Chapter 25: On the Southern Edge of Paradise
How quiet and transcendent the world had fallen in only the blink of the eye. Where once the sun shone brightly above and kissed the skin in a warm embrace, darkness had fallen to chill the flesh and numb the mind. But it was good. Within this loss of sensation, there was only tranquility and nirvana. The eyes did not see, the ears did not hear, and the body became cleansed and focused. Most importantly, the spirit was renewed. If one could remain in such a state of being for all eternity, they would surely have been able to discover the deepest truths locked within the universe. But sadly, the body cannot remain in such a state for duration under the laws of nature and must return to equilibrium.
Coming forth from the blackness, the light reemerges and the threshold is broken as breaths of life fill the lungs with the warm, sun-kissed air.
"Sweet Jesus, that's cold!" comes a surprised exclamation laden with a noticeable country drawl.
Shaking his tangled black hair side to side, Croix freed the excess water from his person in a burst of splashes. With short kicks, he kept his head above the waterline, allowing his body to grow accustomed to the dual sensation of the icy water and the radiant sunlight.
"Come on in," he encouraged with a slight shiver. "It ain't so bad one you get used to it."
"Indeed," the only aquatic Digimon confirmed, her pale blue underbelly pointing to the clear sky as she floated lazily on her back. "It is quite pleasant."
From the white-sanded shore, the remainder of their party watched on as the cowboy had nonchalantly discarded his clothes, hat, and Digivice and proceeded to jump haphazardly into the sea in nothing more than his boxers.
"Seriously?! Are we the only ones who ain't afraid of the water?" he jeered. "Ladies?"
"I'll pass," Lona rejected as she relaxed under the shade of a tree. "Besides, we don't have any swimsuits."
"Go naked then," came a straight reply.
"Fat chance, you perv," the blonde shouted back.
"Can't blame a guy for tryin'," he grinned before diving back under.
With the exception of Ry and Trio, who both wished to keep their injuries hidden from view, the men had discarded their shirts and were in the middle of teaching their Digimon the basics of the human sport of baseball, utilizing a dead tree limb and some round red fruit that hung plentifully from the canopies above. Though the teaching of the rules went over well enough, the execution of the game itself was another matter all together. Neither Coppermon nor Chitalmon had arms with which to hold the bat or throw, Beakmon was horribly uncoordinated, swinging wildly at the pitches, and Cubmon just turned the fruit into a sticky mess with his powerful arm strength. The game rapidly degraded into a childish food fight.
It had now been two days since their departure from Rio de Huesos and their third week in the Digital World. At least, that is what they believed it to be. None of them had really bothered keeping an accurate tracking of how much time had passed thus far. The more days that elapsed, the more they seemed to run together until they formed a single, continuous blur.
Setting off westward along the southern coastline of the Glass Sky Sea, they moved steadily without destination into the unknown, nearing the territorial boundaries of how far any of the Digimon had gone. Even the ramblers, Coppermon and Cubmon, had not traveled this particular route in quite some time, offering little to no assistance as far as navigating the grasslands that gave way to low-lying coastal marshland. For the most part they stuck to the dryer ground that ran between the edge of the sandy beaches and the wetlands. For as far as their Digivices could indicate, there was only the open expanse of the water to their right and emptiness to their left.
With no real point of arrival or schedule to stick to, the Digi-Destined had decided to cease their marching on a particularly perfect day. Midday sunlight shone brilliantly but didn't beat down upon them mercilessly as it had done in the past as a gentle easterly wind kept the air from becoming hot and stagnant. Free from any foreseen obligations, they concluded there would be no harm in spending one or two days on a mini vacation.
It was nearing lunch around the time the boys braved the crispness of the water to wash themselves clean of the dried and sandy pieces of fruit that clung to them. After preparing a small campfire on the beach, they then proceeded to "assist" Ry in preparing the catch of the day courtesy of Lutramon, who effortlessly retrieved numerous brightly colored fish from the sea. Like a household cat pleased by the killing of a pesky barn rat, she placed the products of her efforts at Ry's feet as he monitored the fire and prepared the meal. With a small knife he had acquired from Rio de Huesos, he filleted the scales and placed the meat on large green leaves pulled from the fruit trees. Using a series of interlaced sticks to lift the leaves just off the fire, he allowed the meal to smoke slowly and crisp from the heat.
