5. File City

Shinyu raised a shaking hand and grasped the digimon's claws. Still smiling, it turned and crawled along the floor towards what looked like a metal futon.
The digimon's back limbs were much smaller than it's front. It's body was so low to the ground that Shinyu had to stay on his hands and knees as he was led along. This suited him fine because he didn't think he could stand up just yet.
Following the digimon's instructions, he removed his pack and lay down on the futon. A swishing sound to his right drew his attention to a set of plastic curtains like the kind found in hospitals.
They were drawn back to reveal Tigremon sitting on a similar structure to Shinyu. Next to her was a digimon that looked identical to the one that had greeted him, except it's skin was blue.
"Hey, Shinyu." Tigremon waved at him, before pointing to the digimon beside her. "This is Otamamon, and that guy with you is RedOtamamon. We call 'em Blue and Red."
"You call us that." Otamamon corrected her while looking at a flat metal device in his claws. "Your data appears to be intact, though that might not be the case once Babamon is done with you."
Tigremon gave an amused snort and lay back with her paws behind her head.
"Just wait until she gets a load of my little upgrade. I can't wait to see the look on her face."
Before Shinyu could ask what the deal was between Tigremon and this Babamon; RedOtamaon jumped onto his stomach, holding a hand mirror.
"Breathing check!"
He slammed the mirror into Shinyu's face, causing him to let out a surprised yelp. Bringing it back, The digimon looked at the imprint formed by steam on the surface.
"Breathing normal."
Shinyu rubbed his stinging nose and opened his watering eyes to see Red holding a small torch.
"Sight check!"
He flashed the torch right into Shinyu's left eye. Shinyu cried out and held both hands over his eye.
"Sight normal."
"That's not how you - Are you guys actual doctors?!"
Otamamon looked up from his machine.
"Well, I'm training to be one. He's just volunteering for today." He gestured to his crimson counterpart.
"Yeah, but don't worry. I've looked up pictures of human anatomy, and read a guide on how to tell if one's dead. Reflexes check!"
Red slammed his finned tail down on Shinyu's knee.
"Yaaargh!"
Shinyu gripped his knee and turned on his side as Red hopped to the floor.
"Reflexes normal. This human's definitely alive."
"I could've told you that." Tigremon got to her feet and picked up Shinyu's pack. "Come on, partner. There's someone I've been looking forward to introducing you to."
Shinyu hobbled out the door after her, hoping the next digimon he met was more gentle.

-

"Grraaargh!"
A broom head collided with a teapot, sending it flying through the air. A large green hand caught the vessel and placed it gently down on a side table.
Ogremon fought the urge to sigh. Babamon was having one of her moments.
"Twenty! We sent a hundred digimon to the Physical World and only twenty brought back humans?!"
The elderly looking digimon whacked her broom repeatedly on the desk in front of her. If it wasn't constructed from DigiGodwood, it probably would've shattered by now.
"I mean, I wasn't expecting them all to be successful; but twenty?! In percentages, that's just... um...?"
"Twenty per cent." Ogremon stated.
Seeing Babamon deflate into her chair, he took the opportunity to approach her desk and present his digipad to her.
The Gate Guardian looked over the data presented on the small flat computer.
"The humans are getting checked over as we speak, and the welcoming banquet is being prepared." Ogremon reported.
"There's going to be a lot of leftovers." Babamon muttered. She leaned back and ran her fingers through her gray hair. "It's fine. We can work with this. We'll just start off small."
She went to pour herself some tea, only to realise the teapot was across the room. Making a requesting gesture to Ogremon, she began looking through the digipad again.
"What about our little runaway? Has there been any sign of her?"
Ogremon picked up the teapot and turned back to Babamon. Before he could answer her, the doors to her office were pushed open and the subject of her query strutted in.
"I'm back!"
Tigremon stood with her paws on her hips and a toothy smile on her face.
Babamon stared at her for a second before standing up and brandishing her broom.
The smile dropped from Tigremon's face and she brought her paws up in a placating gesture.
