Digimon Reboot

by Kenliano

Cal Lynn and 3 other human children are torn from their world by an unknown force and pulled into the Digital World. Each partnered with a newly hatched digimon, the children are confused, and no one seems to know who brought them there, or why. But there must be a reason. And Cal and the others are determined to find out.

3. Chapter 2: A Wolf and His Cubs

p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""It's okay, small one, you're safe now."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"The voice was directed at Ari. That got her to stop screaming. It was a deep voice that sounded, somehow, both rough as gravel and smooth as river stones. And it came from none other than the grey and black canine monster. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"She'd stopped screaming, but still she whimpered, and shivered. Babbu, on the other hand, had calmed beside her, looking with eager dark eyes at the huge wolf head that hung before them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""I am AkelaGarurumon," he continued, addressing not just Ari now, but all of them. "That Mikemon—" he pronounced it like emmih-keh-mon/em "—is gone now. A newly evolved upstart hoping to get more power by preying on the weak, no doubt." He shook his huge head. "She won't be bothering you anymore." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Cal took a quick look over his shoulder and saw the feline still running away in defeat, limping, yet still moving at blinding speed. It was Ari pressing herself closer to him that brought his attention back to the wolf. The older, blonde girl, and the other boy, who looked Indian close up, had both fallen on their butts and looked up with wide eyes at the huge creature before them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""I congratulate you children on your bravery for protecting these babies. How strange to meet emeight/em digimon whose kinds I don't know. What sort of digimon are you?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"He looked from face to face. It was hard to believe that only moments before he had been locked in fierce battle with teeth bared, snarling like a vicious beast. There was no hint of a wound or other damage on him. His black and grey fur – striped like a zebra's – wasn't even ruffled. His red eyes had grown almost gentle. He still stood impressively tall at about a storey and a half, though./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""You don't need to be afraid of me. I won't hurt you. What sort of digimon are you? You don't seem suited to this environment at all."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"It was the Indian boy who answered first. He sounded British. "We're not… that," he managed to say with a slightly trembling voice. "We're human."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""emHu/emmon?" AkelaGarurumon said, tilting his head to the left almost like a curious oversized puppy. "I've never heard of emthat/em kind of digimon before."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Then Cal spoke up. He hoped showing that (or, rather, pretending) he was not afraid that would calm Ari, whom he still held with his right arm, with Babbu in his left. "Not humon. emHuman/em. Human beings." He took a steadying breath." Where are we, Akela…?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"And it was then that Cal recognised that name. It was from a story he'd read as a child, and from that movie, emThe Jungle Book/em. Akela, leader of the wolf pack that adopted Mowgli…/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""AkelaGarurumon," the wolf creature corrected softly. "And is it not obvious? You are on the largest grassland in the world, the Gigabyte Savannah. Well, the edge of it, near Pixel Forest." He pointed with his broad snout towards the forest of satellite-trees. Then, his eyes, narrowed, as he said, "Human, you say…? emNot/em digimon?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""No," the tall girl answered. "I don't know about everyone else, but I've never heard of Gigabyte Savannah or Pixel Forest. Those sound like…" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""Computer stuff," Ari finished for her, albeit faintly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Good/span/emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;", Cal She's recovering./em He looked around at the other We all are/em./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""Computer…?" AkelaGarurumon settled himself down on his belly as his eyebrow furrowed. "Human beings… Computer…" he repeated. "You say things I don't understand. You speak, you have intelligence. emEverything/em that speaks is a digimon. If you're not, then… /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""What are you?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Cal pushed Ari gently to the side and got to his feet. Even as he stood, he still had to look up to see into AkelaGarurumon's eyes, a good foot or more above his./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""I think we come from another world. My name is Cal Lynn. I was swimming through a river on my way to summer school when I found myself… I don't know, feeling weird. And then, I was here. And this little thing—" he indicated Babbu by lifting it slightly "—came to me out of the water, along with this." He showed him the digital pet thing, which was securely fastened to a belt loop of his khaki three-quarter pants. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Cal suddenly realised he should probably explain something for the sake of the other humans. "My school's on the other side of a river," he told them. "I sometimes swim across for exercise, instead of walking all the way to the bridge." Ashwin and Kyndal's faces showed understanding, and Cal found himself smiling at their previous confusion. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"The digimon, however, for surely that's what he was, was concerned with other things. He considered what Cal had said for a while, staring over the humans' heads at nothing. Finally, he said, "Another world… It sounds impossible. But you're here. You don't look or smell like any digimon I've ever met. What other explanation emis/em there?