Author's Note: I apologise for taking so long in updating. My interest in fanfiction has been severely down lately, and I'm dealing with a lot in RL. Please forgive me.
Dedications: Thank you to the following: Star-The-Writer, Rosy Fire, Chaz746, YatogamiKushina, SilverMoon100, Denachan91 and Hannahjoma and for adding this story to their favourites/alerts. Appreciate it.
I don't own Digimon. But I do own any original characters that are of my own design.
Title: Expect the Unexpected
Summary: Kimiko is the estranged daughter of Mitsuo Yamaki. For her fifteenth birthday, she acquires the Digimon: Labramon and becomes the fourth Digimon Tamer.
Chapter Twenty-Four: Divided They Fall
The space between the digital world and the human world was nothing more than a basic data field with odd, twisting beams of light, all interwoven into unique patterns. Floating letters and punctuation-filled the space that Kimiko fondly named "the in-between".
"Well ladies and gentlemen, we are officially the pioneers of the Digital World," Takato said, leading his friends further into the starfield.
"Oh please," Rika grumbled. "Try to stay focused. We're here to save Calumon."
"And be careful," Renamon added. "The laws of the real world may not apply here."
"You're telling me," said Henry. "I almost got hit in the mouth with a floating question mark."
Kimiko smiled and looked around. The starfield was nothing like she had expected. This place didn't exist in the Digimon TV series, and she wondered if the producers actually ever thought of a place like this between the worlds. A place filled with nothing but data, or was it just something Mr. Wong and the other Monster Makers knew about?
"Guys, wait up," Jerri called. "It's too bright... I can't see."
The tamers paused and turned back. Jerri, Kenta, and Kazu had their hands up over their eyes in an attempt to block out the bright lights. Unlike their friends they had never been inside a digital field, and therefore didn't realise that they would've needed special glasses to block out the data strips.
"Here," said Rika, taking Jerri's hand. "Stick close, 'kay?"
"Thank you, Rika," Jerri breathed in relief. "Much better."
Takato chuckled as he stepped behind Kazu and Kenta, put both hands on their shoulders and steered them forward. "Alright guys, let's go," he said, cheerfully.
"Where are we anyway?" Kazu asked.
"A data field," Renamon answered. "An ocean of digital information."
Suddenly Kimiko felt her stomach flip over, and suddenly she was hanging upside down. "What happened?" she asked, craning her neck to look at the others. Henry floated nearby, his hand outstretched to her. Kimiko took it and instantly felt safer.
"It must've been a data surge," Henry said, helping Kimiko turn around so she was the right way up. "Maybe new information changes spatial relationships."
"I'll have to change something too if this keeps up," Takato said.
"But which way is up and which way is down?" Rika asked as she and Jerri floated past.
"It's all the same," Renamon explained. "Up or down depends on you."
Jerri looked thoughtful. "I think," she said, her finger touching her lips. "That way is down." She pointed in the direction that, to her, was down.
"Oh dear," Renamon said, her eyes snapping open.
The space around the tamers started to shake, and quite suddenly they started to fall. Screams echoed from everyone, expect the Digimon, as they fell towards the fast approaching ground.
Instinctively, Kimiko gripped Henry's hand tighter and pulled herself closer to him.
"Alright guys, I know it's a little late, but we need a plan," Takato called.
"Now whatever gave you that idea, Takato!" Rika snapped.
"Momentai," Terriermon said, passively.
"You're kidding, right?" Kimiko asked.
"Here it comes!" Takato yelled.
And then suddenly the falling stopped. They hit the ground with little to no impact at all, creating various craters all over the place but thankfully no one was injured.
Kimiko rolled over, away from Henry, and frowned as she stared up at the revolving world high above her. It was hard to believe they had just come from there, especially since it seemed so far away, yet so close at the same time.
"So this is the digital world," Henry said. While Kimiko got her bearings he had started to climb out of the crater they had created.
"What did you expect?" Terriermon asked. "Everything to look like a video game?"
"No," Henry said, distractedly. "I guess I just pictured something different. I just never thought it would be so real."
Shaking her head, Kimiko stood and started to climb out of the crater. Henry offered her his hand and Kimiko smiled as she took it, using his assistance to climb out. Labramon barked and bounded to her side, nudging her tamer with her head.
"I'm alright, Labramon," Kimiko said, petting her best friend.
