Chapter One

"War, Davis, is not about winning. It's not about courage, comradeship, or blood spill either. If you held war in any sort of white light, called it dignified in your mind, would you please strip it of those ideas. War is nothing more than ignorant, immature adults who are allowed to shoot a gun, and think they have found a reason, and a person, to shoot at."

Deep lines creased the brow of the team's brave leader as he said this. His gaze pierced well into the horizon from their high altitude, but a person didn't need to see far to watch the carnage. Deep in the desert large clouds of smoke billowed up to the gray sky, and at their bases were fiery orange moieties of explosions, half circles hugging the charred ground. There were no more towns or people down there now, and if there were they would be badly injured. The entire digital team was present to watch, to despair, as the angry explosions ripped through the digital world, and the scintilla scent of burning earth and bodies drifted up to them on a soughing wind.

"Who is doing this?" Jou mumbled, almost to himself. Far back in his thoughts he could remember the images of Hiroshima; the death tolls, the reason. Even after years of contemplating the motive didn't seem legitimate. He agreed whole heartedly with Taichi on the matter of reason; there was no valid reason to kill so many people.

"I wish that we could do something," stated Mimi quietly, "but I think that we just don't have that special something anymore."

Taichi set his jaw hard, thinking of all the things that they could have done against such a monster in their younger days. Even the second generation of the digital world saviors were loosing that "special something", and no word had been heard concerning children to replace them. Utterly worthless, though, to think about what could have been done in a different place and time. Now continued to be now, and no one had the option of turning that around. He studied the faces of his comrades and saw the same thoughts in their eyes. Either they wait for some replacements, or they try and fight anyway. Taichi knew that they would lose should it come to fighting, but he would be sure to make an end worth remembering. And yet, worth remembering by whom? His eyes glowered at this thought and returned to the explosion-riddled milieu. No one; because that was the warrior's way.

"You're not a warrior, Taichi, so don't force yourself to think like one."

For the first time that day, a smile creased the long-forgotten lines on Taichi's face at the sound of Jenai's old man voice. Finally the day of news would come to the digidestined.

"What long-expected news do you bring, Jenai? Don't mistake I've been biting my fingernails waiting for you, or is that the kind of grand entrance that you want?"

"No, no, Taichi, I would not wish to be so dramatic (bad for the heart). I had pressing matters to attend to, ones which needed my attention for many months. I am sorry I sent no word, but it was impossible, you see, for I was in the wilderness, making very careful and imperative decisions. Decisions that might be enough to stop this war," he sighed then, and he looked twice as old as he had ever been before. He scanned the faded line in the distance with his wrinkled and hazy blue eyes, bunching up his shoulders with copious amounts of worries by the minute.

"Jenai," Tai said softly, and placed a hand reassuringly on the man who was half his height, "did these decisions deal with a new generation of digidestined?"

The withered man raised his puffy white eyebrows high, clearly confused.

"New digidestined? Oh, no, no, that would take years and years to decide. Why, all of you were chosen at birth and so we had to wait quite a few years for you to save us." He laughed at the group's surprised visages and continued in his slow, comforting voice. "No, Taichi, I was deciding just who among you would become active as a digidestined again."

The group gaped at him openly, even Koushiro and Ken, who were now very refined gentlemen indeed. He chuckled a few times and then spoke again, much too slow to the likes of his impatient listeners.

"Yes, yes, I know what you all are thinking. You're probably thinking that you are much too old to do anymore adventuring."

"No, sir, Jenai," Koushiro said as he stepped in, "I always was under the impression that the possibility of digivolving declined at a certain age."

"Which it does, which it does. I never put it beyond all of you to figure that one out. I understand that even our brave and fearless leader Taichi is coming up upon his twenty-ninth year. Ha, you still look to be fifteen, with all your muscles and good looks. It's in my knowledge that your ability to have your digimon, Agumon was his name if I'm not mistaken, digivolve began to disintegrate around your fifteenth birthday. Now, that is why I said 'active again'. Unfortunately, only a handful of you can be selected." He took a deep breath and tried to meet their pressing eyes. "This, as it seems, is what took me so long to decide. I chose to not tell you as to not favor any of you. Five of you can be chosen, no more and no less. So, with much deliberation betwixt my instinct and my reason, I have chosen those I think would work the greatest together and would save this planet for sure.

"Daisuki: your natural leading skills have improved and blossomed since your first adventures here, as well as your control. Your strength, leadership, and courage are the first things essential to making this plan work. I have chosen you to be the company's leader. Do you accept?"

Daisuki nodded vigorously, not sure whether to be beaming or afraid for his life. He glanced over at Taichi, wondering if there would be any hard feelings after this. Perhaps Taichi would still tag along. In fact, he had no doubt that the ultra-perfect leader (in his eyes) would be chosen to go. It was no secret that Taichi was the strongest in the group.

"Good. I thank you from the bottom of my heart, Daisuki. And in accordance to your personality, I have chosen a person that I think will be both helpful and invaluable. Koushiro: I need you to do the technical planning on this mission. Your brains and bottomless knowledge will surely make this mission possible. I know that you accept."

Koushiro smiled a gaucherie grin, also feeling the first seeds of fear plant themselves.

