Sorry for the delay. Me and my beta reader are both ready now. I'll be posting chapters monthly from now on once again.

Part Two: The Gizumon Conspiracy

Data

"Then they said 'come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves; otherwise we will be scattered over the face of the whole earth.' But then He came down to see the city and the tower the people were building."

Otsu Prince Hotel

1:00 P.M.

Sunday, April 29th, 2018

Steel and concrete pressed into Dinoster's back, the crushing weight of the fallen building squeezing at him from all sides. The monster had not dared to move, too cautious of the fragile debris stacked around him. One false movement and the rubble could shift and tear his precious cargo apart. He couldn't stay still for long, however. The air was stale, and though he was conserving his breath, and his strength, it was getting more difficult to breathe with each passing minute. He wasn't worried for himself, but for his partner Takuya and the rookie Impmon who he held in his arms, both of them unconscious. He had to break free from his steel tomb, and he had to do so soon, but without knowing how close to the surface he was, it was too dangerous to try and plow through the steel and concrete above him.

As he contemplated the gravity of his situation, he heard a noise, and his heart skipped a beat. There was talking, or yelling, beyond his tomb, muffled by the rock above him. The faint sound gave him the information he needed. Though he could only estimate, he calculated how far above him the surface was. The monster raised his leg, leveraging it against a heightened steel beam, then bent his knees and ducked down. As the steel above him began to buckle, Dinoster jumped upwards, plowing through the debris. He thrust his wings outwards, peppering rubble around him. He gasped deeply for air as he crawled out onto the surface, his legs wobbling, eyes squinting as they adjusted to the light.

Dinoster looked across a field of debris, stretching in every direction from pier to pier, before sloping down to the wide parking lot. Beams of steel, shattered cloth, broken furniture, and crumbled walls rolled out into the Biwa lake on each pier, slowly breaking off into the water with the tide.

"Stay away from him!" A piercing cry caught his attention. The morbidly grey expanse of destruction was broken by a collection of Digimon standing atop the field. The closest was Lillymon, the fairy Digimon, with her flower cannon aimed forward. The Digimon was quivering, covered in cuts and bruises, beads of sweat dripping down her arms, and she struggled to hold her cannon upright. In front of her were three other Digimon. Laying on his stomach was Monmon, the rookie monkey, who was struggling under the heel of Renamon, the yellow fox and member of the digital army. The last Digimon Dinoster didn't recognize, but knew the species as Sharmamon, a rookie ogre Digimon, but this one looked badly injured, and was using his club as a cane.

"Lillymon…" Dinoster sighed, catching the attention of the group. Dinoster immediately questioned his decision, realizing the tactical value he could have offered had he struck quickly, as Monmon seemed to be Renamon's prisoner, but at the risk of leaving Takuya and Impmon behind, he decided it had been for the best.

"Dinoster, you're alive!" She smiled weakly as she looked over her shoulder.

"Stay back!" Renamon barked. Dinoster hadn't noticed before how angry the Digimon had looked. His fur was standing on end, his face in a snarl, fists clenched and shaking.

"I said let him go!" Lillymon immediately turned back to the fox, who dug his claws deeper into Monmon's back. The monkey bit his lip rather than scream, but his body continued to squirm in futility.

"What's going on?" Dinoster inquired, not daring to move.

"They were going to kill him," Lillymon grunted, "Until I freed myself from the rubble."

"You killed everyone!" Renamon barked, baring his teeth. "All of my comrades are gone, thanks to you!"

"We didn't kill anyone!" Lillymon cried. "Blossomon had surrendered. The battle was over! Until…" She whimpered.

"The Gizumon…" Dinoster growled. He looked around the former battlefield, the ruins of the hotel suddenly feeling like a graveyard to him. "Where is everyone? Mimi, Willis… Penguinmon… Floramon…"

"I don't believe you!" Renamon growled once more. "Blossomon would never surrender. He'd never stop fighting against the likes of you traitors!"

"Listen to me!" Lillymon snapped. "The Gizumon did all of this! They killed Monochromon and abducted our people, and then destroyed this place!" Tears streamed down her face. "And who knows what other damage they caused…"

"I don't care what happened to your people!" Renamon snarled. "What did you do with Blossomon?"

