Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Another memorial. ❯ Chapter 2

So that her wish could be granted, so that her happiness could return… All because of that one wish and that day of sorrowful memory…

 

If not for that sadness, perhaps things would have been different, perhaps it wouldn't have happened… But would it truly have been any better?

 

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Noriko, one of the so-called “Dark seed children”, was… Sad. There were times when Ken's words seemed true, only yesterday she had truly believed that as long as she believed in herself and her dreams, the dark seeds truly would be powerless.

 

Maybe she still did, maybe she had merely let go of those dreams. But on the second day of August, at the age of nine years, Noriko's dreams had died.

 

She turned her head to look at her digimon, the Penmon so unfitting for her. Punimon was a baby digimon like any other, sure, and she supposed Tsunomon was as solid a stage before the child form as any.

 

But Penmon was not. Odd as it was for a human to think of her digimon partner in this fashion, even when she looked at her own digimon waddle, all she felt was disgust, that sense of wrongness, and that glimpse of an alternate future, her looking upon a ruined digital world, a black Elecmon by her side.

 

Elecmon, a digimon that could easily had been her partner. There was more than one path a Tsunomon could take…

 

But that was not the source of Noriko's sorrow, simply another one of the many things one begins to feel sad about when one is truly sad…

 

She had seen the digital world, yes, she had seen it in those last hours. Oikawa's pain, Venom Vamdemon's defeat, the bonds were still there, there was still that level of kinship she felt with all others that had lived through such a thing.

 

But for her, a distant world could not overcome the reality of her own. Stupidity, more stupidity, children talking about such foolish, petty things, adults talking about some foreign wars fought for some silly reason, suffering and cruelty the way of the world, and those who did not fit their mold would be simply crushed. It was all so meaningless, so useless, she easily could have shouted to the rooftops that they were fools, not worth half as much as she was worth…

 

Perhaps it was that realization which crushed her dreams… Her hopes of teaching the next generation, crushed when she realized just how foolish and stupid humans were.

 

And when foolishness was all she saw, and with all she had heard of happiness through conquest, wasn't it right for her to rule?

 

And so she entered the digital world, in the same way Ken had so long before, succeeding her just as Daisuke could be said to succeed Taichi.

 

And on that day, it could be said the Digimon Tsarina was born.

 

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“Digimon Tsarina.” That's what they would say of her, the digimon tsarina, just a shadow of the Kaiser. Sure, it wasn't “Kaiserin”, when every fictional human villainess in the digital world was called “Kaiserin” they had to use a new title, but the meaning was the same… Just the feminine form of Ken's title, a derivative of “Caesar” like before, they wouldn't even give her the courtesy to call her “Tyrant” or “Empress.”

 

But why would they? It seemed all she did was follow in her predecessor's footsteps… Even her weapons, the same, sure, black rings were obvious and useful, and spirals, well, they were a natural progression…

 

“But Ken Ichijouji did those exact same things, and I haven't come up with any ideas he didn't before me… I'm just a female, slightly younger version of the Kaiser with a Penmon instead of a Wormmon, nothing different, nothing original. Nothing.”

 

“But isn't everyone just lost in the past these days? Iori-san and his friends don't seem any different… And besides…” Noriko thought, smiling for the first time in years… “I won't fail like Ken did.”

 

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Even if they had to grant this wish, this was not something they would do automatically, without hesitation, or even without sorrow… After all, it wasn't like they were just pressing some button and then flying off to wherever it is gods go, the consequences would be many, and few of those would be good for this world… No, even if this was their duty, it was a solemn one, the sort of atrocity no one feels happy to bring about, only bound to make it come to pass…

 

Sealed beneath the digital world, sealed by those who came long before the chosen children of old… None of them would simply break the seal and fly off content, perhaps they would not fly off at all.

 

“Even if we do owe them this…” Byakko, or perhaps Baihumon would better describe him in this world, spoke, his voice filled with regret. “We're called the harmonious ones, shouldn't we be keeping the balance! What the hell are we doing?” He finished, crying as he shouted those words.

 

Seiryu nodded, understanding the white tiger's anger and sadness. “But this is the digital world, and we must grant their wish… May those who follow forgive us…”

 

“May those who follow forgive everyone who lived through those days.” Suzaku spoke firmly, his eyes alone among them not clouded by tears. “Every one of them wanted this, and it is not this world of boredom that can truly forge digimon's souls.”

 

Genbu nodded, the ground opened, and the evils of the distant past entered the digital world.

 

Most of them, anyway. None noticed Byakko's subtle betrayal, or even how that map found its way into the chosen's hands…

 

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“It's August 2nd now… Not that anything will ever change…” Sora thought, her sorrow still not fading. “Even if I do have a few more memories, even if yesterday had its happier bits… Today will be as boring as ever, I'll still have nothing going forward.”

 

“Sora?” Piyomon chirped, the pink digimon as upbeat and cheery as ever, even as her partner drowned in sadness… Their emotions were opposite now, no matter how close their bond.

 

She remained silent, the only movement a tear dropping down her orange-shaded hair.

 

There are stories of tears bringing miracles, of crying bringing one back to life, healing the world, or other such things. It was Mimi's teardrop that once enabled the crest of purity to glow, after all.

 

But Sora's tears would do nothing. Nothing, it was nothing in this world that would heal her sorrow, Taichi, Yamato, Takeru, Mimi, Piyomon, none of them could do a thing to end her tears.

 

But… This stagnant time, this time where her only happiness were in memories tinged with sorrow, that time she had only wished to end…

 

Though she knew not this fact, though it did nothing to heal her immense sadness, the gods had granted her wish.

 

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News spreads fast in the digital world, and with the gates open, they were bound to learn of this soon. Gabumon had decided to spend the day with him, in his cramped, smallish apartment. Yamato had asked why, and the cloaked reptile only responded by saying “The digital world is my home, and our adventure crossed both worlds…”

 

But now Gabumon's tone was far more serious, and when the false dog digimon returned, after the light faded all he saw was a very serious look. Gabumon was standing on his hind legs, horn directly up, even the false arms standing on end.

