Chapter 13
"You guys!"
Matt, Mimi and the Digimon looked up in alarm, but the window hanging in midair by the carousel showed only Izzy's face, strangely excited.
"What is it?" Matt said, not sure what to do. He was dazed with shock...
"TK just called me, and he's okay!"
"Huh?" they all said, baffled. Izzy frowned.
"Never mind, I'll tell you later. Anyway, he told me something vital! The virus feeds on negative emotions! You've got to overcome your fear and anger and all of that sort of thing; it's the only way to beat it!"
"Well, that sure explains why it's growing so fast on the Internet," Mimi spoke up, a rueful expression on her face. "When I think of some of the hate sites I've run into by mistake..."
"Not to mention all the paranoids and their sites," Matt added, the ghost of a smile appearing on his lips. "I wonder if Joe has a site anywhere around here..."
"This is not the time for jokes, you guys," Izzy said firmly.
"But what are we supposed to do?" Agumon said nervously.
"Uh-huh," Palmon said, plucking at her petals. "I mean, I know how to battle, but how do I get rid of how scared I am? I'm about ready to start shedding leaves here, I'm so freaked out!"
"Same here," Gabumon agreed, and then paused, frowning. "Except for the part about the leaves."
"You'll have to figure that out on your own," Izzy said hurriedly. "I've got to try and reach Sora, and the virus isn't wanting to let me through with a message."
"Try overcoming your negative emotions," Matt said with a grin.
Izzy paused. "Good idea!" he exclaimed. "Thanks, Matt!" With that, the window winked out. Matt raised his eyebrows, glancing at Mimi.
"I was just yanking his chain," he said, surprised.
"But your idea was a good one," Mimi replied, and closed her eyes. "Let me see..." She let go of Matt to step back and clench her fists at her sides. "I am not afraid," she declared, and then winced. "This isn't working..."
"Well, keep trying," Matt said, trying to think of something else to do...
"Okay, I'm done recording," Izzy said with a sigh, resting his hands, unmoving, on the keyboard. "Let's give this a go..." Closing his eyes, he spoke firmly to himself. "I'm not scared. I'm perfectly happy. Nothing wrong with me." Opening his eyes, Izzy snorted sarcastically. "Oh, yeah, I'm just fine with the fact that Tai and Sora are going to *die*... Of all the ideas TK's had, this has got to be the worst!"
"What's your problem?" Joe said, looking over from where he'd been sitting and jittering on the bed.
"I'm trying to overcome my negative emotions," Izzy stated matter-of-factly. "It's not working."
"What's so hard about that?" Joe said, shrugging.
Izzy turned slowly to stare at him.
"What?" Joe said, sounding injured and a bit confused.
"Um, Joe? Of all the people I know," Izzy said slowly, "you are the last one I would expect to say that."
"How come?" Joe said defensively, crossing his arms.
"Because you're neurotic, that's why!" Izzy exploded. "Look, would you just sit still, or...or go find something new to be allergic to, or at least shut up?! I am trying to let go of my fears here, which for your information is not an easy thing to do, especially when you're scared out of your mind!"
Joe looked hurt. "I am *not* neurotic...and why shouldn't it be easy? It's just like that mind-over-matter thing we did to get rid of the Bakemon."
Izzy was staring at him again. Joe scowled.
"Oh, what's your damage *now*?" he said irritably.
"'Mind over matter'...Joe, you're a genius!" Izzy crowed.
"A neurotic genius?" Joe said, still a bit indignant.
"An *absolute* genius!" Izzy corrected, delighted with his friend's accidental brilliance "Listen, what was that chant you and Sora did?"
"Uh, 'Bakemon lose your power'?" Joe said, confused as to where all this was leading.
"Not exactly Shakespeare, but it'll do," Izzy said. "The whole point of those chants is that they build up the confidence to help you achieve your goals, which is exactly what we need right now!" He turned to the screen. "Virus, lose your power!" he shouted.
"Izzy? Have you completely lost it?" Joe said nervously.
"It was your idea, now chant!" Izzy shot back. "Virus, lose your power!"
"Virus, uhm, lose your power," Joe said gamely. They repeated the chant, shouting it as loudly as they could.
"What's going on up there?" someone yelled through the locked door.
"Uh, nothing Mom! Just a game!" Izzy yelled back. "When did she get home?" he muttered to Joe. "Virus, lose your power!"
"Well, try to keep it down!"
