Oh wow this was hard to write.
So there's actually violence in this chapter. I didn't describe it in detail since that'd be… *Shudders*
Tuesday
Tai ceased his pacing and faced his surrounding friends. Slowly he explained, "We're going to try this again. We're all heading into the Digital World, and this time we will figure out what's going on. Now why is that, Izzy?"
Izzy looked up from his laptop, startled at being addressed. "Oh you see, I have faith in my theory about an angel digimon being behind this, but my explanation had been-" a quick glance to Mimi- "interrupted the other day. Basically there are two high-ranking angel digimon I suspect, Cherubimon and Lucemon, so I successfully searched for and found their locations. Now all we have to do is figure out which one it is."
Tai clapped his hands together. "Right so three groups! We'll go me, TK, and Mimi then Sora, Matt, and Kari. Joe and Izzy can stay behind to monitor everything and in case a group needs back up."
"There's a slight problem with those groups," Matt pointed out.
Sora stated flatly while averting her eyes from the group, "I second that."
Tai's eyes traveled between the feuding couple. He sighed. "Alright, let's try me, Matt, and Joe then TK, Kari, and Mimi. Sora and Izzy stay behind."
Kari coughed slightly to get her brother's attention then firmly shook her head, rejecting the groups.
He bit his lower lip. Everyone just had to be difficult. "Me, Sora, Kari and Joe, Matt, TK. Mimi, you'll stay behind with-" He made eye contact with her glare.
"You're joking, right?" She asked incredulously.
"No, I'm not. Did I not give you all a 'we're a team' speech? These are the groups whether you like it or hate it!"
And hate it she did. The others went their respective ways leaving her alone with…
"Would you pass me my d-terminal?"
She was stubbornly unresponsive.
"Can you pass my d-terminal?" Izzy repeated a bit more forcefully. "…Mimi?"
"What?" she snarled.
He hesitated but still kept his attention on his computer. "I'm aware you're upset by the recent events but-"
"But what? It doesn't matter! I'll be out of your life soon, so why should you care?"
A long bout where the only sound was Izzy typing. He didn't know how to respond. Of course he cared, he made the pill because he cared about her and the others, but she wouldn't understand that.
"Why do I care?" Mimi whispered low enough that Izzy barely caught it over the click-clack of the keyboard.
He finally stopped typing but continued to face his computer, and she went on with a shaky voice, "I don't remember… I don't. That- that place on the other side of the computer, it-it's like a fairy tale. Like I hear all these stories about it, but I don't believe them, and I don't… feel them because I never lived them. Some princess in a far off land did, and I could never dream of having adventures like that, of m-meeting monsters… of having all those friends."
Izzy gulped. He couldn't face her because he just knew there were tears in her eyes. "But Mimi, you were that princess. Those stories are your adventures and your memory."
She shook her head dislodging a tear or two. "Not my memory."
"I'm sorry, Mimi," Izzy whispered now bringing down his volume and mood to match hers. He spun around in his chair to face her. She sat innocently on the floor with her head down. He put his hand to her chin and carefully directed her head up, so there eyes met. There was no more anger or frustration in her beautiful, brown orbs, just confusion and longing. Izzy knew it was time for him to be truthful, honesty being the only thing she'd wanted from him.
He took a deep breath and began, "I knew I had to create the pills ever since Gennai talked to me…"
Joe, Matt, and TK's group walked in a fairly comfortable silence with a few words passing by now and again. Neither of the brothers were exceedingly angry with Joe, so this was probably the best group the eldest could have gotten. Honestly he still didn't know why he kept coming here with these people. Something drew him to them, told him that he needed to stick with them. Even if he barely knew what was going on and couldn't recall most of their names a lot of the time, he knew he belonged there… no matter how much everything in this world terrified him.
It wasn't until Joe said something about his talk with Mori that really set Matt off.
"I'm really sorry."
"Are you?" Matt questioned as he abruptly stopped walking. "Look Joe, I get it. You're lost. You don't have a clue what's going on, and I get that, but don't pretend you're sorry. You can't be sorry when you don't even know what you did."
Joe hesitated as he tried to turn his thoughts into words. "But I'm sorry that I upset all of you."
Matt didn't speak for several moments. He kept his head averted from Joe. "If you could, would you take back telling Mori everything?"
"I..," Joe trailed off as he searched his mind for an answer that was anything besides the truth because he knew the truth would only upset him more. He eventually decided if he owed them, his supposed friends and teammates, anything it was honesty. "… No, I wouldn't."
Matt cleared his throat then kept walking forward as he threw over his shoulder, "Then you're not sorry so quit lying."
