Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
Revival
Chapter: 25/ Rising Mists
Kurata let loose a howl as convulsions tore their way throughout his body. His hands—human-like now—clawed at his chest and saliva frothed at his mouth. As he lay there, muscles collapsed and reformed themselves, shrinking and altering to more human lines. However, his overall appearance did not change much. Tough, black colored, leathery skin mottled his body, broken only in small patches of white that appeared as half-healed burn scars. Chains remained wrapped around his body, and horns remained affixed to his skull, though a mop of unruly hair manifested itself. With one final cry, Kurata went limp, breathing heavily. His eyes rolled around, taking in his surroundings. His vision fell on the demonic form of LadyDevimon, who regarded him with disdain.
"You make such a fuss," she sneered, "and all over a simple transformation."
"Be quiet, LadyDevimon," spoke up a new voice, this one youthful and masculine. Kurata's eyes shifted towards a figure wearing a blue cloak. Narrowing his eyes, he looked closer into the figure's hood, and found himself pleasantly surprised to see that his face was human—more specifically that of a young teenager with kind eyes. They genuinely seemed to be full of concern for his well-being. "Just ignore her. She's like that with everyone she meets."
"You're…human…" Kurata croaked. He swallowed. His throat felt so parched it was like swallowing a desert.
"So are you from what I hear," the cloaked figure smiled. "Could have fooled me though." The boy turned away and looked upwards. Kurata followed his gaze towards a massive figure standing on four legs. Two shark heads stood out prominently before him, slavering hungrily, while sitting atop them was a man holding himself with a gentlemanly poise.
A digimon…
"GranDracmon…who is he?" asked the cloaked boy.
"His name is Akihiro Kurata," replied GranDracmon. "He is a criminal in the digital world and to the human world—the one that he originated from. From his actions, I would believe that he would be considered a criminal in other human worlds as well. He is responsible for mass genocide."
The cloaked boy frowned. "But…I don't understand. Why is he here? Why is he like this? Is he like me?"
"In some manner yes, but unlike you he possessed the body of the Demon Lord Belphemon. Rest assured though, he deserves to be here."
"Don't we all?" scoffed LadyDevimon with a scowl, brushing her crimson hair over one shoulder. GranDracmon ignored her and focused his attention fully on Kurata.
"Where am I?" Kurata swallowed again, but not from nerves. He felt too weak from his transformation to feel fear. All he had…were questions. He had no memory of what had happened to him.
The last thing I remember was that brat, Marcus Damon…standing in the palm of his digimon pet and then he attacked me. After that…nothing. Kurata scowled, wracking his brains for something—anything that could help him. Unfortunately for him, nothing but a dank blankness came to mind. It felt as though he had been buried alive and made to sleep for the longest time…
GranDracmon turned towards LadyDevimon and her cloaked companion.
"Take him to one of the visitor's quarters," he said, his tone carrying a strange sense of compassion on top of an authority that felt like a master in his home. "I shall send for someone to take care of his injuries."
"You're going to waste them on this pathetic excuse of a human?"
"To get answers, yes. Now do as I say, LadyDevimon."
The demonic woman glared at the massive digimon, but nodded reluctantly. Stepping over to Kurata she roughly pulled him upwards. He nearly collapsed to the floor again, but the cloaked boy was right there to catch him, quickly looping his free arm over his shoulders to support his limp weight.
"Easy there. I've got you." The boy offered him a smile before turning an exasperated look to LadyDevimon. "You know…I'm human too."
"And don't think I haven't forgotten," the demoness replied, looking at him haughtily. "We still have to finish our match by the way."
"Don't think I've forgotten," the boy grimaced. With that, the two strode off with their charge. GranDracmon watched them go; faintly amused by how their respective approach to carrying Kurata differed. With a humorous smile, he melted into the shadows and returned to his chambers.
Kurata groaned as he was laid down on a soft bed. His bones creaked, echoing his sentiment.
It feels as though I haven't slept on anything soft in forever, he thought, his body practically melting into the bed. Cracking open his eyes, his gaze fell on the human boy as he pulled off his cloak. Holding it before him briefly, the cloak shifted form, becoming reptilian in appearance. It lacked any discernable features and appeared more as shadow than anything else. Taking down a lantern from off the wall, the boy held it out in front of the shadow. A brief flare of crimson fire and a second later the lamp was ablaze with light, illuminating the room. Kurata glanced around him, feeling amazed by what he saw while at the same time somewhat frightened by it. Shadows danced along the spacious walls, carving vicious, many-fanged mouths and eyes that stared hungrily at him. Yet the fire from the lantern assured him that he would be safe in this room for as long as he dwelt within it.
