Intertwined Destinies
Previously in Intertwined Destinies:
Eight children have appeared in the Digital World, seven who have a partner and one who has memories of the Digital World from her childhood. This child is Jade Potter. Together the group of eight humans and seven digimon (Digital Monsters) explore the island they arrived on, slowly making their way to the mountain in the middle, Infinity Mountain. One of the many dangers they come across is the Black Gears, evil discs that can make good digimon into dark digimon. After arriving on Infinity Mountain the group meet Devimon and are subsequently separated. Alone and adrift, the children all make their way back to their friends. Tai and Matt have found each other, as has Mimi and Izzy. Protecting them from harm is the fabled Sovereign, protector of all digimon. It is revealed that Jade has been to the Digital World before and was once the Sovereign, though how that came to be is still a mystery.
Devimon has been defeated, but at a cost. Angemon was deleted, having used up too much of his power, but the Sovereign - Phoenixmon - was able to gather his data and recreate him as a digi-egg. And now, moments before the children were to search for Jade, who is still missing, a strange man has appeared claiming to be Gennai...
Chapter 9: Across the Ocean
Tai's eyes widened as the old man introduced himself. He must have made a sound as well for everyone turned to look at him in curiosity. Sora and Matt were the only two who figured out the reason for Tai's reaction, and looked back to Gennai to try and link him to the Gennai in Jade's dreams.
"You're the man who saved Jade, aren't you?" Tai asked. "When she was six?"
"Ah, she told you about me then?" Gennai asked. "Such a sweet kid, is she not with you at the moment?"
"No, she's further up the mountain and we were about to grab her when you popped up," Tai replied. "So you are the same Gennai?"
"I can't believe it," Sora stated. "There are actually other humans besides us in this world."
"I am human," Gennai told her, his eyes turning so that he was looking right at her and ignoring Tai's question. "And yet, I am not human."
"This is confusing," Mimi muttered. Gennai looked at her quickly before his eyes rested again on Tai. Tai stared back, slightly nervous under the old man's gaze, before thinking back on what Jade had written to him.
"You were human though," he said. "But something happened that changed you?"
"Very good," Gennai praised. "I would expect nothing less from the digidestined. You must be strong as well, to have defeated Devimon. As you now know, I am Gennai. I couldn't send this transmission during your battle with Devimon, but now the lines are clear and only ten cents a minute."
"Where are you?" Izzy asked curiously. "And why haven't we seen you before? Are there others like you around?"
"I am speaking to you from far away from File Island, across the ocean on the continent of Sever. You have never seen me before because File Island has been in a dark zone of non-communication since Devimon took over. Nothing could get in, and nothing could get out. There are others like me around the Digital World; it is too big a place for just me to oversee."
"Talk about a long distance call," Sora mused. "How long have you been here?"
"Since before the beginning, and until after the end," was the cryptic response.
"Are you the one who got us stuck here in the Digital World?" Mimi asked. "Or was it one of your friends?"
"It was not I."
"Then who was it?" Mimi asked again.
"It was…" Gennai began, trailing off thoughtfully. "I don't know."
"But Mr Gennai sir, do you know what we need to do so that we can all get back home again?" TK asked hopefully, his arms wrapped tightly around his egg.
"No, I don't."
"Boy, you're a regular fountain of information aren't you?" Tai muttered. "Jade used to say that you had answers for everything."
"I'm sorry I can't help you," Gennai told him, sincere in his regret. "But you can be of help to me."
"How?" the reply was a mixture of wariness, excitement and reluctance. All they wanted to do was go home, but apparently they wouldn't be able to do so anytime soon.
"Please come to Sever and defeat our enemy. As the digidestined I have faith in all of you."
"That's crazy when we don't know your exact location," Izzy said, already shaking his head.
"Good point, I forgot you're from out of town. Let me create a map for you on your computer."
"What if you're enemies are humungazoid?" Joe mused with a hint of panic in his voice. Izzy looked over his shoulder at his laptop with a thoughtful frown on his face. "Do you think we can beat anything tougher than Devimon?"
"Not presently," Gennai told him. "But if your digimon can digivolve once more you might be able to do it."
"So we can digivolve even more?" Agumon asked excitedly. Gennai nodded slowly.
"But you'll need something special to do it," Gennai's image faded and a picture of a necklace and a crest appeared. "If you have the tags and crests, your digimon will be able to digivolve even further."
"Please tell us where we can find these tags and crests," Gabumon requested with stars in his eyes.
"Well, the crests are scattered about, you can locate them throughout the continent of Sever. And the tags were secretly sealed away somewhere by Devimon."
"Great," Tai muttered again. "I'm going to look for Jade, this is a waste of time."
"Does she remember anything?" Gennai asked to his retreating back. Tai paused and looked over his shoulder.
