Authors Note: I just thought I would point out now, something you may come to realise on your own. Another, probably my favourite anime/manga show is Dragonball Z. So, you may start to discover that this Digimon story moves along at a similar pace. There is an overlaying storyline, but it is going to very fight oriented. And because I enjoy how Dragonball Z would make their battles long and intense.. you may see that a lot of my fights are drawn out, especially the larger more important ones. Oh and, please review!

CHAPTER TWO
A Storm Is Brewing

Abigail was woken by a low creaking as her bedroom door crept open. She stirred annoyingly in her bed before deciding to peer over the covers to see who or what had disturbed her treasured slumber. Her father was stood there, leaning against the door with a smile on his face. He was tall and his massive frame managed to fill out the doorway with ease. He was dressed for work to – a corporate business suit ironed to a crease-free perfection.

"Abby, I'm heading off to work now," her father said softly. "Maybe you could actually get out of bed this time and I don't know… enjoy the day. The sun is out, the skies are clear. It's a wonderful day."

Abigail sat up, her hair a mess and her general appearance looking slightly dishevelled. She shot an angry glare at her father, as if to challenge his opinions. "Wonderful day, dad…really? When has this day ever been wonderful? It has sucked now for nearly ten years."

Her father's expression altered, changing to a more sorrowful look. Maybe his smile had been forced for the benefit of his daughter. "I know, sweetheart. I miss your brother to. But, it has been almost ten years now."

"And so what, are you trying to say I should give up hope?" Abigail challenged.

"No, I'm not. You should never give up hope, but… I think you should accept the possibility that he may never come back."

Abigail looked hurt by her father's words, but she knew deep down that there was an air of truth about them. Isaac had not been seen or heard from for almost ten years. The police had investigated his disappearance for three years before finally giving up on the search. His case remained open, but on the shelf, and secretly everyone had pretty much accepted the fact that he was most likely dead.

"You should at least go outside," Abby's father insisted. "I don't think your brother would want you to be sad and alone on today of all days."

"Ok then, fine." Abigail gave in. "I guess I could go to the park, maybe."

"Great, I'm glad." Her father seemed genuinely happy now. "Happy birthday, sweetie," he said as he backed out of the room.

After he closed the door, Abigail slid off the end of her bed and dragged herself over to her wall cupboard. She slept in a white robe that swept around her feet as she walked, giving off a ghostly illusion that she was floating across the varnished wood flooring.

She pulled open the cupboard doors and stepped inside. There were a few tops, skirts and a couple of party dresses hung on several hangars. The cupboard was actually a sizeable wardrobe built into the wall. Abigail pushed the assortment of clothing aside and dropped to her knees. Lining the back of the cupboard was a large collection of what looked like boxes, gift wrapped with rainbow coloured paper. Cards were attached to each gift – plain, white and identical.

Each card read the same: "To Isaac – Happy Birthday – Love Abby".

Abigail stroked a finger across one of the cards, running it along Isaac's now. "Happy birthday, Isaac. I hope you're safe."

* * *

Isaac moved swiftly through the forest with Kotemon keeping pace as he leapt from tree to tree. Apparently, the meeting had come about upon the return of the chief figure of the village. Kotemon had been stashing away food supplies – as expected – when he overheard talk about capturing Isaac and himself and delivering them to some higher authority who the village leader refused to name. Fortunately, the meeting had attracted all of the Ninjamon in the village – even the ones that were tasked with guarding the main entrance. This small act of stupidity had allowed Kotemon and Isaac to sneak away unnoticed.

Isaac knew their head start wouldn't be a long one. Once the village digimon checked out Isaac's hut, they would notice his absence and give pursuit. It actually didn't even pay to run, the Ninjamon were swift movers, especially through the forest canopy. Isaac imagined that their as of yet, faceless leader would be just as quick. In all of his visits, Isaac had never met him though, so he could only guess. The only positive Isaac could take from fleeing was that surely they wouldn't send the entire village after the escapees. Hopefully, that would play to Isaac and Kotemon's advantage.

He couldn't be certain how much distance he had put between himself and the village, but it wasn't far enough. Through his panted breath, Isaac noticed that the forest had fallen eerily silent. His pace lessened, slowing to an abrupt stop. Kotemon hopped down beside him, joining Isaac as he scanned the surrounding treetops. An ominous wind whistled by, caressing the leaves with a gentle touch and creating a faint rustling chorus.

"They're here," Isaac whispered to his digimon companion. "They're watching us."

"I know," Kotemon said.

