Chapter 11:
Ice Cold
It was cold.
As cold as if a fairy-tale ice queen had swept her hand across the mountains and turned them into lands trapped in the middle of an Arctic winter.
Yuka shivered, remembering a story about an ice lady who would freeze anything in her path. There was an 'ice lady' at work here as well, but this one didn't just make the temperature drop.
There was evil here. She could sense it, especially when the fog and mist got thicker and thicker, and everyone had disappeared. She could hear screams and sobs echoing across the mountaintops. Not long after, everything had started to freeze over. Lopmon had fallen into a deep sleep, and until now, she had not awoken. Yuka somehow knew she didn't do it on purpose.
Yuka was alone, scared. She wanted Lopmon to wake up. She wished that someone, anyone at all, was here with her. She felt Mana and Jun's frustration toward a dangerous barrier to overcome. She heard Kei's cries in the air, along with Tian's – anguish over things she could only wonder about. She could feel some of the same emotions from Akira – fragmented, confused, but still concealed. And she could sense her big brother's concern for Akira, and his determination to make sure she was all right.
Then, Yuka sensed the being responsible for all of this.
“Go away...” she whispered, closing her eyes and clutching a limp Lopmon in her arms. She could almost see the evil being in her mind.
Go away. Leave us alone.
The being, in her mind's eye, flickered and turned around, noticing her. It came closer.
Stop it. Stop making us suffer like this.
The being didn't stop. It came closer and closer. Soon, it was less than ten feet away from her.
GO AWAY!
Yuka suddenly opened her eyes and screamed out that last thought. Her Digivice came to life, shining a pale pink light and beeping uncontrollably.
A pale pink light surrounded Lopmon, and she finally woke up. She saw the dark creature in front of her, and knew what she had to do.
“Lopmon, evolve to... Turuiemon!”
A large, pale lavender rabbit appeared, dressed in ancient Chinese garb. Silver blades adorned her wrists. She raised one, and deflected a blast of dark energy Devimon fired. She raised her hand again to attack, but it turned out she didn't need to. Devimon had already fled, driven away by the abundance of light.
Yuka felt a warmth spread through her. She felt safe again. Something seemed to reach out to her, and reassure her.
You don't have to worry anymore. Everything will be all right.
Yuka looked up and saw Turuiemon standing beside her, glowing. She looked at Turuiemon in wonder, and slowly smiled. Turuiemon smiled back, and took Yuka's hand.
Together, they set off to find and heal the shattered remnants of their team.
Kei was freezing, but she didn't care. Terriermon, like Lopmon, had fallen into a deep sleep, and still, Kei didn't care. All she cared about at that moment was finding an answer to her question:
Why?
One year. That was all it took. One year of living with screams, shouts, and tears had given Kei the worst memories of her life. But it didn't start that way...
A year ago, on a sunny, late-spring day, Kei was staring through a huge window at the airport, watching planes take off and land. She was excited, because in another thirty minutes or so, she would finally meet her big sister – the big sister she had never known.
She could hear her mom and dad talking to each other softly behind her.
“Are you feeling all right, Touma?” her mom asked, “You don't look very excited at all.”
“I'm still a little upset at you, Kyoko,” Touma answered, “You never told me about her. All these years, and I never knew you had another daughter.”
“...I'm sorry. I closed that chapter of my life a long time ago.” She looked at Kei, and Kei smiled at her and waved.
“Akira was Kei's age the last time I saw her,” Kyoko murmured, “It's been so long – eight years... she must be starting high school by now...”
“Mom! Mom!” Kei piped up, “Is that the plane?” She pointed at a Japan Airlines plane just pulling in. “Japan, right?”
Kyoko nodded, her eyes misty.
Twenty minutes later, Kei was staring at the crowd of passengers from the plane walking down a long hallway toward their families. Soon, she saw a teenage girl with mid-length black hair emerge. She wore an olive green and navy blue uniform, and was carrying a large backpack. Kei heard her mother cry out and rush up to hug the girl.
