Thanks for reading! And reviewing! I'm glad that you've stuck with me to chapter 6 and I hope you continue until the end. This chapter will hint at the "conspiracy" that's going on but you'll have to wait until Chapter 7 for all the juicy details.
Enjoy!
Chapter 6. The Laptop
"Kari." A high voice sounded but no one answered it. It tried again as if the fate of the world depended on being heard, "Kari!"
"What!" Kari said bounding out of bed in fright. She wildly looked around the dark room for the source of the sound but saw nothing but eerie shadows. It was the time of the day in which no one or no thing should be awake.
"Over here." The voice said again and Kari looked worriedly at her half opened laptop. She touched the mouse and the image that immediately appeared was that of her best friend; a happy sight indeed.
"Gatomon! Is that really you?"
"How many other talking cats who know how to work a computer have you met?" Gatomon responded sassily.
"But how?"
"I haven't got time to explain." Gatomon spoke fast and her tone reestablished Kari's fright, "I can only tell you that something weird is going on here. I don't know what it is but I'm scared."
"What?" Kari said in horror. "What should I do?"
"An old friend helped me wire this computer to talk to you. Try getting Izzy or someone to reconfigure the connection. I think we'll need the digidestineds again." Gatomon's head snapped around as if a loud sound boomed behind her. "I've got to go."
"Wait! Gatomon." Kari yelled to stop her as the computer screen began to fuzz.
"What is it?"
"Have you...have you seen Tk?"
Even through the pixilated screen Kari could tell Gatomon wore a confused expression, "No, not since I saw you ages ago."
"Ok." Kari was disappointed but Gatomon continued.
"I also haven't seen Patamon in years."
"Wait, what?" Kari shouted but the screen fuzzed so much she couldn't make out what Gatomon said next. A moment later everything went black.
"No." Kari said with a defeated sigh, "No."
"Wait, wait. Explain that one more time." Izzy said with his eyes furrowed, elbows on knees, and fingers tapping against each other.
"I said it a dozen already." Kari said.
"Humor me."
Kari sighed again.
"C'mon Kari," Tai began seriously, "you just told us that Gatomon talked to you through your computer after several years without any contact. Given your emotional state last night you can't blame us for doubting you."
"Yes, I can blame you. I'm telling the truth." She paused to calm herself, "Gatomon told me that you might be able to use my computer to get to the digital world." Kari pushed her laptop across the table to Izzy. He and Tai eyed it suspiciously, "Just try it."
Tai nodded his head, "It's worth a try."
"And what if it doesn't work?" Izzy said logically. "Can you really handle that disappointment, Kari?"
Kari had never though about what would happen if Izzy failed and she didn't want to start now. She would gamble on both Izzy and her emotions. "I can handle anything."
"Fine." Izzy said while opening the computer, "But don't forget you said that."
The constant tapping of Izzy's fast fingers on the keyboard continued for many minutes. Kari couldn't stay still and had resorted to pacing around Izzy's living room; Tai watched her with worry. Only when Izzy finally spoke was either sibling free to breath.
"I found some record of a virus entering your computer around midnight. Well, it's not exactly a virus - perhaps just an odd form of hacking."
"That's good, right?" Kari asked happily, "You can figure out how Gatomon did it."
"I don't know, I need time." Izzy said distracted, "And Ken. He might know more about this hacking given his history with the digital world."
Tai wasted no time in calling the other genius. Ken agreed, quite excitedly, to get over to the apartment as fast as he could. In the meantime, Izzy continued typing and Tai and Kari moved towards the kitchen to give him space as he worked.
"There's more isn't there?" Tai asked and Kari was so surprised that she didn't notice her mouth drop open.
"How did you know?"
"The odd timing given last night's meeting, your emotional break down, and, let's face it, your total inability to lie." Tai talked with so much logic that Kari would have been impressed if not otherwise distracted.
"Yes, I asked Gatomon about Tk." Kari said softly.
"And?"
"She hasn't seen him since our last contact with the digital world."
"And what's unsettling about that?" Tai asked confused.
"No, that's normal. What's strange is that she hasn't seen Patamon in years."
"Years?" Tai repeated, "I though the digimon kept in contact with each other? Why would Patamon be gone for so long?"
