Remember what I said about update frequency? I lied. Life stops for nobody. Also, keep in mind that the parts aren't necessarily written sequentially. They might be happening in parallel, so I'll add some cues in so you'll know when what happens.
...
Rushing air and purple light guided Markus' descent into the digital world. G-forces pulled on his guts as he slowed down, coming to a gentle stop on the gate platform. His team followed briefly after. As he stepped off, alarms began to buzz. They were closing the gate.
"Ah, colonel Andrew Markus. Welcome to the digital world." a man neatly dressed in a white uniform spoke.
"Admiral." Markus replied with a brief salute. He wasn't sure if he did it right.
The admiral raised an eyebrow. "Let's not waste any time, your mark certainly won't. You have been briefed on your mission, yes?"
The purple light behind Markus began to fade. The last open gate was now closed, and Markus realized it became night.
"Yes sir." Markus said as they all walked into a well-lit corridor. "But I have to ask-"
"Why all the hassle? For just one digimon and a boy? Well, colonel, even I don't know that. The Emperor wishes it however. And that's reason enough." White replied.
They walked into an atrium and were greeted by a pair of pilots and a boy, maybe 15 or 16 years old. Markus frowned. He didn't like it.
"Colonel? Meet the three new members of your team : captain Anneke van Veen, ensign Carina Walt, and agent Samuel Colton. They will be joining you for this mission." White said. The three saluted.
"Hang on. How old is the kid?" Markus asked. "Is he even old enough to enlist?"
"Agent Colton is here to provide intel on the target, as well as fulfilling a diplomatic role to try and detain the target peaceably. And his age is classified." White sharply said.
"I'm 15." Samuel said. Admiral white glared at him.
"At any rate, your new members will not fail you. These two ladies are among the best pilots we have. We assumed none of you had flown an airship before. Now, if you will excuse me, I will leave you to bond with your team on the journey to the Citadel dockyards, where you will find your ship. Good luck, colonel."
With that, the admiral gave a small nod and walked off into a transport helicopter.
...
The expansive, lush forest never seemed to end. Thomas couldn't help but look up to the sky all the time, still in awe of the digital world. What struck him was the presence of birds, insects. Forest sounds of Earth. It was so unreal, and yet it felt completely real. A sense of vertigo overtook him, and he looked down to try holding down his lunch.
Oh, right. Lunch.
"So, Renamon. Are we going to uh... Eat something?" he asked, supressing a rumble from his stomach.
"No need. Just keep moving."
"No need? But, don't we—" Thomas stammered.
"I told you how you survived the fall, yes? Your body doesn't need food here. Your mind does." Renamon replied, pausing. "But... I suppose that eating isn't something that you can just stop doing."
She sighed. "Very well. Let's find something to eat. Don't stray too far though."
"What am I, 6?" Thomas asked sourly.
"You may as well be for all the smart moves you made. Who knows what else lurks in this forest. Rule of thumb : If it's not the Empire you need to look out for, it's other digimon."
Thomas frowned, but resigned to her instructions.
A few minutes passed, while Thomas ate some berries and nuts. Renamon ate nothing. Thomas admired his surroundings some more.
"Hey, Renamon... How did the digital world open up again?"
Renamon chuckled. "It never closed. Not really."
Thomas frowned. "That's not what the news said."
"And yet here you are. Do you still believe them?"
Thomas shook his head.
"I thought not." Renamon said smugly. "After the D-Reaper, Janyu Wong and his team managed to almost seal off the digital world. But, with Earth becoming more reliant on the internet, the tiniest breaches became gaps... Gateways. And so the digital world re-opened."
"Did Henry and the others seek out their partners?" Thomas asked.
"No. At least, not that we know. Unless Rika did. Her Renamon hasn't been seen since. But the rest all reside in Shadewood. Don't worry, if we make it there, I'll introduce you."
"That would be-" Thomas began, when the light suddenly began to rapidly fade. Earth went from a bright, sun-like orb to a vaguely glowing ball in the sky.
"... Great?"
Renamon sat next to Thomas protectively. "Nightfall. We should find a shelter. We need rest, but the Empire might not. Come on, we'll get some sleep."
