A Bigger Threat
Episode 9:
"The Return of Davis"
By: Shmeilia
"Okay, I don't get something," Yolei complained. "When Ken 'Digivolved', the gate to the Digital World opened back up. When Cody 'Digivolved', the buildings and rodes came back. With TK, the plants came back. With Kari, the sky cleared up. How come when I 'Digivolved', NOTHING HAPPENED?!"
Cody sighed and shifted Davis a little so he wouldn't drop him. "Oh, it did. You just don't know what it was."
"Well, Mr. I-Know-Everything, what was it?"
Cody opened his mouth to respond, but then snapped it shut again. "I haven't the slightest clue. Sorry."
Yolei slapped her forehead. Kari tried not to laugh.
"Hey, guys, can we take a break?"
"Sure, TK," Cody needed a break too, but being the leader, he couldn't admitt it. He laid Davis not-so-gently on the ground and collasped on a rock next to TK. The extra weight was killing them.
The two girls sat across from them on their own rocks. Yolei's stomach gurggled and she sweatdropped, "Sorry! I could really go for a Veggie Burger right about now."
"Oh, I know what you mean," Kari agreed, "I need some cheesecake!"
"A baked potato with mustard," TK daydreamed.
"Gogert," Cody added with a sigh.
"Gogert?" Everyone asked, eyeing him strangely.
Cody snapped out of his daze, "You guys haven't heard of Gogert? It's an American snack."
"What IS it?" Kari asked.
"It's the go-anywhere snack! Drinkable yogert! No need for a spoon!" Cody said in his best announcer voice. Then he added, "And for a real treat, just pop it in the freezer."
"Right," Yolei laughed, "Don't quit your day-job, Cody."
Somewhere far away, Davis heard voices. It seemed like he was sitting at the bottom of a dark pool, and they were all above the surface, in the sunlight. Already, he could feel the pain his body was in, and he didn't want to deal with it. If only he could go back to thoughtless sleep, but that wasn't possible. No turning back now...
Slowly, Davis stirred. He groaned, and the sound of his own voice seemed alien to him. He opened his eyes to see Cody and Yolei standing over him, smiling. He stared at them blankly, trying desprately to remember who they were.
"How are you feeling?" Cody asked.
Suddenly, his memories rushed back to him with the speed of an on-coming truck. He covered his ears, "No!"
"No?" Yolei asked. "He asked how you were feeling, and that's not a yes-or-no quest-"
"Oh, what have I done?" He lept to his feet and took off.
"Okay, what the heck was that about?" TK asked after the following shocked pause.
"I better go get him, before he tries something desprate," Cody said to himself. He grabbed his fighting staff and trotted off after Davis.
Yolei watched after them, a worried look on her face.
Davis had no idea where he was going, but he ran as fast as his exhausted body could go. He hadn't eatten in days, and Keesma took full advantage of him without worrying about the consequences. After all, she didn't feel the pain, the exhaustion. He did. Every fiber of his body ached, but not as much as his soul. He now operated on the lesser of his two crests, and it was so weak. He felt like he would collapse any minute, but he didn't care. He'd surrendered part of his soul to the Queen of the Demons, now he could never be forgiven. He'd never forgive himself. He came to a cliff, and stopped. Tears ran down his face. He would do what he should have done when Keesma tortured him-He would die now. In his heart he knew it wouldn't solve anything. He knew where it would land him, but even an eternity in Hell wouldn't make up for his crime. He looked up at the star-filled sky, then down at the bottomless canyon. He closed his eyes, whispered, "Sorry," and fell over the edge in what felt like slow motion.
"Oh, no you don't," a voice called. A hand caught his foot at the last second and he slammed against the rock. Someone hauled him back onto solid ground.
"Why did you do that?" He shreiked, pushing the person away from him.
"I won't let anyone take their own life," Cody answered, out of breath.
Davis shamefully whiped the tears from his eyes. "Why won't you just let me die?"
"Don't talk like that. You've still got your whole life ahead of you!"
Davis could only look up at him with pain-filled eyes. He couldn't respond, but he knew in his soul that the rest of his life would be a living nightmare. And he only had himself to blame.
Cody grabbed his arm and led him back to the others. Davis didn't resist, because he knew he desrved this humilliation. It was his punishment. He retreated to the back of his mind, detaching himself temporarily from the pain of guilt.
"Oh, good, you brought him back!" Yolei was happy that Davis was okay. "Why'd you run off like that, Davis?"
Words. Those were just words, they had no meaning to him. He stared blankly at her. She might as well have asked him in Latin.
"What happened?" She asked Cody instead.
"He tried to commit suicide."
"Why?" She gasped.
"I don't deserve to live, I'm a monster," Davis responded dully, not even needing to think about it.
"It's not your fault, Davis," she told him. "You were possessed."
"But, I..." Emotion surged up within him like a tidal wave. "I let her possess me! Don't you understand? I WANTED it! And THAT'S why I need to die."
Silence. Davis closed his eyes to block out their hot stares, but he could feel them anyway. He could feel himself blushing from shame. He fell to the ground, exhaustion suddenly hitting him with full force.
"Get up," TK commanded, kicking him.
Sleep, he needed sleep. "I can't. Leave me here."
"We're not leaving you. Now, get UP!"
