Well. Missed that deadline again. Is it just me or does the month just pass by so fast? There have been some big life changes for me lately… I got a second job that I'm still adjusting to. Some days I'm not scheduled at either one, some days I work 8-2 at one and then 3-11 at the other… Yay, adulting. It's just something to get used to. I'm still working on finding some sort of consistent block of free time that I can dedicate to fanfiction... I just like to keep you guys in the loop. But enough about real life.

Thank you for reviewing chapter twenty-two: Lord Jaric, ReaperOfShadows125, Fruitloop Trooper, Sweet Cari, Berry Doyle, Miqila, and dnofsunshine!

Chapter Twenty-Three: Initiative

There wasn't much that shook Davis. But the sight of the Nonaka home gave him pause. He imagined that when he heard his sister or Yolei fantasizing about wooing and marrying some rich stranger, it was property like this they were hoping to acquire.

It was certainly a step up from his family's apartment, he couldn't help reflecting as he let himself in through the unlocked garden gate. The yard was even bigger than he'd first thought and impeccably manicured. He spotted a small stone bridge crossing what must be a man-made (and carefully crafted) brook snaking its way through their yard. As he got closer to the house, he spotted an older woman standing by the pond.

She was watching a dragonfly flitting over the water's surface, a serene smile on her face. The woman only looked up as the sound of Davis's footsteps drew nearer. He saw her blink in surprise.

"Oh, hello. I'm sorry; I must not have heard the door. I sent the housekeeper home early. Can I help you?"

"Uh, yeah. I'm looking for Rika?"

He saw the woman's eyes light up. "Ah. My granddaughter. She's always been a bit of a loner. It's nice to see a friend of hers come around. I'm afraid she's out at the moment, though—"

No sooner had she said this, before Davis even had the chance to get disappointed, another voice reached their ears, ringing out from within the house. "Grandma? I'm home."

The girl who stepped out onto the porch a moment later fit Kari's description… with one exception. Her guard was down. The expression on Rika's face as her grandmother stepped up onto the porch to hug her was actually quite soft. But she stiffened up at her grandmother's next words.

"Welcome home. What perfect timing. A friend of yours just arrived." The older woman stepped back. "I'll give you two some privacy."

It was as her grandmother was retreating back into the house that Rika finally spotted him standing in the yard. Immediately, her face hardened, and her cold expression was just as chilling as Kari had described. She jumped down from the porch in one aggressive motion and strode towards him, completely disregarding the carefully-laid cobblestones weaving a path through their garden.

"Who are you?" she demanded once they were close enough that she didn't have to raise her voice and worry about bringing her grandmother running.

And he had to admit, she did enforce a domineering atmosphere on the situation. He was a little taken aback for a moment, and Henry or Cody might have backed down completely, but Davis recovered quickly. "Rika, right? I'm Davis. I heard about you from Kari and Takato—"

"Oh, god, another one," she groaned. She started to turn away dismissively before her anger resurged. "Who do you think you are, showing up at my house? I'm not interested in working with you and whoever your loser partner is, okay? It may technically be our job, but Renamon and I are doing just fine on our own."

"I'm thinking about the bigger picture," Davis cut in before she could stalk off and leave him standing there. "Not just partners and Digidestined—or, Tamers. We're a team now. There's a lot going on, Rika. I think you should be a part of it."

"What is going to make you people understand? I am not interested."

Davis pushed ahead. "I know about your mission. Henry told us about the Digimon crossing over into our world. And I've met Takato, okay? I believe that you've done most of the work." Davis knew when he was up against a tough opponent. His serious side was not one that made a frequent appearance, but he wasn't backing down here. And knew he was faced with a girl who already didn't take him seriously. "There's so much more going on here. Just… take a minute to listen."

Rika stared him down for another minute. There were no outward clues that he'd won her over. When she answered, it was steely and controlled. "This is how it's going to work. We're going to go inside where you will play nice with my grandmother for a while. Then we can talk business. You will be gone before my mother gets home. And if anyone asks, you're the brother of a sick classmate, here to copy some notes. We are not friends. Got it?"

…

"So that's where we are now," Kari finished.

"Wow…" Takato seemed almost starstruck. She'd tried to avoid the lunch rush today, but he'd still been behind the front counter when she'd arrived. He'd jumped at the sight of her, made a few hurried excuses… But she'd bought a pastry to smooth things over with his parents. (His mother had given her a wink and a smile and seemed all too happy to let Takato slip out the back door with the day-old bread at that particular moment.)