A pink ball tumbled past.
"Dude, check it out," Kazu said, excitedly. "They're like digital tumbleweeds."
"Hey, what's that?" Takato asked, pointing at pink streams of light in the distance.
"I dunno," Kazu replied. "It looks like a movie premiere."
"It's so beautiful," Takato whispered.
"Those beams are gigantic, and they lead right up to real world," Rika said, observing the floating globe above them through her binoculars. "They're everywhere. What are they, do you think?"
"They must be streams of data between our world and this one," Henry said. "Anytime you use a computer, I bet it sends one of those beams to extract the information from down here."
"This place is humungous," Takato said, looking around.
"Can we go find the bread now?" Guilmon whined.
Takato chuckled and shook his head. "You never give up, do you?" he asked. "We came here to find Calumon enough with the bread."
"How are we going to find Calumon?" Kimiko asked. "As you said, Takato, this place is humungous, and we don't even know where to start."
"Hey, over here," Kenta yelled.
Kimiko and the others turned, hoping to see that Kazu and Kenta had found a clue to finding Calumon, at least it would've been a start, but instead the two were standing with Takato's flag, which they had wedged into the ground, and Kenta was holding a small digital camera.
"We're the first humans to step foot in the digital world," Kazu said, proudly. "Picture time, now let's get busy."
Kenta grinned and raised his hand into the air. "Smiles, everyone," he said. "Leomon... oh forget," he added.
"Oh, terrific," Rika mumbled, folding her arms in annoyance. "Another camera test."
"Let's make sure to get our flag in the shot," Kenta said, snapping a series of pictures. On the last shot, which Kenta wanted a group shot, the camera toppled over backwards and ended up taking a picture of the rotating globe instead, and elicited laughter from the tamers, whilst Kenta grumbled.
Rika sighed as Kenta picked up his camera. "Now that Kenta's little fashion shoot is over," she said. "Shouldn't we start looking for Calumon?"
"Rika's right," Kimiko said, unshouldering her backpack and digging around inside.
"What are you looking for?" Takato asked.
"This," Kimiko said, removing the coms device her father had given her before she left the real world.
"What's that?" Guilmon asked. "Some kind of food finder?"
Kimiko smiled and shook her head. "No, my dad gave it to us before we left," she explained. "He said it was to communicate with him while we are here. But maybe it can help us locate Calumon too." She turned the device on and frowned as a 'System Error' message appeared on the screen.
"Maybe try rebooting it," Takato said, looking over her shoulder.
Kimiko turned off the comms device and looked around as Kenta wailed in despair.
"What is it, Kenta?" Henry asked.
"Something's wrong with my camera," Kenta answered.
"Let me see it," Henry said. Kenta handed over the device and Henry clicked through the individual pictures only to find them covered in snow. "That's weird. They're pixilated."
"Pixa-whated?" Kenta asked.
"Fuzzy, Kenta, they're fuzzy," Henry elaborated.
"I don't get it," Kazu said. "It worked fine when we were back in the real world."
Kimiko sighed as she turned the comms device back on after the reboot only to find the same system error message waiting for her.
"Maybe the data streams are interfering with the signal?" Takato asked.
Kimiko stood up and lifted the comms device into the air. But nothing changed. She shook her head at Takato.
"Hey guys," Takato sighed. "This thing's fried too. It won't connect."
"Mhm, I wonder," Henry murmured. "Those data streams must be interfering with anything that is digital. As long as we're anywhere near them, the electronics that we've brought with us won't work."
"So, basically, you're saying that we're cut off?" Takato asked.
"Brilliant deduction, Sherlock," Rika said sarcastically.
"Um, how are we going to get home?" Jerri asked. "If we can't communicate how are we supposed to find our way back? I don't want to be stuck here forever."
"Who's going to feed the school - I mean, my hamster?" Kenta asked.
"We lost a lot of supplies in the fall," Kazu added, "and I don't see any convenience stores around here."
"Man, a mega slushie sounds good right now," Kenta said.
Kimiko pocketed the comms device and turned to face the others. "Come on, you guys, you sound like you're giving up already," she said. "You knew the risks of coming here, and still chose to do it. You can't give up now after one minor setback."
"Kimi's right," Takato agreed. "Look, the Digimon all traveled from this world to ours somehow. All we have to do is find that portal, okay? If there is a way in then there's got to be a way out. Right?"