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"He turned his gaze to them. "And so what are emyour/em names?" he asked the rest of them before muttering to himself, "Human, not huemmon/em…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""Kyndal Todd," the tall blonde girl said. Her creature's tail twitched as it made a content little gurgling sound. She crossed her legs beneath her so she was more comfortable. She had an accent Cal couldn't place, but it sounded familiar, another he'd heard on TV. She held a digital toy thing like Cal's, red where Cal's was blue./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""Ashwin. Ashwin Grant," the Indian boy said. His silver baby creature looked like a simple ball of fur with round black eyes. He had a toy, too, at the end of a short chain that hung from his belt. His was white and grey./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""I'm Ari Hamal," said Ari behind Cal. He turned and saw for the first time that she had a corner of a yellow digital pet-like toy sticking out of her pants pocket. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"AkelaGarurumon nodded his great head, looking as if he was still considering everything. "And I don't suppose you know the names of the little digimon you each carry. Because though digimon you all may not be, emthey/em definitely are."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Cal and the others exchanged looks. Each in turn shook his or her head. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""This is indeed strange," AkelaGarurumon told them. "A digimon knows the name of just about every other species of digimon he meets. We learn them as we grow up. It is very rare that an adult happen upon another digimon without knowing at least emthat/em. It's part of our culture, almost a matter of pride." His expression was grave. That was clear, even though he wasn't human. "I am the caregiver of babies in this area. I find them, take them to safety, and nurture them. And in all the years I've been in this line of work, I've never met a baby who I couldn't identify. Never./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;" "But here, there are emfour/em, hatched on the same day, moments apart, embefore/em I could find their digieggs, and I don't know what they are."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"It was strange seeing such a fierce-looking monster looking so bewildered. Cal looked down at Babbu. emYou don't even know what's going on, do you?/em he thought. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"As if in response, it asked him, "Babbu?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;" "I hope you don't mind my saying so, since strength is yet another thing we digimon pride ourselves on, but you are not strong enough to be safe out here. The savannah is a dangerous place, and that's why I'm stationed close-by. To find and protect any digieggs I find here. You should come with me." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"After that run-in with Mikemon, none of the humans had any objections. They had more pressing concerns than pride./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; line-height: 200%;" align="center"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"***/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"They followed AkelaGarurumon for at least half an hour. He took them into the forest, assuring them that they would be safe with him. With two humans on each side, his ears kept shifting, as if listening for any danger. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"They were mostly silent, but as they walked under in the shadow of the satellite-tree crowns, AkelaGarurumon asked, "How did you… human beings, you said? How did you find these baby digimon?/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"Kyndal spoke first. "When I came into this world, there was a fire near me. An egg just… came out of it, and out came emthis/em little bundle of joy."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""Fire?!" AkelaGarurumon stopped and turned to her. "Is it still burning?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""No, no," Kyndal answered quickly. "It… fizzled out somehow."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"AkelaGarurumon's chest visibly heaved as he breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. Fires are a huge problem on the savannah, and the dry season's almost here. And you, Ashwin?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""The egg came out of the ground. It was the strangest thing." /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;"AkelaGarurumon turned his head to the right, where Ari and Cal walked. "And you, small one?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""The egg was just… floating in the air when I woke up," she said. She was holding on to Cal's hand as they walked. He wondered if the desire to protect her was what it was like to have a younger sister./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;""A digimon's code is born from the world around it," said AkelaGarurumon as he faced forward once again/spanspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;", and a twig snapped beneath his huge paw/spanspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM;". "When was young, I was told that my digiegg was compiled from the rock on top of a cliff under a full moon./spanspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;" That's why I've wondered for a long time if I'd evolve into WereGerurumon…" His voice trailed off. Cal could have sworn he saw the beginnings of a smile at the corner of that huge mouth./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Anyway, the mystery here is why these digimon seem to have come to being in response to each of you coming into this world," continued AkelaGarurumon when he pulled himself out of his silence. "Someone or something brought or sent you here… And I imagine you want to go back home."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Wait," Cal heard Kyndal say. They all stopped moving, and AkelaGarurumon cast his crimson gaze her way, away from Cal and Ari./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"She walked slowly towards a tree a few feet away from them. It was only then that Cal realised that some trees had thin vines hanging from them, or wrapped around their trunks. Kyndal reached for one of the vines./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Don't you see?" she asked when she turned towards the group. "Ashwin, hold my… digimon for a while."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"He obeyed, and they all looked at her curiously. AkelaGarurumon sat on his haunches. Kyndal took a white smartphone out of her pocket. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Oh. I forgot…" Then, her eyes widened when she pressed a button on the side of her phone. "Wow! We waded through emwater/em, and my phone still works!" