Chapter 9 has arrived and so has my holiday~! Yay~ I didn't really re-read this thoroughly so I hope it's fine. Hmm 2 months to update this...well at least it's an improvement to 3 months! xD Some of you will recognize in one way or another that his happens roughly half way through the game's plot. But my story doesn't really flow it too closely because you see..., the seed of originality I have planted at the starting phases of the story has begun to sprout. How will you guys find it? Hehehheh...
Thanks to my reviews~
Guest 1 - I'm not sure if either of their Digimons have really teased them about liking each other yet but mark my words - it will happen!Last chappy was Shade's sad moment and this one's Kou's~ ;P I'm relieved that you like my "slow paced attempt at natural romance" because I've read a ton of other Fanfics in other sections and they made the romance waaay to obvious and fast for my liking.
Stuff like - "Wait did I just think she's cute?!" and "Why do I keep thinking about her." are overused IMO. The latter is used at wrong times. So are super strong and straight out Tsundere thoughts/responses. No offense intended if you write/like reading those kind of Fics. Hope you'll keep reviewing :)
Guest 2 - 'Try creating your own digimon.' huh... An idea did pop in mind while I was reading your review and I should be adding him in. Though it won't be Dronemon ;)But I do find your suggestion really amusing. Comedy was never my forte but tragedy is. ( *whispers*Because I'm sadistic to fictional characters and the like muahahaah~!) So, I may use some of your points.
I really appreciate you even bothering to come up with this suggestion to help with my motivation. Though the truth is my motivation is lacking more because of the amount of homework I have and my low pool of energy. I get tired more easily than others :/ But that won't hold me back forever! Please review~! ;)
Here's a list of Digimons each Protagonist has and have been revealed in the past chapters. (Not including any changes in this Chapter)
Shade's Digimon
-Lekismon (Diana)
-Ogremon (Kageru)
-Palmon (Alora)
-Aquilamon ( - )
-Kyubimon (Yang)
- ?
Kou's Digimon
-Firamon (Nova)
-Reppamon (Ciel)
-Sunflomon (Haru)
-Black KnightChessmon (Titania)
-Seadramon (Soul)
-Akatorimon (Aegis)
Enjoy~ :)
Chapter 9 - Fading Light
Shade's POV
DarkmoonCITY
After my night shift yesterday, I slept till the middle of the afternoon. I forced my eyes opened and continued to embrace the comfort of my bed. Minutes passed and I decided to freshen up. The Chief has told us to take the rest of the day off and rest. I wasn't in the mood for action right now, so I ended up wandering around town and getting some food in my body. The Sun quickly fell and the Moon rose in tow. I headed for my bed at my usual sleeping time in hopes that my odd 'nap' wouldn't affect my body clock. I tossed and turned for awhile before my body relaxed under the comfort of darkness.
I was jerked out of my sleep when a dull thump was heard outside my room. I curiously peeked through my door to find a huge shadowed lump on the corridor of the floor below mine. I couldn't make out what it was because my eyes were still drowsy and the shadow of the clouds over the Moon wasn't helping. My eyes flickered to Saz who rushed to the scene. I drowsily watched as he approached the lump and inspected it. He suddenly jumped back and tried moving it. The lump barely budged and he paused in defeat. That's when he noticed me on the second floor.
"Shade don't just stand there, come down here and give me a hand!" I shrugged and climbed down the ladder to join Saz...and the lump. I stood infront of the lump and barely made out some of it's outlines. With the slow shifting of the clouds, the moonlight gradually shone over the lump - green leaf-like wings, a long tail, light-colored body, two bodies and a tuft of orange. Hmmm...
"..." Things eventually clicked in place within my drowsy mind and my eyes widened in realisation. WAIT, WHAT'S A DIGIMON DOING HERE LIKE THIS?! With a signal from Saz, we shoved the Digimon's body off the other. My breath hitched at the boy.
"Shade, take the boy to the infirmary. I'll do what I can for the Digimon." I nodded at the urgency in his voice and heaved the body on my back piggyback-style. I ran as fast as I could which, wasn't too fast. HE. IS. HEAVY. Either that or I'm physically weak. My back and chest felt tingly. Anxiousness, fear, worry - they all mashed together. I stumbled into the infirmary panting. Words weren't needed once they laid eyes on the boy. The medics took his roughed up body and went into action quickly. I slumped into a nearby chair and caught my breath. Time ticked by as I patiently waited for some news.
"You should probably go back to sleep, Shade." My head snapped up to see a nurse smiling warmly at me.
"But.."