"Okay, before you get angry -"
"Grraaargh!"
Babamon leapt over her desk and swung her broom at Tigremon, who started bounding around the room on all fours, dodging the other digimon's assaults.
"If you would just listen for a sec - Yikes! You'd see that I - Whoa! Did exactly what you wanted - Eep!"
Tigremon clawed her way up Ogremon's body and stood on his head with her back arched. Babamon tried to reach her with her broom, but just succeeded in smacking the much taller Ogremon in the face.
"What I wanted was for you to listen to me for once, and stay here!" Babamon tried jumping to reach Tigremon, but her short legs only got her high enough to hit Ogremon's eye. "Do you have any idea what could've happened to you in the Physical World?"
"You mean; make a bond with my human, protect him from a poacher and digivolve to Champion level? Yeah, I've got a pretty good idea."
Babamon stopped swinging her broom and stared up at Tigremon. Even Ogremon, who'd been enduring Babamon's battering with resigned calm, perked up upon hearing this.
"You bonded with a human?"
"And you digivolved?" Babamon leaned on her broom as if her legs had gone weak.
"That's right." Tigremon didn't even try to hide the gloating tone in her voice. "You wanna meet him? Shinyu, come in here!"
Shinyu slowly peeked his head around the door frame.
"Are you sure I'm not going to get assaulted again? I heard a lot of crashing in here."
"If you're going to work with Babamon, then you can't be scared of sudden acts of violence. Now get in here!"
Shinyu stepped into the room. He had to consciously stop himself from flinching at the sight of the hulking green digimon on whose head Tigremon was perched. It resembled an oni from the picture books he'd read as a child; complete with horns, long sharp nails and a gaping mouth with massive teeth. The way the creature was staring at him made Shinyu feel like he'd just been served up on a silver platter.
The clacking sound of Babamon's broomstick hitting the floor as she approached pulled Shinyu's attention towards her.
At first glance, Babamon could've been mistaken for an elderly human woman dressed in a green robe. But, as she drew closer, Shinyu saw that her wizened gray face was devoid of a nose and thick white stitches ran loosely through her lipless mouth.
She was about a foot shorter than he was, and had to tilt her head up to look at his face. At least, Shinyu assumed that was what she was looking at. Her eyes were hidden by long bangs, while the rest of her hair was tied in a Japanese style bun.
Remembering that he was a guest here, Shinyu straightened up and gave a respectful bow to Babamon.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Shinyu Shirogane."
Babamon seemed to snap out of her own trance and returned Shinyu's bow.
"The pleasure is mine. I'm Babamon, guardian of File City." She pointed at the large green digimon. "This is my secretary, Ogremon. You already know Tigremon."
Ogremon gave a small nod, but remained silent. He was still looking fixedly at Shinyu, as if he was a particularly interesting zoo animal.
As if sensing Shinyu's discomfort, Babamon placed a gentle hand on his arm and steered him towards a pair of large windows. Shinyu's eyes widened at what he saw.
Tigremon had told him she came from a city, but he hadn't pictured anything like what was spread out before him.
Babamon's office was high up, allowing him to see far over the urban space.
No two buildings were the same. They ranged from squat bungalows to narrow towers. There were roads and footpaths with multicoloured lights flashing along them like electricity through a current. And moving along them were digimon.
The city's residents were as varied as it's infrastructure. Some resembled beasts and monsters straight out of legend. Others had more humanoid shapes but, even at a distance, Shinyu could see the peculiar proportions of their bodies. There were even some who were little more than blobs or balls, bouncing or crawling along beside their more complex neighbours.
"Hard to believe, isn't it?"
Shinyu realised that he'd been pressing up against the window and pulled himself back to face Babamon.
"All of this;" She gestured to the city below them. "It all came from your world."
She stood with her broom held up by her side and her free arm folded behind her back.
"I can only imagine what humans have thought, watching us grow and prosper. And now we're finally going to meet. It's almost like reuniting with long-lost family."
