Disclaimer: Digimon is a franchise owned jointly by Toei Animation and Bandai, and conceptualized by Akiyoshi Hongo. Doctor Who is a property owned by the British Broadcasting Company created by Sydney Newman. The concept of Digimon: The Tamer is a fanfiction idea. Please support the official properties.
Author's Notes: This makes eight updates over eight weeks. I am on a roll! Here's update eight on schedule. As before, I'm now handling review responses directly as opposed to in the author's notes. If you left a review, look out for a reply in PM box. So, on with the show.
The Tamer: A Digimon Adventure
Chapter 8: The Prophecy of the DigiDestined
The day after they'd all left, everyone one of them returned to the cave as they agreed. Sora, Joe, Gomamon and Biyomon were there first ones back, arriving at about midmorning. Izzy, Mimi, Palmon and Tentomon arrived next - Izzy visibly the most excited of their group. It was the arrival of Matt, TK, Patamon, and Gabumon's group that shocked them all when they saw Leomon walking behind them. They were all naturally weary of the digimon but listened to TK vouch for him, "It's okay! He's on our side now!"
"If you say so," Sora glanced sideways at Biyomon, who also stole a sideways glance at her.
"Leomon said he had information to share with us," Matt explained, "About the black gears and why we're here."
"We do as well," Izzy began excitedly, "We met a digimon named Centarumon and he told us the gears are all over the island! That's why we keep running into digimon affected by them. They're everywhere! He also mentioned that they're old! Really old! He couldn't saw how long but he confirmed that they were artificial, not a natural part of the island's design!"
"Calm down," Gabumon hushed him, "I'm not following any of that. Start again, slowly."
Izzy reexplained everything he'd just said, but tried to keep from going off on tangents and stopping every so often to answer their questions. After he'd said his fill, the others looked to Leomon to elaborate.
"Yes, it's true," Leomon confirmed, "The black gears on this very island are old and can be practically considered a part of the Digital World."
"That confirms what Centarumon told us," Palmon added. Seeing the quizzical looks on the others faces, she added, "Centarumon was a digimon we met guarding a temple that was made for those digivices. He said they were made as a last line of defense against the dark but couldn't elaborate more."
Leomon took a seat by the mouth of the cave and explained, "No, he wouldn't. There aren't many digimon left from when the temple was built. The few who are alive aren't around anymore - they've gone into hiding, or have fallen to slumber, or don't want anything more to do with us."
Leomon went out to sit under a nearby tree and motioned for them to join him. The group took a seat in a circle around him, listening intently to every word. Naturally, Izzy retrieved his laptop and began jotting down everything Leomon said, "I don't know if it was a prophecy, a legend, or just a story that was made up. This prophecy foretells that a time would come when peril would befall the Digital World. In these dark times, a group of children would come to our world and restore balance by driving back the dark. They would be known by their digivices which gave digimon the ability to digivolve to higher forms. They are the chosen children, sometimes called the digidestined. They would be the saviors of our world."
"Yeah, Centarumon said something like that," Mimi smiled, hugging Palmon, "And I'll show anyone who tries to hurt Palmon what for!"
"I can't say no to helping out our friends," Sora added, "But that story sounds a little vague. Does the peril and darkness refer to Devimon, right?"
"To be honest, all this vague prophecy stuff sounds stupid," Matt chimed in, earning him a disapproving gaze from Leomon, "Don't you have anything specific to tell us? Like where to find Devimon? We beat him and we get to go home, right?"
"Devimon resides at the peak of Infinity Mountain at the center of the island. It's known as File Island," Leomon answered, "But defeating him will not restore balance. There are greater dangers to this world than anything Devimon can throw at you. He's what you might call a pawn or a soldier."
"Pawn? You mean like in chess?" Joe and Izzy looked at each other, already disliking this news they'd been given. Their partners all confusedly asked, "What's chess?"
"I'll tell you guys later," Sora waved them off, "So if Devimon's a pawn, who else is out there?"
