Chapter 11
The night had been a little cramped, but they had gotten through it alright, and now everyone had reconvened for another meeting at TK's. Ryo and Natasha sat together on the couch, talking in low voices, while TK and Kari occupied the recliner and everyone else either stood around or sat on the floor.
"Alright, we're all agreed that it would probably be a bad idea to wait too long before taking this guy out," TK began, receiving several confirming nods. "Well, then I'm open to any other ideas, because a prolonged siege won't work. Kari, Ken and I can't just drop off the face of the earth for a few weeks while we fight this guy."
"Who says it'll take that long?" Ryo spoke up; he and Natasha apparently coming to an agreement on whatever they'd been talking about. "First off, most of the time that we spent fighting the first emperor was spent getting more powerful, or launching sneak attacks because we couldn't just take him on head-to-head. We don't exactly have that problem anymore. All of us can become Megas through bio-merges, or at least Ultimates."
"Except me," Wormmon grumbled.
"We can even get you up high enough, I think," Ryo grinned. The point is, unless this guy has raised one massive army of entirely Megas, which I don't think would be possible, we shouldn't have too much trouble."
"Maybe," TK admitted. "Unless he's managed to hide the bulk of his forces."
"TK, I think that you are overlooking something," Natasha spoke up. "We obviously need more information, so we must get it."
"Well said," TK replied, sarcastically. "Might I ask how?"
"Azulongmon." TK hesitated at her answer, his head lowering slightly as he answered.
"I don't think that would be a good idea."
"Why not?" Willis spoke up. "The dragon's got to have a good idea of what's going on, why not just ask him? Then we can make plans."
"He's not up to company, right now," TK replied, looking out the window.
"Alright, for those of us who just got involved, huh?" Yolei spoke up.
"Azulongmon is the guardian of the Eastern Sphere of the digital world," Willis replied.
"We got that last night," Yolei replied. "What I meant was, what are you guys talking about?"
"TK and Kari are his avatars, of course, and they can communicate with him anywhere in this world or the digital one" Ryo replied, looking surprised. "Didn't anyone tell you?"
"No one thought to inform me," Kari replied, her voice like ice as her eyes bored into TK's back.
"It works like this," TK sighed, looking back. "The four Guardians each represent two aspects of the digital world. Azulongmon represents Light and Hope, Baihumon represents Courage and Friendship, Zhuqiaomon represents Love and Sincerity, and Ebonwumon represents Knowledge and Reliability. Each of them, at the beginning of the Dark Masters' rise to power, created two avatars, beings to do their will while they were imprisoned. To ensure that they wouldn't be corrupted by the Dark Masters, each avatar was infused with a small bit of the Guardian's own power."
"Why didn't you ever tell us this?" Kari demanded, not angry, per se, but more intrigued.
"I only found out about it during our travels, fighting the original Emperor," TK replied, taking her hand and gently kissing the back of it. "Afterwards, I didn't really talk to any of you guys until recently, and I didn't know how to tell you without also telling you about Ken."
"TK, at the very least, this gives us a reason to visit Azulongmon," Willis pointed out. "Kari's never met him and all."
"Look, it's not going to happen," TK repeated. "Azulongmon is at his temple right now, and none of the Guardians want the locations of their temples known to anyone." TK rubbed his eyes and sighed. "This is what we're going to do. I'm going to take Kari to the temple. We'll meet with Azulongmon, and find out how he wants this done. You guys find Alex, Chris and Kamon and meet us in Primary Village. Alright?"
"I wanted to insult the lizard again," Willis moaned.
"Shut it, little boy," TK grinned. "You grunts dropped the joys of command on my shoulders, that means I get to make all the decisions. We'll catch up with you in a few hours."
"TK, this place is increadible!" Kari breathed as the pair stepped out of the portal into a large tropical jungle. TK looked up from where he was adjusting the straps on his backpack and smiled.
"I was a little preoccupied the first time I came here, so I didn't notice the scenery as much," he admitted. "It is nice, though. Azulongmon picked a nice place to build his temple."
"Temple?"
"Where would you live if you were one of the closest things the digimon have to a God?"
"Point. So, where is it?"
"About three miles that way," TK pointed in a roughly northerly direction. "He's kind of weak at the moment, so he prefers to remain hidden."
"So do we walk or fly?"
"I'd prefer to walk, if you don't mind. Gives me some exercise for my leg, and we haven't had a chance to really talk recently."
"No, we haven't," Kari softly agreed as they headed out, TK using an ornamental katana he had brought to cut his way through the underbrush.
"I haven't meant to keep secrets from you," TK began, cutting straight to the point. "I sure as hell haven't lied to you. It's just, discussing my past; the time between when I was supposed to move back and now; it's not pleasant. I'd have had to break my oath to Ken to keep his involvement a secret, and you know I couldn't do that."
"No, you'd never betray someone like that," Kari agreed, whipping away the sheen of sweat that was beginning to collect on her brow. "But, still, it's like I don't know you anymore. There was a time when you and I told each other everything."
