Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, nor do I own When the World's Not Ending, by Smartalec121 or any of their associated works.
Off the Beaten Path
Chapter: 24/ "…That Guides Me Back to Grief."
Slowly, Renamon dug herself out from underneath the ground.
Her right hand was the first to burst free from the earth that had entombed her, followed quickly by her left. Finding purchase upon more solid ground, she hoisted herself up from her grave with a desperate gasp, drawing in breath that tasted far sweeter than any food she remembered having. Trembling, she flopped down to the side, where she lay, chest heaving.
Not dead, she thought. Still. Somehow. Despite everything.
Fate, she decided, was cruel and unusual.
Rolling to her knees, she took in the landscape surrounding her. The digital field that had enshrouded the park was gone, and only the light of the Earth's sun, though broken and choked by smoke, shone down from the sky. She frowned slightly at the false peace the daylight presented to her, not believing it one bit.
Her suspicions were proven correct as she heard – and felt – yet another quake in the long chain of tremors that rocked the park since Titamon's initial attack.
At the memory of the Sovereign's betrayal of his oath, shame welled up in the vulpine digimon.
I have failed, she thought. I betrayed my oaths and my friend is dead because he followed me. I have nothing now. I am nothing. Nothing, except a traitor.
Traitor. Those words stung her, but at the same time she leveled them against her former master, the Sovereign.
Was I right to call him that? He swore an oath to defend the digital world after all. That is a much larger oath than one made for an alliance. But…allying with the humans would have also helped safeguard the digital world.
The thunder of explosions beat in time with her frustrations. She punched the ground. Her knuckles shot pain back at her in response to the impact. She did not blame her nerves. Instead, she took their warning agony to heart.
What's done is done. There is no use dwelling on the choice I made. I must instead focus on the consequences and what to do about them.
It wasn't as though she had much choice in the matter. She effectively threw her lot in with the humans. Her former master would not forgive such a transgression no matter how she justified it. She found that she could not so readily forgive his betrayal of the humans either, or even his using her to lull them into a false sense of security. Promises made in good faith should be honored.
Rising to her feet, she considered her options. The sounds of battle continued to rage, albeit further away now. However, something about it felt off. What the issue was she couldn't tell for certain, as her senses were now dulled from exhaustion and injury. She felt the presence of Gallantmon sure enough, but who was his opponent?
I don't feel…anything. Titamon's presence is gone.
Not just missing. Gone. She couldn't feel a trace of him. Curious, she started off in the direction of the battle, bounding up and over the ruins of trees that littered the ground like corpses on a battlefield. Concerned about the Tamers, she stretched out her senses, trying to find them. Had Titamon killed the others after all? Had she failed to protect Suzie and Lopmon? Where were they?
Her senses gave her a start just then, detecting something. Upon landing on a branch, she whirled about. Her blue eyes searched the battered landscape and quickly found someone buried beneath the branches of a thick tree trunk, struggling to get out. Teleporting over, she pulled the branches back and found Rika lying on the ground, one leg pinned beneath the tree.
"R-Renamon?" she stammered out, looking up at her in bewilderment and confusion. A dozen questions ran through the kitsune's mind, but upon seeing the nasty gash that bled on her forehead, the most important one took priority.
"Are you all right?" she asked. Taking a moment, she began to clear away some of the branches so she could get in closer to inspect the girl.
"I-I think so. My leg's stuck, but I think…" Rika gave an annoyed grunt as she tried to dislodge herself. The tree's girth held her firm to the ground.
"One moment," Renamon replied. Kneeling down, she inspected the tree and Rika's leg. Beyond the gash on her forehead, she didn't appear to be injured. Or if she was, then not seriously so, which was fortunate. She tested her claws against the soil. There was some give. Not much, but enough for her to work with. With a grunt of her own, she pressed them deep underneath the tree.
"When I lift, see if you can get your leg out," she said, positioning herself as best she could. "Are you ready?"
Rika nodded. Taking a deep breath, Renamon closed her eyes and gave a lift. The tree hoisted up by mere inches, and Renamon felt the muscles in her arms groan in protest, but she was doing it. Rika's trapped leg slipped free and seeing this, the kitsune relinquished her grip without any fanfare, whereupon it dropped with a dull, heavy thud back to the ground.
"What are you doing here?" Rika asked. "Where's Other-Me?"
"Other-You?" Renamon arched an eyebrow before understanding dawned on her. "Oh. That's right. You only saw me in my Mega form of Kuzuhamon."
"Oh." Rika blushed lightly, realizing she had gotten the two mistake she made. Somehow, she thought the other version of herself had learned about the fight and crossed over to help out. "What happened that made you reverse-digivolve?"
"I used up all my power protecting the Tamers from my former comrade, Titamon," Renamon replied. She helped Rika get to her feet. "How is your leg?"
"Feels fine," she said, testing her weight on it. "Hurts a little. Might be a sprain, but I think I can get by."
