Chapter Twenty-One
"Are you all right my friend?"
Tentomon moans, his big green eyes slowly lifting up towards Angemon's helmeted face as the angel holds the weakened bug in his arms.
"…Izzy…"
"Don't worry. Izzy will be all right…."
"…I attacked my own partner….how could I…?" He breathes, swallowing hard. Angemon shakes his head. "You should not worry about that. There wasn't anything you could do. You were being controlled and there was no way you could fight it. Look, not even Lillithmon could fight it, and she has been Dilbert's partner for a much longer time than you have been with izzy."
"…True but…"
"If you continue to mope like this," Angemon says, his tone suddenly getting much more severe, "I shall have to do what Lily does and hit you."
"…"
"Take me to Izzy." Tentomon pleads and then his green eyes narrow. "And then this bug is going to kick some major butt…."
…
You know what I really hate? That awkward moment when, at first you've got the enemy cornered. They're powerless. They're even whimpering a little, if you're lucky. And then the next thing you know there's hundreds more swarming out of nowhere for backup.
Yeah. I hate those moments.
"TAI!"
Renamon is wrestling on the ground with a Dobermon, teeth and claws flashing, as the two canines tried to tear into each other.
So far it looked like she was fine. This moron wasn't exactly experienced enough to really be a threat to her, plus she was much more agile.
So she wasn't the one I worried about. But in the heat of the battle, in one very small, tight attic, I'd lost track of Tai.
"GIGA BLASTER!"
Ah. There he was. "Tai!"
I run forwards, kicking a snarling Elecmon out of the way and rolling underneath the swipe of a Tyrannomon. "Lily!"
Scrambling up the back of MetalGreymon's tail, I reach up and grab Tai's outstretched hand. "Care to join the party?" He laughs.
I snort, watching as the rest of our team decimates the slut's backup. "Nah. I think I'll sit up here and watch. Wish we had popcorn…" I muse as Lillithmon literally throws a SkullBaluchimon through the wall, her razor sharp nails carving straight through the living skeleton.
Tai laughs as he sits beside me before gesturing for MetalGreymon to shoot at a large group of Bakemon that cluster around Cody, his eyes narrowing.
"Cody!" I shout, leaning forwards, all pretense gone. Digmon wasn't there to protect the little boy, darn it, we should have made him stay down in the tunnel rather he liked it or not.
"Take them out MetalGreymon! Now!"
But before he could even release his missiles there's an explosion, and something bursts through the ground in front of Cody.
The screams of the Bakemon echo as several large sharp objects pierce through them. Cody blinks in disbelief and then takes a slight step back as something lands beside him…
"Cody? Are you okay?"
"…Digmon?" He asks in disbelief, his eyes widening. Digmon breathes a sigh of relief. "Thank Yggdrasil you're ok…Cody?"
He blinks as Cody suddenly runs forward and wraps around his leg. The sound of soft crying can be heard, and Digmon smiles softly. "Yeah…I missed you too kiddo."
"Well what do you know?" I mutter, a smile forming on my face as Tai grins.
"Look out!"
TK shoves Kari out of the way just as several needles swoop downwards and embed themselves in the wood meters deep. TK grimaces as he pulls Kari behind what looks like a gigantic hat box, the needles of the Airdramon following them.
"Angemon! I have an idea!" He fishes into his pocket and pulls out his D-3. "But you're going to have to degenerate for it to work!"
Angemon has enough trust in his partner to know that TK had a plan in mind, so he let the grey light surround him, shrinking him back to Patamon.
'PATAMON ARMOUR DIGIVOLVE TO…PEGASUSMON! FLYING HOPE!"
"Shall we partner?" Nerfertimon smirks as she flies up to him. Pegasusmon knickers and flicks his mane back. "…I still don't see what…" His eyes widen as she taps a claw impatiently against his bracelet.
"…Oh."
"Duh."
"Oh shut up…" He mutters, embarrassed before soaring towards the angry dragons right next to her.
Nerfertimon and Pegasusmon both swoop around theflock of Airdramon, calling loudly as their bracelets shine gold, "GOLDEN NOOSE!"
Screeches erupt as a gigantic net falls over the angry dragons, encircling around them in golden chains as they're dragged down to the ground.
My eyes scan the battlefield, and I frown, knowing something was wrong but not knowing what….Then it hit me. "…Tai! She's gone!"
Tai doesn't have to ask who I'm talking about. His eyes immediately scan the area as well as and he swears, loudly.
The woman who had caused all of this mess had escaped. The battle hadn't been to wipe us out, oh no. Just to give her a chance to slip away.
I'm furious with myself for not seeing this coming, and then Tentomon, who's weakly hovering next to us, asks, "…Do you guys feel that?"
"Feel what?"
A low rumbling makes my entire body start to shake, and I blink, looking down in surprise. It sounded like an earthquake…no…it sounded like a massive wave…I smile.
…
Arukenimon, for that was the strange woman's name, had reverted back to her true form. Her extra legs sprout out of her body as it lengthened, and her human like face seemed to melt like wax, revealing a creature with bulging eyes and fangs that glistened in the depths of the pipe wall she climbed on.
Heh. The human's really were stupid. Not that it mattered. It wasn't HER fault the mission had failed. It wasn't her fault that she hadn't managed to get the stupid thing. Okay, so she probably shouldn't have thrown it away earlier. But how could she have known? The master had said to only bring him the girl. Therefore, there was no point in him getting so furious.
