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CHILDREN OF DESTINY

-CHAPTER FOUR-

It seemed like Jijimon had thought of everything. Medical supplies, food, water and even a couple of sleeping bags had managed to fit inside the old leather backpack he had given to Jei for the journey. Veemon too carried a small pack filled with emergency supplies; matches, extra bandages and dry paper to shred into kindling for fires during cold nights. Jei had been ready to go for hours, meanwhile Veemon was still running about the hut going back through Jijimon's checklist to make sure they had everything they needed. However, no one had any idea where Kotemon had gone. Jei had fallen back asleep that morning, not for very long, but long enough for Kotemon to slip away, speaking only to Jijimon before he left.

"Yes, I saw him early this morning" Jijimon had said "It seemed like he wanted to be alone for a while. He feels terrible about what happened".

The old backpack weighed heavily on Jei, it felt like he had a one ton weight strapped to his back the whole time he had been standing there. He finally decided to give his spine a break, but no sooner than he had managed to unstrap the hefty load, Veemon had completed Jijimon's checklist and was ready to go. What else did Jijimon cram into this thing? Jei thought to himself. At this rate, he was sure that his back would snap like a twig long before anything inside the leather pack became useful, so he decided to take one last look through the plentifull supplies to see if there was anything that they could risk leaving behind. Food, water, cloth and-

"What the heck?" Jei said baffled.

Rocks. Actual stone rocks rested in the deepest crevices of the old pack. Jei counted no less than four, each easily the size of Veemon's head.

"Uh, Jijimon" Jei asked "what exactly are these for?".

"Sunning stones!" Jijimon said gleefully "They're for drying your garments in the sunlight after washing them. It's a three day journey you know, you don't want to come back smelling like an Ogremon!".

"Sure..." Jei said pretending accept Jijimon's logic.

As soon as Jijimon wasn't looking, Jei hoisted the heavy stones out of the pack and over the window sill. Ever heard of a clothes line? Jei thought to himself. The pack was much liter now, in fact compared to before it felt like carrying nothing at all.

"Good luck to you both" Jijimon said "You are a brave one Jei, of that I'm sure. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise".

"Thanks for everything Jijimon!" Jei said "We won't let you down!".

"Yeah!" Veemon said "You can count on us!".

Jei reached for the door with Veemon following close behind, both ready to begin the long quest ahead of them, but to his surprise, it creaked open before he even touched the handle and a panting Kotemon stepped inside.

"Kid, you're still here!" Kotemon panted "I'm glad I caught you. I want to come with you!"

"Kotemon-" Jei tried to say.

"I know what you're going to say" Kotemon inturrupted "It's too dangerous, we can handle this, but I travel all of the time, I know the lay of the land and I want to make up for what happened".

"Kotemon!" Jei said trying to get a word in "I just wanted to say, of course you're coming with us!".

"Wait, r-really?" Kotemon said surprised "Even though I almost got you killed by Gabumon and his Gazimon thugs?".

"You saved me Kotemon, thats what counts." Jei said "You even digivolved when I needed you most and it got me thinking. Maybe you're supposed to be my partner?".

"Do you really mean that?" Kotemon asked.

"I mean it!" Jei replied "More than anything!".

Jei could see the tears welling in Kotemon's eyes, as if this was the best moment of his life. Veemon too shed a solitary tear, but not for the same reasons. Jei knew that he was thinking about Shion. He also knew that if their mission was successful, that Shion would surely forgive Veemon, even if he couldn't forgive himself for abandoning her when the digimon started turning.

"Don't worry Veemon" Jei said putting his hand on his shoulder "Like you said, we can do this! We'll get Shion back, and all of the others too!".