After washing the knife in the freshwater, the chef reached behind him for the now nearly empty equipment bag that they still kept with them from Otec and Matka. All the rations they had brought were quickly consumed, leaving only the machete, a fifty foot span of rope, a ball of twine, box of matches, a notepad and pen, their canteens, and now the knife remaining. The vast majority of the time he was the one left as its sole caretaker, not that he necessarily minded. It gave him a strange sense of personal satisfaction in its responsibility. He supposed it came from his days in the Scouts, where the motto "Always Prepared" became engrained into him.
Peeling the leaves aside, he checked their contents to confirm they were thoroughly done.
"Alright, guys, lunch is ready," he called, satisfied by the end result.
Gathering together around the smoky fire, Kiela offered a short prayer of thanks before they commenced to make short work of the tasty morsels. As per usual, Croix and Andreo led the pack in their feeding frenzy and were already asking for seconds before anyone else had managed to swallow their first bites.
"Are they always this barbarous?" Beakmon whispered covertly to Erri, slightly ashamed of his partner's poor etiquette.
"Pretty much," Erri replied quietly. "You get used to it after a while."
Despite their lack of formalized manners, the mood amongst them was light and free from worry as they partook in their food underneath the cooling canopies that rested just off the water's edge. They were all cheerful as they ate, trading swigs from one of the two wine sacks given to them by the Calaveramon prior to their departure and munching on the tangy red fruit for dessert. Though it was hardly a home cooked meal or a five star cuisine, none of them paid any mind to the notion.
Nor did they seem to notice the large duffel that was now sliding slowly away from them down the beachhead. Leaving a prominent trail as it skidded along the sand, it had traveled almost fifty yards before being stopped dead in its tracks. A tug on the bag indicated that it still attempted to move forward by whatever force was propelling it. With a slight yank, the bag was lifted from the ground.
"Well, well, well," Cubmon observed threateningly. "What do we have here?"
Beneath the duffel, a pair of alien black orbs jutted outwards from the sand like two periscopes on reconnaissance for a submarine. Twitching about their axis, they gave a look of fright before retreating beneath the surface.
"Oh no you don't!" Cubmon barked. "Get back here you little thief!"
Diving for the darkened spheres, his paws grasped out but only clung to a fistful of gritty silica.
"Crap!"
Picking himself from the ground, he brushed himself off and decided there was no rational point in ruining a nice day by getting into a fist fight. Retrieving the bag, he walked back over to the campfire as everyone else had watched him take off after the intruder.
"What was that all about?" Erri questioned, returning to his seat in the sand.
"Fiddlemon," Cubmon answered, tossing the bag down beside him. "They're pesky little scavenger Digimon that live under the sand. Normally they travel in colonies, so there's probably a whole lot more we're not seeing. They're harmless most of the time, but they'll take anything on the beach they can find."
"Do we need to move?" Erri inquired.
"Nah," the Digimon assured. "They know they've been caught so I wouldn't worry about it."
"If you say so."
Keeping a sharp eye out for the subterranean nuisances, they finished up the remainder of their quaint meal under the shadows of the low drooping branches, though no further incidents occurred throughout the day. By the afternoon, the sun was beginning to fall from the sky as the majority of the Digi-Destined had settled down to nap beneath the shadows or wandered down the beach a ways for a stroll. Before they knew it, the night was soon upon them as the succulent smell of another fine catch lingered and wafted through the cooling air.
As the embers suffocated slowly in their pit, the only sounds to be heard were the occasional snores and grunts as human and Digimon tossed and turned subconsciously in their sleep. High above against the blackened blue backdrop, the cosmic scene of the hundreds of thousands of stars and planets shone through, nearly overcome by the growing light of the now dual half moons.