…Wait…
She stops moving, tensing. As a spider, she was much more sensitive to vibrations. And there was a very large vibration coming straight towards her. Her entire body tenses with panic, unsure of what to do, and that was long enough.
The smell of the ocean fills the tunnel, and Arukenimon SCREAMS as the most massive wave of water speeds through the tunnel towards her. Frantically she turns back around and tries to make a run for it, but it's no good. The water easily catches up to her, holding her in a deadly embrace, and she gurgles as she's forced back the way she came.
…
"RYO!"
Ken gasps as the Snimon screeches hungrily, rising up in front of him, blades glinting as it dives down, ready to slice off his head and feast on his corpse.
Or it….was about to. There was a sudden scream of rage, familiar, and the next thing Ken knew, there was a pink blade sticking out of the creature's stomach.
"Ken, are you all right?" Stingmon demands, walking over, his red eyes gleaming with anger as he watches the data of the Snimon drift up into the sky.
"…I'm fine."
"Listen…I didn't mean to…."
"I know you didn't…" Ken says softly, looking up at him. "Just like I didn't. Believe me. I know how you feel."
"…I…thank you Ken."
"Not to interrupt the nice moment," Ryo yells, looking over her shoulder as she crouches behind a large boulder and lets out gunshot after gunshot, "but could you two come on?!"
Ken lets Stingmon grab him by the waist as they kick off into the air, just as a BlackTyrannomon's firey attack nearly strikes them. "We're coming!"
"SPIKING STRIKE!" Stingmon roars, stabbing a Kuwagamon right through the face and yanking the blade back out.
Devidramon snarls as he sinks his teeth into a Monochromon's stomach, the only unarmoured place, by grabbing the unfortunate dinosaur with his tail and flipping him up into the air.
Few seconds later, a massive clawed hand swats him aside with a roar.
"WARUMONZEAMON! GET BACK!"
It looks like, to put in plainly, a teddy bear gone horribly wrong, with the stained fur, the red eyes, the loose knitting, the steel claws on one paw, and the massive hole in the stomach that revealed…something like an eye glowing…gold inside.
Ken swallows hard just as Ryo screams, "WATCH OUT!"
"BEAR CLAW!"
Stingmon tries to swoop out of the way, but the mangy teddy bear is much faster than he looks, and Ken screams as he's forced to obey gravity and his body plummets to the Earth, a voice cackling, "Oh, I'm not done with you yet your HIGHNESS…HEART BREAKER!"
…It is….one of the worst experiences in his entire life. The images flash through his mind over and over again, as he seems to sink in them like he's drowning…
"I was just playing with it…."
"Mom and Dad only care about him! I wish he'd just disappear!"
"I HATE YOU SAM! SOMETIMES I JUST WISH YOU'D DIE!"
"…S-Sam…?..."
"…I didn't mean it…."
"S-Sam! Wake up! Don't leave me! Why did you do it, you idiot?! It should have been me! SAM! SAAAMMM!"
"I don't need you, you pathetic little insect…"
"Don't ever touch me again! You disgust me!"
"Any partner would have been better than you, you pathetic waste of data!"
"…Wormmon…WORMMON! NO! PLEASE NO NOT AGAIN!"
"….Just give me another chance…just one more chance please…."
"….I want to die…I want to die…"
"KEN! KEN WAKE UP!"
Ken moans, feeling the horrible sensation of drowning slowly start to fade away, replaced by the feeling that his body weighed about a hundred tons.
"…Ken…"
His eyelids flicker open to see Ryo bending over him, her hand pressed to his forehead. "…Are you okay?"
"Y-ye…what happened?"
Ryo turns her head slowly and Ken blinks when he sees a man with long blonde hair, piercing golden eyes, and what looked like fangs sticking out of his mouth.
"…Who…?"
"GranDracmon." She breathes, not making eye contact for once. It somehow alarms Ken to see Ryo looking so unsure of herself. Even Devidramon looks unsure, shifting his massive claws on the ground as he stares at the Lord of the Underworld.
"…" GranDracmon's lips quirk up in a teasing grin, something that Ken definently didn't expect to see from the stories he's heard. "Not the best thank you I've ever had but….what can you do?"
"…W-what did you do with…?"
"The mangy flea bag?" GranDracmon cocks an eyebrow and stretches a hand out to show the massive claw marks on the ground, as if something had desperately been clinging for support. "…Dragged him straight down to hell."
"…Why?" Ryo asks warily, confused, like it's not anything she can comprehend.
GranDracmon just shrugs. "Because death by giant teddy bear is truly too pathetic for anyone to endure. Oh, and Ryo? I don't really hold grudges."
"…" Ken blinks as he gets to his feet and looks at Ryo, who's staring at the spot where GranDracmon vanished.
"Are you okay?"
"…He's too confusing." She mutters, lowering her head and having Devidramon headbutt her gently. "I can't…never mind." She shakes her head. "It's not about grudges, anyway. I just know better than to waste my time…." Her eyes narrow as she looks back at the house. "If we can't use the map, that sets us back greatly. We'll need to hurry if we're going to beat the tamers at finding the Digieggs."
Ken nods in agreement but still hesitates. …He can't just walk away, what with him knowing the truth…
Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out his Digivice and types a quick message. "Ask Arukenimon where Adelina is. Trust me, she knows."
