Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A/N: I'll be getting to the parents' conversation soon enough, but first, let's go meet Veemon and friends! Please review! (Trust me, I had tons of fun reading them last time!) And check out my cliff-hanger. I'm so evil!

Following the Footsteps of Destiny

Chapter 67: Primary Village

Daichi 'Dai' Motomiya

File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World

Daichi slowly got to his feet and glanced anxiously at his friends. "Are you guys alright?"

"We're fine," Takara grumbled, sitting up and rubbing the back of her head.

Dovemon nodded in agreement and fluttered into Takara's arms. "Where are we?" the little rookie asked.

Good question. I know we're on File Island, but that isn't really much to go on. Veemon and his friends could be miles away from us!

Dai frowned at the thick, green grass under his feet and crossed his arms. He was standing at the edge of a small river, and the sky above him was bright blue. Large, white, puffy clouds created rolling shadows across the ground, and occasionally they blocked out the sun. The area around them was quiet and peaceful, and a light breeze sent small ripples across the water. It was a perfect place to start looking for Veemon and the others, but unfortunately there was not a single digimon in sight.

"Well, these things are useless!" Matty said cheerfully, waving his yellow D-Coder in the air.

Dai adjusted his goggles and frowned at his own red D-Coder. "You're right. Our D-Coders were able to find Embermon and the others easily enough, but I don't think that's going to be the case with Veemon and his buddies. They aren't our partners, and that means we're not going to be able to pick up their signals."

"The D-Coders are not useless!" Celestimon muttered, looking extremely indignant.

Matty laughed and gently patted his partner's head. "Sorry, Celestimon. I was just kidding. My D-Coder helped you digivolve to Angelicmon, didn't it?"

Celestimon stood next to Matty on the ground, and the little rookie beamed at his partner. "That's right!"

"Where should we start looking?" Glowmon asked, fluttering into the air and glancing curiously at his partner. "Veemon and his friends could be anywhere."

Dai shrugged and shoved his hands into his pockets. "Why don't we just follow the river and see where it takes us?"

"That's the best you can come up with?" Ryoko snorted. "Alright. Let's get moving. We've wasted enough time this afternoon already."

I can't believe him! He's the reason we got held up in the first place, and now he's trying to act like it's my fault we ended up coming to the Digital World a little bit later than we had planned!

Dai made a face at the blond's back and shook his head. "Jerk," he muttered.

"I never thought you were the type of human who would want a jerk for a friend!" Embermon replied, looking amused.

Dai blushed and glanced nervously at Ryoko, but the blond never looked in his direction. "Will you keep your voice down?" he hissed, glaring at the little rookie who was walking beside him.

Embermon rolled his bright green eyes and sighed. "Humans are very confusing."

"Embermon, remind me never to tell you any of my secrets again!" Dai muttered. He had finally worked up the courage to tell Embermon about Ryoko, and he was seriously starting to regret it.

They walked along the edge of the river in silence for about fifteen minutes when Mickey suddenly let out a gasp of surprise.

"What's wrong, Mickey?" Halomon asked, hovering anxiously next to his partner's shoulder.

Mickey frowned and pointed at something ahead of them in the distance. "Look! Is that a digimon?"

"Where?" Matty asked.

Dai stepped forward and squinted at a small shape standing next to the river. It looked like a rookie level digimon with large eyes and rust coloured fir. "You're right, Mickey! That is a digimon! It looks like he's fishing in the river. Why don't we go talk to him?"

"Good idea," Sam replied. "He looks harmless enough, and he might know who Veemon is!"

"Let's go," Alopemon said quietly.

Dai quickly hurried after the others, and they raced along the riverbank towards the little rookie. The rust coloured digimon saw them coming, and he dropped his net in surprise.

"Hello!" Celestimon said cheerfully, giving the other digimon a small smile.

The little rookie stared at them for a moment and slowly shook his head. "It has been a long time since I've seen humans in the Digital World," he said softly. "I take it you six are the new Digidestined? You must be if you have digimon partners. I knew you would come eventually. The Digital World has been a bit...unsettled lately, and the Powers of Darkness are rising. It's good you're here. I have a feeling we're going to need your help in our fight against evil."

Dai sat down next to the little digimon and raised his eyebrows. "You know about the Digidestined?"

"Yes," the little rookie said quietly. "Many years ago, I met a young boy who was a member of the Digidestined. He was very nice and very loyal to his partner."

"What's your name?" Glowmon asked curiously.

"My name is Elecmon," the digimon replied. "I'm a rookie level data type digimon, and my special attack is Super Thunder Strike."

"You're the rookie form of Leomon," Mickey whispered, his amber eyes sparkling with sudden excitement. "You wouldn't happen to be in charge of Primary Village, would you?"

"Yes, as a matter of fact, I am. How did you know?" Elecmon asked. "He...didn't tell you, did he? You look so much like him. You don't know him...do you?"

"Who?" Mickey asked, looking confused.