"Thank you. Hikari: Your grace and wonderful healing powers will undoubtedly be enhanced on this mission. When one is hurt, I need you to be there for them, both spiritually and physically. Can you do this for me and for the digital world?"

"I will do my best, Jenai," she said quietly. Catching Taichi's glance, she quickly slapped on a grin and forced a small "gee-no-pressure" laugh. Jenai smiled back at her seemingly irrepressible happiness.

"Takeru, your strength and cool head are needed to complete this group. Will you accept being the last member to this company?"

Takeru looked at him oddly, and then around at everyone else.

"I will accept, but weren't there supposed to be five people?"

"Yes, five. You, Hikari, Koushiro, Daisuki, and..." He trailed off slowly, his mouth closing up and then opening again. "Oh no..." he stuttered, "I forgot to put one more person in!"

He stared off into space for a long while, not even blinking, while the rest of the team stood on their toenails wondering who he would pick at such short notice. All thought that they would be helpful in some way, but mostly all wanted to feel the sensation of fighting again. Several moments passed until Jenai finally looked someone in the eye again.

"It seems that I have made a dreadful error, one not worth forgiveness. I need your help once again, digidestined, for I am too tired to make the decision. Choose among yourself who should go and I shall deem it correct or not."

With that, he sat back on a large rock and stared at the deadly silent group. Finally, Jou broke the silence.

"I think that Tai should go. He is the leader and the strongest of us all."

Surprisingly to all, Taichi shook his head. "No, Jou, being the leader is Davis' responsibility now. Someone strong should go, but they don't necessarily have to be the strongest of all."

"Then Matt would probably be the best choice, right?" Sora piped in, clinging onto her husband's arm tightly.

"I wouldn't want to leave you though. I mean, we have a family. What if I got killed?"

In the background Taichi rolled his eyes and spat, but all were too busy looking away from the swooning couple to see.

"What about Miyako? Or Mimi?"

"Well," Taichi hissed, "those are the only choices left, aren't they?"

"Iori."

Everyone coughed simultaneously and averted their eyes. No way Iori was going.

"Very interesting," Jenai said from his perch, "that you should pick one of your weakest. Actually, I take that back, because Miyako isn't very weak. In fact, if you give me those two to chose from, I would choose... ah, Mimi."

"Mimi!" cried the entire group, surprised at Jenai's reaction when they had only been kidding not a moment before.

"Me!" Mimi shouted, "but I'm just no good at those fights and all!"

"Perhaps, but that's what Daisuki and Takeru are for. You, my dear, are for spirit."

"Spirit? What is that supposed to mean?"

"You'll understand in due time. Do you accept or not?"

Mimi looked back and forth between everyone, caught like gum in hair. Ultimately she slumped her shoulders and gave in to the tenebrous eyes.

"Alright, I'll go, but those boys better promise to not get me killed!"

"They will," Jenai promised solemnly, and then turned to Taichi, "Taichi, thank you for understanding. I was afraid that..."

"I have other things to do, Jenai, and places to be where I'm needed more."

"I see. And my thanks goes to all the rest of you, and may you wish your friends the best of luck on this mission. It is a dangerous one. Now, I must be leaving you, for I have other things to do, more people to see." He hopped down from the rock and was already disappearing when Daisuki grabbed his arm.

"Wait, Mr. Jenai, you didn't tell us where to begin, or even who the target is."

"Target? Daisuki, you still have a lot to learn about war and its motives, and perhaps that is why I chose you, but all you have to know for your mission is to: follow those explosions, but be careful not to get hurt. Oh! And one more thing! Your digimon!"

The wrinkly fingers snapped loudly in the cold silence; even the explosion sounds rested for a moment. Out from the circumambient trees five digimon appeared and jumped into the awaiting arms of their masters. They looked healthy and in good spirits, particularly Gatoman, who's fur was shinning from a recent brushing. War was temporarily forgotten as human and digimon embraced. Jenai smiled his crooked toothed smile and turned back to the digidestined who weren't chosen.

"Seeing as you have no protection against this war, it would be wise to put all faith in your friends and not return to the digital world until I see that it is fit."

Six heads nodded in unity to the evaporating old man, each head holding its own not very risible thoughts. As the last particles of Jenai dispersed into the gathering wind, the digidestined team stared off after the inexplicable explosions, experiencing unwanted deja vus. Out there, they all thought, might hold death for one or more of their friends.

The sun was setting slowly to the east, yet the sky was still painted orange by the fire. Taichi embraced his sister affectionately, and kissed her forehead softly.

"Hikari," he whispered quietly into her ear, "be careful, and stay close to Davis, he'll protect you, I know he will." He stared at her smooth face, picturing her cherubic face as a child, and it was suddenly hard to accept her virago attitude now. He brought his hand up to touch her face, but she clasped it midway and squeezed hard.

"Even though I have Gatoman with me, I'll take your advice to the heart, big brother."

"Good, now get this job done fast, because I'll be missing you on Earth."

She accented her agreement with head movements, and then pushed him playfully towards the portal.

"Get going, we won't take long."

And so everyone said their farewells as cheerfully as they could manage, but there still hung a doom-riddled atmosphere over their heads - it showered them with rain when they said goodbye and deprecated their spirits with hail as they hugged their friends for perhaps the last times. At the end of all the mumbling and hugs, the sun was naught but a thin ribbon of red light on the horizon, and even that was engulfed by the mingling of explosions. Jou's thin chest heaved up in a heavy sigh, and his stomach ballooned outward with the exhaling of the forbidding air.

