"Holy light, shine softly in the darkness
And show us tomorrow's path
Holy light, give me courage to face the future
True courage, eternally."
Hikari Yagami—"Holy Light"
(Translated by Megchan)
With Broken Wings
Chapter Three: "Holy Light"
Shutumon hovered in the sky for a moment, watching the sunset, as well as the newest shipment of escapees from Kouichi's base. She was silently wishing them good luck when she observed that one girl in the group was wearing a bandana that reminded her very much of Kouji's. It was almost as if Kouji was still there, standing next to her…
There was that heartache again.
It happened every time she remembered that day. It had been five months since she'd held his limp body in her arms, the stillness of death consuming him as his breathing slowed to a stop. She closed her eyes as a tear dampened the mask she wore over her mouth. She slid the mask down in order to take a deep breath of the sweet spring air before glancing down once more to look at the newcomers. One was slowly walking off into the sunset, as though he was looking for someone. In a way, it was reminiscent of how Kouji always left after a battle…
Looking back on it again, she regretted having said those words:
"Kouji?" she had asked, meeting up with him outside his house.
"What is it?" he questioned. "Is there something wrong?"
"Yes there is," she replied.
Kouji opened the door, ushering her in. Inside was the unmistakable sound of a baby crying. "Come on," he insisted. "My dad and stepmom are home, but I'll tell them that you need to talk to me uninterrupted."
"Thank you," she answered.
"Dad, Satomi, I'm home," he announced.
"Your father went to the store to get something for Kouri's cold," Satomi informed. She walked toward the front door, holding the tiny newborn. "Oh, Izumi, I didn't know you were coming. Are you staying for dinner?"
"No thank you, Mrs. Minamoto," she replied. "I only came to tell Kouji something. It won't take long."
"Okay," Satomi answered. "Kouji, could you please take Kouri for me? She only seems to stop crying for you."
"Sure," he agreed, taking the small child. "You don't mind, Izumi, do you?"
"No, of course not," she assured. She carefully placed her finger in Kouri's hand. The baby gripped it tightly, not wanting to let go. With that simple action, things just felt right in the world again.
"You had something to tell me," Kouji remembered.
"Oh yeah." Izumi withdrew her finger from Kouri's fist, losing that feeling of security.
"Tell me in her room," Kouji instructed. "I think I have to change her diaper."
Kouri's room was a traditional nursery: a crib against the wall, waiting for when she was out of the basinet in her parents' room; soft pink wallpaper; a changing table stocked with diapers and wipes; and a closet and dresser filled with clothes she'd probably never fit into. Kouji set Kouri on the changing table and began to unfasten the tape on her diaper.
"So what's the problem?" he asked.
"I'm not sure where to begin," Izumi started, sitting down and fidgeting with the hem of her lavender skirt. This skirt was longer than her old one, and much warmer as it was made of thicker material.
"Just try. I won't be able to help if I don't know what's wrong."
"You've noticed how Kouichi's been having attitude problems?"
"Yeah. A couple of days ago, he threw a book at me. I don't know why. And he didn't remember it an hour later."
"That's what bugs me. He's losing his temper, starting fights—sometimes finishing them too. But he doesn't seem to even know he's doing it."
Kouji finished changing his sister's diaper and picked her up, turning to face Izumi.
"Something tells me that isn't all." As usual, his voice was serious, but it held a more compassionate tone now. He was truly and deeply concerned about her. "Izumi, what did he do to you?"
"It wasn't so much what he did as it was what he said. We were walking through the park when we just began talking about life. I was saying how beautiful it was, and he just went on about how everything had to come to an end. I thought he was suicidal because it might explain his attitude, but when I asked him about it, he told me that he didn't want my interference and asked why he should take advice from an inferior creature. Those were his words."
Kouji's face was grim with suppressed anger. One thing they'd all learned during their time in the Digital World was that Kouji wouldn't stand for anyone—even his own brother—hurting any member of the team in any way. It was most likely the reason why he'd risked his life on numerous occasions, or fought personal vendettas on his own: so he couldn't attract the danger to the others.
"I'm going to talk to him," he decided in such a tone that it was futile to even think about arguing with him.
"Not alone," Izumi begged. "You know he's losing control."
"I won't be alone," he assured. "I'm calling the others first. We'll meet near the beach. If there's something wrong with Kouichi, we can all deal with it, just the way we've always done."
He went into the kitchen and quickly dialed the others. Kouichi was the only one reluctant to come, but he agreed anyway.
"Satomi, I'm going out for a little while," Kouji informed, handing Kouri to his stepmother.
"Will you be back in time for dinner?" she checked.
"No, I don't think so. Don't wait for me." And he headed out the door with Izumi. Nobody was aware that those were the last words he'd say to his stepmother.
The walk to the meeting area wasn't very long, but the others were all there before Kouji and Izumi arrived.
"Kouji, please get around to explaining why we're all here before you waste any more of my life," Kouichi urged in an annoyed tone.
Kouji glared at his brother with a look that could kill three people within a second of coming in contact with his eyes. But Kouichi stared back with a glare of his own, one containing a sense of superiority. Choosing to ignore it, Kouji turned to the others.
"I think it's pretty evident that there's a problem with one of us," he said. "My onii-san—and I use the term loosely—seems to be having trouble controlling his temper, and suddenly has a total disregard for life. It sounds like Kouichi might be suicidal."
"She told you, didn't she?" Kouichi roared, lunging for Izumi. Kouji extended his right arm in front of her in a gesture of protection.
"Look, we only want to help," Tomoki reasoned. "How can we?"
