AN: Hey everyone! I know it's been a little while. Sorry. But, hey, still here. How are all of you guys doing? I know it's a tough time that seems to be dragging on and on, but it'll be over soon enough. I hope you're all doing okay.
Anyways, here are some responses:
To smartalec121: Yeah, I asked myself what would Jeri do given what horrors happened to her, and a Doctorate in Psychiatry/Psychology seemed like the best answer. She liked to help people with their problems already, and the key to defeating the D-Reaper was a bit psychological on her part. What better legacy than a child Psychiatrist? As for Jiji and Baba, I'm happy it was a callback to something, but I didn't mean for it to be. I just googled what Japanese kids call their grandparents.
To Guest(1): I'm glad Jeri's job of choice made sense. It seemed to me like something she'd definitely go into. I'm excited for her to meet up with the new Digidestined, Henry, and more. And I am also excited Tasuke finally got his haircut; finally, I don't imagine that awful two tone hair. When Dan is around again, it could cause problems. As for BlackGuilmon, the more I write the more I love him. He's changing a lot over the course of the story, but his bluntness is just great. We will learn more about Tasuke's grandparents soon.
To reddevil47: It was a fun line, yeah. He's a fun mon to write.
To Guest(2): Yeah, Jennifer is interesting. I hope I can stick the landing with her and Commandramon.
To Guest(3): I'm glad the secret agent angle is working out. It is a new experience for me, and I know I've stumbled a bit but I'm happy it's still pretty good. Originally I wasn't going to use the humans in fights all that often, but I quickly realized that made no sense. After all, the easiest way to disarm a Digimon is to get rid of their partner, and affords a lot of opportunities for the Digimon and human pair to demonstrate how much they care for each other. At the same time, Digimon fights are more fun and huge, so they'll definitely be the main draw, especially the further they Digivolve. You can focus more on humans in a fight between rookies, but when a Digimon like BlackWarGrowlmon shows up?
Episode 22: Advent 2 of 2: The Days Before Christmas
"Wahoo!" May shouted as she blazed ahead of me, a tiny purple blob in her backpack screaming along with her. May crouched low and leaned forward a bit as she snowboarded towards the big jumping ramp nearby. I skidded to a stop and watched her hit the lip and soar upward, bending her legs and swinging the board back so she could grab the board as she flew. She turned midair and let go of the board, swerving a bit on the landing before stabilizing and speeding towards a rail, hopping on and sliding down.
"We going to do that?" BlackGigimon asked, popping his head out of my pack.
"If you want us to crash and die, sure?" I replied. I shook my head. "She was good at stuff like this before we started getting basically ninja training from Davis. I was mediocre, maybe. If we were at one of the smaller ones, maybe."
"Sounds like prey talk." Read, coward talk.
"If I crash on my back, it would definitely hurt you with how small you are," I reminded him just quiet enough no one around us would pay attention to me.
"So don't crash."
I shook my head and turned my board to continue down the run, passing the jumps that May had taken, weaving through people way better at this than me, and eventually sliding to a stop in front of some trees with May. "Dummy, why didn't you take any fun jumps?" Dorimon asked from over May's shoulder.
"He was being prey," BlackGigimon told her from mine.
I shoved him back into my bag. "I know my limits," I told Dorimon. I turned to May. "But you're insane."
"Come on, I've been doing this since you still lived in Japan. You can do tons I can't though."
"Yeah, like she can't even draw stick figures!" Dorimon exclaimed. Then she was shoved into her bag by an annoyed May.
"She's right. You can't." May glared at me. "Hey, you can't shove me in a backpack," I told her, then I hopped and turned my board, sliding past her and flying down the mountain. I wheeled between some trees and turned sharply with the small trail, winding around tight corners.
"This is more like it!" BlackGigimon shouted. He rested his front legs on my shoulder and grinned wide. "Faster, faster!"