Now they were camped out in the alley once more. Guilmon was digging through the box of stale bread behind them while Gatomon gave him a wide berth, crinkling her nose at his behavior.

"So Cody's in the Digital World too… Things are really moving fast." Takato paused for a moment. Kari was about to move on when he spoke again. "Hey, has anyone heard from Henry?"

She blinked, thrown off track. "Henry? Uh, no, I don't think so. Davis was going to go talk to Rika today. Henry said he was going to follow up on the research Cody was doing, but I'm not sure what that entails, exactly."

"Huh. It's just… I tried calling him earlier, and his sister said no one's seen him all day. That he must have gone out before anyone got up this morning."

Kari could see Takato biting the inside of his lip. This news might not have been enough to give her pause in another situation, but given how many of her friends had gone missing lately… She locked eyes with Gatomon, and a silent understanding passed between them.

She'd snuck back into her apartment late the previous night, trying to avoid her parents. But it had been a rough slumber. And with the dawn, the pressure weighing her down had only multiplied. Yolei's parents' patience was about to run out, and she suspected Cody's mother wouldn't be far behind. There was only so long that she could put things off under the pretense of reconnaissance. Something needed to be done.

"I think… we've accomplished all that we can from this side of things," she said slowly. The decision didn't send the chill through her veins that she'd kind of been expecting. It was true that she was still scared, but slowly but surely, that fear was being overridden by the overwhelming need to do something.

"So that means you're… going back?" Takato jumped a second later when Guilmon, having finished everything in the box, came up and started licking some of the residual glaze from his partner's fingers. "Oh, Guilmon! Gross…"

Kari had to stifle a giggle. Sometimes Guilmon really was more like a pet or a child than an equal partner. And Gatomon may not have been impressed, but Kari thought that could be good for Takato, in some ways. But as it turned out, Takato's partner wasn't quite as out of the loop as she'd thought.

"What about us, Takatomon?"

"Uh, what?" Takato blinked down at him blankly.

Guilmon blinked back. "I want to help your friends too."

Takato seemed to freeze for a second, looking into his partner's eyes. Kari saw his hand clench into a fist decisively. And when he looked back at her, there was a firmness to his expression that she'd never seen from him before.

"I do want to help," he confirmed, quiet but steady. "I know I haven't exactly been pulling my weight. When Guilmon first showed up, it was like a game… And then the stakes kept getting higher and higher. But I am a Tamer, and I want to do my part. Especially now that Henry's wrapped up in all this too. If you'll have me along, I'm ready."

Kari smiled at him, trying to let her genuineness shine through, as Gatomon came to stand beside her for solidarity. Her partner certainly looked ready to charge headfirst into this war. "Takato, I feel like you're under the impression that the rest of us actually know what we're doing. We don't, really. We're all scared. But there's this evil that only we can face, and just remember, you're never really alone."

Takato smiled down at Guilmon once more. More confidently this time, he said, "I know. I'm ready."

…

The final floor of the Digimon Emperor's lair was almost completely empty. The floor and ceiling were the same dark tile as the rest of the hideout—the floors devoted to his personal research at least. (The prison blocks had been all cold steel and hard stone.) Computer screens and keyboards lined the three walls facing the staircase. Though unmanned, they were all aglow with activity, and they provided a dim light to the rest of the room.

And TK might have been curious, under other circumstances. He couldn't tell what data the Emperor was tracking, but the scene before him commanded his full attention. In the center of the room, a cylindrical glass case stood from floor to ceiling. A strange, shadowy substance wafted upwards—seeming to phase through the subject inside. TK figured it was pure darkness, and he wasn't surprised, given what was inside.

He felt Patamon shudder—or maybe it was his own shudder traveling through his partner. They were both all too familiar with the dark figure inside.

"Devimon," Patamon whispered. "I thought we'd seen the last of him… Or hoped, I should say."

TK slowly circled the case, still waiting for his initial chill to subside. He couldn't help thinking that the Digimon before them looked… smaller than he remembered. Somehow, that didn't make him any less threatening. Finally, he managed, "How is this even possible? After you two… fought… His data should have been too corrupted to reform."