"You can help by keeping out of my life!" Kouichi shouted. Tomoki bit his lip to keep himself from crying, but the other Chosen could all see a couple of tears sliding down his face. "Does the little baby want to cry?"
"Enough!" Kouji interrupted. "What is your problem?"
Kouichi turned and walked away. It took every ounce of Kouji's carefully attained self-control not to go up and punch him right there and then. Instead, he turned to Tomoki, who was still trying to keep from crying.
"You okay?" he checked. Tomoki nodded and his tears eventually stopped. Several months before, Kouji's compassion would have shocked them, but he'd grown more understanding with the discovery of his brother and the birth of his half-sister.
"So what are we going to do about him now?" Junpei asked.
"You still think he's suicidal?" Takuya questioned.
"I don't know anymore," Izumi replied.
"You think one of us should talk to him?" Tomoki asked.
"I'll do it," Kouji volunteered.
"Yeah," Takuya agreed. "You're brothers. He'll listen to you better than to anyone else."
Kouji nodded in agreement and began walking toward his brother's destination.
"I've got a bad feeling about this," Izumi commented. Just as she said this, a bright light emerged from the pocket of her vest. She reached in and pulled out her cell phone, which rapidly returned to its form as a D-scanner, complete with her Spirits of Wind. The boys also removed their phones, finding digivices in their place. "This can't be good. I don't think we should leave Kouji alone."
Takuya looked into the distance, where Kouji was already beginning to run. "Yeah," he finally agreed. "Let's go after them."
They walked along the same path, breaking into a run when Kouji was out of sight. For a while, they weren't sure of the other boy's whereabouts until they saw him collapse on the sand on a stretch of beach, his body shaking from a deadly electrical shock. Kouichi retracted a leather whip from his brother's neck and stood near Kouji's fallen body, emotionless.
"Kouji!" they shouted as they rushed over to him. Izumi lifted him from the sand, wiping it away from his face. His skin was hot to the touch from the electricity. His neck was burned red from the electrical whip, and his fingertips were raw from pulling at the leather that was strangling him. His face held the same expression of pain as when he'd taken a blow from Duskmon's blade in the Dark Continent, and his breaths were unbelievably shallow. Izumi cradled him in her arms, too shocked to do anything else. His chest rose with a breath and fell once…twice… Three times.
"Kouji?" she questioned. She placed her ear against his chest and listened for any sign of a rhythm, but heard nothing: no heartbeat, no breathing—nothing. She nearly dropped him in shock, but her arms seemed to be frozen in place. Time had stopped the moment he'd fallen. She looked up at the cold, heartless Kouichi and asked, "Kouichi, how? How could you do this? How could you do this to your brother?" But he just turned and walked away, saying one thing:
"Take this as an example of what will happen if anyone dares to cross paths with the Digimon Kaiser."
The Chosen Children never really thought much about death, but they all knew it would come sooner or later. Their predictions were that Izumi, Kouji, Kouichi, Junpei, and Tomoki would die in a peaceful world, while Takuya would die at the hands of an enemy—too stubborn to stop fighting, even at times of peace. But they never thought that one of their own, especially Kouji, would die like this: at the hands of a friend, at the hands of his brother… It was the tragedy of Cain and Abel all over again.
Stop thinking that! she mentally ordered herself. What's done is done; now leave it in the past, all right? God, she was even starting to think like Kouji! When would it end? Like the others, she was still in deep mourning for their close friend, vowing never to forget his life and death. Kouji's death was a shock to them all, as he'd died not in battle as a Digimon, but while trying to talk to his brother, human-to-human.
The sun had almost completely set by now and several stars were shining through the forest canopy. Shutumon closed her light blue eyes and breathed deeply again, allowing herself to be bathed in the stars' holy light. It was times like this when things just felt right, like the whole ordeal on the beach was simply just a dream. But as Shutumon opened her eyes and pulled her mask up again, she could see that the nightmare was still very much alive. It would take a light much more powerful than those tiny radiant flecks of starlight to shine through the darkness that had seemed to overtake them all.
A slight breeze kicked up, as though telling Shutumon, Daijoubu, it'll be all right." She sighed and glanced forlornly at the last rays of sunlight descending below the horizon.
"Send my regards to Kouji Minamoto," she whispered to the wind, "wherever he is."
-------
Reiji Takamoto pushed away a strand of his bright red hair as he hiked through the forest.
"You really think that they'll approve, Reiji?" Chideta Miyagami asked, not at all sounding like his usual carefree self.
"Of course they will," he answered. "The Chosen have had to deal with the Kaiser for too long. It's time for some revenge. I mean, the guy murdered their friend, so they're bound to want justice."
"But Kage doesn't want…"
"Forget about what Kage wants, Chideta. Think about what we all want. The needs of all, remember? They outweigh the needs of one. We need to get rid of the Kaiser and his lackeys, and this little baby is the only way to do it." He patted his gun affectionately; proud of the bullets he'd created.
"You do know that Kage's creating something of his own," Miyagami informed.
"I know," Takamoto answered, "but with his pace, that thing won't be finished till Christmas. And this is already completed."
"Dr. Akagami almost caught you with that bacterium," Miyagami pointed out. "I don't trust that guy. He's up to something. He knows what we're up to. Notice that the pharmacies all stocked up on penicillin? I think he knows what you're creating—he might give it to the Kaiser."
"Let him try," Takamoto answered, sounding cocky and far too overconfident. Takamoto and Miyagami were the best of friends—partners in crime at everything they did—but this was something that they couldn't agree on. "I'll take care of all his guards, and then I'll take care of him the same way he got the First Three." The sound of crushing leaves and grass interrupted them. In the shadows, they could make out the appearance of someone walking through the woods. "My first target," Takamoto whispered.
