Series: Division of Destiny||Story: Reign of the Undead King||Chapter: The Encounter
Characters: Piemon, Vamdemon, Chosen Children, others||Pairings: Ken x Daisuke/Daisuke x Ken, Mimi x Sora/Sora x Mimi
Chapters: 15-40||Words: 2,670||Total: 40,047
Genre: Romance, Drama||Rated: PG-13
Summary: Vamdemon and Piemon rule supreme. Only now, ten years after their victory, are things about to change. For good or for ill.
One of the many lessons Piemon drilled into Yamato over their years as student and teacher involved the use of every sense that one possessed to keep track of what was going on around him. He wasn't on a vampire's level, of course, but Yamato wouldn't have wanted to be. He'd never been especially thrilled about Vamdemon and what he'd done to half of his friends.
He had no intention of ever telling Piemon this, but he fully intended to one day slam a stake into Vamdemon's heart, just as much as he wanted to take Gennai's head off his neck. Only when both of them were dead would Yamato feel he'd adequately avenged the loss of Taichi, Mimi, Sora, and Jou.
Part of him knew that he should blame Piemon to some extent, but it was harder doing that when the Digimon had raised him, Takeru, and Koushirou for most of the last decade. He wasn't a good Digimon by any means; Yamato knew that quite well. But he had at least taken care of them.
Garurumon's head moved underneath his hand and he turned automatically in the direction his partner looked. Someone was coming toward them, hm? He nodded a fraction to indicate he'd understood the message. Garurumon stopped, while Yamato kept moving, his every step cautious and wary. He breathed in deeply; the wind brought a faint hint of a wild musk that he thought vaguely familiar. Someone he'd met, then, but not someone that he knew very well.
That covered a lot of options. The only Digimon he could say that he knew very well were Garurumon, Piemon, and the other Dark Masters, and none of them had a scent like that. He would've recognized it far more quickly if they had. It couldn't have been any of those who worked at the castle, because none of them would be out here right now.
So, that meant it was likely someone that he'd met before everything changed. There were several who answered that description. That made it all the more interesting; who of those Digimon would be around here? They weren't precisely in Piemon's direct territory, but it wasn't far enough away that he really expected to have encountered anyone from that side here.
Well, he couldn't be entirely sure about that, really. He'd only left the castle a short time ago, but Garurumon could, and did, cover a vast amount of territory, and he'd wanted to get into the area he'd decided to check out for Gennai as soon as he could. Garurumon didn't harbor the burning hatred that he did for their so-called former guide, but he had never turned down the chance to be alone with Yamato either.
Yamato closed his eyes, focusing on that wild scent. If he hadn't them very often, he didn't expect to be able to identify them by that alone, but he wanted to try. It would make for a fine story to tell Piemon and Takeru once he returned home, if nothing else. The only problem he foresaw was that telling stories wasn't really his forte, not anymore.
He'd figure something out. Maybe he could try to draw, like Piemon did.
Slowly he inched forward, taking in breaths and listening for the slightest hint of movement. Whoever it was, they were well-built, and skilled in moving silently. He couldn't really hear them that well, and he didn't think it was because his ears were that dull. They were taking care to walk in silence.
Which put them even more firmly on the other side, because those who served Piemon didn't worry about crossing paths with other people in the world that they ruled. Yamato bared his teeth in something that couldn't even remotely be considered a smile. Perhaps whoever this was would know where Gennai was.
Garurumon brushed against him and Yamato glanced toward him, head tilted to the side. With his usual lack of speech, they'd spent years developing ways to communicate without it. Gabumon could still speak, of course, but when they were out in the field like this, it was better not to take any chances on who might hear them.
His partner tilted his head up, indicating the trees above them. Yamato blinked for a moment, then nodded. Whoever their quarry was, they'd taken the high road. Which meant they either had heard Yamato and Garurumon, or they at least suspected that someone else was out there.
Either way, he knew what to do next. He moved carefully, one hand resting on the sword by his side, giving his best impression of being unaware that there was anyone there at all. He couldn't be sure if this would work, but it didn't matter. One way or another, he'd find whoever it was, and do what he did best.
