Reviews:
Greymon Leader Batx flashpoint: Could not have said it better myself. Happy New Year.
Clefeifei: Nothing to worry about, Fei Fei. It's all good. It will be glorious later. I can promise you that. Happy New Year.
Ackbarfan5556: Thanks.
Music Chick: Glad you were. That's what I wanted.
ReR0547: I'm not quite sure what you mean, but thanks.
Happy New Year, everybody! Let's all move forward to what's next in our lives. That includes finally reaching the final chapter of Coexistence. There's only a month and a half left in this story. It's crazy to think about. I hope you guys are prepared for what's coming because it is going to hit you like a freight train.
Enjoy.
Izzy woke the next morning in a blissful state of euphoria. His mind was so hazy for a few moments that he didn't know why at first until he opened his eyes and saw Mimi sleeping beside him. They were both bare under the pile of clothes they had placed over them before falling asleep last night. He blushed thinking of what transpired.
"Mmm. Izzy Bear," Mimi mumbled in her sleep.
A smile spread across Izzy's face. He had grown to love the nickname Mimi gave him. It was so Mimi. He snuggled closer to Mimi, wanting to soak in her warmth for just a little longer. It still felt like nothing more than a dream. How could he, a nerd whose only interest was computers, win over a beautiful girl like Mimi Tachikawa? Let alone do something like what they did last night. But seeing her lying beside him confirmed it was not a dream.
Goosebumps rose up his arm. Something wasn't right.
'Of all the times to show up,' Izzy grumbled unhappily to himself. After all that down time, it was back to business. He hoped that the others had felt it too.
"Mimi, wake up," he said softly, gently shaking her shoulder. "Come on."
Mimi moaned as she slowly opened her eyes. "Wh-What?" she said.
"Something's here. We've got to warn everyone. Get dressed."
He didn't wait for a response as he got up from the floor to put his clothes on. Mimi was facing the other way that he didn't have to worry about her watching him dress. Though he wouldn't have minded that honestly since she saw all of him last night.
Once his clothes were on and he had freshened himself up, he ran out of the classroom with Mimi right behind him. The dark feeling had spread throughout his stomach. Whatever this was, it meant danger. Izzy and Mimi ran through the school until they found the door that belonged to Daigo's office.
Izzy slammed the door open and shouted, "Guys, wake up! We're in trouble!"
To his surprise, everyone else was up and dressed too. Strangely, Tai was nowhere to be found.
"What's up, Izzy?" Daigo asked
"Where's Tai?" Izzy returned.
A yawn came from behind him. He looked back and saw Tai standing there.
"I'm here. Good morning, lovebirds," he replied in a low voice before walking past him and into the office.
Izzy saw how low Tai was hanging his head and how slackened his posture was. It must have been from something the night before. Whatever it was, he was going to ask him about it later. What Tai had said then clicked in his head and he blushed madly.
Everyone let out a roar of cat calls and happy shouts, congratulating him and Mimi on finally doing it. Several of them made kissing noises at them, only adding more fuel to Izzy's embarrassment. Daigo slapped his hand to his face and shook his head.
Glancing over at his girlfriend, Izzy saw that at first she was taken aback at everyone's reactions. Just as expected, he watched a smile erupt on her face and raised her arms into the air as if signaling 'victory'. She then hugged the Destined Jedi of Knowledge, giving him a kiss on the cheek. The rest of the group–– save for Daigo, who tried telling the others to calm down––erupted in a cheer.
The computer genius cleared his throat. This was too embarrassing.
"Anyway," he said in annoyance. "If you guys are through, we've got a problem. I think a Digimon has appeared in the real world, and it doesn't feel friendly."
That got everyone's attention. The teasing banter stopped and they all fell silent. Judging from their faces, Izzy saw that they too must have sensed it.
"What do we do?" asked Joe.
"First, we have to know what this thing is," said TK. He went to look out the window. Izzy and everyone else soon followed and looked out too.