…
The rumbling continues to grow louder and louder, and I feel Tai tense behind me. "…What is?"
I simply smile and hold up a finger. "…3…2…1…."
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
The wall seems to positively explode, all of us ducking as the rubble knocks the two Tyrannomon MetalGreymon is fighting unconscious at once.
"…"
"Hello there…." I smile dangerously down at the woman, her hair dripping wet, gasping for breath. Although it was pretty obvious she was a Digimon. The extra legs, fangs, and horns kind of tipped me off.
"…" Stella pulls out her Digivice and scans the creature. "…Arukenimon." She says grimly. "Should have known. One of the nastier kinds of Digimon. Prefer using trickery than actual fighting."
She hisses and scrambles back up, her eyes flashing. "What did you say to me, you pathetic little…" She's cut off as someone pounces on her with a growl from behind, knocking her forwards with a fierce blow.
"Sira!"
"Tell me where she is…" Sira growls,an ice blade forming in her right hand and pointing it straight at her neck.
Cody lets out a strangled yelp at this, but Sira is past caring. I can see her pupils start to vanish and I feel a prick of fear. "Sira, maybe you should…"
"Quiet!" She presses the blade down a bit more and a trickle of blood appears on Arukenimon's neck as she snarls up at Sira.
"…Where…is…Adelina…?"
"…What?"
My jaw tightens and I look away, fury filling me as well as the feeling that I really don't care what happens to that slut now.
Images of the blood stained rocks fill my mind and I picture Adelina's laughing face….
Arukenimon laughs, a broken, half crazed sound that fills the room. "You think I'll tell you, beta tamer? You think I fear you at all compared to my master's wrath? Even if you kill me, it's better than a slow death and torture at his hands, you coward."
"…"
Stella growls and reaches for her Digivice, her eyes flashing with anger as Seraphimon puts a hand on her arm. "Wait, little one…" He says softly.
"…" Sira's eyes narrow down to murderous slits. "…Then you've made your choice." She flicks her wrist at an awkward angle and Arukenimon SCREAMS, her back arching horribly, and twisting, writhing on the ground.
I'm not bothered by the actual scene of torture. I've seen it happen many times in my life. But the fact that it was Sira doing it…made me feel a little ill, to be honest.
"She's doing this for Adelina…." I tell myself over and over again in my head. "She's like, how Sora and Matt are to me and Tai….if one of them were ever kidnapped and had Yggdrasil knows what done to them…"
But somehow…that didn't make me feel any better, especially when the screams got louder.
"TELL ME WHERE SHE IS!"
"STOP IT!" Cody shrieks, and his voice carries through the whole room. "STOP IT!"
Sira's head turns to face him, her eyes narrowing, her mouth opening just as I sensed something very, very bad coming towards us NOW…
"SIRA WATCH OUT!"
"H-AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"NO!"
Electrical energy struck Sira full force, and I saw her writhe with pain on the floor, screaming as it curled around her.
In that instant, all of us were racing towards her at full speeds, just as a voice calls out, "Aren't you happy to see me?"
"Yes…Mummymon…." She gasps out, pushing herself back to her feet. My eyes shoot up and I see someone standing on top of the hat box, a figure whose limbs are oddly skinny, whose face is oddly pale.
"…!"
"Renamon, stop them!" I gasp out as Sira writhes again, and Seraphimon and Lillithmon both roar out attacks in unison.
Light and darkness mix together, forming a spear of blue light shooting towards the enemy, as a purple sphere of energy somehow pops up out of nowhere, preventing them from striking, and actually bouncing back!
"GET DOWN!"
Lillithmon screams as the attack hits her in the chest, her eyes rolling backwards, and robes smoking as she collapses onto the ground just as Dilbert screams and runs towards her.
"What the heck?!"
"Sira!' Renamon drops to her side and lets out a soft moan as she looks at Sira's closed eyes. I can't move…I'm frozen in horror….because behind the barrier is one of the most horrible thing I've ever seen in my life.
Standing in front of Arukenimon I swear I see…a tall figure, dressed in purple armour, with a staff in one hand, long flowing white hair, and a fox like mask over my face.
"…S-Sakuyamon?" I say in disbelief, hearing the gasps from the others behind me.
"No way…."
"It looks exactly like…."
"But that doesn't make any sense…"
Sira groans, and I blink as the shadows from the walls seem to take on a life of their own, peeling free and wrapping around her, like a fierce embrace.
"…" The figure that's me and yet not me smirks and takes a step back, starting to fade out of existence with the other two flunkies just as the shadows blast towards her.
"RIONA!"
Let me tell you, there is absolutely nothing more terrifying than an angry vampire lord, especially when he appears out of nowhere, fangs bared, golden eyes flashing, with the shadows moving around him at his command and several bats chirping as they circle around him.
Sira groans slightly as he drops beside her, her eyelids flickering as he brushes her hair back. "…R-…Ras…"
"…What just happened?"
…
"BLUE THUNDER!"
The streaks of electricity shot forwards from the horn on Raidramon's head, blasting through the stringy white threads.
Davis gasps as he clings to Raidramon and in turn, feels Yolei clinging to him, as the sound of hundreds of spider legs scuttling after them echoes.
"There's just no end to these guys!"
Yolei clings tighter to Poromon, squeezing her eyes firmly shut as the hungry screeches fill the air. "Yggdrasil keep us safe…" She moans, feeling like she might throw up.
"YOLEI!"