Kari sighed, "And now Tk's gone, too. Something must be happening in the digital world and I'm assuming they're in the middle of it."
Ken and Izzy had been working for four days straight. They'd even called in sick to work because they were so determined to discover the mysteries behind Kari's laptop. Other digidestineds would come and go as they pleased or call to ask if there were any more updates. It seemed that everyone was on edge.
"Is that it...oh, my...I never thought of that..." Ken muttered softly to himself as he hunched over a piece of paper at the table. His eyes were dark and his hair was greasy from general neglect. While Izzy worked on writing codes on the computer he was theorizing a mathematical formula that would deconstructed the digital code Gatomon used into one that would work in reverse.
"What did you come up with?" Izzy turned to face his friend. His eyes and hair had the same neglect if not worse.
"I was thinking of the data in a two demential framework but the digital world is three dimensional like us. With that taken into consideration the variables shift up a denomination."
"Let me see." Izzy took the scribbled paper away from Ken and began typing. As each finger hit the keyboard his face seemed to lift as he understood Ken's sudden enlightenment. "Prodigious! This could definitely work. Given the code I've already completed and Gatomon's own code I think we'll be able to create a...a..."
"A what?" Kari was the one that spoke. Ken and Izzy were the ones that had been working for the last four days but she had never left their side. She was making sure they ate and got at least a little bit of sleep. It was the least she could do to help; plus, she didn't want to leave in case they discovered something.
Kari leaned over to view the computer screen and saw the nostalgic portal to the digital world, "Oh my."
"It's the digigate." Ken said in shock, "We actually did it."
"But does it work?" Izzy's entire body was motionless as he stared at the screen.
However, Kari was not still. She wasn't even rational enough to think about calling the others. She simply help her old digivice towards the gate and shouted, "Digiport open!"
It was another nostalgic feeling to be taken up in the digital whirlwind and then dumped into a pile in the digital world. In fact, sorting themselves out and untangling limbs was actually a pleasure for Ken, Izzy, and Kari.
"We're here. I can't believe we're here." Kari said looking around happily. She half expected Gatomon to come bounding up to her at any moment.
"Where exactly is here?" Ken said more skeptically. The terrain was rough and more dingy than he remembered seeing in the digital world except on a battlefield.
"If I'm not mistaken," Izzy said with his hand to his forehead in thought, "I thought I saw a map of File Island before Kari opened the gate." The way he phrased the last part of his statement made Kari cringe a bit. She knew that he didn't approve of her impulsive decision to come to the digital world.
"That makes sense," Ken said pointing into the distance, "that could be infinity mountain."
"Prodigious. We can start heading in that direction and I'm sure we'll come across the Yokomon village or maybe primary village. Someone might know what's going on."
"She's here." As the woman turned away from the window of the highest tower of the stone castle her raven hair glistened in the evening light.
"It's too soon," a man responded, "she won't understand what's going on."
"She'll have to try." A second man said while putting his hand on the first's shoulder, "Tk, we need her."
"I know that in my brain, Willis, but my heart won't listen." Tk brushing away Willis's hand.
"Make it listen." The woman, Cory, said while walking past both blonds. Her voice was grave and troubled, "If we fail there will be nothing left."
"And what about the other digidestineds?" Tk asked. Though there was supposed to be an equal partnership between the three of them he always felt that Cory was in charge. She was, after all, the one that had pulled both her and Willis into the digital world.
"Your friends from Tokyo, even if they are the originals, are little different from the other digidestineds that we have sent home. We can't have them here to muck up our plans or confuse Kari. This choice is her own." Cory turned back towards the window as she questioned their next move.
"What are you thinking?" Willis asked. He worried about the furrow in between her eyebrows.
"I'm wondering what will cause less trouble: sending the others home directly or explaining it to them."
"Let me tell them off." Tk said boldly.
"Won't that be painful?" Willis's concern now switched to Tk.
"Yes, but I feel like I owe it to them."
"Do what you must; we'll be waiting for your signal." Cory turned and gave Tk a rare smile, "Don't let them break your heart."
Tk nodded and descended the tower. He picked up Patamon from where he was playing with the other digimon and then headed towards the forest.
I promise lots of juicy details and explanations in the next chapter. Review for faster updates...and to put a smile on my face.