 

“So, it seems we have another adventure…”

 

“An adventure, you say?” The blonde asked, his voice cutting sharply through the few feet of air separating him from Gabumon. “This is just an imitation, a desperate attempt to create something as good as those before.”

 

“Does it matter?” Yamato froze at hearing this, Gabumon's words piercing his coldness. “If it is a desperate attempt, will you not grasp at it anyway?”

 

“You're right.” The chosen child said, already thinking of himself as an old man, looking back at a glorious past and forward to a boring future… “Still, I'll grasp at it, I'll grab at even the tiniest hope of something like before. As long as I live, I'll try desperately for another adventure… Even though it will never come.”

 

“I thought so.” Gabumon spoke firmly, understanding his partner well.

 

“Besides… Even if Noriko-san is just a pale shadow of the Kaiser… I stayed behind during that adventure too.”

 

“Let's go.” Yamato spoke, his look one of determination. “It may just be a pathetic attempt, but let's try it anyway.”

 

Gabumon nodded, and then they departed, leaving for that worthless imitation of the past that called itself a future.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

 

“So, what do we do now?” Taichi asked. The chosen children had come to meet yet again in the digital world, all having heard of the so-called “Digimon Tsarina”, almost all torn on how to react…

 

“Where's Ken-kun?” Miyako asked, her tone still filled with energy, even as the others seemed half-dead.

 

“I didn't want him to know…” Takeru spoke softly, and the others nodded.

 

“As for what to do… It's obvious, isn't it? She hasn't turned many digimon to her side, and we still have Sylphimon, Shakkoumon, and Imperial Dramon, right? This shouldn't be that hard.” Hikari spoke, her timid self seeming… Different than usual, but it wasn't that she hadn't been bold to stop the suffering of digimon before.

 

“As long as our two hearts beat as one…” Hikari froze, her body still enough that it might as well have been encased in ice. “I don't think any of us younger chosen are like that anymore…” Takeru finished, and the one who had once brought hope to that world made eight others hopeless, all just looking downward in sorrow.

 

But the older chosen at least understood, and while they may not entirely like some of what it would bring, it would be lying to say there was no excitement or hope in their souls.

 

“Still…” Taichi spoke, his tone a soft, wavering one that seemed so wrong for him. “Greymon and the others are strong, if we strike now, before she can enslave too many digimon…”

 

“It could make us win.” Sora answered, nodding. “But… Noriko appearing here, right after a day like yesterday… It feels like my wish has been granted, and I don't want this last chance at adventure to slip by…”

 

Though her words were not audible, it still seemed like the others had heard her, or at least thought those same things.

 

“I'm not staying.” Hikari spoke, acting as if she were channeling the Taichi of old. “If you want to stay here, go ahead, but I'm fighting.”

 

“I'll go with you, Hikari-chan.”

 

The bearer of light turned, a warm hand on her shoulder, and then turned the other way, a gloved hand that finally seemed to show sympathy. “Daisuke-kun, Miyako-chan… Thank you so much. Digital gate, open!”

 

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“They shall know… A superior being, one who was meant to rule this foolish world…” She spoke, her voice soft, too soft for one bent on world domination, most would say, nothing like the contempt-filled one of the Kaiser…

 

But the hatred in the Leomon's eyes was not affected by her sweet voice, as the lion warrior raised his sword and the girl threw her spiral… And once again, a young child growing the seeds of darkness brought fear to digimon across the world.

 

Still, it seemed so easy, it was as if she would just take over the world in three days or so, and then go back to her home, bored regardless of where she was, the sort of omnipotent boredom that, in a religion with billions of followers, was said to have brought about the creation of the world… Still, she conquered, going about the digital world with intent to rule, knowing that, if nothing else, destruction can make someone feel better.

 

But her boredom, the hopelessness of the chosen, those bits of the price of victory not ending lives, or maybe just the sadness that comes when something truly ends… The gods would make that change, at least.

 

Noriko looked up from her Airdramon mount, looking not at the near-empty forest below, but at the three humans and digimon that still stood there, even after all else had fled her impending presence.

 

“Noriko-chan?” Hikari asked, the light one's voice heavy with concern, then turning sullen... “So, you've fallen…”

 

The tsarina, upon hearing such a casual honorific, was angered, and one of her veins popped in that traditional anime display of rage. “Noriko-sama, if you must use that name.” She spoke, still strong enough not to yell; yelling like that wouldn't suit an empress. “Let's see if -chan is a proper honorific for someone like me, Hikari-san… Leomon!” She shouted, and the lion digimon, nothing but white in his eyes, raised his sword.

 

“Tailmon?” She asked, turning to the cat and holding up that odd red device Koushirou had once dubbed a “D-3.”

 

“Let's do it, it's been a while.” The cat digimon said, her adrenaline finally pumping again, crying at the thought that she would finally be able to fight.

 

“Hawkmon shinka, Aquilamon!” Miyako held up her own D-3, and a giant red eagle took the place of the small bird form her partner had held.

 

“Let's do it.” Miyako, Hikari, Tailmon, and Aquilamon spoke, their voices melding as one.

 

“Aquilamon!”

 

“Tailmon!”

 

“Jogress shinka!”

 

The red and pink spirits left their bodies again, sure… They flew up to the light, long-tailed energy versions of their normal form, but then stopped and returned to their bodies.

 

While this happened, Noriko, seeing no challenge here, called the Leomon back and flew on.

 

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“As long as two hearts beat as one… But we have grown to become distant… It's only been a year, and yet still… We've been so very apart...”

 

It was then that Hikari realized the sadness that all the others had felt for so long.

