Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
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Chapter: 26
Using his crutch to carefully pick his way through the hills and potholes of garbage in his path, Teruo came to a stop in front of a pile of flat, metallic-like disks sitting in a pile—more than he expected. Standing near it was Bob, looking over him.
"Are you all right?" the robot asked, taking in how much Teruo was favoring his leg.
"I'll be fine," Teruo waved him off. "I should be better by tomorrow. Now…" He lifted up one of the disks. "…let's see what we have here." Picking up one of the disks, he turned it over, running a hand across its surface.
These are definitely transmat platforms. Hmmm… He shifted it and squinted. Silver Age model. I can tell by the gold inlay. Not as efficient, but mostly devoid of damage. "Where'd you find all these?" he asked, turning up to Bob. "I thought you said that there was only one."
"Transmat devices are not high priority, and due to the number of layers here it is difficult to maintain an accurate inventory. I noted one transmat platform the last time I passed through the northern section of the yard."
"How long ago was that?"
"Twelve years ago." Bob noticed the way Teruo raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Space often folds and stretches to great degrees in the yard. The space in the northern section was significantly smaller at the time and it was easier to travel through. The yard has expanded since then."
"Of course." Teruo sat down and placed his makeshift crutch on the ground along with the transmat device before picking up another. "Just out of curiosity… Is that safe?"
"The expanding of space?" Bob asked.
"Yeah."
"It was deemed a necessary addition as landfills were being filled to capacity faster than anticipated. An old spatial distortion core from the Nemesi known as 'Empress' was appropriated to solve the problem. Since then, all remaining debris and technology from the previous Ages were retired here."
"That didn't really answer my question."
"At the minimum, should the distortion core be destroyed, the power and material released would destroy Shinjuku. At least, that is what the math said at the time, and it is being reevaluated constantly."
"Now I wish I didn't ask," Teruo grumbled, not liking the implication in light of his earlier EMP blast. Flipping over the transmat device in his hand he continued. "You'd think they wouldn't have let a town spring up around here. Nothing like sitting on a potential volcano to liven things up. I guess this is why I hadn't heard about how big this place really is." He placed the device on its edge and ran a finger on it. "Very nice… Bronze Age tech. Less loose with its physics and energy budget, but always more accurate." He turned its surface back in his direction. "The crack isn't good but…I may be able to fix that with vacuum welding. Maybe. Depending on the materials used. I'm definitely keeping this."
Placing the device alongside its Silver Age brethren and picked up the next one. This piece was a shining gold piece with a silver center. Teruo tossed it aside like a Frisbee almost as soon as he picked it up with a look of disgust.
"Golden Age. Model T-304. I recognize this crap anywhere. I'd have better luck duct taping someone's molecules together."
"It was by far in the best shape," Bob said, following the disk's flight path until it crashed into a nearby refrigerator. "Could you not work around it should the others fail to operate or have equipment to function with? Golden Age technology is the most numerous and is…robust."
"I could, but not that piece. Model T-304 Transmat Platforms killed people 99 percent of the time they were used. In one war they were altered and turned into a weapon to use against heavy mech bots because that was all they were good for. I'm surprised one of the original models actually found its way here. I thought they were all melted down in the Silver Age."
"With the amount of technology the Golden Age produced, eventually one was bound to survive an upgrade," Bob noted. "I have a cousin that is still in his original Bronze Age design. He requires battery-life support to continue functioning. He claims that any change to his structure ruins his historical value."
"Weird." Teruo sighed and looked over the remaining three disks. These ones were in far rougher shape, with chips and spidery-cracks all along their surfaces.
All late Bronze Age tech. They used honey-comb cells in their creation for better memory and energy usage. There's no way I can fix those without having an entire industry at my command. Oh well. At least the two I have is usable and fixable. Two out of six isn't bad. Better than I figured.