Somehow, only by sheer will power, he managed to climb to his feet and follow the group.
After a while, Cody herded him to the front of the pack. "No offence, but I don't want you running away again."
Since he spent all his energy just trying to keep up, he didn't complain.
Cody and TK took turns carrying Ken. At least Ken had earned his rest, although Davis couldn't remember how. He didn't want to know what had happened while SHE had control.
After several more hours of silence, they arrived at Light Castle.
Michael and Willis eyed them suspeciously. "You cannot come in."
"Why not?" Yolei whined.
"One of you does not have good intentions."
"What? Who?"
They pointed their sickles at Davis. "He wants to end his life, and we cannot let that happen."
Davis stared at the ground. Hatred gnawed at his insides. Hatred only for himself. He tried to snuff out his own soul, like when someone 'dies of grief'. It wasn't working.
"Oh, please let us in!" Yolei begged, "We need sanctuary!"
The two Freedom Sprits looked at each other, communicating telepathically. "Tie him up, otherwise he WILL find a way to kill himself. Murder will not be tolerated within these walls."
They handed Cody a golden rope. He took it with great pain and led Davis through the doors. Davis put up no resistence, even when they tied him to a bed in a secluded part of the castle. TK and Kari wouldn't even stand in the same room as him, and he didn't blame him. He remembered what he'd done to them all too clearly.
"Are you okay, Davis?" Yolei asked in her sweet way.
He didn't respond.
"If you need anything..."
"Yeah, I need you to kill me."
Her eyes went wide. "I can't do that."
"Then leave me alone."
She stared at him for a moment, not understanding his pain at all.
"Come on, Yolei, he wants some time alone."
"But Cody..."
"Go on!" Davis yelled, "Why don't you two just leave?"
So they left, and the silence settled in.
* * * *
*Author's note: This is the first appearance of the Dark Digidestined, and I just wanted to tell my readers about one small neglected detail: Darkness looks a lot like Sam. More specifically, he looks JUST like the CardCaptors character Eli (Yes, Sheila calls them by their american names.) a.k.a. Eriol. I already had a picture of Darkness in my mind before I ever saw Eli, so I found it really disturbing to see my guy playing some other show's character. Also note that the guy they got to play Eli in the American version sounds almost exactly like Darkness. How weird is that?*
"Fear, Lust, Apathy, Hate, Darkness, get your sorry butts into the Digital World right now! If do not then I will make every one of your Dark Spores grow into Dark Trees! I, your master, Keesma, command you!"
"Chaos? I thought she called in sick today."
Darkness finished his shake and tossed it over his shoulder. It whacked a sixth-grader on the head, bounced off and landed in the trash can. The Dark Digidestined were just finishing lunch, for Pete's sake! "That is not Chaos."
"Yeah," Fear agreed, "That's our Master! Come on, before she adds some new decorations to the court yard."
They disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, much to the surprise of the other kids eatting lunch in the cafeteria that day.
* * * *
COMMERCIAL BREAK!
Izzy: Now here's something you don't see every day...
(Ken's beating up the Digimon Emperor.)
What's wrong with this picture? This is just one very bad example of how weird life is for the Megadigidestined.
(Ken's still beating the Emperor)
Izzy: Oh, boy.
The Emperor looks over the top of his glasses at Ken. "Lookin' good."
Izzy: See what I mean? Anyway, now back to the show.
* * * *
Davis was dreaming, and he knew it, but that didn't make it seem any less real. Keesma floated just inches him, staring and smiling. He laid there, frozen with an overwhelming fear.
"Miss me?" She asked.
"Why don't you leave me alone?"
She fluffed his messy hair. "Oh, you know you still want me. I have your crest. It misses you."
He started to say something nasty, but before he could she kissed him. He was tied to the bed, so he really couldn't resist, but he didn't want to. The contact connected him momentarily to that lost part of his soul, and the pain dulled.
"Hmm, what a good boy," she told him.
"You're a horrible creature, you know that?"
"Thank you, I live off your compliments."
"Why'd you make me do all those terrible things?"
She snapped his goggles, "Hey, you did 'em. You've wanted to do such things for a very long time, and I just provided the means for it. Blame me all you want, but it's all your own fault."
"But Kari...I never wanted to hurt her."
"Aw, did you think you were in love with her? You wanted to own her, and that in itself is evil. It was just a tiny step to abuse. Remember that well."
"I did, no, I do love her!"
In the blink of an eye, they were on the top of the castle. "She never loved you, Davis."
TK and Kari stood in the corner of the roof, overlooking the entire Digital World. He had his arms around her, and she couldn't look any happier.
"I thought I'd lost you, TK."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you pain."
She turned to look into his sky-blue eyes. "But YOU didn't do anything."
"What that demon did with my body..." He trailed off and frowned. "This is all Davis's fault. The ambitious little-"
She put her finger to his lips and whispered, "Let's not think about him, all right?"
"But when I think about what he could have done to you..."
Davis looked away, ashamed.
"No," she stopped him. "I'm fine. You're okay too. So let's just forget Davis."
Then he kissed her. Keesma pushed Davis closer so he had to watch. Watching them felt like swallowing a sharp knife. She never would love him.
"Enough!" Davis turned to run away, but there they were again.