"See anything, guys?" Izzy asked as he scanned the landscape in front of him. All he saw was the sun-blanketed streets of the Tsukishima section of Tokyo. Nothing nefarious there.
"Nope," was the common response.
"No. Nothing," TK said. A second later, he gasped, "Oh no."
"What is it?"
TK looked over at him. The younger blonde's eyes were wide with terror.
"It's Alphamon," he breathed.
Izzy's eyes widened. "Alphamon?" he repeated just as fearfully. This was the absolute worst scenario they could be in.
He went over to TK's spot to confirm that. His eyes darted in every direction before looking out straight ahead. A dark shadow blocked out the sun as a towering figure stood in the field across from the school. It was cloaked in black armor and even from this distance, Izzy still could see its red eyes staring in their direction. A chill went down his spine.
"Izzy, tell us we're not in trouble," said Joe. Izzy turned to see the oldest Destined Jedi now stood beside him.
The computer genius gulped nervously and nodded his head. "We're in trouble," he said. "Guys, we've gotta get out of here before he blows the school to kingdom come. He's after us."
Izzy's instinctive reaction was to glance at Tai.
"What's our plan, Tai?" he asked.
The leader bit his lip.
"Come on, guys. Keep moving," said Tai as the group stayed in the shadows while making their escape from the school. "Stay quiet. We don't want to alert Alphamon to our presence."
Meiko stuck close to Matt, running alongside him as they went through the covered outdoor walkway surrounding the courtyard. After their discussion last night, she swore to always stay by his side. He made her feel safe. She felt her cheeks burn from that thought, but kept her focus on the moment at hand. Tai's last sentence made her think.
"Tai?" she asked nervously, wanting to choose her words carefully around him. "May I make a suggestion?"
The leader turned around to look at her. Meiko wasn't sure what to make of the expression he gave her. It looked like he was trying to keep a friendly façade, but unable to keep his true feelings about her from showing. It seemed he was willing to hear her out. Before he could say anything, the ground shook like an earthquake that was building in momentum before ripping through the earth.
Boom! Boom!
Meiko squeaked in fear.
"What do you have, Meiko?" Tai asked.
The girl settled down long enough to collect her thoughts. "If I could try, maybe I can hide all of us long enough to escape."
"That is absolutely out of the question," said Daigo in a serious tone. "It's too risky. Only someone powerful enough to handle it is capable of that."
But Meiko was not having it. She wanted to do something to show everyone that she could contribute; that she wasn't worried about the infection taking hold of her. She'd do anything to earn their trust back after all that had happened over the last week and a half. As of now, Matt was the only one that completely trusted her. Mimi and Sora seemed sincere, but she could not be too sure. Kari and Izzy too, and possibly TK. Joe and Tai, however, were the ones most hesitant to trust her because of what happened at the Big Sight. If this worked, maybe she could finally prove to them that she was worthy of their trust.
"No, I want to try. Alphamon is here because of me. Let me give you all a chance to escape. It's the least I can do to make up for all the trouble I have caused. I don't care what the cost is."
"Meiko, please," said Matt. "It's too dangerous."
Boom! Boom!
The footsteps got closer and closer. Meiko's anxiety rose.
"Please, Tai! Let me do it," she begged.
Loud, nasally breaths came from Tai as he seemed to be thinking it over. The ground shook with a greater magnitude as Meiko felt Alphamon come closer to their position. It would soon discover them if nothing else happened.
The breaths stopped.
"No," Tai said. "I need my entire team on board. We can't take a chance of potentially wiping your energy."
Meiko's mouth fell open, as did everyone else, hearing such a statement come out of his mouth. Just last night Tai was spouting to kill her, and now he was insinuating she was part of the team?
The small makings of a shadow fell over the courtyard and got progressively bigger with each moment.
"Guys, move!" Tai cried.
Meiko felt someone grab her arm and carry her off in a running stride. She knew it was Matt due to the fact he had been standing beside her the whole time. Her legs pumped like pistons as she did her best to keep up.