"Devimon is the most active of the ones I'm aware of," Leomon shrugged, "There was Etemon, but supposedly he went off to focus on a career as a rock star. There's also Datamon, but nobody has seen him in years. The vampire Myotismon is around as well, but he hasn't done anything recently. Myotismon just stays in his castle. If I had to guess, he's preparing for something."
"And these guys are in charge of Devimon?" Matt crossed his arms, continuing to express frustration, "Are you sure the Digital World needs saving? I mean, Devimon sounds like he's acting out since his bosses are either stuck in a fantasy world, doing nothing, or just not around."
"They're not his bosses. They're soldiers like him," Leomon clarified, earning him Matt's attention, "I don't know who his masters are. But I do know that Devimon can be considered the least dangerous when compared to the others."
"That's what the kid with the goggles said," Gomamon remarked, "That there were guys out there worse than Devimon."
They all went quiet and looked at Gomamon. Then to Sora, Joe, and Biyomon. Each had questions they wanted to ask, but so many flew through their heads that they didn't know which to ask first. Except Leomon, who calmly remarked, "Ah, so I see he's still alive."
"Yeah, he and Agumon were the reason we were able to save Joe and Sora!" Biyomon added.
"When were you going to mention that part?" asked everyone who was not in their group. Sora and Joe threw up their hands defensively, "We were going to get to it eventually."
"Oh, so you encountered him before?" Leomon asked. Mimi nodded, "Yeah! they totally saved us when Devimon trapped us in a manor."
"Before he blew it up," Matt added.
"Yeah, about that," Gomamon started nervously, "He said they were distracting someone by drawing their attention, whatever that means. To be honest, I think they're crazy. I don't know anyone who could so casually kill another digimon like that."
"He did?" Mimi's mouth fell open. Biyomon was the one to explain, "His partner killed a Bakemon before they let us out."
"Hmm, so he's still continuing the fight after all that time," Leomon sighed, a pleased look in his eyes. They all looked at Leomon, surprised that he completely overlooked the death of another digimon so passively. Izzy was the first to ask, "Leomon, do you know anything about them? All we have to work off is the guy's name. He called himself Digimon Tamer."
"Yes, I've met them a few times. The Tamer and Agumon were always together. We travelled together as well, but only briefly. They were always on the move - running from some enemy. They would help out where they could, but they never stayed long and always moved on. Then, they just vanished. No sign of them. Personally? I always feared that the stories were wrong about the chosen children, because with him it seemed like chosen child was more accurate," Leomon frowned, "And to be honest, I figured we were doomed if he was the only one. To disappear for so long could only have meant they were dead."
"So you agree, they're crazy!" Gomamon pointed out.
"I imagine they would be. You don't fight enemies like Devimon for so long without going a little crazy," Leomon shrugged dismissively.
"How long? No one's given us an exact time frame," Izzy stated, "Meramon guessed he died of old age. But that would mean he'd been here for a long time, right?"
"Well, I haven't seem him in over a hundred years, so I guess he might have aged a little," Leomon's answer had all of them gasping in surprise. Even Izzy stopped typing to stare in disbelief, prompting Leomon to ask, "Is that weird?"
"My grandma's eighty and she doesn't look anywhere as young as he does!" TK shouted out loud.
"Humans don't live that long," Joe mumbled, "Are you sure you don't have a weird calendar? Maybe your years are different? Are you sure you don't mean months or weeks?"
"No, it's years. A hundred and forty-five now that I think about it," Leomon quietly added. They each had a tumult of questions running through their minds, but Izzy was the first to speak out, "Wait, how old are you?"
"That's a bit personal. If you want to know, I'm about a thousand," Leomon answered nonchalantly. They all stared slack jawed, "You're really a thousand years old?"
"And looking good aren't I?" Leomon beat his chest proudly. The digimon nodded their agreement but the children were less forth coming. Mimi remarked, "We can't exactly judge. Although the muscles really sell the idea that your less than a thousand."