Kimiko nodded in agreement.
"Good point, Takato," Leomon said.
"See, that's what I'm talking about," Takato grinned. "Now, didn't we all come here to rescue Calumon?"
"Yeah," Jerri grinned.
"Right, so let's go find the little guy," Henry said.
"Momentai," Terriermon agreed.
Kazu looked around himself. "But where do we even begin?" he asked.
"Where are we, anyway?" Kenta asked.
"See, that's a problem," Takato said.
Kimiko shook her head. "Stop looking for solutions to problems and start looking for the right path," she murmured.
"What?" Takato asked, looking around.
"Just something my grandfather used to say," Kimiko replied.
"But how can we find the right path?" Kenta asked.
"Hey, goggle-heads," Rika called.
The group looked up to see that Rika had scaled a formation behind them and was pointing at something in the distance. "There's something on the horizon," she said. "I think they're towers, or maybe a bunch of antennae."
"That's long ways away," Kazu said. "Are you sure?"
"She's right," Henry confirmed. "That does look like an antenna."
"That means there might be a city," Kazu exclaimed. "I wonder if they have digital chili dogs."
"Mega slushies here we come," Kenta shouted excitedly.
"Well?" Henry asked.
"Yep, I see it," Takato said, saluting. He was sitting on Guilmon's shoulders. "Let's move."
"Do you think Calumon might be there?" Jerri asked.
"There's only one way to find out," Kimiko said, shouldering her backpack and looking down at Labramon. "If not, maybe someone there can help us find him."
The others nodded and the long trek to the distant city began.
~*Expect the Unexpected*~
After what felt like hours of walking in the blistering heat, Kazu, Kenta and Takato were ready to collapse into the sand before they could even reach the far away city.
"Are we there yet?" Kenta whined.
"I think my feet fell off," Kenta grumbled.
"Suck it up, boys," Rika said. "According to Henry's calculations, we should be there any second."
"We better be," said Kenta. "I have enough sand in my shoes to start my own private beach."
"At least you've only got it in your shoes," Kazu said, collapsing to the ground with an exasperated huff. "I'm finished."
Takato huffed and sat down beside him. "Good idea," he said. "Let's take a break."
"Hey, don't these rocks look familiar?" Jerri asked, looking up. Suddenly her face fell as realisation set in. "Oh no! Don't you guys get it? This is the city, it's just a bunch of rocks. It was a mirage."
Rika shook her head stubbornly. "It can't be," she said. "I swear it was an antenna."
"We all thoughts so too, Rika," Henry said, sitting down in defeat.
"Yeah, but we wasted all this time because of me," Rika argued. "I hate that."
"It was an easy mistake," Kimiko said, settling down beside Henry. "Don't blame yourself."
Takato breathed in amazement as he looked up at the rock formations. "Did somebody make these things?" he asked.
"It appears to be natural," Leomon explained. "But it is just fragments of human-made data."
"So what are we supposed to do now?" Kenta asked.
"I have an idea," said Takato. "Let's eat."
"Yeah!" the others chorused in agreement.
Guilmon frowned. "But, Takato, we have no food," he said. "We lost it during the fall, remember?"
"Oh, yeah, I forgot," Takato sighed.
"No sweat," Kazu said, digging around inside his backpack. He held up a box of candies. "You can have my gummy fleas."
"And I'd be happy to share my cookies," Jerri added, holding up a pink cloth with a red ribbon.
Kimiko smiled and pulled out the box that she and Henry had prepared the previous evening. They weren't sure how long they were going to be gone so they had packed enough food to last them roughly a week. "We're a team," she said. "Which means we can share, right?"
"She's right," Henry agreed, opening his own food box.
Takato smiled as Guilmon crept over to Kimiko as she handed a sandwich to Labramon.
"Here you go, big guy," Kimiko said, passing Guilmon the second half. He wolfed it down like he hadn't eaten in days. Kimiko giggled. "Slow down, Guilmon, this has got to last us."
"Sorry," Guilmon apologised.
The others laughed as Kimiko petted Guilmon behind the ear, and then offered him another sandwich.
"Hey, what's that?" Takato asked, earning everyone's attention. He was looking up the hill towards where a horde of data tumbleweeds was rolling towards them.
"It's just a pack of old data," Leomon informed the group.
