AN: Sorry for the wait!
This chapter focuses on the frontier, better known to the digital worlds humans as "the rebellion". The plot thickens... (;
—
Kouji was tired. Kouji's friends were tired. The entirety of the human population in the digital world was exhausted.
'Where are you Kouichi?' He thinks privately, glancing at his friends, who were also as roughed up as him. A long sigh escapes him.
"...Alright..." A normally rowdy, but currently subdued voice breaks the silence punctuated by shallow breaths. "That didn't go as planned, but... but next time, it'll totally work..."
"Takuya..." Kouji says, putting a hand above his face, shielding his eyes. "Just rest. We don't need a plan, we need recovery."
A beat.
Kouji glances over at Takuya, who appears to tired to even form a coherent response.
That's a first, at least for Takuya. He couldn't blame him though, thinking of the utter annihilation of their supposedly meticulous planning.
—
"You there! Rookie! Flame rookie!" One of the guards shouted. "Get back over here, this is a restricted area!"
Takuya cursed under his breath, a thin puff of smoke escaping his mouth.
'Plan B- what was plan B? Stay calm and... stall for time,' He thinks haphazardly.
"Oh! Hello!" He says, turning to face the guard- a rather rugged looking Silphymon- with a gigantic, innocent, fanged smile.
"What are you doing here kid?" The Silphymon glances around. "You could get in a lot of trouble for being here."
"I must have gotten turned around," Takuya says, tilting his head and delicately batting his eyelashes.
"Ugh," The larger digimon pinched the bridge of their nose. "I don't get paid enough for this."
The Silphymon continued forward, body language relaxed.
'They don't think of me as a threat. Good,' The small human-turned-digimon thinks.
"C'mon kid, let's get you outta here," The Silphymon says softly, as if coaxing a small child, which Takuya supposed he was.
Although, Takuya drew the line when he reaches for his ha-paw? Either way, he snatched his paw out of Silphymon's reach, and backed himself away. He could not allow himself to be captured and taken away from their objective.
His bright green eyes dart up to Silphymon, who is still processing his escape. Looking back and forth between his claws and where Takuya once stood, his strange visor blocking his eye's expressions.
He hopes Kouji and the others are doing better.
—
Junpei was not doing well.
From the instant he'd slid through the vents into the control room, preparing to undo the security measures blocking Omnimon's private tower from the rest of the castle, he knew the mission was most likely compromised.
For one, Craniummon- the 'brains' of the Royal Knights was still in the room. From the schedule they'd intercepted from their source you could infer he was pulling a late shift.
JP surveyed the control room. While Craniummon was large and JP was small, there wasn't any way to get past him to override security measures without being noticed.
He sighed, glancing down at his D-Terminal. Little multicolored dots indicating his friends positions lit up a dark screen. The others were all in position, besides Takuya- who had probably run into a guard.
'...There has to be a solution,' JP grips the edge of the cool metal vent. Once again he looks over the room, and that's when he sees it.
A solution.
A human child of unclear features sits on the edge of the table, covered in a shadow.
'I can't make it to the control panel... but just maybe..!" JP's hope returns slowly, a light feeling in his chest expanding with it.
Slipping out of the vent discreetly, he slides onto a cool marble floor. Inside the vent it was hard to tell a lot about the room. Now JP had a clear vision. He squints, his eyes adjusting to the brighter light. Instinctively, he turns towards the giant monitor screens- which Craniummon is currently occupied with.
He ducks under the counter connected to the monitors. JP feels his legs ache from overuse as he sets off to the other side of the grey counter. Where the human child sits.
He almost misses the kid when he's sprinting past. The only indications that the other human is there are the swinging legs just barely visible from JP's viewpoint.
His excited smile dissipates when he realizes he doesn't know how to get their attention. He glances around the area, eyes landing on a round object. A rock, or a pebble to the digimon working in this room. Probably dragged in by someone's boot or armor or whatever.
Almost instinctively he throws the small rock, hitting the kid(admittedly a little roughly) in the shin.
A surprised yelp sounds, and the legs retreat back to counter.
After a minute JP thinks he lost the kid, having seen no evidence of a return from them. Seconds later, a spikey brunette boy sticks his head under the table. His eyes widen comically upon seeing JP, who for the life of him is too frozen to move.
Finally, he regains his composure.
"Hey!" He yells, as quietly as possible.
"...hey?" The boy respondes, tilting his heads.