"Leomon told us about you," Dai explained. "He said you look after the baby digimon at Primary Village. According to Gennai, we're the new Digidestined, and we need your help. We're looking for a digimon named Veemon. You wouldn't happen to know him, would you?"

Elecmon smiled slightly and nodded. "It looks like Gennai wants the six of you to discover quite a few things about the Digital World on your own. I met Veemon a while ago, and he's a very good friend of mine. In fact, I can take you right to him. He and his friends are playing with the baby digimon at Primary Village."

"You've got to be kidding me!" Ryoko said in disbelief.

"I never thought we'd end up finding Veemon this quick! It looks like you were grumbling and complaining for nothing, Dai!" Dovemon laughed.

Dai jumped to his feet and gave her a dirty look. "Come on, let's go. Primary Village isn't too far from here, is it?"

"No," Elecmon said softly. "It's close by, but before we go, can I ask all of you a question?"

"Sure," Dai replied.

"What are your names?" the little rookie asked quietly.

Dai glanced at Elecmon and smiled slightly. "I'm Daichi Motomiya, and these are my friends. Their names are Ryoko Ishida, Takara Kamiya, Sam Ichijouji, Masato Takaishi, and Makiya Takaishi."

Elecmon let out a gasp and turned to look at the twins. "You do know him! I had my suspicions, but I wanted to make sure. Both of you look so much like him. He taught me a lot about human babies, you know."

"Who are you talking about?" Matty asked, his amber eyes narrowing into a frown. "Are you talking about that boy you met a long time ago?"

"Yes," Elecmon said softly.

"Can you tell us his name?" Mickey asked eagerly. "Do we know him? Please, Elecmon? We-"

"I think I'll let Veemon and Patamon answer your questions," Elecmon interrupted. "They'll be able to explain everything to you."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's hurry up and find them!" Matty grumbled.

"Of course," Elecmon replied. "Come on, everyone, follow me."

Dai quickly hurried after Elecmon and realized they were heading for a small town in the distance. He could see the brightly coloured rooftops of the houses in the village and nearly tripped over his own feet in an effort to stop himself from running the whole way. He was extremely excited about meeting Veemon, and if he had to wait any longer, he was going to explode.

"So Leomon was the one who mentioned me to you. He's a great digimon. I hope I can be as brave as him someday," Elecmon murmured.

Dai gave the little rookie a warm smile and shrugged. "You already are. Leomon's your champion form, and maybe one day you'll get to digivolve."

"I would like that," Elecmon said softly. "No one would ever try to hurt the babies at Primary Village if I were Leomon. I guess I've changed a lot since I met Patamon and his partner. I'll never underestimate anyone again after meeting them!"

"You seem to have a knack for meeting up with Digidestined. One of these days a group of Digidestined will help you digivolve. If it can happen to Leomon, it can happen to you," Embermon murmured.

"Who's Patamon?" Celestimon asked, fluttering out of the sky and landing next to Elecmon.

Halomon quickly joined Celestimon, and they both turned to stare at the rust coloured digimon. "We know Patamon had a human partner, but that doesn't tell us anything about what kind of a digimon he is," Halomon said slowly.

Elecmon studied the other two rookies for a moment and nodded to himself. "You two remind me a lot of Patamon. He's an amazing digimon, and I bet he's going to be very excited to meet both of you."

Halomon blushed and buried his face against Celestimon's wings. "Thank you," the little angel said softly.

I guess we're just going to have to wait to find out who Patamon is.

Dai motioned for the others to hurry up, and they quickened their pace. They reached the edge of Primary Village about twenty minutes later, and Elecmon took the lead again.

"This way," the little rookie murmured. "Veemon's probably playing soccer with the babies. He loves soccer."

Dai blinked in surprise and grinned. "Veemon knows what soccer is? Wow! He's definitely my kind of digimon!"

"I'll second that!" Matty cheered.

They started across the village, and Dai spotted hundreds of eggs lying in the grass. Each egg was brightly coloured and large enough to hold in both hands. Some had patterns on them, and others were plain. It was obvious Elecmon spent a lot of time taking care of them because each egg looked like it was in excellent condition.

"Those are Digieggs," Elecmon said softly. "They'll probably hatch in another three weeks, and then I'll have a new crop to look after. The baby digimon usually stay here until they reach their rookie forms, and then they leave to find their own place in the Digital World. Of course, there are exceptions. Digimon sometimes leave while still at the in-training level if they are strong enough to survive the dangers of the Digital World."

"The egg is the first stage of a digimon's life," Mickey said quietly. "I've wanted to come here ever since Leomon told me about this place. It's even better than I thought it would be. Evil digimon have a chance to start over here, and that means they have another opportunity to turn away from the Powers of Darkness."

"One day DarkAngelicmon will have that chance," Matty whispered.

Mickey's eyes filled with tears, and he rested his cheek against the side of Matty's face. "I hope so," the older twin whispered.

"One of Veemon's friends was reborn here at Primary Village," Elecmon murmured. "This village is a place of miracles. The former Digimon Emperor knows that better than anyone."

"The former Digimon Emperor?" Sam choked out, his eyes growing dark with uneasiness.