"Don't worry, it's nothing serious. He'll be better when he wakes up." She's right. There's no need for me to wait here. I'll just be wasting my time.
"I understand," I stood up and bowed slightly, "please take care of him." I smiled at her and left. Upon reach the Tamer's home, I noticed that the Digimon was no longer there. Saz probably moved her somewhere to treat her injuries. I'll just see how she is after I wake up.
Normal POV
The morning sun was already high up in the sky by the time Kou regained consciousness in the infirmary. He opened his eyes to see blurs around him. Those blurs cleared up to reveal unfamiliar people draped in white. The doctors and medics eased him slowly by asking him a few simple questions like 'how are you feeling?' and 'does it hurt anywhere?' They received positive answers and decided to let his body rest and recover further before asking more. Kou was given a device to call them if he needed help. He thanked them and asked some questions of his own.
"Where am I?"
"This is the infirmary in DarkmoonCITY." DarkmoonCITY? Isn't this the Night Crow's home?!
"How did I end up here?" They shrugged.
"We don't know the details but Shade was the one who brought you here."
"Shade...?" The name slipped out as a murmur before the doctor managed to hear it.
"Yes, she's a promising Tamer." The doctor chuckled, "She really surprised us when she suddenly rushed in here in the wee hours of the morning with you on her back. Would you like to meet her?"
"Huh? A-ah no t-that's fine. It's okay."
"I understand. Well let us know if you change your mind." The doctor and nurses left the room and I stared at the white ceiling. Shade huh...I'll have to remember to thank her if I see her later.
Shade's POV
I casually walked around the CITY as my mind wandered. I've already heard that Kou has awoken in the infirmary and I'm relieved about it but, I just couldn't bring myself to go visit him. I don't know why, it was as if that was the last place I wanted to go right now. I felt myself come to a stop and my eyes continued to stare at the ground. Am I...scared of meeting him? I shook my head. Why should I be scared? I have no reason to be...right?
"-ade. Oi Shade!"
"Huh what?!"
"Geez what's up with you? I've been calling your name for the past minute you know."
"I'm sorry. I...wasn't paying attention." She sighed.
"I was asking if you wanted to go on a quest together? You look like you could use some fresh air or something."
"...I don't see why not." Unexpectedly, I felt my wrist being grabbed and tugged lightly. I looked up to see Dorothy pulling me behind her.
"W-Why are you dragging me?"
"If you would keep up I wouldn't have to this now do I?" Seeing no sense in arguing further, I let her pull me along. We arrived at the Quest Center where Dorothy picked out a quest and once again dragged me to our destination.
Login Mountain
"So what are we suppose to do?"
"We just have to take care of some violent Digimons and retrieve something they took from our client. They should be deep within the mountains " Simple enough. The cool crisp breeze brushed against my face and hair. At any other time, I would gladly embrace this refreshing feeling. But right now, I'm just not in the right mood even though I can't place my finger on why. We defeated our targets and retrieved the item in no time. They weren't even a match for us especially with all the training we've been through. I sighed. the whole day has been pretty dull and anti-climatic, it's odd. I felt a tap on my shoulder and turn only to get my cheeks smacked between two hands.
"What are you-?" She released my face and held a finger to my mouth.
"I never took you to be a stubborn one Shade but isn't it time you visited Kou?" I tensed.
"What do you mean by that?"
"I mean, just visit the guy already! He's the reason why you're so out of it today isn't it."
"..." Dorothy shook her head and spoke in a teasing tone.
"Awww~ To think that lil'Shade's fallen for flame head, a Light Fang nonetheless. You've grown up haven't you~." My cheeks suddenly felt warm.
"W-WHAT?! That's not true and Kou being a Light Fang has nothing to do with anything!"
"Then you don't have a reason not to go right?" She...has a point. "Then it's decided! I'll take your silence as consent. You'll visit him after we get back even if I have to force you to." I sighed in defeat.
"Fineā¦"
DarkmoonCITY Infirmary - Outside Kou's room,
"Well, here we are." I stiffly nodded.
"..."
"..." I heard the door open and I got forcefully shoved into the room. "Oh just go in already!" I tried to reopen the door but it was no use. Dorothy must have found some way to temporarily jam the knob or she's just stopped it from turning with her hands. I mentally hit my head on the wall at her actions.
"Is someone there?" My body froze and my mind went blank at the familiar male voice. I panicked. WHAT TO DO What to do?! I could stay quiet but I don't think Dorothy'll open the door anytime soon and if he finds me afterwards, it'll just make things worse!
