Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon

(A/N: School. God damn it. Hate it. Sorry for the long update.)

Chapter 4: Suspension

"Power is not a means, it is an end. One does not establish a dictatorship in order to safeguard a revolution; one makes the revolution in order to establish the dictatorship." -George Orwell

The trees blew as the wind meandered along, picking up the dying, colored leaves that so decorated the season known as Fall. Flowers and other plants, pointing at the burning sun, were knocked off course, the breeze pushing the stems off. The wind was powerful indeed, as it blew down towards a beaten path.

A semi-line of human beings formed in front of the massive, brown-brick building, seeking shelter under the trees that were align along the path leading towards the building, providing shade from the burning sun. The breeze noted how such humans, dressed in black suits, that defied its might, cowered at the burning eye of the sun. And they would wilt under its power as well. It was this building, or school, as the humans called it, that the breeze flowed towards. It moved with power and strength, turning leaves and blowing hair, gathering more and more strength as it flew through the teeming masses of humans, its speed building as it blew through and-

"GOD DAMN IT!"

Takato Matsuki sighed, bending down to pick up Kazu Shioda's lost hat. "Wind blew your hat off again?" He asked, returning the lost possession to its owner.

Kenta Kitagawa turned his head, his face reproachful. "You don't have to get all angry over something that small Kazu," He admonished, readjusting his glasses.

Kazu huffed, his black eyes burning with annoyance. He swiped his hat from Takato's hand and shoved it back on his head, glaring at Kenta. "It's not the stupid wind! The wind's weak! It's the fact that we have to waste a Saturday morning taking some stupid math test! Spending half the time on a freaking long bus ride! Standing in this damn line that ain't moving in these damn school uniforms in 32 degrees!"

Kazu stopped for a moment to wearily rub his eyes before continuing his tirade; "And we were up all morning at that damn Tamer meeting! Couldn't we wave our Tamer rights or something to get out or take this test later?"

Kenta yawned; "You know, the Americans would say its 90 degrees Fahrenheit. You should start talking in Fahrenheit because we're probably going to have know how to convert Celsius on the test."

Kazu glared at Kenta, causing Kenta to chuckle and look back towards the front of the line All Takato could do was sigh again, running his hand through his hair. Kazu was not alone; Takato was also exhausted and burning up in this damn school uniform, and he was sure Kenta was as well, if his constant yawning gave any clue. Hypnos II made an effort to have these meetings at timely intervals, but when they could not, they made sure to inform their school and postpone any test that the Tamers were about to take.

But the last meeting was an emergency meeting set up by that G-Woman regarding their apparent abandonment of Rika. And while Takato didn't know what happen to Rika, he had a vibe that the G-Woman was the kind of person who would still punish Takato and the other Tamers, despite doing no wrong.

The G-Woman. Just thinking of her gave Takato the chills. Never before had he met someone that seemed so...intimidating! In appearance, she was just a regular, average woman who wore a fancy tuxedo-like dress. She was just like any other female agent that Takato had across of, complete with shades to hide the identity of the woman.

Yet, it was those shades that seemed to pierce Takato soul. They should have acted as a veil for the eyes of the woman, but to Takato, they seemed only to enhance the woman's eyes; an odd idea, since he had never the woman before last night and therefore would not know what her eyes looked like. It was all in a weird vibe Takato had, the same vibe that told Takato that the government was not delaying this test because of the G-Woman.

Come to think of it, Takato realized that he had been having a lot of weird vibes lately. Not only with this G-Woman, but there was the sudden drop in temperature when Takato was waiting for a ride to Hypnos II's transportation to arrive. Takato wasn't sure if he imagined it or not, but it still was odd. And there was the moving of test locations...

The test that Kazu was complaining about, and all these students were waiting outside a large building, was a national exam that all Japanese students were required to take. It was done annually, its official purpose to keep the students sharp. But everyone knew it was actually a test to see how well the students of Japan were doing in comparison to other countries. It was just one of those things that people knew but never talked about. Not like Takato really mind; he was an average student who aimed to finish the test simply to draw Digimon pictures or just think. What he did mind, however, was that while his school did not require them to wear school uniforms, at an event like this where other schools would be at the locations, school uniforms were required to show their school spirit. This meant that the students had to stand in black and red tuxedo-like suits, topped with stiff black pants. Combined with this weather, it was a terrible experience.

But Takato didn't mind that either; it was only the burning weather that was bad. The uniform itself actually looked pretty good, and made Takato feel smart. No, this feeling of apprehension came from the change in test locations. Normally, Takato and the others took it in the school they normally go to. However, at the age of fourteen and looking towards high school, students were required to take a test that needed materials that only certain schools had. Takato's school had these materials...or use to. Someone had stolen all the supplies, most likely as an attempt to avoid the test. While this would have been great, it failed, as the students were simply sent to another school. All the thief did was force the students to wake up earlier, for the closest school with the necessary materials was at least half an hour from Takato's own school. Takato couldn't help but have a bad feeling about this...

"Oi, Takato."

Takato jolted, realizing he had zoned out; something he had been doing a lot lately. And most of the time it was thinking about a certain someone. Takato wondered what was up-there he went again. Zoning out. Mentally shaking himself, he turned his head looked at Kazu, replying, "Yeah?"

Kazu rolled his eyes and pointed in front of Takato. Takato looked forward and realized from Kenta waving at him from a distance that the line of students was moving. Grinning sheepishly, he ran up and the line behind him followed. Kenta laughed and jeered, "Way to pay attention Takato."

Takato only shrugged. "You know, I wonder what happen to Rika-"

"God damn it Takato," Kazu exclaimed, whacking him on the back of the head. "You've said that almost a million times, and every single time, either Kenta or me say we don't know. Jeez, we'll find out after we finish this stupid test."

Kenta pushed his glasses up, looking straight in Takato's eyes. "Yeah," Kenta cried, voicing his affirmation of Kazu's statement. "Why are you so impatient to know what's going on with Rika?"

"Uh..." Takato stammered, his face turning red.

"Its cause Takato has a crush on Rika!" Kazu shouted, drawing many stares from the other students nearby. He ignored them, singing, "Takato and Rika sitting in a tree; K-I-S-S-I-N-G,"

"I do not!" Takato shouted back, his face crimson with embarrassment and anger, as Kenta and Kazu roared with laughter. "God, you guys are impossible!"

Takato pushed his way up the line, getting away from Kazu and Kenta's raucous laughs. Kazu and Kenta were great friends, but they could get really immature and annoying. But Takato couldn't deny it; it certainly seemed like he had a crush on Rika. Even with his denials, Takato could not ignore that he really wanted to finish this test, not to draw more Digimon pictures, but to see what happen to Rika. He wondered where she was now, on this hot, Saturday morning. Unlike the rest of the main Tamers, Rika went to a private school. They had taken a slightly different test two weeks ago, so she was probably outside, enjoying her Saturday morning, listening to her I-Pod...


I wish I was outside, enjoying my Saturday morning, listening to my I-Pod.

Rika Nonaka sighed; if wishes were horses, all beggars would ride. And last she had seen, the beggars were still horseless.

She was laying on her bed, belly-side down, reading the Tamer Progress Report written by Jeri Katou; or at least trying too. Everytime Rika read the title of the progress report, she kept thinking back to the interrogation that very morning...


A couple hours earlier...

On the outside, Rika looked perfectly fine. Her demeanor remained calm and solid, the only inclination that Rika heard the G-Woman was the slight raise in her thin eyebrows, the slight dilation of her black pupils in her lavender eyes and the slight bounce in Rika's ponytail as her ear twitched an inscrutable amount. But that was only to the eye of an outside observer.

Inside was a turbulent storm of emotion. Shock went through Rika entire body like the waves created by a dropping a stone in a pond. She felt small, insignificant. She felt terrible, ashamed of her actions. She felt terror at the words confiscation. She couldn't think; to lose Renamon was like losing her right arm, nay part of her soul. She didn't even know the government could do this to them. Her mind reeled, as the final statement of the G-Woman played in her head over and over again: Rika Nonaka will no longer be a Tamer.

Her voice broke out from her closed lips, calm and steady, a complete contrast to the turmoil going inside. "Complete removal of all my Tamer rights?" Rika questioned.

