Disclaimer = I don't own Digimon (!)
A/N: I can't believe how long it was since I last wrote a chapter for this story, I hope you enjoy and if you want more chapters, review this chapter :D
Chapter 08
Emma sat Relena down in what really looked like an interrogation room, but every time that Relena asked, Emma said it was nothing.
"Emma, what's going on?" Relena asked shyly.
"Relena!"
There was a thump at the door and through the window, the Norstein girl could see her older brother staring back at her with wide eyes. Something about him was different, but Relena just couldn't put her finger on it.
"Emma, open the door!" he demanded.
Emma shook her head, "Thomas, you know that by following protocol- she isn't allowed contact with anyone other than the most superior officer. You do know the new policies and protocols, don't you? Things have changed since you last worked for DATS."
Thomas cursed before walking away down the corridor, his steady pace caused a slow echo to be heard.
"You've missed out on quite a bit – despite being gone for four days-"
"Four days! No, I've been gone for like- one day at most. It didn't feel like four days, but I may have been out cold for some time. What happened here, Emma?"
"Commander Sampson has been ordered to step down so that myself and Lucas could try out a management position. We've been informed by the governors to review yourself, Keenan Crier, Kristy Naomi Damon, Ryan Benjamin Sampson and – if her parents will allow it – Ruka Minami Crier."
"Why? Why do you need to review us?"
"Whereas in the past, Mr Hashima turned a blind eye to who Sampson allowed into DATS, things are going to be different. Everyone is to be reviewed by Lucas and I – including Spencer Damon, the Criers, the Commander himself and Miki and Megumi."
"Before that, I'm going to need an actual meal. I haven't even eaten anything recently and I'm feeling incredibly hungry."
"Sure thing. You just sit tight. I'll be back in a second with something for you to eat." Emma stood up and headed out the room.
Relena was sure that she heard a sudden click of a metal lock sliding across the door, totally trapping her in the interrogation room.
For a moment, Relena sat quietly at the chair, looking calmly at her reflection in the mirror directly opposite her. Her eyes grew wider when the reflection stood up. Disbelief became painted across Relena's face like a red streak on a black canvas. The reflection walked around the table with a finger rubbing along its surface. Something about the reflection – despite it moving – had intrigued Relena. It was the way their eyes looked. By the time Relena realised that, she could see there were dark rings around her 'reflection's' eyes.
"What are you?" Relena mumbled, lifting her hand up to the mirror, much unlike her 'reflection'.
The 'reflection's' hand shot out- out of the mirror and grabbed Relena's wrist. Its grip was so strong and tight, even their nails dug into her skin. Frightened for her life, Relena tried to pull her wrist away.
"Let go of me!" she squealed in an incredibly high pitch, tugging at her wrist with her free hand.
Her wrist was yanked so hard that Relena thought it could have been broken, but fortunately, she didn't hear a snapping sound. Relena flew through the mirror which instantly rippled like a droplet of water.
Now. Now, she was in a dark area – so dark that no walls could be seen. All that Relena could see was a suspended, rectangular pane which looked into the room that was the one that Relena had been sitting in no ten seconds ago.
The 'reflection' stared at Relena with dark and slightly red eyes, giving her a mischievous look.
"What are you going to do? Relena asked as she picked herself up off the floor.
The 'reflection' leapt through the mirror and took a seat in the chair – just as Relena had done so before she had been pulled through the mirror.
"No! Come back – you can't be me!" Relena's fist thumped the mirror as the door opened and Emma walked in with a glass of water.
The 'reflection' shook her head, smiling all the more. Emma gave the reflection a weird look before putting the glass down on the table.
"Emma! Emma?!" Relena yelled. "She's not me!"
Unfortunately, Emma didn't bat an eyelid. Instead, she opened the door and let Thomas walk in slowly
"No Thomas, please…" Relena whimpered. "No!" she exclaimed brutally as the 'reflection' embraced Thomas.
Relena was sure that the 'reflection' gave her a sly, sneaky but nasty looking grin which sent a shiver down her spine.