"I told you: Blossomon surrendered." Lillymon shook her head. "I was busy fighting the Gizumon. If he's not here, he must have been buried when the hotel collapsed."

"That answer is unacceptable!" Renamon pressed his heel down. Monmon finally let out a whimper.

"I've told you everything I know. Now let my friend go!" Lillymon ordered.

"Never!" Renamon was consumed with rage, his eyes piercing through Lillymon as he dug his claws deeper into the monkey's back.

"No!" Lillymon cried.

"That's enough!" A voice boomed from the water's edge. The Digimon all turned their heads, causing wide eyes from Dinoster and Lillymon, and a sigh of relief from Renamon and Sharmamon.

"Colonel Blossomon!" The fox cheered as his commander dragged his soaking vines out of the water and onto the dry debris field. The monster looked like he could barely stand, his severed arm still tucked in against his chest.

"Let him go, Renamon." Blossomon ordered.

"But sir-!"

"Let him go!" The monster boomed. Renamon immediately complied. "He have much to discuss."

Kyoto Underground

1:00 P.M.

"Almost time for lunch, isn't it?" Kuwabara Urameshi asked as he and Yusuke Kazuma stood side-by-side, driving their pickaxes into the ground. The two men had been working for most of the day, clearing dirt out of the bottom of the massive underground pit.

"The machines will tell us when it's time, calm your overactive stomach, Kuwabara." Yusuke shook his head.

"I'm just saying, man; they've had us on a pretty tight schedule so far. No reason to stray now. And I'm pretty hungry."

"Looks like we're getting some new arrivals." Yusuke gathered the other man's attention, where a Gizumon was herding a group of ten people towards them, including a small child.

"Those bastards," Kuwabara murmured under his breath, "Kidnapping children now, are they?"

"Keep quiet." Yusuke hissed as the Gizumon approached them.

"Educate them." The Gizumon said simply before floating away, leaving the confused people before them.

"Alright folks," Yusuke shook his head, "I'm sorry to say it, but you've just been drafted into a work camp. The Gizumon expect us to keep digging this hole until god knows when, and they want us to teach you, apparently."

"They just expect us to work for them?" One woman barked angrily.

"I won't force you, ma'am, but those machines have made examples out of people who've refused to work in the past. I don't recommend going against their order, at least not yet."

"What are we supposed to do?" The child asked. Kuwabara sighed as he began to answer, looking down at the boy.

"Well, here at least, we're supposed to dig. Grab a pickaxe or a shovel and take up a spot on the wall and start clearing dirt, moving it into the center." He pointed towards the center of the hole, where a large pile of dirt could be seen. Men were shoveling the dirt into buckets and wheeling it off down an unseen path. "Movers will take the dirt and cart it out of the way. The goal is to make a wall perpendicular to the upper levels," Kuwabara pointed upwards towards the heights of the pit. "Once the wall is made, we start digging short caves. I recommend not half-assing them, because that's where we'll be sleeping.

"So we're digging our own prison?" A man questioned.

"For the first half of the day at least." Yusuke answered. "Their scheduling isn't even that bad. If you follow the rules, they mostly ignore you. They'll wake you up around 6 in the morning or so, and take you to a room for breakfast. The slop is shit, but it's filling. They give you 30 minutes to an hour, then cart you into either this room or the other work station. You work here until about mid-day, alternating between digging and carting dirt, and then they move you back into the lunchroom. An hour later you're in the other workstation, which they'll explain once you go over there. Six hours later they let you grab dinner and then find a room to sleep in."

"The robots don't seem that interested in us, they just want us to work. Keep your head down and don't start anything, and you'll be fine. We'll find a way out of this eventually." Kuwabara said optimistically.

A begrudged set of murmurs erupted from the crowd, but they eventually sighed and began grabbing shovels and buckets from the station against the wall, and got to work.

"This is insane," A woman spoke to the child as they took up posts next to each other and began to dig. "What are the Gizumon doing down here?"

"I guess we'll find out once we get carted off into the next chamber." The child answered.

"Tommy," She whispered, "What happened to Veemon?"