The G-Woman nodded, and suddenly Rika's turmoil of emotion was blown away with anger. To be a Tamer was not a little, petty rank given by the government; this program was set up after she became Tamer. No, she was CHOSEN to be a Tamer, and not chosen by any human, but the Digital gnomes that rule the backdrop of the Digital World. Her D-Arc and Renamon were NOT little things the government could take as they please, and she would be damned if-

"But-" The G-Woman's cold voice broke through Rika's thoughts. Rika looked up and starred at her reflection in the black shades of the G-Woman. "The decision is not mine to make."

Rika mind froze. "What?"

The G-Woman shuffled her papers as she spoke; "I can merely recommend the punishment. I do not have the authority to decide what your punishment should be. That decision lies upon the head of the disciplinary branch of Hypnos II. However, I am sure my recommendation will be realized by Agent Fanatikku."

Roiyaru Fanatikku. Rika mentally trembled. She had befriended the massive man and knew there would be no mercy for her. Fanatikku was a man who believed in strict discipline, with no room for error or complaint. Orders were to be followed when given, no questions asked. That also applied to Fanatikku himself, and as this G-Woman was from the government inspection department, she had no doubt that Fanatikku would view her "recommendation" as an order; a correct assumption too, as recommendations from the inspection department were essentially orders, as they decided whether one keeps their job or not. And when she was being pinned down for insubordination...

She starred at the interrogation table and reached down to her belt, gripping her D-Arc with trembling hands. Might as well turn in it now; she was going to be banned.


Roiyaru Fanatikku saw Rika place her hand upon her D-Arc, ready to hand it in. She expected him to agree with the G-Woman, and ban her permanently from all Tamer programs. And he would normally agree; Fanatikku had worked with Kim Duong before, and while they were not friends, Fanatikku held a high level of respect for her and her decisions. She had proven numerous times before how wise her decisions were.

But this time he didn't agree. As he looked at the red-spiked, teenage girl, Fanatikku felt a wave of emotion crash through his body. It was as if he had been shocked, and the current ran down his body, as he saw, not the proud, rebellious Tamer that he had been so accustomed to. He saw only the young, teenage girl with an extremely mature and adult task placed upon her. He saw a tomboy, a child going through the bumpy area of life known as puberty, confused by new emotions flowing through her. And from all this, Fanatikku felt pity.

Pity? No, it wasn't pity. Fanatikku knew what pity was. Pity was when one stood over a broken, defeated enemy in a war, their life in your hands. He was accustomed to pity; he had stood over many broken opponents and felt that emotion before squelching it and crushing the life out of his enemies. But that was only in war. No, this emotion that rose from Fanatikku's stomach and pierced his heart was another emotion he had not experienced before.

Affection.

Fanatikku blinked. Yes, that was the word; affection. Fanatikku was an only child when he was a boy, and had lived in a neighborhood with no other children. He had friends in school, but not in the sense of close friends that he maintained communication with. He gained closer friends in life, but that was only because it's hard not to bond with the man fighting next to you for his own and your survival. Those friends were soldiers as well, like Fanatikku, and he had respect and loyalty to them, but certainly not affection. No, affection wasn't something that could be applied to friends. It was an emotion applied to someone younger than you, someone you looked over like a child.

Fanatikku was a single man, and therefore had no children. But as Fanatikku thought about, when he was around Rika Nonaka, he sometimes wondered; was this what it was like to have a child?

Because if it was...he liked it.


"I do not agree Miss. Duong," Fanatikku's deep voice boomed out, addressing the G-Woman by her name.

Rika's looked up with such speed, her neck cracked slightly. She ignored it as her eyes and pupils dilated; Fanatikku, the loyal Enforcer of the Hypnos II branch, the one who valued obedience and the chain of command as if they were the building blocks of foundations, disagreeing with a government inspector? She was surprised, no she was more than surprised, she was dumbfounded. This was a bombshell for Rika...and apparently for every other occupant in the room of three people, Rika and Fanatikku included. For due to the speed that Rika had pulled her head up, she had seen the reaction of the G-Woman upon hearing Fanatikku's profound statement.

A tick.

It was only for a split second, but Rika saw it. The G-Woman had moved a minuscule amount for an infinitesimal period of time, but it was enough for Rika to know; the G-Woman was as shocked as she was at Fanatikku's declaration and disagreement with her recommendation. And although Rika knew she didn't deserve it, she couldn't help but smirk that the "emotionless" G-Woman was knocked off guard by a loyal official over an "insubordinate" girl like her.

You can't predict everything about me! Rika crowed mentally.

The G-Woman continued the interrogation. "What will the punishment be then, Mr. Fanatikku?" She asked, her voice as cold and emotionless as it always was.

Fanatikku frowned slightly at the change in title from 'Agent Fanatikku' to 'Mr. Fanatikku'. He replied, "Miss. Nonaka here has been a talented and hard-working Tamer, one of the four Tamers to enter into the depths of the monster known as the D-Reaper. She has demonstrated loyalty to the government and a firm belief in justice, never once backing down from her duty and responsibility to utilize her power and partner to protect and better the people of Japan and mankind. While her actions, especially in relation with the Elektra Incident were erroneous and deserving punishment, I do not believe that she should not be forgiven; after all everyone makes mistakes

"There is also a much larger problem that overshadows Rika's actions; the number of Tamers, or lack of. There are currently only seven full-fledged Tamers, with only six of them able to actively seek and destroy Wild Ones. Of those six, only Rika and three other Tamers have successfully bio-merged with her Digimon to become Mega-level Digimon and achieve a higher state of power. Additionally, at this moment, we have only two of those four Tamers in the city now; Rika and Takato. If we were to permanently ban or remove Rika's partner for a long period of time, we would only have one Bio-Tamer left to defend against higher-level emergences."

Fanatikku leaned closer to the table and the recorder, making his voice louder to emphasis the point. "So far we have only had rookies realize into this plane of existence. But as we have seen before with the failure of the Juggernaut problem, higher-level Digimon are able to cross into this realm. And I have no doubt they will come. It will those times we will need Tamers like Rika to combat them."

The G-Woman remained impassive. "Well said. But what will the punishment be then, Mr. Fanatikku?"

Fanatikku's reply was immediate; "Two week suspension from all Tamer duties without pay. Rika will be allowed to keep her D-Arc, but she will not be allowed on Hypnos II grounds or to respond to any Realizations. Furthermore, Renamon, Rika's partner, will be restricted from leaving Hypnos II ground, and Rika from entering Hypnos II territory."

Then, to Rika's surprise, the G-Woman nodded and replied, "Good." She pulled out a stamp and whacked a piece of paper and stood up and handed it to Fanatikku. Rika managed to get a glanced at it and saw that it was her profile sheet with the words Punishment Approved stamped in red at the top. The G-Woman walked back to her seat and spoke to the recorder.

"This was the interrogation of Rika Nonaka, questioned by Agent Duong and witnessed by Agent Fanatikku. For tampering with life-dependent materials, recklessness, and being a danger to those around her, Rika will be punished with a two-week suspension from Tamer activities. This ends the interrogation and court-martial of Rika Nonaka."

Click

The G-Woman turned off the recorder and Rika let out her breath, which she suddenly realized she had been holding. She starred at the table, letting what had just happen run through her head a couple of times; she had been lucky; lucky to befriend Fanatikku. Lucky that Fanatikku had disagreed with the G-Woman. A two week suspension was alright; Renamon needed the rest anyway. God, she couldn't stress what a lucky break this was.

Oh well...Rika thought to herself, smiling. Every great fighter must have a little bit of luck.

"Rika Nonaka."

Rika tensed up and her smile froze; the voice that had spoken her name was cold, colder than any other voice Rika had heard before. It was like a sharp knife that cut through the air and made it twenty degrees below freezing. It was as if a piercing wind had flown through the room, causing Rika to shiver; her body was suddenly numb, as chills ran up and down her spine. Rika slowly looked up
at the source of the voice.

It was the G-Woman, looking unchanged and emotionless as she starred at Rika through her dark shades. Yet at the same time, she didn't look the same. She look different, as if she had undergone some kind of transformation, but not one that changed her physical features, yet still changed her somehow. Rika didn't know what had changed in her, what the G-Woman had done, but it was powerful. So powerful, that it caused a feeling in her gut that pulled and tightened its grip upon her. It was this feeling that forced her to stare into the dark, depths of the glasses that hid the G-Woman's eyes. It was a feeling that could destroy even the strongest man, even a man as strong as Fanatikku, a feeling that could break any human, animal, or Digimon.

It was fear.

