Episode 2: Reveal; Revitalize; Retaliation
Linkmon did not know what he was seeing. The visage that appeared before him was that of a Kuwagamon; or half of one. It was broken down like the Digimon around him, missing its entire right side, but it was still alive. The sadness that struck his heart was quickly shattered, however, as the red beetle wrapped its curled fingers around the neck of the deceased Airdramon, and sunk its partial mouth into its skull. All four of the remaining Digimon were horrified by what they were seeing; the Kuwagamon cannibalizing another Digimon, gorging itself on its corpse.
The brash Kabuterimon, redirecting his misplaced anger, was the first to attack. He fired four simultaneous Mega Blasters at it, all of them colliding dead-on and sending a cloud of digital smoke into the air. The air grew silent. None of them made a sound, and no other sounds pierced the air. Except the scream. The Kuwagamon burst out of the smoke at break-neck speed, shooting straight toward Kabuterimon. He raised his head, his horn glowing, trying to intercept the monsters attacks.
"Beetle Hor-!"
His cry was silenced as a ripping noise pierced the air. The Kuwagamon had sped up at the last second and shoved his hand through the other beetle's chest. Kabuterimon wheezed as thou he couldn't breathe; his face frozen in shock. His terrified compatriots, eyes wide in sheer terror, turned their tails and galloped away as fast as they could. Linkmon could only stand there and watch in fear at what was happening. Kabuterimon turned his head slowly toward Linkmon and tried to utter some cry for help, but the eyeless face was quickly torn from the rest of its body by the jaws of his attacker. The Kuwagamon continued to feast on the bug, not even taking 20 seconds to devour the entirety of it.
Linkmon was paralyzed. There were no words he could think of to express the level of fear he was experiencing. It was only enhanced by a sickening echo that began resounding from the cannibal. The place where his body was severed began to quake as the sky does above the pavement in heat. With another sound that seemed to be a mix between squelching and the very tearing of space itself, a stream of data poured from the empty hollows of its body, taking on the shape of that which he had most recently devoured. The face of a beast, half Kuwagamon and half Kabuterimon turned to face Linkmon, and roared.
The creature charged him; its mismatched maw wide, ready to fill its seemingly bottomless stomach. Linkmon just stood there. He could not process what was going on. Everything was happening so fast. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he thought he heard a voice. Was it calling his name?
"Link! Wake up, goddamnit! Link!" On the other side of the computer, Kurohi was shuffling through his support programs. "Link! Nap time is over!"
Program Activated – Evolution
Linkmon felt a surge of energy within himself. From his horns to the tip of his tail, he was radiating with it. He knew this feeling. He had experienced it many times. The rush of energy that came with-
"Linkmon, evolve to-"
His frame expanded, become less lizard-like and more saurian. His muscles expanded, his jaws widened, and his eyes glowed with an emotion that had no resemblance to the fear he had experienced only seconds ago.
His hand shot out, and easily caught the horned head in his hand, twisting its face until the red side of its face was pointed in his direction.
"-Jackmon!" He threw a heavy right hook into its exposed cheek, sending it flying into the tunnel wall. It blew through the dust and charged him, but Jackmon's speed was far superior. He was easily able to dodge the lopsided creatures attempts to ram him. After its third attempt to run him through as he did Kabuterimon, Jackmon placed his open mouth next to the side of its asymmetrical head.
"System Down!" There was no chance of it avoiding the blast of dark purple energy. It wailed in pain. Propelled by the speed of the attack's impact, it hurried to the wall and tore through it, creating a hole like the one it entered from. Before Jackmon could pursue, the hole had already closed.
"Kurohi, it escaped. What should we do?"
"Screencap. Be thorough. We'll send what we can to Digicorps. and get a bolo out on this thing. Do you think you can extract some images of it from your memory files?"
"That won't work. They'll be able to track those images back to me. Even screencaps. It'd be the same if you use your computer as well. If we want to stay hidden then we'll have to find another way to get the word out."
"You're right. But what can we do? I doubt those jack asses that ran off would be smart enough to report this. And to be honest, we really don't have any friends in the online community that we can ask either."
Jackmon contemplated the situation. Their status as Illegals greatly hindered their ability to acquire help from an authoritative source like Digicorps. "Then I suppose we'll just have to bring it down alone."
"No. No way. You saw what it did to that guy. There's no way I'd willingly let you get involved in something this dangerous."
