W-W-WHAT?! Two chapters in two weeks? Guess what everyone, it's summer! A certain author had graduated Wednesday and now has more free time than she knows what to do with. So guess what? New schedule! I'm going to try and post a chapter every Friday now! Woohoo! I don't know if they will all be in this particular story, this is definitely my biggest project, but I may want to try and release some smaller stories too. I was looking and my page is very sadly empty. SO why not give some more cool stuff like this! I know I said I was originally going to make this a prologue project, but now that we are finally starting to pick up some steam, I may cancel that and just make this a plain old story. It'll make everything much less confusion. 1700 views people! I'm so happy I think I may explode. I never would have thought this story would this would be so popular, I'm glad I was proven wrong. But now I'm rambling, and I know you are eager to read this. So, Read Relax and Enjoy!
Kazu stared absentmindedly out the window, aimlessly staring at the passing clouds. It was hard to believe, and he was truly beginning to wonder if he was going insane, but having a substitute teacher was really starting to get boring.
When Miss Asagi had been teaching, he'd love to get a reaction out of her. Sure, he'd always get yelled at, given detention, and even sent to the principal's office now and then, but it was all worth it to divert lesson plans for the few sweet moments he could stall for.
With the crummy substitute teacher they had been stuck with, , they'd literally done nothing. A month into the school year and not a single assignment had been completed, let alone issued. The hunched back balding man simply sat there at the teacher's desk, flipping through a heavy black leather bound book.
However today was different. The book was nowhere in sight, just standing in front of the chalkboard up at the front of the room. Kazu had been so used to not seeing him move, he nearly fell out of his chair when the teacher spoke.
"Now class," he rasped in a low voice. "Perhaps today, it is time I taught you a lesson."
Many of the students looked at each other. Many gave sighs of relief, glad the teacher was finally taking initiative. Others grumbled, displeased at having to pay attention. And few others were just confused, curious if they should take the substitute seriously or not.
"Finally," Henry muttered. "Time to get this show on the road."
Kazu agreed, cracking his knuckles in enthusiasm. Time to see how long it'll take to crack this nut job hehe.
With chalk in one hand, a wooden pointer stick in the other, began to draw something on the chalkboard. He scribbled for several minutes, stepping away once he finished.
"Now then. If this is a human being," he began, pointing to an outline that looked humanoid. "What is this?" he asked, directing the pointer at the outline's chest a circle drawn inside.
Jeri raised her hand. This was the first time he had seen her for several days. The last time he had seen her was when she had run out of the classroom crying; when he had sided with Henry, saying the Sora kid was suspicious. That had been weeks ago.
"A heart," she answered when the teacher pointed at her.
"Correct," Mr. Manse mused. "And what is it that makes the heart so special, so strong?"
This time Henry raised his hand, allowing Kazu to sigh in relief. He needed to stay under the teacher's radar for as long as possible.
"The heart is a self sustaining organ that pumps blood into itself and throughout the body. It carries oxygen and nutrients to where they are needed and is the central component of the circulatory system."
Mr. Manse nods approvingly. "Correct. However, that is not what I was thinking. That is true in a physical sense, but what about spiritually, mentally, magically?"
"Magic sir?" Takato questioned, not waiting to be called on
"Forgive me," the teacher bowed. "I seem to have mispoken." His eyes lit up, causing a shiver to run down Kazu's spine. "I think I shall tell you all a story."
Mr. Manse began to pace around front of the room, still clutching the chalk and pointer. "Long ago," he began. "People lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light. Everyone love the light. Then people began to fight over it, they wanted to keep it for themselves. Thus, darkness was born in their hearts." At this, the teacher scribbled over the circle he had claimed was a human heart. "The darkness spread, swallowing the light in many people's hearts. It covered everything, and the world disappeared. But, small fragments of light survived. In the hearts of children." He gestured towards all the students with his pointer. "With these fragments, children rebuilt the lost world. It's the world we live in now."
"Sounds like a load of baloney to me," Kazu scoffed. What kind of mumbo jumbo does this guy put into his coffee?
"We are all born into darkness, and we will all die in darkness. If it is our start and our end, why must we stray towards the light?"
