Blame this delay on being on vacation last week and unable to reach a computer. I tried to write some, however. Hope you like it. While I do not own Digimon, any of the seasons, or most of the characters, I did invent a few of the characters (human and digimon). I've already named several of them, so I won't do it again until I show more new guys. I also devised the tamer's crests and designs. As I've stated before as well, you may borrow my ideas as long as you ask first and give me credit. Now, back to the story.
As they moved closer to the spreading Guardian program, the more signs of chaos and fear became evident. Cars packed the streets to a greater degree than was normal for that time of day, all moving away from the same epicenter. People rushed by on foot, parents clasping their family close as they shoved past the large group of digidestined, tamers, and digimon in their hurry. The fact no one gave them a second look was proof of how distracted they truly were.
"Okay, this is creeping me out," muttered Hiro. "Shouldn't someone be staring at the dinosaur, large insect, and other assorted digimon? How bad is this Guardian thing?"
"If it ends up being like the D-reaper, very bad," Takato responded.
"I hope Izzy and the others made it to the television station without any problems," Tai whispered, glancing at his partner.
Riku grinned, "You haven't seen Ren and Youkomon move before, have you? They're fast, agile, and would always pull off the most insane stunts. Traffic won't stop them, though a few cars might gain some large fox's footprints on the roofs."
"Are we talking about the same guy? The skinny guy with glasses? He's supposed to be some kind of daredevil?" asked Impmon skeptically.
"Don't judge him by his appearance," warned the adult Goggle-head. "We may have grown up, but we're still the same people that we were years ago. We've just… added more experiences and added layers to our personality. Under all that 'businessman' exterior, the old Ren is still there."
"Which means that Jay is still the wimpy pushover under all this new attitude," Tsukaimon snickered.
"I don't mean we can't change and grow," Riku clarified. "I mean the basic traits that we like about a person are never really lost. They can just get buried under new developments until something brings them out again."
"Like Takato will always be a 'crazy Goggle-head with less common sense than a Numemon' and Guilmon will always be a 'bottomless pit who'll fall for anything'?" asked Mako innocently. "That's what Impmon calls them."
Hiro shrugged, "Don't know them well enough to judge, but I guess so."
"Trust me, that's a perfect description of the pair," Impmon grinned.
Before the tamer or red rookie could try to defend themselves from the virus' description, the group rounded the next corner and finally caught sight of the infamous blue mist. Every detail of the fog was unnatural, starting with the color. Normal mists, or even the digital fields the tamers knew from back home and had described to the others somewhat during the last two days, would range from white to a large array of grey hues. It was a bright shade of blue that did not normal occur in nature beyond the most flamboyant flora. It was a color that would be more likely to be seen in the man-made products of the world, like the insanely-sweet and artificially-flavored candy that would send children into hyper mode or the glowing shade of certain neon signs. Or even the troublesome color that overtook a computer suffering from "the Blue Screen of Death." Even more concerning was how moved. It slid across the ground swiftly until it reached a building or vehicle. Then, the fog climbed up the surface and consumed it. The skyscrapers ahead of them were covered in blue mist, but the shapes could still be made out. It looked like a giant blue blanket had been tossed on top of a rough surface; the rises and dips of the landscape could still be identified, but the covered object was concealed.
"Spread out," Destiny instructed. "Help those you encounter and work your way inside. Guardian is deadly, but it can be affected by the attacks of digimon. Use that knowledge to get to your goal. There will be others struggling against the enemy, but the mist holds secrets as well."
"Wait, you want us to split up further?" asked Takato. "Doesn't splitting up lead to everyone getting eaten or killed in movies?"
The dark-haired prophetess remarked, "The dangerous effects of the program are spreading across the city, threatening innocent people. They need help and, in order to protect the largest number of lives, you must divide your forces to cover a greater area."
"You're leaving again," Jeri frowned.
She nodded, "Yes. But only to open the way for the last of the allies. Diaboromon has made more enemies than just those in the human world." Holding out her crystalline D-arc, she created a colorful portal. "I'll return soon. Before I leave, I have one last piece of information to impart at this time: 'one who once stood as a hero allowed this tragedy to unfold by failing as a protector.' Farewell."
