Project D.I.G.I.M.O.N
Summary- AU. What started off as 8 children trained into deadly assassins, D.I.G.I.M.O.N has ever had. Has turned into them being lost in a tide of mind-games, crimes, power struggles and training the next generation. But they'll also have to face the very demons that made them turn to D.I.G.I.M.O.N.
Disclaimer-I don't own DIGIMON.
Chapter One- Enter: Yuuki and Chishiki
October, 14th 1992 -Agugato.
It was a dark night veiled in a fierce rainstorm in the coal mining town of Agugato. Everyone had shut themselves away to avoid being covered in coal ash and wet mud, all but two dark figures. No one saw running through the back alleyways with a beat down bag in tow.
Normally, no one in Agugato would be found outside at night, not since two years ago. Before a man named Machinedra came into the picture. He was a ruthless, tech-savvy dictator with a vision of making Agugato the base of his future technical Ethiopia. He tormented the townsfolk and controlled what came in and out of Agugato.
Medicine. Food. Trades. Agugato became a fenced in doggy town, with raids that killed adults and children alike. The town had more orphans then they did housing. He installed curfews, he enforced with his own hired "law-force" and he allowed criminals to make base in the town as long as they respected technology as much as he did.
During the short hours in the day when Machinedra allowed his citizens to mingle with little fear. They would turn their heads away from the orphans, who had lost their families to Machinedra's earlier raids when he secured himself as the town's mayor. Other adults could be found beating the orphans that had been caught sneaking their hands in the food market.
And as the fierce rainstorm sent strong winds through the empty streets, and alleyways; two dainty little boys took their chance to duck around covered in the coal ash and mud. They were just a couple of the unwanted and homeless orphans, littering Agugato. The normal patrolling criminal "law-force" avoided being outside this particular cold night, so the two boys were safe to run in the cover of night.
The taller of the two was an 11-year old cheeky street punk, with more brawn then brain; Taichi Yagami. With the handful of years living on the streets, his jaded deep brown eyes surveyed the landscape as he nudged the boy beside him and shifted the smaller body on his back ever so slightly.
The small body that was perched on Taichi's back was covered in an over sized wet coat and coal ash stained scarf that once was a soft shade of pink. Muffled coughs were drowned out by the whistling wind. The small body looked up for a moment, a pair of drowsy hazel eyes peeked over Taichi's shoulder to watch the rain furiously crash onto the pavement. Small, tender hands covered in coal ash tried to tighten around Taichi but only felt numbed from the cold fall weather.
The small body was Taichi's 7-year old sister Hikari Yagami, she was a gentle sweetheart orphan with weak health. She was targeted, once upon a time, by other orphans who thought they could use her to get to Taichi. Although they learned quickly enough that Taichi's normal strength over them, doubled when you threatened Hikari. She was Taichi's sole family, and his treasured light in the darkness that Machinedra brought upon Agugato.
The boy beside him was 10-year old boy named Koushiro Izumi. He had been part of the neighboring welding town of Tento. When Machinedra came to Agugato, a small time brainiac criminal named Vade wanted to appeal into his territory and made it big by taking control of Tento and even handing over child labor force for the mines of Agugato.
Vade discovered soon enough that Koushiro was practically a prodigy, and possibly possessed a better brain then even he did. So needless to say, Koushiro was one of the first orphans sent off. Unfortunately for Vade though, Koushiro's quicker mind and wits allowed him to escape the bandwagon and finding himself running right into the Yagami siblings.
"Kari. Keep your head down." ordered Taichi as he rushed behind a couple of the emptied market stalls. He turned his gaze towards Koushiro who shifted the bag he was entrusted to carry. Time was ticking, the storm was lessening which meant that Machinedra's men would soon come out to beat around anyone out after curfew. No exceptions to those without a home to hide into either.
Feeling Hikari duck her head back down, Taichi shifted the end of the stained scarf he had salvaged a week prior for her, back over his shoulder. He nudged Koushiro again and the two splattered swiftly through. They ran out of the main streets and to the edge of the town's borders that held tall fences with barbed wire ontop to keep Agugato citizens in.
Taichi slowed down and leaned into the side of the rattling fence as he set down a coughing Hikari.
"Shh...hopefully the stuff we snatched can help you."
Koushiro was panting heavily from the run, but despite the ache from the exercise, he ruffled through the bag. Going through the many labelled bottles they had snatched from one of Machinedra's top criminal Metal-Ete's warehouses.