She screams as a group of three Dokugumon drop down on them from above at once, red eyes glittering, but Raidramon roars and bounds, pressing his back paws against the tree trunk and catapulting himself upwards.
"…" Davis slowly grins as his partner keeps bounding from branch to branch, easily outwitting and dodging the slower arachinds. "This is so freaking awesome!"
"DAVIS!"
"Huh?!"
The creaking sound reaches his ears one second too late to do anything, and all three of them scream as they plummet towards the ground.
"We're gonna die we're gonna die we're gonna die!"
"YOLEI!"
"…"
Davis' eyes widen as something glows, opening up beneath them…..a…portal….
"HOLY ###%%%%%!"
…
"Any luck Tai?"
"No…." He sighs on the other end of my phone. "How the two of them could both disappear like that…without a trace…."
I swallow hard and roll over on my surprisingly comfy bed, still cupping the phone in my right hand. "…You think they might have been kidnapped by the same person that took Adelina."
"That's the theory anyway…." He says through clenched teeth. "Stella contacted DISC and every person in the entire Digital World is looking for them. We scanned the forest for hours…." He sighs. "…But I still feel like I should be looking for them at least…"
I glance up at the clock. "Tai, it's almost near midnight. And finding them in the night, when it's all dark, would be pointless. It's…hard to say…." I sigh, hating myself. "…But this is up to the computer nerds now."
"…"
"Tai…promise me you won't do something stupid…."
"…I won't…." He sighs. "Mostly because I spent so much time having to explain to Izzy's parents the scars on his back. Just thank Yggdrasil Sorcerymon was able to heal him or I don't think Tentomon would ever have forgiven himself."
"Any luck finding Arukenimon?" I ask, feeling the pain of anger rising up in my heart again, my hands curling into shaking fists.
Tai literally growls on the other side of the phone. "No, but once we got our hands on that…."
"Watch it Kamiya…" I say, surpressing a snort even at the seriousness at the situation. "…You know if your mum hears you cursing like that you'll never hear the end of it."
"…Yeah…I know….you know you didn't have to leave….mum wasn't that mad at you, she was just…upset…."
"I know what she said, Tai." I say, my voice flat. "I don't need to be around to here more."
"…But…"
"Tai, you're stressed out enough, having to get between me and your mom can only make things worse for you." My voice softens. "…Get some sleep. We'll find them in the morning. We'll find all of them in the morning….
"…Thanks Lils…you get some sleep too, you hear? Sira will personally kick my butt if her only other alpha tamer is too tired to walk in the morning…."
I snort with laughter before collapsing back onto the bed. "Sir yes sir. Goodnight Tai…."
"Night Lily…sweet dreams."
My eyes widen slightly before I slowly smile. "…Yeah. You too."
"All the mushiness is going to make me hurl." A voice complains behind me, and I roll my eyes without looking. "Hello to you too Lucemon."
Lucemon yawns, rubbing one eye, holding a…giant plushie Cherubimon by the ear behind him. "Aren't you ever going to actually go to bed?"
"Couldn't sleep…" I sigh, looking up at him, which is weird considering how short he was.
"You're not still upset because that one human kicked you out?" He asks, sitting on the end of my bed and raising an eyebrow sanctimoniously.
"…She didn't kick me out…" I sigh, rolling my eyes. "…We just had a…really loud disagreement…."
Lucemon sighs, rolling his eyes. "...Humans are so narrow-minded, just like Digimon. Blinded by petty differences they can never come together for the common good."
"I think it has more to do with the fact that she loves her children and she blames both me and the Digimon for getting them into danger." I point out with a shrug.
Lucemon scoffs, a harsh noise that makes me flinch slightly. "When you're the one whose saved her brats' lives countless times? You know it's been centuries since I was sealed here...and beings still treat each other like Numemon slime. It disgusts me."
"Well..." I say, pretty confused about where he's going with this. "I agree that it sucks Lucemon, but what can you do? You can't force people to do the right thing..."
He just raises an eyebrow. "Why not?" The question actually sounds completely sincere, like he couldn't understand what was wrong with the idea. I had to actually forcibly close my jaw as I stared at him. "Because...because refusing people the right to make their own choices is...slavery Lucemon!"
"No it's not." He argues calmly back. "Freedom is dangerous. Too many Digimon and humans alike abuse it. All the wars, all the pointless killings for power and money. All I would do is take away the cause of that, which is freedom.
...My gosh he really believes what he's saying. I can only stare blankly at him for a few more managing to open my mouth I manage to yet out-"But you're basing all of this on the actions of a few!"
".,,What?"
"You heard me." I say,my voice rising slightly with confidence. "Not all humans are like that, or Digimon. I mean actually if you really saw the outside world you'd see almost no one is. Look at the Digidedtined. After the battle against VenomMyotismon the kids didn't have to go back and keep helping. They CHOSE to. To leave their families and fight a war that they knew they might not survive.."
"True..." He says slowly, a little bit of annoyance in his voice. "But I'm not talking about the Digidedtined or tamers. They're only a few among billions."
"But it's those few people who make the difference..."
Lucemon's face is blank and I fidget a little, not sure if I've just made him more upset. But what he says next pretty much destroys all of my working brain cells.
"Prove it to me."
"EH?!"
"You heard me." Lucemon says calmly, though his lips quirk upwards at my outburst. "Show me that this world and the humans you love so much are as pure as you claim."