"Reiji!" Miyagami whispered loudly, but Takamoto signaled him to be quiet. Then he placed the silencer on his weapon, raised the gun, and—whoosh—the specially designed bullet flew out. The target dropped to the ground, clutching his knee in pain.
I can't believe Reiji actually shot someone with that, Miyagami thought. "Hey, you okay?"
"What are you doing?" Takamoto snapped.
"I'm fine," the target answered, his voice at a normal level, but sounding strained, like he was shouting. "Something just went past my knee, that's all."
"That's good to hear," Takamoto replied, angry that his aim had been off. "We were doing some target practice and one of our bullets shot toward you."
"Yeah, I think it hit that tree," the target commented, standing up to prove he was fine.
"You sure you're fine?" Miyagami checked.
"Yeah. Nothing bad, it was just a reflex." Despite his words, he was using his shirt to wipe blood off his hands.
"Where you headed?" Miyagami questioned.
"I was looking for my friends. They call themselves the Chosen Children. Someone said their camp is this way."
"Yeah, just keep going in that direction," Takamoto urged. "You'll find them in no time."
"Thanks," the target replied, walking off toward the Chosen's camp.
"He was hit," Miyagami knew. "And you let him go to the Chosen's camp. What were you thinking?"
"Don't worry. They're friends with Dr. Yamamoto. Once the kid's DNA begins to mutate, they'll know to get him."
"Reiji, you shot a kid!" Miyagami shouted. "What if it had been one of the Chosen?"
"Chideta, you've got to learn to toughen up out here. This isn't the dojo, you know." Miyagami wasn't really a soldier, but a martial artist. None of the militia really qualified as an army, in fact. "We don't have honorable fights against honorable opponents. The Kaiser is the lowest form of slime around, and we need to fight on his terms."
"Reiji, even outside the dojo, everyone knows not to attack your own ally, which you did. That kid didn't wear the uniform of the Imperial Guard, his clothes didn't crinkle with the sound of identification papers, and he was already hurt. He was one of ours! Kage probably sent him!" He began walking in the direction of the Chosen Children's camp. "And I'm going to go help him." He never heard the gun sound off, but he certainly felt Reiji Takamoto's specialized bullet dig its way into his back.
"Sorry, Chideta, but I can't have you telling them what I'm up to," Takamoto answered. "I'll tell the others you were with me in the woods, and we were both shot at with bio-weapons. I got away, but I didn't know what happened to you."
Miyagami cursed loudly at his friend, disgusted with him. But a fever soon began to course through him, leaving him weak and exhausted.
"Reiji…" he murmured, losing consciousness. "That kid better live…"
-------
Izumi Orimoto returned to the camp she shared with Takuya Kanbara, Junpei Shibayama, and Tomoki Himi. All four were relieved at the sight of the others; they had no way of contacting each other through their D-scanners without the risk of Kouichi tapping into the signal. She'd checked at the other Resistance settlements in the area and found everything to be fine. All three boys appeared to be as somber as she was, even though they'd all vowed that they wouldn't let Kouji's memory be a sorrowful one. The camouflaged tent hid them inside, while a small fire burned in a hole in the ground, with a metal grid placed over it like a stove burner.
"Izumi, you're back," Junpei noticed.
"Yeah," she answered. "Nothing new, except Kage got a few new passengers on the Railroad."
"Where were they from?" Tomoki asked.
"Didn't get a chance to ask. I had a lot on my mind."
"Hey, look what we got for you," Takuya said, pointing at a vanilla cake adorned with juicy strawberries.
"Happy birthday," all three wished.
"Thanks, but my birthday isn't until next week," Izumi corrected.
"Oh well," Takuya replied, seeming to become his old self again. "At least I remembered it was May. Let's eat up. Kage might come, and he's the only one I know that can eat more than Junpei, but never gain weight."
"Hey!" Junpei defended himself.
Kage Tenshi was a fourteen-year-old super genius who lived on his own after the murder of his father, a respected doctor and scientist named Tadaaki Tenshi, who had refused to work for Kouichi because he thought the boy to be no more than a preteen megalomaniac, easily comparable to Napoleon or Hitler. Kage's tunnel complex—the Underground Railroad—had been designed after the tunnel complexes Al Qaida used during the war on terror, but he swore that he wasn't going to be the next Bin Laden. He was a revolutionary, preferring peaceful negotiations to fighting wars. He was also the one who'd developed all of their weapons, as well as hacked into the military satellites. He was able to hack into any computer anywhere—without leaving even one cookie of his computer's data behind. His computer was a souped-up Sony VAIO laptop, protected by his special firewall and anti-virus programs, installed with a built-in printer on the bottom, and guarded by his DNA/Fingerprint Analyzer, which would allow only him access to his computer. His motto was "Print it, read it, burn it," after the typical procedure they had to follow with any files: print out the information, read it and memorize the important details, and then burn it so Kouichi would never know what they were up to.
Each of the four Chosen ate only one slice of the small cake. It was moist and fresh—stolen from a bakery not long ago. The Resistance did all they could to replace what they'd taken, but it was hard with the Imperial Guard always "keeping the peace" in the cities. In fact, it was sometimes just easier having a member go out and buy their necessities, all with the comfort of a pair of grayed contact lenses and falsified identification papers.
Takuya reached in the back of the tent for one of their many jugs of water, only to be met with the Minamotos' very friendly dog.
"Calm down, mutt!" Takuya ordered. "I'll get you some water too! Geez!"
