Frontier 02: Home Frontier – Chapter 24: Numb
madjack89: And here we are at chapter 24! We've come a long way, and there's still so much more to come!
Takuya: Yeah, like "what the hell, Chikao!"
Kouji: You are making me freaking emo!
madjack89: Shut up, pretty boy!
Kira: Woot, go Madjack!
Kouji: Shut up, Yankee!
Kira: Pretty boy!
Kouichi: Well, this is a loud intro.
Zoe: Madjack, just start answering reviews, will you?
madjack89: Sure. Nothing good can come of this since everyone's in a bad mood anyway.
Shino: Isn't that kind of your fault?
madjack89: …Well hey, I guess it is! Ha!
Takuya: How's that funny?
Zoe: That's it; I'm pulling up the first review.
*break*
agoodcupoftea: I keep answering your reviews even though you're not up to this point in the story yet, but oh well! You'll read them eventually! Thanks!
JewelledTears: I try to update quickly because I know how it feels to be left in suspense (and I hate it)! It's okay that you missed a few, I don't mind! This isn't going to be a xover fic, though. Sorry! Good luck with your exam and sorry you don't get a holiday too! Thanks!
GoldenDragon326: (Shino: You're welcome.) Yay for getting out of school! Woohoo! Thanks for reviewing and remember that what doesn't kill you usually succeeds in a second attempt! (Spongebob!)
hazeleyedharmony: Wow, this review is amazing! Cookies for you! I think this is one of my favorite reviews that I've gotten (though I love all my reviews!). You gave an opinion on everything! Thanks for the feedback and sorry my answer isn't as long as your review!
Kayland Elric: Yeah, clumsy little Kouji (heh heh)! But he was a little upset, so I suppose it's justified. And holy crap, I gotta get to the mall and find that live action Death Note DVD (can't now though)! I just know it's gonna be sweet! (Daiki: Heck yes!)Me and Dai can even watch it together and give you our opinions. Hooray! Thanks for reviewing! (And by the way, my Death Note fic is finally done and uploaded! Hooray!)
kyokoaurora: Yays! Two chappies this week! Woohoo! Thanks for reviewing!
Megmo8214: Thanks! And I remember that episode; that made me laugh! Now that you mention it, I may have to bring him back…(Kouji: For the love of God, no!) But anyway, I checked out your stuff on deviantart. It was cool! Wish I could do that! Thanks again!
garnettfox: Those names sound cool! Did you come up with them on your own? For the names of the OCs in this story, I looked them up on a baby name website! Except for Kira, actually (I already had that one in mind)! Okay, thank you and I promise to stay nice to Tommy! (Tommy: Hooray!)
*break*
madjack89: Okays, time for chappie numero veinte y cuatro! (I take Spanish!)
—
Kouichi glared at Duskmon, hate burning through him. Everything that had happened to him because of this Digimon's mere spirit; all the hardship he had been put through came flooding into his thoughts, fueling the fiery hate.
"Aw, you're mad," said Duskmon, smirking (or whatever. You can't really see his face, so…). "I'm glad you remember me."
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just kill you right now," Kouichi growled, hand glowing with data. Before he could Spirit Evolve, however, Duskmon popped up behind him, grabbing his D-Tector.
"I'm not here to fight, just to talk," he said in an attempt at being good-natured. It sounded more like a threat coming from him.
Kouichi whipped his head around, eyes burning with hatred. "Give me that right now," he whispered threateningly.
"C'mon Kouichi, what kind of attitude is that?" Duskmon walked casually around Kouichi. Kouichi followed him with his eyes the whole time, not even blinking.
"Why are you here?" Kouichi asked, still staring Duskmon down. "You said you wanted to talk, so let's."
Duskmon stared back at Kouichi, seeming annoyed by his question. Finally he gave Kouichi an answer. "Revenge."
Kouichi kept a cool expression on his face, though he was confused by Duskmon's answer. "Revenge, huh?" he said. "Isn't that what did it with me? Who'd you get this time?"
Duskmon glared at him. "I'm talking about my revenge against your brother. And your friends, for that matter.
"If it weren't for them," Duskmon continued quietly, "I'd still be bonded to you. I'll bet you didn't know that being bonded to a human increases a Digimon's power."