 

“But… Now that I understand this sadness, aren't we all united again? Aren't we all together, if only in sadness?” She whispered, sitting down on the digital world's soft grass, her many-colored outfit ripping as she leaned forward, leaning only to use her knee for support. “No… I didn't just want us to be together… I want to be able to lean on Miyako-chan or Takeru-kun when I needed it, I wish we could still support each other like that…” A tear dropped down Hikari's face, rolling down her exposed knee to the ground.

 

“Takeru promised to protect me, Tailmon's been through endless pain to find me, Miyako said I'd never have to fight the darkness alone… Yet here I am, seeing my soul crushed even as I triumph, my heart so distant from all of them…”

 

Water streamed down the brunette's face, as for the first time in her life, she cried for her own sadness. Tailmon, Daisuke, Miyako, even Iori… They weren't leaving her to drown in her own tears, they were saying so many words to try to make her happy again…

 

If she had heard any of those words, perhaps they might have worked, perhaps she would have turned and smiled, their reassuring voices convincing her that the sadness she felt was for naught. But with her head buried on her knee and her ears waterlogged by tears, she didn't, and thus nothing changed.

 

“Then again, these days… It seems nothing ever changes, nothing's changed for a year… We were this sad the day after it ended…”

 

And the fact that it was the eve of change, or perhaps it's morn, the fact that Noriko's appearance as the Tsarina would bring great change, that fact did not even occur to them.

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“So… Noriko-chan's returned… But what now?”

 

“If she's beaten, it'll just end again… I'd like to say “One last adventure”, but really, a couple more memories won't make me much happier… So how can I even fight?”

 

“If I don't… Nothing will ever change… But if I do…”

 

“I fear it will truly be over.”

 

Sora opened her eyes, still sad and uncertain, unable to enjoy the current adventure, because she feared so much that it too would end. Instead, she sat paralyzed, perhaps waiting for someone to come, perhaps simply too broken to move, even as what she had wanted more than anything had occurred… No, she would not move.

 

“So you're just going to resign yourself to your sad fate, even when things change.”

 

Sora turned, caught a glimpse of the one who, for some brief period of time after her adventures, was perhaps the one she had been the closest to… And then she looked away silently.

 

“The day after our memorial, hasn't that struck you as odd in the slightest? Well?”

 

“It has.” Sora answered, at last speaking to Yamato. “But…”

 

“You can't always just think about the future!” The bearer of friendship shouted back, remembering his own times, though then he was instead thinking of the past. “If you do, you'll never live…”

 

At that point, the one who had wished for this stood up. “You're right, Yamato-san, thanks.” She began, bowing to Takeru's older brother, the one she had been farthest from during the adventures and perhaps closest to once everything ended... But now she was determined to resume those adventures, Yamato's words had indeed reached her. “Digital gate, open!”

 

That's what she wanted to say, at least, and that's what she would say if she lived in a vacuum… But, even if she wanted desperately to leave, she too had a life and duties.

 

And it was for that reason that she would stay cut off, cut off and perhaps destroyed, the same way Oikawa had lived for three years…

 

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Happiness… Those days when it seemed life was something you just wanted to live, those people who simply being near would make you incredibly happy… Brought by many things for different people, perhaps falling in love did this for some, for some it might just be a console and gaming, for others, an anime series or something of the sort where it was worth living just to see another episode…

 

Was that gone from this world now? It seemed it very well could be, and that thought was too sad for even Takeru's once-hopeful heart to bear.

 

“After all… Even hearing of this new adventure didn't bring me any happiness… Will I ever be happy again?” He thought, his heart still mourning this reality, but then…

 

“No… I can't accept that!” He exclaimed, at last feeling that intensity again, his life coming back to him. “And…” He nodded, understanding what he would do, no matter how many would come to hate him for it.

 

And even with what it would bring… His heart was smiling now, the thought that hope had returned to the digital world, that another adventure could begin, that the trait he had once been thought of as embodying he at last possessed again, that thought filled him with happiness.

 

Taichi Yagami saw the blonde-haired boy leave, realized his intent, and nodded sadly, but said nothing, perhaps simply understanding as a fellow chosen his sorrow. He didn't like it, but… He couldn't bring himself to stop him, even if it meant thousands of lives lost or ruined, he still couldn't raise a hand or question the younger chosen, he understood Takeru too well.

 

Takeru walked on, a slight pang of guilt flooding him as he passed by the one he once thought of as leader, but he continued to move, his determination the same as he left to bring about that new adventure.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

He walked down that dark area in the digital world, his black clothing shielding even his face from view… As for who he was, all that could be said as he walked against the strong winds was that “he”, if it even was a “he”, was a biped of about human height.

 

This suited him fine. He didn't wish for anyone to know who he was, not even the one he had come to contact… A reputation as a traitor, Noriko knowing she was being manipulated, he did not want any of that sort of thing.

 

So with a crumpled ball of paper in his hand, he walked onward, then onward still, until his suspicions of the Tsarina's location were confirmed.

 

In other words, he saw Noriko.

 

“Take this.” He spoke, sending the piece of paper spiraling in the young girl's direction, until such time as it slammed into her back.

 

Noriko turned and stared at the paper. “What is this? I do not understand.” She spoke, her tone firm and contemptuous, even as inside she was elated that such an unexpected twist had come.

 

“A map to death.” The dark one answered, then turned around and walked casually away.

 

The conqueror opened up the many-folded paper, a hideous smile coming across her falsely innocent face. “This should do nicely.” She spoke, grinning, and then she jumped up to one of the winged serpent-dragons called “Airdramon” and flew off, her dark laughter echoing into the night.

 

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Time continued to pass, sadness continued to crush, and the day went on. Even in this digital age, news only travels so fast, especially when dealing with one who seldom lets any escape... And even when the news does travel, people are only so often in a position to know, all people have their lives, as boring and pathetic as they may be, and these lives often tear people away and leave them in no position to know.