"No, but it's only a matter of time. Phoenixmon was clear about that."
"Phoenixmon?" Gennai repeated, his eyes going wide. "You must get her to Server as soon as you can. She isn't safe on File Island anymore. In fact, you must get off File Island as soon as you can as well. With the communication blackout lifted He will be there soon and you are not ready to face Him."
At that moment the transmission started to collapse. Gennai put as much desperation into his voice to get Tai to believe him, that File Island wasn't safe anymore. Tai nodded once in his direction and then the old man disappeared. The children were silent as they registered the terror that had been present in Gennai's voice.
"I'm going after Jade," Tai suddenly announced, breaking the silence. "Let's meet on the outskirts of the Primary Village in a couple of hours."
"I know the perfect place!" TK stated excitedly. "Me and Patamon landed there when the island broke."
"Great," Tai said with a nod. "Let's go Agumon. The sooner we leave the sooner we can all be together again."
"Why are we splitting up?" Joe asked. "Wouldn't it make more sense if we all go together?"
"I won't be long," Tai promised. "And I'll be back with Jade."
"Oh, Tai," Sora sighed. "When will you believe that this isn't your fault?"
"I don't think I ever will," Tai told her, turning and walking off. "See you in a few hours!"
The remaining six children watched as Tai disappeared with Agumon with confusion and curiosity. Izzy sat down against the rocky cliff and opened his laptop to see if Gennai's email came through. Tentomon sat next to him, staring at the screen and ignoring the others.
"Gennai's transmission ended rather abruptly," Tentomon stated. Izzy h'mmed his agreement as his fingers tapped away at the keyboard.
"Well, at least he was able to send this map to me before he got cut off."
"I hope he's alright," Sora added, her eyes following Tai's progress. "What's our next move going to be?"
"Let's go to the lake!" TK suggested. "And we can get dinner ready so when Tai and Jade get back there will be food for them! I bet everyone's hungry!"
"I am," Gomamon admitted. "That battle really took it out of us."
"Stupid Tai," Matt muttered. "Ok, let's go to the lake. You remember the way TK?"
"How will Tai and Agumon find us again?" Mimi asked nervously. "Shouldn't we wait here for them?"
"Agumon will know where we are," Palmon told her partner. "We digimon can always find each other."
"Agumon mentioned that once," Joe remembered. "What did he mean?"
"Well, ever since we hatched we've always been able to find each other," Biyomon explained. "It's like there's an echo in the back of our minds that points to where everyone is. When Angemon was deleted, his echo got really weak. We can barely feel it now, but when he hatches I'm positive that his echo will return as well."
"Huh," Sora observed. "That's pretty cool."
The digimon all looked at each other before nodding. Working together they were able to get the children moving off Infinity Mountain and down towards the Primary Village. They spoke about their individual adventures on the broken off island fragments, and hypothesised to the identity of Gennai's enemy across the ocean. But the one thing they all couldn't figure out was: who was the Him that Gennai was afraid of?
Tai and Agumon walked in silence, but Tai knew that Agumon was itching to ask him questions about what had just happened. But Tai was preoccupied with what Devimon had said to him. What power did he have inside of him? Strange things happened to him when he was particularly angry or scared, but the rarity that it happened helped him to erase it from his memory.
Only twice could he recall something. The first was after Kari had gotten sick with pneumonia. He had been so scared and afraid, and his parents had been so angry with him, that he hadn't visited her until it looked like she wouldn't make it. He remembered visiting her, holding her hand and wishing that she would get better so that he could apologise to her, when warmth flowed from his body into hers. He went home after that, feeling tired and weak. Four days later Kari came home.
The second time something had happened he had been so angry, so full of hate, that the boys who had been bullying Kari were nearly killed when a tree crashed down on top of them. The three boys had cornered Kari in the park when Tai appeared and saw what was happening. He ran towards them, ordering the boys to leave his sister alone, when the tree nearest them simply fell and buried them. Tai's anger had disappeared quickly, and both he Kari had screamed for help. The three bullies were injured, but they would live. They never bullied anyone after that though.
"Hey, Tai?" Agumon asked. "Why didn't you want the others to go with us?"
"What?" Tai mumbled, pulled from his thoughts. "Oh, it's kind of selfish."
"Is it because you feel responsible for Jade?"
"Partly," Tai admitted. "But I also wanted to just be alone for a while without the others asking questions. Devimon told me a few things that left me thinking, things I don't quite understand."
"Is this about the power that Devimon said you had?" Agumon asked. "We know that you have power Tai. Not as much as Jade, but more than what the other kids have."
"What?"
"Each of you has a power inside of you. If I were to put it in order of strongest to weakest it would be: Jade, you, Izzy, TK, Matt, Joe, Sora and then Mimi. Does that shock you?"
