Hey! I decided to keep going on this since I left the last chapter kinda just hanging there; however I still expect reviews!
FYI: If you see this * next to a word, I'll explain it at the end of the chapter!
Chapter 4
"So, how exactly are we supposed to get out of this damn place?" Romano asked harshly.
The group had managed to find a path that led down the cliff and were now walking along the rushing river.
"Well, if there's a way into this place there's bound to be a way out," Britain answered.
"What's the last thing you remember?" Alfamon asked.
"Ve vere in a lab in New Mexico; a strange machine opened a portal and pulled us all in." Germany said.
"Zat sounds pretty awesome," Gilbamon said smiling.
"Not really; it's really important that we get back," Britain said.
"Why?" Alfamon asked.
"Well we have to…" Britain trailed off. His mind had suddenly gone blank. They had only arrived in the Digital World a while ago; it shouldn't be that hard to remember, "What were we doing before we came here?" Britain asked, turning to the others.
"We were…uh…" Romano said slowly, and scratched his head.
"I…don't remember…" France said slowly.
"Neither do I," Austria agreed; all the nations nodded.
Britain tried to remember what they were doing a little before that, but only little bits and pieces came back to him. He was starting to panic a bit so he tried thinking back to a date more in the past. He found that all his memories of his childhood were still intact; all the fights he had with France and his brothers were still very clear. He tried thinking after that but all he could remember was the War of Austrian Succession. There was something that happened before that…but what?
The other nations made the same horrible discovery; large pieces of their memories were gone.
Romano, and Russia, to their horror, could hardly remember any of their childhood memories. Romano remembered living with Spain and Russia remembered the time he spent with Ukraine, but after that…nothing.
Austria remembered the War of Austrian Succession, but he couldn't remember if he won or not.
There was a big empty space in all of their memories, like something…or someone was missing; someone special and important to them.
"What's wrong?" Felimon asked, snapping the nations back to reality.
"Well…it seems that most of our memories are gone," Britain answered as calmly as possible, leaving the Digitalia gaping in shock.
"Dude, how can you like, forget certain parts of your life? That makes, like no sense!" Alfamon protested after the nations had told them what they forgot.
Felimon clung Romano tightly, "What if you're slowly losing your memory bit by bit? What if we're next? I don't want to lose my memory! I don't want to forget anything!" he wailed with tears forming.
"Calm down, and get off me you bastard! Memory loss isn't contagious dammit!" Romano yelled as he tried to pry the crying Digitalia off him.
"We know that memory ross can happen when people travel from the Digital Word and back, but it's never this bad," Kikumon said.
"Yes; don't people just forget how they got here?" Lizamon asked frantically, to which Kikumon nodded.
"Hang on! Are you saying zat you knew ve vould lose our memories all zis time?" Germany demanded.
"No! Zat's not vat she meant!" Gilbamon said, coming to Lizamon's rescue, "People who have come here in ze past only lose ze memory of how zey got here! Ve don't know vhy you lost memories of your pasts as vell!" he explained.
"But wait; they actually remember how they got here! You don't think…" Natamon trailed off.
"Think what?" Austria asked.
"That…he did it," Mattamon finished quietly. The Digitalia all stiffened, fear etched onto their faces.
"Who's 'he'?" France asked.
"The most dangerous Digitalia in the Digital World," Alfamon said slowly.
"Who is it?" Britain asked, but Alfamon shook his head as the other Digitalia began to shiver in fear.
"We can't say his name…" he said.
"They say he watches everything and everyone…" Lizamon said shakily.
"And if you say his name…he'll come and play…" Felimon said, choking on the last word with more tears threatening to spill.
"He can take anyzing precious to you; objects, family, friends…memories," Gilbamon said slowly.
The nations froze; that was how they lost their memories?…They were stolen from them? But one thing didn't make sense; why would this Digitalia take only certain memories of their past? Did he want the nations to forget something important in their pasts?
They continued to walk, still thinking about the issue at hand. They eventually arrived at a clearing with the river connecting to a large lake. The jungle around them had transformed into a forest, teeming with plant life.
