Tamed Instincts

Part One: Summer Exotic! A City in the Digital World.

Chapter Four: Virulent and Defiled, Part Two

** Angels, fighting each other. I never thought this day would come. *

Takeru continues to observe the battle, calm while the other Chosen and digimon are in shock.

"Two Angemon?" balks Daisuke.

"Unbelievable," breathes Miyako.

Ken trembles slightly, wondering about the monster who could drive a holy digimon to near-insanity, and who would inflict abuse on the Salamon he still cradles in his arms.

Then Ken sinks to his knees, shivering in fresh shock. "It could have been me, so easily," he moans quietly. "It so easily could have been me...."

Almost in answer to Ken's thoughts, Daisuke turns to his friend. "It's not. And whoever's responsible now, we'll make him pay.

"If we'd known about him back then, we'd have fought him too."

"You don't understand," Ken hisses. "It's Neo we're up against."

"I don't care if it's Saddam Hussein we're up against-we'll take him out, okay?"

"Can't there be one evil fiend I meet that isn't drop-dead gorgeous?" screeches a peeved Miyako. "No offense, Ken," she smiles apologetically.

"It's all right; I needed that," grins Ken.

Meanwhile, the Angemon battle rages on. The two holy rods are broken.

"Angemon!" cries Takeru, watching his Angemon's wings become broken.

"This will only make things harder. Now neither of the Angemon can fly," notes Ryo.

"Unfortunately, the infected one seems to have more battle experience," says Ken.

"Despite the fact that he's younger," adds Gatomon. "It's all of that advanced training, I guess."

Takato eyes the infected Angemon, who's gaining the upper hand in the battle.

"No...it can't be...." the Snimon murmurs.

"Yeah, it's him all right," sighs Kazenori. "Gotsutei. No way that outer can beat him."

** It's this area...Angemon's unused to fighting at this level. But he has a hidden advantage. * Ken turns to Takeru, sending Gatomon to Hikari. "Angemon, Gatomon!" he calls to the two holy digimon. "I want you both to use your digimentals."

"But that means Angemon will have to revert to Patamon," says Takeru.

"Please, don't question my judgement on this. We can't do anything to help this digimon until we tire him out," continues Ken, "and it will take both of your armored digimon to restrain him."

"I'll cover you." Wormmon had already digivolved to Stingmon.

==

"We can't let them have it that easy," protests Mari, pouting at Zed.

"I'll deal with the larva." Zed flies out.

==

Stingmon and Exveemon hold Gotsutei long enough for Patamon and Gatomon to armor evolve.

The infected Angemon breaks free, but faces two armored digimon and two champions.

However, a large, fast-moving form grabs Stingmon and drags him into the forest.

"Stingmon!" Ken starts to run to the aid of his partner.

"Never mind him-Stingmon can handle himself." Ryo holds Ken back. "You need to finish this mission first, Ken."

"What!" Ken gives Ryo a lethal expression he thought had died with the Kaizer.

"We'll head after them," says Daisuke, once again averting an argument. He and Exveemon head after Stingmon and the attacker.

"Right now, we need to focus on restraining this Angemon, especially if he's a friend of yours," Ken says coolly. "However, if anything adverse happens to my partner digimon, you'll have hell to pay. Understand, Akiyama?"

"Roger." Ryo eyes Ken a moment, beginning to get glimpses of what the Kaizer must have been like.

Zero merely laughs. "Now he's acting like a Tamer."

"Much better," adds Takato. "What do we do, Ken?"

Ken smiles slightly. "You two help Aquillamon and Birdramon distract Gotsutei. The four of you in the air should distract him from the two armoreds on land."

"Hai." Takato flies toward Gotsutei, and after digivolving, Zeromaru follows suit as Aeroveedramon.

Ken hands Hikari the Salamon, who still slumbers in his cloak.

"May I, Nefertimon?" asks Ken.

"Ride? Certainly. What are you up to?" asks Nefertimon.

