Chapter 11: First Strike
As much as Rei's parents had tried to teach her that appearances weren't everything and that she shouldn't judge a book by its cover, she wasn't surprised in the slightest when the inside of the "Damon Dojo" was a pretty spot on match for the outside. On top of the damage she had already seen, the hut was also pretty sparse on furniture. Aside from a couple bedrolls, rocks and tree stumps seemed to be stand-ins for tables and chairs.
Of course, Rei knew she hadn't come here to comment on interior decoration. Clearly, she was here for the room's centerpiece, an improvised mannequin of some kind. Built around a wooden post standing about two meters tall with some kind of padding wrapped around it, a pair of lanky pieces of wood were attached to it to stand in for arms. It didn't have a head, though Marcus seemed to have that covered by way of crudely drawn picture. With blonde hair and blue eyes, Rei first thoughts of the likeness would have been Matt if he spent less time on his hair if she hadn't known better.
While the room wasn't exactly isolated, Tai and the rest of the Digidestined remained outside and out of Rei's line of sight. Glancing to Marcus and his Agumon, Rei wasn't sure where to start with questioning their intentions. Not wanting to drag things out either, she decided to start with the most obvious problem and work down from there.
"You know, it's gonna be hard for Koromon to punch this thing without any arms," Rei pointed out, as plainly and dryly as she could.
"That's fine," Marcus replied, his tone even and confident. "She's not gonna be the one punching it."
Rei hesitated, realizing all eyes in the room, including Koromon's, were on her. Looking back and forth, the conclusion seemed so stupid that her brain almost refused to let it sink in.
"You're joking, right?"
"The Boss never jokes about punching stuff!" Agumon piped up, pumping a claw into the air.
"And what's this supposed to accomplish?" Rei asked, slightly raising her voice.
"You don't have a handle on your emotions right now," Marcus answered, facial expression remaining unchanged. "They're punching with you instead of you punching with them."
"Did you even understand what you just said?"
Marcus waved a dismissive hand in front of his face. "That's not important right now."
"I disagree," Rei grunted, her shoulders starting to sink. "Very strongly."
"Of all the fights I've been in, none of my opponents were exactly the same." Marcus counted off on his fingers. "Some fought better angry, some happy, and some when they were feeling no emotions at all."
"And there were even a couple weirdos who fought best when they were hungry," Agumon added.
Marcus pointed a finger in Rei's direction. "The point is you have to figure out what works for you and stick with it. Otherwise, you're gonna lose every fight you get into."
Rei hesitated again, though this time, she focused under her arm at her partner. She was looking for any kind of input, ideally for some confirmation that she wasn't the only sane person left in the world.
"Don't look at me." Koromon gave her current form's best approximation of a shrug. "I'ma just watch from the corner."
True to her word, Koromon hopped from Rei's arm and waddled over to the opposite side of the room. Rei sighed, before taking a step closer to the wooden dummie.
Again, given the obvious nature of how it was thrown together, it wasn't particularly intimidating. The issue was with the questions circling around in Rei's head, and not just whether or not Marcus knew anything about what he was talking about. If he was on right track, she worried about this exercise just showing how far she had fallen. Worse, if she couldn't pick herself back up, if she couldn't help Koromon digivolve ever again, what was the point in her being here?
She had to be able to fight, because not being able to meant she had basically died on the bridge, which meant that her friends and loved ones had died with her. Needing to prove that she and they were still alive in some form or another, she reeled her right fist back.
"Wait!" Marcus called out suddenly.
Rei rolled her eyes. "What now?"
"Are you right handed?" Marcus asked, as though it was the most important question in the world.
"Yeah…"
"Take up a proper fighting stance then," Marcus instructed, holding up both fists, his left just ahead of his right. "Lead with your left fist. It'll be easier to block incoming strikes and then counterattack."
Rei squinted at him. "Is this thing gonna hit me back?"
"No, but actual opponents will." Marcus crossed his arms. "You're gonna be smaller than most of them, so you'll need all the leverage you can get."
Rei arched an eyebrow. "Anything else?"