"I hope you guys don't come across too big of a monster out there," he murmured, actually quite convinced that they would.

"Alright," Taichi waved his hand, "I think it's time to leave our friends to their mission. Good luck on your fights guys, and...also good luck on your finding food and water to live off of."

Daisuki gasped in morbid realization of a serious problem, but Mimi just laughed and clapped her hands.

"Oh don't you worry about that, Tai! I brought plenty of food like I always do when we go to the digital world, so we'll be set for awhile."

"Yeah, but is it perishable?"

"Um...some is, yes, but we can just eat that first!"

"Hey, Mimi, I brought some food too that you can take along. All of it is pretty much nonperishable, so it'll last until the end. That is, unless you eat it all too fast."

"Thank you, Yolei! This will really help out a lot, I'm sure, but...does anyone have any water? I mean, I'm not sure we want to be drinking out of rivers if we're going to be following that trail of explosions, because of fall-out and all."

As everyone looked back and forth at each other, Jenai suddenly made another surprising appearance.

"Hello again!" he cried, "I almost forgot something!"

He threw out water bottles like Santa Clause to the five digidestined, and actually laughed like jolly old Saint Nick to go along with it.

"Yes, yes, I see you eyeing that small water bottle desperately, Daisuki, but fear not! for this is a special bottle, one that has a certain feature you will be most thankful for. Behold!"

He yanked out another water bottle, unscrewed the cap with one great spin, and downed the whole thing. Miraculously, the water seemed to regroup from nowhere to refill the bottle. After a mighty belch, he chugged it again, and the water came back again.

"You see!" he hiccupped, "this will be invaluable on your journey!" Then he nudged the nearest person to him and whispered, "A special gift from higher beings who thought you could use a hand, or a magical water bottle for that matter."

With another great bellow of laughter (much too cheerful for the situation ahead) he spun around and vanished.

"Alright, then I guess that solves that problem," Koushiro mumbled, staring at the ordinary looking contraption suspiciously.

And while the first stars of the digital world gleamed overhead, the five digidestined said goodbye one last time, and headed off on the trail of the explosions, hoping that they would lead them somewhere of importance.

Daisuki took the lead automatically, and led them southeast, where the fire was merely a dim glow on the farthest point of the horizon. They trudged in single file for a long while, without one word spoken since the descent from the mesa. Koushiro was behind the grim leader, then Hikari, Mimi, and Takeru brought up the rear. Their digimon walked alongside of their long-absent masters, somewhat disappointed with the greeting. Still, loyalty shined brightly in their eyes as they tried to match step with the digidestined, each feeling in their hearts the sense of danger again.

Dark smoke clouds cluttered most of the sky, resulting in a deep black night and few visible stars. The only light to guide them were the rapidly disappearing explosions, but not much light was needed for foot placement on this ground for it was barren and brown, with no living things or debris left to hinder their movement. The smell, though, was unbearable. The scent was a mixture of many things that the digidestined didn't really want to know about. It encompassed them like a thick woolen blanket, smothering their senses and thoughts with its rancid smell. Still they walked on without rest, playing 'Follow the Leader' with a silent Daisuki, who's eye was fixed on the receding light. He didn't want to lose that light, for it was their guide and only guess to the enemy, so if it disappeared completely, he would run to see it again.

Late that night, some two hours before dawn, the latter happened.

Daisuki paused for a moment and turned back to the players in the game.

"Get ready to chase me," he said with a boyish grin, and then sprinted off into the dark.

"Davis! Come back here!"

Reluctantly, they followed suit after Mimi's startled cry. Koushiro could just see the faint outline of Daisuki and Veemon, and could only hear the heavy pounding of his feet. He knew that he wasn't an athlete, he never had been one anyway. The hours of walking had already made his legs ache terribly, and now the extra strain of running was stretching his low stamina to the limit. Slowly but surely, the two sleek figures in front of him faded totally into the night.

Koushiro's raspy breathing ahead of her frightened Hikari as much as Daisuki's abrupt decision had. She wasn't putting her best foot forward and still she was on Koushiro's heels. Behind her she could hear Mimi's labored breathing also, and she wondered how long they could keep this up. Daisuki was in good physical form, as was Takeru, and she was alright, but Mimi and Koushiro were not all that great strength wise. She smiled as her legs carried her smoothly along, wondering if it was possible to have brains or beauty and still be fit. If it was, then there would be no use for teams, and this mission would have been done by one person. One person, her mind echoed, one person...

Ten minutes later Daisuki caught sight of an orange line far away and slowed his pace to a fast walk. He turned and walked backwards for awhile, intently watching the jogging form of Koushiro. The genius was staring at his feet and, as it looked to Daisuki, barely shuffling. Behind Koushiro he saw the rest walking a medium pace, all held up by Koushiro. He sighed and waited for the group to catch up, pondering how far they could possibly get with this (he refrained from saying 'thing') man holding them up. Now, he had the highest respect for Koushiro's brain power, but wasn't it the slightest bit possible that the man could run a mile a day or something? It was a miracle that he didn't weigh three hundred pounds by now, even if he was only twenty-eight.

