Chapter 4 - Sleeping Fears
"This is speech."
'This is Matamon's voice in someone's (Takuya's) head'
'This is thought and Takuya's voice in his own head'
'This is the Telamon side of Takuya in Takuya's head'
"He's sleeping..."
"He's been sleeping for 3 days..."
"There's something wrong with his mind at the present..."
"He can not be moved yet..."
"I'll do my best to re-initiate our plans..."
"No...no other will do...It has to be him..."
"I'm sorry, sir. I'll do my best..."
"Give me 2 more days..."
-
A door shut softly and a blonde girl turned to face the other teens in the hallway. She sighed.
"He cried himself to sleep again..." she whispered.
"He's always been the crier in the group, hasn't he?"
"J.P.!" Zoe whisper yelled at him.
"I didn't mean anything by it. But it's true isn't it? He was always the one the cried." Kouji shook his head. "Huh?"
"Remember? Takuya cried too. When we thought that Lucimon was gonna win, he cried." Kouji explained.
"I don't remember-"
"You had already sacrificed yourself before then. We followed him to the human world, where we first entered the digital world. Takuya had given up. He started talking about how weak we were, not being able to defeat Lucimon...who was now a huge monster thing..." Zoe explained.
"Takuya tried pushing over an elevator...that's when he cried. He said 'Look, I can't even push over this elevator'...or to that effect." J.P. whispered in his 2 cents, no one wanted to wake Tommy up. "Then Agunimon's spirit came and helped us, along with the other 9 warriors. Takuya pushed the elevator over and we all went to go kick Lucimon's butt!"
"Shhh!" they all said at once. J.P. covered his mouth.
"Wow...I missed it." Kouichi mumbled, seeming disappointed.
"And I have to thank Takuya for finding you after we left." Kouji muttered as they walked downstairs. "He showed me where you fell, I still don't know how he knew."
"Well...in that case, thank him for knowing who I was." Kouichi said, slightly more cheerful. "Even though I had it all planned in my head, the words 'I'm your twin brother' wouldn't have made it out of my mouth." They all smirked slightly, then frowned again.
There was a long silence. They were in Kouji's house because his parents were out. Kouji got them all sodas as they sat down. J.P. sat on his couch at one end, Zoe on the other. Kouichi was in one chair, to J.P.'s left. Kouji sat down in the chair to Zoe's right.
No one spoke for awhile...
"Where d'you suppose he is, anyway?" Zoe asked suddenly. Her voice was like a hot knife through butter in the silence of the room. No one seemed to know how to answer her...
"I think..." Kouichi paused and then shook his head.
"What is it Kouichi?" J.P. asked. The older twin had all their attentions. He sighed slightly.
"I think...that his disappearance...has something to do with those digimon's appearances..." he said slowly and softly, usual Kouichi fashion.
"Really?"
"Yea. Just think about it for a moment. Takuya disappeared, and then, the next day, these digimon attack. And the only reason seems to be to destroy things. I think they may know what happened to Takuya..." Kouichi said, now voicing his opinion freely.
"So, what do you expect? We just waltz right up to them and say 'Hey, you wouldn't happen to have our friend captive right now, would you?' Yea, real smart." J.P. said, slightly exasperated.
"No." Kouichi shook his head, thinking.
"We ask that fire guy."
All heads turned to Kouji, who had been unusually quiet.
"What?" J.P. and Zoe asked at the same time. Kouji sat up straight.
"Just, think...He was the most talkative of the two. That guy, Baronmon or whatever, he was just talking about himself, and he didn't say much. But the other guy, he seemed to know something..."
"No..."
Kouji blinked the thought away. No, it hadn't been him.
"But he seemed so..." Zoe started.
"Bloodthirsty? Power hungry?" J.P. tried. Zoe nodded.
"I think he was confused." Kouichi muttered. "Why else would he have Baronmon there to watch him? He might be new, or...rebellious."
They all looked at the floor and began to think about what Kouichi had just said.
"Please..."
"No..."
Kouji shook his head again.
'No, it's not him...It can't be...'
-
"Baronmon...what is the world up to?" Heraldomon asked, petting a flaming something next to him.
"They have begun to worry about...what are you doing ssir?" he asked, looking at the flaming boy sitting against Heraldomon's chair.
He has flaming hair and tail, claws, and tan skin. He is wearing black leather and looks adorably cute in semi-unconsciousness...Not that any of the bad digi-people think he's cute. His head cocked to the side slightly, his flaming hair pulling itself lightly from Heraldomon's fingers.
"What do you mean, Baronmon?" the blunette asked.
"What iss that...human doing here...in your throne room...?" he asked in confusion. Heraldomon narrowed his eyes.
"He is here because I had him brought here. I believe he will become loyal to me if we do not keep him locked in his own mind, in Matamon's lab..." he began to run his finger's through Telamon's hair again.
"Of coursse ssir." the baron then bowed. "The children are becoming worried...We sshould move..." he suddenly flared slightly. "I don't like thiss. We sshould kill them now!"
