14. What's In a Person
Taichi barely slams the phone down into its cradle before he's back out the door. He had just stopped to get a water bottle before going back to meet the others and his sister's up and passed out and something is wrong. This is why he should have gone with from the get go. He needed to protect her and he just kept failing. Well it was going to stop, somehow, some way. He didn't know what it would take but he would do it.
For a moment, a gentle throb of pain filled his chest. Taichi stopped walking, frowning in puzzlement. Then he took off at a run, diving deep into Odaiba. Around him, the air ripples and his Digivice beeps. He doesn't stop but does almost trip at the sound of familiar large feet racing after him. He looked behind him and a smile lit up his face.
"Agumon!"
"You called, Taichi?"
That big dinosaur grin lifted his spirits right up. "You betcha. Let's go kick tail and save Hikari!"
"All right!" What's the point of questioning this? His family's in danger!
They made it to the heart of their city when the ground exploded. A great blue dragon burst from where the sewer pipes had been, Hikari clutched in one hand and sewer water spraying everywhere. That was an ultimate level… at least. What was it doing with his sister?
Taichi reacted as only a true leader of the Chosen Children could. "Hit him, Agumon, distract him!" He charged forward.
If it were anyone else, they would have facepalmed. But Agumon understood Taichi better than Taichi. He fired a great burst of flame. The Digimon didn't even turn but the heat on his armor made him pause. He yelped comically, shaking his foot. Hikari swayed in his grasp and started to stir.
"Master, calm down!" shouted a tiny lion as it crawled up through the rubble. Taichi paid no attention to the others climbing after him.
"But my foot's on fire!" the digimon protested. He shook it off and sighed. "I don't need that along with everything else." He turned his head about and down until it was staring in Taichi's general direction. "Actually… that's kind of a familiar feeling! I wonder wh-"
"Master!" shrieked the lion as Hikari slid from his large arms. The knight righted her quickly and paused. His nostrils, if he had any under there, flared.
"Taichi?"
Taichi stiffened. Okay, his name was not all that common. "Who are you?" he shouted instead. "Put Hikari down now!"
"Onii-chan, he's okay," he heard Hikari shout but paid no attention. The blind eyes went over him and rooted him to the spot.
"Taichi?" repeated the knight. "It is you, isn't it Taichi?"
Taichi shook his head absently. "Who… are you?"