Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys creature collector franchises. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri. Digimon is owned by Bandai, WiZ, Toei Animation, and Akiyoshi Hongo. If you want to support the official releases, worry not. Lord knows there is plenty of merchandise to choose from.
Listening to as I write: Mikakunin Hikousen (Digimon Adventure 2020)
The Crest of a Master Chapter 2: Downloading Trainers
Byte Island, Digital World
Hmmm. Something felt off.
Without opening his eyes, Gabumon knew something was wrong. Was it his bed? Nope, the grass felt just as cushy and itchy as usual. Smell? Nope, same salty scent. Sound? Well, there were the crashing of the waves, a slight breeze whistling by, and…wait a minute.
Where was Agumon?
Gabumon sprang out of bed, charged out his front door, and ran over to his neighbor's hut. The sun was bright in the sky and judging by how far it had climbed up it was almost midday. Looks like Candlemon was wrong. Without Agumon he would only sleep in through the morning, not the entire day.
As to the whereabouts of his friend he certainly wasn't in his hut. Which was good because for a brief moment Gabumon thought that Agumon may have slipped on some fruit peel he kept forgetting to toss in the island's compost pile. But that still begged the question on where Agumon was.
If Agumon was doing choirs then surly he would have bugged Gabumon awake for a hand. Which left two options: either Agumon was training at their usual makeshift battle field/gym or he was at the shrine studying. No, wait. He wouldn't be at the shrine studying. But he still might be at the shrine.
Not wanting to entertain the possibility that something bad may have happen, such as a wild Digimon attack, Gabumon immediately scrambled to the other side of the orchard and through the tiny village almost stepping on some of the villagers in the process.
After offering the almost-stomped-on-bystanders a quick, yet sincere apology, Gabumon finished his hasty trek to the shrine. Sure enough there was Agumon, standing in front of the pedestal with the Digivices with his arms crossed and toes tapping against the ground. He probably did some pacing too judging by the small groove worn into the sandy floor.
"Oh. Hey, Gabumon," Agumon greeted, his green eyes never once moving from the devices.
On one side of the room Gabumon could see Candlemon organizing some books on the shelf. Every so often the wax monster would shoot Agumon an exasperated glare as though that would make the reptile leave. Candlemon then turned to Gabumon. "Please talk some sense into him. He's been camping out here all night."
Gabumon looked back and forth between the two. "Well, um," Gabumon began. What was he supposed to say? "Want to go and get some breakfast? We can do some training afterwards."
The orange reptile didn't budge. "I'm on a break," Agumon stated. "Tell Candlemon that this is a public space and I can stand here if I want to."
"Oh, um," Gabumon turned to the sentient candle. "Agumon said to tell you…"
"Yes, I know what he said! I'm standing right here!" Candlemon yelled as he tossed a scroll he was holding onto the ground in rage. He then rounded on Agumon. "It doesn't matter if this a public space! You are loitering and it's a nuisance!"
Agumon ripped his eyes away from the Digivices. "Says the guy who practically lives in the shrine," he retorted.
Candlemon wasn't backing down. "I'm here all the time because I actually use the shrine to study and organize. I'm making use of myself."
As the two argued, Gabumon's attention turned to the two Digivices. Was it just him, or were they changing colors?
"You want useful? As soon as my partner gets here I'll be saving the world. How's that for useful." Agumon snarled.
"Do you really believe that once the humans get here you'll just magically become a hero?" Candlemon lectured, hands on the capital of his holder. "It's not just going to be on your human partner. You'll have to do your part too."
Gabumon continued to watch the devices. Yep, they were changing colors. Right now one had turned a deep crimson red and its twin turn navy blue. "Guys," Gabumon attempted to interject.
"I know I'll have to do my part! What do think I was training for? Funsies?" Agumon continued to argue.
Now the devices were starting to glow. Gabumon tried to interject again. "Uh, guys."
Candlemon wasn't backing down. "Being a hero is not just about physical strength. It's also a matter of temperament. You can't just go around brute forcing yourself onto others. How many times has the elder told you to practice discipline?"