A quiet round of laughter erupted from Izumi, Junpei, and Tomoki. Takuya smiled a little bit. This was the first time they'd laughed in five months. It was a good sign that they were healing from the incident. But his expression grew more serious when he noticed the brown and black dog was sniffing the breeze that had blown toward them. He secured his D-scanner on his belt and dashed out to meet the intruder.
"Tomoki," he ordered, "follow and take the mutt."
Takuya made his way through the forest surrounding Mt. Fuji, being cautious not to make any sound that could reveal his location.
There he is, he noticed, seeing a figure slowly and painfully walking through the wood. The intruder seemed hurt and sick, and looked ready to collapse, but Takuya knew it could be an act, considering the Resistance housed all injured. And this person was too close to camp to be ignored. Plus there was the fact that the wind had carried this guy's scent a good five decameters to the dog's sensitive nose…
Suddenly, the figure's hood fell off his head. Takuya made his decision in all of two seconds, rushing over to confront the young man with long dark hair.
"Kouichi," he growled angrily, taking his fist and allowing it to connect with the boy's jaw. He pulled it back to see a few drops of liquid: blood—good.
He continued his assault, barely giving his victim the chance to breathe. But the sound of Tomoki yelling, "Come back!" to a barking dog temporarily interrupted his ambush. Despite this, he pressed his opponent against a tree trunk, ready to deliver another blow.
"This is for the First Three—the first three people you murdered," he avenged menacingly. "I doubt you even remember who they were: Kouji Minamoto, Nari Ayamisa, and Tadaaki Tenshi." He took his fist and drove it into the other boy's jaw again. "What? Not going to show your pain? Did Kouji show his pain when you killed him, Kouichi?"
"Takuya, it's me," gasped the other boy, barely able to speak above a whisper.
"Save it, Kouichi! I'm giving you exactly what you deserve!" He drew his fist back, only to feel a row of sharp teeth digging into his leg. He let go of his opponent, letting him fall to the ground, and tried kicking the dog, who went directly to the injured boy's side, snarling and growling.
"Takuya onii-chan!" called Tomoki, who rushed over with a flashlight he'd returned to grab from camp. He shined it on Takuya's wound. The skin hadn't broken, but teeth marks were visible. "Why'd he bite you?"
"I don't know," Takuya answered, backing away from the crazy dog.
"It's okay," the injured boy insisted in a stronger voice, sitting up. "He just mistook me for someone else." The dog turned and tried to lick his face, but the boy kept holding him back. "Don't. I'm fine, just not feeling too good right now."
That voice, thought Takuya and Tomoki simultaneously. Tomoki shined the flashlight on the newcomer's face, and then dropped the light in shock.
"Kouji?" he recognized. He nodded in response.
"Let me help you up," Takuya offered, but the dog threatened to attack him again.
"It's okay," Kouji assured, standing up. He rubbed behind the dog's ears, letting him know that the young master was all right. "Nice to see you guys again." Suddenly, he hit the ground, unable to stand any longer.
"We have to get him to the others," Takuya realized. The dog allowed him to come closer to help Kouji to his feet. Tomoki went to Kouji's other side and glanced at his friend's knee.
"Takuya, look," Tomoki whispered. Takuya glanced down and noticed a large blood stain on the left side of Kouji's knee—near the kneecap. It looked like a bullet had dug its way in there. But there was no time to ask questions as Kouji completely lost consciousness. Quickly, they both helped him back to camp.
"Hey, Takuya, Tomoki, what took you so…long?" Junpei asked, his question losing its effect at the sight of the newcomer.
Throughout their time in the Digital World, the Chosen Children had learned many things. They'd learned that many things didn't exist, such as 1) ghosts, and 2) easy answers to any of their questions. Both Junpei and Izumi tried their hardest to keep that in mind as they stared at Kouji Minamoto—back from the dead.
"How?" Izumi started, but Takuya and Tomoki quickly laid the unconscious boy on the ground.
"Junpei, get to the settlement and find Dr. Yamamoto," Takuya instructed. "Tomoki and I'll take the mutt and find Kage. Izumi, you're the only one trained in first aid, so do what you can to help Kouji until Dr. Yamamoto comes."
The orders were followed without question. Junpei rushed for the Resistance settlement in the abandoned ski lodge at Mt. Fuji while Takuya and Tomoki took the dog and headed for Kage's tunnel complex. Izumi removed Kouji's jacket to see that his arms, although fairly tanned—only looking pale from his apparent illness—were riddled with scabs and bruises. She removed the first aid kit, a jug of water, two bowls (one fairly large one and a small rice bowl), and a medium-sized pot from their tent and went to work, pouring water into the pot and placing it over the grid on the fire. She then removed Kouji's tattered yellow shirt and set it aside, assessing his injuries. What she saw was frightening. Cuts were piled on bruises, which were probably concealing broken bones. And worst of all was how thin he was. He'd always been very thin before, but now it was as though he was a walking skeleton. He looked as though he'd just barely managed to survive the Nazi concentration camps. She added a cold pack on his bruises, rotating so all the bruises could get attended to. When the water was hot enough, she poured it into the bowls, placing the shirt in the large one, using the warm wet cloth to clean Kouji's wounds. Once that was done, she wrapped a fresh white bandage around his ribcage, securing it by wrapping it once over his right shoulder. Then she wrapped another around a cut on his right bicep and used the scissors to cut the left leg off his pants, getting to the gruesome bullet wound on his knee.
This is fresh, she noticed. Someone just shot him, but who?
She wrapped another bandage around his knee. All the time, he slept, seeming to feel nothing at all.
I can't believe Kouichi would do this, Izumi thought, gently kissing Kouji's forehead in sympathy. Somehow, it was more satisfying than she meant it to be. She withdrew in surprise. How could she have feelings like this for Kouji? He was her best friend! Besides, it was Kouichi she loved, right?