"Yes...but...but..." I splutter as he walks out the door.
"See you in the morning Lily!" He says cheerfully with a smile that's much too innocent. "Sweet dreams!" I stare after him a few seconds longer, then I'm out of bed like a shot. "A-ALEXANDER!"
...
"Ah..." Alexander muses, his three blue eyes fixing on me. "I wondered when he might pick on you."
"What do you mean by that?" I yelp, trying to fight the feeling of growing horror rising up inside of me. I mean not that I don't trust Lucemon. I do. Really. Mostly. Within a reasonable margin. Okay that doesn't sound very trusting at all but give me a break...I like him a lot but he is planning to take over both worlds and create a dystopia. You know. Minor things like that.
"Don't worry so, you'll get horrible lines all over your face." Alexander chuckles as I scowl at him and turns back to his paperwork, which, apparently there's a lot of in the Demon Lord manor. My mind flashes to the paperwork Sira ordered me to complete a few days ago, but I quickly shove that thought to the side. Again.
"Don't you ever worry about this?" I ask almost pleadingly, putting my palms on his desk and leaning forwards, "I mean, I like Lucemon a lot and I respect him but..,this...plan of his is..."
"Preposterous, insane, and a little terrifying?" He asks dryly.
"..." I blink. "Er...I was going to say freaking mental, but yours has less slang in it, I suppose."
Alexander smiles wryly and turns around in his chair so he's facing me. "Listen, you have nothing to worry about. None of the other tamers who took him out have...well I don't THINK they were completely scarred for life, though Stella does twitch a little everytime she sees him."
"That's...so very comforting." I say darkly. "Why do we do this anyway? Just for kicks? Let the evil demon loose once a year?"
"Don't ask me." He says dryly. "All I know is that somehow he convinced Yggdrasil to let him out once a year, surprivised, and under the condition he must completely behave."
"..So basically I'm a babysitter?" I say flatly, facepalming.
"I wouldn't say that to him if I were you." Alexander chuckles and I roll my eyes.
He moves suddenly, wrapping his arms around my shoulders and pulling me into a hug.
My eyes widen slightly as my cheek presses against his leather jacket. It's a comforting, fatherly gesture that...actually the last time someone hugged me like that was when Wizardmon was alive...I swallow hard and slowly pull away, not wanting to look at the hurt look on his face.
"Um..." I stammer, looking down at the ground. "I'm really tired I'm...going back to bed." He nods quickly, and I hate how the only sound filling the silence is my footsteps walking away. It's just so scary, trying to build that kind of relationship again. It was hard enough for me to let my friends get close to me, because I was so afraid I'd loose them.
Risking loosing someone who was starting to mean as much to me as Wizardmon had...that was too much for me to take.r
...
Edan bends over the computer, his bright green eyes fixed resolutely on the screen, the blue glow of the light surrounding his face like some creepy kind of halo. "Initiate scan." He orders for what feels like the thousandth time.A map appears on the screen with a pulsing red circle that flows outwards, again and again, and again. Edan closes his eyes and positively growls as he slams his hands against the desk. "Adelina, where ARE you?!" Suddenly the light surrounding his face turns bright red instead of blue, and a loud beeping sound began to wail loudly. "What..."
His eyes widen as the scene seems to show the red light seeming to collapse in on itself, the wailing turning more and more frantic. Edan stares at the screen, unable to process what he's seeing before bolting from the room, absolute panic and horror filling him. "S-SIRA!"
...
"I'm so worried Tai..." Kari says quietly as the two of them made their way down the crowded hallways. Normally they were like ordinary siblings and wouldn't be caught dead being seen in public together-at least not SCHOOL certainly. But Kari had been upset all night, what with Davis and Yolei disappearing, and the screaming match Lily and their mum had had. Neither she nor Tai were speaking to their mother right now, which only made Mrs. Kamiya more upset about how the Digimon were turning her children against her.
Privately, though Kari hasn't mentioned this to Tai yet, she wonders if the reason the two dislike each other so much is because they're both almost scarily similar. Both of them have this strong desire to protect TK and Kari, and both seem to see the other as an annoying interloper who kept getting in the way.
"We'll find them..." Tai says soothingly. "As soon as Izzy's feeling better he can help Edan track them down, them and Adelina." He doesn't mention to Kari his doubts, and his severe doubts about the latter. A few days might not seem very long, but he knew in missing person's case, it meant everything. "Mimi's with Izzy now so she'll be able to help too." That he didn't have any doubts about. Mimi might be a sparkly diva, but if you hurt someone she loved she was a sparkling diva with a cold desire dot vengeance, and she would hunt you down relentlessly and mercilessly. Arukenimon was doomed. "Did Edan say if he found anything himself?" Kari asks, brushing a strand of honey-blonde hair out of her face. Tai shakes his head. "No..I tried to contact him this morning and I couldn't get ahold of any of the tamers."
As if one cue, there was the sound of someone trying frantically to open her locker, cursing in great expression and volume as she couldn't manage it, and a high pitched voice Tai didn't really recognize saying sternly, "Language, Olivia."
"So Yggdrasil help me, if I want to swear I'll swear till I am blue in the face!" A much more familiar voice snarls. Tai's lips quirk up in a smile as he turns the corner. "Lils?"
"Tai!" I whirl around and point at the blonde midget standing next to me. "Tell him it's no longer the 16th century and that women are allowed to curse however and however loudly they want."
