To Sleep…Perchance to Scream
Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon and its characters, nor am I making any money from this. This is done purely for fun.
Warnings: This story disregards the ending of season 02. The Digital World is still a secret except for the Digi-destined. And this story contains violence, angst, and some mild language. I have only seen the American version of Digimon.
Artistic license is being used here, folks. Sorry if things aren't quite according to cannon. As always, I thank my sister Reber for getting me involved in yet another anime obsession as well as letting me post this fic under her name. And to Megchan, whose Digimon encyclopedia was invaluable.
A special thank you for those of you who have reviewed To Sleep. Your encouragement means a lot to me!
And I will show
you something different from either
Your shadow in the
morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at
the evening rising to meet you;
I will show you
fear in a handful of dust
T.S. Eliot "The Waste Land"
Chapter 7
Fear in a Handful of Dust
Ken jumped off of Stingmon, landing with a soft whumph on the rocky terrain. The champion Digimon settled behind him, a silent sentinel guarding the former Digimon Emperor's back.
"It pleases me to see that you are smart enough to surrender, young Ken," Daemon greeted them, his voice thick as smoke. The demon lord stood about fifty feet from where they landed. "I am surprised, but pleased." The sky above him was dark and churning, like a hurricane at sunset.
'At least there is no worry about getting sunburned', Ken thought, taking his time before answering, scanning the area, looking for other Digimon that might think it their business to join into the discussion. It seemed clear of party crashers, but Ken remained wary. There were many rocky outcroppings that could conceal Digimon from him and Stingmon, even though they had done an aerial sweep before landing.
"Think what you want, Daemon." Ken replied easily, the wind ruffling his cape and hair. Behind him, Stingmon remained silent and watchful. The tension in the air was almost palpable, and in spite of himself, Ken nearly laughed. He half expected to see tumbleweed go rolling by at any time.
The smirk of triumph was easily heard in Daemon's voice. "Why else are you here, unaccompanied by those Digibrats?" he asked, moving closer to the boy and his Digimon partner. "Unless you think that your pet can defeat me?"
Ken shrugged. "He's just here for comic relief." 'I have definitely been hanging around Davis too much'.
Daemon's fiery eyes flicked uncertainly from Ken to the somber countenance of Stingmon, who stared back with unblinking red eyes. With a surge of annoyance, Daemon got the feeling that Ken was mocking him. It was hard to tell what the boy was thinking behind those dark glasses, hiding his eyes. "Enough, come with me Ken. We have much to do," he commanded.
"I don't think so," Ken smirked. One hand on his hip, the other hung at his side, the picture of cool confidence.
Daemon once again felt a slight flicker of unease. He couldn't figure out why Ken was so confident. By rights, the boy should be terrified, on his knees and begging for his life! Then Daemon caught himself. It was a bluff, that's all. The demon lord was the most powerful Digimon alive. He had nothing to worry about from a simple human boy.
"It matters not what you think, boy. Come here, now," Daemon commanded, raising one hand in a threatening manner.
Ken cocked his head to one side, as if considering, then grinned a cheeky grin, a reflection from his emperor days. "Daemon, if you want me, you have to come and get me," he explained in a condescending tone. "That's how this game is played."
"Fine then! When I get my hands on you, you will find out this is not a game." Daemon was through playing with the child. When the demon lord got his hands on Ken, he would make that insolent brat suffer like no one had suffered before. He strode toward the boy, his fury growing with every step. The boy waited for him patiently, still smirking. Daemon growled low in his throat as he reached out to grab the Child of Kindness.
Moving faster than one would have ever thought possible, Ken's hand blurred to his side and he pulled out his whip from where it had hung on his belt under his cloak. The leather screamed through the air towards the demon lord's outstretched hand.
CRACK
The whip wrapped around Daemon's wrist. Startled, Daemon stared at the whip in disbelief. Then his pupiless eyes flicked to Ken, whose satisfied expression never changed. Daemon was about to ask what the boy though he was doing when a wave of pure black raced along the length of the whip, from the butt to the tip, searing the Digimon with its intense energy.