The room itself was quite luxurious, in some ways reminding him of the flat that he had prior to ending up…wherever here was, with many chairs and a few tables for writing letters on. If anything, it appeared as an old Victorian room in all of its glamour.
"Could this really be the digital world…?" he mused aloud. The sound of LadyDevimon barking a laugh broke the quiet of the room.
"The digital world," she chuckled. "Is that where you think you are? You must have lost your mind while you were dwelling in those dungeons."
The boy frowned across from her, but did not comment on that. Instead, he turned towards Kurata. "Well…it's like the digital world."
"Don't soften the blow for him," LadyDevimon snarled. "This is as far from the digital world that you can get. Outside of crossing into the Celestial Plain that is, or even the World of Thoughts." LadyDevimon smirked at Kurata. "You have bad luck to end up here, human. Welcome to the Dark Area, the Ocean between the Worlds. You are in digital hell, where all the sinners of the digital world end up when they are deleted."
"Digital hell…" Kurata croaked. "Don't make me laugh. You things aren't real. You have no soul…"
Crimson claws stabbed into the pillow where his head lay, and Kurata found himself staring up into the fearsome eyes of LadyDevimon. A smirk crawled across her lips, but fury blazed in her vision.
"Then why don't we see what this thing is going to do to you…" she whispered in a husky voice. Crimson hair spilled down her shoulders and tickled Kurata's face, yet he did not break his gaze from hers.
"LadyDevimon!"
The female digimon snorted and withdrew her claws, disappearing into the shadows. Tension seemed to melt off the air and the boy sighed.
"Sorry about that. She…can be kind of testy about some things. You'll find a lot of digimon are around here." The boy pulled up a chair and sat down in it while the shadowy outline of his cloak-turned-reptile stood next to him, eerily silent and watching him with invisible eyes. "Anyway…you're name is Kurata right? Mine is Takato. Takato Matsuki."
"And what?" asked Kurata. "Is that supposed to make us friends now? Brothers in species? I can already see that you're in league with these creatures."
"You don't like digimon very much do you?" asked Takato, tilting his head to one side. After a moment he gave a harsh chuckle. "Well, I guess that's no surprise. I used to know a guy with that attitude. He wanted to destroy all digimon, but he wound up making things even worse along the way." Takato's eyes became nostalgic for a moment but Kurata was quick to break that moment.
"I hate digimon," Kurata grumbled, turning his face away. "They're a pestilence that needs to be wiped out if humanity has any chance to survive." Kurata was quiet for a moment before laughing lightly. "That's probably something that I shouldn't be saying out loud… After all, I'm in the care of them as well as one of their fans."
Takato shrugged. "GranDracmon would still make sure that he would take care of you. He took care of me." A troubled look then crossed his face but he quickly dismissed it.
"Don't pander to me, kid," Kurata said spitefully. He turned to look Takato square in the face. "I may be out of the loop, but your big boss is only keeping me around because he wants one thing from me: answers! Once he's done with me, I'm gone. Dead. Do you get that?"
"But…" Takato tilted his head to one side in confusion. "…you're already dead…right?"
Kurata blinked in surprise. Now that wasn't something he expected to hear.
"…What?"
"I asked if you're…" the boy hesitated before continuing. "…dead. I mean, that's how most people end up here. That's how I ended up here after all."
Kurata pushed himself up onto one arm. His arm shook from the strain, leading him to briefly wonder if his muscles had atrophied but he quickly pushed it out of his mind.
"You don't look dead to me, kid."
Although he had barely known him for very long, Kurata swore Takato's face took on an expression that seemed most unnatural for him. It was a deep pondering one that was tinged with fear, as though he were contemplating something terrible.
"I sometimes think that I'm not. I mean, I keep getting injured and I bleed…" Takato shifted his shirt down slightly, revealing two puncture wounds on his neck that looked suspiciously like someone bit him. "Dead people don't bleed normally, do they?"
