Chapter 21: Spreading Cracks

Yolei's eyes widened as she caught sight of a mass of white and pink fur lying just below the window. It was curled up into a small ball and seemingly absolutely unaware of everything and anything around it; even staring at it from just a few feet away.

"What's it still doing here?" She mouthed to her companion and Sora shook her head quietly in return.

An evacuation order had been given out to go into hiding after all; other than them, a scary Digimon with killing intent and Shisamon no one and nothing should be left in this city. There was after all no reason whatsoever to remain in a deserted city void of any other life and provisions. Except-

"Maybe it's hurt!" She whispered, rising to her tiptoes and looking inside again.

Yolei saw a pink tail twitched back and forth in a nervous tact and even with her limited vision from the window she saw the body moving in paced deep breaths, dispersing dust and dirt from the ground it was lying on. Now that she listened closely she heard it, too.

Quickly scanning the room for a door or an entrance or something similar, Yolei decided that there was no way she could not help if the Digimon was hurt. Or if there was something else she could do to help it.

As long as it didn't attack them, of course.

"Hawkmon," she addressed her partner, lifting him of the ground to save him from creating unnecessary noise by flapping his wings, "please check up on it."

"Will do Yolei," he answered back as he hopped on the window's ledge.

"But be careful."

Hawkmon nodded and Yolei found it kind of strange that the Digimon inside still hadn't visibly acknowledged them. They were only a wall apart, after all, and whispering too boot.

Hawkmon spread his wings and glided gracefully down to the floor on the inside, creating no noise like a hawk on hunt and even though he did land only a few feet away from the dog Digimon it didn't react.

She traded a look with Sora and saw her worry mirrored, paired with more than just a bit of suspicion. Piyomon down at their feet picked up on it and stiffened, readying herself for action.

That change would be worst case, though.

Inside Hawkmon hoped closer and closer to the Digimon with deliberate slowness and just enough grinding of his claws against the stony floor to create noise the Labramon's fine ears should be able to pick up without a problem. And its ears did twitch. But nothing else, causing Hawkmon to suspect it was just an instinctive reaction; that it was most likely unconscious, not sleeping, because Digimon like the Labramon or even himself were based off data from hunters. And hunters were not unaware of their surroundings if they didn't want to become the prey instead.

It was programmed inside their data. There was no way around it.

So either the Labramon was forcibly unconscious, or it was faking.

Both cases would spell trouble. One meaning there was an attacker nearby, the other that the attacker was right in front of him.

Hawkmon was now within his wing's reach of the Digimon and he could still not see a wound or blood.

Aware of his partner's eyes following and watching him Hawkmon moved to touch the Labramon.

He hadn't given up.

No, not at all.

He just didn't care anymore. Or couldn't care.

Which it was didn't matter.

In the end it was all the same.

Him. Those surrounding him.

It was all the same anyway.

It was like a blur. So fast, that Yolei didn't even have time to blink even as her heart had already frozen to a tight knot.

One second Hawkmon was poking the white and pink dog in the side the next her partner was sprawled on the ground with the dog standing over him, fletching his teeth.

Gasping for breath, she gripped her Digivice harder. It stared glowing and Yolei didn't even need to think about which evolution to choose. It was inside a house. "Digimental up!" she screamed, hoping to draw the white Digimon's attention to her; away from Hawkmon.

Away from her partner, who she didn't want to send fighting, who she didn't want to see hurt.

Light exploded from Hawkmon's form still lying on the ground.

It was blinding, especially in the limited space of a small room, but she managed not to avert her eyes, even though it brought tears to them. Fear kept them in place; fear for Hawkmon. The fear that always clawed at her heart and soul when she saw him throw himself head first into a fight. To protect her. Fear that still sometimes nailed her in place, making her unable to move. Fear that was steadily disappearing.

A part of her wondered what would be left of the day she finally lost that fear. A monster? An empty shell? She didn't want to find out.

Yolei watched a dark shadow that she knew was the enemy Digimon jump away from her partner and land in a crouch on all fours in a far corner of the little room.