"Just head straight for Gotsutei, both of you."

"You hear that, Pegasusmon?"

"I heard," answers the gold pegasus.

"Good," says Ken.

The two armored digimon ride toward their target.

"When I give the signal, you two use that famous rampaging digimon restraint of yours," smirks Ken.

"The Golden Noose?" Pegasusmon asks, confused.

"Yes; your combined holy data should be able to hold him for a bit." ** The gods know it's worked miracles on many of my plans; this poor creature doesn't even have a control device to remove. *

As the two holy beasts near Gotsutei, Ken vaults over the infected Angemon, who is still distracted with attacking the airborne digimon.

"Now!" commands Ken, reaching for his whip.

The pegasus and sphinx use the Golden Noose, even as Ken's whip wraps around Gotsutei. The Angemon growls in rage, ensnared in bonds of gold and black.

"Be quiet." Ken glares ruthlessly at Gotsutei. "We cannot help you unless you calm down. In your current state, you could hurt yourself and others."

"He's right, Gotsutei," adds Takeru. "You're in much more pain than you realize. You need to revert to your Patamon stage and let us care for you."

Gotsutei trembles momentarily, then breaks free of his bonds, snapping Ken backwards.

"Ken, are you all right?" shouts Yamato.

"Fine...but it's as though Gotsutei doesn't care if he lives or dies," Ken seethes.

"He doesn't," says Takeru grimly. "Keep in mind that he's been brutally tortured."

"Then Zed's probably getting a kick out of watching us fight him."

==

"Sadly, no, Ken-koi." Neo sighs.

The blond Tamer dines on cheese and grapes alone, all while monitoring the battle and Zed.

==

"Where are you, you coward?" snarls Stingmon, uncharacteristically furious.

"Yeah-come out and fight!" adds Exveemon.

"Find me first, you misshapen rookies," hisses Zed, who lurks in the trees.

"Forget it. Stingmon, let's just jogress to Paildramon and blast him out of hiding."

"Sounds like a plan, except we need both Ken and Daisuke to do that."

"Maybe; maybe not. Remember what we saw?" Daisuke asks. "Even around control spires, these central digimon can digivolve-they just push themselves harder.

"What makes them any better than you guys?"

"They know about this environment, while we don't have a clue," answers Exveemon.

"We can figure it out-we have to." Daisuke closes his eyes, drawing from an unseen force.

** Impossible, boy, * scoffs Zed. ** You'd need a tag and crest for what you're trying to do. That infant digimon of yours is too young to reach ultimate on his own, and a jogress requires two digimon and Chosen. *

Zed's laughter echoes through the forest.

"You think we can't do it, huh, pal?" shouts Daisuke. "Well, you're wrong-because I don't know the meaning of the word 'impossible'."

==

"Perhaps you need an updated dictionary, Daisuke," smiles Neo as he sips a glass of wine. "Zed is the most powerful digimon in his class, maybe one of the most powerful ones in the digital world."

==

Takeru notes that Gotsutei is weakening. "Pegasusmon, revert."

"What?" asks Pegasusmon.

"You need to reserve your strength. Gotsutei is nearly defeated."

Although curious, Pegasusmon heeds Takeru and reverts to Patamon.

"Hand of Fear!" Gotsutei launches a viral form of an Angemon's most powerful attack.

Takeru holds Patamon in his arms.

"Don't be afraid, Patamon," says Takeru gently.

"I'm not, Takeru," replies Patamon, "don't worry."

The vicious attack engulfs both the human and the digimon, but fails to consume them. Patamon, instead, absorbs the energy and reformats it.

Takeru releases Patamon, who then launches a quick Air Shot before digivolving back to a healed Angemon.

Gotsutei, weak from the battle and his torture, actually suffers slight injury from the air bubble. And is unable to defend against Angemon.