The children looked at each other, uncertainty in their eyes. "What's he talking about?" one student asked.
"I dunno, when did a science lesson turn into one on philosophy?"
"Should we like, call someone dude?"
Kazu looked over at Takato, Henry, and Jeri. Kenta was strangely absent, probably sick or something. "What is this guy's problem? I bet he escaped from an insane asylum!"
Henry sighed. "Gonna have to agree with you on that Kazu. Magic? Light and dark?"
Takato lowered his goggles, clamping them over his eyes. "If you guys can keep his attention off the door, I should be able to sneak out and grab the principal. If he sees how crazy this guy is, we might be able to get a new teacher."
"You got it Takato," Henry reassured.
"Be careful," Jeri cautioned. Takato's face turned bright red before he slipped out of his chair and pressed himself against the wall.
"Let's do this. Operation Disrupt Class is a go!" Kazu whispered excitedly. Henry rolled his eyes, Jeri not even looking in his direction. Time to do what I do best.
"Um, excuse me, Mr. Manse?" Kazu asked.
"What is it now?" the teacher replied grumpily. Clearly he was irritated that Kazu had interrupted his lecture, and Kazu was loving every second of it.
"Your drawing is great and all, but you can do so much better. I drew better that that when I was four years old."
"Oooohhhh," echoed the class, the students sensing a showdown.
Kazu took a moment to glance at Takato, the Tamer already creeping towards the door. "Here, I'll show you." Without waiting for permission, he jumped out of his chair and walked to the front of the room.
"Return to your seat you vermin!" Snarled the substitute. Kazu snatched the chalk from his hand, commencing the start of his doodling on the chalkboard.
He managed to draw a large valentine heart on the board before turning to the adult and mimicking the shape with his hands. "I love you Mr. Manse," he said in a high pitched voice, outstretching his heart shaped hands.
The menacing glare he was given sent chills down his spine. Aww man! M-maybe I went a little too far… The teacher's lips were pursed into an evil sneer, his eyes twitching with white hot rage. His right hand began to clench and unclench involuntarily. He took a step forward.
"You little brat will regret the day you were born!" He lunged at Kazu, clawing furiously over his body.
He attempted to dodge, but jumped right into a desk, knocking the wind out of himself. Stunned momentarily, Mr. Manse grabbed the back of Kazu's shirt, holding him in place.
At this moment, the door opened, Takato and the school principal bursting in. "What is the meaning of this! I never authorized for there to be a substitute teacher, nor did I know that Nami Asagi was missing!" He turned to look at Mr. Manse. "I've called the police, they will be here to escort you off the premises of this school and into a jail cell. Attempt to leave or hurt these children and you will be faced with consequences."
Kazu never thought he'd see the day where he was thankful they had such an uptight principal. He just totally saved my behind! His arms still stung from where the teacher scratched him, but other than that, he was on top of the world.
Despite the daylight streaming from outside from the windows, the room turned pitch black. Kazu couldn't even see his own hand, let alone the deranged teacher in front of him. He flailed his arms aimlessly around him, slightly panicking. Where the hell did the sun go?
About four seconds of panicking later, Kazu was able to see again. The principal and Takato still positioned in the doorway, the rest of the students at their desks. However, Mr. Manse was nowhere to be seen.
"C-class is dismissed for the day. Please go home as soon as possible and stay there for the rest of the week. I must have the authorities investigate all this." The principal calmly assured the students that nothing was wrong, but Kazu could tell he was just a spook away from wetting his pants. How did he know this? He felt exactly the same.
He got out of that room as fast as possible, his friends only slightly behind him. It was only once they got to the bike rack that they began to chatter amongst themselves. Despite the intense situation they had just gone through, it was a beautiful day outside. Blue skies, white clouds, bright sunshine, the perfect time to end their two hour school day."Woohoo no more school for the week. Best school year ever!"
"I dunno." Henry interjected. "I don't like the fact that the principal didn't know about our subsitute. I mean, he called the police!"
"He was very surprised when I came kinda crashing into his office," Takato said, rubbing the back of his head bashfully.
