Chapter 2
TK
This was definitely strange. For the past few weeks, TK had been in America helping Willis, Michael and Mimi to secure the entirety of the east coast. He had just finished a battle with a gang in Virginia when Izzy called saying Matt called a meeting back in Japan. It was strange, even for his brother.
Although the DigiDestined all worked together through the DDO, they hadn't gathered the group together since the start of the war. Each member had their own place in the war effort, and it wasn't necessary to all be in one place. Matt hadn't given them a specific reason to meet, but he assumed it had to be important. He wouldn't call them from all over the world just to have a reunion.
TK hadn't spoken to his brother in a few weeks and when he tried to call Matt in order to see what was up, Matt hadn't answered. So a week after his call, TK showed up in the old convention center, their headquarters for the time being. TK had just flown in that morning with Mimi. It had been hard to get back to Japan, but luckily, he had some friends that pulled some strings to get him on a private flight back to Japan relatively quickly. TK had stopped by Matt's empty apartment and taken a quick shower before heading over to the convention center. Mimi had rushed out of the airport and into a car yelling something about meeting Sora before the meeting.
The convention center brought back memories of the first time the DigiDestined had saved the world. It had been the center of that time and it seemed full circle that they would come back here. It had been months, and even a year since he had seen some of the DigiDestined.
When TK arrived Joe and Ken were already there. Joe was armed to the teeth with supplies, laptop, med bag, folders. Being the head doctor of the DDO didn't leave him much free time, if any, and TK barely got a hug from Joe before he went back his work on his laptop. Joe hadn't changed a bit, except for getting older.
TK sat next to Ken and they had a few minutes to check in with each other before others started arriving. Their Digimon all talked around the edges of the room, catching up just like their partners.
"Hey guys! I'm so glad you're here!" came a squeal from the doorway. Yolei came barreling to him to give him a hug. She hadn't changed at all since they were kids and he smiled at her as she sat down.
Cody was right behind her in the doorway, quiet as usual. "Hey, it's nice to have you guys back for a little bit," he said to them. Out of everybody, Cody had changed the most. He had grown his hair down to his shoulders, still well kempt and clean, and he was almost taller than TK now. But his respect for others and his kind manners had never changed, even in the heat of the war.
Matt, Izzy, and Davis showed up barely on time as usual even though they were the ones who set up the meeting. TK went straight for Matt. There would never be a time that TK wasn't grateful for his brother still being there to see him. The war had taken lots of things from him, but he wouldn't let it take his brother.
"Good to see you, little brother," Matt said to him. TK nodded and smiled. Matt wasn't always the emotional one, but he knew through hugging Matt how glad he was to see TK too.
Finally, arriving right before the meeting was supposed to start were Sora and Mimi with Biyomon and Palmon coming in right after. Even after she got off of a 15 hour flight, Mimi still looked like perfection, down to her newly dyed pink hair. Even in war time, she somehow found a way to get pink hair dye. Could he expect anything less out of Mimi?
Sora, however, TK noticed had changed the most out of anyone during the war. After Matt and Sora had broken up, TK hadn't gotten to see much of her. She and Matt still got along fine, but she had been travelling around the world, providing as much help as possible to their allies. TK knew that she wanted to get out of Japan for a while. Partly to get away from the break-up and partly to keep searching for Tai. Sora had let her orange hair grow down to her shoulders and they lay in loose waves. The tomboy-turned girly girl had gone back to wearing clothes more like what she had worn on her first adventure. She had donned black skinny jeans with a blue tank top and brown leather jacket over it and wore crimson combat boots to top off her look. All in all, she looked like a badass. But her smile was the same, still a cheery, happy girl who spread love to everyone she met. He was glad the war hadn't changed her completely.
Only two people weren't there. One was to be expected and it left a big hole that the group tried, and failed, to ignore. Their demeanor overall was happy to see each other, but everyone kept it quiet and downplayed.
But the one person he didn't expect to be missing was Kari. Out of all of the DigiDestined, he had kept in contact with her frequently, not only because he was absolutely in love with her, but also because she was his best friend.
About 3 months ago, she had called him and told him she would be out of touch for a few weeks or so. Apparently Matt needed her to visit Egypt, which was in need of desperate help. They were in contact with a group in Egypt who had the same goals as they did. Their leader, Avaline, had contacted them when the previous leader had been killed and she was left in charge. Egypt needed supplies as well as someone who had plenty of battle experience to help with the transition. So Kari went as a representative of DDO. She told TK that Egypt had very few ways to communicate outside of their country, so she wouldn't be able to contact him. He hadn't heard anything from his brother since, and that worried him more than he had let on. The fact that she wasn't here worried him even more. After not hearing from her, he had assumed she would come back here with everyone else.
As soon as everyone had quieted down, Matt stood up at the head of the table. They had met in a small conference room, with a table just big enough to fit all of the DigiDestined. Matt was at the head of the table, across from the door, and TK was seated to his left, while Davis sat to his right. He glanced around the table, noting everyone's expressions and could see they were all just as confused as he was.