A former small time criminal like Vade. Metal-Ete was a black belt martial artist gone wrong with the smarts to win Machinedra's favor. With the look of 'Elvis meets punk', he didn't look or act the part but he wasn't someone that any citizen in Agugato with sense would want to mess with. Any other town, he'd be considered a criminal with an illegal whorehouse. But in this town, he was the man living the life in his stripper-karaoke bar.
It was only Taichi and Koushiro's luck, that Taichi had gone against Metal-Ete, when he refused to hand over Hikari as a "promising star" to his business. While Koushiro handed a small liquid bottle to Taichi, he recalled how they had avoided the adults after the defiant refusal. In Agugato, whoever could 'take Hikari from Taichi', would win Metal-Ete's favor.
Hikari gave a small gag and coughed heavily at the liquid Taichi made her consume.
"Just a little bit more Kari..." Taichi tried to soothe his baby sister as Koushiro looked over the broken down crates by the rattling fence they resided inbetween.
"Just the mountains of coal...I think we got out of the main square unspotted Taichi." The relief in Koushiro's tone was obvious as he sat back under their make shift cover. Koushiro's black eyes watched as Hikari fell into a slumber in Taichi's arms and as the rain finally lessened, and the storm past by Agugato.
"We have to get out of this hell-hole." Taichi's tone was not his usual happy-go-lucky facade, he often kept in front of Hikari, it was the serious Taichi. The dangerous one. Koushiro knew that other orphans didn't dare mess with; and the one he usually saw when Taichi chose to do something that would change everything. Like when he told Metal-Ete to "Drop dead in an electric malfunction in the sun's core!"
Taichi, often found his creative muse at the wrong moments.
Needless to say, its why Taichi sported more bruises then usual, and why Koushiro was hiding during the day with Hikari now that Metal-Ete had a reward on her head.
"...What about that Mr. Andro? The one who came a couple of days ago, he seems...nice. And he's only on that visitors pass. Maybe we can hitch a ride out of Arugato." Koushiro thought of the tall skin-headed mammoth of a man with the grey trench coat that hid the rifles he carried. He was the only adult who bothered to help Hikari when she had fallen in front of Metal-Ete's pathway a couple of days ago.
"Mr. Andro? ...The man with those hi-tech specs he clearly got from that perverted competitor of Metal-Ete's? That stupid ...Dat-Guy? It's his logo on them." Taichi didn't look like he took Koushiro seriously, if anything when he was in serious mode he often made others feel like boys playing grown up.
" ..." Koushiro sighed as he fixed Hikari's hair. He may have only known the Yagami siblings for a couple of months, but he had grown to care for them. They had his back, and he had theirs. Taichi didn't use him for his brains, but he sure knew how to thank him for it.
"But this isn't about Mr. Data, he isn't into girls Hikari's age. He likes girls your age or higher...but the point is, if we appeal to Mr. Andro...maybe we'll never have to worry about Arugato or Tento again. We'll be far away."
Taichi weighed Koushiro's suggestion as he recalled Hikari thanking Mr. Andro, and his almost mechanical response to her. It could work, but Taichi just wanted to run. Away from Metal-Ete, from Machinedra's territory, from Arugato who didn't five a damn about them. And from Mr. Andro, who could offer salvation to Hikari and Koushiro. But would he be able to keep the three of them together?
Taichi didn't have a chance to keep contemplating the choices pro's and con's when he suddenly heard gunfire and shouts not to far from the coal mine entrance that the trio hid by. Koushiro's eyes widen as he took off for cover taking the drowsy Hikari to hide behind old forgotten crates.
Taichi out of forced habit picked up the bag of stolen medicine and packaged food and turned to follow but something told him, he should see what was occurring. And he did.
Ignoring Koushiro's desperate whispers to come back, Taichi took off past the coal piles to witness what the situation was about. He could hear his heartbeat pumping, could feel the natural adrenaline of fear kick in. It would just be his luck to lose his head for his damn curiosity coming up at the wrong time.
Looking to the gun scene, he watched as Mr. Andro fired at Metal-Ete's men. His rifles where large, the man clearly had trigger finger syndrome.
With adrenaline coursing through him at the sight and sounds of the gunfire and explosions. Taichi watched Mr. Andro's back up swarm out of the large pick up truck not to far and how the turf war began in front of his eyes.
"That's it!" Taichi turned to sprint back to Koushiro and Hikari. They wouldn't have to beg their way out of Arugato! They'd stowaway! Moving swiftly, he ignored Koushiro's scowl and picked up Hikari onto his back. The very same way he had self-taught himself to do, when her illness first manifested during the nights the patrol had caught them out past curfew.