With a cry, Daemon fell back, not from fear or pain, but from surprise. Ken shook the whip loose and still holding the smooth handle, let the length of the weapon fall to the ground in front of him, like a pet snake that would strike on command. He was about to taunt Daemon yet again, having been around Davis he knew the value of a well-chosen insult, when a voice interrupted them.
"I see the cub has grown fangs." The voice was as cold and as dark as a patch of midnight.
Both Ken and Stingmon spun around to face this new player in the game. The owner of the voice was a huge black Digimon whose face consisted of one large eye. Batlike wings flared on its back. The tiny scanners in Ken's shades picked up the newcomer's identity and fed it to the computer perched on his wrist. Glancing down, Ken's jaw tightened.
Daemon greeted the newcomer. "Deathmon, it's been a long time."
Deathmon, a mega-level virus, was also a demon lord Digimon. Why he had picked this time to interfere, Ken could make a safe assumption. Now, would they join forces, or battle each other like two dogs fighting over a bone, with Ken being the bone? As the two Mega demon lords tried to stare each other down, Ken didn't move a muscle, eminently interested in this turn of events.
Daemon bowed politely to the other Digimon, making Ken's eyes narrow in anger. This was not good. He needed to drive a wedge between them, make them fight each other instead of joining forces. It was then yet another voice caught his attention.
"Hello, Daemon, Deathmon."
Ken and Stingmon whirled around. Behind them was another Digimon. This one looked vaguely like a winged centaur. It's animal half was build like a huge black panther, and its top half looked like a Viking from hell. It had no hands, its arms ended in three sharp metallic claws. It was shrouded in darkness as well. The scanners in the glasses identified it as…
"Hello Galfmon," Deathmon greeted the newcomer.
Galfmon, the computer identified was a demon beast Digimon. Its attacks consisted of Dead Scream and Black Requiem. Neither of these two attacks sounded pleasant.
All three of the demon Digimon were surrounding Ken and Stingmon, and ignoring their presence like one would ignore a child at an adult meeting. Ken ground his teeth and tried to hold his temper. He hated being ignored, but he knew it was the spore that was driving him, and furiously sought to control it. However, the darkness in Ken demanded that he would not be ignored. Without thinking, he opened his mouth and said in a cool sneer, "It seems that you guys have a lot to catch up on. If you are busy, I'll just go. Call me when you are ready to get down to business."
Galfmon chuckled in amusement. "The cub certainly is a bold one, Daemon. Does it really have the Spore?" The demon beast approached Ken, who stood his ground, whip at ready. Stingmon made a move to interpose himself between Ken and Galfmon, but Ken held up a restraining hand, and the Champion stayed where he was.
"Yes, he does. He has already used it to banish me to the dark ocean once," Daemon admitted reluctantly, and Deathmon roared with laughter.
"I like this cub! He amuses me," Deathmon laughed.
This was too much. "I am not a cub!" Ken snapped, twitching his whip in anger. "I am the Digimon Emperor! You will call me Master."
This pronouncement elicited yet more laughter and Ken flushed red in rage. They were laughing at him! With a Herculean effort, he reined in his temper. Forcing himself to smile again, he waited for one of them to make a move.
"Oh you are just too much, cub!" Deathmon howled, nearly doubled over. "I can see you will provide years of amusement for us."
"I am not your pet!" Ken shouted, feeling his cool control slipping away as his rage rolled in like an obscuring fog.
"Yes you are!" And with that, the laughter was gone and all three of the Mega demons began to converge on Ken and Stingmon, with one thing shining in their eyes.
To get Ken.
In the empty dimension, the Digi-destined were handling their situation with their usual, calm professional demeanor.
"C'mon Izzy!" Davis's shout sounded half pleading, half ordering. "Hurry up!"
"Leave him alone Davis!" Yolei hollered. "The more you bother him, the longer it will take!"
"Oh yeah?" was Davis' witty reply. "Well, Ken said it would take Izzy only 15 minutes to get us out of here, and it's been 13 already. He'd better get a move on!" The younger Keeper of Courage and Friendship knew he was acting immature, but he was so worried he didn't care.
"Davis," Tai warned, laying a restraining hand on the smaller boy's arm.