"Hello?" I hesitantly turned around and stared at the white curtain where the voice came from. I really don't have any other choice do I? I took small forced steps towards it and lightly pulled the curtain upon reaching it. Kou must have noticed the sound because I saw his eyes staring straight at me when I peeked up. His eyes were wide as if in shock or surprise and we stayed motionlessly still in the silence. I couldn't take the eye contact any longer so broke it when I turned my head to the side and he did the same.
Kou's POV
Of all the people, I wasn't expecting Shade to visit me. Just call it a gut feeling. But then again, who else in DarkmoonCITY would even bother visiting a Light Fang, their enemy. I could easily feel the tension between us and this uncomfortable uncertainty in my chest.
"It's good to see that you're awake."
"Yeah..."
"..."
"..." I frowned. Was it ever this hard to talk to her?
"..."
"..." The silence persisted. Staring at the other empty end of the room, I made a lousy attempt of starting a conversation. I scratched the back of my head nervously.
"So...how are things? Outside I mean. With the virus and stuff." I probably would have slapped myself in the face if I was alone. With the way I said each sentence right after the other, I sounded like a nervous-wrecked boy on his first date.
"We're managing by but there's still a lot we don't know."
"I see. Oh and err w-well...t-thank you." I mumbled the last part.
"What for?"
"Well you were the one who brought me here right? I figured I should at least thank you." Shade didn't reply but I did see her shift.
"So er Shade, I-I was wondering...can you tell me what happen that night?"
"T-That night?" Shade asked but I could tell she clearly knew which night I was referring to. I frowned. Somewhere deep down, I had a strong, heavy feeling that I would regret bringing up this topic right now. But it's been eating at me ever since then. I had to ask.
"The night we met at Resistor Jungle. ...I can't remember anything that happened." Shade fell silent and looked away.
"Nothing happened. You just suddenly collapsed when we were talking." I inwardly groan.
"I know you're lying."
"How can you be so sure about that?" Her face remained passive.
"Nova gave me a gist of what happened but that's all. I want to know what happen in detail." My breath hitched when she didn't reply immediately. I wasn't sure if was simply a trick on my eyes but I could swear I saw her flinch. A wave of what seemed like pain, conflict and uncertainty flashed in her eyes. But before I could see properly, it left as soon as it came.
"I...can't tell you." My head snapped to her.
"Why not?"
"I just can't!" Her outburst caught me by surprise and she quickly spoke in a shaky voice. "I-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have shouted. I-I 'll just leave now. Please excuse me." Shade abruptly turned around to leave and my body moved on it's own. I stumbled out of bed and managed to grasp her wrist. My legs were a little weak but I held firm.
"I'm sorry." The words left my mouth without second thought. I wasn't sure why I apologized but it felt as if it was the least I should do. The pull against my grip weakened but she never turned back. She paused in silence and after a few seconds, she spoke softly but sadly.
"I'm sorry but I need to be alone." Before the words sunk in, she yanked her wrist from my grip and ran out of the room. Something within me held me back from going after her so all I could do was to watch her leave. I slumped back on my bed and I felt frustration boil within me. When did our friendship crumble so much? It's...because of me isn't it. Because of what happened at Resistor Jungle. I slammed my fist onto the bed. Darn it, why can't I remember anything?! I laid on my back, feeling mentally exhausted.
Everything's going downhill. I stared at my hand and I began to think. My actions and those words that I had no control over...the reason why I didn't reach out to her the second time, does it have something to do with what happened? I retracted my hand and covered my eyes with my arm. An old memory resurfaced and I couldn't help but notice how much it resembled the current situation. It was a memory of something someone told me long ago - even if the mind forgets, the body will always remember.
I sighed. I can't seem to get a break can I? It's been one bad thing after another and 'that', took the icing on the cake.
Flashback~
Late at night, Kou sneaked into the union room. majority of the staffs were already asleep but a few were still around. He waited till they left before heading to one of the computers. On his way there he heard talking and quickly hid himself. He peered around the corner to see chief glare talking to somebody.
"I trust that everything's going smoothly."
"It is. It'll only be a matter of time before the D-word spreads and takes control of the entire CITY." The figure snickered.
"Excellent. The second phase will be ready to start in due time. You do understand what you'll have to do, right Chief Glare?"
"Of course." Chief Glare closed his eyes and reopened his eyes with a blank serious expression. "We'll invade DarkmoonCITY and take control of every single Night Crow." Kou couldn't believe his ears. Chief Glare has been working together with whoever's bringing the Digital World in chaos this whole time. He tried to push his luck to try and catch a glimpse of the figure. But he pushed his luck a little too far. His foot knocked against something which caused a loud clang in the otherwise quiet room. Shit.
