Chapter 9: The Forest and the Trees
Matt tried to summarize their current situation the best he could, but found more than a couple details falling through the cracks. Part of the problem was Izzy, who had been and still was a bit too distracted by their new environment to help with that. Not that Matt was blameless, as more than once his attention was grabbed by some screen or flashing light, which stopped him mid-thought each time.
Izzy's distraction wasn't for nothing, however, as he was able pull a decent bit of info from the surrounding stimuli, and not just their location. Izzy had been the first to spot the day's date, confirming they had moved about sixteen years into the future, though he was also quick to remind everyone that it wasn't necessarily their future.
They had also gotten more formal introductions to their current guides, though Ruli revealing her surname to be Tsukiyono was immediately followed by her telling them all to avoid any formalities going forward. Kiyoshiro Higashimitarai, on the other hand, emphasized his full name, though Matt wondered if that was more to head off anyone else calling him "Higashi" or "Darling."
Their respective partners, Angoramon and Jellymon, followed along, the latter seeming to have retracted her body into her headpiece as she floated slightly above the rest of them. Both were only visible as holographic outlines at present, though the rest of world around them seemed like they couldn't even see that. Izzy had briefly rejoined the conversation to speculate that it might have been a side effect of the patch that Ruli and Kiyoshiro's digivices had uploaded to their own. Not that the digimon being visible or not seemed to draw any extra eyes, with the most attention they got being a child stopping to gawk at Tentomon and ask Izzy where he could "get one."
Eventually, the number of distractions fell, especially after they moved into a more residential area. They stopped at one house in particular, which Matt might have referred to as "modern" if he wanted to pretend he knew anything about architecture. Ruli leading the way to the front door settled any questions as to whose home this was.
"Here we are!" she announced as she unlocked the door and swung it open. "My parents are hardly ever home, so we work out of here when we have to."
"Work?" Cody questioned, inspecting his surroundings as they all stepped inside.
"We'll only ever be working out of here if we don't pull in some kind of revenue," Kiyoshiro cut in, pointing an accusatory finger in Ruli's direction. Matt noted skintight bandages wrapped around his right hand and continuing into his sleeve, though said hand articulated enough to make it seem like it wasn't an injury.
"For the last time," Ruli replied after rolling her eyes. "We're not charging to help people."
"I'm not talking about profiting," Kiyoshiro countered, repeatedly jabbing his finger into the palm of his opposite hand. "We need to consider long-term resources and viability."
Ruli sighed. "Don't you have your own job for stuff like that?"
"My apologies…" Cody said diplomatically. "I was more curious about what kind of work you do."
"We investigate Hologram Ghosts," Jellymon said with waving tentacles and what was likely her version of a "spooky" voice.
"Ghosts?" Izzy asked, pulling himself away from his inspection of the living room around them. While more than polite enough not to touch anything, he couldn't keep himself from looking.
"Urban legends and the like," Ruli quickly elaborated.
"Nearly all of which turn out to be lost digimon," Angoramon continued as he sat down on a nearby couch.
Ruli nodded. "They live all over Tokyo. Plenty of people interact with them every day without even realizing."
"But not all those interactions are peaceful," Matt concluded, knowing how their experiences back home could go.
"That's where Lirurun Investigations comes in!" Ruli explained, like a sales pitch she had memorized. "It's a long story, but we've taken up the job of making sure humans and digimon can live together peacefully."
Matt let himself grin briefly, Ruli's goal reminding him of Tai. While maybe or maybe not the exact words Tai would have used, it was more or less what he had recently devoted himself to. The feeling went away quickly, however, as Matt was also reminded that they had no idea where Tai currently was.
"So what kind of case are you working on?" Gatomon asked, peeling herself off of the window still she was perched on.
"Missing children, unfortunately," Ruli answered, her expression sinking. "Seven have gone missing in the last few days, that we now know were all abducted by the same group of digimon."
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Kari asked without a second's pause, worried eyes very briefly glancing to Akira. The boy had taken Salamon to sit on the couch next to Angoramon.
Matt gave no answer, though he worried about wasting too much time when they could be getting back to their friends. He raised an eyebrow in Izzy's direction, hoping for a second opinion.
"Well, I wouldn't recommend blindly opening another tear while Salamon is still recovering," Izzy said, no conflict on his face or in his voice. "I think it only right that we assist while planning our next move."
Armadillomon stepped forward. "It's not like we have an inklin' as to how we'd tussle with that Dragomon fella."
"Dr-Dragmon?" Angoramon's attention snapped between them.
"Did it suddenly get colder in here?" Kiyoshiro shivered. The room around them had gone still if nothing else.
"You fought him?" Cody asked, reading the room slightly quicker than the rest of them.
