Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: Earlier I mentioned that Taysuke and Ryoko had Matt's and Tai's names for middle names. Now, Japanese people don't actually have middle names. This was not an error on my part. I knew that, but I had to do it for the sake of Matt and Tai. I'm sure you'll all understand. Hey, this story is based off the english version so it's perfectly okay to go by english custom with baby names. Just thought I'd clear that up incase anyone realized that. Oh, two chapters from now you get to meet Nobunari!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 17: Leomon's Guide To Digivolution
Ryoko Ishida
File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
"Crystalmon's gone!" Ryoko gasped in astonishment.
"We really defeated her," Sam said softly, looking skeptical of his own words.
Ryoko had trouble believing them, too. Crystalmon had seemed so powerful, and it looked as if they were on the verge of being destroyed. Despite the fact that the odds had been against them, somehow Dragermon and Leomon had managed to stop her.
"You killed her," Mickey whispered, his lip trembling.
Ryoko sighed. He squirmed out of Matty's and Takara's arms and went to his other twin cousin's side.
"Mickey, I don't think they really had a choice," Ryoko said softly, wrapping a comforting arm around his cousin's shoulder. Mickey had always been very sensitive to that kind of thing. It did not matter to his cousin that Crystalmon was evil. The fact that they had hurt someone was enough to upset the other boy.
"Don't be sad, Mickey," Matty whispered, slipping both arms around his twin's neck. "It makes me sad."
Mickey hid his face against Matty's chest and did not reply.
"Oh, Mickey," Takara murmured, leaning over to kiss her cousin's cheek.
Leomon came forward and knelt in front of Mickey with a smile on his face. "If there's one thing you need to know about digimon, Makiya Takaishi, it's that digimon never really die. All digimon are reconfigured, and then they are reborn at Primary Village in the form of an egg which eventually hatches. Do not be sad about Crystalmon. In fact, if you really think about it, we did her a favor. She now has a chance to come back as a better digimon and free herself from the darkness. All digimon are born innocent whether they are a virus digimon of not. Digimon become evil because they choose to become evil, just like humans. As I said before, there are many similarities between your world and ours."
"Really? Digimon come back at this village you mentioned?" Mickey whispered, a smile coming back to his face.
"That's right," Leomon said, patting Mickey's shoulder. "In fact, Primary Village is located right here on File Island. It's run by a digimon named Elecmon. Maybe you'll get to meet him someday. Actually, it just so happens that Elecmon is my rookie form, though I am not the same one who runs Primary Village."
Mickey nodded and gave the lion digimon a grateful smile. "Thanks, Leomon."
"Sometimes when battling evil, we have to make hard choices to do what is right," Leomon said softly. "Remember that as well, my young friend."
"I will," Mickey said quietly.
Ryoko could not help feeling a little bit relieved by Leomon's words, as well. After all, he had never been responsible for hurting so much as a fly before, and he could tell by the looks on his friend's faces that they felt the same way.
"Are you okay now?" Matty asked, rubbing his twin's back and looking a little anxious.
Mickey looked up and gave his brother a fond smile. "Matty," the blond murmured. "I'm the older twin. I'm suppose to worry about you!"
"Only by three minutes," Matty grumbled. "Which means that I have every right to worry about you, too!"
Mickey laughed and hugged his younger twin tightly.
"Now that we've got that straightened out, what about Dragermon?" Sam asked, eyeing the large digimon.
Ryoko turned to see Dai edging hesitantly closer to Dragermon, as if frightened by the digimon's size.
"What...I mean, are you still Embermon?" Dai asked, staring wide-eyed at the dragon digimon.
"Of course," Dragermon laughed, lowering his head so that he could look Dai directly in the eyes.
Dai jumped and took a step back, his face growing a little pale.
"So you're not some new digimon who's going to try and hurt us or anything?" Takara whispered in fear.
"No way!" Dragermon replied, looking shocked. "Why would I have turned on Crystalmon if my intentions were to hurt you guys?"
"Good point," Sam said thoughtfully.
"Well that's a relief," Ryoko muttered.
"I think it's time to answer your questions now, Sam."
Leomon turned to face them all and smiled. "Like humans, digimon have several growth stages, only they're slightly different. Digimon have seven different stages. They are the egg, baby, in-training, rookie, champion, ultimate, and mega. As a digimon reaches the next level, they become stronger and more powerful. So, when Embermon, a rookie digimon, digivolved to his champion level, that's what happened. Now, Crystalmon was an ultimate level digimon which is one stage higher than Dragermon. Even though technically she is considered to be more powerful, she still wasn't able to defeat us because she was fighting two champions. Together Dragermon and I were stronger than her ultimate form. This isn't always the case though. The level of power differs not only in each stage, but in each digimon, as well. It's one of the things that makes us unique from one another. Each stage requires a certain amount of energy to maintain. The higher the level is, the more energy it needs. If a digimon uses up all the energy they need to keep that form in battle, they will de-digivolve back to a lower stage, or more precisely, they will revert back to a stage that they do have enough energy to keep. If a digimon uses up all of his energy, then he will turn back into an egg. That's what happened to Crystalmon. So you see, we don't die. Our data just breaks down and has to start over. Usually those eggs will reappear at Primary Village to be looked after by Elecmon until they are ready to hatch again."