I grinned. "You got it!" I leaned forward and made my turns sharper and sharper. We whipped around another tree, leaving the exit to the path in front of us with a small jump at the end. I jumped off of it, not gaining all that much air – especially compared to May – but making BlackGigimon laugh excitedly nonetheless. We hit the ground and wobbled, which only made him happier. "Glad you had fun – now back in the bag. We're almost at the base for lunch, and we're not really supposed to bring dogs when we go up."
"As long as I get good food out of it," he growled back, vanishing into the pack once more.
I chuckled and made a few more turns in the snow, leaving a repeating 'S' trail behind me as I weaved between the other skiers and snowboarders around. I turned sharply on my heel at the bottom, sliding to a stop near the lift. I plopped down and pulled my bindings off, secretly letting my Digimon hop out beside me. May slid up behind us, showering me and BlackGigimon with a wave of powder. I was protected by a jacket and helmet. BlackGigimon was – naked really only applies to people, right? Well, he took the cold without any protection, letting out a loud yelp. He turned around and began to growl angrily.
May pulled up her goggles and grinned down at him. "Oh, whoops. Didn't see your ugly dog there!" she remarked before letting out a grin. She bent down and let Dorimon jump out.
At which point I grabbed hold of some snow and threw it at May's face while BlackGigimon slapped some snow into Dorimon's face. "Sorry, didn't see you there," I told May. Snow dripped off of her face and she growled. "Oh, come on. You deserved it." I pushed myself up and grabbed my board. "Come on, Boy." BlackGigimon and I rushed off. "We'll eat all the food before you even get there!"
"Wha!" Dorimon turned and began barking incessantly at May. The message was obvious: "GO FASTER!"
"Whoa, you're charging along," Henry noted when BlackGigimon and me sprinted up to the table. He reached down and grabbed the 'dog' and began scratching his ears. I was impressed, honestly; BlackGigimon wasn't just tolerating Henry for my sake, he almost seemed to like my uncle. It really helped sell the whole dog thing, which made everything a lot easier on me.
"Did you take your dog up the lift with you?" Janyu wondered. He frowned and examined BlackGigimon as he had for the past few days. "He's a weird looking dog..."
Before BlackGigimon could glare at me, I interjected, "Maybe, but I think he's great," I explained. I sat down beside Henry and rubbed my Digimon's head. "Actually, Gil's the best. Ever." BlackGigimon woofed approvingly.
May and Dorimon rushed up. May looked around, then groaned into her hand. "Wait, don't tell me Aunt Suzie got lost again!?"
"Your parents are out finding her, Dear," Mayumi explained with a shrug. "And the little ones are still in ski school, so it's just us for lunch."
"Speaking of, I'm starving," I remarked. I popped off of the bench. "Can you watch Gil and Dori for us, thanks bye!" I grabbed May's wrist and pulled her inside. We needed to hurry if we were going to get enough food for the digital trash compactors those two had for stomachs.
"They're more hyperactive then you and your friends at that age, Henry," Janyu said as we rushed away.
Henry sighed. "At least they have less to worry about."
I fought off a pit in my stomach. What did they go through back then? Maybe when all this was over, I could ask my parents and Henry.
X X X
Huckmon was worried about his partner. Davis hadn't come out of his room in two days, only cleaning up and coming out to make sure his mother didn't worry every night at dinner. As a professional When she wasn't around, all Davis did was stay in his room with his comforter pulled over his head. When he got too hot, he'd just pull the comforter from his face and gaze at the wall with glazed over eyes.
Huckmon sat on top of Davis' desk, watching his partner's brown eyes fail to fix on anything. He knew what this meant; Davis had been focused a lot recently on what that ex-agent, Jennifer, had told them. That Director Gethen wasn't just the normal, politician type evil. He was the world-destroying kind. Davis had been working for a monster. Killing for a monster. When he'd been able to tell himself that it was all for the greater good, he'd been able to handle the guilt of the lives he'd taken in self defense or otherwise. But now he knew that everything he had done was just in service of a greater evil. Of a man who would partner with Digimon like Reapmon. Someone who would sacrifice the world to get what he wanted. So Davis shut off and the weight of all those lives slammed into him at once. And Huckmon didn't know what to do to fix it.
