I live! And I come bearing gifts. We're entering a new arc of the story. Of course, I have no idea if anyone who used to read this is even still out there. It's been at least a year since I last uploaded. I have been working on this chapter since I last posted too, but I just couldn't dial it in and took extended breaks from it. I got a bit of inspiration this past weekend and finally came out on the other end. I have 2 more chapters close to finished on top of this one! Once I get a few reviews on this one I'll be ready to upload the next. So the more reviews I get the sooner you'll see chapter 39 and 40.
That is, if anyone still reads this or cares! Thank you for all your support!
T.K. opened his eyes, instantly blinded by pain. He couldn't move his arms. He was on his knees. His entire body shuddered with pain with each breath he took. His insides felt on fire, but he was so cold at the same time. He choked and blood splattered on the ground in front of him. He finally regained enough coherency to lift his head and look around. He couldn't see past the white light that shone straight down on him from above, shrouding everything beyond in darkness. His arms bound in chains, hanging above his head, suspended from seemingly nothing.
He didn't understand. He should have been dead. Why wasn't he dead?
A sharp noise, like metal scraping against metal, made him wince, which only sent searing pain through every muscle in his body simultaneously, forcing a pathetic whimper from his shaking lips.
GATE
The voice he'd heard so many times inside his head was now just a few feet in front of him.
T.K. lifted his head and glared at the cloaked digimon in front of him. He swallowed hard, ignoring the rancid taste of blood that coated the inside of his mouth.
After a moment of deafening silence, Wisemon reached his hand down, slowly. "You are the Gate…"
T.K. wanted to fight. He wanted to scream. But he couldn't. He felt so weak and there was too much pain. Moving felt literally impossible. He wasn't even sure he could open his mouth and make sound come out intentionally.
Wisemon pressed his palm to the center of T.K.'s chest. He couldn't breathe now. That fuzzy sensation engulfed him. Suffocating, muffled, frozen. However, Wisemon's words were clear and fluent, despite not knowing a word of the language he was speaking.
Burning. The nerves running under his skin throughout his body burned. The pain was excruciating, and he couldn't do anything. Not even let out a cry. All he could do was stare into Wisemon's hollow cloak, at those beady yellow eyes.
"I will find you… I will find you…" Wisemon's chanting was suddenly comprehensible. His tone shifted to anger. "I will find you! I will find you! I will find you! I WILL FIND YOU—!"
#
T.K. shoved himself upwards, gasping desperately. Crisp, cool air filled his lungs. Opening his eyes, he found himself in an unfamiliar room.
To his left, he felt someone firmly grab hold of his arm and shoulder to help steady him. The calloused fingers from guitar playing told him it was Matt.
"Hey, slow down. You're all right." Matt's voice was calm, but firm.
The taste of blood, the pain, the weakness, all of it gone. In fact, he couldn't remember the last he'd felt so well rested. He let out a slow, shaky breath before blinking and looking up at his brother. The first thing he noticed was the cut on Matt's left cheek. It looked to be a few days old now. He immediately looked away, guilt rising in his chest.
"What… is this?" He asked weakly. He was dreaming, right? He had to be. This wasn't possible. He was closing himself off from the pain. Surely, he was retreating into the depth of his mind to escape reality.
"T.K.?" Kari spoke softly from his right. He refused to look her direction. He couldn't. This wasn't real.
Matt's grip loosened slightly, shifting so that he was sitting in front of T.K. "Hey. Look at me."
T.K. swallowed hard and let out another shaky breath. He averted his eyes from his brother's. He wasn't here. This wasn't happening.
"Are you in pain?" Matt's eyes scanned him up and down.
T.K. shook his head slightly, his eyes involuntarily glancing toward Matt's. He saw Matt relax and felt his grip slipping from his shoulder—he reached up and grabbed Matt's forearm quickly, his hand shaking as he dug his fingers into his arm.
Matt's concern returned at the distress that was clearly on T.K.'s face. "T.K., what's wrong? Are you sure you're not in any pain?"
