Reviews:
Ackbarfan5556: Yes they are ;-)
Music Chick: It's about time either of them made the first move XD Yeah, we'll see what how Ken changes from that whole experience.
Ratchet McCloud: I was going for Macbeth, but Tell Tale Heart works too. Thanks a lot, my friend.
Greymon Leader Batx flashpoint: All of those things you brought up will be addressed in the near future ;-) Thank you for your continuous reviews.
Hey guys. Hope you all had a great holiday and new year. I know I promised to update last week, but I guess my mind said 'Shut it down for the holidays' and that's what I did.
Last time, the group went to a small village called Little Edo to save the Gekomon and Otamamon from the grasp of the Digimon Emperor. While they succeeded, the Emperor looks like he has started to crack from the stress of his defeats. Also, Tai and Sora seem like they're getting somewhere.
On with the show.
Ashtrays full of still-smoking cigarettes and cups of coffee littered the desk as the two men sat around the computer. It was another late day at the office for the Fuji TV employees, but these two were especially hard at work.
Chioka Haruno, known as 'Charlie' to his colleagues, lit another cigarette as he and the editor looked at footage recently shot for a new television show that he was directing. Three years after the incident in Odaiba, Chioka had started coming into his own after receiving a good word of reference from Hiroaki Ishida. His career was starting to take off, and he believed that this show would be the gateway to bigger projects.
"Alright, I think we're good," said the editor, taking a sip of coffee. "You ready to see the whole thing, Charlie?"
The young man took the cigarette out of his mouth. "Yeah. I'm telling ya, this show is going to put me on the map," he said, bouncing with excitement. "Next, they'll be begging me to do movies."
"Don't get ahead of yourself, big guy," the other man replied sharply. He moved the mouse around until it was over the play button on the screen. "Hold on to your butt."
With a click, the video started to play.
Everything seemed fine for the first few seconds, but then the editor saw something on the corner of the screen that was driving him nuts.
"You sure you cleaned the camera before you shot this, Charlie?" he asked.
The younger man made a noise in surprise.
"Yeah, of course I did," he replied, taking a drag before putting the cigarette in the ashtray. "I double checked it too. Why?"
The editor pointed to a dark shadow on the screen. "You see that? What's that shadow there? If you cleaned the camera, you didn't do a very good job of it."
"Are you calling me a liar?"
"I'm not calling you a truther."
While the two men argued, the shadow started to move all over the screen until it vanished. Chioka noticed and stopped the arguing.
"Oh, look. It's gone," he said with a sigh of relief. "Maybe it was just on that one shot. I'm sure we can edit that out."
The editor shrugged. "Whatever you say."
So the two men continued watching through. The shadow looked like it was gone for good. After two more minutes, though, the shadow returned. This time, it lingered longer than it did before. As they took a closer look, the shadow started to take the form of a small person. Both men turned pale.
"What is that?" the man at the computer asked in a small voice.
"I don't know," Chioka breathed. "You don't think this place is haunted, do you?"
"That's impossible! This place just got rebuilt a year ago. Ghosts don't haunt new places, Charlie."
"I'm gonna go tell the boss about this."
Chioka ran out of the editing room and down the hallway as fast as his legs could carry him. His journey took him up three escalators and two sets of stairs before he finally reached the door to the programming director's office.
"Hiroaki!" he cried as he burst through the door.
The man jumped away from his computer in surprise at the sudden entry. He put the cigarette out in the ashtray on his desk before giving the younger man his full attention.
Hiroaki Ishida looked even older than his thirty-eight years would otherwise tell. The bags under his eyes were a lot deeper, the wrinkles on his face sharper. He still had a love-hate relationship with smoking that was on again, off again. He had been the program director for six months in what was supposed to be a promotion, but turned out to be even more exhausting than his previous position.
"Charlie, what's up?" he asked.
"We've got a problem with the computers," Chioka said. "There's this shadow that keeps appearing all over the place on every screen. I think the place could be haunted."
Hiroaki frowned. "Be real with me here. Did you check everything? Maybe it was just the one computer."
"No, this problem's everywhere. What do we do?"
The older man sighed and took a sip of coffee. "Alright, I'll take a look at it."
"Thanks."
Chioka walked out and closed the door behind him. Hiroaki buried his face on the cold glass top of his desk and let out an exhausted sigh.
'I'm getting too old for this shit.'
