Chapter 1: Lost and Found

"C'mon Leomon, attack!" Kit Jennings growled at the screen. She then groaned as the Champion Digimon was turned into a pile of data. Beside her, Samuel Burke chuckled and said, "That's two wins out of three for me. Guess I got this round."

"Hmph, just because you won with Monochromon doesn't mean you have to be so cocky, Sam." his friend replied, turning and glaring at him. When he didn't reply, she sighed and turned to the two people sitting on the couch behind them.

"You guys wanna play?" Kit offered hopefully.

"I don't think so." Nicole Smith snorted, adding, "You and Sam are experts about Digimon. We'd get our butts kicked playing you two. Right Amanda?"

"Sorry, Kit, but I have to go with Nicole. Although I'm good, I'm not that good." Amanda Johnston replied with an apologetic shrug. Nodding, Kit faced Sam. "How about another round, then?"

"You bet!" the teen replied with a grin. Smiling back, Kit started to set up the battle when the screen started to flicker. Leaning forward, she banged on the TV, but the flickering only worsened.

"Stupid thing…" she muttered, and was about to reach for the power button when the screen started to glow.

"What's going on?" Amanda asked.

"No idea." Kit replied, but was cut off from saying anything else when the screen flashed and everything went white. Crying out, the girl felt like she was falling, but could see nothing except a world of white. Where are my friends? she asked herself, then yelled as a jolt of pain went through her and everything faded to black.

- - -

When Kit awoke, she realized she was lying on the ground and that it was night. Wondering what had happened and why she was suddenly outside, the 13-year-old froze as a voice off to her left hissed, "The child is mine!"

"I will never allow that to happen, Piedmon! She will not fall into evil hands as long as I am here to protect her. You should know that by now." a firm voice replied, sounding defiant, although quite tired. Kit blinked, recognizing the name. Piedmon was a Mega-level Digimon, which was one of the most powerful levels a Digimon could get to.

The girl knew from facing Piedmon in her game that he resembled a clown, complete with bright clothing and a black and white mask on his face. On his back were four swords, which he used to attack, and he was slightly larger than a full-grown man. Although he looked weak, the Mega Digimon was powerful and had the brains to back his strength up.

"That's a pity, Andromon…I'll just have to destroy you, then." Piedmon replied calmly. Andromon…he's a Ultimate Digimon. He's not gonna defeat Piedmon easily. Kit thought to herself, scanning the area around her for a hiding spot. If this was real and not just a bad dream, she did not want to be stuck in the middle of a fight.

Spying a hiding spot between two trees that were growing close together, the teen quickly rolled into the undergrowth and slipped behind the trees, peering out through the gap. Andromon stood with his back to her, looking rather the worse for wear. Wondering exactly how long they had been fighting, Kit jumped as a small Digimon charged out of the bushes.

"No! I won't let you do that!" it cried, stopping beside Kit's battered protector. It looked like an Agumon, but was made of Lego blocks. Confused, the girl watched as Piedmon threw back his head and laughed.

"Hahahahaha! What's this Andromon? Are you so weak that you must rely on a Rookie Digimon to save you? But enough of this. I'll turn you both into data and claim the girl." the Mega Digimon sneered, drawing one of his swords.

Andromon faced his opponent and cried, "Gatling Attack!" A missile shot from his chest and raced towards the other Digimon. At the same time, the Lego Agumon (Kit had just decided to call it that, not knowing its actual name) took a deep breath and called, "Toy Flame!"

A small fireball flew towards Piedmon, following Andromon's attack, but Piedmon merely blocked them with a twirl of his sword, shielding himself from the blast of the missile. Snorting, the clown Digimon slashed his sword horizontally and roared, "TRUMP SWORD!" A beam of light appeared after the slash and flew towards the two Digimon hitting them and creating a small explosion.