"Everyone," Tai ordered as they burst through the school front entrance into the outside, "hide your own presence. What we can handle on our own without using all of Meiko's energy, that's what we'll do."
Boom! Boom! Boom!
"My car is just around this way," Daigo said as he led the way. "If we somehow can't escape, at least we can try to lead him somewhere with less population."
Meiko saw the man's armored car just a few feet away from them. Maybe she wouldn't need to hide everyone's presence after all. Like he said, they could at least get him away from the center of the district to a more isolated part.
A blinding shot of green streaked across the sky from her right side and hit the car head on. A deafening BOOM! erupted through the air as a brilliant ball of fire blasted up into the sky and around the schoolyard. The force was so strong that it blew everyone down to the ground. Meiko's ears rang from the sound, leaving her unable to hear for about three seconds.
When the fireball died down, the group saw the charred, burning remains of what used to be Daigo's armored vehicle. Meiko felt dread wash over herself and everyone else. This was not going according to plan.
A long shadow came over them as Alphamon rounded the corner to stand in full view.
"Very well, Meiko," Tai said reluctantly, staring at the mammoth Digmon. "Try it."
Meiko concentrated her power internally, trying to build up enough energy to cover everyone in a shadow blanket. To her discouragement, it was not building up fast enough. It was more of a slow drip from a pipe rather than a torrential burst from a dam. Something was blocking her from doing it easily. Alphamon, maybe.
"Hurry up, Meiko!" the leader shouted impatiently.
"Tai, stop! She's doing the best she can," Matt chastised.
"Matt's right. Lay off of her," Mimi echoed.
The dark-haired girl closed her eyes and concentrated with all her might. She had to protect her family. She had to protect the only people that cared about her. She wanted to prove she could fight the darkness that was trying to claw its way out of her to answer Alphamon's psychic call in its fight to conquer and destroy.
Yesterday, she was ready to die. Today, she would do everything in her power to live and protect the only people in the world who cared about her.
A shout of desperation roared from Meiko as she urged that shadow blanket to hurry. It wouldn't answer.
"Listen up!" she shouted with fire in her eyes as she faced everyone. "I can do this, but I need your help! Hide your energy! I'll take care of the rest."
"Are you sure about this, Meiko?" TK asked.
Meiko nodded. "I'm sure. Please do it."
No one said anything. Their answers came in the form of their energy spiking. Meiko concentrated even harder until she worried her brain would break off from its stem. This time, the energy came flooding into her as easily as rain falling into water. Before she knew it, she could no longer sense anyone else beside her.
The footsteps stopped and a sound that could be described as confusion came from Alphamon.
Meiko dared to open her eyes and gaze up at the hulking behemoth that loomed over them. Its head swiftly turned left and right, like it was searching. Alphamon shot a green blast from its cannon. The shot hit the ground a few yards behind Daigo. Meiko was curious about the knight's behavior.
Then she realized. It was looking for them. Alphamon could not see them.
"Now's our chance," she said quietly to everyone else on the chance that it could still hear them. "Let's get out of here while we still can."
No one hesitated as they all took off toward the school gates. They passed through without issue and took off down the sidewalk to the Harumi Bridge and the Toyosu district. Without the luxury of Daigo's car at their disposal, they would have to go as far as their feet could carry them. Because they all were Force users, it would not be a problem for them to get somewhere in the blink of an eye.
As Meiko ran after Matt, something like a fiery knife plunged into her stomach. She screamed in agony. Her body trembled as the strain of covering everyone overwhelmed her. Desperately, she tried to keep it going for just a little longer as they all nearly crossed the bridge.
She gritted her teeth, trying to ignore the pain as she pushed the limit of what she could handle.
"Just...a little...MORE!"
"What's happening?"
Meiko couldn't look at him, but she could feel the worry radiate off of Matt.
"Mei-Mei?"
"Get over the bridge!" Meiko ordered.