The G-Woman smiled, a smile with plenty of teeth, that sent multiple shivers down Rika's spine. "I see that Fanatikku has lessened my punishment down to two weeks. Congratulations on your reprieve. How do you feel?"

Rika opened her mouth, but no words came out as she trembled under the gaze and voice of this G-Woman. "You must feel special to have escape with a lesser punishment," The G-Woman continued. "Because now you don't have to face the consequences of your actions. The kind of feeling a school student gets when he or she gets away with breaking the rules, right?"

The G-Woman leaned closer. "But this isn't school or a game, little Rika. This is real life. You are not special. You are simple a little girl who has given a destructive power. And people get hurt in real life. People die in real life. Like in the Elektra Incident."

Rika pupils dilated as the screams of the people getting crushed in the earthquake played in her ears. The screams that weren't of fear or pain, but that of a person waking from a nightmare, only to find the nightmare is not a creation of one's subconscious mind, but that of painful reality...

The Elektra Incident. All her fault. A fog of despair seemed to float in front of Rika's eyes, clouding and obscuring her vision. Rika left out a shaky breath, trying to calm herself But the G-Woman wasn't finished.

She walked around the table and leaned her head next to her ear, whispering, "And next time, and there WILL be a next time, your punishment won't be decided by a fool who's befriend you. Next time, I will decide your punishment. Next time, you will receive what you deserve; you and your friends are foolish, immature children who have been given a power that is too large for you."

And then the G-Woman whispered directly into her ear, "Count on it."

"That's enough Kim."

Rika felt a heavy hand on her right shoulder; she numbly looked up to see Fanatikku starring at G-Woman with an odd expression on his face, an expression that seemed to be a mixture of surprise and disgust, as if Fanatikku was seeing a side that he had not, nor ever wanted to see.

The G-Woman straightened up and smooth out her suit. "Of course. My apologies Miss. Nonaka," She said, her voice back to her normal, emotionless, flat tone. Rika nodded numbly as she starred at the opposite wall, unable to meet the lenses of the G-Woman. Her mouth formed the words of acceptance but no sound came out.

"I will take my leave now; I have more work to do. Good day Fanatikku," The G-Woman nodded to Fanatikku, who did not nod back, as he continued to stare at the G-Woman oddly. The G-Woman ignored his gaze, snapped her suitcase shut, and promptly left the interrogation room.

Plink

A drop of water fell upon Rika's right knuckle, shaking her out of her shock. She looked down, confused; where had the water come from?

Then the numbness disappeared from her body and she realized where the source of the water was; her eye. A single tear had fallen from her right eye, sliding down her face and falling onto her hand. She slowly whipped her wet cheek; even though it was only one tear, she couldn't remember the last time she had cried. What kind of woman was that lady...?

Her heart suddenly locked up as her ice cage rose around it and protected her from danger. She mentally shook herself; it did not matter what kind of woman that G-Woman was, she was already in the past and gone. She stood up and turned to Fanatikku, her face expressionless, as she calmly stated, in a neutral and emotionless voice, "Thanks Fanatikku, for changing the punishment."

Fanatikku rose an eyebrow at the sudden change in Rika's attitude; one second she seemed shell-shock, the next perfectly normal. How odd. He cleared his throat and looked into Rika's eyes through his shades. "What I said was what I believe you truly deserved. You simply made a mistake; I do not think you deserved to be punished for life for one mistake.

"However, you need to be more careful. I know all of you Tamers are teenagers now, and are going through a hard time right now. You're at the stage of life when everything starts changing, both physically and mentally, and it's hard to adjust. But the G-Woman was right when she said you guys have been given a power that really shouldn't be handled by children. You need to cease your insubordination Rika."

Rika glared at Fanatikku. "I'm not being insubordinate."

Fanatikku gave a humorous nod. "You're going through the rebellious stage of teenagers-"

"No I'm not." Rika replied instantly.

Fanatikku chuckled. "You're acting pretty rebellious now, you know that?"

"You're acting like an asshole, you know that?"

Fanatikku's face hardened and he admonish, in a hard voice, "Watch your tongue, young lady."

Rika continued glaring at him. "Not until you watch yours, Mr. You're-the-only-one-who-lost-her-Digimon."

Fanatikku face softened and he shifted uneasily a bit. "I know I shouldn't have said to Miss. Katou. Could you give my apologies to her?"

Rika walked past Fanatikku and stopped at the exit door. "Tell Jeri yourself." She snapped, before walking away, leaving Fanatikku alone with his own thoughts.


Damn. As Rika thought about, maybe she shouldn't have been so rude to Fanatikku; after all, he had turned a life-time ban to a two week suspension. Still, Fanatikku's comment to Jeri had been an extremely low blow, and she had been extremely angry at the end of that damn interrogation.

Angry? Rika suddenly realized she hadn't been angry. She had been...frightened?

Nah, what am I thinking? Rika admonished herself. Frightened...hah!

Still, Rika could not deny that the G-Woman had freaked her out. Her voice, so cold and chilly, was like a knife plunged into her chest. It was like a chilling wind that had completely numbed her body, and-

Rika panned her eyes downward and looked at the Tamers Progress Report, trying to distract herself. She didn't want to remember her encounter with the G-Woman. On the contrary, she wanted to burn it from her memory, and never meet that freaky woman again.

Rika sighed. There she went again, getting distracted. Since she was suspended from Tamer activities, Rika thought she might as well read the report complied by Jeri Katou on the current Tamer situation, something she had never found the time to do before (though Rika knew deep down that it had more to do with the fact that she really didn't want to read the long and boring reports about something she could just go out and fight...but she digress). She opened the packet and flipped to a random page.

TRAINS (Teimāzu Reasoning Analytical Informative Neurological System)

Section 1: Understanding Digimon

No one knows who the first Tamer was; Digimon and Tamer have appeared in other countries besides Japan, making it impossible to know for sure who was the first to receive their D-Arc. However, due to power influxes read by Hypnos I and other countries counterpart departments, we do know that the first three Tamers to digivolve their Digimon are residing and protecting Japan as we speak.

These power fluxes are the byproduct of rapidly changing data, evolving and changing form and retrogressing back to machine language. It is this data that makes up Digimon and the Digital World, the data that defines their every actions and thoughts. They hold the key to understanding Digimon, holding every single piece of data that composes Digimon. However, reading this data is not an easy task; it can not be manipulated, intercepted, or molded by any outside force to change its original composition. It is essentially untouchable and unreadable, only detectable in great burst.

Or so it was thought. Gorou Mizuno aka. Shibumi, the lead programmer of the Monster Makers, did not agree. In the time he spent in the Digital World, Shibumi delved into the great depths that made up the D-Arc. Although he only scratched the surface of the device, he discovered enough to design a program to detect and rudimentally compile the data that made up the Digimon and their world. The idea was to be able to understand and predict every action and though in the Digital World.

This goal has not been reached, and most likely will not be reached until millennium later; Digital monster are essentially living, sentient creatures, much like humans, except composed of data. We have not discovered every single aspect and function of the human body; what chance do we have of a huge Digital race, composed of billions of different individual creatures with their own unique build-up, constantly changing and evolving? However, Shibumi's research was not wasted; for in it, a machine was created; TRAINS.

Section 2: The Tamer connection

A knock on the door caused Rika to jump; she hadn't heard any footsteps towards the door. She had expected this Tamer report to be incredibly boring, but she was finding herself highly interested in the information it contained. Unusual, as Rika was exactly fond of reading, but then again, this packet contained very essential knowledge to Digimon Tamers. Plus, Jeri was a pretty good a writer.

Another knock elicited a, "Come in" from Rika. The door slide opened, revealing Rika's grandmother, Seiko Hata. She was an old woman with grey hair hanging loosely in its short cut. Age lines wrinkled across the woman's kind face, and her blue eyes twinkled with a spark often found in the eyes of those much younger then this woman.

"You don't have to knock, Grandma," Rika said, sitting up. Rika's grandmother was the only other soul in the house, with Renamon at Hypnos II and her mother preparing for some concert. Rika's relation with her mother had improved immensely after the D-Reaper incident, but it was Seiko that Rika was closest to. After all, it was Seiko that had taken care of Rika ever since her father had left; she was the one Rika felt most comfortable with, even more than when her father had taken care of her. If there was anyone that knew Rika, it was Rika's grandmother.

"I thought you needed some time alone. I wanted to give you the option of turning me away if necessary," Seiko stated calmly, entering the room.