"So when Dragermon's energy gets used up, he'll turn back into Embermon?" Dai asked.
"Exactly," Leomon replied.
"But, I don't understand something," Sam said slowly. "How was Embermon able to digivolve in the first place?"
"The Digivice," Leomon said simply.
"You mean this thing made Embermon digivolve?" Dai asked, holding out his red Digivice.
"Not exactly," Leomon laughed. "The Digivice is only a tool to help in the digivolving process. The real power comes from your hearts, and the Digivice acts as a gateway to transfer that power to your digimon. You see, digivolving is a very difficult process. In fact, most digimon in the Digital World never achieve it past the rookie or champion stage, and a lot of data becomes lost. To digivolve, a digimon must be powerful and have a strong need for it. Unfortunately it can be used for good or evil which is why many dark digimon are at the ultimate or mega level. They usually have an evil master and the Powers of Darkness to help them. We good digimon have the aid of the Powers of Light and you humans. Somehow the strength of the human heart can help digimon digivolve, and that is why we call humans to this world when we need help defeating the darkness. We find them worthy digimon partners, whom they can help to digvolve, and who will fight for what is right. Even digimon who don't have partners have been able to digivolve in the presence of a human. I myself was one of those digimon."
Leomon stared at the ceiling, lost in memory. "A group of Digidestined and their Digivices helped me to digivolve to SaberLeomon which is my mega form. So you see, even being in the presence of the Powers of Light, especially from the pure heart of a human, can help digimon digivolve. Evil digimon, like I said before, use the Powers of Darkness. The point is, your Digivices store the power from your hearts and transforms it into the power a digimon uses to digivolve. It's the easiest way to digivolve, and that's why we pair up honourable digimon with reliable human partners. These digimon have the most likely chance of digivolving with a compatible human. Digimon like me are merely the lucky ones who pick up the excess data. It isn't chance that Embermon ended up with Dai. Although one of you other Digidestined may have been able to help Embermon digivolve, he has the most likely chance of doing so with Dai because they share many of the same qualities. That's why they're partners."
"It's kind of like having a digital twin, only they don't look anything like us!" Matty laughed and exchanged one of his signature twin looks with Mickey.
"So Embermon was able to digivolve so quickly because something happened to affect Daichi so deeply that the power from his heart was transferred to the Digivice," Ryoko said slowly.
Dragermon lowered his large head and gently nuzzled Ryoko's side. "You were in trouble," the dragon digimon said softly. "That's what helped me to digivolve. You're Dai's friend, and he cares about you. He was frightened that you would end up dying, and so was I. That affected us both so deeply that the strength of his feelings allowed me to digivolve."
"Digivolving also tends to happen when a digimon's human partner is in trouble. The human's wish to save themself and the strength of their bond with their digimon often results in digivolution," Leomon added.
Ryoko barely heard Leomon. His eyes were glued to Dai, and he was trembling so badly that he could barely stand up. He would do that for me? Impossible! Dai was probably only worried about having to face my parents and explaining to them why I ended up dead.
His throat closed up, and he had to fight back a sudden rush of emotions. But, if Leomon is right...
Dai's face turned bright red, and it was obvious that the goggle headed leader was trying to avoid having to look at him.
"That's dumb," Dai muttered, now avoiding Leomon's eyes. "You don't know what you're talking about. I never felt any of those things."
Leomon merely smiled at Dai and did not reply.
I knew I was right. Ryoko's heart sank, but he felt slightly better when Dragermon nuzzled his shoulder and gave him a warm smile.
"Are we all going to get digimon then?" Takara asked.
"Yes, you will," Leomon replied.
"How do you know so much about the human world, Leomon?" Sam asked curiously.
"I had some help with that!" Leomon laughed.
"It's true," Mickey said softly. "There have been other humans in this world who have had digimon partners. They obviously had to fight evil digimon and save this world, just like us. Who were they? They might be able to give us some advice, and that would definitely help out a lot."
"They must have had their reasons for not telling you," Leomon said softly. "Since they are my friends, I must respect their wishes. I'm sure you will all learn the truth eventually. Besides, you have your digimon and digimon like myself and Piximon to help you."
"Not fair," Dai grumbled.
"It's too bad Crystalmon's gone," Matty said. "She might have been able to give us some useful information."