"That doesn't really matter," Izzy interrupted, "For now, we should focus on climbing Infinity Mountain and defeating Devimon."
"And how do we that? He hasn't exactly been easy to fight," Gomamon's voice contained a hint of uncharacteristic resignation, "Don't forget what happened in the manor. And if being able to beat him means we have to be like Tamer and Agumon, then forget it."
"Actually, since you brought it up, Centarumon said the digivices were preservers of light. And Tamer said that he could use his digivice to purify the black gears," Izzy began, "With that in mind, it's safe to assume that we can do the same thing with ours."
"Matt and TK already did! That's how they were able to save me," Leomon motioned to the two brothers, "Without them, I would still be under the control of the black gears."
"Well, he used it to blow up a house so I guess stopping black gears shouldn't be surprising," Joe bemoaned their fortunes, "So how did you guys do it?"
"I dunno," TK shrugged. Matt's own answer was less helpful, "Leomon was about to kill me when the digivice activated."
"But the digivices never did that before, so what changed?" Sora asked, "There's not much point in having them if we don't know how to use them."
"Well we were always able to digivolve when you were in danger! So maybe it's the same idea," Biyomon offered happily, "It protects you when you're in danger."
"What about that time Shellmon tried to crush me? Or when we were all trapped by Monzaemon's heart bubbles?"
Biyomon crossed her wings and thought deeply, "That's a good point."
"Well we better figure it out soon," Matt remarked, "Devimon is still out there and there's no telling when he'll show up again."
"Hey guys, it was morning a little bit ago, right?" Gomamon asked. Every last one of them looked around and noticed the world around them had become dark, but it was too soon for night fall.
"Clouds, maybe?" Izzy looked up, and the sight meeting them was not something any of them were prepared to see. A swarm of black gears silently whizzing overhead so large that it practically blackened the skies. In the center of the swarm was Devimon looming over them silently with his wings outstretched.
"It's Devimon!" TK shrieked, prompting everyone to stand up.
"Was he just sitting there watching us?" Palmon asked.
"The evidence is really piling up," Mimi added, "He's a creep."
"Well, here goes nothing!" Matt pointed his digivice up at Devimon, waiting for the light to burst forth and drive the gears away. He was disappointed when nothing happened but not surprised. An amused smile crossed Devimon's face as he waved his hand and the black gears gathered around him - then struck Devimon. Watching Devimon attack himself with the gears surprised them, but not as much as watching him grow with each gear permeating his body.
"Uh, guys - what's happening?" Gomamon asked.
"He's absorbing the black gears and growing bigger," Leomon exclaimed, to which Gomamon asked, "I can see that. How is it happening?"
"I'm all for learning more about the Digital World - especially if it means knowing how he's doing that. But right now I think attack would be the best course of action," Izzy declared. Leomon nodded, "Agreed."
"Tentomon?"
Tentomon buzzed ahead of them, "I'm on it!"
"Biyomon! You too!" Sora said to her partner. Biyomon and Tentomon flew straight for Devimon, disappearing into balls of light and reemerging as their stronger forms.
"Biyomon! Digivolve to! Birdramon!"
"Tentomon! Digivolve to! Kabuterimon!"
The two flying digimon tackled Devimon in the air, and bounced off him like he was rubber. Absorbing the black gears appeared to make him stronger as well as larger, which only spelled bad news for them since there were still more black gears for him to absorb. The ground beneath them shook violently, crumbling away for more black gears to join Devimon. Birdramon and Kabuterimon flew out of their path, trying to destroy as many as they could. Some gears were destroyed, but it was clear that there were more than they could possibly hope to overcome.
"Matt!" Gabumon called out to his partner, snapping him out of his stupor, "Huh? Oh right!"
"Mimi! We should help too!" Palmon nudged Mimi.
"Are you ready Gomamon?" Joe asked.