"That is good," Renamon nodded with relief. "What are you doing here?"
"Something blew up and a tree fell on me before I could get out of the way."
"No." Renamon shook her head. "I mean, you should not be here."
Rika scowled and looked away. "You're right, but I need to be here."
"Why? You are not a Tamer."
Rika clenched a tight fist. A thunderclap washed over them, causing Rika to stagger. Renamon caught her, steadying her balance.
"I thought we already had this discussion," Rika said once the quake had passed. "My friends are in trouble. I have to help them. End of story."
She started toward the direction of the distant fighting, only for Renamon's grasp to draw her up short.
"Let me go!" Rika tugged at Renamon's grip angrily, but the kitsune held firm.
"It is too dangerous for you here, and you do not have a partner to protect you." Renamon's icy blue eyes bore into Rika's violet ones. "I understand why you want to help, but this is not the time."
Rika yanked her arm again in a futile attempt to pull free. Her violet eyes blazed angrily at the kitsune.
"If we were partners, we wouldn't be arguing about this."
Renamon cocked her head slightly, sensing a deeper meaning to her words. "Do not confuse the two of us with the alternate versions you met. We are not them."
A flash of emotion passed over Rika's eyes at that, but it was gone almost as quickly as it came.
"Whatever," Rika replied, her voice thick with anger. "I'm still going. You can either help me or piss off. Those are my friends out there. I'm not leaving them to die like I used to do."
Renamon opened her mouth to respond, but before she could do so, a voice hailed them from the side.
"What's going on here?"
Both turned and found Kenta and MarineAngemon emerging from the brush, looking more than a bit rough around the edges. His eyes fell on Rika and widened.
"W-Wha…? What are…?"
"I know you said not to be here." She shot a hard look up at Renamon before returning her attention to Kenta. "I don't care how dangerous it is. I'm here to help anyway."
Another explosion and more smoke rose into the air followed by the anguished yell of Gallantmon. Desperation painted itself all over Kenta's face.
"I'll-I'll need your cards," he said. "I lost most of mine earlier and then Hypnos shot that beam at us and everything just exploded... Uh, wait, do you even have…?"
"I do!" Rika interrupted, relieved to not have to fight with someone else over this. Hastily swinging out her bag, she tore it open and produced her deck box. It remained intact and unopened.
"Then let's go! Takato really needs our help! Titamon infected him with some kind of virus! He might dark digivolve!"
"Wait, what happened to Takato?!"
"Pihpih!" MarineAngemon hastily explained as both he and Kenta immediately tore off in the direction of the fight.
Adjusting her bag, Rika prepared to follow, only for Renamon to lay a paw on her shoulder, stopping her.
"I'm not leaving them alone!" Rika growled. Renamon shook her head.
"It seems you won't be able to, but as you are injured…" Stooping down, she hoisted Rika up into her arms bridal style.
"H-Hey!" Rika exclaimed, blushing furiously. "What are you doing?!"
"I may not be your partner in this reality, but I will protect you while this conflict remains to be fought," Renamon explained. "Are you ready?"
Rika gripped her deck box tightly in her hands. She wasn't entirely sure what she was going to be ready for, but she knew she had to be there all the same.
"As ready as I'll ever be. Let's go."
Carrying her charge, Renamon leapt after Kenta and the pair faded from view.
###
"System rebooting in three…two…one…"
The screens around Riley and Tally – dark after the violent explosion in the park – flickered back to life, bathing the two women in a silvery glow.
"Systems coming back online," reported Tally, her hands flying over her control panel. "Beginning systems check."
"Data feed establishing," added Riley. Across from her, one of the screens changed from a flat, white light to an image of the city. More screens joined it, each from different perspectives. Swiveling her chair about, she brought up a new screen, this one showing a single, thin line that ran across its center. Riley let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding. Tapping a button, she contacted Himiko.
"Portal stability has returned to normal. Video stream and outgoing network communications are back online."
"I'm on my way back. What's the status on Juggernaut? It looks like it went offline."
Riley pulled up another screen, this one displaying the status on the program in question. A pulsing red non-responsive greeted her.
"Juggernaut is offline," she reported.
"There appears to have been a massive overload following the explosion in the park," supplied Tally. "Attempting to reboot."
"Hold off on activation until we know what's going on down there. Can you see anything yet?"
Riley returned her attention to the screens. The street cameras were distorted still, but not anywhere near as badly as before.
"The data feed is still a congested," she said, tapping on her control panel. "But I think we can… There!"
A black scar stood prominently in the center of the screen. Such was the extent of the damage that she couldn't tell from visual where in Chuo Park it was, but a quick check on camera coordinates indicated she was looking in the direction of Shinjuku Niagara Falls.
It's gone. All gone. How…?
She froze as the movement of a solitary figure caught her attention. Zooming in, she saw the familiar shape of an armored, winged knight. Only instead of the red and white that she was accustomed to, only blue and silver greeted her. The dark knight rose from the ash and, upon surveying his surroundings, the azure light surrounding him grew in intensity. The video stream cracked and blurred before dissolving back into electric white.
