DISCLAIMER: I don't own Digimon, but I do own the OCs introduced in this story and later stories (except where stated).
CHAPTER 11
Plight of the Dark Kitsune
New York City
15:09 EST
"What do you think?" Mari asked as Ryder stepped out of the changing rooms, MiniDonmon sitting on Mari's head. Ryder was now wearing a black shirt with a strange pair of orange triangles forming a '1' shape in the middle, a navy blue jacket and black sneakers with orange lines on them. His wrist still had the D-Vice, fitting in well with his new clothes.
"Cool…" MiniDonmon commented.
"Not bad, I must say…" Ryder noted.
"Better than that raggedy old rubbish you used to wear…"
"Hey, I liked that!"
Mari chuckled.
"So what's up with the logo?" Ryder asked.
"Huh, why?"
"Looks familiar, that's all…"
"Like I'd know…anyway, get changed back into your normal clothes and I'll buy these, okay?"
"Will it bring an end to our shopping trip?"
"Yes…"
"Okay then…" Ryder replied, walking into the changing room again.
DarkRenamon stood nearby, unbeknownst to them, listening to their conversation. She watched Mari stand against the wall again, her red-brown hair framing her face, as MiniDonmon attracted attention from some people nearby. Mari sighed.
"You okay?" MiniDonmon asked.
"Yeah, just that whole DarkRenamon thing is concerning me slightly…"
"Why?"
"By the sounds of it, she had second thoughts about what she was doing. At least, that's what Renamon said it looked like."
"What do you think she was thinking about?"
"I'm not sure…"
"Maybe she realised that we're the good guys?"
"I don't think it's that simple."
"Are you sure that's everything?"
Mari's mind flashed back to the events of that morning. "No…I remember…this morning, when I held that gun out, my heart racing with adrenaline, I stared into her eyes and I saw…fear…not just fear, but bewilderment…and I have no idea why…"
MiniDonmon sighed. "We'll need to get to the bottom of this mystery."
Mari nodded, MiniDonmon holding on tight to her hair to avoid falling off. Mari ignored the minor discomfort, and replied. "That's the thing; everyone else just wants to blow her to bits, without even finding out anything from her. I don't want to kill her, that seems just…wrong. She doesn't deserve it, not if Yggdrasil is tricking her in some way."
MiniDonmon nodded. "I'll try to help you get a chance…"
"Thanks…" Mari replied, as Ryder exited the changing rooms, normal clothes now on, and new clothes in hand. He passed them to Mari.
"There you go…" he told her. She nodded, and smiled.
DarkRenamon stared at the floor. Unintentionally, she had overheard everything. This…Mari…seemed so calm…yet still fearful…in the face of this kind of fear. And she wanted to help DarkRenamon. 'But why? Why do I need helping? And why do they think Yggdrasil is tricking me? He can do no wrong!' DarkRenamon argued with herself. She clenched her fist in anger, before taking calming breaths. 'Anger will not help me…I have to talk to someone…maybe I can find some answers…maybe I could talk to Mari…'
Mari walked out of the department store, Ryder promptly following, MiniDonmon moving to his shoulder en route. DarkRenamon decided to follow.
Central Park
15:15 EST
Takato sat next to Rika in the calm and serenity of the park, which had been disturbed earlier by DarkRenamon. Takato put his arm around Rika, and she smiled. Their earlier meeting with the other Tamers had given them a chance to talk about what had happened, but it still concerned them. For the most part, however, both of them were simply content to sit in each others' company in the park, which was somehow quiet despite the number of people walking, skating and cycling around.
"Rika…I forgot to say…thanks for running after DarkRenamon…"
"No problem…I'll always be there for you Takato…"
"Same…"
"Ah, so soppy…" Chaos commented. Rika snorted.
"Shut it Chaos…"
Flynn Residence, 3rd Avenue
15:36 EST
Maria unlocked the door to her apartment, the standard key paling in comparison to the flashy card key systems of the hotel. The apartment was on the third floor, and was actually larger than Ryder expected, although still not huge. It was similar in size to the Janyuu residence back in Shinjuku.
