NeoWorld
Chapter 2 - First Time for Everything
Pink-tinged grass waved gentle in a breeze, beneath a gray sky. An Elecmon padded through the grass, sniffing the ground. His ears perked and he looked up at the clouds. With a shriek he turned and dashed off, just before a huge portal opened up, spitting out nine shapes. Both humans and Digimon hit the ground hard. Kerai was the first to get up, shaking her head in an effort to clear it.
"Is everyone okay?" she asked.
"No matter how many times I go between the worlds, I'll never get used to it," CB groaned, pushing herself up off the ground. She stood as the others did, and began brushing herself off.
"What a ride," Minako remarked.
"I-I'm okay," Felicia said, glancing over at Kerai.
"Yeah, me too," Talia piped up, straightening her glasses. She blinked and gasped, looking around. "Whoa...is this the Digital World?"
"Yep, this is our home," Kiramon replied. The four DigiDestined looked around in silence, taking in their new surroundings.
They stood in an expansive field that stretched out as far as the eye could see in almost every direction. Thick clouds choked the sky; muffled lightning crashed here and there. A dark forest was off to the east, its blackened trees making it look evil and forbidding. Something thin and mud-colored seemed to burn on the horizon; closer investigation would reveal it to be a collection of earthen huts in a long-since abandoned village.
"Trust me, it looks a lot better when it's not poisoned by evil," CB reassured.
"Alright. So we're here. Now what?" Minako asked, folding her arms.
"We need to see about finding allies," Spaniemon remarked.
"Allies would be nice," Marinamon hastily agreed.
"You guys know this place a lot better than we do," Minako stated, looking at CB and the Digimon. She gestured out across the field. "Lead on."
"Wait, wait, which way do we go?" Kerai asked.
"Well, there's a forest over there," Felamon announced, pointing.
"Yeah, but it looks majorly creepy," Marinamon gulped. She glanced up at Kerai, who was staring at her. "What?"
"What about...what about over there?" Felicia softly asked, pointing to the south.
"That...that used to be a Tsunomon village," Spaniemon said in a quiet voice. "There's no one there anymore..." There was a long moment of silence, until Minako spoke up.
"CB, right? Which way do we go?"
"Well..." CB muttered, scratching her head. "If I remember correctly, there's an ocean to the north, that is--or was--guarded by a huge, oceanic Digimon called Plesiomon. There's a chance he might join our side. If he's still there, anyway..."
"Sounds like a good chance to me," Kiramon said with a happy nod.
"Let's go!" Minako said, grinning. The group started north after a moment, unaware of a pair of sinister eyes watching them from the weeds. The little Elecmon turned and bounded away. Somewhere far away, in a nasty corner of the Digiworld, a dark figure was well aware of the news the Elecmon was bringing.
"So...she thinks she can save this world..." the being hissed. Green eyes glittered, as a dark chuckle rang out. "How funny." A second form stepped up, this one in bulky, round gold armor, compared to the human-like build of the first speaker.
"She apparently thinks 4 humans are going to do it," the new arrival remarked.
"Yes, well, we should be wary anyway. She has been known to bring out the light in others."
"So, what should we do?" asked the armored one. The first speaker turned.
"We'll keep an eye on them. If needed, we'll send someone out to test them, to see if we have anything to worry about." The petite human form stepped forward, those emerald eyes looking over one shoulder. "Take whoever you wish, and go spy on those kids."
"Right away," the bulky Digimon said, bowing. She turned and stepped away.
***
"Well, here we are," CB announced, holding her arms out wide. She and the others stood on the grayed sands of a deserted beach.
"It's quiet," Felicia softly remarked.
"Sadly, it's too quiet. I don't think Plesiomon is here," Marinamon sighed. She walked towards the gently rolling ocean. "I don't like seeing the beach so quiet. It's depressing."
"I know, I don't like it either," CB muttered.
"So what now? There's nobody here," Kerai stated.
"We don't know that. I say we search," Minako suggested.
"Me too. There might be someone around," Kiramon agreed. There were several nods, and the group started walking down the shoreline. Two Digimon watched the humans and their partners from behind a sand bank. The first nodded to the second, her gold armor gleaming as she moved closer. The other there nodded, and followed.