“Akira...” Kyoko said, tears in her eyes.
Akira smiled. “Mom...You still look the same!”
Kyoko laughed. “And you-” She looked at Akira's uniform. “Junior high already?”
Akira looked at herself and flashed an embarrassed smile. “Not anymore. Dad signed me out right before I left, since when I go back next year, I'm going straight to high school.”
Kei watched this from her mother's side, and when she saw Akira smiling, she relaxed.
Akira looked from her mother to Kei and her smile faded a little, replaced by a questioning look. Kyoko put her hand on Kei's head.
“Akira, this is Kei. Your little sister.”
Akira stared at Kei for a while, then she took her hand and shook it. “Hello.”
Kei studied Akira for a couple of seconds. She seemed to be a nice person. Kei swallowed, then spoke, “Hajimemashite doozo yoroshiku... onee-chan.”
Akira stared at Kei in wonder, then a surprised but warm and happy smile appeared on her face. She hugged her. ”Nice to meet you too,” she answered, “... little sister.”
It was the last time Kei ever saw Akira that happy again. Because by the time Akira was introduced to her dad, the smile had disappeared from her face. She didn't look angry, but then, she wasn't happy either. The questioning look had returned. Touma did not look happy either.
It was the first sign that Touma and Akira wouldn't see eye-to-eye.
But why? Why didn't they?
A couple of months later, after Akira and Kei started school again, the arguments started. Kei, not understanding, heard many of them while sitting on the stairs. Other times, Akira and Touma were so loud their voices carried all the way upstairs and Kei could hear them through her bedroom door.
As the arguments continued, night after night, questions formed in Kei's mind.
Why does Daddy act the way he does?
Why does Akira lie whenever I ask her what's wrong, and pretend that nothing happened?
Why does Mom never ever notice what's going on?
I don't see what happens around the house during the day or at night, but I know something's going on. I know there is, when I hear Daddy and Akira screaming at each other every night over something Akira did, or something Daddy thought Akira did.
I know something's wrong when, afterward, when she thinks I'm sleeping, Akira comes in with bruises on her arms and legs. Most times, she just goes to bed and falls asleep and all I'd hear is breathing. But once or twice before, I heard her crying. The day after, whenever I ask her what happened, she smiles and says it was nothing. That someone hit her with a soccer ball the other day and it bruised, or that she wasn't looking and fell down the stairs when I was sleeping. I don't believe her. I never do, because even though I don't see it, someone in this house is responsible for those bruises.
It's not her, and it's not me, so...
When I'm with Daddy, just the two of us, or with Mom, he never gets mad. He always smiles. Sometimes I ask him why he's so happy, and he says because I'm with him.
Mom, because of the job she has, is hardly ever home. But on the days that she is home, and she asks us how everything was when she was gone, Daddy and Akira smile and say everything was just fine. And so, Mom suspects nothing.
I don't understand.
One day, when Akira and Kei were walking through the park, alone, Kei stopped suddenly, lost in thought.
“Akira?”
“Hm?” Akira turned around to face Kei, “What is it?” she asked, a puzzled look on her face.
Kei glanced at Akira's arms, but couldn't see anything, since she wore a sweatshirt that covered them. She looked up at Akira and swallowed.
“Do you hate me?”
Akira stared at her, shocked. She wondered if Kei was joking, but the look on her face told her otherwise.
“No...” she said, horrified, “No, I don't hate you. How could I? What made you think of something like that?”
“Because...” Kei said slowly, “because you and Daddy fight all the time, and I wonder if it's because of-”
“No.” Akira hugged her. “It has nothing to do with you. Whatever's going on is just between your dad and me. We'll fix things up eventually, so don't worry about it.” Kei didn't look convinced, so Akira smiled. “Don't worry about me. I'll be fine! And-” she hugged her tighter, “I'll always love you, no matter what happens. Don't forget that, okay?”
Kei nodded. “Okay.”
I don't understand. Why is everyone pretending that everything's fine? Why am I not getting any answers?