All three digimon ran in to help, swallowed by the light of their partner's digivices.
"Gabumon! Digivolve to! Garurumon!"
"Palmon! Digivolve to! Togemon!"
"Gomamon! Digivolve to! Ikakumon!"
Their three partners fired off their attacks into the air, aiming at either the black gears or at Devimon. The kids cheered with each black gears they destroyed but another one always appeared to replace it. It didn't take long for them to realize that their attacks meant nothing against the endless number, so they instead focused on attacking Devimon. Their attacks did nothing to harm him and he continued to absorb more of the black gears. Leomon joined the fray with his sword in hand, "Devimon! This ends here."
Leomon's movements were agile and fluid, leaping up along the side of the tree before using one last good jump at Devimon. Just as he was about to strike the ever growing demon, he was intercepted by Ogremon. The two traded blows in the air before knocking each other away and landing face to face. Leomon growled, "Ogremon! Stand aside! I must aid the digidestined and stop Devimon."
Ogremon scoffed, "Years of fighting each other and you'd rather fight Devimon instead of me? I ought to kill you in jealous rage. In fact-"
The two charged towards each other and locked weapons. The two swung their weapons back and forth, each trying to out do the other to no avail. When their weapons locked again, Leomon pleaded, "You realize that if Devimon wins, our world is doomed!"
"That may be a bad thing for you, but those loyal to Devimon like me will be spared!" Ogremon cackled delightfully, taunting Leomon. Angered, Leomon pushed Ogremon away and charged for Devimon again. And again, Ogremon leapt to intercept Leomon and brush him aside. The two resumed trading blows, leaving the six kids and their partners to fight Devimon alone.
The skies cleared with the last of the gears disappearing into Devimon's body. At his full size, he stood at equal height with the mountain beside them. The demon gazed down at them with his teeth bared, "I didn't want things to come this far! I don't have a choice this time. I will not die!"
Devimon brought his massive hand down upon the children and split the ground open. Matt and TK were separated from the others by the chasm Devimon created. Sora, Joe, Mimi and Izzy called out to the two brothers but were too far away to be heard.
"Matt!" Garurumon shouted out from across the divide, separated from and unable to protect his partner. Patamon flew across the gap to join the two brothers in his stead. In spite of his small size, he bravely roared out, "I'll protect them!"
Birdramon and Kabuterimon went to join him but were flicked aside by Devimon's hand. Patamon, because of his smaller size, was much harder to hit and crossed the gap to join them. Devimon focused his attention on the two brothers and Patamon, "Only one needs to die. The smallest is foretold to be the one to defeat me. But the prophecy can not be fulfilled if you die."
Devimon reached out for them. Matt moved his little brother behind him and threw out his arms to shield him, "Stay away from my brother you creep!"
Seeing them in danger, the other three digimon fired a volley of their attacks at Devimon. Blue flames, a flurry of needles, and waves of explosives impacted on Devimon's massive body. He barely registered their attacks and glimpsed them from the corner of his eye, "I don't have time to deal with you. Let my gears and servants entertain you."
With a snap of his fingers, several of the gears dispersed from his body into the surrounding forest. They were al puzzled on why Devimon did this, until they witnessed the scores of digimon emerging from the forest around them - Kuwagamon, Unimon, Meramon, and more began to appear. Ikakumon, Garurumon, and Togemon went to fight the digimon but were at the disadvantage. Some of these digimon were their friends and they couldn't bring themselves to harm them. But the digimon had no control over their actions, only Devimon's will. Kabuterimon and Birdramon were forced back onto their feet to help the others deal with the attackers - leaving the brothers with Patamon.
TK suppressed a gasp when Matt drew his pocket knife behind his pocket and hid it behind his back. He understood what Matt was planning to do and looked to Patamon for help. Patamon looked back just as helplessly. Devimon's hand was massive - he could crush them between his fingers if he wanted. It was just a matter of time.