"Hata, I think we have a new problem," she said gravely.
"What's the situation?" Himiko asked exhaustedly at just that very moment, rushing into the control room.
"Whatever Titamon did to Gallantmon, it appears to have altered his appearance," Riley answered. Tapping a button, she called up the last recorded image of Shinjuku's Knight. Starting to catch her breath, Himiko narrowed her eyes and took in the visage of the azure knight. While she wasn't as intimately familiar with the digimon's various forms the way Yamaki was, Gallantmon was universally recognizable to her, being the primary focus of the news whenever a wild digimon incursion appeared. Except for the color, this form was visually identical to his angelic Crimson Mode.
No. There's something else, she thought. Taking a closer look, her eyes zeroed in on Gallantmon. The aura surrounding him caused a chill to run through her.
"Are you scared, Himiko?" came a mocking memory from childhood. She quickly dismissed it, but the question lingered and she repeated it to herself. The chill settled heavily into her gut and a cold sweat broke out on her body. Yes. At the very least, something about this form left her feeling worried in a way she had never been prior.
The look in his eyes… she thought, focusing on the knight's gold-colored eyes. As small and distant as they were, she saw despair reflected in them. Her face hardening, she folded her arms together.
"Can you patch in to Takato, Riley?" she asked.
"The data stream is still congested…"
Himiko broke her gaze away from Gallantmon and glared up at Yamaki's second in command. "I didn't ask about that. I asked if you could talk to him."
She saw Riley grit her teeth irritably, but Himiko ignored it and just kept staring hard at her, awaiting her response. She half-expected the woman to argue back at her, but Riley maintained a calm, professional air to her and resumed her work.
"One moment," she said, her hands moving across her control panel. As promised, a moment later, she nodded. "I have a connection. It's not a very good one, but you can talk to him."
"Not me. You."
"I beg your pardon?" Riley looked back at her, befuddled.
"If Titamon has indeed infected Takato and his partner with a virus that's affecting their mental stability, a familiar voice is going to have the better chance of reaching him. I am the least qualified for that." Her eyes went over to Tally. "Keep the channel clean for her."
"Y-Yes, ma'am."
Riley gaze lingered on Himiko for a moment longer before returning her attention to her board. She tapped another button, opening audio communication.
"Takato?" she called.
###
"All my fault. It's all my fault."
The boy was surrounded by an icy darkness. The blue of his data sphere offered no comfort, and Guilmon's presence faded into little more than a vague sense of feeling. He was there, but not in the way he had been before. Guilmon felt more instinctual now, doing as Takato desired; to be the partner he failed to be.
"You didn't fail, boy," he called to the darkness. "I failed. Oh please, please come back, Guilmon."
No verbal answer came to him, but Takato felt the vague presence of his partner had shifted about him, as though the darkness tried to hug him physically.
I'm here, it seemed to say. I'll always be here.
"Oh, Guilmon… I'm so, so sorry…"
"Takato?"
Riley's voice caught his attention and looking up, he saw her image light up on a screen in front of him. He blinked blearily, trying to focus his thoughts. The cold of the darkness made mud of everything. The image of Jeri, being crushed by Titamon, flitted through his head and the swell of despair bore down on him once more.
"Takato," Riley repeated. "Are you all right? What's happened?"
"Jeri. Jeri's dead. I let her down." A harsh, choking sound tore loose from his throat. "Guilmon… Something's wrong with Guilmon too. He can't talk anymore."
A horrified look crossed Riley's face, but she quickly forced it away and shifted to a more concerned, maternal expression.
"Takato. Listen to me. Titamon infected you with some kind of virus and it's affecting how you think and feel. Can you disengage your Mega form?"
"All… All my fault…" Takato replied, clutching at the sides of his head. "No one would have died if it weren't for me. Rika should have been a Tamer. Not me. Not…me…"
The light surrounding his digi-core pulsated and Takato looked up suddenly. Guilmon's instincts roared through him and he summoned his spear and sword into his hands.
"He's still out there. He's not finished yet."
"Who?"
"Titamon."
"Takato, I'm not detecting Titamon's signal anywhere…"
"Invincible Sword!" Takato shouted, and outwardly, Gallantmon's sword clove through the air, sending a torrent of blue energy ripping through the ruins of the park. Trees at the edge of the crater, already scorched black and smoldering, shattered upon impact and their limbs were sent flying through the air. Gallantmon whirled about, his eyes growing feverish. He saw Titamon, ghostly and pale looking, standing and mocking him for his failure and weakness. Storming at the apparition of the Destroyer, Takato thrust out his spear, only for it to pass through nothing. Titamon vanished and his spear struck nothing but air.
"You failed again," came the derisive, scornful tone from within Takato's head. "As powerful as you've become, you still failed to delete me."