Rika turned slightly red from a combination of shame and guilt. When Rika had returned to Hypnos II, her grandmother had been awake, waiting for her to return. Rika loved her grandma immensely, but it was only at times like these that Rika truly appreciated how calm and patient Seiko was, her age tempering her temper. Rika had informed her Seiko of her actions, leaving nothing out, the truth spilling out of her like water from a pitcher. She, however, could not continue when it came to telling Seiko of her punishment, and had settled with giving the government paper detailing the outlines of her disciplinary action.

Her grandmother had read the paper dictating the details of her suspension, and instead of becoming enraged, Seiko had sighed and told Rika to go to bed; which Rika had done so quite willingly, being tired and glad to leave the room. Rika hoped she wouldn't need to talk about the punishment, but clearly it was a foolish dream.

But Rika wasn't one to give up that easily. "Are you leaving?" She asked, indicating to her grandmother's attire. Seiko, being the epitome of stay-home woman, was almost always garbed in a cooking apron. However, at the moment, she was dressed in a simple, but formal, blue dress.

"Yes, I'm on my way to the airport. My flight to Sendai will be leaving in about two hours," Seiko replied, in a tone that showed she was clearly not fooled by Rika's attempt to change the subject. Seiko had received a message from her brother in Sendai, Rika's great-uncle, that he was sick. Her grandmother, the senior of the family, had booked a flight to Sendai and would be traveling there to take care of her brother until he recovered. This was good for Seiko, as she had not seen her brother in a week. However, this was bad for Rika, as it left her by herself with her mother. And while Rika loved her mother, things were a bit tense between them ever since her mother's decision...

"But that's not what I came here to discuss," Seiko continued. Rika made a grimace; she tried. Her grandmother ignored her scowl; "I came here to talk about why you threw your life and Renamon's in such great peril."

Annoyance crept onto Rika's face as her scowl deepened. She didn't want to talk about this. "Look, I don't know why I did it! I guess I did it because I just wanted to fight! Or because I'm going through a 'phase'!"

Seiko made no indication to Rika's outburst. She walked and sat down next to Rika, putting her arms around her, in the form of a hug. Rika made no response, except to pointedly turn her head from her grandmother. "Rika, I know you're angry about your mother's decision-"

Rika scowled even more; as if Grandma needed to remind her about things to come. Her grandmother continued, "And your mother did act a bit rashly-" Damn right she did! Rika shouted mentally. "-But you don't need to prove yourself to anyone."

"I'm not trying to prove myself at all!" Rika suddenly snapped, suddenly turning her head and glaring at her grandmother.

Seiko soft face filled Rika's eyes, the surprise on her face only outdone by the surprise on Rika's own face. The scowl was gone, replaced with an expression of confusion; Rika's outburst had surprised even herself. She had been perfectly fine a second ago, and then suddenly she was enraged beyond all means. What is up with me? Rika thought confused.

Rika looked down at her feet, ashamed. Her grandmother was the one person in her entire world that remained at her side, looking out for her. She was trying to help; why did Rika feel so angry? "Sorry," Rika mumbled to her feet.

Seiko demonstrated her amazing patience by smiling and hugging Rika more tightly. This time, Rika did not ignore her, but snugged in closer. Seiko's body was extremely warm and comfortable. It reminded her, inexplicably, of a person she once knew.

Her father...

Rika must have tensed up, because Seiko released her hold of Rika and stood up. "Well, I must go now. Try not to fight too much with your mother."

Rika smiled, hiding her disappointment at the ending of the hug. "It'll be difficult, but I'll try my hardest. No promises though."

"Well promise me one thing Rika."

Rika looked up; her grandmother's voice was serious. "What?" She asked, cautiously.

"Do not leave this home to fight Digimon."

Rika burst out into wild laughter. "Oh, that's all? Ha! You don't have to worry!" She managed to say in-between her laughs.

"I do worry Rika," Seiko said, her voice serious. Rika's laughs subsided as she looked even more warily at her grandmother. "Promise me that you won't go and fight. Please."

Rika's was shocked; there was undertone of pleading in her grandmother's voice that she had never heard before. Seiko's blue eyes looked into her own, pleading for her to heed her words. "I promise Grandma." Rika declared.

Seiko face broke into a smile. "Now give your grandmother a good-bye hug!"

She held her arms out. Rika laughed happily; she jumped up and hugged her grandmother, tightly before untangling herself. Seiko patted her on the cheek, and then exit the room. Rika ran to the door and popped her head out, shouting down the hallway, "Say 'hi' to great-uncle for me!"

"I will!" Her grandmother shouted over her shoulder, before disappearing around the corner. A few minutes later, the slam of the front door closing could be heard. Rika closed her own room door, the joy in her face gone as she lay back on her bed. It was replaced by a pensive look, as Rika reflected her grandmother's worry.

Why did she make me promise not to fight Digimon? I can't anyone, since I'm suspended, and I wouldn't do it because I'll just get in trouble again. Also, more importantly, Renamon needs her rest.

Rika stretched her arms and legs out, groaning as her sore body protested the motion. She needed some rest as well; she had barely gotten any sleep last night. Picking up the Tamer Report packet from her bed, she absentmindedley placed it on her desk; her mind was filled with thoughts about her grandmother's odd request.

Well, it's not really that odd, Rika realized, as she laid in her bed. Her grandmother was probably just worried about her that's all. Yeah, that was probably it.

Rolling over in her mat, Rika's exhausted mind quickly fell asleep, leaving doubts behind as she entered the world of dreams.


The room was tense.

The massive red dinosaur-like Digimon known as Guilmon stood at the table, foregoing the chair. He was about five and a half feet, but only if he stood erect. He was hunched over slightly, making him relatively the same height as his partner Takato. His massive tail lay curled around his feet, and the Digital Hazard symbol that marked the middle of his chest was partly obscured by the edge of the large, steel black table. A small huff could be heard as he breathed out of nostrils, two tiny puffs of smoke flying out.

Guilmon's feral yellow eyes narrowed, his black pupils glaring at the other three Digimon that stood or sat the table. He focused in on the Digimon to his immediate left; a huge Guardromon stood. The robotic Digimon was even larger than Guilmon, even when Guilmon stood at his fullest height, and his body was a great deal more massive. His entire body was composed of solid steel, with two rocket jets mounted upon his back. He too stood, for it was more comfortable and there were no chairs in the direct vicinity large or strong enough to hold his large bulk.

Guilmon shifted his gaze to the Digimon next to him. At first glance, one would think he was the Digimon Impmon, the digital partner of the toddler Tamers, Ai and Mako. The mistake was understandable; after all the Digimon was an Impmon. He looked exactly like an Imp, with the same purple fur and point ears as the known Impmon. He had the pointed ears and short tail that barely manage to reach down to his feet.

Yet there were key differences between this Impmon and the Impmon that could reach the level of Beelzemon. Whereas that Impmon was garbed in a red bandana and red gloves, this Impmon had black mittens. Instead of a red bandana, this Impmon had a thick woolen scarf wrapped around his neck. It was composed of blue and black stripes.

This Scarf Impmon, who preferred to call himself Zurui, was one of the new rookie's partners. He had become a partner to his equally new Tamer, Akira, two months ago. Guilmon had not met Zurui's Tamer yet; in fact, it was two weeks ago when Guilmon had met Zurui, and confused him with Impmon. However, two weeks was more than enough time to realize how different Zurui was from Impmon. While Impmon was loud and rude, Zurui was soft-spoken and very polite. He was easy to befriend and was a great Digimon to hang around. Guilmon liked him

Guilmon turned his gaze to the last occupant at the table; Calumon. He was the smallest Digimon currently in the room, though only Zurui was only a little bit taller than him. However, his short stature only aided him; combined with his soft, white fur and his huge green eyes, he was the epitome of cuteness. While most others wish for such beauty to attract the opposite sex, for Calumon, it was a necessity; he had no fighting skills at all. Luckily, thanks to his cuteness and his ability to digivolve other Digimon, he was protected by the Tamers.

Or at least Hypnos II. Guilmon and the others would protect Calumon even if he didn't have those abilities; they had already proven that by adventuring into the digital world to rescue Calumon without knowing that it was he that held the power to digivolution. They did it because he was their friend.

And he was Guilmon's friend especially; he was really fun to play with! This was why Guilmon narrowed his eyes even more at Calumon, who's normally large ears were small, his large eyes squinted as he starred at Guilmon back.

