A/N: It's been years. I'm so sorry about that! Been drowning in work, but given the long absence, this chapter does reflect on some of the other events that have happened so far. In part a set up of what's to come, and a few reminders of where things sit with the frontier kids and a few of the 02 kids. And a bit of technical explanation for the howdunits as well. Just a tad. :D I use up most of my deductive reasoning abilities at work. :)


Concurring Overwrite
Data Fragment 30 - Score

Part of Ryo enjoys the thrill of not knowing how things will end up.

(A smaller part of Ryo is afraid, but he doesn't acknowledge that very much).

The kids with the digimon spirits hadn't followed the same rules as the other children. They didn't have partners; rather, they turned into digimon. Ryo had thought that would mean they'd be more susceptible to the virus. Except they weren't. They were just… different.

Like that Zoe girl. She was more coherent than when the original kids had gone through their transformations. She kept a hint of camaraderie with the children who hadn't turned into Saints like her. She'd only gotten a little sick and then turned and she only access a little amount of her powers… or, at least, he hoped it was just a little.

Her spirit forms were stronger than the current her. And Tommy is equally boring, even if Sora seems to be having a breeze in "raising" him.

(It could also mean the spirits themselves were immune to the virus and he was left with almost ordinary human children trying to be special, but that wasn't fun or useful at all).

And then there were the twins. Matt had gotten very interested in the lone wolf of light (and with good reason, given his own origins) but the holy rings had had an interesting effect. Honestly, he'd hoped to see someone try it, but he'd been expecting Willis. Or maybe Kari. Both of them had holy rings at their disposal but instead they used the far inferior programmes Willis created.

And Ryo kept him busy enough mutating his virus so the programmes could barely keep up. Like the influenza vaccine that needed to be renewed every year. He can stop Willis in his tracks if he wants, but every god needs an antithesis, at least until paradise is complete.

And then there's the other twin, who'd gotten a hold of a holy ring after the virus had taken root but before it started exhibiting symptoms, and then taken it off. The effect had been similar to suddenly withdrawing disease-supressing treatment, except there's less sentience and more instinct in the end result.

Another antithesis existence, but this one's easy enough to deal with when he gets around to it. For the time being, it keeps enough other parties occupied to suit him. And who knows, maybe Davis will use up one of his miracles to fix it. Or maybe he's already used his one and only miracle on MaloMyotismon. He's curious to see how that works out, too.

As for Kari… well, Koji is the element of light as well. He's wondering when that's going to kick in. Maybe he needs to give the virus a bit of a boost. See if he can overcome the original Holy rings.

With ENIAC now at his fingertips – the puppet instead of the puppeteer – many manners of things are possible to him.

And he wonders how those little research teams are going. A group of rag-tag family members with a sick Digidestined, and the Monster Makers with their toy Juggernaut.