Disclaimer:
I do not own Digimon.
Author's Note:
I'm glad that people are enjoying this story. Thanks to the reviewers for giving this story such great reviews. I am motivated to continue this story until the end, but I still need reviews to see if there's anything I can add to the next chapters. Got a lot of projects, but hopefully they will lessen as the year goes on. Expect about three more chapters before I move on to another story. (I'm rambling again aren't I?)Also, note that I have changed the rating. The language content will begin to contain some profanity in the later chapters. I hope I have not discouraged anyone from continuing to read. Don't worry, I will not fill up half the story with profanity and create a pointless story. Again, some Daikari in here but also with a minute bit of Kensuke. Anyway, here is the third chapter…
TRUE COLORS
Chapter Three: The Culling
By: UNKNOWN
Veemon shuffled his feet as he walked through the rough dirt. Gatomon glanced at the blue creature, who did not seem to be in a good mood…
"What's wrong with you today Veemon?" Gatomon asked.
Veemon turned to face her.
"Nothing's wrong with me…except…except…" He trailed off.
Gatomon stared at him.
"You can't expect me to help you if you can't even tell me what you're worrying about."
Veemon sighed. The wind blew in his ears and gray clouds began forming overhead, blocking out the bright sun. Looks like it's about to rain…Veemon thought. Gatomon tapped Veemon on the shoulder.
"Well? What's wrong?" she pressed.
"It's just that…I'm worried about the Digital World. So many things are happening to it. First, there's Arukenimon and Mummymon trying to rip it apart from the inside. Next, there's Blackwargreymon, whose location we don't even know, who's trying to destroy the Destiny Stones. Then there are all those other locations which are so… dark, like the Dark Whirlpool."
Gatomon thought hard. "Or the Dark Ocean."
Veemon nodded. "Yeah, that place sounds creepy just by the name."
The cat-like digimon turned back to face the mountains in the horizon, whose peaks jutted up like jagged teeth.
"I almost lost Kari there once. I tried to save her…but I couldn't. Luckily, T.K. had managed to find a way in and rescued her."
"So what's it like in there?"
Gatomon faced Veemon. "I don't think you want to know."
The duo walked around for another ten minutes. Veemon felt a trickle of water hit his nose. He looked up. The sky had turned completely gray and rain was falling.
Gatomon fussed. "I hate it when my fur gets wet!"
Veemon started to run.
"Where are you going?" Gatomon asked.
"Remember that cave by picnic area? We can take shelter in there until the storm settles."
Gatomon shrugged, and ran after Veemon.
"Ken! It's starting to rain!" Stingmon cried.
Ken could feel the rain dropping onto his shirt. The coldness penetrated deep down into him. He shivered. Behind him, Yolei groaned.
"My glasses are fogging up! Acquilamon, is there anywhere you can take us?"
Acquilamon squinted in the pouring rain.
"I can't see any place to shelter us in…in fact, I can't see at all!"
Ken clenched his teeth. Stingmon would fall if his wings got any wetter.
"Stingmon! You'd better land…under that tree!"
Stingmon flew down to the giant tree, followed by Acquilamon.
"What a way to spend a free day at the digital world," Yolei grumbled.
Ken sat at the trunk of the tree. The tree provided at least some protection from the rain. He watched the raindrops fall, a clear-like color. He gazed for a moment longer, then gasped.
Yolei, Hawkmon, and Wormmon ran over to him.
"Ken? Ken? Is something wrong?" Wormmon asked.
"No…nothing…Ah…" he said.
He looked up once again at the raindrops. The raindrops were black.
"No…No!" he cried.
"Ken, what is it? Let us help you!" Yolei urged.
She bent down and reached for him. Her hand passed right through him.
"I don't believe it…" she whispered.
Wormmon cried. "Ken! Answer me!"
Hawkmon fluttered about in the air. "It seems that Ken is in some sort of trance," he said with deep concern in his voice.
"Ken!" Yolei yelled.
Ken did not answer. He stared up at the sky and continued to shake. His eyes were transfixed on something no one else could see. I can't be taken there…not with all those horrible memories! No! Don't take me!
Yolei had enough of Ken's ignorance of their attempts to help him. She raised her hand as to slap him.
Hawkmon groaned. "You really should take anger control classes Yolei."
Her hand swept through the air with blinding speed. Within seconds, her hand connected with…the tree trunk. She yelped in pain and jumped back. Wormmon and Hawkmon glanced around nervously.
Ken was gone.