Huckmon jumped onto the ground and carefully moved towards the edge of the bed, moving as silently as possible. "... D-Davis?" he asked when he reached the edge. Huckmon hopped up on his hind legs and placed his front claws on the bed before resting his chin on the bed. "Davis, are you – Are you awake, Davis?"
There was no response from his partner, not even a shuffling beneath the comforter or a noise to show he was listening. Huckmon glanced down, chin trembling. He hopped on top of the bed, landing softly and nudging his partner softly. "Davis, come on... Please. For me?"
No response. Huckmon shut his eyes and curled up beside Davis, curling his tail up and being incredibly careful to avoid ripping any of the bedding. The silence echoed around them, turning into a quiet whine that moved up and down in intensity, almost vanishing at times or becoming all consuming at others. But either way, it just began to blend into the thoughts filling the Digimon's head. See. He even thinks it would be better if he'd never met me, the growing sadness in his mind suggested.
No! No, he doesn't, Huckmon protested half heartedly. He... he's my best friend. We make each other better...
I made him a killer.
… Th-that wasn't me... It was the G-Man!
Because of me.
Huckmon shut his eyes tighter and held in a shuddering breath. Maybe he'd be better off if I just left.
But I... don't want to! I don't... I won't...
I'm only hurting him. At best I'll only get him killed.
No...
At worst, I bet I'll make him a monster...
Huckmon huffed and pushed up, leaping across the room and rolling beneath the desk. He wouldn't believe it. It was stupid. Davis was his friend! Davis was his Partner! Davis was...
Davis was broken, all because of him. Huckmon sidled up closer to the wall and covered his eyes, hiding the tears welling up. "I... I'm sorry," he whispered to Davis. Whimpering, Huckmon finally cried as quietly as he could manage. "I'm a bad Digimon..."
X X X
Next morning, I leaned back on my bed in the, honestly, huge place that Suze, Henry, and the rest of the family had worked together to rent. It was nice, with flannel sheets and the same kitschy vibe all these mountain houses had. Lots of leather seating, uneven carved wood for the furniture. They're trying so hard to look like an old mountain cabin they buy things that look unfinished on purpose. It's like buying jeans with holes in them: more expensive because it looks less expensive. Still, it's one of those things you can't help but liking when surrounded by it. And with everyone else around, it almost feels like a home on a sitcom. BlackGigimon was even snoring on the bed like an actual dog from a show like that.
I frowned and pulled out my 3D, staring at its dark screen. A family. Yeah, Henry's family was my family. But what if my other family could be here? I shut my eyes and let my hand fall to my side, then I let my imagination run wild. I could see it. Dad couldn't stand up on a snowboard, and tumbled head over heels down the entire way. A Guilmon chased him, shouting about something before tumbling himself. The two crashed into a rack of boards and skis with a loud clang. Mom, she made it down on her skis, making the movements effortless as she slid to a stop beside him. And then I saw Renamon skiing, too, and I knew my imagination had gone overboard.
Other than that, though... it almost sounded right. I wish I could have seen that. I opened my eyes and turned to the Digivice. "I wish you were here."
The screen stayed dark. Then suddenly, it glowed. Red Digicode scrolled across the screen, filling it up. "What the -" And then it ended. I sat up quickly and pressed a button, trying to recreate whatever had just happened. "Come on... come on!" I went through everything I could, but... there wasn't even evidence that it had happened. My fist tightened around the Digivice. Had it? Or was I imagining things? The 3D had never done that before, but... I looked down at BlackGigimon, still snoring away. It was connected to him, so shouldn't it have woken him up? Done... something?
There was a knock at my door. "Hey, Taj, let's head out. I'm getting bored!"