And now the Digivices were starting to rise from their pedestal, their glowing growing more intense. "Guys, please," Gabumon pleaded.
Smoke began to rise from Agumon's nostrils. "Well what should I do? Go meditate? Read a book? Do you really think that that's going to make them come faster?"
"GUYS!" Gabumon shouted.
Both squabbling parties turned towards Gabumon. "WHAT!?" They shouted in unison.
"DUCK!" Gabumon shouted as he hit the deck.
Just as Gabumon shouted out his warning the Digivices shot off across the room and out the door. Fortunately Agumon and Candlemon received the warning in time and followed Gabumon's lead in ducking down to allow the newly made comets to take off without taking off anyone's limbs.
As soon as the devices cleared out of the room the trio of occupants exited the shrine. They watched as the devices rocketed towards the sky. And they were not alone. In addition to the newly formed red and blue comets there were eight other comets shooting upwards towards the ring of stars in the sky.
"It's happening."
Gabumon turned around to see his friend staring up towards the sky, eyes wide. "It's happening," he whispered. A grin spread across Agumon's face. "It's happening!" He said again with more volume.
Agumon then started to dance around. "It's happening! It's happening! It's happening!" He chanted.
Candlemon just kept watching the sky, slack jawed. "I guess it's time," he surmised.
Watching Agumon's display, a smile spread on Gabumon's muzzle. He threw his hands in the air and joined in Agumon's dance. "It's happening! It's happening! It's happening!" They sang as they danced around each other in circles, not unlike the ring constellation which lite up in a bright display allowing the comets to fly through it and disappear to parts unknown.
Pallet Town, Kanto, Pokémon World
Ash moaned and grunted as he rolled around in his bed as the morning light from the sun flooded into his room and threatened to pry his eyelids open. It didn't help that his covers were a mess from him tossing and turning as he slept so when he tried to pull the sheets over his head all he managed to do was blindly pinch around the mattress unable to reach the sheets compiled at the other end of the bed.
This wasn't his usual sleeping habit. It just happened when he was excited and why wouldn't he be? Yesterday he completed his Journey Preparation courses and passed with…moderately okay colors. Okay, maybe he needed to go in for a bunch of extra classes, his cooking was just edible, and he still had a ways to go in the battle simulators, but he could pick up and polish those skills during his journey. Right now he was capable of insuring that he didn't shrivel up and die without parent supervision and that's what mattered!
Speaking of parent supervision this would usually be the time Ash's mom would wrestle him out of bed either by shaking or scolding him awake. Mostly, if she wanted him up and about at a given time, she would just set his alarm clock and move it to a location where he couldn't just pick it up and chuck it across the room (how that alarm clock still functioned was anyone's guess).
But sometimes Ash's mom would be sneaky with how she got her son out of bed. Some days she would allow noise to do her dirty work by opening his window to let in the crowing of the town's Dodrio or she would deliberately take her time vacuuming outside his room. On other days she would cook up something with a strong scent. Like some well-seasoned sausage patties or freshly baked nanab berry bread. Or something with cinnamon. Mmm. Cinnamon.
Ash bolted straight up. Cinnamon! All drowsy feelings wiped from his being, Ash leapt out of bed and down the stairs towards the warm spicy scent that wafted through the air. Sure enough, the stream of cinnamon goodness turned into a full ocean the second he entered the kitchen. There was his mother icing the freshly baked buns with her usual long auburn hair in a low ponytail and a bright smile on her face.
"Good morning, sleepy head," she said. "I figured since you've been working so hard I might as well treat you."
Ash's mother walked over to the table with a large plate containing a cinnamon bun along with some eggs and fruit. "Congratulations on passing your classes."
"Thanks!" Ash eagerly accepted the plate and began wolfing down the hearty breakfast.
His mother took the seat opposite him and poured a cup of tea. "So my up and coming trainer, do you have a plan for your journey?"
"Ie hashn't chaged," Ash responded with a mouth full of egg and bun.
"Don't talk with your mouth full," his mother chided.
