AN: …Hello!! *silence* Er…hello? Is anyone there? Does anyone even still
READ this fic?? Did you all think I'd abandoned it or something?? DON'T BE
ANGRY!! IT'S MY FAULT, NOT THE FIC!! ^_^;; I'm so VERY lazy, and I got
distracted by three Ranma fics, various assorted other fics that aren't
even POSTED anywhere, and two original novel ideas… Not that I'm excusing
my absence. I've, uh…actually had this chapter written for a long, long,
LONG time, I just…I never posted it. At first it was the whole converting
thing, then they made it so I could post it as a .doc thing but I was just
too busy, so… But anyway, I was rereading some old reviews and decided to
post. ^_^ I'm outta things to say now, so…read on!! Review at the end and
tell me what you think!!
Disclaimer: Y'know, it's been a long time since I did one of these…let's make it fun: THE PENGUINS MADE ME DO IT!!! ^_^
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Chapter Nine
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Matt coughed quietly into his right hand. He tried to contain the noise as much as possible, knowing that his traveling companions would refuse to let him take a watch if they thought he was getting sick again. Especially T.K. and Joe. The blond was left with one of two options: contain the coughing before the others got back from gathering dinner, or loose the good fight and turn in early. Unfortunately, Yamato Ishida was not always known for his wisdom and opted for choice a. He really did like standing watch; it made him feel needed, as though he were still pulling his share, even though his stupid broken arm and various assorted wounds kept him from doing most types of physical labor. Matt finally got his coughs under control just as the first of the other Chosen Children returned. Fish and fruit for dinner. How original.
Sora sighed. "Isn't there anything else in the Digital World we can eat? Fish and fruit, fruit and fish. It's always the same thing."
"Ah," T.K. added wisely, "but is it? We add different spices whenever we can, so isn't it like having a new type of fish every night?" The others stared at him until he sighed, defeated. "What do you want me to say? I'm the Chosen Child of Hope. I've got to be hopeful, don't I?"
Everyone sighed. Silence descended upon the group.
"Let's talk about something," Mimi said suddenly. "We're all too quiet too much of the time. Let's have a conversation."
"My hand hurts," Tai offered.
Matt, sitting by him, smirked mockingly and punched him lightly in the arm. "I'll bet."
"Hey, it's a deep cut!" He displayed the afflicted hand, seemingly proud of the bandages wrapped around it.
"It's a scratch," Matt contended, arching an eyebrow and picking lightly at his fish.
"Scratch? Scratch? You," he accused, "may have scratches. This is a wound. Which, I might add, I got saving you from the depths of despair. So don't knock it."
Matt sighed, offering his leftovers to Gabumon. "Yes, yes, you saved me from myself. Hurrah. Everyone else here did, too, so you can't feel that special. Besides, it's still just a little bitty old cut."
"It's a wound."
"Care to compare?" Matt held out his right arm, still covered in bandages from the Araknamon, and lifted his left slightly.
Tai smirked. "All because I'm not a total masochist doesn't make my wound less important than any of yours."
"Yes but I'm being self contained and mature about my wounds. You're just whining and whining."
"Hey, Mimi asked for the topic, not me."
"Let's pick a new topic now," Sora suggested. "It might be entertaining for the two of you to argue around in circles, but it's not really all that thrilling for the rest of us."
"That's a good idea," T.K. agreed, "What should we talk about instead?"
Silence.
"What about the next Basic Digimon?" Tai suggested. "What can you tell us, Izzy?"
The frazzled-haired genius set his food aside and pulled his computer into his lap.
"Oh, please, Tai," Kari begged. "Can't we talk about something else?"
Izzy shrugged and put his laptop down, retrieving his remaining food.
"No, Kari, we've got to think of the mission."
Food down, computer up.
"But that's all we ever do! It's our first night out of Anamnemon's castle, can't we rest for a bit?"
Put down the laptop, pick up the food.
"Don't you want to go home? The only way we get out of here is to do what we've been called here to do."
Toss away the food, retrieve the computer.
"Yeah, but as soon as we do finish, we leave the Digiworld again, maybe forever! Don't you want to stay with Agumon a little longer?"
Trade the laptop for the food.
"Sure, but we've got responsibilities, both here and at home. We can't just ignore that."
As Izzy switched his food for his laptop again, he felt a spark of annoyance.
"I know we can't, but one night isn't going to make a difference."
"Can you prove that?"
"Can you disprove it?"
"We have to think of the mission!"
"We have to rest!"
"Mission!"
"Rest!"
Laptop, food.
"Mission!"
"Rest!"
"Oh, would you two stop it already?" All eyes turned to Izzy, who was frowning at the bickering siblings. "This is just more arguing for the sake of arguing. Make up your minds already. We were almost killed yesterday; we could all be killed tomorrow. I would rather not waste my time squabbling, if it's all the same to you."
The two stared at each other. "Sorry," they said in unison.
Joe sighed. "Well, let's just agree to disagree, and I'll start a new topic. It's called: rheumatic fever, little known complication of strep throat." Matt winced. "How're you feeling, Matt?"
"Fine," he lied.
"Now that," Joe observed dryly, "is a lie if ever I heard one. Or, at least, it's a half-truth. You're getting sick again, aren't you?"
Matt met Joe's eyes defiantly. "No."
The boy doctor sighed. "See, I know it's a lie because I heard you coughing before I came back to camp."
Matt glared at him. "You were spying on me?"
Joe returned the glare. "What else can I do? You lie about your health because you don't want to be a burden, and while that would be borderline noble back on earth, where there are people who can help you when you're dying of a fever, this is the Digital World. We can only operate on prevention here. If you get sick again, we're in trouble. I don't do magic, Matt. There's a difference between patching up cuts and battling rheumatic fever. I don't have the medicine, training, or recourses to deal with that kind of stuff. Be stupid if you want to when we're battling Digimon, because I've got lots of bandages, and I can heal wounds, but I can't heal illnesses. I just can't."
Matt sighed. "Fine, Joe. I'll be more careful."
"Good. I'm glad you feel like being cooperative right now, because I have something else to say."
"What?"
"You're not standing watch anymore."
"What? You can't do that!"
"Yes, I can. And I am. Look, you're relapsing. Don't deny it because you are. You need all the sleep you can get to battle the illness trying to reassert itself in your system." The young doctor turned to Tai. "You'll back me in this, right?"
The leader held up his hands. "Don't pull me into this! I'm not the doctor; you are."
"Exactly," Joe said, turning back to Matt. "Did you hear him? You're not the doctor; I am."
"Joe, you're not letting me do anything because of this stupid arm, you can't take away my night shift, too. Then I'll be completely useless!"
"No, you won't. You cook our meals for us, right? That's something."
"It's not enough. I don't want to be a burden."
"A burden? Imagine the kind of burden a sick person would be! How would we travel, Matt? Someone would have to carry you. Who would it be?" Matt didn't say anything, but he scowled at the fire. Joe sighed. "Look, I know you don't like this, but facts are facts. If you don't want to get sick again, you've got to get more sleep. It's as simple as that."
Matt sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Fine," he relented at last, "fine. I won't stand watch any more. I'll go to sleep like a good little boy and take things nice and easy from now on. Happy?"
Joe shook his head. "It's not like that. I'm not doing this to pick on you."
The blond sighed and rested his cheek on his hand, propping his arm on his leg and resting his broken arm against his chest. He studied the fire as he spoke. "I know you're not, Joe. I guess I just wanted someone to blame. It feels like I'm betraying myself. I want to help, but if I do I'll only make things worse in the long run. I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place."
T.K. rested a hand on his brother's shoulder and smiled brightly when Matt looked at him. "It's ok, Matt! We don't mind standing your watch. It's not your fault this is happening. Don't beat yourself up about it."
The others smiled at him as well, conveying their support of Joe's decision.
Matt smiled back at them. "Thanks, guys."
"We just don't want you suffering anymore," Mimi explained. "As your friends, we'll do anything to keep you from getting sick again."
The blond sighed and flopped onto his back. "I know," he admitted, "and I really am grateful. I don't want to get sick here, either."
"Really?" T.K. asked innocently as one by one the others lied back to stare at the stars with the Chosen Child of Friendship.
"Really," he confirmed. His voice dropped to a bare murmur. "It's the thing I worry about the most. Getting sick here would be such a bad thing. A relapse now…I'm not sure how we'd handle it. It's my only real nightmare. The thing I fear…most of all."
The next day at lunch, Izzy pulled up his laptop and looked up the next Basic Digimon they would all be facing.
"Her name's Loyarimon," he informed them, munching on a piece of fruit. "She lives not too far from here, just over these foothills. Her castle must be fortified by the mountains. Actually, if we pushed ourselves-"
"Don't even go there," Tai said flatly. "We're not pushing anything."
Matt sighed.