"I was holding onto him when we were first taken, Miss Masao." Tommy answered. "When they dropped us off into one of those rooms, the Gizumon saw him and immediately dragged him off. I tried to go after him but another Gizumon stopped me."

"I wager that's a good thing." Masao speculated. "Had they wanted him dead, they probably would have done the deed right then and there. They must be keeping him somewhere else within this place." She took a moment to look up at the lower levels, where various tunnels led out into the dark complex, the torches lining the walls all that allowed her to make out the features of their prison. "Do you still have your digivice?"

"Of course," Tommy patted his pocket. "We should go and find him."

"Not yet," Masao shook her head, "Based on what those two told us, people who stray from the work schedule get punished. We should take the opportunity to learn the layout of this place as they cart us off to each work area, and try to learn the Gizumon's patrolling patterns first. After that, we can go look for him."

"I don't like this place Miss Masao." Tommy sighed. "What are we doing here?" He began to finger a pendant around his neck nervously.

"I'm not sure kid, but for now we'd better get to work. Like they said, let's keep our heads down."

1:10 P.M.

"V-headbutt!" The rookie careened through the air, bashing his skull against the metal bars blocking his path, but the steel beams were too strong for him, and he bounced off of them to no effect, instead rolling back into his cell.

"Grr… When I find my way out of here I'm going to show these Gizumon a thing or two…" He angrily massaged his forehead, where the pain from the blow had yet to subside.

"Is that so…?" An inquisitive voice sounded from the darkness beyond his cell.

"Who's there?" Veemon growled, instantly noting the difference between the speaker's voice and the monotone droning of the Gizumon.

"Relax, little one," The voice chuckled as a figure appeared in the blackness beyond the cell. "I mean you no harm, at least not yet. We have plans for you."

"The big shot huh?" Veemon glared into the darkness. "So you're running the whole thing, eh? Why don't you show yourself?"

"If you insist." The monster chuckled unsettlingly. Suddenly a torch became ablaze in the figure's arm, illuminating the monster. A demon stood before him, with red skin, dressed in black boots and gloves, with a pointy tail and horns atop his head.

"Speak of the devil…" Veemon gasped.

"Greetings," The monster bowed, "My name is Phelesmon. And yes, I am the one in charge of the Gizumon and the Grimmon. You probably noticed by my having more than a shred of personality."

"I have questions," Veemon now spoke calmly, wary of the creature before him. He had addressed himself as Phelesmon, a Digimon, but not one that Veemon had ever heard of.

"I'm sure you do, but I have some questions of my own. Questions that I need answered."

"Well, what are we going to do about that then?" Veemon quipped. "Clearly, we can't both ask questions at the same time. Nothing would get done. I have a proposition. You ask, I answer, then I ask, and you answer. Sounds good?"

"Heh," Phelesmon chuckled, "You seem to be under the delusion that you have something to bargain with," Phelesmon stroked one of the bars of the cage with his finger. "I can assure you, that's not the case."

"Hold on now," Veemon raised his hands into the air warily, "All I'm proposing is an exchange of information. Sure, you're under no obligation to provide me with anything, however I'd be much more obliged to share with you if you were to do the same, you see?"

"Hmpf…" Phelesmon rested his hand on his hip, "You're a confident one, I'll give you that." He smiled at the creature. "Very well, I'll go along with your deal. However, be careful what you ask of me. I might not be so forthcoming."

"Fantastic!" Veemon gave him a thumbs-up. "Alright, you first."

"You came here with the digital army, did you not? Then why are you allied with the humans?" The demon inquired.

"That's two questions." Veemon smiled.

"The first was rhetorical." Phelesmon frowned. "Answer."

"I never intended to ally with the digital army. A small group of Digimon in the digital world opposed the actions of the army. I was implanted in their ranks in order to disrupt their actions and protect the humans. When I got here, my cover was outed rather quickly, so I had to switch sides."

"I'd like to know more about this group." Phelesmon replied.

"Hold on now, it's my turn to ask a question." Veemon held up his palm. "How come I've never heard of any of you: Gizumon, Grimmon, or Phelesmon?"

