A/N: Gonna keep these beginning ones short from now on, unless I have something special to say. One thing I feel I should just mention is that while I loved Runaway Locomon, for this story's purpose it didn't happen. That doesn't mean it couldn't though. Anyway thanks for coming back. Enjoy.
Janyu sat in his home office as he conversed with his old friend via telephone. Dark circles hung below his sleepy eyes. His dark blue tie was loose and his collar pulled apart to give him some breathing room. His home office was quite small really; only a desk and a chair could fit in there. It had been a walk in closet in the room when they first moved in, but after much effort to persuade his wife he was able to make it his office. So they tore the shelves down, painted the walls white (because they had been bright orange, of all colors), threw in a cedar work desk and the tiniest chair they could find that Janyu actually fit in. And of course his most trusted companion, his desktop computer. Sure he loved his sleek, modern laptop. But nothing had the processing power and functionality of his baby. He had built it himself, and he had done a damn good job, young as he had been. The fact that it stood so long and still ran so well was a testament to his skill. The simple egg-shell white exterior hid a much more complex machine underneath.
"I see. That's quite interesting Janyu. I would like to take a look at these cards as well." Shibumi's voice resounded through the phone receiver. Janyu smiled at his old friend's voice. It was about that time of day when Shibumi would start getting tired, and his voice reflected that. Slightly soft and scratchy. "I knew you would Shibumi. I'll start contacting the others." He replied thankfully.
"Alright. I need to sleep on this. Maybe the answer will come to me in my dreams." Janyu laughed at his friend's remark as he heard a click on the line. He looked at the screen of his sleek, touchscreen handheld to confirm the call had ended and pocketed the device. Shibumi was a character.
But now that left Janyu alone to think. And he didn't really know what to think as his fingers idly tapped on the desk. The resounding effects of his and his colleagues' foray into the word of artificial intelligence all those years ago were quite astounding. And even after the threat was supposedly gone, and the Digimon along with it, they still managed to cause some sort of trouble.
He didn't know what to think about the cards. They were clearly a bad omen.
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door. Henry was standing in the doorway. He wasn't wearing his vest now, and his hair was slightly wet, meaning he must have just bathed. In fact, Janyu thought he could smell the jasmine scented soap he knew Henry to be fond of.
"Yes Henry?" The father asked, his posture relaxing.
"I don't know why I didn't ask before, but do you know who made the Digimon card game? And who writes the show?" Henry asked curiously. "Takato, Rika and I came to the conclusion that we need to talk to them. Or get in contact with them or something." Janyu was completely unprepared for the question. He blinked a couple times.
"Come to think of it, I don't. In fact, now that you mention it, I feel like I should. I mean, how could they have gotten the idea if they weren't one of the original Monster Makers?" Janyu questioned, more to himself than out loud. He really was quite perturbed by this. "I'll definitely bring it up when we get together again. Which we will be soon by the way. I just talked to Shibumi and I'm about to round up the others." Henry smiled at this. "I'm sorry I don't have a more definitive answer to your question."
"It's okay. I didn't think it would be that easy." Henry left his father alone after that, and Janyu got back to contacting the rest of the Monster Makers. It would be a long night for sure.
Takato had a big ole smile on his face as he moseyed through the park. The sunlight, as it poked through the dense, green foliage of the park, seemed to highlight each of his steps. He was as bright as the reflection on his goggles. His footsteps were light and whimsical like the breeze, and it was whimsy indeed as he danced with the leaves. He and Rika were...well they were something now. He didn't want to say she was his girlfriend. Because he hadn't asked her to be his girlfriend, and something told him Rika would loathe the idea of being called someone's girlfriend. But it really didn't matter what they "were". As if they needed a name for it. They made each other happy. That was how she put it, and he felt it was the best way to describe it. And as he continued through the park, through the places he had been many, many times over the past few months that it may as well have bore his footprints, he truly felt happy. These last two days had been wonderful, and it was all because he had decided to end his pity party and go see Rika. He could honestly say things would only get better from here. Although, the cards did have a bit to do with it as well as Rika.
His thoughts shifted to the cards, and while they clearly had some kind of meaning or bad omen to them, they still made him excited. Excited because he knew; the feeling surged through him like electricity. He knew Guilmon and all the others were still out there. He knew they would meet again to solve this mystery and end whatever threat came along with it. They would find their friends again and gain back the part of themselves they had lost. He could taste the sweet taste of reconciliation. And it would be sweeter than any Anpan Bun, Pocky or Mochi he could conceive. It was like Rika said. If he wanted it, he got it. And he wanted this. More than anything.
He wanted to go back to the stone shrine where he used to hide Guilmon, but he really didn't have any time. His mother was probably worried enough already, and that was the one thing that could probably bring him to his knees any day, regardless of however many layers of Chrome Digizoid armor he was protected by. He picked up the pace a bit, as did the breeze. He'd come back another day. Tomorrow, since it was the last day of the weekend. Maybe he'd get Kazu or Kenta to come along...maybe he'd show them the cards.