"I don't see any sign of any Digimon," Felamon reported, walking at the front of the group.
"We'll just keep looking, then," Talia said.
"Why keep looking when you've found someone!" a sudden voice shouted. The DigiDestined stopped and turned as two Digimon jumped down to them. Felicia gave a little shriek of surprise, and took a step back. CB narrowed her eyes.
"You again," she growled.
"Who are they?" Kerai asked. The gold-armored Digimon stepped forward, fluttering her wings.
"My name is Butterflymon, chief commander of my queen's legion of darkness. I have been ordered to come here and--"
"Deal with you saps!" interrupted the Digimon with her.
"Umm...CB...?" Talia said, trailing off.
"It's true. Butterflymon is an agent of the Digimon you're here to stop, and so is that BlackGargomon with her," CB confirmed.
"Ah, we can take these guys!" Marinamon said confidently, walking forward. She looked over her shoulder at her partner. "Can we fight?"
"Umm..." Kerai muttered.
"Let them fight," BlackGargomon sneered. "I'm all for a little butt-kicking."
"Digimon," Minako began, swinging her arm forward, making CB duck as it came around, "ATTACK!" At the shout, Spaniemon, Kiramon, Felamon and Marinamon ran forward, two each going for the enemy Digimon.
"White Claw!" Marinamon growled, jumping at slashing at BlackGargomon. The gun bunny jumped back, and brought up his arm. Marinamon gulped, just before being blown back with a quick shot. Kiramon let out an angry whinny, galloping for BlackGargomon. She leapt over the slightly smoking Marinamon, as she brought down her horn.
"Horn Attack!" BlackGargomon fell back, and Kiramon moved to ram him again.
"Come on, Spaniemon, you can do it!" Minako cheered. She watched as her partner rolled out of the way of a purple cloud from Butterflymon, then leapt up and aimed a kick. Felamon pounced on the bug, and began slashing at her.
"Wow," Felicia said, looking on in awe. "They're really fierce"
"Oh, this is nothing." CB chuckled, and grinned. "Wait until after they can digivolve."
"'Digivolve'?" Kerai repeated. She turned back to the battle at a cry of "Bubble Beam!" from her Digimon, which sent BlackGargomon skidding across the sands from the force of the stream of bubbles. Repeated Energy Shot attacks from Kiramon kept him down. Butterflymon glanced over, and growled.
"Fool!" She flapped her wings and flew up, glaring down at her enemies.
"Coward!" Minako shouted up. "Get down and fight!"
"Another time, DigiDestined!" Butterflymon threatened. She hissed faintly, and vanished in a swirl of black flames.
"I think we won," Marinamon said hesitantly. Talia turned.
"BlackGargomon is still here." The others glanced over towards the dark Digimon, who was sprawled out on a singed part of the beach nearby. He tried to push himself up, with a great deal of difficulty.
"I'll...get you!..." he growled through a pained expression. He watched CB step closer. With a soft snarl, he tried to move back.
"Easy, easy," CB comforted. She knelt beside BlackGargomon, reaching forward to place a hand on his forehead. At her touch, his eyelids became heavy, and he relaxed, soon starting to snore.
"He's asleep," Talia whispered. She looked at CB. "How'd you do that?"
"Comes with my job," CB said with a nervous laugh. She looked back at BlackGargomon, pressing her palm against his temple. "Hmm.. The darkness is strong within him."
"Well duh. He's a BlackGargomon," Marinamon quipped. CB gave her a look.
"Yeah, but not all 'Black' Digimon are evil." Turning back, she patted his cheek and stood up. "But I can help him. It'll take every bit of energy I've got, but I can do it."
"That's good," Kiramon said, sighing in relief. She and the others stepped back as CB became MarineAngewomon, and bent down again. Everyone watched as she held her hands out over him and closed her eyes. After a long, silent moment, white light began to slowly fall from her fingers, flowing into BlackGargomon. MarineAngewomon gasped sharply, arching back as the flow of light became stronger, gushing into the sleeping Digimon. It spread over his body and vanished, seemingly absorbed. With a small sound, MarineAngewomon collapsed, Minako and Kerai diving forward to catch her as she fell back.