"Come on! It's going to disappear again if we don't go fast enough!"

The group reformed and walked quickly, once again with Daisuki in the lead, who continuously urged them to pick up the speed. He was regretting the extended goodbyes at the mesa (which when he looked back was hidden in the night, along with the ever-bright portal) and wasn't sure as to how they would make up the time. He felt suddenly the holes between them all, the ones that had snuck up in between days and then ripped blackness into their friendships, the absence of closeness, and he remembered how the group used to look, friendly and cheerful, and compared it to tonight's visages, which mirrored shallowness and conceitedness. When had all this happened? He shook his head slowly and forced himself to walk on without considering the matter more, and just to leave it at that. But the thought came back into his mind when glanced back and saw Hikari, wearing wrinkles on her normally smooth brow. He had the sudden want to stroke the blemishes out of the silk her face was, hold her closer and just protect her. Hadn't that always dominated his thoughts a few years ago? How could he have forgotten how he had felt about her? He whipped his face back around to the front and steadied his gaze to the orange in the sky. Hikari... The old feelings were coming back now in full force, ones he had buried so long ago when he had moved on. Yet even after that milestone she had smelled so sweet when close, felt so perfect when they accidentally touched each other... His heart throbbed painfully against the memories, the ones involving Takeru. Takeru. That one person that had always stood between him and Hikari, was - wait, what was he talking about? Takeru wasn't some evil person, he was his friend. Friend, yeah.

Morning dawned hazy and clouded, threatening to pour rain on them if they made the slightest move. Maybe feeling the morning's malcontent, they sat down on the dead earth and had their first breakfast of the journey. The foul smell still lingered and would have turned off their hunger if the food hadn't looked so tempting. The food was a nice link to the society that was but a day old in their hearts, and they took each bite with a slow thoughtfulness, wondering when that society would become fresh again. With full stomachs conversation seemed possible, but they spoke in whispers, secretly afraid of disturbing the silence around them.

"I wonder why Tai didn't come," Mimi said after a lull in the voices. Hikari stuffed her face with another rice ball and smiled at Mimi.

"He'd have to stay behind to tell all the people who want to come here that the digital world is temporarily...down, if that's the correct word."

"Still, he was a really great leader. I just feel safer when he's around."

"Yeah, so do I."

Hikari caught Daisuki's eye and held it for a moment, thinking of her brother's words. Daisuki was very much like Taichi, but the feeling she got just wasn't the same. It was the feeling of a complete stranger mentally undressing you that she got with Daisuki, but just not as bad. He flashed a carefree smile at her, but the imbroglio in his eyes was a weaving of concern and hard thoughts, born during last night's march. But that's just part of becoming a true leader, she thought.

They packed the remaining food and set off at a quick pace, for Daisuki was determined to gain on the faster moving explosions. No breath was spared in favor of talking all that day, they did not stop for lunch and it was not questioned that they didn't stop, they just kept walking. Their water bottles were drained and refilled numerous times, but remarkably no one needed to go to the bathroom in the span of time from breakfast, to when they finally stopped for dinner.

An exhausted group of people and their digimon fell upon the dirt as soon as Daisuki stopped moving. He looked over his shoulder disapprovingly, but acceded that they could rest here tonight. Besides, he added, they were as close as he wanted to get to the explosions.

Mimi sat back dejectedly after half-heartedly digging through a bag for food. Her stomach churned and complained just at the notion of eating and it was all because of the putrid smell surrounding them.

"I think I'm going to hurl," Koushiro moaned, clutching his midsection tightly.

"Please don't," said the lackadaisical Takeru, but he averted his eyes just in case the message didn't get across.

"Why does it smell so bad?"

"Because digimon probably died here, Mimi. Burned up like that." Davis snapped his fingers and scowled.

"That's terrible!" she cried, and clung grimly to Palmon.

"I wonder," said Takeru, "if our digimon will digivolve the same way like they always did. Do you want to try it, Patomon?"

The adorable digimon shook his head and explained quietly that he had 'no one to fight right now'.

"You could fight Veemon," Daisuki offered, "yeah, and then whoever wins gets something special, like a gas mask or something."

"Funny, Davis, funny. But that's just a waste of energy, so no."

"I was just kidding, you don't have to get so defensive all the time."

"All the time? I haven't seen you in months!"

Oh that's right, Daisuki mused, I was probably thinking about the old days. Funny how I don't feel this old...

"Sorry, I'm not sure what got into me."

And that was certainly the truth. They were all adults now, and adults didn't fight about stupid, nugatory stuff like digimon and Hikari. Well, maybe the latter was worth it, but maybe a fight wouldn't ensue for her attention.

The camp turned deadly silent after that outbreak and stayed quiet until Daisuki noticed that the whole lot of them were asleep, himself included. He started awake and chanced a glance at the sky. The sun was already above their heads and red-orange blasts could not be seen in any direction. He tried to push himself off the ground, but his arms were surprisingly limp yet ridged. His legs were in the same condition, even down to his smallest toe. He moved his eyes this way and that to try and get a look at his friends, but they were either gone or out of his viewing range. Then he noticed that the ground under him was no longer brown and cracked, but composed of cobbled stones, fastened together by some gray mortar. And on top of that, the sky above him was laced through with metal bars. Wait, that wasn't right, it must've been some sort of window...room...cell?