Thomas gawked at the now dim Earth. "It's so sudden.."
"Yes, another thing to get used to. Now start walking, or I'll carry you."
...
Samuel spent most of the ride in silence, as did most of his new team. He contemplated how the hell he'd gotten into all this. It was a normal school day less than a day or two ago... Now he's fighting in some army, sworn to protect Earth against the very creatures that saved it all those years ago.
Sworn to protect Earth against one of his best friends.
"Guys?" He asked, his mind blurred, working overtime processing it all. "Is this... Real?"
Nobody laughed like he had half expected. Instead, the colonel spoke up.
"Yeah kid. It's real." There was an expression of understanding on his face.
Samuel smiled and huffed. "You know, my family doesn't even know where I am. The Emperor told me that they were told I was kidnapped by terrorists. A much more believable story, he'd said. Much more comforting too."
There was a silence. Captain van Veen spoke up. "ISIS would be a mercy compared to some of the things we'd see here." Samuel went pale. "But the digital world is mostly under control. You're safe with us, promise." she quickly added.
"And besides, you'll get used to it." Walt added. "This world, I mean. The digimon. The Empire."
"Hey back there, hate to interrupt, but we're there in 5. Get your gear packed, you're going to be moving into your new ship."
After a moment, with a soft thud, the transport had landed. The loading ramp lowered revealing a spectacle that left Markus astounded. The maps hadn't done this place justice, Markus thought as he gawked in the rain.
A vast, tiered city greeted them. At the outskirts was the military districts, riddled with dockyards and factories, the outer walls lined with heavy cannons. The inner circle, separated from the first tier with a canyon and a high wall, armed to the teeth, was the civilian district. Flats, neon lights and streetcars. Again separated with a canyon, and followed by high walls, was the center. A towering, cathedral like structure that seemed to pierce the eye of the storm. The Citadel. The most guarded place in the digital world, its metal construction gleamed in the lightning flashes, occasionally revealing it's silhouette in the foggy conditions.
"You people... Built all this?" He stammered.
"Yup. But if you follow me, sir, I'll show you what else we built. And trust me, you'll like this."
The brief walk towards an oddly quiet hangar made Markus and his team uneasy. Where was the staff? The city was buzzing a few hangars ago...
Captain van Veen produced a keycard. She swiped it, opening the door into a dimly lit hallway.
"In here, sir." she said curtly.
Markus stepped inside, noting how he couldn't hear the rain anymore. He shivered. Swallowing quietly, he moved through the hallway towards a T section with a mirror.
"Now, sir. You probably read up the file of your ship. Lo and behold." Van Veen said.
Floodlights sprang on in the hangar, revealing the mirror to be a window instead. Inside the hangar was a brand new, matte grey airship. Markus hadn't seen anything like it.
"Something else, right?" Walt asked. "Not my colour, but hey. Also there is no name sprayed on, nothing. Guess she's meant to be off the books. Never seen her designation before either, or her specs." Walt and van Veen guided Markus' team to a door reading 'hangar floor'. "But from what I was told, she's fast. Very fast."
As they walked down a set of stairs, Samuel couldn't help but stare. This went from being a hot mess to a dream come true real quick.
van Veen handed the team a set of keys. "Biometrically locked. Only you can use it, and there's only one of each. That means don't lose it. If you do, we'll have to keep you aboard as cleaning detail until we can get you a new key made." she said.
She pressed the button that called down an elevator leading into the aft cargo hold.
"After you sir." she said.
The ship was pristine, brand new. Probably built here in this old hangar, complete hush hush. The team made their way to the bridge (first installing their limited personal items in the bunks and checking the fridge in the canteen for beer), and settled in. Markus took a seat in the captain's chair. Now, he was a married man that left his youth behind a long time ago. But he had to admit, this was cool. From his seat, the large canopy provided sight in front, sides, above and below. He could just see the two barrels of the hailstorm gun sticking out from underneath the canopy.
"Alright captain." he said. "Let's fire her up."
"Yes sir." the captain complied. "Carina, fire up main engines, transfer helm to my station. See to keeping us level and monitoring..." she went on, giving orders to the ensign. Markus smiled, he actually smiled. Who knows! This could yet be fun.