"I've seen the other Digimon seasons," snapped Kouichi impatiently. "So what? Your sense of vengeance brought you back from the dead?"
"Not quite, but I suppose we can leave it at that," Duskmon shrugged, taking a step toward Kouichi. Kouichi flinched involuntarily, taking a small step backwards.
"So you are still scared of me," Duskmon pondered.
"I'm not afraid of you!" Kouichi cried angrily. "But you aren't making this very fair, are you? So you're just going to kill me right here, right now?"
"Well, that would be a good way to get my revenge," said Duskmon. "But as it turns out, you're important enough to keep alive a little while longer. I've been given orders not to kill you, and I'll abide by that."
"Okay, next question," Kouichi hissed, anger growing. "If you aren't here to kill me, why are you here? Who is giving you orders?"
Duskmon chuckled. "You always were curious. That's exactly what got you into trouble. Curiosity killed the cat, after all."
Kouichi's eyes narrowed at the accurate analogy. "Are you mocking me now?"
"Perhaps," Duskmon replied. "You know, that warrior of wind is quite pretty," said Duskmon, changing the subject.
"Leave her out of this!" Kouichi yelled, his anger finally boiling over. "I thought I was through with you back in the Digital World! Why can't you just leave me alone? I turned away from the darkness, so why does it keep following me?"
Duskmon paused before replying. "I heard how you attacked your brother. What was it, a baseball bat?"
"That's it!" Kouichi exclaimed, lunging at Duskmon. Duskmon reacted quickly, jumping over Kouichi and kicking him square in the back, causing him to hit the concrete sidewalk hard. Duskmon landed gracefully beside Kouichi, surveying the damage.
Kouichi's vision went in and out of focus. He had the fleeting thought that he had hit his head on the sidewalk, but he couldn't get his jumbled thoughts in order.
Suddenly Duskmon grabbed Kouichi by the back of his shirt collar, holding him in the air in front of him. Kouichi choked, unable to breathe.
"You're so fragile," murmured Duskmon, tossing Kouichi unceremoniously in a bush. "But now I know that I can get to you. That should work to my advantage."
He tossed Kouichi's D-Tector in the bush as well. Kouichi got shakily to his knees, clutching his D-Tector.
"You can't fight me with the shape you're in," Duskmon said, turning around. "One more thing before I go," he added over his shoulder. "Do you know the best way to a Miss Kira Ishiko's home?"
Kouichi's eyes widened in fear. "Kira…"
"I'll just find it on my own, then." Duskmon chuckled. "Give my regards to your girlfriend." Then Duskmon was gone, leaving Kouichi alone and aching. In a bush.
—
Takuya stared at his cousin, shock crossing his face. "Your trip to the…Digital World?"
"I knew it," whispered Gatomon, slumping back down on the ground. "I suppose if you're going to have a flashback I might as well get comfortable."
Chikao glared at her. "You know, I don't really like you," he said bluntly.
"The feeling is mutual," Gatomon replied cockily.
"Feeling confident without your brother around, huh?" Chikao chuckled. "Poor little kitty cat."
"Watch it," Gatomon growled.
Chikao smiled at her. "I think Taki's gonna die of curiosity if I don't tell you this story soon."
Gatomon glanced at Takuya and heaved a sigh. "Go on," she muttered grudgingly.
"Good," Chikao murmured, turning to face Takuya. "Okay, here's how it goes. You remember your ninth birthday, right?"
Takuya nodded, staring at the floor. "How could I forget?" he whispered half to himself. "It was the day I got these," he added, touching his goggles lightly.
Chikao's eyes narrowed. "Those goggles have a certain legacy, I guess. Maybe you'll pass them down to your little buddy Tommy after you lose…"
He paused. "We'll get to that in a second," he said evenly, as if he were trying to stop his voice from cracking.
Takuya was starting to wonder what kind of story Chikao was going to tell him. Although he was pretty sure it didn't have a happy ending.
"It all started on the morning of the twelfth of August. I got up, went through my regular morning routine, and got ready to head over to your party."
Chikao smirked. "I also called my girlfriend. You know how cute she always thought you were. She wanted to be there for your birthday."