The last word made his heart struggled up into his throat and stay there, pumping, pumping, worrying, worrying. What had happened? When had they (or he) gotten here? He struggled hopelessly against his invisible bonds, alone and frightened in a small cell.

***********************

Taichi spun in circles on his swivel chair. He had just locked the doors of his travel agency business (an agency for travel to the digital world) against the crowds outside, who were now screaming and pounding on his windows. One might say that it was bad for business (his ignoring the crowd), but there was no other digital world travel agency anyway. Taichi closed the blinds, turned up some music louder, and started to spin around again.

He wasn't exactly thinking of anything in particular. His thoughts would wander aimlessly down the rooms of this building (which served as his home too), then to Sora and Matt's house (which he was very familiar with), and back to his old apartment with his family. His parents were dead now, all he had left was Hikari, and even she was on a suicidal mission. He didn't have any family; all he had was this business and his friends. Oh, and his own personal gym in the back of the building. He had just decided to head back that way when he heard a familiar shouting outside. He carefully opened the door, fended off some angry people who were wondering what was happening to their digimon, and let Sora in.

She beamed up at him in awe of his keen recognition, and slid past gracefully with her compact Japanese body. She was amazingly slim in light of having four children, and Taichi found himself wishing time and time again that he had been blessed enough to have been her husband. He had always felt so close to her, almost as close as Hikari was to his heart, but for some reason she had chosen Yamato. Ah well, those things were well in the past by now. He turned the music down and turned to the "one who had gotten away."

"How'd you find the time to get away from the kids?"

"I told them that their favorite uncle could come over for awhile if they behaved for their father. They rarely do, so I had to bribe them."

Taichi grinned at her boldness, for her kids' "favorite uncle" was none other than himself.

"Well, that's awful nice of you to invite me to see your kids, but I sort of had some plans."

"Like? You never have plans! Which still amazes me; Tai, you should really start dating someone. It's not like no one likes you. Your one of the hottest, I mean, nicest guys ever."

"Ah, I'm just waiting for that special someone I guess."

"Haven't found her?"

"I wouldn't say that," he trailed off meaningfully, but a deaf stranger could probably guess that he was talking about her.

She changed the subject rather abruptly, dragging him into a conversation that neither of them wanted to really talk about but felt obliged to.

"So what'd you really come to see me for?" Taichi asked suddenly. She sat down on his swivel chair and spun around in it once or twice and then dragged her sneaker-clad feet to a stop. Her subfusc eyes raised up to his questionably, and then fell back to the carpet.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean: why - did - you - come - to - see - me? There has to be some reason that you fought the crowds for."

"Well...Tai, I just wanted to...wanted to be with you I guess. I just felt bad after all that digital world stuff and... well, you being around always comforts me. That's why."

He fought the strong urge to sprint over and hug her small body to his, stroke her hair and mollify all her worries. Instead, he leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.

"Oh, yeah, that stuff."

The words sounded bland, nonchalant, which was exactly the effect that the master of being nonchalant had desired. He caught Sora raising her eyebrows in a manner of "whatever you say, lump of coal for a heart man", but felt no shame. He was certainly not obligated to disclose any of his thoughts to her, and yet here she sat, opening her heart and worries to him, not relying on her husband, but him, a long trusted friend. Long, that was an understatement by a mile.

"Should I go?" his guest asked rather sharply, and he forgot in a flash that matched the beat to the background music just what his façade should accomplish.

"No, no, please don't; I didn't mean to sound like that. Well, you know me, I just...don't like to show those things."

There was an awkward silence, in which Sora nodded her head politely and pushed back into the raging and foaming sea of the crowd outside. Her children did not get to see their favorite uncle as promised that night or any other night that whole week. There was an unsaid and uncomfortable feeling burning once sturdy bridges in their relationship down into an evil chasm below, a chasm that resounded so curtly with Yamato's spirit.

That sweet rapport which had been in their grasps for more than twenty years was losing its empathy, showing its raw and meager sidings, turning this way and that in their now loose fingers, and soon, oh so painfully soon, it was sure to slip. Then where would it head? Or was it some sort of backwards virus: killing its host by leaving it after such a long and soothing stay. A virus that had no other meaning but to kill without thought, for it couldn't think, one of the worst of the prokaryote type. The viruses' victim scraped down unto the floor, ripping at the carpet mindlessly. Echoing in his mind were the shouts and curses from outside, mingled mercilessly with Sora's polite yet sour nod. Why would such a thing be created to harm one so much! He cursed and loathed that twisted virus, taking an oath to meet it one day in hell.

***********************

Twenty and one belly rumblings from the time he woke up, Daisuki laughed at the open ceiling. It laughed back at him too, somehow knowing what his little joke was. You and me, it laughed, will be good buddies for some time to come. The smaller of the buddies gagged and retched at this silent response, and then spit precious saliva onto the floor, where it soon evaporated in a sizzle of steam.

It was ghastly hot. In the sky above only one star took witness to his happenings, and perhaps this was the one and the same that laughed at him, and perhaps it wasn't. In the hours or days or years following his waking, everything had seemed to personify itself, and all of his new buddies were laughing viciously at his predicament. He would have shaken a rueful fist at them, had the scratchy snakes wrapped around his wrists not bitten in so hard.

