Chapter 2: Initialization
Team JNPR were sitting in Ozpin's office, waiting for their friends to arrive with the strange creature that was staying with them. While Pyrrha and Ren were more or less relaxed, Jaune kept looking around nervously as, along with Professor Ozpin and Goodwitch, General Ironwood, Specialist Schnee, and Qrow Branwen were looking at them expectantly. Nora was, of course, oblivious to the situation as she hummed to herself and tapped her shoes to the said humming.
Professor Ozpin sat at his desk, looking over some files, paperwork, and videos, seemingly all at the same time, while the General, the Specialist, and the Combat Instructor all looked at the Hunter-in-training as they waited for Team RWBY, as Qrow periodically took a swig of his flask as he leaned against the wall.
The dreadful silence was thankfully interrupted by Glynda. "Mr. Arc." Jaune nearly jumped at her voice.
"Y-Yes Professor Goodwitch?" Glynda sighed at the reaction.
"I wanted to ask if there was any change to your Scroll, Mr. Arc." The rest of the adults in the room turned their attention to the two after hearing that.
"Oh," Jaune answered before taking his altered Scroll out and opening it. The blonde boy shook his head, "Same as it was before we went to bed and this morning when we woke up. See?" Jaune flipped his Scroll for Goodwitch to see for herself.
Taking the Scroll, it read:
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (1/3): PROCESSING...]-
As several lines of gold-colored strange symbols blinked in and out under the message. Interested, Specialist Schnee walked over to the older woman and saw for herself.
"'DV-Scroll?'" She asked rhetorically, "What does the 'DV' stand for?" Ironwood looked over at her.
"May I see it?"
Winter nodded, "Of course, General." She began to walk over to him, but stopped, confusion clear on her face. The message had changed:
-[INITIALIZATION PAUSED - PLEASE RETURN TO TAMER]-
"What is it, Specialist?" Winter turned the Scroll around for Ironwood to see, to which he nodded.
"Huh," said Qrow, as he had leaned over to see what had changed. "Wonder what a 'Tamer' is..." He then took another drink from his flask.
"Hopefully, our new resident will be able to help us answer that," Ozpin said. Ironwood looked over at him, but was met with equally hard eyes. A silent argument started until they looked away from each other.
It was obvious what the matter was, if anyone had remembered their argument from the night before: Ironwood thought that the threat was too unknown and too great to let the small creature and the Scrolls freely move about, especially since the intruder had escaped. Ozpin wanted to play the situation by ear, since there were too many variables to account for with no real way to know how an action may shape events. Besides, the small creature was no doubt a sentient being; locking him up and conducting experiments was completely out of the question.
Deciding to try out a theory, Winter walked over to Jaune and handed his Scroll back, if only to see what would happen. As predicted, the message returned to what it had been before.
Winter hummed to herself, "Near-instant authorization recognition software… The best Atlesian roboticists have been trying to perfect that for a decade now, and they've gotten nowhere near this advanced..."
Qrow snorted, "Something's got the Ice Queen stumped? We're in trouble now..." Winter scowled at him in return.
"Unlike someone, I'd rather educate myself than laze about and be an alcoholic."
"Ooo," Qrow continued, in a mockingly tone. "What a scathing retort. How ever will I ever recover from that?" Winter scowled further and was about to give Qrow a piece of her mind and saber-
"Winter," Ironwood simply said, but the command was evident, and the Specialist had schooled herself, settling to just glaring at the Huntsman instead. After a little lul, Jaune decided to ask something…
"Um… Specialist, ma'am?" Winter turned to face him, giving a cold, evaluating look before answering the Beacon student.
"Yes?"
"You, uh, wouldn't happen to be related-" Just then, the elevator car had reached the top with a ding. Team RWBY entered the office, as the door had been open, before Glynda closed them with her Semblance. Calumon had decided that hiding on Ruby's head while her hood was up had been the best idea, as a small portion of its head and it's nervous eyes were visible and darted around.
Weiss stopped in mid stride, her eyes widening, "Winter? What are you doing here?!" The elder sister responded by raising a brow.
"Guess that answered my question…" murmured Jaune.
Winter explained, "Besides the fact that the General ordered me? Once I had heard that you and your team had, and I quote, 'fought a giant, fire breathing lizard-like creature,' I flew over as fast as I could." Weiss smiled up to her sister, ultimately not caring about the why.