"Yeah," Tai admitted. "I mean, I've never thought about it quite like that before. This power that we all have, could that be the reason why we were chosen to save this world?"
"I suppose, no one else could help us to digivolve. We use the power inside you to digivolve so that we can protect you. It's like…we're an extension of you. I can't really explain it very well."
"So we'll figure it out, together," Tai promised. "Now, do you have any idea where Jade is?"
Agumon smirked and altered their course slightly so that they were taking a more direct path up the mountain. The dinosaur digimon explained that even though they hadn't grown up with Jade, she did have a faint presence that they were able to follow. He likened it to how Patamon felt in his digi-egg. The closer they were to the egg, the stronger the echo in their minds. With Jade, her presence was like a warm light or a fire on a cold day. They would always be able to find her.
At the ruins of Devimon's castle the travelling duo ran into Leomon. Leomon apparently had the same idea as Tai but he had followed Phoenixmon to where Jade was. Phoenixmon was standing a short distance away but she smiled when she saw that Tai and Agumon were the two who had searched for her. Tai rushed over to help, and together they moved aside the leaves of a fallen tree to reveal the unconscious form of Jade.
Wearing nought but a singlet and shorts, and shivering slightly in the cool air, Jade looked impossibly young. Her hair pooled around her head without a care, and beneath her closed eye lids her eyes darted in every direction. Tai rested his hand on her forehead, frowning as he felt the heat of a fever through his gloves. He looked up to Phoenixmon.
"She's sick," he said unnecessarily. "Will she get sick every time you appear?"
No, I have been apart from her for too long and her body is fighting alone
"Will she remember these past few days?" Agumon asked.
In her dreams she will see, but otherwise the last thing she will remember is Devimon attacking her
"Will we see you again, My Lady?" Leomon asked curiously. Phoenixmon looked at him with a smile on her face.
The time will come when Jade and I become one again, and fight to preserve this world. That day, however, is not today
"Until we meet again then," Leomon replied with a smile of his own. Phoenixmon nodded before her form burst into flames. Tai and Agumon shouted in alarm, especially when the flames settled over Jade's form, seeping into her skin. Jade took a deep breath and stopped shivering once the flames were absorbed into her body. After hesitating a mere moment, Tai lifted Jade into his arms and held her close to his chest.
"What is your plan now?" Leomon asked.
"Gennai is asking for our help on the continent of Server," Tai explained, standing up. "He also begged us to get Jade off this island as soon as possible. Something about Him knowing that she was here."
"I see," Leomon stated. "Well, a raft would be your best bet. I will see if I can recruit some more digimon to help you."
"Thank you," Tai said, bowing his head. "We'll probably start mid-morning tomorrow. I think we deserve a sleep in. Let's go Agumon."
"Take care of her," Leomon requested after he started to walk away. "That girl in your arms is very important to us, to all of us."
"I will," Tai promised. He continued moving, allowing Agumon to lead the way in silence. There was a flush to Jade's cheeks now, with the rest of her face very pale. He knew, without a doubt, that she was sick. He hoped that it wasn't pneumonia, as young and scrawny as she was, she could die because of it.
"She doesn't look too good Tai," Agumon eventually said.
"I know."
"Is she going to be okay?"
"I don't know Agumon," Tai said softly. "I hope so."
Agumon stared sadly at the girl in Tai's arms. He was feeling tired now, his energy levels low after the fight with Devimon, but he knew that he needed to get Tai and Jade to safety before he could allow himself to rest.
It was dark when Tai, Agumon and Jade made it to the waterfall where the others were waiting for them. Jade hadn't opened her eyes, but she had shifted in Tai's arms so that her hands were scrunched up in his shirt. Despite the fever she was running she was shivering and searching for warmth. While Tai's expression didn't change beyond concern, but on the inside he was panicking. When they finally reached the others, Joe took one look at Jade and Tai's expression before darting over.
He wrapped Jade in her blanket as soon as she was on the ground and had Sora wet a wash cloth so that they could cool Jade down. While he worked, Tai sat by Jade's side and explained what Phoenixmon and Leomon had told him. While he was talking the other digimon gave Agumon something to eat, and Mimi brought something over to Tai, glaring at him until he ate. Tai hesitated in his story, but started to eat under Mimi's glare and continued.
"So, what are we going to do now?" Matt asked. Everyone had formed a circle around Jade, their eyes focused on her even if they thought about the future. Whatever they decided would affect her. Stay…or go?
"It's obvious isn't it?" Sora asked him. "We have to go to Server to save Gennai from his enemies."
"Well, according to my calculations of longitude and latitude," Izzy began. His computer was open on his lap as he studied the email Gennai had sent him. "I'd say Server was quite some distance from here."