The boys ignored her, chanting together. "I think it's working!" Joe exclaimed. He actually felt better, more…well, confident, like he might have some power over the situation after all. Izzy grinned, nodding. He, too, had begun to feel sure of himself.
"We're going to make it after all! Virus, lose your power!!"
With a bang, two symbols exploded into existence in the air.
Purple Knowledge and dark-blue Reliability.
"Prodigious!" Izzy yelled, pumping his fist in the air.
"What on Earth *was* that?!"
"Just a video game, Mom!" Izzy fudged, quickly going back to his computer. He cracked his knuckles. "Okay, virus, say your prayers! One Email, coming at ya!"
Joe grinned, amused by his friend's relapse to normal-speak. "What are you waiting for?" he exclaimed. "Punch it!"
"Right," Izzy agreed, and hit the Send button.
"Sora, this is Izzy!"
Startled, Sora lifted her head to see a window hovering in midair.
"Izzy?" she murmured, confused. "What are you doing here?"
"I've just gotten some important information," he barreled on, not focusing on her, and she realized that it was a prerecorded message.
*He probably had trouble getting a signal through the virus,* she thought, surprised that he'd gotten one in at all.
"TK called me on the D-Terminal. He's all right!"
Sora's mouth dropped open. "You're kidding," she whispered, as pleased as she was stunned. *He's okay! Oh, TK!*
"He says the virus feeds on emotions! Hatred, gloom, terror, grief, all that delightful sort of thing." Izzy rolled his eyes. "So, to beat the virus, you have to beat those feelings. Hold on to hope, Sora," he said determinedly. "We all know you can do it. Help Tai...and yourself."
The window winked out. Sora stared at the place where it had been. Izzy's words rang in her mind. *Hold on to hope...help Tai...we all know you can do it...* A strange warmth spread through her at the thought of her friends, still working hard to give her a hand, even when they felt so far away...
*I'm not alone,* she thought, astonished. *Not even here.* She looked down at Tai's still face. *And...neither is he.*
"Tai, please keep trying," she whispered, almost inaudibly. Her voice grew in volume and confidence as she spoke. "Be strong. Don't give up." She reached down to take his hand, closing her eyes and listening to his slowing heartbeat, willing it to speed up again. For a split second, Sora imagined that their hearts beat as one...
"I love you."
"I'm not afraid," Mimi tried again, clenching her fists at her sides. "I'm not-what the hell is that?!"
Matt's head snapped up, shocked. Mimi *never* swore!
Then he saw what she was looking at, and let out a few choice words of his own.
The ball of virus was...rippling. Holes were appearing in the sides, and beams of orange and pale blue light were shooting from them like lances. A soft humming note, like a temple bell, shimmered in the watchers' ears. It became harsher, louder, rising to a thin, keening squeal...
"I don't get it..." Matt muttered, flabbergasted. "What's-"
He didn't get any further; at that moment, the roiling ball quite literally exploded. Gobs of virus flew in every direction, as a burst of light left stars dancing in front of Matt's vision. A chunk of virus hit the carousel, rocking it back, and the occupants lunged to grab the poles that held up the fanciful horses to keep from being thrown clear.
"Whooooa!"
Blinking sunspots from his eyes, Matt tried to focus on the place where the dark globe had been...
And cursed again, completely bewildered.
"Uh, Matt?" Gabumon said, reaching over to tug at his pants leg from the next pole over. "Is it just me...or are those Tai and Sora's crests?"
The diminutive wolf was right on target. The crests of Courage and Love shone brightly from the former center of the virus, sending orange and blue light dancing across the faces of the stunned onlookers.
"Wow..." Mimi breathed, staring in awe at the glittering emblems. Suddenly, the carousel shuddered, and everyone on it cried out, distracted from the shining spectacle.
"What now?" Palmon wailed. Looking down, it was too clear. The lump of virus that had hit them earlier had not flown away.
It was crawling up over the edge of the carousel.
And it was the size of a bus.
"Oh, great, just what we need!" Matt yelled, disgusted. Right when he thought they were getting somewhere, too. "Hey, Gabumon, torch it, will you?"
"Already on it," Gabumon assured him, starting to rev up a Blue Blaster.
The virus convulsed suddenly, jerking the drifting carousel sideways and throwing all those present off their feet. They clung to the poles like flies as the virus rocked the carousel again...
"Okay, scratch that plan!" Matt shouted.