"Maybe the Emperor pieced him back together manually," Patamon posited. TK didn't answer. They both kept their eyes locked on the being before them. He appeared whole and awake… but was motionless. There was no sign of life or recognition in his eyes. Patamon shuddered again. "Or maybe he just… regrew. I'd believe it. What is the Emperor doing down here, harvesting darkness?"

TK shook his head slowly, finally tearing his eyes away. "It's so… cold down here." He didn't have to explain to his partner that he didn't mean physically.

"You know, it's almost familiar," Patamon commented as TK moved slowly around the room, his fingers ghosting over the keyboards, though he made sure not to press any buttons.

He stopped abruptly, however, as Patamon's words sunk in. "You're right. I do recognize it. It feels like the Dark Ocean down here."

They both looked around, as if they might have suddenly developed the ability to see through the walls. Did the Digimon Emperor's lair extend all the way down into the Dark Ocean? Somehow, that wouldn't surprise him either.

…

The conversation with Takato's parents went… reasonably well. The Matsukis were simple, ordinary people. Logical. Everything they'd achieved in life had been through their own hard work. There was no easy way to tell people like that that monsters were real.

But they'd seemed to understand the seriousness of his request immediately when their son returned inside with his new friend and asked that they shut down the shop for a while. Guilmon and Gatomon had made an appearance shortly into the next conversation, just as Takato's mother had looked ready to shut down what must surely be a joke. They were actually rather lucky her scream had not brought any of their neighbors running, but Mr. Matsuki had been there to steady her. Takato's father had paled… but admitted to suspicions that his son was hiding something. (Though he'd been expecting a more traditional pet.)

They'd done their best to explain the situation. The missing kids, both past and present. This other world that Kari had seen with her own eyes. And their plan to set things right. (Though they may have glossed over the nonexistence of some of those finer details.)

At the end of it all, Takato's parents had appeared shaken but resigned. She'd watched them embrace their son, agree on a cover story. When Takato ran upstairs to pack a bag, his mother took one of Kari's hands in both of hers.

Kari felt a stab of guilt at the barely-concealed desperation in her eyes. She had to remind herself that, technically, Takato had been involved before the two of them had even met. The woman's voice was barely a whisper. "Just promise me you'll bring my boy home."

"I will." Kari maintained eye contact the whole time. And this time, she finally felt the confidence behind her words. She would make sure Takato made it back home. She was going to bring everyone's children home.

Takato rushed back down the stairs a second later, and the moment was broken. Kari locked eyes with her team mate… and hoped they at least looked like they were capable of the task ahead of them.

Now, they stood before the door to her apartment. She had to give Takato credit. He'd handled the conversation with his own parents well. She'd really only been there to offer moral support. Now it was her turn to 'shine,' and she could only hope it went half as well.

Takato was eying her worriedly. They'd been out in the hall long enough to make things awkward. She nodded decisively and turned to him before opening the door. "Just… hang back, okay? I basically already told them I know where all the missing kids are the last time I was home and… things are just a little tense right now."

Takato nodded back and waited obediently in the entryway after she let them in. Her parents were both home, further in. They were seated on the couch, the TV and radio both off, already deep in hushed conversation. They rose to their feet immediately when she walked in.

"Kari," her mother all but exclaimed. There was newfound steel in her as well, though. "We need to talk."

She'd been caught off guard the first time, but now she was ready. "I know."

Her parents seemed a little taken aback at her directness, but they were all about as composed as possible when they sat down.

Her father cleared his throat and started in. "Kari… You've been acting strangely lately. Your mother and I are worried."

She was sure he had a whole speech planned to get her to open up. She cleared her own throat, albeit more softly so as not to be rude. Her dad gladly gave her the floor, and she clasped her hands together before her.

"I'm sorry that I worried you. That was never my intention. It's kind of a long story. I just ask that you hear me out, okay?"

Slowly, they both nodded, so she continued.

"Around the end of the last school semester… right before TK transferred in… my friends and I started looking into Tai's disappearance ourselves—the whole mystery, actually. I know this is going to sound a little weird, but it led back to this game designer and his work with artificial intelligence. When he was in college, he and a bunch of his friends made a fully-functioning AI. They had to abandon the project because of money problems, but it continued to grow without them."

Her parents exchanged a look. Her mother responded with, "I don't follow."