"Sorey," Ash took a moment to swallow before addressing his mother again. "It hasn't changed. I'm still aiming to become a Pokémon master!"
Ash's mother smiled at this. "I should have known. Your love of Pokémon never wavered. Just like your…" she paused for a brief moment before continuing. "Just like your father."
At this Ash slowed his chewing. Most people wouldn't have caught it, but after the pause his mother's voice became slightly more subdued. He could even spot the corners of her mouth drop ever so slightly. "Want some sugar cubes?" He offered.
Instantly the woman was back to her cheerful self. "Why, yes. Thank you very much." Ash's mother accepted the sugar cup and peered inside. "Oh dear, it appears we are out."
"I'll go to the store to grab some more!" With that Ash sprang out of his seat and zoomed to the front door.
"Pajamas," Ash's mom called out as she lifted her cup for another sip.
Ash zoomed away from the front door and to his room to change.
One Wardrobe Change Later
Dawned in his signature wardrobe, Ash made his way down the long dusty road to the market. Despite being home to a handful of famous trainers, Pallet Town itself was a small farming town. Its buildings were spread out to make room for the small fields of crops save for Professor Oak's Laboratory which sat on top of a hill with acers upon acers of open land in the back to house the wide variety of Pokémon the professor kept for his studies.
It was thanks to those various fields that a trip to the store could take a while. Not that Ash minded. Sure he had to pick up his walk to a jog in order to get to the store before lunch, but he always enjoyed looking around to see if he could spot any Pokémon. So far there weren't too many out today. Just a flock of Pidgey making their way over to the woods.
Ash craned his head skyward as he jogged to watch the flock. It didn't matter that Pidgey were common. Bird Pokémon were so cool! The way they soared around the battle field, switching from a serene drift to a savage sky bomb at the drop of a hat. He was defiantly going to get some kind of bird for his team. A Pidgey would be nice, they were supposed to get really fast as they evolved. Heck, why stop with just a Pidgey? Why not grab and train a bird from every region he visited. He could have his own flying squadron.
Of course, that would just be one member of his main team. As much as Ash enjoyed birds, he didn't want to commit to being a bird keeper. There were way too many cool Pokémon out there for him to just limit himself like that! So what other kinds of Pokémon should he look for? Well, there was the classic elemental trio of grass, fire, and water. Old man Oak said that one of the reasons he became a champion was thanks to the balance that typing triangle gave to half of his team during his trainer years. It was also the reason that offering beginner trainers one of those three types as a starter was a staple all around the world. Or at least that's what Ash thought the professor said. He wasn't really paying attention during that lecture. Or most of the other lectures for that matter. Textbooks and lectures never agreed with him.
But hey, why just stop at flying, grass, fire, or water? There were plenty of Pokémon to choose from. Bugs were seen as weak, but were easy to raise. Dragons were on the opposite end of the spectrum, difficult to find and train but real power houses. Rock, ground, and steel types tended to be hardy and could tank most hits. Unless those hits were thrown by fighting types. Psychic types were heavy hitters too, just less physical and more special. Fairies may have seemed cute and girly but they could pack a punch while poison types worked as damage chippers who just needed one good attack to slowly wear down their targets. Ice Pokémon were famous for their ability to weather hostile environments and ghost types could make any place feel hostile if you got on their bad side. There weren't any native dark types in Kanto, so they were about as mysterious to Ash as their name would suggest. Normal types were kind of all-rounders who didn't excel against any opponent, but could adapt pretty easily.
What type was he forgetting? Oh yeah, electric. Defiantly needed to train an electric type at some point during his journey. And all the others. A Pokémon master had to be able to work with any Pokémon after all.
"Hey! Eyes on the road!"
"Huh?" Ash was broken out of his musings by a call and a line of what appeared to be walking yellow flowers using their roots as makeshift feet to cross the road. Ash recognized them as Bellsprout and he was closing in on them fast.