"All right." Teruo hoisted himself back up, picking up his Transmat Platforms and sticking them in his book bag. "After this, there's the focusing lens and I'll need to strip down some war bots and power transformers and after that I'll say that I'm in business."
"It is getting late out," Bob reported. My internal clock states that it is rapidly approaching 3:30 pm. Do you have a credible excuse for your location?"
"You must get a lot of heroi that pop in here," Teruo frowned. "But you're right. I guess for now I'll have to leave things as is and…"
Another thunderclap broke across his voice. Looking up, Teruo saw another figure dropping out of the sky.
"Oh maaan! Not again! I didn't mean that really!" he complained, hitting the ground with his crutch. Spinning on a dime—or at least as well as he could with a limp—he started to hobble in the opposite direction away from the incoming dive-bombing superhuman. "That's it; I'm getting out of Dodge before someone starts a fight."
"I know of a weakness in the fence that you can use in the future."
Teruo's eyes lit up and a grin broke across his face.
###
Dust billowed upward like a cloud as Rumiko touched down, her hair, now tied in a simple ponytail, flapped slightly before dropping against her back. Casting her eyes around her, she took in the junkyard.
"I know you're watching me, Ken," she called loudly. "Come out and show yourself already!"
Air shimmered before her before taking on the visage of the dark-haired young man that she left earlier. Rumiko narrowed her eyes at him as his body flickered once before stabilizing.
"Come to root me out?" Ken asked.
"I'm here to give you a warning. Whatever it is that you're up to, I want you to leave my daughter out of it."
"Fair enough," Ken shrugged. "She got me what I wanted anyway." The rather blunt response caused Rumiko to blink in surprise.
That was too easy… I destroyed that AI unit. Unless… She thought back to what Riley told her about the break in at the Meta Foundation. "What did Rika get you?"
"Why don't you ask her?" Ken asked, a sardonic grin on his face. "I'm not in the business to giving information to former heroi that abandon their duty."
Rumiko felt a coal of anger flare slightly in her heart, but she quickly squashed it. He's trying to distract me, she thought. I forgot how he knows to push the right buttons to get what he wants.
"Did she have anything to do with the Meta Foundation break in?"
Ken merely smirked at her condescendingly. "Have you gotten hard of hearing in your old age, Mimi? I already told you that I'm not here to tell you what I'm doing. I know that you had to be told things twice a lot when you were a kid, but I thought that age brought wisdom. How about we just agree that I stop having your daughter work for me and leave it at that?"
"Ken, I think we both know that she will try to come here on her own, regardless of whatever I say." Rumiko stabbed a finger at the hologram. "And I know you won't stop her. If there's one thing I've known about you, it's that you can make promises but get out on technicalities. She'll come, and you won't force her to do anything she doesn't want to do, and she wants to find Ran."
Ken chuckled. "So you have learned a thing or two during the time we associated."
"Ken!" Rumiko growled. "What did she get you?!"
Ken considered her for a moment before glancing away, making a tsking sound. All the while he didn't lose his smirk.
"Well… If you must know, it concerns a group of heroi that have been massing lately called the Noir. You've heard of them, right?" He eyed Rumiko, taking in the tension in her body for a moment before continuing. "The Meta Foundation has been showing signs of connections with them."
"Does Rika think…?"
"She hasn't mentioned anything about what she thinks," Ken interrupted. "She's smarter than you give her credit for. She is however looking for her sister, and I've only been using that to point her in whatever directions sound to her that might be a clue. The Noir? I already know that she's not a part of that group. They're only tools. I haven't yet shared that with your daughter."
Rumiko ran a hand through her hair, sighing in exasperation. "This… If PlanPol knew about this…"
"It won't matter whether they know or not. They have bigger things to worry about. You already know about that I'm sure." Ken smirked. "The city has had a visitor and made a mess of the museum. Crushed a priceless relic at that—a hydra egg." Ken's smirk opened wide as he burst out laughing. "Well, I've always believed that it's better to be safe than sorry with those throwbacks! Dangerous antiques like that have no place in the Modern Age."