Guilmon growled. The nerve of Calumon! It was time to crush him.

"Do you have any threes Calumon?" Asked Guilmon.

Calumon's ears grew as he smiled. "Goldfish!" Calumon replied in a sing-song voice.

Guilmon groaned as he reached a claw out to draw a card. He had two cards left, both of them "threes". All he needed was two more threes, and then he would win Goldfish for the first time! Guardromon had won three games, Zurui five games, and Calumon eight games. Guilmon had never been this close before, and now he had to draw another card.

He picked up the card. A three.

Guilmon couldn't help it. He shouted in delight, "YIPPIE I CAN STILL WIN!"

"SHHHHHH!"

Simultaneously, Guardromon and Calumon bent over the table, brought a finger to their mouth, and hushed Guilmon. Guilmon gave a look of confusion then glanced over Guardromon's shoulder.

Renamon was standing a bit of distance away from Guardromon, leaning against the wall with her eyes close. Renamon had done this many times before; whenever the Digimon met together to play cards, Renamon would always lean against a wall and close her eyes, pretending to sleep. Though the rookies like Zurui were fooled, Guilmon and the Main Digimon knew that Renamon wasn't actually sleeping. She was either meditating or simply listening to the conversations.

Today was not one of those times. Guilmon knew Renamon enough now to know when she was meditating and when she was sleeping. And right now, she was out cold.

"Oh. Sorry" Guilmon whispered, shrinking a little.

A look of confusion crossed Zurui's face. "Wait a minute. She is asleep now? I was lead to believe Renamon only simulated sleep during the day."

Guardromon turned to Zurui, "You didn't hear about what happened?"

Zurui shook his head. "I apologize; my partner and I are one of the lower Tamers. We do not receive the same information as you. Could you tell me what has transpired?"

Guilmon cut in before Guardromon could speak. "Let's talk about something else," Guilmon's normally childish voice was unnaturally serious. He gave a pointed stare at Zurui, continuing, "It's Renamon's business."

An awkward silence filled the air, as Zurui shifted uneasily under the fierce gaze of Guilmon. Guardromon looked bewildered, his head turning from Guilmon and Zurui back, confused as to when Guilmon had become this serious. Guilmon ignored Guardromon's moving head, and continue to stare at a nervous Zurui, who tried to avoid eye contact.

After what seemed like an eternity, Calumon suddenly spoke, breaking the silence. "Poor Renamon," He said, his ears shrinking. He looked down sad for a few moments before looking up and stretching out his ears. "But she wouldn't want us to fight over her problems, right?"

Guilmon blinked, looking over at Calumon as he starred directly at him, his green eyes stretched to their maximum length, providing a frightening image. Guilmon mentally shook at the sight, but nodded on the outside. "You're right Calumon." He looked at Zurui again. "I believe it's your turn Zurui."

Zurui face broke into a smile, obviously relieved that the awkward silence had been broken and Guilmon had stopped starring at him. He picked up his cards and the game continued.


He entered the dark building, breathing in the air that was instilled in this place. It was dimly lit by a four flaming fires that hung in the air with no visible support; it was simply fire hovering about five feet above the dusty ground. These floating fires hung in four corners, forming a square.

He stepped closer and looked down at the floor inside the square; a small, perfect circle of six feet was drawn directly in the middle of a massive twenty foot circle, which touched the borders of the square. In-between the small circle and large circle, fancy curls flourished through, filling the space up. As close to art as they would get.

He looked around; he wasn't old enough to remember when this building was created; that was long, long before his time. He was, however, old enough to remember when it was rebuilt, destroyed in the war that had exploded in the land. He was old enough to remember the pain staking precision used to mark the location with the circles. The flourishes were added in later, by those bored and dishearten with the lack of progress.

He remembered that as well. Progress. This building was one of the many makers doted around the world. The small circle upon the ground represented a very special spot in the world, only seen in a few other locations in the massive world.

A spot where the veil between the worlds was weak.

This building, when rebuilt, had been filled with hundreds, all trying to break through. The hope had driven those to try and break the impossible. A vain dream. Years had been devoted trying to open the way, and most likely hundred of years had been spent on the same task before, in the original building...which he doubted was the original. Most likely it was another reconstruction from another war. Heh, it seemed with every reconstruction, the hope of breaking through was revived.

By now, however, they had realized that it was it hopeless to try. The room was completely empty; not a single soul remained, though most likely it was empty because word of his coming had caused all those to vacate. There were always those who never gave up, despite it being impossible. No matter how many times in the past it had failed, hopefuls believed in new times.

In fact, he mused, by being here he could be considered one of those hopefuls. But he knew he was not one of those hopefuls, and everyone else knew that. No doubt, thousands were outside of this building, waiting, and seeing if he could break the impossible laws that govern this world.

Impossible. He knew it wasn't anymore. Not with the new Lord that had risen. Now the impossible, was possible. His Lord contained powered unseen before in the world, power that could crush all. His Lord was...

A God.

Of course, there were always skeptics. Another war was brewing over the horizon, as foolish others band together and opposed his Lord's position as rightful leader of the world. These skeptics could easily be destroyed by his Lord, but they had forces that would continue to fight even if their leaders were killed, leading to long and bloody conflict. His Lord was merciful; he did not enjoy war. He wanted to avoid bloodshed. Should this succeed, should they break the impossible, the skeptics would lose all their support. Their armies would desert them, allowing his Lord to easily destroy the skeptics. Should this succeed, his Lord's rightful position as God in the world would be cemented for eternity.

He was willing to give his life for this to succeed, but he knew he would not need to; it would succeed, for his Lord was a God.

"I am ready, My Lord." He declared to seemingly thin air, his deep and gruff voice echoing across the walls of the room.

"Then prepare yourself," The Voice immediately responded out of nowhere. "For the Real World."

Boom.

And the patch of air seemed to shimmer for a split second before it exploded. He raised his arms to cover himself from the explosion, his armor protecting him from any damage. He lowered his arms and gasped.

There, before him, in the place where the small circle was drawn, lay no more floor. He had seen many sights in his time, but none like the one before him. For in the circle lay an entire new world, one that was for him to explore.

And conquer.

He walked closer to the hole and bent down. He took a deep breath of the air that constituted the Real World. He breath deeply, his chest expanding as he took in the air, his armor creaking as it strained against the pressure. He slowly let it out, breathing through the openings in his mask for his nose.

The Real World smelled good.

It was time. Time to begin the new order. Time for the first of his kind to step into the Real World of the creators. Time for them to show their true might.

Time for his Lord to become God of all worlds.

He took a step and became the first of his kind to place a foot in the Real World.


And around the world, six heads snapped up.

"What the hell...?" Takato Matsuki's whispered, his teeth clattering as his body shook. He suddenly felt cold, as if he had been just jumped into icy water. Kazu and Kenta, who were sitting next to him in the middle of a massive body of students, looked over concern.

"Yo, Takato you okay?" Kazu asked, eyeing Takato's shivering body with concern.

"J-j-j-ust c-c-c-old," Takato whispered back. It was weird; it was over thirty degrees Celsius outside, and despite the air conditioning, there was over three hundred students in the massive room they were in now. He should not be feeling cold; he should be sweating like all the other students.

An expression of shock came over Kazu's sweaty face. "That's weird...I thought I felt a cold draft."

"Yeah," Kenta agreed, pushing up his glasses. "I felt it also. But it wasn't cold enough to make my entire body shiver..."

Takato shrugged. "I don't know, I just have a bad feeling-"

"Hey! You three! Stop talking or we're throwing you out!"

Takato, Kazu and Kenta complied, returning their attention to their respective test, the odd coldness drifting to the back of their minds as they attempted to improve their educational career.


And in the same building, a couple of rooms down, Jeri Katou was interrupted by from her test due to a massive coughing fit. Others around her took their gazes off their test as they looked over at Jeri, who continued dryly coughing.

"Are you alright, miss?" An administrator asked, approaching Jeri as close as he could in the masses of students.

Jeri waved him off. "I'm fine, I just have a cold," She whispered, holding her throat. The administrator nodded then turned to the others students and telling them to return to their test.

Jeri looked down back her test, sniffing and massaging her throat; she certainly had a cold. Which was odd, since when she entered this testing facility about half an hour ago, she was perfectly fine. There was also the fact that it over thirty degrees...

I have a bad feeling about this...