"Can you see any of them?"

"No, but I can sense them," Kotemon replied, his eyes shifting rapidly as he tried to locate a visual presence. "There are at least five."

Kotemon shifted closer to Isaac, not out of fear, but out of a need to protect him. He pricked his ears and listened to the sounds of the forest. The wind faded like a hushed wave, and Kotemon could then single out the movements of the Ninjamon as they attempted to silently slip through the trees. Isaac was tense, gripping his staff as tightly as he could; any increase in his strength would've probably allowed him to snap the staff into splinters with his bare hands.

He was ready to defend himself.

Then suddenly, a shining glimmer of steel flashed towards his eyes from the distance. It cut through the treetops with speed, shredding any leaves or branches that fell in its path like a sword through paper. It was moving too quickly for Isaac to attempt to avoid it; he had been trained to fight by a great samurai, but he was still only human. Kotemon sprang to his defence though, leaping from a standing position in front of Isaac's face. His hand wrapped around his kendo stick he carried on his back, whipping it out with force and striking it against the oncoming projectile – a sharp and deadly shuriken.

The impact was fierce, but Kotemon's combined strength, will and determination afforded him the advantage. He deflected the steel blade and catapulted it back into the trees. For a brief moment, Kotemon appeared to hover in mid-air before he dropped back down into a soft and graceful landing.

Perhaps the shuriken was merely a warning strike, Isaac couldn't be sure. However, what it did do was serve as way of announcing the assailant's arrival. On cue, four darkened figures descended from the treetops, falling into the shadows that stretched across the forest floor. They were all of identical shape, emerging from the cover of the shade to reveal themselves – four Ninjamon.

It was unnecessary though, even without the benefit of light striking their shape, they were unmistakable. Isaac eyed them, one after another. He recognised them all as the four that had blocked his path when he entered the village. The leader was present and at the forefront of the line, his undeniable smug grin plastered across his face.

"Leaving so soon?" Ninjamon said, slyly.

"We told you, we wanted no trouble," Isaac said, hoping to negotiate a peaceful resolution to the current situation. "Why do you pursue us?"

"As it happens, you are somewhat of a desired commodity by certain powerful individuals," Ninjamon explained. "There is a substantial bounty on your head."

"And you're here to kill me and collect, I assume." Isaac spoke with a firm tone now, showing as best he could that he would not be intimidated.

"On the contrary," Ninjamon started, a more inauspicious smile taking residence across his face, "the bounty says to deliver you… alive!"

* * *

A splash hit Abigail's ears, accompanied by the mixed laughter of several young kids. She glanced to her left and spotted the small group of kids (ranging from 8 to 11 years of age) playing by a large surface of water – too large to be considered a pond, but not big enough to be seen as a lake. She had taken her father's earlier advice and gone for a walk through the nearby Shinjuku Park. Over the past year the park had flourished, ever since the attacks. The trees had found new life, sprouting green and growing taller than before. The grassy surfaces were lush again and the footpaths had been re-laid. You couldn't even tell that such a destructive battle had ever ravaged it so badly.

Abigail could still recall the attacks now, as if they had only happened just yesterday. Strange creatures had plagued the park; some had looked like vicious monsters straight from a horror movie; others had resembled humanoid type warriors and some even looked, well, mechanical like robots. They had battled fiercely, clearly intent on destroying each other. It had been all over the news, and what made it even stranger was that the news reports also placed several children from Abigail's neighbourhood on the scene. Whether they had been drawn by the commotion, or were a part of it all, Abigail wasn't sure.

What had they called them? Abigail began to ask herself as her mind got caught up in the memory. Something like… digimon. It all seemed very farfetched; had she not witnessed it with her own eyes, Abigail would have never believed it. That and it apparently wasn't the first time it had happened in Shinjuku. There were stories dating back around thirty years or so, telling of a group of kids back then that fought these mysterious monsters. Abigail had even heard a rumour that her Art teacher, Mr. Matsuki had been one of the children, and that there was a peculiar red dinosaur looking creature that lived with him and his wife, Rika.

Abigail walked slowly towards the water, her arrival somehow forcing the young kids to seek out an alternative place to enjoy themselves. The park was quiet, only the sounds of the busy traffic circling broke the hush; blaring car horns and the roar of an army of engines. As for people, the park was relatively empty. It was about thirty minutes before lunch hour for the flanking office block corporates, so Abigail had a brief period where she could be alone.

"Isaac," she sighed as she stared at her own sad reflection in the calm water, "I miss you so much."