Keesma laughed her evil laugh, "You can't escape this, Davis. Not until you except it."
"No!" He woke up. Stared at the blank ceiling and cried himself back to sleep. He slept dreamlessly until he couldn't sleep any more. For who knows how long, he alternated between a state of overwhelming self-hatred where he trashed about trying to get loose, and moments of complete emptiness. Panic. Nothing. Rage. Nothing.
Nothing. The hope was gone.
* * * *
"I feel so lost, I don't have a clue what I'm doing."
"You just need to trust in the Powers," Wormmon told him. Ken was dreaming.
"But why did they charge ME with this? It's not like I deserve it."
"Does anyone, really? Is anyone perfect?"
"No, I guess not." Ken looked away, frustrated. He gazed up at the pink clouds drifting lazily across the orange sky. Everything was covered in a sweet, warm haze. Perfectly peaceful. It would be easy to stay there forever, but that wasn't possible and he knew it. At least not right now. He sighed heavily and looked at his partner. Wormmon didn't say a thing, but looked up at him with loving eyes. "I don't even deserve you as a friend."
"Don't say that."
"I don't deserve any of the blessings in my life. Not after the awful things I've done."
Wormmon scooted closer, and took Ken's hands. "Are you sorry?"
"Of course."
He smiled with his eyes, "Then stop worring about it, Ken. You're sorry, and you've been forgiven. Dwelling on it won't make it any better. Just know that you've learned from your mistakes, and let it go."
Ken gave his Digimon a hug. "Thanks, buddy."
"That's what I'm here for. If you ever need to talk again, you know where to find me."
"Uh-oh, that sounds like good-bye to me."
"You're needed in the Waking World, Ken. Davis..."
POP! He woke up. "Davis!"
"What?" Came the hopeless reply.
Ken toppled out of his bed and turned to the one next to him. To his horror, he discovered someone had TIED DAVIS TO THE BED AND JUST LEFT HIM THERE! Immediately, he started untying the knots.
"Stop," Davis commanded weakly.
"What?"
"If you don't want me committing suicide, I suggest you leave me the way I am."
Ken stepped back and looked at the state of his best human friend. It seemed as though Davis were withering away. He looked like he'd lost a lot of weight, and he was bleeding everywhere the ropes touched his skin, like he'd been thrashing against them. Ken took a deep breath, ran his hands through his blue hair and resumed working on those knots. Davis stared at his with confusion in his screaming eyes. He told Davis, "As long as I'm with you, I won't let you kill yourself."
If it had been anyone else, Davis would have ran away and hid, but he couldn't. Ken was the only one who knew what Davis was going through. He stretched, stood up shakily, and toppled over into the arms of his best friend. Ken made him sit on the bed. "Thanks. I've been tied up for days."
Ken couldn't help noticing how weak and hopeless Davis sounded. Indeed, he knew that tone too well. He also knew the only way Davis would get through this was with time and a really, really good friend. The tides had turned. He told Davis, "Don't worry, you're not alone."
Davis rubbed his eyes. "I want to argue with you, but I know you're right. We ought to start a 'Been Evil and Now Hate Ourselves' Club."
This got a little smile from Ken, but he wasn't fooled by Davis's act. "I won't leave you, and I definately won't let you kill yourself. In a couple of days, that feeling will start to go away, and you'll be glad I stopped you."
"No offence intended, but how did you live with yourself, knowing the awful things you did?"
He thought about that for a moment. "Well, lucky for me, my memory started to go fuzzy. Eventually, I had completely forgotten that I'd been the Emperor. I repressed my own memory of it, it was so horrible. Even today, I still can't remember a lot of it."
"I don't think that will happen to me," Davis said, squeezing his eyes shut. "It's all too fresh in my mind. I wish I could, though."
"Nah, it's probably best that you don't forget."
Davis looked at him like he'd declaired himself a Digimon.
"Hey, I'm serious. Trials make us better people. They...They define who we are, and as much as I hate to admitt it, I'm glad I went though my 'evil phase'. If I hadn't then I'd probably be pretty boring. I'd have no personality, I can promise you that. Besides, I got over it, and now I have a personal grudge against evil."
"I'm not sure I believe you on that one, Ken, but you're normally right about everything, so I'll just take your word for it." Davis absent-mindedly ran his fingers through his hair and came across his goggles. He took off and stared at them.
"I'm not right about EVERYTHING. But I do know exactly what your going through. It's all too fresh right now for you to understand. In a few years, you'll know."
"A few YEARS! Will it really take that long?"
"You'll never really get over it. Something that trumatic will stay with you forever."
Davis groaned and fell back on the bed. He held his goggles over him, and they cast a blue light on his weary face. "I guess I should pass these to the new leader. Ya know, go with the tradition."
"Cody wouldn't wear them. It's not his style. He's trying to stay humble."
Davis frowned at him, "What are you saying?"
Ken waved his arms frantically, "Nothing! Sorry that came out wrong. See, I still make mistakes! I'm not as perfect as I think people try to make me out to be."
"Well, I don't deserve them anymore, so, uh, do you want them?"
"Are you kidding?" He snapped them on, "Does this go with my hair? I don't think so!"
