Digital Monsters, Digital Adventure

With Angie steadily gaining the lead on her cousins, they slipped into a conversation on their own…

“It’s so pretty…” Palmon voiced, watching the crest hanging from her partner’s neck.

“And it’s different…”

Lily looked back at her cousins.

“They’ve all been different from each other. Color, symbol, meaning…”

“Well, we’re all different from each other.” Gabriel pointed out.

“Nobody’s the same as anybody else. It’s genetic, even physical.”

“Our only problem is that we need to learn how to use them.” Elie piped in.

“An’ maybe the way ta do that is ta fin’ all the crests…” Z muttered.

“Gennai said we ‘ad ta ‘ave all ‘a ‘em ta bring ‘total ‘armony’, right?”

“That’s true…Maybe the power comes from ‘avin’ ‘em all…”

Angie, realizing nobody was following her anymore, stopped and turned around.

“…What are they doing back there, Agu?”

“I don’t know…”

“Hey, guys!” She shouted back, noting the few yards between herself and the group.

“Mind hurrying it up a bit? We do have stuff to do!”

“Oh, sure! Sorry, Fearless!”

Before they could get a step closer, sand exploded under Angie’s feet.

With a yelp of surprise and shock, the crimson-eyed turtle grabbed hold of the only solid thing she could find.

It happened to be one of the jagged claws attached to Kuwagamon’s unforgiving jaws…

The others jumped in surprise, almost rushing forward.

“ANGIE!”

Clinging as tight as she could, the sky-masked turtle was still flung to the sand a couple yards away while Agumon was hurled before the roaring Digimon.

“Pepper Breath!”

It seemed to only anger the large red Digimon further…

“Agu…”

“AGUMON, YOU’VE GOT TO DIGIVOLVE!” Gabumon shouted.

Angie froze, almost trembling…

‘But…if he does…’

Skullgreymon flashed before her eyes, and tears burned behind her lids…

‘He might turn into that monster again…NO! It hurt him too much!’

The others were shouting earnestly for the dinosaur Digimon to Digivolve, but he seemed…

Frightened…

‘Oh, Agu…’

Kuwagamon’s jaws threatened to cut Agumon in half…

“AGU!”

Bolting forward and jumping, she tackled him to the ground before the jaws crashed together above them like swords.

They clashed together a second time, when an attack flew through the air above them…

“Pixi-Bomb, seek and destroy!”

Sand flew up, but Kuwagamon was gone at least…

Angie sat up, shaking the mineral off as she helped her partner up.

A little puff-ball was before them, a bright pink, with a cute face and stubby arms and legs.

He even had little wings and a long spear.

“Ya ‘kay, Fearless?”

“I’m fine…”

“What happened?”

She looked up at her worried cousins…

“…I don’t know…”

Rose turned to the strange Digimon, looking curious.

“He’s cute!”

“But what happened to Kuwagamon?” Elie wondered.

“I am no enemy, nope nope! If anything, you are your OWN enemies!”

Biyomon jumped up, seeming surprised and excited.

“Oh, I’ve heard of you! You’re the famous Piximon, right?”

“Who’s that? Somebody important?” Z asked.

“Piximon is famous in our world for his skills in training, but few have ever met him. His home is the training ground for all the great Digimon fighters.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you, too. But so far, I am not impressed!”

Izzy’s eyes narrowed dangerously…

“Min’ givin’ us a hint, puff-ball?”

“You seven are supposed to be the Digidestined. Ha! Be careful, or you’ll all be Digi-dinners!”

“Why I oughta-!”

“IZZY!”

As Rose and Lily fought to keep her from striking, Piximon turned to the group of Digimon.

“You Digimon there! You’re supposed to protect the children, but half the time, they’re protecting YOU! I wanna see some guts! I wanna see some courage!”

“Ya don’t gotta yell at ‘em like that!” Z snarled dangerously.

“They’ve been tryin’ their damn best, alright? An’ they’ve saved our asses plenty ‘a times!”

“But the news isn’t all bad.” Piximon continued, ignoring the shell-less she-turtle.

“From now on, you’re all going to train with me!”

“…How’s that good news?” Both angry turtle’s grumbled.

“Especially you two!”

Angie paused in confusion, quirking an eye-ridge at the little Digimon.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me! You two need lots of help! And I have a special extreme training program just for you!”

Agumon shared a glance with his partner, and both sighed in defeat…

“Kind of reminds me of home…” She muttered.

She sounded almost resentful, as if that part of her life was something thrust upon her against her will and made to weigh down her shell.

