イーケアノ！ (I hope you are living well!)
I'm uploading all the content I've written thus far finally to this site. I hesitated, but it seems there was little other place to go.
While the formatting options here are scant, the outreach is some of the best.
If you'd like to see the content in its original form (plus everything I haven't uploaded yet!) let me know in my messages!
Expect to see all of Act 1 and Act 2, and parts of Act 3, uploaded in relatively quick succession over the next month or two.
If you'd appreciate a segment synopsis at the end of a segment - let me know!
Act 1: Beating Heart
Segment 1: Come From Away
Chapter 1-1: Panic!
The sky lit up with unnatural fire: the explosions of missiles, fired energy beams, blades glowing with power. Herissmon panted, bent over, its quills flat against its body. It had been running for so long, it could hardly remember what the village they had escaped from looked like. Panting for breath, Lomamon laid down in the dirt next to it and complained, "Don't these Dark Digimon ever take a break?!"
Herissmon looked up at the night sky through the tree canopy. Somewhere up there was their saviour, UlforceVeedramon, nothing more than flashes of azure light, fending off the countless Dark Digimon that had invaded from the Dark Area. "I wish," it gasped as it leaned against a tree root, "but they just want our heads!"
"What kind of Digimon –" started Lomamon, but Herissmon grabbed it by the blue-grey fuzzy arm and pulled it back onto its feet. "We gotta go!" yelled Herissmon as multiple DemiDevimon chased after them.
"Ah, look, we got survivors!" "Scream for us, friends! Heheh!" they jeered, producing their needles.
Lomamon and Herissmon turned tail, screaming as they ran.
"It's so easy to stir up fear! Why didn't we do this before?" said a Tsukaimon flying alongside the DemiDevimon.
"And it's so much fun to make them panic!" A DemiDevimon flung its darts at Lomamon and Herissmon. The wind whistled as the sharp points sliced off a lock of Lomamon's fur, who made a noise of fear. "Ah, crap, I missed," it moaned.
"My turn!" giggled another. Lomamon checked over its shoulder and yelled, "Herissmon, dive!" But it was too late.
"Ahh!" it screamed, tumbling face-first into the dirt. The dart protruded from its left leg. "It stings so much!"
The DemiDevimon cackled. "100 points to me!"
A third DemiDevimon pushed it aside, annoyed. "Not fair – you gotta let me have a turn!" The metal needle tips glinted in the light of the Digital World's moons as Lomamon pulled the needle out of Herissmon. "C'mon buddy, stay awake – I'll take you myself!"
"Hands off our prize, kid!" Tsukaimon blew a ball of fire at Lomamon.
Lomamon screamed as its blue-grey fur was set alight. "Oh gods, it burns, it hurts!" It rolled on the ground desperate to put the fire out.
Tsukaimon sneered. "Pitiful little twerp."
Herissmon, half-unconscious and exhausted from the venom and from running for so long, could only watch with pleading eyes as the DemiDevimon descended on it. "Lomamon… please, run…", it groaned as the DemiDevimon picked it up in their talons.
"We'll take this little guy back to IceDevimon as a prize – maybe it'll show us how to evolve then!" they cackled. "Tsukaimon, feel free to finish this raccoon off," one of them added.
Lomamon rolled back upright onto its feet, its fur singed and ashy. "I'm not a raccoon! I'm a Lomamon – there's a difference!" it told off.
Tsukaimon leered as it prepared another fireball, "There's no difference between a dead raccoon and a dead Lomamon, now is there?"
"Gah, not again! Herissmon, I'll – I'll come back for you, you just wa – aahh, hot, hot, hot!" Lomamon jumped about as Tsukaimon fired sphere after sphere of fire at it. Tsukaimon cackled with evil glee, joyfully spewing fireballs at the dancing Lomamon.
"Rrrh, you're a quick and annoying one, I'll give you that," Tsukaimon growled, unable to get another hit on Lomamon.
"Grr, you'll pay for this!" Lomamon took advantage of the brief pause by Tsukaimon to turn its bushy tail at it, raising the sharp red quills on the end of its striped tail. "Eat this, ya purple flying fluff ball! Stripe Fire!", yelled Lomamon, as a few needles launched skyward.
