Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: If I've gotten any of the info on the digimon wrong, please let me know, and if anyone knows the name for the rookie form of Noriko's digimon, please let me know as well! I'm not sure if I'll get anymore chapters up this week, but I'll write again as soon as I can. Please review!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 68: The Original Digidestined
Daichi 'Dai' Motomiya
File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
"You're joking, right?" Dai whispered, his voice trembling with emotion. "Please tell me you're joking."
Veemon shook his head and frowned. "No. Davis Motomiya is my partner. He was the one who taught me how to play soccer."
I don't believe it. My dad's a Digidestined. Why didn't he tell me?
"You know T.K.?" Matty gasped, staring at the long eared digimon in astonishment.
"That's right," the little rookie replied. "T.K. Takaishi's my partner. We make an amazing team."
Mickey's face turned pure white, and his amber eyes grew wide with shock. "Impossible," the older twin whispered.
"Kari Kamiya's my partner," the white cat digimon said, giving Mickey a rather suspicious look. "Well, her name is actually Kari Takaishi now, but you get my drift."
"Izzy Izumi's my partner," Tentomon stammered.
Dai swallowed hard and glanced at the rest of the rookie digimon. "What about the rest of you?"
The pink bird digimon stepped forward and smiled nervously at him. "Sora Takenouchi...um...I mean Sora Kamiya is my partner."
"My partner is Tai Kamiya," the orange dinosaur said slowly.
"No," Takara moaned, covering her face with her hands.
The plant digimon frowned at Takara and crossed her arms. "My partner is Mimi Tachikawa. No, wait! That's not right. It's Mimi Ishida now!"
"That's right," the mammal digimon beside her said seriously. "My partner is Matt Ishida."
Ryoko's face turned green, and the blond slowly sank to the ground. "I think I'm going to be sick," he mumbled.
"My partner's Cody Hida," an armadillo digimon said, yawning loudly.
"And my partner is Joe Kido," a white water digimon added.
The hawk digimon ruffled his feathers and gave the water digimon an impatient look. "My partner is Yolei Inoue. She goes by Yolei Ichijouji now."
"My partner is Ken Ichijouji," a small worm digimon said quietly.
Sam's face turned pure white, and the raven haired Digidestined nearly dropped Glowmon on the grass. "Wormmon," he whispered, gazing at the green worm digimon. "Your name is Wormmon. You're my father's partner? I don't understand..."
"Your father," Wormmon said slowly, gazing up at Sam with large, curious eyes. "Yes. That makes sense. You look so much like him."
Wormmon is Ken's partner? Does that mean Ken knows who the Digimon Emperor is? I can't believe I even said that! How can our parents be Digidestined? This is insane! Absolutely insane!
"You're not Davis, are you?" Veemon said, interrupting his thoughts.
Dai slowly shook his head and managed a weak smile. "No, I'm his son. My name is Daichi. Daichi Motomiya."
"Davis didn't have any children the last time I saw him," Veemon said cheerfully. "Actually, that's not really true. Davis told me Noriko was having a baby, but the gates to the Digital World closed before the little human was born."
"You know my mother?" Dai choked out, almost stumbling over the words.
Veemon nodded and settled himself on the ground next to Embermon. "Noriko's a Digidestined, too. Her partner went to visit Meramon and Gotsumon. Meramon is Mina Izumi's partner and Gotsumon is Rosa's partner. Did she marry Cody? She was dating him the last we heard. You do know Rosa, don't you?"
"I really am going to be sick!" Ryoko moaned, covering his face with his hands.
"My mom must have been pregnant with Ami," Dai murmured. "She's my older sister."
"That's great! Davis always wanted kids!" Veemon said enthusiastically.
Embermon smiled at Veemon and held out his hand. "By the way, I'm Daichi's digimon partner. My name is Embermon, and yes, according to Dai, Rosa did marry Cody."
"It's nice to meet you," Veemon replied, shaking Embermon's hand. "I can tell you and Dai make a great team. I'm Veemon. I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attacks are Vee-HeadButt and Vee-Punch."
"My name is Patamon. I'm a rookie level data type digimon, and my special attack is Boom Bubble," T.K.'s digimon said, glancing curiously at Mickey and Matty. "Does this mean T.K.'s still in one piece?"
Matty gave the long eared digimon an incredulous look and held onto Mickey's arm for support. "Mickey and I are T.K.'s sons, and Kari is our mother," the younger twin stammered. "We also have a little sister named Yurina. My name is Masato Takaishi, and this is my brother, Makiya Takaishi. We're twins."
"Yes, that's what he tried to tell me, too," Tentomon whispered in Patamon's ear.
"If you call me a clone one more time, I'm going to clip your wings!" Matty shouted, his face turning red with anger.
"Hide me!" Tentomon moaned, trying to cower behind Patamon.
"See? I told you they look like Kari!" the cat digimon said smugly. "I'm Gatomon. I'm a champion level vaccine type digimon, and my special attacks are Lightning Paw and Cat's Eye Hypnotism."