Telamon twitched slightly, making their leader stop petting him. He glanced down at Telamon with interest, then gave Baronmon a look of the slightest glee.
"You shouldn't say such things..." he said in a slight whisper, pointing to the sleeping mon. "You might anger him." he laughed softly, yet still with his evil aura.
"I would never dream of it ssir..." Baronmon spread his wings as he stood to his full height. "But when do we next attack?"
Heraldomon noticed the hint of anxiousness in his warrior's voice. He narrowed his eyes slightly, but not in anger.
"As soon as our chibi wakes up." he gave Telamon a caring pat on the head without looking away from Baronmon. "Go get Matamon and the gazimon. He should be awake within the hour."
Baronmon grumbled but did as he was told. He disappeared without moving and left Telamon and Heraldomon alone in the room. Heraldomon leaned over the side of his chair and whispered in Telamon's ear.
"You are my most loyal warrior..." he assured the boy, his voice low, as if daring the boy to defy him. "You need nobody else but me..." he began to laugh as he sat up, his laugh growing to echo loudly around the room.
But Telamon didn't budge. His eyes flickered, almost as if he were feigning sleep, but he wasn't. Telamon was deep asleep...floating under the surface of pure blue water...but unable to see it, or the sun shining above the surface. He was blind, and losing his breath.
'I can't...'
-
Kouji sat bolt upright. He was breathing hard and he was sweating. Kouji put his hands on his forehead and tried to calm down. What was that?
All he remembered was...He had been floating downstream, the water blue and peaceful. The sun was shining brightly, but it didn't seem to bother him. His eyes were closed and he had felt...so at ease...
Then that pain...he'd felt pain jab through him like an bullet through it's prey. Why? He hadn't had time to think about it because, along with the pain, there was a laugh. An evil laugh...
It had echoed, filled his entire being...It was...controlling...
Now that he was awake, Kouji looked around. It was still late at night, probably about 3. Checking the clock he'd set up next to him, it was 3:23 am.
'Good guess, Kouji.' he silently congratulated himself, then shook his head.
Zoe was sleeping in his room, so he was on the floor in the living room. Why the floor? Because J.P. had taken the couch, and Tommy had stuck the two chairs together as a makeshift bed. He jumped slightly when something brushed him, but calmed down when he saw what it was.
Kouichi was laying next to him. Kouji paused.
'Didn't Kouichi sleep over...' he looked next to the wall, where a dark blue blanket and white pillow were, all crumpled up and not even resembling a bed anymore. He sweat dropped. 'Kouichi has a big problem with rolling in his sleep I see...'
He ignored his brother, who was now snuggling close to him in his sleep, holding him by the waist, and mumbling something about candy canes, pink clouds, and rampaging stuffed animals, for the more important job of making sure nothing was going wrong.
J.P. seemed to be struggling with the cover he had, mumbling the names of snack foods...Kouji had the impression of Candy Land. Then he looked to Tommy, gasping softly as Kouichi's hold on his waist tightened.
"K-kouichi..I can't...brea-" he froze. Why was that so familiar?
"Don't...don't let them take me...teddy...teddy bears...c-candy...candy canes are...growing..." Kouichi muttered before falling deeper into sleep and relinquishing his hold on the younger boy from his death grip. Kouji thanked whoever was watching him and moved from his 'bed' to check on Tommy.
Tommy wasn't rolling like the other two, but was twitching and writhing in his sleep. Kouji knelt down and put a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him without waking him. He gasped when Tommy's hands shot out and grabbed his wrist so fast he hadn't even seen them move.
"T-takuya?" the 13 year old muttered. "C-come back...please..."
Kouji gave him a sympathetic look and pried him off his wrist. He pat Tommy on the head slightly, like Takuya might, and Tommy seemed to calm down. He pulled away and Tommy flinched but didn't move.
Kouji stood up and began walking upstairs to his room. He heard nothing from the other side and sighed. At least Zoe was sleeping peacefully. Suddenly...
A series of explosions was heard. Kouji counted about 20 in a row. His eyes snapped open and he opened his bedroom door. Yells came from downstairs, the others were awake. Rushing in Kouji's room, they found Kouji and a half dressed Zoe next to the window, looking out at where the explosions came from.
"Z-zoe..." J.P. muttered, blushing. She turned around, blushed, slapped him, and pulled on one of Kouji's dark blue, long bathrobes around herself. Everyone else was wearing their boxers and shirts.
"What was that?" Tommy asked, joining the other two at the window, J.P. behind him.
"Explosions." Kouji pointed as Kouichi yelled from downstairs.
"Guys! Come on! We should go check that out!" he called, already ready to go, blue hat and all.
They all ran from the room, except Zoe, to go get ready. Zoe got ready in the room. They all then ran out the door towards the explosions.
-
'Make them help you.'
'Who?'
'You know who'
'I don't...know'
'Yes you do...'
'I can't...remember...'
'You don't need to'
'It hurts...'
'You can not feel pain...Now go...'
