I don't own digimon.


Story 76

Germinacide Pt 1: Purging

Takeru Takaishi could tell something was wrong the moment he opened his eyes. While the day he had was pretty average, it was almost enough to lull him into a false sense of comfort. Yet in the darkness of his room, that false sense had given way to something far more nefarious.

"U ̄ n... (Ugh…)" he muttered and reached for the switch to his lamp. Perhaps if he could find Patamon, he could find some kind of answ-

Takeru didn't get to finish that thought, the sound of his phone going off cutting off any attempt to turn on the lights. While normally annoying, the likely urgency in regards to whatever was going on outweighed those feelings. Grabbing his phone, Takeru took just a moment to look and see who was calling. At the moment, it appeared to be Daisuke of all people. Raising the phone up to his ear, Takeru swore he could make out something purple laying on his lap. Likely a trick of his eyes than anything concrete.

"Daisu ke, kore wa anata no nūdoru ID janai kata ga ī - (Daisuke, this better not be one of your noodle id-)" Takeru greeted, the sound of what he can only assume to be X-Laser blasting into something.

"Dattara īnoni. (I wish it was.)" Daisuke answered, his voice a mix of tired, stressed and frustrated. Takeru could only imagine what kind of situation could bring about that. "Sora wa akaku, pōtaru ga sora ni arawarete ori, beriaru vu~andemon o mita to kakushin shimashita. (The sky is red, portals are appearing in the sky and I swore I just saw Belial Vamdemon.)"

Takeru sat up, feeling the weight of someone or perhaps something shift in his lap. Ignoring it for now, he let out a deep breath.

"Hoka no min'na ni renraku dekimashita ka? (Have you been able to contact everyone else?)" Takeru inquired, doing his best to speak over the sound of punches and lasers in the background. What kind of digimon could XV-mon be fighting there? A champion, perhaps an ultimate. All the more reason to be on his guard.

"Dejimon o motte iru to shitte iru hito de, saigo ni renraku o totta no wa anatadesu. (You're the last one I've contacted who I know has a digimon.)" Daisuke answered and Takeru looked away from the phone. While he believed him, the chosen of hope could only wonder if he contacted the others as well. He could only ho-

"Don't believe his words! The last time he claimed that, you ended up in a ditch. Dead as can be. When I get my hands on you, Timekeeper, it'll be I who wear your stupid corpse as a hat! I'm back and you will regret killing my partner!" a voice announced and Takeru found himself treated to a headbutt. Knocking him back down, his head landed on his pillow. Just in time to gaze upon a purple Patamon. Except no, it was likely not that. Probably some kind of variant species and in turn, likely the digimon partner of the previous Takeru. Or TK, according to Victoria. Yeah, that was probably it.

"Ē to... Kon'nichiwa? (Uh… hi?)" TK greeted and turned the light on. Now illuminated, he could make out Patamon and his little bed off to the side. The walls had been cyan, with a touch of yellow thrown in to break it up amid the shelves and pictures hanging on the wall. In the limited light, it would be too much of a pain in the butt. "Namae wa nani? (What is your name?)"

The purple patamon looked away. Muttering something at the bedspread, that was TK's cue to shift his attention to the phone. It would probably be a couple moments before he got an answer. In the meantime, he would finish up this phone call.

"Hoka ni shitte okubeki koto wa arimasu ka? (Anything else I should know?)" Takeru inquired, the sounds of punching and laser fire continuing in the background on Daisuke's side.

"Tada kiwotsukete kudasai. Sore ga watashi kara no kanemochidearu koto wa shitte imasuga, watashi ga nozomu yō ni, anata ga futatabi shi ni chikadzuki sugiru koto wa, watashitachi ga saigo ni hitsuyō to suru kotodesu. (Just be careful. I know that's rich coming from me, but the last thing we need is you coming far too close to death again for my liking.)" Daisuke answered and Takeru held in a chuckle. While he got where his friend was coming from, that didn't change the fact that the chosen of miracles did just as boneheaded stuff and lived to tell the tale.

"Watashi wa sō shimasu. (I will.)" Takeru answered and ended the call. Setting the phone back on his nightstand, the chosen of hope's focus shifted back to the purple patamon.