It was a long road ahead. Jei had had his doubts when he first arrived, but something about this world and the friends he had made gave him courage. He felt like he could do things he would normally be too scared to do, and with the friend that he had thought lost now within his reach, he was more motivated than ever before. The field over which they had crossed the day before seemed bigger going the other way, though that was likely due to the fact that they walked this time around to conserve their energy. As they reached border where the field ended and the forest began, it was immediately familier to Jei. The forest looked as vast as ever, he was sure that if Veemon had not been there that night, he would have become hopelessly lost among the gnarly winding trees in the darkness. Now, with even the small amount of daylight bleeding through the canopy that there was, it seemed like a completely different place.

The forest became more dense the deeper they went. More than once Jei had gotten the old leather backpack stuck among the branches, trying to squeeze through the tight gaps. Veemon and Kotemon didn't have much trouble making it through, their small size made them perfect for scouting ahead, although Kotemon was pulling further and further away.

"Kotemon!" Jei yelled "Slow down, even Veemon is having trouble keeping up!".

It seemed that Kotemon did not hear Jei's pleas as he continued to push on further until they could only catch glimpses of him between the small gaps in the trees.

"Jei, Jei!" Veemon said in urgently, "I think someone is following us!".

"What?" Jei replied "what are you talking about?".

He to look without breaking his stride for fear of falling further behind Kotemon. There was no one around for miles aside from his two digimon companions, although in this part of the forest, it wouldn't be difficult for a follower to go unnoticed behind the trees.

"I don't see anyone" he said trying to comfort his worried friend "besides, who else but us would be way out here?".

Jei turned his attention forward, being careful not to run face first into any trees. Veemon was practically on top of him nw, sticking as close to him as possible. Kotemon was now nowhere in sight, but Jei could still see his etched into the forest floor like a map.

"Kotemon!" Jei yelled "Come back! You're too far ahead!", but there was no reply.

Kotemon's trail became increasingly sporadic and hard to follow as it went on, and Jei couldn't shake the paranoid feeling that something was wrong. He tried his best to follow in his footsteps, but eventually Kotemon's trail cut off altogether. The tracks ended in a small clearing. Jei looked around frantically, trying in vein to catch a glimpse of where Kotemon could have gone.

"Kotemon!" Jei yelled again "Kotemon!".

There was still no reply. He was about to call out to his friend once more, but something stopped him. Strange noises were coming from beyond the clearing, quiet at first, but growing louder as if something was slithering towards them along the forest floor. Jei jumped as he felt something grab a hold of his leg, wrapping itself painfully tight around him, litely tugging as if trying to draw him closer.

"Let go of my leg Veemon!" Jei said "You're hurting me!".

"Uh, Jei..." Veemon replied "That's not me!".

Jei felt panic strike through him like a shot through the heart. The tugging turned to pulling and Jei had to fight to keep his balance. He looked down to see what was clutching his leg, and was horrified to see what looked like a long piece of black cloth reaching up from the ground.

"W-What the!?" Jei screamed, "What is this!?".

Jei's leg was suddenly yanked out from beneath him, knocking him flat on his face. He felt himself being dragged through the dirt, the cloth creeping up his body making it nearly impossible to unravel.

"Jei!" Veemon yelled running after him.

"Veemon!" Jei yelled back "Help me!".

The cloth became even tighter as it continued to envelop him, pulling his arms to his sides and binding them, eliminating any hope of escape. Jei felt a sudden disorientation as he found himself being hoised up into the air, pain rippling through him in waves as his back was slammed against a nearby tree, the cloth becoming entangled in it's branches and around tying itself firmly the trunk, effectively trapping him. Veemon was immediately by his side, tugging and nawing at the dark material holding Jei captive, but to no avail.

"Well, well human" came a voice from the sky "is this a bad time? You look a bit tied up at the moment!".

That voice Jei thought to himself I know that voice! He looked up to see who or what had spoken to him. His head was still spinning from the impact of the tree, but he could make out the a sillouette of a woman soaring above him, and what looked to be enormous wings spread out over the canopy, cloaking it in a cold shadow that made Jei's skin crawl.

"Is that..." Jei started "An angel?".