"Hand of Fate." The golden fist becomes a beam of light that envelopes Gotsutei entirely. The latter Angemon has no choice except to revert to his Patamon stage as he loses consciousness.

"Gotsutei...." Kazenori sighs.

==

"Jyou's treating Gotsutei's injuries," says Koushirou.

"That's good; with Jyou around, Gotsutei and the Salamon will recover," smiles Takeru.

Gatomon sighs. "Physically, at least. Other than that, those two are scarred for life."

"I think I understand what you mean."

Kazenori and Takato step towards the now-spotted Salamon.

"If you look at her, she looks a bit like a Dalmatian puppy," smiles Mimi in an effort at cheerfulness.

"She's not supposed to look like that," Gatomon says with a pained look on her face.

"Shh...she's waking up," hisses Takato. "Kishi, hello."

The Salamon slowly opens her eyes, and begins to snarl.

"Kishi...." Takato seems hurt.

"You'd...better back off. If Kishi's a friend of yours," continues Gatomon, "you have to understand that she's not craving outside contact now."

"Kishi, it's me, Kaze-chan," grins Kazenori.

Kishi looks at the Lopmon and sobs.

Jyou steps away from Gotsutei, who sleeps quietly. "It's all right, little one," Jyou smiles. "I just have to make sure you get healthy."

The tearful Salamon looks up at Jyou. "Kai-chan...? Kai-chan!" She leaps into Jyou's arms, even as the eldest digidestined carries her to a separate room in the underground fortress, bewildered.

Jyou peeks his head out a few minutes later, beckoning Ken and the four female digidestined inside.

"Why can't I go in?" asks Ryo. "I'm her commander."

"That's well and good; but right now she's very edgy about who she comes in contact with. I can't examine her unless she feels protected," continues Jyou.

"Protected from what?"

"I guess you'll find out as soon as we do."

"Ask her if it's okay for me to come in," says Gatomon.

Jyou reenters the room a moment. He peeks back out to nod to Gatomon. After letting the five selected Chosen and Gatomon inside, Jyou closes the door.

Ken peeks out a moment. "Ryo? Find Daisuke and the others, please."

"Relax; they'll make it back here. I'll wait outside," Ryo smiles. ** He has changed a bit. He's not half as pushy as he used to be. *

==

"Are we in the right place?" asks Wormmon irritably.

"This is where Ryo told us to go," says Daisuke.

"We're in the middle of nowhere, Dai," groans Veemon.

"That means we've done our job." Ryo leaps down from a tree, landing next to Daisuke. "I'll have to give props to Kazenori, though it'll probably go to his head."

"You mind not sneaking up on me like that!" Daisuke starts.

"You could try being quiet. Zed could still be following you guys, and we'd have to move to another base. Which is a negative given the current circumstances."

"Fine by me if that coward follows us-we're itching for a rematch," scowls Daisuke.

"Yeah," add the digimon in unison.

"You can tell us about it later," says Ryo. "Right now, you three head this way."

"And which way are you heading?"

"Classified. We have to keep at least three entrances secret. Just trust me."

"We're sorry, Ryo-it's just that right now we have a hard time trusting anybody," says Wormmon.

"You've said it, leaf muncher." Ryo disappears into the shadows.

"I don't like all of this hiding and sneaking around." Daisuke enters the secret passage. "Why can't Ryo and Neo just fight and get it over with?"

==

"What?" Hikari's eyes widen in shock and disbelief.

"It's like I said," says Jyou calmly. "Kishi was molested.

"Maybe her torturer forced her to become Angewomon, maybe she remained in her Salamon stage...." Jyou shuts his eyes, not even wanting to imagine what happened.

"M-maybe Neo's-not really aware of what's going on." Miyako trembles.

"No human fluids were found on her," says Jyou.

"Good, that means even Neo can't be in two places at once," adds Ken. "At the time that this...happened, Neo and I were in a heated discussion which I was all too happy to end."

"He was trying to recruit you, wasn't he?" asks Gatomon.