They kept walking until Felimon spoke up, "Hey, are any you guys hungry at all?" he asked.
"I know I am," Alfamon agreed.
Everyone stopped, "Vell…it has been a vile since ve've eaten," Germany pointed out.
"But we don't have any damn food!" Romano said angrily.
"Just leave that to the awesome Digitalia!" Gilbamon said.
Lizamon nodded, "We Digitalia hunt and forage for our food; there's bound to be something here that we all can eat," she said.
"Zat sounds good," France agreed.
"Then we'll split up; we'll pair up with our partners," Mattemon decided; the Digitalia nodded.
"Great! Let's go Britain!" Alfamon said happily.
"What are you-" Britain began, but cried out in alarm as Alfamon held the Brit from under his arms and lifted him into the air. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU WANKER! PUT ME DOWN!" Britain yelled.
Alfamon laughed loudly and flew off above the forest, "Relax British dude, we'll find things easier this way!"
Lizamon and Gilbamon looked at each other and nodded. Gilbamon grabbed Germany from under his arms as well, while Lizamon picked up Austria bridal-style as they flew into the air in different directions, ignoring the shocked cries of their partners.
"I'm really glad you don't fly," Romano said to Felimon.
"Me too; flying is scary!" Felimon agreed smiling. The rest of the Digitalia took their partners and walked off in different directions to find some food.
Meanwhile, Alfamon and Britain flew above the forest. Britain held onto Alfamon's arms (that were still holding him under his arms) for dear life as Alfamon scanned the trees for anything. He kept looking until a tinge of blue caught his eye. He squinted for minute until his eyes widened with happiness, "JACKPOT!" he yelled out of nowhere, causing Britain to flinch.
Alfamon soared downward at top speed and landed on the ground, releasing Britain who was shaking like a leaf from the sudden descent. Alfamon ran towards a tree that was covered in bright blue berries that were the size of peaches.
"Sweet! Now we'll be okay!" Alfamon said happily and started to fly up to collect the berries. Britain managed to pull himself together and walked up to the tree.
Alfamon flew down with an armful of the berries and held one out to the Brit, "What kind of fruit is this?" Britain asked as he took it.
"The best kind; they're called Maya berries*!" Alfamon answered taking a bite of one, "Not only are they super healthy, they're like, totally super great to eat!"
Britain hesitated and took a bite of the berry and chewed for a minute; his eyes widened at sudden flavor explosion. It was juicy like an apple, sweet like a pear, and slightly tangy like a peach. Britain kept eating until the whole thing was gone in seconds; not even his cooking could compare to this! (No sh*t Sherlock…) Alfamon finished his berry before gathering a few more for everyone and Britain grabbed a few as well and started the journey back.
Meanwhile, everyone else was arriving back at the lake. "Did you find anything?" Mattamon asked.
"Nothing safe anyway," Kikumon answered sadly.
Lizamon nodded, "Everything we found was poisonous or unsafe,"
"I heard Alfamon yell like he vas happy a minute ago; maybe he found something," Gilbamon suggested.
Everyone nodded when the ground started to shake. The Digitalia all stiffened and turned towards the lake to see a large octopus about the size of a house with razor sharp fangs emerge from the water.
"Oh no! It's Hexamon*!" Felimon cried.
"What's the hell's a Hexamon?" Romano yelled in horror.
"Take a big octopus with six tentacles, give it Romano's temper, and you'll have him!" Felimon said.
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?" Romano demanded.
Alfamon and Britain emerged from the woods and stared at the new Digitalia in shock. They placed the berries on the ground before joining the others. Hexamon lashed out one of his tentacles and smashed it into the ground as it pulled itself closer to the shore, "Let's get 'em Digitalia!" Alfamon yelled and they ran towards the monster.
Alfamon flew into the air, "Star Blast!" he yelled before shooting the blue beam of starry energy at the monsters head.
Gilbamon and Lizamon joined him in the air, "Flash Fire!" Gilbamon yelled. His wings turned from yellow to red as he prepared to fire the flames, but only a small ember emerged.