"Uh, yeah... You might want to hit pause on that." Tigremon remarked from behind her. "Turns out; humans don't know we exist."
Babamon went unnaturally still. Even the bristles on her broom were standing straight up.
"What."
Tigremon was still laying on Ogremon's head with her arms hanging loosely on either side of his face. She was clearly enjoying herself.
"Yeah, they know nothing about us at all. Shinyu here totally freaked out when I told him about the Digital World."
"I didn't freak out. I just needed some time to process. It was a lot to take in." Shinyu looked nervously at Babamon who still hadn't so much as twitched.
"That would explain why so few of them agreed to come to the Digital World." Ogremon put in. "They probably thought we were trying to abduct them."
"What was that?" Tigremon's ears pricked up and a grin spread over her face. "I succeeded at a task that most of the digimon our esteemed leader picked failed? Well, isn't that a surprise?"
Like an old creaky door slowly opening, Babamon turned her head to face Tigremon.
The feline digimon seemed to realise she was pushing her luck and lowered herself behind Ogremon's head, gripping his long white hair.
"Did I mention that we found a solution to the gate problem? Shinyu, show her the thingy."
"The - Oh, right."
Shinyu untied the white device from his belt and held it out to Babamon. She leant closer to inspect it but made no move to take it from Shinyu.
"I don't know what it is." Shinyu said. "It just appeared in my hand while I was trying to help Tigremon."
"And this is what allowed you to digivolve?" Babamon looked to Tigremon.
"Uh huh. And that's not all it did. That bozo Baboongamon opened a gate to get to the Physical World. I knocked him back through it and that machine sealed it up behind him."
Shinyu couldn't help but notice that Ogremon grimaced at the mention of Baboongamon and his large fists tightened at his sides. Tigremon must've noticed too, as she patted the top of his head while she spoke.
Babamon stroked her chin and looked out the window once more.
"When I made contact with Yggdrasil, it told me that it would bestow a gift upon any digimon and human that formed a sincere bond. It seems the power produced from a union between our species is more than legend."
She looked to the boy beside her.
"Shinyu, correct? Would you come with me? I'd like to have our 'mon in the lab take a look at this device and run a few tests."
"These tests won't involve hitting me with things, will it?" Shinyu's knee still ached from his 'check up' with RedOtamamon.
Babamon let out a chuckle and put a friendly hand on his back.
"No. We just want to see how much your proximity affects the machine's functionality. Yggdrasil bestowed it on you, after all."
"Alright then, let's get sciencey."
Tigremon hopped down from Ogremon's shoulders and started following Babamon and Shinyu to the office doors.
"Not you." Babamon pointed her broom straight at Tigremon, stopping her in her tracks. "You're still in big trouble. I want you to stay right here until the banquet is over. Then I'll decide what to do with you. Ogremon, keep an eye on her."
"What?!" Tigremon's fur stood on end and the tips of her claws were showing. "I just provided the answer to our problems and you're still gonna treat me like a Baby-Level?!"
"We don't know yet if this device is the answer. And even if it is; that doesn't change the fact that you were never supposed to go to the Physical World!"
"You weren't?" Shinyu spun around and stared at Tigremon. "You said Yggdrasil sent you to me."
"It did!" Tigremon's voice dropped and her eyes darted around the room, looking at everything but Shinyu. "I just... wasn't on the official list."
"We set up the gate to identify and send digimon to a compatible human." Babamon explained to Shinyu. "Tigremon snuck in and used it the night before the designated envoys were set to leave."
"And it's a good thing I did!" Tigremon cut in hotly. "If I hadn't been there when Baboongamon showed up, Shinyu would be in the poachers' clutches right now!"
Babamon slammed the tip of her broomstick onto the floor, causing a small shockwave to spread out. Shinyu, Tigremon and Ogremon all staggered as the energy hit them.
Babamon seemed to grow as she marched up to Tigremon, looming over the feline and speaking with barely suppressed rage.