"Bursting Purity …. Shurimon!"

Shurimon took form as the light ebbed away, bladed stars at his hands spinning wildly, while he took position in front of the window, blocking her view, in his typical protective fashion.

She didn't see anything other than Shurimon's back, but her partner must have seen something that made him tense even more.

"Are you Chosen Ones?" The voice was weak, without any real energy behind it, but it was also harsh and demanding. At any other time Yolei would have been impressed that it was possible be both at once.

"Who wants to know?" Surimon asked, not moving from his spot at all, making it impossible for Yolei and Sora to catch a glimpse of anything other than the shuriken stored on her partner's back, Yolei noticed Sora holing her Digivice in preparation for when the battle left the confined walls of the house. Piyomon had no small evolutions after al,l which was without a doubt terribly frustrating for the other pair.

"Behind you," the enemy Digimon grunted out, "I took it from the control room. From right under their noses." There was a definite smugness hidden in that statement and the silence following it had something definite.

"Are you saying," Sora asked, catching on and pushing Shurimon an inch to the side to let them see again, "that you are Takuya's friend?"

The Digimon gave a grunt that could mean anything.

Choosing to interpret it as a confirmation Sora continued, "we were informed that you choose a Shisamon for help."

They were met with an impressive are-you-stupid look for a Digimon.

"This is a Labramon," the other informed them, gaining more strength with each word, but amazingly Yolei could almost see a sneer in his voice after only few seconds of conversation, "I devolved from Shisamon to save energy. You wouldn't know, but this controlling is exhausting."

"I see," commented Sora, appearing all relaxed now. "We got a message from Takuya for you, by the way. He said to sit back and wait to get rescued."

The Labramon looked at them unblinking for a second before he answered, giving them another look. "Tell him 'no thanks. I'd like to be out of there before I'm all old and wrinkly.'"

Yolei breathed a sigh of relief.

"So what do you have for us?"Sora asked, now dropping fake cheerfulness for a hard look of seriousness.

Labramon, not moving a step, nodded in a suspiciously human way in their direction. "The small box there. The control room was heavily guarded and it was a pain to get it out of there. Don't mess this up."

Was he talking down to them?

Yolei ignored him, instead trying to get look at what the boy was talking about, but the window was too high up for her to see anything that small below it on the inside.

"I don't see anything," she mumbled frustrated, "can you pick it up Shurimon?"

Only very reluctantly did Shurimon move and even then only in a way that allowed him to keep an eye on the Labramon and only after said Digimon moved to lick his paw. Must be a strange thing to do with his human mind.

Suddenly the Labramon made a noise sounding awfully close to a human snort. "I won't attack you," he said, freezing Shurimon his tracks, "just now that was your mistake. Sneaking up on me like that."

Yolei frowned. "We weren't sneaking. You got dog ears, don't you?"

Labramon eyed them with cold detachment. "In situations like this it is still common sense to try talking first; if you don't know who is an enemy and who not. Not to mention that what I'm doing here is naturally much more complicated than it looks to you. Especially if I want to return to my body."

He was talking down to them.

Yolei ignored it only with some effort this time as Shurimon shoved a black box in her face. She took it from her partner and inspected it with some interest, not really having expected something so small. The rectangular box wasn't cold to her touch and fit comfortably in her hand, similar to her Digivice. It was heavy and hard, likely made of something akin to metal while its surface was smooth and unscratched, with only a tiny hole the size of her thumb nail providing s hint to what it the box could hold.

She was no Izzy, but Yolei had some experience with computers and knew an access point when she saw one.

This thing held information, she mused, handing it to Sora so that the elder girl could take a good look at it as well.

"You are amateurs." A statement. A disappointed estimation.

Yolei's head shot up from her observation to look at Labramon who looked at them with an unreadable expression. Hawkmon, having devolved, hopped down from the window, gliding down to her feet, joining Piyomon, but it was clear that both Digimon were listening intently.

"Wha-"

"Not just letting your guard down, but also turning your back on a possible enemy and giving up your advantage without any real prove of if I am who I say I am. I could be lying. Codes can be broken by a lucky guess, previous information or betrayal. You got lucky this time, because I'm not an enemy, but luck won't last.