 

And there Sora was, her life seeming to merely be a barrier between her and that one world where, even if she became sad and hopeless there, it was still the place she had once found and perhaps again would find happiness. Specifically, she was flower-arranging with her mother, a nice, traditional art, a feminine pastime, but it might have well been anything, all it did was keep her away…

 

She tried to look at the flowers, pay attention to what she was doing, delicately putting them in the proper position… It wasn't possible, though, she just couldn't pay any attention to those flowers, they only seemed another foolish part of that world she called home, but still found stagnant and useless.

 

“Leave.” Sora turned, hearing the firm, commanding voice of her mother. She was confused, to say the least, she had never expected someone like that to actually ask her to go, let alone let her do so… But Somoe was also a mother, after all, and even as formal and domineering as she could be, she wasn't entirely unaware of her daughter's feelings.

 

“Huh?” The orange-haired girl answered, utterly shocked by that statement.

 

“Go. You're not in any shape to do this, and I haven't forgotten what happened four years ago. Go back to your world, my daughter.”

 

The time when Tokyo was under siege flashed through the sad girl's head, remembering how her mother had disguised herself as a Bakemon, risking so much for Sora's sake, how she had at last accepted that her daughter was a chosen child… And perhaps that made her understand her mother's actions.

 

“Thank you.” Sora said, a wet tear sweeping down her face, and then she got up, prepared to return to that world yet again.

 

Somoe Takenouchi watched on as her daughter left, hoping her daughter could somehow become happy, even as it pained her to see the girl so far from her, only able to have a chance at happiness in a world that Somoe could not even enter…

 

As Sora left, she was still crying, but there was still that slight bit of hope… And even if she was sad, the sadness somehow felt… Right, like even if she was sad, she was at least where she belonged, still doing what she lived for.

And besides… If what she had heard about Noriko was true, and if she somehow proved a decent threat, then maybe a new adventure really could start… In her current state, a “maybe” was enough to make her happier than she had been in the past four years, and for that reason she smiled. She continued her walk and opened the gate between worlds, knowing that whatever she would do, even if she had no idea what that was, she knew she wanted to be there, to stand in the digital world while it all happened.

 

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Noriko examined the map, still not having deciphered it. It didn't make any sense to her, with her knowledge of the digital world's topography, and however long the black-haired girl stared at the piece of paper or ran over that encounter in her head, she still couldn't figure out what that stranger had meant by “A map to death.”

 

Sure, she was composed, and sure, she thought it would be helpful, but the text still confused her, and as much as it hurt her to do this… At least things would be interesting again.

 

Did she need the power? Perhaps, perhaps the chosen would rally or pull out some hidden power, perhaps she could lose after all. But even if she didn't, or even if it was a trap, she still had to know what was meant by “A map to death.”

 

Swallowing her pride, she at last spoke, ending her hour-long trance. “Penmon, decipher this.”

 

Penmon gazed at her human partner, the blue digimon remembering all they had been through over those seven short months… It wasn't much, they had no adventures to bind them, after all, but at least they were close.

 

Were. Were, not are. It's easy to judge falsely based on a day, to think one hates you when they're only in a bad mood, or even when you briefly see a person and misinterpret a reaction… But Penmon was convinced just the same, Noriko had never been this cold to her before, nor did she ever look so pained to simply ask her digimon a simple question…

 

Penmon waddled up to Noriko, briefly put her small flippers around her as best she could… Noriko may have, in her current state, been disgusted by her digimon's show of affection, but she leaned in to embrace her digimon just the same, no matter how humiliated she felt… If the bird can read it… It's worth it, to end these times…

 

A long time ago, when Devimon, wrapped in megalomania, attempted to conquer File Island, he once said “Your hopes and dreams are useless.” For Noriko, and Sora, and Takeru, and Yamato, and virtually everyone else who had lived through that adventure, this seemed so very true.

 

Penmon continued to read, most chosen had arrived in the digital world, the adventure was supposed to have begun… But all that happened was that a blue penguin read a mysterious map and everyone else mourned.

 

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Mourning… A lost world, perhaps, an adventure they had once had… They were sad, it didn't matter how soon things would change, even if it were only minutes it might not give them any comfort… As things stood, even if a few were better than others, even if this wasn't quite the day of memory, such memories stay in your head for longer than a day…

 

Nothing had changed, it seemed nothing ever would… Noriko, as she was, had enslaved a few digimon and brought Hikari, the only one who seemed to enjoy this “victory”, sadness. Beyond that, though… The wish was still not granted, and the map to death was still the world's only hope.

 

Perhaps that's why Penmon was able to read such a text, because the gods, to grant that wish, gave her the knowledge to do so.

 

“Noriko.” The penguin said, trying to get the attention of the one who was still her human partner, for all the coldness she had showed of late.

 

“Have you found anything?” Noriko asked.

 

“It's written in an ancient version of digi-code, the text is often scratchy, and it refers to locations that have typically been thought of as forbidden. But I think I've figured it out.”

 

“Very well then. It's time to learn of this “death…””

 

And beneath the digital world, they waited still, waiting like so many others…

 

At last the wait would end, and if nothing else, they would at least see if this could be a “true adventure,” to learn if this future really could be anything more than just some feeble imitation of the past.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It had been a day and a half now, or so… Since that day, since those feelings had been arose in the chosen children… And it seemed something was happening, it truly did, it didn't look like a stagnant future lied ahead…

 

And yet what had happened? A brief bit of nostalgic talking between the chosen children of old? Noriko's appearance, that appearance that still lacked even a reaction, it was just a brief flyover, really… A day can sometimes seem like a very long time, and these weren't the sort of days that just brushed by and might as well have been skipped… And yet nothing had happened.

 

Perhaps that was why, because the chosen realized just how stagnant everything was… A showdown like this belonged atop some high mountain, wind blowing through as those heroic digimon faced off boldly against the new tyrant… It didn't belong in some random forest, trees blocking the flight paths, attacks easily avoided through the thick branches and ample camouflage provided by those blue trees… But no one was in a position to make their first encounter a noble one, for them, in their desperation, it wouldn't matter how it began.