The shiny buddy way up high was painting his cheek and other exposed limbs with its special red fire paint. At every crease and relaxation of his muscles the paint stung more, until he was reduced to (not by choice) crying hot tears down onto the floor, where they immediately (if not before touching the stones) were wisped away on the rising heat.

His fingers were swollen purple with trapped blood, and even puffier with the inhumane heat. He laughed again, though, his cracked lips parting to release that wheezing sound, remembering with giddiness that he had forsaken all thoughts of being rescued from his mind. Then he heard the door cringe open.

"Hey, Davis? Are you in there?"

Of course I'm in here, can you not see me in this glaring sunlight? he shouted back to the intruder.

"Davis? Are you okay?"

Of course I am, now won't you leave me alone to play some more with all these wonderful snakes?

"Davis, there are no snakes in here with you. Look, I'm going to untie you, but I need you to be quieter, because..."

The bouncing sound of footsteps reached both of their ears almost at the same time, and Daisuki's rescuer/intruder closed the door in a hurry and dived under some limp straw in the corner.

There was no jangle of keys, only a gruff voice that sounded stout and at the same time reflected the image of its owner as being one of great stature.

"Hello little prisoner? Who might you be talking to?"

The sun, the heat, and my spit, the little prisoner replied.

"Is that so? Do they speak back in your state, or do they see you as less than worthy of that grace?"

Less than disgraced, I suppose.

"Now that doesn't make much sense, so I suppose as to give you some water, at the least."

The little prisoner would be much appreciative.

Then the keys jangled their fine yet shrill tune and the grating of the door was soon to join the ballad. In from the hallway came a sudden, apprehensive air and the gruff, stout, and tall voice spoke again.

"Did you open your door?"

Does it look like I could, was the prisoner's dry reply.

So the voice took it as a sign of guards that were anything but sedulous and huffed off towards somewhere, perhaps to chastise those careless guards, and left in such a hurry that the promised water never reached Daisuki's mouth.

"Davis," the intruder whispered again, "he left the door open, so let's hurry."

Pale hands grabbed his shoulders, but jumped back in quick reaction as Daisuki hollered in pain. Takeru, who was in fact the savior, looked down onto Daisuki's arm and saw a rapidly disappearing silhouette of his hand outlined in the burnt red skin of the little prisoner. Wait, little?

He took a double take on Daisuki's features and gaped openly in stupidity at his appearance. The man had shed off at least ten years! Bemused, he rubbed the back of his neck, and was just as nearly surprised at the slim feel of it. He looked down at his hands, which sure enough were that once familiar scene of weakness. No veins popped out at him, no knuckles looked out of place, it was all smooth and soft, and not to mention frightfully pale. And when he blinked, they returned to the hands of a man who has felt twenty five years.

Thundering footsteps rampaged down the hallway in response to the scream, followed quickly by the owner of the stout, tall voice poking his head into the doorway. His red, round face became redder at the sight of Takeru kneeling by the prisoner who wasn't little anymore, veins and eyes bulged in that visage of horror and his teeth grinded together with an unholy grating sound that knocked any spirit out of Takeru at all. Then the voice dashed up at an upsetting fast pace and knocked Takeru on the back of his broad neck, and he fell into a deep slumber at once, right onto Daisuki's red pain paint. He howled again for his sinister buddies to recognize the pain, but was caught halfway in between breaths by the voice's small but plump hand. He looked up, in terrifying dreamland, into the large, protruding eyes of the voice, and fainted clean away from fright as the voice rolled his eyes in either direction at the same time and laughed his putrid laugh.

"Davis, Davis. T.K., T.K. Are either of you conscious?"

"What is it?"

"It seems that a specific one of us is to be immolated."

"You don't say? To some sort of god?"

"Inanition, my dear Davis, is not always a positive thing to possess while others depend upon your judgment and care."

"Apologies."

"Silence!" shouted a robustious voice, and all humming of the crowd ceased. "We are here to lick these people to death!"

There was much roaring of cheerfulness from the bloodthirsty crowd below their heightened stand point, and Daisuki passed a questioning glance at Koushiro.

"In the sense of flames," he whispered, with a little bit of a smile.

"Now," continued the speaker, "let the One choose who is to be licked first."

Daisuki would have snickered at the expression but for the dead serious faces of his friends. He observed them, wondering how many days it had been since they had seen each other. They seemed to be fine physically, but on their foreheads was a novel of worries, bound in hard leather casings by the heart wrenching look in their eyes. Then a guard next to him prodded his still crimson limbs and indicated that he should be attentive in the severest manner to the "One".

The One did not appear. The crowd stood silent, on edge, with all heads and limbs entangled in a mass of expectancy and awe. The guards and other higher peoples stood just as dutiful, staring at nothing in particular.

"I am in hopes this apparition does not appear," Koushiro whispered to Daisuki.

Another guard prodded him as well and growled down to him:

"Your verbiage is most annoying."

The others, as it was, were most intrigued by the votaries of the "One", and looked on in amazement at their composure, and patience. Certainly these quick events would send the teams' heads spinning, but as of now they were relatively calm and warmed up to the idea of their demise, which seemed duly inevitably. So they sat on their haunches, looking also to nowhere, and awaited the arrival of this mystic, if it was called so. They were left waiting for some time after that.