"MarineAngewomon!" Talia exclaimed. Kiramon nuzzled her partner reassuringly.
"It's alright. She just ran out of energy."
"Oh..."
"A day or so of rest will do her good," Spaniemon said, smiling as she walked forward. "I remember being at the Council HQ once when she did the same thing for a Tortomon."
"You know," Felicia started, "I think rest would do us all some good...Felamon looks a little tired, and so do the others."
"I'm not tired," Marinamon said, in the middle of a yawn.
"Suuurreee you're not," Kerai chuckled.
"So, I guess we make camp or something? Until MarineAngewomon wakes up?" Talia asked. There was no answer, because at that moment, BlackGargomon began to stir. He grunted softly, then sat up, rubbing his head.
"Oof...did anyone get the name of that Monochromon who ran me over?" he groaned. He opened his eyes, glancing around. "Where am I?"
"You're...not going to attack us...are you?" Felamon asked.
"Attack?" BlackGargomon repeated. He blinked, then glanced down, remembering. "Oh..."
"It's alright. We knew you were under the influence of evil," Kiramon said in a cheerful voice.
"That's...that's right," BlackGargomon muttered. He turned his head, and gasped faintly. "Is that MarineAngewomon??"
"Yeah," Kerai nodded, readjusting her hold on the fallen angel. "She used up most of her energy to heal you."
"Praise to the Council," BlackGargomon said, grinning. He pushed himself up, and shook the sand off his pants. "I'm so glad to be free. What can I do to repay you?"
"Just before you woke up, we were talking about setting up a campsite," Minako stated.
"Camp, huh?" BlackGargomon said. "I think human camps have fires, right? I can go gather wood."
"That'd be great," a voice said.
"MarineAngewomon!" Spaniemon exclaimed. Minako and Kerai moved back as the water angel sat up, smiling at BlackGargomon.
"So glad to see you're up."
"Thanks to you," BlackGargomon replied, smiling. He turned. "Now, I'll go see about getting that firewood." With that, he turned and flew off.
"Can we trust him?" Minako asked, watching as the dark bunny became a dot in the sky.
"If my healing worked," MarineAngewomon said, "then yes, we can." She looked at the rest with a smile. "Now, let's go ahead and find somewhere to set up camp, and turn in. We have a long day ahead of us."
***
Stars twinkled in the decidedly purple nighttime sky. The beach was quiet. Not specifically peaceful, just quiet. Storm clouds roared in the distance, but none shadowed the sands. A certain gunner Digimon stood guard near the surf, away from the camp so his newfound friends could get some sleep. Well, that worked in theory, but...
"Tell us again," Talia begged. CB laughed, and sat forward to poke the fire with a stick.
"Alright, alright."
Sleeping is made all that much more difficult when you have 9 girls, all eager to talk. CB grinned, starting her story again.
"So there we were, just me, a Digmon partner Digimon, and a Flamedramon partner Digimon, trying to keep an attacking Monzaemon from trying to find our hideout." CB gestured as she spoke. "We were standing at the top of a hill, when suddenly here he comes, stomping and growling and tearing his way through the brush! We were just 2 Armors and a Rookie--I couldn't digivolve at the time--against one Ultimate." She paused. "I already explained the levels, right?"
"Yep," Minako nodded.
"Alright," CB said. She continued with her tale. "So anyway, there we stood, ready for what we thought would be our last fight. Here comes Monzaemon. He thuds up to where we were, and he starts using his attack, so we get ready. Suddenly, he stops because his stomach growls! Monzaemon looked down at us, then said 'Sorry, I'll have to take a rain check. It's lunchtime!' and thunders off the way he'd came." Laughter rang out over the sands at the light story on the dark night. Kerai snapped her fingers, and looked at CB.
"I heard you say 'digivolve' during the fight. What exactly is that?" she asked.
"Come to think of it, I heard it too," Talia commented.
"Oh digivolving! It's fun," Kiramon said, smiling.
"Yep!" Marinamon quickly agreed. "It's where we go from our 'look-at-me-I'm-so-weak' forms to 'I'm-SO-going-to-kick-your-butt!' bigger forms!" Spaniemon and the other Digimon laughed softly at the explanation, and shared a group eyeroll. CB giggled, and crossed her legs, taking out her laptop. She opened it, and began typing.
