Thunder and Lightning.
A Digimon fanfic by Tally~Fox, aka Ally Webb. .
Please note: This is my first Digimon fanfic, so it may not be very good. If you like it, make sure you tell me, and if you don't then... well, tell me anyway.
This story is set in the future, when Tai and Matt are fifteen. They and the other original digidestined (Kari included) are now back on Digiworld. There's no sign of Cody etc. in this fanfic, as I live in Britain and have never even seen series two yet.
***
It was late evening in the noisy seaside town. The tourists were just beginning to travel back to their hotels, carrying whinging children who just had to spend an extra hour building sandcastles on the beach. The air was getting colder, and the choppy waves lapped against the sand, tearing down the weak buildings handcrafted by young ones.
But it was warm where Shinri was. Inside her favourite hang-out, the games arcade, she leant against the wall soaking up the atmosphere as she listened to her CD player. This was as close as it got to bliss.
"Shin!" She bristled with annoyance, as the name was called. Only a few people called her that, most knowing her as Shinri. And the voice that called her was her half-brother's. "Shinri, come look at this!"
"What is it, brat?"
"It's a fortune teller's tent! Lookit!"
The ten year old gestured towards the strange marquee, made of rainbow coloured silks. Beside it was a sign painted on a loose piece of canvas.
'Gennai Fortunes.' It read. Shinri sighed.
"Ryan, you don't honestly believe in all this do you?" She rubbed her fingers against the sign absent-mindedly. "And why would a psychic put his stall up in a video games arcade?"
Ryan shrugged and pulled back the cloth covering the entrance. "Well, sis, there's only one way to find out."
Slowly and carefully, the two entered the silent tent. It was almost completely dark in the room, save for a strange beam of light coming from the ceiling. The shadows played across the surroundings in many colours, more shades of darkness than they had ever known to exist.
"Hello?" Shinri called out. The light flickered, catching her eye. In amazement, she watched.
In the midst of the beam, a figure began to form. At first it bore no distinct shape, but as it gradually became clearer, it seemed to take on the shape of a small, wizened old man. Ryan approached it, putting a hand through the middle of the figure. The man fizzled around the limb, then came back into focus as the child withdrew his hand. The man looked at Ryan for a moment, then finally spoke.
"Greetings. I am Gennai." He told Shinri. She began to introduce herself, when he stopped her. "And I already know who you are, Shinri. I have a very important message for you."
"What about me?" Ryan pouted. He was very spoilt by his parents, and was impatiently self-centred as a result. "Do I get a message?"
Gennai inspected him for a moment, then stumbled backwards in shock, a strange fear showing on his face.
"Y.. you're Ryan!" He choked. "Get out of here at once!"
Ryan folded his arms in an expression of defiance. "Don't want to." His older sister turned and glared at him.
"Just get out of here, idiot! Get lost!"
Ryan frowned back, and kicked her in the shin, as he strode out defiantly. Shinri rubbed her injured leg and looked back at Gennai. "So what's my message?"
The old man waved an arm in the air, and two objects began to fall, as if from nowhere. Shinri reached for them, eyeing them curiously. One was a strange electronic device, and the other a necklace. On the necklace was a design of the moon and two stars, simplistically carved into the pendant.
"You are the final of the Digi-destined," Gennai told her. "Your tag and crest were for some reason permanently conjoined, unlike the others. This caused us problems in finding you, as the locations of the tags for the others were parallel to their homes in this world."
Shinri gazed at him in confusion. "What are you saying?"
He stepped aside slightly, gesturing to the side where he had stood before. "Step through."
Shaking her head in bewilderment, Shinri pulled the necklace over her head, so the tag hung at her throat, and clipped the device to the strap of her backpack. Gingerly, she began to step inside, unsure of what she was doing.
"Shin!" She spun on her heels, to see Ryan running back in. "Shinri, I wanna come too!"
Gennai edged back in fear, putting his hands in front of his face. "No! He must not be..."
But before he could finish his sentence, the two had disappeared. Gennai shook his head.
"The Anti-Destined has stepped through," He murmured. "The Digiworld is in great peril."
*
The sun beat down onto the rocky ground, as if trying to pound a hole to the centre of the world. Ryan felt the rays as they forced themselves against his head, boiling his skull. Groaning, he rolled onto his stomach, then used what little energy he had to push himself up to his knees.
"Where am I?" He gasped, as he surveyed the dusty brown surroundings. All around him, sandy mountains towered, and the ground was cracked. Chapped through lack of moisture.
"This is the Digiworld, Rai, my brother." The voice came from behind him, and he knew it was not his sisters. He spun around to find himself facing a strange, bird-like creature.