"It's coming right at us," Henry said, reclosing his food box and stowing it back into his backpack.
"Maybe they want some cookies too?" Takato asked, sarcastically terrified.
"There's nowhere to go," Henry said as the data packets reached them.
Fearing for their lives, Kazu and Kenta shot to their feet and tried to run away. Renamon caught them by the scruffs of their clothes and held them in the air, their arms and legs still moving.
"Just hold it there, you two," Renamon said. "Would you stop running? It's just old data, completely harmless."
"They must be sensing something," Labramon said, sniffing the ground and then the air.
"What is it, Labramon?" Kimiko asked.
"I don't know," Labramon said. She couldn't smell anything different in the air, but she too could sense something was approaching. Suddenly her fur ruffled and she growled, her eyes narrowing.
The group gasped and Kimiko frowned.
"Labramon?" Kimiko questioned.
"Down there," Labramon said. "By the rock towers."
The group looked in the direction she had described and hesitated. The air above the rock formations had turned dark, illuminating the data streams even more than before.
"It's turning dark," Kimiko said.
"Is this normal?" Kenta asked.
"I hope so," Takato said.
"Nobody panic," Renamon warned.
As quick as water the darkness washed over the group and instantly the colour disappeared.
"Aw, man, who turned off the colour?" Kazu asked, looking around at the dark grey formations.
"Is it nighttime now?" Jerri whispered.
Kimiko shrugged.
"How weird," said Henry. "No dusk just darkness."
"That was the fastest sunset I've ever seen," Kazu said.
"More like a switch," Kenta agreed.
"I guess that's how it works here," Rika said.
"Uh-huh," Takato said. His head was thrown right back and he was staring at the sky, his mouth open wide.
A flash of pink caught Jerri's attention. "Hey, look," she said, pointing in the direction of a data stream. "Am I the only one who thinks that data stream is getting pretty close?"
"If that hit us, what would happen?" Henry asked, curiously.
"Those streams collects massive amounts of information from the surface of this world," Renamon explained, "and transfers it to wherever the user specifies."
"If it did hit us who knows where we might end up," Leomon added.
A flash of colour caught Rika's eye causing her to turn towards nearby rock formations.
"Rika, what is it?" Renamon asked.
"We've got company," Rika said, pointing at the flaming appearance of another Digimon.
"Woah, who's that dude?" Kazu asked.
"Meramon," Kimiko answered. "And he doesn't look too happy."
"Be on guard, everyone," Labramon warned. "For now let's just see what he is up too."
The others nodded and Henry took out his digivice. "Meramon, champion level. His special attack is magma blast."
"Great," Terriermon said.
"Yeah, wonder what he wants?" Henry asked.
"Magma Blast!" Meramon shouted, firing balls of molten lava into the air. They descended upon the team, causing them to scatter.
Kimiko screamed as she slipped to a stop, inches away from where a magma bomb hit.
"RetrieverG!" Labramon barked, firing a spiral of energy at Meramon. The fire Digimon jumped into the air and the blast shattered the formation beneath him.
Meramon landed on the ground before Kimiko and Labramon. He raised his fist and punched the dog aside, causing her to whimper.
"Labramon!" Kimiko yelled running to her partner's side.
"Kimiko!" yelled Henry.
"Ready?" Rika asked looking to Renamon.
The fox nodded.
But before they could move a muscle, Leomon rushed past and jumped into the air behind Meramon. "Fist of the Beast King!" he shouted, firing a bright light in the shape of a lion at the fire Digimon. It hit him, causing another crater and a ton of smoke.
Once the smoke cleared, the tamers looked down to see Meramon laying in the middle of the crater. He didn't look wounded, but he was admitting defeat and waiting for them to download his data.
"We wouldn't have hurt you if you hadn't have attacked us," Takato said. "Did the Devas send you?"
"Devas?" Meramon repeated. "Hey, wait, you're not a Digimon."
"Huh? Oh no, I'm a human being," Takato said.
"What, a human?" Meramon gasped. "Are you from the real world?"
"Yeah, we came here to rescue a friend," Takato explained, "and then you attacked us."
"I beg your pardon," Meramon apologised. "I thought you were those monstrous creatures. I am so sorry."
"Hey, Meramon, maybe you could help us," Takato said as Meramon pulled himself out of the crater. Takato dug around inside his pack for the pictures he had drawn of Calumon and Makuramon.