Yang and the rest of RWBY stood behind their teammate. She coughed into her hand awkwardly, "Uh, you gonna introduce us, Weiss?"
"Oh, right! Winter, these are my teammates: Ruby Rose-"
Ruby waved at the Specialist, "Hi there, Weiss' big sis!" Winter's brow quirked up again, especially at seeing the Digimon looking up at her from under the girl's hood.
"Yang Xiao Long-"
"Sup," Yang greeted as she held out her hand, which Winter shook.
"And Blake Belladonna-" Blake simply nodded in acknowledgement, which Winter returned after a moment. Then Qrow decided to interrupt.
"Pipsqueak, Firecracker," he said, smirking. Both girls looked incredulously at him.
"Uncle Qrow?!" they said together. Both Team JNPR and the rest of RWBY, including Winter, thought the same thing.
Uncle?! Seeing the shy Digimon on top of Ruby's head, Qrow pointed his chin to him.
"And this must be the little...whatever he is that we've been waiting for." Ruby looked up to Calumon before looking back at her uncle.
"Yup, this is Calumon." She looked up and reassured him, "This is my uncle; he won't hurt you, will you, uncle?" Ruby's voice hardened when she questioned Qrow, which made him snort.
"Seems like Yang's been rubbin' off of ya… Can't tell of that's a good or bad thing, though..." Yang playfully punched the Huntsman's arm. "Ow."
"Miss Rose," Ozpin interrupted, "if you and your team could have a seat, we'd like to begin." He motioned his hand to the second couch in the room (the other one being occupied by Team JNPR), especially provided for the occasion.
Ruby nodded and her team sat down. Ruby outstretched both of her arms to where Calumon was, waiting for him. The little Digimon looked around, eyeing Team JNPR as they looked on in curiosity (except for Nora, who just waved happily at it), Winter, Goodwitch, Qrow, and Ozpin, who looked expectantly, but he shrank at Ironwood's steely gaze.
Ozpin eyed Ironwood with dead seriousness before saying, "James, if you can't be civil about this, then you will be removed from this tower." The tone of his voice took (almost) everyone by surprise; it was very obvious that the headmaster was less than pleased…
"I second that..." Qrow mumbled under his breath. Goodwitch just shook her head slowly.
Ironwood held his gaze with Ozpin for a moment longer, before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. His face and body relaxed as he sat back in the chair that he was in.
Taking what he could get, Ozpin looked back to Calumon, and with a warmer grin, asked, "If you wouldn't mind...Calumon, was it?" Ruby nodded, answering him. "We would like to ask a few questions."
Calumon slowly nodded before climbing into Ruby's grasp, allowing the Huntress-in-training to lower it onto her lap. Calumon looked away and scratched his cheek as everyone's curious gazes intensified.
"Now Calumon," Ozpin began again, "for the record, could you give your name, what you are, and where you came from, please?" He nodded.
"I'm Calumon and I'm a Digimon, a Digital Monster...from the Digital World." Total silence.
After a minute, Winter had to ask, "When you mean 'Digital-'" Weiss gently interrupted her sister.
"Yes, Winter, Digimon are apparently non-organic, data-based life-forms...that live in an alternate universe that's somehow connected to the Internet..." Everyone looked at her, obviously stunned. Weiss shrunk in on herself from their gazes and explained, "We thought it would be a good idea to ask a few questions before, so Calumon could get used to...this..."
Ozpin hummed to himself, before turning to Calumon and asking, "Is what Weiss said true?" The little Digimon nodded and then looked thoughtful for a moment.
"Is this really the Real World, like, with humans and stuff?" Calumon asked. Ozpin chuckled at his curiosity.
"Well… I don't know about 'real', per se, but this world is called Remnant and there are more than just humans that call it home; there are also the Faunus, which look like humans, but they have one thing that differentiates them. Each Faunus has an animal trait, such as cat ears or dog tails." Calumon looked on, absorbing the information, but he looked confused.
"Remnant? Faunus? I thought humans called the Real World 'Earth...' And I've never heard of 'Faunus' before..." Calumon crossed his arms and looked at Ozpin skeptically, "Are you playing a joke or something?"