"I can't even swim across the bathtub, never mind an ocean," Mimi admitted softly. "I'll never make it."
"Why do we have to go anyway?" Joe asked, looking up briefly from Jade. "What I mean is, Devimon's gone from this island. All the Black Gears have disappeared too. We've been once around the island so we pretty much know where everything is. We wouldn't have to worry about food or water."
"What are you saying?" Sora asked.
"Why should we believe what this weirdo Gennai guy says?" Joe asked her. "What I mean is, how can we be sure this place, Server, really exists?"
"What are you thinking?" Tai demanded of him. "If we hang around here guys, we'll never get back home."
"I don't know guys," Sora started. "Devimon nearly got us. Maybe we shouldn't go, at least we know what we're up against over here."
"And even if we wanted to go," Izzy said closing his computer. "What mode of transportation could we utilize?"
"We don't even know what the fashions like on Server," Mimi added. Joe nodded to her, even though all could tell that fashion was far from his mind.
"Maybe we should stay here a while longer and think things through," Matt suggested.
"What's with you, man?" Tai asked.
"I don't think setting out to sea would be a good idea right now Tai," Joe said, drawing attention to himself again. "Jade is really sick. Going to Server now would kill her."
"Don't say that!" Tai ordered. "Jade will not die!"
"How do you suggest getting to Server?" Izzy asked.
"Leomon offered to help us build a raft," Tai stated, still angry. "And just to say it, I trust Gennai when he says that Jade can't stay here. So if it's just me and Jade who go, then so be it."
"Let's go!" TK voted. "We don't know what kind of danger will be waiting for us, but let's see! I'm sure Angemon would say the same thing if he were still around. So I'm going with Tai and Jade!"
"If we have the tags and crests," Agumon said looking up at Tai loyally. "We'll be able to digivolve again, right? Once we transform into our new shapes we'll be able to protect you for sure!"
The digimon were particularly excited about the prospect of digivolving further, and in their own way encouraged their partners that going was a good idea. The only one who wasn't convinced was Joe, but that was because he didn't think moving Jade was a good idea. Tai didn't want to move her either, but Jade trusted Gennai and therefore Tai trusted the old man. If the old man said that it was paramount that Jade gets off File Island as soon as possible, then Tai would get Jade off File Island as soon as possible.
After a staring contest with Joe, which Joe lost, Tai ordered everyone to get some sleep. They would start building a raft mid-morning.
Tai lay down to sleep next to Jade, and for all intents and purposes ignored the other children and digimon. He didn't think that he'd be alright until Jade opened her eyes and told him that she forgave him for leaving her alone. As he drifted off to sleep he whispered into her ear: "I'm sorry Jade."
Jade was floating in darkness. She was so cold, but her face felt like it was on fire. A while ago warmth had returned briefly, like a blanket covering her, but she was still lost and alone. She didn't want to wake up, because that meant that Devimon would continue hurting her. But she wanted to know what had happened to her friends. Were the still apart? Had they found each other? Would they find her? Would they want to find her?
Voices floated over and around her, making no sense at all, but they comforted her. When the voices fell silent, there was someone holding her hand. She gathered that she must have been rescued from Devimon's clutches, but had no idea how, or why. Her hand held onto the one holding her, but still her eyes didn't open. And then words she recognised brushed her conscious mind.
"I'm sorry Jade."
Her eyes snapped open as she sat up quickly. Her head snapped in all directions, looking for a threat that wasn't there. Her eyes found each of her friends, most of who were sleeping, and slowly she started to calm down. She looked at her hand to see who was next to her, and her gaze softened when she recognised that Tai was looking out for her. He was still asleep, and he looked exhausted.
"It's good to see you awake Jade."
Jade turned slightly so that she was looking at Gabumon. He walked over and sat next to her feet, smiling as he moved. Jade reached out with her free hand and rested it on Gabumon's nose. Her smile of relief as she made contact made Gabumon chuckle.
"I am real," he promised her. "The others have been worried about you, a lot. Particularly Tai, he went off on his own to get you back."
"Devimon?" Jade asked in a whisper.
"Destroyed," Gabumon said simply. "We defeated him with the help of the Sovereign. Oh, and Patamon digivolved in Angemon. It's a great story, and once you're feeling better we'll tell you about it. You should go back to sleep. We won't let anything happen to you."
Jade smiled and lay back down. She found that she was still cold so she rolled onto her side and snuggled up to Tai's chest. His heart beat gave her comfort and before she could think about it she was asleep. Gabumon readjusted her blanket so that it covered the two of them before returning to Matt's side.
"How's she doing?" Matt asked sleepily.
"She'll be fine."
Matt nodded at the reassurance and returned to his dreams. Gabumon made eye contact with each digimon conscious, reassuring them as well that all was well. For the rest of the night they all slept peacefully, for the danger had now passed, and the future was uncertain.