As Takato lay out the pictures, Meramon looked around at those present. He could see the blonde human and her Digimon partner, the dog he had attacked, resting at the base of the rock formation. There were a boy and another Digimon alongside them. The blonde seemed eager to keep her distance from him, and Meramon sighed. He had only himself to blame for that. He had attacked without thinking, and for that, the consequences were the human's distrust.
"This is our friend - Calumon," Takato said, finally laying the images out on the sand. "He was kidnapped by this creature - Makuramon. Have you seen either of them?"
"Let me see," Meramon said, sitting down in front of Takato and looking at the images. "I am very well traveled throughout this part of the world, so there is always a chance." He stared long and hard at the images, taking in as much detail as he could, before shaking his head. "I'm sorry, I don't remember seeing them."
"No dice?" Takato asked.
"No, I'm afraid not," Meramon said. He cast his gaze around once more, lingering for half a second on each of the humans and their Digimon. "You know, I thought travelling to the real world was only a myth, but now I long for the day that I become powerful enough to go there on my own." He looked up at the revolving ball above and reached out a hand. "Every night I look at it. So close, so beautiful."
"Yeah, it sure is," Takato agreed, drawing his knees up to his chest. "I wonder when we'll see it again?"
~*Expect the Unexpected*~
After soothing Labramon's minor burn with some water, and wrapping it in a cloth she had found at the bottom of her backpack, Kimiko lay down beside her best friend and rest her head against her flank. "You're going to be OK, Labramon," she promised, running her fingers against Labramon's fur. "It's only a minor burn."
Labramon breathed in and out silently, her head tilted to the side and she nudged Kimiko's with her snout, pressing her tongue lightly against Kimiko's hairline. It was a small, yet simple gesture but held a lot of love and admiration she held for her pretty little human partner.
Kimiko smiled and closed her eyes.
Labramon rested her head between her paws and was soon asleep.
Kimiko, unfortunately, found that she couldn't sleep. She sat up, her gaze lifting to the earth above her. It was so beautiful. Surrounded by a layer of data, and linked to the digital world by data streams. But the more she stared at the earth, the more Kimiko's heart ached. She hadn't been in this world less than a few hours and already she missed her family. After weeks of being away, Kimiko's mother, Sasha, had come home today. She had come home with the hopes of seeing her daughter again and Kimiko had ruined that by running off to the Digital World.
"Hey," a soft, friendly voice called.
Kimiko turned to see Henry laying a few feet away. She smiled as he stood up and walked towards her.
"Can't sleep?" Henry asked sitting down beside her.
"No," Kimiko said. "I keep thinking about my mum."
Henry nodded. "Yeah, me too," he said. "They're bound to notice we're missing by now."
"I told my mum we were coming here," Kimiko said. "She's knows where I am, so my dad can't lie to her when she sees him. But that doesn't mean I don't miss her. I mean, it's been weeks since I last saw her, and part of me thinks that if I hadn't have got involved in all of this, I would've seen her again today."
Henry paused and looked down. "Do you regret getting involved?" he asked.
"Sometimes," Kimiko said, nodding. "But then I think of all the fun I've had, and all the friends I've made. I owe you guys a lot... especially you, Henry. I mean, despite our differences and all that we've been through, you've stuck by my side. Even when you found out about my dad, you had every right to be mad at me, and you reacted exactly like I expected, but even then you didn't turn me away."
"I'd never turn you away," Henry said. "I like you too much."
Kimiko cast her gaze down, a dull blush rose in her cheeks and a small smile graced her lips.
"I mean," Henry stammered, realising his confession.
"I like you too, Henry," Kimiko said, resting her hand on top of his. "Quite a bit, actually."
Henry smiled in return, and Kimiko rested her head against his shoulder as he intertwined his fingers around hers. At least it was a start.
~*Expect the Unexpected*~
Sometime after their confessions Kimiko had fallen asleep, her fingers still intertwined with Henry's while he remained awake, alternating between watching her sleep and staring at the sky. He felt his attention drift as another voice cut through the silence. He craned his neck to see that Takato was now awake too.
"A shooting star," Takato gasped. "This place never ceases to amaze me, and all Meramon dreams about is fighting and getting strong enough to go to the real world. I wonder why?"