Everyone looked at him with astonishment, but Nora broke the ice, "'Earth?' That's a silly name to call a planet; might as well name it planet 'Dirt' or 'Mud.'" Calumon looked at Nora for a moment before ultimately shrugging it off and waited for Ozpin to ask another question.
Ozpin coughed in his hand before continuing, "Right… Now, tell us, what is the Digital World like?" Calumon seemed to brighten up a bit, but soon looked downcast, unsure of what to say.
"It's...complicated..." Ruby nudged him, giving the purple and white Digimon a reassuring smile. Encouraged, Calumon continued, "The Digital World is maintained by YGGDRASIL. It monitors everything that happens in the Digital World. King Drasil is the Prime Administrator, directing the main factions in order to maintain balance. The Royal Knights, thirteen extremely powerful Digimon, are under King Drasil's command, but they only intervene when something really bad endangers the Digital World..."
"The Five Sovereigns are the ones that hold the most sway, since they are the ones that guard the Destiny Stones."
"Destiny Stones?" asked Goodwitch, to which Calumon nodded.
"I think Wisemon called them 'linchpins' once… They hold the Digital World together."
"I thought that Wisemon's information was unreliable," questioned Blake, but Calumon shook his head.
"Wisemon knows his stuff, but when it comes down to theorizing… That's when I tune him out..."
Ironwood suddenly spoke up, "And how are Digimon created, if they're data-based beings?"
"General, sir..." Weiss interrupted him, a slight blush on her face, "Digimon don't, um… They don't reproduce like living beings on Remnant do… Digimon revert back into their egg stage after they have been 'killed.'"
"Then where are the other two Digimon's eggs?" Silence dominated the area before Calumon, after taking a deep breath, elaborated.
"Digimon only turn back into Digi-Eggs if they're in the Digital World or in the Internet..." Everyone except Team RWBY (since they already knew) frowned.
Ozpin gave Calumon a sympathetic look and said, "I'm sorry for your loss. Losing a loved one is never easy..." Calumon sniffled before nodding in appreciation. "Now, if you're still up for it, I'd like to ask one more question, at least." Calumon nodded again. "Why did you come to our world?"
Calomon took a deep breath...and answered, "Everything was peaceful, until the New Dark Masters rose up and started a massive war. It escalated very quickly..."
"What about the Royal Knights?" asked Pyrrha, who suspected the worst. Calumon reaffirmed them.
"Most of them are gone; the only ones left are leading the Resistance."
"And the Sovereigns?" Ironwood asked, who was much calmer, but no less serious.
"Imprisoned, since killing them would be a very dumb idea. Killing a Sovereign would destroy their Destiny Stone; they want to rule over the Digital World, not destroy it."
"So why are you here," Qrow repeated Ozpin's question, "if there's a Resistance and all."
"Azulongmon ordered Leomon to take the Crests and me as far away from the New Dark Masters as possible."
"And this DarkTyrannomon followed you here," Ironwood stated coldly, clearly implying that it was Calumon and Leomon's fault for the chaos last night. But before anyone could refute or criticize him, Calumon shook his head.
"No," Calumon said plainly, like it was obvious. "DarkTyrannomon came here because of the virus in your tower-thingy." Everyone looked at the little Digimon, making him start to sweat. "Leomon thought it was following us, too, but when we changed routes, it didn't follow us. Leomon decided to follow it, and that led us here."
It took a minute for everyone to process the information.
Winter asked herself aloud, "Why would there be a virus..."
Ruby looked up with wide eyes and nearly shouted, "The intruder! The woman that I followed to the CCT! She must've downloaded-"
"Uploaded," Weiss corrected.
"-Uploaded a virus into the network!" Ironwood nodded in agreement.
"My thoughts exactly..." Ironwood gave a look to Ozpin, "It seems like I was right to bring my forces here, after all..."
"Well-" Weiss began, before Ironwood's raised brow stopped her. "I mean...maybe it's possible that the virus could've affected any autonomous devices, like the Atlesian Knights, in the area since all Atlesian tech automatically links up to the CCT Tower?"
Everyone froze for a moment before Winter turned toward her superior and agreed with her sister, "She may have a point, General, sir..."
Qrow snorted, "Maybe it wasn't a good idea after all, Jimmy." Ironwood gripped his chair hard, making it creak from the strain.
"Dammit!" Calumon looked between the three and Ozpin before looking up at Ruby.
"Now I'm confused..."