"This…" his voice was barely above a whisper. "This isn't real, is it?"
Matt and Kari exchanged looks before looking back toward him, clearly anxious.
Matt glanced behind his shoulder, then turned his face to Kari. "Can you let the others know?"
T.K. felt Kari slide off the edge of the bed, seeing her walk toward a door out of the corner of his eye.
"T.K.? Hey…" Matt whispered. "Can you look at me, please?"
T.K. shook his head, closing his eyes. "It doesn't matter. None of this matters. I'm just dreaming. Or…" He held even tighter to Matt's arm. "Or…" T.K. swallowed hard.
Matt spoke firmly. "T.K., I promise you. You are not dreaming. This is real. You're safe."
T.K. finally looked up and met his brothers' eyes, the worry clear in his expression. He could only imagine his face reflecting his doubts.
Matt spoke softer, but still firm. "You're here, T.K."
T.K.'s fingers ached—he knew it was probably hurting Matt too, but he couldn't let go. He felt like the darkness would flood back and consume him and he'd be at Wisemon's mercy again if he dared to let go.
"T.K., hey, just relax." Matt squeezed T.K.'s shoulder tightly. "We got away. We're back in the real world. We're in Izzy's apartment. Everyone is here."
A flicker of hope sparked.
No.
He closed his eyes tightly—he couldn't believe it. T.K. shook his head. "I… I can't… I can't do this." Shutting down the idea before he could allow himself to wonder if it were true. But…
No.
He couldn't let himself believe it. If he did and had it ripped away, he couldn't handle it.
"What's the last thing you remember?"
T.K. hesitated. He didn't want to think; he didn't want to remember. He forced Patamon to evolve. He felt everything go cold and numb. He saw…
"I saw Ken…" His voice so low he didn't think Matt could hear.
"Right." Matt's voice was calm. "Gennai opened a gate, Ken and the others came in time."
T.K. blinked a few times, trying to comprehend the information. Was this actually real?
"He's awake?" He heard Ken's voice muffled through a closed door. "Is he…?" He couldn't make out the rest of what Ken said. More muffled voices—Tai, maybe Mimi… was that Joe's voice?
The door opened and T.K. closed his eyes. He loosened his grip on Matt's arm and slid it down to his brother's wrist. Holding tightly, he tried to stop his hand from quivering.
Joe's voice came clearly from beside him, calm and soft. "Hey there, T.K., how're you feeling?"
T.K. bit his bottom lip and lowered his face. He couldn't speak.
Matt shifted, his hand lowering from his shoulder, but T.K. wouldn't release his grip. "Hey, T.K." He spoke gently. "Can we just ask a few questions, make sure you're alright?"
T.K. inhaled slowly. "I don't want to go back yet." His voice was barely audible. The fear that this was just a dream tightening his chest.
"Back?" Matt's voice was full of confusion. "Back where?"
T.K. couldn't say it. He just shook his head. Wisemon had him. He wasn't here. This wasn't real.
Joe pursed his lips and shifted so that he was sitting on the edge of the bed. He reached over and pressed his fingers to T.K.'s wrist. A few seconds passed, and he released his hand. Then something pressed against his back, the shirt he was wearing not thick enough to keep the metal from feeling cold against his skin. And again, on his chest.
"How's your shoulder feeling?" Joe asked casually.
T.K. remained silent.
After a few moments, he felt Matt's arm shifting, pulling away. T.K. tightened his grip and leaned forward. "Please don't…" his voice trembled. "Please…"
"Then talk to us." Matt spoke between clenched teeth, desperate. "Does your head hurt? Does your shoulder hurt? Does anything hurt or…" he stopped as T.K. lifted his face, his eyes fixed on his lap.
T.K. took several deep breaths before he tried to speak again. "I don't know…" he whispered. "I can't tell… I can't think. I just don't want to wake up yet…" his voice broke at the end.