"It's not my fault if you're not well traveled enough to have heard of every Digimon that's existed." Phelesmon answered sarcastically.

"There's more to it than that." Veemon replied. "Every Digimon I've spoken to has never heard of any of you, and the Digital army has soldiers from all over the digital world, at least from the third plane, the digital world proper."

"It seems you've answered your own question then." Phelesmon scoffed. "The digital world has multiple planes, or dimensions, of existence, does it not?"

"You're from… another plane…?" Veemon gasped. Phelesmon's statement did not sit well with him. His knowledge of the digital world's structure had been taught to him as a child. The digital world was divided into six separate dimensions, all connected by the data streams. In the center was the digital core, where all information was kept protected. The second plane was a dark abyss, where the data of Digimon too corrupt to be reconfigured were sent after they were deleted. The third plane was the digital world proper, where most Digimon lived. On the fourth plane, the twelve Devas controlled the paths of the data streams and managed the flow of information in and out of the digital world. The fifth plane housed the Royal Knights, protectors of the digital world. The final plane was cut off from the rest: a barren wasteland where none had existed since the birth of the digital world itself.

"Nuh uh, it's my turn." Phelesmon wagged his finger. "This opposition group you spoke of, are any more of its members within the ranks of the digital army?"

"No, at least not to my knowledge. We were too small and too spread out to effectively plant ourselves within the organization."

"I see." Phelesmon replied.

"Which plane did you come from?" Veemon inquired. "Was it the first?"

"Well, that depends on which plane you consider which," Phelesmon scoffed.

"The first would be the digital core, then the dark plane, the digital world proper, the land of the Devas, the land of the Royal Knights, and the battleground of Yggdrasil and the D-Reaper."

"I see," Phelesmon nodded, "Well then by your standards, we'd be inhabitants of the dark plane." He answered. "Now, you've allied with the humans, but my soldiers have observed you sharing energy with them as well. How is this possible?"

"Technology developed in the digital world," Veemon answered, "A small device strapped to the wrist that allows us to draw energy from the humans in order to digivolve. Are you the reincarnated versions of corrupted Digimon then?"

"We were there long before any Digimon from your plane ever appeared." Phelesmon answered. "How many Digimon are allied with humans?"

"Around twenty or so." Veemon answered. "Why are you here?"

"When the virus appeared in the digital world, it infected our plane as well, via the corrupted Digimon that appeared in our plane." Phelesmon took a pause, squinting his eyes at the small Digimon. "Last question…"

"What's that?"

"Was anything that you just told me true?" Phelesmon growled.

"Was anything that you said the truth?" Veemon retorted. Phelesmon laughed at his reply, then slowly began to back away. "Our conversation is not finished." He smirked. "I will return when you're more willing to share." Phelesmon retreated into the dark, taking the torchlight with him. He rounded a corner and was gone, leaving Veemon enclosed in darkness.

4:00 P.M.

"Ugh…" Mimi groaned as she dragged a large, square sheet of metal behind her, placing it into a central pile. A Gizumon then took the top sheet of the pile and began fusing it into an open panel on a metal wall. "I'm not cut out for this…" She whined as she stumbled back towards the processing center. As she walked, Willis came up next to her.

"After all the fighting you've done as a Digidestined, you're going to let a little bit of construction work get to you?" Willis smiled, trying to cheer her up.

"I may be a Digidestined, but Palmon did all the heavy lifting." Mimi groaned. "This is exhausting."

"Well try to keep up. You don't want them noticing you slacking behind. That guy told us they leave you alone as long as you do your work, and we need to stay incognito until we can find a way out of this place." Willis replied.

"I know; you don't have to repeat the plan." She grunted as she grabbed another sheet of metal. Workers were busy pounding chunks of metal being brought in from the city by the Gizumon into the sheets, as directed by the robots. Mimi and Willis, along with others, were tasked with running them towards the Gizumon, who were operating on a massive machine in the middle of the man-made tunnel, similar to the one Mimi and Willis had found themselves in upon arrival. "I have to wonder though…" Mimi looked up at the large machine, "What in the heck are they building anyway?"

Otsu

8:00 P.M.