"But we may be the only ones who know about it who are strong enough to do anything. It is my duty as a knight-"
"You are not a knight, you are a lizard! And strong or not, you could die! This isn't you losing to some cheating ass in an unregistered arena! I can't bring you back if you lose this fight."
"Then there's only one thing that we can do, isn't there." He stared Kurohi straight in the eyes; their matching iris' both glimmering with their own form of determination. "Win."
Kurohi kept their eyes locked for a few more seconds before dropping his head and letting out a heavy sigh. "Gawdamnit, Jackmon. Why do you have to say it all cool like that?"
"So when do we start looking?"
"Not tonight. Like you said; I have homework. Even if it's just an excuse to keep you from fighting this thing for a bit longer, I don't want you out hunting while my back is turned, and I can't support you."
Jackmon gave a small smile. "I understand. We will begin our investigation tomorrow, then.
It was late. Kurohi had already handed in his abysmal papers, and had to have his senpai snap him out of a trance several times during work. He knew he promised Linkmon that they'd try and do something to stop whatever that abhorrence from the previous day was, but he didn't want to risk losing his partner either.
The sun was bright overhead. It didn't reflect Kurohi's mood at all. Linkmon spoke to his as thou he was reading his mind.
"Kurohi, we're doing this." He sometimes wondered if he has Link's tamer or if it was the other way around.
"You're sure you want to do this?"
"Yes."
"Really sure?"
"Yes."
"Really, really, really sure with spaghetti flavored sprinkles?"
"Of those actually exist, I'll eat my tail."
"I can check Google real quick to see-"
"Kurohi, your attempts to delay my departure would prove more fruitful if I were actually in a computer, and not resting in the palm of your hand."
Kurohi looked stared at his little partner. "Is there anything I can say to convince you not to risk your life?"
"It is my duty as-"
"-A knight to defend the people. I know. You've been going on about that all day." He beamed Linkmon back into his PC as he walked in the door and sat down in front of his monitor. "Just try to be careful, will you? This is me who's asking."
"Of course I will."
Linkmon quickly departed for the internet. Even if Kurohi was worried, the chances of meeting that thing again were slim. It would have to be incredibly stupid to return to the same location where they defeated it yesterday, and who knows where it would flee to from there. The probability was that they would never see whatever that was again.
Kurohi checked the monitor. Linkmon was not heading to the spot where they had fought yesterday. He was searching around a large stock exchange website.
"Linkmon? What are you doing?"
"…Looking for the creature."
"No you're not. You're looking for Bazaarmon, aren't you?"
"Yes I am. He is our highest chance of finding that creature again."
"But you hate that guy."
"Yes I do. He is a grotesque pheasant that I wish were skewered on a rotisserie."
"O-ho-ho. Yet you seek me out for information? You wear your feelings on your sleeveless wrists, my reptilian friend."
The voice came from Linkmon's right, carrying from the top of a large world map. The figure on top gently floated down to eye level. Bazaarmon, a brown Hawkmon with a turban, beamed a warm smile at his two guests. "Sahib Furijin, Sahib Linkmon, welcome and a good evening to you. How may I be of assistance?"
Kurohi spoke first, as Linkmon was obviously embarrassed that he was overheard by the subject of his dislike. "Evenin', Bazaarmon. If it makes you feel any better, I just think you're a suck-up."
"Yes, it does, Sahib Furijin. I am glad that you hold me in a higher opinion than your associate." He turned to Linkmon. "And I find your visions of my serverly demise most amusing, Sahib Linkmon." He beamed another smile. Linkmon just scowled.
"We are searching for something. We were hoping you may have an idea of its whereabouts."
"Ah, perhaps. You mentioned a creature, did you not? A Kuwagamon, by chance?"
"Not anymore. Now it's a Kuwaga- and Kabuterimon, split down the middle." Kurohi's interjection brought glowing excitement to Bazaarmon's face.
"Oh, is it now! This is news to me! Yes, yes, news indeed. Do you perchance see its transformation?"
"That is not why we are here!" Linkmon was obviously not happy.
"O-ho-ho, but you want my information, do you not? If you give me yours, I may just give you mine for free."
"Fine, if it will make you easier to work with." Linkmon quickly recounted the previous day's events. Bazaarmon stood there, listening and nodding.
"I see. Well, there has been word of more bodies within the past day. Two Digimon were found near the access to the China server this morning. Around 2, I believe."