"You're not the only one..." admitted Yang.
"Excuse me," Ren said to the two headmasters, since they appeared to know what was going on. "But why would anyone want to cripple the CCT network or the Atlesian forces stationed here?" They looked at each other before turning to the two teams.
"There are some people who do not agree with the way things are currently run," Ozpin stated before Ironwood continued.
"They are anarchists that want to upend our way of life for their own selfish goals."
"And why haven't we heard of them before…?" Blake asked warily.
Ozpin answered her, "They use subterfuge, assassinations, and other, more secretive methods to achieve their objectives. And honestly? We didn't want the populace to panic; it is hard enough to deal with the Grimm, but if people knew of these extremists?" He let the question hang.
Qrow stepped up to talk, "We've done a...decent job of snuffing them out, but they always seem to crawl out of a new hole, with new minions to boot." The eight students became silent as they tried to absorb the bombshell that had been dropped on them…
Calumon huffed to himself, "Sounds like the Dark Masters..." The little Digimon elaborated when he saw everyone looking at him. "The New Dark Masters said that they could make the Digital World better, for everyone, but they're just a bunch of tyrants..."
"Why do you keep calling them 'the New Dark Masters?'" asked Glynda.
"Because there were a group of four Digimon a long time ago that called themselves the Dark Masters that 'united' the Digital World, but they were tyrants, too."
"And no one learned from what happened?" Blake asked dryly.
Calumon shook its head before answering, "That happened a really long time ago, so nobody really remembered it, and some...darker...Digimon happily jumped at the chance to join them."
"What defeated them? The first Dark Masters, I mean," asked Ruby curiously. Calumon really brightened up when she asked.
"The DigiDestined!"
"...What?" asked Jaune when nobody else did.
"The DigiDestined were the heroes who defeated the Dark Masters."
"And who were these 'DigiDestined?'" asked Pyrrha.
"Humans!" More silent stares. "Humans that were partnered with Digimon and empowered by the Crests."
"Humans and Digimon...can partner up?" asked Yang, to which Calumon nodded.
"Any human can become partnered with a Digimon, becoming a Tamer, if they share a strong bond. But the DigiDestined are chosen by the Crests and are usually given a quest to save the Digital World." Calumon then scratched his chin thoughtfully, "I don't know if a Faunus can be a Tamer, but I don't see why not..."
Winter narrowed her eyes at the Digimon before looking at her sister. "Weiss?" she asked. The girl perked up from her thoughts and looked at her sister curiously.
"Yes, Winter?"
"Has the status of your Scroll changed since it was altered?" Weiss quickly took her Scroll out and inspected it.
"No… But what is a 'DV-Scroll?'" At hearing this, Calumon looked over and gasped.
"It did work!"
"Did what work?" Everyone was looking at the little Digimon curiously, though Winter looked apprehensive…
"These things must've become Digivices!"
Team RWBY and JNPR looked at each other before Ruby asked, "What's a Digivice?"
"A Digivice is the physical representation of the bond between a Digimon and their Tamer! At least that's what Wisemon said… And you're DigiDestined, too!"
The room became deadly silent.
Nora jumped up from her seat, grinning ear to ear. "That...is...AWESOME!" She began to shake Ren's shoulder more violently than normal. "Did you hear that, Ren?! We're going to be superheroes!"
Calumon fluttered in the air in excitement, but the six other students were...less than thrilled…
"Um," Jaune finally asked, "is they're a way to be...unchosen?" Calumon stopped and looked at him, confused.
"Why would you want that?"
"No offense, I mean..." Jaune scratched the back of his head sheepishly before continuing, "We're just students; we can't just go on a quest to save an entire world!"
"They are...young," Goodwitch admitted.
"So?" asked Calumon, "The DigiDestined before were kids." Everyone gave it various shocked expressions.
"What do you mean that they were kids?!" asked Jaune, but Calumon just shrugged.
"That's what the legend said; the DigiDestined were seven Chosen Children from the Real World and became partners with seven Digimon."
"Sooo, there's no way to undo it?" asked Yang, but stopped when she saw Calumon's saddened face.
"You...don't wanna be Tamers, or have a partner Digi-?"
"No-no-no- I mean," Yang tried to backpedal, "I'm flattered, we all are, but are we really the right ones for the job?" Calumon looked curiously at everyone who was nodding their heads in agreement.