"What do you want to know?" TK asked, stopping for a moment as they reached a clearing. He set his backpack down and pulled out two bottles of water and passed one to Kari, who smiled in thanks.
"I'm not sure," she replied after taking a gulp of water. "That's part of the problem. I know that you'll answer any questions I ask you, but I don't know what to ask. And when I do find out something, everyone else finds out at the same time, so I only get the same answer they get."
"So ask me," TK pleaded, gently taking her hands and pulling her into his embrace. "I swear to you, Kari, that's all you have to do. Just ask me and I'll tell you. If I can't, I'll tell you when I can. I promise you."
"I love you."
"I love you, too." Their lips met for a brief kiss, quickly broken as TK smiled down at Kari. "I really don't deserve you."
"You're stuck with me."
"Poor me," TK smiled. "I'm getting kind of tired of walking, if you don't mind. Angemon? Can you give us a ride?"
"Of course," the angel replied, gently lifting both of them and waiting for Gatomon to scramble into Kari's arms before taking off. Their trip through the air took much less time than Kari thought it would have, and they soon descended into a large clearing in the jungle.
"Alright, I just don't see it," Kari finally confessed, looking around. "There's no temple here."
"It's right there," TK replied, gently taking her by the shoulders and pointing her in an Easterly direction. At first, there was nothing. Then, as the rays of the sun sparkled, she saw it; a brief flicker of light up high, in the center of the clearing. Then, with a kind of musical moan, the Temple of the Dragon shimmered and appeared. It was massive, with a kind of pagoda style of architecture, colored in red, and black and blue in a strange contrast that came off as breathtaking. The steps up to the doors were flanked on either side by large stone statues of a pair of serpentine dragons winding their way up to the door, which was surrounded by three statues, two of knights in armor, and one of a griffin over the door.
"TK," Kari breathed in awe. "It's beautiful."
"You can tell him when we get there," TK replied, smiling. "Come on, we need to get inside. It's not safe for the temple to remain open like this."
Kari followed him up the steps to the main doors of the temple. TK stopped at the top step and motioned for Kari to wait as well.
"I am Hope, avatar of the Dragon of the East," TK intoned, formally. "Do you know and acknowledge me?" The griffin statue suddenly stopped being a statue. It swiveled it's beaked head towards them, piercing green eyes taking the four of them in.
"Yessss," it finally rasped. "And you partner. But who are thesssse otherssss?"
"They are Light, and the children of the Great Dragon," TK replied, not moving from his position on the topmost step. The griffin seemed to consider it for a few moments, and then nodded.
"They may enter." TK bowed to the griffin and then motioned for Kari and Gatomon to follow him and Angemon inside as the massive, ornate doors groaned open.
"Come on, let's get inside. I don't want to give him a chance to change his mind."
Kari followed TK down a long chamber lit with flickering torches. She idly wondered about the irony of a world that existed entirely on the basis of human technology lighting their buildings with torches. As they passed a doorway, it opened and a man in a brown robed walked out, right into her.
"Oh, I'm so sorry," her apologized as he scrambled to his feet, reaching a hand out to help her up, but he froze upon seeing her face. "Kari?"
"Nice one, old man," TK laughed, gently pushing the man out of the way and helping Kari to her feet. "It's good to see you again, though."
Kari stared at the young man's face, trying desperately to place it, and suddenly her mind harkened back to her earliest memories of this world, and the kindly, forgetful old man who had been one of their few allies.
"Gennai?"
"I'm glad you remember me," he beamed, looking nothing at all like the Gennai she remembered. This Gennai, and she knew without a doubt that it was Gennai, was young, nearly as old as Tai at the moment, with short brown hair and sparkling blue eyes. He wore a harsh, brown robe and currently had his hood down. He seemed spry and full of life, with an alertness behind his eyes that surprised her.
"Give her a minute, she's still used to you as a forgetful old man," TK laughed.
"Yeah, I can't say I was overly proud of that form," Gennai replied, scratching the back of his head.
"It kept the Dark Master's guessing," TK supplied, hiding a chuckle. "The great Gennai, a tottering old man."
"Drop it, Takeshi," Gennai mock-growled. "It's good to see you again, Kari. Especially without cataracts blocking the view."
"How…"
"I've always looked this way," Gennai replied, smiling. "I'm the high priest to Azulongmon, and a tottering old man isn't too good of a priest. So, I've pretty much always been this way. When the Dark Masters imprisoned the Guardians, the other three high priests and I agreed that we'd need to hide, so we allowed ourselves to age, significantly. That way, even when the Dark Masters finally did find us, they didn't consider us a threat, so they left us alone."
"Wow," Kari replied, unable to think of anything else.
"I take it you're here to see Azulongmon?" Gennai wondered, changing track.
"Yeah, I figured he'd want to meet his other avatar," TK shrugged. "Plus, I need to talk to him about some things."
"Well, he's in the main room right now, but he's in consultation with the other Guardians," Gennai replied motioning down the hallway, towards a massive set of double doors.