She knelt down and stroked her fingers through the water, creating small, passing ripples. Even as her reflection fractured before her eyes, she could still identify the grief present in her split eyes. As the water steadied though, a different sight attracted her attention. She looked left of her reflection and saw what could only be described as a small, overly happy, smiling black bear. It had walked clear into view, its friendly grin beaming from the watery surface. It had blue straps clinging to its arms; wrists and paws and what looked like a blue belt around its portly belly. Then, resting atop its fluffy head was a blue baseball cap that it wore backwards, and the word "BEARS" was written across it.

"Hiya!" It waved a paw and greeted Abigail loudly as she turned.

Abigail fell backwards, unsure whether to slap herself to see if she was awake, run screaming, or return the hello to the talking bear. "Ummm… hi," she said with a half stutter.

"I'm Kumamon," the bear introduced, skipping towards Abigail who was still visibly freaked out.

"You're a talking bear," Abigail pointed out.

"Yep, I'm a digital monster," Kumamon said, still smiling. "Or you know, just digimon for short."

Digimon? This was definitely turning into a strange day, but it was further prove that these monsters certain people called 'digimon' were true. Abigail then wondered if the rumours about Mr. Matsuki were true also.

"Ok, I'll play along," Abigail said as she got to her feet. "If you're a digimon, then what are you doing here?"

"I'm looking for you, of course."

"Why?"

Kumamon skipped to Abigail's side and hugged her leg in a warm, friendly manner. "Because you and I are partners," he said, gazing up into her eyes.

"Partners?" Abigail was confused, but she couldn't help but feel a little more relaxed as Kumamon flashed her another smile.

"Absolutely," Kumamon said with a high pitched squeal. "It's destiny, it is. There's trouble coming; a storm is on the horizon. You and I are gonna help save the world."

"We are?" Abigail said, intrigued.

"Oh yeah, but first we have to find the others."

"What others?"

"The other digimon, of course. They have been here for a long, long time." Kumamon's tone of voice suddenly turned sad, with a hint of guilt. "I was supposed to find you a long time ago to, but I got lost."

Abigail felt a little sad for the bear, his eyes seemed to be welling up so she placed a comforting hand on top of his head to try and make him feel better. "It's ok, you've found me now."

"I sure did, now come on!" Kumamon yelled, cheerily as he ran off across the grass. "We must find the others… and then we can find your brother!"

Abigail wasn't sure if she heard him right, had he said he knew how to find her brother? Already, Kumamon was distancing himself from her as he ran happily across the park, so with no time to waste allowing him to get out of sight, Abigail took off after him.

* * *

Yaaggghhh!

The lead Ninjamon charged, almost skating across the ground like it was made of ice. His hand hovered above his head, wrapped around the hilt of his sword. His expression never altered and his speed never faltered, but secretly the Ninjamon was hiding his concern. He had not expected Kotemon to back down, but Isaac – a human – was also standing his ground.

Ninjamon drew his sword as he shuffled to the left before pivoting on the ball of his foot and leaping towards Isaac with the intent to immobilise him. Isaac shifted his feet, establishing a firm defensive battle stance. He readied his staff and when the time struck, he swung it forwards. As it passed through the air it emitted a white glow and a pulsating energy appeared to surround it. The collision was a forceful one; steel on wood. The expected outcome would have been to see the blade slice clean through the stick, surely wood could be no match for a ninja's choice of weapon.

Instead, Isaac's staff hit the sword like a plate of steel. It pushed it back into Ninjamon's chest and struck him with venom. Before he knew what hit him, the ball shaped digimon was flying back through the air with his arms flailing about in an attempt to balance himself out. He hit the ground rolling awkwardly, feeling the full force of the concussive blow he had been dealt.

"Your staff, Isaac," Kotemon said, excitedly. "It's working again."

This notion seemed to ease Isaac's concerns, and his general swagger began to radiate an air of confidence. "You ready to do this, buddy?" he said as he turned to Kotemon.

"You bet, but I think we might need a little extra firepower."

Isaac knew what Kotemon was suggesting. "Do it," he said, nodding.

The small digimon stepped forward and felt a surge of adrenaline course through his body. It fuelled him with a newfound energy, which emitted from his body in a bright, engulfing white light.