Several other fiery knives plunged through her stomach as she cried out in pain. It was like she was stretching a rubber band to its breaking point. She wanted to live! She wanted her family to live!
"Meiko!" Matt tried to stop her. "Tai, she can't handle it!"
"Find a way, Meiko!" Tai called out. "You can do it!"
"Didn't I say this would happen?" Daigo shouted his warning.
The Alternative Chosen One pushed Matt away with what remaining strength she had left. She could feel him wanting to carry her. As much as he made her feel safe, she had to keep going to keep everyone safe for once.
But it became too much.
Her vision turned spotted. The world, unbalanced. She failed her mission and killed her family, like a good-for-nothing, useless Alternative Chosen One whose true mission was to be the host in this unfair game of survival that she never signed up for in the first place.
Who was she kidding? Monsters could never redeem themselves. All they did was attract destruction and death. And to think it was possible that Tai had somehow trusted her enough to get them all out of this mess.
She had failed everyone.
Meiko collapsed to the ground at the border of the Harumi Bridge, heaving for air.
'I'm sorry,' was her last thought before she closed her eyes and passed out.
xXx
"Meiko!" Matt cried.
Tai turned back as he felt the invisible protective cloak around him vanish like it had been ripped off of him. Meiko had fallen to the ground on her stomach with Matt now beside her. This must have been Harry Potter's worst nightmare when wearing the Invisibility Cloak, but now it happened to the rest of them.
His blood froze as Alphamon turned in their direction. Its red eyes stared directly at him, making eye contact. It now saw them.
Only one thought entered Tai's mind, and he did not hesitate to verbalize it.
"Run!"
The others took off without a second to waste. Tai stayed back to make sure everyone got away safely before looking back at the border of the bridge to check on Matt and Meiko. Matt threw Meiko over his shoulder and ran along with Tai as they joined everyone. Daigo led at the front before Alphamon emerged out of nowhere and planted itself in the asphalt road, sending shockwaves through the ground.
Total chaos ensued. The Jedi activated their lightsabers, but none were brave enough to take the giant Digimon head on so they hid wherever they could. Alphamon used its cannon arm to blast green lasers wherever it saw movement. It missed a human target every time, but succeeded in destroying the surrounding area. Potholes were blasted into the pavement, almost exposing the sewers beneath. Windows in buildings were blown out with giant holes in the sides, raining glass and concrete down on the ground. Terrified civilians ran as fast as they could to get away from the scene.
Tai watched the destruction with wide, terrified eyes from behind a piece of rubble. Kari hid with him. This was his worst nightmare come true. If they didn't do something, there would be nothing left to defend. Alphamon would destroy the city if it had to in order to get them just like it did Davis' team. He was not going to let that happen.
"What do we do, Tai?" his sister asked.
For once, he had no answer. The sounds of Alphamon's lasers rang in his ears, followed by an explosion and more screams. A cloud of dirt and dust shot into the air around them as the laser blast landed a few feet away. They had to get somewhere, but he didn't know where to take everyone.
As he opened his mouth to answer, someone else beat him to it.
"This way! Keep your heads down!" Daigo shouted over the sounds of destruction.
"Mr. Nishijima, where are you?" Tai responded. He looked around, but couldn't see anything through the thick cloud of dust and dirt. "I can hear you, but I can't see you."
"Just follow my voice. We're getting out of here."
Tai quieted his mind and used the Force to sense the man's location. He was somewhere behind them. Tai took Kari's hand and pulled her in that direction. He still could hardly see anything, so he relied on the Force energy to guide him. Alphamon's laser blasts still zinged by, but were aimed blindly rather than on target. It seemed the dust cloud was keeping it from getting a lock on any of them.
Soon, Tai and Kari emerged from the cloud of dirt and back into the bright sunshine. Daigo and the others stood together on a corner. All of them were covered in dirt, but unharmed. Tai shook off some from his clothes and hair before wiping Kari off.