"That's not the only virus left, either!" Agumon cried. "Look around! That bang didn't kill it-it just relocated it! It's all over the place!"
He was right. Virus dripped down the floating junk of the 'Net, forming into puddles, and the puddles into pools, and the pools into lakes...
"If that stuff turns into the Terminator, I'm calling my lawyer!" Matt shouted.
"Matt!" Mimi screamed, losing her grip as she was buffeted about. She started to slide 'down' the tilted floor of the carousel toward the virus. Matt swore again, viciously.
Gabumon started to charge up another attack, but Matt stopped him.
"Hold it! You're going to hit her!" he yelled, thinking fast...
"I can snag her!" Palmon cried. "Poison Ivy!"
The vines wrapped around Mimi's wrists, stopping her fall abruptly. She swung back and forth, looking down at the virus in terror...
That moment of fear was all it needed. A wide tendril of virus sprang from the lump as it began to grow again, reaching for the little Digimon's vines.
"Palmon, let go!" Mimi shrieked. Automatically, she obeyed, reeling in the vines faster than you could blink. Mimi began to fall again...
The reaction had been instinctive, but Palmon instantly felt aghast at what she'd done. "Hold on, Mimi! Poi-"
"No!" Agumon exclaimed, stopping her short. "She's right! You're too powerful to risk!"
"But that's my Mimi down there!" Palmon wailed. "I'm the weakest Digimon here-I don't even have a Mega level! You've got to let me!"
"Don't worry about it," Matt said quickly. He was done thinking; it was more than time for action. "I'll get her."
"What?!" all three Digimon gasped, but Matt was on his way down already, sliding from horse to horse at a terrific pace.
"I hope he knows what he's doing..." Agumon muttered.
"Are you kidding? He's nuts!" Gabumon exclaimed.
"Well, thanks for your vote of confidence!" Matt yelled, dashing to get there in time...
___________________________
Okay, folks, I'm afraid this fic isn't going to be done by the time I leave for Japan. Gomen nasai! (Forgive me!) I promise, I'll do my best to finish it while I'm there and put it up as soon as I get back! (On July 23rd...sigh...) Luv you all, and please, keep reviewing! Jya ne! (See you later!) -from, Bandit O_o
"You guys!"
Matt, Mimi and the Digimon looked up in alarm, but the window hanging in midair by the carousel showed only Izzy's face, strangely excited.
"What is it?" Matt said, not sure what to do. He was dazed with shock...
"TK just called me, and he's okay!"
"Huh?" they all said, baffled. Izzy frowned.
"Never mind, I'll tell you later. Anyway, he told me something vital! The virus feeds on negative emotions! You've got to overcome your fear and anger and all of that sort of thing; it's the only way to beat it!"
"Well, that sure explains why it's growing so fast on the Internet," Mimi spoke up, a rueful expression on her face. "When I think of some of the hate sites I've run into by mistake..."
"Not to mention all the paranoids and their sites," Matt added, the ghost of a smile appearing on his lips. "I wonder if Joe has a site anywhere around here..."
"This is not the time for jokes, you guys," Izzy said firmly.
"But what are we supposed to do?" Agumon said nervously.
"Uh-huh," Palmon said, plucking at her petals. "I mean, I know how to battle, but how do I get rid of how scared I am? I'm about ready to start shedding leaves here, I'm so freaked out!"
"Same here," Gabumon agreed, and then paused, frowning. "Except for the part about the leaves."
"You'll have to figure that out on your own," Izzy said hurriedly. "I've got to try and reach Sora, and the virus isn't wanting to let me through with a message."
"Try overcoming your negative emotions," Matt said with a grin.
Izzy paused. "Good idea!" he exclaimed. "Thanks, Matt!" With that, the window winked out. Matt raised his eyebrows, glancing at Mimi.
"I was just yanking his chain," he said, surprised.
"But your idea was a good one," Mimi replied, and closed her eyes. "Let me see..." She let go of Matt to step back and clench her fists at her sides. "I am not afraid," she declared, and then winced. "This isn't working..."
"Well, keep trying," Matt said, trying to think of something else to do...
"Okay, I'm done recording," Izzy said with a sigh, resting his hands, unmoving, on the keyboard. "Let's give this a go..." Closing his eyes, he spoke firmly to himself. "I'm not scared. I'm perfectly happy. Nothing wrong with me." Opening his eyes, Izzy snorted sarcastically. "Oh, yeah, I'm just fine with the fact that Tai and Sora are going to *die*... Of all the ideas TK's had, this has got to be the worst!"