"No place like it…" Maria noted glumly, mirroring the well-known idiom. The apartment had a few windows along one wall, a two doors leading to (presumably) a bathroom and a bedroom, and a small kitchen area in the main room. There was a small sofa, and a small flat panel TV.
"It's not that bad…" Ryder tried to compliment.
"Yeah, but lonely…"
Ryder nodded glumly.
"You can change in the bathroom if you want…" she noted, gesturing to the right hand door of the pair. Ryder nodded, and took the shopping bag she handed to him.
"Cheers…" he replied, before heading into the bathroom, pausing only as MiniDonmon leapt off of his shoulder and sat on Mari's head. Mari leaned against the wall to wait for Ryder.
Suddenly, a wind ripped through the apartment, and Mari's brown orbs looked up to see a black fox appear in the room. She reached down and grabbed the gun from its holster strapped to her leg. She held it out, flicking the safety off, and DarkRenamon raised her hands defensively. Mari's expression turned determined, and MiniDonmon growled, although it was not very convincing given his size.
"Please…I don't want to fight…" DarkRenamon insisted.
"Huh?" Mari asked, her concentration dropping slightly. She quickly sharpened her focus.
"I want to talk…" the black Kitsune continued.
"Have you been spying on me?" Mari asked.
"Very deductive…" DarkRenamon noted, the hint of a smile appearing on her face. "Yes, I have, and I heard what you said. I wish to talk…"
Mari frowned. "How do I know I can trust you?"
"I'm afraid I cannot think of anything you can trust me on but my words" she replied, bowing her head slightly. Mari lowered the gun, and sat on the sofa's armrest.
"The safety stays on…" she commented, holding the gun near her.
"Thank you…" DarkRenamon replied humbly, before beginning to talk. "I guess that what I want to talk about is myself…"
"I would like to talk about the same thing…"
"Why would you not kill me if you could?"
"I don't think you deserve it; there is more going on here than is immediately apparent."
"Such as?"
"I think Yggdrasil is actually a threat, and he is telling you that we are a threat for his own personal purposes."
Mari watched DarkRenamon, almost by reflex, become angry at the insult of Yggdrasil, but she calmed herself down. "Yggdrasil is omnibenevolent and omnipotent, he only means good for the Digital World…"
"What would happen if another being also became omnipotent, or more powerful than him?"
"What are you suggesting?"
"What if Yggdrasil were to end up being jealous? Or envious? Or worried by a threat to himself and his leadership?"
"Yggdrasil has no emotions, it is not possible."
"Emotionless? That's a bit odd; surely he must have some emotions if he is omnibenevolent?" MiniDonmon asked.
"Huh?" DarkRenamon questioned.
"Well omnibenevolence is about being all-good, not evil in the slightest. But kindness, the want to protect someone, and similar emotions are needed to be good. So how can Yggdrasil lack emotions?" MiniDonmon asked.
DarkRenamon almost looked convinced, before shaking her head. "I must follow Yggdrasil in all his orders…" she stated.
"You doubt him…" Mari stated.
"Huh?"
"I can tell…"
"What do you mean by fake Gods?" asked a new voice. Mari, DarkRenamon and MiniDonmon turned to see Ryder, now dressed in his new garb and holding the old in hand.
"Huh?" asked DarkRenamon.
"Rika said you said you had no time for fake Gods…"
"Lord Yggdrasil informed me that Chaos and Harmony are fake Gods…" Ryder chuckled in response. "Why are you laughing?"
"Sorry, but you are seriously falling head over heels into a trap…" Ryder replied.
"What?"
"Your argument is self-defeating, Yggdrasil is omnipotent yet he sends Digimon on his missions, he is omnipresent yet he needs Digimon to carry out his surveying, he is transcendent but he requires conformation of his all-superiority by destroying any threats, and he is omnibenevolent but he sends you on a mission you can't possibly survive." Ryder explained.