"This way," said Daigo as he led them all in a direction away from the black knight Digimon.
As Tai looked back, he saw it turn in their direction and take giant steps towards them. Its cannon lifted and aimed right for them before blasting a green laser. It sailed right on over them, but it was enough to let the group know that Alphamon was still relentlessly pursuing them.
"We can't outrun it, Mr. Nishijima," cried Joe.
"I know, but we can at least get it to a less populated area. That way no civilians will be caught up in the crossfire."
Tai nodded. That was the best they could do for now. "You heard the man. Keep it moving, guys."
The game of chase continued on as the group passed over the half of the Harumi Bridge that led to Ariake. Laser blasts flew over their heads or hit the ground a few feet behind them. Before they got far, a laser blast hit the road a few feet in front of them. The shockwave was so strong that everyone was knocked to the ground. Tai looked around for anywhere they could go and saw an open field to his right. That wouldn't provide any cover, but gave them a chance to fight Alphamon without being a threat to civilians.
"Everyone, to the field on your right!" he shouted, helping Kari up from the ground. "We're ending this here."
The Jedi followed him to the field and took up positions as Alphamon came dangerously close to their position. It didn't fire off any blasts from its cannon this time, but Tai knew that it was getting ready for the real fight. Thankfully, they all had a few moments to rest and catch their breath before that happened. Maybe they could make a strategy to defeat it.
"This is nuts!" Joe cried, clutching his blue lightsaber tightly. "What does it want with us?"
"It must be working for King Drasil," said Matt, still carrying Meiko on his shoulder. He gritted his teeth. "That's why it took out Davis' team. Now, it wants us out of the way."
"That won't happen!" Mimi added. "Whatever it takes, we're going to find a way to save Mei-Mei and our friends."
"It's hopeless."
A chill ran down Tai's back. That came from Kari, but it didn't sound like her. It was her voice mixed with something else's. The way she spoke reminded him of Galadriel from the Lord of the Rings movies. He turned to his left and saw his sister glowing with a subtle light. Her reddish brown eyes were now multicolored.
Homeostasis had taken over.
"You Destined Jedi are naïve to believe that you can save everyone," said Homeostasis. "It is better for all of us if you stop interfering. The host and the parasite must be destroyed."
Tai and everyone else gasped.
"What are you talking about?" he breathed.
"We were told that as long as Himekawa was killed, Meiko would be spared," Matt added indignantly. "What changed?"
"I said NO ONE is killing Hime or Meiko!" Daigo growled. "There has to be another way!"
Homeostasis ignored Daigo and turned to speak to Matt directly.
"Meiko has proven to be unworthy because her vessel can be easily manipulated for darkness," it said. "If not killed today, who's to say a new evil will not come along and do the same to her again? Hard decisions must be made in order to maintain harmony and balance, even if we don't like the methods being used."
Tai could not believe what he was hearing. Wasn't Homeostasis supposed to help them in their time of need? If not, why would Hackmon tell them the opposite of what had to be done in order to succeed? He felt so frustrated and fooled that he didn't know what to do or say. Was this how it ended?
"How does this work with that dumb prophecy we seem to be incapable of solving?" asked Joe. "Could Meiko or Himekawa be considered a snake in the garden in this instance?"
"It's hard to say," replied Homeostasis. "There is a much greater evil at work than any of you humans could ever hope to understand. Even I have a limit to how far I can see."
"Then help us understand!" Sora exclaimed in frustration. "We're the ones risking our necks for your world. Why did you choose us to take care of this when you won't help us?"
"Watch your tongue, Jedi of Love. There has been a slight change in the plan. In order for this infection to be destroyed and for harmony to be restored, Meiko must die. She is not worthy of being allowed to live."
Tai glanced in Alphamon's direction as it continued its progress toward them. This whole conversation frustrated him. It seemed like they were completely on their own as of now with no one to help them out.
Matt gently laid Meiko down on the ground before he stepped forward. He grabbed Homeostasis by Kari's shirt and pulled it closer to him.