"I doubt it," Leomon replied. "There was no way that she was going to tell us anything she didn't want us to hear. Besides, she wasn't important anyway. It sounds like Crystalmon was only a servant. It's this Vampiramon that she spoke of who is the one we have to worry about. From the sounds of things, Vampiramon is the bigger threat and the brains behind this little mission."
"Do you know her?" Mickey asked.
Leomon shook his head. "No, but I intend to find out who she is."
"Do you know what a D-Coder is?" Sam asked, his blue gaze thoughtful. "Why are they so important?"
"Again I do not know," Leomon sighed. "I only hope we can find out before it's too late. In the meantime you must be careful. This Vampiramon is obviously after you so watch your backs."
Ryoko shivered with fear. "We will," he whispered.
"Do you see why Crystalmon wanted to stop you from digivolving?" Leomon asked. "The higher the level you reach, the more powerful you become, and that gives you a greater chance of defeating the darkness."
"Wait!" Takara squeaked. "Didn't Crystalmon say that Vampiramon wouldn't let us defeat her master? That means there's a digimon out there who's even more powerful than Vampiramon!"
"And that guy wants us defeated because we're standing in the way of some sick plan he has for taking over the Digital World," Dai said grimly.
"As I said before. Watch your backs," Leomon said softly.
"What about Gennai?' Ryoko asked.
"I think it's obvious that Vampiramon's master has captured Gennai in order to stop him from helping you."
"Then what are we going to do?" Takara asked, looking worried.
"Listen closely. Now that I no longer have to protect Embermon, I'm going to go searching for Gennai, or at least to seek information on his whereabouts. Some digimon must have seen something. As for you, Digidestined, you must begin the search for the rest of your digimon partners. There are two more located somewhere here on File Island. I'm not sure of the exact location, but I'm sure your Digivices will help you find them. This is very important. You are going to need all of your partners to stop Vampiramon and her allies. You will also need them to be able to protect yourselves. I am sure Gennai will have other digimon watching over them."
"Right, we're on it!" Dai said. "Hey, what does Gennai look like anyway?'
"Like a human," Leomon replied. "Only he isn't, not really."
They all looked at him in confusion, and he laughed. "You'll see what I mean when you meet him. But, before you go running off on another adventure, I think you'd better head home first. I'm sure your parents are worried about you."
"But how do we get home?" Ryoko whispered. "What about the Digiworld?"
"The Digiworld will hold it's own until you return. As for getting home, it's easy. Come, I will show you."
They all went outside, and Leomon led them to the original spot where they had appeared in the Digiworld in the first place. That's when Ryoko spotted a small television sitting in the grass.
"That's how you get home," Leomon said, pointing at the television.
"No way!" Matty gasped. "I noticed this thing earlier, and I was going to tell you guys about it when you left me standing here. I completely forgot about it! If only I had known!"
"We're saved!" Takara cheered.
"It's a good thing you didn't, otherwise we never would have found Embermon," Dai said softly, wrapping his arms around his digimon's large head and resting his cheek on the dragon's nose. "Not to mention we wouldn't be in the process of saving this world. Thanks for everything, Dragermon. You're an amazing digimon."
"And you are an amazing human!" Dragermon laughed.
There was a flash of red light, and Dai jumped back with a startled gasp. Dragermon began to shrink. The light faded away, and Embermon stood where Dragermon had been only seconds before.
"I guess I ran out of energy," Embermon said, looking apologetic. Everyone laughed.
"Okay, this is a gateway that connects your world to ours. When you want to leave the Digital World, all you have to do is find one of these televisions, hold out your Digivice, and say Digiport open. It will transport you back to the human world. If you're already in the human world, and you want to come to the Digiworld, then you can access any computer to travel here. Again, just hold out your digivice and say Digiport open," Leomon explained.
"Got it," Matty said, looking excited at the prospect of gong home.
"You're right, Daichi," Ryoko said softly. "This is something we have to do."
Dai nodded without looking at him. "It's something I want to do," the goggle headed leader replied.
"Me, too," he whispered, and realized that he meant it. The others all smiled in agreement.
They were about to leave when Leomon put out a hand to stop Dai. "Aren't you going to take Embermon with you?"
Dai's eyes widened in shock. "You mean I can?" he gasped.
"Of course. Just don't let your parents see him. I have a feeling that the stuffed animal trick won't work on them!" Leomon laughed.
"I've always wanted to see the human world." Embermon grinned.
Dai picked up the little rookie and hugged him tightly. "This is so awesome! Wait till you see it, Embermon. There's so much I want to show you!"
"I can't believe we're going home!" Sam said happily. "It seems like we've been gone for ages."
"Thanks for everything, Leomon!" Mickey said.
"Good luck, Digidestined. Be careful!" Leomon called out.
"Come on, guys. Lets go home!" Ryoko laughed and held up his Digivice. "Digiport open!"
They heard Leomon muttering something about finding Benjamin and the others before they were swept through the gate.