"He just can't help it," Henry said, earning himself Takato's attention.
"Hey, can't sleep either?" Takato asked.
"Nah, to wired," Henry said. He slipped his hand from Kimiko's and turned his around to face his friend. "You?"
"Same thing," Takato said. "Hey, why did you say 'he can't help it'?"
"Well, he's like all Digimon," Henry said. "They just don't know any other way to live. Until they met us, Terriermon, Renamon, Labramon, and Leomon were the same way."
Takato looked down at Guilmon. "Yeah, but that's so sad," he said. "Guilmon never..." he reached out to touch his best friend but pulled back as Guilmon shifted, sniffed the air, and opened his eyes. "What is it, boy?"
All around the small camp, each Digimon awoke with a start. Labramon lifted her head and sniffed the air.
"What's the matter?" Takato asked.
"Do you hear that, Renamon?" Labramon asked.
Renamon nodded and jumped up onto the nearest rock formation. She surveyed the scene as below the tamers started to awaken.
"Kimi, wake up," Takato said shaking the blonde lightly.
"What's going on?" Kimiko asked sitting up and rubbing her eyes. "What's that sound?"
"Jagamon," Rika said holding up her digivice. "Ultimate level plant Digimon that travel in herds."
"Are they mean?" Jerri asked as she awoke.
"I don't know," Rika replied. "It doesn't say."
"They're coming right at us!" Renamon called from the rock formation. "Let's move!" She jumped down and scooped up Kazu and Kenta, both of whom were still sleeping.
Leomon collected Jerri and Rika, carefully moving them to a ledge above their camp. Renamon followed, depositing Kazu and Kenta beside the two girls and then returning to help Kimiko with the still injured Labramon.
With her best friend and partner safe, Kimiko followed Henry towards the incline. She hauled herself up onto the ledge and rushed to Labramon's side as Renamon carefully set the Retriever down.
"Look," Jerri said, pointing across the way. "On the other side of the gorge."
It was Meramon.
"Magma Blast!" Meramon shouted, firing his balls of lava into the skies. The balls descended on the rampaging Jagamon's causing a few of them to split off and mow him down. He yelled out before disappearing.
"Wait, what happened?" Takato asked. "Where'd he go?"
"I'm afraid he's gone," Renamon said.
"Just like that?" Rika asked.
"Yes," Renamon nodded, solemnly. "It's the law of the Digital World."
"Why?"
"Things here can be cruel sometimes, Takato."
~*Expect the Unexpected*~
The next morning, after a much restless sleep, the tamers awoke early to say goodbye to their friend - Meramon. Even Kimiko, who had given the fire Digimon the cold shoulder after his unprovoked attack on Labramon, had helped create the shrine that Takato stuck a hand drawn image too.
"Goodbye, Meramon," Takato said.
"Your fire burned bright, my friend," Leomon said.
The moment was interrupted by a shrill, "We can't eat this" from the ledge above. Kazu and Kenta were finally awake.
"Hold him, Kenta," Kazu said as he tugged hard on, what appeared to be, the tail of a Jagamon.
"I am holding him," Kenta said holding the little Digimon's head.
"Please let go of my tail," the Jagamon cried, paws over its head. "I'll do anything you want, please just..."
He broke off as Rika's voice cut through the air. She sounded mad, and she looked it too as she stalked back up the hill towards Kenta, Kazu, and the Jagamon. "You're in a lot of trouble for what you did last night!" she snapped.
"What do you mean?" Kenta asked.
"He and his friends caused a stampede that almost flattened us," Rika explained.
Instantly the two boys let the Digimon go.
"Meramon didn't make it," Takato added sadly.
"Explain yourself!" Rika demanded.
"We only wanted to protect ourselves," Jagamon cowered.
"You hurt him," said Rika.
"I think Meramon was trying to take over their territory, Rika," Renamon called from the back of the group.
"We're sorry," said Jagamon. "We didn't mean to hurt him."
"He's sorry, see," Kazu said.
"Well that just isn't good enough, see," Rika argued.
"Stop it, Rika," Henry said, glancing around at the red head. He then turned swiftly to Takato. "Show Jagamon the pictures of Calumon and Makuramon. Maybe he's seen them in the area."
Takato nodded and took out the two folded images from his pocket. "Have you seen him?" he asked.
But Jagamon was too afraid to look.