"Then we'll get there tomorrow morning," Izzy replied, shrugging. "Anywhere between nine and eleven am, if all present conditions hold up." At that precise instant, the heavens opened, pouring a sheet of rain over the Digidestined. "All right," Izzy called over the sudden downpour, snapping his laptop shut and stuffing it under his shirt, "so we'll get there around dinner time."
"If we're lucky," T.K. added, turning his face up to the cooling thunderstorm.
"Lucky?" Mimi demanded, seeking shelter under a tree with Palmon clasped in her arms. "We're going to battle a Basic Digimon. What's lucky about that?"
T.K. shrugged. "Dunno. I guess it's lucky because if we're in her castle we're not in the rain."
"You're such an optimist," Sora sighed, standing with the others.
T.K. grinned.
"Ok," Tai called to everyone. "This rain looks like it's going pretty strong right now, so let's see if we can find some shelter somewhere. We'll split up to search and meet back here in fifteen minutes. T.K., you go with Matt. Sora, you can go with Mimi. Joe, Izzy, the two of you can stick together. Kari, you can come with me. All right, let's go."
A little cave was discovered in the side of one of the foothills. Sora said Mimi found it with her anti-uncomfortable radars. The more uncomfortable she was, the more efficient she became. Working quickly, Tai, T.K., Joe, and Izzy were able to gather some firewood before everything got completely soaked. As they did this, Matt, Mimi, Sora, and Kari organized the leaves in the cave into sleeping piles, cleared all the large debris and rocks, and cleared an area for the fire. After that, the girls left Matt with Gabumon to guard the cave while they darted about the damp forest looking for fruit. When everything was done, the Digidestined gathered around the fire to warm themselves and ate silently. After that they sat quietly until Izzy, finding nothing else to do, pulled out his laptop and began explaining to the others about Loyarimon.
"This says her type is…oh, wow. That's…not very good."
"What?" Tai demanded, sitting straighter. "What's not very good?"
"Well, her type seems to be…Fear."
Silence.
"Fear," Mimi repeated, leaning against the cave wall. "We've had a hard enough time with Oblivion and Silence. Now we've got to deal with Fear? Oh, no."
"It's ok," Kari assured her. "We'll be fine. Fear isn't so bad. What's the worst that can happen?"
"Are you kidding?" Mimi demanded. "Think about what you just said. We're talking about the Basic Digimon of Fear. What do you think her attack is? Do you know what she could do to us?"
"Probably bring all our deepest, most terrifying fears to the surface," Joe admitted flatly.
Gomamon rested his paw on Joe's shoulder. "Don't worry, Joe! No matter what she throws at you, we'll protect you!"
"Yeah!" Palmon agreed, smiling at Mimi. "We've fought your fears before, remember?"
Mimi blinked. "When?"
"When we battled Puppetmon."
Biyomon wrapped her wings around Sora. "And Piedmon."
"And the other Dark Masters," Tentomon agreed.
"Don't forget Apocalymon!" Gomamon laughed, leaning against Joe.
"Or when we fought LadyDevimon," Gatomon added.
"Or Demidevimon or Devimon," Patamon continued, landing on T.K.'s head.
"Cherrymon, too," Gabumon agreed, sitting next to Matt.
Agumon looked at Tai steadily. "Or SkullGreymon."
"Those were your fears," Biyomon explained. "You were afraid, but you didn't give up. We helped you then, and we'll help you now."
"Feel better?" Patamon asked T.K.
The boy smiled.
"Ok," Tai began after a while, "it's getting late now. Let's split up the watch and get some sleep."
Matt sighed heavily.
"Get over it," Tai advised him. "That isn't going to work."
The blond sighed again and retreated to the back of the cave with Gabumon. The Digimon was the only one to see the tiny smile on Matt's lips. "It's fun annoying them," he explained in a hushed whisper. He winked and settled down for the night.
Even after bringing the boy back to life, Gabumon was not sure he understood his Digital Destined.
The rain continued to pour all through the night. Sitting her watch, Sora felt something just beyond the mouth of the cave and turned. When she looked, nothing was there. Still, the chill down her spine that told her someone was watcher her wouldn't leave.
"Biyomon," she whispered, shaking the Digimon. "Biyomon, wake up."
"Mmm? Sora? What's wrong?"
The girl glanced into the dark, rain soaked night. "I don't know. I just have this feeling. Like something's watching us."
Biyomon sat up and looked out of the cave. "I don't see anything, Sora," she admitted, "but I can go out and look, if you want me to."
"No!" Sora blushed and put a hand over her mouth, glancing back at where the others slept. "I mean, no, thank you, Biyomon. I-I don't think you need to."
The Digimon stared at her. "Are you sure?"
She nodded folding her hands in her lap. "Yes. I'm sure. Everything's probably fine. I'm just a little tired."
"Oh. Well, Tai's watch is coming up soon, then you can get some sleep."
Sora smiled at her. "All right, Biyomon. Thanks. Sorry if I worried you."
The Digimon shrugged, smiled, and settled herself back at Sora's feet. The girl stared pensively at the fire.
"I know something was out there," she murmured to herself. "But what? And why does it give me such a bad feeling?"
By the next morning, the rain had stopped completely, leaving the Digital World blanketed in thousands of bright raindrops. It was beautiful, but not the most pleasant condition in which to hike over a mountain, considering the higher the sun rose the more humid it became. The group began taking frequent breaks.
"I've told you that I feel fine," Matt insisted for the thousandth time during one of these breathers.
"Just checking," T.K. assured, smiling.
Matt sighed. "Look, you're all asking that question every five minutes. It's getting old. I know you don't want me to get sick, but I don't want to, either. If I start feeling sick, I'll let you know. All right?"
The other seven sighed. "All right," they agreed, defeated.
"Good. Now let's get climbing."
Several minutes later, Sora stopped walking and looked behind her.
Izzy, trekking next to her, turned to her. "What's the matter?"
She didn't respond.
"Sora? Hello, Digiworld to Sora!"
She looked at him and blinked. "Hmm? Oh, sorry, Izzy, did you say something?"
"Yes. I was curious as to why you discontinued your ascent."
She computed that. "I don't know," Sora admitted, looking into the forest behind her. "I just get this feeling."
"What feeling?" Izzy and Sora turned. Tai had doubled back and was watching Sora intently. Izzy opened his mouth, but Tai waved him off. "I let Matt keep going with the others. Joe will stop him if he starts overdoing it and it'll make him feel useful. Now, what's this feeling you're talking about?"
Sora sighed. "I don't know. It's like…like we're being followed. But not even that. It's more than that, different." She sighed, frustrated. "I don't know! It's just…it's wrong. Like…like we're being…"
"Hunted." Tai was looking back up the path where Joe and Matt were helping Mimi and the Digimon over a rough spot. "We're being hunted, aren't we, Sora?"
The girl didn't answer, frightened for the first time. That was it. The feeling. Like being followed, only worse. Different. Something was hunting them.
"Come on," Tai urged softly, turning. "I want to be with them when whatever's going to attack hits us, because I bet it's from Loyarimon. And I bet it isn't good." They began a steady trot uphill, dodging tree branches and jumping over roots and rocks. "Hey, Matt!" Tai called ahead. The others looked back. "Wait up a sec!" The trio caught up with their friends and Tai began explaining what he thought was going on. "Loyarimon's sent her henchmons after us. We're being hunted. I don't know how or where from, but we are. That means we've all got to be way more alert than we have been. Ok?" The others nodded. "All right. Let's keep going." They walked on for almost an hour more in relative silence before they realized anything was wrong.
"Hey," Joe began suddenly, looking around. "Where's Mimi?"
Everyone stopped and stared dumbly at each other.
"Wasn't she at the end of the line?" Kari asked hesitantly.
Joe nodded. "Right behind me, as a matter of fact. But when I turned around to see how she was doing…she was gone. What's going on?"
Tai took a deep breath. "Palmon's gone too, so we'll just have to hope Loyarimon doesn't want us all dead. Hopefully she'll be at the castle. Come on, we've got to go get her before anything- Joe?" He was gone now, too. The remaining Digidestined continued their ascent, but their speed noticeably picked up.
"T.K.!" Matt cried suddenly, turning. Sure enough, the boy was gone. Matt took a half-step back, shaking his head. "Oh, no…he's gone!" They began looking for him. "What's going on?" Matt demanded suddenly, going a little off the path to look for clues. "None of us saw anything, what could have-" The shadows of the bush rose up to envelop Matt.
"No!" Gabumon cried, and leapt into the shadows after him.
Tai turned on his heel. "Come on, you guys! We can't be caught, too! We've got to save the others!" The five Chosen Children began a mad dash, but whether it was from the mysterious attacking Digimon or to Loyarimon's castle, no one was sure. After a few minutes, Kari tripped. With an exclamation, the shadows from the surrounding forest exploded towards her. She and Gatomon were swallowed by the darkness.