Rumiko lowered her hand, looking at Ken with a flat, dark stare.
"You won't go to PlanPol on your own then?" she asked. Ken placed his hands in his pockets, his smile one of supreme confidence.
"We'd both benefit by their not knowing. The Meta Foundation has its goal. I can't say that I disapprove of it, thinking back on all the things we've lost since the City was banished. Don't you want to see everyone again?"
"I'd rather know where Ran is," Rumiko said flatly.
"I can't help you with that. What Rika brought me had nothing pertaining to her. Just a reference to the Noir and their satellite system. The satellites…" Ken chuckled. "Well. That would spoil the surprise for PlanPol."
"What surprise?"
"I think that's enough chitchat now," Ken said. "Until you find me, you won't get anything more out of me."
Rumiko tilted her head to one side, her eyes narrowing as though she were listening for something. She was silent for a moment before speaking.
"Found you."
At that, Ken's eyes went wide, and at once he vanished from sight, disappearing in a shower of sparkles. Rumiko wasted no time however as she jetted forward, her surroundings blurring as she accelerated. Wreckage exploded away from her as she flew forward…only to be abruptly stopped as a metallic claw ripped its way free from the ground and snatched hold of her. Rumiko grunted as the steel trap pinned her arms to her side. Looking down, she swore as a massive, heavily plated robot lifted itself from out of a pile of metal garbage.
Damn it! How did he…? Never mind! Just…I've just got to get free! He can't have much time to escape!
With a loud scream, Rumiko threw all her strength against the robot's claw-like clamps. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, the claw began to pull apart. Shifting for better leverage, she continued to press her strength against the machine. With one final scream, the ancient war-bot's claw ripped apart with explosive force. Grabbing hold of one of the pieces, she sent it hurtling into the robot's head, smashing through its eye and skewering its computer brain. Not finished with the metallic monster yet, Rumiko flew forward. Pulling one arm back, she smashed a fist into the machine's chest, sending sparks of electricity arcing all along its abdomen and slashing at Rumiko's body, causing her to be blasted away by the shocks and sent flying backward into a heap of jagged trash. She burst free from the pile moments later and, after taking a quick look at her cybernetic attacker, she took to the air once again, returning to her original course.
###
The silence of the Nonaka household was oppressive. Michael noticed that even the dog that the family had picked up was unbearably quiet. Sitting on the couch with Rika in the chair across from him he took her in, trying to guess at what was on her mind. It wasn't hard, given what had happened before Rumiko left. The girl looked tense, and Michael couldn't say that he blamed her.
Rumiko didn't give me a whole lot to go on when she called me, he mused. I should have asked for something… He grimaced at the memory of Rumiko ordering her daughter to take a suppressant pill. That had not been something he ever expected to see. He had been friends with the family for quite a number of years, and he couldn't recall Ran, the eldest daughter, being made to deal with that, even at her most rebellious.
As he muddled through the memories, Rika abruptly got up from her chair and moved to leave the room. The puppy's head rose to watch her go and he sprang to his feet to follow.
"Where are you going?" Michael asked, getting up and starting after her.
"To get some water and something to eat," Rika replied flatly. "I can do that, right?"
"That's not a problem," Michael said. He fumbled for something else to say. "So…" began he began as he and Rika wandered into the kitchen. "You're a heroi now? When did this happen?"
His attempt at sounding jovial did not bring out the response that he hoped it would. Rika did not so much as respond to him. Instead she went into the cupboard and began to root through its contents.
She won't call me 'uncle' like she used to?
Sighing mentally, he altered his tactics a little.
"You know, I can understand you not wanting to tell your mother about having powers. I was the same way when I was your age."
Still not saying anything, Rika slammed the cupboard door shut after producing a container of salt. Looking up at Michael, she glared at him for a moment before moving over to the sink and turning the hot water handle to the faucet.