"Or at least a version of him," Matt clarified, or at least thought he was clarifying. There was only so much coincidence he was willing to let himself accept.
"Maybe…" Izzy added, seeming slightly less confident than he had a second ago.
"How did you win? Gatomon asked, focus sharp as ever.
"We didn't," Angoramon answered solemnly.
"BlackGatomon saved us," Ruli answered, eyeline lowering as she picked at one of her fingernails. "Opened some kind of gate that pulled Dragomon in, and that was the last we heard of it."
"Alright," Kari replied, her voice maintaining its empathy. "Where do we find BlackGatomon?"
Jellymon shrugged. "He usually finds us."
"Professor Amanokawa might know how," Kiyoshiro offered.
"Sounds like we have plan," a weak voice croaked from the couch.
"Salamon!" Akira called down to his partner.
"We split up." Salamon wobbled as they tried to stand on their partner's lap. "Some of us try to find your friend while the rest look for these missing kids."
Matt found himself nodding, not really having any objections to the plan. There was currently fourteen of them counting humans and digimon, and there was no reason to not take advantage of that before Dragomon's goon squad traced them. The only question was who would go where, but he was sure they could sort that quick enough.
Despite not being all that familiar with the area, Sora didn't feel there was any particular difficulty finding Shinjuku's Central Park. Once there, it was simple enough to get their bearings, which only took as long as it did for Biyomon and Veemon to track two other digimon who weren't actively hiding from them. Eventually, they found their way to an out of the way utility shed, where Takato Matsuki and Rika Nonaka waited for them.
"I'm not even picking up any regular wild digimon," Takato said after greetings sorted themselves out, presenting the group with a holographic radar that emitted from his digivice.
Sora couldn't quite figure out how to read said radar, so she didn't object when Takato stuffed the device back into one of his pockets. Out of habit, Sora noted his blue shorts and white t-shirt, which said to her that, like Henry, Takato hadn't been expecting much in the way of excitement that day. It did create a funny contrast with Rika, who looked like she was wearing the same t-shirt and jeans combo from the one time Sora had met her in person, though Sora was willing to bet Rika's casual wear didn't vary so much. With that said, in keeping with one of the multiverse's recurring oddities, Takato did wear his pair of yellow-rimmed goggles on his forehead.
"That's assuming our enemies haven't found a way of concealing themselves from us," Renamon, Rika's partner, pointed out. The yellow fox digimon stood a couple paces away while the humans had been looking over Takato's shoulder, likely not needing the info as much as they did.
"I don't smell anything funny either," Takato's partner, Guilmon, added without looking in their direction.
The red saurian digimon sat in the shed's doorway, sharing a brown paper bag with Veemon. Sora's eyes looked past them to the shed, very briefly distracted by the contradiction it presented. On the outside, it seemed in good condition, almost like it had recently seen maintenance. Inside, on the other hand, it was full of holes and claw marks that Sora could only think to describe as Guilmon-sized.
"Not sure how much hiding Argomon would be able to do, even if we can't smell him," Veemon said as reached into Guilmon's bag and pulled out a glazed bun.
"What did he smell like?" Guilmon asked with a tilted head.
Veemon's shoulders sank. "Like he wanted to punch me."
Guilmon sighed. "Yeah, I hate that smell."
"I still think Imperialdramon could've taken him," Davis whined, hands in his pockets as he kicked the dirt in front of him.
Rika snorted. "Overconfident much?"
"I mean…" Takato paused and shrugged. "Argomon did make it a point to take ExVeemon out of the fight."
Rika raised an eyebrow in his direction, with Takato's nervous grin widening in response. The pause lasted until Rika rolled her eyes and looked away, followed by a subtle but noticeable sigh of relief from Takato. Just as subtle, notably, was the smirk on Rika's face.
"So basically, we're dealing with bruisers and thinkers," Rika summarized.
"In a sense," Renamon replied, before turning in Sora's direction. "Given your story, it stands to reason that your foes have encountered your group before, if not multiple times."
"So how do we fight bad guys who have beaten us already?" Biyomon asked, raising a wing to her chin.
"You have us this go around," Takato announced with humble reassurance. "So it should be easier to figure out now."
Rika crossed her arms. "Now who's overconfident?"
"Nah, it's just regular confidence," Davis said as he slung an arm around Takato's shoulder. "Once we've got everyone back together, those creeps are history."
Sora couldn't resist smiling, mostly at Davis' unmatched ability to make friends. She wasn't a bit surprised how he had latched onto Takato, having a peer he could relate to in way he couldn't with Tai. Takato and Rika were about a year older than Davis if she remembered correctly, but the gap was small enough that it dodged the hero worship that Davis still hadn't outgrown with Tai.
"So what's your plan?" Rika asked neither boy in particular.