Taking the images from her friend, Kimiko knelt gently in front of the Jagamon. "Hey, it's OK," she said softly. "We're not going to hurt you. We just need your help."
Jagamon relaxed at her soft tone and lifted his head from his paws. He blinked and stared up into the blonde's face before his gaze lowered to the images in her hand. The look on his face was sad and confused, a clear indication that he didn't recognise Calumon.
"OK," Kimiko said, smiling. "How about this one?" She showed him the image of Makuramon.
Jagamon jumped back in alarm, fear swept across his face and a frightened yelp rolled off his tongue. All around them more and more Jagamon popped out of the ground.
"Whoa," Takato said looking around. "Uh, hi, does this mean all of you have seen him?"
"Can you tell us when?" Henry asked.
A chorus of "No," rippled through the Jagamon herd.
"Oh, okay, how about where?" Takato asked.
Again, another "no".
"Do you think we can believe them?" Jerri asked. "Don't you think it's a bit strange that they saw Makuramon but not Calumon?"
Rika balled her hands into fists. "Listen up, are you lying to us about see that monkey?" she demanded.
"Lying, what is lying?" Jagamon asked.
"They could've seen Makuramon before he took Calumon," Kimiko defended.
Rika huffed and turned away, her arms folded across her stomach. She was still getting used to Kimiko's compassion for all things digital.
Kimiko rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to Jagamon. "Where did you see Makuramon?" she asked.
"Over there in the desert," Jagamon said sitting up on his hind legs and pointing into the distance. "He's where all those big lights are."
"Then that's where we are going," Takato said taking his images back from Kimiko.
"Thank you," Kimiko said petting the Jagamon under the chin. She then stood and faced the desert. "What are we waiting for? Let's go save Calumon."
The others nodded and began the long walk back towards the desert.
~*Expect the Unexpected*~
The walk back to the desert took just as long as the walk away.
"Oh, wow, what a day," Takato said. "We've been dropped, lost, starved, attacked and stampeded."
"Yeah, if we were back home I'd be in social studies right now catching up on my sleep," said Kazu from the back of the group.
"It's only going to get more intense," Rika said. "We haven't even faced Makuramon yet."
"Well be ready for him," Takato said. "And we'll get Calumon back too."
"Yeah, but at what price?" Henry asked. "You saw what happened to Meramon. This place can be brutal."
"And, to make matters worse, it's not just Makuramon we have to face," said Kimiko. "There's also the Dragon and Rabbit devas, not to mention the Digimon Sovereign that they work for."
"Way to look on the bright side, Princess," Rika huffed.
Kimiko sighed and looked back at Labramon. She had slowed down considerably due to her injury but was still going fast enough to keep up with her partner.
"Are you OK, Labramon?" Kimiko asked. "Do you need to rest?"
"No, I'm OK," Labramon said.
"Are you sure?"
Labramon nodded and smiled at her partner. "I'll let you know if I need to rest, Kimi," she promised.
"OK," Kimiko said still unsure. She couldn't force Labramon to do something she didn't want, so the only thing she could do was to keep an eye on her partner.
"Guys, look out!" Takato's voice cut through the air. The group stopped and spun around. A data stream was heading directly for them from behind, and it was inches away from sucking Kazu and Kenta up inside.
"Run!" Labramon barked loudly. The sound startled the others and they took off in the opposite direction. Labramon followed them, ignoring the spasms of pain in her right paw.
Glancing over her shoulder to check whether the data stream had passed over, Rika gasped as she saw Kazu and Kenta heading in the opposite direction. "Guys," she called. "You're going the wrong way!"
But the two were too far away to hear her.
"Renamon, we have to help them," Rika said wheeling around.
"Right," Renamon said. She scooped up her partner and took off across the sand towards Kazu and Kenta.
"Wait, no, Rika!" Kimiko yelled. But her friend had already gone. The data stream passed before the blonde's eyes, blocking out any sight of Rika, Renamon, Kazu and Kenta.
Turning back both Henry and Takato returned to Kimiko's side.
"What happened?" Takato asked.
"If that thing catches them we may never find them again," Kimiko said her eyes never wavering from the data stream. She just hoped it passed without incident, and that her friends were safe on the other side.
But when were they ever that lucky?
Copyrighted ©
Chapter written by xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx
Chapter updated 17 September 2016 at 22:02pm