"Takuya must have misread you," there was something hidden in that statement, but Yolei was too distracted by her bubbling emotions to take notice of it, "if he thought you'd be able to handle this situation without his help. You are amateurs, right? They, in contrary to half prepared fools, can learn." He said the last sentence downright mockingly.

Shifting his weight he licked another paw, not even gracing them with another look, ignoring the shocked silence following his words and seemingly talking to himself as he continued. "Not to mention that you are pretty much standing in broad daylight with who knows what stalking through the streets. Even you must have noticed it. Either way, lucky again. Whoever is out there has either no interest in you, hasn't found you yet or is still waiting for a better time." He got up and stalked a few steps in their direction. Yolei automatically retreated from the window.

Labramon's words hurt. She clenched her fists, glaring, angry tears stinging in her eyes.

"Anyway you should go. You have what you came for. I'll wait a few minutes and then start a diversion to give you some space. God knows you'll probably need it."

"Wha-", she swallowed, unable to form a straight thought or simply comprehend what the boy hidden behind a Digimon had just accused them of.

How dare he? He didn't know the first thing about them. How dare he judge, just because they still had hope, trust and love.

Labramon just jumped fluidly through the window, which was just wide enough to for him to pass, sniffed the air and the ground, then froze.

Yolei only saw a dark flash before a hard shockwave blew her down the alley.

Landing painfully on the hard ground, with dust and dirt invading her lungs, making her struggle for air, Yolei fought with the shock and sudden fear overtaking her senses. She rubbed her eyes, which cleared quickly tanks to the tears had suppressed earlier. At that time her brain caught up and she jerked her head around for any sign of what had attacked her, but her priorities were quickly set straight when a deep red speck of color twitched right next to her.

She picked Hawkmon up, who only blinked a few times before climbing out of her protective hold with strong movements.

She let him go reluctantly.

"What happened?", she whispered, her voice fearful.

Yolei coudn't see far, even after she cleaned her glasses. Dust floated in the area, obscuring everything from sight, but a quick glance around made her guess that she was still on the same street she had been before, only further down.

Sora wasn't in sight.

"Labramon was attacked", Hawkmon replied, taking fa few steps towards the dust cloud. "We have to flee, Yolei. It was Phelesmon."

Yolei swallowed. "But we don't know where Sora and Piyomon are. And that Labramon, too."

"Yes", agreed her partner, "but we can't win if we fight. Probably."

Sora had Garudamon, but there was no guarantee that they were really dealing with only an Ultra Level. And she didn't know if Sora was fine.

Either way they needed a diversion.

"Do you think you can evolve two times?"

Hawkmon nodded.

"Good. First we need Aquilamon to blow away the dust, and then Holsemon. He is faster."

"Hit and run, is it?"

"Yes,"Yolei agreed, " we-"

Suddenly a strong wind picked up and Yolei covered her eyes, when she looked again she had full view of the alley ans the sky above where Birdramon flapped her great wings.

"Only Holsmon, now," Yolei mumbled almost to herself as she made Hawkmon evolve.

Drifting.

Floating.

She didn't know.

But she was aware that she had no control at all.

Over nothing at all.

So as she drifted everything disappeared. Slowly. Perhaps painfully, but she was no longer aware of it.

Just that everything faded away. The memories she couldn't remember, the body she couldn't move, the mind that was oblivious to everything, the emotions that she had possessed once upon a time.

Thump.

Thump.

She heard it. Heard it. Ever repeating itself. Never pausing.

Thump.

But it, too, faded.

Thu-

She didn't care that it stopped. Not anymore. Not about anything as she drifted away.

It didn't matter. Because she was no longer able to care with a heart that has long since been silenced or with a spirit that had been sucked out of her so slowly she never noticed how.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. It hadn't always been.

But it was too late.

Thump.

A last time.