"Look…" continued Michael, frustrated for some kind of dialogue to happen between them. "Just what happened between the two of you? This has to be more than just a typical teenager and mother spat." He glanced behind him, indicating the mess over in the next room. "If you could just tell me, I might be able to help you."
Rika withdrew a cup from above the sink and filled it up with hot water. Grabbing the salt, she flipped the lid open.
"Help me?" she asked. "You didn't see my mother force-feeding me suppressant?"
"I did," Michael replied. "And I'd like to point out that she said you have the same powers as she does. I may not know what's going on, but judging by a certain hole in the wall she has good reason for keeping you under wraps and out of trouble."
"Figures you'd support her," Rika said, taking the salt container into the sink and pouring it into her cup.
"I've known her for a long time. She's earned my trust. Do you have anything that would get me to change my mind?"
Rika lifted the cup to her mouth, but before she could chug the salt water down, Guilmon bumped up against her leg with a rough sort of doggy-hug, causing some of her 'drink' to spill down onto her arm.
"Guilmon!" she scolded before raising the glass once again to her lips.
Michael grabbed her wrist.
"That won't do you any good you know," Michael said, a small grin gracing his lips. "Suppressant dissolves the second it hits your stomach. All you'll do is make yourself sick drinking that, and you won't get your powers back."
Releasing her wrist, Michael stepped back. Rika glowered at him before setting the down on the countertop.
"You can talk about it, you know," Michael prompted. Making a disgusted sound, Rika stepped past him.
"Like it's going to matter," she replied. "You'll just agree with her anyway."
"You could at least try to convince me." Michael turned to follow her. "What? You don't think that anyone can understand? Or that I can't because I'm an adult?"
Rika didn't respond. Even if I told him, he still wouldn't do anything. He'd probably just say we should sit here and wait for Mom to come home so we can talk about this. I'm sick of waiting. I've got to find a way to ditch this guy and…
As Rika passed by the hole in the wall of her home, she saw something out of the corner of her eye. Turning, she came face to face with a tall girl with long, blond hair tied behind her head. Sky-blue eyes latched onto her own violet ones and Rika felt her body grow cold.
"Rika…" the figure spoke in a voice that was all-too familiar, causing Rika's breath to catch in her throat.
"Ran!" she called out, darting through the hole and into the yard. No sooner did she touch ground, the figure became translucent and vanished from sight. Rika looked around her, bewildered.
"Ran… Ran!" she called out. Nothing. No response. There was no other sound beyond the usual ones of children playing outside the gate. Rika pressed a hand against her forehead, her eyes wide. Behind her, Guilmon approached her and sat down, eyes looking up at her and head tilted to one side worryingly.
What was that? What did I just see? Was Ran trying to contact me? Am I going crazy?
"Rika?" came Michael's voice from inside the house, interrupting her train of thought. "Hey! Is everything all right?"
Rika shot a glare over her shoulder and took off at a run toward the gate. He heard Michael's shout as he appeared at the hole in the house, but she ignored him. Grabbing hold of the iron bars, she swung herself up, hooking her legs on the top rungs and dropped herself on the other side.
I'm done with this, she thought. Powers or not, I'm not going to just sit around and wait to get answers!
With determination blazing in her heart, she took off at a run.
###
Michael arrived at the gate too late to stop the girl from making her escape.
Terrific! he thought, slamming a hand against the lock on the gate while beside him Guilmon yapped loudly, trying to chase after the girl. Raising one hand, he concentrated until small, crystalline particles materialized above his index finger. Pointing it at the lock, the particles flowed into its keyhole and solidified into ice. Upon twisting it, the lock released and the gate swung open slightly.
"Whoa there!" Michael exclaimed, placing a foot in front of Guilmon as he attempted to dart outside. Pushing the gate shut, he took hold of the animal and lifted him. Guilmon struggled to free himself, but for the moment was victim the fact that Michael was bigger than him. "Can't have you running off on your own. I think I saw a leash in the hallway. Give me a moment to hook you up and then we'll chase after your owner."