Ken nods.

"Congratulations, Ken, on winning the Villain Originality Award."

"I'd like to thank no one," Ken quips in kind, "as my triumph stemmed primarily from my flawed thinking that everyone else in the world were insects."

"You're so funny, Kai-chan," Kishi laughs weakly.

Ken steps over to the Salamon and smiles gently. "You will be all right."

"I'm not worried about me; I'm worried about the babies. They're all alone, and Kazeyu-san...Kazeyu-san's not there to protect them. If Zed finds them...." Kishi breaks into fresh sobs.

"What is Zed?" asks Sora.

"I suspect that I know the answer to that; I pray that I'm wrong," says Ken grimly.

"There's more," sighs Jyou. "Gatomon, you stay with Kishi a second."

"No problem." Gatomon eyes Kishi coolly.

Jyou turns to the other humans. "It seems that two digimon were responsible. One's an insect-type; I haven't been able to identify which one."

"That explains her reaction to Takato," notes Mimi.

"Hmm...the digimon must have been tall and green, then," continues Sora.

"The other assailant...was Gotsutei."

"That explains his nudity as Angemon," says Ken.

"But...that's wrong. It's all wrong!" cries Hikari, nearing tears. "Even if digimon were capable of that-and they apparently are-an Angemon wouldn't...rape someone. That's something an unholy digimon would do."

"I know." Jyou struggles to continue his report. "Gotsutei was abused in the same way, repeatedly. By the same bug digimon. The digimon most likely forced Gotsutei to rape her."

"That type of abuse must have been going on for years," muses Ken.

"You're right, Ken. Gotsutei and Kishi only let me near them because in their delirium, they thought I was you."

"What's so special about me? I don't even know them. At any rate, they can't be more than three years old; and back then, I probably would have enslaved them."

"Are you sure?" asks Jyou. "They gave you a 'chan', which isn't something we'd associate with the Kaizer. And Takato said he was glad to see you. He even mentioned you trying to enslave a digimon, so that sounded right."

"Yeah, Kenichi was what Takato said," adds Miyako.

"I wish I knew." Ken massages his temples. "I don't recall anything from here, or anyone.

"I think I'd remember digimon with Japanese names. Or any names other than their species."

"Maybe you met them while on a recon mission," says Miyako. "Knowing you, you probably went alone."

"A reconnaissance run? That does sound like something I would have done. And if so, I'd have a record of it...except that we reduced my old base to rubble."

"Backup and save," Miyako grins cryptically.

"What?" Ken stares at her in confusion.

"You'd have been a pretty stupid genius if you didn't back up your data."

"Half of my fortress was a supercomputer. Where the hell am I supposed to have backups of that information?"

"A supercomputer made of data itself. It wouldn't be hard to store something you thought was a game into your hard drive at home."

"And I haven't really used my computer for much except homework since then," Ken muses. "They probably saw the blue hair and glasses, Jyou."

"What do we do now?" asks Mimi.

"Right now, we should focus on making sure these two digimon are healed, and helping them to trust others again," says Hikari.

"Also, we find that yaro Zed and send him back to hell," adds Miyako.

"Until we identify who Zed is, we can't do anything," says Ken calmly.

"But you said that you suspect what type of digimon he is."

"Suspicion and knowledge are two different things, Miyako."

"We've got to do something, Ken! That monster of a digimon is probably lurking in the shadows, waiting for his next victim."

"All the more reason why restraint is the best idea I can give you."

"I'm not hearing this!" Miyako storms out of the room.

==

And into a fight. Miyako's rage melts into surprise.

Takato and Stingmon clash in a furious battle.

"Daisuke, what's going on?"

"I don't know! We walk in, and Takato jumps us."

"No, just Wormmon," corrects Tentomon. "He had to digivolve."

"There's a serious problem of mistaken identity on his part," snarls Stingmon as he blocks Takato's scythes.