"I'm Tsukaimon. (I'm Tsukaimon.)" the purple patamon announced and looked over to his orange counterpart. A stink eye followed, not that the target in question actually noticed it. No, Patamon was blissfully unaware of what was even going on here. That wouldn't last much longer though. Takeru had a feeling he was going to need to wake his partner up. But he could let the little guy sleep a touch longer. "Anata wa,`taimu rain o iji suru' tame ni nando mo hito o koroshita otoko ni kanari no shinrai o yosete imasu. So no yōna hitobito wa, subete no mondai no kongendesu. (You have quite a lot of trust in a man who's on multiple occasions murdered people for the sake of 'perserving the timeline'. People like that are the root of all your problems.)"

Takeru raised an eyebrow. He was definitely missing a huge heaping of context here to clue him into what was going on. Daisuke had never killed anyone (that the chosen of hope knew about). Could this be a case of mistaken identity? No. Victoria had made it seem like he was just one of many Takerus to exist. Perhaps the same could be said about Daisuke and perhaps all the others. Most likely. A shame he didn't have a way to test that theory.

"Etto… koreha, anata ga shitte iru Daisuke to wa chigau kamo shiremasen. (Uh… this is probably a different Daisuke from the one you know.)" Takeru explained and got a glare from Tsukaimon.

"Dōshite son'nani kakushin ga moteru no? (How can you be so certain?)" Tsukaimon announced, puffing up for good measure. By no means threatening, it did get his point across. Kind of. From certain angles, the purple pig digimon did look like one of those novelty balloons one could buy in American grocery stores.

"Dejimonkaizā nado to taiketsu shite iru ijō, sōiu kōi wa kanarazu arukaradesu. (Because such acts were bound to come up while taking on the likes of the Digimon Kaiser.)" Takeru countered and Tsukaimon returned to his normal size. Meeting the chosen of hope's gaze to the best of his abilities, a shrug followed.

"Anata wa shirimasenga, watashi wa anata ga sono yō na jijitsu o shiranai koto o sememasen. Anata wa sekai no me ni wa mada hijō ni wakai Takerudesu. Arigatai koto ni, rōpu o misete moraimasu. (You don't know, but I don't blame you for being ignorant of such facts. You are still a very young Takeru in the eyes of the world. Thankfully, you have me to show you the ropes.)" Tsukaimon announced, more than loud enough to wake up Patamon.

"Takeru,-dōshita no? (Takeru, what's going on?)" the orange pig digimon announced as he stood up. Splitting his gaze between his partner and Tsukaimon, it did little to quell the confusion that was surging through his mind at the moment.

"Shōjiki yoku wakaranai. Sora wa akaku, pōtaru ga sora ni araware, izen no bājon no watashi no pātonā ga watashi no mono ni narimashita... Nanrakano riyū de. (I honestly don't really know. The sky is red, portals are appearing in the sky and the previous version of me's partner is now mine… for some reason.)" Takeru explained and shot Tsukaimon a look. All that got him was a shrug. Not exactly the answer either person was looking for here.

"Watashi mo anata to onajiyōni konran shite imasuga, watashi ga shitte iru koto o yorokonde o mise shimasu. O ni-ri wa watashi no seito ni naru koto ga dekimasu! (I'm just as confused as you are, but I'm willing to show you the things I know. You two can be my pupils!)" Tsukaimon announced and was treated to a look. So much for that angle. While worth the shot, it was clear they weren't particularly receptive to it. Oh well. He would figure out a way to get into the boss role.

"Pasu shimasuga, tonikaku arigatō. (We'll pass, but thanks anyway.)" Takeru answered and walked over to his closet. Opening it up, he wasted little time in getting changed into his day clothes. By no means an outfit he expected to be putting on at whatever time it was, it would do nicely. Turning to face his partners, he got their best attempts at a thumbs-up. The chosen of hope accepted the gesture as he grabbed his phone. Shoving it into his pocket, now came the tricky part - actually getting out of the apartment. While his mother might have been asleep, Tsukaimon had no doubt woken her up. Though, she would've likely come to his room to see what was going on. Considering that he hadn't heard anything from the other side of his door. "Junbi wa īdesu ka? (Are you both ready to go?)"