"No!" Tai cried. Sora grabbed his arm as she ran by him and dragged him after her. "No! My sister!"
"You can't save her if you're captured, too, Tai!" The three of them ran. As they dashed madly up the mountain, Izzy's jacket snagged on a tree; his laptop was jogged loose.
"Oh!" he exclaimed, turning to get it.
"Izzy, don't!" Sora called back to him. "If you do, the shadows-"
He bent to pick up his computer. Blackness gathered around him. He looked up at Tai and Sora. "Run," he said firmly, clutching his laptop to his chest. "Run!" The shadows crashed over him.
"Super Shocker!" The electricity had little effect. Soon Tentomon was caught, too. Sora and Tai continued running. A clearing stretched out in front of them. Just as they were about to enter it, a tendril of shadow reached out and encircled Tai's foot. He crashed to the ground.
"Tai!" Agumon shouted, running to his side. "Pepper-" The shadows gathered around them.
"Sora!" Tai cried. "You're our last hope! Don't get caught!" They were gone.
Sora, trembling, took a step back. "Gone," she murmured. "They're all gone!"
"Sora!"
"Biyomon?"
"Keep running! We're almost there!" The two continued their hurried journey. When they broke out of the forest, they were met with a staggering sight. Loyarimon's castle. It was huge, fortified into the side of the mountain on three sides, just as Izzy had predicted. A huge wall surrounded the exposed front of the castle, with two monstrous watchtowers rising high above everything else. Seven stakes stood posted on the walkway between the watchtowers. They were huge, very tall and very thick, make of some black material. They looked like pointed towers of shadow. Seven figures were wrapped in the spikes: the Chosen Children. It looked as though the stakes were made of a pliable material and each of the Destined had been pressed into it. Knees, elbows, parts of legs and arms, some feet, some hands, and heads were left exposed. None of them looked hurt, but they were all unconscious. The Digimon were all piled on top of each other by the foot of the gate, signed off as a nuisance more than a threat and left unguarded. Sora's eyes were locked on her comrades.
"Biyomon." The Digimon looked up at her. "I don't think I'm their last hope. I think…" she smiled down at her. "You Digimon are." At that moment, blackness swept Sora away. It rushed to the castle, gathered the other Digidestined, and entered the castle. Biyomon was dropped on the pile of Digimon and forgotten. It was this brushing off and ignoring of a possible threat that began Loyarimon's defeat.
Sora, as the last one captured, was the last one to regain consciousness. She moaned and sat up. The other Digidestined were with her, but where were they? The last thing she remembered…she gasped.
"Where are we?" she asked suddenly.
Only Izzy looked over at her. "We're in a cell of the dungeon in Loyarimon's castle."
Sora looked around.
Tai was standing by the bars of their prison, looking about desperately for a means of escape.
Kari was standing by him, talking softly, probably about what they could do. As she talked, she rewrapped his hand, which had bled through its bandages.
Izzy was typing on his laptop, no doubt trying to find a blueprint or some information about the castle structure itself.
Mimi, Joe, and T.K. were all clustered around Matt, who sat leaning against wall of their cell. Matt was panting hard, holding his arm as T.K. readjusted his sling. Mimi and Joe were rewrapping and repacking what was left of Joe's medical supplies, which were laid out around them.
"What happened?" Sora asked, crawling over.
"Matt's arm was re-broken," Joe explained calmly, accepting some bandaging from Mimi and tucking them into a side pocket. "When that shadow stuff got him, it twisted his arm. We had to reset it."
Sora looked over to where Matt and T.K. sat. The younger boy was just tying the ends of Matt's sling together, talking softly and encouragingly. Matt smiled whitely at something he said.
Kari released her brother's hand and Tai turned away from the bars to look back at them. "Everything ok?" he asked gently.
"I guess so," Mimi said, sighing. "As ok as can be expected, anyway. Joe gave Matt some really strong pain killers, and that should help, but we can't give them to him much because they cause drowsiness and we're worried he'll be allergic."
From where he sat, Matt chuckled. "Complications upon complications, right?"
Joe smiled sadly at him. "Hey, you're the one who has to live with the ouch, not me."
Matt smiled gently and leaned his head back against the wall, numb with a sort of pain exhaustion, content to let T.K. flit around him, trying to make the older blond more comfortable.
"How are we going to get out of this, Tai?" Matt asked suddenly.
The leader sighed, leaning forward to rest his forehead on the bars. "I don't know, Matt. I honestly don't."
"We're here for a reason," Mimi observed. "Don't you think?"
Joe nodded grimly. "Of course we're here for a reason. We're here because Loyarimon wants us dead. Why? Because we're a threat to her. Just like our Digimon."
The other seven members of the cell looked devastated.
Sora blinked. "What's wrong?"
"Sora," Kari began slowly. "Haven't you noticed? The Digimon aren't here. They're not even in the castle. I can't feel Gatomon. They're…our Digimon…are…"
Suddenly Sora understood. "No!" she exclaimed, standing. "You guys don't understand! They're not dead! I saw your Digimon before I was captured. They were all left in a pile outside the gate. Loyarimon must not think they're going to be any trouble. She left them alone!"
The gloom that had settled over the cell immediately lifted.
"All right!" Tai enthused. "We've still got a chance then! We've just got to let all our faith rest on the Digimon."
"Don't be absurd. Faith is useless."
The eight Chosen Children turned and found the sister of Meloremon and Anamnemon, Loyarimon, standing before them in the dungeon. Her hair was black, falling in waves all the way to the floor. Her eyes, too, were a bleak ebony, as were the folds of cloth hanging about her petite form. Her face was expressionless, as blank as stone.
T.K. stood. "What did you say?"
"Faith is useless."
He shook his head. "No…that's wrong. Faith is what give us the ability to hope."
She gave no reaction. "I am here to inform you."
"Of what?" Tai asked hesitantly.
"Your deaths." The Digidestined were shocked into silence. "You are kept here as my prisoners here until I decide you are no longer necessary. Then I will summon you one at a time to my chamber, where I will use your innermost fears to terrify you until you die."
Silence.
"You're…" Tai hesitated. "You're going to scare us to death?"
She nodded. "Yes."
"Ok, then. Whatever you say."
She shrugged. "Doubt if you will. Until the time I decide, you will remain here." This said, she turned on her heel and disappeared.
"All right," Tai began slowly. "Ok. I think that went well."
Matt spoke up suddenly. "Tai…if she makes our innermost fears come true, we're in trouble."
"Why?"
"Because my innermost fear is being sick here like I was before. I couldn't even move then, Tai."
The leader blinked. "Oh…oh, that's not good."
"No," Matt agreed, "it isn't."
Agumon sat up and stared at the castle. He turned to see the other Digimon, who were all watching the castle as well. Each Digimon shifted their gaze to Agumon, who nodded.
"We've got to save them."
The Digimon crept along the castle's border, looking for a weakness.
"There aren't any guards," Palmon observed, looking up to the watchtowers. "Couldn't we just…climb up there?"
"Let me check," Patamon said, flying up to the tower. He landed on the wall, looked around, and flew back down. "I didn't see anything, so I think it's safe."
"What if someone comes while we're climbing up?" Gomamon asked, darting suspicious looks around the clearing.
"No problem," Biyomon assured. "Patamon, Tentomon, and I can fly up there and keep a look out."
"Ok," Patamon agreed. Tentomon lifted off the ground. The three rose to the watchtower and perched on the wall, one looking in at the castle, one watching the forest, one keeping an eye on the sky. Palmon shot a Poison Ivy up to where the three were. It caught and acted like a rope for the others. When Palmon landed on the marble next to the rest of the Digimon, they all began a steady, swift dash to where they could feel their Digidestined waiting.
"Something's wrong," Gabumon commented softly as they ran. "Matt's hurt again."
"Yeah," Palmon agreed. "I mean, I don't know about Matt, but something is wrong. Mimi…she's scared."
"As is Izzy," Tentomon added. "He's terrified of something."
"Tai, too. But he's trying not to show it."
"So is Sora."
"And T.K.!"
"Joe's scared, too. Well, actually, he's scared a lot, but this is different. Bigger. Worse."
"Kari's not at any picnic, either."
Agumon gulped. "Let's run faster."
They did.
Tai slammed his fist into the wall. "This is nuts! We should be doing something!"
Kari sighed from her position on the ground and leaned against the wall. "Calm down, Tai. You're going to bleed through your bandages again. Getting worked up isn't going to solve anything."
"Well, neither is sitting here doing nothing, so just shut up!"
Kari glared at him. "At least I'm trying to be considerate!"
"To who?"
"To whom," Izzy corrected half-heartedly.
"Who, whom, what's the difference?"
"One's correct; the other isn't."
"Whatever."