May! If something was really up with my Digivice, maybe it had happened to hers, too! "I'm on my way!" I jumped off the bed, sending BlackGigimon tumbling to the ground with a yelp of surprise.
Later, we were walking down a path in the trees with our freshly Digivolved partners, knowing that even a bear or mountain lion wouldn't be able to mess with us when those two were involved. "Something weird with my Digivice? No, it's been acting normal all day," she told me as we walked along, hands stuffed in our pockets.
Dorumon jumped out of the treeline in front of us, her fur caked with powdery snow. "Yeah, it's just been a normal, boring phone all morning, Dummy," she explained. She shook her entire body, sending snow and purple fur flying everywhere. "Are you sure you really saw anything?"
I glared at the fuzzbrain. "I... Well, no. Not really," I admitted. I shook my head. "Even BlackGigimon was asleep. But I..." I pulled my Digivice out. "Maybe I was just wishing it happened."
Beep!
May's Digivice was in her hand a moment later, and the compasses on both of ours were swirling. "Digmon? Really?" she asked when the information appeared.
"And Flamedramon," I noted. We looked at one another and groaned. This was happening? "Ready?"
"You got it," she agreed.
I pulled out a Digimon card and raised it and my Digivice above my head; May raised her own in front of her, screen facing out. "Digi-Modify! Digivolution, Activate!"
"Dorumon Digivolve to..."
"BlackGuilmon Digivolve to..."
Twin eggs erupted around them, stripping them down and changing their data and expanding. Trees shattered from the growth, and even more when the eggs exploded.
"Dorugamon!" she roared, tail shattering a tree as she stretched out.
"BlackGrowlmon!" he snarled, arm blades carving through a tree trunk.
The two Digimon glanced at each other, flashing huge, sharp toothed grins. Then they followed their noses, charging off in opposite directions. I chased after BlackGrowlmon and watched a Digital field appear around us. I brought my goggles down and glanced around. "Great, another test," I grumbled angrily at the air. A forced Bioemergence of a Flamedramon while we were on vacation. I was starting to get real annoyed with Director Gethen. Who puts someone in a life and death situation on vacation!?
Dammit, no use complaining about that. Better to just take the enemy out and get back to vacation. And, let's be honest here: it'd be fun. Flamedramon shot out from the Digital Field, blue body and his oh-so-90s flame pattern armor standing out against the white powder on the ground. "Now, I'd try to be nice, but the last Veemon I was nice to tried to kill me, so let's just skip that," I growled. "BlackGrowlmon, get him!"
Flamedramon gasped and leaped back, avoiding the massive claw that had crashed into the ground. "Wait, I don't want to fight!" Flamedramon shouted as he landed softly in a tree branch. "You are not the one responsible for my capture. Let me seek out this... Gethen and deal with him."
I glanced up at BlackGrowlmon, and he down at me. BlackGrowlmon stayed silent, waiting on me to say or do something. I sighed and turned to Flamedramon. "I still need Gethen," I admitted. I watched Flamedramon narrow his eyes at me. "BlackGrowlmon... Load him."
Flamedramon snarled and leaped into action first, fire erupting from the long, sword like horn on his head before spreading all over him. "Fire Rocket!" And the best part? He was heading right for me. At least until a massive black wall got in the way. BlackGrowlmon roared in pain and stumbled towards me. I barely had enough time to dive tot he side, tumbling through the snow for a moment before collecting myself.
BlackGrowlmon was struggling a little. It was obvious that most of Flamedramon's attacks weren't doing much to BlackGrowlmon, but BlackGrowlmon wasn't able to connect at all. Speed versus power, I guess. I pushed myself up, fingers growing cold from the snow melting into my knit gloves, and grabbed another card. "Digi-Modify! Hyper-Sonic, activate!"