Matt took a breath before starting. "First, it's really great to all be back together. But, I can't really let us get into reunions right now. We have business to take care of and there's a war still going on while we are meeting here. Izzy, Davis, and I were…talking last week and we came to a conclusion that led to this meeting," Matt said, looking around the table. TK could see him clenching his hands at his sides. As much as Matt had grown up, he was still nervous to be the leader here.
TK tried to focus on what Matt was saying, but he just couldn't. All the details just floated in his brain. Unlike Matt or Tai or even Davis, TK never would be a leader and didn't want to be. He didn't have the desire, the skills, or the attention span needed for this. Even though TK knew that the meeting was important, all he could think about was Kari and if she was in trouble. Why wouldn't she be here? Everyone had been called in from around the world, so what could she be doing that would prevent her from being here?
"-but there are too few of us. We are spread too thin and can't cover as much ground as needed. Each day that goes by means another day that kids are in danger just walking down the street and Digimon aren't free to live their own lives. What we've all seemed to lose focus of is that we aren't the only ones involved in the war. This isn't just guns and tanks and bombs as the weapons. Humans have included Digimon in our war. What happens here affects the DigiWorld. Some Digimon who don't have partners have come over to help, but they are far and few between. This war has gone on for a year. A year too long, in my opinion," Matt was saying as TK tuned back in. Finally, TK was seeing where Matt was going with this meeting.
"Izzy ran the numbers: there should be thousands…maybe even hundreds of thousands of Digimon in the DigiWorld. They don't want to admit that this war is affecting them and their world. They don't want to help the humans. Even though we had made progress to bringing the worlds together before the war, it wasn't enough to get their immediate help. But times are desperate. We need to end this war before it destroys this world and their world. And the only way to do that is to show the wild Digimon what they have refused to see. We need their help and they need ours. We need to ban together before it's too late. We need the DigiWorld," Matt finished.
The room was silent for a moment. TK looked around and found that others nodding with Matt. He could see in their eyes the thought of the DigiWorld brought joy to each of them. It held some of their fondest memories even as it held dark ones. But the DigiWorld was the place they all loved to go to no matter what and he could see that they all wanted to go back. And uniting with it did seem to be the right thing to do. Their worlds had been separate for too long. It was time they were brought together. His brother really was becoming a great leader.
But just when Matt was going to say more, steps sounded from outside the meeting room. All their heads turned in time to see the doors open and TK's heart stopped. Kari. But she seemed…different. She had let her hair grow out down to past her shoulders and her demeanor seemed a dimmed. Usually there was a natural light about her, but it was as if TK was looking at her through sunglasses. Instead of her normal outfits, she had on white skinny jeans and black boots with a maroon tank top and black leather jacket. She looked wild and dangerous, yet, he could see it was still Kari inside. Her eyes were more serious and focused, but he could still see her natural kindness in them. Her Digimon partner was right behind her, in her Nefertimon form.
She smiled at them, though TK could tell it was tighter and not as easy as it usually was. "Hey Matt, sorry I'm late. It's bit crazy in Egypt right now," she explained. Her eyes were calm, but hard, and her mouth was in a tight line. TK glanced at his brother, and found that he looked shocked.
"I wasn't expecting you to make it, Kari. The last message I had from you said you didn't know if you would be able to contact again. You said that you had one major city left to fight back the gang, but it had higher security than you had seen before. I heard nothing from you after that. I didn't even know if you had survived," Matt replied, obviously stunned by her appearance.
TK abruptly stood up, full of anger. "What? You thought she was dead and didn't tell me? You didn't tell any of us?" he yelled, but stopped himself from going further.
Matt at least had the decency to look ashamed. "I didn't want to worry you if there was nothing to worry about. I had no proof that Kari wasn't ok. There were no reports saying anything about casualties and I hadn't heard from our other sources in Egypt either," he replied stuttering, trying to explain himself. TK could tell that Matt felt bad about keeping the secret from him, but in that moment, he didn't care, his anger was overpowering his sense of reason. How could his brother keep a secret from him about his best friend being in danger and possibly dead?
Kari walked over to them and put a hand on his shoulder. "TK, Matt was right to not worry you. It was dangerous in Egypt, but nothing I couldn't handle. I didn't want him to tell you and worry you when in all odds, I would be fine," Kari said, keeping the brothers from fighting. Fine, TK thought, I'll drop it. For now. "But, we have more important things to discuss. I have information that could change everything."
Matt nodded, and waited for TK to sit back down before he started again. "Well, I was just saying that we need to ban together with the DigiWorld. My plan was for us to send teams of recruiters, looking for Digimon who will help us fight to end the war and save both our worlds," he recounted for her. He gestured for her to step up to the table. "Now, Kari, tell us what you have found."
Kari nodded and took a place at the other empty end of the table, Nefertimon dedigivolving back to Gatomon and sitting at the table with her.
