Intertwined Destinies
Gennai has given the digidestined bad news: there is an eighth digidestined in Japan, and Myotismon, their new enemy, is on his way to get her. It is now a race against time to get home. If they lose this race, it will be more than the Human World that is in danger...every world will be facing its destruction. The children and digimon have opened the Gateway to the Human World and are now home. All they have to do now is figure out who the eighth child is, and protect the child from Myotismon. Simple right?
All the children made it home to their families, and it came to light that Yuuko, Tai's mother, is aware of the Digital World. Currently, only Agumon is aware of her knowledge, keeping it as a secret at her request. Jade was attacked by Bakemon after retrieving the eighth digivice and being kicked out of Odaiba Elementary by her cousin and his friends. She has also come into contact with the Japanese magicians, and the digidestined are aware that she is alright. She is now on her way to visit Joe and get into contact with the original digidestined: Michael (Determination) from America, and Akili (Wisdom) from Africa.
The next chapter of their adventure awaits...
Chapter 23: The Fog of Odaiba
August 1 1999
Jade had no idea where Joe lived, but she could sense where he was and just followed that until she got to him. She was lucky that she spotted him before he got into his apartment, because otherwise she might not have been able to get the right building or the right room straight away. She skipped up towards him, but before she could get close to him he stopped and pulled out his digivice. She figured that it had activated once she got close as she had the eighth child's digivice in her backpack still. Joe spun around, staring at his digivice, and when it told him that she was in front of him he looked up.
She grinned happily at him as she continued her journey forward, but Joe's expression rapidly changed. First there was surprise, then joy at her appearance, and then horror as he took into account her injury across her face. Jade kept the grin on her face as she stopped in front of him, and remained still as he raised a hand to lightly touch her scars.
"Tai said that you were injured," he said softly. "Bakemon did this?"
"Yes," Jade said with a small nod. "I didn't hear it sneaking up behind me, but the magicians healed me as much as they could. They said that in time the scars would be so faint that I wouldn't notice them. It's just that, until then, I'll have some pretty noticeable scars on my face."
"I…see," Joe told her. "You also have the eighth child's digivice? Is that what caused my digivice to react?"
"Oh!" Jade exclaimed as she pulled off her backpack and pulled out the digivice. "I almost forgot about it. I found it last night and I'm going to hold it until I can identify the eighth child."
"And how do you plan on doing that?"
"Can I use your phone to make a call to America?" she asked with a smile. Joe nodded and led her inside. Gomamon popped out of the bag that Joe had hanging from his shoulder and Jade carried him in her arms as they traveled up. As they walked, Joe explained what they had discussed earlier that day, and the assumption that the eighth child had been in Hikarigaoka four years with them. Jade listened silently, though she did giggle when Joe showed her the address books he was supposed to call.
"What's your test about?" Jade asked as he opened his door.
"Advanced Mathematics," Joe muttered. "I'm going to fail, I just know it."
"You can study if you like," Jade continued as she looked around the apartment. "I'll just borrow your phone and play with Gomamon for a while."
Joe nodded and led her to the study where the phone was. She held it in her hand and watched as Joe quickly set out his mathematics books, his pens and his notepad. He started to write immediately, and Jade grinned at Gomamon before she made herself comfortable on the floor and pulled out the piece of paper Gennai had given her from her backpack. With her tongue between her teeth she slowly dialed Michael's number, deciding that it would be best to call him first.
"This had better be important. Who the hell calls someone this late at night?"
The boy who answered the phone sounded young, possibly around Tai's age, and he was speaking in English. He also sounded really annoyed.
"Hi, I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was so late. I'm calling from Japan," Jade told the boy on the other end of the phone in English.
"Japan? Who is this?"
"Jade," she answered. "I'm looking for Michael."
"My name's Michael. You looking for me or my dad?"
"Your dad, is he there?"
"Nope, he left this morning to travel to Japan," Michael told her with a yawn. "He stopped in Nairobi first, so he's probably just left there. Give it twelve hours or so and he'll be where you are. What do you need him for anyway?"
"He and my mum were friends before she died," Jade explained with a frown. She had missed him, but he was on his way to Japan so that was something, and if he stopped in Nairobi first that meant that he was picking up Akili before heading to Japan. It was going to be a digidestined reunion. "Is there another number I can get him at?"
"Sure, just give me a minute while I find is cell phone number…where's that damn light? Damn it!"
Jade listened with a growing smile on her face as she listened to Michael stumbling around in complete darkness to find a phone number for her. When he gave it to her he asked another question.
"So, who was your mum?"
"Lily," she told him. There was a crash from the other end of the phone.
"You're Aunt Lily's daughter?"
"Aunt?"
"Well, yeah, dad talked about her all the time. You're Jade right? We even met once, though I doubt you remember it. You would have only been a few months old then. I don't even remember where we were, but dad, Aunt Lily and Aunt Yo-Yo had gathered so that we could play together. Aunt Yo-Yo had a little boy, but we haven't seen each other since Aunt Lily was killed. Wow, I didn't think you were still alive. Dad was worried about you, but he had no idea where to find you. You've been in Japan?"
"Yeah, for the past few weeks," Jade confirmed. "But I'll be going back to England shortly. I'll see if I can contact your dad. Thanks again!"
"No problems, maybe we could meet each other again one day?"
"We'll see. Goodnight!"
Jade hung up the phone and started to dial the next number. She hoped that Michael Senior would answer, she wanted to know what was going on. Gomamon was silent as he watched her, and the only sound that echoed in the room came from Joe mumbling to himself. Jade pressed the phone to her ear again and waited as it connected.
"You've reached Michael J Barton, how can I help you?"
"Determination?" Jade asked hesitatingly. There was a curse from the other end of the phone, what sounded like a crash from the phone hitting the ground, and then more cursing as the holder tried to find the phone.
"There are only a few people who would call me that," Michael eventually said as he reclaimed the phone. "Gennai sounds older, the lovely Yuuko has already called me and knows that I'm on my way, Akili is sitting next to me giggling like a school girl, so that leaves sweet little Jade, the Little Princess of the Digital World. Am I correct?"
"Of course you are," Jade said with a giggle. "You're coming to Japan?"