Upon a small rocky peninsula that jutted into the sea, the young violet-clad woman sat silently alongside her partner. With her hands wrapped around her knees, she stared off both literally and figuratively into space as she took in the gentle calmness of the glimmering expanse. It was something that she couldn't help but love about the Digital World. Unlike the real world, here the sky seemed so much fuller than what she was accustomed to back home. Watching it all as the coastal winds lapped lazily upon her, it was as if there was a delicate balance between it all being sensually overwhelming and just a little too empty. In the end, however, it was all perfect in its beauty to her eyes. Beside her, Lutramon was curled up happily, bordering the fine line between sacred silence and sleep.
Carefully and ever so gently, the soft floating song escaped her lips.
"Blackened pools reveal blue oceans…whirlpools amongst the heaven's sky…diamond lights pierce the canvas…to the rhythm of a changing tide."
The steady roll of the water seemed to move in time to the melancholy tune of the acoustic guitar that strummed silently within her head.
"White streaks across the night chase each other…dancing across the Van Gogh…star-crossed lovers…blind to one another…beneath a thousand UFOs…"
Each note that danced on the wind carried her emotions within upon them. Closing her eyes, she allowed the song to take its own course, carrying her along for the ride. To the young maiden, singing was in itself an expression of escape from her reality. It soothed her when she wasn't feeling like herself and allowed her to convey her feelings in ways she never could just by conversing. But tonight, she found herself choking on every few words, unable to sing the melody as she once could.
"If only we could see through the stardust…to find the heavens in our eyes …we can dance upon the moon forever…no other world but you and I."
And with the final stanza, it disappeared. With a tiresome sigh, Lona reopened her eyes to find the world was just as she had left it. Though the song had helped to alleviate her mind, it did nothing to satisfy the aches in her chest. Ever so lightly, she felt a small tear come forth to flow like a stream of emotional complexity.
From behind, a steady clapping of hands grabbed her and Lutramon's attention, startling the creature from her slumber.
"Such tenderness and woe," a lanky phantom stated lowly as he ended the gesture. "Captivatingly serene for a night such as this."
Jumping to their feet, Lutramon placed herself between her partner and the stranger before them, blue aura already radiating at the ready from her tails.
"Who are you?" Lona demanded firmly, her tone neither insulting nor inviting to the masked being. Call it a growing cynicism, but her amount of trustworthiness in the intentions of others had taken a serious blow since their arrival in the Digital World.
Under the celestial moonlight, the figure in the simple white oval mask bowed deeply, swinging his cloak outwards in an overly-dramatic display.
"My apologies, Madams," he begged pardon. "It was not my intention to impose so rudely. My name is Bijannumon, and I was merely entranced by your song. I found it quite heavenly, to say the least."
Reaching down to her Digivice, Lone waited for the gadget to provide her with any information, but it remained inactive. With a perplexed expression, she returned to the blackened Digimon before her.
"Thank you," she replied somewhat warily to the being's complement. "I'm Lona."
"Lutramon," the Rookie introduced, relaxing her guard ever so slightly.
"The pleasure is mine," Bijannumon stated courteously with a following bow. "Again, my sincerest apologies. I did not mean to intrude."
"It is no intrusion at all," Lutramon assured. "You just scared us."
"Thank you," the voice behind the red-painted mask said. "I must say I was hoping to have had a more approachable way to speak with one of the legendary Digi-Destined. Unfortunately, this appeared to be the only option short of strolling across the water and approaching you from there."
"I understand," Lona replied, relaxing her tense posture. From first impressions, the strange Digimon may have looked unsettling in part that never wavering smile that looked back at her with unblinking eyes, but he didn't seem intent on doing them any harm. Even still, for all intents and purposes she remained on her toes.
"But again," he continued. "I would like to say that you do indeed have a very gifted talent. It isn't very often that the Digital World is blessed with someone of such refined musical skill, let alone a human. Though if I may be so bold as to ask why you chose a song of such dejectedness?"
Taken aback by the question at hand, the woman averted her eyes to her partner, as though Lutramon would contain the answer.
"I…just like it. That's all," she hesitated in her response. "It just seemed to speak to me."