"Yeah…" she muttered, taking a deep breath. Here came the hard part. "They created a whole Digital World, dictated by the story they'd programmed for the game. Which was basically… that a group of human children got sucked in and had to team up with these monster partners to save the world. That's what happened to Tai and the others. The AI broke through the barrier between our worlds that night and… basically kidnapped the kids who disappeared. And—except for TK, who's been going back and forth—they've been stuck in that world ever since."

Her parents gave her the speechless, bewildered expressions she'd been expecting. She had to resist holding her breath or closing her eyes in preparation for their response. It didn't disappoint.

Her mother broke out of her frozen state first. She ducked her head, running her hands through her already messy hair. When she looked back up, her eyes were red and filled with more anger than Kari had ever seen directed at her. "Is this… a joke to you?"

There was danger in that tone, without a doubt. It was a very distinctive mom tone that Kari could honestly say she'd never been on the receiving end of before. But what hurt most of all was the mere accusation—that either of her parents could believe that she would mock their tragedy in such a way.

A commotion near the front door saved her from having to find an answer. Her parents jumped at Takato's hushed, "Guilmon, wait!"

But he wasn't able to get a grip on his partner before the red dinosaur nosed his way towards the living room, replying, "But, Takatomon, what's taking so long?"

Both of her parents let out shrieks to rival Mrs. Matsuki's, her mother pulling her legs up onto the couch, her father freezing. Kari jumped to her feet as Takato and Gatomon rushed in after him. Kari quickly pulled the cat into her arms, trying to make her partner look like slightly less of a warrior. With… questionable results.

"Uh, Mom, Dad… This is my friend Takato. And these are Gatomon and Guilmon, our Digimon partners."

Her parents' eyes swung back and forth from one to the other, still unable to form words. She sat back down with Gatomon on her lap, Takato coming to stand awkwardly beside her chair. …Until Guilmon's curious sniffing around knocked over a picture frame, and her dove to save it, finally wrestling Guilmon over to his side where he couldn't do any more damage. Another small sound choked its way out of Mrs. Kamiya's throat as Guilmon waved his claws in their direction, and Takato smiled apologetically.

"I'm sorry to spring this on you so suddenly… I know how crazy it sounds. But it's all real. I've been to this other world. TK, Yolei, and Cody are there right now. Along with another friend of ours, Henry. The program recruited us as… backup, basically. It's our job to set things right with the original kids. Once we've completed the story, we can all return home." She paused, swallowed. But her parents hadn't found their words yet, so she continued. "I blew TK off the first time. I didn't want to put you two through anything else. But now I have an opportunity to help Tai and bring him home. It's about time someone did."

There was silence for a long moment. Kari could see the unbelievable truth sinking in. At last her mother whispered, "I just don't understand why it has to be you."

The lack of backlash sent a jittery feeling through their daughter. Like they'd accepted this was a losing battle. She rushed to soften that blow however she could.

"It won't be just me. I'll have all my friends by my side. And we're more prepared than the first group was. Everything is going to be all right."

Her parents finally unfroze as she got up to hug them. The trio clung to each other for as long as Kari could allow the moment to last. And then she went to pack her own bag for the journey ahead.

…

Davis did as Rika asked and played along. It wasn't too hard. Well, normally, he probably would have put his foot in his mouth by now—he knew it. But the inside of the Nonaka house was just as impressive as the outside, and Rika's grandmother was already fond of him.

It felt like no time at all before the abrasive girl was prodding him roughly down the hall and locked them both away in her room. It was… sparse. He wasn't that surprised, actually. Rika didn't strike him as the type of girl to decorate her personal space with flashy trinkets and posters. But there was a map of the city spread out over the low table and her own computer set up in the corner. But most notably, he spotted a tall, bipedal fox Digimon watching from the shadows.

Davis's eyes lit up at the sight of Renamon, and he immediately headed over to get a closer look. "Oh, cool! You're Rika's partner, right? I'm Davis."

Renamon eyes him stoically for a moment before extending a hand. "Pleasure."

"Don't humor him, Renamon," Rika sighed, going over and starting up her computer. She shot over her shoulder, "Where's your partner anyway?"

"Oh, I don't have one yet," he replied, unconcerned.

"Great," she muttered. "Some team mate you're turning out to be…"

Davis shrugged. "Whatever. I'll just have to get to the Digital World and find myself a partner."

Rika scoffed. "Yeah, good luck with that. You have to be chosen. Now stop gawking and come over here."