Was, her mind informed. Loved. Kouichi is no longer capable of that emotion. But that didn't mean she had to move on to his brother!
As she tried to sort her feelings out, she made a mental note to mention that Kouji seemed to have a high fever. She took a brown knitted blanket and placed it on him carefully, so as not to disturb his much needed rest.
She was about to place his jacket inside when she noticed something sticking out of the pocket. She reached in and removed the photos Kotemon had placed inside.
I can't believe he kept these, she thought. She nearly laughed. I remember how much we hated when he took these. But the photo of her kiss with Kouichi brought back bad memories. She looked at it momentarily, and then threw it in the fire.
"Too bad," a voice commented weakly. "That was one of my favorites." She turned to see that Kouji was awake. She handed him the other bowl, instructing him to sip carefully. With his first sip of water, he rinsed the blood (courtesy of Takuya's assault) out of his mouth, spitting the reddish liquid on the ground.
"You have to drink this," Izumi instructed. She propped him up a bit and held the bowl to his lips again. He took a few sips, but began choking on the water.
It was terrible. He couldn't stop coughing, and Izumi didn't know what to do to help. For a moment, she remembered how he'd apparently died in her arms: unable to breathe. Becoming certified in first aid was her way of vowing never to let that happen again, but now she was too afraid to touch him, scared of injuring him even more.
But that won't matter if he dies, a rational part of her protested.
The matter settled, she helped him into a sitting position, gently pounding on his back to loosen the water that had cut off his breathing tube. He continued coughing so hard that he ended up vomiting all over the ground, but there weren't many regurgitated substances to speak of, supporting her theory that he'd been starved. His choking finally subsided and Izumi gave him the bowl of water again, tipping it back more carefully so he could take smaller sips. She then helped him walk away from the soiled ground and had him lie down, a bit further from the fire, but still close enough so she didn't have to waste precious time walking back and forth with the medical supplies if things went from bad to worse.
Looking at his thin form, Izumi couldn't help but ask, "When's the last time you ate?"
"Last night," Kouji answered.
"What did you have?"
"A quarter of a bowl of soup and half a slice of bread."
"Is that all you ate the whole day?"
He nodded. "That's all I ever eat."
Izumi looked around for any type of food he could eat, but all there was in the camp was the cake from earlier. She wasn't exactly sure if it was a good idea to give him sugar if he hadn't been eating too many solid foods in months, but it was all there was available. Finally, she removed the strawberries from the top and carefully wiped the white sugary icing off with her finger. She was undoubtedly certain that her first aid instructors wouldn't approve of this unsanitary way of handling food, but there was enough of an emergency on her hands without having to deal with sterilization.
"Eat this." She propped him up again and held one of the berries to his mouth. He took a small bite and chewed it carefully. "Luckily there's vitamin C in them, so it should help you fight off whatever's making you sick." She didn't place him back down again until all three strawberries had been finished.
"Izumi, thank you for watching out for me," he whispered.
"Go back to sleep," she urged. "The others are coming back with a doctor." He nodded in reply and closed his eyes.
-------
Sakiko lay awake on the cot in the tunnel settlement. Kouji's family was fast asleep, but Sakiko, Koemon, and Kotemon were all too tired to sleep. The events of that day had exhausted them, but they couldn't sleep at all.
"Can't sleep?" she asked. Kotemon was rubbing his eyes. "Me neither."
"Let's go see if Kage needs help," Koemon suggested.
"I'd feel better if we knew if Kouji needed help," Kotemon commented, taking his helmet and placing it on his head.
In the mess hall, Kage had gathered the entire militia that was under his command. That militia consisted of Digimon from the levels of Child to Perfect—even the occasional Ultimate—and any human willing to fight. With his tall stature and strong voice, Kage could pass as a soldier. But it was still odd to think that this one teenager was ordering around adults.
"Biological weapons?" he shouted, pacing in front of the soldiers like a commanding officer. "We are revolutionaries, not terrorists! Our job is to stop the Kaiser and save those under his influence, not to shoot everyone in sight! Himi and Gabumon are searching for that bullet, and if they don't find it, you can be sure that all hell's going to break loose!"
"What bullet?" asked a tan boy with a pair of goggles atop his brown hair. Standing next to him was a small boy whose brown hair was streaked with summer blond.
"One of our trigger-happy gunmen decided to be a fool and make his own biological weapon by making bullets filled with a bacterium he cultured in the Mt. Fuji Settlement Hospital. The bullets were designed to dissolve in blood so the bacterium would be released. It mutates DNA in humans and causes painful non-cancerous tumors, but no one can guess what it would do to someone with Digimon forms."
"Yutaka onii-chan," recognized the smaller boy as a college-age boy walked in with a Gabumon.
"Sorry, Tomoki, can't talk now," he answered. "Kage, I have bad news."
"Let me guess," he replied. "No trace of the bullet?"
"That and more," Gabumon added. "The shot was fired near the Chosen's camp. One of them is infected."
The goggle-headed boy turned pale in shock. "Kouji—his knee was bleeding. I didn't think much of it, but it looked like a bullet wound."
"Kouji?" Sakiko, Kotemon, and Koemon repeated in shock.
"As in Kouji Minamoto, the Kaiser's brother?" Sakiko asked. Kage seemed to react to the name a little bit, as though he recognized it.
"Oh no," Koemon declared.
"The bacterium is in him now," Kotemon realized.