"I'm in here, Tommy… That's not me…" she whispered helplessly, with her hand plastered to the mirror.
"Relena!" a girl called out from behind Relena in this dark area.
"Come with us. We're here to get you out!" A boy took Relena and the girl's hand and pulled them away from the rectangular pane.
Suddenly, Relena was standing on the roof of the DATS building.
"What the-? Where am I? And who are you?" Relena turned to look at the boy and girl who had technically just saved her. Although where she was standing looked like the human world, it certainly wasn't – or at least it didn't feel like it.
"I'm Kaiya, and the boy who is about to jump off the roof is Daichi." Kaiya held her hand out to Relend. "We're here to help the human world from the Seven Deadly Sins."
Relena shook Kaiya's hand and squeezed it sharply as Daichi jumped off the roof – despite being told about him.
"Don't worry – he's a free runner and he's done it since he was twelve." Kaiya started to laugh. "This, this is a parallel world, Relena. It is neither the human world, or the Digital world- it's like a vice world…"
"Vice world – of the human world?" Relena asked, beginning to feel the chilly wind.
"Yes, you remember all those years ago that there was a Digimon encounter – the sleeping Digimon called Belphemon. He is claimed to be the Digimon that represents the sin of sloth. One of the seven vices if you paid attention to religious studies. Now, Daichi and I have received word from Azulongmon that dark times are coming. Where you were, was a bad place we could only get to by travelling to this world – the vice world."
"Vice world, why do I have the feeling that you're not telling me everything?" Relena scanned the horizon.
The giveaway was the additional buildings that were in the area that Relena didn't recognise amongst ones she did understand. Then, the bridge leading out of town had completely collapsed and half of it was still in the river below. In the distance, she could also see some smoke billowing into the clouds.
"I'm sorry, but I need to ask, is this the future?"
Kaiya blinked rapidly, slightly astonished at Relena's curiosity. She began to run a hair through her ponytail. "Relena, that was something I didn't want to say- but you've asked now. This is the human world, one year from now."
"One year!" Relena exclaimed with a hand across her mouth. "It can't be."
"But we can change this, if we make a change – if we do something now," Kaiya replied boldly. Deep down, Kaiya knew that she was special, just like Relena and Daichi were, but she hadn't managed to tell them, or try and break the news to them.
"What do you know, Kaiya?" Relena asked, knowing all too well that Kaiya knew more than she was letting on.
"Renamon found us, she never stopped searching for you- even though you were only gone a week. Time runs differently in the human and Digital world. The Digimon aren't going to stop fighting. My Lopmon, and Daichi's Terriermon want to do something to help us save the Digital world."
"You two have Digimon?"
"Well yeah, how do you think we knew about this world? But do you know anyone else with a Digimon?"
"There's this skater guy in my year called Ryan Sampson who has a Dracomon. My best friend's little sister has got a Labramon now. And my two best friends – Kristy and Keenan – they used to have to Digimon called Biyomon and Falcomon. I suppose they could help, but their Digimon are in the Digital World." Relena wiped a tear that was on her cheek. "I want to go home…" Being at home a while ago made it clearer that she want to be at home.
"I'm sorry Relena, but you can't do that. When the reflection exists in the human world, you can't go there. It's like the whole sci-fi thing- if you saw yourself after time travelling, the world would just collapse around you."
"But that reflection isn't me," Relena whispered, feeling a little overwhelmed. "So what happens now?"
"Now, you and I will wait. Daichi is sourcing out a way out of this future world. He's going to try and stop your reflection and bring it here as we go out. Like a revolving door."
"Sounds like a plan," Relena mumbled, wondering whether Thomas knew that the reflection was not the real Relena Norstein, "So you and Daichi-"
"Yeah, we're sort of on and off at the moment. I guess I'm just one of the more patient of us both. Not to mention I may have forgiven him one too many times…"
Thoughts from AspiringWriterGirl = Another incredibly delayed update, oh well, let me know what you think. By the way, I'm currently looking for a beta to check over this story and help me out – if you are interested, or can recommend any betas! :D