"I know you are worried about Ken, we all are," Kari said in an attempt to forestall a full-blown fistfight. "Please try to stay calm. Fighting amongst ourselves isn't going to help Ken." All the Digi-destined had been on the razor's edge, ready to fight Daemon from the moment they entered the Digi-gate Ken had created. But thanks to Ken's sending them on a little side trip, they were currently wound up with no one to fight. No one that is, except each other.
Silence descended on the group as the tension grew. Davis was about to scream when Izzy smiled triumphantly. "Got it! Fourteen minutes, 12 seconds!" he crowed.
"So lets go already!" Davis was crowding forward holding out his Digivice to open the portal, when Izzy clamped down on Davis' wrist.
"Not so fast."
"Huh?" Davis blinked, trying to figure out what was going on now. "Why?"
"Look at this," Izzy motioned to the screen and the incoming information.
"What is it?" Tai asked, crowding behind Davis and peering over his shoulder.
"Its from Ken," Izzy replied as he typed instructions to open the new files.
"Ken?" Yolei demanded. "What does it say?"
Izzy was quiet for a few seconds as he read. "There are three mega-level virus Digimon currently at his position. It seems they are demon lord type," he frowned.
"Let me guess, one is Daemon," Joe said.
Izzy nodded. "The others are Deathmon and Galfmon. Deathmon's attacks consist of Death Arrow and Explosion Eye. Galfmon is a demon beast Digimon. Its attacks consist of Dead Scream and Black Requiem. Both sound very charming. It appears that we will have our work cut out for us when we get there."
"So that's why Ken sent us here," Matt said, and seeing the quizzical looks the others were shooting him, the blond elaborated. "He went to the Digital World alone to force Daemon to make the first move and give us the information that we would need to defeat him and the others. He set himself up as bait."
"Whoa," Davis breathed in wonder. "Well now that we know, lets go and save him!"
"I'm contacting Agumon and the rest. They will be in position when we get there," Izzy reported as he stared intently at the screen, still typing commands.
"Okay, here's the plan. As soon as we hit the Digital World, everyone goes to Mega if they are able. War Greymon and Hercules Kabuterimon will take Daemon. Metal Garurumon and Seraphimon will take Deathmon. Vikemon and Holy Dramon will take Galfmon. Davis, you try to get to Ken and Stingmon. If they are up to it, have Exveemon and Stingmon DNA Digivolve to Imperialdramon and give Metal Garurumon and Seraphimon a hand. Cody and Yolei, since Armadillomon and Hawkmon can't go to Mega yet, it will be your Digimon's job to protect us from stray attacks and other Digimon that might want to join in. Any questions?" Tai asked.
"Yeah, can we go already?" Davis asked plaintively. The need to get to his friend was nearly overwhelming and he didn't know how much longer he could remain in his skin.
"Izzy?" Tai turned to the computer genius.
"Ready," Izzy confirmed. They would have to come back later and retrieve Ken's laptop. Ken knew what he was doing all along, Izzy decided as he shook his head in wonder.
"Let's go! Digiport open!" Davis shouted and felt the light pull him inside. 'Okay Ken. We are on our way! Just hang on a few more minutes'.
Ken backed up until his back was pressed against Stingmon's leg, trying to keep all the evil Digimon in sight. They continued to approach the pair until Ken felt they were close enough. "Stingmon, now!" he snapped.
Stingmon took off straight into the air, leaving Ken alone, surrounded by the three demon Megas. Galfmon turned to go after him, but Daemon waved him off. "That one is of no consequence to us. The human is the only one that matters." Galfmon nodded and turned back, just as Ken made his move.
Holding the dark Digivice high above his head, he concentrated and then released all the power he was able to into the device. A sphere of pure midnight surrounded the young Digidestined, and blasted outward. Rocks were picked up and thrown aside and the ground underneath was blown to dust under the impact. It continued to expand, so quickly that the demon Digimon had no chance to react before it engulfed them.
Stingmon circled above, fighting every instinct to dive down into the blackness and grab Ken. Ken had forbidden him to interfere, and Stingmon trusted that Ken knew what he was doing. But it was still excruciating to watch.