"I'm not mistaken, you liar! I know you're Zed, and you'll pay for what you did."

"But I didn't do anything, and I'm not Zed!" Stingmon judo-flips the angry Snimon.

Zeromaru, seeing his old friend being attacked, heads toward the fray to stop Takato.

But someone holds him back. Ryo.

"Hey, I've got to stop that overgrown freshie before he does something stupid."

"Shh. Not yet, Zero. Let's see what Stingmon's made of."

==

Daisuke notes movement in the shadows. "Ryo! I see you hiding back there! Is that all you can do, hide?"

No one comes out.

"You know damn well Stingmon can't possibly be who Takato thinks he is, so come out here and vouch for him!"

==

"What's with the racket?" asks Sora.

She steps out with Jyou, Ken and the other two girls.

Ken glares at the scene a moment, then darts between the digimon combatants.

"Enough!" he thunders. "Takato, halt."

"Don't protect him! You don't know who he is," Takato growls.

"I know who he is not."

"Then he's tricked you, Ken, because he is Zed."

"I'm not Zed! I don't even know who you're talking about!" shouts Stingmon.

"Oh, come on, Takato-you know Zed better than that!" laughs Zero. "We'd all be dead by now if that were Zed.

"That's the same digimon that was with Ken earlier today. Is your memory that erratic?"

"Good point...I was about to say that Zed was off his game. Guess I should've known better, taishou."

"You certainly should have," scowls Stingmon.

Ken has an equally inscrutable scowl on his face, but he turns it to Ryo.

"He's a pretty good fighter, but nowhere near Zed's level," Ryo says.

"Why did you let him fight? Or don't you have better control of your troops?" glares Ken.

"I had to see where Stingmon was in his fighting ability. Remember, we're dealing with--*"

"Who said anything about we?" Ken says abruptly.

"Ken, we are going to work together to face Neo."

"This seems to be your battle, Ryo. After all, if we can't trust each other, we're wasting our time.

"I recommend that you leave," Ken says to his friends, "because that's what I plan to do."

"What?" say the other humans and digimon.

"Kishi and Gotsutei need help recovering. I'll help with that. But after they recover, I'm taking Stingmon back to the eastern continent, and then I'm going home to do something useful this summer. Again, I suggest you do likewise."

"No, we have to stay here!" counters Miyako. "We're needed. All of us."

"Ken, if you or your friends leave here, it will be our obligation to kill you." Ryo eyes Ken levelly. "For reasons you and I have both witnessed, I can't just let you and Stingmon leave here; you know the location of our base."

Ken gives a rueful smirk. "You don't understand. One, I don't care about your army games. Two, I have no intention of even speaking to Neo again. Three, in case you're worried about Stingmon or I being a torture victim, I have learned to have many tricks up my sleeve.

"So if you intend to kill me, do so now."

Ken walks past Ryo and into the hallway. Ryo takes out his Walther Shot, aiming it at Ken. Ryo fires the gun, and the laser misses Ken by centimeters.

"Let him go, taishou," grunts Takato. "He'll be back."

"I doubt he even plans to leave," adds Zero.

"Ken wouldn't have left if you hadn't opened your big mouth, Zero," snaps Ryo. "And you, Takato, need to learn restraint. You just attacked a digimon without provocation."

"How restrained do you think I can be, commander?" roars Takato. "Kishi's afraid of me. She and I fought Neo side by side for years. Now, she looks at me and sees Zed. How do you expect me to feel?"

"Just the way you feel now. You can't control your emotions, but can control your reactions to those emotions." Ryo takes out four rings, tossing them on Takato.

"Restrictor bands?"

"To keep you still long enough to think. Meanwhile, drop and give me fifty."

"Hai." The Snimon goes on all fours and begins a set of pushups.

==

Ken and Wormmon walk in silence. They stop at a clearing.

"Are we really leaving Ryo and the others?" asks Wormmon. "They really do need us."