Takato slashed behind him, ripping up the ground with a blast of blue light.
###
"He's not listening anymore," Riley said, watching the video footage of Gallantmon as he attacked seemingly at random. Himiko's bit her tongue to relieve some of the tension building up inside her.
"They can't exit his biomerge?"
"Not while he's like this, I don't think. Whatever Titamon's virus is doing, it's going to keep him wound up until…" Riley worried her lower lip. "…until this form kills him."
Himiko lifted an eyebrow.
"Gallantmon's Mode Change has a limit on how long it can be safely held," Tally explained from behind Riley. "It has a lot of power and because of that it places a lot of stress on the user. We don't know how long, but we've seen Takato and Guilmon become exhausted when it's been used for longer than a few minutes."
The tip of Himiko's tongue poked at her teeth in anxiety. She bit down on it to tamp it down and focus her thoughts.
"Status on Juggernaut?" she asked.
"You're not seriously thinking about using it again?" asked Riley, her mouth falling open in surprise.
"Ootori, if you are unable to fulfill your duties, you are free to leave," Himiko replied, her voice holding a cold edge. "Status on Juggernaut?"
"It's locked into a reboot cycle," Tally said. "I don't think we can count on it anytime soon."
Himiko's toes wiggled next within her shoes while she considered her options. Her heart didn't like any of her options and made it plain with each, heavy beat it made. She thought about the remaining Tamers, but could they contain Gallantmon until they could purge the virus from him?
Not while he's lashing out like this. Himiko felt the building shudder as Gallantmon unleashed another forceful blast. And Lopmon still has that problem with her partner…
There didn't appear to be any better options though. Not while Juggernaut remained stuck.
"Can you contact any of the Tamers?" she asked.
"I believe so," Riley answered. A moment later she bit back a curse and shook her head. "It's no good. The portal's no longer interfering, but their phones aren't connecting. The network damage from Juggernaut is too severe."
Himiko tapped a finger on her arm in thought. Well, I was warned that would be a possibility, she thought. Her mind raced, narrowing down her remaining options. Gallantmon needed to be brought to heel, but Juggernaut was no longer functional. Nor could they contact any of the remaining Tamers.
Assuming any are still alive, a part of her chimed in. She pushed the thought away hard.
"Prepare to activate Sleipnir," she said. Making her way over to a control panel, she activated its screen and logged on. "What are the controls for Sleipnir without Yamaki's Arc device?"
"Voice command mainly," replied Tally. "There are additional applications you can use that are like the Tamers' modify cards, but none of them have been properly tested yet."
"I'll worry about that. Just give me a crash course." Himiko launched the Sleipnir 'partner program' and the image of a circle appeared at the center of the screen followed by a number of executable files lining the sides. She quickly read them off.
. . Looks pretty much like what she said. Not a whole lot of options here. I don't know how they'll work in conjunction with each other. Can I really do this?
She swallowed nervously and then forced her nerves to steel themselves. She was going to have to learn to do this the hard way.
Here's hoping my misspent youth will pay off for me here.
The building shook again, this time with greater ferocity than before. Himiko had to grab at the corner of her post to keep from falling.
"What was that?" she asked.
As if on cue, another screen flickered on and focus fell on Gallantmon. Energy crackled along his spear with growing intensity and the hazard sign on his chest pulsated wildly.
"Gallantmon's data is showing a massive energy buildup!" Riley reported. "I-I think he's preparing to self-destruct! Takato!What are you doing?!"
"I have to stop him," Riley heard him say through their communication feed. He sounded delirious. "I have to stop Titamon before he hurts anyone else, no matter what. I'm sorry everyone. I'm sorry, Jeri. I have to stop him."
"Bio-emerge Sleipnir now!" Himiko ordered, horror and desperation fracturing all control in her voice.
"It's too late!" Tally reported. "He's going to detonate!"
###
Wind whipped at Rika as Renamon deposited her at the edge of the crater that had once been Shinjuku Niagara Falls. Blinking back tears, she raised a hand to shield her eyes from the dust that pelted her.
"What's going on?" she asked, focusing on the angelic figure of Gallantmon – his Crimson Mode strangely now decked out in blue and silver instead of their usual red and gold. "What's he doing? What's wrong with him?"
The knight was kneeling in front of his spear, both hands gripped tightly about its handle. Lightning snaked all around him, ripping up ground while his blue aura swelled about him.
"Kenta said Titamon had infected him," replied Renamon. "This must be the effect of his Phantom Blade. It somehow corrupted his Mode Change."
The light surrounding Gallantmon pulsated angrily and the rubble from the water fall began to levitate into the air. Renamon found herself taking an unconscious step back. The power emanating from his aura was so palpable she could practically taste it. An alarm sounded in her mind as she realized what he was about to do.
"Rika, he's going to self-destruct. We have to get out of here."
Rika's eyes went wide with shock and she whirled about on Renamon.