Calumon rolled its eyes at the new DigiDestined, "Of course! If the Crests chose you, then that means that you were meant to be chosen!" Calumon tilted his head, "Besides, the only way to become 'unchosen' is to...you know..." Calumon stuck a digit out and moved across his neck, giving an all-too clear idea of what he meant…
"Oh..." all seven said simultaneously.
Beep-beep-beep!
The seven students retrieved and looked at their DV-Scrolls as the Digivices made a noise, drawing everyone's attention. A new message appeared on the screens:
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (1/3): COMPLETE]-
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (2/3): PROCESSING...]-
A red laser-pointer-like light shot out of the lens in the upper right corner on each DV-Scroll and zig-zagged a bit before touching their respective owners, which flared their Aura simultaneously. The light then retracted back into the lens after about a fifth of a second passed by.
"Weiss!" Winter called out in concern, "Are you alright?" The younger Schnee nodded.
"Yes… But I did feel a little tingly, as if my arm fell asleep, but for my whole body..."
"It kinda tickled," Nora stated, which everyone (minus Calumon) gave her a deadpan look. "...What?"
Beep-beep-beep!
"What now?!" groaned Jaune.
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (2/3): COMPLETE]-
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (3/3): PROCESSING...]-
All seven DV-Scrolls floated out of the students' hands in front of them, before they opened slightly more than they normally would.
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION (3/3): PROCESSING… SEARCHING AVAILABLE POTENTIAL PARTNERS...]-
Seven large, oval objects slowly appeared, coming out of the devices until seven large eggs sat on the DigiDestined's laps.
"Oh!" Calumon said excitedly, "Those are Digi-Eggs! These must be your partners."
Yang's Digi-Egg had three green rings around it. Ren's Digi-Egg had an orange-colored top and bottom. Weiss' Digi-Egg had pink hearts on it. Blake's Digi-Egg had green splotch patterns on it. Jaune's Digi-Egg was green with reddish-orange triangles patterned on it. Nora's Digi-Egg was turquoise with red Y-shaped patterns on it. Pyrrha's Digi-Egg was snow-white with a deep red zig-zag along the middle of it.
Beep-beep-beep!
Blake very reluctantly opened her DV-Scroll to look at the new message on it's screen:
-[DV-SCROLL - INITIALIZATION: COMPLETE!]-
-[ENJOY THE REST OF YOUR DAY, TAMER!]-
The screen then (finally) became like any other Scroll's screen, idly waiting for Blake to press a button. The other's found that their DV-Scrolls became 'normal,' too.
"Well," Ozpin said aloud, after a couple minutes passed by, "it seems like there might be no turning back, especially now..." Everyone inspected their eggs, honestly curious of what kind of Digimon were inside them.
"Ooo!" Nora cooed as she held her Digi-Egg to her cheek, "It's so warm!"
"And big..." added Jaune, who didn't know what to think, really.
Weiss looked at Calumon and asked, "How long until they'll hatch?" but Calumon just shrugged.
"I've never really seen Digi-Eggs close up before, but since you just got them, it shouldn't be long. I think..."
"Is there any way to figure out what kind of Digimon is inside?" asked Winter, but Calumon shrugged again.
"I have a few more questions for you, Calumon," Ironwood stated, which the purple and white Digimon nodded. "Are you positive that these Dark Masters will attack our world?" The atmosphere of the room became much more grim.
Calumon nodded, "DarkTyrannomon was destroyed, and they'll want to know what did it. They'll attack even more when they find out that there is another world to take over." Ironwood nodded solemnly.
"Can you tell us more about these Dark Masters? So we can prepare for what is to come." Calumon nodded again before beginning.
"Regalecusmon is the Dark Master of the Oceanic Territory. He commands lots of aquatic Digimon, but he likes to fight strong opponents one on one."
"TyrantKabuterimon is the Dark Master of the Arboreal Territory. It controls lots of insect Digimon, but it's not really smart…"
"Titamon is the Dark Master of the Mountainous Territory. He's lazy, so he sends out his army of dinosaur and beast Digimon to deal with enemies or the other Dark Masters."
"Hexebaumon is the Dark Master of the Frozen Territory, which is guarded by an army of ice and magical Digimon. He sees himself as a benevolent ruler rather than a warlord..."