"Aren't you the least bit angry that I didn't come to help you, Veemon and Dai fight that other digimon?"

"You were helping the others, Ken."

"But you're my partner."

"Ken. We are partners, no matter what. The two of us don't have to be tethered to each other to be united."

"You seem very agitated, Wormmon," Ken says quietly.

"I...I'm obviously not strong enough. I failed, Ken."

"At what?"

"Zed and I fought briefly, but he won. Then the three of us chased Zed into the woods, where he hid. Daisuke-you know how he always finds ways to do the impossible-almost had a limit break for Exveemon."

"At that stage, Exveemon could evolve to ultimate," muses Ken. "Go on."

"But...we saw Zed, and it broke Dai's concentration. Zed escaped."

"I see. Can you guess who I suspect Zed is?"

"Yes, Ken; that's why you were watching me strangely at first."

Ken sighs. "Do you want to know what happened back at Neo's?"

"Go ahead."

"I went back to the palace, trying to sort things out in my mind. Met Neo in the courtyard. He was wearing tennis gear. We played a round of tennis. He won. We played Donkey Madness for a while. I won. We played chess; stalemate. We played Monopoly...."

"He won?"

"Of course not, I kicked his ass. That's not the point. Neo tried to mislead me...him, my brother's only friend."

"Ken," counters Wormmon, "Neo never said he was Osamu's friend, just an acquaintance."

"Your memory is worse than Takato's. Then again, you're just as stubborn as ever," grins Ryo, shrugging.

"I don't recall requesting your company," glares Ken.

"Too bad; we're tag partners, whether you want to remember it or not. And we have a job to do.

"If you'd just face your destiny, you'd remember everything. I have that kind of faith in you."

"What do you mean?" Ken's eyes widen. "What do you know about me...?" he adds in a muted voice.

"I know...that you're a person that inspires others to be great. People look at you, Ken, and say, 'That's no ordinary boy.'"

"But that's what I want, Ryo: to be ordinary."

"You are the antithesis of ordinary, Ichijouji Ken. You've never been ordinary in your life."

"How did that sneak into your vocabulary?"

"I asked myself the same question about you five years ago, when I heard that word emanate from your mouth. You were pretty angry then, too."

"I'm angry now," says Ken slowly, "because I'm the only person with no knowledge of my own life."

"You have only yourself to blame, Ken. Quit blocking your memories, and you'll remember."

"What if it's a lie you're trying to make me remember?"

"Did I lie about Neo?"

"Coincidence. I suspected Neo had malicious intent almost from the start."

"Did I lie about Zed?"

"You never mentioned Zed. I found out about him without you as well."

"Do you trust Wormmon?" Ryo asks quietly.

"Do I have a choice?" Ken cries bitterly. "He's the only one in the digital world who doesn't have a hidden agenda for my life."

"Ken, I don't have an agenda at all. I'm just a soldier, commanding a bunch of digimon instead of humans.

"You may not have been the most level-headed Chosen here, and you are vulnerable, but...you're needed. It's not a matter of what I want-because I want you to be safe. I want to protect you. I want you to go home to your parents and brother...." Ryo trails off, noting Ken's wild laughter.

"My...brother...." Ken continues laughing.

"Okay, so your brother moved out. No reason to lose your mind--*"

Ken still laughs, almost maniacally.

Ryo grips Ken's shoulders. "Ken! Calm down. Let it go."

"No."

"Please; you can remember. You do remember."

"Remember what?" Ken looks confused.

"I believe in you, partner; I believe in all of you. Quite frankly, the central digimon aren't picky about who helps them fight Neo."

Ken pushes Ryo away. "What am I supposed to remember?"

Ryo scowls. "Who created Kimeramon?"

"I did, three years ago, when I was the Kaizer. What kind of stupid question is that?"

"One that reassures me that your long-term memory is intact. Why did you create Kimeramon?"

"To strike fear in the digital world, I guess," Ken shrugs.