Davis sat down on the soft sand. He surveyed the landscape before him, and sighed. Now I know why this place is called the Dark Ocean. It seems…so out of focus and dried of color. Everything looks normal, but I can sense that something's wrong here…
Kari looked out at the waters. The waves silently moved up and down the coastline, creating mud on the once rocky sand. Davis was picking at his shoes and Ken was… Ken? When did Ken get here?
"Ken!" Kari shouted.
Davis turned around. "Hey! How in the world did you get here?"
Ken ran up to them, clearly pleased that he was not the only person in the Dark Ocean.
"I was sitting by a tree with Yolei, when the raindrops suddenly turned black. I knew that the Dark Ocean was calling for me. I was too weak to resist its call…"
"Oh Ken," Kari said, "You're not weak. No one can even explain what takes us here, but I doubt it has anything to do with our physical strength."
Ken shook his head. "I don't think so. You're partially correct though Kari. I don't think that the Dark Ocean feeds on our physical strength but upon our mental strength instead. I was talking about my will being too weak to prevent my teleportation here."
He sighed and gazed off to the ocean. "I've done too many things in my past, things I can't even bring to mind. My will was shattered the day my reign as the Digimon Emperor ended. When you told me the truth behind the digimon. You told me that they weren't just plain pieces of computer data and textures, but were real living things that could feel joy, pain, and sorrow… I couldn't handle all that information at once."
Davis stood up. "You have pretty low expectations of yourself Ken. Get yourself together! Your days as being the Digimon Emperor are over! We've all forgiven you! And it doesn't matter if you're will is weak. You've got a good heart and determination Ken, and I'm sure that they will see you through all your troubles!"
Ken's solemn face broke into a grin.
"Thanks Davis."
"No problemo!"
The trio began to walk across the bare beach, Ken taking the lead and Davis in the back. Unknowingly, they were being watched from the cliffs above…
T.K. awoke as he felt a drop of rain splash onto his nose. Cody sat atop on Ankylomon's shoulders and seemed to be sleeping. T.K., still half asleep, poked Cody on the shoulder. Cody grunted.
"Where are we Cody?" T.K. murmured.
Cody shrugged then tapped Ankylomon on the head. Cody whispered in his ears and replied," Close to our original camping area."
Patamon peeped out from under T.K.'s hat.
"Did anything exciting happen? I'd hate to miss out…"
"Nah, go back to sleep Patamon. Cody will e-mail the others soon so we can go back and eat some sushi!"
Patamon scrunched his nose.
"Sushi has a disgusting taste to it. I think ice cream is better."
Ankylomon rolled his eyes.
"I didn't say that you had to eat sushi too, you know."
T.K. sat up and looked around. Cody seemed to have fallen asleep again so T.K. decided that he'd better e-mail the others instead. He whipped out his D-Terminal from his pocket and began typing. The rain began to drip harder as T.K.'s hat drooped. Patamon emerged from under the hat again.
"T.K.! Your hat is getting all wet! It's getting real cold in here!"
T.K. laughed. "Well, now you know how we feel!"
The gray clouds soon covered the sun and rain began to pour. Ankylomon trudged over to an oversized mushroom.
"This should keep us dry until the rain stops," Ankylomon said.
Cody and T.K. jumped off the digimon's hard shell. Thunder clapped nearby and sent a brilliant flash of light through the dark sky. T.K. and Cody fell silent. Ankylomon returned to his rookie stage, Armadillomon, and crawled to sleep next to Cody.
Yolei paced back and forth in front of the giant tree. How could Ken suddenly have just disappeared? She thought hard. Then she thought of it. This had happened before…when I was taken to the Dark Ocean with Ken and Kari. I suppose we vanished because Davis couldn't see me, and Veemon passed right through…Hawkmon. She sank to her knees. Wormmon and Hawkmon ran over to her.
She looked up at them. "I think I know where Ken is."
Wormmon seemed extremely eager. "Where?"
Yolei thought about her conclusion before telling Wormmon and Hawkmon.
"I'm pretty sure that he was taken to the D-" she began.
Her D-Terminal suddenly began to beep. Yolei froze, and then dove for her backpack. She opened it and took out her D-Terminal.
"Who is it from Yolei?" Hawkmon asked.
"I can't really tell…the rain is still fogging up my glasses."
She squinted at the pixilated letters on the screen. Her head lifted.
"It's from T.K. He says that Cody and him are taking shelter under a giant mushroom. According to Patamon, it should be pretty easy to spot it."
She typed a message back and then put the D-Terminal away.