Indeed, they stuck out sorely under his shoulder-length hair, giving him the appearance of having a mane. That comical look clashed dearly with his solem grey school uniform.
Davis snorted as he repressed a laugh, and Ken knew he hadn't lost him yet. He handed them back, "Keep them, even if you don't wear them. Who knows, maybe you'll give 'em to one of your kids or something, someday."
"Yeah, right. Like I'm going to have kids. I'd feel sorry for them, having a jerk like me for a father."
Ken sighed. This was going to take a long time. But then again, this was all too familiar...
*Flashback*
Ken was walking home from school, so many things reeling in his head. School didn't matter that much anymore. Nothing mattered much any more. He'd given up, and gotten the first bad score on a test in years. The whole student body was in an uproar, but he wished they'd just forget he existed. Fame is a hard thing to run away from.
The sun set rapidly, and his long shadow fell across a pair of feet. Startled out of his thoughts, Ken looked up.
"Hey! Need to talk?"
Ken turned away from him, towards the river. "What do you want, Davis? Have you come to remind me that I've been a bad boy?"
"Come on, Ken, you're not evil."
"I'm not?"
"No. You're not."
"How would you know? What makes YOU so special?"
Davis held out his hands in surrender, "Hey, I'm not claiming to be special. I just know you're better than you think you are. After all, you're one of us Digidestined, so you can't be all bad."
This was new news to Ken. He eyed Davis carefully, "Me? A Digidestined?"
Davis just smiled. He knew silence spoke volumes, especially right about now.
"Thanks, Davis, but I'm just not interested." Ken started back down the path, half expecting Davis to come running after him. He didn't.
"Don't turn your back on us!"
Wether he realized it or not at that time, what Davis had done left a lasting impression on his mind. The others still thought he was the evil Digimon Emperor, but Davis knew better. He tried to make friends with Ken. That took a lot of guts. And it meant the world to him.
*End Flashback*
"Come on, let's get something to eat."
Davis groaned, and stood up shakily. "Oh, all right, fine."
They wandered around until they found a small kitchen. It seemed a little out of place in the grand castle.
Ken looked in the fridge, then stopped. "You know, I think I should tell the others that we're up."
"Not that they care, or anything."
"Will you be all right, Davis? While I go find them?"
"Yeah, sure."
Ken left, and after a pause Davis started searching for a knife. He hated himself as much as ever, and he was bound and determined to murder himself. He found a particularly evil looking knife with a wicked curving blade. He gripped it by the handle, aimed it at his heart and closed his eyes. He held it at arm's length for what seemed like an hour, trying to gather the courage to stab himself with it. Finally, he lowered it. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. He stared at his distorted reflection on the silvery polished surface. Man, he looked as bad as he felt. Oh, well, if he couldn't commit suicide, he'd at least punish himself. He closed his right hand around the blade and squeezed as hard as he could. He barely even felt the pain, and watched in awe as the blood trickled onto the floor in a steady stream.
"Hey, Davis, look who I found!" Oh, no. It was Ken. Davis dropped the knife just before Ken rounded the corner, followed by Veemon. They both just stood there staring with their mouths open. "What happened?"
Davis looked at his hand and said scornfully, "You should have known better than to leave me alone in such a dangerous place."
After Ken recovered from the shock, he picked up the knife and sliced his own hand.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"
"I cut myself for a short time, too, you know." Ken gripped Davis's wounded hand with his own and let their blood combine as it dripped onto the floor. Veemon continued to stare with his mouth open, making little squeaking noises. "Davis, you and I are like brothers now. You don't have to be alone anymore."
Davis blushed, finally understanding.
An explosion of light burst from their hands, throwing them in different directions.
"What the heck was that?" Davis asked, rubbing his head with his good hand.
"Are you okay?" Veemon asked, looking at both of them in concern.
Ken sat up and stared at Davis for a few moments before saying, "I think that was your Megadigidestined transformation."
Davis looked down at his normal clothes. "Where's my armor?"
"The armor is, uh, turned off inside the castle. You'll have to wait until we're outside to see it."
"Oh," After a short pause, "Thanks, Ken."
Ken smiled, "That's what I'm here for."
* * * *
"Honestly, I don't know what you two were thinking!" Yolei uncorked the bottle of pearly green liquid that hung around her neck and poured it over Davis's hand. Immediately, the wound was washed away, leaving a scar in the shape of the Crest of Friendship. "Wow, this stuff really does work wonders!"
Davis smiled at Ken, who shook his head as Yolei turned to him. "And you. YOU! Ken, of all people, I thought you would have known better. But I guess I was wrong. Humph!" She fixed his hand, then held the bottle up to her eyes. It looked just as full as it had before.
Ken looked at his hand and saw that he too had a Crest-shaped scar. He held it up for Davis to see. Davis blushed again and clasped hands with Ken. No one was watching.
"Well, guys, what do we do now?" Davis asked timidly, after the moment was over.
"We wait," Cody told him.
"I hate waiting!" Yolei declaired with a frustrated growl.
"Yes, I know."
"You know, I wish the older Digidestined were here," Ken said, looking at his hand.
POOF!
What is to become of the Digidestined now?
And what was that big 'poof' for?