###
Rumiko tore through the junkyard at breakneck speed before finally slamming back down to ground. Behind her, debris and old artifacts came crashing down behind her.
"I'm here now, Ken," she said in a low, dangerous voice. "You're going to tell me what I want to know."
Concentrating, she listened carefully until she heard the slight buzzing that she had been expecting to hear. Zeroing in on a dirty metal plate she surged over to it and ripped it off, flinging it to the side. She paused for a moment, considering the possibility that she was walking into a trap.
He wouldn't be this careless, and so far I've only ran into one of his 'guards'. She narrowed her eyes, but quickly dropped down the tunnel. Regardless of whether or not she was walking into a trap, she had to press forward. Landing at the bottom, she took a quick glance around her before heading off in the direction where light was coming from. Within short order she burst into a room full of computers, screens, and electrical wires spread all over the place.
He escaped, she thought bitterly, pulling one hand into a tight, angry fist. Attempting to relieve herself of her frustration, she swung to the side, smashing her fist into the dirt wall. The empty room shuddered a little, causing some clods of dirt to fall around her. Rumiko breathed a heavy sigh, not feeling much better. I should have known…
The lights on the computer screens lit up, revealing Ken's smiling face.
"Hello, Mimi," he greeted. "While I admit that the speed that you discovered my main base surprised me, just discovering it was well within my ability to predict. I am familiar with all of your powers, as you well know."
"Ken…" Rumiko began, but the dark-haired youth shook a finger at her to silence her.
"I'm already far away from here. You can trace this signal if you want, but the properties of this place will ensure that will be problematic for you and anyone else. That and I won't give you enough time to do so."
Rumiko whirled around as a heavy-steel door rose up from the ground behind her, locking her in the room.
"I hoped that we could have talked more, but since you don't want to listen, I'm afraid I'm going to have to terminate negotiations. And this base as well. Sorry about that. Goodbye."
Tipping her a wink and a salute, Ken's visage disappeared, dissolving into a blue screen with a countdown number on it, starting from five. Her eyes growing wide, Rumiko dashed to the steel door and slammed her fists into it. The door shuddered and it strained, but did not fall.
Three… Two…
Rumiko spun and kicked at the door. With a heavy groan, it started to collapse.
One…
White light and fire accompanied by thunder exploded around her, blinding the woman as the base collapsed all around her.
###
"What was that?" Teruo asked, hearing the sound of something exploding from off in the distance. "Tell me that wasn't whoever keeps dropping in around here."
"Unfortunately I do not have any information available to confirm or deny what is happening," replied Bob. "Do you wish to investigate, or should we continue on our way?"
"Let's keep going," Teruo replied. "As much as I would like, I'd rather be done and out of here, and know of a good way to get in without having to constantly risk blowing up the city to do it." He shuddered again, thinking about how perilously close he had come to doing just that with the transformer. If that EMP was just a little bit stronger, would it have blown everything up?
"Very well then," Bob replied. "Then let us continue. This way."
Adjusting his crutch, Teruo resumed following the robot. "How much further do we have to go?" he asked. His leg was hurting quite a bit from the distance that they traveled. It seemed as though the path went on forever. Is it because of the warp?
"We'll be there once we pass over this hill," Bob said as they began to climb. Teruo swallowed as he searched for easy purchase, putting just enough weight on the garbage to ensure that he could lift himself up without worrying about his injured leg giving out beneath him. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the two reached the top where Teruo was greeted by a most bizarre sight.
"What… What is that?" he asked, pointing at the fence. He would have felt foolish asking such a question, as normally the fence itself wouldn't have warranted a question, but the fact that one of the chain-links, instead of being barely large enough to fit a finger through, was now large enough for a tank to drive through.
"The spatial distortion in this section is…distorted." Bob looked at Teruo and gave a helpless shrug. "For lack of a better description. The position shifts daily, but it's a doorway that my superior used for a time before he settled here. There's a narrow pathway that you can use to leave the premises without being affected by the warp."