Patamon and Tsukaimon didn't answer, choosing instead to fly up to Takeru's shoulders. Landing there, that was all the chosen of hope needed to see.

Reaching out to the door, Takeru pulled it open in a single motion. Stepping through, the trio was met with the darkened hallways of the Takashi apartment. By no means the biggest in the world, it was more than enough for Takeru and his mother.

"Kutsu nage no oni o dasanaide kudasai… (Please don't let the shoe-throw demon appear…)" Tsukaimon whispered, his gaze darting about in search of something that very much wasn't there. Even as Takeru and Patamon shot him a look in the hopes of figuring what might be there. As far as they could tell, Takeru's mother was nowhere to be found. For now, at least. That could easily change if they weren't careful and made too much noise.

"Takeru no okāsan wa onide wa arimasen. (Takeru's mom isn't a demon.)" Patamon announced in his quietest voice, getting a look from Tsuakaimon. What had gotten into that stupid purple pig to make him think that his partner's mother was somehow a demon? There had to be a reason for that cla-

The answer came far faster than any of them had expected it too. Coming in the form of a slipper, it slammed right into Tsukaimon. Not enough to knock him off, but enough to get his attention to the far end of the hallway. There, Ms Takaishi waited. Not particularly happy about any of this, she looked ready to throw yet another shoe their way.

"Kudaranai. Kanojodesu. (Crap. It's her.)" Tsukaimon announced and attempted to cower behind Takeru's shoulder. Try as he might though, it wasn't enough to get out of range of the slipper. Hitting him right upside the head, the purple pig digimon managed to hang on quite well. Flying back to Takeru's shoulder, he laid down. But not before shooting Ms Takaishi a look.

"Taka ru-san, nanikāttandesuka? (Takaru, is there something wrong?)" Ms Takaishi inquired and Takeru stared at the nearby wall. Looking at the pictures hanging on it, his gaze swiveled back over to his mother.

"Hora… sora wa akaku, sora ni wa pōtaru ga ari, shinda to omotte ita dejimon ga byōtō o shoyū shite iru yō ni hashirimawatte imasu. (Let's see… the sky is red, there are portals in the sky and digimon we thought were dead are now running around like they own the ward.)" Takeru explained, his mother trying her best to split focus between the trio. While a struggle to balance it out, she did eventually get there.

"Gaishutsu wa jiyūdesu. Tada kiwotsukete kudasai. Zenkai no dekigoto no nochi de, otokonoko o ushinaitaku arimasen. (You're free to go out. Just be careful. I don't want to lose my baby boy after what happened last time.)" Ms Takaishi answered, silence falling over the hallway. Even without saying it outright, Takeru knew exactly what she was talking about here.

"Okāsan. (I will, mom.)" Takeru answered and took the time to walk over to Ms Takaishi. Embracing her, he was met with a hug back. While quite warm, a chill threatened to appear and bring a swift end to this moment. "Watashi wa anata ni sore o yakusoku shimasu. (I promise you that.)"

Ms Takaishi nodded, Takeru ending the embrace. Afterwards, Takeru and company headed for the living room. There, the exit out into the apartments hallway awaited. Taking just a moment to examine the furniture in the darkened atmosphere, it was back over to the door.

"Dekakeru. (Heading out.)" Takeru announced and reached out to the handle. Taking just a moment to feel for any unnatural warmth, he was met with a neutral feeling. Ironically, that was the best feeling to get here as he twisted the handle.

Heading through, the trio was met with a relatively normal hallway. Or at least, as relatively normal as one could get when there's a Devimon and Pic oDevimon huddled up against a door. Holding what looked to be (stolen) banana cream pies, they looked to be attempting to prank whatever occupant lived in that apartment.

"Matte. Anata wa kako no watashidesu ka? (Wait. You're me from the past?)" Pico Devimon whispered and watched the taller devil nod. Somehow managing to not notice Takeru and his digimon, they continue to patiently wait for the occupant to exit their apartment.