"Now you listen here, Homeostasis," he snarled. "Meiko is worthy of being allowed to live. She wasn't activated by you. Hackmon said that King Drasil was the one that activated her. This is a cop out to easily end this. Fight against us if you want, but I will fight to the end to save her."
"That's right. You tell it, Matt!" Mimi cheered.
To his surprise, Tai found he could not stand idly by and be quiet any second longer. He had to say something.
"And what you're saying is not what Hackmon told Mr. Nishijima," he said. "Hackmon said that either the host or parasite must die in order for the infection to be destroyed. Now you're saying that only Meiko should die? That's not right!"
Homeostasis ignored his statement and smirked. "Human feelings are frail and at times interfere with achieving harmony. Do all of you know why your tattoos and outfits have an assigned color." It pointed to its eyes. "Look into my eyes. Each color is a representation of a power I wield, something that I have graciously lent to you all. Just as easily as it was given, I can also take it back."
The smirk widened as it reached out one of Kari's hands. Time then froze around them. Alphamon no longer continued its progress toward them. It was now completely still like a life-size Gundam statue, which would have been cool had it not been so dead set on killing them. Tai's jaw dropped, and looking around he saw that everyone else was surprised too. A few screams rang out from the public, but none of the kids paid much attention to them.
"I would be mindful of where you step next, Jedi of Friendship," said Homeostasis. "Your feelings for the creature called Meiko will only lead you to heartbreak. It's no wonder you so fiercely defend her. You humans are so easily corruptible."
"What's so corrupting about wanting to take care of our friends?" Tai snapped. "You don't understand what it means to be human. You don't know what it's like to have people that you care about deeply, so who the hell are you to tell us these things?"
Once again, Homeostasis ignored him.
Matt gritted his teeth, but said nothing as he let Homeostasis go. Tai knew he so desperately wanted to lash out, but figured it was better not to say anything at this point. Nothing he said would change Homeostasis' mind.
A change took place as Kari's voice emerged to break the spell slightly. The light surrounding her flickered.
"You're wrong," said Kari. "Our emotions are not what make us vulnerable. They give us the strength to defend those we care about most. What do you know about human nature?"
Homeostasis came back. "Foolish girl. I have foreseen what will happen to you specifically. Your emotions will destroy you."
"No," Kari said as she returned. "Get out of my head and stop controlling my body. I don't want you here anymore. Go away, and never come back."
"Kari Kamiya, as my messenger host I will use you as I see fit to save both worlds." spoke Homeostasis with authority. "However, I'll leave you all with this parting gift." It set its sights on Meiko and kneeled down before touching her cheek. All it said were two words. "Wake up."
Meiko's eyes snapped open. Just as she did, the Jedi of Light wobbled slightly as the light faded away from her. Homeostasis had left. Tai and TK were both there to catch her and keep her up.
"Watch out!" Daigo cried.
Before Tai could do anything, a green blast hit the ground just inches away from him, TK, and Kari. The three Jedi were sent flying back several yards before landing on the ground in a heap. Tai saw everyone else had been blasted away too. Luckily, it had not been a direct hit so he wasn't hurt that much. He looked at the two younger Jedi.
"You okay, TK?" he asked.
The younger blonde nodded. "I'm fine, Tai. So's Kari."
The leader slowly stood up and activated his lightsaber, his eyes focused down the field to where the others now engaged Alphamon in combat. He saw Izzy and Daigo both charge at the same time––the man's lightsaber was green just like Izzy's––and managed to keep the knight busy with their attacks. Alphamon then sliced its arm through the air, sending a sharp gust of wind that blew all the Jedi nearby away. Meiko leapt over them and engaged the knight Digimon herself.
A small moan reached Tai's ears and he turned back to see Kari had opened her eyes, which were back to their normal color. A sigh of relief escaped his lips. His sister was okay, but he wasn't ready to let her back into the battle just yet. They had to get this out of the real world and back to the Digital World somehow.