Elecmon studied Sam's face for a moment and nodded. "You will learn about the Emperor soon enough. Come on. I'm sure Veemon will be very excited to meet all of you."

They stepped around the corner of a bright yellow building, and Dai nearly ran into a small digimon who was hovering in the air.

"Will you please watch where you're going?" the insect digimon complained. "You nearly damaged my wings!"

"Sorry," Dai replied. He studied the little rookie's face and frowned. The insect digimon had a round body and large eyes. His wings were small, and his skin was red with purple spots.

What's he worrying about his wings for? I'm the one who should be complaining! This bug nearly flew right into my face!

The insect digimon stared at him for a moment and suddenly let out a loud gasp. "You're a human!"

"That's right, and you're in my way!" Dai shot back. "You'd think the leader of the Digidestined would get a little more respect around here!"

"Yeah, nice try!" Ryoko smirked.

"Impossible," the insect digimon whispered. "There haven't been humans in the Digital World for years!"

"Well, there are now, and frankly we have more important things to do than waste our time talking to an overgrown bug! Um...no offence, Glowmon," Dai added, giving Sam's partner an apologetic look.

Glowmon glared at him and promptly began to ignore him.

"You can't be here! The gates are closed!" the insect digimon gasped.

"Not anymore," Matty said softly. "Hey, are you okay?"

Dai caught the little rookie in his arms, just before the insect digimon hit the ground, and frowned. "What's wrong?"

"Look!" the little rookie gasped, nodding towards Mickey and Matty. "They're clones! My partner told me all about human cloning, and I guess they've finally managed to succeed!"

"We're not clones! We're twins!" Mickey and Matty shouted, looking extremely offended.

Dai ignored the twins and stared at the insect digimon in surprise. "Did you just say you have a partner?"

"Yes," the insect digimon said weakly. "There are humans in the Digital World again! I have to warn Agumon! Humans only come to the Digital World when it's being invaded by evil digimon! On no. This isn't good at all! As a matter of fact, you look a lot like-"

"Tentomon, they've come here to talk to Veemon," Elecmon interrupted. "We'd better go find him and the others. I'm sure Daichi and his friends will explain everything to us as soon as they get a chance to meet Veemon."

"That's right. Lead the way, Tentomon!" Embermon said cheerfully.

Tentomon managed to nod his head and quickly fluttered towards a large green field that stood on the edge of Primary Village.

"This way," the little rookie stammered. "I was actually coming to find you, Elecmon. The baby digimon are getting hungry."

"I left dinner back with the Digieggs," Elecmon replied. "Right now we have more important things to worry about."

Dai followed the two rookies out onto the soccer field and spotted a large group of baby digimon bouncing a soccer ball around. There were several larger digimon on the field, as well, and they were cheering on the baby digimon.

"That's Veemon," Elecmon murmured, pointing to a blue reptile digimon who appeared to be directing traffic.

Dai gazed at the little rookie named Veemon and smiled softly. "Yeah, he's definitely a cool digimon."

"Veemon, over here!" Elecmon called out.

Veemon turned to look in their direction and froze. The reptile digimon's eyes slowly widened in shock, and the whistle in his hand fell to the ground. He stared at them for a long moment, and after a brief hesitation, he slowly headed towards them.

"Hey, wait for us!" a pink bird digimon called out, fluttering after Veemon with a group of rookie digimon right behind her.

Dai knelt in front of Veemon and smiled at the little rookie. "Hi, Veemon. We've been looking for you all afternoon. Gennai and Centaurumon sent us to find you. We've got a ton of questions, so I hope you have a lot of answers!"

"Look at his face!" an orange dinosaur digimon gasped.

Dai jumped as Veemon suddenly placed a hand against his cheek, and he found himself gazing into the digimon's large eyes.

"Davis?" Veemon whispered. "No, you can't be. Davis is older now, but...you look so much like him when he was a kid. I don't understand..."

"Time travel!" a green plant digimon gasped. "Davis had learned how to travel back in time! Izzy used to talk about time travel a lot."

"T.K., what happened to you?" a chubby digimon with long ears cried. "You've split into two people! That must have been very painful."

"What do you mean T.K.? They look like Kari with blond hair!" a white cat digimon gasped, looking horrified. "My partner has been turned into a boy! Two boys!"

Dai's heart began to pound rapidly in his chest, and his mind started to spin at an alarming pace.

Veemon. He didn't just say what I think he said...did he? Davis, Izzy, T.K., Kari...this can't be happening. I must be having some sort of a nightmare...

"Are you really Davis, or are you someone else?" Veemon asked, touching the goggles on his head. "These used to belong to Davis. Tai gave them to him. I remember that moment like it was yesterday. Where did you get them from?"

Dai slowly placed his trembling hands on Veemon's shoulders and gazed into the digimon's wide eyes. "Veemon, you have a human partner, don't you," he choked out. "Who is he? I have to know!"

Veemon slowly turned to look at Embermon and smiled. "Davis," the little rookie said quietly. "My partner's name is Davis Motomiya."