She moved so he could see the program open on her screen. He saw… what looked like some sort of funnel or mountain, made from bits of data, rotating slowly in place. It was cool at first, but he quickly lost interest, eyes scanning the screen for some other sign of action. "Uh… I'm not a real tech-y person."

"Yeah, no surprise there." (He was already getting used to brushing off her barbs. Somehow he knew that, unlike Yolei, Rika wasn't someone he wanted to poke back at.) She pulled out her own Digivice—with blue accents where Kari's had been pink—and said, "One day, this device materialized out of my computer and left this program in its place. When I opened it up, they both started to glow. This is like… its resting state. When it's active, the whole thing opens up, and it's like looking through to another world. Literally, I guess. The first time I opened it, there was a girl waiting for me on the other end."

"A girl?"

"That's what I said. She's the one who told me all about the Digital World and how Digimon were starting to break through the barrier to this side of things. She told me to hold my Digivice up to the screen so my partner would be able to find their way to me… And she did."

"Yeah, but wait. This girl—was it Yolei?"

"I didn't ask for her name. She gave me my mission, and then she was gone."

"Okay, but what did she look like? Big glasses, pink hair, really annoying?"

"No."

Davis gestured for her to move aside and she did, albeit grudgingly, and he opened the internet. In a few seconds, he had an old article about the missing kids pulled up and scrolled down so she could see the pictures. "How about now? Was it one of these girls?"

"Yeah." Rika sounded surprised. Her voice had slowly lost its edge as the conversation went on. She pointed to one of the pictures and read the name underneath. "Sora Takenouchi… That's her. What is this?"

"This is what I was trying to tell you. It's so much bigger than a few Digimon showing up in the city." He quickly ran through the story. It wasn't exactly linear, and he knew he was probably forgetting a few details, but Rika seemed to be keeping up just fine. "So you're saying you've been in touch with Sora for a while?"

"Sort of. She's not there every time." A more perceptive boy than Davis might have noticed that Rika was hedging and had started to look uncomfortable. But, luckily for her, he had a pretty one-track mind.

Davis had already gone to bring the mysterious program back up… but paused when he caught sight of its title in the tab. "Gennai… I know that name."

"What do you mean?"

"Gennai—Kari said he was supposed to be, like, some sort of guardian to the original Digidestined. Like a guide or something."

Rika seemed unconcerned. "So maybe he's guiding her. What's so strange about that?"

Davis shrugged. "I don't know… It didn't sound like he was ever all that helpful… It's just weird."

Rika still looked impressed. "Whatever. I never saw this Gennai guy."

"Well… here." He pulled the tab back up. "Open it up again. Maybe we'll see him. Or maybe we'll see Sora and finally get some real answers."

He'd piqued her curiosity at least. She didn't try to protest or make a big show of it as she brought her Digivice up to the screen. Just as she'd said, both began to glow… but they were not treated to a view of another person or place.

"Renamon," Rika called after a moment, finally starting to sound unnerved.

Her partner was already at her side. "Rika. The energy output is too high. Something's wrong."

"I know," she ground out through her teeth, the first signs of fear flashing in her eyes. She let out another sound of effort and frustration, and Davis realized she was trying to tear her arm away from the screen. The lights had connected and were acting like magnets. He went to grab her arm, help her pull away, but as soon as his skin met hers, the light rose to a blinding peak, and they both froze.

When it died down a second later, they both took a few shaky steps backwards, relieved to be free to do so. Renamon was there to place a steadying hand on her partner's back. Davis found he had something else to ground him.

The hand he'd placed on Rika still shook ever so slightly. The one by his side was gripping something that hadn't been there before. He looked down to see an orange-plated Digivice in his own hand, and the thrill of excitement this prompted washed away everything else. He held it up triumphantly and crowed, "Ha! See! I told you so!"

Rika stared, muttering, "You've got to be kidding me…"

"He did tell you so…" She shot Renamon a glare for her amused tone.

But Davis wasn't done celebrating yet. In his excitement, he shoved his own Digivice at the screen where the program was still facing them. Rika's cautionary shout got lost in the next light that swallowed them up.

Review please!

I don't own Digimon.

And finally, Rika's here. To actually do something, not just show up to prove she exists. (Takato too, for that matter.) ^^' It feels like we've come so far… I almost forget myself how much further there still is to go. I still don't have a good gauge for how many chapters this story will have.