"No, just something I thought I should teach you." Marcus looked away briefly, like he was thinking about something else entirely. He put his confident demeanor back on just as quickly, taking a couple steps back to lean against the hut's wall.
Rei sighed, but copied his fighting pose. After one last deep breath, she took her first swing.
Sora crept through the brush, or at least the best that she could. Rika had gotten a phone call during their patrol, one that had directed them to this spot. All technical information had been glossed over, meaning Sora didn't learn exactly what was detected until she laid eyes on it.
One of the bulbous Champion-leveled Argomon skittered through an opening in the treeline, looking for them if Sora had to guess. Whether it was down to luck or intervention from Hypnos, the government organization that had called them here, there was no signs of any other human life, nor any signs that this Argomon was aware of their presence just yet.
"Pretty convenient that it appeared right here in the park," Biyomon whispered.
"More a convenience on our opponent's part," Renamon replied in kind, eyes zeroed in on the Argomon. "Dimensional barriers are a bit weaker in this park than they are in the rest of the city."
"Should we make this quick?" Rika asked, though the calm undertone to her voice said she had already decided her vote on the matter.
"Probably…" Sora paused, placing a hand on her chin as she surveyed the area around them. "I'm just worried that it's not alone."
Rika glanced to her other side. "Renamon?"
"I don't sense anything." Renamon stood up straighter. "I can go in first to draw out anything that might be hiding from us."
"Do it," Sora instructed. She felt guilty for making the call so quickly for a brief moment, before realizing it was their best option. Renamon could move quickly and quietly, and in the absolute worst scenario, Biyomon could digivolve and make up for any shortcomings in those areas with power.
Without hesitation, Renamon vanished from sight, only to quickly reappear directly above Argomon. Clearly having taken her directions to heart, she traced a claw across the air in front of her, drawing a thin line of energy.
"DIAMOND STORM!"
Glowing shards rained downward, impacting and embedding themselves into the Argomon. The wild digimon made no sound, but twitched and convulsed as it took damage.
Landing right at the wounded digimon's side, Renamon drew a paw back for a follow-up strike. Unfortunately, Argomon flailed wildly, one of its metal claws connecting with Renamon and sending her flying some distance away.
"Sora?" Biyomon requested, already flapping her wings to get into position.
"You're up," Sora confirmed. There was no sign of any other Argomon, and it was time to step in regardless.
Sora grabbed her DigiVice and Biyomon flew forward, though Argomono raised its claws just as quickly. Electricity sparked to life, spreading in every direction. Biyomon took evasive maneuvers, while Sora was saved from a stray bolt by Rika jumping and tackling her to the ground.
Barely given a chance to exchange a thankful nod, the pair of them scrambled away, barely making to a tree big enough to shield them both from any further strikes. They found their cover, but were now pinned by the continuing streams of electricity.
Sora noted Rika reaching her belt for a handful of cards, but before she could pick one, the surrounding energy seemed to slow. Risking peering out from cover, Sora saw the electricity hadn't stopped, but had been drawn in the opposite direction and was converging on a single point.
Acting as lightning rod was Raidramon, Veemon's black-clad and quadrupedal Armored form. In his element, he didn't so much as flinch as the energy poured into him.
"That trick's not gonna work on us, pal!" Davis taunted from beside his partner.
"Finish it!" Rika ordered, Renamon having already thrown herself back into the fray.
"DIAMOND STORM!"
As the kitsune prepared her signature attack, Biyomon flew back upwards to do the very same.
"SPIRAL TWISTER!"
From her wings, Biyomon produced a coil of green flames, which swept through Renamon attack and dragged the energy shards along with it. The now single attack hit Argomon's center mass, slowing for a brief moment before burrowing through it. The wild digimon burst into flakes of data not more than a few seconds after that.
Takato and Guilmon emerged, the latter moving to where the Argomon once stood to sniff the bits of data as they disappeared. Rika jogged out into the clearing, with Sora taking one last look at the forest behind them before joining her.
"Anything?" Rika questioned, looking from Guilmon to her own partner.
"No movement in the immediate area," Renamon answered as she scanned the vicinity.
"I smell something," Guilmon revealed as he looked off into the distance. "A lot of somethings. Not super close but not super far either."
