I do own Digimon. Rei Kurenada is of my own creation though. And he is legit.
Did you ever think we would make it this far? Here we are novel 4 when their was only supposed to be three. Truth be told I was thinking of jumping straight to novel 5, but you know, in the interest of this mad quest of mine we got to go all the way back from the beginning up until the present time. I can only tell you that you will either hate me to death for making you wait for novel five or you will only appreciate the whole novel process more extolling the virtues of it. Regardless, the Digital Record will be completed in it's entirety. And I thank you all for going on this insane journey with me.
Chapter One: The World is Full of Liars
The gloomy walls sung a melancholy chorus. Like a spreading mist they seemed to change ever so lightly in the flickering of the shadows as if exposed to light for a brief moment. Rei Kurenada, ten years old, sat among those darting shadows, his eyes immune to such annoyance of contrasts between moments of darkness and the quick bursts of light that made his blueish green eyes seem lighter as well as the nearly similar hair color, messy, but consistent. He wore a simple midnight blue shirt and beige cargo shorts, and normal gray white tennis shoes, anxious for any word of his mother's condition. Rei kept staring at the door in front of him, his dull blue green eyes keen on finding out whatever atrocities awaited him emerging from that door.
In a brief interlude both his cousin Sarada, ten, and his best friend Hiroki, eleven, took a seat next to him.
Sarada had short brown hair falling down to her neck and concerning yellowish brown eyes. She had a white and green bow in her hair, and also a mint colored skirt and white top with green and white tennis shoes. She was a breath of fresh air, but her lack of having an awareness for her surroundings only made him more keen. Yes, to her she was like a wintergreen breath mint.
"How are you holding up?" Hiroki asked placing a hand on his back.
Hiroki also had that energetic vibe. He had spiky light brown hair, fiercesome brownish orange eyes just screaming for a challenge, and always wore a uniform of his favorite baseball athletes every day. Today's color was red with white numbers on the back and he did not even care to look at the number. He had white shorts and always had on the same black sneakers.
The energy and concern of the two of them took his energy away at times, but Rei could not complain. They were his friends after all, not something he could really say about any other people.
"I'm fine," he replied calmly trying not to make eye contact.
"Are you sure?" his cousin Sarada said fishing out a bottle of water and some snacks from a snack purse. "You haven't looked like you've eaten in days."
Rei grinned, but not at them. "I've never been better," he said trying to throw them off.
"Why?" Hiroki questioned. "Isn't your mom in intensive care?"
"She's going to get better," he said tensing up his hand. "She promised me she would."
"But, Rei," Sarada said, "Your mom, she-"
"-I said she's going to get better," Rei stared at her deathly serious. "She even told me so. It's only some kind of cancer after all," he said. "Many people end up beating cancer."
"If you say so," Hiroki said. "But, Rei, if she dies then-"
"-She will not die I said!" Rei said starting to shake. "My mother was stronger than that," he said sincerely. "She told me she would make it. I believe her," he said.
No sooner had he said those words his Uncle Goumatsu walked over, a plastic smile covering his face making his wrinkles seemingly vanish. He was a large big boned man with fat lips, a bit of a black cowlick on his head and had a habit of wearing Hawaiian shirts, but when he needed to throw his weight around he would wear expensive suits and don gold chains around his neck and even an expensive watch or rings or both.
This time he sported a black suit, slacks for a giant, and black leather shoes. Today he wore two gold rings with a green emerald on one and a purple amethyst on another and his rollex. He really did like to flaunt his wealth.
Rei also knew about his Uncle's terrible character. Uncle Goumatsu pretended to be in his thirties, but he was really in his late forties. He would always see him with a silly woman every now and then and knew he must have been lying to them to especially concerning about him being married.
"My poor nephew," he said ominously somber, or at least playing at it. "You should know your mother, my sister was only trying to be considerate of you," he grinned. "She knew she did not have long."
Rei stared at him, the tone of his voice immediately dropping his defenses. "Just what are you saying?" he said, his voice starting to break down.
"She's gone. Passed away just a couple minutes ago while you were here brooding. A shame you missed it: your mother's last moments."
Rei Kurenada felt all the color drain from his face, but that sny bastard Goumatsu snickered as if entertained by his pain.
"H-hey," Hiroki said with one arm on his shoulder. "Rei, I-I'm sorry," he said.
"Me to," Sarada said shaking her head. "Your mom, she's-"
"-That's right," Goumatsu said pouring salt on his wound already. "She's dead!"
As if time had stopped Rei could feel every cell move in his body aching slowly in agitation, his face developing rage oblivious to everything around him.
"I'll kill you!" he snapped reaching for Goumatsu, Goumatsu letting him punch and kick at his impenetrable stomach, unleashing his rage.
"Such a violent temper," he said. "You really should use that energy for something more noteworthy like a sport or something. You're just wasting the life your mother gave you trying to fight me," he said.
"Try?" he said taking his knee and finding a spot to jam into the back of his lower leg socket, Goumatsu groaning in pain. He then grabbed his face as he sank to a knee, placing his knee directly underneath his chin. "If you want me to try," he smile devilishly, "Then I suggest you become someone worthy of more than the garbage disposal," he said coldly.