"Tai, you need to calm down!"
The leader whirled on Sora. "How can you say that! Our Digimon are out there, we don't know where, doing something, we don't know what, and we can't help them!"
Sora put a hand on Tai's arm. "Have faith in them, Tai. I'm sure they'll be here for us as soon as they can."
Tai shook his head very slightly before turning away and wrapping his hands around the bars again. "We should still be trying," he murmured. "They can't do this all on their own. It's not possible. They can't even Digivolve. What can they do as Rookies?"
Matt opened his eyes and blinked slowly. "Tai…"
The leader wasn't listening. "Anything could happen to them. They could be hurt or dying or…or hungry and we'll never know."
"Tai-"
"What if they need us? What if they need to Digivolve, and they can't, because we're in here and they're out there?"
Matt, still looking at the ceiling, stopped trying to reach the worrying leader. "T.K., do you feel it?"
The younger boy took his brother's uninjured hand. "Feel what, Matt?"
He was sluggish, fuzzy around the edges because of the pain medication. "Gabumon…do you feel it? They're here…"
Silence reigned as all attention turned on Matt.
"What do you mean?" T.K. asked calmly, trying to keep the growing excitement from his voice. "What do you mean, they're here?"
"T.K., can't you feel Patamon? The Digimon are here. They'll be here soon. Gabumon says there isn't much in the way of security here, so it's not that hard, and they'll be here as soon as they can."
"How are you doing that?" Mimi asked, mystified.
Matt's hazy eyes turned to her. "Doing what?"
"Communicating with Gabumon. I can feel that Palmon's here, now that you've said it, but how are you hearing what Gabumon's saying?"
A slight smile curved Matt's lips. "He brought me back when I was dead. Of course I can hear him. He can hear me, too…" Matt's drowsy eyes closed as his breathing evened out.
Izzy pulled up his computer and began typing furiously. "Ah-ha!" he announced triumphantly. "Look at this."
"What is it?" Joe asked, confused.
"It's a document about the rules of the Digital World."
"There are rules?" Tai demanded, surprised.
"Certainly. All things are based on some set of rules or another. Anyway, this document states that if a Digimon leaves the Digital World to bring its human partner back to life after that partner has died, the Digimon is breaking a Rule of Nature, stating everything in existence has a time to die. That's what Gabumon did for Matt. Now, when Gabumon did that for Matt, he had to use his own life energy, thus bonding them in a most unusual and irrevocable way. They're connected. If ever Matt were to die, Gabumon wouldn't be that far behind him. Unfortunately, the reverse is also applicable. Meaning, if Gabumon dies, so does Matt. And that's why it's illegal."
"So," T.K. began hesitantly, "so Matt shouldn't be alive right now? I mean, it's against the Digital Law that he's even here?" Izzy nodded. "Thank God for disobedient Digimon."
"What I can't figure out," Izzy began again, "is why they weren't punished."
Sora blinked. "Punished?"
"Yes. The breaking of a Digital Law is punishable by death if done purposefully."
"Was Devimon breaking the law? And the Dark Masters and Apocalymon?"
"Certainly."
"Then why weren't they punished?"
"They were. Why do you think we were summoned?"
"Now, hold on a second there!" Joe interrupted. "You mean we're just inter- dimensional cops?"
"It seems that way."
"Oh. Ok."
"Getting back to Matt," T.K. prompted.
"Ah, yes," Izzy agreed. "Matt. Well, it would seem that Matt and Gabumon- and maybe even the rest of us- might me above this law, somehow. It can't be every Digidestined that's ever been born, because there are documented cases of Digimon and their Digidestined trying to bring one or the other back and dying. So now we're left to wonder: why not Matt and Gabumon?"
"You know," Kari commented, "that 'above the law' theory actually makes sense. I mean, in one way."
"How so?"
"Well, you remember when we started this whole thing? How Matt and Gennai seemed to hate each other? This explains it. Gennai's probably mad that Gabumon and Matt went against the law, and Matt's probably mad that Gennai would have just let him die. It fits, doesn't it?"
The others digested this.
Suddenly Tai looked up. "I can feel Agumon," he murmured. "They really are coming. They…they're just…"
Sora looked up. "About…"
Izzy turned. "Here."
The doors to the dungeon slammed open.
The Digimon raced through the castle, somehow navigating the maze without actually knowing where they were going. Around corners, through rooms, down halls, out windows, in doors. All throughout this journey, they kept their minds focused completely on their mission: Izzy, Joe, Mimi, Sora, Tai, Kari, T.K., and Matt were captured in the underbelly of this maze and they had to be found. The eight Digimon entered a large room and looked around.
"Through here!" Tentomon cried. The others turned to dash through the door Tentomon had blasted open. It led to a stairwell.
"They're down there!" Gomamon exclaimed, hopping down the first stair. "Right down there!"
"Unfortunately," a voice commented, "you won't be going there."
The Digimon turned, prepared to fight, only to find…nothing. Nothing but shadows filled the room. Suddenly a shadow lashed out to send Agumon crashing into a wall.
"P-Pepper Breath!" he called, once he was standing again. The ball of fire smashed through the dark room to hit a wall. Whatever had attacked him was gone.
A deep, maniacal laughter filled the room. "You cannot win."
Agumon took a step forward. "We can do anything!" He turned. "Go save Tai and the others! I'll hold these guys!"
"Not on your own! Blue Blaster!"
"Poison Ivy! Ah, it's useless if I can't find them!"
"Lightning Paw! So's mine! Agh, this is terrible!"
Tentomon flew into the air. "Super Shocker! You two and Gomamon go rescue Izzy and the others! We'll stay here and guard the door!"
"Boom Bubble! I'll go with them, incase any more of these things are guarding the others!"
"Spiral Twister! All right, but go now! Quick! Before it's too late!"
"Pepper Breath!"
"All right! We're going!"
"Good luck, you guys!"
"We'll be back soon!"
"Super Shocker! Hurry!" As Gomamon, Palmon, and Gatomon dashed down into the dungeon, the remaining Digimon gathered at the door, forming a chain of resistance against the attacking foe.
"They're staying in the shadows," Tentomon observed. "Maybe they're allergic to light, like the Araknamon were."
"If so, let's keep the light show going! Blue Blaster!"
"Pepper Breath!"
"Spiral Twister!"
"Super Shocker!"
T.K. looked up as the door opened. "Patamon!" he cried.
"Gatomon!"
"Palmon!"
"Gomamon!"
Tai looked around. "Where's Agumon?"
"Yeah, and Biyomon?"
"Tentomon is absent!"
"Patamon, are they fighting?" The Digimon looked over. Matt was standing with a little bit of help from T.K. "Are they fighting?" he asked again.
Gatomon nodded. "Yes, and we should hurry here. The Digimon they're battling aren't exactly dandelions. Lightning Paw!" She slashed at the door and it broke in two, falling in on itself.
"Poison Ivy!" Palmon caught the falling pieces and tossed them away. There was a brief, tearful reunion between the four Destined and the Digimon who were there. The other four rushed up the stairs.
"Come on!" Gomamon insisted urgently. "They'll need our help!" As they dashed up the stairs, they heard the screaming of Digivices. War cries echoed through the large room.
"Greymon!"
"Birdramon!"
"Kabuterimon!"
"Garurumon!" The four Champion Digimon gathered in a wary bunch, waiting for the move they knew was coming.
Suddenly Greymon put his head back. "Nova Blast!" The room was filled with light. A horde of between thirty and thirty-five black Digimon shrunk back against the corners of the room.
Izzy pulled out his laptop. "One more time!"
"Nova Blast!"
"They're called Shadoramon! They're Digimon of shadow, which is why we can never see them! They blend in perfectly! No one's actually ever seen one before. Apparently they're impossibly hard to defeat."
Patamon hmmed thoughtfully. "Hey, Gatomon, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"You got it, Patamon. Gatomon Digivolve TO!"
"Patamon Digivolve TO!"
"Angewomon!"
"Angemon!" The two angelic Digimon flew into the air. Angemon went to one side of the room while Angewomon went to the other.
"Hand of Fate!"
"Celestial Arrow!" The Digimon had shot their powers, not at the ground where the attacking Digimon hid, but at each other. They caught each other's attack as it came at them, sustaining it through their own power. As Power met Angel, the room exploded in light.
"Hurry!" Angemon called down.
"We can't keep this up for long!"
"C'mon, guys!" Gomamon cried. "Let's kick it up! Gomamon Digivolve TO!"
"Palmon Digivolve TO!"
"Ikkakumon!"
"Togemon!" The Champion Digimon stepped forward; the Shadoramon shrunk back. They were impossibly black, darker than night. It was easy to see how they had blended in so thoroughly. Their edges were hard to define, even in the light, as though they were shifting under their skin. Each Digimon had a thin body, supported on elongated arms and legs. They kept low, whether on the ground, a wall, or the ceiling. The room crawled with them.
