someone else. Taichi watched Sora grimace as she struggled to move her foot.

"What happened?" he asked those around him, still flustered. He stood on his tiptoes, shifting his weight around as he searched between the backs of heads for a better line of sight. He tried to get her attention but didn't blame her for not noticing. The crowd was probably overwhelming but Taichi was also all-too familiar with the spike of adrenaline that rendered a cluster like this mere background noise.

One girl, in a uniform that matched Sora's and long hair pulled into a high ponytail, took a half-step towards him and whispered, like she didn't want to make Sora feel worse by describing what'd happened. "I didn't see it, but someone said she rolled her ankle."

"Rolled it?" Taichi asked, blinking. He turned back to see Sora's shaky grip on her ankle and frowned. "If she rolled it she'd be able to walk."

"Well, something like that." The girl muttered, turning back to her own friends to further discuss the situation. Taichi remembered the few times he'd gotten injured in his childhood and recalled a particularly painful sprain that put him in a cast for weeks. The look Sora had on her face reminded him of how gruesome it was, but more so how upsetting it was to have to sit out of a big game. He internally willed Sora to get up, but she could only stand with the help of the nurse. The older woman wrapped Sora's arm over her shoulders and let her use her like a crutch as they started to hobble away. The tennis coach watched with a hand on his hip. Natsu stared in disbelief. Taichi finally found it in him to push through the group of girls and meekly called out. "Sora!"

His friend strained her neck to find him over her shoulder. She didn't say anything, but she offered a weak smile, feigning reassurance he was sure she didn't believe in. The boy's shoulders drooped as she continued to hobble off. Perhaps he should have gone with her, but he wasn't sure he could be of any use. In these sorts of situations, he knew bystanders only ended up being a distraction to those that could truly help. The boy sidestepped off of the court as the small crowd dispersed. Aside from Natsu, the team resumed practicing, and it was much like nothing happened.

Koushiro had become privy to something going on at this point and wandered over. He locked eyes with Taichi, wanting some sort of explanation. "Sora's hurt?" he asked.

"Yeah." Taichi clarified the obvious, meeting his gaze for a moment before looking away. "She had a big game coming up too."

"Oh…" Koushiro noted, unable to truly relate. "That's too bad."

More so to himself, Taichi went on. "I… feel like I jinxed her."

Koushiro stood by his friend's side but didn't say anything. It was an absurd statement and he assumed Taichi didn't believe it. Still, the conversation fizzled away, and Taichi didn't say anything to try and spark it again.

So the morning went on and eventually, classes began. Taichi had the unrequested pleasure of explaining Sora's absence to his teacher before shuffling back towards his desk. He was assigned to the back corner which he thought was peculiar, as his attention always seemed to drift out the window. Today, however, he stared at Sora's empty desk in front of him. Yamato Ishida was in the classroom next door and didn't have the chance to notice Sora's absence until lunch. Even if he wasn't headed in the same direction as them, he normally caught Sora and Taichi as morning class let out. Only Taichi bobbled by on this particular day and he was looking awful solemn. Yamato trailed him until he was close enough to reach out.

With his hand landing solidly on Taichi's shoulder, he tested him. "Eh… good morning to you too."

Taichi jolted a bit and instinctively clicked the home button on his phone- it was 12:01. He craned his neck and shot Yamato a sarcastic look. "Actually, 'afternoon."

Yamato rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Where's Sora?"

Taichi blinked at him. "You haven't heard?"

"Heard what?" The blonde dropped his hand back down to his side as the final few students trickled down the hall. He narrowed his eyes, like he was accusing Taichi of a lie that hadn't yet been uttered. "Is something wrong?"

"Well, sorta-" Taichi scratched the back of his head as Yamato stared on, unappreciative of his vagueness. "Sora got hurt at practice this morning. She's fine, but I guess she'll be out of school for the day."

Taichi hadn't realized the tension in Yamato's shoulders until he watched his friend relax. "Oh," he responded, "a tennis injury, huh? That's too bad. She had a tournament coming up, didn't she?"

"Yeah…" Taichi's voice trailed off. First Koushiro and now Yamato- why was everyone simply saying it was 'too bad'? Missing a big tournament was catastrophic, as far as he was concerned, but he supposed Yamato didn't play sports either. Taichi considered trying to explain it in terms Yamato could relate to, but while he contemplated it, a shrill voice called out to them from a ways down the hall. "Hey!"