"I'm JP, short for Junpei! I'll help you out of here!" He continues, simultaneously speed-walking and reaching towards the boy.
"Out...? Like, away from Craniummon...?" The boy hesitates, already widened eyes widening even more. "Um, yeah, hey JP! I'm Hirokazu, you can call me Kazu!" The boy, Kazu ruffles with excitement, a large smile appearing in his face.
"Hirokazu? What are you doing?"
JP and Kazu froze in unison. Craniummon now directed his attention at the smaller of the two humans, oblivious to the second.
"Um," Kazu starts nervously, glancing under the counter briefly.
Craniummon doesn't let him finish.
"Am I already an hour late?" Craniummon stands up, eyes glued to the clock in disbelief.
The large knight stands to gather his things, turning his back to the two children.
"Kazu-" JP starts. Kazu jumps down from the counter, landing in a crouch. "Oh, that was cool." He said, processing the jump.
"Yeah you get used to it with all the big furniture, eh?" Kazu grins mischievously.
"...Kazu..." The other starts, guilty.
"It's alright, dude. Come back for me later, K? Look out for whoever you're trying to help right now," His grin stays in tact, still sincere. "..Oh, and if you meet anyone named Kenta, tell him I said hello."
With that, Hirokazu hastily says goodbye and jogs over to his partner.
JP clutched his shirt, squeezing the fabric around his chest.
'He was younger than me,' He thinks morosely when he hears the door creak shut, announcing the Knight's leave, as well as Kazu's.
—
"JP, status?" Kouji speaks into his D-terminal.
"It's no use," Zoey says. "They monitor room jams outside signal, remember?"
Kouji sighed, pulling on his dog-like ears.
Only his name wasn't Kouji.
Now, he was Strabimon.
He hated this form. Takuya never minded his rookie form, though he'd been reluctant to use it at first(not that he had enough brain cells to understand why he should hate it.). But to Kouji, it always made him feel small. Part of a society that turned a blind eye on his kind. That took them from their homes and forced them to be their sick version of pets.
It made Kouji shiver with rage.
"Kouji! You're hurt," Tommy said, grasping onto his pants.
"Huh?" Indeed, he'd cut his paw from holding it into a fist.
"Hold on, I've got bandages!" Tommy said, excited to be of help.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Kouji's eyes widened. Footsteps... a guard? It wouldn't be smart to use their champion forms, it would be awful to be recognized like that in case of emergency.
Only use our digimon forms when necessary was the go to within their small group.
"Zoe, Tommy, I need you to run,"
Zoe blinked. "Kouji, wha-"
"Now! Go!" He howled.
She hesitated a second before grabbing Tommy's hand and running towards the slightly ajar window they'd used to get inside.
Grabbing his D-Terminal, he whispers into it, not wanting to disturb the quiet lest the approaching person might hear.
"Takuya? Do you copy?"
Silence.
Kouji squinted, brow creasing. 'I really hope he's alright,' passes through puppy-like-digimon's mind.
Pap pap pap pap-
The sound of bare feet pounding against stone floor.
Kouji sniffed the air curiously. Smells like... cheeseburgers and smoke. Takuya. Yep, that's him.
Well, whatever. He was running which meant someone was after him, meaning he was right to send Zoe and Tommy away.
Closer, closer, aaaaaaand...
Kouji snatched Takuya's wrist, dragging him into the side hall he was hiding out in.
"Wha-Ko-Stra-Ko-"
"Shut up you moronic booger machine!" Was one of the insults hissed at Takuya.
He smacked a clawed hand over Flamon's noisy mouth, ears twitching.
Suddenly, a ruffled looking Silphymon ran past their hiding spot, shouting towards where he thought Takuya had run to.
"Kid wait! I'm sorry for scaring you but you really shouldn't be here!"
Silphymon's worried yells dwindled as he got farther away.
Letting out a large heave, Kouji released his hold on Takuya's mouth. Takuya took a similar breath, but this one to get his deprived air.
They glance at each other, jittery from adrenaline. Takuya starts to giggle.
"You're so annoying," is the only thing Kouji can even say to the other's snort-laugh.
"Did you see his face Strabimon? I mean-"
"Don't call me that,"
"...Strabimon? Why?"
"Because I told you not to!"
"...Strabimon, Strabimon, Strabimon, Strabi- ack!" Takuya choked on his air, eyes widening from Kouji's sudden tackle.
So they wrestled for a bit, before Kouji realized, yet again, Takuya had made him into an idiot eleven year old.
