Chapter 12: Pieces

"This Chosen Child business is definitely dangerous" Susan Keith muttered as she bandaged her son's arm. "I thought it was your Digimon that was supposed to fight. Not you".

Noel could not answer. He looked at the ground. He couldn't find anything to say. He had jumped into a battle just because a girl, who he had met twice and barely knew, asked him. He had put his friends in danger and almost lost his Digimon partner and that was only his first fight.

While he stared at the ground, he realized that he had only one thing to say.

"Sorry."

Susan caressed her son's face. Noel could see the tears swelling up.

"I'm so sorry."

"Sometimes" the mother muttered as she brought her son's face closer towards her. "I think that we're gifted with things only so that they may be taken away".

"Mom…."Noel embraced his mother.

"I know this is something you have and that the fate of the world depends on it but it is so unfair to me. I already lost my husband. I don't want to lose you too."

"I'll protect him Ms Keith" it was Bokhramon who had seemingly recovered from the injuries. "Besides, he won't be alone."

Noel pondered on that sentence. His friend Hiran was apparently a Chosen Child like him. It could have been coincidence but either way it wasn't too bad to have him around.

"That girl…" Susan looked up.

"She's not a Chosen Child. Her sister is" Noel explained.

Susan grew thoughtful at that. Perhaps the mention of Kyrie's situation made her realize that they were both in the same predicament and a certain kinship had grown from that discovery.

"You seem to care for her deeply. The way you rushed out…" Susan giggled a bit.

"Mom!" Noel cried out. "It's not like that…"

Bokhramon was laughing around the corner.

"If you say so…." Susan laughed. "I wouldn't mind you know. She's very pretty." She burst out laughing soon after that comment much to Noel's embarrassment. Susan was definitely sad and afraid of the prospect of her son being a Chosen Child- that Noel knew very well. She tried to hide it amongst the giggles and serene laughter. He would know that very well since he did it very often. It was a type of lying that he was surprisingly good at. It was kind of amazing how many people would be fooled by a smile.

The conversation had distracted him from the pain in his arm- a reminder of how horrible things could go. Unlike Aurochmon his arm wouldn't regenerate. God knew how many battles he would find himself in and how many injuries Bokhramon would sustain.

"Maybe it was a bad idea" he thought and turned to look at his partner.

His eyes still held the same determination. He would have no problem going through that horrid experience again.

"If only I was even half as strong as you…" Noel thought as he got up. "I'm going to my room."

He immediately headed for his bed and tried to sleep but the throbbing in his arm prevented his eyes from closing.

"Damn" he shifted restlessly, thoughts accompanying the pain.

He wasn't worthy of being a Chosen Child.

The ringing of his cell phone brought him back to Earth. He shuffled clumsily off his bed and checked it.

"Eric…" Noel didn't feel like talking especially at an odd time like this. It would be rude to just decline the call and Eric was known to be persistent.

"Hello" Noel spoke into the phone.

"Noel, you free?" Eric asked.

"Not really" Noel lied. He was about to put down the phone before Eric said something.

"It's about the Chosen Children thing. Not a freaking football game. In case you didn't know, the fate of both worlds depends on it."

He knew that. "What is it?"

"I want all the Chosen Children to meet up and discuss things. Can you make it day after tomorrow?"

"I'll try" Noel replied.

"There's no trying" came the harsh reply. "You want to save the world? Then give it your A game."

"Got it" the call ended and silence resumed its reign.

"Noel?" The Digimon stared on with its innocent blue eyes. The boy turned towards his partner.

"I'm sorry but I'm scared" Noel crouched down as the goat moved towards him. He caressed the white fur once more. It seemed to relax him.

"You're not the only one scared, Noel" the goat replied.

"You sure don't look the part" Noel remarked. How much did this digital being feel or experience? Pain, hunger and taste. Such were biological in their constitution. What about emotion? To what extent did they experience them?

"How do you manage to be brave?" Noel asked.

"I don't know. I really haven't thought about it" Bokhramon replied. "You do that a lot though."

"What?"

"Think. You think a lot."

"Yeah. I do"

"What do you think about?"

"Lots of stuff." He used to like thinking. Lying in bed looking at ceiling and just letting the thoughts drift. It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. Hardly. He couldn't help it. The dark thoughts came naturally. Like a bad neighbourhood where the residents come out to wreck havoc from time to time.

"No one likes you."

"You're different. You'll never fit in"

Two common thoughts. Being a Chosen Child didn't help either. While he wasn't different in ways pertaining to race or anything that made him stand out he managed to get through most of school with only Julia and Eric. He was the quiet guy and he didn't like interacting with people fearing whatever they might think of him. He wasn't strong in that regard. Far from it. He admired Eric and Julia for being much stronger than him. There was no telling where he'd be without them.

"I guess it helps knowing you have someone to protect" Bokhramon replied. "I mean there are some people you always try to help regardless of how difficult it is. Maybe it's like that. You rushed in for Kyrie's sake."

"Then the mess happened" the boy remarked.