"Seems like there's some danger afoot and when Compassion calls us to say that we're going to die, we got on the first plane possible. Are you in Japan Little Princess?"
"Yeah, I have been for a week or so," Jade admitted. "There is actually a reason that I'm calling."
"To find out who the Child of Light is, yeah, we already know that."
"Who is it?" Jade asked. "She's in great danger, and with her partner working for Myotismon there's no telling when she'll be discovered."
"I'm not sure if you're familiar with everyone's names," Michael admitted. "But the Child of Light is the little sister of Courage and the daughter of Compassion."
"Hikari?!" Jade gasped out. "And then Compassion is her mum? Oh man."
"We'll be landing around eleven pm-ish, Japan time," Michael continued. "I would recommend getting as close to young Hikari as soon as possible. This is going to turn into a great story and as soon as it is over I want to hear all of it."
"Deal, say hi to Akili for me!"
"Be careful Little Princess, I don't like the sound of this Myotismon character, and I haven't been able to get in touch with Gennai for a while."
"I'll be careful," Jade promised, and then she hung up. Gomamon looked at her curiously and Joe stopped writing so that he could spin on his chair to watch her.
"Was that success I heard?" he asked.
"Yep!" Jade told him cheerfully, once again speaking Japanese. "I know who the eighth child is!"
"You said 'Hikari' before, is that who it is?" Gomamon asked as he head-butted her crossed legs.
"Tai's sister," Jade told him with a nod. "I'm going to find her and then tail her just in case someone else figures it out as well."
"You're not going to tell the others?" Joe asked curiously.
"Not just yet," Jade confirmed. "They're all doing stuff around Tokyo, and it's better that Myotismon thinks that we haven't found her yet. And then tonight the original digidestined are going to be reunited after years of not seeing each other. Michael and Akili will land around eleven-ish, and then they'll make their way to Odaiba."
"Excellent!" Joe cried happily. "That's so good to hear!"
"Does that mean you're leaving?" Gomamon asked sadly.
"I can play for a bit," Jade reassured him. "And then when Joe's taking his test I'll go and find Hikari. Or I could meet up with my spy in Myotismon's ranks."
Gomamon grinned happily and Jade lifted him into the air to leave the study so that Joe could do some serious studying without either of them bugging him. They made themselves comfortable in the lounge room and in moments their laughter echoed around the apartment as they played games ranging from tag to tickle attacks. Gomamon never mentioned the scars on Jade's face, but on the inside he was angry that anyone dared to harm her. He would have to get together with the other digimon and plan a counter attack, even if it wasn't something that Jade would want.
At three Joe came out of the study and announced that he was going for his test and that he needed to get across the bay to Hinode. Jade followed the two of them to the water bus terminal, but after that she began to leisurely walk around Japan without a care in the world. She made sure to avoid going close to the Elementary School, and when she saw some of her classmates she walked off in the other direction as quickly as she could. On a few occasions she noticed people tailing her, and when she recognized Haru she realized that the Japanese magicians were looking after her from a distance.
Still in her bag was Hikari's digivice, and she kept an eye out for Myotismon's army as they would be tracking it. It was also due to the digivice that she was reluctant to go off and find Hikari, because she would be in danger if they came across a digimon that meant her harm. Instead, she decided that Wizardmon deserved a visit from her. There would be time later to get in touch with the digidestined of Compassion, and Tai would protect his sister despite not knowing her destiny.
Her thoughts turned to Gatomon. It was such a shame that a protector digimon was corrupted as Gatomon had been. The digimon had probably felt so lost and lonely before Myotismon found her, and Jade was really grateful that at least Wizardmon was protecting her in secret. It was as she wandered aimlessly passed an apartment complex that she noticed the digimon she had thought about tailing after a girl in a yellow top and pink shorts.
For one heart-stopping moment Jade panicked, but as the moment passed she realized that there was no threat to the girl who had to be Hikari. Gatomon would never harm her partner, no partner digimon would. No matter how loyal Gatomon thought she was to Myotismon, there would be that feeling in her heart when she was near Hikari that would prevent her from harming her. But, if Gatomon had found the eighth child meant that their window to stop Myotismon was getting smaller.
On the positive side, Jade now knew where Tai, Hikari and the digidestined of Compassion lived.
Moving on, Jade started to whistle as she walked. Her cheerful mood didn't last long as she felt four partner digimon digivolve. That meant that Mimi, Sora, Izzy and Tai were in trouble. She started to make her way in the direction the four of them were in, but before she could get too far she was interrupted by Wizardmon.
He stepped out in front of her, and while she smiled at him in greeting, he didn't smile in return. She had the distinct impression that he was unhappy with her, and when he pulled a light pink crest from his cape that was flashing she realized why. Her grin turned sheepish but she didn't apologize. It was better that she had Hikari's digivice for the time being.
"You're asking for Myotismon to find you," he warned her. "And if I get caught with you we're both going to be in a lot of trouble."
"I could reach out for digimon in the area and warn you if anyone was on their way," Jade proposed. "I haven't done it much here except for with the partner digimon because it hurts in this world."
"I had heard that Phantomon and his Bakemon got you yesterday," Wizardmon remarked as the two started to walk. "I see his claims were not an exaggeration. Your wound, however, looks weeks old."
"The magicians here healed me as much as they could," Jade explained.
"So you've met them then?"
"Only a handful here in Japan," Jade muttered. "Tom told me about the 'wizards' in England…I'm not too keen on going back."
"You do what makes you happy," Wizardmon ordered. "Whatever you decide, your mother and I will be proud of you."
"Thanks," Jade whispered. "So, how is everything progressing?"
Wizardmon launched into a tale about how Myotismon had narrowed down where the eighth child was located to Odaiba, and how his gaze was focused on Gatomon. He knew that it was only a matter of time before she found her partner, and once she came for the real crest he would put his last plan into action. Jade followed up his story by informing him that Michael and Akili were on their way to Japan on Yuuko Kamiya's order. That news brought a light to Wizardmon's eyes that hadn't been there before, and Jade felt pleased with herself.
The two separated shortly after in fear that someone would spot them together and ruin everything, but Wizardmon promised that he would stick closer to Gatomon than he had previously. With a nod of agreement, Jade continued walking, paying close attention to the four digimon who had digivolved. Greymon had digivolved to Metalgreymon while she was talking, but now the digimon were back in their Rookie forms and seemed to be fine.