-
Telamon stood in the middle of a now beyond burnt area of forest. He nodded.
'It's a nice start...Please, let me finish this...'
He faintly heard footsteps coming closer. His now sensitive nose picked up the scents of his former friends. They stopped when they saw him, but his head was still down.
'I feel...'
'The need to hurt them...'
'No! I don't want to!'
'Telamon...attack them...'
'But I'm not...'
'Telamon!'
'I...I...'
"Hey you!" J.P. 's voice barely registered.
'J.P? It is you guys!'
'Attack them!'
'I..I don't...no...I do want to attack them...'
"Where's Takuya?" Zoe yelled at him.
His head snapped up, and for a split moment, his eyes were brown. Kouichi and Kouji seemed to be the only ones that noticed this. They exchanged glances.
"We know...you have something to do with him disappearing!" Tommy chipped in. "So where is he? Please let him go!"
"I'm sorry..." came a creamy voice as a man fell gracefully from the sky, and landed next to Telamon. "We can not help you there."
Zoe gasped at his handsome features and long, dirty blonde hair. They were all caught by his eyes until his turned around, back to them. He took Telamon by the shoulders, bent down slightly, and looked him straight in the eyes. They were brown mixed with gold.
"Telamon...do not waver...You can not waver in your loyalty...Both our necks are on the line if you do..." he muttered, inaudible to the other teens in the area.
Telamon's eyes changed to fully gold and he smirked evilly, pushing Matamon out of the way.
"What do I care if you get hurt, Matamon? Lord Heraldomon wouldn't hurt you anyways. With your good looks, why would he ever hurt you?" he asked, not bothering to keep his voice low, like Matamon was.
"Matamon..." Kouji muttered, remembering this new information.
"Besides..." his voice became softer, Matamon's eyes widened at the change in tone. "They don't recognize me..."
"Your not...!" he stopped his sentence. "Telamon, snap out of it!" he stretched his hand towards the flame boy and blue electricity flew from his fingers, hitting Telamon in the head as he went to turn around.
The digi-destined watched as he started to glow blue on the edges. Something clicked in Tommy's mind.
"This is what happened last time! When he paused in attacking! He was glowing blue then too!" he whisper yelled to his friends. Everyone else had stunned looks on as they remembered also.
'Attack them!'
'I must attack...them...'
'No! Guys! Run! Run away!'
'I need to feel their flesh...'
'I don't want...' -sniff-
'You can not cry Telamon. Do not show them any weakness...'
'Of course not...They do not recognize us, why should we care?'
"Guys, look!" Zoe pointed as the blue faded away and the flame like appearance of Telamon increased. "Whatever was wrong with him is gone now!"
The all flinched at the murderous intent underlying the clear pyromaniacism in his eyes. He took a step forward, creating a fireball in his right hand. They all took a step back, even Matamon moved away from the flaming boy. He took another step, a fireball in his left hand.
"Take this!" he threw the fireballs at them, and they all ran, jumped, or rolled away.
He kept this up, chasing them through the forest, making sure they turned when he wanted them to and went the direction he wanted them to. At one point, he even let them run past him and go back the way they came.
"He's...toying with us!" J.P. managed to choke out, out of breath as they ran.
"At least he hasn't gotten bored yet and killed us!" Zoe pointed out, clearly tired. They all nodded in agreement and further pushed themselves to keep running.
"To bad we can't digivolve here!" Tommy said later on, amidst the roaring of the flames. "Wait...maybe we can!"
"Ok! Who wants to stop and give it a try?" Kouichi asked. They glanced at each other, then kept running.
After 20 minutes of running, Baronmon showed up and blocked the kids path.
"Baronmon!" Tommy let out. He glared down at the short teen.
"You remembered my name..." he whispered. "To bad I have no time for you." his head turned to the side, towards more fire far in the distance. "Matamon!"
"What is it Baronmon?" Matamon asked in his creamy voice. Telamon paused in his game, seeing the interruption.
"The Gazimon aren't lisstening anymore. I've even blinded them and they won't stop...They've left the assssigned target..." he whispered so that only Matamon could hear. But Telamon caught it.
"You idiot! Use brute force! There are plenty where they came from!" Telamon yelled, causing the kids to jump. Baronmon smirked.
"Ah, the Lord'ss plaything. I didn't ssee you. But I ssupposse...chassing your prey rather than killing it off at the sstart iss more towardss your personality than Matamon'ss huh?" he motioned towards the burnt forest, and then the group of confused teenagers.
"Shut up!" Telamon actually caught fire! and jumped away. Matamon turned to Baronmon.
"Let's go. Lord Heraldomon will not be pleased if we let him get loose. And I will not take the fall for you, since this is all your fault." His voice didn't betray any anger, but his aura said enough.
"I'm ssorry..." Baronmon didn't sound the least bit apologetic. "I forgot he wass your charge..." he smirked before disappearing. Matamon soon disappeared too, leaving 5 very confused former digi-destined in their wake.
End chapter 4!