The black sphere continued to blossom up and out, turning gray in the process. Soon it dissipated from the center on out, revealing Ken, still standing in the center of the devastation with the Digivice held high. For a few seconds, nothing stirred, then Stingmon's heart stopped when he heard applause, slow and deliberate, accompanied by a very familiar laugh. One that reminded those who heard it of gravel being slowly ground to dust.
"Very impressive, cub," it sneered. And the last of the darkness faded away, leaving the sight of the three demon Digimon, whole and unharmed, surrounding the lone boy. "But did you really think that you can defeat us with dark power?"
"Ken!" Stingmon dove like a dolphin, cutting through the air as Daemon, Deathmon and Galfmon converged on Ken. Ken whirled, tossing the tip of his whip at his Digimon partner. Stingmon caught it and, using the momentum gained from his dive, climbed once again in the air with Ken trailing behind him, clinging to the butt of the whip for dear life. Ken bit his lip as he felt like his arms were being pulled out of their sockets.
"Hang on Ken!" Stingmon called to his partner as they continued to climb. Ken didn't need to be told twice as the ground fell away from them at an alarming speed. He gripped the whip handle, and couldn't help but look back at the terrible trio. Stingmon was beating his wings frantically, trying to gain as much altitude as possible. Ken's violet eyes widened behind his glasses when he saw Deathmon point in their direction.
"Stingmon! Look out!" Ken shouted. But it was too late.
"Death Arrow!"
Stingmon dodged as well as he could, but the attack was too fast and he was hampered by the overwhelming need to protect Ken. Luckily, the attack only hit him as a glancing blow, but it was more than enough to send Stingmon flailing across the sky, making him lose his grip on the whip.
"Stingmon!" Ken called frantically as he plummeted toward the ground. Stingmon, having been thrown a good distance away, was desperately trying to stabilize his fall and save Ken. But the distance was too great, and Ken was falling.
Ken twisted in mid air, in order to land on his feet. But he wasn't so deluded to know that he didn't have a chance in hell of surviving the fall no matter how fortified his suit was. Somewhere in the back of his mind, a beeping at his side was registered, but the ground rushing up to meet him demanded the bulk of his attention. As he watched the ground approach at greater and greater speed his only thought was a ridiculous one. 'Davis is going to be so pissed at me.'
"KEN!" Stingmon screamed, sounding as if his heart was being ripped from his chest.
It occurred to Ken that he was going to die. It didn't frighten him, not really. What he did feel was regret. He would never again play soccer with Davis and their Digimon. He would never get the chance to see if Matt's band would make it big. He would never get the chance to see the new Harry Potter movie, or the Lord of the Rings either. He would never choose which college he would attend. There was no marriage and two point two children in his future. It was over and it had all been for nothing.
It had all been a waste. He was a waste.
The ground got closer.
And closer.
And it was then that he realized that he was going to be a black and indigo splotch on the rocky ground in the Digital world.
And, as the horrific finality sank in, the ground rushed up to meet him and Ken drew in a breath and screamed for the last time.
And what he screamed was "Daaaaavis!"
Once upon a time, there was a
young man named Ken Ichijouji.
Ken was a genius and a star athlete. He was the idol of the young, and the darling of the media. He had also discovered a game in another world, a secret world called that Digital world. Being a computer whiz, and a game master, Ken set out to win the game by conquering the Digital world. He was known as the Digimon Emperor, and he ruled with a whip, and an iron fist.
Then one day, some other kids showed up in the Digital world. They were known as the Digi-destined. At first they fought against Ken, but eventually they became friends and fought on the same side. They had many great adventures together. They even saved both the Digital world and the real world.
And then….
Ken Ichijouji…
…woke up.
Here's a list of who Digivolves to what:
Agumon - War Greymon
Gabumon - Metal Garurumon
Gomamon - Vikemon
Tentomon - Hercules Kabuterimon
Gatomon - Holy Dramon
Patamon - Seraphimon
I got this information from Megchan's ever-so-helpful Digimon encyclopedia. I know that in the series, Gomamon has not reached Mega, but I'm letting him and Joe in on the action because I like them so much!