Hello and welcome to my new short series. For those already following the "Networks of destiny" group and series, this is a short series of several chapters that takes place 4 months after "Ride the lightning" and 2 months before "Virus of the shadow". Etiger1995's story "Rise Of The Hybirds" is also set a month after this story.
I am writing this series as a thank you to Megablastdragon (Leya) who drew an amazing piece of fan art for our group for Christmas. Sadly I didn't see it till early January. So I hope this makes up for finding it late and finishing "Virus of the shadow" early.
If you wish to view the fan art, go onto Deviant art and search for "networks of destiny" or "megablastdragon" the piece is called "A NOD christmas."
Also, "Networks of Destiny : ReWired" will be posted after this series is finished so keep your eyes open.
For the new readers, "Networks of destiny" is a large collaboration between a group of writers, each with their own Oc.
Novelistoftheksky : Will and Lightmon.
Etiger1995 : Trace and Black Wargreymon.
Dowski : Alex and Neoflamedramon.
Megablastdragon : Leya and Gilmon.
The series takes place both before and after 02. If you enjoy this story, please feel free to give a look at each members stories in the series. We have a lot planned and I am launching the next installment of the series shortly after this short series is finished. You can follow just one of us or you can follow all of us for the full story.
If you read any of our work and wish to join "Networks of destiny" with your own contrabution, please contact one of us and we'll see what we can do.
For readers old and new, I hope you enjoy this short series and I hope you let me know what you think of it.
Four months. Four quiet peaceful months had passed since the terrifying siege of Odaiba. The threat of Armageddonmon had also come to pass before the siege. Odaiba was quiet and being rebuilt. All Digidestined involved in the events were now enjoying the peace, believing there was nothing left to attempt to destroy the peace or Sovereigns. Taichi and the other Digidestined had been enjoying time out of school and university, spending much needed time together to hang out and relax. Other Digidiestined who had been part of the defense team at Odaiba during the siege were now doing same. Such a shame, peace never lasts.
"Hey, he did not beat me! He caught me off gaurd!" An Irish accent sang happily. A young adult laughed as finished the contents of a brown glass bottle, the smell of sweet Swedish cider wafting from it slowly. Light grey eyes studied the small camp fire before him, watching the small embers float away into the clear night sky as the fire illuminated his pale skin. He stopped laughing and ran a hand through his messy medium length brown hair. He sat back agains't an old tree tilting his head back comfortably listening to the chorus of laughter around him. He needed this, it had been a long time since he had fun with his friends. Just for a moment he stayed like that, soaking in the sound of happiness. He didn't care his blue jeans or red skate shoes were getting muddy from sitting on the ground or that his buttoned up black duffer jacket was being rubbed against the rough bark of the tree behind him. This was Will Murphy, the first Irish Digidestined who had been around since Tai entered the Digital world the fire time.
"Yes he did! He headbutted you and beat you in the fight!" An American accent chirped in. Will didn't open his eyes but gritted his teeth.
"Tai's just lucky! He caught me off guard. That's all." Will grinned, remembering his fight with Taichi during the siege, the two had come to blows over a disagreement and Will had lost. Will opened his eyes and looked at the younger Digidestined who was sat across from him. His tan skin easily stood out from the dark blue polo shirt he was wearing with two black claw marks across the shoulders, like torn out stripes. His short black hair moved with the light breeze of the wind as he bellowed with laugther. His black jeans blended with the night along with his black converse and silver studded belt. Trace Hinata, an elite American Digidestined who led his own team despite only being a teenager. Trace fell backwards onto the soft green grass , an empty brown glass bottle rolling away from him.
"I really shouldn't let him drink." Will muttered to himself and smiled watching his friend crack up with laugther. A beeping interupted the sound of laughter and the group fell silent. All eyes turned the sorce of the sound. Another young adult sat around the fire, his back to large fallen tree that was slowly turning black with age. His orange orbs studied the message carefully on his d-terminal and a wicked grin grew quickly across his pale skin. He ran a fingertip against part of his short smart blonde hair as he sat up straight.
"Matt's asking what it feels like to get your ass kicked by a guy with hair as big as your ego." He stiffled laughter as he nearly doubled over and clutched his sides , ruffling his white shirt. His black jeans fitted perfectly as he cross his legs in an attempt to stay balance. Another American Digidestined, Alex Dowski. A Digidestined who became a Digital being after a terrible accident. Will rolled his eyes.
"You told Matt?" Will asked in fake annoyance. He had become close with Tai and the other Digidestined in Odaiba after a few run ins with common enemies both in the Digital world and Odaiba. He knew Matt wouldn't let this one go for a while. Trace burst into another round of laughter and Alex and Will joined him.
