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Legend:
Flashback
Thoughts
Other Thoughts
'Writing'
ATTACK
Normal
Chapter 4: Time to Think
It was two weeks after the incident. Shinjuku had fallen under the blanket of night, and the light of the moon was the only light that could be seen except the streetlights and the light pouring from nightclubs. Except for the zealous determined to not fall victim to the sandman, everyone was snoozing comfortably in dreamland.
However, Takato was not one of those people. During the two weeks that he had met Guilmon, he had learned about many things. Guilmon's healing factor was one of them, as doctors were scratching their heads at Takato's condition.
Currently, he was laying in his futon, staring up at the ceiling, his chest simply rising and falling in simple pattern. He just laid there, not exactly that tired to sleep, despite the prospect of school in the morning.
Most people see the darkness as a fiend, as an ever-present entity that hides all sorts of unpleasant surprises under its dark cloak. It was easy to get a sense of paranoia and fear from the darkness, yet once again Takato wasn't one of those people. For Takato, darkness actually represented more than fear.
For him, darkness blocked out anything, allowing for clarity and hopefully no distractions. But it also represented something else to him. For Takato, it was a safe, a lock, to explanations and revelations. He was simply lying there, as if asking the darkness to let go of its secrets. But as time moved on, the darkness was as impassive as it was five minutes ago.
Takato closed his eyes, breathing even more slowly, as his mind began to drift to the dream that had got him into this position.
Dream
Takato looked around in panic, his heart fluttering with panic. Darkness surrounded him, but this darkness was not simply just the absence of light, it felt dark, foreboding and secretive. The feeling chilled his bones and he crouched down, hoping to be able to react to any thing that might suddenly race out to him.
He did wonder why Guilmon wasn't there with him. Then he realized that Guilmon goes into a hibernation state whenever he wasn't called. Although, that did made him wonder why Guilmon had even awakened in the first place. Since the darkness didn't seem to dissipate, he had time to ponder the new question. He walked around in circles, rubbed his face, and had sat down in criss-cross applesauce position before what he believed to be the most believable explanation. It was a case of brotherly concern that had awakened Guilmon. Takato was just not accustomed to Jeri walking home by herself, considering that most of the time he was walking right beside her.
Takato smiled and stood up to dust himself off when like liquid slipping off a sphere, the darkness retreated. Takato reacted to the phenomena by covering his eyes with his arms. Staying absolutely still for a few seconds, he then became aware of that there was no sensation of his body turning into oblivion.
The goggle headed lad lowered his arms and let out the breath he had held in. Once he had calmed his beating heart, he craned his neck and looked around. Wherever he was, he seemed to be at a secluded part of Shinjuku. The buildings looked rundown and out of date. The streets were littered with garbage and residue. A stray wind next to Takato picked up a pile of trash, twirled the garbage around like a mini-tornado, and then blew them away. Takato took in all of it, and began to process the information.
A moment later, Takato put a box over himself, peeking out from the handler hole, and looked for the sign that welcomed him to Silent Hill.
Continuing on, Takato thanked his lucky stars that this was a dream. Something popped in Takato, and he had a long look at his situation. After dusting his pants off, he then became aware of noises coming from what seemed to be an abandoned entrance to a subway. Breathing in, he crept into the entrance and down the stairs.
When he had climbed back over the last bit of stairs, he took a look around and promptly gasped. The whole place looked like it was a war zone. Scratch marks decorated the walls while smoking craters littered the floor. One steel track lay beside his foot and was bent in a ninety degree.
Taking in the scenery, Takato stumbled a bit, but was able to regain his balance. Looking down at the thing that tripped him, he was horrified to see that what he had tripped over was a human leg. Looking at the body that the leg was connected, Takato stumbled back and landed on his butt. Takato groaned and rubbed his poor backside. Then he got back up and looked at the person.
The person was Takato himself. Only the dream Takato looked like crud. His shirt and pants were barely holding themselves together, and the shoes looked ratty and worn. A black eye and a swelled cheek adorned his face. Around his arms, burns snaked across his forearms. He looked like he was nearly half dead.
Takato looked at himself and put a hand to his mouth. "Who had done this?"
Just then, Takato heard voices coming from the tunnel. Turning his attention from the beaten Takato, he strained to hear the voices and possibly the explanation for this dream that he was having, if he could even call it that. After checking dream Takato to see if he would be okay on his own, Takato rose from his spot and quietly crept over to the site.
