Once there was a human who came to the Digital world. A human with noble intentions that wished only to help everyone around them. However, this Tamer was cursed with a frail body and an even weaker heart. Normally, going to the Digital World would fix such a thing. But they believed that their condition was incurable so strongly that it became part of their very soul. It stuck with them, and while they found a partner, they struggled and failed to save others countless times. They cursed their own weakness and eventually gave in to despair. Knowing how harmful the air was to them, they found a way to leave the world entirely and decided to watch over it from above, content to live forever in their own personal purgatory. If anyone dares approach them, this Tamer will still be helpful. Part of them still wishes for this, after all. But be careful to only ask one request at a time, or the lingering ghost of what once was will deny all of your wishes without a second thought.

Ch. 5: The Best of Friends

Bright lights converged, forming a solid glowing orb, before dispersing to reveal a white-haired girl holding a bloody young boy. Tears streamed down her face as she desperately cried for help, her friend putting a hand on her shoulder in solidarity. Soon afterward, a small robotic creature with long arms and a glass dome on his head approached, scuttling along on four short metal feet.

"Please!" Vex pleaded. "He's hurt bad! He needs help!"

Without warning, the creature took Yuji's body from the young lady as she fell to her hands and knees, still sobbing. Why? Why did it have to happen like that?! This wasn't just a game. It wasn't something they could screw around with anymore. This other world was real. Their mistakes mattered.

Lopmon pulled at Vex's sleeve for a moment to get her attention. "I wish I could help you, but... I should really be with my Partner. I hope you understand." After waiting for the girl to nod, Lopmon cautiously ran off toward the robotic Digimon.

Another hand patted the grieving girl on the back. "It's going to be okay, Vex..." Rita assured her in a calming tone.

"You don't know that!" The girl shot back.

"Listen..." Rita continued, trying to reassure her friend. "Lopmon said this place could help him, right? I still don't get this world, but he would probably know what he's talking about, wouldn't he?" A smile crossed the girl's lips. "I think they can save him. Don't you?"

Slowly, the woman's crying began to stop. "Do... do you really think so...?" Vex asked, sniffing slightly as she slowly looked up at Rita.

The red-haired girl awkwardly scratched her head for a moment. "I mean... you know... it's Yuji, right?" Rita murmured. "I'm sure he's going to fight through this. You know how Yuji gets, he's more resilient than a cockroach. That guy could probably shrug something like this off on his own if his pride was on the line..."

She was lying. Of course, she was lying. Both of them knew that. But, still, something about it felt true as well. Even though neither of them wanted to admit it, it felt better to believe something so dumb than it would feel to surrender to the truth. "Y- yeah..." Vex said. "You're right. Of course, you're right!" She wiped her tears away before slowly standing up. "A knucklehead like that? He could probably take three- no, four more hits like that and stay standing."

"Yuji would definitely say something cheezy to look cool, too," Rita added. "That boy really is just so embarrassing sometimes... I don't know how you can put up with him so long."

"Oh, so what?" Vex pouted in a snarky tone while crossing her arms. "So Yuji's embarrassing and I'm not?" She sharply turned her head away. "Shows what you think, I'm ten times as cringy as he is! I guess I'll have to up my game then. It's no fun if only one of us is the group weirdo."

"Okay, okay!" Rita admitted, ruffling the girl's white hair as she flinched in surprise. "You're a massive dork, too. I'm embarrassed to know both of you losers!" A slight chuckle escaped her. Somehow, Vex always had a weird way of lowering her guard and brightening the mood. "Do you feel better now?"

"No, not really." The weird girl huffed back. "It's like there's a dark pit in my stomach that won't go away... I feel heavy. I want to scream and keep screaming until I can't scream anymore." A sigh escaped her before she looked back over to her friend. "But... that's fine. I think that's pretty normal, right...? So... thanks. I think I really needed that. I... I think we both really needed that..."

"Yeah..." the red-haired girl muttered. "I think so, too." A slow moment of silence passed as the two of them quietly let the feeling sink in. The dread was still there. It would always be there. But at least they could keep it from consuming them for just one fleeting instant. "Please don't actually scream, though," Rita added. "Even I have my limits for embarrassment..."

Finally, Vex turned her head as she began to process where they were. The grey baren hallway looked almost metallic with a freshly polished tile floor below them. Fluorescent lights flickered above them, illuminating the hallway's grey benches and bare architecture. Standing out behind them was a bright red square letterbox, identical to the one they went through to get here, the only splash of color fighting the stagnation around them. Even the air felt odd... it felt stale and lifeless with a faint dusty scent floating around, almost like nobody had lived here in years.

The white-haired girl slowly walked forward, unsure of what to think of their new setting, before a large square window caught her eye to her left. Cautiously she turned to look outside, only to be greeted with pure darkness. Black framed the entire horizon with specks of light breaking up the oppressive color as a white, empty landscape extended in front of her. Off in the distance, a huge orb could be seen covered in a swirling mass of grey gasses impenetrable to the naked eye.

The revelation struck her immediately. "No... there's no way... this... it can't be..." Slowly, Vex turned to her friend and weakly pointed. "Look... we're in space, Rita... we're just on the moon now... what the heck is this...?!"

The red-haired girl rushed over before being even more stunned by the discovery. This didn't make sense! How could it even make sense?! "Wait, but- No, this- What even-" She stuttered. "The samurai manor I get, places like that were real. But these lights... they're outdated! Humans never even colonized the Moon!" The girl turned from the window to the lights before scanning everything she could for clues. "Vex- this-... this place isn't just weird. It's impossible! Even if someone wanted to, they couldn't make this!"

Slowly, the other girl nodded in agreement. Even she understood what Rita was talking about. But before they could speculate further, their thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching footsteps. The two shocked newcomers looked over as a person in a bulky astronaut suit approached them, the astronaut's face hidden behind a black-tinted visor.

"Hello." They said in a robotically distorted voice. "I'm Rei." The astronaut put their hand up in a friendly wave. "All three of you must be new here. Please, follow me. I need to discuss your friend's condition with you. Only if you don't mind, though, that is. I believe one of you requested to save them, right?"