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Why wouldn't it?" asked AkelaGarurumon. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Electronics and water aren't exactly friends in emour/em world," she answered./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Elec… Okay. That wasn't what you wanted to show us, is it?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;" "No," said Kyndal as she raised her phone and the green-brown vine in opposite hands. "emThis/em is." And then, she did something unexpected./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Cal gasped. And heard Ashwin and Ari let out small cries of surprise. The vine, which hung from a satellite-tree at least twice as tall as AkelaGarurumon had a strangely shaped tip. But that isn't what surprised everyone. What did was that it had fit perfectly into the USB slot of Kyndal's phone. And the phone lit up as if it were charging./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"It was then that Cal decided to look around at these vines. Some had tips that looked like perfect fits for the USB ports of a computer. Some looked like they might fit the HDMI slot of a TV. Others were shaped like they'd fit where his headphones would plug into his iPod./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"All of them resembled the kind things you would expect to plug into some electronic device or other./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Where the hell are we?" Cal blurted out. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Kyndal looked at him squarely in the eye and said, "I think… we're in some kind of computer world."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Actually," said AkelaGarurumon, "we called this place the emDigital/em World."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; line-height: 200%;" align="center"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"***/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"They got to their destination soon after that. The humans were all still somewhat jarred by the revelation of the nature of the world they were in. Digital. The vegetation was some sort of parody of the electronic devices they knew in their own world, only… alive./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"What's next?/span/emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;" Cal thought. emSnakes made out of power cables?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""We're here," AkelaGarurumon said suddenly. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Here?" Cal said, squeezing Ari's hand gently. There didn't seem to be anything different about this place than anywhere else in the forest that they'd passed. Trees surrounded them still. There was nowhere they could go./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Here," repeated AkelaGarurumon. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"And a vertical line of light appeared before them, making Ari start and Ashwin cry out, "Bloody hell!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The line quickly grew into a rectangle tall enough for the wolf digimon to walk through. And they saw it was a doorway that bathed them in light. Inside was a colourful place with a large satellite-tree at the centre. The walls were covered with geometric patterns and shapes of all sizes and hues. On the floor were rows and rows of what could only be cribs: silver, wineglass-shaped structures that had soft beds, and bars so the tiny cooing, babbling or crying creature inside each would not fall out. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Babies, just like the ones that Cal and his new companions carried with them. The babies were so diverse that Cal could hardly believe there were so many kinds. There might easily have been hundreds of them, very few of which resembled each other. And there were eggs, too. They rested on the tiled floor, in gaps in the rows of cribs. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"It was a nursery, Cal realised. How could one creature take care of so many tiny babies? /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""This is where I care for the young ones I find," AkelaGarurumon said. "It's a program I inherited, and so I'm the only digimon older than a baby allowed inside. In order to protect the digieggs and babies. In all honesty, though…" He paused. "Well, I can only guess that since you are not digimon, it might just allow you to enter./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""If you can, you'll be safe here. But if not, you will have to wait outside while I take your baby digimon inside and try to edit the program so it allows you humans in."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Program. This really /span/emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"isem a computer world/em, Cal thought. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The idea of being left without the protection of the hulking wolf was not very enticing. He looked around to the others, and knew they had the same thought. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Well? Aren't you going to try to go in?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Ari stepped forward, gently pulling Cal with her. Babbu made a small noise as they moved towards the brightly coloured chamber. Cal felt himself holding his breath as Ari pulled him out across the threshold. Cal half expected to feel a similar strange sensation to when he had originally gone into the Digital World. Some feeling of… change./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"But there was nothing. It was like passing through any door. The dirt gave way to hard white tiles, and they were inside. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Good," said AkelaGarurumon behind them, clearly relieved. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Cal and Ari turned and watched Ashwin and Kyndal step inside. Then, they all made way for AkelaGarurumon to enter, too, and the doorway vanished as quickly as it appeared./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Hold on a moment," the wolf digimon said. "It's feeding time." Then, there was movement atop the tree. Dozens of dark, translucent canine figures jumped from the green dish, which faced a large ball of light floating far above it, where Cal assumed there might be a ceiling hiding behind some white foggy light. The figures looked like AkelaGarurumon but smaller by about half. Each carried a white object in its snout and headed to a crib, where it dropped the white ball before the baby digimon before heading back for more./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""A milkfruit tree," AkelaGarurumon explained, probably seeing the bewildered expressions of Cal and the others. "It bears fruit all year round. A special tree. Every single Nursery in the world has one."