"But he can't be reasoned with?" asked Glynda.
"The last Digimon that tried that were frozen solid, before being shattered. RustTyrannomon is the Dark Master of the Burning Territory and commands lots of dragon, machine, and cyborg Digimon. He's always seeking to make himself and his army stronger with more powerful technology."
"Great," muttered Qrow, "another Tyranno-whatever..."
"And then there's Mephistomon," Calumon continued to explain. "He isn't a Dark Master, but he's more like an unofficial moderator between the Dark Masters. He also controls the Dark Area."
"And the Dark Area is…?" asked Ren.
"Where the worst Digimon ever go. Lots of evil and demonic Digimon are trapped there..."
"So, it's like a prison?" guessed Winter.
"For evil Digimon so powerful that they could wipe out a whole city in a few minutes… Like the Seven Great Demon Lords." Silence dominates the room for a few minutes.
Jaune coughed into his hand, "Well...that doesn't sound good..."
"No," admitted Qrow. "No it does not..." He took a large drink from his flask.
"The Dark Masters rely on Mephistomon to keep the Dark Area secure so that the Seven Great Demon Lords and the other Digimon imprisoned there can't escape and threaten them… Which is kinda ironic since I'm pretty sure that Titamon was trapped there until Mephistomon freed him..."
"Was Mephistomon always in charge of the Dark Area?" asked Ozpin.
Calumon shook his head before answering, "No, the Anubismon usually kept the Digimon in the Dark Area, but no one knows what happened to them… Wisemon said that it was possible that Mephistomon deleted them all, but that never made sense to me, since the Anubismon were all Mega level Digimon while Mephistomon is an Ultimate level..."
"What's a Mega and Ultimate level?" asked Blake, which made Calumon blink a couple times before remembering that they wouldn't know about something so basic that every Digimon already knew.
"Digimon come in several Levels, and each one is stronger than the last," Calumon explained. "All Digimon start out as Fresh before becoming In-Training, Rookie, Champion, Ultimate, and then Mega. I've heard that there are Ultra level Digimon, but I think that's just a rumor."
"And what level was DarkTyrannomon?" Jaune asked, not really wanting to know the answer.
"Champion," Calumon answered, which made everyone groan.
"We barely scratched the thing and it was just the fourth strongest?!" complained Yang.
"Well," Calumon tried to explain, "DarkTyrannomon are pretty strong, even among other Champion level Digimon..."
"And what Level are the Dark Masters?" asked Ironwood. Calumon scratched his cheek sheepishly.
"...Mega..." Everyone groaned again after hearing that. "But you're DigiDestined! The last DigiDestined fought the last Dark Masters and they were all Mega level Digimon, too."
Ironwood suddenly stood before making his way towards the door.
"General, sir?" Winter asked, slightly worried. The Atlesian general stopped before turning halfway towards the group.
"I believe I've heard all that I care to today… I'm going to see if we can speed up the CCT Tower's reconstruction and talk to a few people to see whether they can get rid of this virus."
"I can accompany you, sir," Winter suggested, but Ironwood shook his head.
"No. You should talk with your sister; you wanted to visit her, didn't you?" He gave a weak smile, which made Winter pause, but she nodded anyway.
"James," Ozpin said, causing everyone to look over at him. "I have one more question, one which I think you should hear."
Ozpin turned to Calumon and asked, "Calumon, you mentioned before that Azulongmon told Leomon to take you and the Crests away, correct?" The little Digimon nodded. "I can understand why the Crests were sent to be hidden, but why you?" Everyone looked at the Digimon, waiting for an answer.
Calumon's brows scrunched together, as if trying to remember… "I don't really get it myself, but Azulongmon said that my job is to monitor Digivolution…"
"What's Digivolution?" asked Ruby.
"It's what transforms Digimon of a weaker Level into one of a stronger Level."
"...What?" asked Yang.
"Digimon become stronger by transforming into new forms. The reason for my existence is to keep the rate of Digivolution balanced and in check, or at least that's what I was told."
"What do you mean 'the reason for your existence?'" asked Goodwitch.
Calumon shrugged and answered, "I was created by YGGDRASIL itself to make sure no one tried to use the power of Digivolution for their own." Everyone was silent after hearing that. What could they say? Being created solely to perform a single task?