"No. We should keep these cards a secret." He and Rika had decided to split the cards. He got the Guilmon line, and she kept Megidramon, ChaosGallantmon and the Digital Hazard. It seemed like the smart thing to do. And then his thoughts drifted to the one thing that really bothered him. "Who the hell is ChaosGallantmon? I mean...it's me right?" He pictured the foreign Digimon in his head again. His once shining armor had been replaced by dull, flat, gray armor. And the bright red accents had all been replaced by a toxic looking purple. It was as if all the life had been drained from him. And he didn't know of anyone else that went by the name of Gallantmon. Just what was the importance of that stupid symbol he drew on Guilmon's chest? He had only thought it looked cool.
He finally found himself standing out front of his bakery, forcing him to stow his thoughts for now. Darkness had all but snuffed out the last remaining rays of daylight, and the streets were mostly lit by the various store lights. It was pretty empty for the market district, but then again, it always was at night. As he walked in he saw his mother kneading a large batch of dough for the next day. Her face was etched in concentration; the lines between her cheeks and nose more prominent now, accentuating the squareness of her cheeks. Herr long brown hair, apron and sleeves were all covered in flour. It was especially noticeable on her yellow sleeves. The table was covered in flour too, but then again mostly everything around their house was perpetually covered in flour.
"Well look who's home." She said, a hint of reprimand in her voice, her hand going to her hip. Really though, she was just worried. She knew there was something missing from her little boy's life right now, in the form of a lovable, red dinosaur. And she felt useless as a mother because nothing she tried worked.
"Hi mom. Sorry I'm late. I was with Rika and Henry." He explained quickly his eyes roaming around the room. Yeah, he wasn't saying anything to his mom about Rika.
"It's okay. Just don't make a habit of it. Even though you already do." She smiled as she said the last part, her cheeks puffing out wide. Takato laughed nervously and scratched his head. "How are Henry and Rika?"
"Uhm, they're good. Well, we're all doing better recently." He admitted. Her smile grew.
"That's wonderful Takato. Well, I don't know if you're hungry, but your father made his special curry bread. It's sitting in the warmer." She let him know endearingly. His eyes lit up. Dad's special curry bread was delicious.
"Aright!" One of the pros of living in a bakery is you could use the equipment to cook. Not that they did too often, but having something like a warmer always handy was great. He let his nose lead him to the warmer like a dog on a leash. The smell washed over him like a wave of warm, comforting love, and he sighed almost dreamily as he pulled it out. As he grabbed the bread he could feel it was still quite soft, not to mention obviously warm. He placed the golden, brown orbs of cooked dough on a yellow plate. He carried the plate up to his room as he munched on one of the pieces of gourmet bread, and his mouth died and went to heaven. The spices his dad used, whatever they were he still hadn't figured it out, were always just perfect. And the bread practically melted in your mouth it was so soft. Sometimes he cursed having to live in a bakery but dammit he loved bread so much.
When he passed his parents room, he saw his dad sitting at a small, light-brown wooden desk hunched over the computer. The room itself was not so big, only fitting a bed and a dresser otherwise, the same wood as the desk. The carpet was a deep, dark but vibrant brown, and the walls were a creamy beige. And various picture of Takato and his family were displayed wherever they could be. Takato decided now was the time to talk to him, while his mother was still busy.
"Want a piece of bread?" If Takato's father was startled by his son he didn't show it. He just turned around, his red eyes lighting up at the sound of his son's voice.
"I was just getting hungry! You're a god send son." He exclaimed, taking one of the pieces of bread. He took a bite and a bit of the inside filling dripped onto his gray button-up shirt. Takato chuckled.
"I try…" He took a deep breath. This didn't go unnoticed by Takehiro as he gulped down his piece of bread.
"Something on your mind son?" Takehiro questioned, licking his lips. Takato nodded.
"Yeah...well someone, not something." Takato stated rather elegantly. A grin spread across Takehiro's face that could have eaten shit for days.
"My boys got himself a woman? Well I'll be damned! Who is it? That red headed girl?" Takato was very taken aback by his father's sudden elation. Takehiro was quite animated now, almost flailing around as he talked. He wasn't given a chance to answer. "Well son, you've come to the right person." And as his father said that, Takato wasn't so sure anymore that that was the case here.
"Yeah...it's Rika." He muttered nervously.
"Well have you told her?" Takehiro asked eagerly.
"Yeah." Takato's hand found the back of his neck. It was slightly sweaty.
"Well what did she say?"
"Uhm, that I make her happy." Takehiro blinked at that.
"Not what I was expecting. What did you say back?" The curious father asked again.