The Destined Jedi emerged from the other side of the digital divide after another long day's work. Ken was nowhere to be found, so they all did their part in helping the Gekomon rebuild their village. It was a long process that took most of the day, but it was rewarding seeing the Gekomon and Otamamon smile for the first time in a long time.
Davis let out an exhausted sigh. "Man, I'm beat," he said. "Let's go down to Aqua City and get some food."
"Shoyu ramen?" Cody's eyes brightened hopefully.
"Whatever you want, Cody," Davis winked at him. "I'll buy."
Late July meant extremely hot temperatures in the Tokyo area. By noon, it was a sweltering day, but now it was the late afternoon and temperatures were dangerously nearing 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
It also meant wardrobe changes to much lighter clothing. TK wore light athletic shorts, a yellow Kobe Bryant jersey with a white muscle shirt underneath in addition to his hat and goggles. Davis had a royal blue tank top with a black stripe across the middle and athletic shorts. Kari wore a mature version of what she used to wear when she was younger, but with a pale yellow ascot around her neck.
"It is weird that we have not seen Ken in a few days," said Yolei. "You guys think he may be up to do something? Even when we hadn't seen him for that brief spell a while ago, he wasn't gone this long."
Davis groaned. "We just finished a long day, and you're worried about Ken?"
TK thinned his lips. "She has a point though. The Force has been clouded lately," he said. "Whenever we have gone, Ken's presence is barely a flicker. It's like Ken has shut himself off from the world."
"That's good though," Davis quipped. "Without him around, the Digital World is a much safer place. Peace can be restored."
"Don't be naïve, Davis," Kari said with a glare. "He's probably biding his time. We all need to be careful going forward."
"So, let's come back tomorrow and go find him."
TK and Kari glanced to each other out of the corner of their eyes.
"Tomorrow's not going to work," TK said. "We have plans tomorrow."
"Plans for what?" Yolei asked.
"Plans with me," Kari finished, which earned a scream from Davis. Cody and Yolei were intrigued by what she meant.
"You mean like a DATE?" Davis shrieked.
TK's cheeks turned slightly pink. Even though he knew she meant something else, it still would have been nice to have those other kinds of plans with her. If only he hadn't been such a doofus before.
"No, she doesn't mean that," he said. "Tomorrow's August 1st, which is a pretty special day for all of us Destined Jedi."
"How so?" Cody asked.
"That was the day us original seven went to the Digital World. Kari was sick with a cold and couldn't come with us, so it was just the older six kids and me. We didn't know where we were or why we were there. I was a little more cool with it than Joe was."
He stopped, but Cody wanted to know more. Joe had not told him any of this before.
"What did he do?" he asked.
TK chuckled. "I'm sure Joe will be happy to tell you when we all get together tomorrow in Daiba Park. To think that it's been three years since this whole thing started."
"I know," Kari echoed. "Do you guys want to come with us too? It's important that you remember how this whole thing started."
All three of the new Jedi nodded.
"Perfect. Then meet us early tomorrow."
The next day was bright and sunny, like fate was smiling down on the Destined Jedi to make this the most perfect day it could be. The group all met in Daiba Park as planned and sat down for a picnic.
The spread was full of a variety of foods. Instant ramen, yakitori, many different onigiris, and Sora's homemade meatballs with yakisoba. To them, there was not a better way to start their reminiscing than being with each other and rehashing old stories.
"Come on! Quit hogging the bowl, Davis," Yolei wrestled the boy for control of the bowl of dessert mochi. "Make sure to save some for the rest of us!"
"Wait your turn, four eyes!" Davis shot back.
TK spoke up to end the conflict. "Hey, guys. Come on. There's plenty for all of us. No need to fight, especially not today."
That eased things a bit as Davis took two from the bowl and passed it over to the lavender-haired girl. They all sat quietly and enjoyed their food.
Tai stared across the blanket at Sora. The outfit she wore was his favorite ever since the first time he saw her wearing it. A pink shirt and a red skirt that showed off her long, toned legs. A few dirty thoughts would always cross his mind when he caught sight of them, and he'd always have to pull himself back.
The kiss she gave him a couple days ago still lingered on his cheek like a third-degree burn. He hadn't told anyone about it yet because he still didn't know what to think about the action. Did this mean she liked him the way he thought she did, or was it just a friendly thing? Did he like her that way?
The Jedi of Love felt his eyes on her and made eye contact for the slightest of seconds. Tai cast his eyes down, his cheeks burning red. Hers were too. Tai's heart beat hard like a drum. He needed to get out.
"Izzy, can we talk for a second?" he said, grabbing the boy next to him and pulling him away from the blanket.