"How do you know that?! H-He's not…! He wouldn't!"
"Whatever he would or wouldn't do, the effect of the Phantom Blade has altered him." Reaching out, Renamon gripped Rika's shoulder tightly. "There is nothing we can do for him. We must leave before we are caught up in…"
"No!" With a ferocious strength that took the vulpine digimon by surprise, Rika shrugged Renamon off and dashed into the crater.
"Rika! Don't!" Renamon shouted just as Kenta and MarineAngemon pulled up. He had only a second to digest what was going on before running on after her.
"MarineAngemon! Puh time, buddy!"
"No!" Renamon called after them. "There's no time! We have to…"
"I'm not losing another friend!" Kenta shouted over his shoulder. At just that moment, a bolt of lightning narrowly missed him and struck the ground by Renamon's foot. Taking no notice, Kenta dug his heels in and struggled against the force of Gallantmon's building power. The wind violently buffeted both him and Rika, slowing their advance to a crawl. MarineAngemon flapped his tiny wings to get a little more speed, but no matter how hard he strained, he couldn't get closer any more quickly than his human allies.
"Rika! I need a speed card!" Kenta called. "A-And maybe a strength card!"
Unfortunately, his voice was stolen from him by the howling of the wind. And the same held true for Rika as she shouted Takato's name over and over, trying desperately to get his attention. His armor was glowing so brightly now that his figure was almost completely obscured. A jagged blast of light shot forth, aiming directly at Rika. The girl gasped, but not from spotting the bolt shooting her way. Renamon teleported directly behind her and tackled her out of the path of the lightning. The ground exploded behind them, showering the pair with dirt and debris.
"T-Thanks," Rika choked out.
"Listen to me, please, I'm begging you!" Renamon said. "You are walking into certain death. When he goes, the release of his power will not discriminate. You will die. Go back now and there's a chance you'll survive!"
"No way!" Rika struggled to break away, but Renamon forcefully pinned her down.
"Why won't you listen?! Does your life matter that little to you?!"
"Everyone else's lives mattered and I could have saved them all!" Rika shouted. "We could have saved them all if we were partners! I'm not running away from Takato when he needs me more than ever! Not this time!"
What kind of partner would I be if I let any harm come to you? she thought in answer, but the image of Gaiomon gazing at her flashed through her mind. Even as he prepared to self-destruct in his attempt to take Titamon with him into death, his eyes showed he thought only of her and his oath to her. Renamon trembled. She had tried desperately to spare his life and he threw it away so she could live.
"Live on and find new purpose, little Viximon. And remember your oath to me."
Gaiomon…
She could just ignore Rika and spirit her away against her will. They weren't partners. She didn't have to be concerned about how she would feel – alive, but having lost one of her friends.
I don't have to be here either, she thought, her arms trembling. And yet I am here.
"What…do you need me to do?" she asked. Rika blinked. Her mind sped up. Did she just hear what she thought she did?
"Get me closer," she said to the kitsune.
And just like that, they were there. Rika almost didn't notice that she had been teleported until she felt the wave of heat emanating off Gallantmon's body. Sweat broke out upon her skin. She knew she wasn't going to be able to stand it for very long.
That's fine. It's not like we're going to be standing here long if I can't reach him anyway.
"Takato!" she called out. "Takato!"
"I'm sorry, Jeri," she heard him whisper. "I'm sorry. I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry."
Wind whipped at her hair as she tried to think of a way to reach him. Jeri. He kept repeating her name over and over like a mantra.
That must be how Titamon's attack is hurting him. How am I going to get past that? I'm not…
A thought occurred to her. A thought so crazy she nearly balked at it. But opening her eyes, she saw how tightly he gripped his spear. The way his hands trembled about it. And his eyes… The depth of fear and sorrow they held swept away all reservations and just like that, her hand went to her ponytail and she slipped her hair tie off.
"Rika?" Renamon asked as her hair fell down to her shoulders.
"Just follow my lead," she said. Taking up a small, fistful of hair on the side of her head, she slipped the tie around it and then closed her eyes. Drawing in a deep breath, she thought of Jeri. The Jeri she met in that Other World. The Jeri who came over to her and helped ground her in the impossible world she suddenly found herself in. Drawing on a smile, she opened her eyes again and took a step forward.
"Takato?" she called, this time with a softer, more tender sounding voice. "It's me. It's Jeri. I'm here."
This is crazy, her mind quailed and rightfully so. Her 'disguise' was so paper-thin as to be ludicrous. Gallantmon would see through it in a second.
All I need is a second.
Blue light bathed over her, washing out her color, and the wind slashed at her, but she continued to step closer to the knight. Heat baked off of him so intensely the air distorted into dizzying waves. Yet, Rika continued her approach. Seeing her movement, Gallantmon's head rose up and he frowned in confusion. Rika continued to smile.
"Are you all right?" she asked.