"You're asking me, kid?" Kurata shifted himself backwards, propping himself up on the pillow behind him. It was starting to become laborious to sit on his arm like that. "Let's forget about that for now." Kurata instinctively pushed his hand upwards on the bridge of his nose, and upon finding his glasses there he took them off to examine them. "Damn…broken…"
"I can get those fixed for you," Takato offered. "I know a Wisemon who can help."
Kurata looked at his glasses thoughtfully before tossing them over to Takato. "Whatever," he muttered. "Anyway, as I was about to say before I was so rudely interrupted by my inconvenience… How did I get here? I don't remember showing up here or anything. Just where is here anyway?"
"This is the Dark Area," replied Takato. "Well…the TV show called it the Dark Ocean because, well, it was first shown as a beach. I guess it makes sense…in context…sort of." Takato rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "I don't know how you got here. This is actually the first time that I've even heard about you, and I've been here for almost a year. Well, in this castle anyway. I've been living in the Dark Area for far longer…"
"Hmmm…I see." Kurata raised one hand and looked at it speculatively. "Well…all right then. I guess you're not going to be of any help to me then."
A hurt look crossed Takato's face but before he could say anything else the door clicked open and in walked a tall, gray and violet colored digimon, dressed in priests robes with a fox-like face mask; a Doumon.
"I am here to see the patient," the Doumon explained. Takato nodded and got up from his chair. With a gesture, the shadowy reptile's form shifted and flowed into his hand, transforming into his cloak. He quickly swept it up and placed it around his shoulders.
"I'll see you later," Takato said. Kurata hmmphed, folding his arms over each other. The door closed, leaving him alone with the Doumon, who looked at him dispassionately.
"Well," Kurata said in annoyance. "Let's get this over with. A second later he sneezed.
God dammit…
Takato made his way down the hallway of GranDracmon's castle, his brow knotted so deeply in thought that he almost didn't notice LadyDevimon materialize next to him, falling into step and matching his pace easily.
"You're not attacking me," he noted. LadyDevimon raised one hand and looked at her claws with an interested look.
"That can change," she said, smirking. Takato nodded in understanding, providing the demoness with a forced smile.
"You never told me that we had a human living here."
"There was no need to. He showed up a few months before you did. He was continuously caught up in transforming between human and digimon, attacking everything that moved until GranDracmon forced him to fall asleep." LadyDevimon swept one hand over her hair and tsked. "Really. He was a bad memory that I would have been happy to forget."
"What's going to happen to him?"
"Leave the thinking to GranDracmon, human," LadyDevimon sighed. "It will be easier on your conscience." LadyDevimon glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "Easier for you on the whole I should say."
Takato grimaced, quickly getting the message behind her words.
But I can't just let it go…can I? Takato raised one hand and pressed it against his side, as though remembering the pain of an old wound. He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. He didn't like the thought that ran through his mind. What would my old friends say if they saw me now?
"You have that look on your face," observed LadyDevimon.
"What look?"
"Don't play dumb with me," she snarled. "As empty headed as you can be, you did not live this long here by being completely stupid! That human is dead as soon as his purpose is over. He's not even worth your trying to save him! Not by your standards of excellence!"
"So you keep telling me about everything in this place."
Takato then gave a surprised cry as LadyDevimon suddenly and violently shoved him forward, nearly knocking him off his feet. He quickly recovered though, taking note of the fact that the demoness had not put her full strength into it.
"Fine," she hissed. "But you should know that I'm not going to help you. If you do what you're thinking of doing, you're on your own and I will gladly bring in your head myself."
So why don't you? wondered Takato, though he didn't say it out loud. He knew from firsthand experience that LadyDevimon was not the kind of digimon to be pushed.
"That's okay," he said instead, offering her an understanding smile. "I wouldn't have asked you to do it anyway. I'm the only one who needs to lose his head for something like this anyway." Takato laughed lightly and rubbed the back of his head, feeling slightly uncomfortable for his gallows humor. He waited for a reaction from LadyDevimon, only to be surprised to find her regarding him with cool anger on her face before she melted into the darkness of the hall. Takato raised an eyebrow, somewhat taken aback by LadyDevimon's reaction…or rather the lack of it.
You know…I think that's the first time I've seen her hold back…
Shrugging his shoulders, Takato proceeded towards GranDracmon's chambers. Despite the long, twisting paths involved, he arrived there in short order, standing outside the main doors. He raised one hand hesitantly to knock on the door.
"The door is open, Takato," came the voice of GranDracmon before his knuckles could even land on the solid wood. "You know you have the freedom to enter as you choose."