"It's... it's a Pteradactyl!" He exclaimed, anxiously reaching forward to touch it's leathery wing. "But, they're extinct... and they can't talk!"
The supposed dinosaur laughed. "I'm not a Pteradactyl, whatever that is! I'm a Digimon, my name is Dactylmon."
The boy sat in the sand so his face was level with the creature's. Dactylmon offered a scaly claw forward, clasping in his hand another one of the strange necklaces, and the digital device that had also accompanied his sister's pendant.
"This is your tag, crest, and digivice," He told Ryan, placing the objects in the child's hand. "I and the others searched high and low, in preparation for your coming to assist us. With the exception of that traitor, Bebemon." He snarled, then turned back to poor Ryan, who was looking very perplexed.
"Of course, you don't know do you?" Dactylmon exclaimed. Rai shook his head morosely. "I am the leader of what is known as 'The New Wave Digimon'. We are all of new races of Digimon, and are far more powerful and intelligent than any before us." He waved a claw in the air arrogantly.
"We believe that it is our destiny to destroy all of the so-called good Digimon, along with their Digi-destined. I was most honoured when I discovered that I would be the partner to our 'Anti-Destined," unexpectedly, he paused, and bowed down. Ryan looked down in a mixture of shock and pleasure.
"You mean I have to lead you? And help you take over?"
"Yes, master."
Rai looked around with a wicked glint in his eyes, surveying his surroundings. Finally, he turned back to Dactylmon, grinning like a man possessed by his lust for power.
"I'll do it."
*
Escaping was the only thought in her mind as she travelled deeper into the jungle. All around her, in her head and in her thoughts, Bebemon could hear the taunts of the other Digimon.
"So you've been told you've gotta help a little Digi-destined have you?"
"Traitor!"
She could still see their evil eyes boring into her soul as they drove her out of their lair, aiming their attacks to kill her. She still did not know how she had escaped. It was almost as if her destiny was causing her to be somehow... protected.
So she was obviously pretty much absorbed in her thoughts when she heard the scream, yet it still cut to the core of her soul. Bebemon almost felt as if she was the one screaming, as if the same fear was creeping over her. Following her ears, she found herself travelling to a cave, deep in the centre of the forest.
"Help! I'm trapped!" The voice was feminine, and panicky. The little Digimon followed the path in the cave, noticing that it became narrower and narrower. The ceiling was forever getting closer, but eventually Bebemon found the end, where a human girl sat, hugging her knees and biting her lip as she rocked back and forth. She looked at Bebemon through clouded moist eyes.
"Help me... please!"
The lavender Digimon was puzzled. "You aren't trapped? But why are you crying?"
"Please... move away,"
Bebemon disobeyed, hopping closer. "Let me help you..."
"I SAID MOVE AWAY!" The girl was shouting now, and the hot tears streamed across her cheeks. Then she shook her head. "I'm really sorry, I snapped. Please, move back."
Bebemon edged back by about a metre, still watching the distraught teenager. The girl was now breathing heavily, as if trying to control her fear.
"Would you like me to..."
The girl waved a hand at Bebemon. "No, I've been working at this. I have to cope by myself." Still hyperventilating, she positioned herself onto her hands and knees, and gradually began to crawl through the tunnel towards the entrance.
It took quite a lot longer than would be expected, but eventually the pair found themselves at the entrance. The human girl sat down with a sigh.
"What was wrong, anyway?" Bebemon asked curiously.
"Well, I'm claustrophobic. That's the fear of tight, enclosed places." She paused, looking at her companion. "I don't mean to be rude, but, who... what are you?"
Bebemon introduced herself. "My name is Bebemon. I am a Digimon, and I'm on a quest to find a girl from Earth, named Shinri. She is one of the Digi-destined."
The girl grinned, then hugged the Digimon. "I'm Shinri!"
"Really?"
"Yes, really!"
The two embraced again, but were interrupted by a voice full of contempt.
"What a touching scene. The Traitor and the Digi-Destined," It was Dactylmon, wings spread out like a legendary phoenix, claws prepared to strike; to kill. Seated on his back was a young boy, of about ten years old. His blond hair was covered by a black baseball cap, and his shoulders were hidden under a thick black cape.
"Dactylmon!"
"Ryan!" Shinri stood up, frowning. "What the hell do you want?"
Her half-brother looked down at her, and she gasped with shock. Shining in his eyes was a pure venom, as if he would kill if he had to. Reaching behind him, he revealed a sharp bladed axe, almost as big as him.
"It is our Destiny to take over the Digi-world," he glowered. "But first we must destroy all the Digi-destined!"
"There are others?" Was all Shinri could say, as Bebemon leapt in front of her. She reached out to stop her new friend, but stopped. Something told her that she should not try to prevent Bebemon from fighting.