Gallantmon's eyes flickered over to the small ponytail fluttering on the side of her head before returning to her eyes. His confusion grew, but the light and heat and wind began to die down. Cool air rushed in to fill the void.
"I-I… Jeri?" Gallantmon stammered out. He then looked away in shame. "No… Nothing's all right."
Rika laid a gentle hand along his gauntleted fists.
"It's okay now. Everything's okay. Calm down. You don't need to worry anymore."
"J-Jeri…" Gallantmon shook his head. "No… No! You're dead! I failed you!"
"Takato!" Rika's fingers gripped around his. She did her best to ignore the fact that if he really wanted to, he could pull free without batting an eye. "You didn't fail! But you need to calm down!"
"Titamon… Titamon is still out there! I can't beat him! Not unless…"
"Takato." Her voice trembled and she squeezed his metal hands. "Please don't. Don't leave me alone."
Gallantmon's eyes met hers and she held him there. She felt like a heel using his memories of Jeri like this; playing off his emotions, but she needed to hold his attention and, hopefully, bring him back down to Earth. As she watched, tears formed in his eyes and she felt him begin to shake beneath her grasp.
"Jeri… I'm so…sorry."
"Shhh," Rika whispered as the last of the light and wind died down to nothing. "You have nothing to be sorry for."
MarineAngemon, no longer assailed by any intense winds, fluttered up to the angelic knight and blew a heart at Gallantmon. The heart floated over to him and where it touched, blue and silver began to give way to red and gold. MarineAngemon blew more hearts in rapid succession until, finally, a soft glow surrounded Gallantmon's body and he separated into Takato and Guilmon once again. Guilmon slumped forward, but caught himself at the last second. He looked up, dazed and confused at his surroundings. Rika, seeing Takato was about to fall, hurriedly caught him in her arms and then, carefully, laid him down. He felt feverish to her touch and he quickly began shaking. Yet, when he opened his eyes, she saw the boy she had come to know and not the knight caught up in Titamon's infection.
"Rika?" he asked in a hoarse whisper. She ran a soothing hand through his hair.
"Hey there," she smiled. "Thought you could use some help. How are you feeling?"
Takato's response was to clutch at himself as his trembling increased suddenly. Kenta drew up to the group now and quickly dropped down next to Takato.
"Oh man," he said, touching the chattering Takato's forehead. "He's burning up bad."
"Is he okay?" Rika asked with growing alarm.
Kenta adjusted his glasses worriedly. "I don't know. This is only the third time this has happened. A fever like this, I mean. He held onto his Crimson Mode for too long."
"How'd it go over last time?"
"He was fine after a little bit, but he didn't have an infection last time." Undoing the jacket to his school uniform, he tugged it off and then draped it over Takato to help keep him warm. Kenta looked up at Rika and Renamon.
"I'm going to find someone from Hypnos. Could you stay with him?"
Rika nodded. Climbing to his feet, Kenta then ran off with his partner close behind, leaving her alone with Takato and Guilmon. Her eyes shifted between the Tamer and his partner. Despite his shivering, Takato was already on the verge of falling asleep from exhaustion. She ran her hand through his hair again, smoothing out its chaotic snarls. His eyes fluttered open.
"R-Rika…?"
"Hey," she smiled. "We've got help coming, so just sit tight, okay?"
Takato closed his eyes, but she could see him struggling to remain awake.
"Guilmon…" he slurred, his eyes forcing themselves shut despite his ongoing protests to do otherwise. "W-Where's Guilmon?"
He struggled to sit up, but Rika pressed him back down. Such was his level of exhaustion that she barely had to fight him.
"It's okay," she said. "He's here. He's not going anywhere."
She looked over at the dinosaur. His golden eyes had a faraway look to them and his scales appeared dull and dark. She was certain it wasn't a trick of the light this time. Digivolving into that dark Gallantmon had done something to him.
"Hey," she called to the dinosaur. "Dinoboy. Are you in there?"
He didn't respond. Growing concerned, Rika went over to him. His lips curled up at her approach, revealing sharp teeth, and a low growl emanated from his throat. Rika drew up short, surprised.
"His viral instincts have overtaken him," Renamon said, materializing next to her. "He is feral now."
Rika bristled at that. "No," she said. "I refuse to believe that. This is Guilmon. A bread-snarfing doofus who's a really nice digimon." She smiled at the dinosaur digimon and held her hand out to him to sniff. "Come on, Guilmon. Come back to us. Everything's okay now."
Renamon lifted a paw to stop her, but hesitated. She had seen this girl perform a miracle once already with Gallantmon. Perhaps she would do so again?
Guilmon's growling increased, but Rika didn't pull her hand back. Instead, as if to counter his menacing sound, she began to hum a slow, soft tune. She had done so before, when the chill at home was at its worst. She would, at times, move about her home, bringing a happier tune to whatever room she could and just let people listen. She didn't fight to make it louder than Guilmon's snarl. She just let it be, and the wind carried it where it will.