Mickey's mouth fell open, and he gazed at Gatomon in shock. "You're a champion digimon? No offence, but you look like a rookie."
"I more than make up for it in strength," Gatomon said smoothly. "I take it these two are your digimon?"
"Yes," Mickey mumbled. "This is my partner, Halomon, and that's Matty's partner, Celestimon."
"Hello," Halomon said, giving Patamon a shy look.
Patamon let out a gasp and gently touched Halomon's cheek with his ear. "You and Celestimon are angels!" the chubby digimon murmured.
Halomon blushed and stroked one of Patamon's ears. "So are you and Gatomon."
"It must run in the family," Gatomon said dryly.
"Mickey, didn't our dad say something about his 'guardian angel' earlier?" Matty said weakly.
Mickey collapsed on the ground and hid his face against his knees. "Matty, we're really stupid, you know that?" the older twin mumbled. "We should have realized what Dad was trying to say a long time ago! I must be dreaming."
"This is no dream," Matty whispered. "Both Mom and Dad have angel digimon."
"What about you?" the pink bird digimon asked, turning to look at Takara. "What's your name?"
"Takara Kamiya," Kara squeaked. "Tai and Sora are my parents. I also have a brother named Taysuke."
"I'm Biyomon," the pink bird digimon replied. "I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attack is Spiral Twister. Your mom's an amazing human."
"I'm Agumon," Tai's partner piped up. "I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attack is Pepper Breath."
"This is my partner, Dovemon," Takara whispered, her eyes wide with shock.
Biyomon glanced at Dovemon and turned back to Takara. "You're just like your mom," she said softly.
"Thank you," Kara murmured.
Dovemon's face turned pink, and she gave Biyomon a tentative smile. "Kara and I make a great team."
"I bet you do!" Agumon replied.
"You must be Matt's son," the mammal digimon said quietly, turning to look at Ryoko. "You look so much like him."
Ryoko swallowed hard and nodded. "Matt and Mimi are my parents. My name is Ryoko Ishida. I don't have any siblings. Actually, that's not really true. My mom's going to be having a baby."
"Mimi's having another child?" the plant digimon gasped. "She must be so excited! I'm Palmon. I'm a rookie level data type digimon, and my special attack is Poison Ivy. Mimi's the best partner ever!"
"I'm Gabumon," Matt's digimon said quietly. "I'm a rookie level data type digimon, and my special attack is Blue Blaster."
Ryoko hugged himself and slowly nodded. "This is my partner. His name is Alopemon."
"It's nice to meet you," Alopemon said, eyeing Palmon and Gabumon with interest.
"You, too," Gabumon replied.
The hawk digimon stepped forward and gave Sam a slight bow. "You must be Ken's and Yolei's son. You look remarkably like Ken. My name is Hawkmon. I'm a rookie level data type digimon, and my special attack is Feather Strike."
"Yes," Sam mumbled. "My name is Sam Ichijouji. My father named me after his brother. I have an older sister named Miya and a younger brother named Nao."
"How did you know my name was Wormmon?" the green worm digimon asked.
"Centaurumon told me about you," Sam replied. "He said you might be able to help me."
Wormmon glanced anxiously at Hawkmon and slowly shook his head. "I can't help you, Sam," the little rookie said quietly. "Only you can help yourself. I am a rookie level virus type digimon, and my special attacks are Silk Thread and Sticky Net."
"You're a virus digimon?" Sam gasped. "Why did my dad get a virus-"
"It doesn't matter what kind of a digimon he is," Mickey said quietly. "You've said the same thing yourself several times now."
Sam blushed and quickly nodded. "You're right, Mickey. I'm sorry, Wormmon."
"That's okay, Sam. You don't have to apologize," Wormmon said softly. "I'm not surprised Ken named you after his brother. He really admired your uncle."
"I know," Sam whispered. The raven haired Digidestined appeared to have forgotten all about the Emperor because he did not bring up the subject again. "This is my digimon. His name is Glowmon."
"Hello," Glowmon mumbled, sounding extremely shy.
"It's a pleasure to meet you," Hawkmon replied.
"I feel the same way," Wormmon murmured.
"Don't forget about us," the armadillo digimon said mildly. "My name is Armadillomon. I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attack is Diamond Shell."
"As you already know, I'm Tentomon," the insect digimon said, glancing warily at Matty. "I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attack is Super Shocker."
"I'm Gomamon," Joe's partner announced with a flourish. "I'm a rookie level vaccine type digimon, and my special attacks are Fish Power and Marching Fishes."
"So much for time travel," Gatomon snorted.
Palmon gave the champion digimon a sheepish look and shrugged. "You never know. If anyone had managed to discover how to travel back in time, it would have been Izzy."