"Well, I told her that her mother was crazy, and that she made me happy too. Her mother had walked in a few moments before, interrupting our conversation." Takato explained. His father chuckled and shook his head.
"You said her mother was crazy? Are you crazy? Nevermind that. Son, it seems to me like you like this girl very much. You're quite nervous right now." Takato's eyes widened for a second before he looked at where his arm was, and removed it. He stood up straighter too, smiling a bit. "Have you felt this way since you met her?" Takehiro was now actually on the edge of his seat, whether he noticed it or not.
"I can't really say...there was always something about her. But I never found myself admiring her the way I do now. I just have this desire to know more about her and be near her." The boy admitted, feeling a bit vindicated. "It feels like normal around her." He finished with a smile.
"You kids have grown up a bit faster than any of us thought you would it seems." Takehiro said suddenly. He stood up and took a step forward, putting a hand on his son's shoulder. "You're all so mature now. It makes me proud. It makes us proud." Takato smiled at this. "The best advice I can give you is to be yourself and be honest. If you do that, you can't go wrong. You're a good kid." Their unique sets of red eyes met, and Takehiro hoped that Takato could see he meant it. He hoped those were the words his son needed to hear. The only thing he could hope to give him as a father was confidence in himself. The rest was up to Takato.
"Thanks dad...by the way the bread is delicious!" Takato commented, taking another bite of one of the rolls. "You should make this kind of bread, but Guilmon shaped." Takato suggested. His father nodded.
"Alright, I will. One day next week." They smiled at each other.
Rika didn't really know what to say. She wasn't sure if the feeling swirling around in her head was embarrassment, disappointment or amusement, probably a mix of the three, but it was swirling like the patterns on her mother's multi-colored sundress. In the end she settled on amusement. Really, her mother needed to learn something about the world that didn't have to do with makeup or clothes.
"Do you like it? I think it's your size." Rumiko, looking beautiful as ever in the aforementioned sundress, held up the t-shirt she had gotten for Rika up to her daughter. Her violet eyes twinkled with appreciation as she smiled warmly. Behind her, Seiko had a horrified expression on her face. Her thoughts we're swirling more like a violent tornado.
"Rumiko! Do you even know what that is!?" The grandmother questioned outrageously, feeling a strain in her throat as she did. The young mother shrugged. Her mood was as light as her dress.
"Some hip new design? I don't know, I've never heard of this designer. 'Hammer & Sickle', it's such a weird name. But i thought you would love it Rika. It just says 'bad girl' all over it." Rumiko went on, glossing over her mother's fury. Although her mother had every right to be angry. For emblazoned on the front of the black shirt as large as it could possibly be was the Hammer & Sickle, the mark of Communism, in bold red.
In Seiko's eyes, it may as well have said 'Hello, Fuck You!'
In Rika's eyes, it may as well have said 'Hello, My Mother is a Blithering Idiot!'
"Rumiko! For heaven's sake it's the-"
"I love it mom. Thank you." Rika suddenly stated, cutting her grandmother off. Seiko's eyes ignited. This was just too hilarious not to keep it. She wondered if people would get angry at her. Rumiko smiled widely.
"I knew you would. Don't say I don't have good taste! Now, I'm off to bed. These long flights are really starting to wear on my body…" Rumiko slowly made her way out of the room, her dress almost waving at them as she walked away, leaving Seiko and Rika alone. Seiko just shook her head as she muttered something along the lines of 'That's not the only thing it's wearing down...'.
"You really want to wear that in public?" Seiko asked, now turning back to her granddaughter. Why she asked, she had no idea, for she already knew the answer. The wrinkles on her face were becoming more and more prominent - she could feel it.
"You really don't think this is even a tad bit funny?" Rika retorted, smiling as she did. "Maybe most people won't even know what it is." Seiko walked away in defeat, again muttering something about 'How anyone in all of Asia could not know what that symbol was…' to herself. But Rika didn't feel bad. She wasn't the one who didn't recognize the internationally recognized symbol for Communism.
"Bad girl indeed." She said to herself, giggling a bit.
The next day, Takato once again found himself on his way to meet Henry and Rika. Henry had told them over the phone that his father would be getting the Monster Makers back together to take a look at the cards. They were meeting to give Henry the cards so he could take them to his dad.
His feet followed the familiar path through the park towards their old meeting place. Past the bushes and trees, under the green, swaying leaves. He had said he would go back to visit, and he decided now was as good a time as ever. It was on the way. He ascended the steps as he reached them, finally coming to the abandoned shrine. He took a peek inside through the solid iron gate, seeing the hole Guilmon had dug. More like a tunnel really.
"I miss ya buddy…" He sighed as he whispered his sentiment, letting it drift away with the wind. He suddenly felt like he was sick to his stomach, and he fell to his knees in shock. Suddenly he lost his breakfast in the bushes, and probably part of dad's curry bread from last night. He really hoped no one heard or saw that. The violent vomit subsided after a moment, and he groaned painfully as he wiped his face with his arm. "Whyyyyyyyyy…..?" His stomach felt really weird. Like it was pulsing with heat and energy. It seemed like it was...glowing too? He lifted his shirt up.