"Who'd have thought? Will losing to Tai!" A young female voice chirped in, causing another round of laughter. Her long soft brown hair fell against her back gracefully and sat ontop of black hooded jacket. She had her legs pulled up to her with her arms wrapped around them as she sat close to the fire. Her brown , baggy combat trousers were both comfortable and practical, as Will had once stated when she asked him why he wore them during his adventures. A half full brown glass bottle sat nearby her , she chose to drink the alcoholic slow. Leya Hayato, another Amiercan Digidestined who had faced off with some of the worst Dark Digidestined. Alex and Will were older and around the same age so they could hold their own when it came to alcohol. Leya and Trace were two years younger and hadn't encountered much alcohol yet. She heard stories of how Alex had got really drunk during an outing with Trace and Will. The two had a brilliant idea of how to sober their friend up and threw Alex into a duck pond. Leya decided she'd stay somewhat sober, to help avoid another incident like that.
"Hey, at least I could keep up with Elegon! I remeber he out ran both of you!" Will jestered towards Trace and Alex who stopped laughing and scowled. Elegon was a fellow Digidestined who they had met several times and was also present during the defense of Odaiba. Leya studied the group quietly as they continued to try to tell outdo each other with story after story. The four of them were close friends but Alex, Will and Trace had known each other longer. They were all acomplished Digidestined. Will had faced off with an ancient Digital god and won. Trace had fought against a savage Digimon who attempted to conquer part of the Digital world and defeated him. Alex had protected the power of the crests and survived an encounter with Fangolomon. She suddenly felt very inaquidate and small against their amazing triumphs. They had done so much but she could never match them. Will glanced over and smiled.
"Hey Leya." Leya looked up at the mention of her name. "Remember that time you kicked that Myotismon's ass in America?" Leya remembered it well. She had been cornered by Myotismon, a deadly vampire Digimon. She had fought against him, but even then it was Will who had finished off the Digimon.
"Yeah but you were the one who defeated it." Leya said with a warm smile. Will shook his head.
"Only because you weakened him first." Leya smiled again. She wasn't exactly short of achievements either. She had stopped a force of Digimon rampaging across a continent with the help of her friends. She also fought against the legendary Digidestined David Winter, Will's former team leader. She was also there when Trace fought the savage Digimon and she defeated several of his generals. She was also present during the recent incident in Florida with Trace. She smiled, realising just how much she had done. She glanced over at Alex who was studying his Digivice. She had never really worked directly with him, not yet.
"Which poor Digidestined are you stalking now?" Trace teased. Alex had access to a huge amount of data and equipment as a Digital being and monitored hundreds of different things across the Digital world and real world, including the Digidestined.
"I am not stalking!" Alex protested as he took a large swig from the bottle next to him. He went back to the data stream on the screen of his Digivice as he noticed Will and Trace both standing and moving behind him to watch the screen. Leya also moved and they gathered to watch the display. It was a small map with street names and Digivice signals , Alex could easily focus in on the signals in greater detail. If anyone knew how crests and Digivices worked better than Izzy, it was him.
"Isn't that Matt and Sora's signals?" Trace said quietly. Alex nodded.
"Where are they?" Will asked quietly. His eyes studied the screen intensly.
"Uh...Matt's bedroom I think. They're Digivices activated earlier, I think they ran into something." Alex said with a note of worry in his voice. He didn't wish for his friends to fight alone. Silence fell on the group wondering if they were okay.
"It's their date night." Will said quietly. "They were going to primary village today." Will stood and cracked his back.
"But they haven't left his room for a while, what could they be -" Trace realised suddenly and stopped what he was saying as all four members of the group turned a light shade of red.
"Well I know what I'll be pestering Matt about tomorrow." Alex said sneakily. Will stepped away and ran a hand through his hair. Leya approached him carefully.
"You okay?" She asked in a light voice. It was no secret Will had some form of feelings for Sora. His duty as a Digidestined was to protect her and they had met a year ago when his old team leader attacked Odaiba. The two quickly became close but she started dating Matt six months ago, just before the siege of Odaiba.
"Yeah. Fine." Will said as he forced a smile. He bent down and picked up another bottle from the cooler. He picked up two more and held two in one hand.
"Heads up." He called over to Trace and Alex as he threw each one a seperate bottle. He gestured to Leya but she declined. Tai had once expressed worry about Will, saying he'd been through too much without a break. She was beginning to agree with him. She hoped he'd meet someone soon.