"…..I guess it's possible," Izzy admitted with a sigh in response to Tai, who had done some thinking after the others had left his room following their disastrous conflict with Takuya. "But then -"

Izzy stopped abruptly as a bright light erupted form the screen of his laptop, which, for once, was not being worked to death by the red haired genius, as he had opted to put it away during their discussion. A gate was also set up and Tai guessed Izzy didn't want to get burried below Yolei and Sora once they returned, which apparently was now.

Following a dulled thud Tai recognized a familiar scene of tangled limps and instinctively he tried to get up to sort the mess out, but winced in pain as he tried moving his back. Being hurt sucked.

As it turned out, though, help wasn't needed at all when Yolei jumped up not a second later.

"Hey," he greeted with a grin and a wave of his hand, incredibly relieved to all four had come back conscious and not bloody, as far as he could see. "How did-"

The words died on his lips when he saw Sora's expression as she lifted herself of the ground. It was a mix of hollow mortification and sadness. Automatically his eyes swung to Yolei who had her back turned to him, but he noticed her shoulders shaking, and her head turning from left to right in search of something.

Obviously she didn't find what she was looking for, since she turned around to him, tears spilling and face set in rage.

"Where is he," she hissed venomously, voice shaking and close to a whisper with fury.

Tai was too perplexed to answer.

"Where is he," she repeated and as Tai failed to reply again she checked out his room once more. Izzy, Mochimon, Koromon and him apparently weren't 'him', so she stormed out, Hawkmon following behind, the door crashing loudly close.

Tai blinked.

Facing Sora Tai's mind tried without success to come up with an explanation as to what had happened, when they, both along with their partners, were well enough to be enraged.

Sora was taking time dusting her clothes off and freeing her hair from sand grains. Her eyes were shadowed by strains of her reddish hair. Piyomon sat on the ground, miserably staring at her clawed feet.

Tai shared a look with Izzy, who gave him a raised eyebrow in return, though he already had pulled his laptop back within arm's reach.

"Sora? Piyomon?" He began discreetly after a few minutes had passed and nothing had changed. It was worrying on a whole different level from what he was used to.

Sora stopped fiddling around with her clothes, trying to get rid of dust that no longer there and gave an exhausted sigh. Still not looking up she reached into a pocket of her jeans and pulled a small black box out. It was about as large as a lighter.

Handing it to Izzy with shaking hands Sora pulled in a deep breath. "It's what ….. Takuya's friend gave to us," she explained quietly. "Don't know what it is, though."

Izzy immediately eyed the box with great interest, leaving Tai to deal with everything else.

"Excuse me," Sora said, almost stumbling over her feet to reach the door. "I'm tired. I'll go rest." She was not fooling anyone, but Tai let her go. He twisted his neck, trying to catch a better glimpse of Piyomon, who was still sitting on the floor, apparently oblivious to everything else. Either she didn't notice Sora leaving or she didn't want to follow.

It was disturbing.

Her feathers were standing on end, making her look extremely close to a pink snowman and she made a strange noise every few seconds, which, Tai realized with startling shock, were her equivalent of sobs.

Their partners hadn't cried even at the most extreme circumstances he could remember.

Something cold settled in the pit of his stomach.

"Tai," Piyomon squeaked; it sounded so broken. His sense of foreboding intensified. "Are we too weak?"

He swallowed, pressing all his concerns and questions, cursed and hasty denials to the back of his mind in favor of plastering a confident mask with a gentle smile on his face.

"No," he answered confidently, "you aren't weak. I don't know what happened, but none of us are weak." Tai hoped so very much his words reached her. "Don't think so." He smiled encouraging." But don't you want to go to Sora? I'm sure she would like your company."

Just like that the little bird's head shot up and she fluttered to the door, waiting for Izzy to open it as she couldn't do it herself.

So she hadn't noticed Sora leave.

Izzy closed the door behind her and when he turned to face Tai again he had a blank expression on his face.

"What?"

"Nothing," Izzy replied tiredly, "but I have a bad feeling about this."

Tai sank sighing deeper into the pillows supporting his back. "Me too."

He almost feared hearing about what had happened.