"The reason we were so select with the digimon we sent, was because many of their humans lived in areas where the barrier between our worlds was already weakening. Opening a gate to those areas would make it easier for certain digimon to force their way through. Do you understand what I'm telling you?"
Tigremon flinched at Babamon's words and seemed to curl in on herself.
Shinyu's head was ringing and his face felt hot.
"You're the reason Baboongamon showed up at the park?" He spoke in a strained voice. "You put me and Arisu in danger. You put the whole city in danger. You told me our worlds needed me, but I was never supposed to be here. You just barged into my life and dragged me away from my home! And for what?!"
Tigremon was crouched on the floor with her tail puffed up. Shinyu barely heard her reply.
"I just wanted to help."
Babamon gently took Shinyu's arm and led him out the door. Tigremon couldn't bring herself to look at him as he left.
She stayed in her hunched position, staring at the floor, until the sound of Ogremon's heavy footsteps approached. He sat down beside her and placed two cups of steaming tea down in front of them.
Tigremon sat up at took a sip of the hot drink.
"I really did want to help."
Ogremon blew on his beverage and let out a small sigh.
"I know."
He placed his huge hand over Tigremon's head and gently patted her as they drank their tea in silence.

-

Charlie stumbled out of the exam room and slumped against the wall of the hallway she found herself in.
"That was the second worst physical I've ever had."
Kumomon pattered out after her and set off down the corridor.
"C-Come on. They'll be setting up a b-banquet in the main hall."
Charlie was so excited, she didn't notice the digimon's curt tone. She walked quickly beside Kumomon, pelting her with questions.
"So what kind of food do you guys eat? Is it safe for human consumption? How many other humans will be there? Is there a dress code? Should I have worn something fancier?"
Kumomon kept walking, silently questioning her life choices, until they came upon a set of doors framed by silk purple drapes.
Charlie pushed the doors open and let out a low whistle.
Before her was a large room containing two long banquet tables covered in crisp white cloth. A stage was set at the far end of the room, decorated with various flowers, beneath a giant banner that read; 'Welcome to the Digital World'.
Milling around the place were several digimon. Kumomon went up to one that looked like a human sized red and blue toy robot. It was directing the other digimon and checking what looked like a tablet computer in it's hands.
"E-Excuse me. I'm just dr-dropping off the human I f-fetched from the Ph-Physical World. If you could t-take over from here, I'll j-just be on my way."
"I'm afraid there's been a change of plans." The digimon replied in a synthesised sounding masculine voice. "You're going to have to hold on to your human a little longer."
Charlie didn't hear Kumomon's rather colourful outburst to this news. She was too busy being entranced by the digimon around her. It was like every story she'd read had come to life in front of her.
She turned her head at the sound of chair legs scraping against the floor and saw some of the digimon were removing one of the banquet tables. She approached the robot Kumomon was talking to.
"Say, why are they taking apart the seating? Is the party cancelled?"
"No; just postponed." The digimon replied without looking up from his pad. "And it turns out there's going to be far fewer guests than was previously predicted."
He let out a hissing noise that could be interpreted as a sigh.
"Honestly, as if I don't have other things to do today. This is going to set my schedule back by - " His glowing yellow eyes flicked up to see Charlie staring at him with a big grin on her face. "Is there anything else?"
"No. I just think you look really cool."
Kumomon pulled her legs in close, letting out a quiet groan of embarrassment.
The digimon lowered his pad and turned to face Charlie. To Kumomon's surprise, he held his hand out to her.
"Thank you very much. My name is Ballistamon. I'm File City's event planner."
Charlie shook his hand.
"I'm Charlie. This place looks amazing. You've done a great job."
Ballistamon held his pad to his chest. His voice held a slight tremble as he spoke.
"That is so nice to hear. I work so hard and hardly anyone seems to notice."
"Well, I noticed." Charlie patted his red metal shoulder. "I can't wait for the banquet to start. I'm getting hungry."
Ballistamon leaned in closer to her.
"Between you and me, there're a lot of speeches planned before the actual meal; so you may want to grab a bite to eat now to tide you over."