BlackGrowlmon blurred and shot past Flamedramon's next attack, arm blades slicing trees in his path before he turned and slid to a stop using the claws on his feet. He bolted back at the surprised Flamedramon, delivering a shoulder check that sent Flamedramon soaring into a tree trunk. "Digi-Modify! MetalGarurumon, Activate!" I snapped while dragging another card through my Digivice.
BlackGrowlmon's claws curled into the ground again and opened his jaws. Red lines began to form in front of him, curling into the shape of a missile that promptly flew towards the stunned Flamedramon. Flamedramon snarled and leaped over the attack, only for the attack's icy explosive radius to slam into his back. Flamedramon howled in pain and tumbled to the ground, the ice slowly growing across his back and into the snow to freeze him in place.
BlackGrowlmon stomped over towards our downed enemy. "For the record," he rumbled at Flamedramon, "I enjoy this more because you tried to attack Taj first." And then BlackGrowlmon took a step forward and an explosion of yellow data began to rise around us, turning red and black before flowing into BlackGrowlmon.
I smiled at that and walked over. "Let's go find May and Dorugamon, okay? See if we beat that Digimon up way faster than they could?" I supplied.
BlackGrowlmon flashed a grin with his massive incisors. "Of course we did!"
X X X
"I really wish you would stop that," BlackGigimon growled at Suzie, who was busy pinching his cheeks and ears. "This does not make me like you, Suze."
"But you're so adorable!" she whispered back, continuing with what she was doing.
Henry and Lopmon sighed, exasperated, and glanced at one another. "Both of you, could we please focus?" Henry grumbled quietly. He walked over and pulled BlackGigimon from Suzie's hands, then placed him softly on the nearest bar stool. BlackGigimon seemed relieved and plopped down onto his haunches. "Now, first of all, I would like an apology, Suzie. You lied to me about Tasuke."
"What – no I didn't," she denied. "I very clearly did not lie. Bent the truth? Maybe. Misdirected? Definitely. But everything that I told you about Taj and May... was technically true. Very technically. I made sure."
Henry's eye twitched as he passed through all of their conversations. She was right. She hadn't lied at all. Which is why he had figured out she was lying when she left! Wait, no, not lied. Just misled to the point of lying. "Apologize..." Henry commanded quietly.
Suzie chuckled nervously. "I, uh... okay," she finally agreed. Head hanging, she muttered, "I'm sorry, Henry." Her gaze came up. "Even though you obviously haven't stopped them from working with their Digimon, which means you agree with what I was said, and that really I didn't do anything wrong since you ended up listening to my advice anyways."
Henry held her gaze for a few moments. Lopmon came over and tugged on his shirt. "I think that is the best you are going to get," she supplied.
Henry knew she was right. "Ugh... Moving on," he groaned. He moved over to BlackGigimon. "So, is there anything new that's happened that I should know?"
BlackGigimon shrugged. "We were attacked by a Flamedramon and a Digmon earlier. I defeated Flamedramon then head to help the fuzzball finish off Digmon," he told them. "I mean, could she have gone slower?"
Henry didn't know how true the extra details were, but that was fine. "So, I'm guessing this means Gethen is sending more Digimon out." He pulled off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "It does seem that the quickest way to Digivolving is getting in fights, at least if our childhood is anything to go by."
"What, so he's just going to keep sending bigger and bigger threats after the kids until they can open a door to the Digital World?" Suzie wondered.
"You knew about that too!?" Henry hissed, causing her to flinch. "You do know that I've been trying to work on that for years now and you knew weeks before I even had a clue?"
"Well you know now," she supplied sheepishly.
"I have been thinking on everything we learned from the children, and I would not be surprised," Lopmon cut in before Henry could say anything else, "if this Gethen man has been purposefully telling others about their existence. If he wishes for them to Digivolve, what faster method than placing them in direct conflict with Tamers and their Digimon?"
"You think he's been telling people about us?" BlackGigimon wondered. He shrugged. "Wouldn't put it past him. He's..." He trailed off, remembering the feeling of the man's boot on his snout. BlackGigimon shook his head and forced a scowl. "A hunter."