He really shouldn't have been surprised at this point, but he was only a human.
In the middle of his stomach, glowing a fiery red, was the same mark he drew on Guilmon's chest. Burning like a fresh brand mark. Oozing energy like a deep wound. Bleeding nothing but crimson light. The mark that he had now come to know as the Digital Hazard.
"Oh what the hell?" He was still in a lot of pain, and it only seemed to be getting worse. It felt like his stomach was collapsing on itself, and he was slowly being crushed. It felt like the muscles in his stomach were being pulled apart. He wouldn't be able to make it to Henry's...
He sighed and pulled out the cell phone he had been able to convince his parents to buy him after the D-Reaper incident. He dialed Rika. One ring. Two rings. "Hello?" Her voice echoed over through the speaker. And he had never been happier to hear it.
"Rika...it's Takato." He strained to say. "I'm at the old-augh-shrine and I can't move. The Digital…Hazard is on me." As he finished he let out a huge breath and collapsed on his face, dropping the phone. "Aghh!" He was now writhing in pain. He curled up in a ball as his stomach really pulled in on itself. It felt like something was slicing through the muscles in his stomach with their teeth.
"Takato? What the hell is going on?...Takato!" Her voice rang out from the phone. She was only answered by more pained grunts and screams by Takato.
"Rika!"
The phone exploded into nothing but fragments.
It was another quiet day at Hypnos. Too quiet compared to the surplus of activity they had dealt with not but a few months ago. Hardly anything but simple computer viruses popped up nowadays, and they were easily eradicated with the click of a button. To say things were boring was putting it nicely. And as Riley, dressed in the same damn uniform, sitting in that damn mechanical, twirling crow's nest, attempted to do her now-seemingly-useless job, she was just that. Positively, absolutely bored.
"I can't believe they still have us working full time even with the Digimon gone. This is so boring. Maybe I can find Yamaki alone in his office and jump him real quick…" Riley giggled to herself as the thought raced through her head. Her thick, brown hair flowed freely behind her as she slowly swiveled around in the air, her face obscured by her headgear. She had finally gotten Yamaki to lighten up a bit. After the year-long rough patch since the conception of Hypnos, he was starting to become a person dedicated to using his power to help others, not himself. And she was a big part of that. It could have been because lately she was finding random times to jump Yamaki whenever she could. It had thrown him for a loop.
Suddenly the alarm went off, and Riley was alerted to some kind of digital presence in the real world, and all of the super high-tech equipment that made up the Hypnos system roared to life. A digital presence should have been impossible because the barriers between the worlds were intact now. Lights strobed and flashed all sorts of colors while the sound of beeping and whirring kicked up the decibel level in the room. The large wrap-around monitor started to flash warning lights as Riley furiously clicked away on her computer keyboard. Down below, the situation became frantic as the various technicians in labcoats started buzzing around like bees in a hive tried to fix the problem. The door to the room slid opened and Yamaki came running in.
"Riley! What's going on?" He shouted, wanting to get a hold of the situation as quickly as possible. You couldn't see his eyes past the black shades, but they were focused. That was some response time. How he was always in the room the second there was a problem, she never knew. And never questioned.
"I'm not sure! The system is detecting a digital presence in the real world! But I wasn't notified of any kind of bio-emergence or data transfer or anything! One second there was nothing and the next it was there. I'm scanning for a concentration point...here! Shinjuku Park!" Her surprise was evident in her voice as she frantically explained the situation while trying to get it under control. Suddenly, the warning messages on the screen got more frantic, and along with them many tiny Digital Hazards appeared all over the screen, just like it had when Megidramon had been created. "Yamaki!"
"I see it!" He replied sternly, his shaded eyes never leaving the screen once; fixed like the path of a planet. What the hell was this phenomenon that was now a recurring one? He flicked his lighter open and shut it absent-mindedly as his eyes were glued to the screen. "It's never over is it…"
"Rika!" Takato's voice pierced her ear, and then just static. She groaned in frustration and shoved the phone in her pocket before taking off. Luckily Henry lived pretty close to the park, and she hadn't even been there yet, putting her right in the vicinity of the park.
Her feet clapped upon the ground and her legs worked furiously to propel her forward. Her ponytail/bun thing (sorry I'm a guy and thus don't know what to call that) bounced on her head with each step. She was worried as all hell. He sounded like he was in a lot of pain. And what did Takato mean the Digital Hazard was on him? Her heart was beating faster than her legs were moving. Finally she entered the park and hopped over some bushes, not bothering to use the paths. She arrived at the steps in seconds and took them 2 at a time to the top, where she saw Takato, still fetal. She ran up to him and knelt down.