"Maybe not with an entire class of kindergartners behind you." Tai says, his voice shaking in an effort not to burst out laughing.
"Huh?!"
I whirl around to see about sixteen pairs of wide eyes staring at me, their teacher glaring at me, her face pinching to an unnatural state.
"Uh..." I scratch the back of my head awkwardly. "Hi kids...um...don't ever smoke, drink, or get in the car with creepy old men who offer you candy." If possible, the teacher looked even more mad, storming off with her brood while Tai sloped against the lockers, laughing his head off. "Thanks..." I grumble at him, groaning as I try to open the locker again to no success. "Ugh...today is just not my day..."
"I can see that..." Kari snickers, her hand over her mouth. "Because that's not your locker."
"...AHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Where'd you sleep last night anyway?" Tai says, concern creeping into his voice.
"Demon Lord manor..." I mutter, my back to him. "Couldn't sleep at all..."
"I hope that's not a complaint about the room I set up for you." The little boy sniffs.
"No Lucemon the room was great..."
"Whoah Whoah Whoah!" Tai yelps suddenly as his head whips around and stares at the little boy standing next to me. "You're telling me the kid is..."
"I'd have thought it would be obvious." I say, raising an eyebrow.
Lucemon smiles slightly. It's not that nice of a smile more of an amused smirk.
"..." Tai and Kari both narrow their eyes slightly and I give Lucemon a nudge in the shin. "Try not to piss too many people off with the superioristic attitude, kay?"
"I'm the Demon Lord of Pride Lily, it's kind of in my nature to be an arrogant jerk."
Kari's backpack shifts slightly and Gatomon pops her head out. Thankfully no one is paying attention. "You're not exactly what I was expecting from all the stories I heard."
Lucemon raises an eyebrow. "Hmm? What WERE you expecting out of curiosity?"
"Well definitely someone less sho..." Her voice trails off as I shake my head wildly, making frantic hand gestures. Don't do it. Please, for the love of Yggdrasil don't make a height comment! YOU'LL KILL US ALL!
"Yes...?"
"Um...someone less...blonde?"
Thankfully the sound of the bell ringing puts an end to this awkward conversation. "Tai and I have English class..."
I shoot Lucemon a pleading look as I grab Tai by the arm and start herding him down the hallway. "Please day you won't mentally scar too many people."
The innocent expression gives him a very good "I'm such a sweet yet abused puppy" look. You'd never guess who he really was. "Wouldn't dream of it..."
"You're really just leaving...LUCEMON of all people to just walk around our school?!" Tai asks in complete disbelief as I pull him up the stairs to our classroom. In answer I pull my right sleeve up to show a bracelet wrapped around my right wrist.
"...What is that?"
"Lucemon and I both had them fitted on before I left the Manor. It means that no matter how far apart, I'll know if something goes wrong."
"...And do what? Stay out of the way or get completely creamed?" I smirk. "The bracelet he wears means his abilities don't work."
Tai raises an eyebrow. "...So it's made of zinc?"
"Sort of. I think. Dunno."
"How do you know all the rest of this stuff?"
"...Alexander told me."
"Well that was nicer than most people we run into. Most of the time they don't bother and take the "figure it out for yourself" attitude."
"...Yeah..." I mutter, fidgeting with the bracelet.
Tai groans, raising his eyes to heaven."What did you do?!"
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I dunno, the guilty look on your face, the way your shoulders slumped when I said his name, or the way you won't look me in the face."
...Dang it.
"Tai it's just that..." My voice trails off and I swallow. "I like him a lot. But...I guess the truth is I'm a little scared. You know how I am...I guess I'm afraid of losing them too like I lost..."
"Lils...you never lost any of us. Or any of the tamers. And this isn't like with...look my point is..." He sighs. "And if you push them away you'll loose something really great."
"..." WHY was he always right?
"Just...think about it."
...
The brown haired girl whimpers as she backs away, her broken glasses sliding down her nose. "P-please..."
"Nerd..." The older boy laughs, looming over her. "Don't even bother crying, you look even uglier when you do so."
She cringes as he pins her against the lockers, his breath in her ear and his hands digging into her pockets, yanking out the money she had saved up for her sister's birthday.
"I..."
"Did I say you could talk?" He growls, yanking hard on her hair and making her cry out in pain.
The sound of footsteps echoes throughout the hallway, causing both of them to turn their heads and look.
"...Let her go." The voice isn't very loud at all, but it still sends a little chill down her spine.
The boy standing in front of them looks like he's only about twelve, her age. He's beautiful, with curly blonde hair, pale skin, and bright blue eyes. But something about his eyes is...unsettling. Noriko lets out a soft gasp as she saw the power of that glare, a feeling of thousands of pins and needles tickling her whole body. And she wasn't even the one the glare was directed at.
Loosening his grip on Noriko, the boy takes a hasty step back, stammering, "Listen, I was just..."
But he doesn't have time to finish his sentence before, ironically, he's pinned to the lockers himself, letting out a high pitched yelp of terror as he was forced to stare into those cold blue eyes.
Lucemon smirks slightly as the boy shakes a little, whimpering growing steadily louder. "Not so much fun when you're the one being traumatized is it...?"
There was the sound of rushing footsteps and Lucemon rolls his eyes, knowing what was about to come as he finally drops the boy and sniffs disdainfully.
"LUCE-LUCIEN!" I shriek, rushing down the hallway. "What did you DO?!"