Are they doing this to keep me from feeling bad? If that's the case, they're doing a terrible job. I'm feeling bad already. And if I hear “it's nothing” or “everything's fine” one more time, I'm going to scream.
Kei wrapped her arms around herself and breathed out a ragged breath. The coldness of the mountains was starting to get to her. Tears streamed down her face.
I wish I could tell Mom something, or let her know what's really been happening every time she's away, but then I would be saying something bad about Daddy, and I can't do that. If I don't say something, Akira will keep getting hurt and it will never stop because, being Akira, she'll never say anything or do anything to hurt someone else, and she'd rather get hurt instead.
I hate this. I don't know what to do.
I want to do something about this, but I can't. Either way, someone I love gets hurt.
Kei cried harder, and shook her head.
What can I do?
Kei then felt a warmth spread through her, and a small hand clasped hers. She was starting to feel better, in spite of herself. She opened her eyes and looked up. Yuka was there, holding her hand, and Turuiemon was standing in front of them, her back to them. Both of them seemed to be glowing a soft pink.
Kei stared at Turuiemon, her mouth wide open in surprise. She turned to Yuka. “Lopmon...?”
Yuka nodded, smiling.
Kei dropped her gaze. “You could sense everything... in here, right?” She put a hand to her forehead. “You understood?” Yuka nodded again.
Kei was silent for several seconds, then spoke again. “Do you know... what could I have done? What can I do now? It hurt to see all of that and not be able to do something.”
“Well...” Yuka had a thoughtful look on her face. “You could have told someone.”
“But-”
“It doesn't have to be your mom,” Yuka interrupted, “but even if you did tell her, I think she would understand. If it was something as serious as this, she'd probably be grateful that you did.” Yuka smiled again. “When I was really little, I would see Seita bother Akira all the time. You could hear them shout at each other up and down the street! But after I said something about it, my mom told him to stop. And he did. At least, he did when Mom was watching!” She started laughing, and Kei laughed along with her.
Yuka continued, “And you could be there for Akira, always, whenever she needs someone to talk to.”
Kei nodded. “Of course.”
“And don't lose hope that things will turn out right in the end,” a little voice piped up from Kei's lap.
Kei looked down at her lap, surprised. “Terriermon! You're awake?”
“Perfect timing,” Turuiemon said, speaking for the first time in a while. “Devimon's coming back.”
“Devimon?” Kei looked confused.
“He's the bad Digimon that made you remember all those horrible things,” Yuka replied.
Devimon appeared before Kei had a chance to retort. He saw her glaring at him, and Yuka and Turuiemon with her.
“Not again...” he hissed, “Lost another one. You children are stronger than I thought!”
“You haven't even seen the worst of us yet!” Kei shot back. Without even thinking, she pulled out her Digivice, and it began to glow a bright green. “Terriermon!”
“Right!” Terriermon nodded, and began to glow green as well. “Terriermon, evolve to... Galgomon!”
A large green-eared rabbit with great big guns for arms jumped at Devimon and fired millions of tiny shots at him. “Gatling Arm!”
Devimon dodged, the shots missing his wings by a hair, and landed on the ground. Galgomon lifted an arm at him.
“Go ahead, try and escape. This time, I won't miss.”
“You can give up now, Devimon. You have no place to go.” Turuiemon said calmly, on the other side. “We have you cornered.”
Devimon laughed raucously. “Surrender? Me? I'm more powerful than the two of you put together! And the longer you all stay here, the stronger I get! The next time you see me will be your last!” He laughed again and disappeared into thin air.
Kei stared at where Devimon used to be, then spoke up. “So what do we do now... Galgomon?” She stared at Galgomon in awe.
“Do we go after him?” Galgomon asked Turuiemon.
“No.” Turuiemon shook her head. “We find the others.”
“Of course,” Yuka said, “By ourselves, Devimon had power over us. But together...”
“Well, come on then,” Kei interrupted, “let's go!” She started walking off, looking behind her at the other three, all the while hoping that everyone else was all right. That Akira was all right.