"Tai, just because she's off the ground, doesn't mean she's better off!" Joe snapped the next morning. Tai looked at Joe in confusion, before over his shoulder to where Jade was perched on his back. She hadn't wanted to remain behind at the waterfall so Tai had carried her away. Her blanket was draped over her shoulders so that she would be kept warm, and her head rested on Tai's shoulder so that it would remain still.
"I don't understand," Tai admitted. "She's not moving, she's not alone, and she's warm. Of course she's better off."
"Tai, she's sick," Joe tried to explain, again. "She needs to be lying down and resting. We need to keep her fluids up so that she doesn't become dehydrated. She needs to sleep so that she'll recover quicker."
"Then she can sleep on the beach with TK while we chop down trees," Tai stated. "TK will look after her, make sure that she's not alone and that she keeps drinking."
Joe looked like he wanted to argue more, but by now everyone knew that it was a lost cause. When Tai was determined to do something, there was little anyone else could do about it. When he and Jade were determined to do something, there was nothing that anyone else could do about it. TK skipped off with Tai happily enough, already telling Jade all about his adventures in the Primary Village.
"Jade will be fine Joe," Sora told him. "Now come on guys, we have a raft to build!"
Building the raft didn't take as long as the children had assumed. With the help of Leomon and the other digimon they had encountered on their little adventure the raft was down by mid-afternoon. The smaller digimon had gathered food for the digidestined, while the others had helped rope the fallen trees together and make a mast so that they could travel without the use of oars.
Throughout the construction process, TK told Jade everything he knew from the time they were at the fake mansion to when Jade had woken up at the waterfall. Jade hadn't said a word the entire time she had been awake, much to everyone's concern, but it was the digimon who weren't worried. They knew that Jade just needed time to understand that it wasn't a dream and that she was safe with them.
Shortly after TK finished his story, the raft that the others had worked hard to make flew over their heads and landed in the water, keeping afloat easily. The digimon had hitched a ride on the raft, and were excitedly jumping up and down to test its balance.
"Hey, it really worked!" Matt cried happily as he and the others ran over to the water.
"Alright!" Tai added.
"It's hydrodynamicly sound," Izzy informed everyone.
"I think I'm getting sea sick already," Joe muttered, staring at the raft that was bobbing up and down gently. TK helped Jade walk over to the group where she leaned against Tai's side. Her eyes were fastened on the raft with a bit of fear.
"Get a grip Joe," Tai ordered. His eyes rested briefly on Jade before snapping back up again. His arm went around Jade's shoulders. "It'll have to do."
"Believe me, that raft is strong enough to get you across the ocean," Leomon promised as he walked up to the group. The children smiled up at him in gratitude.
"Thanks Leomon," Tai said for everyone. "We never could have done it without your help."
At that moment TK let out a cry of surprise. Everyone twisted around to look at him, only to notice that his gaze was fixed on his digi-egg. Cracks started to appear, and the joy on TK's face as he realised that his digi-egg was hatching was more than enough to make Jade smile as well as the other children. The top half of the egg broke apart into little pieces and a white ball of fluff popped out with a joyful greeting.
"Hi!"
"Digi-egg! You hatched!" TK said delightedly.
"How cute!" Mimi told him.
"That's great!" Sora added.
"Yay!" TK cried, spinning around in circles in joy. He held the white digimon close to his face in a hug. It was barely bigger than his hands, a real baby. All the while the digimon was calling out its own name, possibly the only thing that he could say in this form.
Poyomon.
"Poyomon is a jellyfish type digimon of few words," Tentomon explained for the other children. "But if his friends are in trouble he's ready for action."
Tai laughed happily before ushering everyone onto the raft. Jade clung to his side, her arms wrapped around his leg, but still waved at the digimon on the shore.
"This is goodbye," Leomon told them as they started to drift away.
"And good luck!" Elecmon added. Elecmon was the digimon who took care of all the baby digimon in the Primary Village. He, TK and Patamon had become friends whilst the digidestined were separated.
The digidestined waved and called out their own goodbyes, watching as File Island slowly became smaller and smaller. Jade made herself comfortable in the middle of the raft, as far from the water as she could get. Maybe on Server, if they had time, the older kids would be able to teach her how to swim. Tai and Sora went to the front of the raft, Tai with his mini telescope and Sora just so that she could see where they were going.
"I can't see anything," Tai admitted.
"I wonder how long this trip will take," Joe mused, walking so that he was just behind Tai. Tai turned to look at him.
"Chill out Joe, we just left."
"The salt air's killing my sinuses," Joe told him in return. "And we've only got enough food for two weeks."
"If we run out of food we'll catch some fish," Tai rebutted easily enough.