Takuya sat on his bed in the room he shared with Tommy and Koichi staring at the opposing wall with empty brown eyes.

After Takuya had left the other Chosen Children a few hours ago he had noticed his perception and thoughts of everything were rather off. Or strange. Different anyhow. In a very confusing way. It was as if he had two minds, which was technically true, but 'his' multiple minds had been neatly separated before, sharing real thoughts only when wanted or needed.

Now not so much anymore.

Back with the others he had had two vastly different opinions of the same thing at exactly the same time.

It was very confusing and would without a doubt give Takuya much trouble in the future if it didn't change. Particularly in battle; what if one half thought left while the other thought right? It'd be laughable and Takuya was determined not to let it happen.

Not to mention he already had a splitting headache.

Combat, though, was the main reason he currently sitting still in a hospital bed doing nothing. For hours.

Because he was trying to get his mind stuck as one.

He had not been successful in any way.

But his headache was getting better since both minds were thinking the very same thing.

How very damn bored he was.

So it was not all that surprising when, resting in a comfortable bed with little noise around, he dozed off. Especially considering how tired he was.

What was surprising, however, was when he slept with a frown on his face and woke up more annoyed and bored than he ever remembered feeling.

Though, thinking about his dream, it was only natural.

Takuya slipped out of bed and walked over to his friends' beds, checking up on them. Not that he thought something was going to happen to them, but Takuya was, quite frankly, going to go insane if he didn't lose his boredom soon.

Having who knows how many years of staring at the very same stone wall inside a dark chamber squashed into a few minutes of dreaming could do that to you. If he ever got home he was never going to complain about school again. In comparison that was as exciting as things come.

Which, in turn, was a really sad thought and totally off subject.

He blinked once when he stepped to the window and sunlight hit him straight in the eyes. Turning away he chose to sit down on one of the room's chairs instead of lying in his bed.

But Takuya was still bored.

A quick look at Koichi proved that his comrade was sadly still not awake or even remotely present, seeing how the Beast Spirit of Darkness still sat on Koichi's pillow.

Well then, what to do? He was stuck in a hospital. In a world different from his own. Friends either knocked out or kidnapped. And he had parted on a bad note with the go-to people.

Just great.

He wanted home.

Suddenly his eyes began swimming and he rubbed them, pushing the depressing thoughts away.

He had no right to complain.

And he didn't want to either, because Koji would snort dismissively and turn away, pretending to ignore him but in reality only give him some privacy; Zoe would first tease him if she caught him like this, proclaiming how cute she thought it was that he cried; Tommy would get sad too, because he always missed his parents and brother and because he really was too young for all that what was happening; JP would offer him chocolate and try to give him a reassuring speech, which he always overloaded with jokes making them a complete failure in the speech department; Koichi would shuffle around awkwardly at the rand of his vision indecisively and then opt to just stay there, always just within sight.

Takuya mumbled a curse to the un-responding room, rubbing his eyes angrily and this time forcefully and definitely pushed all thoughts away.

He reminded himself where he was and what he had to and who the hell was responsible for taking away their peace in the first place.

He didn't know the latter yet, but he was going to find out and make them pay.

Leaning back in the chair he let his thoughts drift in the encouraging department of vengeance. Never mind that revenge actually wasn't his style.

After who knows how much time he heard soft knock and the door swung a slit open, revealing a brown mop of hair.

Writing Koji was fun. Because he pretends not to care about people he is terribly harsh and offending to those he doesn't know, not sugar coating anything. That was fun to write, though as it is he could have hardly picked a worse timing to be so offending.

I know i'm mean to cut Double City's happenings off like this again, but it makes more sense to do so for the long run. Sorry.

I created a poll about Gatomon; if i (big maybe; i still got no idea) choose to let Gatomon reach mega what Digimon do you want her to turn into? Into the classic Ophanimon or HolyDramon (from the first 02 movie)?
I remembered that polls need time so i decided to better start now then just a chapter before i actually need to know the result. Please vote to let me know which one you'd prefer.

This is the chapter for August.

please review and thank you for last chapter's.