Chapter 13

The group walked along the trail peacefully, enjoying their surroundings and their day. The sun shone down on them and the simple feeling of warmth it brought upon them lightened all their hearts and spirits. They chatted happily with one another as they walked.

Ken strolled along leisurely, his hands in his pockets, staring up at the clear blue sky. For the moment, he had managed to push his troubles out of his mind. He smiled cheerily.

"Whatcha lookin' at?" Yolei questioned, her own eyes wandering to the sky.

"Nothing really," Ken answered, "just kind of… admiring things."

"Yeah, it's nice here," Yolei agreed. "It's the kind of place that you never want to leave."

"Yeah…"

They walked for a moment longer, then Ken stopped suddenly. In fact, he didn't just stop. He froze in place, not moving a muscle.

Yolei raised an eyebrow in question. "Ken?"

He didn't move.

"Ken?" Yolei repeated, poking him.

"I hear water!" he blurted out.

Yolei giggled. "Of course you do, silly," she said, slapping him easily, playfully.

Ken eased his posture and looked to her, expecting further explanation.

"We're coming up on the waterfall," Yolei told him. "We've still got a while to go, but we're close enough now that you can hear it in the distance."

"So you can hear it too?"

"That's right! Everybody can hear it!"

Ken let out a sigh of relief.

"Gosh, don't be so paranoid," Yolei said with a roll of her eyes.

"I can't help it," Ken insisted.

Yolei looked over at him, noticing that, although more at ease than before, he was still a bit stiff. She grinned, saying, "Loosen up, Kenny!"

He nodded, knowing that he need not be so worried. Hearing the rush of water was normal this time; nothing to be afraid of.

The running of the waterfall had become rather loud. The girls were becoming especially excited and now lead the group, eager to reach the natural beauty.

Ken was at the end. Although everyone had assured him that the water he heard was nothing but the waterfall ahead, the sound fractured the tranquility he'd had before. It brought back memories of his brief moment in the Dark Ocean, alone and afraid.

He walked slowly, glancing about in a sort of nervous matter, making sure there was nothing around that could be dangerous. He would stop every now and then and close his eyes, attempting to imagine or see something that his friends were not attuned to. All of his senses he kept at high. If the Dark Ocean were to attack him again, he would be prepared this time, and he would fight it.

His gaze fell to the ground then, his train of thought changing to everything he had learned and been told in this period of amnesia. Everything he thought to be important, he replayed and envisioned in his head…

"Your name is Kenneth Ichijouji," a man in a white coat- Dr. Tsunikawa- had told him.

The faces of his parents appeared, and he recalled his mother's nervous words: "Kenny, I'm… I'm your mother. Don't you recognize me?"

He remembered the first time he entered his home. Unknowingly, he had toyed with a picture frame, examining the image of the boy it held. "This is your brother, Sam," his father, with sorrow in his voice, had informed him.

In his short-lived life, Sam had been a genius. Ken followed in his brother's footsteps, becoming a genius himself. He went beyond that, though. He became a soccer star and a face that was well known to the television screen.

…And yet, none of it was true. His skills, his intelligence… Lies.

Then, of course, there were his friends: fun-loving Davis Motomiya, bubbly Yolei Inoue, serious but caring Cody Hida, sweet Kari Kamiya, and optimistic TK Takaishi. He had rejected them at first, but he was glad now that he had opened up and allowed them to help. They'd been good to him.

After recalling these facts, his mind then wandered to the things that remained unexplained: the Dark Spore, Digimon, the Dark Ocean… There were all such great mysteries. Somehow, in his heart, Ken knew that these things were all of great importance to his life. How, though, was something else. His friends had not explained them enough. But still…

Still, he was empty without them. These enigmas needed to be answered in order for him to be complete again. There was a dark aura around them, but it somehow made them more compelling. Somehow, he knew- he just knew- that in finding these answers he would find himself.

Ken continued watching his feet as he walked. His mind spun with all the memories and thoughts. He was so bogged down with thought that he didn't notice the roaring of the water growing unbelievably loud; so bogged down that he didn't notice when the ground beneath him turned from its lush green to a dull grey. He didn't even notice that his friends vanished before him.

"Would you look at that!" Davis exclaimed excitedly.

The amazing waterfall was right in front of the digidestined now, its clear, crisp liquid flowing gracefully. The water was perfect, untainted.

"It's…" Kari started, but her voice trailed off as she stared at it.

Yolei finished for her: "…beautiful."

It certainly was, and that was something everyone could agree on.

Yolei turned around suddenly as she called, "Ken! Ken, are you seeing this!" But when she turned, Ken wasn't there. He was gone, no where in sight.

"Guys," she said, her voice shaking slightly, "where's Ken…?"

The other digidestined turned their attention away from the waterfall.

"He was with us just a second ago," Cody pointed out.

"Yeah," TK agreed. "He was right behind us."

"Hmm," Tai said thoughtfully. "Come to think of it, he never really said a word after-"

"After he started hearing water!" Kari interrupted.

The other digidestined looked to her, expecting more.

"Guys," Kari went on, "what if Ken… What if he's…" She paused, starting to tremble.

She didn't have to finish. The others caught her drift and knew what she implied. Though they could've stared at it for hours, the digidestined had to leave the waterfall behind as they hurried back the trail, calling and searching for Ken.

Ken still stared at his feet, wandering aimlessly along what he thought to be the trail that led to the waterfall. A horrible crashing sound startled him and shattered his thought.

He looked up and glanced around. He suddenly realized that he was no longer behind his friends. They were no where to be found. He also noticed that his surroundings were dark and drab. Everything had a grey tint to it. The grass, the tress; nothing was green as it should have been. Even the sky was not its normal blue.

He surveyed his surroundings closer… He wasn't on a trail at all! There was no clear, marked path to follow!

Panic came over him. He ran through this strange, wooded area, shouting the names of his friends and looking about frantically.

Finally, the number of flora lessened, and Ken came to cliff… but what he saw before him stunned him.

There was a beach below, with a darkened ocean caressing its grey sands.

His eyes widened, "The Dark Ocean," he whispered to himself.

At that moment, the ocean picked up momentum, its waves starting to grow to immense sizes as they crashed down upon the beach.

"It can't be," Ken told himself, confused. "I was ready for it. I was prepared to fight it off."

Still, even with his preparations, the Dark Ocean had managed to suck him in. There it was before him, with an almost enticing sense about it.

As he stood there in a mixture of confusion and fear, he heard whispers. They seemed to be calling him, calling his name. The ocean wanted him…

For those of you who have been reading this since the beginning, you may have realized a little change in the chapters. No big deal; I just went back and merged a few of them together.

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