After a minute, Guilmon then gave a start and she saw light start to return to his eyes.
"H-Hah?" He blinked and then looked around. "Rika…mon?"
Rika let out a giggle and her eyes became damp with happiness.
"Hey there," she said, not bothering to correct him. "Glad to have you back with us. How are you feeling?"
"I…feel like I woke up from a bad dream." Guilmon shook his head and turned to look at her. He cocked his head to one side in confusion. "Your hair looks different. Kind of like Jeri's."
"Yeah," Rika admitted. "I had to bring you two boys out of your bad dream. I needed a little help with that. Worked better than I expected."
"It looks nice," Guilmon smiled. "Very pretty."
Rika blushed as Guilmon then turned his attention to Takato. Going up to the boy, he snuffled him before giving him a lick. Takato responded with a surprised jerk.
"Gah…!" The boy bolted up; all exhaustion momentarily forgotten. Upon seeing his partner, his face scrunched up and he hugged him tightly to him. "G-Guilmon! Oh, thank goodness! I thought I lost you!"
"I'm okay now," Guilmon said, gently hugging his partner. "Oh. Takato. You're all warm, but you're shivering." He looked at Rika questioningly. "How long were we in Crimson Mode?"
He doesn't remember the way they were? Rika pressed her lips together worriedly, noting that his scales were still the dull, red color and not bright and vibrant crimson they were before. One thing at a time.
"A while I guess," she replied. "I only just got here."
Guilmon sighed and closed his eyes. Hitching a sigh, he breathed in his partner's scent. His Tamer's grip was already loosening. His head dipped against Guilmon's shoulder and then he slumped against him. The knowledge that his partner was all right had taken the last of the fight out of him.
"Sleepy-bye, nappy-time, Takatomon," Guilmon said, bringing his chin to rest on Takato's shoulder where, in the minutes to come, he would fall asleep.
Silence fell over the park, and Renamon stared at Rika, her brow furrowed. Sensing this, Rika squirmed slightly.
"Well? What?" she demanded as she turned to face the fox-digimon. She kept her voice low so as to not disturb the sleeping duo, but she couldn't keep her frustration out of her voice.
"I don't understand you," Renamon replied. Rika opened her mouth to say something, paused, and then scowled.
"I get that sometimes," she said. She balled her hands into fists against her legs "I've gotten used to it."
"I am a digimon. Fighting is my way of life. Most humans prefer to avoid that. But not you."
"It's not like I want to fight. I've just seen what happened when I didn't." She clenched her fists tightly. "It's times like this that I wish I were that Other-Me. I feel so useless here."
"You can't be that other version of you," Renamon said. "Your experiences must have been different if she became a Tamer and you didn't."
"Way to state the obvious, Renamon." Rika rose to her feet and turned to face Renamon more fully. "I already know I can't change the past. But I can change the future, right? What do you think would have happened here if I wasn't involved?"
Renamon didn't have to answer. She knew perfectly well that in all likelihood, Takato and Guilmon would have died. Destroyed by the madness brought by Titamon's infection.
Gazing back into Rika's eyes, she saw a small fire burning within them. A fire that held a certainty of purpose and desire. She found herself admiring her fierce determination and she was reminded of her earlier, endless days of wandering and fighting. Those days had felt so empty and devoid of any real direction. Gaiomon had been the first she could say she truly connected with, but even then, a gulf remained between them. He desired only to fight and die for a purpose, while she felt the gnawing call for something higher. A life beyond simply fighting and growing stronger.
That other Renamon had found that life, she thought. But such was not our destiny. If only we had such fortune, perhaps I could have found what she had. A family to protect.
A great sadness welled up inside her. And with it, came a desire. A wish, and a memory.
"Live on and find new purpose, little Viximon. And remember your oath to me."
White light suddenly burst into existence between the two, startling them both. The light formed into a small, ark shaped device, white with a blue trimmed ring surrounding a central screen. The light died down and the device – a digivice – hung in the air for a moment before dropping to the ground, leaving the two to stare at it in stunned amazement for one long moment before turning their gazes up at each other.
No words were exchanged, but they both knew things had changed for the two of them forever.
And hidden out of view, watching from the distance, a brown-haired girl with amber eyes smiled warmly.
###
"Gallantmon's power levels have dropped to zero," Riley reported, unable to hide the relief in her voice. "Biomerge has been canceled."
Himiko let out a heavy sigh, but didn't let go of her tension just yet. This wasn't over yet. "Are there any further returns on scans regarding Titamon?"
"Sporadic readings," said Tally. "It looks like just remnants of his data. He appears to have been destroyed."
Himiko drew in a breath.
"Stand down all systems," she said. "Deactivate Sleipnir and order all emergency units into the park. I want a full report on the situation as soon as possible."
"Yes, ma'am."
"Hata."
"What is it?" Himiko turned up toward Riley.
"I'm having difficulty disengaging Sleipnir. It's attempting to breach."