"Hey, Tai! What's going on? What are you doing?" Izzy protested as he was dragged behind a tree a few paces away from everyone else. "Why'd you do that?"
"I'm sorry," Tai apologized, "but I couldn't let everyone else hear this."
"Hear what? Is everything okay?"
The Jedi of Courage pushed aside hair that was dangling over his eyes and took a deep breath. His cheeks were still red as a tomato.
"I guess so," he replied. "I'm just really confused right now."
Izzy blinked. "Confused about what? Did something happen?"
A nod.
"Then what happened?"
Tai thinned his lips and let out a long exhale from his mouth.
"You know how after we finished up our job in Little Edo, I walked Sora home?" he asked, to which Izzy nodded. Tai took another breath as the events from that night played out again in his mind. "Well, when we said good night, she…she kissed me on the cheek."
Izzy's eyes widened, as what escaped from him was a shocked, "What!"
"Sshh!" Tai immediately covered his mouth, and rushed to looked over his shoulder. To his relief, no one looked their way.
"Are you serious?" Izzy whispered moving his friend's hand away. "Are you two –"
"No," Tai interrupted, frustrated with himself. "That's what I need to talk about. I get this isn't the best time, but you're the only one I'd rather talk to about this, and I can't keep this to myself any more."
"Tai, I'm not sure that I'm qualified enough for advice about stuff like this. Perhaps asking Mimi would be better?"
Tai's eyes fell to the ground in silence. He nodded his head once. "Right…Right. What was I thinking?"
Izzy groaned holding a palm to his forehead. "Oh, fine. Tell me. But promise me that if I give the wrong advice, I won't be blamed."
Relief for the second time washed over Tai. "Izzy, I'm not sure if you realize this, but I've always thought of you as my best friend. You've never steered me wrong."
"Wow. Thanks," Izzy said touched. "That means a lot." He glanced over to Sora to see she was laughing with Mimi. "So, she kissed you, but you two aren't dating. Did you kiss her back?"
Tai shook his head.
"Is that what you're confused about? That you didn't kiss her back?"
"I don't know," a frustrated sigh was released. "I guess I'm confused why didn't I kiss her back. Why didn't I stop her from leaving? Why didn't I at least call her? Why haven't I been able to stop thinking about her? She's always been my best friend too, and then one day she's about to die in my arms, and," Tai paused and looked over his shoulder to Sora. A soft smile crept on his face, "and, she's beautiful. Everything about her is just…beautiful."
Izzy grinned to himself while watching his best friend's reaction. "You know," he analyzed, "Now that I analyzed the past, the two of you always had a different kind of connection. It was subtle, but whenever I'd witness it, I could describe it like it was as natural as breathing air. Like two magnets always drawn to the other. I bet that sometime today, you'll eventually find that without realizing it, your arm is around her shoulders again."
Tai's mouth hung open. "Are you saying that I've always liked her, and never realized it?"
"No, but I do think the potential has always been there. Do you want to ask her out?"
"I-I don't know. I mean, this is my best friend. What if she didn't mean it that way? What if it was a 'thank you for saving me' kind of kiss?"
Izzy scratched his head, then shrugged. "Did it feel that way?"
Tai looked to Sora again, then back to Izzy. "Izzy, if I screw this up," he rubbed his face nervously. "Oh, man. The worst thing in the world is when she's upset with me. The agony of waiting until she's not mad at me anymore is too much."
"Well, Tai, the best thing I can tell you, going off of movies I've seen, is that if she kisses you, and you get that feeling it meant more than just friends, then it probably means she thinks of you in a different way than most friends do. Don't quote me on that though."
Tai stared far off with a dreamy smile. "She likes me."
Izzy smiled, satisfied with Tai's enlightenment. It was high time the bushy haired teenager realized his feelings for the auburn-haired Jedi of Love.
Tai's smile widened as he faced Izzy. "She likes me. Out of anyone else she could've picked, she chose me."
"Then ask her out," Izzy said in a matter of fact tone.
Tai's face paled.
"What's wrong?"
"Izzy, pal," Tai put an arm around Izzy's shoulders, "When the day comes that you like someone, then you'll understand why it's not that simple."
Izzy raised an eyebrow. "Why can't it be that simple? It's only complicated if you make it like that."
"I don't know," Tai shrugged. "You might be right."
"Of course, I'm right," the Jedi of Knowledge responded again in a matter-of-fact tone. "Let's get through today first and see how you feel afterwards. If nothing's changed, then get the girl."