“Follow me!”

As Piximon began marching away, the seven turtles shared a glance.

“What do ya thin’, Gabe?” Izzy wondered.

“Well, he did save us…And we need all the help we can get. I say we go.”

Everyone nodded in agreement, following the little Digimon…

Unfortunately, they didn’t realize how long they’d have to follow him…

“Are we there yet?” Elie whined.

“Just a little further!”

…

“Are we there yet?”

“Just a little further!”

…

“Are we there-?”

“ELIE!”

The orange-masked turtle jumped, looking up at her sister.

The brown-banded turtle tried to keep her eye from twitching…

“I swear…If ya ask ‘im ONE MORE TIME, I’ll be forced ta cut ya open an’ rip out yer vocal cords…”

“…Okey-Dokey!”

Twitch…

“Halt! We have arrived!”

Everyone stopped, looking around…

“Does he notice nothing’s here?” Lily wondered.

“Except sand.” Her brother pointed out.

“Pixi-Portal!”

Their eyes widened at the sight of a doorway in the air, showing a beautiful shady rainforest…

“…NICE!”

Wanting shade more than anything, they bolted in before it disappeared at their shells.

“It’s beautiful…” Lily noted, fingering a large bloom…

“Right…Don’t you think so, Tokomon?”

“Absolutely!”

“I wonder how a jungle got in the middle of a desert like this…” Gabriel mused.

“GUYS!”

Elie looked terrified, hugging Biyomon to her chest.

“It’s Etemon!”

Looking back through the ‘front door’, they saw the Elvis-wannabe’s trailer being pulled across the sand by a Monochromon.

Everyone felt adrenaline begin rushing through them, their ‘fight or flight’ instincts revving it into high gear, when Piximon soothed their worries.

“Don’t worry about it. He isn’t able to see through the barrier.”

Lily relaxed…

“Thank goodness…”

“Not that I wouldn’t min’ beatin’ on ‘im a bit…” Z mused to herself, happily thinking of all the things she could do to him.

Rocks started piercing the jungle foliage, and they were free of the plants only to see a large, steep-looking mountain.

There were steps carved up it in lazy turns and spirals, leading to a large mansion at the very top.

“My house is just up these steps.”

“Ya gotta be KIDDIN’ me!”

Rose and Elie whined, while Izzy and Z grumbled harshly under their breath about possible torture methods.

“Let’s go, guys. No use complaining.” Angie reasoned.

“Come on, Agu…”

“Tento, I don’t think you’re supposed to fly up.”

“But-.”

“No flying!” Piximon ordered.

“OH…” Tentomon groaned, following his partner slowly.

“Is it part of our training?” Lily wondered.

“Exactly!”

A collective groan, and they began trudging upwards…

Izzy was wondering what she could do with just one of her kunai and Firebending, and Z was thinking of how easy their task would be if she could only Earthbend…

Gabriel was calculating how long it would take for them to reach the top, while his sister tried to keep herself going.

“Come on, Agu…We can’t stop now…”

“Buddy…Tell me…when I can kill ‘im…”

“IZZY…”

“I NEED to…” She almost whined.

“Izzy, no killing!” Angie ordered.

“AW…”

“Can I kill ‘im?”

“Z!!!”

“WHAT?”

“Can we stop now?” Elie wondered, eyes wide and dark and pretty.

“…Are we at the top?”

“…No…”

“Then we can’t stop, can we?”

“…You don’t have to be MEAN about it, sis…”

“Tokomon, are you okay?”

“TIRED…”

“Me, too…”

The last step, and everyone fell onto the ground in utter exhaustion, trying to catch their breath and return the strength to their muscles.

The sun was setting in the sky, and the humid air looked hazy as Piximon flew over them.

“Don’t tell me you’re all tired! Don’t give up yet!”

“Leave us ‘lone, ya annoyin’ puff-ball…” Izzy managed.

“There’s plenty of food for all!”

Gomamon perked, along with the other Digimon, and they dragged their partners in the mad dash for the front door.

The mansion was in the shape of a circle, with multiple floors and a massive statue of Piximon in its hollow center.

“Where’s the food?” Rose wondered.

“Ah, yes! But first, you must earn it!”

“We shoulda known…” Z grumbled, Gomamon drooping on her shoulder.

Using his powers, Piximon made mops, buckets, and rags appear.

“I want you all to scrub the floors. ALL the floors.”

“I’ll show ya what I’m gonna do-!”

“My friend, NO!”