***********************

The mob outside soon dispersed and went off in different directions in search of another soul to harass, leaving the dejected ex-digidestined leader to his depression. He half listened to the music, but even its soothing melodies didn't register very well in his scattered mind. Only Sora predominated his mind's wandering, but it wasn't her usual shining face, but a sad and rejecting profile. Sora, he thought, tugging at his heart strings, when did we become like this?

On the almost muted radio the D.J. struck up a new tune, and it drifted slowly through the small office in a cheerless meander, singing like fingertips sliding over polished wood:

Zankoku na tenshi no you ni, shounen yo shinwa ni nare...

The rising voice of the female resounded in his ears, and it felt like his mother whispering once again all those worthless but encouraging whispers.

Aoi kaze ga ima, mune no doa wo tataite mo. Watashi dake wo, tada mitsumete, hohoende'ru anata...

He smiled at these lines, beginning to hear his own story reflected in the words. Yes, change was here, but he was blatantly ignoring its knock.

Sotto fureru mono, motomeru koto ni muchuu de. Unmei sae mada shiranai, itaiki na hitomi...

That wasn't exactly true for him though; he was not really intent on finding anything right now. Or was it inferring something more...

Dakedo itsuka kidzuku deshou sono senaka ni wa. Haruka mirai mezasu tame no hane ga aru koto...

Far...off...future? To Taichi that future seemed to always be right in front of him, an opponent who constantly snickered and slapped him time and time again, just inches out of his reach. And as for his back...well, nothing seemed to be sprouting out of it as of late, especially not wings.

Zankoku na tenshi no te-ze

But who needed wings?

Madobe kara yagate tobitatsu

Certainly not someone who could have everything.

Hotobashiru atsui patosu de

All he had to do was try harder, not let all of this walk over him.

Omoide wo uragiru nara

He had potential, and not just for any job, but for everything.

Shounen yo shinwa ni nare!

Yeah, he just needed to try...

He rose decisively with his fist clenched tight at this sudden burst of self-endorsement, and was splayed flat onto the ground again when a body fell heavily on top of his head. There was a shooting pain up and down his spine (which never quite felt the same again) followed by not being able to respire. He gasped and wheezed in precious air as he pushed the body off of him, taking a quick and unhappy notice of the giant hole in his ceiling.

"Jeez," mumbled the man rubbing his neck and back, "how the heck did a person make that hole?"

After casting another disapproving glance at the capacious gap above him, which was spitting out plaster like a sick mother, he focused on the body lying next to him. Fortunately the person did not look dead or seriously injured, so he moved a vigilant hand towards the body, reassured that he wouldn't be suspected of killing this mysterious person. His fingertips touched the soft facial skin and pictured a time of happiness, completeness, and freedom. Everything flashed brilliantly in the dark room and the pale skin glowed with a new inner heat. Taichi retracted his hand quickly as the body shivered and rose to its feet, displaying short golden hair and a feminine build. She glided to face him, her so smooth face the picture of emptiness and her golden eyes paintings of pain.

"He...he...hello," Taichi finally managed to spit out. Her expression changed little, but the slight fluctuation on her brow conveyed such a deep meaning; it was surely an explanation. He asserted that he understood her movements and...

Hello. The sound crept out of the music around them and wound its way to his ears. It did not hurry to get to him though: it curved under his desk, through the window panes, and then into his sensitive hearing. When it got to him it had traveled many miles and related these miles and the hopes of more to the listener, who listened intently to this silent communication. Only when the voice flew to him again did he realized it was from the girl in front of him who was half his height but twice his age. The message was finally creeping into his mind with prevailing vim when the woman began slipping around the room. Her pale feet did little more than brush the floor, trailing a sweet scent of lilies in the springtime, but with an underlying odor of their decay in a dry summer. She turned back to him after her expedition throughout the tiny space and spoke slowly to him, this time using her real voice. The sound of it was not as silky as the first, for it seemed riddled with questions and more questions, and a never-ending thirst for something.

"Where did I come from."

Taichi's throat had a mysterious something logged in it so he merely pointed up to the hole, which she stared at for a minute, contemplating its existence and its affect on her being.

"No," she sang again, "where did I come from?"

Again all he could do was point at the hole in silent awe, even though he wished dearly to provide her with a better answer. Her beauty wrapped him in its aura and pressured him to tell more, but he could not, and suddenly fear for his life began rising against that something in his throat.

Calmly, she drifted through the other rooms in the building in a silent storm of thoughts, leaving him to watch her wake. When she did not appear again he stood up tensely, and preformed his own scooping out of the rooms, which ended with him baffled about the pastel girl's appearance and disappearance.

***********************

Daisuki let out a sudden screech of pain that sent the whole crowd shuddering. Heads craned in his direction, covered with smiles and glinting eyes of secret knowledge.

"Izzy!" the victim screamed, "help me!"

But the plea fell upon silent eardrums, while drums in the background covered up all sound. Their boom and hollow yell poured liquid fear into Daisuki's mouth, until he collapsed to the floor, coughing up the fear in great heaves of inside muscles. Just over the din of the voices he could hear: "The one has chosen!" and directly after that horrifying statement flames leaped into the air next to him, connected to no ground whatsoever. Their white heat lashed out at his red body in zealous confliction, flattening him to the ground in a sudden burst of hate. He could feel all hairs on his limbs curl and fall off in one instant, soon followed by an overpowering smell of...wasabi?