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""What are these?" Ari asked, releasing Cal's hand and pointing to one of the shadowy wolves as it bounded past her. "Are they digimon, too?" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""No. They're part of the program. Projections of me to help me take care of all these little ones. A useful addition, if I do say so myself. It's a modification I made soon after I took on this role. Most Nurseries have a lot more digimon to provide care. But here… it's just me./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Now, if you'll follow me," he said, turning to his right, "I think the first order of business is to find the names of your little ones. That, at least is a question we can answer."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Babbu was getting excited, making noises and fidgeting as the shadow wolves trotted past. Ari stepped forward first, and Cal followed, with Kyndal and Ashwin behind them. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"AkelaGarurumon stopped next to the long white shelf or table that projected out from the wall. On it were about ten pillows, each big enough for a baby digimon to rest on comfortably. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""This part of the Nursery program hasn't been used in a long time," said AkelaGarurumon. "Just rest your babies on the pillows, and the program will do the rest."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Cal looked down at Babbu. This would be the second time since he'd found it that he'd not be in contact with it. He put it down first when he changed out of his swim trunks and into his dry clothes. But for some reason, being in this strange place, apparently eminside/em a computer program, made him feel wary of letting it go again. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"He should feel Babbu was safe in the Nursery. He'd no proof that AkelaGarurumon wanted to hurt them. But… he still had a bad feeling./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""We still should do this, shouldn't we?" he muttered to Babbu. "We have to do emsomething/em." And so, he stepped away from Ari, and towards the table. Babbu wiggled a bit in his hand as he rested it on the nearest pillow. And as he let go, something popped into being above it that made him jump back and nearly bump into Ari; a strange string of angular symbols./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""What the hell is emthat/em?!" Cal yelled./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"AkelaGarurumon looked to him with that head-tilting-to-the-side expression. "I'm guessing you can't read it?" He looked towards each of the children and saw the confusion on their faces before looking back to Cal. "It's your digimon's name. Bubblemon. Are all human beings illiterate in your world?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Wait just a blooming minute!" Ashwin exclaimed. "emI/em can read emEnglish/em just fine! Just not whatever emthat/em is!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Ari chuckled behind Cal, which made him smile a bit himself. Babbu, or rather Bubblemon, gurgled, joining the chorus of baby noises all around them./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Hmm…" AkelaGarurumon's brow furrowed. "That emis/em English. You'll have to be sure to show me how English DigiCode is written in your world." He walked up to the tiny blue digimon and nudged it with his black snout. "Hello, Bubblemon. Welcome to the world."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Babbu closed its eyes made a noise that was clearly a giggle. Then, AkelaGarurumon turned an expectant face towards the rest of the humans. Cal picked up Babbu, and walked away from the table as Ashwin stepped forward with his silver baby digimon. Above its head floated the DigiCode word which AkelaGarurumon translated as Arjemon./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Kyndal's was next: Wagmon. And finally, Ari's digimon, Alefmon./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"When each baby was back in the arms of its human, the last of AkelaGarurumon's shadows vanished had just vanished back into the dish of the satellite-tree, except for one. It stopped before Cal and the others, dropping a branch of pearly white fruits the size of baseballs before running off between rows of cribs and jumping at least three storeys to its resting place atop the tree. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The baby digimon were silent in their cribs as they fed. AkelaGarurumon nodded to the branch on the floor, and Cal knew what he expected them to do. Each human picked up a fruit, which was came off the branch easily at their touch. It was soft, as if it was made of some liquid so viscous that it kept its spherical shape. Cal put the while ball to Bubblemon's mouth and watched as some instinct took over and it started sucking on the ball. Ari and the others did the same, giving their baby digimon their first meals./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""There's something you should know," AkelaGarurumon said, as he lay down, keeping his head upright. "The Name Bed does not only tell me the name of your digimon. It sends the caregiver a full diagnostic. Your babies hatched less than an hour ago, yet they all have the maturity of a digimon who's hatched weeks ago. Yet another surprise."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""What does that mean?" Kyndal asked. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""It means," AkelaGarurumon continued, "your digimon are maturing faster than any other I've ever seen. Before the sun sets tomorrow, they may already have evolved."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Cal spoke up, "Evolve…? What do you mean?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""So much to explain" AkelaGarurumon stood and walked over to where a baby rested, bits of white milkfruit hanging from its mouth. It was red with three round-tipped ear- or horn-like projections on it. "A digimon changes form as it grows. A long time ago, this is what I looked like. I was called Punimon back then, just like him."