"Ha, haha, that's cute, so cute! It can fight!" Tsukaimon sneered as it dodged the red needles. "Purple Haze!"
"Yikes!" yelled Lomamon as it scrambled away from the dark cloud spewing at it, managing to flee just in time. "Herissmon – bud – I promise I'll find you soon! Just stay alive, please!" it cried as it ran as fast as its feet could manage. Tree after tree seemed to blur by as Lomamon wiped tear after tear from its eyes. "I – I swear! I'll… please…"
It continued to run and run and run until it finally ran out of breath and collapsed on its face. "Ow… ow," it groaned. It looked around as it sat back up and rubbed its knees. Tsukaimon was nowhere to be found, but the forest refused to give way. Only the faint light of the glow bugs and the distant sounds of violence gave it company. "Herissmon…" it whimpered, and crawled to rest against a decaying tree trunk, holding its tail to itself. "Elecmon… Jijimon…", it sobbed. Flashes of light cast brief ghosts of shadows from the leaves and branches around it. "Why us? Why now?"
It cried there, alone, for as long as it could have tears to cry. Faint rumbles and the sound of gunfire and cannons bounced around the thick forest. The salty water rolled off its short snout and its nose, dripping into a puddle in the dirt. "Couldn't it have been me instead?" it wailed.
The Digital World answered with the distant roar of a DarkLizardmon. Not wanting to get set on fire again, Lomamon sniffled and struggled to its feet and began to wander aimlessly. It picked its way around some dead leaves and branches, not wanting to make any noise. There was another roar, followed by the faint bellowing of a massive dragon. Possibly, it was Examon, but Lomamon had no desire to check.
"W-w-who's there?!" Lomamon jumped back as a ghostly giggling emerged from the leaves. Bakemon? It looked around for a sign of the characteristic white sheet. There was nothing. Maybe it was just its imagination. Lomamon shivered. The nights were getting colder, and the tree canopy that blocked the sun during the day served to chill the dirt at night. A faint whimper escaped its dry throat. After all that running, it could use a drink and a break, but this whole area was unfamiliar to it – at least, unfamiliar in the obsidian night.
Lomamon wandered aimlessly, wondering if it would ever find a way out. Not that being out in the meadows or plains was any better; if anything, it might make it easier to be spotted, and with the Dark Digimon on the prowl, being hidden was a far better choice. But there were no hiding spots to be had, not unless it dug underground and hid in a hole. But Lomamon didn't want to dirty its paws with that, and still, it might not be good enough. Its foot snapped a dead branch. "Ah, for f-" it hissed, aware that there could be anything nearby.
It whipped its head around wildly, looking for any danger, its chest tight with anxiety. There was nothing. Lomamon's shoulders slumped, relieved that there seemed to be no danger, and continued to wander. Was it going in circles? The babbling of a creek told it that it wasn't. "Some fresh water, finally," it gasped, and knelt at the creek bank and cupped some of the cool water up and drank greedily. "Ahh, yeah, that's better," it sighed. It drank more from the creek to relieve its parched throat.
The sky was still alight with the distant reminders of incredible violence. The Dark Digimon had been invading here and there for months, or so that was what the rumours said. The Digital World was too big, after all, for them to travel around with ease, so they often relied on messages sent by Trailmon to learn what was happening elsewhere. It seems everyone was caught off guard by how intense the invasions became. After being left homeless for two weeks, it had been welcomed into a Jijimon's hostel, but then the Dark Digimon attacked en masse.
A screech from an unidentified Digimon sounded somewhere behind it. Lomamon shook its head. "Time to keep going," it reminded itself. Maybe it would be lucky to come across Herissmon again after all this, but hope was scarce. It stepped its way on some rocks to cross the creek. But it was weak and tired, and slipped on the wet rocks. "Aaah!" it yelped, waving its arms helplessly, falling into the water. A brief flash of bright light made it squint. "Nnh, what was that flash…" it moaned, squeezing its eyes shut. Maybe on a warmer day the cold water would have been pleasant, but now it was just damp and uncomfortable. It opened its eyes, still pained by the bright flash of light. At least everything seemed as quiet as it was before.