"Nothing Lily darling, don't worry your pretty little head."
"Really?" I say in disbelief, feeling my head start to pound wildly and my energy start to fade. "Then why does that kid look like his soul was been thrown into a bottomless dark abyss?"
"I was just teaching an important life lesson..."
"Lucien, I don't care if the kid is the spawn of Sata...oh quit looking at me like that...you just broke the kid's brain!"
"Why does it matter if he deserved it?"
"Because...because..." I groan. "Oh I give up you're right..."
"Course I'm right. I'm always right."
...Actually I gave up because arguing with him gave me the headache of the century but whatever.
"Noriko? Are you all right?"
I turn my head and have to forcibly prevent my jaw from dropping. The blonde cheerleader bending over the little girl is disturbingly familiar.
"McKenzie?"
She glares at me, her eyes narrowing down to challenging slits as she helps the little girl to her feet. I just raise an eyebrow and she huffs, taking Noriko by the hand and leading her away. "Come on sweetie let's go home..."
I can't help the small chuckle that escapes me, and Lucemon turns his head and gives me a questioning look.
"You know...you're right about a lot of things Lucemon. People are scum, who don't do anything good without a reward. But...there's something you don't get. And that's that people can surprise you."
"..." Lucemon raises an eyebrow before looking away.
My phone rings, the hallway echoing loudly with "Once I Was The King Of Spain."
"...Don't you dare say a word. Hello?"
"Lily, meet back at base." The voice is terse, urgent, and so filled with fear I almost didn't recognize it. "...Stella? What is it?"
"...Just...hurry."
...
Yolei groans, rubbing her head as she felt conciousness slowly returning to her again. It takes a moment for her to realize that she was lying in some kind of bed...
"Davis...?" she moans, pushing herself upwards. She seems to be in some kind of hospital room, the smell of antiseptic filling her nose. She begins to feel the emotions of panic rising up in her as she realizes that she is completely alone. "P-Poromon? Davis?! Where is everyone?"
The door opens and Yolei tenses, ready for either flight or fight but not sure if she was capable of either, Yolei is almost shaking with nerves as a woman dressed in a nurse's outfit walks into the room, carrying a tray into the room. "Oh good." She smiles. "You're awake. We were beginning to worry."
"Wh...Where am I?" Yolei asks warily, hating how weak and tired her voice sounded.
"Shh..." The nurse says softly, setting the tray down on the bed. "You and your friend were in a bad way when we found you. You 're in the Pokemon Center now. You're safe."
The word doesn't mean anything to her so she focuses on the last part of the sentence.
"Davis? He's here?"
The nurse smiles comfortingly. "He's sleeping right now. Here. Eat something."
The tomato soup did indeed taste very good, warming up her entire body.
Another, more important question fills her mind. "Po..Poromon?"
"If you mean your Pokemon you needn't worry. The doctor's looking him over right now."
Yolei began to feel dizziness rise up inside of her again. Her entire body seems to be growing numb, and thoughts disappear into a thick fog. Still the part of her mind that can still think knows this is very wrong. Humans shouldn't be looking at her Digimon. "No...I..." Her tongue feels much thicker in her mouth as she manages to say, "What...did you do?"
"Rest." The nurse smiles sweetly, pushing Yolei back onto the bed. Her smile grows into a smirk, as the girl's eyes slowly close.
"Finally, I can get out of this ridiculous getup." She mutters, pulling off her wig to show much darker red hair done up in a ridiculous style. Her communicator beeps. "Well?"
"These creatures are absolutely fascinating..." The image on her phone shows a terrified pink puff ball shaking in one cage while the blue and white lizard snarls through the bars of his own.
Smirking cruelly, the woman flicks back her red hair. "Well don't let me hold you back. You may proceed with any experiments you wish, as long as they're in...general good shape for when our leader comes."
"...And...the humans?"
"Human? They're not human, they're alien as those creatures. I'm sure we can use them for scientific purposes as well."
"...Yes General Mars."
"Just remember. Keep them alive. They're too valuable for us to let them die."'
….
"So what exactly is this all about….?" My voice trails off as I see what's on the screen in front of me. "…Never mind."
"Is that what I think it is?" Ellen gasps as she stares at the massive Dark Tower glowing ominously on the screen.
"…Another one?" Stella says, her eyes narrowing down to slits. "I guess Ken's not as redeemed as we thought he was."
"I don't believe that." I retort back, even though my heart starts sinking into my stomach as doubts echo in my head. It can't…really be him can it? But I can't trust Ryo either.
"People never really change…"
"Lucemon. Now is REALLY not the time for your pessimistic view on the human nature, got it?"
"And besides…." Edan says, his voice softer than usual than I remember it being, his eyes fixed on the table. I take in his tight shoulders, the muscle jumping in his jaw, and his Adam's apple.
…Something's wrong. Something's very wrong.
"…What do you mean?"
"Look." Wormmon snaps, her eyes narrowing as she jerks her head at the screen. "Does that look like the Digital World to you?"
My eyes flicker back up to the screen and I saw the image of humans….humans walking around the small town, with creatures walking beside them, reptiles with tail flames, a brown massive hawk bird, and a black lion.
"…That's the Pokemon world…." My entire mouth grows dry. "But…but there's no way…..I don't understand…."
"There's no way Ken could get in there. He doesn't even know anything about it."