"Greymon!" Tai called. "Go for it!"
"Nova Blast!"
The battle began.
AN: So?? What'd ya think?? Review!! I'm trying to post chapter 10 as well, but we'll see what happens. Ok? Ok! REVIEW!!!!
Pineapples, people!
-Angel Baby
Disclaimer: Y'know, it's been a long time since I did one of these…let's make it fun: THE PENGUINS MADE ME DO IT!!! ^_^
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter Nine
*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Matt coughed quietly into his right hand. He tried to contain the noise as much as possible, knowing that his traveling companions would refuse to let him take a watch if they thought he was getting sick again. Especially T.K. and Joe. The blond was left with one of two options: contain the coughing before the others got back from gathering dinner, or loose the good fight and turn in early. Unfortunately, Yamato Ishida was not always known for his wisdom and opted for choice a. He really did like standing watch; it made him feel needed, as though he were still pulling his share, even though his stupid broken arm and various assorted wounds kept him from doing most types of physical labor. Matt finally got his coughs under control just as the first of the other Chosen Children returned. Fish and fruit for dinner. How original.
Sora sighed. "Isn't there anything else in the Digital World we can eat? Fish and fruit, fruit and fish. It's always the same thing."
"Ah," T.K. added wisely, "but is it? We add different spices whenever we can, so isn't it like having a new type of fish every night?" The others stared at him until he sighed, defeated. "What do you want me to say? I'm the Chosen Child of Hope. I've got to be hopeful, don't I?"
Everyone sighed. Silence descended upon the group.
"Let's talk about something," Mimi said suddenly. "We're all too quiet too much of the time. Let's have a conversation."
"My hand hurts," Tai offered.
Matt, sitting by him, smirked mockingly and punched him lightly in the arm. "I'll bet."
"Hey, it's a deep cut!" He displayed the afflicted hand, seemingly proud of the bandages wrapped around it.
"It's a scratch," Matt contended, arching an eyebrow and picking lightly at his fish.
"Scratch? Scratch? You," he accused, "may have scratches. This is a wound. Which, I might add, I got saving you from the depths of despair. So don't knock it."
Matt sighed, offering his leftovers to Gabumon. "Yes, yes, you saved me from myself. Hurrah. Everyone else here did, too, so you can't feel that special. Besides, it's still just a little bitty old cut."
"It's a wound."
"Care to compare?" Matt held out his right arm, still covered in bandages from the Araknamon, and lifted his left slightly.
Tai smirked. "All because I'm not a total masochist doesn't make my wound less important than any of yours."
"Yes but I'm being self contained and mature about my wounds. You're just whining and whining."
"Hey, Mimi asked for the topic, not me."
"Let's pick a new topic now," Sora suggested. "It might be entertaining for the two of you to argue around in circles, but it's not really all that thrilling for the rest of us."
"That's a good idea," T.K. agreed, "What should we talk about instead?"
Silence.
"What about the next Basic Digimon?" Tai suggested. "What can you tell us, Izzy?"
The frazzled-haired genius set his food aside and pulled his computer into his lap.
"Oh, please, Tai," Kari begged. "Can't we talk about something else?"
Izzy shrugged and put his laptop down, retrieving his remaining food.
"No, Kari, we've got to think of the mission."
Food down, computer up.
"But that's all we ever do! It's our first night out of Anamnemon's castle, can't we rest for a bit?"
Put down the laptop, pick up the food.
"Don't you want to go home? The only way we get out of here is to do what we've been called here to do."
Toss away the food, retrieve the computer.
"Yeah, but as soon as we do finish, we leave the Digiworld again, maybe forever! Don't you want to stay with Agumon a little longer?"
Trade the laptop for the food.
"Sure, but we've got responsibilities, both here and at home. We can't just ignore that."
As Izzy switched his food for his laptop again, he felt a spark of annoyance.
"I know we can't, but one night isn't going to make a difference."
"Can you prove that?"
"Can you disprove it?"
"We have to think of the mission!"
"We have to rest!"
"Mission!"
"Rest!"
Laptop, food.
"Mission!"
"Rest!"
"Oh, would you two stop it already?" All eyes turned to Izzy, who was frowning at the bickering siblings. "This is just more arguing for the sake of arguing. Make up your minds already. We were almost killed yesterday; we could all be killed tomorrow. I would rather not waste my time squabbling, if it's all the same to you."
The two stared at each other. "Sorry," they said in unison.
Joe sighed. "Well, let's just agree to disagree, and I'll start a new topic. It's called: rheumatic fever, little known complication of strep throat." Matt winced. "How're you feeling, Matt?"
"Fine," he lied.
"Now that," Joe observed dryly, "is a lie if ever I heard one. Or, at least, it's a half-truth. You're getting sick again, aren't you?"
Matt met Joe's eyes defiantly. "No."
The boy doctor sighed. "See, I know it's a lie because I heard you coughing before I came back to camp."
Matt glared at him. "You were spying on me?"
Joe returned the glare. "What else can I do? You lie about your health because you don't want to be a burden, and while that would be borderline noble back on earth, where there are people who can help you when you're dying of a fever, this is the Digital World. We can only operate on prevention here. If you get sick again, we're in trouble. I don't do magic, Matt. There's a difference between patching up cuts and battling rheumatic fever. I don't have the medicine, training, or recourses to deal with that kind of stuff. Be stupid if you want to when we're battling Digimon, because I've got lots of bandages, and I can heal wounds, but I can't heal illnesses. I just can't."
Matt sighed. "Fine, Joe. I'll be more careful."
"Good. I'm glad you feel like being cooperative right now, because I have something else to say."
"What?"
"You're not standing watch anymore."
"What? You can't do that!"
"Yes, I can. And I am. Look, you're relapsing. Don't deny it because you are. You need all the sleep you can get to battle the illness trying to reassert itself in your system." The young doctor turned to Tai. "You'll back me in this, right?"
The leader held up his hands. "Don't pull me into this! I'm not the doctor; you are."
"Exactly," Joe said, turning back to Matt. "Did you hear him? You're not the doctor; I am."
"Joe, you're not letting me do anything because of this stupid arm, you can't take away my night shift, too. Then I'll be completely useless!"
"No, you won't. You cook our meals for us, right? That's something."
"It's not enough. I don't want to be a burden."
"A burden? Imagine the kind of burden a sick person would be! How would we travel, Matt? Someone would have to carry you. Who would it be?" Matt didn't say anything, but he scowled at the fire. Joe sighed. "Look, I know you don't like this, but facts are facts. If you don't want to get sick again, you've got to get more sleep. It's as simple as that."
Matt sighed, his shoulders slumping. "Fine," he relented at last, "fine. I won't stand watch any more. I'll go to sleep like a good little boy and take things nice and easy from now on. Happy?"
Joe shook his head. "It's not like that. I'm not doing this to pick on you."
The blond sighed and rested his cheek on his hand, propping his arm on his leg and resting his broken arm against his chest. He studied the fire as he spoke. "I know you're not, Joe. I guess I just wanted someone to blame. It feels like I'm betraying myself. I want to help, but if I do I'll only make things worse in the long run. I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place."
T.K. rested a hand on his brother's shoulder and smiled brightly when Matt looked at him. "It's ok, Matt! We don't mind standing your watch. It's not your fault this is happening. Don't beat yourself up about it."
The others smiled at him as well, conveying their support of Joe's decision.
Matt smiled back at them. "Thanks, guys."
"We just don't want you suffering anymore," Mimi explained. "As your friends, we'll do anything to keep you from getting sick again."
The blond sighed and flopped onto his back. "I know," he admitted, "and I really am grateful. I don't want to get sick here, either."
"Really?" T.K. asked innocently as one by one the others lied back to stare at the stars with the Chosen Child of Friendship.
"Really," he confirmed. His voice dropped to a bare murmur. "It's the thing I worry about the most. Getting sick here would be such a bad thing. A relapse now…I'm not sure how we'd handle it. It's my only real nightmare. The thing I fear…most of all."
The next day at lunch, Izzy pulled up his laptop and looked up the next Basic Digimon they would all be facing.
"Her name's Loyarimon," he informed them, munching on a piece of fruit. "She lives not too far from here, just over these foothills. Her castle must be fortified by the mountains. Actually, if we pushed ourselves-"
"Don't even go there," Tai said flatly. "We're not pushing anything."
Matt sighed.
"Then we'll get there tomorrow morning," Izzy replied, shrugging. "Anywhere between nine and eleven am, if all present conditions hold up." At that precise instant, the heavens opened, pouring a sheet of rain over the Digidestined. "All right," Izzy called over the sudden downpour, snapping his laptop shut and stuffing it under his shirt, "so we'll get there around dinner time."