The boys spun around just in time to see Mimi Tachikawa swing around the corner. Taichi unenthusiastically waved. Yamato lazily crossed his arms over his chest. Mimi was nearly out of breath by the time she reached them, but she mustered enough energy to jab Taichi's arm. "Ehh, baka! You didn't tell me?! I was here early this morning too!"

Taichi leaned back and furrowed his brows. "Tell you what?!"

Mimi grumbled something inaudibly as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. She flipped it open and held it out in front of Taichi's face. The boy looked from the phone, to Yamato, and to Mimi once more before hesitantly leaning in to read what she'd loaded on her screen. It was a message from Sora, detailing her injury and asking Mimi to collect her missed work for her.

Now it was Taichi's turn to grumble. "Ehh... why would she ask you to go through the trouble of getting her homework? I'm in all her morning classes, and isn't she with you in the afternoon?" The brunette gestured towards Yamato, who looked indifferent towards the entire situation.

"You two would forget everything!" Mimi countered. "You're both thoughtless, you know. Sora must have been bored to death waiting with the nurse for her mom to pick her up. By the time I checked my phone she was already gone. I'm gonna bring her some snacks later too, something to cheer her up!"

"Mimi, how could I-" Taichi began before Mimi's look of annoyance stopped him in his tracks. A few seconds went by as Taichi considered the importance of choosing his battles.

"I didn't even get a text." Yamato muttered suddenly in a melodramatic attempt to clear his name. It wasn't needed, but at least it got Taichi off the hook.

Mimi sighed at the boys in front of her. "Ah, well, I'll take care of her later! No worries, right?" She stuck her tongue out and linked arms with the two of them. "Now I'm starving! Who's ready for lunch?"

Taichi glanced confusedly over Mimi's head and caught Yamato's eye. The blonde shrugged in response and pulled his arm away. "You two go on ahead. I've got to buy today, so I'll catch up with you later."

"You sure?" Mimi asked, stopping short of offering him some of her food, although she probably would have shared if he needed it.

"Mm." Yamato nodded and stuffed his hands back in his pockets. His shoulders hunched forward like he was trying to protect something.

A little ways away at the middle school, Takeru and Hikari were pulling out lunches of their own. Takeru grinned hungrily at his homemade sandwich before taking a giant bite. Hikari gawked at him. "You shouldn't eat it all at once."

Takeru elbowed her. "I'm not!"

Hikari rolled her eyes as she watched Takeru bite off another similarly sized chunk.

The two younger chosen children sat side by side on the school steps, as they did most days. Other groups of kids were scattered across the yard, chatting excitedly about as much as they could before the bell rang for afternoon classes. Sometimes Hikari and Takeru would join them, but they always felt like it wouldn't be appropriate to have their most pressing discussions around their classmates.

"Anyways," Hikari went on, "were you able to talk to Patamon yesterday?"

Takeru nodded as he chewed. "Mm- yeah" he mustered once he swallowed. "Everything seems to be good there. I don't know why our D-3s were malfunctioning yesterday."

Hikari, who had yet to eat any of her food, glanced down at the pink D-3 clipped to her bag. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with it now.

Takeru did a double-take at her, knowing that distant look well. "Hey, don't worry. It's never any use worrying about something until we at least know what it is."

The girl's eyes lingered on her D-3 for a moment as she pondered his sentiment. To her, not knowing what to be worried about was part of the problem. "You're right." she said anyways, turning to Takeru and sighing. "Can you talk to Yamato tonight, though?"

"Yeah…" Takeru muttered. This time he was the one to look away. "I'll try. I think I told you, but tonight's the night my dad has that…" he hesitated on his next word, "lady… coming over."

"Oh, that's tonight?" Hikari asked, watching him carefully. She didn't really need to ask- she knew it was tonight- but she also thought Takeru was being unusually indifferent about something so important. Her ears perked up and she tuned into him more carefully.

"Mm." The boy felt his eyes on her, so he turned around and feigned a smile. "I'm happy for my dad though, you know? If he likes this person so much, it's about time Yamato and I meet her."

Hikari stared up at him. Although they were the same age, Takeru was quite a bit taller than her. He'd likely be measured at two or three inches more than her if they stood back to back. Sometimes she could feel him shrink though, and this was one of those times. The girl decided to change the topic, if only slightly.