"As does all music to all beings," Bijannumon countered. "But I can see it as clearly as the moons in the sky that your heart is in deep distress. One does not sing songs of such sorrowful beauty on nights such as this. If it spoke to you, then it is most assuredly speaking with great intensity."
"Please stop," Lutramon interjected. "This matter is her own. She does not wish to talk about it."
Looking to the creature that he easily towered over, his painted mouth did not move as he responded solemnly.
"As her Digimon partner, you are in synch with her emotions, are you not?"
"Indeed," she confirmed sternly. "Our bond may not be the strongest amongst us, but we are growing each day."
"Then you can feel the discord within her heart as well?"
Looking upon Bijannumon with a menacing expression, her typically polite demeanor was rapidly diminishing.
"How dare you!" she fired back accusingly, pointing her blackened paw at him as the blue hue glowed from her tail once more. "These issues are not your own and I will not ask you nicely again to refrain from speaking about Lona in such a manner!"
In the cool eastern breeze, the world fell quiet as the stabbing words bore into their mark. Watching the event unfold, both Lutramon and Lona were suddenly surprised by the audacity of the statement. Since their first encounter, Lona had never seen Lutramon so riled up, even in the midst of battle.
From beneath his face plate, Bijannumon eyed the defensive creature with cautious curiosity before resuming.
"Once more, I must apologize with all my sincerity," the figure said, declining his head. "I crossed the line in my rudeness and will not pursue the matter further if the young lady does not wish me so. If she desires it, I will take my leave at once."
Watching as the young lass shifted uneasily under the moonlight, both Digimon awaited her reply with curious anxiety.
"It's alright,Lutramon," Lona answered softly. "I'm fine. Don't worry about it. "
"But…"
"We can talk about it later," Lona reassured with a small smile. "Alright?"
Lutramon nodded her head in understanding, releasing the energy stored up for her potential attack as her fur returned to its normal coloring.
Having successfully calmed her partner down, at least for the time being, the blonde returned her attention to the lanky Digimon.
"I think we've gotten off on the wrong foot," she stated mildly. "I don't want you to think that you're intruding, but at the same time I have to agree with Lutramon that my personal life is not your business. If you wish to stay you may, but I'd rather not talk about things that are private."
"With all due respect to you," Bijannumon continued lowly and evenly. "The reason I ask these questions is that your personal affairs, in a manner of speaking, are indeed a great concern for me. If you would, please allow me to show you both something of importance. It will allow you to see things from a different perspective."
With long, slender steps he strode over towards the water's edge as he uncovered his equally thin arms from beneath his flowing cloak. Inclining his head to stare into the faces of the twin half-opened orbs, he raised them parallel to his body as the puzzled and fascinated human and partner watched attentively. Crossing his arms as though to touch the opposing shoulder, Bijannumon threw the appendages outwards in a wide-spread arc.
As though an invisible force had been expelled against the sea, the chilling breeze from the water was cancelled and immediately ceased to exist. Letting the tides subside, Lona's and Lutramon's eyes grew wide in wonderment and fascination as the entire infinite expanse before them lay perfectly still, as the wrinkles in the body were smoothed over. Standing on the edge of the peninsula, they seemed to disappear from the world around them as the heavens and the earth became one perfectly seamless painting of symmetry.
"How…how did you do that?!" Lona exclaimed under her breath.
Lowering his arms, Bijannumon tucked them back beneath their cover.
"This," he began calmly, ignoring her question. "Is the true nature of the Glass Sky Sea. However, it also has another name that is very seldom used. That name is The Astral Gates. You can obviously see why it would be given such a magnificent title. It is even more glorious during the full moons."
No words could come to Lona's mind to properly express the surrealism and beauty of it all. The various shades of black, blue, green and purple floated along in the flowing stardust like cosmic rivers, and the stars shone brightly like precious gems embedded into the earth. It seemed as though one could literally walk into the cosmos as though walking on solid ground.
"It's wonderful," she stated. "But what does any of this have to do with me?"