"Well, the one good thing is this is beautiful weather for sailing," Sora told the two boys.
The raft went up over huge swells, and Jade groaned as she held her head. The constant up and down sensation caused by the waves was making her feel sick. Mimi and Izzy were of a like mind, but no one else seemed to be suffering any ill effects of sailing. TK and Poyomon were having a grand old time near the back of the raft, ignoring everything that was happening.
Jade knew that she was going to throw up, as much as she hated the idea of it. She crawled to the edge of the raft any food that was in her stomach was instantly in the water. Joe appeared behind her, making sure that she stayed on the raft, and held her hair out of the way. When she was done, or felt like she was done, Jade leant back against Joe and allowed him to give her some water to clean her mouth.
"Do you feel better?" he asked softly.
"No," Jade murmured. "Are we there yet?"
"Not even close," Joe answered sadly. Jade groaned and wrapped her arms around her stomach. Joe carried her back to the safety of the middle of the raft, and sat beside her as the waves got bigger.
"Tidal wave!" Tai called out in warning. The children all screamed in horror as the raft was tossed aside easily. Jade clung to Joe so that she wouldn't end up in the water. Suddenly, she shivered as a familiar cold feeling washed over her. There was a Black Gear nearby.
"That had to be twelve feet tall!" Matt guessed.
"Eighteen point three to be exact," Izzy corrected.
"There's a Black Gear near us," Jade whispered to Joe. Joe repeated her statement, drawing attention to her shivering form. Matt cursed softly, drawing an outraged stare from TK for his language.
"This isn't good," Sora stated unnecessarily. "I thought that the Black Gears would be unique to File Island."
"It's a whale!" Tai cried as the water before them parted and a giant whale rose above the surface. The children clung to each other as the whale sunk beneath the surface and used its tail to create a splash that sent the small raft high into the air. The waves got worse, and as the raft landed back in the water, Jade was impressed that it hadn't broken apart.
"Whamon is a giant digimon who lives in the deep oceans of the Digital World," Tentomon explained, having flown into the air so that he wouldn't be hurt. "Its Jet Arrows are unbelievable."
"It's going to eat us," Jade whimpered as Whamon appeared in front of them, jaws opened wide. With the current, the wind, and the forward motion of the raft, there was no escaping their fate. They were pulled in and sailed down his throat, the raft small enough that it didn't reach the sides of the oesophagus. The light disappeared as the jaws shut. With the rush of wind the children crowded around the mast, holding onto each other so that they wouldn't fall off.
"I hope we don't give him a sore throat!" Sora cried against the wind.
"Technically it's not the throat!" Izzy told her. "It's the oesophagus that leads to the stomach!"
"He thinks we're fast food!" Joe cried in despair.
"So he really did eat us!" Mimi wailed.
"Sooner or later this has to lead to an exit," Sora stated optimistically.
"It does," Izzy confirmed. "But you don't want to go there!"
Globs of water started to rain down on them, aiming for the raft but missing each time. Jade covered her ears and closed her eyes, ignoring everything that was going on around her. The feel of the Black Gear was getting closer, but while she knew that it wasn't Whamon's fault for attacking them, it didn't make her feel any better about it.
The raft became airborne again, but this time the room they ended up in had light in it. Jade slowly opened her eyes and looked around, her gaze travelling up as the surprisingly metallic interior of Whamon's stomach came to light.
"Finally, we stopped," Sora said in relief, letting go of Tai's waist. "Is everyone alright?"
"Where are we?" Joe asked, helping Jade to stand so that he could join the others in a more upright position.
"Anatomically speaking this would be the stomach," Izzy informed him. Jade wrinkled her nose and continued looking around. The Black Gear was close by. Gastric juices, the acid in the stomach that dissolved food, started to creep towards them and began attacking the wood on the raft.
"We're melting," TK cried in horror.
"Don't let it get on you," Tai ordered, his eyes darting around to make sure that everyone was away from the edges. Jade stared up at him, her eyes bright with the fever she still had and her cheeks flushed, but she pointed up to the roof of the stomach to where she had found the Black Gear. Everyone's eyes followed her pointed finger, a following that everyone gasped.
"Joe, do something!" Gomamon ordered.
"Why me?" Joe asked incredulously.
"Someone can climb on these!" Palmon suggested, before flinging her fingers out. "Poison Ivy!"
Vines grew from her fingers and wrapped around the Black Gear. Tai volunteered, and with a brief pat on Jade's head he was crawling along the vines to get to the Gear. Jade couldn't figure out why he wanted to climb up, nor could she figure out what he intended to do. She decided to help him by pushing back against the darkness. Together with Tai's digivice, the Black Gear shattered and Tai dropped back onto the raft.