"You were really brave then"

"Stupid. Dumb. Reckless. All those qualify. Not brave".

"They can be one of the same at times"

"Nice words" Noel smiled. Some old memories swirled back. It was years back when his dad was still alive. Noel had come back from school. His father was home that day.

"Didn't have a good day, son?" His dad put down the paper.

"It's the same thing everyday" Noel replied.

"Well yes. Life is like that. If it wasn't monotonous you wouldn't have the great memorable moments"

"Shouldn't life be full of fun and adventure?" Noel raised an eyebrow.

"You'd be tired and lying on the bed after a few days" his father chuckled. "Life is many things. It's about doing things you may not like or thing you'll never end up doing. It's not fun. It's quite hard. At times you'll end up being lost and won't even know what to do."

"Stop scaring him" Susan told her husband as she came walking into room.

"I'm not scaring him" John laughed. It was hard to tell at times. He laughed so much.

"He's not" Noel replied.

"See?" John smiled.

"Then how are you so happy. Both you and mom?"

The husband and wife turned to each other and smiled. "That's cause we have each other" Susan answered.

"And we have you" John answered.

"Still not sure on what to do" Noel brought himself back to the present. "But there's really only one thing to do at this point. Keep moving forward I guess despite how scary it is."

"Well, I'll be there by your side" his Digimon replied. "But first, can we sleep?"

"Oh God, yes. So much happened I forgot I was even tired."

-xxxx-

"So what's your world like?" Gina asked Viperdramon.

"Our world? I didn't get to see much before having to leave for this world but I can describe the World Tree and the Garden for you?"

"World Tree?" Kevin wasn't really curious but he didn't have much to do then.

"Yggdrasil's residence and the place where we were born" the digimon answered stirring up from it's resting position.

Kevin stifled a laugh. "You were born in a tree?"

"Where were you born?" the dragon inquired.

"A hospital" Gina replied.

"Both of you were created in a hospital?" Viperdramon recalled what twins meant.

"Not created" Kevin corrected.

"Then how were you….?"

"Let's not go there. You continue."

Viperdramon gave up then. He gave up easily on matters considering humans. They were too complex. "As I was saying, the World Tree is where Yggdrasil is located. He oversees and runs all of the Digital World from there. The World Tree is huge reaching towards the sky even and has some of the strongest defensive walls set in to protect Yggdrasil."

"And the garden?" Gina seemed interested in that.

"It's a large area extending around the World Tree. Flowers and greenery everywhere. Digimon like to rest there."

"Is it beautiful?" Gina asked, "The garden?"

"Yggdrasil intended it to be the most beautiful sight in the whole Digital World. The whole garden is made out of data so Yggdrasil can alter it to look however he pleases and unlike the flowers in your gardens these are eternal and will never wither."

"Eternal beauty" Gina said, "doesn't sound nice."

Viperdramon looked confused while Kevin sighed.

"I think that it's the momentary nature of existence that really makes something beautiful, you know? Like you know the flowers will wither and die, that's what makes you appreciate them since you know they're not always gonna be there. I mean the thought that you won't be alive for ever is what drives people to do the things they want to do."

"Yggdrasil is a God. To him things are different" Viperdramon sounded like he hissed.

"Yeah but you're not that kind of being are you, Viperdramon?" Gina asked.

"You're boring him with the philosophical talk" Kevin smirked.

"She's not. It's just hard to take in" the Digimon replied. "So are you saying I should have the same opinion?"

"You could" she began, "or you could have a different opinion or no opinion at all. It doesn't really matter as long as you accept people for who they are."

"What she's trying to say is that you're different. I mean you're a freaking a dragon. Doesn't change the fact that we see you as a friend" Kevin interjected. His sister looked satisfied with his reply.

Viperdramon dwelled on the word 'friend'. From where he came from he didn't know that word. He only knew how to fight to kill and yet in these years he has learned compassion from these two humans who took care of him more than the one who created him.

"You need a hug?" Kevin mocked.

"I swear to Yggdrasil. No hugging or this place burns" laughter ensued.

"So when are your friends coming?" Gina asked Kevin. She had heard about how the Chosen Children would meet up at their house. She asked if it was the de facto leader's responsibility to host all their group meetings and victory celebrations here. Kevin replied that they had a nice enough house to host.

"A day or two later"

"You excited?"

"It's a meeting. What is there to be excited about?"

"Not that. I mean first time you're part of a group like this. You'll get to be friends with people and save the world. Sounds pretty exciting."

"It's not meant to be exciting. We aren't here for a picnic. It's serious."

Gina looked saddened. His brother wasn't interested in bonding with these people. She wished he would realize that when they would travel to that alien world they would only have themselves. They would have each other's shoulders to cry on but only if they let them. Kevin wasn't one to go around befriending people, opening up to them and partaking in drama. She got up from the bed and spoke "you don't realize something. If you don't get to know each other and learn to help each other you'll never make it there. What kind of leader would you want to be?"

Kevin sighed, "I don't know. I don't know why Eric said it had to be me."