"What's that?" Ryan yelled, pointing to her shoulder. She followed his gaze, and noticed the strange device glowing. Looking back at Bebemon, it seemed as if light was pouring into her. But what...?
"She's digivolving!" Dactylmon yelled, cursing and flapping his wings. Sure enough, there seemed to be some sort of metamorphosis taking place. There was a flash, and stood in Bebemon's place was a pink fox cub, with a blue tipped tail. She turned back to Shinri, her black eyes dancing with pleasure.
"Just leave this to me, Shinri!"
The vixen leapt forward, landing on Dactylmon's head and obscuring his view. He thrashed around blindly.
"Psychic shocker!" She roared. A flash of blue seemed to come from her forehead to Dactylmon's, as he writhed in agony.
"What's wrong with you? Can't you change too?" Rai shrieked at his partner. But even if Dactylmon was able to, he seemed weakened and surprised by the blow. He could not even bring a weak glow to Rai's digivice.
Shinri lifted a rock and threw it, hitting the ten year old boy on the head. He yelped, and swung with the axe, slicing a gash into Shinri's left arm as she rose it to defend herself. Feeling faint, she collapsed to the ground. Ryan was about to finish her with a final blow, when he noticed Dactylmon. The beast lifted his head and peered at Ryan.
"Cubomon severely weakened me. Leave her now, she'll die anyway from exposure or something." He shook a claw dismissively; this was not important to him. The boy nodded, and left, running back to the New Wave lair with his Digimon in his arms. Cubomon instantly jumped to Shinri's side.
"Are you okay?"
"He's right." The seriousness of the girl's voice scared Cubomon. "I will die if I'm left here. There's nothing you can do." The vixen Digimon looked flustered, as she shuffled on her paws.
"I'll run... I'll get help..."
"Will you come back?"
Cubomon looked at her friend's pained expression, and nuzzled against her cheek.
"I promise."
*
The other Digi-Destined had lived on the Digiworld for a long time now. They had first arrived when TK was eight, but he was now...
"Twelve!" TK looked up at his older brother, Matt. "I'm the same age as you were when you first got here! I'm not a baby!"
Matt sighed, not diverting his eyes from the food he was cooking over the makeshift fire. "I just don't think it would be safe for you to go somewhere so dangerous, that we haven't yet explored together! There could be anything lurking in that cavern!"
"He's right, you know; you do treat him like a baby."
This comment was made by Tai, the self-appointed leader of the group. He and Matt did not tend to see eye to eye on most matters, and were constantly feuding. Sadly, neither of them seemed to put any effort into co-operating with the other. Matt flinched as he tried to contain his fury.
"I think TK is old enough to be responsible for himself..."
"Shut up, Tai!" Matt finally snapped, fists ready to aim a blow. Just in time though, TK stood between the two older boys.
"Stop it! I may have grown, but I still can't stand to see you fighting!" Matt and Tai exchanged guilty glances, then began the inevitable verbal battle of placing the blame. Kari, who was watching this scene, shook her head.
"Who are you two to say we're not mature or old enough?" She sighed. Matt groaned, putting his head in his hands.
"Okay, I give in! Go ahead... but don't say I didn't warn you!"
The two twelve year olds ran off, followed by their Digimon. Matt glared at Tai.
"Who are you to tell me how to take care of my little brother?" He snarled. Tai was taken aback for a moment, but this comment was still enough to anger him.
"I just think you should give him the chance to prove that he can take care of himself."
"Well, sorry for caring!"
Tai looked as if he could throttle him, but instead shook his head and sat down on one of the logs that he had positioned near the fire as a bench. Matt turned back to his cooking, when he heard shouts from between the trees.
"Tai! Quick, this is important!" The voice was Sora's. She sprinted into the clearing, followed by Biomon and an unfamiliar Digimon. "We found an injured girl! Her arm's been cut real bad, and she's faint from blood loss!"
Matt dropped everything, and Tai got up, both prepared to run and help the girl.
"That's not all!" Biomon exclaimed. "She has a tag, crest and digivice too!"
Matt looked down at the Digimon who had accompanied them. "Is she your friend?" He asked. The vixen turned her nose up at him.
"Yes. And who are you?" Her tone was icy, and her expression was so venomous it could poison. She had a feeling, for some reason, that Matt was not going to get on with her at all.
"We have to go!" Tai yelled, not noticing the tension. Sora grabbed his hand, guiding him towards the girl, whilst Matt and the four Digimon followed.
It took about five minutes to find the others, who were with the girl. She was now sitting up, sipping some water that Mimi had given her, as Izzy wrapped her arm in a tight bandage. Joe sat beside him, looking more worried than the girl herself.