The sudden consistent steps of someone in authority walked over separating the two of them.
"That's enough," a tall man said with blue green eyes and gray glasses, a blue suit coat, white undershirt, and gray slacks. He also had oddly reddish brown hair unlike the other family members. "You've both made your point. Rei, stop attacking your uncle. Goumatsu, knock it off tormenting him, you're a grown adult." he said sternly.
Rei immediately recognized him. It was his cooler uncle Fujiwara. He represented everything decent about the family and seemed to ignore all the nonsense and dark dealings that had gone around. Still, it pained Rei sometimes to see him be slandered because of the circumstances of whom he was born to. Hopefully that would not happen this time.
Goumatsu stood up to him throwing his weight around. "Eh? A bastard like you thinks he can tell me what to do with my own family huh? Your mother was a hor and your father was the shame of this family!" he scolded gritting his teeth, his nostrils fuming.
Fujiwara tilted his glasses up to his face, his messy hair still consistently in place.
"It is as you say," he said. He glanced back at Rei, nodded his head and proceeded to discuss things with Goumatsu trying to calm him.
Rei Kurenada gritted his teeth clenching his fist bruised from attacking the man. "I regret nothing," he said. "Tell this piece of filth to never show his face in front of me again," he said turning around and storming away.
He continued walking, his friends following him, trying his best not to show them his tears from being upset.
"There's no way she's gone," he said to himself becoming emotionally distraught. He found himself start to lose sight of everything, his vision growing hazy and collapsed.
Rei Kurenada felt a warm hand rub his forehead, a familiar practice he had become accustomed to whenever he had gotten upset. Because of his constitution, he himself could not handle putting too much stress on his body.
At those times his mother would tell him that to rest now because tomorrow will be waiting for you. With all your hopes, dreams, and better times to come. At least, even if it wasn't true, Rei Kurenada took comfort in those words looking forward to the next day no matter what happened.
"I will mother," he remembered saying. "Tomorrow's going to be a better day…"
...No sooner had he said those words that he opened his eyes looking up to see his cousin Sarada comforting him, Hiroki also looking down concerned.
"What are you all doing here?" he asked. Something did not seem right. Where was was his mother? When she always had comforted him?
"Have you seen my mother?" he asked. "She's the one who would be usually…." he paused staring her in the eyes, her face starting to break down tears leaking from her face.
"...It's true then," he swallowed refusing to be comforted anymore. He stood up indifferently and walked onward past her and Hiroki.
"Rei!" Hiroki called out.
"Oh? Is that you Hiroki?" he said nonchalantly. "I heard my mother passed away. Even after she told me she wouldn't," he said keeping it all in.
"It's too sad," Sarada said wiping here eyes. "I can't believe she's gone. Rei, I'm so sorry for her-huh?" she said slightly bewildered.
Rei Kurenada stared right into her and Hiroki. "Their is nothing to apologize for," he smiled. "After all Sarada, me, you and Hiroki, even mother…none of us can escape death. It will come for all of us eventually. Especially me though," he said.
They looked at him, their hearts impacted emotionally.
Yes, he did not need to say anything anymore to them. They did not need to be reminded of what he had already told them. He had been born with an illness he had inherited from his father; a weak heart. Cardiovascular disease. None of his relatives had lived past the age of thirty-five and his father was almost at that marker. But their were quite a few that didn't even make it into their twenties. Others did not even make it into their teenage years. In a way it made his life seem almost pointless, the specter of death having loomed over his bloodline waiting to swoop down and take it.
He smiled towards them as if they did not understand, but wanted to be comforting. This was why he lived; for his two dearest friends who wore both of their hearts on their sleeves. And he would fight like hell to protect them and his mother, but now he couldn't for her anymore. He swallowed his brimming tears thinking about her and tried to be warm towards them.
Hiroki turned away, his teeth clenched his eyes shut tight.
Sarada kept wiping her eyes as if trying to overcome his words.
"Come now, it's all right," he said gathering the two of them in his arms and holding them. "We know it can't be helped. I just hope that I'm the one who dies before you do," he said.
"Rei!" Sarada whimpered.
"I just hope you don't see my sniveling crying face since I'm going to go first," he said. "You guys understand right?"
"Yeah," Hiroki said a bit choked up. "Don't worry Rei, we'll support you the whole way. All the way to the end!"
"It's a promise!" Sarada gently smiled.
Rei Kurenada stared at the ceiling on his bed trying to relax from the event of the day. Like it or not, his mother was gone. He kept thinking about her last words telling him she would make it. And then also about Goumatsu; That conniving sack of dung! He also lied religiously deceiving others for his gain. In fact, not only him, but many in his family were like that to. Lying to line their own pockets or gain wealth, fame, or prestige. And now, albeit painfully, he had to add his mother to the end of this list.
She was now one of many in this family. He thought about it, brooding about the matter in his heart.
The world is full of liars. I thought that to myself that day when we made a promise. My mother who said she would be ok died without me seeing her final moments. A mother is supposed to love their children right? Wouldn't they want to be around till the very end? No, I suppose not. It would be traumatizing.