Ironwood had turned completely towards Calumon during his explanation and asked, "And if the Dark Masters captured you…?" Calumon shivered in response.
"They could try to use me to Digivolve their armies to become stronger...but..."
Ruby shook her head and gave the Digimon a look of pure defiance, "We won't let them try! Will we?" She turned to her team and her friends from JNPR. They had been skeptical before, about being supposedly prophesied heroes for a civilization of superpowered monsters, but after seeing Calumon's concerned expression as he thought of what the Dark Masters would do to him…
"Hell no," Jaune said, looking at his teammates, who all nodded in agreement. "We won't let any of them get anywhere near you." Yang accentuated what the blonde boy said by punching her open palm, eyes turning red.
"I'd pay to see them try..." she said dangerously. It was obvious to all of them that if the situation was reversed, a human child being attacked by a Grimm, they wouldn't hesitate to put their lives on the line to save him or her… And even after only knowing Calumon for a short while, this situation was no different.
Calumon looked around in awe at everyone's determined expressions. Tears welled in his eyes as his bottom lip quivered before launching himself at Ruby's chest and began to cry.
"You guys are the best!" Ruby patted his back as Calumon hugged her, making the two teams chuckle.
Ozpin and Goodwitch smiled as they looked on, but the headmaster turned his gaze to his old friend and frowned. Ironwood looked towards the teenagers before sighing.
"I truly hope you can..." He looked over at the Digi-Eggs before continuing, "Because the only thing we have to fight these Digimon are Digimon. In the meantime, we'll see to cleaning up this CCT mess, and after that, try to devise a countermeasure against enemy Digimon, in case these ones don't hatch or if you can't reach the enemy in time."
Winter wanted to say something, but the General cut her off, "Specialist, enjoy some time with your sister. That's an order." Ironwood walked out of the office and entered the elevator car, descending to the ground floor.
An awkward silence was left in his wake, leaving everyone concerned with what could happen next. Ozpin coughed into his fist, drawing their attention to him.
"I must apologize for General Ironwood… He's far more used to being in control than he is now. It comes with the territory."
"Jimmy's not exactly wrong, though," Qrow actually admitted, drawing a raised brow from Goodwitch, which he promptly ignored. "If these guys don't hatch soon, we may be in trouble."
"They should hatch soon," Calumon countered. "I mean...it would be weird if the Digivices found your partners, but they wouldn't hatch for a long time, right?"
"For now, you all should head back to your rooms; you've had a long day, plus you have the eggs to take care of." The two teams looked at each other before giving a nod to the headmaster.
"And with that," Qrow said as he reached for his Scroll, "it's time for me to call Tai..."
"Whyyyyy?" asked Yang suspiciously, but Ruby already knew.
"Please don't tell Dad!" begged the younger niece. "Do you know how much he'd overreact?!" He turned around and gave her an 'are you dumb?' look.
"Are you kidding me?" Qrow started, "Do you have any idea what Tai would do to me if he found out you two were fighting non-Grimm monsters and I didn't tell him? I like my limbs where they are and untwisted." The Huntsman walked out of the room, waiting for the man to pick up.
"Is your Dad really that mean?" asked Jaune after a couple seconds.
"Just overprotective," Yang answered, waving him off.
"There's the JJ Incident," Ruby recounted, which made Yang wince.
"'JJ Incident?'" asked Blake.
"A boyfriend I had a long time ago; we were like, what, fourteen?" explained Yang. "Just one of those 'mushy stuff' kind of things, but Dad scared him so bad that he ran into a tree and broke his nose. Blood everywhere..." Everyone, even the three adults left in the room, winced in sympathy. "Well, JJ wouldn't talk to me ever since that-"
"And that's when Yang discovered her Semblance," Ruby interrupted.
Yang chuckled, "Yeah, I got so mad at Dad that I punched him right through the wall." Everyone winced again. Calumon looked at the two sisters worryingly.
"Is this 'Dad' really that scary?"
"Naw. He just goes overboard sometimes...which embarrasses us to death..." Everyone chuckled at that, but Calumon was still kind of nervous...
/~/
"Dammit! Pick up!" Cinder breathed as she paced in her 'team's' room, alone and seething in anger. She was currently trying to get into contact with Tyrian, of all people. Her Scroll didn't seem to reach Watts', seeing as it kept saying 'unable to connect' whenever she did.