"Now c'mon, Joe!" Mimi grinned, placing an arm about his shoulders. "It isn't your blood, so why are you so panicky?"
Joe shuddered. "I just hate the sight of blood, okay?"
"Are you alright now?"
Shinri turned around to see Sora, and smiled.
"I'm fine now, Sora. But I am a little worried about Joe..."
Tai laughed. "He'll be fine! He's always this much of a wimp." He sat on the ground in front of her. "My name's Tai, by the way." He offered her his hand. She shook it.
"I'm Shinri."
Izzy looked up to the sky, noticing the sun setting over the trees. "We better head back," he told his friends. "It's late."
Shinri nodded, and began trying to get up. But she found it very difficult to get up without the support of her injured arm. As she tried to push herself up, a hand appeared in front of her.
"I'll help you up."
A little nervously, she took Matt's hand and he pulled her to her feet. He pulled her arm around his neck.
"Lean on me until we get back." He ordered. She smiled weakly, and they began to talk like old friends.
Behind them, Cubomon snarled.
*
TK and Kari arrived back at the camp to find a stranger joking and laughing with their friends. She had short brown hair a little like Sora's, and very dark brown eyes. When she saw TK, she smiled and said:
"So you're the infamous TK! Matt's told me so much about you!"
"Really?"
"Yeah," She paused. "Y'know, you've got yourself one hell of a great guy for a brother." Matt felt himself blush slightly, and turned away so nobody could tell.
"Who are you?" Kari asked.
"I'm sorry, I forgot to introduce myself? I'm Shinri."
"I'm Kari."
The conversation continued, as they all munched on fruits that Izzy and the others had found in the forest. Cubomon turned down any offers of food with an aloof expression.
"No thanks. I only eat meat."
Gomamon sniggered. "Sorry, your highness!"
There was a growl, and Cubomon struck. She bit Gomamons shoulder, scratching at his flippers. Shocked, Gabumon pulled her away.
"Unhand me!"
"Not until you apologise!" Agumon responded. Cubomon was silent for a moment, then sighed.
"Fine. I'm sorry." Gabumon let her go, and she smirked as she flounced off. Patamon glared as he watched her approach Gatomon.
"She didn't mean it!" The others agreed, nodding solemnly.
"There's nothing we can do, though." Palmon said. "You can't trust these New wavers, any way."
This was met with unanimous echoes of harmony. They'd all had recent run-ins with these evil Digimon, and from what they had heard, things were going to get worse. But as of yet there was no way they could discover the whereabouts of the New Wave lair.
*
Tai watched as the others laughed, telling jokes and stories whilst planning how they could get rid of the evil uprising. But at the moment the mood was one of happiness, and Mimi was telling an elaborate story about her pet cat back on their home world. All were sat in the circle, listening- or day-dreaming whilst pretending to listen- except Tai. He sat a little separate from the others, lost in his own thought.
Shinri leant with her head on Matt's shoulder, chatting to Sora about something he couldn't quite hear. They were both giggling now, and he watched the way Sora's face lit up with pleasure. She was very pretty...
He shook the thought from his mind. What was he thinking? Sora was an old friend of his! But still...
"Penny for your thoughts, Tai?" He wasn't sure exactly how Shinri had got there so suddenly, but there she was by his side.
"I don't think they're worth that much." He replied, sounding a little sad. Shinri put a hand on his.
"Now, c'mon! I can tell that there's something wrong!" She sounded so sweet then that Tai had no choice but to tell her. He inhaled sharply, and began.
"Well, you see... there's this girl..."
"Sora."
"So... how'd you know?"
She laughed a little mysteriously. "Tai, it's either her or Mimi. And I can tell that Mimi is definitely not your type."
Tai grinned fiendishly. "But how do you know it isn't you?" She just smiled and shook her head.
"Tai, I know it isn't! You think that you might be falling in love with Sora, and you're worried because you're close friends with her." Her tone was entirely confident, as if she was plucking the words from Tai's thoughts. "But there's nothing to be scared of, Tai. And Matt did tell me you held the crest of courage."
"How do you know all this? About me, and Sora, and," He paused, hushing his voice almost to a whisper. "And love."
Shinri took both of his hands between hers, and leant closer to whisper to him. Tai could swear that Matt was giving him a very evil look.
"I have the crest of Intuition, Tai." She whispered. "I know things, you see. I'm sensitive to other people's emotions... unless they involve myself. You were practically buzzing with emotion when you looked at Sora!" She leant back. "But don't you worry, I won't tell a soul!"
She got up, and went back to talk to Izzy, who was hunched over his computer.
"Can you get onto our world's internet from that?" She asked.