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"He turned towards the humans and their digimon. "I don't know why you're here, or how you got here, but I think I know how you can find out. You have to go ask the Wizarmon."/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Wizarmon? Weird name/span/emspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;", Cal mused, glancing around at the others to see if they had the same thought. emIt sounds… like 'wizard'…?/em/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Their Order," continued AkelaGarurumon, "has made it their business to know the happenings of the Digital World. They're wise, and in tune to things in a way few others are. If anyone knows why you are here, they do. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""You're free to stay here until you're ready, but I believe they/spanspan style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif; color: #545454; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"—/spanspan lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"He stopped and looked upwards. He suddenly had an expression that looked like extreme terror, even on his canine face. And, soon after, a large noise reverberated through the Nursery. It was like a cross between a boom and a crack. And it was followed by another. And another./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""No," murmured AkelaGarurumon between booming noises. "It can't be!" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The light at the top of the Nursery turned red, and high pitched alarm started going off. Babies started screaming all over. And AkelaGarurumon looked terrified./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""What's going on?" yelled Kyndal. Ari grabbed on to Cal's hand and he pulled her to him./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;" AkelaGarurumon didn't answer. Instead, a voice reached Cal's ears over the scream of the babies (including Babbu and the others) and the alarm. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""AkelaGarurumon! What's going on?"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""The Nursery's in danger! Someone's coming in!" The canine digimon that, less than an hour before, had seemed invincible, had trembling lips and a tail tucked between his legs./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""I'm nearby!" the voice answered. It was an adult female voice. "Ready the babies for transport!" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""I thought you said no other digimon could come in!" Cal shouted. Ari whimpered and trembled against him, and Kyndal and Ashwin's heads flashed around wildly as they tried to find the sourc of the booming noise./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""I thought so, too," AkelaGarurumon said, barely audible in the chaos. He looked like he was in a trance. "emNo one/em is strong enough to break into a Nursery program. No one…"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Akela! What are you doing?! emDo/em something!" Kyndal yelled. She had fallen to her knees, holding her screaming Wagmon against her chest./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Kyndal's call seemed to pull the large digimon out of his stupor. He shook his head as if he'd just come out of water and was flashing it off his fur. Then, he tossed his head back and howled. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The shadow wolves emerged once again. Many, many more this time, at least as many there were babies in the Nursery. Each moved towards a baby digimon, lifting it from its crib with its mouth the way a mother wolf would its cubs, or lifting an egg the same way. Another doorway opened, this one opening into the clear blue sky rather than the darkness of the forest, and the muffled sound of a jet engine filled the room, mingling with the alarm and screams of the babies. The shadow wolves were rushing to the new doorway. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Go! Follow them!" AkelaGarurumon shouted to the humans. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Large cracks started forming on the walls as Cal grabbed Ari's hand and started to run. Suddenly, the doorway darkened as though a room had appeared on the other side of it. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Tell her to take you to the Wizarmon Order," continued AkelaGarurumon. He sounded farther away. Cal realised he was not following them, and Ashwin and Kyndal passed him and Ari as he stopped to look. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"A sudden cracking sound marked the end of the alarm as a large chunk of the wall fell onto the empty cribs beneath it. The wiring of the alarm must have burst. The jet engine's sound filled the room in its place./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Akela! What are you doing! Come on!" shouted Cal./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""No! I've got to keep whoever this is distracted long enough for you to escape! emGo/em!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"Babbu was crying. Ari was pulling on his hand, urging him towards the exit. With a yell of frustration, he gave in, heading after the other two humans. They ran between the rows of empty cribs with shadow wolves passing them with their bawling baby charges in their mouths. The floor shook beneath their feet, and cribs literally shattered into shards of red-tinted silver light all around them. /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The last of the shadows moved through the doorway when he and Ari ran through. When he turned back, the glimpse he saw of the Nursery was unrecognisable. Chunks of wall were scattered all over./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"AkelaGarurumon was nowhere to be seen./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The doorway suddenly closed, shutting the red light away, and Cal fell backwards as the room he was in surged forward with such speed he must have been in some sort of train or other quick-moving vehicle./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"The same female voice sounded in his ears as he tried to get his bearings:/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;""Can someone please tell me what just happened?!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify; text-justify: inter-ideograph; line-height: 200%;"span lang="EN-JM" style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'MS Mincho'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-ansi-language: EN-JM; mso-fareast-language: JA;"And Cal wished more than anything that he knew./span/p