Across the globe, on a separate island famous for its warm, hot beaches, laid a young boy with wavy black hair. He was garbed in only swimming trunks as he lay on the soothing, comfortable sand, a pair of sunglasses shielding his eyes from the bright sunlight. He looked to be sleeping as two small creatures ran around him; both were about the same height and had long ears that came down to their feet, making them looking to be the same race, had it not been for a few differing features. One of them was light brown with green strips, a single horn adorning its head. The other was dark brown with purple strips, possessing three horns on the top its head.

"You can't catch me Lopmon!" The green stripped creature shouted to the dark brown creature, his voice squeaky.

"It's you can't who can't catch me Terriermon!" Lopmon squealed back, as both Terriormon and Lopmon, Digimon as the "mon" endings implied, continued running around in a circle. Their peals of laughter intertwined in the air, creating a scene of amusement.

The laughter subsided as the two creatures ceased their running as the boy suddenly sat up and took off his shades, breathing hard. The two creatures exchanged glances and approached the boy. "What's wrong Henry?" Terriermon asked.

Henry Wong didn't respond, his head was filled with confusing thoughts. He held up his hand and breathed against it.

He could see his breath. He could see his breath vapor on a hot beach in the middle of Hawaii.

What the heck...? Was the all Henry could think.


And in an entirely different location, a young boy stood in a pitch black location; or seemingly pitch black. One could clearly see the way his wavy brown hair curled up, akin to Saiyan-jins in another Universe. He was dressed in a bluish-grey shirt, a short black robe over his green pants. A single light-brown glove adorned his left hand, his right hand covered by an odd metal contraption that looked like a metallic forearm. A right shoulder pad sat beneath his red scarf, the red matching the tops of his white shoes.

Behind the boy, one could also clearly see a huge black dragon-like creature towered over him, as it stood on its two hind legs. Four mighty red wings lay curled on its back, wrapped around a black tail that dragged behind the beast.

Ryo Akiyama turned to Cyberdramon, his expression confused. "Did you just feel a draft, Cyberdramon?"

Cyberdramon grunted. "You're worried about a cold draft at a time like this?" His voice came out in a feral growl.

Ryo shrugged. "Just asking. Must have been my imagination."


Rika couldn't move.

She had been dozing off when it hit; an odd change of feeling. Although she did not know it, it hit at the exact same time it hit the rest of the Main Tamers. But while the reaction of the Main Tamers ranged from shivering trembles and breath vapor to feeling of a slight draft, Rika's was quite different.

For a brief second she felt a spike of cold; her eyes opened from the chill before it was suddenly gone. In its stead, she felt quite fuzzy and warm. Extremely warm. Her eyes closed as she began falling asleep again.

Then she was jolted awake when her breath became short and shallow; she couldn't breath at all. She sat up and looked down at her hands; they were there, but she couldn't feel them at all. It was as if she never had them despite the fact that she could see them right in front of her face.

And as she thought that, her fingers began turning blue.

"What the..." Rika gasped out, before her voice caught. Her breath became even more erratic, as her lungs tried to draw in my air. The warm, fuzzy feeling disappeared, and was replaced instantly by a chill even worst than the first time. Her numb hands flew to her throat as it constricted from the cold. The more it constricted, the less space there felt in her throat, making it seem as if something was blocking her wind pipe. Rika's body responded instantly; she began coughing.

Coughing, but not like Jeri was coughing. Not like the coughing caused from a cold or sore throat. The cough sounded like the coughs belonging to people who smoked three packs of cigarettes a day for the last twenty years. It sounded like she was trying to cough up her lungs.

And then her body became colder.

Her whole body shivered as her vital organs began reflexively to make rapid small movements, in an attempt to create energy and heat. Her hands became even more blue as her veins popped out due to their constriction; blood was being pumped from her hands into her body to keep her vital organs warm. Goosebumps popped all over her body, as her hair rose to its end, trying to create a semi-insulating layer around her.

Rika collapsed on all fours as she heaved, and coughed even harder. Blood spattered her floor as her body continued to try and defend against the spreading cold. The room spun as Rika's thoughts became foggy.

Numb hands...coughing...shivering...goosebumps... Rika knew that all these signs were related knew that she knew what it all meant. She knew somewhere in her head that all these were symptoms for something...but she couldn't remember.

Hypothermia...

Rika rolled over on to her back, as she tried to control her breathing. She knew what was happening; she was in the first stage of hypothermia. How she got into this stage, she did not know; she couldn't think. All she knew is she needed help. She needed someone to warm her up before she entered stage two.

Renamon...

But it was hopeless. There was no air to breath. She couldn't believe it, but she was going to die. There was no one to help her or save her; she was alone...

And then suddenly it was gone. The feeling in her hands returned as blood rushed back and her shivering came to a halt. Her whole body began to feel warmer and warmer as the cold disappeared. Her breathing, though still shallow, was not as erratic. Her throat loosened up and her coughing ceased.

She lurched up, stuck her head out of her bedroom window, and barfed.


Deep within the Hypnos II compound, buried beneath the massive walls that created the exterior of the massive human building, lay a room. It was a massive globe, its interior composed completely of monitor screens that connected together to make a massive screen to display information. It was large in relation to the typical room sizes of United State houses, massive in comparison to the rooms of Japan, but it was nothing compared to many of the other rooms within Hypnos II. Yet if one were to remove every single excess room that did not serve the Hypnos II's purpose, to track and handle emerges, then one would only have this room left. The Control Room.

Within The Control Room, two black chairs were extended into the middle of the room, supported by black, steel remote arms. These chairs were not built for comfort; it was built for work. All space that could be used for cushions was occupied by electronics and computers, leaving only a small spot for a human operator to sit within the jumble of machinery and utilize it efficiently.

Riley Ootori was one of those occupying one of The Chairs. Dress in a plain, white lab suit (which thankfully was quite comfortable), her long, red hair tied back, she didn't really mind the uncomfortable seat. Sure, it could get pretty terrible during the long stretches of day, (the job was done in twelve hour shifts, with two operators working per shift), and when there was no activity, the boredom threatened to kill her. Yet this was an important duty, one that few people had the capacity to do.

There were many factors that had to be considered when one wanted to be an operator. Hanging here in the middle of The Control Room, the operator's duty was to sit at these consoles with computer goggles on, monitoring the activity between the Digital World and Shinjuku. This was not an easy task to do; first one had to endure the twelve hour shifts, which began at one A.M. and ended at one P.M.

Next, an operator was required to wear computer goggles at all times while working. These goggles allowed one to utilize the screens through eye movements and speech. These goggles were difficult to get use to, and could easily tire those who did not use it to its fullest potential. However, not only was it required by the Hypnos II, it was a necessity when Digital activity picked up. Speed was essential when imputing commands on the computer. With lives hanging on every second wasted, it was a necessity for an operator to utilize both keyboard and computer goggles to get analyze and send information through as quickly as possible.

Last, an operator needed to have a sharp and quick analytical eye; an ability to understand a situation and react accordingly was essential for this job. While many people could complete the first two task, it was only people like Riley who could do the deed effectively. And Riley had proved herself before; she was one of the most experienced Hypnos II operators, having operated in the early days, back with Hypnos I, when the program was still new and secretive, and the primary method of eliminating Wild Ones was the Yuggoth Program. Even more impressively, she had been one of the two operators on duty when the Juggernaut Program created by Mitsuo Yamaki had been turned on, managing the systems in the overwhelming numbers of incoming Digimon, enduring their screams and working diligently to maintain Hypnos' super computer.

Mitsuo Yamaki. Riley let out a content sigh; Mitsuo was an amazing man. Of course he had his shortcomings; his pride had created the Juggernaut program which threw those inabilities into sharp light. However, he had enough humility to learn from his mistakes, starting Hypnos II and rectifying his errors. He was one of the main reasons why Riley stayed through the bumpy period of Hypnos I and continued to work at Hypnos II.

In fact, their relation had really hit off after the D-Reaper had been elimnated. Riley remembered in vivid detail what she and Mitsuo had been doing two nights ago, quite alone in their home...

"Riley."

The sharp utterance of her name was enough to jolt Riley from her memories of her intimate encounter with Mitsuo in the privacy of their room. She quickly responded to the speaker with out looking; "What is it Tally?"

