Digital Monsters: Back In Action
By Charles Xavier
…
A Visit From Hikari
…
"Konban wa. My name is Ryo Akiyama."
"Konban wa. My name is Nakama Yuchie."
"And welcome to the Toei Animation News Network at 7 o'clock in the evening. Two hours have passed after alleged killer Takeru Takaishi disappeared. And an hour after that, swarms of anime have paraded across the streets of Tokyo, protesting against the recent announcement made by the Japanese government. Sources say that if Takeru was not to turn himself in within the next twenty-four hours, every anime in Japan would strictly be put under martial law. Quite surprisingly, owners from every anime company have turned against the decision as well. Among them, Hironobu Samaguchi (1), owner of Square-Enix, was especially outraged and said: 'What has happened to this country, has the world gone mad? Why must our beloved anime be treated this way now?'. Regardless of the animes' demands, the Japanese government is unwilling to change their actions. And while Takeru is still reported to be missing, police advise viewers to call their nearest police station if they are ever to encounter him, as he is now considered to be dangerous and armed…that is, with a Digimon called Patamon."
"Thank you, Ryo. When we come back, we'll bring you more news about how SkullMeramon got the biggest tattoo in world record history, why inviting a Blitzmon in your house can cause pest problems, and last but not least, the status on Black WarGreymon who is apparently suffering a serious case of anorexia according to medical doctors. All this and more, coming up after these messages."
…
This was Eddie's first time staying in a five star hotel in Tokyo. His private room in particular was luxurious, relaxing, unnerving, and best of all, it had a wide plasma TV attached to the wall with numerous channels on it. It sure was very generous of Yamaki and his friends to make the Lieutenant and himself most comfortable on this visit; they paid for most of the costs in the hotel after all.
While Eddie was watching the news on the TV, he was distracted away when somebody came ringing his doorbell. Knowing that he was being expected, he stretched his arms, got up and went over to the door. Peeking through the peephole, he saw Hikari Yagami standing there rather bashfully, positioning her hands together in a polite form, looking as if she was a maid coming to clean up his room. By her side stood Tailmon, looking unafraid of who might answer them.
Eddie turned the knob and opened the door.
"Excuse me, sir." Said Hikari in a most formal manner. "I'm very sorry to disturb you, and I may be mistaken here. But would you happen to be Detective Eddie Valiant by any chance?"
"That's me, kiddo."
"Would it be all right if I came in, Mr. Valiant?" Hikari asked meekly. "I in no means want to cause you any interruption, but…"
"No, it's fine. Come right in."
Eddie opened the door and allowed Hikari and Tailmon to step into his room. Hikari gave a friendly smile and bowed her head at Eddie, and then she followed him into his bedroom where she sat herself down onto a chair nearby the TV. Eddie sat on his bed facing his visitors, saying:
"So, what can I do for you, Miss…"
"Hikari Yagami." She bowed again at Eddie. "Nice to meet you. This is my Digimon, Tailmon. I was hoping that I would be able to find you here as soon as I had hoped."
"Really…?"
"Yes, really. Tailmon and I have come here with concern about the Takeru Takaishi case…and please, don't get me wrong or anything, but I believe that Takeru is innocent…"
…
"Hi, there! My name is Wallace, and do you ever get hungry in the middle of the night, while you're working on that sweaty chair, or maybe when you're exercising out in the gym? Well, look no further! Burgemon King has all your answers right here! Yes, now with our 100 percent fat free Boarmon burgers, fresh Reaper fries, crunchy Gomamon fish sticks, refreshing Chocomon milkshakes, and our special Omnimon sundaes, you can eat all that for only 500 Yen! Yes, you heard me correct, 500 Yen! Oh…and did I mention that Burgemon King is now open twenty-four hours? Whoops! Looks like I just did! And have I gone crazy, you might ask? Well, I'm not going to tell you, because you're going to have to find out yourself when you come over here and accept this irresistible offer we are making…only for a limited time in participating restaurants. So get off your lazy bums and get hopping to it! You got the urge, get to Burgemon King!"
…
While the TV was continuing to show random advertisements, Eddie's attention was attached to what Hikari had to say about everything she knew about Takeru and how she positively thought that he wasn't the culprit of this horrendous murder.
"Mr. Valiant, I know it's hard for you to understand. But Takeru and I have been close friends for years now, and I know him dearly as one of his closest friends. He would never have done anything cruel as this, even if he did lose his job."
Eddie couldn't fully disagree. After learning what happened in the trial, Eddie felt that the Japanese government were pushing themselves over the limit when it came to the mention of DIP and martial law. Furthermore, there was the fact that neither the Lieutenant nor himself were notified that fingerprints were found at the crime scene…it sounded slightly suspicious.
"Well, Hikari. I'm afraid I can't help you with the whereabouts of Takeru or Patamon, if that's what you're asking for. Those two could be miles away from Tokyo by now, hiding someplace remote."