She was also getting hungry. She had gone for longer without food before, but having something in her stomach always helped in the long run.
"Jade! Matt, it's Jade!"
Jade spun on the spot as she heard her name being called out and grinned when she saw Matt and TK running towards her with Patamon on TK's head and Tsunomon in Matt's arms. She rushed towards them and hugged TK as his arms went around her waist, before grinning up at Matt. He, like Joe, looked horrified at her new scars and gently brushed his hand against them.
"They don't hurt," Jade promised him as she stepped back from TK.
"What are you doing around here?" Matt asked, lowering his hand.
"Tailing people, chatting with spies, making my way towards Tai, Izzy, Mimi and Sora to see if they're alright," Jade answered. "Something made their digimon digivolve earlier, and I think they're fine now but I was concerned."
"There is something on the radio about Tokyo Tower," Matt mused. Patamon jumped off TK's head and into Jade's arms, his little face nuzzling her own.
"Do you know who the eighth child is?" TK asked. "We were following the signal when we saw you."
"You won't find her that way," Jade told him. "I have her digivice, which is what you are searching for, but it's not safe to give it to her yet. When Michael and Akili get here everything will be alright."
"Michael and Akili?" Tsunomon asked.
"Who are they?" Patamon asked as well.
"The original digidestined," Jade explained as they started to walk again. "They were already on their way here when I called, something about the digidestined of Compassion telling them that they were going to die. She's not happy with them."
"Why not?" TK asked.
"Because she wasn't consulted when you digidestined were chosen. Now, on to more important matters, do you have any food on you?"
Matt and the digimon looked at each other without saying a word, but TK simply smiled and started to lead her in the direction of the nearest fast food restaurant. He was explaining that Matt had money, and that after they had eaten he was going to make sure that TK got home to his mum because he hadn't seen her yet. That made Jade curious, having assumed that everyone had gone home the night before, but she didn't ask as it wasn't her business.
The five of them ate quite happily together, their laughter echoing around the small restaurant, but Matt was quiet as he observed the girl they had run across. In all their time in the Digital World, not once had he ever heard Jade ask for food. For her to ask now, in the Human World, it meant that she was really hungry and probably hadn't eaten since being in the Digital World. They certainly hadn't eaten at camp, but Matt remembered how much of a bully Dudley was and didn't find it too unbelievable to think that he had arranged it so that he had her food. Pig.
It also didn't take a genius to figure out that Jade didn't want to go back to the school, but he couldn't just leave her on the street. He needed to get TK home, but that wouldn't take too long and Jade could stay with him once they were done. His dad wouldn't mind having another kid in the apartment, he wasn't there much anyway.
As the afternoon dragged on Matt lead his small group to the train station and bought a ticket for each of them. At first Jade had protested, not wanting to be a bother, but Matt bought the ticket despite her protests and pushed her on the train so that they would all ride together. TK distracted her soon enough, and Patamon remained in her lap to keep her there. The two of them told her all about how their day before went, and the play that Sora had put on when a baby pulled on Yokomon's hair causing her to cry out. Jade laughed. She also got to hear about the fight between Birdramon and Mammothmon, and the problems they had with Gesomon in the river.
Time passed slowly, but eventually the train emptied and Jade finally asked where they were going. She hadn't realized that TK lived so far away from everyone else. TK and his mum lived in the Sangenjaya district of Setagaya, and summer camp was the first time in years that the brothers had seen each other.
"How much longer Matt?" TK eventually asked. The boy pulled out his digivice to look at the time, and Jade blinked in surprise in seeing how late it actually was. It was almost ten past seven at night, and she really needed to get back to Odaiba to keep an eye on the Kamiya family.
"Relax TK, you're almost home," Matt reassured him.
"It's late," TK continued. "You should get off at the next stop."
"No, I'll take you all the way to Sangenjaya," Matt refused. Jade's eyes flickered between the two brothers, suddenlyfeeling very uncomfortable.
"It's okay."
"TK," Matt sighed. "Let me do this."
Jade looked at Patamon on her lap, and then across to Tsunomon who sat between the two boys. Both digimon looked just as uncomfortable as she did, but neither one of them spoke. Jade started to tap her fingers on Patamon's head, not really sure what to say now. She was tired, but she had slept most of the morning in whatever room the Japanese magicians had given her, but she had also spent the rest of the day walking around. The food Matt had bought for her was great, and while it had given her energy for a while, a couple of hours of sleep would help even more.
"Do you not like separating?" Patamon suddenly asked. Jade's attention flickered back to the digimon and the boys. TK glared at his partner, and Jade realized that Patamon had breached a sensitive topic. She rested her hand over Patamon's mouth so that he couldn't continue to talk.
"You shouldn't talk about us brothers like that," TK scolded. Jade felt Patamon shrink in on himself, sensed the hurt he felt and the worry from Tsunomon. Digimon didn't have parents like humans did, they didn't understand what separation meant, and Jade doubted that either of the boys had explained it to them. Jade tried to sooth Patamon, but the hurt that he was feeling was too great. As the train stopped at the next station he jumped off her lap and flew out the opening doors.
"Patamon!" she cried in shock. She and Matt jumped off the seat and started to run for the door, but where Matt stopped to wait for TK who hadn't moved, Jade kept running. If she lost the brothers it didn't matter because she could always follow their crests, but if she lost Patamon in such a large city she might never be able to find him midst the emotions of the people around her. She continued to run, doing her best to keep Patamon in sight, and ignoring the strange looks she was getting for being on her own so late at night.
Patamon? You know TK didn't mean to make you sad, she thought at him.
Why does he always yell at me? Patamon asked, his inner voice full of sorrow.
Because he likes you, Jade said after a moment or two. She really had no idea how to answer that. Do you really think he'd yell at complete strangers? Maybe TK was just as hurt as you are because you said what he was thinking?
Patamon stopped trying to fly away and returned to Jade, allowing her arms to wrap around him. She continued walking, and as she moved she tried to find Matt, TK and Tsunomon. She was quite surprised when she realized just how far away they had gotten, or it could be that the others went the opposite direction to what she went.