"What are you saying?" DarkRenamon asked, concerned.
"Isn't it obvious? Yggdrasil is lying; he is covering up his emotions." Ryder added.
"Yggdrasil cannot have emotions!" DarkRenamon stated.
"He is omnibenevolent, by definition he must have…" Mari replied
"Yggdrasil has no emotions."
"Except jealousy, fear and aggression, at least…" Ryder replied.
DarkRenamon was about to reply, but she looked down to the floor. "Hmm…"
"What do you think?" Mari asked.
"I will consider it. I thank you for talking to me, I apologise for any inconvenience." DarkRenamon replied bowing.
"Not a problem…" Mari replied, as DarkRenamon vanished into thin air.
"How did you get her to talk?" Ryder asked.
"She wanted to talk to me specifically…"
"Why?"
"She heard me talking before…"
"What did you say?"
"That I wanted to talk to her, and that I don't want to kill her. And that I thought that Yggdrasil was tricking her."
Ryder nodded. He looked into Mari's eyes, and saw an odd emotion that he hadn't seen before.
'Why was she bewildered about me?' Mari thought.
Central Park
17:59 EST
Davis, Kari and Kristy, along with partners, sat in a cart as it was pulled along by a horse through the tree-lined park, filled with tourists, some of whom were surprised by the in-training, rookie and champion on the buggy as well.
"You don't have to pretend you're enjoying this…" Kari whispered in Davis' ear, noticing his obviously fake smile, contrasting with Kristy's excitement.
"Thank goodness…" Davis replied, breathing a sigh of relief and showing his real expression, that of boredom. Kari smiled.
A shadow leapt past them, unbeknownst to all. DarkRenamon was confused, far more than she thought she should be. She had spent several hours collecting her thoughts, without much success.
'Yggdrasil must be right…why do I doubt him?'
DarkRenamon landed, near Bethesda Terrace. She recalled the events of the previous day, and frowned.
'Mari is right…I think…It's like I have an affinity with her…how did she understand me? And how did she know I was watching her?'
DarkRenamon walked beneath the arches, and opened a door to see a portal glowing, data flowing around a central orb, and the light glitching. She was about to walk forward, but she hesitated.
'There may be someone else worth talking to…'
DarkRenamon turned, and leapt away.
DIGITAL WORLD
Apex
13:11 EST
Yggdrasil strode about, almost as if agitated. Duftmon and Magnamon stood nearby, watching. "My lord, are you okay?" Duftmon asked, concerned. Yggdrasil shook his head.
"I am merely gathering my thoughts…"
"How dare you question Yggdrasil?!" Magnamon asked.
Duftmon cocked his head in curiosity, his eyes looking up in thought. He turned to Yggdrasil, and bowed his head. "Yggdrasil, my sincere apologies. Magnamon, would you care to speak to me elsewhere?"
"If it is of importance, it can be discussed in front of our Lord Yggdrasil…"
"I hardly consider Yggdrasil to care at all about our petty chat, he finds far better and nobler acts to spend his priceless time accomplishing that we can hardly think it worthy of wasting his time with…"
"Go, I have no need to hear what your conversation entails." Yggdrasil instructed, monotonous as ever.
"Thank you, my lord…" Duftmon replied. Yggdrasil nodded, and Magnamon and Duftmon exited the tree. Magnamon was eager to find what Duftmon wished to say, but Duftmon took his time, gathering his thoughts as he did so.
"Duftmon, pray tell, what is bothering you?" Magnamon asked, now vexed at the time spent waiting.
"It is surprising that you, the most questioning of our sacred clan, would turn so quickly to unquestioning allegiance." Duftmon stated.
"What are you suggesting?"
"I am suggesting that you have become a brainless fool, like so many of our clan."
"How dare you insult the Royal Knights?"