" Then how in the name of Yggdrasil's holy panties did a Control Spire pop up in the Pokemon world?!"
Lucemon winces and holds up a hand. "Dilbert. Please."
"Oh...right. Sorry Lucemon."
A part of me wonders why the devil would care if the God is insulted, but the trivial thought is pushed from my mind.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Renamon demands, swishing her tail back and forth in irritation and nervousness. "Let's go there and tear it to scrap metal!"
"You don't hold back much do you?" Kudamon asks dryly,
She grins, showing some of her teeth. "Nope."
"...It's not that simple." Edan's voice is quiet, strained.
"..." My eyes narrow as I lean across the table from him. "Okay computer boy I know something very wrong has happened that you're not telling me. I'm a tamer too so you betternot say it's any of my business. Spill."
I know I'm being rude, but I've never sensed so much fear coming off him before, not even when we were cornered by NeoVamdemon.
"...That's the even worse news."
"Oh goodie."
Edan swallows hard, D'Arcmon touching his shoulder as he digs his fingers into the wood.
"I was...scanning for Adelina's signal...and I saw something...else."
"Else?" Stella asks sharply.
"...The barrier between the Pokemon world and the Digital World is near fatal collapse." He says these words in one, frantic breath but each syllable rings horribly in my ears. "Only about 20 percent remains undamaged."
"...WHAAT?!"
"I spoke with both Izzy and various DISC members as well. They reported that...that the barrier between the human and Digital world isn't much better. Only about fifty percent remains undamaged."
Ice seems to creep up my skin as the silence fills the room. My fingers reach for my phone. "...I have to call Tai."
"NO!"
"Well why the heck not?! This involves the Digidestined too!"
"I agree." Ellen frowns at the rest of our group. " Now is not the time for petty group differences. Besides, you're involving me, aren't you? And
I'm not a tamer."
"Exac-...wait, you're not?"
She giggles at the look on my face, despite the severity of the situation. "Nope. Bounty hunter."
"...Uh huh. So regardless, why are you all being too stubborn to contact the Dogidestined? They can help!"
Stella rolls her eyes and I shot her a glare as Dilbert says grimly, "That's not why. There's a very good chance if they try to enter the Pokemon world...they could die. Heck there's a very good chance some of us could die just trying to travel there."
"..."
"Because ..." Lucemon cuts in, actually sounding grim for once in his life. "The barrier between all three worlds is, in a sense alive. It's like the way you human's bodies work. Right now it's injured, and it's shutting down to prevent any more damage being done. It will be difficult enough for the Digivces of those who are from the Pokemon world to open a portal. Those whose Digivices aren't programmed for the Pokemon world will have to literally tear through. And the barrier will react to that the same way the human body will react to germs-by trying to eliminate you."
"..."
"But wait." Stella's Tsukaimon asks, sitting on top of her head. "If only Digivces that have been programmed to reach the Pokemon world can get through...how was that
Control Spire built?"
"...We don't know."
"I just LOVE that answer." I say sarcastically. "Hasn't anyone tried to contact the boss?"
...Holy Yggdrasil. Did I really just call Sira the boss? Well judging by the way Renamon is staring at me, her jaw hanging down to her knees, the Apoyclapse might just truly be upon us. "We tried that. There's no way of contacting her, the barrier is halting any connection to home." Ellen says grimly.
"...So the only way to fix this is to go in ourselves?" My jaw tightens. "I'm game."
"What?!" Lucemon's eyes flick towards me and narrow at the same time as Ellen's outburst.
"Ellen, it's not like we have a choice."
"B-but...your Digivice isn't naturally programmed for the Pokemon world."
"Most of ours aren't..." Stella says quietly, looking down at her own phone. "But we can't afford to have anyone stay behind."
"..."
"Hey Lily," Lucemon's voice echoes among the sound of all of us getting to our feet.
My eyes look back and lock onto his, and he half-smiles. "...Be careful. Alexander will kill me if you die."
"Relax midget." I say breezily. "I've got this all under control."
Big words, while on the inside I'm terrified knowing the situation is so NOT under control.
"By the way Lucemon..." Dilbert carefully pulls an old looking scroll out of his bag. "We can't bring you with us, but if you would, there is one way you could help us..." He says, lowering his head respectfully. Lucemon inclines his on head slightly, in a "go on" gesture.
"...Is that the..."
"Yes." Dilbert nods. "This is the map we found only yesterday...although if you want to be technical, it seems to be more of a bunch of riddles than a map. Since we can't contract GranDracmon and we're not sure what's happened to him, we're going to need you to translate it for us."
"Hold on a second," I say, raising an eyebrow. "Lucemon's been with me all day! Why the heck didn't you give it to him earlier?"
"..."Dilbert looks sheepish. "Because I didn't know?"
"And even if Lucemon can translate..." I catch myself at the look on the angel's face. "Sorry. EVEN THOUGH Lucemon can translate, how are we supposed to..."
"We're going to have to worry about that later." Stella says grimly, though in her eyes I see the sane fear and unease in mine. "Besides, at least this way we know the map will be safe."
"...I guess..."
"Look at you being all responsible and thinking things through for once." Renamon teases as I walk over to her and the others. I shrug."Sira's not here so we all have to combine all our sense of responsibility to equal hers."
"Enough chatter. Is everyone ready for this?"
"as we'll ever be..."
I watch, my heart in my throat as Stella raises her Digivice shouting, "Digiport open!"