Here's the next chapter! Extremely late, I know, but don't get too mad. I was gone at my Grandma's and was just now able to type and post it. I did it all in one sitting, about, eh, two or three hours of nonstop Digimon action. Riiiiight… And if anyone is interested, I was listening to the CD Hot Fuss by The Killers while writing it. Over, and over, and over again…
Chapter Two
"Phase one complete, sir," a man said into a small microphone. He was distinctly Asian, speaking his native tongue, Japanese. He sat in a rolling chair, blinking and beeping gadgetry all around him. He was manning the Matrix System, the brains and mechanics behind the whole Digimon: Online experience. "The children are in their pods."
"Good job," a sweet, soothing voice said from the man's earpiece. "Commence phase two."
"Of course, Gervartitymon, sir," the man said happily. It wasn't often that one was praised by his Master. "Children are being virtualized and sent to the Digital World…"
Brian awoke gradually, a splitting headache impairing his thinking ability. He vaguely remembered what had happened before he lost consciousness… But he didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think about the strange figures, moaning his name…
Brian shivered. He finally opened his eyes, unsure of where he would be. What he saw renewed his fear. He appeared to be within a small metal sphere. Leather straps held him to the wall of the sphere by his wrists, ankles, and neck.
What's going on here? He thought frantically, straining to free himself. The straps didn't budge. Without warning, an electrical current coursed through the metal walls and into Brian. His eyes glowed bright green for a split second before returning to their normal shade. His head fell once again limp on his shoulder.
Deep breaths, deep breaths, Leslie thought frantically. The walls of her sphere were quickly closing in around her.
"Help!" she screamed again, voice cracked with fear. Sweat dripped down her face, cold sweat. "HEL-" she was cut off in mid scream. Electricity shot through her body as well, painless, if unexpected. All consciousness left the girl, claustrophobia forgotten.
Shinji awoke with a jolt, trying to put his arms over his head to protect himself. He soon found that both them and his legs were restrained. He glanced around his prison and recognized the Digimon: Online virtualization pods. What was going on? He thought. How'd I get here? What was with the figures?
The electricity met him as well. He had only one last thought before going blank. So this is how they do it…
Jenn had been awake for some time now, occasionally trying to feebly free her arms. To her dismay, the goggles she'd put on before entering the door to the Matrix room had fallen over her eyes, and she was having difficulty seeing in the darkness. The lenses were blue tinted, the rims a darker blue.
She sighed. With her arms bound, she couldn't put them back up on her head. What was she going to do? They were so freaking irritating…
The electricity coursed through her, lighting up her goggles' lenses. Her mind was sent spiraling away from her body. In a flash of bright light, she was cascaded forward, bonds gone. She found herself in a tunnel of ever-changing light. First it was blue, but as she was pushed forward at an impossible speed around corners, it gradually turned purple, then red, and then black. Suddenly, she stopped. Some kind of computer screen was revealed before her. White type appeared, saying 'Access Granted'. Those soon disappeared, changing to 'Welcome to the Digital World'. Her eyes widened as she was once again sent spiraling forward, into a new, dark world. She found herself tumbling through open air as the portal behind her snapped closed. She fell to the soft, wet sand below.
"Well," she thought aloud, "that was quite a trip." She'd landed on her back in the wet sand, black ocean water lapping at her heels. She sat up and looked around.
The sky and ocean of this place was barely distinguishable. Both seemed black and ominous, dark clouds whirling in the sky, lighted by the occasional bolt of lightning, and the frothy, choppy waters below swirling and fighting. It seemed… Frightening.
"Scary, isn't it?" Jenn jumped at the sound of another voice. She turned and her eyes widened.
The only creature around was what appeared to be a white seal. It had a small, almost cat-like muzzle with two tiny fangs protruding from its upper lip. Its eyes were large and green, light purple markings around them. A Mohawk of bright orange fur ran down his neck between two large, floppy ears tipped in the same light purple. Its front flippers ended in large black claws, also bearing purple markings. These markings ran along his temple and his back, ending with a long, crooked tail and two smaller black clawed flippers.
"The name's Gomamon," he said with a wave of his front flipper. "And I'm a-"
"A Digimon," Jenn finished for him. Gomamon smiled.