Leomon held his breath as he caught a glimpse of a silver mask and what he thought was blond hair peeking out from underneath it. It wasn't Piemon; he knew the shape and scent of that fiend better than most. He'd heard stories, though. Stories about how the once Chosen of Friendship now lived behind a mask. Though why he did no one seemed to know. Conflicting stories ran rampant and the ones who knew the truth kept it to themselves.
He could see Garurumon there as well, and that disturbed him in ways he didn't want to think much of. Takeru's partner changed his evolution. So why didn't Yamato's? He needed to tell Gennai about this. Very few had seen the Chosen over the years, at least not in a way so they could tell details like this.
While he needed to tell Gennai, Leomon knew he needed more information than this. Telling him that Yamato wore a mask and that Garurumon was still with him wasn't much more than the shattered scraps they already knew about him. He needed to find out what happened, and as dangerous as that might be, that meant talking to Yamato.
He's spent ten years with Piemon. This isn't going to be easy. Yet it needed to be done. Whatever damage existed couldn't be healed if they didn't know what it was in the first place.
"It's been a long time, Yamato." Leomon spoke from where he was. Wanting to gain information didn't mean he was going to put himself to where he could get his throat torn out, or worse.
The blond's head came up, blue eyes targeting right where Leomon's voice came from. He was clearly much more of a warrior than he'd been a decade earlier. Leomon shifted enough to get a better look and mentally nodded. Far from being the boy he'd once been, he now stood much taller, with broader shoulders developed from years of swordplay and long legs that could likely give Leomon himself a run for his money in a race.
But he said nothing at all, only stared at where the golden Digimon hid himself. His fingers brushed against Garurumon's fur, and Leomon wondered that their bond could be so strong even now. Piemon corrupted all that he touched. Could he not twist this as well?
"What are you doing here, Leomon?" Garurumon spoke, as tense as his partner.
"Why do you want to know?" Leomon responded. "And I could ask you two the same thing." He wanted to know if he needed to warn Gennai about Piemon's warriors being in the area, and if security for their home needed improving. But those were not questions he could ask.
Leomon couldn't tell from where he was if Yamato touched Garurumon again, or if he said something too low even for his ears to hear. What he knew was that Garurumon moved forward almost too quick to be seen, slamming one heavy shoulder against his tree, and nearly knocking him from it by sheer surprise alone.
He didn't wait around for the second attack, but leaped forward to another tree, thoughts racing as he did. Clearly Yamato didn't want a civil conversation. Though why he hadn't said anything at all confused him more than enough on its own.
Does it have something to do with how he was hurt? He needed to find that out too. So he moved, quick as he could manage, landing on the ground and taking only the quickest of breaths to recover himself before he leaped to his feet and whirled to find the two of them behind him. Yamato, now mounted on Garurumon, held his sword in his hand, pointed directly toward Leomon. There wasn't so much as a quiver to indicate any hesitation he might have about running Leomon through.
"Yamato." Leomon spoke the name in his best soothing tones. He wasn't very good at being soothing, but he tried anyway. He didn't know the child who had been very well, and he knew this man who was even less, but he had to do something. "What happened to you? We haven't heard much."
Yamato's eyes, still visible behind his mask, narrowed for a fraction of a second before Garurumon stepped forward. They weren't attacking, but they did push him back step by step.
"Not. Your. Business."
It took a few moments for Leomon to understand the grating, harsh words, much less that they'd come out of Yamato's mouth. The mask covered his lips as well, but it was really more the tone that surprised him more than anything else. Only then did the words themselves sink in.
"I thought we were friends, once." True, they hadn't spent much time together, but they'd had the common goal to defeat Devimon and surely they would've stood together against Vamdemon and the Dark Masters if circumstances had been other than what they were. He recognized all of the Chosen as fellow warriors if nothing else.
Yamato only shook his head, and Garurumon leaped forward, a low deep growl echoing from his chest. Leomon moved back; as much as he knew that Yamato would attack, that he faced a warrior as loyal to Piemon as Leomon was to Gennai, he could not bring himself to attack.
Did Piemon do this to him? It made sense, more sense than Leomon wanted to believe. Tormenting the poor child until he bent or broke to Piemon's will, that was just what the mad clown would do. Given that Piemon wore a mask as well, that surely spoke clearer of the truth than anything else.
He dodged, quick as could be, still refusing to draw out his own sword. He'd found out more than he wanted to know, and yet not enough at the same time.