"Come on Hawkmon! Let's get going!"
Veemon and Gatomon gasped as they reached their picnic site. The rain continued to pour. Gatomon's fur was wet and she was cranky. Veemon was blinded by the amount of rain. Gatomon growled.
"The cave's entrance is blocked! There are a whole bunch of rocks blocking the way in!"
Veemon groaned. He began to run in another direction.
Gatomon chased after him. "You have no idea where you're going do you?"
"Nope. I just hope that I'm going the right way!"
Veemon and Gatomon began running up a steep hill. Veemon reached the top, then tripped on a rock and slid back to the bottom.
Gatomon sighed. "If I knew any better, I'd swear that Veemon and Davis shared the same mind."
Gatomon could hear Veemon groaning in the distance.
"Need help?" Gatomon yelled.
"I'm fine!' came the response.
Gatomon reached the top and looked down for a few seconds. She could make out Veemon's figure. As soon as Veemon reached the top, she grabbed his hand and yanked him. They continued running until they spotted a mass of giant mushrooms. Together, they slid down the hill and raced towards the mushrooms.
As soon as they reached the mushroom, Veemon began to turn a sickly green color. Gatomon looked on as he turned black, then pale.
"Is something wrong Veemon?" she asked.
Veemon could do nothing by shake his head. He clasped his throat and coughed. Gatomon watched a little longer, then turned the other way. She looked around them and then saw what seemed to be a rock under one of the other mushrooms. She squinted. It was impossible to see through the rain. Though dark and gloomy, Gatomon managed to make out Patamon's outline.
'Veemon! It's T.K.!" Gatomon cried.
"Huh?" Veemon asked.
Once again, poor Veemon was yanked by the hand and pulled across the field. As Gatomon neared the mushroom, she could make out Cody and Armadillomon's figure as well. The dark sky stirred and threw a bolt of lighting down. The bolt struck Gatomon and Veemon's former mushroom, and blew it to pieces. Gatomon glanced back as Veemon collapsed.
"Hey Gatomon, Veemon!" Patamon greeted.
They all sat down again and waited for the storm to settle.
Soon enough, they heard wings flapping over the area and faint voices arguing. T.K. peeked up from under the mushroom.
"Let me guess, it's Yolei," Patamon said.
T.K. nodded. "I don't think she can see us. Patamon, I think you'd better digivolve."
Patamon glowed a deep yellow. His figure expanded and elongated. Soon, Angemon was standing where Patamon once was.
"Send up a beam of light for them to see!" T.K. said.
Yolei squinted. Today was definitely not a good day. I'm wet, my glasses are so fogged that everything is gray, Ken is gone, and I can't find T.K. or Cody. Suddenly, a beam of yellow light erupted from somewhere underneath Acquilamon. Acquilamon swerved as Yolei and Wormmon screamed.
"Acquilamon! Land down where you saw the light come from!" Yolei shouted.
The wind grew heavier as Acquilamon began his descent. He wavered and rocked, but his wings did not give in. Finally, his feet clutched the grass floor and let the passengers off.
T.K. and Cody ran to the edge of the mushroom.
"Yolei! Over here!"
Yolei gathered up Hawkmon and Wormmon and ran over to the mushroom. Under it, she observed Armidillomon, Veemon, and Gatomon sleeping.
"Where are Kari and Davis?" Yolei asked.
"Where's Ken?" T.K. asked.
Wormmon butted in. "Yolei thinks that Ken was taken to the Dark Ocean."
T.K. yelled. "But how? He disappeared right before your eyes?"
Yolei nodded. T.K. and Cody glanced at each other.
"Yolei looked around. "So where are Kari and Davis?"
T.K. shrugged. I e-mailed them about ten minutes ago, but I haven't received a response yet."
"Looks like our plan worked well. Too well, if you ask me," Yolei remarked.
T.K. sighed. "We're in the middle of a devastating storm and all you can think about is if our plan worked to cheer Davis up? For all I know, they could be hiding under a tree, or separated…"
Yolei sat next to Armadillomon. "Yeah, I know. But there's nothing else to talk about."
Soon, everyone under the giant mushroom was asleep, listening to the rain pound on the dirt, and the thunder booming in the distance.
Meanwhile, at the camp in the real world, Tai, Matt, and Sora were feasting upon their dinner. Izzy sat a bit to the side, trying to concentrate on his laptop.
"Izzy, give the computer a break will you? If you keep getting distracted by the computer, you'll starve to death before we leave this place!"
