Chapter 9: Dicision
Chapter Text
Yasui knew that he was not supposed to leave his room at night. However, he was suffering from insomnia and there were no other patients roaming around. He only had a few more days left in the hospital before he could finally return home. He was eager to get a drink, but he couldn't find the vending machine. He decided to go to the lobby and get one there. He took the elevator and pressed the button for the ground floor, but something was wrong. The elevator did not stop at the ground floor and continued to descend. Yasui frantically pressed the button again, but to no avail. He eventually reached the lowest level of the hospital and cursed. Why did the elevator have to malfunction when he was using it? At least he wasn't stuck. He activated the emergency switch, but it did not respond. He had no choice but to exit the elevator and find someone to help him. He found himself in a dark corridor, which seemed to be located in the basement of the hospital. At the end of the corridor, he saw a light and was relieved to have found someone. He reached a hall with strange equipment and was puzzled by its purpose. He then heard a noise above him and looked up. He saw things hanging from the ceiling that resembled cocoons. Yasui was reminded of something, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. Suddenly, something descended upon him and he lost consciousness.
When Shun returned home, he was relieved that his parents had not yet discovered Koemon. They would have never allowed him to keep the Digimon in the house, let alone become a DigiDestined. But were they right? Was Shun really of any help to the others? He and the others were absent during the attack on the city, and the other day, when Takeshi needed help, he was stuck in tutoring. Would it be better if he passed on Koemon and his DigiVice to someone else, someone who knew what they were doing?
"Shun, do you want to go and look for the balls today?" Koemon asked.
Shun had to decline. "No, I have tutoring today. It's not until later, but I should prepare."
Koemon was visibly disappointed. He was 100% behind the mission, while Shun could only devote himself to it sporadically.
Shun's phone rang and he fished it out of his pocket. It was a number he didn't recognize at first, but he still answered.
"Hello, this is TK. I hope I have the right number. Is this Shun?" he asked.
"Yes, speaking," Shun replied.
T.K didn't keep him in suspense for long. "I was wondering if you could meet me today. In about half an hour? I'm not far from you."
This surprised Shun. He was about to decline, as he had tutoring later, but then he reconsidered. The tutoring was still a few hours away, so there was no reason he couldn't meet TK. Besides, the older DigiRitters had been so supportive of him and the others, it would have been rude to decline. So he agreed and said he would be there.
When he hung up, Koemon asked if he could come along. Shun hesitated for a moment, but then he figured it wouldn't hurt to ask T.K if he could bring his Digimon. So he put Koemon in his backpack and got ready. His mother reminded him to be on time for his tutoring session, as he really needed it.
Shun promised and left the house. He had arranged to meet T.K near the park. When he arrived, he saw the older DigiDestined sitting on a bench and called out to him. T.K stood up and walked over to him with a smile.
"Hey, thanks for finding the time," he said.
Shun said it was no problem, but he mentioned his tutoring session.
"Don't worry, I've allowed about two hours," T.K said, and he gave Shun a sign to follow him.
At first, Shun didn't dare to ask what T.K had planned, but when they arrived in front of a tall building, he couldn't help himself.
"A hospital? What do we want there?" he asked.
T.K rubbed his head in embarrassment. "Well, you told me about your learning disability the other day, and I happen to have a friend who is a doctor. I thought a second opinion wouldn't hurt."
Shun was taken aback. Did he mean that seriously?
"Hold on! That's not something you can just do. And I couldn't afford to pay for something like that!" he objected.
But T.K waved him off. "Nonsense, money has nothing to do with it. He is very interested in seeing you. And I assure you that he is very good at his job. Otherwise, I wouldn't have suggested it to you."
Shun nodded and followed T.K into the hospital. He felt a little uneasy. He didn't like to be the center of attention, even though it was flattering that TK was so concerned about him.
T.K had just registered at the reception desk when they were told that they would be picked up shortly. This was indeed the case, and a nurse took the two of them to a waiting room. Koemon complained about the special smells in this place.
It was only a few minutes before a doctor in a white coat entered the room. He and T.K shook hands immediately.
"Thank you for taking the time to see me. I owe you one," T.K said.
But the doctor waved him off. "Nonsense. I am now the deputy chief physician, I can pretty much do what I want," he smiled.
"This is Dr. Kido. He is the friend I was telling you about, and the best doctor I know," T.K introduced him.
Dr. Kido put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm probably the only one you know, though, right?"
TK admitted that there was also his dentist, and both of them laughed.
Shun cleared his throat. "Um... Dr. Kido? I don't know what T.K has told you, but..."
The doctor reached into his coat and pulled out a file. "Only about your problem. I have printed out and studied your file. There are a few things I would like to check."