Takuya smiled wistfully. "She was nice." Then he frowned. "But didn't she…?"
"I lied," Chikao said flatly. "She never broke up with me. Quite the opposite.
"Now I have a question for you, buddy," Chikao continued, looking intently at Takuya. "Did you ever see Mitsuki again after that, even once?"
Takuya cocked his head, getting lost. "Not really, but I didn't see you, either…"
Chikao paused, chuckling softly. "That's because she's dead."
Takuya stared at Chikao for several seconds, not comprehending what he had heard. "Quit kidding around, Chikao. She can't be…"
"If you'd been paying attention, you'd know that she had supposedly gone missing the day after you're birthday. But she'll never be found, not even her remains. She was killed and scanned in the Digital World, and she's never coming back."
"No," Takuya muttered quietly. "That…it can't be…"
"I see," said Gatomon.
"Wait a minute!" Takuya exclaimed. "Kouichi was scanned too, and he came back!"
"Takuya, Kouichi was only in the Digital World in spirit. I don't think it's the same." Gatomon sighed. "That girl is truly dead."
Takuya's eyes brimmed with tears. "No…"
Chikao stared at the ground. "I knew you'd cry. I did too, for a while." He snapped his head back up. "But I'm through with tears. I've become too numb for that."
He placed his hand on his heart. "That day, we were running late. We were told that there would be a subway down on the bottom floor of Shibuya Station that could get us to your house on time.
"We took an elevator down, but realized too late that it was the wrong one. We began dropping faster and faster. We thought the elevator cables had broken. Finally though, we stopped and the elevator doors opened.
"We stepped out and found one solitary train sitting in an immense station. I thought that we should just go back, that this obviously wasn't the place we were looking for. But she said that it could be an adventure, and she dragged me over to the train. We got in and soon, we were on our way.
"As you can well imagine, I was scared as hell of the Digimon at first. Not Mitsuki, though. She just thought they were adorable."
Chikao's face stayed cold. "It's amazing how that memory can't even cause me joy anymore."
Takuya shuddered. "What happened, Chikao? What happened to her?"
Chikao sighed. "Actually, I believe I saw the culprit in the paper recently. One of the legendary warriors."
Takuya frowned. "It would have to be one of the formerly corrupted warriors."
"You guessed it," Chikao said dully. "We got a little taste of Digimon history while we were there. That is, before he attacked."
"That rules out Ranamon," Gatomon stated, ticking it off on her paws.
Chikao nodded. "The village we were in was attacked, destroyed, and scanned. As far as I know, I was the only survivor. The attacking Digimon didn't show any mercy, claiming he would find his beast spirit under the village.
"As it turned out, he was right. But before he could grab it, someone stepped in front of him, making him stop."
Chikao paused again. "Mitsuki tried to convince him to stop what he was doing; to see the error in his ways. I don't think she knew where I was. Some debris had fallen on me, pinning me to the ground. I couldn't stop her; couldn't protect her.
"The Digimon sneered at her, then lashed out with his arm, hitting her square in the head. The force of that was enough to kill her, if you ask me. But of course, he had to make sure, so he scanned her, right before my eyes.
"I was devastated, as you can well imagine. I didn't even bother trying to move for the next day or so. I knew people would be worried where I was, but I didn't care.
"During that time, I went through a change. I won't bore you with the details of how I got back, but when I did, I had changed. I wasn't the same happy-go-lucky person I was before. I'm a hollow shell of my former self.
"I didn't want to upset you, so I distanced myself from you. From everyone, actually. And after all these years, I've become an uncaring, numb person. I just don't care anymore. That's why I'm doing this. Work out the details on your own."
Takuya stared at his cousin, tears rolling down his cheek. "Chikao…I'm so sorry."
Gatomon nodded. "But, if you don't mind my asking, who was the legendary warrior that attacked you?"
Chikao smiled. "It was none other than Arbormon. Or Shino, as I'm told."
—
Shino ran. That was all he could do at this point. He couldn't go home; he couldn't go to Takuya's home. He was still undecided, after all.
A million thoughts ran through his head, none of them very good.