"Not exactly, Mr. Valiant. Though I am not a hundred percent certain, I may know where Takeru might be."
Eddie lowered his brows at her. "What makes you think that?"
"Takeru and I have a part time job outside of Toei Animation. But after he lost his position, he got too depressed and quit. As for me, I work there less often these days, because Toei has been offering me a bigger role in the series."
"What's this place called?"
"It's called Casino PicoDevimon, and is owned by PicoDevimon himself. It is one of the most successful casinos in the whole of Japan, and some of us Toei anime work there as well."
"A casino?" Eddie wasn't expecting that sort of answer. It seemed unusual for anime of Hikari's age to be working in a place like that…but then again, this was Japan. And as the Lieutenant said, things were run very differently here. So without bothering to fuss further about Hikari's occupation there, he asked simply: "Why do you suppose Takeru would be there?"
"Takeru always visited me there when he was unemployed. And tonight's one of my shifts; he's bound to be waiting for me there's…there's nobody else he can go to, you know. His family is currently being surveyed by the police, so he can't go up to them. And I don't think his other friends would risk helping him out…they're all busy protesting on the streets."
Eddie thought deeply about this situation. It would have seemed unwise if he spread all this to the Lieutenant or Yamaki, as they would likely rush over to the casino and completely rampage through the place searching for Takeru. So no…he couldn't tell them anything about this.
"Mr. Valiant, I've heard many stories about you in the west. You've solved crimes, you've help many cartoons like us, and you've never let your hopes down on anybody. And I know it is difficult for me to ask this, but since you managed to get Takeru into this whole mess, perhaps it would be possible for you to get him out it." That wasn't the first time Eddie had heard somebody say that to him in the past, and this time it was more serious. "If we find him together, then there is a small possibility that we could find a way to prove that he's innocent before time runs out for us anime…I'm sure you heard that by tomorrow, life for us is going to become more restricted than we had ever expected. So will you please help us, Mr. Valiant?"
She looked desperate for an answer. Eddie realized how she felt, and therefore wasn't willing to let this young anime feel disappointed or upset in any way. Rubbing his chin in thought, he finally responded:
"Ah, to hell with it…I'll help you out, Hikari."
"Oh, thank you so much!" Hikari clapped her hands and shook Eddie's hand, bowing many times at him once more. "Thank you so much for helping us…I won't forget this moment!"
"Sure."
…
"Heeya! Welcome, we're the Hoi Brothers, and this here is the TokyoTraining School for the traditional Chinese Martial Arts, run by our very own sensei, which we simply call…Sensei! If you are curious to know more about Chinese culture, and the styles of fighting, then you've come to the right place! We will teach you how to control the energies in your body, we will teach you how to balance the yin and yang, and we will teach you how to avoid getting bullied when you are in school. But that is not all! We will also teach you how to skip on water, climb up walls, wield dangerous looking swords, and smash through powerful objects, such as your bathroom door! So what are you waiting for? Come on over to the TokyoTraining School for the traditional Chinese Martial Arts and enroll now! Alternatively, you can e-mail us at shaolinnoodles(at)toei(dotcome) (2) or telephone us at 075-889-TOFU. Lines are open twenty-four hours a day…er, except on Chinese New Year!"
…
Leaving the TV on, Eddie left his bed and went into his bathroom to do his business.
"So when do you have to get to work by?" He shouted out.
"Oh, not for another hour." Hikari sat softly down onto Eddie's bed with Tailmon. "It's quite a distance away from here, but if we take the Locomon Express Line, it will only take five minutes to get there from here!"
Tailmon grabbed the remote control lying at the end of the bed.
"Huh, I wonder if they've got my favorite channel." She said, surfing the channels, trying to find her right one. "Ah, here it is!"
…
"Are you ready to be entertained, tonight? Because right now, you're watching DH-1! Music television WE control! And the only music channel network in the whole of Japan. Isn't that right, Megumi?"
"That's right, Reika. And looking at the music charts for this week here, we still have at number one for its sixth week, Yamato Ishida's explosive smash hit song: 'Digimon Killed The Pokemon Star'. Down in second place is Culumon's first song debut: 'I Saw Mommy Kissing Mephismon'. That's followed in third place by LadyDevimon's most controversial song: 'Hit Me Toei One More Time'. And later on, we will also be going behind the music, with Tonosama Gekomon, who's still trying to get his groove back after gaining 200 pounds of weight when he went under an ice cream overdose."
…
(1) I know it's supposed to be Hironobu Sakaguchi, but I just wanted to make him seem fictional…
(2) Something went funny with the format when I tried to put in the e-mail adrress name. So excuse me if the '(at)toei(dotcom)' thing has confused any of you readers.
Author's Note: Thank you again for your reviews.