“This’ll take a while…A LONG while…” Gabriel noted, down-hearted.

“Might as well get started…”

WHACK!!!

“OW!!!”

Angie pulled back the wrist Piximon had smacked, nursing it against her plastron.

“But not you, Angie and Agumon. Come now. I have a special chore for you.”

‘Great…We probably have to paint the place…’

Before following the Digimon, she gave her family a smile.

“Don’t worry about me, guys. I’ll be fine. Just do what you’ve gotta do and I’ll join up with you.”

“…A’right, Fearless. Come back soon.”

“Promise.”

Following Piximon, the sky-masked turtle took hold of her partner’s hand.

‘Where’s he leading us?’

He stopped in front of a cave, giving a moment for the turtle to look at the strange statues near its entrance.

“Alright, you two. This is the place. Into the cave.”

“…Alright.”

Stepping in warily, the jade-skinned turtle carefully inched her way in, pace steadily increasing as nothing jumped out to attack them.

“Man, I can’t see ANYTHING…Can you, Agu?”

“Nope…”

Something caught them, sent them spiraling into the empty darkness…

“ANGIE!”

“AGU!”

Silence…

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“Too…tired…”

Gabriel moved his arm…

“Ow…”

Moved his toe…

“OW…”

Moved his pinky finger…

“OW…”

Everyone was aching and sore, minds too foggy with fatigue to wonder where their leader was…

So they slept, and it was only a few hours before Izzy woke up to the glowing of her tag.

Cupping it in her hands to hide the light, she slipped out into the open halls only to find Gabriel.

“Yours too?”

Nodding in understanding, a smile spread across her face.

“Let’s go fin’ ‘em.”

“Right.”

The two headed out of the mansion, the glow of their tags leading them through the dark like beacons.

“I wonder what our crests are…” Gabriel mused.

“Don’t know.”

He paused, seeing the barrier getting closer and closer the longer they walked.

“Maybe we should’ve gotten Gabumon and Tento up…What if we have to leave the barrier?”

“Don’t be a chicken.” Izzy replied, grabbing his wrist and pulling him along.

“Nothin’ ‘ill ‘appen. Don’t be such a worrywart.”

“But…”

“Maybe we’ll e’en fin’ Fearless. She probably foun’ ‘em or somethin’.”

“…Maybe…”

The sun was barely peeking over the horizon when they reached the barrier, seeing a glow coming from the well just beyond it.

“Come on.”

“But-.”

“It’s right there. Don’t worry.”

Cautiously, he followed his older cousin, and both climbed down a rope into the stone well.

Two strange symbols danced across the walls, spinning and twirling and making him dizzy…

“Hold your tag up to the wall.”

“A’right.”

Bright glows, and the crests were fitted securely within the golden tags.

“Yes! Now we’ve got five!”

A roar, and they scurried out to find a massive dinosaur Digimon…

“…Don’t WORRY, you say…Nothing will HAPPEN, you say…”

“Just shut up an’ RUN!”

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Angie felt something rock, heard the gentle splash of water…

It reminded her of the old creaky rocking chair her mother had used to help rock her to sleep as a young toddler…

She even remembered when her grandfather would do the same, telling her and the others stories about might Japanese samurai that had kindled her love for the katana.

He’d even told stories of his children’s adventures, of aliens and different dimensions and even trips through time and space.

Everyone had been enraptured by the stories, the tales of wonder and battle, and had pulled Angie into the world of ninja.

Crimson eyes fluttered open, seeing fog and mist and darkness…

They were in a boat.

Sitting up, the sky-masked turtle put a hand on her head to slow the dizzy spell.

“Agu? Agu, are you okay?”

“I’m okay, Angie…Are you?”

“I’m fine…”

Looking around at the murky water and the gently swaying boat, Angie sat up straighter as a lantern gently rocked above her head.

“Where are we?”

“I don’t know…”

A light caught their attention, and it glowed brightly for a moment before disappearing.

The water took on a scent that was familiar to her, and the fog thinned to show bricks and cement.

‘It’s a sewer tunnel…’

The boat hit ground, and she carefully disembarked to see the dojo.

The dojo she’d trained in as a child so she could be a great kunoichi like her mother…

Her father…

A little form yelped, falling as something clattered across the stone.

Turning to it in a snap, her eyes widened as Agumon reached her side.

“Angie?”

“I-It’s me…”

And it was.

When she’d been much younger and was just beginning to learn how to wield small practice katana.

The little crimson-eyed turtle sat on her rump, looking forlornly at the fallen blades as tears filled her eyes…

“I’ll never be able to use them…It’s just too hard…”

“Don’t think like that.”

