Ben10 & Digimon Tamers
Heroes and Humanity
Part 02: Humanity and Heroes
What Happens in Bellwood... – Chapter 49
Originally Written: August 9, 2016 1133PM to September 8, 2016 1011PM
. . . . .
"Henry's pacing driving you nuts too?" Beelzemon looked up from his modified tablet. Mrs. Pacman protested horribly. The tall digimon snorted from his seat on the floor just outside Henry and Albedo's apartment.
"Nuh uh," Terriermon's feet tapped against the floor. The apartment door clicked softly. "Too quiet." He walked over to Beelzemon and looked up at him. Mrs. Pacman protested horribly once more. He pointed a floppy ear at the tablet.
"Not really in the mood." He shrugged as he turned off the game.
"Was that Mrs. Pacman?" The small digimon snickered.
"Yes, it was, Princess Prettypants." Beelzemon snorted as Terriermon recoiled, taking a step backwards.
"Does everyone know!?"
"You don't shut up about it." Beelzemon hung his long arm over his knees.
Terriermon flopped down next to him, "I'll have you know it's quite a traumatic experience for me."
Beelzemon snorted. "Yea, I'm sure."
"Imagine being forced to dress up as a princess for a day! Many days!" The digimon moaned dramatically while rolling onto his back.
"Ai once put me in one of her grandma's fancy kimonos. The long things." He focused on a nondescript spot on the wall across from him.
"I'll never complain again."
"You'll be complaining five minutes from now."
"You know me too well."
"How's you know who?"
"He locked himself in the bedroom. He's still there, and won't open the door. I don't know if he's sleeping or not, but I think he's okay." Terriermon moved to sit up, "Just a feeling I have."
"Hm. Henry must be driving him batty."
"Suzie's no better. Asking him if he's alright every few minutes. At least Kenta and MarineAngemon are keeping everyone calm." The digimon looked at the tiled floor. "This whole thing is crazy."
"Only us, huh?" Beelzemon snorted.
"Best luck in the universe!"
Beelzemon snorted again.
"Beelzemon?"
"Hm?"
The small digimon pressed his tiny paws up against Beelzemon's leg. "Does that tablet have access to Hypnos?"
"I can make it have it."
"What about that big HQ? The one in Bellwood?"
"That too. Whatcha thinking about, pipsqueak?" Beelzemon looked at him, shifting a gloved hand to hold his tablet.
"Do you..." The digimon tapped Beelzemon's leg. He quickly looked around for a moment. "Can you look up aliens that affect dreams?"
Beelzemon raised an eyebrow.
"Please?"
"Uh sure." The digimon looked at him cross-eyed. "You think something's freaked you-know-who? Other than the locked up thing?"
"I don't know." Terriermon spoke softly as he bowed his head.
"Terriermon..." Beelzemon spoke in a stern voice.
"Honest! I don't know!" He looked up. "Just look it up for me, please?" He clasped his tiny paws together.
The bipedal digimon fluttered his eyes at him.
"How the hell are you doing that? You have no eyelids." Beelzemon scrunched up his face in disgust.
"It's the patented Terriermon charm. Makes me a good Princess Prettypants."
"Ugh. Whatever." Beelzemon gagged. "I'll do your search thing if you stop whatever that is." He gestured at Terriermon's blinking. The digimon immediately stopped. "Look away, I gotta input my password."
"Oh please. It's probably 'one-two-three-four." Terriermon snickered.
"The hell it ain't!" He snapped back. "That was my first one."
Terriermon snickered once more.
Beezemon promptly turned his companion around and flicked him on the back of his head.
"Oww! I can't reach back there!" Terriermon moaned.
"Jeri, Ai and Mako taught me about passwords while they were explaining the whole literal firewall thing in Digimon Adventure. I'll have you know my passwords are top notch now."
Terriermon giggled.
"Don't make me hitcha again." The digimon pulled up the main portal screen to the plumber database on his table. "Dreams, right?"
"Mhm." Terriermon turned back around. He pressed his hands on Beelzemon's leg and stood up on his tiptoes.
"Lessee..." Beelzemon dragged a clawed finger very carefully across the screen of his tablet. "I need something more to go on here. This is a long ass list."
"Are there aliens on it?"
"The ones that don't end in 'mon'?" He spared a glance as his shorter companion.