The dark-haired girl then vanished through her portal, leaving the humans and digimon behind. As a group, they shook their heads at the fading amazement they once had towards her trick. Impmon quietly grumbled about how she always manages to disappear at the most inconvenient times. Tai, on the other hand, was more focused on her final words.
If the prophetess was right, then everything that was happening at this moment was because of one of the digidestined, someone meant to protect and help, failing to fulfill their duties. Logically, the spiky-haired boy knew that she could be talking about any of the numerous digidestined scattered across the globe. Deep down, however, he knew that if anyone had failed as a protector and even as a leader, it was him. Tai felt the heavy weight of guilt setting on his shoulders as the true extent of his failing became clear. Diaboromon's return, the Guardian program's attack on the human world, and maybe even the hostility of those strange digimon from earlier might all be his fault. Had he truly slipped that far that he was beyond a useless member to an actual liability for the Digidestined?
Shaking his head slightly, Tai tried to shove those thoughts out of his mind. It couldn't be true, right? How could this be his fault? Just because he and Agumon fought against Diaboromon repeatedly over the years, as had Matt, Gabumon, and the others, did that somehow make it his fault? It couldn't…
With an uneasy chill, the spiky-haired boy suddenly recalled watching his partner and Matt's on a computer screen. Izzy was out of the room, suffering from ingesting the horrors of the Kamiya kitchen, but the fight was going in the Digidestined's favor. When the virus made a lucky blow, however, Tai slapped the computer monitor in frustration. The computer froze, causing WarGreymon to stop moving. That stupid act cost them a quick victory, allowed Diaboromon to launch two missiles, and the dangerous mega was able to multiply himself to a nearly innumerable army. Maybe… if they'd managed to stop Diaboromon before he did all that, he wouldn't have kept returning. Maybe if he hadn't messed up the computer at that moment, all of the problems they were facing now wouldn't be happening. Which means it could be all his fault.
"Well, if we have to split up," Riku began, interrupting Tai's thoughts, "I think that Hiro and I should stick together."
"Can I go with the girl? And leave Jay here?" asked Tsukaimon. "I'm willing to bet she's smarter than the goggle-kid and mini-Agumon boy. And smart guys survive."
Takato turned towards the Digidestined of Courage, an expression of excitement spreading across his features, "I'm alright with teaming up with Tai. With WarGreymon and Gallantmon together, we'll be unstoppable."
The former Goggle-head smiled at the younger boy, but didn't quite feel as enthusiastic as him. Takato looked at him as a hero, a role model, like Davis once did and still seemed to on occasion, but he didn't feel he deserved that kind of attention anymore. He probably didn't even deserve to be here. On the other hand, Agumon could help still. Even if the older boy likely caused all of this, the tamer was right about the reptilian digimon's abilities.
"Which means I better make sure his fan-boy tendencies don't take over," muttered Impmon. He glanced over at Jeri and asked, "You'll be okay with the flying pig and Goth-teen?"
She smiled, "I have Elecmon with me. I'll be fine. You, Ai, Mako, Takato, and Guilmon be careful too."
"We'll be fine," waved Guilmon cheerfully.
"I guess we'll meet up at the Digital Anomaly building," Entomon sighed tiredly. "Which is in the middle of the blue fog. Sounds like loads of fun."
"Come on, buddy, we're off on adventures again like the old days," grinned his red-haired partner. "Defeating evil and saving the world. This is way better than being a telemarketer."
"I'm sorry, but there seems to be no answer. Would you like me to try ringing the room again?" asked the woman on the telephone.
Mrs. Kamiya sighed, "No, that's alright. Thank you anyway."
She hung up the phone, frowning. After leaving her son and the others at the alley, though not happily since they were undoubtedly heading for even greater danger, she'd gone to the Izumi residence. Then, once she'd called her husband about events and explained to Izzy's mother about the current situation, she proceeded to try calling the out-of-town Digidestined. Unfortunately, she was having difficulty reaching many of the scattered children. Joe was at a summer course for the college he would be attending in the fall or, as Tai referred to it, "nerd away camp." Sora would be in the middle of a match at that moment. And now, Matt wasn't in his hotel room or, at least, wasn't answering the room's phone. She wasn't planning to give up yet. But she might have to relocate soon.