Takato nodded nervously, chiding himself for being so formal in the presence of GranDracmon, the very digimon who had taken him in ever since they first met. Pushing the door open, Takato entered the room to find GranDracmon languishing upon his rug while reading a leather bound book. The giant demon nodded to him and after placing a bookmark where he left off, closed it. Setting it down, GranDracmon turned towards him.
"You are worried about Kurata," he said simply. Takato sighed.
"Jeez…am I that easily readable."
GranDracmon smiled down at him in an almost fatherly manner. "Not so much as the manner of books, Takato. But I have gotten to know you. You are a curious standout in the Dark Area. You constantly worry about others, even when they should give you no reason to be. Much like your relationship with the LadyDevimon whose care you have been placed under…"
"Not so much as placed under as she made it her duty," mumbled Takato. GranDracmon smiled beneath his mask and nodded towards the corridor.
"Speaking of whom…LadyDevimon? Why don't you join us instead of skulking about outside? It's rather unbecoming of a woman like you."
Crimson hair and black leather spilled out of the shadows and the lithe form of LadyDevimon strode up to stand behind Takato. She eyed the young teenager carefully before turning her attention up to her master.
"Now…let us see if I can answer your questions," said GranDracmon. "Kurata is not going to die."
LadyDevimon's eyes widened as she stiffened in surprise. "What?" she breathed while Takato sighed in relief.
"Kurata is not going to die," GranDracmon repeated. "I don't think I need to remind you that, as this place is the digital world's equivalent to hell, deleting him would serve no meaning, as data is always preserved in one form or another to be reformatted elsewhere. However, I have other reasons for this, one of which involves this…entity that we encountered. He is most definitely not human. What is more, he came looking for Kurata specifically, and means to capture him for his own purposes." GranDracmon smiled. "He means to draw me out."
"Huh?" Takato raised an eyebrow. "But…wasn't he looking for Kurata?"
"He may need Kurata for what is inside of him, but the way he handled himself and escaped so easily… Really Takato. Don't be so easily fooled. He could have come and gone without my having been aware of it, and taken his prize as well. It's not as though I have need for him at the moment."
"Um…not wanting to change the subject, but why do you have Kurata imprisoned."
GranDracmon snapped a finger, and a wine glass rose into the air. A pitcher levitated over to the glass and poured the violet liquid into it, and he accepted it, dismissing the pitcher a second later.
"That is because of the Belphemon side of him was out of control. There was really only one way to ensure that he couldn't cause any more damage to the surrounding environs."
"By imprisoning him?" Takato felt confused. Although he didn't like the idea of killing another digimon, doing so was the rather straightforward problem solving technique in the Dark Area, and many digimon, LadyDevimon especially, used it almost exclusively. It seemed rather…out of place, even for GranDracmon.
"Would you have done anything different, Takato?" asked GranDracmon, taking a small sip of his wine. "I do not kill when I have no need to."
"Oh," was all Takato had to say on the matter, still feeling a bit troubled. GranDracmon chuckled.
"I believe that this requires some investigating," the demonic digimon continued. "I would like to know what he wants with me and Belphemon, but for that to happen I need to trace his trail. Takato."
"Yes?"
"You shall lead the search."
The boy blinked in surprise. "Say wha…?"
"You acquitted yourself well on the field when I let you out, although you need a little supervision. So LadyDevimon will accompany you, to make sure that you stay in line. After all, I suspect there is a strong chance that you will be heading to one of the human worlds."
"Wait. What?"
"Just a hunch. This entity has hidden depths and the smell of humans about him. I believe that his trail—one of many—may lead there. For now however, restrict your search to the surface level of the digital world as you have before and investigate all oddities occurring there. Once you have collected enough data, report to me and we will decide from there."
LadyDevimon looked down at Takato with disdainful eyes.
"Why send this one?" she asked. "You have far better servants. He has the tendency to act on his own…"
"Which is why you're going with him," replied GranDracmon, taking another sip from his drink.
"Of course, but…still. His capabilities are subpar at best, and it's not as though any of your servants can't create a human form for themselves to blend in, in case a trip to a human world is necessary."
"Because, a human face is necessary to keep Kurata in line. Seeing as how my castle is a useless fortification to protect him with, keeping him on the move will be a far better idea. And he does not get along very well with digimon. Even those that look human."