"Was it reported to the company?"
"Yes, thou their response to the statement was that it was a one-time incident; a glitch in the system, if you will. It seems they do not want to start o fuss."
"I see. Thank you for the information."
"Oh, no thank you for your business. Please continue to use my services in the future, Sahib Linkmon, Sahib Furijin."
"What do you think we should do, Kurohi? If the company is going to do things secretly, then it will take time for them to mobilize. More Digimon could be…killed in the time it takes."
"I know. But the China server entrance is a busy place. It won't be easy to move around there without someone blowing the whistle on us."
"The downside of being an illegal."
"We have friends in no places."
Kurohi had learned quickly that many people had a no-tolerance policy toward Illegal Digimon. It wasn't all that surprising thou. Before Linkmon, he had run into a few of them. All were monstrously overpowered, not to mention they moved like brainless automatons. It's easy to create a body. It's not so easy to create a mind.
Kurohi's thoughts moved to the matter at hand, how to explore the China server entrance without being detected. He had almost forgotten his reluctance in all the excitement. "Well, we could always do that one thing."
"Which 'one thing'? There are a lot of 'one things' I am capable of."
"Y'know, your tail thing." The USB plug at the end of Linkmon's tail was programmed to be able to directly modify any data he inserted it into. Linkmon may not be the strongest illegal, but that didn't mean Kurohi hadn't made him overpowered in his own way. "We can use your hacking ability to create a sub-path below the normal pathways and use a one-way sight effect so you can observe while not being seen."
Kurohi's head was swelling at his ingenuity.
"Quell your ego, my tamer. I agree, it is a sound strategy, but it will consume much, if not all, of my energy to create a complete pathway throughout the area. Do you have a plan to compensate for that loss?"
"Do I have a plan? I'm a genius. Of course I have a plan."
"Your grades do not reflect your confidence."
"Neither did Albert Einstein's."
"Who?"
Kurohi's exasperation was obvious, but he pushed it away. "Never mind. Just remember to look up some stuff on relativity later." He cleared his throat and continued. "The solution is simple, my dear Watson-"
"Who is Watson?"
"Historical figures really aren't your forte, are they Link?" He silently apologized to Doyle-sama for his partners blasphemy. "Look, just, make as much as you need to move around. Build as you're moving, y'know? Spend a little at a time, and recharge in between uses. Simple."
"No need to repeat yourself."
"Yea, but repeating things cements them in the processor." He rapped his head with his knuckles.
The two of them made their way to their destination. As they got nearer, they had to dodge around more and more Digimon. After the second time they were almost spotted, Kurohi gave the ok, and Linkmon glided over to the nearest wall. His tail snaked its way from out behind him and its USB end plugged itself into the wall. After a few moments, a small hole, big enough for Linkmon to squeeze through, opened in its face. The two of them quickly scurried inside before any more passersby could appear. The hole quickly closed behind them, and they found themselves in a tiny, dark spherical chamber.
After a moment, a bit of light shone on them. Linkmon had again used his tail to create a one-way screen so they could see the goings-on outside. "So far so good."
"Where do we progress now, Kurohi?"
"Let's inch our way toward the hustle and bustle. Anyone panicking is more likely to find safety in numbers."
"A cruel, but clever assumption."
It took them a while to reach the main thoroughfare while trying to conserve energy. The place was busy, with Digimon and data streams alike zooming past them, like streams of light. They sat there in silence, watching the dazzling spectacle. "Makes you appreciate all the little things, doesn't it?"
"I suppose. But we must not lose focus. There is a purpose to us being here."
"Which hasn't reared its ugly head in the past…wow, it's only been an hour. Feels like a lot longer."
"You do know you are free to move about your apartment. You do not need to sit here and keep me company during the entire stakeout."
"Yea, I know." But he did not move from his seat. He just sat there with his Digimon, watching the lights.
The next two hours passed, with nothing more exciting than Kurohi having to run to the bathroom.
A low rumbling growl pierced the silence that had set between them. Linkmon jumped to his feet. "Kurohi, it's coming!"
"...No it's not." Linkmon turned to Kurohi, who had his arms wrapped around his stomach. He returned the lizard's gaze with an embarrassed look. "Sorry, I haven't eaten if five hours."
"I told you you didn't have to stay. You're free to get something to eat."