"Well, at least you saved us. That teacher was really starting to scare me." She wrapped her arms around the goggle headed boy, pulling him into a hug.
"What about me?" Kazu asked. "I did a pretty awesome job too. How else was he supposed to get he-"
"C'mon Takato. Let's go to my dad's restaurant. Calumon has been swimming in the banana splits lately. It's pretty funny watching him try to eat one all by himself."
"Sure," Takato agreed. He and Jeri grabbed bikes, Jeri pedalling away already. Takato shot Kazu and Henry a confused look before giving a shrug and racing after her."
"She still mad at us?" Kazu asked, already knowing the answer.
"Yup."
"Great. So what now?" His question was only met with silence. "Henry?" He turned around.
"See you at the playground later today Kazu," he hollered from the distance, biking away.
"Why am I always the last one left behind? I basically saved us from that creep of a teacher and I got zero respect." he whined to himself. He gave a sigh before slowly trudging the two minute walk in the direction of his house. Time to go save Guardromon from my mom before she turns him into a crockpot again.
It was in the middle of being fed his lunch of scrambled eggs and dry toast that he noticed it. It was small, nearly undetectable. He had been without it for so long he thought he was imagining it. Obviously, he was delirious from being bedridden for so long, right?
However, when Miss Asagi rose to take his empty plate into the kitchen to wash it, he could feel the sensation growing. A small ember inside him was slowly rekindling, hesitantly fanning out its flames.
His magic spark had returned.
Sora had never felt so excited in a long time. He'd been trapped in this bed for seventeen days now. A number was all he had been able to cling to as he lay there, healing from endeavors he could only vaguely recall.
Should I really do this? He took a deep breath, causing him chest to ignite in pain. A swift reminder only fueling his decision more. No. I have to. I need to.
"Heal," he muttered, envisioning his Cure spell.
The small reservoir of magic he felt was gone before he could even register the fact he used it. A spiraling green energy wafted over his body, slowly dissipating into nothingness.
Despite the obvious effect, his body felt no difference. His concussion had died down ages ago, thankfully healing nicely. However, his broken ribs still burned, the pain rising and falling as he breathed. His broken leg and arm were still set in hardened casts, his fractured wrist in a sling. The burns that coated his body would irritate from time to time, but with Miss Asagi applying various ointments, they were healing nicely.
Sora could feel his frustration bubbling up. Why did he have to be so useless? He had taken on far greater challenges, yet here he was, unable to even leave a bed. Riku and Kairi aren't going to stop searching. I'd do the same for them again if I have to. But they deserve to live their lives, not spend them searching for me. The endless bedrest had made him think much deeper than he usually did. It was the only way for him to occupy himself.
"Sora, did you want to do another lesson?" Miss Asagi's disembodied voice asked from a different room.
"That'd be great!" he hollered. Apparently, his caretaker was a teacher. When he had told her he had missed two years of school, she had been mortified. As a result, she had been teaching him various lessons of different subjects. In all honesty, Sora enjoyed school. It was a major break from saving the world.
"Here," she said, returning with a textbook. "We'll be returning to geology for today. I'll teach you about igneous,sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks, and how they form."
Sora couldn't exactly take notes, so Miss Asagi would simply read him the information, point out the pictures, and ask questions on what she just covered. Sora was glad that if he got a question wrong, there wouldn't be a life or world at stake, just a simple shake of the head and the correct answer.
Miss Asagi was busy explaining him how obsidian was formed, when her telephone rang. Setting the textbook onto the bed, she walked over to the nightstand next to Sora and grabbed the phone she kept there.
"Hello?" Her face lit up. "Ah, Principal Hoshido. Is everything alright?" She twirled the telephone cord around her fingers as she listened. "Yes, I'm fine. I simply had to take medical leave." Her expression seemed to harden. "I'm sorry, but I can't come back yet." Suddenly she looked terrified. "What do you mean the children were attacked!?" The caller on the other side seemed to be explaining the situation to her.
Sora watched his caretaker anxiously. He hated seeing her so stressed out. She has been caring for him for all of seventeen days, if he could repay her back, he would do it tenfold.