Matt's scowl deepened. He glanced at Joe, trying to figure out what he was going on about. Joe took T.K.'s right shoulder, moving it back and forth slowly. Matt looked back at his brother. "T.K., you are awake—"
Suddenly, a jolt of pain shot through T.K.'s arm and he yelped, unintentionally releasing Matt from his grasp. He reached up and grabbed his shoulder, shifting away from Joe instinctually. "Shit!" He cursed under his breath.
"Sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you." Joe quickly apologized.
T.K. looked up at Matt, seeing that he had stood and backed away from him, worriedly staring at him. "T.K., you are awake. What can I do to convince you that this isn't just a dream?"
T.K. stared at Matt for a long time before he looked over at Joe. Joe gave him a soft, encouraging smile. Then he glanced out the window. Sunshine and tops of buildings scattered through town. He looked back over at Matt, lowering his hand from his shoulder. "How did I…" he let out an exasperated sigh. "If this is real, why am I…?" His voice caught. "I should have died."
"We know." Matt's voice was unintentionally coarse.
T.K. Looked away from Matt guiltily.
"T.K." Matt sighed. "T.K." Matt tried to get him to look back up.
"I didn't know what else to do. You were all…" T.K.'s voice caught. He swallowed hard, trying to fight the lump forming in his throat. "You were all hurt and unconscious… our digimon were defeated."
Matt's firm expression softened, quickly reflecting T.K.'s guilt. "We know…"
T.K. opened his mouth to continue, but nothing came out. He opened his eyes, blinking tears away as he stared at the wall in frustration.
Joe shifted uncomfortably. "I think he's stable for now. I'll give you two a moment…" He stood and walked around the bed, making his way out the door quickly.
Matt let out a deep, shaky breath, running his hands over his face exhaustedly.
They sat in silence for longer than was comfortable before T.K. finally spoke, his gaze fixed on the blank wall across from where he sat. "I was in so much pain."
Matt turned to face T.K., an agonizing look taking over his expression.
"I didn't know how to tell any of you, because I didn't want to worry you or put you in danger." He paused just enough to take a shaky breath. "And I fought, and I fought." His voice broke. "But I couldn't keep fighting you all. And the minute I let myself think, that maybe things would work out…"
Matt's voice shook. "T.K., I know." He closed the distance between him and T.K., sitting on the edge of the bed. "I made a promise to you, and I broke it. It won't happen again. We won't let it. We—" Matt stopped as T.K.'s closed his eyes and tears fell down his cheeks.
T.K.'s voice was quiet, defeated. "The last thing I knew for sure was that you, and the others, were hurt or worse…" he finally looked up and made eye contact with Matt, fighting more tears. "I made Patamon…" he pursed his lips. "Because I didn't know if you were… or not… and if there was even a chance that you and the others could make it out alive…"
"T.K." Matt reached for him.
T.K. shifted his shoulder away from Matt, looking down at his hands. "I felt it… I felt the power. I felt myself go numb… So why…" he looked back up at his brother. "Why didn't I die?"
Matt's face contorted into a pained expression, but he inhaled slowly and cleared his throat, trying to even his voice as he spoke. "What I was told was that they arrived right when Patamon evolved and that's when you collapsed." He eyed T.K. carefully as he continued. "Pata… er… Shadowseraphimon, he made quick work of Mephistomon, but he didn't dedigivolve after. He went rampant."
T.K.'s breath caught. "What?" He asked weakly.
Matt hesitated. "You forced a digivolution, T.K."
T.K. felt panicked. "Did he hurt anyone… is Patamon…" his mind spun.
Matt spoke quickly, seeing the panic in his brother's eyes. "He didn't hurt anyone." He paused. "And he's alright too."
T.K. exhaled shakily. "He's alright?" he looked up at Matt, unconvinced.
Matt nodded. "He reverted to Poyomon, once…"
T.K. looked up as Matt trailed off. "Once?"
"Once Kari woke up." Matt watched T.K.'s confused expression carefully. "She's the reason. She's why you're… alive."
T.K. opened his mouth to respond, trying to comprehend what Matt was saying. As he did, his mind wavered and his vision went dark. Flashes of being at Wisemon's mercy, chained and beaten, crossed his vision.