 

When it came down to it, the chosen (Save Ken, who still would not return, and Iori, simply… Outside and slightly pained, not wanting to remember either, perhaps…) did things simply enough… All they really did was have Koushirou map Noriko's flight paths, gate back into the digital world, and prepare for that battle that was, to them at least, better called a return.

 

So there they were. A few syllables, the many voices of child-level digimon melding together, the end-sound “mon” and the word “shinka”, and then the names of their new forms, the chosen of old, two new allies, and their respective digimon standing together as one…

 

But Noriko's army of black-ringed digimon also stood as one, and victory would not prove to be an easy thing… This was what they all wanted, there was not one there who would rather have it differently…

 

They stood silently in the forest, freezing, perhaps savoring the moment, that pause one takes before the first step, even if it's a step to somewhere you're taking back to somewhere you belong, even if it's one you've gone through so much to take… Going back is just the sort of thing that isn't done without hesitation, no matter how much one wants to do so…

 

But it was done just the same, Sora had waited too long, and even if the others, with their lives and sources of happiness, could manage to hesitate… “Birdramon!”

 

To some, this would not even have seemed exciting… They were just watching a battle, they would say, anyone can watch a fight, no setting could make it that interesting…

 

But this was only a beginning, and besides, for some of them, their spirits were so closely linked it didn't matter if it was technically their digimon, not “they”, doing the fighting…

 

The phoenix digimon glanced at her partner, then turned, glad to at last be fighting to protect her again, perhaps this way she could once more truly live… “Meteor Wing!”

 

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Outside the digital world, in that stagnant blue sphere called the earth, Ken and Iori continued to live their lives, trying to stay apart from the digital world… Neither had wanted to return down the paths of memory, neither even talked to the friends they had made in that place, not talking today, at least… Iori had learned much, too much, and had been made to take a life, something he still had not forgiven himself for… And as for the former Kaiser… He still thought himself unworthy of anything.

 

Still, they ended up in that same spot just the same, even if consciously they wanted to stay away, they still kept walking until they found themselves at the portal in Hikarigaoka, the place where everything had began.

 

They faced each other silently for a while, perhaps seconds, perhaps hours, gazing upon each other as if they were still enemies… Sure, they had each saved the other's life, sure, near the tail end of their adventure, they had begun to even think of each other as friends, what with the invitation and all… But for both of them, the two chosen children who did not want to remember, the other was just an annoying relic of their past…

 

Still they gazed upon each other, though, even with hatred in their eyes, neither was not willing to leave what seemed to be the only one either identified with… So they both stayed, faking hatred for as long as they could, but neither walking away.

 

Perhaps if they had gone with the others, they'd be happier right now. Or perhaps they'd just be drowning in their sad memories.

 

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Battles are often a painful thing… By their very nature, pain will be felt, and no one likes to see those they care for suffer… But as Sora watched Birdramon fight for her sake, as she felt the rush that comes from knowing the fate of the world may depend on this, she was smiling.

 

She glanced knowingly at her comrades, those thirteen others that had fought by her side… And it seemed, at least for now, that she was not alone anymore, that they were all the same.

 

It wouldn't last, of course. Even now, Birdramon was outmatched, defeat was imminent, it would probably only be minutes until her emotions turned to sorrow and regret, crying that her deeds had caused another to be hurt…

 

But for now, at least, she was happy. And as she gazed at Takeru, noticing he had that same happiness, she hoped she would forever be able to look back fondly on this day, that she would have another good memory.

 

And then Birdramon fell.

 

The rest of the battle was pretty much a blur to her… She remembered calling out Birdramon's name, she remembered hearing the others fight on, staring at her wounded digimon partner as they did… And then…

 

Well, here she was now, trying to bandage Piyomon's wounds, not even remembering if the battle ended in victory or defeat… It didn't matter to her, she had let Piyomon get hurt, hurt simply to fulfill her own desire, and even crushed as she was before… This still might be even more crushing.

 

“But… I had to do this, didn't I? Didn't I?”

 

She continued to shout at the skies, but they had no response for her… Bearer of love, named for the sky, her digimon winged in every form… And she still shouted at air, air which would not give her a response…

 

She should have been overwhelmed by sadness, she should have been truly filled with regret… Sora knew the emotions she should feel, she had felt them before, after all.

 

But part of her was still happy, happy that, even if her life was sad now, at least she could call herself “alive.” It was a part that disgusted her sometimes, yes… But this bored individual desperate for adventure, why, at least in times of stagnant peace, this was her true self.

 

So even as she healed Piyomon, even as she apologized over and over again, she was still happy to at least feel something again… And remembering that time long ago, when she once restrained Piyomon from fighting, looking over her injured digimon the same as before and knowing if not for her, the wound wouldn't exist…

 

Back then was when Garudamon was born, perhaps the happiest moment of her adventure. And feeling it again, why, for her, an adventure was only beginning.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Even though it had long ended, even after the others had long gone away, Taichi Yagami stayed in that forest that had been a battlefield, sharply scanning his mind to wonder how it had failed...

 

“It had to fail though, right? As long as I was leading… Daisuke should have led us, or maybe Takeru, he's the most experienced here… But…” The goggle-boy wondered, looking back at the time so close to the end, back when it seemed Noriko was truly beaten. “Birdramon and Kabuterimon were down, sure, and Garurumon was hurting. But she didn't have anywhere near enough strength in her enslaved digimon to beat even the ones that remained… Wait, that attack!” Taichi leaped up, shouting as if he had learned a secret of the universe, and then sat back down, crying for what it was.

 

Greymon's fall hadn't been normal… He assumed it was a well-cloaked Bakemon, Bakemon always flocked to dark lords, after all, and they could disguise themselves well enough. But a Bakemon couldn't have done that, right?