"Ugh, now I gotta dry off for hours," it moaned, trying to press the water out of its fur. But it looked more carefully. Something was off about the puddle it was in. "A puddle? Hey, wait a minute!" it hissed, eyes wide. It spun around, trying to get a look at its surroundings. Tall structures surrounded it, rising high into the night sky, blocking out the stars. Something made an unfamiliar noise in the distance. It sounded like some kind of weird animal.
What was it standing on? It was solid and hard and grey. And what were all these lights? And that sound? It must be some kind of machine. But what, exactly? Machines weren't a common occurrence in the Digital World.
A flicker of a shadow emerged in its peripheral vision. "Aah! Who's there?" it yelped as a little thing scurried in front of it. "Just a rat… just a little rat… in the Digital World… yeah… no!"
Lomamon sniffed. Its little black nose twitched as it made its way towards a door propped open. There were some good smells, like bread, and meat, and other food. But this wasn't the Digital World. Or was it?
Its stomach growled. It had been running maybe for hours, and the smell of something cooking was too tempting. It licked its lips, picking around the puddles of water. Wherever it was, there was cake for the taking.
Hawkmon banked hard left. "Falcomon, this way!"
"Right!" came the stressed response. The ninja-like bird Digimon followed right behind Hawkmon. They ducked beneath the floating rock at the outskirts of their city, Sunrise, and perched on an outcropping. "Surely there must be some hiding places still open."
Hawkmon eyed a number of openings in the cliff faces surrounding the floating city. "If only we could get across without being harassed by those flying demons," it muttered. A Birdramon tumbled past them as it flapped aimlessly. Falcomon stared as it screeched and crashed into the ocean beneath them, then winced as the aggressor, a Manticoremon, followed after it, presumably to finish the job.
Hawkmon squeezed Falcomon with its wings. "Aren't they supposed to serve the Angels?!"
Falcomon shook its head. "They can easily go out of control. Why the Angels go to such lengths, I'll never understand." A flash alerted Falcomon. "Look out!"
The two flapped away just before a stray beam from somewhere struck the rock behind them. Sunrise, for its part, seemed unbothered. The incantations by the city's protectors – a circle of Digimon called the Skyraisers – kept it afloat as they had for hundreds of years. The wards were still in place. The Skyraisers were battered, but still alive.
Hawkmon grimaced as a Phelesmon took notice of it. "Falcomon, go! Get shelter!"
"You idiot, I'm not leaving you alone!"
"Fine then!" But before Falcomon could catch up, Phelesmon grinned and let loose an attack. Hawkmon ducked out of the way only to get knocked aside by an incoming Wingdramon fleeing an attacker of its own.
"Hawkmon!" Falcomon yelled. The bird Digimon tumbled and spun out of control, seemingly dazed. Falcomon dove after it, only to be harassed by the same Phelesmon. "Out of my way!" Knowing full well that it would be outclassed by the Ultimate, it slipped into a narrow crevice and hid behind a corner. The Phelesmon approached, grunted, and decided there was easier prey to find.
Falcomon peeked around the corner. It was gone. It looked back down at the coast. Hawkmon was still tumbling and tumbling. It was going to land right next to one of those mysterious artifacts. It dove after it again. As it approached from the sky, however, a brief flicker of light flashed below Hawkmon, and then Hawkmon disappeared into it.
Falcomon stared in disbelief. The light continued to shine, as if a gape had been torn into the fabric of the Digital World. Then it began to seal itself back together. "Hawkmoooon!" Falcomon screamed and dove. It was too late. By the time it reached the white rocky ground, the seam had healed fully, as if nothing had ever happened. "Hawkmon…"
Falcomon perched on a moist stone and stared into the night sky. The stars were impossible to see amongst the fires, bombs, and explosions high in the sky. It cursed quietly under its breath and stared at the artifact stuck into the rocky shore. It was sure it meant something of importance. Perhaps those rumours and myths of a world beyond theirs were true.
Even so, that wouldn't fix anything, not now that a group of Ghost Digimon were coming for it. Falcomon summoned bamboo rods. "Uchitake Otoshi!" It disappeared in the flash of smoke and hurried away.
"Garudamon!" it exclaimed. It recognized it as one of the Skyraisers.
Garudamon had no time to waste on talk. The situation was getting ugly. The Angels were regrouping under the weight of a new wave of Dark Digimon emerging from their dark portals. "Falcomon! Get into the shelters, quickly!"