"Look for Cassiopeian Dream Eater." Terriermon tried to stretch himself with no success.
"Cassio-what-now?" Beelzemon sputtered
"Cassiopeian Dream Eater."
"The fuck is that?" He typed on the tablet, searching.
"I don't know. That's why I'm asking you." Terriermon smiled when Beelzemon glared at him. He shifted when the taller digimon lowered his legs and the tablet, so he could see better.
He looked at the blue and pink jellyfish-like alien on the screen. It looked harmless from first glance, but so did he, he supposed, if his eccentric adventures as part of Suzie's imagination were anything to go by.
"Who names these things?" Beelzemon questioned.
"The alien examination committee?" Terriermon looked at him innocently.
"Buncha stiffs can't name for shit." He scoffed, "Least it says what it does, I guess."
Terriermon dropped his jaw. "What? Scroll back up."
Beelzemon's hand froze as he did so. " 'Cassiopeian Dream Eaters feed off the chemicals produced during stress. Commonly they latch onto the face of the victim. It is said that they cause the victim to have nightmares.' So it's like a Tapirmon gone bad?"
Terriermon shook his head, "Under that. I mean, that's important too, but under that."
" 'It's only recently that Cassiopeian Dream Eaters are able to be studied. Before the invention using Galvan technology, the most common treatment for removing a dream eater was cutting off the victim's head…' " Beelzemon did a quick reread. "No fucking way!" He stared at the screen wide eyed.
" 'Once a Dream eater latches onto its prey, it does not let go, even with serious coercion. Before Galvan Technology, removal attempts frequently resulted in the entire removal of a victim's face. It was in and still is in debate of whether removing the dream eater without killing the victim, or by killing the victim is more -whatever that word is- which roughly translates to 'humane' in Earth languages. Victims may die from suffocation and malnutrition, especially if the Dream Eater manages to cover both the mouth and nose.' " Terriermon stood still, blinking at the screen. "I'm very glad this thing isn't in the digital world."
"Oh we'll see a Digiworld variant soon. Y'know how that place is."
"Blasphemy!" Terriermon shouted, despaired. "The treatment for removing the thing is so new that doctors don't even understand the effects of being attacked by one! All they know is it sucks a lot!" The digimon lowered his head, dejected.
"Where the heck ya hear 'bout this thing?"
"I overheard the three stooges. They said Albedo was attacked by one." Terriermon looked up at him.
"Holy...Azulongmon have mercy." Beelzemon muttered as he lowered his head. He sat in silence for a moment. "You ain't say nothing sooner?"
"I was busy being electrocuted by bipedal space frogs. Sorry." The digimon snapped.
"Momentai, shortstuff."
"I am never telling anyone to momentai ever again." The digimon glared at the ground.
"And one day Ai will no longer want no tea parties with me." Beelzemon replied calmly, "Damn tiny cups."
"You like Ai's tea parties though."
"Ain't no one ask you." The digimon sharply turned away.
Terriermon sighed.
"I ain't be surprised if Henry did feel what happened to ya."
"Can we focus on the mentally traumatized terrible influence on my human partner, please?" Terriermon waved his ears.
"Yea, sure." He looked at the screen. "Henry's gonna flip his shit when he learns 'bout this."
"Henry has no more shit to flip. I promise." Terriermon spoke in a bland, dull voice. "I was kinda hoping that it wasn't related."
"Yea?" Beelzemon tapped a way at the screen.
"...Yea."
"Kid's strong." Beezlemon replied idly, "Reminds me o' Jeri."
"He just hasn't run out of energy yet. Somehow." Terriermon flopped over onto the cold tiles. "Does it say anything else interesting?"
"Nu uh." Beezlemon shook his head. He started typing up a quick, hopefully classified email. "Jeri had quite a few nightmares after the whole Reaper thing. Very hard to watch."
"Yea, but Takato was like her backbone back then. Albedo and Takato don't like each other much."
"Really?"
"Every time they're left in a room by themselves, I wonder how and why the building hasn't collapsed yet." Terriermon sighed, "It's like watching Rika before she fully flipped what Henry calls her 'openly compassionate' switch."
Beelzemon snorted as he shifted against the tiles in an effort to wake his legs and buttocks. "Well, shit. This'll be interesting."