Matt's grip on his arm pulled him back. "T.K.?" His brother looked worriedly. "Hey, what's wrong?"
T.K. felt lightheaded. Reaching up, he pressed his palm to his forehead. "Mmm…" another flash, he winced as Wisemon's voice went shrill in his mind.
I will find you.
T.K. opened his eyes slowly, the hazy feeling gone as quickly as it had come.
"T.K.!" Matt was kneeling on the bed in front of him, both his hands gripping T.K.'s shoulders. "Are you alright?"
T.K. blinked hard, trying to gather his thoughts. This wasn't the dream. Wisemon was searching for him. And he was angry. T.K. was here. This was real. A feeling of relief washed over him suddenly.
Matt was suddenly opening the bedroom door, his voice strained. "Izzy."
Tai's voice came first. "What's wrong?"
Matt ignored Tai. "Izzy, is there a breach?"
"No. There was a slight disturbance just now, but nothing even touched the firewall, let alone a breach." The sound of Izzy typing came across the room. "I got this, Matt. Trust me. There's no breach." Izzy's voice was firm.
Matt's fingers had gone white, holding onto the doorframe. He relaxed and leaned against the doorway, running his hands through his hair before looking back at his brother.
T.K. remembered that was how the last attack had happened. He had felt Wisemon and then the attack. T.K. slowly shook his head, focusing on Matt, trying to ignore all the peering gazes directed at him from Izzy's living room. "It's not that…"
Matt's concern didn't fade. "You scared me."
T.K. looked down slowly. "It wasn't… I didn't mean to…" T.K. shifted, so that his feet were hanging over the edge of the bed. "I didn't mean to…"
"T.K. don't!" Matt darted back across the room, grabbing hold of T.K.'s arm just as he made to stand.
It took him a second to realize what was happening. He had felt fine sitting there. But his legs gave out on him the moment he stood. Matt's support allowed him a more graceful landing on the soft carpet than had he been on his own.
"T.K., what are you doing? You almost died. Your body can't take you rushing like that!"
T.K.'s gaze fixed on the floor in front of him, trying to comprehend how weak he suddenly felt. He heard someone walking into the room. Kari reached out to rest her hand on his, but he pulled away instinctively.
"Sorry…" he murmured.
She hesitated before pulling her hand back. "Are you okay?"
T.K. remained silent.
She shifted and looked up at Matt, ignoring that Ken, Tai and Joe were standing just outside the door.
Matt knelt next to T.K. and let out a long sigh. "Let me help you back up."
T.K. shifted his eyes away from Matt's before lowering his face toward the floor, shaking his head.
"Come on, T.K." Matt sighed.
T.K. let out his own sigh, exasperated. Not only was he recovering from a near death experience, but all the people who he'd intentionally hurt over the past two months were staring awkwardly at him on the floor. "No thanks, it's easier to wallow in self-pity down here." He waved away his brother's outstretched hand.
"Stop that." Matt snapped, clearly not amused.
T.K. flinched at Matt's raised voice.
Matt seemed to regret his tone immediately. "I'm sorry." He spoke softer. "After everything we've been through, I just… this… none of this is funny. Don't make jokes."
"Sorry." T.K. whispered.
Matt didn't ask this time, instead he took T.K.'s arm and wrapped it around his neck, lifting him to sit on the edge of the bed.
T.K. inhaled sharply as Matt set him down. He reached up and pressed his hands to his forehead. "Mmm…" he moaned lightly.
Matt kneeled, worriedly looking at his brother. "What is it?"
"Just a headache…" T.K. murmured, slowly lifting his face to meet Matt's gaze.
Joe stepped in at that, closing the door partway. "Kari, could you go get a glass of water, please?"
Kari stood and hurried out of the room without a word, closing the door behind her.
Matt stood and faced Joe. "Are you sure he doesn't need to go to the hospital?"
T.K. looked up at that, eyes widening.