"Yuuko, you saw the television. I think we should leave soon," suggested Mrs. Izumi, glancing back at the screen with concern. Both women had been shocked when Izzy and Tentomon appeared on television earlier, but they became even more upset as the boy spoke. His warning and suggestion to evacuate caused his mother to close her eyes tightly. She knew the boy was protected by Tentomon, but that didn't stop her from worrying deeply. Now, she seemed to half-expect him to reappear on screen at any moment. "It isn't safe here."
"Let me try Matt's cell phone at least," she requested. "Our children need as much help as they can get."
A door opened suddenly, startling the two women and causing them to leap off the couch. But it wasn't the front door bursting open to allow more dark-suited people coming to arrest them. It was the bedroom door to Izzy's room. Though Mrs. Kamiya could have sworn the only ones in the home were her and Mrs. Izumi, five figures stumbled out of the supposedly empty room.
One was a blond-haired boy close to Kari's age wearing a grey shirt and a red jacket over it. On his shoulders were a pair of rabbit-like creatures, one white and green and the other one brown and pink. Also running out of the room was two, more familiar beings. A girl with brown hair and, oddly, pink pajamas. Along with her was a green, vegetative creature with a brightly-colored flower on her head.
"Mimi? Palmon? What are you doing here?" asked Mrs. Kamiya.
The Digidestined of Sincerity paused, looked over at the adults, and smiled, "Hey, Mrs. Kamiya. This is too funny. I was planning to call you later this week. I was going to ask you about picking up a certain violet skirt that Sora told me about at that little boutique three blocks from here. Sora would have bought it and I would have paid her back, but I heard you have store credit there and thought it would be easier…"
"Mimi, come on," urged Palmon. "You can ask about that later. We're in a hurry."
"Oh right," she blushed. "We're here to help out. Our friends are in trouble, so we came over to Japan as quickly as we could. And I guess I'll pick up the skirt myself while I'm here. Bye, Mrs. Kamiya. Bye, Mrs. Izumi."
"Wait, how did you…" began Izzy's mother, but the group of digidestined and digimon were already out the front door and out of earshot. Her voice trailed off slowly, "…get in Izzy's room?"
"I guess our children have a little back-up now," remarked Mrs. Kamiya, trying to be optimistic. "But you're right. We should get out now. Before it's too late."
After dividing up, they smaller groups of humans and digimon took off in opposing directions. The generally agreed upon plan was to find people in need of help and to slowly work their way inward. Happily, most of the city's population was doing a reasonable job of evacuating on their own. This gave them plenty of time to ask important questions.
"So, anyone have a bright idea of how to get over the deadly blue fog?" asked Tsukaimon. "Because, right now, I'm the only one who can fly."
"You could always carry us," suggested Jay. "As a champion, you can carry me, Jeri, and Elecmon easily."
"So I'm a pack mule now? Forget it," he sneered.
The teenager glared at where his blue partner flapped beside his head, "You gave me rides loads of times before in emergencies. You even gave Riku a lift that one time."
"You weigh more now."
"But you're huge as a champion. You could carry half our group without breaking a sweat. You've just gotten lazy and stubborn."
"I was always this way. You just didn't use to waste time by arguing."
Jeri, having finally set Elecmon down and allowing him to run beside her, interrupted in a sweet voice, "Don't bother the poor little thing. I'm certain that he would give us a ride if he could. It isn't his fault he's too weak."
"Hey, I didn't say I couldn't do it," frowned the virus type. "I just don't want to."
The tamer smiled at him in an obviously patronizing way, "I'm sure you could. You know if you get tired of flying, I'd be happy to carry you and let you rest your little wings."
"You think I'm some sort of idiot, don't you? You think you can trick me into losing my temper and trying to prove you wrong by letting you guys ride me? It isn't going to work," asserted Tsukaimon. "I'm smarter than that."