"I see," she mumbled. After giving a sigh, "I shall consider it." She hung the phone up. With that, she turned back to him, a smile on her face. "Now then, where were we?" she asked.
He gingerly shook his head, still getting used to the idea of being able to actually move a part of his body. "You can stop if you like. And that phone call sounded serious. If you need to get back to teaching, then go."
Miss Asagi pursed her lips. "Sora, I'm not just going to abandon you. You need someone to be here for you."
"And your students need someone to be over there," he countered. "You've helped me so much. Besides, I feel much better already," he lied. At this moment, his chest had a dull burning sensation. His broken bones didn't really hurt, but they felt stiff. He longed to stretch his muscles, to take a shower.
"You need me more. You may think you need to go back to living on your own, but that just isn't true. You have me and Angel now. And if you think we're just going to walk out of that door and leave you, then you are wrong."
It was pointless to argue with a teacher. They're whole job was to educate students on how to better themselves. If Miss Asagi was too stubborn to leave him to his own devices, Sora assumed he'd be stuck with her for a much longer time period. He reached out and put his hand over hers. "Thanks. For putting up with me," he laughed.
She didn't say a word. All she was currently doing was staring at him. Boy, was it making him feel uncomfortable. He wiped away some sweat that was gathering on his forehead. Then it occurred to him.
"I can use my arm!" he stammered, flabbergasted to have a working limb. His fractured wrist was healed!
Miss Asagi seemed equally speechless. "This is impossible," she whispered astoundedly. "I better call the doctors, see what they think." With that, she was back on the phone.
Being able to actually move a part of his body was an amazing first step for recovery. I just wish I knew how I got some of my magic back. He also had to be careful how much he moved his arm. Despite it being healed, it was still connected to his chest, which was still in utter agony.
Magic was a curious element. Even Donald, whom was a powerful Magician, still studied through the various texts they had kept on their Gummi Ship. Merlin, whom had taught him the basics, tended to be too flustered with some other issue to take the time to explain it properly. TO be fair though, the end of the universe had only just been narrowly avoided. Twice.
"A doctor will be here later today. They'll just run some basic tests, ask you some questions. They said you might even be able to upgrade to solid foods," she joked lightheartedly.
Sora nodded, this had been the daily routine. "I've been dreaming of this day for so long," he snarkily replied. This caused her to smile, momentarily forgetting the stressful phone call from earlier.
Angel hopped onto the bed, purring loudly. Using this as a wonderful opportunity, Sora reached out with his newly healed arm and gave her some pets, stroking down her back. Her fur was velvet soft, a luxury in contrast to the bed spread he's been stuck with for nearly three weeks.
The two of them continued to chat like this for sometime, both ever hopeful that he would recover swiftly. They were so engrossed in their jokes and conversation, that neither could hear a muffled beep come from underneath the blankets. A sound made from a certain Digivice.
The small dinosaur playground was currently empty, the perfect place for a Tamer meeting. Takato and Jeri were currently seated on the swing set, gazing up at the clouds as they clung to the chains that held them aloft. Guilmon and Calumon were currently repeatedly going down the slide, walking up the ladder, and sliding back down the the bottom.
It was currently 3:27 PM, about three more minutes before many of his friends would show up.
"So, uh Jeri?"
"Yeah Takato?" she replied curiously.
He could feel his heartbeat quicken as he gazed into her eyes. I'm gonna screw up again, I just know it. "Uh…" Takato wracked his brain, unable to think of anything to say. Awkward tension surrounded the two of them. "Nevermind," he muttered softly. He began to look at the ground, too ashamed to raise his head.
"This is where is all began," she said out of the blue.
"What?" He thought it over, now looking at the sky in deep thought. Oh yeah. "This is where I became a Tamer."
"Yeah," she confirmed. "The start to an amazing life changing adventure." She looked down, a sad expression on her face. "I just wish Leomon could have seen the end of it."
"He's always with you," he heard himself say. "He helped you fight the D-Reaper and he'll be here to help you through everything else."
A smile found its way to her face, causing Takato to smile back at her encouragingly. "Thanks Takato, for everything. You always know just what to say."