"Kotemon, digivolve to……"

The small digimon grew, sprouting upward into a tall and formidable looking warrior – a blend between dragon and human. His arms flexed with impressive muscle, as they held up the weight of a set of thick, brown guards that enveloped his forearms. He wore a pair of light, purple bottoms that were frayed at the ends and a yellow cloth that hung from the front of his waist, sporting a tribal like design. His appearance resembled that of a martial artist, and it was completed to perfection by the set of small blades strapped to his back – surrounding a much larger and more devastating sword that measured in length equal to the digimon's frame.

"……DINOHUMON!"

The four Ninjamon took a step back at the appearance of an opponent that towered above their minute frames. Dinohumon exuded confidence as he stepped forward, his hand teetering at the edge of his sword, Akinakes' hilt.

"Get him!" the head Ninjamon yelled, running forward so as to lead by example.

"NINJA KNIFE THROWING!"

Ninjamon leapt into the air and seemed to pull a set of four shurikens from nowhere. His hand moved in a blur as he released them one at a time, throwing them in Dinohumon's direction. Dinohumon showed no concern as he actually picked up his pace, gunning straight for Ninjamon. As the shurikens closed in, he switched to his smaller blades and took the oncoming blades apart with a serious of delicately accurate strikes.

"AKINAKES!"

Without even breaking stride, Dinohumon glided across the ground before leaping high into the air. His arms moved gracefully as they shifted his small blades back into the right spots and then removed his larger, more imposing sword. The long, razor sharp Akinakes blade glowed yellow, almost as if it was channelling an intense heat through it. Dinohumon soared down on Ninjamon who glanced around him frantically, maybe hoping that his allies would come to his rescue. They weren't quick enough, or brave enough. Like an eagle swooping down to clutch its prey, Dinohumon closed the gap between himself and his opponent and spun majestically, slicing horizontally through the centre of Ninjamon's body.

Ninjamon's sinister glee faded and his colourless face expressed the sickening pain that Dinohumon's attack had left him with. His sword fell from his hand and clattered to the ground before exploding into tiny fragments of data. Ninjamon followed suit, fracturing into tiny pieces that drifted towards Dinohumon as he swallowed them into his blade.

"Ummm, so… what do we do now?" one of the remaining Ninjamon asked, looking slightly lost.

The other two exchanged glances, then eyed Isaac, before returning a look at their friend whom had posed the question. "Get the boy!"

"I don't think so," Dinohumon argued.

The Ninjamon trio shot off in separate directions, hoping that their speed would be enough to accomplish their goal. Dinohumon was ready though, and he successfully anticipated the movements of the Ninjamon closest to him. The dragon warrior spun on his heel to cut his foe off, falling into his path and knocking him back with an arced kick. He continued into a backward somersault that took him over the head of his second opponent and blocked the attacking Ninjamon as he lunged for Isaac. Dinohumon forced the weaker digimon back and then moved in for a finishing blow.

"LIZARDS DANCE!"

He gripped two of his small blades as he skated towards his opponent, swinging them violently as he collided with the defending digimon. Ninjamon could only manage to deflect a couple of attacks, but the constant barrage was too much, and it quickly overwhelmed him. Within seconds, he had been carved into a thousand pieces of data, more fuel to Dinohumon's growing rage.

The third Ninjamon had closed on Isaac who was doing his best to defend himself with his staff. He couldn't parry the offensive digimon's strikes long enough to launch one of his own, so all that was left to do was to defend himself long enough for Dinohumon to assist him.

"AKINAKES!"

Dinohumon was quick to spin on his heel. He swept across the ground, switching once again to his larger blade. The familiar sight of its foreboding glow was glimpsed through the corner of the unsuspecting Ninjamon's eye. Before he could react, it was too late. The blade cut through him cleanly and left a yellow hoop around his body, marking the precision of the blow. The last Ninjamon closed in, anger overpowering his judgement. He was determined to exact his revenge, but his flailing attacks missed and he fell victim to a second strike from Akinakes. It was a blow that proved to be as fatal as the one that had preceded it.

The battle was over, but as Isaac breathed a sigh of relief he could tell that something still concerned his friend. Dinohumon was shifting his gaze from treetop to treetop, searching for something or someone. He seemed tense, handling his sword with a strong grip – it almost seemed like the four Ninjamon that he had so easily dispatched were just a warm-up act for a greater foe.

"Very impressive," an eerily deep voice echoed from the trees, carrying with it a hint of doom. "I see I'm going to have to eliminate you myself."

A shadow dropped from a nearby branch, landing silently on the forest floor. Isaac was sure that the black figure hadn't been there before, he just looked to appear out of nowhere. His shape gave him away, and as the snaking rays of sunlight bathed him in visibility, Isaac's first suspicions were confirmed.