"I'll call Henry," Takato said urgently, already dialing on his cellphone.
Sora remained quiet, partially just being impressed with how on top of things the Tamers were, but also because the foreboding feeling she got from Guilmon's findings. She wasn't surprised, though had hoped they would have had a bit more of a break before they were tracked down. She settled on being disappointed later, however, deciding it was best to focus on team coordination for the time being.
At the mouth of an alley in a section of Tokyo she didn't frequent in her own reality, Gatomon waited for their guides to wrap up their current round of questioning. She would admit that she was curious about this location, a small community of digimon living in an area with a dense population of humans, but kept that curiosity as just that. Ruli seemed to know these digimon, which made it their best bet to let her take the lead here.
"What kind of digimon are we looking for again?" Akira asked, his own curiosity coloring his question more than impatience.
"Bakemon," Gatomon answered, recalling Angoramon quickly mentioning it as they left Ruli's house. Said ghost digimon weren't much of a threat on their own, though they tended to work in large groups to compensate.
"Dang…" Armadillomon said with a sigh. "Makes me feel bad for all the Bakemon who don't try to nab people. Fellas like this lot give them a bad name. Right, Cody?"
"Hm?" Cody's attention snapped over to them at the sound of his name.
Armadillomon tilted his head. "Everything alright?"
"Sorry, I was thinking about something else," Cody confessed, his eyes falling to the sidewalk at his feet.
"Anything we can help with?" Kari offered, light tone and friendly smile saying that she wasn't trying to push the issue.
Cody hesitated, then looked up. "Am I overreacting when I get mad at Izzy for trying to do everything on his own?"
"Not sure if there's an objective way to answer that." Kari leaned back against the wall they were standing in front of, gazing up at the sky above. "We rely on him for a lot."
"Maybe too much?"
"Maybe…" Kari paused, then looked back at Cody. "He's always been the kind of person who'll do everything himself, especially if he thinks it'll save the rest of us a headache or two."
Gatomon considered the matter for a brief moment, maybe even for the first time ever. So many obstacles they had dealt with over the years had been solved by simply defaulting to letting Izzy solve the problem, which to be fair, would often turn out to be the objectively correct solution. Gatomon let the thought go, partially for that reason, but also because she had a small suspicion that Cody's concerns weren't solely focused on Izzy.
"It's not that I don't trust him," Cody continued calmly. "It's just that I know everyone makes mistakes when they're spread too thin."
It was brief, but Gatomon caught Cody's eyes drop towards Akira before bouncing back. If she had to guess, he hadn't been for letting the boy tag along. Being fair, Gatomon had reservations of her own, though reservations she had kept to herself. For one, she didn't want to question Kari's judgment, and for another, she also didn't mind being able to keep an eye on Akira, especially if he was as important as everyone claimed. As for Kari, if she had noticed any of this, she showed no sign.
"Even after all these years, Cody, you're still too polite," Kari said, almost teased.
Cody raised an eyebrow. "How do you mean?"
"I don't think any of us would be bothered by you stepping up when you feel you need to."
"What if I'm overstepping?"
Kari shrugged. "Matt might be better to ask for advice on that. If he waited until my brother asked for help to step in, well, my brother probably wouldn't still be here."
Gatomon remembered Cody weighing similar concerns over the years, particularly with T.K., though sometimes with the others as well. He innately saw things in black and white, and shades of gray still made him hesitate on occasion. Focusing back on Cody's concerns about Izzy, the pair them of them sharing a Crest led to the team noticing and often pointing out the similarities between them. Given Izzy's skillset and position, Gatomon would bet that Cody would try to shoulder a lot of responsibility as well, and it was self-awareness of this that was likely giving him trouble.
Anything further ended up being put on hold by Ruli and Angoramon returning to group. Approaching slowly but steadily, they didn't seem to be carrying themselves as though they had learned nothing.
"Are we on the right track?" Gatomon asked, ready to resume their search either way.
"I think so," Ruli answered confidently. "Apparently those Bakemon are still making recruitment rounds, and asking anyone interested to meet them at a warehouse in this neighborhood."
"Sorry about making you do all the talking, by the way," Kari said as they started moving away from the alley.