"Rage Hammer!" Lizamon yelled as her club started to glow, but the glow quickly faded without transforming at all. Hexamon shot a blast of water from his mouth, effectively shooting down the three flying Digitalia. Britain, Austria and Germany ran up their fallen Digitalia.
"Are you alright?" Britain asked urgently.
Alfamon got back to his feet, "I'm fine," he said and ran back to the monster.
"Sakura Gale!" Kikumon yelled, but no wind came from his hands,
"Ice Breath!" Mattamon yelled softly, but only a small breeze came from his mouth,
"Razor Claws!" Felimon yelled, but his cat claws didn't grow an inch,
"Splitting Shriek!" Natamon yelled and opened her mouth to scream, but no sound came out. Hexamon slapped them all away hard with his tentacles. The nations ran to the side of their Digitalia while Alfamon stepped up and fired another Star Blast that successfully hit the monster.
"Why can only Alfamon attack?" Romano asked while cradling the top half of Felimon,
"We're too hungry," Felimon whined, collapsing against Romano's chest.
China knelt by Kikumon who was struggling to get up, "Can you stand?" he asked with concern.
"I have no strength left…" Kikumon said weakly.
All the Digitalia seemed to be growing very pale; their animal features drooped and they seemed very malnourished as the nations held their Digitalia close in case Hexamon decided to attack them again.
"Alfamon must have eaten some of zose berries before zey came here," Germany said, helping Gilbamon to sit up.
Britain nodded in understanding, "Alfamon! You're the only one who has enough energy to fight! It's up to us!" he called.
"Right!" Alfamon said nodding. He flew into the air again and fired another Star Blast which hit its mark. Hexamon lashed out another tentacle which Alfamon barely dodged.
Britain gritted his teeth; he had to find a way to help Alfamon fight. He ran towards the edge of the lake where he found many large stones.
He picked one up, "Hey! You!" he yelled and threw the stone, which bounced off the monsters' head. Britain quickly threw another one as the octopus turned towards him.
Before he could even breathe, Hexamon wrapped a tentacle around him, pinning his arms to his side, and lifted him into the air.
"Britain! No!" Alfamon cried in horror.
Britain felt the tentacle tighten; he cried out in pain as he struggled to breathe. Alfamon flew towards him, only to be slammed into the ground by another tentacle.
"N-No!" Britain cried weakly as the other tentacles lashed out and slammed dangerously close to the others. The nations held their Digitalia close, hoping to shield them from anymore harm.
Alfamon, who was still face down in the ground from the tentacle, looked up at the monster who roared with delight. Britain squeezed his eyes shut in pain as he felt his lungs burn for air as the tentacle tightened even more,
"A…Alfa…mon…" he croaked, on the brink of blacking out.
Alfamon clenched his fists and squeezed his eyes shut in horror as the device on Britain's waist began to glow slightly,
"IGGY!" Alfamon yelled.
The device sent out a beam of light that enveloped Alfamon. Britain opened one eye halfway as he and the others watched in awe as the figure of Alfamon glowed brightly and immediately begin to grow at an alarming rate,
"Alfamon…Hetavolve to…Freemon*!"
The light faded, revealing a large eagle that was the same size as Hexamon. The eagle screeched and flapped his wings before sinking his talons into the monsters face. The tentacle holding Britain finally loosened, causing Britain to slip limply out of its grasp. Freemon quickly craned his neck and the Brit landed on his head. Britain gasped for breath and held his chest as his vision cleared. He looked down at the large eagle he was on, "A-Alfamon?" he asked.
"No dude! This is my Ultimate form! Now I'm Freemon!" Alfamon's voice said from nowhere.
Britain flinched, "Am I reading your thoughts?" he asked.
The eagle nodded, "That's the kind of awesome bond we have with our partners! It's how we communicate in our Ultimate form!" the voice said excitedly.
Freemon lowered his head to allow Britain to safely slide onto land, "Now stand back; it's time to teach this thing to pick on Digitalia his own size!" Freemon said.
The giant bird took flight as Hexamon lashed out his tentacles again. Freemon flew out of reach of them, so Hexamon resorted to shooting the water blasts again. The eagle dodged and began to flap his wings harder causing an enormous gust of wind to blow. Hexamon was blown into the air and landed in the middle of the lake with a loud slap.