"Well, yes. But don't try sending an e-mail asking for help. They can't do anything for us whilst we're here." He warned. She nodded, and typed an address in the bar.
"It doesn't mean anything to my OL friends if I'm on another world, does it?" She asked. Tai grinned. She seemed to get used to the idea of never going back to Earth rather quickly. It almost made him wonder if she actually wanted to ever return.
"Tai?" Matt's voice interrupted his thoughts, and he looked up to see a pair of angry blue eyes looking down at him. He gulped.
"Yeah, Matt?"
"May I speak to you... in private?" He stressed the final two words, and Tai bit his lip. Following Matt through the tree branches to the nearby lake, he tried to explain.
"Look, Matt. If this has anything to do with...?"
"You knew!" His friend snapped, his fists quaking at his sides. "You guessed that I liked her and did that just to get to me!"
Tai edged away slowly, realising exactly why it was that Matt was so stressed. He'd always felt as if Tai was trying to take TK away from him, but he'd tried to remain calm. Now, when Tai was seemingly trying to take away the first girl he'd ever really liked... Although Matt had misinterpreted all the signs, Tai could see why he was so angry. But this was not going to change anything.
Without a word, Matt swung a strong punch aimed at Tai's jaw. But Tai was lucky enough to block it.
"Lay off, man!" He yelled. But Matt continued his attack, and Tai tried to resist all urges to punch back. Eventually, he snapped, and swung at Matt's face, giving him a black eye.
This came as a shock to the both of them. They stood, facing each other in silence for a moment. Tai's mouth an 'O' of surprise, and Matt's heart boiling with rage. Finally, the blond boy grabbed at Tai's throat, losing his balance and knocking them both to the ground. For a few moments they grappled on the ground. Tai bit his lip hard, not noticing as a trickle of blood ran down his chin and across his cheek. He almost felt as if he would cry. Matt's arm was scratched deep enough to break the skin, but however much Tai hurt him, he barely seemed to feel any pain nor exhaustion. Neither was conceding, despite the fact that one was almost bound to get hurt eventually.
"Tai! Matt! What are you doing?!" Izzy's shout broke through, as he pulled Matt from the ground. The older boy struggled, as Joe grabbed Matt. TK, the girls, and all the Digimon followed. Sora stood in front of Tai as he fought Joe to free himself.
"Tai, it's not worth it." She told him, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Please, stop it."
Tai looked at her, noticing the genuine worry, the pleading, in her eyes, and nodded.
"I... I'm sorry Sora." He finally sighed. She smiled, and Joe let him go. Matt, however, was a lot more stubborn.
"You are not gonna make me apologise!" He yelled at Izzy, elbowing him in the stomach. Izzy was knocked onto the ground, and Shinri ran over to help him. Tai took on fighting stance, glaring at Matt.
"What'd you do that for?" He asked, grabbing Matt by his collar. Joe covered his eyes.
"Will you both please quit it?" Sora's tone was urgent. She grabbed Tai's arm, but he pulled it away, never diverting his gaze from Matt.
"I'm sick of you! I'm beginning to wish you'd just leave!"
"Tai. Leave him..."
Shinri looked at him with scared eyes, and sighed. "I can tell that you and Matt don't get on, but he's been really nice to me. Just... whatever it is, it isn't worth fighting for, okay?"
Sora put a hand on the other girl's shoulder and smiled. "Couldn't have said it better myself!"
Matt pushed Tai away, then strode off in sullen silence, Gabumon at his heels. Shinri watched as he left, and Tai shook his head.
"I just don't see why he got so stressed!"
Sora looked thoughtful, then turned to him. "What was all that about anyway, Tai?"
Silence.
"Tai?"
He shook his head once again, looking away. "I'm sorry, Sora. I'll make things even worse if I tell you."
*
"Where are we going, Matt?" Gabumon's question was not replied, as his companion ran his fingers through his flat gelled hair. It reverted to the spiky, scruffy style he had worn when he was eleven.
"Well, Tai wants me to leave. And he'll tell everybody what we were fighting about..."
Gabumon grinned. It was the smile of the wise, those who knew exactly how people think and were proud of this fact that made them so high in comparison to others.
"You thought he liked Shi...?"
"It's none of your business!"
Matt's outburst obviously shocked the both of them, and he sat down beside his friend.
"I'm sorry, Gabumon."
"Matt?"
The brown-eyed girl emerged from the shadows, Cubomon looking very annoyed behind her. "Are you alright?"
"She dragged me off here to find you. I honestly don't know why she'd show such interest in a violent Neanderthal like..." Cubomon did not finish her sentence, instead sighing as if it was not worth her effort to even speak to him. Shinri frowned at her, and then looked to Matt apologetically.