"And if he wants them to Digivolve to Ultimate or beyond..."
Henry shook his head at his sister's suggestion. "No. I've known Gethen for over a decade now. Unless there's something huge that we're missing, he wouldn't leak information to HYPNOS." Henry shut his eyes and his mind traveled back to his childhood. To Kazu and Kenta, to Guardromon and MarineAngemon. To Jeri. To Ai and Mako and Impmon. To Takato and Rika, to Guilmon and Renamon. Hell, even Yamaki.
"... I miss everyone," Henry finally admitted. "I wish it was still us doing this; I don't want them in danger."
"Yeah, nothing like fighting Devas and demons made out of Jeri's depression," Suzie remarked dryly.
"Seriously, what was this like for all of you?" BlackGigimon asked, awestruck by the barest mention of what they did.
"Honestly what you have been doing does seem safer," Lopmon admitted. She tapped the side of her head, thinking hard. "Thankfully you children have not had to deal with ancient threats older than Digimon themselves."
BlackGigimon scoffed. "We're not children!"
Henry raised his eyebrow. "You're only three months old."
"I – I'm not – So!?" he grumbled.
"I myself am four years older than Henry," Lopmon pointed out.
Suzie opened her mouth, then shut it. "You're that old?"
"I was a Deva. We were older than many Digimon by that point." Lopmon crossed her arms and nodded slowly. "Yes, to Digivolve to that level of power with little application of Loading data required a great amount of time."
"I feel like I've learned something I never wanted to know," Henry mumbled. He shook his head. "But I feel like we've been sidetracked. For now, the important question is are you all safe?"
"With me watching out for Taj, he's super safe!" BlackGigimon exclaimed with a grin. "And, the fuzzball might be annoying and rude, but she would never let anything happen to May. And Huckmon can already reach Ultimate. He's... a good Digimon."
X X X
Rika was having the same dream she'd had on and off for over ten years. It began with her hugging her husband and son, the smell of bread, pencil lead, and the Tasuke's favorite no-tears shampoo filling her nose. Nearby Renamon was keeping Guilmon busy in the rock garden, but even they eventually charged in and sandwiched the family, Guilmon laughing like his Gogglehead partner and Renamon even letting out a few contented chuckles. And the little boy was laughing the loudest.
And then he was dragged away from them, a wall of electric fog rising between them. Her baby on the one side, they on the other. She used to scream in her sleep for him, thrashing about to get to him. But the Digital Firewall wouldn't let her get back.
And then came the loud alarm klaxons.
Wait, no, that wasn't part of the dream. Rika's eyes flew open and her head shot up off of Takato's, which was snoring loudly on her shoulder. "What the –" She looked around wildly, still exhausted, before realizing what was happening. She shoved Takato off her shoulder and grabbed their Digivices from between them. They were screaming at them, but somehow Takato was still asleep. "Gogglehead, get up!" She smacked the back of his head.
"Gah! I'm up! I'm up!" he shouted. "What!?"
She shoved his D-Power into his hands and his droopy eyes shot completely open. "What –?"
Red Digicode was streaming down the holographic screens, giving the pair information neither could understand. "Renamon!"
"Yes?" Renamon asked, appearing in front of them. Rika turned her Digivice to Renamon and her vulpine eyes widened. "... Interesting."
"What's it say?" Takato asked while he and his wife crowded around his Digivice.
"It seems to be executing a program of some kind. Unfortunately, I'm not sure what it is for. Perhaps Henry has done something?" Renamon suggested. She leaned in closer and narrowed her eyes, focusing hard. "Hm, the terms '3D Alpha' and 'Partial Gate' keep showing up."
"3D Alpha?" Takato mumbled. "Welp, don't know what that means."
"You could think for longer than five seconds, Gogglehead," Rika growled, earning a sheepish laugh. She smiled and shoved him away by his head. "Gogglehead."