Freemon screeched and flew higher and circled around. "Liberty Strike!" He yelled as he began to speed towards the monster like a missile.
A red and white energy surrounded him as he propelled towards the lake. Freemon flew right through the monster; he landed as the monster roared in agony before he dissolved and disappeared. Freemon let out one last tired screech before he began to glow and shrink back to normal.
"Alfamon!" Britain cried in horror and ran towards him. By the time he got to him, the light had faded revealing the exhausted adult Digitalia lying face down on the ground. Britain knelt down next to him and rolled him over.
He cradled his head in his lap and started shaking his shoulder slightly, "Alfamon! Are you alright lad? Say something! Alfamon!" He cried.
Said Digitalia opened his eyes halfway, "Hey Britain…you wouldn't happen to have any of those Maya berries on you, would ya?" he asked hoarsely, smirking a bit.
Britain let out a sigh of relief and smiled.
The nations helped the Digitalia to their feet and passed out the Maya berries. Everyone got two or three and there was even enough for all the nations as well, "If you want more just say so; Alfamon and I know where they are," Britain said as everyone began to chow down on their berries.
"By the way Alfamon, before you Hetavolved, you called me Iggy; how did you know that was my nickname?" Britain asked. In all honesty, he despised being called Iggy, but it had been a while since he had heard it.
Alfamon opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again, "Well…I'm not so sure myself," he answered, scratching his head, "I guess…it just came to me,"
All the other nations were just as confused; only very few people called Britain Iggy; but Britain felt like there was someone who always used to call him that…but who? Why was it so hard to remember?
By the time everyone had finished the Maya berries the sun was beginning to set, "It's going to be dark soon," China observed.
"We better sleep here for the night," Austria said.
"But what if another Digitalia comes? I don't want to wake up to another huge roaring monster ripping us to pieces," Romano said.
"Don't worry, we have the ability to sense if any other Digitaria are around; we'll warn you if we feel anything coming to attack us." Kikumon said calmly.
Felimon walked over to the forest and found some fallen pine branches, "Hey, we can use these to sleep on!" he said happily.
Everyone got up and started gathering pine braches for their beds. It was dark by the time everyone was done. All the nations laid down next to their Digitalia and fell asleep almost instantly.
Britain sat up just as Alfamon was getting settled. He really did owe the Digitalia a lot; he had come to his rescue three times now, and he had only known him for a day. Sure, Alfamon was loud and reckless, but something inside just wouldn't let Britain get mad at him. Perhaps if his memories hadn't been stolen he would know why Alfamon seemed so familiar to him, but for now they would just have to wait and see.
"Alfamon?"
"Yeah?"
"Thank you…for saving me," Britain said slowly.
Alfamon paused and smiled, "No problem Britain,"
The two lay down and fell asleep soon after, ready for the great adventure that lay ahead of them the morning that would follow.
Yay! Alfamon's Ultimate form is a huge badass eagle! And yes...I added some USUK fluff. Just a head's up, the next few chappies are going to continue on their adventure and every chapter a different Digitalia will reveal their Ultimate form. And once they're all done, they can Hetavolve all at the same time! :D
So, now you know why they don't recognize the Digitalia; they lost their memories of their siblings and there just happens to be a Digitalia out there that can take memories away. Coincidence? I think NOT!
You'll find out who he is if you just review... ;)
* Meanings:
-Maya berries: I got the name from the shade Maya blue. Not really much to explain there, it just sounded cool.
-Hexamon: Name based on the creature Hexapus, an octopus with six legs instead of eight. They aren't all that big, but if you haven't noticed, in the Digital World, everything's huge and has razor sharp teeth or claws...
-Freemon: I know...SUPER cheesy. I had the eagle idea, I just couldn't figure out a good name. The eagle represents freedom, justice and liberty in America so I took ideas from those words. I tried to avoid Freemon so it wouldn't sound like a total rip-off of Graymon in the Digimon series, but there were just no other catchy words that matched the eagle of America.
Now you know...reviewers will get cake!