The world around them glowed, and Jade let out a whimper in fear as the raft lurched upwards. She had a feeling about what was about to happen, and she was not looking forward to it at all. Moment later they were flying through the air, the raft in pieces, as they were forcefully thrown from Whamon's stomach out his blow hole. Jade screamed as she plunged under the water, her arms flaying about as she tried to get back to the surface.
Not able to find what way up was Jade struggled. She took in a deep breath of water just as arms wrapped around her stomach and wrenched her to the surface. Coughing harshly as her head broke the surface she clung to the person who had saved her. Her eyes locked on Tai's and noticed that he was really worried about her. He swum over to one of the logs left over from the raft and helped her cling to it so that she wouldn't sink. Agumon was already waiting, and he seemed to be really concerned with her as well.
Jade looked around to see if everyone else was alright. TK had been rescued by his brother and was sitting on top of his log with Matt floating near him to make sure that he remained balanced. Poyomon was in TK's hands, but it seemed that every other human and digimon was floating in the water and clinging to the logs so that they wouldn't sink. Jade felt her body shaking and she struggled taking in enough air so that she wouldn't pass out. Tai's arms around her helped her to ground herself.
"Tai, I'm scared," she whispered.
"I won't let you drown," Tai promised by whispering in her ear. "I've got you."
Whamon chose that moment to resurface closer to them, but at least now he wasn't trying to eat them. Mimi screamed in fear, still thinking that Whamon was a danger to them. Whamon didn't seem to be offended, in fact he seemed genuinely apologetic.
"Sorry about that," he said. "I must have had a tummy ache or something."
"It's okay," Biyomon called to him. "We all know it wasn't your fault."
"That's right," Sora added. "It was the Black Gear inside of you."
"Those Black Gears are rude," Tai continued, still holding Jade. "I bet that's the last one."
"I bet you're wrong!" Joe instantly countered.
"Thanks kids," Whamon said, much more cheerfully this time. "I owe you one."
"Don't mention it Whamon, it was our pleasure," Tai accepted courteously. "By the way, do you know how far it is to Server?"
"Yes, it would take me five days," Whamon stated. "Uh, make that three and a half without traffic."
Jade groaned pathetically. The thought of spending more time in the water depressed her, and with the raft broken it would take them so much longer to get to land. She knew that she would never make it. Tai rubbed her arm supportively, but she knew that he was worried as well.
"Are you going to Server?" Whamon asked.
"Yeah, we were trying to," Agumon replied.
"I'll take you there myself," Whamon told them. "It's not every day your lunch saves your life."
"Really?" Sora asked, not quite sure. Mimi on the other hand was ecstatic enough that she let go of the log she was holding onto to throw her arms in the air. Palmon pulled her back to the surface and then they all swam closer to Whamon as most of his body sunk beneath the surface. Standing on his back, the children clumped together as Whamon lifted himself a little bit more so that they could start to travel. Tai lifted Jade into his arms, and she was more than willing to stay curled up against his chest. The sooner they got to solid land the happier she would be.
Joe strolled over to them, his hand resting on Jade's back in warning before feeling her temperature. As she was still shaking, Jade knew that the older boy was deeply concerned about her physical health. She was still recovering from being Devimon's prisoner. He spoke with Tai, their voices kept low so as to not disturb the others, but Jade tuned them out so that she could work on calming down. She wasn't in the water anymore, and that meant that she was safe for the time being.
"This is great!" Sora cried from the front of the group.
"It sure is a whole lot faster and smoother than that raft!" Izzy agreed.
"This means I won't get sea sick!" Mimi added in delight.
"Now if we only knew where we could find those tags and those crests that Devimon hid somewhere," Tai stated with a frown. He and Joe joined the main group, drawing a lot of attention to Jade who was silent and shaking.
"Did you say 'Devimon'?" Whamon asked.
"Yeah, did you know him?" Tai asked. His normal-ish tone informed the others that they weren't to ask questions about Jade just yet…that and his protective hold of her.
"Well, I don't know anything about tags or crests, but a while ago Devimon hid something deep at the bottom of the ocean."
"Can you tell us where?" Tai asked again.
"It's on the way to Server," Whamon informed them. "You can all ride inside me and I'll take you there."
Jade cringed at the thought of being underwater again, but other than that she didn't make any hint of protest. The children and digimon slid down Whamon's blow hole when he opened it for them. It was like a giant slide, and while several of them screamed, only TK, Agumon and Gabumon seemed to enjoy the slide down. Tai didn't make a sound as he slid down with Jade, and Jade kept her eyes close so that she didn't have to look around.
Once they were all settled, Whamon dove under the water and kept diving at a steady rate. Ears popped, whimpers were heard, but no one complained. Joe used the time to talk with Jade, and make sure that she wouldn't panic on them. In all reality, Jade was more exhausted than anything. She would have been happy to go to sleep and stay asleep, but being under water, even if they were in the belly of a giant whale, kept adrenaline running through her veins and made it impossible for her to fall asleep.