A grin formed with the Jedi of Courage. "Get the girl, huh? As simple as that?"
"Sure, Tai," Izzy encouraged.
Tai snorted before patting Izzy on the shoulder. "What would I do without you, Izzy? You're a real pal."
Izzy smiled back and they rejoined everyone else.
After cleaning up, they walked around the entire island, remembering everything that had happened only three years ago. They went by the Big Sight, where everyone in the district was held captive while Myotismon searched for the eighth Destined Jedi. Kari.
Davis' palms started sweating as he eyed the large triangular structure. Some things he wished to forget flashed before his eyes. He tried looking past the Big Sight to something else, but Matt continued droning on about what transpired there.
Tai looked back at the young Jedi and saw the fear in his eyes.
"Everything okay, Davis?" he asked.
"Not really," the boy replied, biting the inside of his lower lip. "I don't like coming by this place. It gives me the creeps."
"Why is that?"
Davis glanced down at his feet for a moment and took a sharp breath in.
"I was one of the kids that were captured," he said. "I was afraid that this bat was going to kill me if I wasn't this child that it was looking for. Someone broke us out and we were just about to escape, but got captured again."
A vision of blonde hair flashed before his eyes, and he recognized the face. His eyes widened.
"The one that freed us was you, Matt," he gasped.
The Jedi of Friendship nodded. "That's right. And your sister almost squeezed me to death when she tried to thank me for it."
Tai and Izzy chortled, earning a glare from Matt.
"Shut up!"
"Look, can we just go now, please?" Davis pleaded. "I really want to get away from this place."
Tai nodded. "Sure," he said, patting the boy on the back. "It's alright. Nothing like that's gonna happen this time. I promise."
The burgundy-haired boy nodded with assurance and the group continued on their tour.
Next up was Fuji TV station, where the majority of the fighting took place. Kari was kidnapped and taken there by Myotismon. Just as he was about to kill her, the rest of the Jedi showed up and came to her aid. The mood turned somber when the older kids mentioned Wizardmon.
"What happened to him?" Davis asked, sensing the uneasy atmosphere.
Kari felt tears start to prick her eyelids. She sniffled a couple of times to get herself under control. She finally said with a shaky voice that she was trying to keep stable, "As Myotismon was about to kill me, Wizardmon jumped in and took the saber instead. He died protecting me."
Tai knew she was about to break down so he pulled her into his chest and let her sob. Everyone else looked at her solemnly.
Davis reached out for her to provide some extra reassurance. His hand rested on her shoulder. The warmth of her skin beneath his hand made his face erupt with redness.
"It's okay, Kari," he said, unsure of what else to say. "I'm sure he knew exactly what he was doing. He knew your life was more valuable than his. It was a sacrifice I'm sure he was happy to make."
Kari looked back at him from her brother's chest. Her eyes were red and tears streamed down her face. Davis couldn't tell whether she was angry at him for saying that or if she needed to hear that. He anxiously waited for her response.
Kari moved to him…and hugged him.
"Thanks," she murmured into the crook of his neck. "I needed that."
Davis' face erupted with redness and felt like the world had stopped turning. Kari was hugging him! This was something he had been waiting for his whole life. He looked down in shock, thinking he was going to wake up right now. But Kari remained in that spot. She really was hugging him!
"N-No problem," he said, unsure of what to do. His arms shook as they rose up to wrap around her back.
No one said anything as they respected the somber moment. TK, however, was steaming. He glared at the boy as he held Kari in his arms. So that was what it was becoming between them, huh? What else was going on in their training sessions with Tai. His hands folded into tightly clenched fists, his face started turning a different shade of red.
"TK, you alright?" Matt asked, sensing the unease from the younger blonde.
TK snapped out of his haze and relaxed. He smiled innocently.
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said.
Once Kari had calmed down, the group continued their way around Odaiba. Once they returned to Daiba Park, Matt took TK aside.
"You wanna sleep over tonight?" he asked. "It's been awhile since we've been in the same place outside of Digital World business."
"Yeah, sure," TK replied. "Will Dad be okay with this?"
"He's been putting in a lot of hours lately and hasn't been home much. Plus, it's you, so I don't think he'll mind."
TK nodded. "Okay, sounds good."
The pungent smell of dirty socks and unwashed dishes blasted TK's nose once he stepped inside the apartment. The whole place looked like it had not been cleaned in a while. Everywhere he looked, there was dust, left-out food wrappers, even the hardwood floors looked like they had seen better days. It just hit TK how long it had been since he had been there.