"And what does Yamato think of this?" she asked, finally taking a bite of her food.

"Well," Takeru smiled- this time genuinely- and scratched the back of his head, "he thinks he'll be there tonight, so there's that."

The boy let himself laugh, so Hikari followed suit. They transitioned into lighter conversation and sat together while they finished their lunch. The second half of the break seemed to go by much more quickly and before they knew it, the afternoon bell called them back inside. The two parted ways in the hall and almost instantly, a friend of Hikari's dashed up to her.

"Okay, you need to spill!" she said, her excitement catching Hikari off-guard.

"Spill?" Hikari noticed two more of her friends hovering curiously in the background. "Spill what?"

The first girl covered her mouth and laughed, looking both ways like she was about to reveal an unspoken secret. "You and Takeru!"

"Me… and Takeru…?" Hikari blinked, her expression morphing from one of confusion to one of shock once she realized what her friend was implying. "Me and Takeru?! No way! We're just friends."

At this point, all three girls had closed in and formed a four-person huddle. Another one of Hikari's friends piped up. "That's what everyone says!"

The final girl jeered. "Why won't you tell us?!"

"There's nothing to tell!" Hikari pleaded with them, taking a step back in frustration. She wasn't lying but she could feel her cheeks flushing. If it weren't for the bell ringing one final time, she was sure someone would have called her out on it. Then, Hikari would have had to explain that she always felt flustered when backed into corners, and the teasing would go on until Hikari finally, and unconvincingly, put her foot down. If Hikari learned one thing from being in middle school, it's that there was no winning in situations like this. One of her friends affirmed this before they ran off.

"Well, you spend an awful lot of time with him if nothing's going on! He's cute though!"

Hikari clutched her books while the halls emptied. Once she was safe from prying eyes, she turned around just in time to catch sight of Takeru wandering into class. Her eyes lingered on his back as she wondered just how many people thought they spent too much time together. Her cheeks flushed deeper while considering whether any of his friends had approached him about the matter. What would he have said?

As classroom doors began to shut, Hikari shook her head. She decided she didn't want to know. She dashed off towards her room, trying to outrun the clock and the looming thought at the same time. The problem was that the thought was already in her head, and she was already late.

"Is that all you've eaten today, Jou?" Koushiro asked, peering at his friend's half-empty thermos of soup. "I don't know how that gets you through the day."

Jou grit his teeth as he struggled to unscrew the cap. He must have closed it too tightly at lunch. "It's all… good… eugh…. Can't eat…. when- there!" The lid came off with a small pop. "I'm a little stressed. I probably won't have much of an appetite until after next week's exams. In fact, I don't even really eat lunch anymore. Why would I spend time eating when I could be studying? It's wasted time. Something like this is good on the go."

Koushiro frowned at him. "You know, not eating healthy really impedes a productive study session. You're much more likely to remember information if you've had a good meal. I mean…" he caught Jou's eye and noticed his elder looked displeased with the advice. "I mean… I guess it's different for everyone, though."

Jou had nothing to say to that. He took a sip of his soup and the two sat together in silence. While the silence was obvious for Jou, however, Koushiro seemed unbothered by it. His laptop was open in front of him and he was clattering away at his keyboard. He wasn't wondering why Jou had decided to sit down next to him while he looked so busy, but Jou felt the need to explain himself anyways.

"I've got an extra class coming up soon. There's an awkward break before it."

"Oh?" Koushiro asked, his eyes still glued to his screen.

"Yeah, not much time to go home. Well, I guess I could if I really hustled, but what would the point of that be? I guess I could get into class early, but you're probably right. Maybe I need a break." Jou leaned back and sighed, tilting his head towards his friend. When he saw that Koushiro was still invested in whatever he was doing on his computer, he cleared his throat. "You're not listening, are you?"

Koushiro didn't miss a beat. Still typing, he rambled. "You have class, you have time to kill, you'd really like to study, but you've decided I'm right and you should take a break."

Jou said nothing. Instead, he rolled his head back again and closed his eyes for a moment. His lids felt heavy and he was sure if he didn't keep talking, he'd fall asleep right there on the ground. "What are you doing anyways?"

"Yesterday I noticed a fleeting break in the link between our world and the digital world." Koushiro explained, "It fixed itself rather quickly, but I'm trying to make sure the break wasn't purposeful."