"Now perish," Devimon cackled while wrapping his giant fingers wrapped around them. Just as he closed his grip, Matt stabbed his knife in Devimon's palm and he pulled away screaming, "You little-"
Devimon massaged his injured hand and winced at them. He waved his other hand and a tumult of black gears came for them. Matt took TK by the hand and ran away with Patamon following closely. They could hear the others shouting at them to keep running out of harm's way. But no amount of running put distance between them and the gears. With each step they took, the gears came closer. When the gears were just inches away, Matt grabbed Patamon and TK - pushing them to the ground and shielding them with his body. The air roared with of the deafening sound of the gears buzzing past. TK quietly squeezed Patamon between his arms hoping that this would all be over. That he would wake up and he'd still be in the manor, or the cave, or somewhere in the forest. Matt and Patamon would be okay. The others would be fine too. He wanted it all to stop. He prayed and hoped over the thunderous roar of the gears.
When the sound of the gears died down, TK opened his eyes to see his older brother staring down at him, "Hey buddy. Are you alright?"
"Yeah…Patamon?"
"I'm okay," Patamon said. TK was momentarily reassured before Matt suddenly found himself in Devimon's hand, "Whoa! TK! TK!"
"Matt!" he called out to his brother, watching helplessly as Devimon threw the older brother across the gap towards the others. The force of the fall would have killed him if Kabuterimon hadn't caught him in the air. The little boy breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that his brother would be safe. That relief turned to dread when he remembered he and Patamon were alone now. Devimon eyed the two of them with pure glee that made his intentions clear. They knew he was going to kill them, but now they understood that he was going to take his time doing so. He was going to enjoy every moment of it, and the thought made both of them shrink away in fear. Why was he doing this? What had they ever done to him.
"Now there's no one left to stand in my way," Devimon cackled, "You will die here boy. You and your partner, prophecy be damned!"
In that moment of despair, TK and Patamon were of one mind. Patamon may have been brave, but it counted for little against Devimon. He was too strong, easily separating the two of them from the others. Birdramon and Kabuterimon were trying to cross the gap to help, but were being interrupted by both Unimon and Kuwagamon. TK looked to his partner, and Patamon looked back. Patamon knew that he was all that was left to protect TK, he just didn't know how he would be able to. If only he could digivolve he might be able to protect TK, like the angel in the painting - the guardians who protect.
Devimon brought his giant hand down on them like a swatter to insects. Patamon went to his partner, "TK I'll protect you!"
There was a thunderous crash and then silence. Matt stared in utter horror at his little brother - or where his brother was. Fear, anger, sorrow. It swelled up inside him and burst out in one loud scream - a wail so animalistic that it couldn't be called human. For him and the others, everything had come to a stand still.
Then there was light and the familiar whistling hum of the digivice. They all heard it and understood right away. The smirk on Devimon's face turned to panic as he pulled his hand away, "No! No! No! No!"
"Patamon! Digivolve to! Angemon!"
The soft glow of light permeated around them. The light was so bright that the rest of the world around them darkened before it. The light spread around them, driving black gears out of the possessed digimon and collapsing them to the ground. Their digimon partners stepped away from their would be enemies, and turned to see the spectacle before them. The only one unaffected was Ogremon, who shielded himself from the light with his arms and growled, "Uh oh. Time to go!"
"Come back here! Coward!" Leomon shouted after the fleeing digimon.
"We'll settle our score another time Leomon! I'll be back! Just you wait!" Ogremon shouted back. Leomon grunted his disapproval, then noticed the light around him. Like the others, he looked to the source of the light and found himself gazing in awe.
The light came from a tall man with white clothing beneath flowing blue robes and shining golden pauldrons. He had long flowing blonde hair running down his back that disappeared into a helmet that covered the upper half of his face. Most remarkable were the six white feathery wings from his back and the golden staff he wielded firmly in his hand.
"He's alright!" Matt remarked, spotting his little brother safe and unharmed.
"He sure is pretty," Mimi mouthed.