"Always glad to help." He gushed. Takato still felt on top of the world from the hug Jeri had given him earlier that day. It just reminded him of how much he really liked Jeri. He only wished he was able to tell her.
"Hey Takato!" hollered a familiar voice.
Oh boy. The goggle headed Tamer looked up to see none other than Kazu.
He came over, Guardromon stomping behind him. "So why're we meeting here and not in our usual spot?"
"Kazu, must you be so loud?" asked the Champion Digimon. He seemed unaware of the noise he was making himself as his body seemed to be hissing.
"Uhhh..Kazu? What is up with Guardomon?" Takato inquired, a little fearful for his safety.
The overconfident Tamer gave a sigh before dragging his hand down his face in an annoyed manner. "My mom kinda has a turkey cooking in him at the moment."
Ummm what? "She turned Guardromon into an oven?"
"Yeah," he said embarrassed. "We've got some relatives coming over, so my mom wants to show off by cooking a turkey." He turned towards Jeri who was being strangely silent. "Hey Jeri, fancy meeting you here."
She refused to meet his eyes, let alone his greeting and instead chose to watch Calumon and Guilmon playing in the distance.
"Ouch. That's a bit harsh," Kazu commented.
Guardromon chose to sit on a nearby bench, the metal piece of furniture squealing and bending under protest due to his weight. "Kazu, I feel I must lose some pounds soon." Kazu simply smacked his forehead in frustration before joining his Digimon is silence.
Not even ten minutes later, Henry, Rika, Ai, Mako, and Suzie would join them. " That's nearly everyone," Henry concluded. "Just missing Ryo and Kenta."
"Good riddance," Rika muttered.
Despite the pleasant atmosphere of the environment, and the cheerful demeanor of the Digimon, Takato couldn't help but feel a large amount of tension between his friends. He knew Jeri was at odds with Henry and Kazu for the moment, but there seemed to be a rift elsewhere. Rika was also very steamed at him for not telling her about the scouting shifts.
"Kenta should be reporting in real soon. I sent him a text saying he can come over." Henry explained.
"What do you mean 'reporting in'?" Kazu asked suspiciously. He crossed his arms, probably trying to think.
"I'll explain when him and Ryo get here." Takato assured.
"If they get here," remarked Rika.
An irritating beeping resounded throughout the air. Each Tamer looked down at their Digivice, suspect that something had gone amiss.
"Sorry everyone," Henry bashfully apologized. He dug in his pocket and pulled out his cellphone. "Hello?" he asked, answering it.
"Uuughh. Why do I have ta be surrounded by idiots!" Beelzemon groaned.
"Impmon, that's not nice," Ai said, crossing her arms. Takato didn't see much of Ai or Mako, but he thoroughly enjoyed watching them give Impmon a talking to. He could swear Impmon would always gloat when he digivolved into Beelzemon. He was now the most powerful Digimon they had now that the Sovereign were out of commission.
"They're my idiots though," he mumbled grumpily.
"Guys we have a major problem." Henry exclaimed, somehow still sounding calm despite the panic in his voice.
"What's up?" Kazu asked.
"Yamaki just gave me a phone call. He told me there are Digital Fields popping up all over the city."
"What? How?" Rika demanded. "They shouldn't be able to come through. The Digital World is gone!"
"Wait what? The Digital World is gone?" Takato was flabbergasted. What happened?
"Why didn't our Digivices tell us they popped up?" Kazu inquired.
"There's no time for this!" Henry yelled. "Yamaki gave me the coordinates for four Digital Fields. We need to split up into teams and solve this."
Both Digimon and Tamers stood there awkwardly, unsure who to pair up with.
Henry threw his hands up into the air in exasperation. "Fine, I'll split us up." He pointed at Takato and Kazu, opening up a map he had pulled out of his backpack. "I want the two of you to go to this northern point, it's near the supermarket. Me and Suzie will go to the point near the subway." He then pointed at Rika and Beelzemon. " I want you guys to go to the hospital. I'm going to send Ryo and Kenta a text and hope they have the fourth Field covered. To make sure, everyone meet up outside the hospital. Both Fields are in that general area."