"Thanks for the tip. C'mon Kumomon. You can show me the city."
Charlie turned and strolled out the door. Kumomon stood still for a moment, wondering what had just happened, before hurrying after her.
After making a few wrong turns, Charlie made her way out the building's front doors. She found herself in a round courtyard with several groups of digimon scattered around it.
Looking closer, Charlie was amazed to see that each of the groups comprised of digimon crowding around a human.
To her left, there was a boy around her age looking nervously at the crowd gathered around him while a white puppy-like digimon was talking animatedly to the gathered onlookers.
To her right, a girl who looked like she could be in college was showing her cellphone to the digimon while a small knight in black armour was standing to attention beside her.
As Charlie walked past, some digimon on the outskirts of their groups noticed her and started to gather around her.
"Look! Another one!"
"They all look so different!"
"This one's a lot skinnier than the last. Is she a lower level?"
Charlie was about to give a strongly worded response to that last comment, when she felt a small tug on her jeans.
Looking down, she saw a little pink digimon with stubby legs and a pair of ribbon-like feelers on it's head. It was quite possibly the cutest thing in all of existence.
"Are you really going to save the Digital World?"
It looked up at her with shining black eyes.
Glancing around, Charlie saw the same hopeful expressions on the faces of the other digimon.
She knelt down before the tiny digimon.
"What's your name, little guy?"
"Tokomon."
"Well Tokomon, you've got nothing to worry about." Charlie lifted him onto her shoulder and stood up before the other digimon. "None of you need to worry. Now that we're here; the Digital World is as good as saved!"
The digimon around her cheered. Some of them started chanting 'Humans! Humans! Humans!', while others seemed to be barely holding back tears.
Charlie couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed by the revering looks she was getting; but she wasn't going to let them see that.
She looked to Tokomon, perched on her shoulder, and gave him a confident grin. She almost dropped him when he returned it; revealing a mouth full of closely packed fangs.
Putting Tokomon back on the ground, Charlie looked around for Kumomon. She spotted some of her legs poking out of the crowd of clamouring digimon.
"E-Excuse me - Oof! I'm tr-trying to - Ow! Could you pl-please get off!"
Kumomon felt something grab her around her abdomen and lift her into the air. She found herself level with Charlie's smiling face.
"Let's keep you up here for now."
Before Kumomon could respond, Charlie lifted her over her head and deposited her in her hood. Kumomon wrapped her two front legs around Charlie's shoulders as the girl excused herself from her admirers; swerving and weaving through the crowd.
Once they were clear of the courtyard, Kumomon spoke quietly into Charlie's ear.
"I h-heard what you said, b-back there. Do you e-even know how to s-save the Digital World?"
"Well, no; but I couldn't tell them that." Charlie replied. "Those guys really looked like they needed some good news. Besides, I'm sure we'll figure something out. We'll take it one step at a time."
Charlie stopped and sniffed the air.
"And the next step is getting some food. Let's find out what that smell is. Mangeons!"
Charlie took off at a run while Kumomon shut her eyes and held on to her tightly.
She couldn't help but feel that this was an apt metaphor for what their partnership was shaping up to be.

-

"Are you sure you're okay? You threw up a lot back there."
Kartik lay with his back against a tree in File City's Data Park. Tarumon had thought it best to take him out the back door of City Hall, to let him recover away from the curious crowd gathered in the courtyard.
"I'm alright." Kartik took a sip from his water bottle. "The trip over was just a little... intense."
He looked up, past the branches above his head.
"Wow. You weren't exaggerating about the sky."
Above the city lay a solid white void. There was no sun; no clouds; not a single feature except for small multicoloured streams of light that Tarumon had called data packets.
Tarumon was sat beside Kartik, staring up at the blank space with a melancholy look on his face. He gave his head a shake and got to his hooves.
"Well, since we've got some time before the banquet; I can show you my favourite place; Primary Nursery."
Kartik followed Tarumon through the park, admiring the scenery as he went. They passed a pond where he saw some white and orange fish slowly swimming through the water.