"If we're lucky," T.K. added, turning his face up to the cooling thunderstorm.
"Lucky?" Mimi demanded, seeking shelter under a tree with Palmon clasped in her arms. "We're going to battle a Basic Digimon. What's lucky about that?"
T.K. shrugged. "Dunno. I guess it's lucky because if we're in her castle we're not in the rain."
"You're such an optimist," Sora sighed, standing with the others.
T.K. grinned.
"Ok," Tai called to everyone. "This rain looks like it's going pretty strong right now, so let's see if we can find some shelter somewhere. We'll split up to search and meet back here in fifteen minutes. T.K., you go with Matt. Sora, you can go with Mimi. Joe, Izzy, the two of you can stick together. Kari, you can come with me. All right, let's go."
A little cave was discovered in the side of one of the foothills. Sora said Mimi found it with her anti-uncomfortable radars. The more uncomfortable she was, the more efficient she became. Working quickly, Tai, T.K., Joe, and Izzy were able to gather some firewood before everything got completely soaked. As they did this, Matt, Mimi, Sora, and Kari organized the leaves in the cave into sleeping piles, cleared all the large debris and rocks, and cleared an area for the fire. After that, the girls left Matt with Gabumon to guard the cave while they darted about the damp forest looking for fruit. When everything was done, the Digidestined gathered around the fire to warm themselves and ate silently. After that they sat quietly until Izzy, finding nothing else to do, pulled out his laptop and began explaining to the others about Loyarimon.
"This says her type is…oh, wow. That's…not very good."
"What?" Tai demanded, sitting straighter. "What's not very good?"
"Well, her type seems to be…Fear."
Silence.
"Fear," Mimi repeated, leaning against the cave wall. "We've had a hard enough time with Oblivion and Silence. Now we've got to deal with Fear? Oh, no."
"It's ok," Kari assured her. "We'll be fine. Fear isn't so bad. What's the worst that can happen?"
"Are you kidding?" Mimi demanded. "Think about what you just said. We're talking about the Basic Digimon of Fear. What do you think her attack is? Do you know what she could do to us?"
"Probably bring all our deepest, most terrifying fears to the surface," Joe admitted flatly.
Gomamon rested his paw on Joe's shoulder. "Don't worry, Joe! No matter what she throws at you, we'll protect you!"
"Yeah!" Palmon agreed, smiling at Mimi. "We've fought your fears before, remember?"
Mimi blinked. "When?"
"When we battled Puppetmon."
Biyomon wrapped her wings around Sora. "And Piedmon."
"And the other Dark Masters," Tentomon agreed.
"Don't forget Apocalymon!" Gomamon laughed, leaning against Joe.
"Or when we fought LadyDevimon," Gatomon added.
"Or Demidevimon or Devimon," Patamon continued, landing on T.K.'s head.
"Cherrymon, too," Gabumon agreed, sitting next to Matt.
Agumon looked at Tai steadily. "Or SkullGreymon."
"Those were your fears," Biyomon explained. "You were afraid, but you didn't give up. We helped you then, and we'll help you now."
"Feel better?" Patamon asked T.K.
The boy smiled.
"Ok," Tai began after a while, "it's getting late now. Let's split up the watch and get some sleep."
Matt sighed heavily.
"Get over it," Tai advised him. "That isn't going to work."
The blond sighed again and retreated to the back of the cave with Gabumon. The Digimon was the only one to see the tiny smile on Matt's lips. "It's fun annoying them," he explained in a hushed whisper. He winked and settled down for the night.
Even after bringing the boy back to life, Gabumon was not sure he understood his Digital Destined.
The rain continued to pour all through the night. Sitting her watch, Sora felt something just beyond the mouth of the cave and turned. When she looked, nothing was there. Still, the chill down her spine that told her someone was watcher her wouldn't leave.
"Biyomon," she whispered, shaking the Digimon. "Biyomon, wake up."
"Mmm? Sora? What's wrong?"
The girl glanced into the dark, rain soaked night. "I don't know. I just have this feeling. Like something's watching us."
Biyomon sat up and looked out of the cave. "I don't see anything, Sora," she admitted, "but I can go out and look, if you want me to."
"No!" Sora blushed and put a hand over her mouth, glancing back at where the others slept. "I mean, no, thank you, Biyomon. I-I don't think you need to."
The Digimon stared at her. "Are you sure?"
She nodded folding her hands in her lap. "Yes. I'm sure. Everything's probably fine. I'm just a little tired."
"Oh. Well, Tai's watch is coming up soon, then you can get some sleep."
Sora smiled at her. "All right, Biyomon. Thanks. Sorry if I worried you."
The Digimon shrugged, smiled, and settled herself back at Sora's feet. The girl stared pensively at the fire.
"I know something was out there," she murmured to herself. "But what? And why does it give me such a bad feeling?"
By the next morning, the rain had stopped completely, leaving the Digital World blanketed in thousands of bright raindrops. It was beautiful, but not the most pleasant condition in which to hike over a mountain, considering the higher the sun rose the more humid it became. The group began taking frequent breaks.
"I've told you that I feel fine," Matt insisted for the thousandth time during one of these breathers.
"Just checking," T.K. assured, smiling.
Matt sighed. "Look, you're all asking that question every five minutes. It's getting old. I know you don't want me to get sick, but I don't want to, either. If I start feeling sick, I'll let you know. All right?"
The other seven sighed. "All right," they agreed, defeated.
"Good. Now let's get climbing."
Several minutes later, Sora stopped walking and looked behind her.
Izzy, trekking next to her, turned to her. "What's the matter?"
She didn't respond.
"Sora? Hello, Digiworld to Sora!"
She looked at him and blinked. "Hmm? Oh, sorry, Izzy, did you say something?"
"Yes. I was curious as to why you discontinued your ascent."
She computed that. "I don't know," Sora admitted, looking into the forest behind her. "I just get this feeling."
"What feeling?" Izzy and Sora turned. Tai had doubled back and was watching Sora intently. Izzy opened his mouth, but Tai waved him off. "I let Matt keep going with the others. Joe will stop him if he starts overdoing it and it'll make him feel useful. Now, what's this feeling you're talking about?"
Sora sighed. "I don't know. It's like…like we're being followed. But not even that. It's more than that, different." She sighed, frustrated. "I don't know! It's just…it's wrong. Like…like we're being…"
"Hunted." Tai was looking back up the path where Joe and Matt were helping Mimi and the Digimon over a rough spot. "We're being hunted, aren't we, Sora?"
The girl didn't answer, frightened for the first time. That was it. The feeling. Like being followed, only worse. Different. Something was hunting them.
"Come on," Tai urged softly, turning. "I want to be with them when whatever's going to attack hits us, because I bet it's from Loyarimon. And I bet it isn't good." They began a steady trot uphill, dodging tree branches and jumping over roots and rocks. "Hey, Matt!" Tai called ahead. The others looked back. "Wait up a sec!" The trio caught up with their friends and Tai began explaining what he thought was going on. "Loyarimon's sent her henchmons after us. We're being hunted. I don't know how or where from, but we are. That means we've all got to be way more alert than we have been. Ok?" The others nodded. "All right. Let's keep going." They walked on for almost an hour more in relative silence before they realized anything was wrong.
"Hey," Joe began suddenly, looking around. "Where's Mimi?"
Everyone stopped and stared dumbly at each other.
"Wasn't she at the end of the line?" Kari asked hesitantly.
Joe nodded. "Right behind me, as a matter of fact. But when I turned around to see how she was doing…she was gone. What's going on?"
Tai took a deep breath. "Palmon's gone too, so we'll just have to hope Loyarimon doesn't want us all dead. Hopefully she'll be at the castle. Come on, we've got to go get her before anything- Joe?" He was gone now, too. The remaining Digidestined continued their ascent, but their speed noticeably picked up.
"T.K.!" Matt cried suddenly, turning. Sure enough, the boy was gone. Matt took a half-step back, shaking his head. "Oh, no…he's gone!" They began looking for him. "What's going on?" Matt demanded suddenly, going a little off the path to look for clues. "None of us saw anything, what could have-" The shadows of the bush rose up to envelop Matt.
"No!" Gabumon cried, and leapt into the shadows after him.
Tai turned on his heel. "Come on, you guys! We can't be caught, too! We've got to save the others!" The five Chosen Children began a mad dash, but whether it was from the mysterious attacking Digimon or to Loyarimon's castle, no one was sure. After a few minutes, Kari tripped. With an exclamation, the shadows from the surrounding forest exploded towards her. She and Gatomon were swallowed by the darkness.
"No!" Tai cried. Sora grabbed his arm as she ran by him and dragged him after her. "No! My sister!"
"You can't save her if you're captured, too, Tai!" The three of them ran. As they dashed madly up the mountain, Izzy's jacket snagged on a tree; his laptop was jogged loose.