A fire roared in the center of the battered group of survivors. Blossomon sat with his subordinates, Renamon and Sharmamon, while Takuya sat on the opposite side of the fire with his partner Dinoster, Palmon, and Monmon. Impmon, now conscious, sat away from both groups, his head in his lap.

Blossomon had defused the volatile situation from earlier in the day, explaining the events that had unfolded to his subordinates. Though they had initially disagreed with his decisions, they complied with his orders to make at least a temporary peace with the Digidestined. From there, he explained to the Digidestined that the Gizumon had abducted Mimi and Willis, and suggested they all rest to regain their strength, and wait until night before retaliating to come up with an effective plan to get their friends back.

"Alright Blossomon, I think we're all well rested." Takuya broke the silence. "Have you come up with any ideas?"

"I have been brainstorming, yes." The raspy-voiced monster nodded. I don't know where your friends were taken, "He began, "However I have an idea of how to find them. Since the Gizumon clearly have a place to return to, we simply need to follow the Gizumon back to where they are hiding." He explained.

"Stalk the creatures that have been stalking us, eh?" Takuya smiled. "That's not bad. But how do we find the Gizumon?"

"Their patterns are not hard to detect." Blossomon answered. "They are simply wherever the digital army goes."

"What's that?" Takuya inquired.

"We've noticed that wherever we appear in the city, the Gizumon show up a short time later. However, in sections where we are not stationed, they are nowhere to be found, according to our scouts."

"So the Gizumon are following you." Takuya surmised. "So your suggesting we head towards where the bulk of the digital army is located, find a Gizumon, and follow it back to its hideout?"

"Precisely."

"Sir, you can't be serious." Renamon jumped up. "They cannot be allowed to learn the location of our headquarters!"

"Calm down Renamon." Blossomon warned.

"With all due respect, he's right." Takuya added. "Even with you backing our cause, it's too dangerous for us to get that close to enemy territory. The digital army wasted no time in labeling the Digimon we've partnered with as traitors. I can't reasonably expect they wouldn't do the same to you. We'd be fighting two fronts at the same time."

"I never suggested we need to go all the way into digital army territory. The outskirts will do fine. That's where the Gizumon have been known to be in highest concentration anyway."

"Even still, if we run into a digital army patrol…" Takuya trailed off.

"I ensure you, this is the safest way to find out where the digital army is, and where they've taken your friends." Blossomon reasoned.

"They're underground." Impmon murmured from the shadows.

"What was that?" Takuya and Blossomon inquired simultaneously.

"I saw them, when I was exploring the city, back when we first got here." Impmon lifted his head out of his lap. "I've seen them going into the subways at night."

"Why didn't you say anything before?" Blosomon inquired.

"I don't owe any of youse guys anything, alright." He grumbled.

"Impmon, can you take us there?" Takuya asked.

"What do you need a schmuck like me for? I'm sure you can find it yourselves." Impmon dropped his head back into his lap.

"Hey, I don't know what your problem is, but right now, we do need you. If you can take us back to where you found them, we can find out where they've taken everyone." Takuya reasoned.

"Why should I?" Impmon groaned.

"Because you're sitting there, being miserable," Renamon walked over to the lone creature, who looked up at him with contempt. "You pout because I've bested you in battle. You thought so highly of yourself and now you see how truly weak you are."

"Is this supposed to be a pep talk?" Impmon sprang to his feet, fire raging in his eyes.

"Be angry with me all you want, but if you want to prove yourself not a coward, if you seek the worth that I took from you in our fight, then you'll do this for these people. It is about the only useful thing you can do now." Renamon flung his tail into the air as he walked away from the begrudged rookie.

"Ugh…" Impmon turned away angrily. "Fine, I'll show you where to go."

"Thank you Impmon," Palmon waved to him, "And you too, Renamon."

"I did not do that for you, I merely tired of his pouting." Renamon answered. "Believe me, I still have contempt for you humans, but if my commander has decided to trust in your cause, I will fight to ensure his interests are preserved."

"Then you wouldn't mind going with them, would you?" Blossomon asked. "Go in my stead to ensure they arrive at their destination without incident. I'd go myself," He waved his damaged arm, "But I am in no shape to fight."