"We might as well talk to all of them at once," TK muttered, straightening his shoulders and striding towards the doors.
"I simply do not see why it is so much of a threat," an echoing voice boomed through the room as TK opened the left door and let himself, Kari, Gatomon, and Angemon into the massive chamber.
"He represents a threat to all digimon," another voice replied, softer and more feminine.
"This discussion can hold for a moment," a third voice, old and filled with wisdom cut in. "We have visitors."
Kari stared at the four Guardians of the Digital World in awe. As if by some inner knowledge, she immediately knew each of them. Azulongmon, the Dragon of the East, Baihumon, the Tiger of the West, Zhuqaimon, the Phoenix of the South, and Ebonwumon, the Tortoise of the North. There forms glowed with a strange kind of pulsing energy that Kari quickly realized came form the twelve orbs that hovered around each Guardian.
"Takeru," Azulongmon acknowledged. "What brings you back to my temple?"
"My lord," TK bowed, then kneeled. "I have the honor to present to you your second avatar."
"So this is the Angel of Light," Baihumon rumbled, grinning a toothy grin at her.
"My lord." Kari quickly copied TK's posture and bowed to the massive glowing dragon.
"Well met, child," Azulongmon rumbled. "It is nice to finally meet you. I see that you still have the potential I gave you as a child."
"Potential, lord?" Kari wondered, briefly wondering if it was proper to question a god.
"It is fine," Azulongmon replied to her thought, grinning through his flowing white beard. "And yes, I can sense your thoughts as you are one of my children."
"Disconcerting, isn't it?" TK grinned. "To answer your question, do you remember when we fought MachineDramon when we were young?"
"Yes?"
"Remember how you healed those Numamons? How you made Agumon digivolve to WarGreymon? Those were manifestations of your potential power as an avatar."
"So, you and the others can do the same things?"
"Not the same, since we all represent a different aspect of the digital world."
"You are the Light of our world," Zhuqaimon spoke up. "As of such, you are the most powerful of the avatars. But, you are unable to defend yourself with your powers, so others must fight for you. You are the guide and inspiration of the digimon, but not their warrior."
"That's my job," TK picked up, gently taking her hand and giving it a loving squeeze. "I'm here to guard you and to help keep you grounded, while you're out there inspiring the birth of a new digital world."
"So, why can't you or the others use these powers?" Kari wondered.
"You haven't been paying attention," TK chided, smilling. "I can't use my powers except to protect you, or by extension myself. The others are simply too old now to be able to access it."
"My main weakness," Azulongmon rumbled in agreement. "After a time, the power of the others returned to their respective Guardians, but you two had tapped your potential and kept the power."
"But, that is not important right now," Ebonwumon rumbled, his voice echoing from his twin heads. "I take it that you had another matter you wished to discuss with us?"
"Merely an extension of your discussions, my lord," TK replied. "I take it that by now you have discovered our new problem."
"Whether or not it is, indeed a problem was the crux of our discussions," Baihumon rumbled. "But, yes, we are aware of the new upstart who calls himself the Digimon Emperor. Quite frankly, we would have thought that the new Chosen would have dealt with him by now."
"They aren't suited to the task, my lord," TK replied, crossing his arms and frowning at the ground. "Davis, Cody and Yolei haven't had to endure the rigors of the digital world like the rest of us did, and they're too used to the idea of leaving at night and coming back whenever to continue their work. It's not entirely their fault, but I don't think Davis can get his mind around the idea that this is more than just a really neat video game."
"I tend to agree with you," Baihumon nodded. "Which lead to our discussions; if the Chosen cannot or will not stop him, should we become directly involved."
"I don't think so," TK slowly replied, shaking his head. "Whoever is behind this has another objective than simply taking over the digital world. If he didn't, he'd have struck more directly than he is. No, he wants you either distracted or contained. I think he's going to do something that would cause the four of you to involve yourselves then. He doesn't want you at full strength when he does whatever it is he's going to do.
"I'd suggest hold back both yourselves and the Devas for now. I've been in touch with Ryo, Willis, and Natasha. They're getting in touch with the others now and we're going to hold a council of war at Primary Village today. If needs be, we'll contact you for your aid, but I think we can handle it for now."
"You seem hesitant, childe," Azulongmon observed. "I have never seen you this unsure of a situation."
"The other side isn't making sense," TK confessed. "I've got a few theories about why, but I can't prove any of them just yet. Basically, it's like the other side's forces have been getting conflicting orders. Some of them are just out there harassing digimon, but others are out there preparing for war."
"Do you suspect Daemon?" The quiet question came from the fiery Zhuqaimon, who looked hesitant to receive the answer.
"No," TK replied, immediately. "This is far too subtle for Daemon's work. I think that might be why there are conflicting orders. Some of them might be coming from Daemon, but the others are coming from this mysterious new opponent."
"I trust you to do what must be done, my avatar," Azulongmon rumbled. "Take care, but stop this Emperor before he becomes too powerful."
"Don't worry, we will," TK grinned.