"Oh!" he exclaimed, turning to get it.
"Izzy, don't!" Sora called back to him. "If you do, the shadows-"
He bent to pick up his computer. Blackness gathered around him. He looked up at Tai and Sora. "Run," he said firmly, clutching his laptop to his chest. "Run!" The shadows crashed over him.
"Super Shocker!" The electricity had little effect. Soon Tentomon was caught, too. Sora and Tai continued running. A clearing stretched out in front of them. Just as they were about to enter it, a tendril of shadow reached out and encircled Tai's foot. He crashed to the ground.
"Tai!" Agumon shouted, running to his side. "Pepper-" The shadows gathered around them.
"Sora!" Tai cried. "You're our last hope! Don't get caught!" They were gone.
Sora, trembling, took a step back. "Gone," she murmured. "They're all gone!"
"Sora!"
"Biyomon?"
"Keep running! We're almost there!" The two continued their hurried journey. When they broke out of the forest, they were met with a staggering sight. Loyarimon's castle. It was huge, fortified into the side of the mountain on three sides, just as Izzy had predicted. A huge wall surrounded the exposed front of the castle, with two monstrous watchtowers rising high above everything else. Seven stakes stood posted on the walkway between the watchtowers. They were huge, very tall and very thick, make of some black material. They looked like pointed towers of shadow. Seven figures were wrapped in the spikes: the Chosen Children. It looked as though the stakes were made of a pliable material and each of the Destined had been pressed into it. Knees, elbows, parts of legs and arms, some feet, some hands, and heads were left exposed. None of them looked hurt, but they were all unconscious. The Digimon were all piled on top of each other by the foot of the gate, signed off as a nuisance more than a threat and left unguarded. Sora's eyes were locked on her comrades.
"Biyomon." The Digimon looked up at her. "I don't think I'm their last hope. I think…" she smiled down at her. "You Digimon are." At that moment, blackness swept Sora away. It rushed to the castle, gathered the other Digidestined, and entered the castle. Biyomon was dropped on the pile of Digimon and forgotten. It was this brushing off and ignoring of a possible threat that began Loyarimon's defeat.
Sora, as the last one captured, was the last one to regain consciousness. She moaned and sat up. The other Digidestined were with her, but where were they? The last thing she remembered…she gasped.
"Where are we?" she asked suddenly.
Only Izzy looked over at her. "We're in a cell of the dungeon in Loyarimon's castle."
Sora looked around.
Tai was standing by the bars of their prison, looking about desperately for a means of escape.
Kari was standing by him, talking softly, probably about what they could do. As she talked, she rewrapped his hand, which had bled through its bandages.
Izzy was typing on his laptop, no doubt trying to find a blueprint or some information about the castle structure itself.
Mimi, Joe, and T.K. were all clustered around Matt, who sat leaning against wall of their cell. Matt was panting hard, holding his arm as T.K. readjusted his sling. Mimi and Joe were rewrapping and repacking what was left of Joe's medical supplies, which were laid out around them.
"What happened?" Sora asked, crawling over.
"Matt's arm was re-broken," Joe explained calmly, accepting some bandaging from Mimi and tucking them into a side pocket. "When that shadow stuff got him, it twisted his arm. We had to reset it."
Sora looked over to where Matt and T.K. sat. The younger boy was just tying the ends of Matt's sling together, talking softly and encouragingly. Matt smiled whitely at something he said.
Kari released her brother's hand and Tai turned away from the bars to look back at them. "Everything ok?" he asked gently.
"I guess so," Mimi said, sighing. "As ok as can be expected, anyway. Joe gave Matt some really strong pain killers, and that should help, but we can't give them to him much because they cause drowsiness and we're worried he'll be allergic."
From where he sat, Matt chuckled. "Complications upon complications, right?"
Joe smiled sadly at him. "Hey, you're the one who has to live with the ouch, not me."
Matt smiled gently and leaned his head back against the wall, numb with a sort of pain exhaustion, content to let T.K. flit around him, trying to make the older blond more comfortable.
"How are we going to get out of this, Tai?" Matt asked suddenly.
The leader sighed, leaning forward to rest his forehead on the bars. "I don't know, Matt. I honestly don't."
"We're here for a reason," Mimi observed. "Don't you think?"
Joe nodded grimly. "Of course we're here for a reason. We're here because Loyarimon wants us dead. Why? Because we're a threat to her. Just like our Digimon."
The other seven members of the cell looked devastated.
Sora blinked. "What's wrong?"
"Sora," Kari began slowly. "Haven't you noticed? The Digimon aren't here. They're not even in the castle. I can't feel Gatomon. They're…our Digimon…are…"
Suddenly Sora understood. "No!" she exclaimed, standing. "You guys don't understand! They're not dead! I saw your Digimon before I was captured. They were all left in a pile outside the gate. Loyarimon must not think they're going to be any trouble. She left them alone!"
The gloom that had settled over the cell immediately lifted.
"All right!" Tai enthused. "We've still got a chance then! We've just got to let all our faith rest on the Digimon."
"Don't be absurd. Faith is useless."
The eight Chosen Children turned and found the sister of Meloremon and Anamnemon, Loyarimon, standing before them in the dungeon. Her hair was black, falling in waves all the way to the floor. Her eyes, too, were a bleak ebony, as were the folds of cloth hanging about her petite form. Her face was expressionless, as blank as stone.
T.K. stood. "What did you say?"
"Faith is useless."
He shook his head. "No…that's wrong. Faith is what give us the ability to hope."
She gave no reaction. "I am here to inform you."
"Of what?" Tai asked hesitantly.
"Your deaths." The Digidestined were shocked into silence. "You are kept here as my prisoners here until I decide you are no longer necessary. Then I will summon you one at a time to my chamber, where I will use your innermost fears to terrify you until you die."
Silence.
"You're…" Tai hesitated. "You're going to scare us to death?"
She nodded. "Yes."
"Ok, then. Whatever you say."
She shrugged. "Doubt if you will. Until the time I decide, you will remain here." This said, she turned on her heel and disappeared.
"All right," Tai began slowly. "Ok. I think that went well."
Matt spoke up suddenly. "Tai…if she makes our innermost fears come true, we're in trouble."
"Why?"
"Because my innermost fear is being sick here like I was before. I couldn't even move then, Tai."
The leader blinked. "Oh…oh, that's not good."
"No," Matt agreed, "it isn't."
Agumon sat up and stared at the castle. He turned to see the other Digimon, who were all watching the castle as well. Each Digimon shifted their gaze to Agumon, who nodded.
"We've got to save them."
The Digimon crept along the castle's border, looking for a weakness.
"There aren't any guards," Palmon observed, looking up to the watchtowers. "Couldn't we just…climb up there?"
"Let me check," Patamon said, flying up to the tower. He landed on the wall, looked around, and flew back down. "I didn't see anything, so I think it's safe."
"What if someone comes while we're climbing up?" Gomamon asked, darting suspicious looks around the clearing.
"No problem," Biyomon assured. "Patamon, Tentomon, and I can fly up there and keep a look out."
"Ok," Patamon agreed. Tentomon lifted off the ground. The three rose to the watchtower and perched on the wall, one looking in at the castle, one watching the forest, one keeping an eye on the sky. Palmon shot a Poison Ivy up to where the three were. It caught and acted like a rope for the others. When Palmon landed on the marble next to the rest of the Digimon, they all began a steady, swift dash to where they could feel their Digidestined waiting.
"Something's wrong," Gabumon commented softly as they ran. "Matt's hurt again."
"Yeah," Palmon agreed. "I mean, I don't know about Matt, but something is wrong. Mimi…she's scared."
"As is Izzy," Tentomon added. "He's terrified of something."
"Tai, too. But he's trying not to show it."
"So is Sora."
"And T.K.!"
"Joe's scared, too. Well, actually, he's scared a lot, but this is different. Bigger. Worse."
"Kari's not at any picnic, either."
Agumon gulped. "Let's run faster."
They did.
Tai slammed his fist into the wall. "This is nuts! We should be doing something!"
Kari sighed from her position on the ground and leaned against the wall. "Calm down, Tai. You're going to bleed through your bandages again. Getting worked up isn't going to solve anything."
"Well, neither is sitting here doing nothing, so just shut up!"
Kari glared at him. "At least I'm trying to be considerate!"
"To who?"
"To whom," Izzy corrected half-heartedly.
"Who, whom, what's the difference?"
"One's correct; the other isn't."
"Whatever."
"Tai, you need to calm down!"
The leader whirled on Sora. "How can you say that! Our Digimon are out there, we don't know where, doing something, we don't know what, and we can't help them!"
Sora put a hand on Tai's arm. "Have faith in them, Tai. I'm sure they'll be here for us as soon as they can."