"Hear that people?" Kage questioned. "The Kaiser's brother was back from the dead, and now he's about to join them again." He walked directly to an eighteen-year-old with red hair and steel-gray eyes, who was obviously the culprit. "I hope you all think of that the next time any of you wants to build a chemical or biological weapon." He then broke his gaze on the perpetrator. "The next time I catch any of you with or hear rumors of anyone making or building a weapon of mass destruction, I'll shoot you personally."
-------
Not much time had passed later when Kouji began shivering under the blanket, and a cold sweat was beading down his forehead and all over his body. His temperature shot up several degrees, and he seemed to be having trouble breathing.
"Move closer to the fire," Izumi ordered. He stood up, holding the woolen blanket around his body, but he soon dropped it, staring at his hand.
"Izumi, something's wrong with my hand," he said. Izumi checked, only to see what looked more like an animal's paw rather than a human hand. His fingernails rounded cylindrically and narrowed into sharp claws. Bluish fur began covering his body, and his outer skin started separating from the rest of his body, forming a thick metallic armor. His bones made a crunching sound, forcing him to sharply and painfully take in his breath as he slowly fell toward the dirt ground. His feet became paws, tearing out of his sneakers—why he had no socks was a mystery. Izumi quickly placed the blanket over him as he continued struggling in feverish pain.
That was when Tomoki, Kage, Takuya, Dr. Yamamoto, and Junpei arrived. Immediately, the doctor went into action, injecting a painkiller to try and relieve the agonizing mutation.
"No…" Kouji resisted, trying to avoid the needle. His attempts were in vain as the necessary medication was injected into his arm. His body went limp, and he fell to his side, slowly losing consciousness again.
"He just had a fever and things suddenly got worse," Izumi explained.
"His DNA is warping, forcing him into his evolutions," Kage realized, quickly explaining Takamoto's blunder. When he was done, he broke into a loud string of cursing, many of the words the Chosen had never heard before.
"Who's had contact with Kouji's wounds?" Dr. Yamamoto questioned, interrupting Kage's rage.
"I cleaned and bandaged them," Izumi replied. "Also, he threw up all over the encampment. Some of it may have ended up on my clothes by accident."
"His jacket covered most of his injuries, so Tomoki and I didn't come in contact with any blood," Takuya added. "And the mutt didn't draw any blood when he bit me."
"I'm going to have to carry him to the hospital tent," Kage said, volunteering as though he owed Kouji some personal debt. "And Himi and Gabumon just went out to search for Chideta Miyagami, who was with Takamoto. It's possible he was shot too."
"You have quarantine tents, right?" Dr. Yamamoto checked. Kage nodded. "Keep Kouji and all definite patients in one, and anyone who could possibly be infected in the other. I'll be in quarantine too, but I'll need another doctor to help me take care of all the patients. Someone go to my hospital and alert Dr. Akagami."
"I'll do it," Junpei volunteered.
"Good. Tell him to be ready for a disease-control burn. We need to burn whatever came in contact with Kouji's blood—mainly clothes and that blanket. The bowls and other cooking utensils can be cleaned in hot water with a touch of laundry detergent or bleach."
"Takuya, Tomoki, head off to the quarantine tents and tell everyone to get ready," Kage ordered.
"Give one of the settlers this," Dr. Yamamoto added, handing Takuya a prescription. "It's for a penicillin that should be able to help kill the bacteria that keeps spreading through Kouji's system, if we can get it to him in time."
"I'll take it," Sakiko offered. Instead of wearing Kouji's bandana over her noticeably purple-and-brown hair, she'd wrapped it in a pink gypsy scarf. "I'll just say I'm a cancer patient or something."
"Let me print out the papers for that," Kage said, removing his computer from the element-proof pack on his back. Rapidly, he typed up the information and printed out a very convincing set of identification papers. "Go. And hurry." She was given the prescription and papers and sent off. Everyone else had already gone to do his duty. Kage braced himself and lifted Kouji's body, which was still covered with the blanket. But he was shocked at how light Kouji was. "That's strange. He hardly weighs anything. Has he eaten anything?"
"Yes. I gave him a few strawberries—it was all we had. And when he threw up, I noticed there wasn't much to it. He said all he ever has to eat is half a piece of bread and a quarter of a bowl of soup."
"That's not a good sign," Dr. Yamamoto realized. "He may not have the strength to fight the bacteria. We have to get him to the hospital tent now."
Izumi glanced up at what stars were visible in the cover of the trees. The stars were shining their light through the darkness, providing everyone with the strength to go on. But it was up to all of them to see what tomorrow would bring.
-------
Sakiko walked into a pharmacy and presented the false ID papers, saying she was a discharged leukemia patient who needed to be taking different medicines to fight off bacterial infection. At the front desk, she handed over the prescription to a kindly old man and hoped for the best.
"You're in luck," he said, his eyes blank from Kouichi's power. "We just got stocked up on this in case the Resistance used biological weapons."
"Biological weapons?" Sakiko asked, making her voice sound weak and tired.
"Yes. Apparently, they're experimenting with a bacterium that causes DNA to mutate. Thank God that Dr. Yamamoto's assistant, Dr. Akagami, alerted us to it and had us stock up on this."
Sakiko felt a wave of anger overcome her. Akagami was going to be treating Kouji. If he did something as traitorous as this, he would stop at nothing to kill the sick boy.
"This just in," a TV reporter alerted, her eyes also vapid. "The Kaiser has just discovered that one of his most dangerous prisoners has just escaped his prison fortress earlier today." A picture of Kouji appeared on the screen. "It is said that this young man may claim to be related to the Kaiser and is mentally unstable. He calls himself Kouji Minamoto, and he is said to be armed with the stolen Spirits of Light and is to be considered very dangerous."
Sakiko knew that things were getting out of hand. And it was up to her to stop it before anyone—namely Kouji—got hurt. She took the medicine, paid, and prayed that her gun was still on her cot.