Beelzemon didn't bother to wait out for any pleasantries. He simply grabbed both of his Tamers and flew off towards his destination. Rika soon followed suit, digivolving Renamon and following after him on Kyubimon's back.
"C'mon Guilmon! Time to go close a Field!" His partner raced over, all but knocking Takato to the ground. "Ugh. You ready Kazu?" he asked, pulling himself up.
"I'm always ready to kick digital butt, just not sure about Guardromon."
Back on his feet, Takato looked at the metal Champion Digimon. "Kazu, it's ready!" he exclaimed in a panicked voice. His body was slowly expanding, screeching with each and every new dent.
With a great deal of difficulty, Guardromon twisted the valve on his chest, allowing it to swing open. A large amount of steam burst through the air. All that remained was a perfectly golden brown turkey, set in a large aluminum pan.
"Ooh. Looks great," drooled Kazu.
"It smells yummy!" exclaimed a hyper Guilmon, dreamily sniffing the air besides Kazu.
"Aw c'mon guys, now you're making me hungry," Takato protested. As though agreeing with his thoughts, his stomach growled loudly. "Guilmon, if you help me close this Field, we can go over to Kazu's for dinner." He turned to look at Kazu. "Think your mom will mind?"
"Nah," he assured, swatting his hand through the air. "She loves it when I have friends over." He crawled onto Guardromon's back. "Let's rock and roll."
He nodded, attempting to ignore the signals his stomach was sending to his brain. "C'mon Guilmon, we've got a turkey waiting on us." He dug into his back pocket and grasped at the deck of cards he kept there. "Digi-Modify! Digivolution activate!"
"Guilmon digivolve to!" The red Digimon began to grow rapidly, tripling in size. A white mane sprouted, along with a pair of stubby horns. Various black markings appeared upon his body, adding a splash of color. "Growlmon!"
Takato climbed onto his partner's back. "To the supermarket!" he commanded. Growlmon gave a roar, stomping his way in the direction of their destination.
Guardromon followed behind, albeit at a slower pace. His body was so heavy, his footsteps left indentions in the pavement.
The Champions had no choice but to travel through the middle of town to get to the supermarket. "Coming through!" Kazu shouted. However, there was no need for him to say a word. The moment people saw Growlmon, they would part ways. Some in terror, others in awe and understanding.
"Sorry about all this," Takato apologized. "Growlmon, the sooner we get out of here, the better."
"I'll try," Growlmon rasped. He was currently trying to skirt around the oncoming cars. Up ahead, there was a large closed off section to the street. Blockades and flashing lights guarded the intersection they needed to go through in order to get to the supermarket. On the other side of the restricted area was a thick layer of fog. The Digital Field.
Guess we have no choice but to go through. "Be careful Growlmon," Takato advised. "I don't want you to get stuck in a pothole or something. They must be trying to repair a street."
Growlmon nodded as he delicately stepped over the striped blockade signs. His tail knocked one over, the sign falling down with a crash.
"Hey you kids!" exclaimed a traffic officer wearing a neon orange vest. Had he not been wearing the vest, the fog would've masked his presence. Takato could feel himself freeze.
Aw nuts! Just what we need.
The officer strode on over to Growlmon quite casually. Instead of giving him a reprimanding however, he gave a subtle salute. "Yamaki sends his regards. He managed to pull some strings and get the Fields quarantined. Keep following the street, the fog keeps getting thicker and thicker."
"Tell Yamaki he totally rocks," Kazu interjected. Guardromon stood next to Growlmon huffing and puffing with effort. "C'mon Guardromon, you really tired already? We won't be able to save the day with you in this shape."
"Perhaps you would like to carry yourself and this turkey uphill?" The Champion countered.
"To the supermarket!" Kazu exclaimed, ignoring his partner not for the first time. Guardromon gave a heavy sigh before continuing the brisk pace he had set for himself, leaving concrete footprints in his wake.
"Let's go," Takato said confidently. Glad we won't have to worry about people getting hurt.
It wasn't long until they reached the center of the Field. The supermarket wasn't really a big building. More like a town square. There were many stalls, abandoned due to the evacuation Yamaki had most likely issued. Each was littered by the remains of what would be their ideal selling product, such as bread or cheese. One even had a large selection of homemade meatballs, still warm in a left behind crockpot.