Tai shook his head very slightly before turning away and wrapping his hands around the bars again. "We should still be trying," he murmured. "They can't do this all on their own. It's not possible. They can't even Digivolve. What can they do as Rookies?"
Matt opened his eyes and blinked slowly. "Tai…"
The leader wasn't listening. "Anything could happen to them. They could be hurt or dying or…or hungry and we'll never know."
"Tai-"
"What if they need us? What if they need to Digivolve, and they can't, because we're in here and they're out there?"
Matt, still looking at the ceiling, stopped trying to reach the worrying leader. "T.K., do you feel it?"
The younger boy took his brother's uninjured hand. "Feel what, Matt?"
He was sluggish, fuzzy around the edges because of the pain medication. "Gabumon…do you feel it? They're here…"
Silence reigned as all attention turned on Matt.
"What do you mean?" T.K. asked calmly, trying to keep the growing excitement from his voice. "What do you mean, they're here?"
"T.K., can't you feel Patamon? The Digimon are here. They'll be here soon. Gabumon says there isn't much in the way of security here, so it's not that hard, and they'll be here as soon as they can."
"How are you doing that?" Mimi asked, mystified.
Matt's hazy eyes turned to her. "Doing what?"
"Communicating with Gabumon. I can feel that Palmon's here, now that you've said it, but how are you hearing what Gabumon's saying?"
A slight smile curved Matt's lips. "He brought me back when I was dead. Of course I can hear him. He can hear me, too…" Matt's drowsy eyes closed as his breathing evened out.
Izzy pulled up his computer and began typing furiously. "Ah-ha!" he announced triumphantly. "Look at this."
"What is it?" Joe asked, confused.
"It's a document about the rules of the Digital World."
"There are rules?" Tai demanded, surprised.
"Certainly. All things are based on some set of rules or another. Anyway, this document states that if a Digimon leaves the Digital World to bring its human partner back to life after that partner has died, the Digimon is breaking a Rule of Nature, stating everything in existence has a time to die. That's what Gabumon did for Matt. Now, when Gabumon did that for Matt, he had to use his own life energy, thus bonding them in a most unusual and irrevocable way. They're connected. If ever Matt were to die, Gabumon wouldn't be that far behind him. Unfortunately, the reverse is also applicable. Meaning, if Gabumon dies, so does Matt. And that's why it's illegal."
"So," T.K. began hesitantly, "so Matt shouldn't be alive right now? I mean, it's against the Digital Law that he's even here?" Izzy nodded. "Thank God for disobedient Digimon."
"What I can't figure out," Izzy began again, "is why they weren't punished."
Sora blinked. "Punished?"
"Yes. The breaking of a Digital Law is punishable by death if done purposefully."
"Was Devimon breaking the law? And the Dark Masters and Apocalymon?"
"Certainly."
"Then why weren't they punished?"
"They were. Why do you think we were summoned?"
"Now, hold on a second there!" Joe interrupted. "You mean we're just inter- dimensional cops?"
"It seems that way."
"Oh. Ok."
"Getting back to Matt," T.K. prompted.
"Ah, yes," Izzy agreed. "Matt. Well, it would seem that Matt and Gabumon- and maybe even the rest of us- might me above this law, somehow. It can't be every Digidestined that's ever been born, because there are documented cases of Digimon and their Digidestined trying to bring one or the other back and dying. So now we're left to wonder: why not Matt and Gabumon?"
"You know," Kari commented, "that 'above the law' theory actually makes sense. I mean, in one way."
"How so?"
"Well, you remember when we started this whole thing? How Matt and Gennai seemed to hate each other? This explains it. Gennai's probably mad that Gabumon and Matt went against the law, and Matt's probably mad that Gennai would have just let him die. It fits, doesn't it?"
The others digested this.
Suddenly Tai looked up. "I can feel Agumon," he murmured. "They really are coming. They…they're just…"
Sora looked up. "About…"
Izzy turned. "Here."
The doors to the dungeon slammed open.
The Digimon raced through the castle, somehow navigating the maze without actually knowing where they were going. Around corners, through rooms, down halls, out windows, in doors. All throughout this journey, they kept their minds focused completely on their mission: Izzy, Joe, Mimi, Sora, Tai, Kari, T.K., and Matt were captured in the underbelly of this maze and they had to be found. The eight Digimon entered a large room and looked around.
"Through here!" Tentomon cried. The others turned to dash through the door Tentomon had blasted open. It led to a stairwell.
"They're down there!" Gomamon exclaimed, hopping down the first stair. "Right down there!"
"Unfortunately," a voice commented, "you won't be going there."
The Digimon turned, prepared to fight, only to find…nothing. Nothing but shadows filled the room. Suddenly a shadow lashed out to send Agumon crashing into a wall.
"P-Pepper Breath!" he called, once he was standing again. The ball of fire smashed through the dark room to hit a wall. Whatever had attacked him was gone.
A deep, maniacal laughter filled the room. "You cannot win."
Agumon took a step forward. "We can do anything!" He turned. "Go save Tai and the others! I'll hold these guys!"
"Not on your own! Blue Blaster!"
"Poison Ivy! Ah, it's useless if I can't find them!"
"Lightning Paw! So's mine! Agh, this is terrible!"
Tentomon flew into the air. "Super Shocker! You two and Gomamon go rescue Izzy and the others! We'll stay here and guard the door!"
"Boom Bubble! I'll go with them, incase any more of these things are guarding the others!"
"Spiral Twister! All right, but go now! Quick! Before it's too late!"
"Pepper Breath!"
"All right! We're going!"
"Good luck, you guys!"
"We'll be back soon!"
"Super Shocker! Hurry!" As Gomamon, Palmon, and Gatomon dashed down into the dungeon, the remaining Digimon gathered at the door, forming a chain of resistance against the attacking foe.
"They're staying in the shadows," Tentomon observed. "Maybe they're allergic to light, like the Araknamon were."
"If so, let's keep the light show going! Blue Blaster!"
"Pepper Breath!"
"Spiral Twister!"
"Super Shocker!"
T.K. looked up as the door opened. "Patamon!" he cried.
"Gatomon!"
"Palmon!"
"Gomamon!"
Tai looked around. "Where's Agumon?"
"Yeah, and Biyomon?"
"Tentomon is absent!"
"Patamon, are they fighting?" The Digimon looked over. Matt was standing with a little bit of help from T.K. "Are they fighting?" he asked again.
Gatomon nodded. "Yes, and we should hurry here. The Digimon they're battling aren't exactly dandelions. Lightning Paw!" She slashed at the door and it broke in two, falling in on itself.
"Poison Ivy!" Palmon caught the falling pieces and tossed them away. There was a brief, tearful reunion between the four Destined and the Digimon who were there. The other four rushed up the stairs.
"Come on!" Gomamon insisted urgently. "They'll need our help!" As they dashed up the stairs, they heard the screaming of Digivices. War cries echoed through the large room.
"Greymon!"
"Birdramon!"
"Kabuterimon!"
"Garurumon!" The four Champion Digimon gathered in a wary bunch, waiting for the move they knew was coming.
Suddenly Greymon put his head back. "Nova Blast!" The room was filled with light. A horde of between thirty and thirty-five black Digimon shrunk back against the corners of the room.
Izzy pulled out his laptop. "One more time!"
"Nova Blast!"
"They're called Shadoramon! They're Digimon of shadow, which is why we can never see them! They blend in perfectly! No one's actually ever seen one before. Apparently they're impossibly hard to defeat."
Patamon hmmed thoughtfully. "Hey, Gatomon, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"
"You got it, Patamon. Gatomon Digivolve TO!"
"Patamon Digivolve TO!"
"Angewomon!"
"Angemon!" The two angelic Digimon flew into the air. Angemon went to one side of the room while Angewomon went to the other.
"Hand of Fate!"
"Celestial Arrow!" The Digimon had shot their powers, not at the ground where the attacking Digimon hid, but at each other. They caught each other's attack as it came at them, sustaining it through their own power. As Power met Angel, the room exploded in light.
"Hurry!" Angemon called down.
"We can't keep this up for long!"
"C'mon, guys!" Gomamon cried. "Let's kick it up! Gomamon Digivolve TO!"
"Palmon Digivolve TO!"
"Ikkakumon!"
"Togemon!" The Champion Digimon stepped forward; the Shadoramon shrunk back. They were impossibly black, darker than night. It was easy to see how they had blended in so thoroughly. Their edges were hard to define, even in the light, as though they were shifting under their skin. Each Digimon had a thin body, supported on elongated arms and legs. They kept low, whether on the ground, a wall, or the ceiling. The room crawled with them.
"Greymon!" Tai called. "Go for it!"
"Nova Blast!"
The battle began.
AN: So?? What'd ya think?? Review!! I'm trying to post chapter 10 as well, but we'll see what happens. Ok? Ok! REVIEW!!!!
Pineapples, people!
-Angel Baby