"I had no idea Patamon had it in him," Joe watched.
"Prodigious," Izzy said.
"Cool," Sora added.
"I want to take him home with me," TK could be heard saying, paralyzed by the form his partner took. As impressive as the newly digivolved digimon was, Angemon couldn't possibly be strong enough to stand against someone the size of Devimon, yet Devimon cowed away, "It's not supposed to be this way."
"Devimon, your actions have brought harm to this island and all who live here. I shall bring it peace by destroying you!" Angemon declared, raising his staff above his head. The light of Angemon's body brought the digivices to life, filling the air with high pitched whistles and shrieks. Light burst from their digivices and joined together at Angemon's staff. Seven beams of light, all coming together. As he drew on the light, the others realized that their partners were regressing back to their normal forms, "I will borrow the light of the others and use their combined strength to strike you down."
"Do you know who I am?" Devimon roared, "I am Devimon! Lord of this island and ruler over all its inhabitants! I defy my fate and I will not bow to my end! Only I decide my time and I will not die! Do you hear me! I will destroy you!
"Your fate has already been decided. If protecting the lives of others means my own, then its a price I will gladly pay," Angemon called out in a loud voice. His staff and the light shrank into his hand and it came aflame with brilliant light.
"Angemon!" TK called out worriedly.
"You know nothing, so you understand nothing! After coming so far, I will not be stopped! This is not DIE!" Devimon winded his massive back and threw it forward. The fire on Angemon's hand burned hotter and brighter than before. He thrust it forward and struck Devimon's larger fist. When the two met, a wave of light blinded them all and all that could be heard was Angemon's voice, "Hand of Fate!"
When the light faded, they could see both Angemon and Devimon standing against each other in the air, their bodies degrading to dust like Devimon's gears. Devimon looked down at his body and started to laugh. His laugh was hollow, full of desperation instead of joy. Through his cackles, he managed to mock Angemon, "I've died! So my fate was unavoidable! But you used all your might to defeat me, so now you can't protect anyone else ever again! You idiot! You're of no use to anyone now!"
"My life is unimportant, if it means your defeat," Angemon said passively. As Devimon faded to dust, he left them with parting words, "You truly are pathetic Angemon, and a fool. Your friends needed you to defeat me. ME! So how will they last against the others? Those far worse and stronger than anything I could do. How long are they for this world? You've won the battle, but guaranteed you've lost the war!"
Devimon laughed to the very end, even past his own disintegration until it faded all together. Angemon held on a little longer, just long enough for TK to call out to his partner, "Angemon! Don't go! Please!"
"I'm sorry, TK," Angemon gave a smile with his apology, "I'm done. Someday, I'll return. If you want me to."
Angemon faded away, leaving a few stray feathers gently blowing with the wind. TK continued to plea and beg for him to stay. Then he begged for him to come back. Tears welled up in his eyes and snot ran down his nose when he finally broke out crying. Matt's instinct as an older brother kicked in and he tapped Sora, "Can you have Biyomon get me over there?"
"Yeah!" Sora aimed her digivice at Biyomon and she digivolved back to Birdramon. They all rode on her back to the other side, except for Leomon who was too heavy and instead used his own skill to leap across. Matt ran to his little brother as soon as they landed to comfort him. The others looked up at where Angemon used to be, still coming to terms with what they'd witnessed. Angemon gave everything to defeat Devimon.
Everything.
The thought had occurred to them in the past, how easily the same fate could befall their partners. But the reality finally sank in after they watched Angemon. Mimi hugged Palmon, trying to hold back tears of her own out of fear that the same thing could happen to her. Joe nudged Gomamon and mumbled something. Sora put a hand on her partner's large frame and thanked her for being safe. Izzy was the most stoic, simply patting Tentomon on the head.