"Takato! What's going on?" At the sound of her voice, he smiled just a bit, and he tried to control his groaning. She could see the glowing coming from underneath his shirt. She looked over and saw the remains of his phone, scattered about like confetti. Then she looked over and saw the vomit covered bush. "Ew did you puke?"
"Who cares about that! I don't know what's-ngh-going on. But it really-agh!-hurts." He grunted. "Look." He lifted his shirt up a bit, revealing the glowing Digital Hazard. Rika was speechless. Her gaze was captured by the glowing symbol, entranced by the crimson waves of energy. In a matter of days all of a sudden they were dealing with more Digital World problems. But now they were without their Digimon. She was scared, and she didn't know what to do.
Suddenly she snapped out of it. "Can you move?" She asked. Takato grunted and tried to push himself up, which he was slowly successful with. Standing though..."C'mon." Rika bent down and put his arm around her shoulder. He still couldn't stand completely straight, and his one arm was tightly gripping his stomach. He smiled at her and together they descended the stairs away from the shrine. When they got to the bottom, Takato let out a sigh of relief.
"I think it's gone." He took in a deep breath and exhaled again as they stood there. "Yeah, it's gone. Just put me on the ground. I need to lie down." Rika gave him an odd look but obliged anyway. Slowly she placed him down on the path. He felt his body connect with the cool asphalt, and it was a great relief from the burning. As he laid on the ground he moaned in satisfaction. "Oh this feels so much better."
"What the hell just happened?" Rika asked, standing over him. The shadow she cast over him was extra relief, and he welcomed it.
"Well, I don't really know. But you saw the mark." Takato looked down at his stomach. Suddenly he started to frantically look around, his hands grabbing for the non-existent thing. "My phone!" He exclaimed. Rika raised an eyebrow.
"Your phone exploded." She deadpanned. He sat up quickly and eyes went wide. He winced in pain as well as an ache shot through his stomach.
"Ow. It what?"
"It exploded." Takato blinked a few times at her answer.
"How is that possible? Man, my parents are gonna be so mad…" He ran a hand through his hair in frustration, messing it up a bit. Rika sat down next to him.
"Only you would be more worried about your phone than yourself Gogglehead." She joked. "Are you okay?" She asked, the features of her face relaxing gently. Her eyes washed over Takato with concern. He blushed a little at her doting, but nodded.
"Yeah I am now...before it felt like...like my body was going to collapse in on itself. Like my stomach was a black hole and I was being sucked into it. That was why standing was so hard." He explained, rubbing his stomach unconsciously.
"A black hole?" Rika asked curiously. Her face was scrunched up, and Takato couldn't help but think it was a bit cute.
"Yeah I don't know how else to describe it...but we can talk about it more with Henry. He's probably wondering where we are." Takato stated, dismissing the situation for now. Rika nodded and helped him up. They looked at each other for a second and Takato smiled. They looked the same as ever, but different somehow. Then he looked down and noticed her shirt.
"Should I ask about the shirt with the Communist symbol on it?" He said it as gently as if he were poking a dead body with a stick.
"It was a gift from my mother." She giggled as he said it. He just shook his head and smiled again.
"Rika?" He asked.
"Yes?"
"Hi." He sounded cheerful. She laughed and smiled at him.
"Hello Gogglehead. Now c'mon." She grabbed his hand, and he almost shivered. Actually, he was pretty sure he did. They looked at each other for another second before giggling and started walking towards Henry's, together.
As soon as they arrived at Henry's the first thing Henry noticed was that Rika and Takato were holding hands. They stopped as soon as they realized that what was going on. Pushing that whole train of thought aside, because it was a train and a half at that. The next thing he noticed was Rika's new shirt, which he questioned in the same manner as Takato did. Very delicately. Henry got the same answer Takato did, and Takato could only offer him a shrug as his opinion. Henry just took it all in stride as he brought them to see Janyu in his office. His now very crowded office. Janyu proceeded to examine the cards by himself for a moment while Henry asked his friends what took them so long.
"How do I put this…the digital hazard appeared on my body. And it hurt. A lot." Takato whispered in Henry's ear, trying to keep it from Janyu's ears. Henry's eyes widened but he didn't have a chance to ask any more questions. Janyu was finished and turned his attention to the kids, giving each of them their own cards back. He sighed as he took his glasses off and cleaned them with his shirt.
"Well, all of these cards are as real as any other Digimon Card you've used in the past. They bear all of the official seals, markings and codes that they should, they have the same dimensions and measurements and the art styles are an exact match." He stated, which explained what he had been doing. "If you'd like to come to the lab with me you're more than welcome. I assume that was your plan in the first place?" His question was met with three nods. "Alright then. You remember Hypnos correct?" The children were stunned at the mention of the government organization.
"Hypnos? Why are we going there?" Henry asked immediately.