"Of course you are," Jeri nodded, adopting a tone of voice that would have irritated Impmon, Kazu, and any number of other males. "I wouldn't try tricking a sweet, little thing like you. It would be just mean. You're far too adorable to hurt with mind games or to attempt difficult stunts like carrying us on your back into battle."
Groaning, the Patamon-like rookie landed on the ground, "Fine, I'll be a pack mule. Just stop talking about me like that. It's disgusting."
She smiled innocently, pretending not to understand what the virus meant. While she rarely tried to change a stubborn person's mind (except for occasionally steering a drunk out of her father's tavern), she knew that attacking the problem head-on usually didn't work and only strengthened their resolve. Instead of begging or arguing, Jeri simply found a way to provide a reason that would cause the virus to prefer changing his mind.
"Thank you," the tamer replied.
The street they were on ran nearly parallel to the advancing blue fog bank. No one else seemed to be currently on it and most of the cars were gone. This meant there was room for larger digimon without causing panic or excess destruction.
Jay, after giving the girl a thankful nod, pulled out his large and old digivice. He held it in front of him and pointed it at his partner.
"Tsukaimon digivolve to… Devidramon!"
The dark-colored champion could best be described as a more animalistic-looking Devimon. He was hunched over; his long arms resting in front of him like a gorilla's. His sharp, red claws scraped the asphalt. A long, black tail twitched behind him like a feline's. His mouth was filled with sharp teeth and his four, blood-red eyes glowed from his face. A pair of ragged black wings completed the image of a demonic gargoyle.
"Get on," he growled, jerking his head.
As Jay stepped towards his partner, a large number of small shapes bounced out of the blue mist. Their bodies matched the fog in color and each one possessed a single eye that took up most of their face. Some were simply roundish with tiny nubs on their heads and tiny stubs that gave them a jellyfish-like appearance. Others were slightly larger, shaped like a clawed hand, and bore a long pair of antenna.
Jeri pulled out her D-arc and glanced at the screen, "Let's see. 'Kuramon, an unidentified type baby level digimon?' And 'Tsumemon, an unidentified in-training digimon?' That's odd. And the colors are wrong. The baby level is supposed to be greyer and the in-training is supposed to be a different shade of blue."
"There were tons of the little jellyfish ones here a few months ago," remarked Jay. "They're Diaboromon's lower stages."
"Well, they're coming our way," reminded the champion. "And they're looking at me weirdly."
"They have one eye," Jay pointed out. "How else are they supposed to look?"
"Less creepy," the evil-looking gargoyle growled. "Let's see how they like my glare. Red Eye!"
His numerous crimson eyes began to glow brightly. Every one of the small creatures that met his gaze froze in their tracks, paralyzed. Unfortunately, not all of the Kuramon and Tsumemon were caught in the trap. Others simply pushed aside their brethren and continued to advance.
Dashing in front of his tamer, Elecmon announced, "Super Thunder Strike!"
Electricity crackled across his red and blue tail feathers before shooting out to hit a number of the small digimon. A few Kuramon dissolved apart and a couple of the Tsumemon flew back from the attack, but more quickly took their place. And the numbers continued to increase as the creatures sprung out of the blue mist.
"They're not that strong, but there are so many of them," Jeri's partner commented.
"Neko Claw!" a voice shouted.
An orange, black, and white shape dashed towards the closest group of the blue creatures, slashing at them fiercely. He was fast and agile, twisting around to connect a blow at every enemy in reach. Only when the closest enemies were defeated did they get a look at the digimon.
He was a feline-like digimon, similar to Gatomon in appearance. He lacked the ring around his tail, his paws were covered by brown gloves with claws instead of her yellow ones, and his fur was a pattern referred to as calico or tortoise-shell instead of white and purple like Kari's partner, but the similarities were still there. He blinked his yellow eyes at them before leaping towards another Tsumemon.
"Nikukyuu Punch!" he announced as he struck the in-training.
Devidramon grinned, "You know, I think I can do better than that." He jumped towards the mass of creatures, shouting, "Crimson Claw!"
If the cat-like being had been effective, the larger digimon's assault on the blue creature would nearly be considered over-kill. The dark virus ripped through them, destroying any baby or in-training that his claws reached.