"What's your problem?" Joe said, looking over from where he'd been sitting and jittering on the bed.
"I'm trying to overcome my negative emotions," Izzy stated matter-of-factly. "It's not working."
"What's so hard about that?" Joe said, shrugging.
Izzy turned slowly to stare at him.
"What?" Joe said, sounding injured and a bit confused.
"Um, Joe? Of all the people I know," Izzy said slowly, "you are the last one I would expect to say that."
"How come?" Joe said defensively, crossing his arms.
"Because you're neurotic, that's why!" Izzy exploded. "Look, would you just sit still, or...or go find something new to be allergic to, or at least shut up?! I am trying to let go of my fears here, which for your information is not an easy thing to do, especially when you're scared out of your mind!"
Joe looked hurt. "I am *not* neurotic...and why shouldn't it be easy? It's just like that mind-over-matter thing we did to get rid of the Bakemon."
Izzy was staring at him again. Joe scowled.
"Oh, what's your damage *now*?" he said irritably.
"'Mind over matter'...Joe, you're a genius!" Izzy crowed.
"A neurotic genius?" Joe said, still a bit indignant.
"An *absolute* genius!" Izzy corrected, delighted with his friend's accidental brilliance "Listen, what was that chant you and Sora did?"
"Uh, 'Bakemon lose your power'?" Joe said, confused as to where all this was leading.
"Not exactly Shakespeare, but it'll do," Izzy said. "The whole point of those chants is that they build up the confidence to help you achieve your goals, which is exactly what we need right now!" He turned to the screen. "Virus, lose your power!" he shouted.
"Izzy? Have you completely lost it?" Joe said nervously.
"It was your idea, now chant!" Izzy shot back. "Virus, lose your power!"
"Virus, uhm, lose your power," Joe said gamely. They repeated the chant, shouting it as loudly as they could.
"What's going on up there?" someone yelled through the locked door.
"Uh, nothing Mom! Just a game!" Izzy yelled back. "When did she get home?" he muttered to Joe. "Virus, lose your power!"
"Well, try to keep it down!"
The boys ignored her, chanting together. "I think it's working!" Joe exclaimed. He actually felt better, more…well, confident, like he might have some power over the situation after all. Izzy grinned, nodding. He, too, had begun to feel sure of himself.
"We're going to make it after all! Virus, lose your power!!"
With a bang, two symbols exploded into existence in the air.
Purple Knowledge and dark-blue Reliability.
"Prodigious!" Izzy yelled, pumping his fist in the air.
"What on Earth *was* that?!"
"Just a video game, Mom!" Izzy fudged, quickly going back to his computer. He cracked his knuckles. "Okay, virus, say your prayers! One Email, coming at ya!"
Joe grinned, amused by his friend's relapse to normal-speak. "What are you waiting for?" he exclaimed. "Punch it!"
"Right," Izzy agreed, and hit the Send button.
"Sora, this is Izzy!"
Startled, Sora lifted her head to see a window hovering in midair.
"Izzy?" she murmured, confused. "What are you doing here?"
"I've just gotten some important information," he barreled on, not focusing on her, and she realized that it was a prerecorded message.
*He probably had trouble getting a signal through the virus,* she thought, surprised that he'd gotten one in at all.
"TK called me on the D-Terminal. He's all right!"
Sora's mouth dropped open. "You're kidding," she whispered, as pleased as she was stunned. *He's okay! Oh, TK!*
"He says the virus feeds on emotions! Hatred, gloom, terror, grief, all that delightful sort of thing." Izzy rolled his eyes. "So, to beat the virus, you have to beat those feelings. Hold on to hope, Sora," he said determinedly. "We all know you can do it. Help Tai...and yourself."
The window winked out. Sora stared at the place where it had been. Izzy's words rang in her mind. *Hold on to hope...help Tai...we all know you can do it...* A strange warmth spread through her at the thought of her friends, still working hard to give her a hand, even when they felt so far away...
*I'm not alone,* she thought, astonished. *Not even here.* She looked down at Tai's still face. *And...neither is he.*
"Tai, please keep trying," she whispered, almost inaudibly. Her voice grew in volume and confidence as she spoke. "Be strong. Don't give up." She reached down to take his hand, closing her eyes and listening to his slowing heartbeat, willing it to speed up again. For a split second, Sora imagined that their hearts beat as one...