"How do you guys keep living like this?" he said.
Matt chuckled good-naturedly. "Very funny," he said. "If you must know, I cleaned up a bit yesterday."
TK pulled a pair of boxer shorts off the floor that smelled heavily of crotch. His eyes almost watered from the smell.
"How long have these been here, huh?" he teased before taking a sniff. He squeezed his nose in repulsion. "Wooohooo! I don't think these have been washed in weeks."
Matt blushed with embarrassment. "Shut up," he shot back, taking the boxers from him and tossing them into a nearby hamper. "Dad's been working a lot of hours and I've been rehearsing with my band. I'm also helping you guys with your battles too, so that doesn't leave me a lot of time to do stuff around the house."
"Oh, right," TK scratched the back of his head.
"You know he's the programming director at the station now, right?"
"Yeah, I heard. That's awesome."
"Yeah, but it means he's been working even more than he used to. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't come home at all today."
Matt picked up the rest of the clothes and put them in the hamper before taking it into the laundry room. While he was gone, TK sat down at the dining room table. Comparing his mother's apartment to his father's, it was almost night and day. His mom's apartment was much more clean and orderly, unlike here. One could definitely tell two guys lived in this apartment.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Matt said as he came back into the room and sat down across from TK. "You hungry? We don't have a lot, but I can whip something up for ya."
TK shrugged. "How about we just order take out? I'm fine with that."
"Nah, let's save the money." Matt then smirked. "You dare doubt my cooking abilities?"
"You, never," TK returned, and they both shared a laugh.
Matt got up and pulled some rice and curry mix out of the pantry, then some vegetables and wasabi from the fridge. TK was surprised, but waited to see what his brother had in mind.
A little while later, the curry was ready and Matt put a bowl in front of TK. The younger blonde chowed down every last bit without thinking. He was so hungry that he would eat anything in front of him.
That thinking would come back to haunt him.
"SPICY!" he screamed once the wasabi taste erupted through his nose and throat. He reached for the glass of water next to him and gulped down all of it. "Are you trying to kill me or something?"
Matt pounded the table in hysterics. "I told you to be careful," he gasped, wiping tears from his eyes. "That's all you, man."
"You asshole!" TK playfully punched Matt in the shoulder, but laughed along with him. It had been a while since they shared a moment like this. "What did you put in that curry?"
"My own secret ingredient," the older blonde smirked. "Wasabi."
The laughter soon died down. It was now just the two of them sitting in silence. Matt took a sip of water to break the ice.
"Can I tell you something?"
"Sure, what's up?" TK had a feeling that this was going into personal territory. He leaned in to hear more.
"I want you to hear this from me before you hear it from Mom or anyone else, but Dad's getting out there again."
TK raised an eyebrow. "'Getting out there again' how?" he asked.
"He's been dating this woman for the last month," Matt elaborated. "Her name's Rumiko, and she works at NHK in Shibuya. I've met her already. She's really nice, and I think Dad really likes her."
The younger blonde's eyes widened in surprise. With all that work he's supposedly been doing, their dad was dating again? It was a bit of a shock, but not unwelcomed.
"Good for him," he replied with a weak smile. "Maybe she'll be a good influence on him. How'd they meet?"
"They met when Dad had to go for a meeting at NHK headquarters. They literally ran into each other on the elevator."
"How old is she?"
"She's in her early thirties."
TK laughed. "And she's dating a divorced guy almost in his forties?"
The front door opened and closed.
"Tadaima," came their father's voice.
"Okaeri nasai, Dad," Matt replied automatically.
Mr. Ishida came stumbling into the kitchen like Frankenstein's monster. TK saw just how tired and beat-up the man looked. He was ready to just fall down from exhaustion as he plopped himself in the chair next to Matt.
"What's for dinner, Matt?" the man mumbled. As he looked across the table, his eyes opened wider as he caught a glimpse of their guest. "Oh, hey, TK. What are you doing here?"
"Matt asked me if I wanted to sleep over tonight," TK replied. "Is that okay with you?"
"Yeah, that's fine," Mr. Ishida replied with a nod. "You're always welcome here. Never forget that."
"You okay there, Dad?" Matt asked, concerned about the shape his father was in. "Just been working so much?"
"A little bit," his father took a cigarette out of a pack and lit it up. "But it's been a challenge. The last couple of days, something's been messing around with our monitors. A dark shadow's been reportedly seen by several of the staff, but every time I go look at it, there's nothing there. I think I'm losing my mind."