"Aaagh! You always do this!"
Kouji would have continued, but the gigantic door behind them, leading into a certain Royal Knights chambers, beeped. Unlocked. JP had finally come through.
A second passed, neither kid moving.
Then the paralyzation shattered.
"Cmon!" Flamon/Takuya regained his snorting giggle.
Following behind him, admittedly more silently, they headed towards the door.
An inch from success, almost into phase three. This could mean everything, finally progress! They'd be able to beat whatever was keeping them here, and go home!
Shinya! Mom! Dad!
Kouichi! Mom!
"Oh? Two rookies?"
Takuya and Kouji stopped, frozen once more. Behind them stood the Royal Knight Cranniummon.
"...He wasn't supposed... to be here..." Kouji whispered to himself, shivering despite the heat Takuya practically(and literally) glowed with.
To his right, Takuya was completely silent.
Cranniummon was mega, a Royal Knight, incredibly intelligent, and probably very fast and very strong.
They'd never win, they couldn't even run.
"What are you doing here? How did two rookies get past our security?" His dark purple armor glistened, catching beautiful colors from a nearby skylight window.
Flamon whimpered, pitifully. Kouji turned his head away, kind of embarrassed to hear the animal like noise come out of his friend.
"Wait! Sir, I'm sorry!"
Oh, Silphymon.
Silphymon had their hands on their knees, clearly exhausted from chasing Takuya around the castle. Kouji probably would of laughed had it been literally any other situation.
"Are these your offspring Silphymon?" Cranniummon asked.
Another awkward silence.
"What? Wha- No! No, I don't- I don't know them!" Silphymon waved their hands up and down. Face reddening to the point of a severe looking sunburn.
Huh, do digimon get sunburnt? Kouji supposed he'd ask Takuya.
Anyway.
"I just, saw this little rookie, and tried to help him out...oh- um sir!" The strange digimon straightened his back abruptly, as if just remembering who he was talking to.
"Hm," Craniummon said, betraying nothing but calm interest. He reached forward, taking a squirming Kouji into hand. "Guard, take the other one," He says, nonchalantly.
"O-Of course, sir!" Silphymon says, and Flamon probably would of gotten away, if he wasn't distracted by Kouji's sudden abduction. But it was too late and he was too slow. He was tucked under the larger ultimates arm, wiggling and flailing rebelliously.
And onward they walked towards the exit... each step farther from their objective, farther from Omnimon's towers, farther from freedom... Kouji began to growl.
"Oh, how feisty," Craniummon commented, opening his palm so Kouji could stand.
Kouji snarled at him, ears tucked down.
"Let me down," He says, not yelling quite yet, but certainly on the brink.
Craniummon paused for a second, surprised. He shakes his head at Kouji, in some kind of strange combination of confusion and amusement.
He shifted one of his hands and tapped Strabimon's head with his pointer finger.
"You are an odd rookie, young... creature." He brings his hands closer to his face. "Where are your caretakers?"
The smaller tenses. "Caretakers?" Escapes his mouth.
"Ah, so you can talk to me," Craniummon, amused once more. "Caregiver, mentor, protector..., Parents."
Parents. Craniummon wanted to know where his Parents were.
Oh no.
—
Takuya looked up at Strabimon, who seemed to be sweating profusely, clearly uncomfortable with whatever question Craniummon had asked.
"So kid,"
Oh boy.
"Never caught your name."
"Never through it," Flamon says sticking his nose up at Silphymon.
"Heh,"
"..."
"Really?"
"..."
"You aren't going to tell me your name?"
Flamemon shrugged.
"Which one do you want me to tell you?"
Silphymon sighed, blissfully unaware of the irony of Takuya's joke.
"Tell me your real name,"
Flamon giggled. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you,"
"Try me,"
"Nope~" He says in a singsong voice, teasing the older one.
Silphymon is about to say something, but Takuya stopped paying attention at the rush of cool air on his face. It hits him that he failed. Completely and utterly.
The pleasantly cool air does nothing to calm the tidal wave of despair that hits him like a particularly rough rock to the shin.
Still he wiggles his way out of Silphymon's grasp, hitting Silphymon in the face on...'accident'.
Scrambling away, Takuya gestured to Kouji, who in turn attempted to leap out of the Royal Knight's grasp.
"Uh uh uuuh!" Craniummon articulated, catching Strabimon with ease. "We have to get approval from your guardians before letting you run wild."
Takuya and Kouji give each other wild looks, both suddenly filled with an electric panic.