-------
Kage placed Kouji on the cot in the main quarantine tent when Yutaka Himi entered, carrying another patient.
"Kage, it's Miyagami," he informed. He placed the motionless young man on another cot, revealing that Chideta Miyagami's face was covered with mutating inflammations. Already, the young man's lower lip had swollen to twice its normal size.
"Good, Himi," Kage answered. "Did Gabumon touch anything?"
"No," he informed. "I made sure of it. Besides, Digimon can't handle blood."
"All right, we'd better go into the other tent."
"It's a good thing that Akagami mentioned that Takamoto was experimenting with bacteria. I don't want to think what might have happened if he didn't warn us."
"True. But I did find it a little unusual that he seemed to know exactly what the new bacterium was—especially considering that Takamoto invented it."
Himi stared at Kage. "You don't think that he might be working for the Kaiser, do you?"
"I don't know. I don't have any definite proof, yet. But let's just say I'll be keeping my eye on him."
They both left and headed for the other quarantine tent. Once he was sure they were inside the other, Reiji Takamoto entered the one they'd left.
"Chideta?" he whispered, trying to wake up his friend.
"Reiji, hey," the sick fighter responded.
"I'm sorry for getting you into all this."
"It's all right. You were right though. I did need to change the way I think and fight, but I doubt in the way you meant."
"Forget about the way I thought. I destroyed that bacterium under Kage's orders, especially after I heard this was going to kill you."
Miyagami whistled. "So, how's it feel talking to a dead guy?"
"Chideta, man, this isn't funny."
"Sorry, Reiji. But it's weird to think that I'll die at the hands of an ally and not an enemy. Guess that's what the Chosen thought when their friend died."
"No, he's alive."
"What?"
"Well, for the moment. That kid on your left—the one that's starting to look like a wolf—is the Kaiser's brother, Kouji."
"Whoa." Miyagami was entirely speechless. "But…how did he survive?"
"Don't know. We won't know anything until he recovers—if he recovers."
"Don't be such a pessimist," Miyagami urged. "No one else has had this. He and I both have a chance of surviving."
"You're right. You forgive me?"
"Of course. We're the undefeated duo, remember?"
Takamoto held back a laugh. "Partners in crime, just like in the dojo. When you get out of here, and when this war's all over, what do you say we pull that prank we've been planning since high school started?"
Miyagami began howling in laughter. "You bet! We'll just hijack the school's golf carts and start a chase with all the administrators. We'll be legends."
"Yeah, but you need to rest first before we do it," Takamoto reasoned. "No point in just laughing about it if we won't be able to do it."
"True. See you when I get out, Reiji."
"Yeah. See you then."
Miyagami closed his eyes and fell back to sleep, but Takamoto couldn't bring himself to leave so soon. He'd made his peace with his friend, but Kouji still remained. He walked over to the other patient's cot. Kouji was lying on his right side, breathing shallowly. His mouth was open, revealing teeth that were slowly becoming pointed. Every once in a while, he'd moan in pain from a mutation, but that was the only noise he made. He was unconscious, but Takamoto needed to confess, even to a sleeping person.
"So, your name is Kouji," he started, hearing a loud moan as two large golden blades exited Kouji's back. The skin tore free, leaving blood on the blades, his back, and the sheets; but after several seconds, the wounds on his back healed, although blood remained on his back, sheets, blades, and the ground. Decontamination would take a long time after this. "Listen, kid, I know this may be hard to believe, but I was one of the main people that actually mourned your loss. I don't know why myself… I guess it's because people die everyday, whether anyone wants them to or not. Most deaths aren't noticed by anyone but those who actually knew the deceased, but then there are those that are publicized. But with these publicized deaths, we always know the name of who died, and we always know what they did. But with you, we didn't. You didn't have a name or a purpose. You were one of the common people, and yet everyone felt an unusual closeness to you. Now why? I'm not sure, but… Complete strangers cried for you when we thought you were dead. A lot of people care about you, kid, whether you notice it or not. You have to survive for these people, if not for yourself." At Kouji's side was a blue-and-black digivice. Takamoto had seen the other Chosen use ones just like it to evolve. Hoping he could spare the boy at least some pain, he pressed a button, causing a full slide evolution sequence. Wolfmon's form was a lot easier to maintain, and a lot less painful to take on. And then he walked out, leaving it all up to Fate once more.
-------
"You let them escape," Kouichi accused.
"It's not my fault," Reiyama answered.
"Silence," Kouichi ordered. "I'm tired of your excuses. If not for you alerting those slaves, he would not have escaped."
"But they had to have known of his existence beforehand," Reiyama protested.
"And whose fault is that?" Kouichi asked. "You were supposed to be sure the Kotemon saw nothing, but you spent your night with a bottle of sake." He raised his whip above his head, placing it on electric blade mode. "You've failed me for the last time." Reiyama tried to plead for his life, but Kouichi jammed the electric blade into the soldier's heart, resulting in a loud bang…
Wait, Kouji thought, his mind hazy. That was a gunshot. He opened his eyes, surprised to see that he was in the form of Wolfmon. He hadn't even felt the evolution. A doctor was lying on the floor near him, blood pouring out of his chest, and Sakiko was holding her gun—the instrument that had killed him. In her other hand was a container of pills. Wearing a pair of latex gloves, she walked over to Miyagami and placed a pill in his mouth, instructing him to carefully swallow, then moved on to Kouji, slipping one in his mouth. He was too weak to ask questions, but Sakiko already knew what he wanted to ask.