"Un. O shiri o kera remashitaga, satsujin-sha o torimodoshimashita. Dakara, soreha subete yoidesu. (Yeah. Got my ass kicked, but I got my killer back. So it's all good.)" Devimon answered, shifting his grip on the banana cream pie. This was going to be such a fun prank. Why hadn't he thought of this before. Probably had something to do with the fact that this would be his first visit to the human world. This was so exciting. What other kinds of trou-

"Hen. (Ahem.)" TK announced, waiting a moment for both demon digimon to focus on him. Taking a second to recognize who they were being faced down, that was more than enough time for TK to wind up his fist and deliver a mean right hook. Knocking Pico Devimon out of the air, the pie fell to the ground. Landing with a splat, Devimon's gaze swiveled over. Glaring at the trio, that was Patamon and Tsukaimon's cue to get off of Takeru's shoulder. Doing their best offensive poses, it wasn't quite the desired results.

"Watashi wa anata ga shinda to omotta! (I thought you died!)" Devimon announced, Patamon taking the opportunity to puff out his chest. Getting in front of Takeru and Tsukaimon, some of the effect was lost on him.

"Watashi wa yoku narimashita. (I got better.)" Patamon answered, only for two more Devimon to casually walk up. One of them was holding an ice cream. Your typical mochi affair, Takeru couldn't say for certain. Not that it mattered in the slightest. Oddly, the other one looked far more detailed than the other two. If you squinted, you could make out the individual threads that make up his attire. Though, you would likely also be ripped to shreds.

"Nande 3-rina no! ? (Why are there three of them?!)" Tsukaimon announced and got a shrug from the chosen of hope. By no means the answer he was looking for, it would do for now. At least until he got his hooves on a better one.

"Shitte ireba yokatta. (I wished I knew.)" Takeru announced and fished his phone out. Holding it out for all the Devimon to see, it glowed with seafoam green light.

Patamon evolve too…

A circular cocoon made from dark blue hexagons formed around Patamon's body, making him temporarily invulnerable to attacks. A shame that such an effect couldn't last after the transformation was done.

"Kore wa, atarashī. Fanshīna kuro no haikei wa dokodesu ka? Karera no mawari ni uzumaku kimyōna dejikōdo? Damasa reta kibun! (This is new. Where's the fancy black background? The weird digicode that swirled around them? I feel cheated!)" Devimon #1 announced, getting looks from Pico Devimon and his two clones. A shrug followed, their gazes fixated on watching the orange pig digimon morph and grow into his next form.

"Kare o korosou to shita kaisū o kangaete mite kudasai. Kore wa karuma ga hataraite imasu.

(Consider the number of times you've tried to kill him, this is karma at work.)" Tsukaimon announced and waved one of his hooves. Sadly, none of the Devimon waved back. Not that he minded in the slightest.

Angemon!

The cocoon shattered, revealing the tall figure of Angemon. Pointing his staff in Devimon #1. Swinging it into him, he managed to hit Pico Devimon as well. Not quite killing the former, it very much did the latter in. Shattering into digital data, nothing in the way of a digitama appeared. Oddly, Devimon #1 did not disappear.

"Oi! Sukunakutomo, anata ga sono koto o furimawashi hajimeru mae ni, watashitachi ni senryaku o kime sasete kudasai! (Hey! At least let us decide on a strategy before you begin swinging that thing about!)" Devimon #2 announced, Angemon attempted to look in Takeru's direction. The results were less than spectacular and Angemon was now gazing at the door.

"Angemon?" Takeru announced, waiting a moment to see what his partner would do here. Angemon decided that he would just gaze out into space. Letting out a sigh, the chosen of hope snapped his fingers. That was just the cue Angemon needed to look over to his partner. "Just take them on."

Angemon nodded, somehow managing to get himself turned around enough in order to pull his staff back once more. This time, he chose to stab it right into Devimon #1. Just to be certain that the job got done and the devil digimon didn't have a chance to react.

"Zuruidesu! (No fair!)" Devimon #2 announced and attempted to scratch Angemon. All that got him was a headbutt from Tsukaimon. Knocking him back, an orange laser was enough to finish him off.