They walked in an uncomfortable silence after that with only TK speaking up every so often to give directions. Thankfully they eventually reached their desired destination.
"Lucemon should be right about here," TK announced as he checked the map on his d-terminal.
"I'll take a look around," Patamon informed as he left his perch on the boy's head to fly around the deserted area. The land was lifeless and barren like there had been something there, but it just up and left leaving behind a few pebbles and an unsettling breeze.
"Let's all do that," Gabumon suggested, and everyone spread out a bit. He nodded to Gomamon as his way of reassurance. The seal like digimon hesitated before nodding back.
Gomamon stepped away from his partner but took a long, heavy look at Joe, that is, what was left of him. They didn't click anymore. Not that they ever did start seeing eye to eye, but they still understood each other. Joe knew Gomamon better than he knew himself but now… that was gone. He didn't know why they were close or what they'd been through. Worst of all, he didn't get Gomamon's jokes! Not that he ever did… but he didn't get them in a way that made the joke all the more funny for both of them. Now it was just an awkward miscommunication.
Within moments of spreading out, the dirt and pebbles lying around were brewed together into a dust cloud of sorts effectively blinding everyone.
"Hey, Patamon!" TK called out.
"Over he-AUGH!" The small digimon was caught off as something covered his mouth. He tried to wind back for a boom bubble but was bound by a tight rope before he got the chance.
"Patamon, are you alright?"Gabumon asked as he covered his eyes, but something was grabbing at his paws and pulling him down.
For Joe, the world around him began to swirl as his focus relaxed, and his glasses slammed into the ground.
"So the knockout gas worked?"
"Yes, sir, very well."
"And you've captured the digimon, so they'll be of no use to these humans?"
"Yes, sir."
"Excellent."
Things came into focus as Joe blinked a couple times. He made to readjust his glasses before realizing his hands were cuffed together behind his back. Now alarmed and more aware, he checked his surroundings. He was in a rather large room, probably twice the size of his parent's apartment, but despite the size it was a very dreary and lifeless place with the exception of one decorative, red chair.
To his right was TK, sitting with his knees under him and looking around wildly as though he had also just woken up. Behind TK stood Piddomon, possibly the Piddomon that attacked Joe, but that isn't certain. He kept one hand firmly wrapped around TK's wrist shackles and the other on Matt's. He sat cross-legged on the other side of TK, and his gaze was firmly planted on one thing. Joe followed Matt's eyes all the way up to a creature who sat in an elegant chair raised above them.
The creature, presumably a digimon, towered over the rest of them partly because of his elevated chair and also because of his size. He looked like an angel much like Angemon but slightly larger and while half of his wings had the same brilliant white, the others were a deep black as was the majority of his clothing. There were touches of gold here and there, but the angel was basically and walking yin-yang sign except a lot more intimidating.
"I think that's what Patamon said Lucemon looks like," Joe overheard TK whisper. Matt must've asked him about the digimon.
Lucemon sat back in his chair that stood high above the floor everyone else was reduced to standing on. There was something about this digimon that could make anyone feel inferior in his presence, but he didn't do anything to cause that. He simply remained relaxed and outwardly confident.
Not even bothering to make eye contact, he casually said, "I hear you digidestined are aiming to leave this world, forget about it or something?"
TK looked up in shock. How had he known that? During his startled hesitation, Matt defiantly spat, "So what if we are? What's that got to do with you or any of these creeps who've been attacking us?"
He smirked, his first sign of any emotion besides dissonant calmness. "More than you would ever understand."
Lucemon took a few menacing steps towards the three. He looked down upon each of them in turn and spoke airily as though his words didn't hold much weight. "You digidestined are facing an ultimatum of sorts. Either keep returning to the Digital World or die here right now."
"D-die? As in killed?" Joe stuttered now painstakingly aware of the situation he was in. He'd seen digimon in action and didn't doubt for a second this one couldn't hold true to his threat.
"Well I'm not going to wait around for you to die of old age, am I?" Joe shrunk under his gaze.
Lucemon's attention was taken away from Joe once Matt challenged, "Since all you evil guys are the same, I'm assuming you want to take over the Digital World, right? Wouldn't that be easier without us around? Why would you want us to stay?"
"I have my reasons," Lucemon stated simply as he delicately unsheathed his sword from its place at his side. "Now, would you like to return or die?"
With as much defiance and loathing he could muster, Matt informed, "In a couple of weeks, we're done with this place."
"So death," Lucemon clarified as he looked expectantly to TK who sat propped up on his knees between Matt and Joe.