"That is…weird." Teruo rubbed his chin quizzically. "No one's noticed it?"
"My superior hasn't mentioned it, and as no one has come to investigate I would assume not"
Teruo looked over his shoulder, feeling uncomfortable, but soon decided to abandon his line of thought for the time being. "Where is the safe zone?"
"My superior told me that you need to stay close to the edge. The warp is located close to the center. You won't be able to get out that way."
"What happens if I go into the center?"
"I do not know," Bob replied. "Would you like to experiment?"
"Not really. Better not look a gift horse in the mouth. My mini-bot is still looking around. Can you keep an eye out for it for me?"
"I will."
"You're a good robot," Teruo grinned. "I'll try and get back here as soon as I can." With that, the young, green-white-haired boy carefully picked his way down the hill and headed toward the warp. Just to see what would happen, he pointed his crutch into the area that Bob had defined as the 'safe zone'.
So far nothing, Teruo noted, carefully inching his way into line. He hoped that he wasn't making a mistake. One wrong move and I'll have my guts stretched out all across this junkyard. He shivered at the mental image of his body parts being pulled and expanded in multiple directions. He picked up his pace, wanting to get out of the junk yard as quickly as possible. Soon enough he stepped outside the fence and into the normal world beyond it. Breathing a sigh of relief he looked around and blinked when he saw that the doorway had vanished, replaced by the normal chain links that made up the fence.
"H-Huh…" he stuttered, not certain how he felt about that. Moving closely, he poked at the fence with his crutch, trying to find where he exited.
The fence shimmered slightly, but did no more.
"Weird…" He scratched his head. I'll need to figure this one out. It would be great if I had a regular way in instead of having to risk blowing up the city every time.
Checking the time, Teruo decided that now was not the best time to think about that sort of thing and immediately began to hobble off in the direction of home as quickly as possible.
###
Darkness. Pain. No air! Fingernails scratched and clawed desperately at the earth until finally they broke through into the light. Speeding up her efforts, Rumiko broke through the ground and took a deep gulp of air—sweet, glorious, air. Never before had it tasted so sweet. Her breasts, barely visible through the tattered remains of her shirt, heaved as she climbed out of the ruins of Ken's base, her lungs drinking in the air like wine. Rumiko pulled her leg out and collapsed to the ground, resting her face against the warm ground.
Never had freedom and warm light felt so good on her bare skin before, and she savored every second of it.
Rumiko quickly sobered though. Coughing, she rose up, her shirt slipping down over her shoulder slightly and she looked down at its pitiable state—burnt, tattered, and covered with dirt—before pulling it back up. Stubbornly, it slipped back down. Rumiko decided to leave it be and she got to her feet, dusting off her jeans. A pointless gesture, but it helped her hands stay busy while she took stock of her situation.
That could have gone better… she commiserated, placing her hands on her hips. I've achieved nothing. Ken will probably still use Rika and she'll try to look for him. Bringing her hand up to her temples, she massaged them gently. And I'm no closer to finding Ran than I was before.
Rumiko felt deathly tired, but she tried to listen for any signals that Ken may be broadcasting. She heard nothing for the time being and she quickly gave up.
I guess I'm going to have to take what I can get and try and keep Rika out of trouble. Should I involve PlanPol or…should I tell Rika everything?
Sighing despondently, Rumiko kicked lightly at the ground and took to the air. Giving the junkyard one final look she headed for home.
###
A/N: With this I have broken 100,000 words for this story, the number that I consider the 'stress test' for a story of this nature. Still, this story wasn't originally intended for fanfiction, and as such I must inform readers that I'm only going to write five more chapters for this story on this site before switching it over to fictionpress, where I'll be able to better write the characters as my characters and not using personalities that weren't intended for them. I hope you all understand and I'll see you all next chapter. 'Till then.
-Crazyeight
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