Joe didn't look at T.K., addressing Matt calmly. "No." he shook his head. "At least not yet. He's stable, pulse is normal, breathing and heart rate are perfectly fine. Honestly, other than being a bit dehydrated and his body recovering its strength, he appears to be in great condition." Joe's expression unreadable. "Physically, at least."
Matt sighed with relief, both he and Joe finally looking down at T.K.
T.K. let out a slow, shaky breath, averting his gaze. "How long?"
Matt gave him a confused look before Joe spoke. "You've been unconscious for about three days."
T.K. frowned. "All my injuries… it hasn't been nearly enough time for me to have healed…"
Joe nodded. "That would be correct."
Matt spoke this time, his voice lowered, glancing back at the door. "Except for the fact that when Kari did what she did, the crest also healed your injuries."
T.K. saw the look in his brother's and Joe's eyes. "What exactly happened?"
Matt had a look on his face, like he was hiding something. "We don't even know for sure, T.K." He had a solemn expression as he made eye contact with T.K. "Somehow, Kari, she triggered her crest when we thought you…" he hesitated. "…when we thought we'd lost you."
T.K. just stared at his brother, unable to think of a reasonable response. Conflicting emotions running through him, making him feel hot. He knew he should feel grateful, but he just didn't. Now that he was wrapping his head around everything and getting a better grasp of their situation, he knew he was in just as much danger now, than he had been before. If the nightmare with Wisemon was anything but a bad omen, the risks were the same. He didn't know what had happened. He didn't know where Patamon was and if he was really alright. He didn't know if he was safe. He didn't know if his friends were safe. He didn't know…
"T.K." Matt said his name firmly.
T.K. blinked a few times before he looked back at Matt, who was leaning down toward him, both he and Joe looking fairly concerned.
"Sorry…" T.K. whispered.
"Can you feel him or…" Matt's expression darkened.
T.K. shook his head. "No. Got lost in my thoughts… sorry."
Matt didn't look convinced. "You have to tell us if you feel or hear anything at all."
T.K. didn't know what to say. He didn't know what good it would do, but voicing that wouldn't help anyone, either. The door opened, saving him from having to respond.
Kari slipped in with a glass of water. Joe met her at the door—he could see that she wanted to come in, but Joe thanked her and all but closed the door in her face.
Joe reached the glass of water out to T.K. "I think you need to eat something, too."
T.K. took the water, but shook his head, grimacing at the mention of eating. "No." The cold water rushed down his throat, not realizing how parched he'd felt until right then.
Matt gave him a look. "You need to eat, T.K."
T.K. shook his head. "I haven't been keeping food down well lately…"
Joe looked more concerned at that. "For how long?"
T.K. hesitated. "Since before I went to the digital world at the beginning of the summer." Matt's eyes widened, so he quickly added. "Between Patamon and Gennai, I've forced myself to eat, but the stress just didn't make it easy to keep it down."
Matt's expression softened, but he worriedly looked to Joe for his opinion. "Joe?"
Joe hesitated. "He's not showing any signs of malnutrition, but we're going to have to monitor it."
T.K. pursed his lips. "I'm just trying to process everything. Can I just have some time to sort through everything before you try to force anything substantial on my stomach?"
Joe nodded. "That's fine. But not too long. Fair?"
T.K. nodded. "Matt."
"Hm?" Matt looked up at T.K. curiously.
"Where… where is he?"
Matt knew immediately who he was asking about. "Izzy has a special room he designed for our digimon on his computer system here. All our digimon are inside of it and can come in and out as needed. Poyomon is resting and slowly regaining his strength."
T.K. eyed his brother carefully. "He's really alright?"
Matt smiled sadly. "He will be, T.K. We're safe. Izzy somehow copied and fortify the barrier that Gennai had around his lake house. He's completely sealed his apartment off from both the real and digital worlds."
T.K. closed his eyes, remembering how real his dream had felt, how intense the pain had been, how loud it was—but if Wisemon really couldn't find him, then it meant Izzy's barrier had to be working, right? For how long… he couldn't be certain.