"It has everything to do with you," the phantom explained. "Look out amongst the Gates and take a moment to carefully analyze every detail. Many will argue that this world before us is nothing more than an elaborate ruse; an illusion of the mind and nothing more. We do not exist to them, hence they see us as nothing more than expendable information in a cluttered universe. But I do not see things as such, as should you. You must remember that you have been brought here by fate to become one of the sacred guardians of this world. This sea, and everything in the Digital World, is held in a very fragile state between those forces that wish to protect it and those that wish to destroy it. Personal emotions can serve as both a mighty sword with which to fight these forces and as a heavy chain with which you will be dragged down. I can see from observing you that you are one whose mind is filled with fantasy and wonderment. Both of these are precious in their own way, but can also serve as your greatest weakness. You seek love and acceptance, as we all do, but find your heart unrequited. Here is where you are most vulnerable to those who wish to do harm. Please understand that I do not ask the questions I do out of ill-manner, but out of concern. Do you see the intentions of my words now?"
From the tip of the rocks, Lona and Lutramon looked outwards as far as their eyes would go to see the precious detail in each twinkling light. Suddenly, everything became just a little more focused and in perspective for them. This world had so much more to it than just them, and they had barely seen but a miniscule fraction of it all.
"I understand," Lona replied with a nod.
"As do I," Lutramon stated.
"Very good," Bijannumon approved. "Now please let me clarify that it is not my place to tell you what to do about your private affairs."
"But know this," he stated, his voice turning gravely serious. "There is something on the horizon that you cannot see that will force you to choose a path unlike any you have taken before. Like the cycles of the moon and the setting of the sun, it comes and goes like clockwork. When it arrives, the road that you choose will be the deciding factor between happiness and despair for not just you, but for all beings."
Turning away from the celestial landscape, Lona and Lutramon eyed the cryptic messenger with uncertainty and befuddlement.
"What is this 'something' that you speak of?" Lutramon inquired demandingly.
"It is not merely 'something' we can hold in tangibility," he replied gravely. "It grows over time, slowly evolving and adapting with each new day. It goes by many names, but the most common one of all is Fear. Fear begins merely as Paranoia then evolves into Misunderstanding. Misunderstanding becomes Distrust and then Fear. Once Fear has been achieved, it will show its true form."
"Which is?" Lona asked timidly.
"Desolation," the low, morbid voice replied without looking away from the sea. "Fear will only bring about Hatred, and like a virus Hatred will spread throughout the masses. Cities will burn with a vengeful hellfire, and brothers and sisters will raise arms against one another. Be forewarned, Digi-Destined, that Fear will rise and there is no stopping it. Like a mighty storm over the horizon, it already approaches, laying waste to everything in its path. Once it hits you, there will be no room to allow petty emotions to dictate your actions. It is only through the roads you choose will it be decided whether you will succumb to or triumph over it. "
Spinning around quickly, the blackened figure about faced and strode off in lengthy steps.
"It was surely a pleasure to meet you both," he concluded, his voice returning to its normal evenness. "Perhaps one day we will meet again, though I do request that what you have seen and heard tonight be kept only between the three of us. These words are for you and you alone."
Before either of the two Digi-Destined could protest, a stiff gale rushed out from over the Glass Sky Sea, sweeping the phantom away in the wind. At the water's edge, the rhythmic tide returned to lap against the shore.
Hey everybody! Just wanted to check in and give an update in my personal life. Right now I'm a little bogged down with work, guitar projects, starting a part-time band, reading classic novels, and most importantly of all getting a real house to live in. Hooray for adulthood!
Just for those who are curious, the song Lona was singing is one I wrote way back in the day, back when I was trying to get a girl to like me (Spoiler Alert! It never happened!). It's honestly pretty lame now that I reread it over, but I thought the lyrics were actually kind of fitting for the situation. In the end it all works out.
So what's going to happen next, you may ask? Are we going to get to see some new bad guys? New Digivolutions? Maybe some butt-kicking action scenes? A little drama and romance on the side? The answers are as follows...
...Hell if I know, Hell if I know, Hell if I know, and Hell if I know.
Honestly I just B.S. my way through about 75% of each chapter and vaguely follow any kind of plot I charted out beforehand.
Hope you guys have a good Spring Break, which unfortunately no longer exists in the working world.
Keyworks Kid