 

“It seemed like victory was so close…” Taichi began, and then nodded, remembering Takeru's oddness earlier, though his voice lacked anger. “I understand.”

 

“Still… Chosen children, I failed you.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Takeru sat quietly in the apartment he called home, the apartment where only one thing had ever happened to consider it anything close to a true home… It was the digital world where he belonged, it still was. But that wasn't what he was thinking right now.

 

“Two adventures, four years, I've hated the darkness for so long…” He thought, his role as manipulator was not one he took eagerly or anything. “But that doesn't matter anymore.”

 

“Is Koushirou thinking and searching again, that same way he loved to for so long? Is my brother glad to journey again with his old friends? Is Sora happy just to end that boredom?” He asked, running a hand through his wavy, golden hair. “I think so… But…”

 

“Hikari-chan's mourning, I'm sure. Taichi-san still thinks himself a failure. And there are plenty of digimon who I, I who once fought so hard to save all digimon, made suffer.”

 

He was sad and regretful, he really was. He was supposed to bring hope, after all, and he was sure he had plunged others even deeper into despair. But closing his eyes, his smooth face still stained with the tears he shed as he turned against all he cared for... He then thought of how things had been two days ago and the morning before, and knew it was best this way.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Hikari returned home, all the light she had meaning nothing. “Failure.” She spoke, looking out at a part of the world she knew soon would be conquered. “I've failed before, though, it's more… We won, the world was saved, and all it did was make my friends sad…”

 

“What am I? What should I do?” She looked deep inside her soul, seeing those bright white lights, ignoring her faded apartment. “I don't know…”

 

And with that, the girl cried, it seemed today the tears she built up for so long had finally come out. “I've never thought about myself, I've always wanted others to be happy, but… All I've done has only made them sadder.” Tears continued down her face, Hikari no longer caring if anyone saw them, it did her no good to hide her sadness anymore…

 

Tailmon did see them, of course, and began to reach for Hikari with that gloved claw she had, but as she began to reach, she saw an endless darkness between them, and pulled her paw down, seeming unable to grasp her partner's spirit, or even put a slight scratch in it to let happiness sink through.

 

“Sadness… Isolation… Well, at least not isolation, even if we're both crying, I think Miyako still understands…”

 

“But Tailmon couldn't jogress with Aquilamon, are you sure she understands? Are you sure you're even close to her?”

 

And Hikari's broken spirit could find no answer to that sad thought.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Jou Kido had always seemed to be the strongest of any of them… After all, his crest, mistaken as they were to do so, had once been translated as “Reliability”, and even when it was gone, he still seemed to manage through everything stoically, shrugging off Gomamon's jokes and Whamon's death so easily… Not until the end did he even search for his own self, and he had always been the responsible one, the rock they could rely on…

 

And after the adventure, as far as any of them could tell, he drifted away into his study of medicine, his test results solid, and, if not happy, he still had that engulfed quality to him…

 

What would they say if they knew that he too was broken, that inside, the tears flowed for him just as much? What would they say if they saw the rock of the chosen children cry?

 

But am I even their rock anymore, how much was I even with them? Every time their sorrows returned, where was I but hiding in some silly textbook?

 

So saddened as he was, he would not let his tears flow, still not thinking himself even worthy of crying… Sure, he was supposed to be sincere, but without his crest, in this new millennium of boredom? He was not Jou the sincere, he was just some broken medical student, useful, perhaps, or maybe only seeming that way to hide, his soul hidden on some deep, endless sea he could not in navigate.

 

But, for all his lost sincerity, he still would not cry.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As for Koushirou… He was pondering, ever-pondering, the same way he used to be… “What caused this? What connection did it have to our Odaiba memorial? And… Who was it that took down Greymon?”

 

He still feared the answers, at least a little. But sitting at his Pineapple, running all sorts of programs to analyze recent events, well, he was... Excited. His eyes were bright with anticipation, the same brightness he had as a young child, and at last he truly wished to learn again.

 

Until the results came up… No miracle can end life's endless setbacks, and even if he wasn't with regret…

 

“That blast came from Angemon!”

 

As he said this, his eyes turned to that sort of look best described as “sheer horror.”

 

“What was that line again… In order for something to be given, something of equal value must be exchanged?” Koushirou spoke, trying to remember… And after all, that anime did seem quite familiar right now, he remembered all too well how Edward had felt when he learned of the makeup of the philosopher's stone.

 

Or perhaps worse, after all, Al hadn't gone ahead and used the stone behind Ed's back. Betrayal, loathing, and guilt… But still he understood.

 

Right now, he'd rather just be curious.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

In another of Japan's many apartments, in a room darker than the caves in which he once angsted,

Yamato Ishida continued to walk the path of sadness. “The adventure's returned... It truly has.” He spoke, nodding and seeing the future all too well. Noriko would lead a formidable army, be struck down, three more slightly connected villains would emerge in turn, and then a final foe who's tale could be described in two simple episodes… Formulaic, maybe, but that was the way of the world.

 

Perhaps that was what caused him pain, the world did seem too formulaic, the future merely an inferior copy of the past… But he knew that wasn't all. No, there was something more, even if he hadn't grasped it yet.

 

“What am I good for?” Yes, that was it, even Gabumon had not truly launched him past the darkness that nearly swallowed him so long ago, he had only delayed it for a while. “Weakest among the chosen, supposed to bear friendship, yet holding my deepest sorrows alone… It was only at the end I looked at the crest as anything but a burden, so… Shouldn't my freedom from it make me happier?”

 

It didn't, though, even if he thought it should. All he saw was a new adventure, a desperate attempt by the world to make him happy… And he couldn't be more undeserving.

 

His thoughts then turned to Takeru, the brother he was supposed to protect, to be there for, all that other stuff an elder brother's supposed to do. No, he wasn't even doing that, not even offering the younger brother a reassuring voice, even if he was sure that Takeru too drowned in this agonizing sadness.

