Chapter 6: The path through the swamp

As he typed, the structure started to take shape. Another few lines, and two brightly-coloured plastic horses sprung up from nothing, firmly fixed to the carousel on their metal poles. He took a moment to look at his creation. What else did amusement parks need? He had started with a Ferris wheel, had added rollercoasters and other attractions, and now he could not think of anything. How long had it been that he had last seen an actual funfair? He did not have children. He could not remember his last visit. But then again, his ex-wife probably would not have liked him hanging around carnies. Fuck her, he thought and started to write a picnic area.

About half an hour later, Titus leaned back in his chair and admired his work. He could only imagine how little the others had accomplished in the time it had taken him to program a whole amusement park, complete with rides, booths, food stands and sanitary facilities.

Hunter was probably still wasting time with that creepy graveyard of his. He wondered if that useless project had some sentimental value or if his colleague hid some kind of morbid sense of humour beneath his stoic façade.

And then there was Leslie, who had not programmed anything in weeks. The last time he had visited the mansion in the woods, she had not even bothered to put up its rich, illusory appearance. Instead, he had stepped into the ruins whose code lay beneath the mansion's, expecting the worst.

The only one who had exceeded his expectations so far had been Reed Kennedy, simply because Titus had not expected him to come up with anything useful. Kennedy had proven a high-maintenance and unnervingly persistent man, the epitome of a spoilt only child. But beneath his tiring airs and graces, Titus had been surprised to find an able, creative mind. Sure, Kennedy had installed all kinds of childish jokes, from refrigerators filled with eggs in Freezeland to hordes of small, green Digimon that threw their own faeces, but he had also shown enviable attention to detail with almost every bit of green that graced the landscape of both File Island and Server. Titus could barely admit his initial astonishment at the fact that these were two sides of the very same man.

In fact, something of Kennedy's own making now caught his eye. A figure had moved through the screen frame that corresponded with a camera at Geko Swamp. The vast wetlands had been named for the Digimon Kennedy had programmed to reside there, tadpole- and frog-like creatures with irritably loud and squawking voices—much like Kennedy's own, Titus noticed. He zoomed in on the picture, his mind moving from his colleague's shortcomings to a sort of dawning and dreadful comprehension. Whatever he was seeing, it was not a Digimon. He zoomed closer, until most of the marshes had disappeared from his view. He let out a gasp, and his suddenly numb hand fell from the keyboard, leaving the picture once again stationary. It was a woman, and not just any woman: It was his ex-wife. She had found him.


A second glance revealed that it was not his ex-wife. After a moment of shock he had examined the screen once more and discovered that despite some similarities concerning Eleanor's brown, shoulder-length hair and light eyes, he was in fact looking at somebody he had never seen before. And she was much younger than Eleanor, he noticed, barely in her twenties. He gave a sigh of relief, but his eyes never left the screen. She had to be one of the hackers he suspected to have broken into their system. If he found a way to capture her, he could find a way to make the Digital World impenetrable from the outside. He was sure of it.


"Leah," cried the little girl.

Leah turned around to find her with her foot deep in swamp water. She took a few paces, careful not to step beside the path as well, and extended her hand to the girl to pull her out. Back on the path, she started crying.

"I don't want to be here," she managed to complain between sobs. "I want to go home."

Leah nodded. "I know. Me too," she replied sympathetically. "We will get home one way or the other, I'm sure of it. You don't need to be afraid, Joanna."

The little girl wiped the tears from her cheeks. "I'm not."

Leah chuckled at her defiant resilience. Joanna was tougher than she looked.

"That's good. I think right now our best plan is to follow Tsunomon and Kyupimon, wherever those two are right now."

Her question was answered by high-pitched cries for help. A short distance ahead, their small guides had managed to veer off course and into swamp water. Joanna started to giggle at the sight of the two Digimon trying to escape the muddy water's pull, oblivious to the fact that she had been in a similar situation only moments before.

Leah knelt and grabbed the small, white Digimon that had clung to Joanna when she had met her and had introduced itself as Kyupimon. She handed the Digimon, which was squeaking gratefully, to Joanna, who was making similar sounds. Next, she pulled out Tsunomon, a ball of beige- to orange-coloured fur with a cute face and a horn on top. She had met the Digimon in the woods bordering the swamp, and it had not left her side since. Well, it had, but only to act as scout and explore what lay ahead.

"That was quite the success, wasn't it?" she teased.

Tsunomon looked down in shame. "I'm sorry we couldn't be of more help."

Leah laughed at the bashful creature. "No need to apologize," she soothed, "I'm just glad you two are safe."

"Do you know how we can get out of here?" asked Joanna, who was either petting Kyupimon or ridding its white fur of mud.

"No idea," squeaked the little white creature beneath her hands. If anything, Kyupimon seemed quite happy and unconcerned.

Tsunomon bowed its head—which was its body as well—and remained silent. Leah could read in its little face how useless it felt.

"It's okay," she reassured the Digimon. "We'll find a way. And I think these," she continued and pulled two grey devices from her pocket, "will help us with that."

Joanna grabbed one from Leah's hand to inspect it once more. She had been rather disappointed before when she had found out that it was not a Tamagotchi. Both girls gasped when all of a sudden white light erupted from their hands.

Tsunomon Digivolve to… Elecmon!

Kyupimon Digivolve to… Lucemon!