As mentioned before, operators worked in pairs on their twelve hour shifts. Riley's partner was the exuberant, blond-haired Tally Onodera. Although she also wore computer goggles that obscured her facial features from others, Riley knew that Tally was worried; she had been partnered with Tally long enough to recognize what emotional states she was in by just listening to her, and Tally could do the same to Riley. Tally was also an experienced operator, starting around the same time as Riley and working with her ever since. She too had been operating during the activation of the Juggernaut Program. Her cheerful attitude was more than enough for Riley to befriend her in the long, lonely hours of operating.

At the moment, however, Tally's voice was deadly serious, with the hint of worry. "I'm picking up some really odd signals, stuff I've never seen before. Are you getting the same information?"

Riley pulled up the appropriate screens. Power readings were low as usual, but there was an odd signal zigzagging across the detector. "I see it. Think I should call Yamaki?"

Tally could be heard typing furiously into her keyboard. "Well, the power levels are really low right now, so I'm not too sure-"

And then everything went to hell.

The room exploded with sirens and alarms, the blue monitors flashing red as the computer assessed the situation. Computer windows immediately popped up, displaying information and power. The previously low power-levels had literally exploded, the energy meter pushing to the brim.

"What the hell?!" Tally shouted. "Power levels are going crazy!"

"This isn't good!" Riley shouted back. "We need to get Yamaki over here! We got something really big stewing!"

And then the flashing lights all turned off as the computer completed it assessment of the situation. Upon the large monitor and the monitors of the computer goggles and the computer screens of the Chairs the project information was displayed.

Riley froze. "Impossible..." She whispered. It couldn't be happening! It never happened before.

"Riley..." Tally said, her voice full of panic. "What do we do? This is the worst possible day for something like this to happen! We don't have any of the Main Tamers in direct vicinity!"

Riley breathed out, already deciding what to do. There was no other choice. "Send the signal."

"The signal?" Tally put an emphasis on "the".

"Yes," Riley replied, already bringing up the program that would send the signal. To send this signal, two operators consent would be needed; from both Riley and Tally.

"Are you crazy!? We only have rookies here! We'll be sending them to their deaths!"

Riley suddenly realized this must have been how Yamaki felt when faced with the rising threats of the Wild Ones. This was why he had turned to using the Juggernaut program. He had to make a hard choice.

And now it was Riley's turn to make a hard choice.

"Send it Tally."

May God hope that she was not about to create another Juggernaut incident.


DOOPDOOPDOOPDOOPDOOPDOOPDOOP!

The loud beeping echoed across the silent room, causing everyone in the area to jump at the sudden noise. Takato, Kazu, and Kenta simultaneously pulled out their beeping D-Arcs, exchanging worried glances. This was not the normal, calm beeping that occurred as usual when alarms happened. They were not expecting to hear an alarm at all in the first place, as Hypnos II would have known they were currently taking a national test, and would have sent other Tamers to do the job. No, this alarm was high pitch and fierce, couple along with an intense vibration. Though they had never witnessed this before, they knew what this signal was; full high alert alarm.

Without a single word, Takato flicked his D-Arc on and read the words on the display.

Connecting...

D-Arc connection recognized. User: Takato Matsuki.

Situation: Wild One Bioemergence

Digimon: Gaiomon

Type: Dragon Man Digimon

Attribute: Virus

Special Attack: Unknown

Biological Characteristics: Unknown

Power: Mega Level

Threat level: High

Recommended Number of Tamers: N/A

Recommended Course of Action: Contact the Main Tamers.

It had finally happened. A mega level had appeared. Well, though Takato, nonchalantly. It was bound to happen. Takato wasn't really worried; they had taken on worst before.

"A mega level, huh?" He said to Kazu and Kenta, packing his stuff away.

"Yeah man! About time we got some higher level action!" Kazu said, thrusting his cap on.

"You guys..."

Takato and Kazu looked over at Kenta, who was looking queasy. "Don't tell me you're scared Kenta?" Kazu demanded.

Kenta shook his head. "No, you guys don't understand. The mega is at Shinjuku."

"Yeah, so- Oh shit." Takato said, freezing as he realized what Kenta meant.

"What?" Kazu asked, looking from both Takato to Kenta, confused. "What's wrong?"

"Kazu, it takes about half an hour to get to our school from here. This mega is farther than that. Which means that Shinjuku, for more than half an hour, will be defended by-"

"Rookies only." Kazu finished Kenta's sentence with a look of horror on his face.

The testing administrator walked over. "What's the problem?" He said, his face crossed. "Are you students leaving?"

Tick. Takato, Kazu and Kenta looked at each other in silence.

"Hello?" The administrator said, waving his hand at them.

The action seemed to galvanize them, as they suddenly jumped on top of the desk, leaving their bags behind and started running, jumping from desk to desk towards the entrance, the realization that they're city was in grave danger pushing them to get home as fast as they could.

Their troubles had just begun.


She felt it.

Renamon's eyes snapped open at the exact same time the three Digimon all froze in mid card game. They all felt it, for they were Digimon, and if it was powerful enough, they could feel each other from massive distances. And there was no mistakening the massive power surge and the enormous power that had entered the Real World close by.

A mega.

"What...what is this power?" Asked an unfamiliar voice. Renamon glanced over at the table and recognized the speaker as Zurui, one of the new Tamer Digimon. He had a sickly look on his face, one associated with those about to barf. The image was only enforced by the fact that his gloved hands were holding his stomach.

"A mega level Digimon," Hissed Guardromon, his voice echoing in his helmet.

Calumon's ears shrunk to their smallest size as he whispered worrily, "Oh no..."

Guilmon growled. "Don't worry Calumon, we can handle him."

Renamon walked towards the table. "How? You and Guardromon can't digivolve without Kazu and Takato, Calumon here isn't a fighter, and Zurui can't compete at that level of power."

She looked over at the Impmon. "No offense, but I doubt you can even beat a Rookie Wild One."

Zurui shook his head. "No offense taken. But if you can not digivolve and reach a higher state of power, then we are going to need to use large amount of lesser power rookies. If that is the case, my Tamer and his classmates will be called into action."

As confirming his words, red lights began flashing and the screech of the siren could be heard. The red light was only used when the signal for total call was used; all active Tamers were to report to the Hypnos II briefing room to be prepped for battle.

Guilmon growled even louder. "I said don't worry Zurui. You and your buddies are too weak; you'll get slaughtered. Guardromon and me will head to Takato and the others and catch them on their way back; they'll be on their way back cause of the alarm."

Renamon was impressed; Guilmon seemed to have grown a lot smarter since the first time she met him. She nodded in agreement to their plan. "Rika and I can fight the mega while you boys do that."

Guardromon immediately jumped in front of Renamon as she moved to the door, blocking her path. She looked at him surprised. "What are you doing Guardromon?"

Guardromon looked straight into her eye. "I'm sorry Renamon, but I can't allow you to leave."

"What do you mean!?" Renamon exclaimed, enraged. "There's a mega on the loose!"

Guardromon remained steady. "Renamon, look at the facts. You can't possibly fight a mega in the state you're in now. You've been fighting non-stop for the last two weeks, by yourself with Rika. Your body is exhausted and needs rest. If you go and fight, you'll only end up in the way, or worst, dead.

"Plus, you're not allowed to leave Hypnos II grounds."

Renamon glared at Guardromon. He was right; not only was she not allowed to leave, Renamon could feel her body screaming for sleep, just from her simple exertion. But she couldn't believe it; she always fought with the other Main Digimon! She glanced over Guardromon's shoulder at Guilmon, silent pleading that Guilmon would tell Guardromon to let her fight.

Guilmon caught her eye then looked away.

Renamon sighed, backing away from Guardromon and sitting, her back against the wall. "I see your point. My anger was clouding my judgment."

Guardromon shrugged. "Not a problem, though we're going to have to keep a watch on you. For your own safety. I hope you understand." He said the last part with a hint of pleading in his voice.

Renamon mentally sighed. They really were worried about her. She voiced her agreement; "Fine."

Guardromon turned to Zurui. "Would you please escort Renamon to the briefing room and keep an eye on her?"

Zurui looked nervous at the idea of having to escort one of Main Digimon. He visibly gulped and said, "Sure."

Guilmon sent a sad look at Renamon before turning to Guardromon. "Alright that's settled. Lead the way Guardromon!"

Without a word, Guardromon turned to the doorway and ran through, with Guilmon running right behind them. Renamon watched them go, her expression sour. She hated having to stay behind while her friends risked their lives. But Guardromon was right; she would just get in the way.