"Hardly." the voice responded with a giggle.

Jei's eyes began to focus, and as he began to make out the woman's face, he felt his heart drop like a stone. Pale skin, piercing red eyes, cloaked from head to toe in black. It was the female figure he had encountered in the human world, one of the two cloaked creatures that had tried to kill him.

"It can't be!" Jei exclaimed "How did you find me!?".

"The same way we found you before" the woman said.

The womans suddenly swooped down uncomfortably close to Jei, being near to her sent a shiver up his spine. She reached for Jei's front pocket, the dark cloth that bound him to the tree slithering out of the way as she plucked the digivice from within, the wrapping back around him even tigher than before, practically squeezing the life out of him. She held it up to his face with a mocking grin, and as if he wasn't being tormented enough, he suddenly understood.

"You've been tracking the signal from that thing!" Jei realised.

"Jei!" Veemon yelled, his eyes wide with fear "You've seen her before!?".

"Back in my world, just before I came here." Jei replied "She was one of the two psychos that tried to kill me and steal Shion's digivice! She's a Digimon!?".

"Jei, she's not just a Digimon!" Veemon said looking white as a ghost "Thats LadyDevimon, and If she's here, then-".

Veemon's words were cut short as a second figure lunged from behind the trees sweeping him off his feet and pinning to the ground.

"Veemon!" Jei shouted wishing he could reach out to his friend.

"Every queen of darkness has an equally dark king watching her back" the second figure said in a deep, raspy voice.

"Ah, there you are Devimon!" LadyDevimon giggled "I thought you were going to miss all the fun!"

Veemon struggled against Devimon's grip, staring him directly in the eyes and doing everything in his power to show no fear. Jei could see the sweat running down his face, he was terrified, but he remained level headed, it was a side of him that Jei had never seen before.

"They're the ones who corrupted all those Digimon and turned them against their partners!" Veemon shouted "They're being controlled by the virus!".

Veemon was right. Jei looked straight into LadyDevimon's eyes, they were glazed over and fuzzy, buzzing like static on a television set.

"Controlled is such a strong word" LadyDevimon said "I see it more as a symbiotic relationship. We feed the virus and help it grow, in return we recieve as much power as we can handle!".

"Power to do the virus' dirty work!" Veemon snapped "You're nothing more than puppets on a string! You're pathetic!".

"You worthless little imp!" Devimon shouted, tightening his grip.

Jei could hear Veemon's bones beginning to creak under the pressure, the pain making him squeal and squirm, and he was helpless to do anything to stop it. Without Shion, there was no way Veemon could digivolve, and no way he could defend himself.

"Please stop!" Jei yelled, tears welling in his eyes at the sight of his friend in so much pain "Please, don't hurt him, I'm begging you!".

"Wait, you said you just wanted the digivice!" came another voice "Nobody was supposed to get hurt!"

It was Kotemon. The small armored digimon emerged from the foliage where it seemed as though he had been observing all along and ran out into the middle of the clearing to confront the two enormous Digimon.

"K-Kotemon!?" Veemon stuttered over his agony.

"I say a lot of things." LadyDevimon said smugly "As long as this human is here, he's just as much of a threat as this device"

LadyDevimon's fist tightened around the digivice, crushing it into dust in her palm and releasing it into the breeze where it dissipated into nothing.

"Kotemon, you're working for them!?" Jei shouted hoarsely "I trusted you and you led us into a trap!".

"Of course you trusted him" LadyDevimon said with a devilish grin "everybody trusts a hero, thats why we staged your little encounter with Gabumon".

The tears Jei had tried to hard to fight back now rolled down his face in a constant stream, the feeling of betrayal choking him as if there were a rock in his throat.

"What was in it for you, huh!?" Jei cried "Was it worth selling out your world!?".

"Kid I..." Kotemon started "It's not like that, I just don't want to be a slave!"

"The way I see it you already are!" Jei shouted through his tears "You're just as bad as them!".