He flattened himself against the wall, and then began to inch towards the voices. When Takato reached the edge of the tunnel, his head moved around the edge to take a glimpse. Then he got startled and hid once against the wall. Takato got a dead pan look and slapped his face, reminding himself that it was just a dream.
Taking a deep breath, and then slapping himself, Takato quietly loosed himself from the wall and walked into the tunnel. A pile of rubble, however, blocked his view and Takato groaned. He spat into his hands to hopefully soften the texture of the rubble against his hands, and took a few steps back to get a running start.
Then he realized that the tunnel was a dead end. Also whoever was at the end of the rubble had somehow created a fire, which in turn created a shadow that reflected on the wall. Takato stepped back a little more to see the shadow.
The people were very close by the fire, as the shadow they left was enormous. Anyhow, the shadows looked like two men. However, one man looked like he was prone of the floor, but obviously not making an effort to get up. The other man had a knee on the prone man's back and had his right arm bent in a ninety degree angle. He had something that was pointing at the other man's head.
Takato gripped his head: how did he know that they were men? What was this, he was asking himself. Was this really a dream, or was it something else?
Suddenly, a bang ran out and Takato froze in surprise. A moment later, the fire went out. The whole tunnel was shrouded in darkness once again. Takato stood absolutely still for a brief second, before reminding himself that this still was a dream.
Just then, a rock fell from the pile of rubble, and Takato turned around. The other man leapt from his perch on the pile and walked out of the tunnel. The stranger then proceeded to look over the dream Takato.
Takato tried to get closer to the site and possibly get a look at the stranger, when the pile of rubble began to shake. Takato turned to look, only to scream as the rubble fell on top of him.
End Dream
Takato sighed as his mind once again as his mind turned up blanks in its endeavor for answers. Life for Takato had become unreasonably more complicated, and to think that he had a normal life. But why look so negatively?
Before Guilmon, Takato had to admit that he wasn't exactly the most social person. While Jeri was out with friends, talking and laughing about whatever they talked about, Takato's pastimes usually involved studying and artwork alone. Sure, Jeri, mom and dad were great company, but there were times that Takato yearned for attention that didn't come from a family member.
So one could imagine the deal of joy Takato got out of Guilmon's presence. Sure, Guilmon wasn't the most intelligent conversationalist around, but Takato still appreciated the effort the dinosaur made to keep up. It was sort of endearing, in a friendly way, Takato added with a frown. He spent a while musing about society's assumption about double entendres being everywhere. Takato was actually glad at that Guilmon was asleep; otherwise, otherwise his head would be filled with Guilmon's whimpering.
Eventually deciding that he had done enough thinking, Takato rolled from his back to his side. He got comfortable, and soon sleep welcomed him into her dark grasp. Still, he really wanted to know what the heck was with his dream, but decided it could wait.
It couldn't wait. Every moment, every second would be wasted simply languishing in darkness, when he could be instead thinking up theories and strategies. Not to mention, he didn't want the nightmares, not yet.
The young man was leaning against the chair, hand on his chin as the light from his laptop illuminated his stormy gray eyes. The luminescent light danced across his seemingly dark blue hair. He looked to be a mix of Japanese and Chinese. An orange vest adorned his upper body while brown pants and Jordans covered his lower body. He looked unassuming, but the old adage about never judging a book by its cover comes to mind. His name was Henry Wong.
Next to him, two more people sat next to him. One was a male, the other a female. The male looked to be in his early 20s. His skin was tanned, and his hair was a chocolate brown. He wore a brown sweater with white cargo pants. He currently had a bit of drool hanging over his lip as he softly snored.
His name was Ryo Akiyama.
In the aisle seat sat a young female looking to be either 16 or 17. Her red-orange hair was tied in a spiky ponytail that Henry thought could poke an eye out. Her pale skin was like porcelain, smooth yet oh so cold. She wore steel tipped sneakers, regular blue jeans, and a shirt with a broken heart that partially exposed her midriff.
Her real name was Rika Nonaka, although out here in the public, she preferred the name Ruki Makino.
Henry paused to consider the group dynamic, and then a frown framed his lips. For reasons he just couldn't comprehend, Rika hated Ryo, and Ryo did nothing to dispel this notion. Instead, he found a certain pleasure in annoying and teasing her. He found it amusing to see her snarl and her hands reaching to throttle his neck. Henry usually found himself shaking his head at their antics.
Henry then mused to himself how was this team was formed.
Flashback
The hallway was metallic and bare of any distractions. For many, the place was nerve racking. For Henry, it was comforting. There was less to think about.