"As many of you know, I went into Egypt to help out the movement there. Our contact, Avaline, had contacted us and I was sent to provide backup and some guidance. She hadn't been the leader but a month, and she needed a bit of support to get back to recovering their country. I met her there and helped her from the background, sharing intel with her, interviewing other potential leaders, making sure they all could be trusted, and bringing with me much needed supplies as well," Kari recounted for them. TK didn't know much about what was going on in Egypt, but from what he had heard, if they could get a foothold there, then the war in Africa would have turned in their favor. "Their rival gang began to grow bolder right after I arrived. The gang was named after the Egyptian god of destruction, Sekhmet, and that's what they wanted for Egypt: destruction. Sekhmet was neck and neck with my friend in a race for who could take over Egypt, but they weren't afraid to lose their members and kill anyone in their path. It was like they had hatred in their hearts. Even their Digimon looked like they oozed darkness. Both Sekhmet and Avaline had recovered around two-fifths of the country, and there was just a little bit left. Whoever took over it first would be set to take over the rest of the country.
"Gatomon and I did as much as we could. Since Gatomon could digivolve into a higher form than many others, we seemed to tip the balance slightly in Ava's favor. Eventually, she took back more and more of Egypt and until she had the majority. It took us a few months, much longer than we thought, but we did it. The last city we needed was Alexandria. We sent in a small infiltration team to take them down from inside as well as out. But our team was cornered in a building just before we could finish what we started. Me included. We were stuck inside the city for three days doing all we could to defend that one building. Finally, Ava found an opening to get behind their lines and used it to both rescue us and take down the city. Ava and I took down their leader, Amon, together.
"It was the first time I had met him, so I didn't know what to expect. He was probably one of the toughest and most hateful people I had ever met. Every word he spoke was full of anger and he just seemed desperate for violence. I won't tell you much about the conversations with him for they were not enjoyable but he did have one very interesting thing to say," Kari explained. TK's imagination ran wild thinking about all that she went through in Egypt but he had to reign it in as she continued.
"When we questioned him, he mentioned a traveler that had come through a few months before we arrived. The traveler had told him he just wanted to stock up on supplies. Apparently Amon didn't think anything of it in his arrogance and though that maybe the traveler would fight for him. So the traveler stayed for a few days, talking with different people, traveling back and forth between tents, and after that he left along with a good number of Amon's people. Amon was furious that he took some of his troops, but he couldn't do anything about it. The strangest part of what Amon told us was how they left. The stranger didn't just leave, they disappeared. One minute they were there, the next they weren't, only a slight indentation left where they had been standing."
TK couldn't understand why she was telling them this and definitely couldn't wrap his brain around the last part. Disappeared? He wouldn't say it was impossible, since Digimon should be impossible, yet here they were. Apparently, Mimi was on the same train of thought as him. "So, what are you saying, Kari? I mean, if this traveler was cute or famous, that would be one thing, but you never even met him. I bet he was scruffy and horribly dressed, not worth our time," Mimi asked impatiently. Even in this serious time, Mimi could always make him smile. Her attitude towards boys and fashion never changed.
"And disappearing? That's highly illogical. Are you sure Amon wasn't on something?" Ken interrupted. TK could tell everyone was skeptical of this.
Kari seemed a little stressed at the memories, but also somewhat…excited? "I was getting to that. The traveler wasn't alone. He also traveled with a Digimon. Now, Amon said that they both wore black cloaks that covered most of their body and their faces, but he could tell that the Digimon was yellow and about half the size of a normal human," Kari continued. She started to talk faster at this point, obviously excited to finish and get to the point. "Not just that, but the one detail that Amon picked up from the stranger was something he wore around his neck. He couldn't figure out why I was so pressed to find out, but after some pressure, he told me."
Kari took a deep breath and let it out, her eyes full of sadness but also hope. "The stranger had a pair of goggles around his neck." There was total silence in the room, and you could have heard a needle drop. TK wasn't sure he had heard her right. There was no way that this Amon had seen that. He couldn't believe it.
Everyone sat there, eyes wide, mouths open, and not one person moved a muscle for an entire minute. "Are you sure, Kari? You're sure this Amon guy wasn't lying to you? If he was as bad as you said, then wouldn't he have done that just to spite you?" Joe commented, being the first one to recover. TK looked back and forth between everyone and could see the building hope in their eyes.
She shook her head forcefully, obviously having thought through anything they were about to counter with. "No, he mentioned this before I said anything about goggles. He said it clearly. As evil as Amon was, he didn't lie to us," Kari said firmly.
TK glanced around the room and saw many mixed emotions on everyone's faces. But in all of their faces was hope. After a year of searching, they had a sliver of hope to find their missing piece. TK met Sora's eyes. Sora had broken out into a grin and TK grinned back at her. He could tell exactly what she was thinking. She spoke aloud the one name they had avoided for months. The one name that could give them the boost that they needed to end this war.
"Tai."