"I-"
"Now!" Garudamon thundered. It grunted and kicked away an incoming IceDevimon, then slashed it to bits. "Hurry!" It pointed to a hole dug into the cliffside that remained open. Another Skyraiser was defending it desperately.
Falcomon hesitated and looked sadly at Sunrise. A block had been set on fire. It might even have been its residence or the city buildings where it worked. "Right." Falcomon turned around and soared around the cliffside. Many of the shelter doors had been closed. By now, most of the residents unable to fight or too weak to fight meaningfully had already taken refuge.
It looked down at the coastline again. The two small artifacts in the beach had been there for just a few days beforehand, like so many of them, and would probably fade in just a few days more. Nobody had solved the reason for their existence, or if they had any kind of special meaning.
Suddenly a tear opened next to the other one. Falcomon's eyes widened. This was its chance! Maybe, just maybe, Hawkmon would be nearby! Falcomon went into freefall and dove. "Hawkmon, I'm coming for you!"
A Leomon waved frantically. "Everyone, it's lost! Fall back! Please, get to the evacuation sites!" it yelled. Crying and wailing Digimon streamed past as it looked on with disappointment. The town of Mizeniya was built right into a cliffside. They had hoped it would give them some protection, but they hadn't expected the Dark Armies to take the gatekeeping town of Rakida down the road so quickly. Leomon paced over to a wailing Koromon. "Friend, where's your caretaker?"
It only responded with more tears.
"Tailmon, please look after this one," it said to the Tailmon nearby.
"And you?" it asked with concern. "If you're staying here to see out the last defence, I'm joining you."
Leomon breathed heavily and scanned Mizeniya's houses. It seemed the town was emptying. A fire had broken out near the front gates where a number of security volunteers were battling a Dark Army battalion. "No. There's no reason to stay now."
Tailmon picked up the crying Koromon and cooed, "It's alright now. You'll be safe." It looked up at it with wet eyes and finally ceased its sobbing. "I suppose you only made it to this stage recently." It nodded. "Well then, let's get you out of here."
Just as Leomon and Tailmon were ready to escape, they encountered two volunteers, a Kudamon and a Gabumon. They seemingly hadn't received the message to retreat to the capital. "You two! We're making our escape!"
"Right!" Kudamon saw off a DemiDevimon with a quick blast from its earring. "Gabumon – Gabumon!" The furred Digimon was knocked off its perch from the town's walls. "Gabumon, you okay?" it asked as it approached.
Gabumon got back up. "Just shaken," it replied. "We're abandoning the place?"
"Yes, let's move, quickly!" Leomon commanded. The four of them, Koromon still in Tailmon's paws, rushed towards the rear of Mizeniya. Further up the road would be the capital. "Tailmon, do you need help?"
"I'm fine," Tailmon replied. "But we should split. Leomon and I will take the tunnel paths. You two should go up. It'll be quicker to the capital."
"Split up?!" Gabumon exclaimed.
"I have to make sure there isn't someone among the refugees waiting on the little one. Besides, you should encounter more towns on your way up. They should act as a buffer. I saw some of the townsfolk go up that way as well. You might be able to catch up."
Kudamon nodded. "Gabumon, let's split. Leomon, Tailmon, hopefully we'll see each other soon!" The two feline Digimon disappeared into a cavern while Kudamon and Gabumon made the climb. The path up had been carved only recently and was still easy to traverse.
The two made their way to a midway point where the path flattened out and overlooked the town. "I've never seen anything quite like this before." Fire hopped from wood roof to roof. Gabumon's shoulders slumped as it recognized its own abode was now aflame in the distance. Even though there wasn't too much of value, there were a few mementos given to it by Kudamon – which had managed to evolve, somehow, during their battle.
"No. It's – ahh!" Another gust of wind blasted past them as a Gulfmon leapt over them to evade a number of Angemon and Angewomon in pursuit of it.
Gabumon stared. Never before had it seen such a terrifying and massive Digimon. A score of Angel Digimon confronted it. It opened its horrendous maw and shrieked with such a bone-shaking howl that Gabumon had to put its paws right onto its ears and wince. It hardly helped. When Gabumon was able to look again, perhaps a third of the Angel Digimon had been obliterated.