"What are you thinking! Where are we going?!" Koushiro was never a big fan on Taichi's more rambunctious ploys.
"Just come on!" Snapped Taichi, as he shoved the bag of ill gotten goods to Koushiro and mad dashed in a wide arch to the large trucks Mr. Andro and his men would no doubt, soon make there own getaway in. Koushiro ducked his head every time he heard a gunfire too close for comfort, the boys made it undetected to the truck.
Koushiro jumped with slight difficulty to the high placed platform of the vehicle, and turned around to assist Hikari's smaller form being lifted onto the truck.
"Quick, take her to the back!" Taichi ordered as he began to climb onto the truck's high platform. While Koushiro wasted no time in securing himself and Hikari to hide behind some of the larger crates filled with weaponry.
"PULL BACK! COME ON!"
Taichi got on just as he heard the shouted orders and before he could turn around, or even duck behind anything. A sharp pain pierced the back of his head, and his world turned black.
-Two Hours Later- October, 15th 1992 -Netserve City
"-Machinedra's contacted the Dark Masters. It's clearly war!"
"Well, with three new recruits, and their native to that place..."
"It was always been a risk, but we should take i-"
"Agent Gennai! We are not saviors!"
"We train killers, I know. But this would be a bigger motivat-"
"It's manipulation, we may share an enemy. But they could turn on us just as easily!"
Taichi felt a sharp throbbing in the back of his head as he awoke to the sound of bickering adults. He kept his eyes closed as he listened onto their muffled words, as he tried to recall his last memories.
'Gunfire...Koushiro! HIKARI!'
Without a second thought, Taichi's frantic deep brown eyes snapped open only to see Hikari passed out to his right, and Koushiro to his left. Taichi let out a breathe he hadn't realized he was holding as he put a hand to the back of his head and suppressed the urge to flinch at the tender bruise that his wild mane of hair hid.
"Oi. Shut up, the bigger brat's awake."
Taichi's eyes widened as he turned slightly to look behind him, only to see a man very unlike Mr. Andro. He wasn't a skin headed mammoth of a man who seemed to have a trigger finger for those large rifles he had seen him use during the mild territory war he had witnessed.
He was much shorter, maybe the height of an average woman. He had a messy mop of light red hair, Taichi would've called it salmon pink if the man's violet-black eyes hadn't looked so dangerous in their slightly slanted glare at the group of men he had spoken to.
Suddenly Taichi wished he hadn't even been caught awake, with the way multiple sets of eyes from tall and dangerous looking men had zoned in on him.
'And to think, I thought we could stowaway undetected...'
"Mind your words, they're children. Pixi!" barked a man with dark red hair that had navy highlights mixed in, it was surprisingly long, reaching the ends of his shoulder blades. It was the longest Taichi ever seen a man have anyways. Taichi merely watched as the shorter man snorted and leaned against the nearest pillar whipping around a long metal pipe like a child would a large stick, during play.
"Stop staring, you creeps. Hikari needs a bed and Koushiro isn't awake. Did you knock him out like barbarians too?" If Koushiro were awake, he'd have winced at Taichi's lack of tack. As he got up to stand tall, despite his much shorter stature to the men around. He stood in an angle to keep Koushiro and Hikari behind him, while he challenged the men with his jaded deep brown eyes.
Pixi's black eyes looked away from his metal pipe he toyed with, to Taichi's face and gave a small smirk at his display.
'Defiant. Perfect.'
The man with red and navy hair just scowled slightly at Taichi's expression. Just as he stepped forward, Mr. Andro's hand stopped him.
"You see Elec? Agent Gennai is right. He's got the right type of stuff to be here." Letting Elec go, Mr. Andro walked up to Taichi and nodded at him.
"We will help your friends out. While doing so, perhaps allow Agent Gennai and Pixi here to accompany you, with a few suggestions." Once again Taichi was unimpressed with Mr. Andro's mechanical tone, like a rehearsed speech that lost its edge.
Taichi turned his gaze to a tall man with brown hair in a rat's tail hairdo, who wore white robes as if he were a cross between a priest and a scientist.
"Like I have a choice."
October, 16th 1992 -Netserve City
Taichi sat in a chair placed beside Hikari's bedside as he toyed with the sun pendant given to him the other night by Gennai.