"That's me," he remarked back. The Digicode continued to stream uninterrupted. "But maybe Partial Gate means our Digivices will open a gate!" The group waited silently, but no. Nothing.
Rika sighed in defeat and turned to Renamon. "How are the Three Toddlers?"
"Still sleeping, though I doubt they will for long. Terriermon does not like to waste time he could be speaking," Renamon noted dryly. She reached out in request and Rika handed her the Digivice to study the Digicode closer. "Hm... What's going on?"
"And... how are..." Takato's eyes widened. "Rika..."
"Hm?" She wondered, turning and freezing.
There, replacing the Digicode, was a grainy video image. Static blurred across the image, but it was clear enough for the both of them to easily see what was there.
A boy – no, a young man. He was staring out at them, hunched over the video's source. His eyes moved around quickly and his mouth moved almost imperceptibly as he mumbled questions to himself. His crimson eyes were wide and confused, occasionally hidden by long strands of orange hair tucked beneath violet and black goggles.
"He's got my goggles!" Takato shouted indignantly.
"He's Tasuke!" Rika shouted at the same time.
Takato immediately shouted, "He's Tasuke! That's what I said, too!"
Renamon glared dryly at him. "Of course it is."
Rika's eyes teared up. "Takato, that's our son!"
His arm looped around her and pulled her closer. "But... how did he get my goggles?"
"Enough about the goggles," Renamon suggested dryly.
X X X
"... and after the target was taken out, we were able to reach the extraction with little issue."
Director Gethen looked up at the screen, where one of the many Tamers under his employ was wrapping up a report Gethen was only half hearing. "Good. The removal of a second Digidestined in China will stabilize the region." Especially since HYPNOS is too busy dealing with things here to be of any use policing their region. Deploying a Digimon against protesters? The move of a cut rate dictator. "Then enjoy your flight back. Your next assignment will be ready in a few days. Enjoy any in flight food for your partner... oatmeal raisin cookies, yes?"
"Thank you, Sir," the agent nodded.
Gethen opened his mouth to respond, but shut it when a familiar beeping began in his desk. Reapmon? Now? Gethen gave the agent a nod of dismissal and the screen shut off. The next moment he had the communicator in his hand. "What?!" he snapped as the silhouette appeared. "Why would you contact me? I contact you."
"Apologies," Reapmon rasped. "But there is a serious complication."
Gethen raised an eyebrow and sighed. "As usual, only I can get things done," he muttered to himself. "Fine, what?"
"There has been a Bio-Emergence. It escaped into the exit we were preparing, directly into the Human World. We attempted to stop it, but the Digimon was able to get past us."
Gethen froze. "All three of you?" He shut his eyes and tossed his mind through a list. "What Digimon was it?"
"..."
"Well?" he snapped, eyes flashing open. "What!?"
Reapmon crossed his arms. "Krampusmon."
Gethen's blood ran cold. "... Repeat that."
"Krampusmon. He attacked and broke through, rambling like a mad-mon. And during this time, there was a... flicker. The Firewall let a single Digimon through and he escaped somewhere into the human world."
Gethen swallowed a pit of worry in his throat. How would he deal with this? Krampusmon was a very dangerous Digimon, driven by a singular mad, psychotic urge. Gethen grimaced. And this close to Christmas, there had to be a reason for his Bio-Emerging. Had he been watching Reapmon to find a way to the human world?
And now what would Gethen himself do? He had been sending Digimon after the Digidestined for months now, increasingly more dangerous in order to accelerate their growth. The idea a Digimon could Bio-Emerge in his country without his consent had long term ramifications he was not happy with. It was a political mess waiting to happen. He could always pretend that it was on purpose, another test. That would avoid the political fallout. On the other hand, Krampusmon was a different breed from his tests. Cruel and psychotic, driven only by a desire to hurt Digimon it deemed unworthy. Specifically unworthy of one thing.
Partnering with a human child.