"I love you."
"I'm not afraid," Mimi tried again, clenching her fists at her sides. "I'm not-what the hell is that?!"
Matt's head snapped up, shocked. Mimi *never* swore!
Then he saw what she was looking at, and let out a few choice words of his own.
The ball of virus was...rippling. Holes were appearing in the sides, and beams of orange and pale blue light were shooting from them like lances. A soft humming note, like a temple bell, shimmered in the watchers' ears. It became harsher, louder, rising to a thin, keening squeal...
"I don't get it..." Matt muttered, flabbergasted. "What's-"
He didn't get any further; at that moment, the roiling ball quite literally exploded. Gobs of virus flew in every direction, as a burst of light left stars dancing in front of Matt's vision. A chunk of virus hit the carousel, rocking it back, and the occupants lunged to grab the poles that held up the fanciful horses to keep from being thrown clear.
"Whooooa!"
Blinking sunspots from his eyes, Matt tried to focus on the place where the dark globe had been...
And cursed again, completely bewildered.
"Uh, Matt?" Gabumon said, reaching over to tug at his pants leg from the next pole over. "Is it just me...or are those Tai and Sora's crests?"
The diminutive wolf was right on target. The crests of Courage and Love shone brightly from the former center of the virus, sending orange and blue light dancing across the faces of the stunned onlookers.
"Wow..." Mimi breathed, staring in awe at the glittering emblems. Suddenly, the carousel shuddered, and everyone on it cried out, distracted from the shining spectacle.
"What now?" Palmon wailed. Looking down, it was too clear. The lump of virus that had hit them earlier had not flown away.
It was crawling up over the edge of the carousel.
And it was the size of a bus.
"Oh, great, just what we need!" Matt yelled, disgusted. Right when he thought they were getting somewhere, too. "Hey, Gabumon, torch it, will you?"
"Already on it," Gabumon assured him, starting to rev up a Blue Blaster.
The virus convulsed suddenly, jerking the drifting carousel sideways and throwing all those present off their feet. They clung to the poles like flies as the virus rocked the carousel again...
"Okay, scratch that plan!" Matt shouted.
"That's not the only virus left, either!" Agumon cried. "Look around! That bang didn't kill it-it just relocated it! It's all over the place!"
He was right. Virus dripped down the floating junk of the 'Net, forming into puddles, and the puddles into pools, and the pools into lakes...
"If that stuff turns into the Terminator, I'm calling my lawyer!" Matt shouted.
"Matt!" Mimi screamed, losing her grip as she was buffeted about. She started to slide 'down' the tilted floor of the carousel toward the virus. Matt swore again, viciously.
Gabumon started to charge up another attack, but Matt stopped him.
"Hold it! You're going to hit her!" he yelled, thinking fast...
"I can snag her!" Palmon cried. "Poison Ivy!"
The vines wrapped around Mimi's wrists, stopping her fall abruptly. She swung back and forth, looking down at the virus in terror...
That moment of fear was all it needed. A wide tendril of virus sprang from the lump as it began to grow again, reaching for the little Digimon's vines.
"Palmon, let go!" Mimi shrieked. Automatically, she obeyed, reeling in the vines faster than you could blink. Mimi began to fall again...
The reaction had been instinctive, but Palmon instantly felt aghast at what she'd done. "Hold on, Mimi! Poi-"
"No!" Agumon exclaimed, stopping her short. "She's right! You're too powerful to risk!"
"But that's my Mimi down there!" Palmon wailed. "I'm the weakest Digimon here-I don't even have a Mega level! You've got to let me!"
"Don't worry about it," Matt said quickly. He was done thinking; it was more than time for action. "I'll get her."
"What?!" all three Digimon gasped, but Matt was on his way down already, sliding from horse to horse at a terrific pace.
"I hope he knows what he's doing..." Agumon muttered.
"Are you kidding? He's nuts!" Gabumon exclaimed.
"Well, thanks for your vote of confidence!" Matt yelled, dashing to get there in time...
___________________________
Okay, folks, I'm afraid this fic isn't going to be done by the time I leave for Japan. Gomen nasai! (Forgive me!) I promise, I'll do my best to finish it while I'm there and put it up as soon as I get back! (On July 23rd...sigh...) Luv you all, and please, keep reviewing! Jya ne! (See you later!) -from, Bandit O_o