"Gennai and I can help you, Yamato!" Leomon hoped the offer would get through to the young man's heart. "You and your brother and Koushirou shouldn't be with Piemon anyway!"
Yamato's only response was to send Garurumon after him even faster. Boiling, fuming rage gleamed in his eyes, and Leomon moved to the side just in time, thanking all of his sparring matches with Ogremon and Kentaurmon for the reflexes that saved his throat from being sliced. As it was, a thin line of pain wrote itself across one shoulder and he saw a swipe of darkness across Yamato's blade.
"Gennai." Yamato croaked out the word, Garurumon taking slow and deadly steps closer. "Where?"
That did not sound good at all, and Leomon knew that it had nothing to do with Yamato's broken voice. But he focused on that anyway, not wanting to give Gennai's location away.
"What happened to him, Garurumon?" If Yamato wouldn't answer, then perhaps his partner would. Garurumon would want to help Yamato, wouldn't he?
The great wolf only shook his head. "It's not mine to tell." Though if Leomon were not mistaken, reluctance tinged his voice.
Yamato said nothing else, only bunched his shoulder in preparation for a quick strike. Leomon could escape from it; they both knew that. What mattered more was that Yamato would do it anyway.
A wild battlecry echoed off the trees, and Garurumon leaped away only a moment before Kentauromon's hooves smashed down where he'd been. Yamato clung to his partner's back as if he'd done this a thousand times before, his enraged gaze slicing between the two Digimon, ever watchful.
"Is that Ishida Yamato? The Chosen of Friendship?" Kentauromon asked, keeping his own watch on their opponent. Leomon could only nod. "So the stories are true." They'd all hoped they weren't, even after knowing for a certainty that Piemon had had the upbringing of the three living Chosen all this time. Knowing it and seeing it for themselves, far closer than the glimpses and shadows they'd had to deal with, were two entirely different matters.
"It's worse than we thought." Leomon managed to pull the words up. "Something's happened to his voice."
Kentauromon frowned, turning his full attention to the human. Before he could make another move, Yamato lowered himself to grip onto Garurumon a little tighter, and the two of them surged forward, far quicker than Leomon expected them to be able to move. In moments, he and Kentauromon were the only two in the clearing.
Yamato hated the fact it hurt so much for him to speak. He didn't just miss the fact he couldn't sing properly anymore, but he couldn't communicate the way that he wanted to. Piemon understood. Takeru understood. So did Koushirou and Gabumon. They learned to understand him without his voice.
He'd forgotten what it was like to be around people who didn't know his ways, who didn't know why he was the way he was now. Part of that was his own fault, he guessed, for not leaving the palace more often. But even if he had, this was Leomon. Leomon worked for Gennai and Gennai's very name sent raging fire storming through Yamato's blood.
As soon as they were out of range for the two Digimon they'd left behind, he nudged Garurumon to slow down. He wasn't ready to go back yet. He needed time to regroup and rethink how to accomplish his mission. Piemon had said he could take his time, so if he took days or even weeks to come back, that was quite all right. He knew how to survive out here.
Of course, if he took longer than a few days, Takeru would get worried, and probably come looking for him. And while he trusted Takeru's skills as he trusted few others, he did not want his brother out here where Gennai's people could get their hands on him. It annoyed him enough that Takeru came out here on his own.
He pulled his thoughts back to where they belonged: how to find out where Gennai was. That was the entire purpose of this mission anyway. If he couldn't find the exact location, then he wanted more information, and much, much more than having simply brushed by two of Gennai's lackeys.
He slouched against a tree, staring up at the sun-dappled leaves, trying to put a plan together. Garurumon stayed beside him, nose tilted into the wind, keeping guard. He draped one arm around his partner's neck, a faint smile touching on his lips. It had almost been fun to fight Leomon. If the lion had just stopped trying to talk to him and done what he should do, it would've been more so.
As much as he wanted to rest more, this wasn't a safe place at all. Yamato held in a sight, but pulled himself to his feet, gesturing with one hand toward Garurumon. He had supplies hidden not that far away, and retrieving them wouldn't be hard. He would set up a base camp from which to do his searching, and it would also provide a place to lure in any other Digimon, such as Leomon or Kentauromon. If they wanted to attack him again, and they found his camp, he'd be the one giving them the surprise.
Beneath his mask, he smiled. Piemon would be proud of him.
To Be Continued