It's more than justified if you took away his happiness now…he deserves what he gets…you haven't done anything wrong, unlike him…think about Duskmon…
"Damn it!" Shino stopped, stooping over to catch his breath. He pushed his more violent thoughts out of his head, trying to be rational.
"Kouichi doesn't deserve that," he murmured to himself, partially trying to convince himself of these facts. "It isn't like his situation was much different from mine. I can learn from his mistakes; I can move on. Zoe's happy; that's all that should matter. We can still be friends. Right?"
He suddenly heard footsteps coming up the street. Before the person saw him, he ducked behind the bushes of a house to his left. He didn't particularly know why, he was just a raw nerve.
As he peered out from the bush, he recognized the girl sprinting up the street, D-Tector in hand.
Shino groaned softly. It had to be Zoe, didn't it?
He tried to stay completely still so she wouldn't notice him. She'd definitely pick up on his slightly panicky mood, and that wouldn't help make his decision any easier.
He held his breath as she passed. Before she was completely out of earshot, however, he caught a snatch of what she was muttering to herself. "Hang on Kouichi; I'm on my way. Duskmon is going to pay if anything happened…"
She rounded the corner and was gone. Shino got slowly to his feet, smiling to himself. "She really loves him," he said. "She's putting herself in harms way just for him."
Though he was confused by the reappearance of Duskmon, he knew he couldn't follow Zoe to find out what was going on. That was Kouichi's show.
He knew he had somewhere else he needed to be. "Hang on, Taki," said Shino, using Takuya's nickname, which he normally didn't do. "Here I come!"
—
JP stopped, seeing Kouji running toward him. He stared at Kouji, confused.
"Correct me if I'm wrong Kouji, but weren't you running away from me a second ago?" JP asked as Kouji stopped in front of him. "Does this mean I don't get to give you a talk?"
Kouji smirked, shoving his hands in his pockets. "I'm sorry about that," he said apologetically. "I guess I was just kind of…"
"Jealous?" JP finished Kouji's sentence.
Kouji nodded, slightly embarrassed. JP grinned, putting his arm over Kouji's shoulders. "Don't worry about it. We understand. But, for the sake of my nerves and everyone else's, please don't go running off again. There is such a thing as talking, you know."
Kouji smiled back. "I'll keep that in mind." He glanced around suddenly, seeming to be looking for something. "JP, where's Tomoyo?"
JP's smile faded. "I left her by the pond to go look for you. Why?"
Kouji's eyes widened. "Because she has a connection with us that the Digimon could exploit to their advantage!"
JP's shoulders drooped. "Oh my god…" he muttered despairingly. "We have to get back to that pond!"
—
madjack89: Sorry that the two chapter promise didn't work out, but it took me a week to get this file on a computer that actually worked! I'm very, very sorry!
Takuya: She on her knees right now, if you don't believe her.
Kira: Poor Madjack.
madjack89: Thank you Kira.
Tommy: So no two chapters?
madjack89: Well, I may still be able to get the other chapter done and uploaded by at least Sunday, but don't get uber excited. I still have to go to the mall and get my Death Note DVD, after all!
Daiki: Hooray!
madjack89: On a lighter note, I think that since I made you guys wait, I'll give you a sneak peek of that Kouji-Seiko story I promised you!
Kouji: Hate…you!
madjack89: Yeah, whatever. Okay, let's get to the magical sneak peek!
—
She confused me. She was one of the most annoying people I had ever met. People always avoided me because I wanted them to. I MADE them with the way I acted. But I wanted companionship more than anything. I craved it. The thing I didn't want was the paralyzing fear that one day they would leave me, just like everyone else in my life.
Then I met her, and she shone her light through my hazy cloud of darkness and despair. She showed me that I could be different; that I could make friends if I tried, and not be afraid of the consequences. She taught me to live in the moment, and I loved every minute of it.
After a while, I realized that it was actually her that I loved. But since this is a story, I should probably explain that a bit further with a couple of flashbacks, because you guys would most likely appreciate that more, wouldn't you? Of course you would. (That's the spirit, Kouji!) Get out of my story! (Awww…)
—
madjack89: Alright guys, see you next time I update. Once again, sorry! I didn't anticipate computer troubles!