He pulled a tape player out of his pocket and put the headphones on. Buddhist chants flooded his ears and put him at ease.
"You want some coffee, Dad?"
"Sure, Matt. That would be great."
The older blonde went up to the coffee machine and got it started. "Oh, hey, Dad," he said. "Rumiko called earlier and asked if you'd meet her for a walk sometime this week."
The man was so immersed in the Buddhist chants that he did not reply.
"Dad!"
"What?" he replied, taking off the headphones.
"Rumiko called earlier and asked if you'd meet her to go for a walk this week."
Mr. Ishida blushed and a small smile rose up his face.
"Alright, I'll call her back later," he replied. His eyes settled on TK, which reminded him that he hadn't told him about her yet. "Rumiko is…"
But TK raised a hand to cut his father off. "Don't worry. Matt told me everything," he said. "I think it's awesome you're getting back out there again, Dad. Mom dates on occasion, but she's not seeing anybody right now."
Mr. Ishida clicked his tongue against his teeth. "I see," he replied. "It's nice having somebody to look after you and to laugh with again."
"And what am I?" Matt teased from the coffee machine.
His father chuckled. "Oh, stop it."
Matt came over with the mug and placed it in front of his father.
"Thanks," the man nodded in appreciation. He took a sip and his body started to wake up a little bit. "Ah, that hits the spot. Ya know, I've been thinking of taking a vacation lately. I haven't been on one in years, so I think it'll be a good chance to recharge my battery. I'm thinking Okinawa."
"That'd be great," Matt said. "Take Rumiko with you, and the two of you can relax together."
"That would be nice."
Mr. Ishida put his headphones back on and let the sounds of Buddhist sutras relax his exhausted brain. He even started chanting along with them, which only made his sons laugh at him.
"Come on, TK. Let's go play some Tekken," Matt suggested with a smirk. "I'm gonna get you this time, buddy."
"Oh yeah?" TK shot. "We'll see about that."
They went into Matt's room, leaving their father alone in the kitchen. Mr. Ishida looked up and saw the plate of curry in front of him. His stomach rumbled in hunger.
Without thinking about it, he picked up a spoonful of curry and popped it into his mouth. It took a second for the heat to completely overwhelm his senses.
"ACK! TOO SPICY!"
Two days later, Chioka and members of his crew were crowded in the editing room, hoping that the problem with the shadow had been fixed for good this time. The young man had not slept in three days trying to find out what was wrong.
"Alright, Charlie, are you ready?" the editor asked. "We're positive we've got it taken care of."
Chioka sipped on a cup of coffee and smoked a cigarette. The dark circles under his eyes made him look ten years older.
"Roll the video," he finally said.
With a click of the mouse, the video started. At the start, everything seemed normal enough. The two men watched nervously.
Ten seconds. So far so good.
Twenty seconds.
A shadow flashed by at thirty seconds. Everyone shouted in disbelief. Chioka banged his head against the desktop several times. Coffee cups and ashtrays rattled on the desks, but stayed put.
"Kill me!" he groaned, sounding on the verge of tears. "Just shoot me right now, please."
"What's the matter, Charlie?" one member of the crew asked. "We can get it fixed. No big deal."
"It is a big deal, you idiot! We're supposed to have this ready for tomorrow night. Hiroaki is gonna have my head if we don't have this fixed by at least today." Chioka started crying. "My career is over!"
The door opened and in came a man in his mid-forties with glasses and beady eyes with a boom box in his hand.
"The soundtrack is finished," he said, completely unaware of the atmosphere in the room. "But there's something wrong with it."
The editor took control of the situation with their director still suffering through his emotional breakdown. Some of the crew stepped up to help comfort him.
"Weird how?" he asked as he started playing the tape. Nothing came through for several seconds. "What's going on? There's no noise coming out."
Suddenly, something that sounded like ragged breathing came through the speakers. It was a sound that chilled the crew down to their bones. Then a quiet, ghostly voice started to emerge in broken words that no one could understand.
"Ka..K…Kar….Ka…" it said in a garbled voice.
Everyone in the room went deathly pale.
"Wh-What is that?" One woman squeaked.
"It's the ghost!" Chioka screamed. "I'm letting Hiroaki know about this!"
He burst out of the editing room and went for the programming director's office on the floor above him.
When he got there, Hiroaki was having his lunch at his desk. The man put the plate of chicken katsu and rice to the side once he saw him.