Renamon sighed and stood up, stretching her back. "Well, shall we go then?" She spoke without looking at Zurui.

Zurui looked startled then suddenly remembered his task. "Yes ma'am," He said, running in front of Renamon and escorting her to the briefing room, leaving all thought behind in the card room.


"-And Guardromon and Guilmon are probably on their way to meet up with us now."

Takato frowned, as the black van bumped over another speed bump, its sirens on full blaze, driving at normally illegal speeds. His body jostled against the seatbelt at the pure vibrations from the engine. He focused his eyes on Kazu. "But how will they know where to meet us? They can't possibly know where our location is."

"Actually, they will." Kazu said, pulling out his D-Arc. "Guardromon's a robot Digimon. He can trace the signal coming from my D-Arc and track us accordingly. All Guilmon has to do is follow Guardromon. Then Kenta, MarineAngemon, and I can fly on the back of Guardromon and you can ride on the back of Growlmon."

Takato's frown deepened. So they and their Digimon would eventually intersect, cutting the time before they met the mega. Then they could travel by their Digimon, which would be faster since they wouldn't need to go by the streets. A forty minute trip would be greatly reduced.

"But it'll still be around ten or fifteen minutes before we can reach the mega," Takato said worriedly. "That's plenty of time for the mega to trash up the city."

Kazu shrugged. "I don't have any better ideas. If you got some, I would be glad to hear it."

MarineAngemon, now awake and out of Kenta's pocket, flew to the middle of the van. "PuPu!"

Kenta pushed up his glasses, his face sweaty. "Yeah, I agree MarineAngemon." Noticing the confused looks on Takato and Kazu, he translated; "MarineAngemon says that Hypnos II will probably use the new rookie Tamers to slow down the mega until we show up."

Kazu grabbed his hat and twisted it. "They can't!" He shouted. "The rookies will get slaughtered by a mega of this power long before we show up!"

Kenta shook his head sadly. "Its like you said; they don't have any better ideas. Unless someone else can take the mega on, then that's the only thing Hypnos II can do, short of sending the military, which is a worst idea; most likely they'll get slaughtered AND damage the surrounding area. At least the rookie Tamers might be able to scratch the mega."

"If only there was something else!" Kazu said, taking out his frustration on his hat.

"There is," Takato said. Both Kazu and Kenta looked up, surprised. "There's Rika."

"No! Renamon's way too tired! Rika won't fight!" Kazu roared.

"Plus, she's not allowed to fight Digimon," Kenta said, pushing up his glasses for the umpth time. His face was really sweaty.

Takato said nothing. It was true Rika wasn't allowed to fight; heck she couldn't even do anything against a mega at the moment. Surely Rika knew that; she was a master Tamer after all, only loosing in the Digimon card game to Ryo.

Yet Takato couldn't help but feel that Rika wasn't going to listen to common sense. He had a feeling he and the others would show up and see Rika going toe-to-toe with the mega. He knew she could delay the mega. But he hoped she didn't. He truly did. Rika had more to lose than her Tamer rights if she fought the mega.

She could lose her life.

Please Rika, Takato mentally prayed. Don't fight!


Splash.

Rika rinsed her mouth once more, trying to rid the last remnants of the barf. She wiped her face with a towel then leaned over the sink and starred into the mirror that hung over it. Her pale face was reflected in the glass, the blood still having not returned due to the sudden bout of hypothermia.

What happened? How could it suddenly became so cold that I started freezing to death? And then it suddenly became warm?

Rika had no answers to her thoughts. All she could do was try and resist the shaking of her body. She wasn't shaking from the cold; that had already past. She shook from weakness.

Why do I feel so tired?

DOOPDOOPDOOPDOOPDOOPDOOP!

Rika was snapped out of her thoughts by the frantic beeping of her D-Arc in her room. Rika had never heard her D-Arc ring like this, but she knew what it was; all the Tamers were to memorize the different signal alarms. She knew what this alarm was, but she simply couldn't believe it.

Full scale alert.

Impossible. They would never do a full-scale alert unless...

The alarm continued ringing, refusing to shut off until Rika responded to it. She quickly hung up the towel and ran from the bathroom back to her room, throwing the sliding door open with a loud bang. She grabbed her ringing, vibrating D-Arc and turned off the alarm by accessing the system alert information.

Connecting...

D-Arc connection recognized. User: Rika Nonaka.

Situation: Wild One Bioemergence

Digimon: Gaiomon

Type: Dragon Man Digimon

Attribute: Virus

Special Attack: Unknown

Biological Characteristics: Unknown

Power: Mega Level

Threat level: High

Recommended Number of Tamers: N/A

Recommended Course of Action: Contact the Main Tamers.

Contact the main Tamers...Rika couldn't believe this was happening. She knew a mega or some Digimon more powerful than a rookie was bound to show up; she had been eagerly awaiting the chance to fight such a powerful being. But there was no eagerness in her system now; the mega couldn't have emerged in a worst possible time. There were no Main Tamers in the city at the moment. Takato, Kenta and Kazu were out of the city, taking an international exam that Rika had already taken last week. Henry was in Hawaii and Ryo was in China visiting relatives. Jeri no longer even had a Digimon.

There was only her.

No! Don't even think about it Rika! Rika mentally shouted at herself. She was banned from taking part in any Digimon fight and she was not even allowed to meet up with Renamon, who had to stay in Hypnos II grounds. And as much as she hated to admit it, Rika knew she could not beat a mega at the moment; Renamon was simply too tired from all her previous fights.

Rika knees gave out for the second time again, and she sat upon her mat, still starring at the D-Arc information. She herself was too weak and tired, having used her Teimāzu many times in the last two weeks to modify Renamon. Rika had even shared her Teimāzu with Renamon so she could digivolve! She was dead tired and exhausted, and might even possibly be sick, if the hypothermia was any indication of that.

But she had to do something! Hypnos II only had rookies left at their disposal! The new Tamers had no true combat experience, poor control of their own Teimāzu, and Digimon partners who could not digivolve past their rookie stage. Even if they sent every single person who had a Digimon partner, Rika doubted they would last one minute; and that was only if the mega was the type who played around with their weaker enemies.

Rika could not sit back and let that happen. She grabbed her D-Arc and placed her cards and shakily walked up to her door.

"Do not leave this home to fight Digimon."

The image of her grandmother's pleading eyes floated into Rika's head, as she suddenly remembered the promise she had made to her grandmother. Had Seiko realized what was about to happen? Did she have some sort of motherly instinct, that told her that something this terrible was hiding behind the veil of time, ready to enter and destroy? Rika didn't know, but she remembered that her grandmother had been almost pleading with Rika to make that promise.

And Rika had.

Rika felt weak again. She grabbed the door handle to support herself, but made no move to open it. Perhaps as Rika know saw the rookie's future, Seiko had seen Rika's own future, and saw only pain and torment should she fight this mega. Perhaps her grandmother saw that Rika could not fight this mega.

Because you are weak...

Rika's eyes snapped open. She suddenly realized what had happened. Her grandmother had forbid her from leaving this home because she saw Rika as weak. Rika, the one who had her Tamer rights suspended for two week. Rika, the one who could not defeat two weeks worth of rookie wild ones without feeling extremely exhausted. Rika, the one who had caused the Elektra Incident.

"But this isn't school or a game, little Rika. This is real life. You are not special. You are simple a little girl who has given a destructive power. And people get hurt in real life. People die in real life. Like in the Elektra Incident."

Rika's hand's formed into fist as she remembered the G-Woman's words. Rika had been so afraid when the G-Woman had spoken like that to her. Now she felt only rage and anger. The G-Woman thought she was weak as well; a simple little girl who had been given a destructive power. Rika slammed her fist into the wall. She wasn't a little girl!

But you are a little girl...that's why dad left.

Rika's hand dropped. She had forgotten about that. But it didn't matter. She wasn't weak!

You are weak...If you weren't weak you wouldn't be afraid to kill this mega...

I'm not weak!

Then prove it. Prove it. Prove it. Prove it! PROVE IT! PROVEITPROVEITPROVEITPROVEIT!

Rika couldn't stand it anymore. With a cry of rage, she threw the door open with a loud bang and ran out of her house towards the mega. She opened her mouth and screamed.

"RENAMON!"


The sound of a musical ghost flue fell upon Zurui's ears. He had only a second to blink as Renamon suddenly disappeared from his eyes, teleporting away.

"Oh crap..." Was all he could say.