Shun was amazed. "Uh... you already have that? How did you get it?"
Dr. Kido waved the file. "Nowadays, we are super networked in medicine. I only had to specify that I am your treating physician. Admittedly, I have not yet asked for your consent and must now make up for it. You have no problem with me, do you?" he asked.
Shun shook his head. What else could he do? He didn't know the doctor, but if he could believe TK, he was in the right place here.
"Good, then I'll leave you two alone. I have to work, but you can rely on Joe, that is, Dr. Kido," TK said once more, and he said goodbye.
Shun thanked him once more before the doctor asked him to accompany him. The two of them then went to his office, where Shun sat down.
To his surprise, they were not alone. Shun had initially thought it was a stuffed animal, but then a white, spotted creature crept up to his backpack and examined it closely. Koemon could no longer keep still and freed himself. The two of them eyed each other skeptically.
"Dr. Kido... you have... a Digimon too?" Shun asked in amazement.
Dr. Kido smiled mildly. "Yes, even though Gomamon always causes mischief when I take him to the hospital with me."
The Digimon reacted indignantly. "Well, what do you expect? If I stay at home, you're always complaining that I watch too much TV!" he justified himself.
Dr. Kido told him that this was indeed the truth. Meanwhile, the Digimon were playing with each other, and Shun answered some of the doctor's questions. Then he wanted to do an EKG on him, and Shun accompanied him to one of the treatment rooms. The doctor reminded the Digimon once again to behave themselves, which they promised, albeit somewhat sullenly.
Shun was already familiar with this procedure and remained still during it. Twenty minutes later, they were back in the office, and Dr. Kido was reviewing the results. Shun did not dare to interrupt him during this time.
Finally, Dr. Kido looked up at the boy. "Ah, yes, that's what I thought. I think your doctor has recommended the wrong medication. For people of a younger age, it is fine, but you are already in middle school, right? I would like to suggest a different medication to your family doctor."
Shun nodded. "If you think that's right," he couldn't think of anything better to say.
Dr. Kido was convinced of his suggestion and handed the boy his business card. They agreed that the boy would contact him again in a few weeks, after the medication had taken effect.
Shun thanked Dr. Kido profusely and, with Koemon in tow, left the office again. Outside, as he was about to say goodbye, Dr. Kido was approached by a nurse.
"What? Are you sure? Another patient has disappeared?" she whispered to him.
The woman nodded. "Yes, I don't think they just left without checking out. Especially since their clothes are still in their rooms. Should we call the police again?"
Dr. Kido thought hard. "We probably have no choice. Please take care of it."
The doctor turned to Shun and apologized. "As you can see, we always have a lot to do here. We've taken care of everything we need to. You can find your way out, can't you?" he said, and then he left.
Shun understood and walked toward the stairs. As he was thinking about everything, he headed for the exit and stepped outside. There, he was surprised by a familiar face. It was someone he had known for years, someone he even went to school with.
"Shun? What are you doing here?" Takeshi asked in surprise. The boy was just about to ask the same question.
"In the hospital? Long story. But what do you want here?" he asked.
Takeshi hesitated for a moment, then he pointed to his backpack. "Rurimon has detected a new ball. It's very close, he thinks it's in the hospital."
Shun understood. It seemed that he would have to stay here for a little while longer after all. But then he remembered something important.
"Okay, can you handle it on your own? I have tutoring soon, my parents will freak out if I don't show up," he said.
Takeshi understood his friend's situation and assured him that he could handle it. "Prismamon is doing much better now. We'll manage," he said.
The two of them arranged to call each other later, then Takeshi hurried past him.
Shun increased his pace. He had already walked a few meters when Koemon spoke up from his backpack.
"Hey, is that really okay? It's our mission to collect the balls. Shouldn't we be supporting Takeshi and Prismamon?" his partner asked.
Shun gritted his teeth. "I don't have time right now! Don't you understand that? I can't always be there for your problems!" he snapped at him and increased his pace.
Koemon didn't dare to contradict him. It was true, he was asking too much of the human. Shun had been drawn into this conflict against his will. He was only helping out of friendship.
Takeshi tried to get his bearings. A hospital had a lot of rooms, they couldn't possibly search them all.
"Hey, can you say where exactly the ball is?" he asked, looking back.
Rurimon and Prismamon, who were snuggled up in his backpack, were far from comfortable.
"I feel... the power below us!" the little dragon finally said.
Below us meant in the basement. Takeshi found a staircase or an elevator. He found the latter quickly and entered it. He pressed the button for the lowest floor, even though it was probably not allowed for visitors to go there. But this was an exception, they had to secure an important object.