"I want Angemon back! I want Patamon back! Bring him back!" TK wailed. Matt squeezed his little brother tight without saying a word. He couldn't say it would be alright. He didn't know if it would be. All he could do was hug his brother and allow him to cry until he calmed down. Angemon was gone. Patamon was gone. He wanted to do whatever he could to make it right and calm his brother down. But what could he do?
Leomon stepped in to offer his own condolences, "I'm sorry for your friend. But he fought bravely and gave everything to protect you. His death was und-"
He was promptly nudged in the rib by Mimi, who shot him a deathly glare. Leomon understood immediately and he went quiet.
An idea came to mind, flickering the tiniest glimmer of hope. It was so energizing that Matt could only verbalize it, "Primary Village."
TK's cries stopped and he whimpered, "What?"
"Gabumon! Can you take us to Primary Village?" Matt asked. TK latched onto the same idea right away, "Gabumon! We have to go! Please take us!"
"Oh! Right!" Gabumon's mood lifted, "Yes! Let's go!"
Matt used his digivice to digivolve Gabumon into Garurumon, and the two brothers quickly started mounting him.
"I see," Leomon mused, "It wouldn't hurt to go look. Fate was on your side today, after all. Maybe it'll smile on you one more time. "
"What's going on? What are you talking about?" Sora demanded of the two brothers, who were already climbing on to Birdramon's back, "I'll explain later! Let's just go!"
"Go where?" Izzy asked.
"Just follow us!" Matt said. Garurumon let out a roar and took off into the forest, leaving the rest of them behind. Realizing they were being left behind, they all quickly piled back onto Birdramon.
"Leomon, will you be coming with us?" Sora asked the lion digimon.
"No, I should go after Ogremon. Who knows what he'll do now that Devimon is gone. Whatever evil he plans to get up to, someone should stop him," Leomon stated. He bowed his head to the children, "You have my thanks for what you've done today. And good luck to your friends."
"Thanks!" Sora said. They waved their good byes while Birdramon kicked off the ground and took to the skies. Garurumon was already far ahead of them, and they gave pursuit. He ran faster than they'd ever seen him move and Birdramon had difficulty keeping pace. They followed Garurumon until the ground was replaced by fabric and the trees turned to giant wooden blocks. Further ahead, they saw a massive field covered in eggs as far as the eye could see. Garurumon stopped at the edge of the field to let Matt and TK down. Birdramon touched down beside them and allowed the others off her back. TK was already running frantically among the eggs, calling out his partner's name, "PATAMON! PATAMON!"
"Okay, what was the big rush?" Joe demanded of Matt, "You three just took off without explaining anything. What is this place and why are we here?"
"Primary Village," Matt said, "This is where we ran into Leomon. It's supposed to be the place where digimon are reborn after they die."
"So you think Patamon is here?" Palmon looked around at all the eggs while TK continued to shout, "Patamon!"
"He has to be. For TK's sake," Matt mumbled, going off to help TK find his brother.
"Hang on, I'll help look!" Mimi went after them.
"Me too!" Palmon added. Birdramon regressed back to Biyomon and collapsed to the ground, "I think I'm going to take a nap."
"Go ahead. You fought and flew all us over here," Sora brushed her hand against Biyomon's feathers, "I'll look doubly hard for both of us."
"Well, what do you suppose?" Joe looked at Izzy, "Do you think Patamon is here somewhere?"
"We won't find out anything just by sitting here," Izzy responded, "Besides, a wealth of information is sitting in front of me about the digimon life cycle! I can't turn something like this down."
"Izzy, we're here for Patamon," Tentomon reminded him. Izzy shrugged but agreed, "Right. Patamon first, then information."
"There is one thing, though," Joe said, "If Patamon can come back, isn't there a chance that Devimon could too?"
"He better not," Matt growled loud enough for Joe and Tentomon to flinch, "If I find Devimon's egg, I'll smash it myself."