The younger she-turtle looked up in surprise at her older counterpart, who looked more sure than she’d been in a long time.

“If you think like that, you’ll never be able to. You have to think that you CAN.”

Stepping forward delicately, she scooped up the katana and twirled them in her hands expertly.

“It’s in the wrist, not the arm. At least, not mostly. You just need to find a balance between the hilt and the sword. Your body and your spirit. Know the limitations of the blades and your own.”

Slipping the handles into the smooth palms that had once been hers, she helped the little turtle take a stance.

“Breathe…And follow the flow your soul is giving you…”

The swing of the blade was like the wind, with the gentle twist of a river.

With a smile of joy, the little girl continued to go through the kata…

“I can do it! I CAN DO IT!”

Agumon stood beside his partner, a look of understanding on his face…

“…You’re just as scared as I am…”

Tears, and she gripped her crest tight…

“…Yes…”

“…I thought you weren’t scared of anything.”

“Agu, I’m not scared. I was TERRIFIED.”

She looked at him with wavering crimson eyes.

“I was terrified that I’d lost you…”

“Angie…”

“Terrified I’d made you into a monster and it was all my fault…”

The tears were escaping, she was sinking to her knees as Agumon held her close.

“…I was terrified, and I was terrified because I was terrified…I-I…I’m not supposed to be scared…”

“Everyone’s scared of something…”

“I’m not SUPPOSED to…Being afraid…it makes me freeze up…”

“It’s alright…”

“My mom…My dad…Both of them are never scared of anything…But I-I…I can’t stop trembling…”

“Maybe…Maybe they hide it. To make you feel safe.”

She looked into the green eyes, still trying to fight away the blurring tears.

“…I want to make my family feel safe…”

“You do. You make all of us feel safe. Being terrified doesn’t make you weak.”

“…Weren’t you scared?”

“Yes…I was scared…TERRIFIED…that I’d hurt you…”

“…You’d never hurt me, Agu…I know that…”

“I wasn’t so sure before…”

Angie looked up at her younger disappearing form…

“Now I know why we were sent here…We were so scared of messing up again, of losing each other, that we weren’t willing to try again. But we NEED to, because it’s so worth it, Agu…”

She seemed determined…

“The only thing worse than trying is NOT trying, right? Mistakes just help you learn what you did wrong.”

“If we believe in ourselves…Believe in each other…Then we can Digivolve, no problem!”

Angie paused, a strange feeling in her chest…

“It’s time to go back, Agu.”

“Alright, Angie.”

The waters current seemed to send them in the right direction, and the jade-skinned turtle felt stronger than she ever remembered being.

‘As long as I have Agu…’

Her hand slipped around his…

‘I have nothing to be afraid of…’

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The group cowered under Piximon’s shield, the flames licking around them dangerously.

“Izzy…” Rose whimpered in fear, hiding behind the older shell for comfort…

“Fearless better get ‘ere soon…”

“She will!” Izzy assured, biting her own lip in worry.

“She has ta…”

…

“Agumon, Digivolve to…GREYMON!!”

Everyone’s eyes widened as Greymon reared up, Angie appearing behind them with a peaceful smile on her face.

“Hey, guys. Miss me?”

“Did we ever!” Gabriel exclaimed, relieved.

Tyrannomon seemed restricted by the many black wires attached and surrounding him, so Greymon had little trouble alluding him.

“Nova Blast!”

The orange-scaled Digimon hefted his opponent into the air, snapping the cables…

Everyone was cheering, adrenaline rushing and hearts racing.

Greymon slammed his enemy into the ground, defeating him as the strange black wires shattered and disappeared…

“You did it, Greymon!”

Piximon seemed pleased as the Digimon Dedigivolved and rejoined the group.

After food, the sun was beginning to set as Piximon said his goodbyes.

“Far from over your training is. Remember, life itself is a training session. Learn all you can.”

“Thanks, Piximon. I learned a lot from you.” Angie stated, smiling.

“You have come far spiritually, little turtle. I am proud to call you the Digidestined of Courage.”

She nodded.

“I’m glad to have met your expectations.”

“Ah…Another lesson you must learn. But that is for another time.”

A bit perplexed at that, she tilted her head in question when Izzy called for her to follow…

‘Reliability, sincerity, friendship, knowledge…But they will need a warrior with unwavering courage…They are lucky to have her.’

Piximon sighed as the turtles left the jungle…

‘I hope they will save our world…’