Duftmon chuckled. "I'm afraid the Royal Knights have already embarrassed ourselves far more than words could give by not thinking for ourselves…"
"What do you mean?"
"Our great founder, Imperialdramon, founded our group for protecting the Digital World. And yet we follow Yggdrasil, who may or may not be intending to protect the world…"
"That is Yggdrasil's purpose…" Magnamon replied.
"We should not assume that. I believe that Yggdrasil may be a force for good, but we must think for ourselves, rather than following Yggdrasil without question. I believe that the Royal Knights should act as an independent group, under the leadership of Omnimon until our great leader Alphamon returns." Duftmon replied.
"Hmm…" Magnamon replied.
"Reconsider you thoughts…now; I must unfortunately go to serve our lord in the Western Region. Call the Knights to order, our unquestioned leader Yggdrasil requests us to gather."
REAL WORLD
New York City
18:15 EST
Takato lay on the bed, TV on and Guilmon sleeping peacefully (despite the snoring, which was growing to annoy him). Rika and Renamon were absent, Renamon searching for any sign of her dark counterpart, and Rika following.
"And there were strange occurrences in the UN today when, during a talk, a strange monster attacked and kidnapped one of the speakers. The person who was kidnapped is now safe and sound, but the Digital Monster, or Digimon, has vanished without a trace."
"Do the public have any need to be worried about this?"
"Not at all, the Tamers have reassured us of this…"
'What does she want?' Takato questioned quietly. 'More importantly, why me? Why is she following Yggdrasil? Something odd is going on here…'
He opened his eyes when he heard Guilmon growling, before suddenly stopping with a yelp of pain. Takato looked across the room to see DarkRenamon standing near the window, foot on Guilmon's jaw to keep him quiet. He turned to stand up.
"Hey, leave him alone!" Takato complained.
"I do not wish to harm you, but I fear that he would have attacked otherwise." DarkRenamon replied, lifting her foot off of Guilmon's jaw. "My apologies…" she said, stepping back. Takato sat on the edge of the bed.
"Why are you here?" Takato asked, bewildered.
"I wish to talk…"
"What about?"
"I have some concerns that need answering."
"Do you doubt Yggdrasil?"
"My concerns are far more complex…"
"What exactly then?"
"About Gods, and Yggdrasil, and Mari"
"Gods? You said false Gods earlier, didn't you?"
DarkRenamon nodded.
"Why?"
"Yggdrasil believes that Chaos and Harmony are false Gods…"
"What does that mean?"
"It means he believes that you are faking it."
"And what do you think?"
"I agree with Yggdrasil…"
"What do you really think?"
"I agree…"
"No, what do you think?" Takato asked again.
"I am unsure…"
"So you have doubts?"
"No, Yggdrasil is omniscient, he knows all."
"No-one could possibly know all…"
"Yggdrasil does…"
"If he does, why hasn't he stopped this conversation?"
"He is infinitely wise…"
"Takato, how can someone know everything if everything isn't certain?" Guilmon asked, confused.
"Exactly…" Takato replied. "DarkRenamon, do you think that I know everything?" he asked, as Chaos.
"Chaos, I presume?"
"Of course…"
"I do not believe you know everything."
"And yet I am a real God…"
"But Yggdrasil informs us that you are not."
"And you trust his word?"
"He created all Digimon, he is omnipotent…"
"He didn't create me…" Guilmon told the black Kitsune.
"There may be a few exceptions…" DarkRenamon corrected.
"So you have doubts?"
"I have no doubts…"
"You do…I can see it DarkRenamon…in your eyes, I've seen it in Rika too…there is a hint, a tiny dot of doubt that is growing, and you know why…" Takato told the fox.
"Why then?"
"You doubt Yggdrasil, and you have no-one but him to talk to…"
DarkRenamon sighed. "The Royal Knights are far above myself; I can hardly begin conversation with them, let alone speak about any doubts."
"Do you believe that you were born to be Yggdrasil's slave?"
"Slave is a derogatory term, slightly harsh for this do you not agree?"