They were all unnerved by Matt's words, but none of them were sure they'd stop him if he tried. Their group split up and wandered the field in search of Patamon amidst all of the eggs. Each took the time to inspect the eggs carefully, hoping they'd stumble upon the one housing Patamon. Without any actual clue of what to look for, their search proved a fruitless endeavor and they were unable to find anything. TK especially was ready to give up hope and burst out crying again, until Elecmon arrived, "Oh, you're back. I was wondering when you'd show up. And you brought friends."
"Elecmon! Have you seen Patamon! Have you?" TK asked desperately, "Please say you've seen him!"
"As a matter of fact, I believe he is what you're looking for," Elecmon produced an egg with white and yellow stripes, "This egg showed up a little while ago, after that earthquake and all the flashing lights in the sky. I recognized it as that friend of yours and thought I should keep it safe."
"Your recognized Patamon even though he's an egg?" Joe questioned, "I mean, how are we supposed to believe that?"
"I see you're friends have the exact same manners you do," Elecmon remarked, "That is your friend, Patamon. If you don't want him, you can always give him back."
"It's Patamon," TK stated, hugging the egg close, "I can feel it."
"How?" Joe demanded again, "I'm not trying to ruin the moment. How exactly can you know that egg is Patamon?"
As if on cue, the egg cracked open and bits of shell sprayed around them. A little white blob with little dots for eyes poked out of the cracked shell and cooed at TK. The little boy cracked a smile at the little creature, "Hi Patamon!"
"Hang on, that's Patamon?" Sora remarked. The little gelatinous blob bobbed up and down at the sound of her voice and giggled uncontrollably. TK hugged the little creature close, a sight that made the others awe in adoration.
"Actually, that's Poyomon!" Elecmon corrected.
"Aha! So it's not Patamon!" Joe pointed out. Elecmon popped an eyebrow and added, "He's a fresh level digimon. His In-training form is Tokomon and, given time, he will digivolve to his rookie form as Patamon."
"So he's not the same Patamon," Joe pressed the matter, "This could be another digimon that just becomes Patamon. Like when you break a toy and just get a new one."
"Tee-Kay!" the little blob cooed, bringing TK to excitedly remark, "He remembers me!"
"Stronger digimon remember their old lives," Elecmon reminded them. After witnessing Angemon singlehandedly defeat Devimon, none of them had their doubts about how strong Patamon was. Joe was the only one who remained unconvinced, "I still have my doubts."
"Joe! S-Stick! In! M-mu-mud!" the little Poyomon struggled with the words but managed to mouth them out eventually.
"Well, I guess that's settled," Mimi folded her arms with a giggle.
"Oh come on! That's what he remembers?" Joe moaned. Gomamon laughed, "He has your number Joe!"
"Prodigious!" Izzy gleamed excitedly, retrieving his laptop to start typing up the information, "Information on both the reproductive processes as well as past life cognition!"
"Is there something wrong with your friend? He's talking funny," Elecmon motioned to Izzy.
"There's nothing wrong with him. That's just how he is," Tentomon defended his partner, who was already approaching Elecmon, "Excuse me Elecmon. If you have a minute, I'd love to ask you questions about raising children and reproduction here in the Digital World."
"At least you're polite," Elecmon nodded, "I'll answer your questions as best as I can, just ask them without those big words of yours."
"Deal," Izzy smiled excitedly. Just before he could start, the ground beneath them shook. A small metal device broke through the felt fabric beneath them and hummed to life. Everyone backed away as light burst forth from the device and it made a few buzzing noises. An image appeared - the boy with fiery hair and goggles in his white cloak. Beside him was Agumon looking puzzled. Oddly, both of them were standing in the hands raised over their heads.
"It's him!" Sora called out, "It's that Tamer kid!"
The one thing that stood out was that they both looked nervous, and stepped backwards anxiously while a voice asked, "There ain't nowhere to run now, kid! Uh huh! Where are the humans?"
…
Author's Notes: That's all for tonight, dear readers! My next update will be in one week on Friday, December 18th. If you loved it, let me know in the reviews section. I also welcome constructive criticism. See you next week!