Find out in the next episode of Digimon: A Bigger Threat:
"Too Many Digidestined"
Episode 9:
"The Return of Davis"
By: Shmeilia
"Okay, I don't get something," Yolei complained. "When Ken 'Digivolved', the gate to the Digital World opened back up. When Cody 'Digivolved', the buildings and rodes came back. With TK, the plants came back. With Kari, the sky cleared up. How come when I 'Digivolved', NOTHING HAPPENED?!"
Cody sighed and shifted Davis a little so he wouldn't drop him. "Oh, it did. You just don't know what it was."
"Well, Mr. I-Know-Everything, what was it?"
Cody opened his mouth to respond, but then snapped it shut again. "I haven't the slightest clue. Sorry."
Yolei slapped her forehead. Kari tried not to laugh.
"Hey, guys, can we take a break?"
"Sure, TK," Cody needed a break too, but being the leader, he couldn't admitt it. He laid Davis not-so-gently on the ground and collasped on a rock next to TK. The extra weight was killing them.
The two girls sat across from them on their own rocks. Yolei's stomach gurggled and she sweatdropped, "Sorry! I could really go for a Veggie Burger right about now."
"Oh, I know what you mean," Kari agreed, "I need some cheesecake!"
"A baked potato with mustard," TK daydreamed.
"Gogert," Cody added with a sigh.
"Gogert?" Everyone asked, eyeing him strangely.
Cody snapped out of his daze, "You guys haven't heard of Gogert? It's an American snack."
"What IS it?" Kari asked.
"It's the go-anywhere snack! Drinkable yogert! No need for a spoon!" Cody said in his best announcer voice. Then he added, "And for a real treat, just pop it in the freezer."
"Right," Yolei laughed, "Don't quit your day-job, Cody."
Somewhere far away, Davis heard voices. It seemed like he was sitting at the bottom of a dark pool, and they were all above the surface, in the sunlight. Already, he could feel the pain his body was in, and he didn't want to deal with it. If only he could go back to thoughtless sleep, but that wasn't possible. No turning back now...
Slowly, Davis stirred. He groaned, and the sound of his own voice seemed alien to him. He opened his eyes to see Cody and Yolei standing over him, smiling. He stared at them blankly, trying desprately to remember who they were.
"How are you feeling?" Cody asked.
Suddenly, his memories rushed back to him with the speed of an on-coming truck. He covered his ears, "No!"
"No?" Yolei asked. "He asked how you were feeling, and that's not a yes-or-no quest-"
"Oh, what have I done?" He lept to his feet and took off.
"Okay, what the heck was that about?" TK asked after the following shocked pause.
"I better go get him, before he tries something desprate," Cody said to himself. He grabbed his fighting staff and trotted off after Davis.
Yolei watched after them, a worried look on her face.
Davis had no idea where he was going, but he ran as fast as his exhausted body could go. He hadn't eatten in days, and Keesma took full advantage of him without worrying about the consequences. After all, she didn't feel the pain, the exhaustion. He did. Every fiber of his body ached, but not as much as his soul. He now operated on the lesser of his two crests, and it was so weak. He felt like he would collapse any minute, but he didn't care. He'd surrendered part of his soul to the Queen of the Demons, now he could never be forgiven. He'd never forgive himself. He came to a cliff, and stopped. Tears ran down his face. He would do what he should have done when Keesma tortured him-He would die now. In his heart he knew it wouldn't solve anything. He knew where it would land him, but even an eternity in Hell wouldn't make up for his crime. He looked up at the star-filled sky, then down at the bottomless canyon. He closed his eyes, whispered, "Sorry," and fell over the edge in what felt like slow motion.
"Oh, no you don't," a voice called. A hand caught his foot at the last second and he slammed against the rock. Someone hauled him back onto solid ground.
"Why did you do that?" He shreiked, pushing the person away from him.
"I won't let anyone take their own life," Cody answered, out of breath.
Davis shamefully whiped the tears from his eyes. "Why won't you just let me die?"
"Don't talk like that. You've still got your whole life ahead of you!"
Davis could only look up at him with pain-filled eyes. He couldn't respond, but he knew in his soul that the rest of his life would be a living nightmare. And he only had himself to blame.
Cody grabbed his arm and led him back to the others. Davis didn't resist, because he knew he desrved this humilliation. It was his punishment. He retreated to the back of his mind, detaching himself temporarily from the pain of guilt.
"Oh, good, you brought him back!" Yolei was happy that Davis was okay. "Why'd you run off like that, Davis?"
Words. Those were just words, they had no meaning to him. He stared blankly at her. She might as well have asked him in Latin.
"What happened?" She asked Cody instead.
"He tried to commit suicide."
"Why?" She gasped.
"I don't deserve to live, I'm a monster," Davis responded dully, not even needing to think about it.
"It's not your fault, Davis," she told him. "You were possessed."
"But, I..." Emotion surged up within him like a tidal wave. "I let her possess me! Don't you understand? I WANTED it! And THAT'S why I need to die."
Silence. Davis closed his eyes to block out their hot stares, but he could feel them anyway. He could feel himself blushing from shame. He fell to the ground, exhaustion suddenly hitting him with full force.
"Get up," TK commanded, kicking him.
Sleep, he needed sleep. "I can't. Leave me here."
"We're not leaving you. Now, get UP!"