"I don't like fighting with TK," Patamon whispered.
"I don't like it when you fight either," Jade admitted. "You are my Protectors after all, how can you protect me when you're fighting among yourselves?"
"Does your face hurt?" Patamon asked softly, his ears reaching up to brush across her scars.
"No," Jade reassured him. "I sometimes forget that they're there, until someone reminds me. Don't worry, you'll be able to get your revenge on Phantomon and the Bakemon. I'm pretty sure that Gomamon already has a plan in mind."
"We were all worried when the others couldn't find you for the meeting this morning," Patamon continued in a softer tone of voice. "We knew that you were alright, but we had no idea where you were. This world is different from the Digital World."
"You'll get used to it," Jade promised. "After all, this is TK's home and despite how awesome the Digital World is, the others will need to come back here to their families."
"And you?"
"If I could stay in the Digital World for the rest of eternity, I would do so. There isn't anything for me here, aside from the digidestined."
"What about your partner?"
"I'm kind of punishing him at the moment," Jade admitted sheepishly. "In his madness he practically destroyed the Shadow World, which is why there is so much darkness in the Digital World."
"What is the Shadow World?"
"A world of darkness," Jade sat down on the nearest park bench and hugged Patamon tighter to her chest. "In the Beginning, there was one world, but it was too crowded and couldn't hope to sustain so much life. The ruler of this world, God, created other worlds where life forms could live in peace. The humans were led to this world, the Human World, and many centuries later they created the Magical World because they didn't want to mingle. It was too dangerous and anyone with magic in their blood were being slaughtered.
"Creatures of light and darkness were taken to what is now the Digital World, but the balance was too hard to keep up. Lord Lucemon, the ruler of the Digital World before me, used his life force to create the Shadow World for all the dark creatures. Like the Human and Magical Worlds, the Digital World and the Shadow World are almost completely identical. The Shadow World is a shadow of the Digital World, and home to dark digimon and dark creatures alike."
"But why were they separated to start with?"
"Dark cannot exist without light, just as light cannot live without the dark. But there needs to be a balance, and when the two exist on the same plain of existence, wars will break out and the balance would be disrupted. That's why the digidestined help with the maintenance of the Digital World, to keep the darkness in the Shadow World. There are dark creatures who act as your opposites, those who are supposed to support the Shadow World, but with Tom's madness they haven't been able to succeed."
"Who are our opposites?"
"As much as I hate to say it, Myotismon was created by Tom to help support everything."
"Myotismon?!" Patamon almost yelled. "He's supposed to be protecting the Shadow World? Then why is he in the Human World and the Digital World?"
"I don't know Patamon," Jade admitted. "But I plan on finding out."
The two were silent for several minutes, but it wasn't uncomfortable. The only time that Patamon tensed up was when a man sat down next to Jade with a sigh. Jade looked at him from the corner of her eye, her body tensing as well, but all he did was lean forward so that his elbows rested on his knees and his eyes stared at the ground. When he spoke, it was soft enough that Jade had to strain her ears.
"A vampire-like creature was spotted in town a few minutes ago," he whispered. "He is not a true vampire, and my superiors think he is one of the monsters you and the 'digidestined?' are chasing. There were also two small creatures, one who looked like it was made of rocks and the other a child wearing a pumpkin on his head. The vampire-like creature was following two blonde boys."
"TK," Patamon whimpered in fear. Jade nodded and stood up, allowing Patamon to rest on her head. She looked back at the man who had to be a magician.
"Evacuate the area if you can," she whispered back. "He is dangerous and has no problems killing to get what he wants."
The man nodded but didn't move until Jade was gone. He had done his task, and while he had questioned the intelligence of telling a child about the monsters, obviously it had been the right call. As he walked in the opposite direction Jade had taken, his thoughts turned to her identity. What was so important about this child?
Jade ran as quickly as she could. If Myotismon was in Shibuya, then Matt and TK were in danger. She told Patamon that as soon as he could he should digivolve, but until he did she would keep running after the two crests she could sense. A fog rolled in, but it wasn't a normal fog. Lightning flared into existence every so often, and as soon as she got closer so realized she could feel Gabumon's fear. She wondered when he had digivolved as she had been too distracted with Patamon to notice.
"TK's in trouble," Patamon suddenly announced fearfully.
"Digivolve then and we can get there quicker," Jade ordered. She felt Patamon nod before he launched himself off her head and burst into white light.
"Patamon digivolve to – Angemon!"
Jade grinned at seeing the angel in front of her. She had always loved Patamon's evolution, and the sense of flying on his back was exactly the same as when she went flying with Lucemon. Even with the situation as serious and dangerous as it was, a grin spread out across her face as she gripped Angemon's shoulders and the two of them rocketed to where Matt and TK were fighting. Gabumon had digivolved into Garurumon, and then digivolved to Weregarurumon.
"I'll jump off when you get closer so that you can fight without worrying about me," Jade called over the roar of the wind. She could transform, but she had faith in the digimon that they would survive. If it looked like they wouldn't she would step in. Angemon nodded and flew closer to the ground. Jade rested on the balls of her feet and jumped upwards. Angemon shot away from her, and as soon as Jade's feet hit the ground she rolled and stood back up. Her eyes followed Angemon to where he was rushing towards Myotismon and Weregarurumon, before looking back down for Matt and TK.
"Matt! TK!" she cried, spotting the two blonde boys standing close together. The two looked at her in surprise before the relief that they felt at her presence spread across their features. She ran up to them before turning her eyes back to the fight.
"You found Patamon!" TK said happily, hugging her tightly. She smiled at him and nodded, but her concern was to the battle above them. She couldn't understand why Myotismon was in Shibuya, she felt for sure that he knew the eighth child was in Odaiba. That meant that he was specifically hunting the digidestined, and that didn't bode well for any of them.
It was also a concern that the two digimon were losing. Matt's cries of encouragement were getting desperate, and TK was becoming scared, so Jade decided that she should join the fight. Before the two boys could figure out what she was doing she darted forward and caught fire, her wings bursting into existence to carry her up into the sky rapidly. She ignored the cries from below, the ones calling for her to return, and instead crashed into Myotismon and pushing him away from the other two digimon.