"Whether or not it had to be you doesn't matter now" Gina spoke up, "it's your responsibility."

"We don't get to choose what we get" Viperdramon walked to Kevin's side, "regardless; you need to carry out a duty to the best of your ability."

"They're like you, Kevin" Gina smiled, "you wanted that didn't you."

He did. People he could trust and people he could be open with. Eric had thought that he could make them follow his every order like soldiers. They weren't soldiers, just teenagers being dragged into something that none of them have the slightest idea about. They were being made to tackle an unknown world and something beyond their imaginations. How would he expect some teenagers to sign up for this and carry out such a dangerous mission?

"They're gonna face difficulties" Kevin spoke.

"Not just them, you too" Gina replied, "communication is more important here. Not just barking out orders."

Communication. Perfect, just what he needed. It wasn't that he was bad at that. It's that most people would have better luck opening a bank vault by randomly rotating the wheel than getting him to be open about his real thoughts. Not after what had happened so many years ago.

It was in 3rd grade. Some bullies were harassing a kid. A common sight but Kevin wasn't in the mood that day. He had frightened them off. The kid had thanked him and soon became his best friend. He had two best friends then. Two people who knew him for who he was. A few years later one had left for a different country and soon Kevin lost contact. It was what happened to the other that shattered him.

"You're cool with mixing with them?" Kevin had asked Willis in 7th grade, the boy he had saved from the bullies.

"Why wouldn't I be okay with em? Willis replied. He talked a lot louder. Before it was a timid voice. Kevin noticed that his present voice was a bit grating on the ears. Still, he was his friend, his best friend at that. At least he thought then.

"They're the guys that bullied you" Kevin replied.

"Hey, we've all changed and grown out of stuff like that" he replied.

Change, Kevin thought, a little more than he would have preferred. "If you say so" was the reply.

In 8th grade Kevin was greeted by silence in most mornings. Willis came late, spent a lot more time with those guys. Conversations ended up being shorter every day. He didn't like it. So he had confronted him.

"Kevin, you should really meet these guys, they're really awesome people" Willis told him before Kevin even got to the point.

"Despite bullying you?"

"The past is the past, man"

"You're changing"

"So? C'mon just get together with us. It'll be much more fun than the two of us."

Kevin told him that he would think hard about it and soon left.

Near the end was when things turned sour. Willis had gotten into a heated argument with Kevin after making fun of him.

"You weren't like this" Kevin said.

"Hey man, no need to get so worked up. We're friends" Willis's reply was the last straw. Kevin got up and knocked him off the bench he was smugly sitting on and onto the floor.

"What the hell?" He hissed.

"We're friends" Kevin spat and left. Throughout the next two years he worked on his mask. He ended up being made fun of by Willis and his group from afar but he stopped caring. It was an art form really-the act of distancing yourself and not caring. You practice and you end up getting used to it.

You might also forget what it meant to be yourself.

Maybe he could trust these people. Maybe he could give them a chance. He was broken once. Why not again?

-xxxx-

"What was that?" Steve asked his brother who was resting after a day at work.

"What?" Tom asked rubbing his eyes. Staring at computer screens was not fun for the eyes. Work had been rough today. More than that however was the story he had heard.

"That thing that attacked" Steve tried to form his hands into scythes to mimic the monster but his brother didn't bother to look.

"Why would you think I know?" came the tired reply. Ada had told him about her meeting up with Lysandre at the museum- narrated it even.

"You're a scientist" argued Steve.

"You've been watching too many monster movies" Tom sighed. "Yes I do research but I'm not a biologist that I'd have a clue about monsters" that in fact was a lie. Digimon as their names suggested were made out of data and it was Tom's job to handle data. He had wondered how he got drawn into this. Creatures made out of data, the thought confused him. What were the chances? He had never sat to wonder how he had found himself in the midst of this.

"There's something much bigger than this" he thought. Something made him get up from the couch. His brother called out to him but he wouldn't respond. He was deep in thought.

Did Lysandre know about the existence of Digimon? Tom was imaginative at times but this was borderline crazy. Yet somehow it seemed to make sense. There were too many oddities and he as well may be just a bystander to this whole thing but what if?

What if Lysandre knew about all this? What if the research facility served a bigger purpose than just processing data?

He thought about it. He was a graduate when he had heard about Lysandre. Not just him though.

No one could possibly do this alone. He had a close confidant.

"Dr. Henry Dunbar" he muttered. His brother look confused.

D.A.R.P.C had a different purpose than he thought. It was just a front. Lysandre and Henry were working on something together involving the Digimon. Dr. Henry Dunbar wasn't the biggest name in the scientific world. His rise into fame was quite sudden in fact. Yet at a certain point the two names got entangled. Newspapers would feature these two closely and more often than not working on similar projects-projects that apparently would revolutionize science itself.

He recalled the car ride with Dr. Henry.

Adaptive programming.

Programs that would evolve and adapt to their environment.

He thought to the day he saw Viperdramon and Saladramon.

"Good God" he muttered.