"Sorry. She's like this to everybody except myself and Kari's Digimon."
"Gatomon?"
"That's the one."
Matt gestured for her to sit beside him. They were right above the edge of the lake, and the trees around them framed the full moon beautifully. Cubomon climbed onto a high branch, glaring down at them.
"This is where I usually come when I'm sick of Tai," Matt said. "None of the others have ever managed to follow me here."
He began to play a tune, his eyes shut in concentration as Gabumon looked on in awe. Shinri threw a pebble into the water, the music fading as the ripples spread.
"You're good." She commented when he had finished. He nodded, and continued playing. For a moment she stayed beside him, but then got up to leave. She turned away, then stopped.
"You know Matt, your hair's really cute when it's all scruffy like that. You shouldn't bother with hair gel."
Matt's cheeks became a rosy shade. "Thanks," He grinned. They both stood still for a few moments, neither exactly sure of what should be said next. Finally, Shinri broke the silence.
"I better leave you in peace." The vixen jumped into her arms. Matt looked up at her, inhaling sharply.
"Shinri..." He hesitated, then sighed. "Er... never mind."
She laughed, and walked off. The final notes drifted through the air, and floated out to the lake.
*
A few days passed before they ran into any evil Digimon. It seemed to Izzy that the corrupt creatures had been somewhat... well, quiet recently. The last fight had been about a week before Shinri had turned up, and even that had been against a relatively pathetic monster. Tai had said that he thought this meant their work on the Digiworld was done-- but if so, why had they not yet returned home?
"I think that for us to return home now could cause a major dimensional rift, resulting in the ends of both this world and Earth." He commented to Sora.
"But we've travelled from one world to the other before?" Izzy shrugged his shoulders.
"Yes, but I think that this can only work on rare occasions. The circumstances must be just right, at million to one chances. And besides," He frowned. "If our duties were to bring peace to the digital world, perhaps Earth had no role in our lives but for our up-bringing? Perhaps we're supposed to stay here for the rest of our lives?"
The others were silent in solemn contemplation. Izzy had voiced the one thing that they had privately grown to accept, but hearing it spoken aloud... it was as if it had just been an idle fear before, and had now become a full reality.
"Well, we can't go getting all depressed about it! What's our plan for today?" Tai finally broke the silence, forcing himself to smile. Sora consulted a notepad that she had been writing notes in, and answered.
"Today, Tai, Izzy, Matt, Shinri and I are on the food search party. The rest of you can take care of things here."
Mimi grinned, leaning back against a tree and inspecting her nails. "Guess that means a peaceful day with no work for me then!"
"Oh, no!" Joe retorted. "There is no way that I'm gonna make meals and stuff, I'm too... er, accident prone."
Mimi and Joe were still arguing, when the others left. Sora sighed, wiping her brow against her arm.
"If Kari and TK can survive the day without going insane, I'll seriously envy their powers of perseverance!"
They all stayed close together as they wondered deeper into the dark forest. Despite the temptation to ask Agumon to destroy the trees that were in the way with his pepper breath, Tai knew that they couldn't do it. If they were to clear an obvious path to their crude campsite, any evil Digimon could easily find and murder them in their beds.
After about an hour without discovering anything, they stopped for a break. Izzy consulted a map on his computer, and announced his ideas to the small group.
"Okay. If we go north, we'll be going straight into a mountain range. But if we do carry on towards the mountains, then turn east, there should be a clearing with some berry bushes."
Matt got up and ran his fingers through his hair. "We better carry on then." He and Gabumon walked ahead, soon to be joined by Tai and Izzy with their Digimon. The girls stayed a couple of metres behind.
"You know, Shinri," Cubomon murmured once she was sure the boys were out of earshot. She glanced around shiftily. "Confidentially, I cannot stand that Matt person."
Biomon looked at the fox in surprise. "Why? Matt's alright!"
Cubomon wearily shook her head. "He's just so... oh, I don't know! You would just be a lot better off if you ignored his sort." She pointedly commented to her human partner, who exchanged glances with Sora and Biomon. The girls merely shrugged, and began talking about something else. Yet it was obvious to see the suspicious looks that Biomon was throwing at Cubomon.
*
"I can't believe we let them get away! And all because she did that digivolving thing... Why can't you do that?" Dactylmon cowered slightly, as the human who he had learnt to call his master shouted and screamed at him. He covered his fragile skull with his leathery wing, afraid of the axe blade that the boy was swinging wildly.
"You said you were powerful! You couldn't even destroy that pink powderpuff fox!" He spat out the words, then flopped back onto the floor. He felt exhausted with rage. Dactylmon did not move, still fearful.