"Lady Sovereign," Myotismon said, dipping his head slightly to show respect, but his tone was sarcastic.
"Lord Myotismon," Phoenixmon said in the same tone. "What are you doing in this area? Surely you realise that the eighth child is not in this region?"
"Of course I know that," Myotismon replied. "Surely you realize that finding the eighth child is not my only goal here?"
"No matter how powerful you become, you will never be able to beat Lord Lucemon," Phoenixmon continued.
"You did, and I am stronger than you thanks to the so-called Lord of Darkness. I will rule the Digital World, the Shadow World, and the Human World. There is nothing that will stop me from achieving my right."
"Your 'right'?" Phoenixmon asked in disbelief, a laugh in her throat. "You were created by Horcruxmon to enforce his rule in the Shadow World. You are purely dark, you cannot rule something you have no connection to."
"But that's where you're wrong, My Lady," Myotismon corrected with an evil grin. "The darkness in my soul was not from the Shadow World, nor was it from the Digital World. The Seeds of Darkness contain His spirit, and I in turn, became Him."
"You're not Myotismon…" Phoenixmon breathed, horror growing in her heart.
"This form is that of Myotismon," the digimon hissed at her, the darkness carrying his words to her ears alone. "But my soul…that is of another. I will retake my place as God, and this creature whose body I possess will make sure that I get my wish."
At that moment Weregarurumon and Angemon attacked and Myotismon fled. She stared after him, feeling fear in her heart, but chose not to speak about the conversation. She could tell that the other digimon were concerned about her, but she knew what she needed to do. She flew back down to the digidestined, remaining in angel form even when the other two de-digivolved.
"You're not coming with us, are you?" TK asked as he hugged Patamon tightly. Phoenixmon shook her head and knelt so that she was closer in height than before.
"There is something I must do," she said softly. "I must check on the others, rest well because the time to fight is near."
Matt nodded. He had one hand on TK's shoulder, and the other was resting on Gabumon's head, and while he looked reluctant he did understand that she needed to go. She smiled at the four of them, before disappearing into the sky again. She was going back to the Kamiya's, she needed to be close in case Myotismon attacked before they were ready.
Tai was beyond tired, but there was still so much that he needed to do. Walking around all day on little to no sleep, stressing out over Jade's well being, and having no success finding out the identity of the eighth child was wearing him down. All he had to do now was get inside his apartment, get Agumon something to eat and check in with the other search groups.
"You look tired Tai," Agumon told him as they walked from the elevator to the apartment.
"I am," Tai replied. "I could sleep for the next week if I was allowed to."
"You should sleep when you get inside," Agumon stated wisely. "You're not going to be able to help anyone if you're falling asleep on your feet."
Tai smiled with a short breath of laughter. He completely agreed, but he knew that the chances of him actually sleeping without seeing that everyone was alright were pretty slim. Still, he opened the door and stuck his head inside, calling out his usual greeting and checking to see if anyone was home. His mother answered his call, before informing him that he was late and that his dinner was in the fridge. Tai grinned at Agumon, before ushering him in so that they could get to his room without his mother seeing him. Agumon was tempted to tell him that his mother knew about him, but at her request he said nothing.
Tai smiled as he saw Kari sitting on the couch reading. A second glance showed that their cat Meeko was back from wherever she had run off to yesterday. Kari waved at him and came over to give him a hug. The phone rang and Tai picked it up as he pushed Agumon into his room. Kari remained where she was, her head resting on his chest and arms around his waist.
"Hello, Kamiya residence," he greeted.
"Tai, you made it home then?" Joe replied.
"Joe! Any luck with the eighth child?" Tai stated with a grin. He looked over to see if his mother heard, but she hadn't moved from the kitchen.
"Kind of," Joe told him. "I'm in Hinode at the moment, exams, but I wanted to check in on you as I haven't seen you since this morning. How are you doing?"
"Good," Tai said honestly. "A little tired, worried about the others, but other than that I'm good."
"Jade's fine as well," Joe reassured him, answering his unasked question. "She happily played with Gomamon while I studied."
"Where did she go afterwards? Did she get anything to eat? Does she know who the eighth child is? How did your exam go?"
"I don't know where she went. She said something about tailing the eighth child, or meeting up with her spy in Myotismon's ranks, but other than that she was pretty mysterious about it all. She didn't eat anything at my place, and she never asked for it, but I'm positive that she had breakfast or found something to eat after she left. She does know who the eighth child is, and the original digidestined are on their way here. My exam? I failed, I know I did. I'm never going to get into medical school at this rate."
"Chin up Joe, I'm sure you did fine," Tai said with a supportive tone. "When do you get back to Odaiba?"
"In a few hours, I'm going to have some dinner and wait for my results. After that I'll get the train home."
"See you tomorrow then," Tai said. Joe echoed his goodbye before hanging up, and as Tai put the phone down he looked at his sister still holding him. He tried to untangle himself from her, but she refused to be moved.
"Kari," he whispered. "Are you going to let go?"
"No," Kari muttered into his chest. "You were gone all day and you look really tired now."
"Then how about you grab us something to eat, and we can play in our room before bed?"
Kari hesitated, but in the end she released her brother to scamper into the kitchen. Tai walked into their room and collapsed backwards on the bed with a sigh of relief. His whole body was sore. His eyes closed as he searched for Jade, something he had done all day just to make sure that she was alright, and his concern grew when he realized that she was Phoenixmon at that moment.
"I brought you something to eat, Tai, Agumon," Kari stated. Tai opened his eyes to see her standing by the door uncertainly. Two bowls of food were in her hands, and he sat up to encourage her to come further into the room. Agumon accepted one bowl and practically inhaled it, and Tai took the second to eat at a slower pace. He asked Kari to tell him about her day, and she spoke of how she had gone looking for Meeko and spotted a few digimon. Tai had been alarmed when she said one had followed her home, but the cat hadn't hurt her and had left not long after.
All the blood drained from his face as he realized that Gatomon had been tailing his sister, and that she could have been killed while he wasn't there to protect her. Kari stopped talking and looked at him in concern, but all Tai did was pull her into a hug. He decided that when they went searching the next day he would take Kari with him to protect her. He didn't want her to be alone.