"That's…" Takato hesitated. "...still a work in progress."
"Does that plan involve more pastries?" Guilmon called over to them. All eyes turned to find him holding his bag upside-down and nothing coming out.
"Oh man…" Davis let go of Takato and walked to the shed. "I didn't even get any!"
"I knew I should have grabbed more," Takato said under his breath.
"Still," Davis said as he planted the palm of his hand on his partner's head. "Not even one, Veemon?"
"Couldn't help it," Veemon replied with a shrug. "I'm still feeling lightheaded from the fight."
"How long are you gonna keep playing that card?"
"Depends how long it keeps working."
"I can go make a run to the bakery to get more," Takato offered.
"Cool, we'll go with you!" Davis declared, pulling Veemon down the path in front of the shed.
"Does he even know where he's going?" Biyomon asked as she watched them leave.
Rika shook her head. "Definitely not."
"I'm sure everything'll be fine," Takato said, sounding like he mostly believed it.
"Yuh-huh," Rika responded, tone of her voice lightening. "Just so you know, I'm not the kind of girl who's gonna like all of your friends."
"I'm sure Takato is more aware than most," Renamon chimed in, matching her partner's tone.
Takato gave one last wave before leading Guilmon off in the direction Davis had already disappeared in. The park around them seemed to become quieter with that, during which Rika moved to stand directly at Sora's side, though didn't look at her.
"You've been quiet," Rika pointed out after a few more seconds.
Sora nodded, knowing she was right. "I guess it's everything we're juggling today."
Rika finally turned to face her. "Including a kid you haven't had yet being dropped on your lap."
"Two, actually," Sora replied, throwing up a pair of fingers to match.
"You think this is the universe's way of poking fun at you for always trying to be everyone's mom."
"The thought's crossed my mind."
They fell silent again, Rika's gaze drifting with it. Looking closer, though, she seemed like she was holding onto a thought, one she was figuring out how to express. After a couple seconds, she took a deep breath.
"I don't think we understood what this whole alternate realities thing meant when we first met."
Sora looked off into the distance, knowing Rika was right. Their worlds had been different enough that the gravity of what they had stumbled on didn't sink in. Sora supposed that it was possible that she had an alternate counterpart somewhere in this version of Tokyo, but she clearly didn't become a Digidestined or Tamer. Interacting with the Tamers never came with the expectation that they would have to confront what could have been and what still could be.
Of course, Rika and her friends hadn't been quite so lucky. Sora hadn't gotten all of the details through their limited communication, but she knew they had had a couple incidents within the last year, both of which had sounded personal.
"You have any advice?" Sora asked, feeling it worth the shot to ask even if the nature of their encounters were different.
"I…" Rika hesitated, clearly giving the question some thought. "...really don't."
"Fair enough," Sora replied, feeling her shoulders sink just a bit. "I don't think anyone can be an expert on this stuff."
Rika shook her head. "The more stuff like this happens, the more I'm convinced that our worlds aren't supposed to intersect like this."
"How so?"
Rika sighed, eyes dropping downward. "The last couple times this happened, I feel like we left things worse than we found them."
"Those worlds had their problems before we ever interacted with them, Rika," Renamon said, nothing but conviction in her voice. "And perhaps I'm being naive, but I wouldn't rule out the possibility that we inspired some good."
"It'll be the same for Mari and Rei," Biyomon added, flying up so she could meet Sora at eye-level. "We just have to be patient."
"In the meanwhile…" Rika cut back in, somberness falling off her. "We have some evil digimon to walk all over."
Sora smiled and nodded. "And until then, we have whatever Takato and Davis bring back to tide us over."
"Please…" Rika rolled her eyes. "You know that bag's not making it back here."
Sora laughed, having been given enough of a reminder as to why she wasn't ready to write off "this whole alternate realities thing" just yet.
Tai tapped his foot impatiently, only keeping himself from complaining because he knew that Agumon getting his bearings was key to them tracking Rei down. Within the few seconds that felt like ten minutes, Agumon's nostrils stopped flaring as he focused on a cluster of trees to his right.
"You got something?" Tai asked, not seeing anything in that direction himself.
"I think so," Agumon answered, squinting for a second. "There's definitely a Koromon in that direction."
"Then let's hurry." Tai jogged forward, his partner quickly falling in step behind him.
"Don't worry, Tai. I'm sure Rei hasn't gotten far." Agumon paused, in what was no doubt a moment of genuine contemplation. "Unless you think she can fly."
Tai sighed. "She's Sora's daughter, not Biyomon's, so I'm guessing not."
"If you say so," Agumon replied, not knowing and, thankfully, not caring much about how human reproduction worked.