Several hours later Whamon surfaced in an underwater cavern and opened his mouth so that they could walk out. Jade let out a sigh of relief once she was standing on dirt, and calmed down considerably when Whamon said that they would need to stay for a while.
"I'm so out of shape, I have to rest here a while. I gotta drop a couple thousand pounds."
"Thanks Whamon," Tai called as the whale slipped under the water to recover. Jade skipped a little, wanting to walk on her own, and the smile on her face made the others want to accommodate her wishes. TK skipped next to her, and soon they were racing each other through the underground tunnels, ignoring the call from behind for them to wait. They didn't stop until they spotted something that stood out in the darkness.
"What's that?" Joe asked as he appeared behind the two youngest in the group.
"A convenience store?" Tai told him in a questioning tone, as if he couldn't believe it himself. Jade walked a little further forward before gasping as she sensed another Black Gear rushing towards them. She staggered a little under the feeling, but was able to warn the others about the oncoming danger before the ground in front of them broke apart to reveal a giant purple and white digimon that looked like a mole. Its lower half was white, whilst the fur on top of it was purple, and aside from the sharp pointy teeth that were clearly visible, the horn that extended from its nose made for a deadly weapon. On top of its head was the Black Gear.
"Drimogemon lives deep inside the earth drilling tunnels," Tentomon explained quickly. "He uses his iron drill spin and crusher bone to wipe out his enemies."
"I knew that we hadn't seen the last of the Black Gears!" Joe cried in despair. "I warned you Tai!"
"It is Lord Devimon's will that no one shall pass!" Drimogemon growled at them.
Jade cringed at the darkness, hearing the digimon behind her promise the humans to take care of Drimogemon. Gomamon rushed forward first, digivolving into Ikkakumon as in that form he could combat Drimogemon's horn with his own. With the two digimon attacking each other, the others rushed passed them into the convenience store. Jade stopped at the entrance, letting the others start to search for the tags that they assumed would be in the store.
She pushed against the darkness of the Gear, helping Ikkakumon destroy it. Granted, the explosion almost caused a cave in with everyone in the store, but as soon as Drimogemon was free from its influence he disappeared down one of his tunnels, explaining to the digimon that the tags were in the store and was hidden behind the jerky. Jade looked behind her at where the other children were gathered, and noticed that they had already found a box that she assumed held their tags.
"They're just like the ones Gennai showed us during his transmission," Izzy remarked.
"Gennai?" Jade queried, almost silent. She was sure that she had heard wrong, when had the others met Gennai, and how had they heard about him? What transmission? She had assumed that Tai was the only one who knew the name of one of her saviours. Why wouldn't Gennai have contacted her? Did she not matter to him anymore? She bit her lip in worry, but otherwise made no motion to indicate she had heard Izzy.
"How pretty," Mimi declared as she accepted a tag as Matt handed them out. The box only contained seven tags, so Jade missed out on wearing one. It didn't really bother her, but it was another indication that she was different from the others. Her thoughts turned once again to why she was in the digital world. Sure, she had been on Tai's back at the time the portal opened, but there had to be another reason as to why she was in there at all. She had been to the digital world before she knew that beyond all doubt, but why? Why had the digimon and Gennai saved her when she was six?
"Jade, let's go," Tai called to her. Jade skipped to his side and he slung one of his arms around her shoulders. They walked back together to where Whamon was still resting, and they used the time to eat some food before they made their way to the surface again. Whamon didn't let them wait too long, and when they were once again safe in his belly they began to travel upwards. The change in air pressure was uncomfortable, and Jade knew that she wasn't the only one to appreciate the fresh air and warm sun when Whamon broke the surface and allowed them to ride on his back.
Riding on Whamon was a lot smoother than the raft, but still Jade would have liked to see some sort of landmass in the distance. She had no idea how Whamon knew which direction to go in because it looked the same to her in every direction.
"Remember what Gennai told us you guys," Matt spoke up. "The crests are hidden throughout the continent of Server."
"And if we get both the tags and the crests," Gabumon added excitedly.
"We'll all be able to digivolve once again," Agumon finished. Jade giggled softly, the excitement in all the digimon was almost infectious, and she had a feeling that the Black Gears were finally gone. She had no idea how she knew it, she just did.
"Then we'll just have to go out there and find the crests!" Tai declared. A resounding cheer echoed from behind him, and Jade grinned. They had a purpose now, and for the others it meant that they were one step closer to going home. For Jade, it meant that she was one step closer to finding out her purpose.
She couldn't wait.
Next up in Intertwined Destinies:
Chapter 10: Courage or Insanity?