Soon they had arrived and got out. But the corridor they landed in ended after a few meters. Here, it seemed, only equipment was stored. But Rurimon struggled in his backpack, so he let it out into the open with Prismamon.
"I feel a barrier here! Created by a Digimon!" the little dragon then said.
Takeshi was amazed. "A barrier? Like a shield?"
"Can you break it?" Prismamon wanted to know.
Rurimon opened his bag and flipped through the pages until he seemed to have arrived at the right place. He raised the finger of his claw, on which a small flame was visible. He held it against the wall, which miraculously disappeared. Behind it, another corridor became visible.
They all nodded to each other and then ventured forward. Soon they arrived in a hall that seemed empty at first glance. Prismamon was the first to point it out and looked up.
Takeshi saw several cocoons hanging from the ceiling. Then everything happened very quickly. A kind of net was thrown over Prismamon and Rurimon, which enveloped them and pulled them upwards.
Takeshi wanted to react and use his DigiVice. But he was not fast enough. Threads hit his arm and then wound themselves around the rest of his body. Soon he was completely enveloped and also wrapped in a cocoon. He struggled and tried to defend himself, but he was already being pulled upwards.
Shun checked the time on his cell phone and realized that he needed to hurry if he didn't want to be late for his tutoring session. He felt a little guilty for leaving Takeshi to deal with the situation on his own, so he decided to call him and ask about the current status.
The phone rang, but his friend didn't pick up. Shun waited and waited, then he hung up. It was probably nothing, Takeshi was probably just busy. But if he was only looking for the ball, wouldn't he have time to answer the phone?
Shun felt uneasy. What if something had happened? The last time Takeshi had gone looking for a ball, he had walked into a trap. It was unlikely that the same thing would happen again, but one could never be sure. What should Shun do in this situation? He had to go to tutoring. Should he contact Tsubasa or one of the older DigiDestines? But they would take forever to reach the hospital. Shun, on the other hand, only had to walk back. But then he could forget about his tutoring session. His parents would be anything but thrilled.
If it was a matter of his friend's safety, however, the decision could only be as follows.
"Koemon, we're going back. Get ready in case we run into a Digimon again," he said to his friend.
Koemon understood and took out his slingshot. Shun ran and was back in front of the hospital in just a few minutes. He entered and asked the receptionist if she had seen his friend, who matched Takeshi's description. This was indeed the case. A boy of that description had taken the elevator. Shun thanked her and also entered the elevator. But where had it taken his friend?
"Shun, if I were a Digimon, I would hide in the basement to avoid all the people here," Koemon suggested.
Shun thought the suggestion was sensible and pressed the button for the lowest floor. The ride began and they descended. When the door opened, darkness greeted them. Shun let Koemon out and together they took the first steps.
"Shun, look over there!" Koemon pointed something out to him. They saw a large hole in the wall that was definitely not natural. They squeezed through it and reached a spacious hall at the end. They had just reached the middle when a warning from Koemon came.
"Shun, to the side!" he called out, but the boy could hardly react.
Koemon grabbed his slingshot and fired a projectile. Shun looked up and saw a construct of threads in flames. He quickly went into cover and tried to get a grip on the situation. Above him on the ceiling, there were several cocoons, as if several caterpillars had pupated and were about to turn into butterflies.
"Hehehehe. Crazy how many of you humans have been wandering down here lately. And there are even a few Digimon among you," a voice sounded from above.
Shun tried to locate the source of the voice. It came from above. There, a shadow detached itself, and something swung down. The DigiDestined saw a large, red centipede. The scary thing was that its feet were blades.
"Are you responsible for this? And what about my friend?" Shun asked.
The centipede laughed. "I am Katabiramon, a loyal servant of the Digimon King. And your friend is sleeping up here with me. Actually, I was only supposed to bring this ball to my master. But I'm taking the opportunity to devour a few more humans."
Shun clenched his fists. "You really think I'm going to let you do that? Koemon, are you ready?"
The little monkey nodded and waited for his partner to activate the DigiVice. "Koemon, digivolves to... Lianpumon!"
In this form, he was able to hover. He took advantage of this opportunity and was soon at eye level with Katabiramon. "Let all the humans go, or face the consequences!" Lianpumon warned him.
But the opponent did not seem to be thinking about it. He attacked with his blades, but Lianpumon skillfully dodged. He then changed the mask, which allowed him to use wind attacks. He whirled the cocoons around, which lost their hold. Before they could fall to the ground, he caught each one of them and placed them gently on the ground.
Katabiramon took advantage of the moment of distraction and shot his threads at the intruder, hitting Lianpumon full on. He was enveloped in sticky threads, from which he could not free himself. Katabiramon pulled him up and sharpened his blades.