"They keep coming back," a young voice announced. "They keep coming back out of the fog."
Jeri turned and caught sight of a small group of adults. While only one wore a suit, they were all dressed like professionals and business people. Right now, however, they looked terrified. Standing in front of them was a boy close to Jeri's age and a girl close to Suzie's. Both had dark hair, though the girl's hair was in a braid down her back, and were clearly related. The boy was wearing a yellow shirt and grey shorts. The girl, apparently the one who just spoke, was in a blue skirt and was holding a small, round object in her arms.
"What are you doing here?" she asked before realizing exactly why these kids were present. "...You're digidestined, aren't you?"
The girl nodded, "My name's Mari and my big brother is Kyo. He got an e-mail from the really smart boy with the bug digimon he met on the computer. It said that some mean guys wanted to take away our friends. I didn't want to take away Pafumon." She hugged the small, soft-furred, translucent-white body with big, black, round eyes and longish ears tipped with brown currently nestled in her arms. The tiny creature gave a soft cooing sound. "But then, later, the T.V. said that there was a really bad digimon who was causing the fog and it hurt people. The boy with the bug told everyone to run away, but we have to help. Isn't that what it means to be a digidestined?"
"We found these people cornered about a block away from here," Kyo continued, stepping protectively closer to his sister and indicating the adults behind him. "Mikemon helped clear a path for them to escape, but these digimon keep coming. And there are other, stronger ones too. We're trying to get them to somewhere safe, but the blue mist keeps advancing. And you can't stay in contact with them or the fog for very long without getting tired. It's like they're made of the same stuff as the mist. Mikemon is fast, but he can't keep it up forever." His gaze shifted towards Elecmon and then to Devidramon, who was still slashing through the innumerable blue digimon. "There's safety in numbers, so we were hoping you could help us."
Jay's one visible eye sparkled with amusement, "I think we can help with that." Turning his head towards the fighting, he yelled, "Devidramon, its pack mule time."
As the viral champion pulled himself away from the blue masses, Jeri realized that while he might be able to carry all the people and digimon, he wouldn't be that fast or maneuverable. And if the other, stronger creature that come out of the blue mist could fly or fire projectiles, he could end up as a sitting duck. But if they could lighten the load and provide some protection for the retreat… She glanced at her partner, silently asking his opinion. The red and blue rookie nodded.
"You guys go ahead," she instructed. "Jay and Devidramon will get you to safety. We'll stay and fight.
Jay stared at her, "Are you sure? It doesn't feel right leaving you alone. Digidestined stick together."
"As do tamers," agreed Elecmon. "But we'll be fine. And Destiny did say to help the innocent and defenseless we encounter. Those adults have no protection beyond what we can offer. They'll be safer away from here."
By this point, the humans, Pafumon, and even Mikemon had climbed onto the champion as best they could. It looked awkward and crowded, but they'd managed somehow. Devidramon turned his four blood-red eyes towards the girl and rookie, waiting to see if they planned to change their minds.
"And I am a tamer," Jeri asserted, taking her yellow-ringed D-arc in one hand and her crest in the other. "We protect others and fight evil." She looked directly at the advancing blue mist and swarming digimon. "Because the strong, both of body and heart, will guard the weak from harm."
With a smooth motion, she slid the card-like crest through her D-arc. She didn't know for certain what the result would end up being, but she knew, as Impmon said, it was bound to have "flashy effects." And now was the time for that kind of thing.
"Digi-Modify! Crest of Forgiveness Activate!"
She had a moment to see Elecmon change into his champion form before both the digimon and her were enveloped in a bright light.
"Leomon Crest Biomerge to… Regulumon Forgiveness Mode!"
If you remember, I went back to "Destiny" and changed Leomon's mega form from SaberLeomon to Regulumon. So don't be confused by that. On another note, Kyo and Mari were some of the other digidestined that live in the area that I mentioned. I figured that it would be good to show them. And if you're upset about Tai in this chapter, keep in mind everyone is allowed to have a bad day. Besides, I plan to get him back to his old self soon.
I'll update as soon as I can. Reviews are deeply appreciated. Thanks.