"We haven't seen T.K. and the others in fifteen years!" Patamon said sadly. "It's strange. In the past the gates to the Digital World always closed right away after we defeated the Powers of Darkness, but for some reason that didn't happen after we stopped MaloMyotismon from taking over earth and the Digital World. The gates remained open for a long time, and we were able to see our human friends whenever we wanted."
"Patamon's right," Hawkmon said seriously. "Our partners used to come visit us all the time in the Digital World, and then the gates closed without warning about fifteen years ago. We haven't seen our partners since, and we still have no idea why it took so long for the gates to close."
"Who is MaloMyotismon?" Sam whispered.
"Later," Gatomon replied.
"How's Nobunari doing?" Gomamon asked.
Dai gaped at Joe's partner and shook his head in disbelief. "You know my cousin? This is unbelievable!"
"Joe took me to the human world to meet Noah when he was a year old," Gomamon explained. "He must have grown up a lot since then."
"Yeah," Dai said faintly. "He has a sister named Ema now, and she's a total brat!"
"I met Miya," Wormmon said quietly. "She was only a couple months old when Ken brought me to the human world to meet her."
"I met Miya, as well," Hawkmon added. "Yolei introduced us. Unfortunately the little human wasn't able to talk yet."
"We all met Noah and Miya!" Palmon said cheerfully.
"This is crazy! Pure madness!" Ryoko mumbled to himself.
"Did Cody have any children?" Armadillomon asked.
"Yes, Cody and Rosa have a son named Kenzo," Takara choked out. "Mina and Izzy also have a child. Her name is Taniko."
"Izzy must be very happy," Tentomon said enthusiastically.
"Davis was only twenty-two the last time I saw him," Veemon piped up. "He and Noriko got married at a pretty young age. Noriko was only twenty and Davis was only twenty-one. Is that young for humans to be getting married? Davis said he was getting married at a young age compared to some people."
"Twenty-one didn't used to be considered a young age, but that has changed over the past few decades. A lot of people wait until their mid twenties at least to get married these days," Dai managed to say.
"Our parents were both twenty-one when they got married," Mickey said softly.
"Not my parents," Ryoko mumbled. "My dad was twenty-four when he got married, and my mom was twenty-three."
"Both of my parents were twenty-four when they got married. They were going to have a double wedding with Ryoko's parents, but they decided not to because my dad wanted Matt to be best man at his wedding. Isn't that sweet?" Takara sighed.
Dai glanced at Ryoko and rolled his eyes, and Ryoko let out a laugh that bordered on the edge of hysteria.
"Sora and Tai were twenty-six that last time we saw them," Biyomon said sadly.
"Yeah," Takara murmured. "My mom didn't have me until she was twenty-eight."
"The Digital World must be in danger if the gates are open again," Agumon spoke up. "You six and your partners must be the new Digidestined."
"That's right," Dai replied, holding out his D-Coder. "Apparently I'm the new leader of the Digidestined, and these are our Digivices. They're called D-Coder Digivices."
"You're the new leader? Well I guess that explains the goggles," Gatomon said dryly.
"Of course he's the new leader! He is Davis' son, after all!" Veemon shot back.
Dai let out a gasp and stared at Veemon in shock. "You mean..."
"Your dad was the leader of the Digidestined before you, and Tai was the leader of the Digidestined before him," Veemon explained.
"Ryoko, you're not the only one who's going to be sick!" Takara said weakly.
Dai touched the goggles on his head, and all of a sudden his father's words from many years ago came back to him.
Dai, if there's ever a time in your life when your courage fails you, I know these goggles will give you the strength to find yourself again. Everytime you look at them, I want you to remember me, and I want you to remember that I'll always believe in you, no matter what...
All of a sudden Piximon's and his father's words were starting to make sense. It was almost as if his dad had known all along what was going to happen...
"Did...our parents have Digivices, as well?" Sam whispered, his voice trembling with emotion.
"Yes," Gabumon replied. "Some of them have original Digivices and some of them have what we call D-3 Digivices. Tai's group and Davis' group are actually considered two separate Digidestined teams. Well...except Kari and T.K. They're a part of both teams."
"I'm...very confused," Matty mumbled.
"It looks like we have a lot of explaining to do!" Gomamon sighed.
"We're not the only ones! I think Dai and his friends have a lot of explaining to do, as well!" Hawkmon sniffed. "Obviously the Digital World is being threatened by a new evil, and we need to know what's going on!"
"Didn't your parents tell you about us?" Biyomon asked slowly.
"I don't understand," Patamon said, looking confused. "Didn't T.K. and the others tell you about the Digital World?"
Dai slowly turned to look at his friends, and they stared back at him with wide frightened eyes. All of them appeared to be shocked and confused, but their expressions were not enough to hide the hurt looks on their faces.
"No," he said quietly. "Our parents didn't tell us anything about the Digital World. We didn't even know it existed until Gennai summoned us. Veemon, you and the others had better sit down. We have a lot of things to tell you, and I know you definitely have a ton of things to tell us."