No doubt that the bastard is trying his hardest to stay away from me as possible… Cinder thought to herself. To say that she was angry was like saying that the ocean was wet. She would not be denied her vengeance. That's when someone had decided to open the line.
"Finally," Cinder groaned. "Tyrian, where is Watts, because the next time I-" The woman didn't finish her threat of eviscerating the mustached man when she saw who had actually picked up the call.
Salem.
The Queen of the Grimm held her head in her hand, leaning on her throne's armrest, giving a bored yet curious look as she watched Cinder.
"Would you like to finish, Cinder, or…?" Salem asked rhetorically and as dryly as possible. Cinder stood there, eyes wide and blood running ice cold.
Recovering after a minute, Cinder began, "I-I'm so sorry, Master, I had no idea-"
"Clearly," Salem responded by interrupting the incoming rambling apology.
"Master, if I may ask, why do you have Tyrian's Scroll?"
"He forgot it, again," Salem answered with a roll of her eyes, like it was a common occurrence. "Now, what was that about Watts?" Cinder gulped silently as she tried to find a way out of this...but couldn't.
"His virus failed..." she simply put, which caused Salem's brow to rise.
"Really?" she said curiously. "He's usually good about that… And is that why, I presume, that you want some sort of retribution?" Cinder closed her eyes before opening them up again.
"The situation...has changed, Master."
"Explain."
"I...don't exactly know how-"
"Then try," from her tone, it was obvious that Salem was running out of patience.
"I believe that, somehow, the virus created a portal, which a creature came out of." A long, silent pause later…
"Excuse me?" Salem asked. She honestly didn't know what to think of that.
"I swear it's true!" Cinder tried desperately, "I saw it myself; it was fifteen feet tall, black, white, with red stripes, and it breathed fire."
"What happened before the creature appeared?" Cinder blinked at that.
"Purplish energy ran through the equipment in the room, the screens of the terminal turned the same color as the energy, and the Black Queen chess emblem for the virus changed into a stylized eye with five markings above it."
"Are you sure?" asked Salem after a moment.
"Yes."
"Did anything else happen?" Cinder nodded.
"Yes. Two more creatures showed up. A lion-man creature appeared when the Hunters couldn't fight the first creature and fought it. A small, purple and white creature flew to the lion-man when it was dying. All three were able to speak."
Salem hummed to herself before issuing an order, "I want you to monitor the situation, but stay hidden." Cinder was stunned, to say the least.
"Master," she dared, "I mean no disrespect, but you believe me?" To her further astonishment, Salem snickered.
"Cinder, I know you're too smart to come up with such a story without a good reason. Besides," Salem continued, grinning the whole time, "Watts was having trouble last night, too. Something began to hack his files and he had to destroy everything just to get rid of it. Including that same symbol… Cinder."
"Master?"
"As I said before, monitor the situation and report to me as soon as possible, if something significant occurs- especially if one of these creatures appears."
"Yes, Master," Cinder nodded before ending the call.
Salem closed the Scroll, her grin turning into an intrigued smile as she said to herself, "It seems that someone new wants to play our little game…"
...To be continued.
/~/
Exposition heavy chapter, my bad…
First, I want to say thanks to FinchFlyingAce for offering his/her/their help in picking out Digimon partners for Team RWBY & JNPR, but I took a long time to figure out who gets what in this fanfic (a lot longer than I had thought it would've taken...) and I'm pretty happy with it, and I hope you guys will be too! I will be explaining why I chose the Digimon like I did for clarification. But in the meantime...
...I'm curious as to who everyone thinks is getting what Digimon. Is Weiss gonna get a SnowAgumon? Is Blake gonna get a Salamon? Is Jaune gonna get a Numemon? I wanna know what you people think!
Whoever can guess correctly (and don't spoil it for everyone else right after I confirm it...) can suggest a Champion/Adult level Digimon for the DigiDestined to fight. How's that for a prize?
Second, Some people have asked if Ruby is gonna get a Digimon/become a DigiDestined or not. Here are the semi-spoiler-ish answers (you read them at your own discretion): Yes, Ruby WILL get a Digimon partner. No, she will NOT be a DigiDestined. Why? I don't consider 'light' to be a virtue. ...Sorry to all of you Kari fans that read this.
Constructive criticism is always welcome.
Do NOT repost or steal. That is rude!