"Tai, I'm still hungry," Agumon informed him. He, too, was concerned that Kari was being followed by Myotismon's followers, but she was alright so that meant that she wasn't the one they wanted. And he had digivolved to Ultimate during the day so his energy was a bit low. Tai nodded to him and the three of them hid in the lounge room, with Agumon hiding under the coffee table. Kari grabbed a plate of watermelon, and Tai turned on the news to see what was happening in Japan with the digimon sightings.
He had no idea why there were digimon in Shibuya, he didn't know anyone in that area, but he also knew that TK lived a bit further out from Shibuya. It was possible that TK, and Matt who had taken him home, were involved in the most recent attack. The phone rang as Agumon came up for another slice of watermelon, and Tai answered it again. Kari's eyes followed him, and from the kitchen Yuuko watched her son in concern.
"Hello?"
"Tai, it's Matt."
"Hey Matt, did TK make it home alright?"
"Yeah, he was happy to see mum again, but that's not why I called."
"You were in Shibuya then?"
"We were, but that's not all. Myotismon attacked us, he even killed two of his own henchmen. TK was pretty distraught, and I know Jade's scared."
"Jade was with you?" Tai muttered, his face paling further.
"She's the only reason we got away," Matt confirmed. "I think she's heading back your way, she said she'd be checking in on everyone else. But Tai, whatever it is that Myotismon is planning, he's really dangerous. I have no idea what he's planning, but we all have to be on guard. We need to find that eighth kid, or at least get Jade to tell us who it is."
"I'll ask," Tai promised. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine Tai," Matt said with a sigh. "You, however, sound exhausted. Get some rest."
"Goodnight Matt."
"Is everything alright Tai?" Kari asked.
"Yeah," Tai muttered as he put the phone down. "Meeko's trying to run away again."
Kari gasped as she spotted their cat making her way out to the balcony. She went outside to bring her back in, and Tai went into his room to sit at the desk. Myotismon had been in Shibuya, but why? It couldn't have been because Matt and TK were there, that had been a coincidence, so there had to be another reason. And why had Gatomon chosen his sister of all people to follow?
"Someone's out there talking to Kari," Agumon told him, breaking into his thoughts. Tai looked up from the desk and went outside in horror. Another digimon? Who was on the balcony?
"Who's there?!" he demanded as he charged outside. He had only moments to realise that Gatomon was sitting on the balcony rail staring at Kari curiously, another digimon that looked like a wizard was floating just off the ground, and Kari was standing close to the door to the lounge room.
"Tai!" Kari called happily.
"What are you doing to my sister?!" he demanded of the two digimon.
"We mean her no harm," the wizard said.
"Wizardmon?" Agumon asked curiously. "Are you Jade's Wizardmon?"
"The Little Princess spoke about me to you?" Wizardmon asked happily. "Yes, I am that Wizardmon, and her spy within Myotismon's ranks."
"You're a spy?" Gatomon asked. "For how long?"
"Ever since I met you," Wizardmon admitted. "I've known for a long time that you're the digimon partner of a digidestined, though I wasn't sure until I spoke with Jade about it. And now that we know who the eighth child is everything is about to get messy."
"Who is the eighth child?" Tai asked, still defensive but slightly calmer due to the fact that Agumon apparently knew of Wizardmon, and that Jade trusted him.
"Your sister."
The group of five on the balcony turned as another voice answered. Phoenixmon appeared from just above them, and as she fell she turned back into Jade and landed on the balcony next to Gatomon. The cat-digimon jumped off the balcony in shock, hiding slightly behind Wizardmon, but Tai, Agumon and Wizardmon grinned at the sight of her.
"Hi," she said softly. Tai jumped forward to hug her, pulling her off the balcony as he did so. She laughed and returned his hug, her arms tightening around his neck in concern. As Tai didn't seem to want to put her down she wrapped her legs around his waist. She greeted the others around her, reaching down to rest her hand on Agumon's head for a moment, before turning to Kari.
"Nice to meet you, Hikari," she said formally. "I'm Jade."
"It's Kari," the younger girl said with a smile. "I've heard so much about you. Did you like your bracelet?"
"I love it, thanks for helping Tai with it," Jade said with a blinding smile. Then she turned to Wizardmon and tilted her head curiously. "I thought you weren't going to bring attention to Gatomon and Hikari?"
"Gatomon started to remember after she met her this afternoon," Wizardmon explained. "I decided that it was time they met. You still have the digivice to confirm?"
"Of course," she said. She tried to pull her bag off her back, and managed with some difficulty as Tai hadn't put her down yet. Once the digivice was in her hand she passed it over to Wizardmon who it turn put it in Gatomon's paw. The digimon held it out to Kari, and as soon as the girl touched it, it lit up like a beacon.
"Taichi? Hikari? What are you doing out here?" Yuuko asked as she joined them on the balcony. She had seen the light and went to investigate. "It's far too late for you both to be….Wizardmon?"
"Yo-Yo," Wizardmon greeted. "It's been a long time."
"Don't call me that," Yuuko ordered. Her eyes traveled over the rest of the people and digimon on the balcony, hesitating a moment on Agumon before moving on. At last her eyes caught Jade, still in Tai's arms, and her eyes widened in shock.
"Lily?" she asked.
"Her daughter," Wizardmon corrected. His statement caused Yuuko's eyes to widen further and before she could stop herself she stepped forward and raised a hand to gently rest on Jade's cheek. Jade went very still as the woman's hand rested on her face, and she wondered what she should do. In the end she figured she'd deflect the woman's attention to something else.
"Gennai says hi," she muttered. "And that Guilmon misses you."
"Mum? What's going on? How do you know Wizardmon?" Tai asked. Yuuko's hand dropped from Jade's cheek as if scalded.
"She's the digidestined of Compassion," Jade explained, turning her attention to Tai. "She's the one who turned her back on the Digital World."
"Jade is our Sovereign," Agumon spoke up, looking at Yuuko. "She succeeded Lord Lucemon."
"You're the ruler of the Digital World?" Yuuko asked in fear. "But, you're still a child! How did this happen?! How are you alive?! I was told you died with your parents! I went to your funeral!"
"The others didn't tell you?" Jade asked, but on the inside she felt strange at the thought that she had a funeral. "I was sent to live with my aunt and uncle."