"Hey, Charlie," he said. "Are we any closer to getting the shadow problem fixed?"
"No, this is worse!" the younger man said in a high voice. He cleared his throat and spoke at his normal tone. "We just got the score back, but instead of music, we're getting a voice. I think the ghost is trying to communicate with us."
Hiroaki let out a long, exasperated sigh. "Alright, I'll be right there. Just give me a few minutes."
"Thanks!" Chioka said before running out of the office.
"GOD DAMN IT!" Hiroaki pounded his desk with his fists. He had finally reached his limit. This whole ghost, spirit, whatever-it-is thing was going to be the death of him. He just knew it.
He glanced at the telephone for a second, then looked away. He looked back and reached for it. He dialed the phone number on the keypad and waited for several seconds. A familiar voice graced his ears.
"Hello?"
"Rumiko, I'll meet you at Yoyogi Park in thirty minutes," he said before hanging up and leaving the office.
The Destined Jedi walked to Fuji TV station. Kari was carrying a bouquet of roses with her as they got closer to the futuristic structure. It was on this day that Wizardmon had died while trying to protect Kari, so the group felt like laying a bouquet of flowers was a proper way to show their respect for his sacrifice.
But as the group got nearer, a large black cloud emerged overhead from out of nowhere and hovered over the building. Lightning then flashed around it, striking dangerously close every time. This was weird. It was supposed to be a bright sunny day, so how could it be about to rain?
Suddenly, a lightning bolt struck the building and plunged it into darkness. The Jedi gasped in horror.
"Hopefully no one was in an elevator," Davis joked.
Kari darted for the observation globe at the top of the building. There was a strong presence there.
"Kari, wait!" Tai cried, following after her. The rest of the group soon followed.
They knifed their way through crowds of people trying to escape the building. Some of the Jedi were briefly separated from the others, but knew where they were supposed to go and continued in that direction.
The escalator up to the observation globe was shut off, but that didn't stop Kari from walking up them like normal stairs. Once she reached the top, she entered the large, open room. The windows were blown out from the lightning strike.
A soft, ghostly voice reached her ears, calling her name in broken words.
"Kar…Kar…Ka…K…Kari," it said.
"Here I am," she replied nervously. "What do you want?"
The rest of the Jedi caught up with her. Just as they were about to ask what was wrong, a dark shadow started flying around the room with reckless abandon. Mimi screamed and jumped into Izzy's arms. He was able to hold her for a second before her weight became too much and they fell to the ground.
"Dad really wasn't going crazy," TK said with wide eyes. "There actually was a ghost here."
"But what does it want?" Davis cried, getting more unsettled as the seconds ticked by.
"It wants me," Kari replied, steeling up her courage to take a step forward.
"Be careful, Kari," Tai cautioned. One hand was on his saber in case he needed to jump in and help her.
Kari bit her bottom lip and resisted the urge to run away as she stood in the middle of the room. She put the bouquet of roses down on the floor and backed away slightly. The dark shadow went down to the floor and stayed there for a moment before rising up. A pale ghost with a pointed hat emerged from the floor.
When everyone saw who it was, the older kids gasped in surprise.
"Kari."
The girl smiled. "Wizardmon."
The wizard smiled back at her. He was outlined in blue light like a regular Force ghost, but Kari could still see right through him.
"I'm glad you have come," he said. "For I bring a message of hope for you all."
"So, the ghost floating around the station was you," said TK. "How are you still here?"
"I was unable to be reborn in the Digital World, which would have wiped out my existence forever," the wizard explained. "But, I had been learning the ancient teachings of existing within the Force up until I died. So, unlike many other Digimon that die outside the Digital World, I was able to live on through the Force."
"Thanks to my teaching," a new, but familiar voice said.
A new Force ghost appeared beside Wizardmon, a small old man with white hair pulled back in a topknot at the back.
"Gennai," Izzy greeted with a bow.
Davis studied the ghost in front of him and snorted. "This is Gennai?" he exclaimed in disbelief before starting to laugh. "This little old man is the guy that taught you everything you knew?"
Gennai's eyes widened sharply with offense. With a wave of his hand, a small box nearby went flying at the boy and hit him square in the head.
"Ow! Geez! What was that for?"
"Still have a lot to learn about respecting your elders, I see," he bit.
"I'm still working on it, Gennai," Tai replied with a weak smile. "It's been tougher than I thought."
Gennai looked past him and moved on to Cody and Yolei, who were awestruck by the sight in front of them. He bowed graciously to them, and they reciprocated.