"Ah, that isn't possible... um," Kouji starts.
"And why not?" Craniummon returns.
"Well, uhh,"
"Because we are...orphans!" Flamon cuts in.
A brief moment of silence.
"That's right! Orphans, no parents- tragic," Kouji contributes, making insanely exaggerated gestures.
"It's very sad. Ko-Str- He's all I have. Like, um, brothers of the wilderness fighting the world and the system and the... um society. Yes, very, very tragic,"
Another moment of silence.
"Orphans...?" Silphymon questioned. "Are you making up words and phrases now?"
"I do not care for mockery," followed the mega.
"Have you guys never heard of orphans...?" Takuya was sweating at this point. He didn't know how much longer he could handle staying in this form any longer.
"So you ran away? We'll have to return you..." Silphymon said, forlorn.
"We didn't run away! Society took advantage of us! Orphans! No parents! No nothing! Stop squeezing me Craniummon!" Strabimon's exasperated gestures cut through the air.
"Apologies," Craniummon loosened his grip.
"Oh..! There-you are! Haha!" Familiar nervous laughter cut through the confused tension.
Kazemon walked towards them almost as if she was walking on marbles. She smiled awkwardly at the two higher levels while approaching Takuya.
"Zoe?" He whispered when she drew near enough to whisper.
"Ssh!" She whispered back. "You are in loads of trouble young m-eeh, um- rookie level... vaccine...digimon!" She yelled, voice warbling like a particularly off pitch song bird.
"Oh my god," Kouji whispers, putting a hand over his face.
"...Yes! Mother..." Flamon's face was the same color as his flaming hair at this point.
"Well, alright then I suppose..." Silphymon said, still looking a little critical of the newcomer.
"Aren't you a little young to be a mother?" The Royal Knight interrupted.
"I'm eleve-eeeeeeeeeeen thousand years old! I'm very old and capable,"
"You are eleven thousand years old,"
"Y-yes, sir,"
"..."
"..."
"..."
"Well! I'll be taking my... children... and leaving! Thanks for finding them!" Zoe said, a little two enthusiastic.
Strabimon practically flew into Zoe/Kazemon's arms, making her take a step back. Flamon followed, if a little less flamboyantly.
"Well," Flamon could hear her nervous sweat at this point. "Bye!"
Takuya was pretty sure he wanted today to be over now. In mid air, just far enough away from the Knights headquarters he changed to human form. He panted, exhausted from keeping up with the strain of Flamon's form all day.
After Kazemon landed she dropped Takuya and Kouji into a soft grass field, perfect for sunbathing.
Kouji shifted back, a gruff voice muffled by the grass saying only:"Thanks...mom,"
Zoe collapses on the ground.
"Oh, the adrenaline is real. I can't believe how close to death I was,"
"They wouldn't of killed you, be more positive," JP, appearing out of nowhere, responded. "They would've sold you into a pseudo slavery because they don't think we have feelings or needs!"
Tommy sniffles a little.
Right, this was the rendezvous point. That's where they were.
"So...we failed," Kouji says, moving on his side so he can make eye contact with Takuya
"Well..." Takuya racks his brain. "Alright..., That didn't go as planned, but next time it'll totally work..."
"We don't need another plan, we need recovery," Kouji's voice was forlorn and irritated. Never a good combination.
Yet another moment of silence.
"What now?" Says someone.
"We do it again," Takuya replied.
"And if we fail?"
"Again."
"Why?"
"Taichi Kamiya and Yamato Ishida will be the best thing the rebellion, I know it. After all, this is the world that they discovered. The first humans ever in this digital world were lead by those two."
"They're basically prisoners!"
"And we can break them out."
"We don't even know them!"
"We'll get to,"
Zoe sighs dramatically. "Fine... you win Takuya. We'll try again. But I'm not playing your mom anymore!"
A deep groan/sigh plagued the little menu as Takuya sat up and began to explain the new plan of action.
—
Sorry about the mediocre chapter that goes on forever... as well as spelling and grammar mistakes... and the wait for it... aaaaaaah, I'm all over the place. But really, sorry about the chapter wait, a lot of things have been happening and I just
Anyway, I'll try to bang out the next chapter quicker and less eye straining to read. Hope you like the rest of the story still- Please review, favorite, or follow, or whatever else you can do! Almost forgot- someone in the review section asked if powers in humans existed in this world, hope this chapter answers your question!
Thanks for reading until the end!