The engines roared to life and the hangar doors above parted, revealing a stormy sky.
"Don't worry folks. It's an artificial storm, it will let us pass." Walt said. And with those words captain van Veen took off, the four massive rotors blowing over everything in the hangar that wasn't bolted down.
"Carl. Do we have an estimate of the target's landing zone?" Markus asked his team member.
"Yes sir. Transferring to NavCon now." he replied.
"Then let's go." Markus smiled. After taking a brief, bird's eye look at the marvellous city below, he watched as he was pressed into his seat. Man, this thing was fast.
...
Thomas tossed and turned in his sleep. Murmuring and sweating, he dreamed...
"You can't do this, please..."
Thunderclouds roiled around Thomas as he floated through a storm...
"Do I have a choice? They betrayed us, they must be an example..."
Darkness enveloped him...
"Please stop this..."
"They are the enemy!"
The lightning intensified...
"You will serve me, or you will burn with them..."
A dark figure loomed over the storm...
"... Renamon."
"Stop!" he yelled, panting. He looked around the den Renamon and he had found. The small fire they had made was just embers now. It was still dark.
"Bad dream?" Renamon asked, not really as a question.
"Yeah... Did you...?" Thomas said.
"No. But I felt it."
"What was that? It was different..."
"Just a dream. Don't worry about it. We should move, we only have half a day of darkness left." she rushed.
"Hold on, I –"
"No time. Come on, we need to utilize the dark while we can. Nights and days are of equal length here, we shouldn't waste it more than we have to."
Groggily, Thomas walked out of the den. Renamon stomped out the embers and covered them with dirt before joining Thomas.
"Hey, Renamon? Are we going to have to walk all the way to the Scar?"
"Well, we don't have a vehicle, and you don't have a digivolve card so I can become Kyubimon and take you."
"Well, true I have no cards but..." Thomas said. He pointed at something oddly shaped. Something grey.
"Look at this!" he said excited. An imperial transport truck sat there, in the middle of the forest. From the look of it, it was trashed and abandoned a while ago. Each of its 12 wheels was almost twice as tall as Thomas, and it towered well above them.
"A carrier truck." Renamon said, calmly. "Probably from the time where the digimon fled for the Scar."
"What do you think is in there?"
"Weapons. Armour."
"A vehicle?"
"Not likely. And we shouldn't use it even if there is. The empire will find us immediately." Renamon said cautiously. "In fact, it may be best to not touch this thing altogether. Who knows what we might set off."
Thomas, paying no heed to Renamon, had found a log to climb onto towards the cockpit.
"Hey, there's something in... Here..."
In the pilot's chair sat a pilot, several holes punched in their armour. From what Thomas could see, not much remained of the actual pilot. Thomas gagged and almost fell off the log.
"Jezus..." he gasped.
"What?"
"The pilot's still in here!" he said.
"Let me see." Renamon calmly said, walking up the log. "Old armour. From when the digimon fled, like I said. This guy's helmet cam is probably out of juice by now." She turned around to Thomas. "Do you want me to check it out?"
Thomas nodded. With that, Renamon disappeared for a moment.
Thomas sat down against a wheel, and waited. He jumped when something white and grey clattered in front of him.
"Here, take that. An assault rifle. Older model, sure. But it'll work. Oh, and some ammunition." Renamon said plainly, as if she hadn't just grave robbed an Imperial assault truck. "No vehicles in there I'm afraid."
Thomas slung the rifle over his shoulder and pocketed the magazines when he felt something in his pocket. His phone.
He pulled it out and checked it quickly. No signal. One message. It was mom, asking where he was. That punched him in the gut like a sledgehammer.
"What's that?" Renamon asked. Her face fell a bit when she saw. "Oh... I forgot. They'll be worried sick..." With that she put an arm on Thomas' shoulder. "Look. You'll be fine, okay? We'll find a way home for you."
Thomas nodded and moved to put it in his pocket. Renamon stopped him.
"You should toss that though. The Empire might—"
"No." Thomas said firmly. Renamon shrugged.
"Let's go then." She said. "If we make it to the desert, we may get to Sandhaven. We can probably score some transport there."