 

But for one as pathetic as himself, that made enough sense… He had tried to compensate, sure, but his life had been nothing but isolation and imitation, nothing matching up to his adventures of old… And even now, finding this new adventure, he still didn't seem any happier, only carrying the same angst he had all his life, digimon or no digimon.

 

And even in the human world, he looked around where his apartment once stood, and saw a dank, dark cave, this time with no Gabumon by his side.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

“I… I never wanted to fight… I never wanted to hurt anyone…” She had never been a warrior, after all… While the rest fought so coldly, and even Sora could easily order her digimon to kill… She had been the one making the graves and mourning her dead friends. No, these times didn't suit Mimi well, she couldn't say she liked it… Or could she?

 

“After all… I'm with them again, if nothing else. I've been living in America for so long… But I always missed them.”

 

“Are you? Even now, do you sit with the other chosen, bonded by memory and friendship? You weren't even this separate when you were fighting the dark masters. You may be close to all of them, or you may once have been… But they've all gone their separate ways.”

 

Mimi tried to ignore that dark voice, but perhaps it was right… After all, according to Koushirou, the other chosen had given up both crest and digi-core, their digimon could no longer reach perfect-level, all that stuff… So maybe she was different, maybe she was still tied to the digital world, if only because she still had her pure, soft heart.

 

Were her friends dead now? Thinking of yesterday, it was hard to see, they seemed the same, digimon and human alike… The years may had changed them, but they had not yet destroyed them, had they? They were still chosen, still bound by that memory, weren't they?

 

Weren't they?

 

These days, it was so hard to believe they truly had stayed the same… After all, if the bond was still there, wouldn't they all be together right now? Wouldn't they still be with her?

 

But even if they were, how long could they last, with only a few months of memory to bind them? They couldn't stay together forever on the strength of a few memories, after all, much as this saddened her… Even if they were close, already it seemed they, or perhaps we, were running out of things to talk about…

 

So Mimi, Mimi the pure, instead found herself in lonely isolation, no longer even able to live for those few times they met.

 

But even in those times she looked back on, the memories she cherished so much… Even back then, she was crying inside.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Day turned to night, the second day of this August of adventure was passing… But even still, was anything different? Save one battle or so, it was almost the same as yesterday…

 

The day of memories… Happiness, sadness, it brought both, but at least there they had intensity, if nothing else… So its extension into this feeble adventure… It was a good thing, right?

 

But the adventure was weak, almost disgraceful, perhaps unable to carry on that greatness of old, or even come close. And even their adventures weren't always times of happiness, no matter how much they missed them when they ended…

 

And it seemed nothing would dry the chosen children's tears.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

The map had been deciphered. Like so many before her, Noriko stood before some dark entity, prepared to bring about said entity's return… How many others in how many tales had done this? How many distant evils of great and terrible power had been revived? Maybe it wasn't the Kaiser's deed (Though she supposed Chimeramon had been similar, though created instead of revived), but the similarity was still there, not even the dark seeds could bring the originality she sought…

 

Regret? Was this something she would come to regret some day? Fear? She was facing a horrible evil, one a group of chosen children far before Taichi had risked their lives, perhaps lost them, to stop… Did those chosen feel that same sense of loss, were they as destroyed as she had seen Iori become? Did they die in battle, going to some afterlife and at least not having to live on in this boring age? Or did they somehow find a way? She was wondering, yes, wondering indeed.

 

But knowledge, that was something she lacked. It didn't matter that she was about to summon one truly powerful, it didn't matter that she had already conquered a tenth of the digital world, it didn't even matter that she had the same seeds that once made Ken a genius and a Kaiser, she was still just a foolish little child.

 

A foolish child, was that how others would think of her? No, she wouldn't let them, she would learn to rule.

 

“So… Why haven't I released him yet?” For that she had no answer, she still couldn't understand… But whenever she moved her hand closer, it froze, the terror seemed to be beyond even her consciousness, but not beyond her fragile, young body.

 

So she stood at death's door, prepared to release an ancient evil, probably creating the greatest threat her reign would have… Noriko turned, feeling a deathly chill on her shoulder, then looking at the ghost beside her. The Bakemon stayed silent, Penmon was too scared to even speak, those enslaved digimon she once had used to reach this place were left outside, and Noriko heard nothing, left alone with her thoughts, in the same way as so many others… Perhaps others would mean something, or perhaps everyone else was so crushed that Jureimon's words were right, that friendship and loyalty were just words, words that meant nothing to those in their darkest times…

 

The bonds of the chosen children, not even those were strong enough to make some try to bring others from their sorrow… Or if they did try, their bonds weren't strong enough to make any of them respond…

 

And Noriko's thoughts were jumbled and confused, so she continued her wait, the long night above not hastening her decision…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

“Robots… Aren't supposed to feel pain.” Andromon spoke, his voice dry and mechanical, not at all the sort that fit with his emotions. “We're supposed to just be programs, we're supposed to carry out our tasks without pain, sadness, or any of that stuff getting in the way… Maybe I'm just defective or something.”

 

It did hurt him, well, he wasn't sure if “hurt” was the right word. He didn't have any visible wounds or anything… Leader of the resistance, a digimon who had seen his world taken over, so many comrades who had been killed, and back then at least, he stoically stood through it all.

 

But now… He was a robot digimon, dammit! His kind was DESIGNED for boring, mindless, repetitive tasks. Why, hadn't he spent a good chunk of his life at some bizarre factory, assembling things then disassembling them as part of the same silly, pointless line?

 

That didn't mean he wasn't sad, though, as unfamiliar as the emotions were… Robots can not cry, their voices are cold and mechanical enough that tone wouldn't get through, there was no simple action for his sadness… But the sadness was still all too strong, and that desire for things to change, that wanting to be with the chosen again… It didn't matter if he was just some android digimon, the desire was still there, and it was still powerful.