"Master?" The small Digimon hovered in the entrance to the cave. "Master, the Digi-destined children... some of them are right outside." The creature shuffled from one slimy paw to the other, waiting for some response.
He finally received it. A sinister grin, reminiscent to that of a hunting crocodile, crept across Rai's freckled face. He reached a hand out, lifting his Digimon partner's head.
"It's time for revenge, Dactylmon. We're gonna destroy them!"
*
As they entered the clearing, Shinri shivered. It was full of a dark smog, and although the plants Izzy had described were there, they were dead and shrivelled. The trees were nothing more than black wood carcasses, and there did not seem to be a living creature beside themselves.
"Sora, I'm scared." Biomon nervously sobbed. Sora nodded, wrapping her arms around the little pink bird. Shinri walked to the centre of the clearing, then stopped in her tracks, frozen to the ground. She could feel a strange sensation creeping up her spine, through her nerves, to her brain. It stung, and she fell to the ground in agony.
"Shinri?!" Matt yelled, running through the smokey atmosphere with Gabumon and Cubomon hot on his heels. "Are you alright?!"
He dropped to his knees beside her, and she looked up at him through clouded eyes. Cautiously, he put an arm around her shoulder.
"Matt, this place is dangerous. I... I can sense it." As she spoke, the feeling still bit through her mind like electricity. He lifted her and carried her back to the group, her body limp in his arms. It was only with the contrast of her faint blueberry-musk scent that he realised how badly the area reeked. It's odour was like poison, and he noticed Tai gagging due to the same stench.
"We can't stay here," She whispered as he sat down beside Izzy, still cradling her. "We have to leave and never come back! This is.. an evil place."
"You can sure say that again!" Tai groaned. Sora motioned for him to be silent, and took the other girl's hand.
"What happened back there?" Shinri looked up at her with misty eyes still full of fear.
"I... I can often sense things. Strong emotions. When I was back home, it came in useful as I could always tell when one of my classmates had a crush on someone!"
She smiled faintly, pausing as she remembered her old friends. But the grim reality soon came back to her, and she sighed.
"This place... it's full of hatred. Pain. It's killed off all the plants," Sora looked down at her hands. Shinri was clutching them so hard in her fear that the colour had drained from them. "This place is evil!"
Biyomon edged closer to Agumon and Tentomon, who were now quaking with fear themselves. Sora helped Shinri get up, and Tai turned to Izzy.
"I think we should leave. There's something seriously freaky about this place."
"Oh, but you cannot leave!"
Tai jumped backwards. He had been in midstep, trying to leave the clearing, when a sharp jolt almost melted his sneakers. On closer inspection, he noted an electric wall around the outside of the dark glade. They were trapped.
"I am Rai," The voice announced, as Tai spun around to find himself facing a young boy, who appeared to be only ten years old. "And this is my good friend, Inazumamon."
Shinri gasped, her eyes full of tears. "Ryan, what are you...?"
"You know this guy?!" Izzy yelled, as a peal of thunder shook the threatening black sky. Shinri nodded, her forehead resting in her right hand. She glanced at Izzy and sighed.
"He's my half-brother."
Matt and Izzy both looked at the child in amazement. Surely this axe-wielding maniac could not be the sibling of their new friend? The creature behind him threw it's head into the air and screamed. Tai fumbled for his digivice, and held it high above his head.
"Agumon! Digivolve!" There was a bright flash of light from the heavens, the only bright spot in the otherwise dark area.
Shinri watched in awe as her small friend grew into a ferocious, dinosaur like creature. Izzy, Sora and Matt also thrust the small electronic devices into the air, and their Digimon also grew. Sora grinned triumphantly.
"We have him outnumbered! That's a great advantage!" She called across to Tai. But no sooner had she said it than she noticed just how wrong she was.
Greymon, Birdramon, Garurumon and Kabuterimon all surrounded the evil creature, fiery wings beating and sharp, savage claws lashing out. Greymon's Nova Blast severely burnt Inazumamon's wings, and all of the others managed to put in some near-critical hits. But although none of them had received any physical damage, they all seemed to be yielding, wavering where they stood.
"It's like something's draining them!" Izzy yelled. Shinri nodded.
"This atmosphere would be enough to drain anyone!"
One by one, the large monsters slowly began to collapse, devolving to their previous forms. Cubomon sat back, laughing maniacally.
"You're supposed to be helping!" Shinri cried. Cubomon shook her head, still sniggering. Agumon weakly lifted his head and glared at her.
"If I had the energy... I'd fry you!" He muttered. Matt looked down at the weakened Digimon, and then to Cubomon. Something inside him snapped.