Shun could only watch helplessly. "You have to free yourself! Come on!" he called out.
But the success was lacking. The centipede laughed and was about to devour Lianpumon.
"Harppoon!" suddenly a projectile sounded, which hit Katabiramon and threw him backwards. However, he did not let go of the cocoon with Lianpumon. Shun turned around and saw... a large walrus? At first, he thought of a new opponent, then he saw Dr. Kido behind it.
"I thought so! A Digimon is behind this," he commented.
Shun nodded. "Yes, he has Lianpumon trapped in his cocoon! He can't free himself!" he complained.
The doctor looked serious. "No, I'm sure your partner is capable of it. You just have to believe in him."
Shun looked to the side. That was easier said than done. Sure, his partner was strong, but what could he himself contribute? He was not good at learning, nor at fighting. That was the sad reality.
Katabiramon was now approaching with his blades to the one trapped in the cocoon, who was still struggling helplessly.
Shun could have slapped himself. Why was he thinking about himself again in this situation? His partner was the one who needed help right now.
"Hey, buddy! I believe in you, you hear me? Make him pay, okay?" he cheered on his friend.
The Digimon seemed to draw new strength. And suddenly it began to glow. Shun and Joe watched as it began to transform.
"Lianpumon, Super-Digivolution to... Xingtianmon!"
As if out of nowhere, a large axe appeared in the hand of the Digimon, with which it split the cocoon in two and freed itself. Its masks had been lost, but its entire upper body now seemed to be made of a gruesome mask. It had also lost the ability to hover, but this was not a problem. It could easily brace itself against the walls and was still as agile as before.
Katabiramon took up the pursuit and crossed swords with Xingtianmon. But his axe was much larger and resembled the face of an oni. He threw the centipede back. This one then sprayed his threads again, but he was too slow.
"Thunderclap!" Xingtianmon let a bolt of lightning shoot out of his mouth, which hit Katabiramon and caused an explosion. The hostile Digimon dissolved into data, and the danger was averted. Shun's partner landed on the ground, while Joe took care of the cocoons.
"We have to free them at all costs!" he said, and Shun nodded to his partner.
With the help of his axe, he was able to open all the cocoons carefully and free the humans inside. Takeshi, Prismamon, and Rurimon were the last ones. Joe instructed Shun to go and get help. He objected that it would be difficult to explain the situation down here, but the doctor would not hear of it. For him, the patients had priority.
An hour later, Takeshi was sitting in a treatment room, which he thought was completely exaggerated. He was not injured and did not want to take up any more of Joe's time. But he assured him that his colleagues were taking care of the patients they had brought up from the basement. Some of them were a little dehydrated, but otherwise, they would recover.
Koemon and Gomamon were sitting next to each other, cuddling. Shun was just feeding them treats. Rurimon had taken the blue ball, which they had secured in one of the cocoons. He opened his book, which absorbed the ball and took it in. Shun suspected that it was now safe.
"I am indebted to you. Without you, this Digimon would have certainly kidnapped even more humans," Joe said.
Shun waved him off. "No, I'm sure you would have managed without us."
Takeshi had to agree with him internally. When he thought about how competently Davis and Ken had approached the last battle, he was sure that Joe would have also defeated the enemy on his own.
"Thank you, but my task is now to take care of the sick and injured. That's why I became a doctor," he said confidently.
Soon after, Takeshi and Shun said goodbye and set off for home. "Hey, you missed your tutoring, didn't you? Should I come with you so your parents don't freak out?" Takeshi offered.
Shun shook his head. He was grateful for the offer, but he didn't want to involve Takeshi in his affairs. They made arrangements to meet at school the next day, then they parted ways.
Shun was a little uneasy as he entered the house. To his dismay, not only his mother but also his father were present. He decided to face the scolding and went to see them immediately.
"Ah, Shun, we've already heard about it," his father said.
The boy was a little confused. "Heard about it? What do you mean?"
His mother was just preparing the food. "Dr. Kido called. He apologized for you missing your tutoring because of him. But he sounded very confident about the new medication. If it really helps, your grades are sure to improve."
His father agreed with her. "You should have told us right away. We hope for the best, after all, we're only thinking about your future."
Shun nodded, now understanding. Joe had spoken up for him. The boy felt a deep sense of gratitude.
During the meal, he avoided all questions that might have revealed why he had really missed his tutoring. Afterwards, he withdrew to his room and stroked Koemon's head.
"Say, what do you think about us doing something fun together tomorrow? We could play a game," he suggested.
Koemon was a little surprised, then he grinned. "Yes, I still want to do a lot of things with you!" he said.