"You got it! I guess that saves some explaining, huh? But, not only am I a Digimon, I'm your Digimon. So, you gonna sit there in the sand all day?" He said enthusiastically. Jenn smiled and stood up, brushing the sand off her pants.
"I'm Jenn," she said with a smile. Gomamon smiled.
"Of course you are. Who else could you be? Now, the big question is; do you know why you're here?" Jenn blinked.
"Well… No…"
"Then c'mon!" He said, turning and walking down the beach. "We need to go this way!" The way Gomamon was going appeared to be towards a darker part of the beach, in the direction of a black tower. Jenn frowned at the direction.
"Are you sure that's the right way?" She asked.
"Of course!" The Digimon replied, turning with a smile. "Don't you trust me?" Do I trust him? Jenny asked herself. Can I trust him? Why should I trust him? Sure, in the show Gomamon was good, but could she really believe he hadn't tilted his loyalties?
"I… I don't…" Jenn stuttered. She was confused. "We've only just met. I'm not sure if I can…" Her eyes widened. Gomamon was changing before her eyes, for the worse. His fur grew shaggy and black, black claws growing bigger and more viciously sharp, as did his tiny fangs. His tail grew long and whip-like, ending in a point, like a devil's. He grew four times larger, finally his eyes taking on a blood red tinge.
"You don't trust me?" He roared. "Then I'll kill you myself!" With a roar he lunged at the girl. She threw herself to one side, watching the explosion of sand as Gomamon attacked where she had just been. She climbed to her feet once more to run when a small, white figure attacked the black beast.
It, too, was a Gomamon. It attacked the monster with its own claws, but was batted back easily.
"Marching Fishes!" The smaller Gomamon shouted. Many colored fishes surged in a torrent out of the sea to overwhelm his adversary. "Ha!" He shouted as the black Gomamon roared with fury. "Thought you'd impersonate me, huh?" Another small form, this one bright purple with wings, swooped down upon the black Gomamon. It was another Digimon, a miniature purple dragon lacking front claws.
"Flare!" It roared in a deep voice. Fire shot from its open maw, singing the black Gomamon's fur. With a final strangled roar, it ran from the fight.
"Yeah!" Shouted a boy's voice very close. "You guys did it!" Jenn watched a white haired boy run out, the purple dragon meeting him in flight. The new Gomamon turned and saw her. Their eyes locked.
"Jenn!" He shouted with exuberance. "You're okay!" She ran to meet the new Gomamon.
"You're real this time, right?" She said hesitantly.
"Of course!" He replied happily. "How you could mistake him for me I have no idea. We look nothing alike."
"What was he, anyway?" She asked.
"A Shapemon." Jenn turned to see the white haired boy with the dragon Digimon. "They're the servants of Gervartitymon. They can take on the shape of any Digimon, or horrendously disfigure it, like you saw before," the dragon continued. "I am Draimon," he said, somewhat regally.
"And I'm Brian," the boy said.
"I'm Jenn," Jenn replied.
"Did… Did you win that trip to be among the first to go to the Digimon: Online theme park?" Brian asked.
"Yeah," Jenn said. "You too?" Brian nodded.
"I didn't think it'd be exactly like this, though…"
"Enough chit-chat!" Draimon interrupted. "We still have to find the others before the Shapemon do."
"Right!" Gomamon agreed. "We have to find them and help them."
"But who's-" Jenn started, but was cut off.
"Gomamon can explain later," Draimon said, flexing his bat-like wings to take off. "We have to get going. I'll scout ahead and come back if I see anything." The dragon took off without another word.
"That's how he was when he found me," Brian said with a sigh. "Actions now, explaining later. I don't know any more than you, Jenn." They began walking away from the beach, and the tower, towards a dark forest.
"I can explain it to you," Gomamon said, kind of waddling alongside the two. "But not yet." He glanced around cautiously. "Wait until we enter the woods."
Lot's of stuff with Jenn! Again, she belongs to Riverfox237, not me. The whole part with Jenn was reviewed by Riverfox, too. Next update will hopefully be this Thursday. Enough ranting from me, R&R.