"I'm gonna kill you!" He screamed, running as fast as his feet could carry him. He was not sure what came over him, but the next thing he knew, he was being lifted into the air by a pair of tough steel-like claws, thrashing about wildly. The creature was squeezing him so tight he felt as if he would burst. Sora gasped, grabbing Tai's hands which surprised her as much as him.
"We have to do something!" Tai told her. But try as he might he could think of no solution. Matt could feel his insides being pressed together, and only one thought ran through his mind: This is it. I'm about to die.
"Matt!" Shinri suddenly shrieked, her voice loud and high as a banshee's. He looked down at her through his half-closed eyes, at the tears streaming down her cheeks, at the rain soaking her body and hair. She pulled something from her pocket-- something that flashed of silver, and ran towards the creature.
The next few moments passed like a movie in slow motion. Sora was rushing around, lifting the wounded Digimon and bringing them all to a corner of the clearing, where she stood over them protectively. Tai, leaping to attack Ryan, his expression full of venom. Izzy aiding Sora, Cubomon still cackling, and all that could be heard was the thunder and the screaming. Screaming, screaming, screaming.
The noise shattered Matt's ears, echoing through his heart and soul. At first he was not sure who's voice it was, but he slowly began to realise. It was his own.
"Matt!" Shinri's voice called to him once again. She was now attempting to climb Inazumamon's reptilian neck, but the rain had soaked it and she kept slipping down. Deftly, she took the object she had been holding earlier, and dug it between the creatures scales. It was a knife.
The Digimon threw his head into the air, cursing and writhing. But Shinri would never let go. She carried on digging the blade into the thick skin, using it to help her climb, until she reached Matt. She took his hands, sobbing and burying her face in his green vest top, as he embraced her soothingly. Neither noticed as the claws closed around her, crushing them both closer together. But Cubomon saw.
"Shinri!" Her voice, usually filled with her spiteful pride, was now anxious and almost caring. "Don't worry, I'm coming!"
A flash of light emerged from the weeping girl's Digivice, meeting a beam from the sky. The two flares met at Cubomon's body and she began to grow. Her fur darkened, and became purple as she grew, and her tail spliced into three. She had digivolved into Kitsumon.
"Sora, look!" Izzy gasped. For some reason, the enormous kitsune was not at all affected by the evil aura. Even Shinri looked on in amazement, until she grinned in realisation.
"Of course! Before, Dactylmon called her a traitor, which must mean she was once on of the evil New Wave Digimon! She's immune to the evil!" Her face portrayed her happiness, and Matt would have found it hard to suppress his urge to draw her closer to him, had it not been for the fact that they were in danger of being suffocated by each others bodies as it was.
Kitsumon brought her head close to Inazumamon's; her fanged smirk struck fear into the evil Digimon's mind. Her nose was now pressed against his beak, and he began to realise just how weak the other Digimon's powers had already rendered him.
"Psychic Flame." She whispered. Inazumamon began to howl and screech as he felt the fire frazzle his mind. He dropped the two digi-destined to the floor, and fell backwards. Ryan screamed and wrenched himself from Tai's angry grasp, running to his fallen comrade.
"We'll meet again!" He shouted, thrusting his Digivice into the air as a cloud of black and red enveloped him. "I can tell you, I'm gonna destroy you!" With that, he vanished.
Kitsumon shrank back down to Cubomon, and ran across to Shinri and Matt. Gabumon was already beside their limp bodies, where they lay exhausted in the mud. Shinri still had her face snuggled close to Matt's chest, warm and protected. Cubomon placed a wary paw over her friends soaked and mud coated body.
"Shinri?" She murmured. The girl squirmed where she lay, as did Matt, and Cubomon let out a sigh of relief. "They're both alive. And she almost killed herself for him!" Her voice was full of wonder as she said this. Izzy nodded.
"Of course she did! That's what friends do!"
"But..."
"I know you don't like Matt all that much, but I think you're going to have to accept their friendship." Biomon told her, smiling as Tai and Sora tried to awaken their two companions. Cubomon thought about this for a while, then grinned.
"Well, the way I see it," She deliberated. "The way I see it, he must be okay, otherwise she wouldn't like him so much. I guess I should learn to trust her judgement."
"She was right about the evil aura in that clearing, after all." Tentomon pointed out, agreeing. Cubomon just nodded, nuzzling against Shinri. She was not sure why exactly, but she felt very protective over the fifteen year-old girl. She knew Shinri could take care of herself, but... it was her duty, to see no harm came to her closest friend. And she had to admit, she was jealous that the girl had found such a good friend in Matt. Lying in the mud, Shinri seemed so vulnerable, so young and endangered. Cubomon knew she must safeguard her. It was her destiny, so to speak. Finally, she sighed and replied:
"I'm just going to have to try and get along with him. For her sake."
*