"It's the only place that has the kind of equipment that could test for what you're looking for." Janyu replied curtly. "Yamaki is interested in the cards as well." He said after a second. Yamaki didn't bother the kids so much as Hypnos did. Hypnos was still a government organization dedicated to eradicating Digimon. Yamaki had shown them he was willing to trust them and cooperate with them.
"Great. How could we forget?" Rika asked rhetorically. "Let's go then. The quicker this is over with the better." Takato and Henry nodded at her suggestion.
"Alright then follow me. We're gonna walk; it's easier than taking the train."
And so after a short walk the original Tamers found themselves inside Hypnos headquarters. It was a large circular building with all tinted windows and guard posted on every entrance. t wasn't the kind of place you just walked into. They were met out front by Yamaki, who was waiting for them when they arrived. He was dressed exactly as they remembered him, or maybe he got a new tie? This one was green. Other than that, same black suit, same black glasses, same stoic look. He approached them swiftly.
"It's a good thing you came by today. We just had an incident." He stated quickly and quietly, not showing any hint of anxiety. Straight to business as usual; classic Yamaki. Same black suit and tie same song and dance. He could at least say hi...but then again if Yamaki was even telling you something was wrong, you knew he was anxious.
"An incident?" Janyu questioned. Yamaki simply nodded as they started heading towards the building. They entered through the tinted glass doors and walked into a small office-like lobby. The walls were made of solid black marble and looked like they could even withstand a Digimon; for a little while at least. Yamaki didn't even bat an eye at the receptionist manning the desk, made of the same black marble, as they walked by. As they started to make their way through the maze of secrets that was Hypnos, they noticed that it was very drab. Gray carpets, gray wallpaper, and just about gray everything else. When they were out of earshot of anyone, he started to explain.
"Do you remember when the children were in the Digital World, and in the blink of an eye something happened and the Digital World almost collapsed on itself? When the Hazard symbols took over every electronic device?" Yamaki asked. The kid's ears perked up at the mention of the word 'hazard'. Janyu nodded, recalling the event quite easily.
"How could I forget? I thought I lost Henry and Suzie. Your theory was that some powerful Digimon caused it." Janyu recalled. Yamaki nodded.
"Yes well, whatever caused it is still a mystery to us but-"
"Was this the symbol?" Rika asked, interrupting Yamaki and holding out the Digital Hazard card. Yamaki clearly wasn't pleased with being cut off but when he saw the card his mood changed. He reached out and grabbed it, analyzing it more closely.
"Yes this is exactly it. It's also the symbol on Guilmon's chest if I'm not mistaken?" His question was met with nods. "What is it?"
"We're not really sure." Takato piped up. "But we can offer an explanation for what powerful Digimon caused whatever you're talking about." Yamaki and Janyu's attention was captured with this.
"You can? What is it?" Janyu asked curiously.
"Well, my guess is that you got those readings after I forced Guilmon to Digivolve to Megidramon." Takato looked over at Rika as he said this, and she held out one of her other cards. The Megidramon card. Yamaki took this and both he and Janyu examined it. "Megidramon is...he's the product of my anger forcing Guilmon to Digivolve, in order to inflict pain on Beelzemon. The Digital Hazard on Guilmon, or I guess I should say WarGrowlmon's chest had been activated, most likely by my anger, and helped him Digivolve. This was right after Beelzemon deleted Leomon…" He explained grimly. "When he came to be, his presence had such an effect on the Digital World that it literally started to fall apart right beneath our feet."
"It wasn't until Megidramon was defeated until everything went back to normal." Henry finished, summing up the event quite nicely. You could almost hear the cranking of the gears in Yamaki and Janyu's heads.
"I see. That does answer a few questions. But it doesn't answer any about what happened today." Yamaki stated with satisfaction. "As I said before, we had an incident this morning. Another one exactly like the one when Megidramon appeared. It didn't last for as long, but considering that there should be a barrier between the worlds right now, it's just as worrisome." The Hypnos Executive filled them in. Takato and Rika's eyes widened.
"What did you say?" Takato asked in astonishment.
"This morning, the system picked up a digital presence in the real world, resonating from somewhere in Shinjuku Park." Yamaki answered, going into slightly further detail. That did it. Apparently Hypnos had picked up on Takato's little incident this morning. Takato and Rika shared a glance, and Takato sighed.
"I...think I can offer an explanation to that too." Takato stated, his tone full of admittance. He didn't like being at the center of trouble all the time. Yamaki took his glasses off and gave Takato his attention. "This morning I was in Shinjuku Park and...well I don't really know how to explain this." He scratched the back of his head.
"The Digital Hazard appeared on Takato's body and must have caused some kind of disturbance. It also caused Takato a tremendous amount of pain, and his cell phone to explode." Rika explained. "If it were some kind of violent, destructive digital field, then it would explain why Takato's phone exploded." She added at the end. Takato looked over at Henry.