"The symbol of Courage...They want me to be their weapon...No...want us..." Taichi glared heavily at the sun medallion he dropped and felt it lightly hit his chest now that it hung around his neck.
Hikari opened her hazel eyes, her cheeks no longer a light shade of pink from fighting the fever and looked up to Taichi.
"They said we could free our old home from Machinedra." Taichi's darker eyes glances over to Hikari, a part of him cursing his sisters good heart.
"Only you would think of helping them after the way they treated us." Koushiro muttered as he glanced at the necklace Pixi had purposely put in Hikari's hand.
It had done its trick the night before, waking her up and making sure neither Koushiro or Taichi took it away from her. They were both irritated the way her eyes had lit up, with the offer they received, being extended towards Hikari.
Hikari sat up slightly as she gave them a weak smile and eyed the soft pink medallion in her hand. Before turning her gaze to the plum purple medallion that hung around Koushiro's neck. She gave a tiny pout when Koushiro purposely put the medallion underneath his collar.
"My necklace symbol is like my name right? Hikari...Light." Hikari looked up at her brother, and Koushiro, the boy who was as close to her as her real brother.
"These symbols, are they our new names? Mine is already Hikari though...I can't call you Tai? Or you Koushiro?" Hikari's face began to look worried, as she misunderstood everything new that was occurring.
"Hikari, it's not our new names. Tai's is a 'Yuuki' symbol, also known as a symbol for 'Courage'. Just like you were named after the symbol of light. 'Hikari'. Understand?"
"Then what is yours, Koushiro?" Hikari tilted her head, letting the longer chestnut strands of her boy cut hair fall off her hazel eyes.
"It's the 'Chishiki' symbol." Koushiro lightly ran a hand through his red-brown hair and when he turned his onyx gaze back to Hikari, he couldn't hep but give her a light hearted smile at her expression.
"It means Knowledge." Koushiro and Hikari both turned to look at Taichi, who had turned away with a small flush to his face.
"I know stuff too you know." Taichi moved to sit by the window as Hikari and Koushiro shared a laugh at his expense.
As he did, Taichi thoughts ran back to the early days of Machinedra's reign, the reason he said yes to Agent Gennai and Pixi.
'The sound of his men hoisting up those rattling fences, that did nothing but make them feel like caged animals. The sting in his clenched fists from the barbed wires when he, along with the many 'stubborn fools' tried to climb over. With the beatings shortly after and for what, some brainless courage to go against Machinedra's men? The cries of Hikari when their parents where shot dead among so many other innocent people. The sharp pain on his face, from the first hit he got from the townsfolk. When they began to turn selfish. Taichi remembered it all, and all he could see in his mind, was his younger version. The young boy who'd once been warm and loving self, turned cold, hostile and jaded.'
Koushiro tucked in Hikari, as she was still recovering from her illness, the medicine and care given by the others helped only so much. He watched her hazel eyes fall shut and her smile fading along with her conscious.
Not disturbing Taichi, Koushiro sat in the chair provided to them, and took out his own medallion once more. His gaze and mind drifting away with old thoughts.
'His home, had been a grand welding district, its heavy lifters being just as intelligent as its book reading neighbors that surrounded all the blocks and side streets within Tento. He'd been unfortunate enough to have been born an orphan, his parents dying in a fire in one of the many welding station. Yet he was fortunate enough, to have had a couple take him in and love him as their own. Koushiro felt the guilt that his last moments with them, had been tensed with having discovered the knowledge of not being their real child. Sadistic Vade had come into the scene, and was furious to have met Koushiro and his stronger mind. He could remember the sweat rolling down his face as he and Vade went through a board game. The lives of his family, his town, and for his fate of being a child slave in the Agugato coal mines at risk with every move. Needless to say, Vade cheated him out of it all.'
"Welcome to D.I.G.I.M.O.N...Welcome home." mumbling in her sleep, Hikari recited the words of the trio's new predicament. Hikari always did have the ability to warm up even the darkest of Taichi's and Koushiro's thoughts with her innocence. They gave her rough smiles as Taichi awkwardly clasped the necklace around her thin neck, as she slept on.
Taichi thought of how he disliked the men he met so far, but at the same time. He was glad, that they picked them up, even if by self-made chance. Koushiro thought of how they'd get use to them, eventually. Hikari was right; it would be their new home.
"Yeah. Home." Koushiro and Taichi gave each other a knowing looks as they pushed the thoughts of training with Mr. Pixi and being tutored by others tomorrow in the backs of their minds.