Somehow, only by sheer will power, he managed to climb to his feet and follow the group.
After a while, Cody herded him to the front of the pack. "No offence, but I don't want you running away again."
Since he spent all his energy just trying to keep up, he didn't complain.
Cody and TK took turns carrying Ken. At least Ken had earned his rest, although Davis couldn't remember how. He didn't want to know what had happened while SHE had control.
After several more hours of silence, they arrived at Light Castle.
Michael and Willis eyed them suspeciously. "You cannot come in."
"Why not?" Yolei whined.
"One of you does not have good intentions."
"What? Who?"
They pointed their sickles at Davis. "He wants to end his life, and we cannot let that happen."
Davis stared at the ground. Hatred gnawed at his insides. Hatred only for himself. He tried to snuff out his own soul, like when someone 'dies of grief'. It wasn't working.
"Oh, please let us in!" Yolei begged, "We need sanctuary!"
The two Freedom Sprits looked at each other, communicating telepathically. "Tie him up, otherwise he WILL find a way to kill himself. Murder will not be tolerated within these walls."
They handed Cody a golden rope. He took it with great pain and led Davis through the doors. Davis put up no resistence, even when they tied him to a bed in a secluded part of the castle. TK and Kari wouldn't even stand in the same room as him, and he didn't blame him. He remembered what he'd done to them all too clearly.
"Are you okay, Davis?" Yolei asked in her sweet way.
He didn't respond.
"If you need anything..."
"Yeah, I need you to kill me."
Her eyes went wide. "I can't do that."
"Then leave me alone."
She stared at him for a moment, not understanding his pain at all.
"Come on, Yolei, he wants some time alone."
"But Cody..."
"Go on!" Davis yelled, "Why don't you two just leave?"
So they left, and the silence settled in.
* * * *
*Author's note: This is the first appearance of the Dark Digidestined, and I just wanted to tell my readers about one small neglected detail: Darkness looks a lot like Sam. More specifically, he looks JUST like the CardCaptors character Eli (Yes, Sheila calls them by their american names.) a.k.a. Eriol. I already had a picture of Darkness in my mind before I ever saw Eli, so I found it really disturbing to see my guy playing some other show's character. Also note that the guy they got to play Eli in the American version sounds almost exactly like Darkness. How weird is that?*
"Fear, Lust, Apathy, Hate, Darkness, get your sorry butts into the Digital World right now! If do not then I will make every one of your Dark Spores grow into Dark Trees! I, your master, Keesma, command you!"
"Chaos? I thought she called in sick today."
Darkness finished his shake and tossed it over his shoulder. It whacked a sixth-grader on the head, bounced off and landed in the trash can. The Dark Digidestined were just finishing lunch, for Pete's sake! "That is not Chaos."
"Yeah," Fear agreed, "That's our Master! Come on, before she adds some new decorations to the court yard."
They disappeared in a cloud of black smoke, much to the surprise of the other kids eatting lunch in the cafeteria that day.
* * * *
COMMERCIAL BREAK!
Izzy: Now here's something you don't see every day...
(Ken's beating up the Digimon Emperor.)
What's wrong with this picture? This is just one very bad example of how weird life is for the Megadigidestined.
(Ken's still beating the Emperor)
Izzy: Oh, boy.
The Emperor looks over the top of his glasses at Ken. "Lookin' good."
Izzy: See what I mean? Anyway, now back to the show.
* * * *
Davis was dreaming, and he knew it, but that didn't make it seem any less real. Keesma floated just inches him, staring and smiling. He laid there, frozen with an overwhelming fear.
"Miss me?" She asked.
"Why don't you leave me alone?"
She fluffed his messy hair. "Oh, you know you still want me. I have your crest. It misses you."
He started to say something nasty, but before he could she kissed him. He was tied to the bed, so he really couldn't resist, but he didn't want to. The contact connected him momentarily to that lost part of his soul, and the pain dulled.
"Hmm, what a good boy," she told him.
"You're a horrible creature, you know that?"
"Thank you, I live off your compliments."
"Why'd you make me do all those terrible things?"
She snapped his goggles, "Hey, you did 'em. You've wanted to do such things for a very long time, and I just provided the means for it. Blame me all you want, but it's all your own fault."
"But Kari...I never wanted to hurt her."
"Aw, did you think you were in love with her? You wanted to own her, and that in itself is evil. It was just a tiny step to abuse. Remember that well."
"I did, no, I do love her!"
In the blink of an eye, they were on the top of the castle. "She never loved you, Davis."
TK and Kari stood in the corner of the roof, overlooking the entire Digital World. He had his arms around her, and she couldn't look any happier.
"I thought I'd lost you, TK."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you pain."
She turned to look into his sky-blue eyes. "But YOU didn't do anything."
"What that demon did with my body..." He trailed off and frowned. "This is all Davis's fault. The ambitious little-"
She put her finger to his lips and whispered, "Let's not think about him, all right?"
"But when I think about what he could have done to you..."
Davis looked away, ashamed.
"No," she stopped him. "I'm fine. You're okay too. So let's just forget Davis."
Then he kissed her. Keesma pushed Davis closer so he had to watch. Watching them felt like swallowing a sharp knife. She never would love him.
"Enough!" Davis turned to run away, but there they were again.