Kazu and Takato jumped off of their partners' backs and landed in the middle of the plaza. Growlmon sniffed the air and stomped away into the fog, Guardromon following him. "Hey!" Kazu exclaimed. "Come back here!"
There was no reply. The Tamers stood in silence, surrounded by the soupy obscuring fog.
"I'm not seeing it," Takato observed. They'd been looking for a solid 15 minutes. There was no Digimon, but there were signs of it. Many stalls lay overturned, some bashed in. Different varieties of food lay scattered all around the pavement.
"Find anything Guardromon?" Kazu hollered. Still no response. "Guardromon! Where are you!?" He put his hands on his hips and sighed.
"You think we should be here in this Digital Field alone?" Takato asked, attempting to keep the fear out of his voice, yet knowing he failed.
"We didn't come here alone, our Digimon ran off on their own. Besides, they should be around here somewhere."
Takato crouched down, rummaging through an old pastry stall. How big is this Digimon? For all we know, it could be too small to find. I mean, we already lost Growlmon and Guardromon, and there's no way we can find them here. Like lightning, an idea struck inside his head.
"Kazu!" he called out.
"I'm right behind you dude," Kazu said, surprising Takato and causing him to jump. "What's up man?" Kazu laughed.
"I just realized we've been idiots. We can literally follow the tracks Guardromon has been making," He explained, gesturing towards the sunken footprints. He could barely see them, but they were visible enough to follow.
Kazu looked down at the tracks, then back at Takato. "This did not happen," he swore, giving Takato a wink.
Takato nodded solemnly. I don't need to give Rika more reasons to call me an idiot. She'd never let us live this down.
The two of them cautiously followed the tracks, careful to make sure they didn't lose them to the fog. They could barely see their own hands, they didn't need to be lost with a Digimon on the loose.
The plan was a success. In the distance, Takato could see the familiar silhouette of Guardromon.
"Guardromon!" Kazu yelled happily. "You okay?"
"Kazu! I may require your assistance," the mechanical Digimon replied. Kazu and Takato ran up, eager to see what was wrong.
Guardromon was currently holding Guilmon in outstretched arms. The Rookie Digimon was snapping and snarling, thrashing about as he tried to break free of Guardromon's literal iron grip. He clawed at Guardromon's arms, leaving wicked scratches where he makes contact. His pupils were dilated, a usual sign Guilmon was in one of his more primal states. "I do not know how much longer I can contain him," Guardromon grunted.
"What happened!?" asked Takato, worried. What made Guilmon Dedigivolve and lose control like this?
Kazu grabbed his Digivice. "Digi-Modify!" He slid a card, flipping it dramatically in his hand. "Iron Power Gauntlets activate!"
Large grey heavy duty gloves materialized around Guardromon's arms, effectively protecting everything Guilmon was able to attack.
"Guilmon! Please calm down!" Takato pleaded. He slowly walked over towards his Digimon. "It's me boy. I'm not going to hurt you."
In response to his movement, Guilmon snapped in his direction. Takato couldn't help but cringe for a moment. He'd never expected Guilmon to attack him. No. I can't give up on him now. He's not himself. With his mental rally, he took another step closer. He reached out, ready to put a hand on his friend.
"Takato no!" Guilmon shouted.
Takato's hand froze as he looked at his partner. No, the voice had not come from in front of him. Rather, it came from behind him. He turned his head around.
Standing behind him was none other than Growlmon.
Takato took a step back too stunned. Both him and Kazu looked from Growlmon, to the Digimon in Guardromon's hands. If that's Growlmon, then what is Guardromon holding?
Seeing Growlmon seemed to make Guardromon lower his guard. The Digimon he had been holding managed to break free, wiggling itself onto the ground. Now free to move, it launched itself onto Guardromon's chest, clawing at his valve.
Retracting one of it's limbs for another swipe, it managed to accidentally pull open the compartment. It leaned its head in, and in a single bite, swiped the turkey, before running a fair distance away.
"Give us back our dinner!" Kazu shouted angrily.