"Your Tai's Pen Pal," Yuuko realized. "And you're not treated right at home, but, you can't be a digidestined if you're the ruler."
"What have you been telling your parents?" Jade asked the boy holding her.
"Just the basics, but nothing about the Digital World," Tai reassured her. "But…mum, why'd you turn your back on the digimon?"
"Are you picking up Wisdom and Determination?" Jade asked as well. From the corner of her eye she saw Kari and Gatomon looking a little lost.
"They can make their own way here," Yuuko growled. "I'm still planning their demise."
"For not telling you that your children were digidestined?" Wizardmon asked with a smile. "They did try to contact you, but you weren't talking to them when they were deciding who would protect our world."
Yuuko didn't answer. Jade chose that moment to get her feet back on the ground, much to Tai's displeasure. He did as she wanted however, and Jade turned to Wizardmon to find out what his plan would be. Yuuko pulled her daughter into a hug, before pulling Tai across into one as well. Tai understood that she was afraid, and he was afraid as well, but there was no way he was going to turn his back on the Digital World now that he knew it existed.
"If we want to be able to defeat Myotismon, we need the crest of Light," Wizardmon said softly.
"But if you go after it now Myotismon will know that you've found her," Jade protested. "He's watching Gatomon closely. If she changes her behavior he will know!"
"I can get it," Wizardmon promised.
"He will kill you," Jade insisted, her voice softer and quieter. "He is not the protector that Tom created."
"Then it is even more important that we get that crest."
"I can get it," Gatomon spoke up. "He keeps it on himself for safe keeping."
"No!" Jade, Wizardmon and Kari cried. Jade continued, "If you go after the crest, he will use you to find Kari. That is the only reason he has kept you alive."
"How would you know that?" Gatomon asked her.
"Because I spoke with Tom about what Myotismon's plans might be and he said that if he ever wanted to find a digidestined he would use their digimon partner. No partner digimon can harm their human partner, they are protectors first. His plan will be to send you out to find the child, wait until you come for the crest, and then make his move on Japan. With the darkness as strong as it is I cannot fight him one-on-one and win."
"That's why you have us," Tai told her. "To protect you. We will fight in your place so that we can push back the darkness."
"You'll only be able to do that if you rest," Jade told him. "You're tired, did you sleep at all last night?"
"I slept until you were attacked," Tai admitted. "Why didn't you call for help?"
"I had the Japanese magicians helping me out."
"So what are you going to do?" Yuuko asked.
"I'm getting the crest," Wizardmon said instantly. "I won't ask you to come with me Gatomon, but you cannot stay here with Hikari just yet. Little Princess, you should head back to your classmates before a political war starts up."
"Tai, you should keep your sister's digivice for now," Jade spoke up. She disagreed with Wizardmon's decision but he was older than her and had fought with the digidestined for a lot longer. "It's still not safe for her to have it."
"I'll call Michael," Yuuko said reluctantly. "They'll be landing in Tokyo before making their way here. And I should probably look for my old digivice…"
"Will you be alright Gatomon?" Kari asked in concern.
"I'll be fine Kari," Gatomon promised. "Wizardmon, we need to go."
"I'll head back to Odaiba Elementary then," Jade said with a sigh. "Please at least try and rest tonight, Tai, call if you need help, and I'll see you in the morning…somehow."
Tai nodded. He pushed his mum's arms away from him before looking seriously at Jade. A change came over him, and Jade blinked in shock as she saw the boy before her change into a warrior.
"I await your call Lady Sovereign," he said with a bow. "We will defeat this darkness."
"Protector of Courage," Jade whispered. "I know."
With that she turned and jumped off the balcony. Wizardmon jumped after her, Gatomon in one of his arms, and with the other he wrapped it around Jade's waist so that she wouldn't crash to the ground. He told her that he would drop her off at Odaiba Elementary before going after the crest, and Jade nodded. Back on the balcony, Tai, Kari, Agumon and Yuuko watched them disappear.
"Mum? If you're a digidestined, and knew Jade's mum, does that mean that you could also use magic?" Tai asked. "Joe said he got invited to a school of magic last summer, but his parents declined the invite on his behalf while he was in the hospital."
"I studied at Mahoutokoro," Yuuko admitted as she ushered her children and Agumon inside again. "Lily studied at Hogwarts, in England, but she hated every moment of it. She would have joined me at Mahoutokoro when she was old enough, but she couldn't read, write or speak Japanese. There was a war that broke out in England while Lily was in school, and she was killed when she was twenty-one."
"You thought Jade was dead?" Kari asked.
"The last time I saw Lily and Jade was when we all went to the Digital World a few months after Jade was born. Michael, Lily and I brought our children to meet Gennai, and keep him company. You and Gennai got on really well, Taichi, and when we left he gave you those goggles that you're wearing. Michael and his son, Michael Jr., didn't stay for long but the two of you played well together. And then a year later I heard that Lily and her family had been murdered by some insane wizard, and I couldn't deal with that."
"So you turned away from magic," Tai said softly.
"All I could think of, was that if Lily hadn't had magic she would still be alive. I went to England after you were born Hikari, and I placed two deer haniwa, a doe and a stag, on the graves to protect them. After that I swore that I would have nothing to do with magic ever again, and that meant that I would never go to the Digital World again either."
"Why?" Kari asked.
"Because not just anyone can go to the Digital World," Yuuko explained as she brushed some loose strands of hair off of Kari's forehead. "The magic in our blood makes it possible."
"So Tai and I have magic in us?" Kari continued to prod.
"Yes," Yuuko forced the two children to wait in the lounge while she went to the kitchen. They watched her wander around before picking up an envelope that was hidden on top of the fridge. When she returned she passed it to Tai.
"This is your invite to Mahoutokoro," she explained. "School begins on September first, and I intended to discuss it with you once you got back from camp, but now…"
"We can still discuss it," Tai muttered as his eyes glanced over the words without much understanding. "But only after Myotismon is defeated."
"Very well," Yuuko agreed. "Now, tell me about the Digital World, and tell me how much it has changed to need the digidestined again."