Keesma laughed her evil laugh, "You can't escape this, Davis. Not until you except it."
"No!" He woke up. Stared at the blank ceiling and cried himself back to sleep. He slept dreamlessly until he couldn't sleep any more. For who knows how long, he alternated between a state of overwhelming self-hatred where he trashed about trying to get loose, and moments of complete emptiness. Panic. Nothing. Rage. Nothing.
Nothing. The hope was gone.
* * * *
"I feel so lost, I don't have a clue what I'm doing."
"You just need to trust in the Powers," Wormmon told him. Ken was dreaming.
"But why did they charge ME with this? It's not like I deserve it."
"Does anyone, really? Is anyone perfect?"
"No, I guess not." Ken looked away, frustrated. He gazed up at the pink clouds drifting lazily across the orange sky. Everything was covered in a sweet, warm haze. Perfectly peaceful. It would be easy to stay there forever, but that wasn't possible and he knew it. At least not right now. He sighed heavily and looked at his partner. Wormmon didn't say a thing, but looked up at him with loving eyes. "I don't even deserve you as a friend."
"Don't say that."
"I don't deserve any of the blessings in my life. Not after the awful things I've done."
Wormmon scooted closer, and took Ken's hands. "Are you sorry?"
"Of course."
He smiled with his eyes, "Then stop worring about it, Ken. You're sorry, and you've been forgiven. Dwelling on it won't make it any better. Just know that you've learned from your mistakes, and let it go."
Ken gave his Digimon a hug. "Thanks, buddy."
"That's what I'm here for. If you ever need to talk again, you know where to find me."
"Uh-oh, that sounds like good-bye to me."
"You're needed in the Waking World, Ken. Davis..."
POP! He woke up. "Davis!"
"What?" Came the hopeless reply.
Ken toppled out of his bed and turned to the one next to him. To his horror, he discovered someone had TIED DAVIS TO THE BED AND JUST LEFT HIM THERE! Immediately, he started untying the knots.
"Stop," Davis commanded weakly.
"What?"
"If you don't want me committing suicide, I suggest you leave me the way I am."
Ken stepped back and looked at the state of his best human friend. It seemed as though Davis were withering away. He looked like he'd lost a lot of weight, and he was bleeding everywhere the ropes touched his skin, like he'd been thrashing against them. Ken took a deep breath, ran his hands through his blue hair and resumed working on those knots. Davis stared at his with confusion in his screaming eyes. He told Davis, "As long as I'm with you, I won't let you kill yourself."
If it had been anyone else, Davis would have ran away and hid, but he couldn't. Ken was the only one who knew what Davis was going through. He stretched, stood up shakily, and toppled over into the arms of his best friend. Ken made him sit on the bed. "Thanks. I've been tied up for days."
Ken couldn't help noticing how weak and hopeless Davis sounded. Indeed, he knew that tone too well. He also knew the only way Davis would get through this was with time and a really, really good friend. The tides had turned. He told Davis, "Don't worry, you're not alone."
Davis rubbed his eyes. "I want to argue with you, but I know you're right. We ought to start a 'Been Evil and Now Hate Ourselves' Club."
This got a little smile from Ken, but he wasn't fooled by Davis's act. "I won't leave you, and I definately won't let you kill yourself. In a couple of days, that feeling will start to go away, and you'll be glad I stopped you."
"No offence intended, but how did you live with yourself, knowing the awful things you did?"
He thought about that for a moment. "Well, lucky for me, my memory started to go fuzzy. Eventually, I had completely forgotten that I'd been the Emperor. I repressed my own memory of it, it was so horrible. Even today, I still can't remember a lot of it."
"I don't think that will happen to me," Davis said, squeezing his eyes shut. "It's all too fresh in my mind. I wish I could, though."
"Nah, it's probably best that you don't forget."
Davis looked at him like he'd declaired himself a Digimon.
"Hey, I'm serious. Trials make us better people. They...They define who we are, and as much as I hate to admitt it, I'm glad I went though my 'evil phase'. If I hadn't then I'd probably be pretty boring. I'd have no personality, I can promise you that. Besides, I got over it, and now I have a personal grudge against evil."
"I'm not sure I believe you on that one, Ken, but you're normally right about everything, so I'll just take your word for it." Davis absent-mindedly ran his fingers through his hair and came across his goggles. He took off and stared at them.
"I'm not right about EVERYTHING. But I do know exactly what your going through. It's all too fresh right now for you to understand. In a few years, you'll know."
"A few YEARS! Will it really take that long?"
"You'll never really get over it. Something that trumatic will stay with you forever."
Davis groaned and fell back on the bed. He held his goggles over him, and they cast a blue light on his weary face. "I guess I should pass these to the new leader. Ya know, go with the tradition."
"Cody wouldn't wear them. It's not his style. He's trying to stay humble."
Davis frowned at him, "What are you saying?"
Ken waved his arms frantically, "Nothing! Sorry that came out wrong. See, I still make mistakes! I'm not as perfect as I think people try to make me out to be."
"Well, I don't deserve them anymore, so, uh, do you want them?"
"Are you kidding?" He snapped them on, "Does this go with my hair? I don't think so!"