"Are those digimon?" Kartik asked, pointing them out.
"No, those are digikoi. There are aquatic digimon, but they look a lot different to regular fish."
"So does that mean there are actual animals in the Digital World?"
"Not exactly." Tarumon scratched his muzzle as he thought of how to explain. "They're sort of part of the scenery. One of the things replicated from the Physical World. Ah! Here we are."
They came upon a large area that looked like a playground for small children. It was surrounded by a low fence made of smooth logs and a wooden sign was posted above the entrance displaying the words 'PRIMARY NURSERY'. Painted around the words were several multicoloured eggs.
"You're gonna love this." Tarumon looked up at Kartik with shining eyes. "Here is where the city's digimon are born and cared for."
As they walked through the entrance, Kartik realised that the ground underfoot was soft and springy. It was like they were standing on a giant mattress.
The sound of laughter drew his attention to the playground. Playing on the equipment were several small digimon. Most of them were shaped like balls with horns, tails or other extremities. They were sliding, swinging and bouncing on the ground, letting out little shrieks of delight.
Kartik couldn't help but smile at the adorable little creatures.
A white digimon, with red-tipped horns and a frill was bouncing close by, spinning in the air with each ascent. As it reached the height of one of it's bounces, it spotted the visitors and gave a joyful squeal.
"Tarumon!"
Distracted, the digimon lost it's balance and landed face-down on the ground; bouncing back into the air in an uncontrolled arc before landing in Tarumon's arms.
Tarumon chuckled at the little digimon whose yellow eyes were spinning.
"Hi Gurimon. I told you I'd be back."
The other digimon began to crowd around Tarumon, expressing joy at his return and asking questions about where he'd been.
"Settle down everybody. First, I want to introduce you to someone." He placed Gurimon down on the ground and gestured toward Kartik. "This is my new friend, Kartik. He's a human, from the Physical World."
The smaller digimon stared up at Kartik with a mixture of wonder and curiosity. A couple of them looked nervous and inched closer to Tarumon.
Kartik got on his knees and hunched down a bit so he wouldn't seem so big. He put his hands together and spoke in a soft light tone.
"Namaste. I'm very happy to meet you all. I hope we can be friends."
The digimon exchanged glances, seemingly unsure how to respond; until Gurimon hopped forward. He stopped before Kartik's knee and sniffed him, twitching the tiny black horn on his nose. He looked up at Kartik and gave him a big smile.
"Human friend!"
He jumped onto Kartik's lap and nuzzled up against his stomach.
Encouraged by this; the other digimon gathered around Kartik, tugging on his clothes and bouncing up and down.
"Human friend! Human friend!"
Kartik and Tarumon spent the next fifteen minutes playing with the young digimon that Tarumon said were called In-Training. Kartik was helping Gurimon down from a swing when a voice called out from behind him.
"Well, toss me in the sewer and call me Numemon; you went 'n did it!"
Kartik turned to see a crab-like digimon about the same size as Tarumon. His spiky bluish gray carapace had patches of red that resembled rust spots. His left claw was twice the size of his right and had sharp metal blades along each pincer. His green eyes were alight with humour as he approached Tarumon.
The bovine digimon smiled warmly as he grasped the newcomer's smaller claw and patted him on the back.
"Don't tell me you still doubted it?"
He beckoned Kartik to come over.
"This is Ganimon. He runs Primary Nursery. Ganimon, this is Kartik. He's come all the way from the Physical World, so be sure to show him some hospitality."
Ganimon scuttled up to Kartik and offered his right claw.
"As if I wouldn't. Hospitality's my specialty. Salutations, Kartik. Welcome to the Digital World."
Kartik leaned down and shook Ganimon's claw.
"Thank you. Everyone's been very friendly to me."
"Well, we been looking forward to meeting humans for nigh on forever. Tarumon 'ere hardly talked about anything else."
"Oh, come on. You're making me sound obsessed."
Ganimon looked to the In-Training digimon.