That piqued Jou's interest. He opened his eyes once more and peered down at Koushiro's screen. He couldn't understand the program on it, but he felt like it was his responsibility to pay attention. "Purposeful, you mean like a new enemy doing something?"

"Maybe." Koushiro replied. "I don't think so. Hopefully not."

The older boy thought that answer was remarkably unclear, but he decided he probably wouldn't get anything else out of his companion until he figured it out for himself. He leaned his head back and let his eyes rest once more. "Well, uh, just let me know if you need me."

"Right." Koushiro quipped. "You'll be the first person I call if I need to get the team back together."

Jou, unamused, glared at Koushiro through a single slit lid. He didn't appreciate how he couldn't tell whether the boy was joking or not. Either way, Jou let it go and unwillingly drifted off to the sound of the clacking keyboard. It was the type of sleep where someone may have felt like they were resting while being aware of the stimuli around them. Jou could feel the passing presence of kids eagerly heading home. He heard distant voices and the sounds of tennis balls smacked against clay and cleats connecting with footballs. Eventually, he felt a shadow cast over him. The sun once warming his skin disappeared and the soft orange glow on the other side of his shut eyes turned dark. Unhappily, Jou forced his eyes open to see who was standing in front of him.

"…Mimi?" He muttered groggily. "Why?" He rubbed his eyes, pushing his glasses up on his forehead as he did so. His question was incomplete. He meant to ask her why she was still at school. Mimi put it together but didn't bother to answer.

Suddenly, the clacking of the keyboard stopped. Jou's vision focused in on Koushiro averting his attention away from his work. "Mimi! What are you doing here?!" the younger boy stuttered.

"Hi, Koushiro." She smiled at him before grumbling in Jou's direction. "Nice to see you too."

The older boy didn't have the energy to argue with her. Instead, he noticed the excessive amount of books Mimi was carrying. He nodded towards them. "You can't have more work than I do. You're two years below me."

"It's for Sora." Mimi shifted the load in her arms to better handle the weight. "I told her I'd bring her missed work to her."

"Missed work?" Jou asked, "What happene-"

"Do you need help?" Koushiro interrupted him, shutting his laptop. "I'm headed that way too."

Jou furrowed his brows in Koushiro's general direction. Instead of calling him out on his change of priorities now that Mimi was present, he tried again. "What happened?"

The younger boy rose to his feet and the two of them looked down at him. Jou listened as intently as he could while Mimi explained Sora's predicament. He offered a frown in response as Mimi turned her attention to Koushiro, insisting she could handle the delivery without his assistance.

"We're gonna have girl time, anyways." She stated.

"Girl time?" Koushiro asked.

Jou smirked, his eyes closed again. "They're going to gossip and online shop. You're not invited."

Koushiro tinged red and Mimi scowled at him. "Shouldn't you be studying?!" she threatened, unaware that he actually should have been.

Jou jolted awake and glanced at his watch. "You're right! I'm late!" He scrambled to his feet, messily piling his things into his arms before running off.

Koushiro, wide-eyed, watched him go. "I don't know how he does it."

"You say that like he's not drowning in his own efforts." Mimi replied stoutly.

Koushiro swiveled around and blinked like he should have been surprised by a statement so bold, but wasn't. Not from her.

"What?" Mimi asked. "It's true. Someone needs to save that boy from himself."

Koushiro didn't know what to say to that, so their conversation ended. Mimi shifted her weight again and glanced towards the street, an indicator that she was ready to go. "Well, I'll see you tomorrow."

The boy nodded. "Tell Sora I hope she feels better."

And with that, all the chosen children had gone their own separate ways for the day. Koushiro could make out Taichi in the distance at afternoon practice. He assumed Yamato was somewhere with his band. Jou surely made it to class, and he thought he heard something about Takeru picking up after-school basketball. Koushiro held his work in the same regard as they all likely held their own hobbies. He was about to sit back down and get back to it when out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something. Well, it wasn't something- it was nothing- the flutter of a passing man moving quickly down the street. He was dressed like he had somewhere important to be, but seemed so uniquely determined as he marched along that Koushiro's gaze lingered. He watched him head in the same direction Mimi had just gone in, only breathing when his towering figure was completely out of sight.

Thanks for reading the first chapter! I hope you enjoyed it. I'm really looking forward to developing this. Many thanks to the friends who found (most of) my spelling errors and let me continually bounce ideas off them.

-garudamon