Easing his eyelids open, he found a scene, not bright with flames, but voluptuous and verdant. Happy sounds greeted his once charred ears and he caught himself wondering if he had woken up from a terrible nightmare in a place he didn't know. Here all the birds sang in unison with the sprite wind, creating the lasting effect of peace, prosperity, and all other things that humans have at the top of their 'To Accomplish' lists. The wind was coaxing him to close his eyes and rest, but there was no reassurance present that this would be here when he awoke; in fact, he was quite sure it would be gone. So he fought a losing battle against the peace, but finally drooped into a happy slumber.

When he woke up a soft hand was stroking his brow, its pale color in sharp contrast with the still green area. He could hear the wind whispering again through the trees and he felt the homely shawl of happiness encompass him until he sighed into the folds of sleep for the second time. The hand continued to caress his forehead with daisy light fingertips, tickling here and there with a silky embrace on every cell. His dreams were carefree and when he looked up in them the sun was silently moving back and forth back and forward. Then it would morph into that flower hand and confirm his existence time and time again. His sighs were deep and pleasurable, and the nagging thought of the real world drifted away away and then finally snuggled down for a nice rest.

Outside of his happiness, the world was winding down the spiral of chaos, flicking beast off on its descent. His friends were rolling with the boulder, slipping into an undefined state of confusion, hate, and fear. The end of the spiral was at their feet now, when they were abruptly stalled by a woman on the path. She refused to budge under any pressure; she simply just held out her hand in a gesture that suggested stopping, as they soon did. Then the spiral gave way to a new light, becoming nothing more than a faded memory as its captives relished in the sudden but welcomed warmth. The woman extended her arms to the digidestined, a kind smile playing about her pale lips, and they heard in the distant background the groaning of their dying captors. When they reached the coruscate woman, they felt the solid ground beneath them poof into oblivion at her eyes, the spiral melt completely away in her mercy, and they just managed to catch a glance at her figure and found themselves all thinking the same words: "So pale...".

It was a bright morning when they awoke, some days later after the incident and far from the position of it, ravenous and disoriented. They found Daisuki lying awkwardly on his side, his breathing shallow and his body still tender. The confreres sat around in a circle, staring dumbly at each other and blinking and squinting at the demanding sunlight. A few words passed between the group, but were found meager and meaningless, so Mimi suggested eating something. That hell-bound smell was gone from the air, and what better thing to do then but eat and have an excuse to not try and decipher what had just occurred. As they ate their rations (which were considerably smaller seeing as the perishable food had gone bad some days before) Daisuki stirred from his slumber, blinked at the sky, and then blinked at his friends.

"Hello," he tried, but he could not find the strength to project it farther than his elbows. He observed them eating for some while, taking mental notes of their lack of manners and new tan lines, until he crawled to their circle and was handed food without a comment. He stared at it in disgust, then at them in the same contempt.

"What are you doing?" projected the cracked voice, and they all raised their eyes to him in feigned surprise. "What are you doing? Don't you...don't you..." but he trailed off without continuing his invigorating speech, and set about devouring the food. All went back to their own vittles, with little dust of care flurried by their leader's attempts. Finally Mimi remembered Jenai's words to her.

"What are we doing!" she cried, "Just look at us! We should have finished this by now and we haven't even found the culprit! Why aren't we talking about all of this? Who was that girl, those savages we met, those prisons we were kept in, and where do we go from here? And why isn't Davis dead? Didn't we all see him get swallowed by flames?"

All eyes turned to the man in question in a sort of accusing manner, and then back to Mimi when she stated dully:

"And where are our digimon?"

There was a dead silence and all tired eyes roved about the bivouac, not really surprised at finding their digimon missing. Why should they be there when everything else was so vehemently not in their favor.

"Why don't we just leave fate alone and go back home?"

Sadly, Koushiro's bland statement was considered by most of the team very thoroughly. And what's sadder is the same words were on the tips of their lips when Daisuki jumped up and smacked them all on the backs of their heads, especially Koushiro.

"What's gotten in to all of you! The digital world has been a part of our lives for more than ten years, and you just want to abandon it?" There were guilty nods all around. "WHAT! YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!" He stared at Mimi and she stared back; apparently they were the only two left who wanted to go on. How disgusting. "How disgusting," he repeated and had half a mind to shriek on but decided against it. It was no loss to him, he could go on at any pace now if he could convince Mimi into going back home. Yes, his mind whispered in a conniving way, if I can get her away from here, prove I can finish this by myself...

A sound like cracking whips echoed across the sky in booms that made the earth tremble so much that Daisuki fell to his knees. The ground shuddered violently again as a second clap deafened them. Daisuki stared at his knees nonchalantly, stared at the worn holes in the pants and couldn't remember when they had gotten there. Had they been like this before setting out? The mesa seemed like eons ago, their friends younger and without much care for any future events. And what had Taichi said to him? What had it been? War is not about winning? The rest of his words were blurred and sketchy, as was his face, and the statement alone didn't make much sense at all. How could war not be about winning? Was it about death? Was that all?

He scrunched his fingers up into his sweaty palms, trying to remember those last words...

Something about children...

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