"Hey, young'uns! What're yer favourite stories from Tarumon?"
The little digimon bounced around as they called out their answers.
"The Human Picnic!"
"The Three Humans!"
"Five Brave Digimon... Meet A Human!"
"Okay! Okay, you've made your point." Tarumon crossed his arms over his chest and the hair covering his cheeks turned a light shade of pink.
Kartik couldn't help but chuckle at the scene before him. It was almost as if he was at school, watching his friends teasing each other over their hobbies and crushes.
These digimon, despite their alien appearances, were really not that different from humans.
Ganimon gave Tarumon a friendly shove with his claw.
"You chose just the right time to come back, Tarumon." He gestured back the way he had come from. "I reckon the Pusumon egg is about ready to hatch."
Tarumon's ears shot up and his eyes widened.
"Why didn't you say that sooner? I don't want to miss it! Kartik, come on! You've got to see this!"
Tarumon took off down a green path that looked like it had been woven into the ground, followed by Ganimon. Kartik waved a quick goodbye to Gurimon and the other In-Trainings, before setting off after them.
The path took them to a structure that resembled a big tent made entirely of hanging willow branches. Kartik couldn't tell if it was natural or constructed.
Tarumon parted the branches like a pair of curtains and entered; throwing an excited smile Kartik's way as he did.
Before following, Kartik slipped his shoes off. The quiet permeating the area reminded him of the temples back home.
Upon entering, Kartik looked upon a large pool that took up almost the whole space inside the tent. It was shadowed by the branches forming the walls, but gentle light of various colours shone from the water.
On the surface floated green lily pads, baring pink lotus flowers. Among the petals were nestled eggs. They were all different colours with various patterns on their shells.
Ganimon slipped into the water and swam up to one of the pads. The egg that it held was white with gray and yellow stripes. Looking closely, Kartik could see that it was wobbling slightly.
Ganimon guided the pad to the edge of the pool where he and Tarumon lifted it out of the water. The three of them gathered around the egg as it began to shake more vigorously.
Suddenly, a crack appeared on the shell, followed by another, then another. The egg gave one final shudder before it's top half fell away completely, revealing a tiny furry gray and white ball.
Tarumon reached in and gently lifted the baby digimon out of the remains of the egg. A pair of light blue eyes opened, roaming around the tent before resting on Tarumon. A few strands of yellow hair stuck up straight on top of it's head and it suckled on a pacifier in it's mouth.
Tarumon held the baby up to his muzzle; his face practically beaming with happiness.
"Hello, Pusumon. Welcome to Primary Nursery. We're so happy to have you here."
He held Pusumon to his chest and gently laid his muzzle on him. Pusumon's eyes closed in contentment and he leant into the bigger digimon's touch.
Kartik felt a small lump in his throat. He found himself remembering being held by his mother as a small child. A stab of guilt hit him as he thought of how his parents must be feeling, discovering he had disappeared in the night.
He was snapped out of his musing by a splashing sound. Ganimon was dropping the broken eggshell pieces into the the pool. Before Kartik's eyes, they dissolved into little specks of light that spread out through the water.
He approached Ganimon and knelt down beside him as the crustacean lay the lily pad back on the pool's surface.
"Do the babies' parents come to get them after they hatch?"
Ganimon raised a spiky eye ridge at Kartik's question before letting out a chuckle.
"I see Tarumon must've been too busy swooning over the Physical World to explain things proper. We digimon don't got no parents. We're born from data. We return to data. And then we're born all over again."
It took a moment for Kartik to process what Ganimon had just told him.
"Are... Are you saying that digimon reincarnate?"
Ganimon waved his claw back and forth.
"That's one way 'o putting it, I s'pose." He gestured in the direction of the playground. "Most of the young'uns here used to be big bad digimon that picked the wrong fight. Then their digicores found their way to this 'ere recovery spring and used the data in it to protect themselves while they formed a new body. That's where digieggs come from."