 

Ogres, for that matter, weren't supposed to feel kindness either. Unicorns were supposed to be aloof, bears of snow are never meant to leave their frozen land, nor Meramon to come down from the mountain… But compared to an adventure like that, compared to those times they all loved, compared to watching the world be reborn, what was destiny?

 

They all gathered again, their thoughts still taking them back to that plateau, four years after the end of the world… Human or digimon, it didn't matter, the memories were still the same.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Sleep… I don't even know why I bother, sleep wasn't any help last night…” Sora spoke, tending to her injured digimon companion. “I should sleep, it is late, and Noriko-chan's probably in bed now. I don't need to stay awake…”

 

But sleep would not come for her, night's warm embrace would not ease her soul… Time passed, 11, 11:30, it didn't matter if it was late, her regrets were too vast and her despair too deep for any sleep to come…

 

“Maybe… Are the others still awake right now?” She wondered aloud, unknowing if their sorrow had translated into restlessness, or even if their sorrow was strong enough to do so… Glancing down at Piyomon, though, her thoughts changed… She did want to speak with them, but first she had a digimon to care for.

 

“Two days, probably the two most exciting I've had this year… We're no longer drifting apart, I'm becoming closer to Takeru and the others again… So why am I still crying?”

 

“Because you deserve it.” A darker part of her said. “You wished so desperately for something that would hurt so many, you didn't do a thing to stop it when the chosen drifted apart, you never even fulfilled the promise of your crest! Love is supposed to be as strong as hope and light…”

 

Were the voice not a part of her brain, but another person speaking those words, said person would have stopped, realized he had gone too far, and muttered a quick apology, or maybe Sora would have found a strong retort along the lines of “You don't know anything.”

 

As it was, though, no part of her responded, for, no matter how much she probed her soul, she still knew this to be the truth.

 

There was a time when Piyomon would have tried desperately to cheer her up, or half the chosen would go to pull her out of her own sorrow… “Back when we were closer… But these days, all I think I'll find is more of this sadness.”

 

She didn't think anyone would call for her, she was sure they were all asleep by now… But that desperate hope was still there, so she waited at the phone even now, hoping to hear Takeru's voice, or Taichi's, or Mimi's… Any of them would work, really, these days she would be happy to talk to Koushirou, just to hear another chosen child's voice right now.

 

But the call, that call she wasn't expecting in the first place, it wouldn't come, nor was there any hope to pull her out of her sadness. After all, the essence of hope still slept, or was perhaps the same as she was, drowning in sadness, desperate to hear another, yet too sad to even make the call…

 

Piyomon, like the others, like her partner, was sad too, sad and powerless… She wanted to help Sora, perhaps loved her human partner, if only in a platonic way… Still, it hurt her so much to see the girl she loved so sad, human and pink little bird, “love” might not have seemed the right word to most, most would say they were too different to love… But she had felt love's power, she had felt that caring energy come through and turn her into a mighty phoenix, then a mightier one, and she knew her feelings for the girl were strong…

 

And that's why, as Sora was being destroyed by sadness, Piyomon cried too, so sad she was that she could do nothing for her…

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

But they were all crying now… Chosen and digimon, any who had lived through that adventure, their sorrows different, maybe, but still so strong… Taichi may be saddened by the failure of his leadership this time, Mimi for how they had drifted apart, Sora and Takeru for how stagnant this time was, Jou, for all his steadiness, still feeling that sorrow he could no longer hold back, Andromon for reasons he, as a robot, could not even explain, Hikari because her victory made her friends so sad, Piyomon, and probably Gabumon, Agumon, Gomamon, Patamon, Tailmon, Palmon and Tentomon for that matter, sad because they could not reach the chosen… The gods wept too, if only for what they found themselves needing to inflict upon this world, or simply because their divine powers could do nothing for the saviors of this world, and Penmon cried for her partner's coldness…

 

Eternity can seem to pass quickly, and a few minutes can seem like eternity… These days had been long, but their sorrows had not yet even waned… Pumpmon, Gotsumon, Wizarmon, Piccolomon, Chuumon,, Whamon, Leomon, even Vamdemon, reviled enemy though he was… They missed all of them, great as adventures were, the casualties still brought them sorrow, the digital world had always been bittersweet…

 

Would it stay this way? Then again, these days, it seemed only bitter. If a new adventure came, wouldn't it have that same suffering involved, that tinged bit of every victory that was only darkness?

 

But there was one who, if evil and uncertain, was at least not broken yet. And maybe it would be through her deeds, dark as they were, that could end this stagnant, doubled day of memory, and create the new adventure they had wanted so badly…

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Noriko still stood at that place that, considering whom it held, could be referred to as “The gates of hell.” And hell was indeed what she would bring to the digital world soon, a hell of the past, another repeat… These memories had been running through the heads of all of them for years anyway, what was the point, if she couldn't create anything new?

 

She didn't see one. But she would still try, it didn't matter if it was pointless… A sliver of hope was better than no hope, a one percent chance was better than nothing, and a repeat that could barely, if at all, match up to the adventures of old was still better than this stagnant era.

 

So with that slight, almost invisible glimmer of hope in her eyes, she glanced down at the map and recited those words…

 

A ghoulish, ghastly digimon, an almost human-sized, small-winged black creature, an eye held in it's small, undead arms… Most would have expected something like Devimon, a virus-type nightmare soldier with a nice laugh, ability to channel powers of darkness, and really big and imposing wings.

 

No, this might not have had the right appearance… But the terror even the Tsarina felt, that was real enough, and the power he held… The ultimate level, that form beyond “complete” or “perfect” or “fully evolved”(Depending on which term you prefer), a digimon that could call itself truly powerful, one who was once sealed behind the wall of fire… A rival, or an ally, Noriko didn't know, and she had no clue what divine manipulations went into his release.

 

But at least now, she was confident things would be a bit more… Interesting. And with that she left, the rebirth of Deathmon complete, the ghoul's demonic, maniacal laughter echoing into the digital night.