"I hope you're enjoying your evening, Digidestined." A figure quickly approached them with the appearance of a young man with short brown hair and a basic grey robe.
"Oh crap." Will and Alex swore at the same time. Gennai had a habbit of appearing and finding them no matter where they went.
"Evening, Gennai." Leya greeted politely. Gennai nodded his head and glanced around the camp site.
"I hope you plan to clean before you leave." Gennai said drly. He had never approved of "accidental Digidestined". People who became Digidestined through simply seeing another Digimon or being picked by a single Sovereign. He'd never admit it, but Gennai had his favourites, the Odaiba Digidestined.
"Is there something you want from us Gennai?" Trace said darkly. Trace and Gennai hadn't always had the best friendship. Will glanced at the tents nearby where their partners were sleeping. He wondered if he made a run for it if he could hide and wait till Gennai left.
"There's something that needs your attention." Gennai said flatly. Leya frowned, this happened often. The group would be enjoying time off and Gennai would call Trace, Alex and Will away for a mission. Last time the mission had taken seven weeks to finish.
"There is a city of Digimon nearby, Excel. It's a neutral city where Digimon live peacefully. There is a large force of Digimon approaching the city and they have requested you to defend the city." Gennai said quickly without taking a breath. Will rubbed his face , attempting to wake himself up a little bit.
"Why us? There are thousands of capable Digidestined now." Alex said , he wasn't exactly happy at having his time off ruined yet again.
"Are you going to turn your back on innocents who can't defend themselves?" Gennai said darkly. The three boys muttered angrily and began to pack up and put the fire out. Leya sighed in annoyance and began to approach the tents.
"Leya will be joining you." Gennai said suddenly. Everyone stopped.
"They have requested her help personally." Gennai grinned at the look of shock on the boys faces. It had always been the three of them. Always.
"Is that wise? We always get the high risk missions. We know how to work them." Alex said in a dark tone. He wasn't annoyed but more he was worried about Leya.
"She has been there through multiple conflicts with you Trace and Will. What do you think?" Gennai folded his arms behind his back. The two Digidestined looked at each other and were speechless for a moment before looking at Alex and then Leya.
"She's never been in a large scale conflict like this before." Trace said quietly, feeling as if he just betrayed his friend.
"She can however hold her own so I guess-" Will was cut off.
"I'm going with you!" Leya marched back towards and glared at her friends.
"You always get taken away on missions and come back in one piece when it's just three of you. I can handle my own , you know that. It'll be easier with four of us." Leya placed her hands on his hips and dared any of the older Digidestined to reply.
"But what about-" Trace was cut off again.
"I'm going!" Leya said and Trace shut his mouth. He nodded, accepting her decision. He didn't disaprove, but Alex and Will were right .She'd never seen anything like about what they about to do.
"Then it's settled. I hope to hear good news soon." Gennai smiled darkly and left the group, walking back into the darkness. The group stayed there in silence. Alex folded his arms and watched the others. Will unbottoned his jacket and removed it and stretched as Trace looked towards the dying fire.
"Suppose we better get some sleep then. " Trace said indifferently.
"What? Shouldn't we get going straight away?" Leya asked , how could Trace be thinking of sleeping right now?
"Trace is right." Will began to walk towards his tent.
"It's important we're rested and sober before any large battles. We'll sleep for four hours and get to work. The city is only a short distance away, we can travel quickly with the help of the Digimon." Alex said as he unfolded his arms and walked towards his own tent. Trace waited till Alex was out of earshot and walked past Leya.
"Sorry. I just worr-" Trace didn't get to finish as a fist crashed into his arm. Leya rolled his eyes.
"I know." She said softly. Trace laughed quietly and the two headed towards their individual tents.
The sun sat proudly in the sky as it shone over the world below it. Clouds wandered by aimlessly along with a soft gentle summers breeze. The city itself was simple enough, basic in design. Housing districts flanked by small shops and market stalls. Tall, dull buildings rose up, their purpose a mystery. Streets paved with orange stone contrasting with the bizzare light grey stone that was used to build everything. Various rookie level and champion level Digimon of all shapes and sizes darted around the city, the imminent attack creating an atmosphere of dread. The usually peaceful city , shattered by the looming chaos. Several high walls had been erected in a quick, messy rush around the city. Several wooden watch towers reached higher than the wall, constantly occupied by a Digimon. The small city had a port with several ships that sat lazily on the masive tranquil lake.
"Why don't they evacuate?" Leya asked as she walked alongside Will through the crowds.