He gestured to the lily pads floating in the pool. For the first time, Kartik noticed that the eggs were different sizes. Some were so small that they were almost hidden by the lotus petals. It hit him then, that these eggs were growing out of the flowers.
Ganimon pointed to Pusumon, still snuggled in Tarumon's arms.
"Though, every now and then, a new type of digimon is born outta the data from your world. Pusumon, like that little'un, only started showing up a few years back. And Gurimon is the only one of his kind I've ever seen, so this could be his first time around."
Kartik thought back to the little digimon in the playground, laughing and playing without a care in the world.
"It's just hard to believe that those children have already lived other lives."
Ganimon raised his claws in what Kartik assumed was a shrug.
"Well, not all digimon remember their past lives. Even for those that do; the memories can take time to come back. Let 'em enjoy this innocence while they can, is what I say."
"Do you remember your past life?"
Kartik was fascinated by the fact that digimon reincarnated. He wanted to learn everything he could about it, and Ganimon seemed to be very knowledgeable on the subject. So he was surprised to see the crab digimon stiffen up at his question.
Ganimon crossed his claws in front of himself and cast his eyes downward.
Kartik felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Tarumon, still holding Pusumon, with a look of guilt on his face.
"I'm sorry, Kartik. I should've told you. Digimon don't ask each other about their past lives. It's a very personal subject." He readjusted his grip on Pusumon. "Being reborn is considered a fresh start. A chance to put your past mistakes behind you and begin again with a clean slate. We judge digimon for who they are now. Not who they used to be."
Kartik turned back to Ganimon with a heavy feeling in his stomach. He brought his hands together.
"I'm so sorry, Ganimon. I didn't mean to upset you."
Ganimon seemed to give himself a quick shake and smiled at Kartik.
"Aw, it ain't nothing. This is new for all of us. There's bound to be things we don't know."
He patted Kartik's leg and began scuttling back the way they'd come.
"Now how's about we take this little'un inside and get 'im fed?"
Kartik followed the digimon out of the tent, still feeling awful about his slip up.
While the digimon certainly shared a lot of mannerisms with humans; it should've been obvious that they'd have their own customs and taboos.
Kartik wondered if there was a handbook or some kind of guide to the Digital World and it's culture. If he was going to be a representative of humanity; he didn't want to accidentally insult his hosts and create an interdimensional incident.

-

File City stood on a circular island surrounded by fast flowing rivers with four bridges at each cardinal point. There were no walls or armaments protecting these entryways to the city. A prime example of Babamon's arrogance. At least, that was how Birdramon saw it.
Beating her flaming wings, she ascended through the air, until she was high enough that the denizens of File City would be hard pressed to spot her; even if they thought to look skyward, which few digimon did nowadays.
Even from such a height, Birdramon's keen eyes had no trouble spotting the City Hall, and the crowds gathered in front of it.
Gliding in a wide circle, she focused on the centre of the crowds. Widening her eyes, she pinpointed the individuals the digimon were surrounding; taking in their appearance, their movements and the venerating looks they were getting from the onlookers.
"They're here."
Banking through the air, she flew towards a thick forest surrounding the southern river. She skimmed over the treetops, causing some of the leaves to smoke and curl.
Coming upon a large clearing, she pulled up and spread her wings; lowering herself to the ground with slow flaps.
The clearing was filled with digimon. Even a casual onlooker could've seen that they were getting ready for combat. Some were inspecting their weapons; others were sparring with each other; a few were sat together in meditation, mentally preparing for the fight ahead.
On the edge of the clearing, a digimon sat with his back against a tree, reading a large red book. His features were almost entirely hidden by the black and white mask that covered his lower face and the blue wrappings around his head, through which poked large strands of messy blond hair.
His visible red eye flicked up as Birdramon approached him with her wings tucked at her side. The larger digimon bowed her head to him in greeting before standing up straight.
"The humans have arrived. From what I could see; they are young ones, just like you predicted."
The masked digimon let out a sigh. He rose to his feet, holding his book in the crook of a long thin arm.
"Gather the troops. It's time to launch the attack."