"Now that we've been introduced, there is something we must tell you," he said.
"Your great enemy has started to waver within the Force," Wizardmon followed. "It will not be long before he begins his final offensive against the Digital World. You are the only ones who can stop this. But be warned, there is a much greater evil behind his actions."
The group's collective jaws hit the floor.
"Wait…so, we're not only dealing with Ken, but something else too?" Davis said.
"What is this 'greater evil' you speak of?" TK asked.
"Its identity is unknown," Gennai replied. "I can't get a good read on it, for it hides in the shadows. The dark side clouds everything. For now, you must return the Digimon Emperor to what he used to be and help him fulfill his destiny."
"Used to be?" said Matt. "You mean, he wasn't always a tyrannical, insane psycho maniac?"
Tai sensed there was something underneath that Gennai was trying to get across, but was having a hard time understanding what it was.
"Is there something you forgot to tell us before, Gennai?" he asked.
Gennai chuckled with a smile. "You have come a long way, Tai," he said. "Unfortunately, yes. There was something I neglected to tell you all before I died."
The old man took a breath before starting his story.
"There were actually supposed to be nine of you when you were called to the Digital World all those years ago," he explained. "Of course, only seven of you came at first. Kari was at home with that cold of hers, and there was supposed to be one other but he never came."
A gasp reverberated through the crowd of children.
"A ninth Jedi?" Joe breathed, unable to believe his ears.
"Then why did you tell us that the eighth Jedi was the most important one to find?" Matt shot, his anger rising with every word. "Slip your mind? You didn't think to tell us that there was one other kid we needed to find while we were here?"
"This does sound suspicious, Gennai," said Sora. "How come we were never told to find this ninth child too?"
"Calm down, my friends," Gennai said calmly. "I know this is a bit of a shock to you, but there is a good reason for why I never told you. Not long after you all went back to your world to find Kari, another young human found his way to the Digital World. He was strong, powerful," a short pause for a breath, "and arrogant."
"How did you find that out?" Izzy asked.
"I was so busy helping you all that Homeostasis sent a messenger to meet the boy when he came. This messenger, who happens to be a very good friend of mine, said that he saw only darkness in the boy's heart. There was so much fear in him that Homeostasis ordered the ninth Jedi to be abandoned and that eight was enough. It didn't want to take the risk of him betraying and killing you all." Gennai then muttered, "Though I don't see why because we had another opti-"
Wizardmon cut him off. "We leave you all with this: Your strength alone will not be enough to defeat this evil. The Digimon Emperor is only one front you must get by. Friendship and kindness will help erase the darkness."
Matt scoffed. "Friendship and kindness will help erase the darkness?" he repeated. "What's that supposed to mean? Are we supposed to show that little prick kindness and friendship in order to stop him from killing us? After what he's done to Sora, Kari, Tai, Davis, Yolei, and Cody, I don't think he's worthy of it."
"Those will not be enough, Matt," Gennai said. "Be mindful of your feelings. I know the Emperor has done horrible things to you all, but you cannot destroy darkness by becoming the darkness. You of all people should know that."
The Jedi of Friendship nodded and bowed his head to the Force ghost.
"Once the Digimon Emperor has been defeated, this new evil will have no choice but to reveal itself," Wizardmon continued. "That is all we can give you. Farewell, my friends. May the Force be with you."
He and Gennai started to fade away from sight.
"Wizardmon, wait!" Kari cried, begging for him to not go.
"Hurry!" the wizard's voice echoed as he and Gennai now completely vanished.
The Jedi stayed where they were as they struggled to take in this overwhelming amount of information. The Digimon Emperor was not the only evil that had taken over the Digital World, and there was supposed to be another Jedi joining them before.
"Trust Gennai to always spring things on us at the worst times," Tai sarcastically rolled his eyes. "Why would he lie to us about this other Jedi?"
"I don't know," Izzy said. "But all will probably be revealed soon. In the meantime, we need to discuss a plan of action."
What awaits the Destined Jedi in their future next? How will they go about facing the Digimon Emperor now? Find out next time on Attack of the Emperor.
Tadaima - "I'm back/home"
Okaeri nasai - "Welcome back"
There were more than a few references to other media in this chapter. If you can name them all, I'll give you a shoutout in the next chapter. There should be a few obvious ones, but even some that were a little hidden.
As always, be sure to leave a review and subscribe because the group goes camping next time.
See you all real soon, and may the Force be with you.