"Yes, boo hoo, how very sad for you" LadyDevimon mocked "don't worry, you won't feel that way for long, in fact soon you won't feel anything at all!".

LadyDevimon grabbed Jei around his neck, tearing him out of his cloth bindings and slamming him back against the tree, knocking the wind out of him and sending him into a daze. Her hold on his neck tightened as she began literally choking the life out of him. All he could do now was whimper as he tried to scream, his lungs lacking the capacity to cry out, the world around him becoming blurred and distorted.

"Jei!" Kotemon yelled.

There was a bright blinding light coming from the center of the clearing where Kotemon had been standing. It reached to the sky like a beacon, almost completely swollowing the clearing.

"Kotemon, digivolve to..." Kotemon power growing within him "Dinohymon!".

Dinohyumon emerged from the light, stronger than ever, once again in his powerful reptilian form. Jei felt an overwhelming sense of relief as Dinohyumon tore LadyDevimon off of him, forcing her to release him from her deathgrip. Air filled his lungs as he dropped to the ground gasping. He tried to pull himself to his feet, using the base of the tree he has been bound to as a crutch, but he was too dizzy and confused, barely able to catch himself as he fell to his knees. Devimon leapt into action to aid his female counterpart, tossing Veemon into the air like a ragdoll. There was a horrifying crack as Veemon hit the trunk of a tree at break-neck speed, collapsing to the ground motionless, with no signs of life. Dinoyumon was now trying to fend off both of the enormous Digimon and they were quickly beginning to overpower him.

"Go! Get Veemon and run!" Dinohyumon shouted "I'll buy you as much time as I can!".

Jei scrambled to his feet, managing to keep himself upright for but a short while, only to collapse again beside the motionless Veemon as he stumbled to his side. He got back onto his knees, the battle still raging on behind him and reached under Veemon's head a back, taking him carefully in his arms and trying once more to stand. His legs felt weak and pain shot through ever muscle in his body, but this time he managed to remain on his feet. He stumbled through the forest, unsure of where to run. Only one thing was going through is mind. Gotta get away Jei thought to himself gotta get Veemon someplace safe. It wasn't long before Devimon and LadyDevimon were on his tail.

"Oh Jei, where did you go?" LadyDevimon called "Don't you like this game anymore?".

They hadn't spotted him yet, so there was still a chance that he could escape. He ran as fast as he could through the narrow gaps in the trees, bobbing and weaving, trying to make it as difficult as possible for them to find him. Jei was paying too much attention to what was in front of him and failing to notice what was below him. His foot caught the underside of a root half emerging from the ground, sending him tumbling into the dirt and sending Veemon flying a few feet in front of him. He clambered to his friend's side to check on him, but he was still motionless, and Jei couldn't tell if he was breathing. Devimon's voice sounded close behind him, Jei knew it was only a matter of time before they found him cowering among the trees.

"Meet your end with dignity you pathetic human!" Devimon called after him "You can not escape us!".

Jei had no strength left to run, he barely had the strength to hold himself off the ground. He looked around desperately for something, anything that could help them escape and just when he thought all was lost, he saw it. A small burrow in the ground among the roots of a large tree, just big enough for them to squeeze inside. Jei mustered up the last of his energy, dragging the limp Digimon to the twisted shelter that would be their salvation. Jei pushed Veemon through the tangled roots into the safe haven under the tree, he slipped through easily, but Jei didn't have it so easy. He managed to crawl most of the way in, but his foot became entangled, the roots trapping him like a snare.

"This is getting old real quick kid!" LadyDevimon shouted "It's only a matter of time before you end up like your traitorous friend Kotemon!".

After much struggling, Jei finally managed to pull free of the gnarled roots, sliding the rest of the way in with ease and pulling Veemon to the very back of the shelter where they were most there was the most cover. Devimon and LadyDevimon's voices became louder, he knew they were close. Now, cradling his friend in his arms, there was nothing Jei could do now but wait.