Izzy nodded. "Yeah, hold up. Let me check this thing out first…"
Matt gulped down a can of soda, then walked over to Izzy. He glanced over Izzy's shoulder and watched as Izzy typed furiously.
"What on earth are you doing?" Matt asked.
"I'm trying to see if I can get a hold of the guys in the Digital World…Here we go!"
Tai and Sora rose from the table and positioned themselves behind Izzy as well.
Izzy typed and then sat back. Tai was confounded. He scratched his bushy hair.
"I still have no idea to as what you're doing Izzy."
Izzy replied, "It's simple. I'm basically downloading some of the Digital World's data so I can use my computer to communicate with their D-Terminals."
"Ah, see that? Yolei just answered!"
"I'm not that stupid Izzy. I think I can see that a window with text just popped up."
"What does it say?" Sora asked.
Izzy returned his attention to the laptop.
"Yolei says that she, T.K., and Cody, along with the digimon, are taking shelter from a storm under a mushroom. She also mentions that Ken was taken to the…Dark Ocean and that no one has a clue to where Kari and Davis are."
Tai slammed his fist on the wooden table.
"How can she not know where Kari is? Who was watching her?"
"Calm down Tai," Sora soothed.
"Yeah, " Matt growled. "They could be taking shelter too you know. It doesn't mean that they're lost. Just wait for the storm to pass and they should be able to find each other."
"What about Ken? What is the Dark O-" Tai began. Then he thought back. The Dark Ocean. Isn't that the place that Kari was taken to last time? I forgot how she was able to come back…
Izzy stared at the computer. He shut it off and then sat over at the tables to help himself to some hot dogs.
"Izzy…what about Ken?" Sora asked.
"I'm pretty sure that he'll be able to find a way out. After all, he was the Digimon Emperor once…"
"…You still don't trust him do you?" Matt asked.
Izzy stayed silent as he chewed on a piece of cold bread.
Ken glanced behind him as he quickened his pace. He didn't know where they were going, but he wanted to get out as soon as he could. He felt defenseless, probably because Wormmon was not there to protect him. Kari looked crestfallen as they walked, while Davis maintained a moderate expression. How are we going to get out of here? Ken thought. He thought hard. The wind ruffled his hair and irritated his ears.
Davis meanwhile, trailed behind Kari and Ken. This place is creepy…what kind of idiot created a place as gloomy as this? From above, he heard a crackling noise. Out of the shadows jumped a shadow thing. Like the one I saw in the cave! Ken and Kari turned and rushed over to Davis's side.
The shadow thing looked like a Scubamon, but was much flatter. The creature had eyes after all, but they were so black they seemed to camouflage with their dark skin. The claws were elongated and it seemed to glide above the ground. The sand swept up in a whirl and blinded Davis. Davis put on his goggles and tried to see. He could make out the form of the shadow thing running towards him. Davis lunged. He held his fist in front of him and threw it forward. His punch missed and he ended up with claws in his face. His goggles snapped and the glass shattered. Davis took a step backwards, his nose leaking blood.
The shadow thing approached Kari and Ken, who were dragging Davis along with them. He looked from Kari, then to Ken.
"Ah…the child of light and her opposite," it said in a raspy voice as its gaze shifted back and forth.
Ken took a step forward. The shadow creature spun and its tail knocked Ken back six feet. He landed with a groan and slumped against the cliff wall.
The shadow creature took a step towards Kari.
"My master has been waiting for a long time now…" it whispered.
Kari slowly retreated, then tripped on a tree root. "Get away from me!" she yelled.
The shadow creature laughed. "Who's going to make me? You're defenseless! Two of your comrades are knocked out! What chance do you think you stand?"
The cold, clammy hands of the creature clasped about her shoulders and tightened. Kari began to yell out loud, and the creature hit her across the cheek.
"Silence you pathetic human! Must you wail so loudly? Can't you see that there is no one here to help you?"
Kari gritted her teeth. "Not true! Ken and Davis are here to help me. They're my friends! They would never abandon me!"
As she spoke, she began to glow. The brightness flowed from deep within her and rushed out from her body. Kari began to shake, her body focusing the energy towards the shadow creature. Ken and Davis sat up unexpectedly. Davis looked up at Kari. Is Kari…glowing? She looks like an angel like that… Ken stood up and ran over to Davis.
"Davis! What is happening to her?" Ken asked.
"I have no idea." Davis responded.
The shadow creature's eyes narrowed.