"The ships are too small and aren't built to hold many Digimon. It would take them a long time to reach the other side of the lake. Even if they did somehow pull it off, there's nothing over there to help, see?" Will pointed across the lake as they made it to the small port. Leya followed where he was pointing too. Several mountains reached into the sky on the other side of the lake that seemed to almost act like a cage to the now threatened city. Digimon raced by and stared at the human pair, hope growing in their expressions.
"Come on, we need to take posistions on the wall." Will said in a dull voice. He'd seen many conflicts like this before. Leya studied him for a second. He was a seasoned fighter. He'd proven himself in many battles before this without a team or any sort of help. During the defense of Odaiba when he had returned with Tai and Trace, he was literally the turning point of the battle. He'd never been nervous about a battle before.
"Are you okay? About Sora I mean." Leya said tentatively. Will turned and smiled.
"I'll get over it." He replied simply. She remembered the last time he'd said that to her. He was helping her in the Digital world with some conflicts and they had run into his old team leader, David. Will and David had engaged in a fierce fight. David escaped afterwards. She had asked if he was okay, Will had shrugged off his injuries and said he'd get over it. Later that same day she had watched him punch a tree with so much force and frustration, his hand should have been broken. She spent the rest of the night talking to him, listening to stories about Will's old team. A cry suddenly went up.
"Looks like the enemy is here." Will said almost giddily. Leya raised an eyebrow but Will began to run through the crowd and motioned for her to follow.
"Don't go soft on them okay?" Will called back to her. She gave him a confused look.
"You're kind, you'd spare them if you could. Trust me, they won't show you any mercy when this gets messy." Will moved around a Leomon and quickly waved to Leya before taking off up a staircase to his posistion. She quickly headed in another direction to where she had agreed to fight.
Several high walls had been erected quickly creating several layers of defense for the city. Will was posistioned on the first wall, he was the first opponent the enemy would run into. He stood there tall and proud with his arms folded. Trace was standing on the same wall but quite a distance away , crouched down behind a large collection of boxes ready to strike as they had planned. Alex was leaning against a large wooden door that acted as the gate way for the next wall. He had requested all defensive forces be posistioned behind his wall so they were infront of Leya. Leya stood on the original wall of the city as the last line of defense. She scowled as she realised she was at the back, they'd put her in the safest posistion.
"Hey, guys...and uh Leya, why don't we make this a bit more interesting?" Will called out cockily.
"What did you have in mind?" Trace shouted back.
"A bet. First one to beat their opponent wins." Will grinned wildly. Leya frowned there was no way the others would agree.
"I'm in." Alex called out. She was wrong. Her mouth fell open in shock, she'd never seen the three of them act like this in any other conflict. Suddenly it struck her.
"Me too! How about this as well? If your wall falls, you have to buy the others dinner?" She called back. She realised, the more goals they set , the harder they worked. Simple but effective.
"Oh hell yes!" Trace called back. An ear piercing horn cut through the hair and silenced the four Digidestined. Those that could see studied the mass approaching them. Large unorganised groupings of Digimon, several larger powerful Digimon at the back of the group. Several smaller, weaker Digimon in the front carried a large blue flag. Will scanned the front row of the enemy forces and frowned.
"We've got an extra problem!" Will shouted angrily. The other Digidestined tensed. It took a lot for Will to admit something was actually a problem.
"What is it?" Alex called out as he stood up properly.
"Digidestined are leading the enemy force! I can't tell if they're Dark Digidestined or just glory seekers though." Will clenched his fists. The lines had been drawn , all they could do now was wait.
"They're not even asking if we want to surrender!" Trace muttered angrily. The explosion of a cannon rattled throughout the air as the first of the attacks was launched.
For those of you who wish to follow the "Networks of destiny" series from the beginning, the series order is here :
Megablastdragon : Fuel In The Fire (in progress)
Novelist of the sky : Trial And Error (comlpete)
Etiger1995 : Return Of Darkness (complete)
Novelistofthesky : Ride The Lightning (complete)
Novelistofthesky : Hour Of Honour (this story - in progress)
Etiger1995 : Rise Of The Hybirds (in progress)
Novelistofthesky : Virus Of The Shadow (complete)
Etiger1995 : The Next Generation (Hiatus)
Dowski : Child of life oneshots (in progress)
Dowski : Children of the chatroom (in progress)
Both of Dowski's works take place before during and after the current stories we have posted and finished. He is currently working on a new series that places before the "Networks Of Destiny"saga.
We accept Oc's on all stories but we are of course only able to take a limited number each time so be fast!
I'm accepting two Oc's for this short series. Remember to drop me a review to let me know what you thought or to submit an oc!