"Eh, it's not that big a change from normal," Ruli replied with a smile and a wave of her hand. "Higashi's not all that personable, even with the digimon we do know."
"You two don't seem very close," Cody pointed out.
"Probably because the reason we started working together was that we had a mutual friend." Ruli paused, suddenly becoming somber, but just as quickly shook her head and forced a smile back onto her face. "Sorry, have a mutual friend. Hiro's not gone, just not here right now."
"So where is Hiro then?" Kari asked, gentle tone and expression matching how she had been talking to Cody earlier.
"In the Digital World, we believe," Angoramon answered.
Ruli stared upwards. "He never learned to turn down people asking him for help, and that's where he was asked to go. Wish he'd at least mentioned why he was leaving first, though."
"Was he like your best friend?" Akira asked, wide-eyed and innocently. "Besides Angoramon, I mean."
"It's gonna make me sound full of myself, but I've never had trouble making friends." Ruli smile faded, before turning to Kari. "Still, you know this life. It's kinda hard to talk about with people who aren't already a part of it."
Kari nodded. "Most normal people have trouble wrapping their head around a talking cat."
"As your talking cat, I don't think we should waste our time with anyone like that," Gatomon recommended, completely sincerely.
"Actually, I'm pretty sure my friend Mika had a crush on Hiro," Ruli said with a giggle. "Was thinking about letting him know before he left."
"When he gets back, maybe?" Kari offered optimistically.
"Maybe…" Ruli looked away, though kept smiling. "So yeah, I do miss my friend."
Approaching another alley, something made the hairs on Gatomon's back stand up. She stopped short, causing everyone else to do the same in response. Motioning for them to hold, Gatomon took the last couple steps forward and peered around the corner. A single Bakemon floated slowly towards them.
"I really gotta start asking about overtime," he muttered to himself, clearly unaware he was being watched.
"Should we introduce ourselves?" Ruli whispered.
"Not quite yet," Gatomon replied, preparing to pounce.
Something was off, and she couldn't quite place what that was. This Bakemon appeared the same as any other they had run into over the years, but the alarms were going off anyway. At the very least, Gatomon wanted to confirm that she was just being paranoid before they all charged into something they weren't prepared for.
Gatomon angled herself one more time before propelling herself off the ground and into the alley. Making adjustments in midair, her paws touched the opposite wall, which she bounced off of to throw herself at the Bakemon. She landed on top of him, holding a claw up to his eyes to assert that she was in control.
Bakemon blinked and stared. "G-Gatomon?"
At first, she thought she was imagining the recognition in his eyes. Then she tried to tell herself it was coincidence, that this Bakemon must have simply known a different Gatomon, though she quickly threw that thought out as well. After all, her and Kari had had conversations in the past on how digimon recognized each other on a different level than humans did. Of course, that left one other option, one that seemed close to impossible.
"They must have got caught in our wake after we jumped."
Salamon's words echoed in the back of her mind a couple more times, almost tauntingly. Gatomon wasn't sure if she was more mad at them for not making known that what she was looking at was even a possibility, or herself for not being prepared for it.
Either way, Gatomon didn't stoop to taking her frustration out on this Bakemon. She drove her claw into him, precisely and mercifully ending his life. She turned away before his data could finish dispersing.
"Gatomon!" Kari called out as she led the others towards her.
"What did you do that for?" Ruli asked, eyes wide with shock. "We needed to question him."
"No, we don't," Gatomon replied, willing herself to remain calm.
"What happened?" Kari asked, visibly upset but not at her. She had always had a good sense when something amiss, even when she couldn't put her finger on the specifics.
Gatomon turned back to the group. "Ruli, how do you know these Bakemon are looking another child?"
Ruli arched an eyebrow. "We overheard them while they were trying to recruit those Fangmon."
"Do you remember the exact words they used?"
"Before the Bakemon escaped, they very specifically made clear their intentions of finding an eighth child," Angoramon recalled.
"Oh no…" Kari said under her breath, very likely accompanied by memories of the events of seven years ago.
Gatomon turned back to Ruli. "You need to call the others, and let them know something followed us here."