Tai did so, with Agumon helping him when he got side-tracked. He never spoke of his injuries, but he made an effort to go into detail with Andromon, who was Gennai's digimon partner, Piximon, who had spoken to him about his anger problems, and their adventure to gather the crests. He knew that if he talked long enough, he would be able to distract Kari from thoughts of Gatomon, and his mother from her thoughts about what Jade was up to on her own.
If he had known what Jade was doing, however, he would have been by her side before anyone could tell him differently.
Michael glanced up at the airport clock with a frown. He hated when flights were delayed, especially as he was the one flying, but one in the morning was ridiculous. He was glad that Yuuko had apparently decided to stay at home, though he would have been beyond surprised if she had actually been there to greet them. Maybe they should have tried harder to contact her when they were choosing the new generation of digidestined, but she had made it very clear that she wanted nothing to do with magic or the Digital World again.
Michael was the oldest in their group, having been sixteen when he first went to the Digital World. He had never wanted to be the leader of their group, that responsibility had gone the Gennai, he had been perfectly fine taking a step back. Gennai had been thirteen throughout their adventure, Akili had been eight, Yuuko had been twelve, and little Lily had been six. It had seemed unfair that a child as young as Lily was forced to protect the Digital World, but in the end she had proved she was the strongest out of all of them, fighting to the bitter end.
Yuuko hadn't been the only one to suffer after Lily had died. Everyone, human and digimon alike, had cried at the thought of their youngest friend dying first. For the digimon, it had been a lesson about just how fragile humans were. Humans weren't reborn like digimon. For humans, death was the end. Wizardmon had flown into a rage and disappeared for so long. Gennai had told him that the first time Wizardmon had been seen by anyone was when Lily's daughter came to the Digital World again.
Michael sighed as his thoughts turned to Jade Potter. Despite looking so similar to her mother, the two couldn't have been more different. Lily had been friendly to everyone. She hadn't known what true darkness was. There was nothing that could have pulled that smile from Lily's face. But Jade, in the beginning she hadn't known how to smile. She didn't trust humans, she preferred the company of digimon, and she'd had no regard for her own life. He only hoped that had changed now that she was older and, apparently, alive.
"You're thinking about Jade," Akili observed softly. "She's alive, and you said she sounded happy."
"The digidestined that we chose were to take our place as Lucemon's soldiers," Michael muttered back. "They were picked with him in mind, not Jade. Can they protect her? Did we choose the right people?"
"Jade is strong, we saw that often enough when we were visiting the old man," Akili continued as he dragged his suitcase behind him. "Obviously she cares more for humans than she used to as she is looking for the digidestined of Light, so maybe she feels a connection with the digidestined. We'll just make sure that these children know it's their job to protect her."
"They're all so young still."
"You're tired," Akili noted. "You've been flying for almost thirty hours and you're not thinking straight."
"I'll sleep once we get to Odaiba," Michael reassured him. "I didn't like the look of that fog, and I have this strange feeling that we need to be as close to Odaiba as possible. I also feel dread when I think about Myotismon. He's not a digimon that I'm familiar with."
"We can ask Jade about it when we see her," Akili promised. "Now move that tired and weary butt of yours. Hinode seems the best place right?"
"To Hinode we go!"
The fog that Michael had mentioned was thick and evil. Myotismon had created the fog after catching Wizardmon and Gatomon in his hideout looking for Kari's crest. Wizardmon was thought dead, having been dumped into the water after being defeated by Myotismon, and Gatomon was now a prisoner and bait to lure Kari out from where she was hiding. The fog kept everyone in, and everyone else out. This meant that of the eight children digidestined, only TK and Joe were on the outside, and everyone else was cut off from the rest of the world.
TK and Patamon were sleeping comfortably, recovering from the adrenaline from earlier that night, blissfully unaware of the fog. In contrast, Joe was still conscious and stressing out. His exam hadn't gone so well, and cram school had been so much worse. He was glad that Jade had insisted on him studying for the exam, otherwise he would have failed miserably. As it was, he had gotten a wretched 72%, his father would be very disappointed in him.
The trains hadn't been running to Odaiba at ten-thirty due to the fog, and the water taxis hadn't been running either when he got there at twelve. He had gotten a few odd looks, due to his age, but no one had bothered him. He had ended up outside the water taxi depot, in an area fairly empty, and was talking with Gomamon about what he learnt at school. The little digimon hadn't understood why learning about numbers was more important than learning about how to light fires or cook, or even how to swim. It was a long and tiring conversation.
"Well that's not good at all."
Joe looked up from his talk with Gomamon at hearing the words in English. He wasn't proficient in the language, but he knew enough to communicate on a basic level due to his father's insistence that communication between doctor and patient was almost more important than the actual healing. Gomamon had looked up as well, recognising the language as one he had heard Jade speaking when she was scared and earlier when she was on the phone.
Two men were standing next to each other, staring at the depot. The older man had blonde hair and looked incredibly familiar. It took a few moments for his memory to tell him that the man before him was Michael J Barton, the movie star from America. The other man was clearly African, and he had a tattoo on the back on his neck that reminded Joe of their crests, but not one he recognized.
"So how do we get to Odaiba, then?" the African asked.
"Don't know," the American replied. "But, I'm going to nap for a bit. When the sun comes up we can figure something out."
"Such a shame our partners aren't here," the African muttered. "We could have flown across or something."
Joe had no idea what they were talking about, and he kept his eyes on them as they found a spot nearby to rest. Gomamon remained hidden in the bag Joe carried around with him, he wasn't sure if he should pop out and talk just yet. Still, it was late and unless they planned on going anywhere soon it would be good to rest up while they could. He told Joe to rest for a few hours, agreeing with the English-speaking strangers that everything would sort itself out in once the sun rose. Joe agreed with him and lent against the wall to rest. Gomamon would keep watch, and then after that they would join the others.
It was the second of August, 1999.
I'm alive! Sorry for the delay in updating this story, but I'm also working on an original story that I hope will be out in publication at the end of the year. It's nearly done, and I've set my deadline for the end of August. Hurray for me! Thanks for the support that I keep getting for this story, your reviews make me happy and motivated. The next chapter is nearly done, should be up in a few more days or so, depending on how well behaved my muse is. Thanks go out to Okami Princess for betaing this chapter!
Next up in Intertwined Destinies:
Chapter 24: Myotismon Makes His Move