"This is what I was going to tell you before. I didn't want to make it seem like a big deal but...apparently it is." He admitted. He looked back at Janyu and Yamaki. "This is just as much of a mystery to me as it is to you, but whatever happened must have been what your sensors picked up." As he finished explaining they continued walking at Yamaki's behest.
"Well, we haven't been able to analyze exactly what happened yet, but when I get the results I can surely fill you in." Yamaki offered, eliciting a smile from the Tamer's leader. The man in the suit led them through a set of automatic doors into an office of sorts with soft yellow walls and beige carpeting. And inside were the rest of the Monster Makers, each in their own cubicle, lined up one behind the other. Janyu smiled.
"Ah, together again. Sorry to pull you from your busy lives so quickly after the last incident but there have been some interesting developments." Janyu apologized as he filled his colleagues in. He was met with smiles.
"Aw now don't be so blue Tao. You know we could never stay mad at you." Babel answered in the tender, velvety way he always did. His beard had grown out more since the last time Janyu had seen him, and it gave him an even heartier look, if that was at all possible, although his head was still as shiny as ever. He almost wanted to call him 'Grampa Babel'.
"Speak for yourself! I was on vacation in Miami!" Rob "Dolphin" McCoy shot back, though there was a grin on his face. As opposed to Babel, he had trimmed his hair, giving him a neater look.
"Swimming with the dolphins again?" Babel questioned teasingly. Janyu laughed. The rest of the programmers chuckled along with him.
"Alright guys settle down. Let me explain why we're here." At his behest, the room quieted down and the attention was on him. Janyu stole a glance at Yamaki, who simply nodded. "Alright, so as we all know, the Digimon we all came in contact with a few months ago are actually based on the children's card game and TV show; well, maybe the other way around." Janyu corrected himself. "Anyway, yesterday my son and his friends, who I'm sure you all remember, found some very interesting cards. Cards they say shouldn't even exist." At this, Janyu collected the cards from the children and spread them out on a table in the middle of the room. Immediately, the view screen at the front of the room turned on, displaying each of the cards as they lie on the table. Some new high-tech equipment for sure. "The first thing I did this morning was make sure all of the cards were real, and they're as real as rain." As the cards flashed up on the screen one by one, Daisy, one of the Monster Makers, 'hmmed' in curiosity. Her long, skinny fingers stroked her chin in thought as her blue eyes gazed at the screen.
"Didn't you tell us at one point that the red dinosaur Digimon, Guilmon, wasn't a real Digimon, and he was created from imagination?" She asked. Janyu nodded.
"Yes, this is true. But, after the D-Reaper incident, most people we're able to lay their eyes on him. And the Digimon card game makers were no exception to that. They probably saw it as an opportunity to make a quick profit. That was one of Henry's theories." Janyu went on. "So the first set of cards is the full evolution-line of Guilmon. Nothing too worrisome. But then...there's this card." Next the D-Reaper card came up on screen, and the atmosphere tensed a bit.
"Are all of our programs destined to end up on the face of a playing card?" Aishwarya "Curly" Rai questioned rhetorically. She removed her thick glasses and sighed heavily.
"It seems that way." Janyu answered. "My son and his friends said that while the Guilmon-line is being advertised, this card is not, but there are others who know of it's existence." Henry stepped forward as his father finished.
"The shopkeeper we talked to told us that the D-Reaper card and the Guilmon cards were one of a kind. The Guilmon cards were placed in one random pack across the world, while the shopkeeper had somehow managed to get his hands on the D-Reaper card. We must have opened about a hundred packs of Digimon cards to find the Guilmon cards." Henry chuckled a bit at the last part. He looked back up at his dad, who cleared his throat and continued.
"And then there's the last set of cards. The set that shouldn't exist." The Megidramon, ChaosGallantmon and Digital Hazard cards appeared on the screen now as Janyu conitinued. "These cards are the ones that really should not exist. The children say that no one should even know of Megidramon or ChaosGallantmon. Megidramon has only appeared once in the Digital World, and ChaosGallantmon has never been seen. As for the third card, you may recognize that as the symbol from Guilmon's chest." So many long winded explanations. Janyu walked over to his desk and took a sip from a cup of water. He sighed in refreshment as the rest of the group studied all of the cards.
"You're saying that no one should have known about these Digimon, not even us, and yet they still created the cards?" Dolphin questioned confusedly. Janyu nodded and Yamaki stepped forward.
"It seems that the makers of this children's game know it's more than a game too." The Hypnos executive stated flatly. The children nodded in response.
"Yeah, that actually brings up another point. Does anyone here know how the Digimon cards and show were created? Or who created them?" Takato spoke up, asking all of the programmers. "I mean, it's all based on your ideas right?" He looked around the room, meeting the eyes of all of them, but none had any spark of recollection. "No?" Takato's voice was full of disappointment. Finally, Shibumi stepped forward. He had been leaning on the wall in the corner of the room. His hair had grown longer and his beard scruffier in the past few months, and he still wore the hat that hid his face a little. He wore a white t-shirt, like when Takato and Henry had met him in the Digital World.