"Damn these human bodily functions." He stood up from his chair. "I'm gonna run out real quick and get something. You'll be okay for about five minutes by yourself, right?"
"I will be fine. It doesn't seem like our stakeout has brought forth much fruit. I will stay here until you get back, then I will proceed home."
Kurohi put on a somewhat baggy hoodie. "Got it. Hold down the fort, Link."
As he walked out the door his stomach growled audibly again. He couldn't help thinking he'd make a lousy cop. He walked to his nearest convenience store, not wanting to walk the distance to his work for his employee discount with Linkmon waiting at home for him. He browsed the shelves, looking at the different flavors of instant noodles. His stomach was telling him that one cup would not be enough, and he heartily agreed. After pulling three whole cups of noodles off the shelf, two with extra meat and one spicy one, he made his way to the checkout area, paid the cashier the Yen he owed them, and headed back to his apartment.
...Or he would have, if the cashier wasn't someone he knew.
"Hello, Kurohi-kun."
"Hey Yumie. I didn't know you worked here."
She gave him a venomous look. "Yumie?"
"Yumie-san! I meant Yumie-san."
Her face melted back to normal. "It's quite late. Is there any reason you're picking up food at this time of day?"
"Well, I haven't eaten dinner yet. I've been kinda busy today."
She gave him a curious look. "What could be so important to make you almost skip a meal?"
"I've been on a stakeout for the past few hours."
"A stakeout?"
"It's weird, you really don't want to hear about it, Yumie." She shot him another look. "-San."
"Well, I don't know what you've been doing, but make sure that you don't push off eating like this, Kurohi-kun. It's bad for your health. Your total comes to 24 Yen."
"And they say we college students have trouble with money. Ah, hold on, I got a text." Kurohi dropped a few coins in her hand and pulled out his DP. The message was from Linkmon.
It was less than a second before he was bolting through the door, leaving his food and change with Yumie.
"Kurohi-kun!? What about you food!?"
All thoughts other than those propelling him toward his home had exited his mind. All that he could focus on were the two words he had received from his partner. They echoed over and over in his head like a gong.
It's here.
The thrashing beast shook the rubble from its body. In minutes most of the Digimon that had stayed to fight had been put out of commission, and it was taking all of Linkmon and the other Digimons' efforts to keep him away from the injured parties. But while their constant barrage of projectiles was keeping it from pressing forward, it showed no signs of retreating.
Letting out a shrieking howl, it fired a multitude of spherical energy blasts into the crowd. While Linkmon was able to use his enhanced speed to dodge the scatter fire, the others were not so lucky. Over half of their dwindling number of fighters were knocked to the floor senseless, while many of the injured were reduced to Digitamas. But none of them were dead; that was something Linkmon could rejoice about at a later time.
With the reduced rate if fire, the creature started pressing forward. Linkmon tried to put more force behind his blasts to make up for their falling numbers, but he was starting to feel tired.
Program Activated – Breath Attack Consolidation
Out of nowhere, Linkmon's spherical blasts became a constant stream of purple energy erupting from his mouth. What was more, he felt his energy slowly coming back.
The mass of insectoid data barked angrily as it was forced back by the purple wave.
"Link! We're goin' big!"
He had never been so glad to hear Kurohi's voice. "Understood."
Program Activated – Evolution
"Linkmon evolve to Jackmon!"
Jackmon charged the monster. The uppercut he assaulted it with sent a loud crack through the chamber. It flew backward several meters from the impact, howling in pain.
"I know it is quite unbecoming, but I quite enjoy the sound it makes when I punch it."
"Then let's see what kinda sound it makes when you blast it."
"Understood." He shot forward and grabbed its red horn, pulling it so it was looking upward. He then grabbed its lower jaw and pried it open. "System Down!"
The blast shot straight though it, leaving a hole through its stomach and out his back that destroyed two of its four wings. It's howl was earsplitting. It fell to the ground, and quickly became motionless.
"Is it over?"
"I believe so. No Digimon could take that type of attack without reverting. I doubt he could."
From below them, the remaining Digimon started cheering. Jackmon looked a little confused at their reaction.
"Seems like they like you, Jackmon. Even if you are a bit of a sadist."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh come on, you blasted a big gaping hole through its-"
Jackmon was thrown sideways into Kurohi's image as the creature sped past him and through a newly torn hole in the ceiling. The crowd was silent.
"So, it is not over?"
"No, Jackmon. Something tells me...that this is just the beginning."