"I've got some footage saved on here that might explain it better," she announced. After entering a few more commands, she turned the laptop so everyone could see. On the screen, a media player opened up; a home movie started moments later, after a bit of static.
The wobbly view showed a grassy lawn on a sunny day. A wooden table appeared as the camera was tilted; the picture became steady when it was set on the tabletop. The timestamp in the right corner read "7/13/01." Nothing happened for a moment, until something resembling a silver Veemon hopped onto the table and leaned into the shot.
"A warning to all those out there. This was Davis's idea, not mine," the Digimon said in a female voice. "He wanted to mark the day after Veemon could finally digivolve to Champion. Why, I don't know..."
"Izumimon, quit it!" a scratchy voice said off-camera. The Digimon hopped out of shot, just before a tan brunette wearing goggles grinned at the camera. "She's just playing." Standing up, the young teen spoke to someone out of the picture. "Got the camera under control?"
"Yeah," answered the same silver Digimon, Izumimon. The picture trembled as the camera was picked back up. Izumimon walked forward and zoomed in one a blue dragon standing in the grass: Veemon.
"Ready?" asked the goggleboy.
"Sure am, Davis!" Veemon responded, though it sounded more like "Shure am, Davish!"
"Then do your stuff!" The picture zoomed out, as a D-3 began beeping.
"VEEMON DIGIVOLVE TO...EXVEEMON!"
"Yay, Veemon!" Izumimon's voice cheered, as she ran the shot up and down ExVeemon's body.
"ExVeemon, you rock!" Davis said excitedly, stepping into view. He patted his partner's thigh, and gave the camera a V-sign. "ExVeemon, Champion Digimon extraordinaire!" Just before the video ended, ExVeemon put a hand on his stomach.
"Can we get something to eat?"
"There you go," CB said, smiling. She turned off the laptop and shut it. "And each Digimon has the power to go to a better, stronger form."
"Who was that kid?" Kerai asked.
"Him? Oh..." CB said. Her smile fell for just a moment, before she brightened again. "That was Davis, one of the...the DigiDestined I mentioned earlier. With...any luck, you'll be able to meet him, and Tai, and Izzy..." Sighing, she stared down at the corner of her laptop. "And everyone else..." CB sat like that for a long moment, before making the computer vanish and standing up.
"CB...?" Felicia said softly. The digi-girl turned to face the others, smiling.
"It's bedtime, guys. I gotta go and contact the Holy Angels Council, but I'll be down soon, too. And don't worry, until I come to sleep, BlackGargomon is standing watch nearby." She started to walk away, but was stopped by a sudden question from Felamon.
"Mrowr...are you going to be alright?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine," CB replied, smiling. "Now go to sleep, guys. We head off in the morning." The DigiDestined and Digimon said their good nights and started to bed down, as CB walked on down the shoreline, pulling from her pocket what looked like a small microphone headset with a few extra buttons on the earpiece, and no wire. She slipped it on her left ear just as she got out of hearing range. The middle button was pressed, and a channel opened up.
"Hello? Anyone there?" CB asked. A voice spoke up on the other side, and she brightened. "Cherubimon! Hiya!... Yeah, I'm here with the humans... We're at Plesiomon's beach... No, no one's here... Hey, I'll tell you all about their first time here with my next report, but I need to talk to Gennai right now... Sure, I'll wait." CB slowly paced back and forth, silent. After a few steps, someone on the other line spoke, and she stopped.
"Gennai, greetings. It's MarineAngewomon... Yeah, I'm here, and the four humans made it... Actually, we were attacked today... Mm-hmm, they did great! You should have seen them..." CB sat down, crossing her legs.
"Hey Gennai, has there been any word from the others?... I see. What about Liekkomon?... Nothing from him either, huh... Yeah, I know." She nodded once. "We'll find everyone someday... Yeah, I have no worries about that." She turned and looked on down the beach, where the team was already asleep. CB smiled. "I have a lot of faith in these kids. Talia, Kerai, Minako, Felicia, they can do it. They can make everything right in the end. Just you wait and see."
~To be continued.
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