Wade watches as Mike staggers at something Luke is telling him, strangely pale as he looks up at the man. "Well, this doesn't look good," he mumbles, glancing over at Heath, who shakes his head slowly. Finally Mike and Luke rejoin them and Wade stands up straighter. "So. What's going on?"
Mike swallows, glances around. "Well, uh. Do you remember Shakamon?" Wade looks clueless but Heath nods faintly. "Since my crest is the crest of light, apparently... I can use it to shatter through darkness and... a lot of what's been going on since we've become Digidestined was a test. To prove that I can control that power... but now the others are being held in a ... a different dimension, and..." He closes his eyes, shakes his head. "I can't believe what my life's become. Remember when I was just an awesome, kick-ass wrestler and movie star?"
"No," Wade deadpans. "Get on with it. What's going on?"
"The only way to find the others is to use my control over light," he says, lifting his digivice up and staring at it. "I don't know if I can do this."
"Well, you apparently have to, so..." Wade stares at him beadily. "To save the others, and you're the only one who can do it. What a boost to your ego, yes?"
Mike wavers, running a finger over the screen. "Well, yes, but..."
Monodramon steps up to him. "I believe in you, Mike," he says simply, his rough claw reaching out for Mike's hand.
This helps, somehow. Miz closes his eyes and squeezes his partner's hand back before turning to face the others. "Fine. Let's do this then." He lifts his hand, aiming the digivice away from Luke's compound and focuses with everything within himself on the power of light that he can feel thrumming within the device, breathing in and out until finally something clicks and a powerful beam shoots from the screen, lighting up the surrounding area.
Wade and Heath back off, eyes widening as it seems like the air ripples, then tears apart at the seams, revealing another world hidden within. It's dark and gloomy, a sharp contrast to the world they're currently residing in, and Mike gasps for air as he struggles to hold onto this. "What the bloody hell is that?" Wade demands, eyes widening as he watches this happen, the gaping wound in the skyline growing.
"The Dark Ocean," Lopmon whimpers, beyond scared.
"What's that?" Heath asks, hugging his partner closer.
"It's a dimension where darkness breeds," Luke says simply, the only one in the group to not seem shocked or overly troubled by the presence of this underlying world. "You should go, now, and find your friends. Humans nor ordinary digimon can tolerate it for too long."
Mike grits his teeth, still clinging to his thrumming device, before looking over his shoulder. "It'll hold if I let go?"
"Yes," Luke says. "Go. Now!"
Wade and Heath, already halfway across to the grim looking tear in the sky, moves quicker and just beats Mike inside, the power of light fading away and closing the portal with it. The landing is harder than expected and Wade immediately feels the change- outside, in the sun and the warm weather, he'd felt fine. But now... now, there's a weird chill creeping into his bones and he feels an odd kind of ache starting in his skull and mediating downwards.
Heath and Mike look about as bad as he feels, his former Nexus teammate groaning as he struggles to sit up, even his hair looking dull and washed out in this environment. Mike, still clinging to his digivice, only seems moderately stronger as he makes it to his feet and looks around, a grimace on his face.
"What're we supposed to do now?" Heath asks, scrubbing a hand through his hair as he brushes sand and grime from his scalp. "How do we find the others?"
Mike reaches out and pulls him to his feet before turning away. "I guess we walk and look."
"Oh great," Wade grouses, getting to his feet anyway and following them. Moonmon hangs from his shoulder, looking distinctly lesser in this world. He worries for her, for all of them, but the others have been here much longer, and he can only imagine how it must be affecting them. Squaring his shoulders, he reavows to find them all- even Alicia- and treks after Mike and Heath with fresh determination.