"TK, I've got a very important job for you," he said in a neutral voice.
"What is it, Tai?"
Tai took a deep breath and responded, "No matter what happens, don't let Kari out of your sight. Keep her safe." He swallowed. "Can you do that for me?"
TK bit his lip. Tai gathered that he was caught off guard by the request, but trying to keep his cool. This was a stressful situation, so anything could happen at any particular moment. He was going to do what he had to do in order to minimize the damage here. If his hunch about TK in regards to Kari was correct, then he needed confirmation that TK could be trusted.
Finally, the younger teen nodded. "I will, Tai. You can count on me. What are you going to do?"
Tai smirked. "Just watch."
Without a second to waste, he charged forward with a burst of speed. A loud, determined cry erupted from the depths of his vocal chords as he neared the black knight. His arms brought his lightsaber forward until it clashed against the knight's red saber. Everything was a blur to him as their sabers met with every strike he threw. He was going to do everything to protect those he cared about.
Alphamon parried one of his attacks and blasted the ground in front of him to send him skidding back. As Tai gathered himself, a distortion opened behind Alphamon and the knight took the chance to go into it. He followed right behind, and he heard the others join.
They emerged into a wide, open desert that strangely reminded Tai of Monument Valley in the United States. He had never been to it––only seen pictures––but this was about as close as he would come to doing that. He was back into his Jedi attire as sweat poured over his skin just from standing in the hot desert.
There was no time to admire the scenery though. They all had a job to do. Alphamon had to be destroyed to both avenge Davis' team and protect Meiko. Whatever this enemy had up its sleeve, he would make sure it would not succeed. The fate of both worlds depended on it.
Tai clutched his saber tightly as he stared Alphamon down. He was no longer intimidated by the sight of the knight Digimon.
"It's time to end this once and for all," he said to his fellow Jedi. "Let's go, team."
"What's our plan here, Tai?" asked Matt.
The leader shrugged. "Just attack as hard as you can until it's destroyed."
Joe replied, "That's not a–"
But Tai ignored him and ran toward Alphamon with his saber over his head. This was his family, and he would do anything to protect them. This thing had taken four of their friends away from them. He was not going to stand idly by and let it take the rest of them.
Tai flipped end over end as he sailed through air toward Alphamon. Their sabers clashed in an array of sparks. From the corner of his eye, Tai saw Matt, Izzy, and Sora all jump in to help. Alphamon must have noticed too because it used its cannon arm to blast them away. The three Jedi cried out in pain.
"No!" Tai shouted, taking his attention off of Alphamon for a split second to check on them.
That cost him.
Another blast hit the ground a few feet in front of Tai and blasted him back. His ears rang from the explosion as the whole world spun around. Once his surroundings became clearer, Tai noticed his lightsaber a few feet away from his fingertips and crawled over to it. As he did, he saw Matt laying on his side just about three yards from the lightsaber. Izzy and Sora had recovered and jumped back into action with everyone else.
"Things look pretty bad, huh, Matt?" he said with a chuckle.
Matt chuckled too. "Yeah. I would say so."
Tai's fingers wrapped around the hilt of his lightsaber. As he watched everyone else fall to the might of Alphamon, save for Daigo, it occurred to him what he had to do next. He didn't know what would happen, but he had to make sure everything was covered before he did it. His brown eyes gazed into Matt's sapphire blue orbs.
"Matt, can you make me a promise?" he asked in his most serious voice.
The blonde Jedi of Friendship swallowed and asked, "About what?"
Tai let out a shaky breath. Why did this sound like he was about to say goodbye? Maybe it was because he wasn't sure what the outcome would be. Alphamon was too powerful for them all to take on, let alone just himself. He willed himself to speak on.