Indeed, they stuck out sorely under his shoulder-length hair, giving him the appearance of having a mane. That comical look clashed dearly with his solem grey school uniform.
Davis snorted as he repressed a laugh, and Ken knew he hadn't lost him yet. He handed them back, "Keep them, even if you don't wear them. Who knows, maybe you'll give 'em to one of your kids or something, someday."
"Yeah, right. Like I'm going to have kids. I'd feel sorry for them, having a jerk like me for a father."
Ken sighed. This was going to take a long time. But then again, this was all too familiar...
*Flashback*
Ken was walking home from school, so many things reeling in his head. School didn't matter that much anymore. Nothing mattered much any more. He'd given up, and gotten the first bad score on a test in years. The whole student body was in an uproar, but he wished they'd just forget he existed. Fame is a hard thing to run away from.
The sun set rapidly, and his long shadow fell across a pair of feet. Startled out of his thoughts, Ken looked up.
"Hey! Need to talk?"
Ken turned away from him, towards the river. "What do you want, Davis? Have you come to remind me that I've been a bad boy?"
"Come on, Ken, you're not evil."
"I'm not?"
"No. You're not."
"How would you know? What makes YOU so special?"
Davis held out his hands in surrender, "Hey, I'm not claiming to be special. I just know you're better than you think you are. After all, you're one of us Digidestined, so you can't be all bad."
This was new news to Ken. He eyed Davis carefully, "Me? A Digidestined?"
Davis just smiled. He knew silence spoke volumes, especially right about now.
"Thanks, Davis, but I'm just not interested." Ken started back down the path, half expecting Davis to come running after him. He didn't.
"Don't turn your back on us!"
Wether he realized it or not at that time, what Davis had done left a lasting impression on his mind. The others still thought he was the evil Digimon Emperor, but Davis knew better. He tried to make friends with Ken. That took a lot of guts. And it meant the world to him.
*End Flashback*
"Come on, let's get something to eat."
Davis groaned, and stood up shakily. "Oh, all right, fine."
They wandered around until they found a small kitchen. It seemed a little out of place in the grand castle.
Ken looked in the fridge, then stopped. "You know, I think I should tell the others that we're up."
"Not that they care, or anything."
"Will you be all right, Davis? While I go find them?"
"Yeah, sure."
Ken left, and after a pause Davis started searching for a knife. He hated himself as much as ever, and he was bound and determined to murder himself. He found a particularly evil looking knife with a wicked curving blade. He gripped it by the handle, aimed it at his heart and closed his eyes. He held it at arm's length for what seemed like an hour, trying to gather the courage to stab himself with it. Finally, he lowered it. He just couldn't bring himself to do it. He stared at his distorted reflection on the silvery polished surface. Man, he looked as bad as he felt. Oh, well, if he couldn't commit suicide, he'd at least punish himself. He closed his right hand around the blade and squeezed as hard as he could. He barely even felt the pain, and watched in awe as the blood trickled onto the floor in a steady stream.
"Hey, Davis, look who I found!" Oh, no. It was Ken. Davis dropped the knife just before Ken rounded the corner, followed by Veemon. They both just stood there staring with their mouths open. "What happened?"
Davis looked at his hand and said scornfully, "You should have known better than to leave me alone in such a dangerous place."
After Ken recovered from the shock, he picked up the knife and sliced his own hand.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?"
"I cut myself for a short time, too, you know." Ken gripped Davis's wounded hand with his own and let their blood combine as it dripped onto the floor. Veemon continued to stare with his mouth open, making little squeaking noises. "Davis, you and I are like brothers now. You don't have to be alone anymore."
Davis blushed, finally understanding.
An explosion of light burst from their hands, throwing them in different directions.
"What the heck was that?" Davis asked, rubbing his head with his good hand.
"Are you okay?" Veemon asked, looking at both of them in concern.
Ken sat up and stared at Davis for a few moments before saying, "I think that was your Megadigidestined transformation."
Davis looked down at his normal clothes. "Where's my armor?"
"The armor is, uh, turned off inside the castle. You'll have to wait until we're outside to see it."
"Oh," After a short pause, "Thanks, Ken."
Ken smiled, "That's what I'm here for."
* * * *
"Honestly, I don't know what you two were thinking!" Yolei uncorked the bottle of pearly green liquid that hung around her neck and poured it over Davis's hand. Immediately, the wound was washed away, leaving a scar in the shape of the Crest of Friendship. "Wow, this stuff really does work wonders!"
Davis smiled at Ken, who shook his head as Yolei turned to him. "And you. YOU! Ken, of all people, I thought you would have known better. But I guess I was wrong. Humph!" She fixed his hand, then held the bottle up to her eyes. It looked just as full as it had before.
Ken looked at his hand and saw that he too had a Crest-shaped scar. He held it up for Davis to see. Davis blushed again and clasped hands with Ken. No one was watching.
"Well, guys, what do we do now?" Davis asked timidly, after the moment was over.
"We wait," Cody told him.
"I hate waiting!" Yolei declaired with a frustrated growl.
"Yes, I know."
"You know, I wish the older Digidestined were here," Ken said, looking at his hand.
POOF!
What is to become of the Digidestined now?
And what was that big 'poof' for?
Find out in the next episode of Digimon: A Bigger Threat:
"Too Many Digidestined"