"So…the child of light does know how to use her powers…"
It tossed Kari towards the cliff wall, but she barely flew a few feet away from the creature itself. Kari's hair fluttered and she fixed her gaze on the shadow creature. A burst of light threw itself out of Kari and swept through the creature's body. The shadow creature moaned and landed a few feet away, dead. Gray blood spurted as it slowly deleted, piece by piece.
Suddenly, a rift opened right where the shadow creature had died. Through it, they could see the Digital World.
"Come one guys, let's go!" Ken yelled cheerfully.
Ken waited for Davis to scoop up the limp Kari, then turned back to the rift. No…the rift is closing! Only a few more seconds before it disappears entirely! Ken signaled for Davis to hurry, then ran off.
Kari stirred awake only to hear Davis panting.
"What's happening Davis?" she whispered.
"A portal to the Digital World opened. I think we can get through it."
Kari lifted her head to see the glowing portal, then rested her head on Davis's chest.
Ken reached the portal and looked back. Davis was sprinting full speed and yelling.
"Go Ken! Get yourself out!"
Ken shook his head furiously. "No! I'm not leaving without you two!"
Davis stumbled. Kari stretched her arms out to wrap around Davis's neck.
"Ken…it'll be pointless if you're stuck here too. At least if you go, that's one person less to worry about here."
Ken stared into Davis's hard eyes. "Davis…"
"Go you moron! How many times to I have to tell you? " Davis yelled.
Ken looked at the portal. It was small, but Ken could still fit through. Ken sighed and walked in. Davis grunted. Kari was as light as a feather but he had trouble running. His legs were cramped and his side burned, but he kept running.
"Don't worry Kari, I'll get you back no matter what!"
Kari glanced up at him, his spiky afro waving due to the wind. He looked down at her. She gave him a warm smile then closed her eyes.
Davis ran again, feeling more motivated than ever. Ken appeared out of the portal and clenched the sides of the portal with his hands.
"Come on Davis! Only a few feet more!" Ken roared, his face contorted with fury. He wouldn't be able to hold the portal much longer. Ken gasped and he shut his eyes. Dark energy was being focused inside of him. I felt this feeling when my digivice transformed here in the Dark Ocean…He felt refreshed by the darkness and was able to maintain the strength to hold the rift for a few seconds longer.
"Davis!" Ken yelled once more.
Davis yelled. "Shit!"
He threw Kari and Ken tried to catch her between his arms. Davis then hurled himself at Ken and hoped that he would make it.
The portal snapped closed and sealed with a strange translucent beam.
Ken awoke, dizzy. The floor he laid on was wet. He got up to his feet and glanced around. The Digital World! he thought in relief.
"Davis, Kari! We did it! We made it-"
Davis and Kari were out of sight…
"No!" Ken cursed. "I failed them! I failed my friends! I'm…a…a monster! I… had the strength to hold the rift a bit longer, but I was careless! I let go too early…!"
Ken's wail of anguish echoed across the plains.
Davis opened one eye. Damn it. They were still in the Dark Ocean, except that Ken was gone. Kari lay a few feet from him, breathing softly. Davis crawled over to her and collapsed.
"You all right Kari?" he asked.
She turned over to face him and nodded. He gave her a quick hug, then got up to help her up to her feet. After she rose, she wiped the sand from her clothes and hair and looked around.
"So…did Ken make it through?"
Davis sighed. "Yeah. But we didn't."
Kari walked to the edge of the beach. She quickly looked away. Davis ran up to her.
"Are you sure you're okay? You look…tired."
Kari didn't look back at the ocean. All she could do was point.
Davis looked in the direction she pointed in.
"I don't see anything. All I see is haze and a…a…" he began.
Through the gloomy mist, a giant dark shadow appeared. It walked with extremely slow speed but it was coming for them.
Davis's breath quickened and Kari took a step back. The waves of the ocean once gently, now became furious. The waves crashed about and threatened to explode in a frenzy of water twists. The waves rammed against one another and sent shockwaves trembling through the entire ocean floor.
Kari closed her eyes.
He was coming. Dragomon was coming.
Phew! I think this is one of my longest chapters ever! Interested in the next? Please review! I hate typing T.K.'s name! First of all, you need two periods, which is annoying. Then the computer thinks T.K. is spelled wrong! I don't know how my subject changed to this but I HATE typing T.K.'s name! @#$!! Again, please review if you wish for another chapter. I'd be happy to take in reasonable suggestions for my next chapter or story. By the way, is it the Dark Whirlpool? Also, Dragomon is the giant digimon in the Dark Ocean, right? If not, someone please correct me when you review. I would appreciate it!