"If it is what you desire Colonel, I will guide them into Kyoto."

"We appreciate it Blossomon." Palmon smiled. "I'm glad we can put the past behind us and work together, those that are left that is…" She looked solemn.

"Floramon, Aruraumon, Biyomon and Penguinmon…" Takuya sighed.

"We should prepare to move." Dinoster suggested, standing up. "Who is going? Myself and Takuya, Renamon, Palmon I assume," He looked to the rookie, who nodded, "And Impmon."

"I'm going as well." Monmon stood up from his place by the fire. "I made Willis a promise, and I failed him. It's time to make it up to him."

"Let's carry on then. We'll need as much darkness as possible to cover our approach." Renamon nodded and started towards the city. Takuya, Dinoster, Palmon, Monmon, and Impmon followed behind him.

Kyoto

11:00 P.M.

"So you found one too?" Koji was holding his crest, having described to her the events in which he found it.

"Didn't know that's what it was called, but yes, I did." She reached into her shirt and pulled the pendant from within. "It crashed through the ceiling just before I had made it back to camp. Didn't know what it was at the time, but I thought it might be important. So you said it helps our partners get stronger?"

"According to Izzy, all the Digidestined have them." Koji replied.

"Is it just me, or is it getting colder down here?" Majester observed as he led the small group through the darkness of the subway tunnels.

"It's always cold in these tunnels." Alice noted. "Quite frankly, it'd surprise me more if it suddenly got warmer in here."

"No, Majester is right." Lopmon shook her head as she stood atop Alice's shoulder, recovered from her previous encounter. "The temperature down here is markedly different from the last time I passed through this area, different enough that I don't believe it's the time of day affecting it."

"I'm starting to feel it too," Koji observed, rubbing his hands together. "I can almost see my breath fogging up as I speak, almost like it would do in the wintertime."

"Why would it be getting colder then?" Alice asked as she too began to notice the cold, rubbing her arms together for warmth.

"I smell something." Majester said softly. "Somewhere, past the bend; I'm going to go check it out." Majester waved the group down and then trotted off down the tunnel, leaving Alice and Koji to huddle next to the wall. Majester returned moments later, quietly waving them forward. The two children quietly made their way around the bend in the tunnel, where the temperature drastically dropped, the air turning frigid. Ice lined the walls and ceiling, with patches dispersed across the ground.

"Watch your step." Majester warned.

"What did all of this?" Koji inquired.

"I'll bet it was him." Alice nodded off to the side, where in a pile of crushed ice sat a towering figure. A humanoid Digimon, white as snow, with tattered wings leaning against the wall. Adorned in belts and rings, the monster's smooth head had two horns protruding from the skull. Its chest heaved up and down slowly, as its bony fingers grasped at its gut.

"Come to mock my defeat, have you?" The monster opened its eyes, revealing its dark red pupil, and glared solemnly. "First the Gizumon destroy my company, and now I'm greeted with humans and their traitorous companions."

"What happened down here?" Alice inquired, wary of approaching the monster.

"And for what reason should I tell you lot?" He growled in response.

"IceDevimon," Lopmon spoke, "Despite our differences, the Gizumon are a threat to both of our groups. We share that enemy, at least."

"We came to investigate sightings of Gizumon and humans in the tunnels," He choked as he spoke, "My company was ambushed by the Gizumon. They never stood a chance. I managed to take out the last of the attackers, but they left their mark on me, as you can see." His eyes fell down to the wound on his stomach, as blood dripped down over his white fingers.

"They were ambushed just like I was." Lopmon observed. If we're not careful, we could find ourselves wondering into another trap."

"We need to keep moving." Alice said with determination. "IceDevimon I'm sorry for what happened to your soldiers," She turned to the fallen captain, "I know you have no love for us, but it would be best if you made your way out of here and didn't attempt to stop us."

"You're going after them?" IceDevimon chuckled, pushing off of the wall with his wings and standing crouched in the tunnel, the back of his head brushing against the ceiling. "You are correct, I have no love for you humans. But those Gizumon slaughtered my soldiers. If you're going to confront them, then I am going with you."