"Oh… no," it muttered. It looked about for an escape route. A few Dark Digimon were coming up the path, while the road further up the mountain was now blocked by that monstrosity. Down was not an option, and behind was only the cliff face. Gabumon backed up anyway. It kept backing up as far as it could.
Kudamon turned around. "Gabumon, what-" It stared as the cliff face behind Gabumon turned bright white, and Gabumon backed into it, and disappeared. "Gabumon!" It chased after it, but only succeeded in ramming its snout against the rocks. The anomaly had already disappeared. The only thing replacing it was that bizarre piece of signage, of a strange looking white character on a blue background. Nobody had ever deciphered what it might mean, only that those rumours of foreign artifacts appearing and disappearing in the Digital World were true.
It turned around with a bad feeling in its gut. The Gulfmon was ready to shriek again. It opened its maw.
Patamon sighed and collapsed on the sand. "Chirasto Sector is so dry…" it complained. "Why did we come here…"
Dracomon snorted and brushed sand off its shoulders. The wind only blew more sand into place. Toku was a large city, yet even here the defences were struggling. "I thought you said you would be fine with the dry heat."
"Not this kind of heat!" it retorted. "If only there were a little less sun-"
At that moment, the sun was suddenly blocked out by a moving mass.
"Uh…" Patamon, Dracomon, and Guilmon stared up at the now-darkened sky. Guilmon pointed. "That's not the moons doing that, right?"
The sound of cackling in the distance was enough of an answer for Patamon. "No! Not at all!"
Dracomon whipped its head around. "Where's that idiot? Now, of all times to go running off on its own!" it snarled. "Amedramon!" it yelled. The only response was the sight of a tall watchtower collapsing in the distance as a DarkTyrannomon railed it with fire shots.
"What about that Monodramon we came across earlier?" Guilmon asked. "Is it coming with us?"
"I don't think we know where it is now," Dracomon complained. "Let it find its own way. Amedramon!" Dracomon jogged down an alleyway between sandy brick houses. "Toku isn't that big, where could it be?"
The three Digimon hurried into the market square. Panicked Digimon were milling about, closing up shops, and hurrying for belongings. Dracomon bumped into a Commandramon mercenary as it turned a corner. "Ah – s-sorry, sir!"
"Watch it, kid!" it spat back and hurried down the road toward the battle.
Patamon watched it as it pulled out its weapons. "Rude," it remarked. "We're all Rookie level, just like it."
Guilmon sniffed the air. "I think…" Patamon and Dracomon stared with anticipation. "Our left!" The trio resumed running and dodged the citizens as they went. "Amedramon!"
They came to a halt at what seemed to be a ring of metal poles in the ground. Despite how out of place they seemed to be, they were a few stories tall. "What are these for?" Patamon wondered.
"It doesn't look finished," Dracomon replied.
Guilmon put its snout to the ground and sniffed. "It… the trail ends here." The three Digimon stared at the spot. There were still paw prints in the dust, clearly belonging to an Amedramon. "There aren't that many Amedramon out there, right?"
"I don't think so," replied Dracomon. "Even back on Obsidia, there weren't too many then."
Guilmon looked up. The metal poles made no sense. They served no function, or they seemed not to. There was no scaffolding around either. "Do you think…" Just as it spoke, a blue-white gash opened in mid-air right in the centre. "Oh!"
Dracomon clutched Guilmon by the shoulder before it could move. "No! Who knows what that is?"
"But – maybe that's where it went!"
"Does that look safe to you?! You know Amedramon, it always rushes into danger!"
Guilmon stared back with pleading eyes. "I… but…" Patamon's fur stood up, and then Guilmon's and Dracomon's scales itched. A hum vibrated in the air. They screamed and ran away as a beam of energy rushed past and evaporated part of the alien structure behind them.
Dracomon lifted itself off the dusty road and looked back. The structure was melted in several places and the rift was sealing. "Guess we'll never know now," it commented as the abnormality faded and disappeared. A piece of it came loose and clattered to the ground before evaporating into digital ether, followed by more of its beams. They stared in awe as the white metal structure heaved, leaned inwards, and then collapsed under its own weight, and disintegrated into nothing, leaving nothing but faint prints on the paving bricks.
Guilmon picked its way back to where the structure had been. Amedramon's prints had been wiped away.