The teen remained silent as he thought everything through. There was obviously a reason Lucemon wanted them to remain in the Digital World, but he didn't know what it could be. Maybe he thought if they escaped to their own world, they could always come back one day, and he wanted them to stay in this world where he could keep an eye on them. But then again why keep an eye on them when he could just kill them now? It didn't add up. There had to be something else going on. He finally looked Lucemon in the eye and proclaimed truthfully, "I'm leaving the Digital World."
Lucemon rolled his eyes muttering, "I swear all you humans are the same."
All attention went to Joe, the only one left to answer. To say the least he was quite nervous and had no idea why the others had just agreed to be killed. Don't they know what happens when you're killed? You die! There's no redoes or second chances! It's over! He didn't understand this world or why leaving or staying was such an issue, but he did know that he'd survived so far by sticking with his apparent friends. With one nerve-wracked glance to Matt and TK, Joe faltered, "Leaving."
Lucemon nodded shortly then his calm demeanor turned purposeful and wrathful. Matt felt Piddomon's grip on him stiffen and was about to say something when he was stopped by an ear-splitting scream.
TK flinched at the noise, but no matter how much he wanted to look away he couldn't. He was numb and frozen in shock, and he wouldn't have tried to move or speak even without Piddomon's grip on him.
Joe had keeled over in pain, gasping and clutching his midsection. From below him, a puddle of blood slowly began to spread out as Joe's gasps and coughs lessened. Lucemon stood over him with a demonic smirk.
The end of his sword, still shiny from under all the blood, stuck out from Joe's back.
"W-what the hell did you do?" Matt demanded still trying to sound tough despite how terrified he now was.
"He chose death," Lucemon explained simply, the smirk still present. "Piddomon, get these children out of here!"
"But aren't you gonna kill them too?" He asked. His eyes were on Joe, and despite not feeling any sympathy for the human he was definitely disturbed.
Lucemon shrugged and turned away from the Digidestined. "That's too easy."
Matt grunted as his back slammed down onto the barren landscape. He rubbed it tenderly as he begrudgingly looked up at the shoot in the side of Lucemon's base they'd been dumped out through meanwhile TK scurried over to Joe's blood-spattered body.
TK crouched down on his knees at Joe's side, begging him to be alright. The boy was quickly becoming hysterical, even going as far as shaking Joe's still warm body expecting it to wake him, but all it did was dirty his hands.
Matt unsteadily grabbed TK's shoulder knowing that for the sake of his little brother, he had to stay calm and rational. He focused all his energy on keeping his voice even. "TK, he's gone."
The younger began shaking his head wildly and calling out to Joe. "Joe, wake up! Matt's wrong! I know you're still here! Please wake up, Joe!"
Matt put his hand to TK's other shoulder and roughly jerked him down, so he laid on his back in the dirt, his older brother towering over him. Matt leaned in deathly close, but TK refused to meet his gaze.
"Look at me, Takeru," Matt ordered. His voice was strong and commanding. Any focus he had had on Joe vanished as he slipped into big brother mode.
For a moment, TK looked like he would push Matt away, but any strength or will he had ended along with Joe. He reluctantly looked into his brother's unreadable, ice blue eyes. Matt's grip tightened as he spoke. "Joe is dead. Nothing you do will change that."
TK didn't move, a million thoughts circled around in his head. He didn't know what to say or how to react. Joe was gone, someone actually died because of the Digital World… because of the darker powers surrounding it.
He sat up, and Matt backed up. TK's bloody hands formed tight fists. "I hate this place! Everyone dies! The sooner we leave the better!"
"TK…" Matt started but never got the opportunity to finish. Gabumon, Patamon, and Gomamon came tumbling out of the shoot awfully ruffled up. Instantly noticing his rage, Patamon flew over to his partner with a worried expression. Gabumon gave Matt a confused look, but he didn't know how to explain what had happened, so the blonde simply hung his head as Gomamon slowly and cautiously waddled over to his partner.
"Joe? But… This isn't Joe, right? He's all…" The digimon trailed off as he realized there was no way of denying it. Gomamon didn't speak after that; there was nothing to say, nothing that mattered anyway. Joe wouldn't hear it. He'd never hear Gomamon speak or cheer him on in fights or listen to his jokes. It was all over, and Gomamon, well aware of the lost connection between him and his partner, was too aware to deny.
For possibly the first time ever, Matt and TK watched a digimon- more specifically Gomamon, one of the cheeriest digimon ever- cry, whimper, and eventually bawl his eyes out.
That was depressing even for me. Thanks for reading