"Gee, wonder what the boss man wants, huh Henry?"
Henry sighed in melancholy. His digimon partner, Terriermon was a far cry from the ideal partner for him. It was like everything that Henry was, Terriermon was the exact opposite. When Henry wants to examine the situation then act accordingly, Terriermon wanted to jump in head first and make it up as it goes. While Henry adjusted his conversation, Terriermon just said whatever came to his mind. The differences went on.
Finally, Henry reached a door, and pulled it open. A clicking could be heard as Henry entered the room. The room was mostly bare, except for a bookcase, a desk and three chairs in front of the desk. The giant swivel chair faced the giant window, as the person on it sat facing it.
"Henry, how pleasant it is to see you."
Henry sighed. "Well, it's been nice."
The person behind the seat chuckled. He then waved a hand toward the seats. "Please, have a seat. I'm expecting two more."
Terriermon whispered into Henry's ear. "Hope we get what the Boss Man is going to give."
Henry let out a bit of a smile. "Yeah, you do that."
"What are you doing here, Akiyama?!"
"I think the better question is what are you doing here, Nonaka?"
A resounding smack could be heard, as Henry sighed and shook his head.
The door opened, Rika walking in with a snarl and Ryo holding his cheek yet retaining his cheeky smile.
All three sat down, and waited for their superior to get on with it.
The chair groaned as the man stood up and continued watching the window. He also still was flicking off and on the lighter he had in his hand. He talked in a very professional voice.
"Now you're probably wondering what I have asked for you all, and I'm going to ask you once, and you better have an answer ready. How would you like a change in scenery?"
Ryo looked visibly confused; Rika widened her eyes in excitement and Henry had the guts to speak out.
"Sir?"
The man turned himself around. He wore a businessman's suit, though it showed some wear and tear. His blond hair contrasted with his dark sunglasses which to any normal man, had a very disturbing look. His expression was as professional and impartial as a statue. His name was Mitsuo Yamaki.
He gave a smirk as no one responded. "Can I take that as a yes?"
Everyone nodded.
He cleared his throat, and put his lighter away.
"Well…all of you can pack your bags. You're all going to Shinjuku, try to bring a souvenir back for me."
But before he could specify, Rika pointed to Ryo. "You're expecting me to team up with Mr. Perfect here?!"
Ryo smirked. "Oh, Rika, I'm flattered."
Yamaki, however, simply had no patience along with his digital partner. "Silence!"
The desk behind him flew into the window. Pieces of glass flew forward from the window as the three covered their faces in reaction. When the glass settled, everyone lowered their arms, each feeling a little embarrassed. Yamaki was relatively nonchalant, only making the effort to adjust his tie.
"Look, you're all I have that I truly can depend on. The Devas are already busy with maintaining order throughout the southern quadrant. So do I make myself clear?"
Everyone nodded, when Rika spoke.
"So, what do you want done?"
Yamaki held out a manila folder and handed it to Henry. He nodded to his new team, and walked out the door. Rika grumbled and stomped out the door. Ryo crossed the room, and lightly closed the door. Yamaki simply sighed as he turned on the intercom.
End flashback
"Um, sir?"
The half-Japanese and half Chinese looked up from his laptop to the flight attendant. He took one more look at the screen, before looking back. "Yes?"
The flight attendant cleared her throat. "We'll be descending soon, please put up your table and put away your laptop."
Henry slightly bowed his head. "Yes… Thank you."
After the flight attendant left, Henry shook Rika and Ryo awake. "Wake up, you two, we'll be landing soon."
Ryo yawned then looked at Henry. "Aww… and just when I was having the most wonderful dream."
Rika yawned, and then smirked at Ryo. "That's funny; I dreamed you were a mute."
Ryo dramatically sniffed and pretended to wipe a tear from his eye. "Rika, that hurts, and just when I thought we had something."
Henry groaned at the drama that took place next to him. He began to close the laptop, the last images being of Takato and Jeri.
Author notes: Dun Dun Dun!!!
ARGH!!! BLASTED UNDERLINE BUTTON!!! YOU ARE THE BANE OF MY CREATIVE GENIOUS!!! D= Ahem...
As of now, reaching a grand total of 3483 words, the shortest chapter of this fiction.
Here you go: a little insight into Takato's condition two years ago with a side order of introducting Ryo, Rika, Henry, Terriermon, and Yamaki. Guess who I made Yamaki's digimon is?
Ciao!!!
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