Gethen turned his gaze back to focus on Reapmon. "Continue preparations. I will warn the Digidestined about what is coming for them," he said quietly. Thankfully, Krampusmon was on a timetable. Tied to the legend that he had Digivolved to embody, Krampusmon would turn to Data and return to the Digital World once Christmas Eve was over. "And hopefully I will be able to muster enough forces to keep them safe until Christmas passes and Krampusmon vanishes."
X X X
It was quiet in the mall when the full moon finally reached its apex. Everyone was home, the building shut down and silent for the few short hours until the day began again, children streaming to meet Santa Clause, families rushing to buy last minute gifts, and a food court packed full of people desperately searching for a break from the hectic activity. Perhaps it was for the best that no one was there to hear the massive, horrible screeching of a hole tearing open in reality. It was like a television had been turned on inside the mall's roof, the screen facing the sky and filled with a screaming static. Slowly a dark shape began to appear at the center, growing larger as the figure came closer and closer. A single, twisted claw reached out to the screen –
And tore through. A gnarled hand leading to a ragged, red jacket grew like a spire towards the sky before bending at an unnatural angle and placing its palm against the roof. Another claw and arm exploded out, this one with black fur trim at the wrist, and pushed against the roof as well. Soon, twin, massive horns began to tear from the screen. Long, curving, red horns tipped with spiny black spheres. A goat like face came next, and when its mouth cleared the screen the creature began to... laugh, needle teeth glinting in the moonlight. It began low, coming slowly. But as it grew louder so too did it grow faster and faster. Soon, the laughter became cackling like an evil goat's bleating at the sky. The red and black coat covering the wizened but surprisingly muscled and furred chest of the monster pushed out of the screen, dragging with it a huge bag harnessed to the monster's back. A pair of cloven hooved legs came out and clopped against the roof.
"Hahaha! Yes, yes Hohoho!" the monster cackled, turning its red, goatlike eyes towards the sky. "Finally in the human world, Hohoho! Finally free to punish those naughty little Digimon and children. To show them what happens, yes, Hohoho!"
The goat monster' head jerked around. "Where are the naughty children and Digimon? Everywhere. So many naughty children. Badbadbad, Hohoho!" The monster let out another cackle and walked past the closing portal. "Naughty, evil, little ones... They need to be punished, yes, or no one will learn! No one will learn Nonono!"
Krampusmon raised a claw and pinched his whispy goat beard. "Never learn, the children never –! Ahem... never learn. Nonono. So I'll kill their naughty Digimon first. Those naughty, bad Digimon, Hohoho." Krampusmon reached the door leading down from the roof and tore it from its hinges. "Yes, first I'll delete those bad, bad Digimon. BlackGuilmon and Huckmon, so bad, so evil. They need to be deleted, not even Loaded. Bad data, bad data, bad. Corrupt data, Hohoho."
The goat grin widened to let his tonsils touch the air. "And then the humans they corrupted, yes. I'll kill those bad humans so Reapmon's silly plan can't work. Kill both those naughty humans, Tasuke and Davis, kill kill kill..." The Digimon laughed and snapped his fingers, and the data began to fold around him. Soon, the wizened, horrifying goat man was replaced with the image of a fat human with a huge beard, dressed all in red with white fur trim. "Hohoho, all those evil Digimon and children will get what they deserve!"
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Aw, man, Chumley Jr. has worse luck than Chumley ever did! A creepy, evil Santa Clause Digimon? I mean what kind of horror is that? Of course, if he had his good ol' Uncle Kazu around, there'd be no problems. Me and Guardromon would give that creepy Krampusmon a serious butt kicking, and take him down easy. After all, the number one Tamer ever couldn't be beat by something dumb like that, huh? Okay, fine, maybe not number one. But definitely... three, after Chumley and Ryo. Uh, don't tell Rika I said that. She's... jealous? Yeah. Jealous of how awesome I am!
Wait, what was I talking about? Eh, doesn't matter. I'll find out on the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!