"This team is my family. It's our family. If anything should happen to me, promise that you will do everything you can to protect them and lead them on," he said. Now was the time to let Matt know what he knew. "I know that you're in love with Meiko, and I respect that. I really do. You're right. We do have more of an emotional attachment to Meiko than to Ms. Himekawa. In that case, if something should happen to me, lead everyone on to find and destroy Himekawa."
Matt's face was deathly pale, his mouth slightly agape. His lip trembled as it tried to form a reply, but nothing came out. Tai knew that he was not expecting to hear something like that, but it had to be said. Before Matt could respond, Tai held up a finger. There was something else that needed to be cleared up.
"But I still stand by what I said. If Meiko turns again, I will not hesitate to destroy her myself. You all matter more to me than anything else. I won't let anyone take that away."
The blonde bared his teeth, like he wanted to refute everything Tai had said, but he visibly restrained himself from saying what he truly wanted to say. Tai knew what it would have been, but there was no time to deal with that. If they didn't get out of this, then there would be nothing to talk about later. Matt seemed to understand that. With that, he bowed his head with a frustrated grunt.
"I promise, Tai," he said.
A smile showed on Tai's lips. He felt a lot better knowing that if something were to happen, everyone would be taken care of. With that, he placed a hand on his knee to help push himself up to his feet. He breathed deeply, feeling the Force flow through him and give him the strength to do what he was about to do. Sora's face flashed through his mind, which saddened him more about what he was going to do.
"Watch over Sora for me too."
"Hold on," Matt scrutinized his leader. "Why does it feel like you're about to––"
"Take care of this family," Tai said firmly before taking one last deep breath. "You guys are everything to me."
With that breath, he raised his saber bayonet style and shouted "BANZAI!" with tremendous emotion and conviction like a Japanese infantryman in World War II before charging toward Alphamon. With hardly any Jedi to fight, the dark knight Digimon turned its attention to him. Tai didn't stop, only pushing himself to move forward until their lightsabers met.
Tai heard his heart pounding in his ears as he swung his saber in every direction, clashing against the large red saber of the dark knight Digimon before him. He savored each breath he took because he never knew which one was going to be his last. As he fought for everything he cared for, he was ready to accept death if need be. Knowing Matt would take care of everyone else, and TK would take care of Kari, made him feel like the luckiest person in the world.
Alphamon's saber buzzed dangerously close to his head during a swipe, but Tai blocked it and sliced off the knight's hand. It let out a cry of aggravation and stumbled back two steps. This was his chance to finish it off for good and avenge Davis and his team. Tai reared his saber back and prepared to jump up and destroy Alphamon.
A blinding green light charged up and flew into the ground below. It wasn't close to Tai that it threw him back like before, but it instead did something worse. Cracks formed in the rocky ground and spread out until it was an ocean of cracks. A loud rumble then shot through the earth. Tai stumbled like he was riding a surfboard before he saw the ground rise and split like during an earthquake.
He looked back at where the rest of the team was and ran for them, trying desperately to escape before the ground completely caved in on him. Unfortunately, it was like a soldier trying to escape from a field full of landmines. Eventually, he was going to land on one, no matter how careful he was. A cloud of dust and dirt shot up from the ground as it collapsed and split apart in all directions. Tai took one step and felt his foot slip through the air and down into the hole below him. He let out a cry of distress as he reached out for something to grab onto. By some stroke of luck, his fingertips grabbed onto a rock in front of him.
"Take my hand, Tai!"
The Jedi of Courage looked to his right and saw Daigo leap toward him with his hand stretched out. Tai reached for him, but a violent shockwave went around the fissure surrounding him and they both fell into the darkness below.
The last thing that went through his mind was 'I love you, Kari.'
Dun dun dunnnnnnn! Is this the end for Tai and Daigo? What will the Destined Jedi do next? Find out next time on Revenge of the Infected.
Hope you guys are ready for what is coming next ;-) Things are about to get crazy in this last arc. You'll love it, I'm sure.
Not much to say this week, so leave a review and subscribe like always. Happy New Year once again. Let's make this year great.
See you guys next week.