LadyDevimon glared down at Takato, but said no more.
"Now Takato, I'll trust you with the preparations and to make sure you are properly supplied. Keep your group small in number. Any large movements will be easily discovered. I hope that you haven't forgotten that basic fact after being so long from the harshness of the desert plain of the digital world."
"Sure," nodded Takato, though a troubled expression crossed his face. "No problem."
"You got lucky," said LadyDevimon as the two of them left GranDracmon's chambers.
"I used to be known for that," Takato replied. "Nice to know that it's coming back in small pieces."
"Luck won't last you forever you know. Sooner or later…"
"…It fails. Yeah." Takato strode onwards while LadyDevimon came to a halt. "I know. I know really well."
"Then remember it for once," she told him, narrowing her eyes. Her gaze was on Takato's back as he kept going. He didn't answer, nor did she expect him to. As soon as he turned a corner, she faded from view, melting into the darkness of the hallway.
Takato closed the door to his chamber with a quiet click and breathed a sigh of relief. His cloak flowed off his body, assuming the form of a shadowy reptile with bat-like ears. It regarded him with quant curiosity, but as always it didn't speak or make a noise. Instead, it strode over to the fireplace, already lit and curled up next to it. Takato watched it and smiled briefly, but his smile faded almost as soon as it appeared, replaced by an exhausted look in his eyes. He looked over at his bed, tempted to fall into it and let the day's exertions fade away from him. Instead he settled for sitting on the edge of the bed and placing his face in his hands, enveloping his vision in darkness. He found it strange. So often he had been afraid of the dark, and this world gave him even more reason to be so, but it was darkness like this that had come to give him comfort. After a few deep breaths, he felt his spirits lift a little and he raised his head, sitting his chin on top of his hands and stared at the fire.
I saw my friends from back home for the first time in years, he thought quietly to himself. He felt a longing tug in him. In a way he had to admit, he hoped that the day's intruder would come from a human world—his human world to be more specific. Out of all the worlds that existed—and it surprised him to no end to learn that many did—the desert plain was closest to the one that he once called home and would be the easiest to get to. He desperately wanted to see it, to breathe its air, even if only for a moment…
So why do I feel scared to go there? he wondered. Takato hitched another sigh and closed his eyes. He felt so tired. The past three years weighed on him heavily, and there didn't seem to be any sign that it would let up. Even with the hope of seeing home he did not believe he would be free. He was chained to this world irrevocably, and even GranDracmon's power, as great as it was, would not permit him to be free even if he stepped out into the light of the human world and refused to return to the Dark Area.
Tomorrow… thought Takato, reopening his eyes to gaze at the flickering fire. We'll see what tomorrow brings.
A/N: GranDracmon begins to make his move, searching for Prometheus, and already guessing that it was all just a ploy to draw him out. Inspired by Nolaquen265's depiction, I really wanted to show GranDracmon as being very cultured and even a little elegant (hence his reading of a book). He's not a villain in the classical sense, where things are black and white and very visible. Part of his power lies in his voice, which has turned angels to corruption, so it made sense to me that he would 'dress himself', as it were, in a manner that would set others at ease so that he could manipulate them to do his bidding. His approach to 'Takato' is very much in the same manner, providing him with something of a fatherly/authoritative figure, and having helped him out of 'benevolance'. His words about why Kurata wasn't killed outright when he (or rather Belphemon) rampaged in his castle also helps to illustrate this point. He appears in control of himself and pragmatic. It's harder to condemn a leader who tries to resolve a situation before resorting to extreme measures than it is with someone who resorts to extreme measures first. At least until you get to know them a little bit more.
And speaking of Takato…surprise! This little bit was in the back of my head for a while ever since I killed Takato briefly in Less than Human. I've also had a story idea of what it would be like for a human if they were transported to the Dark Area and were forced to live there for an extended period of time. This version of Takato, cut off from the point that he was killed, is a little bit different from his prime counterpart, having lived a rougher existence and has no clue that he still 'lives' back home. The core of his personality remains though, and despite his circumstances Takato would fight to make a better life for others, even though it has been sorely tested over the years (making GranDracmon's intervention something of a reprieve for his already taxed sanity—LadyDevimon notwithstanding, though that gives him something to fight for).
Next chapter we'll be returning to the real world, with some tidbits on Norn and Prometheus as they step up their plans to the next phase. 'Till then. :P
-Crazyeight
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