Immediately Ash tried to stop his jog so that he didn't trample the little guys, but the momentum from his movement didn't quite translate gracefully and he ended up tripping over his feet and landing right in front of the last Bellsprout in line who just regarded Ash with a tilt of the head.
"Sorry," Ash weakly apologized.
"Bellsprout," responded the flower Pokémon before waddling off to be with the rest of its group.
"Why are you in a rush? It's not like there's anything happening at the moment," Ash looked up to see the owner of the voice who warned him. It was none other than his dear classmate and rival, Gary Oak. Currently the boy was leaning against a fence casually watching Ash's crash.
Ash quickly got back up and brushed himself off. "I'm going to the store. I figured I might as well jog a bit since I'll have to be fast on my feet while I'm traveling."
"Yeah, I guess I could see that," Gary nonchalantly shrugged. "Too bad you don't have a car."
Ash blinked. "A car?"
Gary smirked. "Yep, my old man has a spare convertible. I'm thinking of asking him to lend it to me for my journey."
Up to this point Ash thought he had seen the extent of Gary's one-ups-man-ship. "Do they give driver's licenses to kids our age?"
"I can hire driver," Gary walked up to Ash and continued. "My plan is to get to the places with the strongest Pokémon fast so I can get started building my league team."
Ash's eyes once again traveled to the flock of Pidgey which was disappearing into the woods. "Wouldn't you want to start by catching some of the Pokémon around here?"
In response Gary began waving his finger back and forth in tisk-tisk motion. "You've got to look at the big picture, Ashy-boy. Ever seen any of the Pokémon the champions use? They use hard hitting, fully evolved, juggernauts. I don't see any Pokémon like that nipping at Old Man Wither's turnips, do you?"
Ash's teeth began to clench. It wasn't so much that Gary was bad mouthing the Pokémon in the area, if he didn't want to put any time into raising them it was his loss. No, what was making his blood boil was that condescending tone that Gary often took on when he spoke to anyone in their age group. Namely Ash. "A Pokémon's strength doesn't come from its evolution or how rare it is." He huffed. "It comes from its trainer."
That retort didn't seem to faze Gary. "Guess whatever poor Pokémon ends up with you is doomed then," Gary dramatically sighed. "You could have a legendary and still find some way to loose and loose badly."
As Ash glared down Gary he hardly noticed the circle of lights suddenly appear in the sky. He barely registered the group of brightly colored projectiles descend from that circle. And he most certainly wasn't focused on the two that were rocketing right towards them.
"I'll take you on with any Pokémon any day!" Ash almost shouted raising one of his fists at his once childhood friend. "It doesn't have to be a legendary. It could be some random monster nobody's ever heard of and I'd still be able to train it up to be the strongest fighter the league's every seen!"
Gary laughed. "Don't kid yourself. If anyone is filling that role, it will be me."
BOOOM!
Before Ash could respond both he and Gary were blown back by a sudden blast as some kind of small object smashed into the ground between them launching both parties back. Fortunately the force of the push back was not enough to knock him out, just off his feet.
Groaning, Ash stood up to see what was just hurled at him. There, floating above a small crater in the ground, was a pair of what appeared to be some kind of device. Both octangular and small with a screen in the middle surrounded by several buttons. One red, one blue.
Ash stepped forward to get a closer look and found himself transfixed. He had never seen anything like these devices. Sure he had seen a number of alien looking pieces of technology in Professor Oak's lab, but there was something about these tiny computers that captivated him. Particularly the red one. Ash felt some kind of yearning in his chest. It was as if the device was calling out to him.
Cautiously Ash reached forward to grab the device. No sooner did his fingers circle around the object that his hand suddenly clamped onto it. That broke Ash's trance. He tried to let it go or pull his arm back, but it was as if his hand had gained a mind of its own.
Now feeling panicked, Ash began using his free hand (thankfully not possessed) to grab at the hand which was gripped onto the device. He spared a quick glance at Gary to see if he could help or if he was also having problems. Sure enough the brown haired boy seemed to be in an identical situation as he also was trying to yank his hand away from the hovering tech with an increasingly fearful look on his face.