The Digimon paid them no heed, devouring the cooked bird in three bites, bones and all. Having just eaten, it turned in circles for a bit before settling down into a small curled up spot. It gave a yawn before settling its head down and closing its eyes.
"Um...what?" Kazu asked,confused. Takato could only nod in stunned agreement.
Guardromon strode forwards, arms raised horizontally. "You foul beast! That fowl was to be ours! I shall avenge it!"
Growlmon had other ideas, stepping between in front of Guardromon before he could fire any rockets. "We can't hurt it." he argued.
Takato felt like he was having deja vu as he watched the sleeping Guilmon. "It's just a baby." he realized.
"What?" Kazu asked, looking at him as though he just said the sky were green.
"Think about it." he pleaded, the gears in his brain turning. "When a baby gets hungry, it cries. Guilmon did the same thing practically when he went around stealing food from the cafeteria after I made him."
"I was lonely too," the Champion Digimon reminded him.
"I don't even know what to do now," Kazu said after pondering the situation for a few minutes. "It ate the dinner we were going to have. But...having two Guilmons would be just so freaking awesome!"
Takato crept towards the sleeping Digimon, hesitantly putting a hand between its ears. The Guilmon opened its eyes, immediately shying away. "Growlmon, I need you to Dedigivolve. Maybe it'll be more comfortable if it sees you."
Growlmon nodded before being enveloped in a swirling light. Guilmon stepped out, standing next to Takato.
"How're we gonna tell them apart?" Kazu asked.
That's a good question. He ran his hand through his hair, ramming into his goggles. He wore them so much he tended to forget they were there. Wait a minute.
He removed his goggles and placed them onto Guilmon's head. "There you go. Now you're a Tamer and the Digimon," he joked.
Guilmon waddled over to his look alike. Seeing another one of it's kind, the other Guilmon gave a cautious sniff.
"Hello! Do you want to play?" Guilmon asked excitedly.
"H-h-hello." The other Guilmon copied, saying the word shakily. It rubbed its head onto Guilmon's chest, content.
"Looks like someone made a friend." Takato commented.
"So cool," Kazu said in awe.
"Can we keep it Takato?" Guilmon pleaded. He was currently attempting to come closer to his Tamer, but his new friend was determined to stay far away from the alien life forms it didn't recognize.
"I dunno." I mean, Guilmon was certainly a handful. But I only created ONE Guilmon. How is there another? I'd really like to know how this happened. "Alright Guilmon. We can keep it."
"Yay!" Guilmon exclaimed loudly. He walked over to Takato, a skip in his step. Takato merely smiled before giving his partner a pet on the head.
Seeing that it's friend didn't combust into a pile of flames after being touched made the Guilmon curious. It "stealthily" began to advance before it was right behind Guilmon.
No matter how patient they were, neither Kazu, nor Takato were able to touch the new Digimon. They didn't try too hard, they didn't want to scare it. But they were still disappointed it didn't trust them more.
I hope the others aren't having too much trouble with their Fields. Pretty sure we got the easiest one of the bunch.
Since their new friend didn't trust anyone but Guilmon, Digivolving Guilmon and riding him was out of the question.
"Kazu, I'm thinking you and Guardromon go on without us. Me and Guilmon need to figure out what to do. We can't exactly go back to the park. Now we need to figure out what to do."
"Ooh, solo mission. Let's do this Guardromon!"
The champion valiantly banged his chest, securely shutting his compartment. "We must not let our sacrifice be in vain!" he declared. The two of them set off, headed towards the hospital.
Takato looked at his partner. "You have any ideas?"
"No. I'm just glad to not be alone anymore."
It never occurred to him that Guilmon would be lonely. He has me. But he realized that until now, Guilmon had been the only one of his kind. Despite having friends, Guilmon probably felt different.
"I'm glad too Guilmon. Now let's get out of here before the two of you eat everything in this market," he joked.
EDIT: Alrighty friends. So I updated the story by putting in this chapter earlier. However, as I was looking through it, a few words had mysteriously disappeared, and all my formatting decided to take a hike. If anyone knows how to avoid this, I really appreciate it, just spent an hour redoing it all. Thank you all so much! See you next Friday :D