They continued on, again for what probably felt like longer than it actually was. At some point, Tai stopped short, tripping over a tree root and just managing to keep himself on his feet. Looking to his left, at another tree just a couple meters away, he let himself feel a sense of relief.
Rei sat with her back against the tree trunk, holding Koromon on her lap. Her expression was still muted, but she didn't look like she had picked up any new scratches or bruises.
"Jeez, kid," Tai said as he caught his breath. "You run off on your dad like this back home?"
Rei turned in his direction, but said nothing. Instead, her face contorted, eyes hitting a halfway point between a glare and genuine disappointment. Tai recognized this look, a signature of Sora's to tell him that a joke wasn't always the answer to make her feel better.
"Right, my bad." Tai scratched the back of his head as he walked over and leaned a shoulder against the tree. "Still, you shouldn't have left like that."
Rei shrugged. "Yeah, well, you guys weren't doing anything but talking."
"We do do that a bit." Tai paused, doing a quick reflection on his and his friends' history. "There's a lot of us and just as many opinions to consider."
"Aren't you the leader?" Rei asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Still gotta listen to everyone," Tai explained, at the same time trying to piece together where this conversation was coming from. "My job's not just telling them what to do. It's also looking after them and making the best decision based on that."
"Right…" Rei looked away, raising a hand off her partner to pull at the goggles around her neck.
Tai also felt like he saw something else in her, or maybe a lack of something else to be more accurate. A quiet sigh and a subtle shake of her head, said either Rei didn't get the answer she wanted to hear or just wasn't interested in answers period. Either way, he felt like it was his job to find out which, if for no reason other than to try and keep her from running away again.
"Have you heard all this before?" Tai asked cautiously, taking his best shot in the dark.
"Not exactly," Rei answered casually, still refusing to face him.
"Look…" Tai sat down next to her, deciding to go for what he saw as the root of the problem. "I know what you're going through."
"I really doubt that." Rei finally turned towards him, bringing back her disappointed glare.
"I mean in the general sense," Tai countered, wishing he had put more though into what to say to the girl while looking for her. "I can tell you're afraid right now."
"Am I?" Rei asked calmly, expression not changing.
"And that's messing with you using your Crest." Tai paused, a part of him worried he was on the wrong track. "You do have a Crest, right?"
"I do."
Tai nodded. "That's okay, though, because the Crest of Courage isn't about never being afraid. It's about being able to confront that fear."
Rei scoffed. "Except you missed one important detail."
"What's that?"
"I didn't get my dad's Crest."
Without hesitating, Rei reached into her t-shirt and pulled out a Crest tag and shoved it forward for Tai to see. While it was a foggier and darker shade of red than he was used to, he'd know the heart-shaped symbol anywhere. He froze, the mistake he had made fully sinking in.
"I got my mom's," Rei continued, an uncomfortable laughter coloring her words. "Which is funny, because the only thing running through my head right now is how much I hate Abbadomon and all of Dragomon's other lackeys, and how much I want to take them apart. So do you have any advice for that?"
"Rei…" Tai began, but couldn't find the words. After all, he didn't feel like he was much help when Sora was trying to figure out her Crest.
"Didn't think so." Rei let go of her Crest to pinch the bridge of her nose. "Crest of Love… Not really any good when I've lost everyone I've ever cared about."
"Everyone, huh?"
Tai might have jumped if Koromon hadn't spoken so softly. Eyeline dragged down at the same time as Rei's, they found the In-Training digimon looking back up at her partner, hurt look in her eyes.
Rei's eyes widened. "Koromon-"
"No, that actually makes a lot of sense." Koromon's whole body seemed to deflate as she looked forward.
"You know that's not what I meant," Rei argued, her voice a mix of worry and anger.
"All I know is what it feels like to be SkullGreymon," Koromon replied, next to no emotion in her voice. "It hurts, by the way, on top of being really scary."
Rei's eyes began to become watery. "We're really doing this now?"
"I'd storm off, but I don't have any legs, on account of the whole being SkullGreymon thing."
Rei said nothing, looking frozen in place. To be fair, the girl had seemed like she was holding back tears since she first appeared, so it was more a question as to whether she was about to break or double down on holding them back.
Tai reached out to her. "Rei-"
"Don't start again!" Rei snapped before jumping to her feet. "I just wanna leave."
Koromon still in hand, she marched off, passing Marcus and his own partner as she left. Marcus watched her for a couple seconds, before turning back to Tai, clearly having something he at least wanted to say.
"Something wrong?" Tai asked, not really in the mood either way.
"Home base is back that way," Marcus replied, pointing a thumb in the direction Rei had left in. "I'll lead us out."
"Yeah, thanks…" Tai stood and walked past him, essentially tracing Rei's footsteps. After all, there didn't seem to be much else he could do for her at the moment.