Kit ducked as dirt clumps rained down on her, and looked up once the dust had cleared. Andromon was slowly getting up, but the Lego Agumon had been replaced by a small egg. Feeling a pang of sadness at the loss of the Digimon, the teen returned her attention to the battle.

"How dare you attack a defenceless Digimon, Piedmon. You're despicable!" the android Digimon said, sounding horrified.

"Thank you, Andromon. I'm honoured." Pied replied with a small bow.

"That wasn't a compliment. Lightning Blade!" An arch of light was sent from Andromon's arm and towards Piedmon, which he countered by using Trump Sword again. The two attacks collided in mid-air, creating a brilliant flash of light followed by a shockwave.

Kit yelped as she was thrown backwards from the force of the attack, but neither Digimon noticed her, each intent on trying to destroy the other. Feeling exposed and unsafe, she looked around for a better hiding spot and noticed that the egg had been tossed next to her by the shockwave. Picking it up, she winced as another explosion echoed through the forest, but looked up as the sky above started to lighten. The starry night was quickly replaced by a swirling mass of clouds which were blue-white and glowing brightly.

Kit stared as a flash of lightning light up their depths, revealing a massive shape inside the clouds. Piedmon and Andromon had also stopped fighting to see what was happening and were also gazing upwards.

A beam of light suddenly shot out of the clouds and landed between the two Digimon, and the ground shook under the impact. It then expanded rapidly, and Kit curled into a ball, shielding the egg and hoping she was going to come out alive. A blast of warm air swept over her, and she once more blacked out.

- - -

"Sam. Samuel, wake up!" a irritated voice snapped. Groaning, Sam opened his eyes and looked up into Amanda's dark brown ones. Looking relieved, she sat back and allowed him to sit up. Rubbing his head, he looked around, seeing that they were in a small forest clearing.

"Where…where are we?" Sam asked slowly, still trying to figure out what happened. One minute they had been sitting at Kit's house, and then everything had gotten weird.

"No idea, but I'm worried. As much as I like nature walks, being lost in the forest is not what I was planning on doing today." Amanda replied with a slight smile.

"Yeah, I know the feeling." he replied. Hearing a rustle in the bushes, he climbed to his feet and turned towards the sound.

"What is it?" his companion asked, moving behind him and sounding nervous. Blue eyes narrowing, Sam eyed the undergrowth warily, not entirely sure how to respond.

"Whatever it is, I hope it's not dangerous." he finally responded. The bushes shook again, and then a voice cried, "Electric Stun Blast!"

Sam dove to the ground, pulling Amanda with him, as a crackling ball of electricity flew out of the bushes and landed behind them. Getting to his knees, Sam saw a light purple blur shoot out of the forest, but decided not to stick around and find out what Digimon was chasing them.

Pulling Amanda to her feet, they raced into the forest and down a hill, hearing the sounds of pursuit close behind them. So they were in the Digital World, being chased by a Digimon, and completely lost.

"Was that a Digimon?" Amanda gasped as they tore around the trees.

"Yep." he answered, hearing a snarl of anger behind them.

"Ok…which one?"

"Don't know." he replied tensely, ducking under a low branch.

"But you're an expert on Digimon!" Amanda protested. Risking a glance back at her, Sam realized that the normally calm girl was scared. Sighing, he said, "I didn't have time to look at it, alright?"

"You will now!" Looking up, Sam came to a quick stop, then grunted as his friend ran into him.

"What was that for?!" she snapped, then followed his gaze. "Oh…never mind. That's a Gazimon, right?"

"Oooh, the human child knows about Digimon? Please, do tell." The purple cat Digimon cackled, hopping down from the tree branch it had been standing on and walking towards them.

Glaring at him in distrust, Sam replied, "In our world, Digimon is a game and a TV show…not real, in other words. What do you want?"

Grinning, the Gazimon waved a paw and answered, "Aw, nothing much. I just need you to come with me to see the Boss, that's all. Easy as pie."