"It perfectly defines this situation. Believe thy master, he is God, don't question."
"So who do you think I am then?" she asked.
"I am unsure, but I believe that Yggdrasil has ulterior motives…"
"Mari suggested that too…"
"When did you speak to Mari?" Takato asked.
"Earlier, I heard her saying that she did not want to kill me, and that she wanted to talk. I spoke to her later; she gave similar reasons to you."
"So do you believe her?"
"Strangely, yes…"
"Why?"
"I am unsure…"
"So what are you going to do?"
"I am unsure…"
Takato frowned. DarkRenamon seemed confused, and torn between loyalties to Yggdrasil and her own instincts, as well as what they had told her. "You could join us…" Guilmon suggested.
DarkRenamon shook her head. "I must talk to someone…" she decided.
"Who?" Guilmon asked
"Thank you for talking to me…" she told Takato.
"No problem…"
DarkRenamon bowed, and vanished into thin air. Takato stared at where she had been. 'Please make the right decision; I couldn't stand to watch something bad happen…'
"Hey Honey…" Rika greeted, opening the door. She walked over to Takato, and kissed him, before looking at him. "Sorry, we didn't find her." She noticed Takato's blank, confused expression. "What's wrong?"
"DarkRenamon came here…" Takato replied.
"What happened?!" Rika asked, surprised at what she had missed.
"She wanted to…talk…and I think she has doubts…"
"She's the enemy, why didn't you trap her?"
"I don't think she is…something really odd is going on here…"
"So what do we do?"
Takato shrugged. "No idea…"
Rika smiled. "We'll see tomorrow, okay hun?"
Takato nodded weakly, still thinking.
"Anything else?"
"She went to see Mari earlier,"
"And?"
"Mari…she said that she felt an affinity for Mari…"
"That's odd…"
"I know…"
"So what do you want to do tonight? Go on a date again, stay in and watch TV…"
"You know what I want to do, and I know you do too…" Rika interrupted, smiling suggestively.
Takato smiled, before looking into her eyes. "I love you Rika…"
"Same…" she replied. "Whatever happens…" she added, putting her arms around his neck and shoulders, him still sitting on the end of the bed, and pulling him into an embrace.
DIGITAL WORLD
Apex
19:01 UTC
DarkRenamon felt weak after materialising back in 'her' world. The portal normally made anyone dizzy, but aiming for a particular point rather than landing on the lowest plain took energy. She panted in exhaustion. Yggdrasil turned to her.
"Ah, DarkRenamon, I see you have returned…"
DarkRenamon, trying to maintain her composure, bowed. "Yes my lord…"
"I see that you have been unsuccessful…" he added.
"My apologies…"
"Something is troubling you…"
"I need to talk…"
"On what subject?"
"I need to know if you are telling the truth…" she asked, determined.
"You have been speaking to the Tamers…"
"Huh?"
"I'm sorry…I must now move to my second plan…"
DarkRenamon, feeling her chance to find answers slip from her paws, quickly replied. "Please, give me another chance!"
Yggdrasil sighed, and turned to her. "Sorry…" he told her.
A blast of energy shot out of Yggdrasil, and hit the already weak DarkRenamon. She screamed in pain, as she felt her data being ripped in two, warped and corrupted in every way. She felt something almost grab her throat and burn her internally, as she felt the last of her energy escape. Her hearing faded and returned continually, as her eyesight, and all of her senses did likewise. Her muscles felt like they were burning, as she tried to move them. Her eyes dilated as her bloodcurdling scream echoed through the cavern. Her last thought was an angered one. 'You bastard!'
TO BE CONTINUED…
A chapter concentrating mainly on DarkRenamon, but with a few other insights. Please review.
Next time…
What is Yggdrasil's second plan? Why did DarkRenamon feel an affinity for Mari? How will Mari react to DarkRenamon's death?
Find out in 'Her Sorrow', Chapter Twelve of Dimensions Book Four: Gods.