Meanwhile, Akira and Kodamon continued walking down the right-side path. Akira was silent for a long time, staring up at the crystal peaks and mirrored cliff walls, tinted an eerie ice-blue due to the heavy mist. It had gotten colder and colder since they had entered the passage, but strangely, Akira barely noticed it, even though Kodamon was shivering.
A short distance away, Seita and Gazimon followed, and the cold was getting to them too.
“Seita,” Gazimon whispered through chattering teeth, “Let's go back! This is too cold even for me! And everything around here gives me the creeps!”
Seita shook his head. “I'm not turning around until I'm sure Akira is okay.”
Gazimon stared at him in bewilderment. “I don't get you. One minute you're mad at her, then the next you're concerned for her safety? Do you like her or do you hate her? Make up your mind!”
“Shh!” Seita snapped back, “She'll hear you!”
A few paces ahead, Akira stopped and turned around to see the two of them behind her. “Why are you following us?” she asked, in a flat voice.
Seita struggled to come up with an appropriate answer, but Akira didn't wait for it.
“Tian made you two come and watch over us, didn't she?” Akira looked down and closed her eyes. “I should have known. She's worrying about me. She always has, ever since we were little.”
Seita swallowed, and walked closer to her. “She's not the only one who's worried about you. We all are.”
Akira turned away. “You don't need to worry about me. I can take care of myself... I – I can... deal with this... on my own...” Her eyes snapped shut again and her fists clenched. Tears sprang from her eyes.
Seita fought an urge to hug her then and there, settling for a hand on her shoulder. He gasped, shocked at how cold she felt, and even more shocked that she didn't seem to notice or care. He gulped. “I don't know what's on your mind, but it's hurting you! And it's scaring me- I mean, us.” he stammered. His expression softened. “I wish you could tell us what happened.”
Akira shrugged him off and stayed silent.
Kodamon gripped Akira's hand tightly and pleaded, “Whatever emotional battle is raging in you... please don't keep it inside! Not this time!”
Akira breathed in sharply. The memories she tried desperately not to relive came flooding back. She pushed Kodamon away and ran.
“Akira! Wait!” Kodamon, Seita and Gazimon ran after her, but the fog and the mist were so thick, they soon lost sight of her.
Seita looked around, agitated. “Where did she go?” He was about to run again, but Kodamon grabbed his hand and pulled him back.
“Don't just go like that!” she said sharply, “We don't want to lose you too!”
“But-”
“Stay.” she growled, “Akira will just push us away again if we keep going on like that.”
“That's the same thing Kei said!” Seita shouted, “How would you know all of this?” Then he stopped. He thought about all the times Akira did strange things to help them out and couldn't seem to remember why, and the times when she would remember strange things, just out of the blue. Things she couldn't have known. Unless...
Seita exchanged a glance with Gazimon, who seemed to have come up with the same conclusion he did. He then looked down at Kodamon, surprised. “This happened before, hasn't it?”
Kodamon nodded. “Yes.”
“How long ago?”
“…Almost a year, according to real-world time,” Kodamon replied softly. “Back then, when we first met, I knew something was bothering her, but she refused to tell me anything. She hid it behind a smile.” She looked away. “She's always been so selfless like that – keeping her own problems to herself and refusing to get others involved. She never wanted to let others get hurt because of her. But now...” She took a deep breath. “It's too much for her to hide. It's overflowing, and now all of us are feeling it.”
Seita had so many questions he wanted to ask, so many things he wanted to know, but this wasn't the time or the place to bring them up. “Do you have any clue what she's thinking about?” he finally asked.
“Not definitely. But I've been suspecting things, and Kei has been dropping hints. I know that something happened to her, and maybe Kei too, on your side – the real world.”
Seita sighed, and looked ahead, into the thick fog. “Is there any way we can help her get over this? I don't want to see her like this again.”
Kodamon stared through the fog, thinking. “I hope there is.”