"From what I gather from your friends and Takato's reports, you were doing a great job of that without Kimeramon. So why did you create him?"

"Because I hated everyone. Because I hated myself."

"Wrong answer." Ryo remains stern.

"How can it be wrong?"

"Because it fits you too much."

"But it's the truth!"

"It's only part of the truth. You created Kimeramon because there was a void, an empty space you wanted filled.

"Ken, you're the type of person that would draw on white walls."

"What?"

"It's true," says Wormmon. "Your dad said he had to repaint your room when you were five, because you'd drawn pictures on it."

"What does that have to do with Kimeramon?"

"You wanted to prove to yourself that Milleniumon was real. Kimeramon is the base level of Milleniumon. Nothing short of a miracle could have stopped that monstrosity from digivolving."

"But a miracle did happen...it cost my partner his life, and I don't want it to happen again. Not for any reason."

"Ken, listen. If you're strong enough to remember that, you can handle anything. Now quit acting like a head case. This is no more about you than it is about me; you know better."

"How can I remember, Ryo? Tell me how in hell am I supposed to remember you? How can I remember snapping at Zero when he wouldn't...."

"Wouldn't what?"

"That's just it." Ken continues to tremble. "I get snatches. Bits and pieces of my memory drift in and out of my mind, unbidden and unwanted.

"For instance, I have recurring dreams about Neo on top of Tokyo Tower at night. Or a hellish nightmare with those Dark Seeds. Or a Stingmon laughing as he carries a silver Patamon away-that dream I had days before I created Kimeramon."

"Gotsutei's a silver Patamon," notes Ryo.

"I also see a dead white rabbit that looks like Kazenori. But if it's white, it's Terriermon; if it's brown, it's Lopmon. I even think about this young blond trying to coax me into the darkness. And the darkness, Ryo-I don't even want to deal with the Dark Ocean right now...."

A deep silence settles, except for a few soft, choked cries from Ken.

"You really have been through hell, haven't you?" says Ryo. "I really wish I didn't have to drag you through more. But you can take it. The Harmonious Ones chose you, and you have a great deal of talent and ability. You were meant to be here: in this time and this place for this moment."

"I am going home the moment Kishi and Gotsutei get better."

"You can't. They can't recover unless their loved. You love them Ken; you love everyone."

"Then why did I become the Kaizer?"

"Because you can be a stubborn idiot when you want something. If you wanted to jump off a cliff badly enough, you'd find a way to do it no matter how many times someone told you it would kill you.

"You love everyone, but I never said you were perfect," grins Ryo.

"Thank the gods."

"I'm serious about the stubborn bit, Ken. When you have your mind clamped on something, that mind won't let go of it."

** Did Ryo ever watch me play soccer back then? * muses Ken, thinking about his then-obsessive fixation with scoring the next goal.

"Sometimes I'm like that," Ken admits aloud.

"But that's how I know now that you won't be gone long. Your mind is locked on this crisis, and it won't let you rest until you do something to resolve it.

"Besides," Ryo grins slyly, "you can't resist the challenge."

"Challenge?"

"Part of the reason you created Kimeramon was simply to prove that it could be done. You probably explored the whole digital world on a dare; it could have even been from Neo."

"I don't understand you."

"The way you handled Gotsutei, and had everyone moving like a unit-that was great. If you hadn't done that, Gotsutei would have killed himself, or would've still been in Zed's clutches.

"Now he and Kishi are going to be free. But they still need you. Daisuke and the rest of your team need you."

"Give me a chance to think."

"No problem, Ken. Head home," says Ryo. "I'll be back for your answer in an hour."

"Thank you. Wormmon," smiles Ken, "remember what we discussed. I want you to go back with Ryo and help with the injured digimon.

"Stay tethered to him if you have to," he adds with a wink.

Ken opens the digiport and returns to his room in the real world.

=== Comments to anubis_soundwave@yahoo.com ===