"I don't think so, Gazimon." Amanda said, and Sam looked at her in surprise. She normally wasn't so…outgoing. That was more like Nicole. What had gotten into her?

Golden eyes narrowed, Gazimon licked his lips and frowned. "Don't want to come, huh? Fine then…" shrugging, he turned away and walked off. Still suspicious, Sam sighed and turned to his friend. "Come on, let's go before he changes his mind. Although Gazimon is just a Rookie, we're no match for him."

"Good idea. Let's get out of here." Amanda replied with a nod. Turning, Sam eyed the retreating back of Gazimon again, then headed back the way they had come.

He had barely taken three steps before the ground beneath him suddenly gave way, and they were both falling. "Ahhhhh!" Sam cried, hearing Amanda echo his scream. Hitting the bottom with a yelp of pain, he paused to catch his breath, watching the world spin above him. Peering upwards, he saw Gazimon kneeling by the edge of the hole.

"You forgot one thing, kid. We Gazimon are pranksters! Hahahaha!" Laughing, the purple cat Digimon grinned at his captives, then shrugged. "For your information, that was my Pitfall attack. Useful, eh?"

When neither human replied, Gazimon snorted and stood up. "Well then, you two can stay down there while I go fetch some help. Have fun!" Still dizzy, Sam watched as the Digimon turned and walked away, feeling his stomach clench. They were trapped and exposed to any other Digimon who decided it would attack them. Not exactly the best situation to be in.

Sitting up, the boy sighed, knowing that all he could do was wait until Gazimon returned.

- - -

Nicole came around slowly, the sudden cold making her shiver. Why was it so cold? And what had happened? She remembered the TV at Kit's house glowing then a bright flash of light, and the sensation of falling. She had seen her friends falling, first witnessing Kit vanish, then Amanda and Sam disappearing too. But something had grabbed her and pulled her sideways…and then nothing.

"Wake up, little one." a soft voice murmured in her ear, and she realized that she was being held by someone. Or something. Light brown eyes opening slowly, she blinked, then looked around. She was in a large frozen cave, surrounded by huge icicles that jutted up from the ground at odd angles. The girl could see that each frozen spire had something in it, but she couldn't make anything out except vague shapes. Looking down, she gasped in shock.

Below her was a large frozen pool of water, the icy surface acting like a mirror. It showed that Nicole was being held by a very large, white winged creature. Red eyes fixed on her brown ones, it spoke again.

"Do not be afraid, little one. I saved you from a nasty fall." the voice was deep, and tinged with kindness. The girl was speechless for a moment, then stammered, "W-who are y-you?"

"I am IceDevimon." Nicole stared. No...it couldn't be real. An actual Digimon? Impossible. But the cold air certainly seemed real, as did the thin arms wrapped around her waist. Breathing out softly, she closed her eyes for a moment.

"I am your partner, little one. I take orders from you, and you alone. Together, we can do anything." IceDevimon continued calmly, and Nicole looked at their reflection again. She had no idea where her friends were, but she figured that the Digimon holding her could help find them. But…do anything? Was he really that powerful?

"Could you help me find my friends?" she asked cautiously, still not entirely trusting him.

"I will follow your every command. But may I know my mistress's name?" he asked politely, giving her a small smile.
"I am Nicole." the girl stated, deciding that she liked this strange Digimon. Although she was relatively new to the entire concept of Digimon, she was confident that she knew enough to stay alive. Still, she wanted to find out more about her new partner. Narrowing her eyes, she asked, "How about we get on solid ground and talk some more? I want to know everything about this place."

His smile widening, IceDevimon nodded and spread his wings. "Of course, Nicole. I will take you somewhere warmer." With that, he beat his wings and launched into the cool air, quickly flying upwards and out of the frozen cavern.

- - -

Author's Notes: This is the start of 'Genesis', the first story arc of this fanfic. I hope you enjoy reading my take on the Digital World, and comments and reviews are always welcome.