Before Ash could call out for help the devices decided they had been stationary long enough and rocketed Ash and Gary upwards into the sky. Watching the ground rapidly slip away, Ash didn't feel as rushed to loosen his grip.
Higher and higher the two pre-teens blasted. Straight through another flock of Pidgey, which gave them a series of angry squawks, and up into the clouds. As they exited the cloud line Ash spared a quick look around. It looked like he and Gary weren't the only ones in this particular predicament.
Around the pair of boys were eight more multi-colored comets. Cerulean, pewter, viridian, purple, magenta, orange, white, and pink. Straining his eyes and neck for a closer look, Ash could vaguely make out the silhouettes of what looked like kids. One in the heart of each comet.
Ash didn't get any more time to stare. Just as it seemed he and the other children would breach the atmosphere, they suddenly found themselves hurdling downwards rather than up. It wasn't because the devices changed their projections or dropped them. They all kept hurdling forwards the entire time. No, what actually happened was that they were now on a collision course with another world on the other side of the ring of lights.
This new world didn't match any of the world maps Ash had ever seen. It had a completely different set of landmasses and ocean layout. Or at least what was left of the globe had a different layout. From his vantage point in space Ash could see that this world was literally crumbling. More than half the globe had been shattered off from the main body which was leaving a trail of debris into space.
Continuing his decent Ash could spot eight of the other kids split off towards the main land while he and Gary were hurtling down towards a tiny island a little ways off. Closer and closer Ash closed his eyes and embraced for impact.
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Elsewhere, away from both the Pokémon and Digital World existed a small pocket dimension. This subspace was mostly dark, only lit by the dim glow of a grid lined floor and the occasional floating specks of data that would blink in and out of existence.
It was within this space that three beings began to gather. As the room was mostly cloaked in darkness none could see each other's faces. Just their silhouettes and the glow from their eyes piercing the dark. The first occupant had a humanoid shape with narrow red and yellow eyes. He took a look around the room and at the other occupants before speaking in an exaggeratedly polite tone. "Really now. You'd think that if he went through the trouble to summon us for a meeting that he would spring for better lighting."
Next to the first figure stood another humanoid figure. This one was almost twice as tall as the first figure clade in heavy armor with a head which appeared more draconic. It spoke with a more subdued tone. "In a way it is fitting. This is what we wish to return the Digital World to. A blank slate. Devoid of light or life. No history, no war, no struggle. Just the void."
The first humanoid threw its arms up in an over-the-top shrug. "Yeesh! So dramatic! Just admit that we've been too busy mucking things up to install proper lights in this subspace."
To this the final member, a serpentine monster which towered over the first two figures, spoke in a booming voice. "I know I've been busy. My army and I have been taking down Celestial soldier after soldier. Ripping them apart and absorbing their data," To emphasize his point he slammed his tail fins, a couple of numbers fins decked across his body, on the gridded ground. "Whatever new task is thrown our way I'm ready. I'm more than strong enough!"
Despite their immersive size difference the draconic member seemed to look down upon the serpent. "If you were truly strong you wouldn't feel the need to constantly boast about slaying such mediocre opponents."
Hissing, the serpent rounded on the draconic member. "You think you're better than me? Just because you're the leader's favorite doesn't buy you any immunity with me!" He opened his jaws revealing rows of blade-like teeth. "Let's see how special you really are."
The draconic member closed his yellow eyes for a brief moment in contemplation before opening them to address the towering serpent. "Perhaps you should be humbled."
As the serpent coiled and prepared to strike, the draconic warrior's gauntlets unsheathed several long claws with a loud "Snikt!" Meanwhile the humanoid figure floated to the side and began pumping his fist in the air along with a cheer of "Fight! Fight! Fight!"
However, before any fighting could actually occur a large red screen appeared before the three. "Enough!" Roared a deep robotic voice.
Without and qualms or complaints all three of the room's occupants ceased their actions and stood at attention, though the serpent gave the draconic member a quick, final glare.