"Who's there?!" Darn I can't let them find me! I got to-! My back hit against something when I moved back. I spun around only to be grabbed up by my throat.
"Oh look who do we have here~" He had the same voice as the figure earlier. But if they're the same person, how'd he get behind me so quickly? He walked into the light with me in his hand. "Looks like the kid want's to join in our conversation."
"C-Chief...Gla-are..." I could barely breathe let alone talk with him grabbing my throat so tightly.
"What are you doing here?" He spoke coldly and emotionlessly.
"...I just...wanted to find some a-answers." The figure brought me closer to his face.
"Hmn~ answers eh~? Now now we can't have someone like you digging around you know." He turned to Chief Glare. "What do you think we should do about this, Chief Glare?" He purposely emphasised the last part. A moment of silence fell around us and I kept mentally shouting for Chief Glare to get him to stop. But, he had to say the two words that killed something within me - my will and my belief.
"Kill him." The figure evil snickered and licked his lips.
'With pleasure~" His grip tightened tremendously around my neck and this time, I was truly suffocating. I tried struggling against his grip, trying to break free from his hand. Trying to...live? Is there really any reason for me to live now? The person who was like a second father to me just ordered for my death, almost everybody in the CITY is under their control and I can't do anything about it. Everything that I believed in and fought for... My arms went limp and they fell to my side as I stopped struggling. ...Just what did I think I could do? It was all just a silly illusion I created. I closed my eyes and prepared for death to come. Nothing mattered to me anymore.
"JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?!" My eyes snapped open at the familiar voice. I instinctively gasped for air when his hand was forcefully pushed away from my throat. I would have collapsed onto the floor if someone didn't catch me. I weakly turned my head and saw Haru beside me.
"Nova let's go!"
"Tch I know I know!" Haru cradled me in her arms and ran out of the Union room with Nova. They kept running till they came to a stop. We were surrounded by Tamers of various ranks. I didn't dare spare them a glance for fear of seeing my friends amongst them. I heard them summon their Digimons and knew that the situation was very grim.
"Give in and we won't have to hurt you. Don't waste your energy. You're severely outnumbered." My ears heard Nova's low snarl.
"Don't screw around with us." His rage erupted. "We don't care about numbers. We'll just force our way through!" Everything that happened next was a mystery to me. My mind was unfocused and couldn't pick up on the battle. The next thing I know, was arriving in the Tamer Home.
Haru set me down and she positioned herself towards the TPGate to prepare for a fight. Nova on the otherhand went up to the wall and his body engulfed in flames. He slammed his body against the wall repeatedly causing the wall to burn and break.
"Oi Haru!" She flung whack away a Digimon with her tail and quickly flew to them. She bent down and hurriedly prompted me.
"Quick get on!" I stumbled onto her back and cling onto her with my arms around her neck. Once I was secured, we flew out of of the hole in the wall. Haru and Nova took to the skies at their maximum speed with other aerial Digimons hot on their tails. An onslaught of different attacks whizzed pass us. Fira did his best to fend off their attacks by intercepting them. Many explosions went off behind us. We didn't have a clear destination but where could we even go? A grunt caught my attention and I risked looking back. Tens of Digimon were gaining on us and Fira unsteadily flew to our side.
"I'm sorry but this is my limit." He digitalised into my Digivice. Soon afterwards, a shot made contact with Haru. Her flight went haywire as more shots hit their target. We spun out of control and I began loosing consciousness. My vision went black and the last thing I remembered, was crashing.
Flashback End~
Normal POV
Kou's hand unconsciously touched his sore throat. He could still remember the force of his tight grip on his neck. He shuddered at the memory. His home, his life and his world - everything shattered before him. His body shook as tears rolled from his eyes. Everything that happened was too much for him to handle. His thoughts were a jumbled mess and he was an emotional wreck. Never once was he so glad to be alone. He didn't want anybody to see him like this. Minutes passed before his tears came to a stop. He hardened his heart and forcefully pushed everything aside. He felt numb as if he was a mere shell.
He had nothing to fight for, no one to share his pain with and worst of all, he didn't have a home he could return to.
CUT and cue the dramatic and depressing music~!
So, according to Guest 1, I made Shade suffer inside in the previous chapter and now it's Kou's turn~ Huehuehu don't mind me. I just love mentally torturing fictional (not real) characters X3
So what were your reaction and thoughts to this revelation? What the heck went wrong with Chief Glare and possibly SunshineCITY? I wonder, how many of you were affected by what happened to Kou? Did you feel him~? :3
Anyways don't forgot to review~ :)