"Emergency protocol then," Himiko frowned.
"I already tried. It's not responding."
"Pull the plug if you have to! Just shut it down!"
"It's too late." Riley looked at Himiko helplessly. "It's preparing to bio-emerge."
###
Suzie sat hunched over Yamaki's unmoving body, sobbing loudly into her hands while Lopmon did her best to comfort her. They had found him like this while attempting to find and regroup with the others following the titanic explosion from Gaiomon's death. At first, they had been glad to find him, Yamaki consistently being one of the many rocks that held the Tamers together. Suzie had hoped that he would be able to provide some direction in the mess things had turned into.
The large branch skewered through his chest and the bright red stain on both his clothes and the ground he lay on swiftly disabused them of such notions.
"Suzie, we need to get going," Lopmon said, trying to rouse her again. But the girl shook her head violently.
"No!" she cried. "No, we can't leave him! Not like this! He's alone, Lopmon! He's all alone and…and…" She lifted her face from her hands and looked at the blond-haired head of Hypnos. He looked so pale and so very cold.
Just like Henry, Suzie thought, her hands beginning to tremble violently. He's just like Henry.
Suzie's stomach recoiled – not for the first time – and she began to dry-heave uncontrollably. Lopmon hugged the girl with her ears and massaged her with her tiny paws. Lopmon looked about them, trying to see if anyone was out there. The sounds of fighting and explosions had ceased. That usually meant that everything was over.
Movement from out of the corner of her eye caught the Deva's attention. Turning, she saw a swirl of sparkling data surging toward them. The shining cloud rose up and merged together, and the ghostly visage of Titamon, badly distorted and blurred, formed.
"Ddd-Devaaa…" he said. His voice came out like a garbled squawk. Lopmon gave Suzie a shake.
"Suzie. We've got to get out of here."
"Nooo…" the girl gagged. "Y-Yamaki… We can't leave Yamaki alone!"
"We're in danger! Suzie, we can't stay!"
Turning, Suzie saw Titamon towering over them. His body blurred, phasing in and out of stability. She didn't know if he was truly capable of hurting them, but at that moment, she didn't care. Fury blazed within her, white and hot. She surged to her feet, clenching her fists so tight that her knuckles were white.
"You killed him!" she shouted, and spittle flew from her mouth. "You killed him! I'm going to make you pay!"
She groped for her digivice and thrust it in front of her, screaming in utter rage. She wanted to crush and break something. She wanted Titamon to hurt for what he did.
"Suzie!" came Lopmon's cry, the diminutive Deva tugging at her pantleg. The urgency in her voice broke through the red storm in Suzie's mind like a bolt of lightning, but her lips were already moving.
"B-B-Bio…!" she began to shout, only for her voice to suddenly tatter. She was sobbing again. Memories of Cherubimon's battle with Gallantmon came crashing to the fore. Beyond a shadow of a doubt, she knew that if she digivolved Lopmon now, she would twist her into something that could no longer be saved. The screen to her digivice lit up, and it began to make clicking noises. She could feel her skin prickle as the Arc prepared to merge the two of them together.
It's too late! I can't stop it! Lopmon!
Titamon lifted a hand and his sword materialized within his grasp. Whatever else was going on with him, this looked real enough to kill them. Suzie clenched her eyes shut.
"B… B…" she stammered out as the swords shadow fell over them. Kill or be killed. Live, but corrupt her partner, the digimon who entrusted her soul to her and didn't deserve a single bad thing to happen. Wind blew over her, driving out the last of her voice.
"Big brother."
A loud clang broke across the air, and it took Suzie a moment to realize that neither she nor Lopmon were the cause. Looking up, she saw the long fluid body of a serpentine creature made of segmented metallic plates above her. The claws of one of its hands had caught Titamon's sword and effortlessly held it there. She recognized it as the Sleipnir program Yamaki had tested, but what it was doing here was beyond her.
"Must…destroy…Deva…" Titamon stammered out, straining to wrench his blade free from Sleipnir's grasp. The dragon's grip didn't so much as budge. Instead, it curled its claws into the Chrome Digizoid and the metal squealed in torment as it crumpled up like tissue paper. With its other claw, it smashed through Titamon's blurred figure, ripping a hole through his chest and sending shards of data flying through the air. Titamon let out a garbled cry as the last energy that had held him together finally vanished, causing him to break apart.
With Titamon's data floating toward the sky, Sleipnir circled about and its eyes zeroed in on Suzie's. As she watched, its golden gaze shifted color, becoming grey, then black, and then grey again. Something passed within them like recognition and when Sleipnir spoke, it was with a single word in a voice that was disturbingly familiar to her.
"Mom…en…tai," it said.
"H-Henry?" Suzie stammered out in a horrified whisper. Sleipnir didn't reply. Instead, a cloud of mist rose up around it and it faded from view, leaving Suzie and Lopmon alone with Yamaki's cold body resting behind them.
15