"I may know something about that." Takato whirled around and gazed up at the man. Everyone else slowly turned to him as well. "Well, let's just say I have some theories."
"You and your crazy theories…" Babel's voice floated across the room.
"Theories that have mostly come true." Janyu stated with a grin.
"I'm not too sure about anything yet, but I have some ideas." Shibumi said continuing on. "My first thought is that there is no 'creator' so to speak. These Digimon have always existed, within the Digital World, separate from our world. What we did, as the Monster Makers all those years ago, was give them a medium in which to come into existence here. We opened up a gateway, if you will." He explained. Everyone was enraptured. "At that point, with our worlds connected, they could start to influence each other. Now, what that entails, well, I really don't know." Shibumi shrugged and shook his head. "But the TV show and card game are most certainly a product of that influence. I can't really say any more, not having any more information to go off of."
"I've had some similar thoughts." Takato piped up. "I think that the TV show may be real." That raised a few eyebrows. Shibumi cocked his head.
"What do you mean?" He asked. He was genuinely curious.
"Well, going off of what you said, which is similar to stuff I've said to them," Takato motioned to Rika and Henry, who nodded in response, "-I think that the TV show may be another world. Another world where the Digimon made a connection with people." Shibumi's eyes widened.
"It's quite possible." The programmer said. It seemed that Takato's theory opened up a myriad of questions in Shibumi's mind. "If that were the case, then the TV show would actually be a glimpse into another realm. Amazing…" He seemed to be thinking to himself for a moment. "This requires a lot more research. It seems that the next step is to figure out how the show and game came about in our world. I'll do everything I can." He stated firmly.
"We will too." Takato agreed, matching the man's determination. Then he just chuckled and scratched the back of his head. "Except I don't really have any idea where to start…" Rika rolled her eyes and Henry just laughed at his friend. Janyu chuckled as well and walked over to Takato, putting a hand on his shoulder.
"Leave that part to us kids. With the resources of Hypnos, assuming he have the full use of them, we should be able to figure it out in no time." As he said this Janyu looked over at Yamaki, who simply nodded at him confirming his request. The kids smiled.
"Alright. Thanks dad. If you don't mind, we're gonna get out of here then." Henry stated, looking at his two comrades. "I think we have some other stuff to discuss." Henry raised an eyebrow at them. They paled a tad bit.
"Okay son, I may not make it home in time for dinner, but there's leftover stir-fry in the refrigerator. There should be plenty for all of you if you guys want to eat over." Janyu offered kindly.
"Oh I'm sure they would just love that." Henry had an amused-yet-excited look on his face. He was going to enjoy this part...
A/N: Alright, there's chapter three. Not as exciting as the first two in my opinion but it needed to be there. So, the first thing I'd like to say is just something that's on my mind about Fanfiction as a whole. It seems to me that when I write it, it's easy and simple enough to leave description out. I think one of the reasons why there's never much imagery in my stories is because I learned to write with Fanfiction, and with fanfiction there's a certain amount of...assumption that goes on. For instance, while in the first chapter I described Takato's look, I glossed over Rika's and I haven't really even described any other character. And the settings are more or less bland. Because I assume you already know what it looks like. Because you honestly probably do because why would you be reading a Digimon Tamers story if you didn't like Digimon Tamers? It makes sense that I can assume things, but that doesn't mean I should. it's something I need to work on, so I may go back over these 1st 3 chapters real quick and add a descriptive layer to them. I'd like to get better at that. Tell me what you guys think.
As for the story, give it like two or three more episodes, or chapters I should say, and it will pick up. Both the adventure and the Rukato. I'm gonna have to throw Jeri in there at some point too, but so far I've done a pretty good job of keeping the other characters out, which was my intent all along. No offense to them, but they all just got in the way. Like all the time. Seriously Kenta and Kazu are useless in a fight. Suzie has no idea what she's doing and Jeri has no Digimon anymore. Only Ryo was useful but, I don't really like his character. Eh, whatever. Anyway thanks for reading and hopefully I'll see you soon. Spread the love.
Ok so I'm writing this last paragraph a week after I wrote everything above it. This is what happens people. Highs and lows are crazy. Basically what happened was I went back over it to add in the aforementioned descriptive elements, and I got bored of it. I'm not trying to be like Tolkien or anything, but I'd like to paint a fairly pretty picture in your head. So please, tell me what you thought about all of the description. I went back over it two times over the course of the last week or so and added what I could but I don't know. I think I may have to start going back over it a couple times. I need to get better at imagery. That and learn some damn patience. Alright, spread the love. Thanks again.