"I have summoned you all here because our spies have found a possible game changer in this war," The robotic voice had gone from angered to emotionless. It spoke strictly and deliberately. "Humans have returned to the Digital World."
At that statement, the red screen switched to a series of pictures depicting multiple colorful falling stars containing humans, though their forms were shrouded in shadow so the room's occupants could only make out the outlines. The images were also kind of blurred indicating that the pictures were taken quite a distance away.
"Now that is interesting." Muttered the humanoid.
The serpent, on the other hand, was more skeptical. "How can we be sure these are actual humans and not just some human-like Digimon?"
"Earlier today a portal was opened from our plain of existence," explained the robotic voice. "It stands to reason that the Celestial Army has called for reinforcements from another realm. Between the dimensional rift and shape of the silhouettes that came through we can conclude that these are humans."
The draconic figure voiced this thoughts. "And given how instrumental that one human was to our lord's imprisonment there is no doubt the Celestial Army will utilize them."
"Then what are we waiting for!" Hissed the serpent. "I say we obliterate them before those angels can get their hands on them!"
"If you wish to be fish fry, then be my guest," chuckled the humanoid.
This caused the serpent to round on the humanoid and snarl. "What?"
"Oh come now," The humanoid waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "I doubt we'd have much luck reaching the humans for the same reason we haven't obliterated the rest of the world. The borders between the war and the 'civilian' zone are well guarded by the celestials. Aside from our daring spies only small handful of our agents have been able to slip through. And even then I suspect it's just because those agents are so weak that not even the most vigilant of those goody to-shoes would bother sparing time to hunt down what's obviously cannon-fodder."
"So we are forced to passively watch," summarized the draconic warrior.
"Perhaps not."
The screen flipped back to red while a series of smaller screens popped up around room. Each screen displayed a different village with a cloud of raising form newly formed craters made by the newly arrived humans. "It is true that if left untended these humans may become a hazard however," Though none of the room's occupants could see their leader they could hear a cruel smile creep into his stoic voice. "Should we play our cards right, they may be the key to our victory."
The main screen switched over from red to an image of a floating inverted pyramid shining with a bright crimson light and surrounded by a stream of various codes. "If the legends of the first human are true, than we've just found the perfect bait for our adversaries."
Seeing the image on the screen the humanoid's eyes lit up with a sinister glint. "Oh my lord, how I love the way your twisted mind works."
Byte Island
The first thing Ash felt was sand. It was warm and soft if a bit wet. Next, he felt the aches. Though it had been a while since Ash went on a nature hike with the Oaks he recalled the dull ache that came with a day of exercise. Why was he feeling so winded?
Ash's eyes snapped open. He remembered! After he grabbed that weird device he was sent flying! And now he was on some kind of beach? Sand, a lot of salty smelling water, yep it was the ocean. All that was missing were some water type Pokémon.
Turning his head form it side to look straight up, Ash saw what he could only assume was some kind of Pokémon. What kind it was eluded Ash, though the best he could guess was some kind of off colored Totodile, the bipedal crocodile Pokémon. Only this creature was at least twice as tall as any of the Totodile pictures he'd seen. It also was completely orange and lacked any of the spinal spikes.
The Totodile grinned down at Ash and spoke. "Hiya!"
Stranded on an unknown beach after a trip skywards and now faced with a talking, unknown Pokémon, Ash did the only thing he could think to do. Scream.
AN: Ash, your hand has gone bad. You've got to replace it with a chainsaw. It's the only way.
Side note, the name of the turnip farmer is just some name I pulled from the top of my head. Apparently it's some guy who appeared in a Wayne's World Scooby-Doo bit. Don't know why that name was floating around my subconscious. I've never seen Wayne's World.
Digimon Introduced
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Pokémon Introduced
Dodrio: Flying/Normal, The Triple Bird Pokémon
Bellsprout: Grass/Poison, The Flower Pokémon
Pidgey: Flying/Normal, The Tiny Bird Pokémon
Next Time: The island elder arrives to educate our two heroes about the world of Digimon and their duty. Then our trainers will get to know their partners the best way a Pokémon trainer can think of.