"Akagami was trying to poison you two. I caught him with cyanide pills." She motioned to a spilled bottle of broken capsules that smelled like bitter almonds. "He's a mercenary, or at least he was." She was silent for a second before continuing. "The Kaiser placed out an all-points bulletin on you. He said you were mentally unstable, and very dangerous. But we all know you're not." She then left the tent, disposing of her gloves and placing her gun in her back pocket.
Kouji glanced at his roommate, Miyagami, who was unconscious again. His face looked scarred and bloated, which was an obvious sign that his body had mutated. Suddenly, he heard his bones crunching and his body shifting to yet another new form. The transition to Strabimon wasn't as long or painful as to Garmmon, but the mutation was just as draining. He closed his eyes and fell back to sleep.
A day later, a foul stench met his nostrils. Still in Strabimon's form, he opened his eyes and blinked to clear his fuzzy vision to see Miyagami being placed in a body bag. Dr. Yamamoto placed an oxygen mask over Kouji's face, keeping him from breathing in the reek of death.
He didn't make it, Kouji realized. They didn't get him help in time. Am I going to end up that way too? Exhaustion swamped him again, forcing him into a deep, dreamless sleep, not even remembering about awakening only for a few seconds for medication.
It was three days later when Kouji opened his eyes again, but not because his long sleep was interrupted, but because he finally felt better. The oxygen mask was no longer on his face; it had been removed some time after the tent had been cleansed. His position on the cot was different, signifying that he'd been taken somewhere else after Miyagami's death. He sat up and saw that he had a human body and not a Digimon form. The bandages around his wounds were fresh and clean, as were the sheets on his bed. Hanging on the wall was a set of clothes with a note signed by a certain Yutaka Himi.
Whatever remained of your clothes was burned to prevent spreading infection, it explained. These clothes used to belong to me, but I outgrew them years ago. I guess I was saving them for Tomoki, but you can have them now. Everything you need is here.
Kouji changed into the clothes, finding that they fit him too well to be a pair of the older boy's, and in too good condition to be hand-me-downs. Tomoki's brother just didn't want to reveal he'd gone shopping for everything Kouji would need: from a new shirt to new underwear and socks. On the ground was a pair of worn black sneakers, which were obviously used before. With them was yet another note.
Himi went out and bought you new clothes, but don't let him know I told you this, that note read. I went around town and found a pair of sneakers someone had thrown on a communication wire. That person's loss is your gain. Hope they fit.
-Kage Tenshi
Kage's sneakers fit Kouji comfortably, although they were pretty big. Luckily, Tomoki's brother had gotten him thick socks, so his feet didn't slide out of the shoes too much. Finally, Kouji removed the third and final gift and note from the pocket in his jeans. It was his bandana and an elastic band for his hair. This note was the shortest of them all:
Figured you'd want this back.
-Sakiko
Kouji placed all three notes on the table next to his cot, surprised to see that someone had saved his photos from the incinerator. He tied his hair back and then tied the bandana over it before stepping outside in the fresh night air. There was a hollowed-out log nearby, and he sat on it.
"Shouldn't you be in bed?" Izumi questioned, standing nearby.
"I've been asleep for days," he replied.
"Nice clothes," she joked. "Tomoki's brother definitely bought them."
"Yours are nice too," he replied, looking at her. She was no longer wearing her old striped blue T-shirt, long skirt, vest, and hat. All of that had been burned. Now she had a pink-and-purple tie-dyed, spaghetti-strap top with a pair of denim shorts.
"Someone at the settlement donated them."
"You look good though." She walked up, taking a seat next to him. "So that other guy died and Akagami was a traitor." It was not a question.
"Miyagami's body was burned for fear of spreading the bacteria. Sakiko and Takamoto made their own pyre and burned Akagami's body privately, but without any of the honors we'd given Miyagami. Akagami wasn't under anyone's control. He did it of his own free will."
"Did my family tell you how I survived?" he checked. Izumi nodded.
"They told us everything." She suddenly buried her head in his chest, crying. "I'm sorry for all Kouichi did to you."
"It's not your fault," he assured. "The Kaiser is controlling him."
"But I could have kept him from doing all that. I could have stopped him."
"He would have tried to kill you too."
Izumi stopped crying and turned her head. "All this time we thought you were dead, but Kouichi wouldn't even let that happen to you. I wish you hadn't gone through all that."
A year ago, Kouji would have been rigid with fear by Izumi's touch. But his experiences over the past few months had changed him, and he'd come to miss the kindness of it. And so now he returned his appreciation by holding her close, running a hand through her soft blond locks and whispering, "I wish you hadn't gone through all that pain either."
And Sakiko watched their reunion in the moonlight. Was it friendship, or something more?
"I hope he finally finds what he's needed," she whispered. And she turned and walked away, completely content.
Onii-san/chan: older brother. –san is more respectful than –chan
Daijoubu: all right/it will be all right
Oh, that last scene was part G Gundam, part Robotech. Plus that Gabumon was the one from episode 8—at least I think it was episode 8. This chapter is dedicated to my friends Valerie and Melissa, who have been plotting with me about the golf carts. The whole idea of the disease was from my Circle of Magic books by Tamora Pierce, but Izumi's first aid scene was stolen from the second episode of G Gundam, where Rain had to treat Domon's wounds. Although Rain was a lot rougher with Domon that Izumi was with Kouji… I got the whole idea of the "hand-me-down" clothing from A Wind in the Door by Madeleine L'Engle. And I didn't know the name of Kouji's dog, so I just worked my way through it again. And I used the dub name for Tomoki's brother, because I don't think he was actually named in the Japanese version: he was just "onii-chan," so someone in the dub rearranged the spelling of Takuya to get Yutaka.