"Moshi yoroshikereba, semete aisukurīmu o tabe kitte itadakemasen ka? (Can I at least finish my ice cream, if you would be so kind?)" Devimon #3 announced and got a look from the trio. Promptly followed by a nod from Takeru. Gobbling the treat down in a couple bites, their gazes met. Lasting just a second, it was more than enough for Devimon to flip the chosen of hope off. Thankfully, Angemon responded with a kick and then smashing his staff right through Devimon #3's neck. Shattering into data, #1 & 2 did the same.

"Zusandesuga, sorede jūbundesu. (Sloppy, but it'll do.)" Tsukaimon announced and got a look from Takeru. The purple pig digimon was bound to have some snarky solution in regards to dealing with this problem. For now, he needed to go down a couple floors to rendezvous with Hikari and Victoria. Perhaps they would have some idea of what needed to be done…

.

Usagi's Dress Boutique, Harajuku

"U r f0rg3tt1ng s0m3th1ng." a voice cried out, the mangled and twisted body of one of my boss's demon's getting slapped about ahead of what one could only assume to be the purification and subsequent destruction of a past better less said, much less felt. For Usagi Renja, it was not the way she was expecting it to go.

"Oh yes, my paradoxical role in the destruction of that place and then the things Polly's parents did to me. Yes, I'm absolutely forgetting something." Usagi announced, tightening the stranglehold she had on her corrupted self. How the fuck, Chacha, Fatemon and Polly hadn't finished the job was beyond her, but it didn't matter. She just had to finish the job. "Believe me, I know I'm missing pieces. But my time in the sun is over. Now, I will play my part."

The seamstress's words fell on deaf ears as her opponent turned to dust. Watching it hover there for a couple seconds, the sound of the door being ripped off of its hinges cut off anything in the way of a satisfying reaction. Shifting her attention over, Usagi was met with a very tall woman. A black with gold pinstripe suit met that of swirling purplish void of sorts serving as the 'skin', making her orange eyes and locks of short jet black hair kept in a professional style. It's a far cry from her companion. Coming just up to the first woman's bust, she had chosen to go with the rattiest pink dress with gold accents imaginable. Deathly gray skin met what looked to be faded milky eyes. The locks of bright pink hair did look nice. Though, the pair of digizoid bands inset with white gems did tell her all she needed to know.

"Ē to… butikku wa genzai aite imasen. Watashitachi ga jissai ni aite ite, daitai bājon no kōgeki o ukete inai toki ni,-go de modotte kuru koto o o susume shimasu - (Uh… the boutique is not open at the moment. I would suggest you come back later when we are actually open and not under attack by alternate versions of ones-)" Usagi started, the taller woman deciding to throw a massive bag of money onto the counter.

"Tsuma no janpukōde to rorītasūtsu o tsukuru hiyō wa kore de jūbundarou ka? (Would this be enough to cover the cost of making a jump coord for my wife and perhaps one of those lolita suits?)" the taller woman explained and Usagi shoved her hook onto her belt. Walking over to the bag, she opened it up. A mix of dollars (American and Digi) stared back. A trip to DA03 was no doubt in order after this.

"O ni-ri no namae ga hitsuyōdesu. (I just need names for both of you.)" Usage answered as she closed the bag. Staring at the pair, she could make out a pair of elegantly carved digizoid rings with a clear stone set within. Intended to be wedding bands, the seamstress made a mental note of it.

"Ē to... (Uh…)" the taller woman announced and brought a hand to her chin. Reaching to her spouse's hand, a squeeze followed.

"Alva Mon and Laura Night Mon!" the shorter woman announced in english, getting a very harsh look from her much taller wife. In retrospect, perhaps going for the first names on the list Imperialdramon provided them before coming down.

"To iu koto de, roiyarunaitodejimon 2-tai. Watashi wa chōsen suru junbi ga dekite imasu. (So two royal knight digimon. I'm up for the challenge.)" Usagi announced and got out her measurement tape. As long of a night it was going to be, she could do this…


Harlequin's Notes:

It'll just be a single part, they told me. It won't be that bad. Well, we're having another arc. Oh well. Je- Harlequin kind of wanted to take a break and recharge, but she'll put on her big girl jumpsuit and power through here.