Chapter 40:
Ground Zero
Kyoko ended her phone call and sighed. Things were starting to get very complicated. On the one hand, Touma had called, saying his flight was delayed. On the other hand…
She looked at her phone again, reading the text message for at least the tenth time.
You know who this is.
You know what’s happening now.
This is not a dream, or a fantasy, or a damned conspiracy theory.
The four of us are coming, whether you like it or not.
Don’t ignore us the way you ignored Akira.
She gritted her teeth. Takashi. Couldn’t he have phrased things a little nicer? A little less like ‘I told you so?’
A damned conspiracy theory.
Kyoko had thrown that phrase into his face the last time they had argued, in the days after that winter night when Akira disappeared, after the flaming ball that was the D. C. Bomb destroyed half of the neighborhood. Takashi had accused Kyoko of ignoring Akira when she needed her the most, while Kyoko accused him and Nami of teaching her about Digimon when they weren’t even real. She accused them of being a cult, spreading nonsense far and wide.
Takashi had taken the accusations quietly, and after Akira was found and hospitalized, he quietly took her home to Japan, and that was that.
At least, until she had the inexplicable desire to reach out to her oldest daughter again. She still wasn’t sure why she invited her back. They still weren’t very close, and especially after the previous year, they were further apart than ever. If she had known the business with the Digimon would explode the way it had, she would have kept her mouth shut and never reached out to Akira again in the first place, if only to protect Kei.
Kei. Her youngest daughter and the apple of her eye was partnered with a Digimon. A small, cute Digimon, but a Digimon nonetheless. They were dangerous creatures.
She walked back to the living room, where Kei, Akira, Rion and Ryou were having an intense discussion.
“So the first floor of the ITI main headquarters is open to the public,” Ryou stated, sketching a map of the floor. “There are guards posted at the elevator and the stairs, here and here.”
“No one can enter the upper floors of the building unless they’re employees, or have special permission,” Rion added.
“Define ‘special permission,’” Akira said.
“Well, Kuya and I can go in, because we’re family…”
“And sometimes visiting school groups are allowed in, to see some of the processes,” Ryou added.
“Hmm…” Akira thought a moment. “So if we show up saying we’re a school group…”
“We could probably make it in!” Kodamon answered.
Kei looked at Terriermon, Guilmon and Kodamon. “But what about you guys? I don’t think we’d get away with saying you’re stuffed animals or kids in costumes…”
“Why not?” Ryou asked. “Weirder things have happened!”
Akira raised an eyebrow. “Seriously?”
“We get the occasional crazy group that shows up cosplaying as furries or anime characters,” Ryou answered, “Most of them get turned away, but a few actually do have business on the upper floors. I’ve seen a couple of them while visiting.”
“So if we can convince the guards that we’re a school group or a club with a weird cosplay hobby, we might make it in?” Akira said skeptically.
“There’s another problem,” Rion said, “There are cameras and CCTVs everywhere. Everyone in the building is watched. So even if we could get in to the upper floors, the moment we start looking suspicious on the cameras, we’ll be kicked out!”
Everyone fell silent, thinking.
“Honestly, I’m not sure what you’re expecting to find,” Ryou said seriously, “I can’t believe my dad would be involved in something like taking over the Digital World or oppressing Digimon. And historically, ITI’s done a lot to help the world, especially after the Great Shaking.”
“Well, everything has a dark side,” Rion answered, “Wherever there’s light, there’s shadow.” He turned to Ryou. “Maybe we’ll find something we won’t like.”
“Why not just ask your dad directly?” Kei asked.
“He’s always traveling,” Ryou said, “I barely ever see him because he’s always on business trips. He’s on one right now to Singapore, so we won’t be able to ask him anything.”
The group fell silent again, then Akira suddenly got up.
“I feel like I need to do something,” she said, “Kodamon and I will head over to ITI and look around. Scope the place out.”
“Remember the cameras,” Rion said.
“We’re just going to look around,” Akira answered, “At least it’s something to do before the rest of us get here.”
“Cool!” Kei piped up. “Terriermon and I can come with you!”
“No, you won’t.”
Kei whipped around to face Kyoko. “Huh? Mom?”
“It’s way too dangerous for you to be walking all over the city, especially with so many Digimon around.”
Kei frowned. “But I’ll be with Terriermon, and Akira and Kodamon!”
“No buts,” Kyoko said sternly, “Akira can do what she likes, but you stay here!”
Kei groaned. “Not fair!” She picked up Terriermon and ran to her room.
“Mom!” Akira said, “Isn’t that a little harsh?”
“I just want what’s best for her,” Kyoko answered reproachfully, “and if it’s for her to stay away from a troublemaker like you, then so be it.”
Akira blinked and looked back at her mother in shock. She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. “Okay,” she finally said, “That’s fine.” Both her voice and her face were emotionless. “Let’s go, Kodamon.” She turned away and walked toward the door.
Kodamon followed, looking between Akira and Kyoko uneasily.
“We’ll be at home, searching for anything important in our dad’s papers,” Ryou called after them.
Akira nodded blankly, and she and Kodamon left the house.
“Well, bye then, Mrs. Nogami.” Ryou said hastily, while Rion glared at her. Guilmon glanced at Rion and Kyoko nervously. She didn’t say a word as they left.
In another part of the city, Akira and Kodamon sat on a park bench, looking intently at the large building across the street. The ITI campus was full of various people walking around the grounds, as well as a multitude of others walking in and out of the main building.
“I can’t believe no one’s noticing us,” Kodamon whispered, “On the street, on the bus, here – everyone’s walking by and not giving us a second look! Amazing!”
Akira laughed. “No, they definitely notice us, but they don’t exactly care. I mean, we’re just a girl and a midget in a bear costume!”
“Teddy bear!” a young child called out, pointing at Kodamon while being dragged along by a parent. Kodamon waved.
“You see?” Akira said.
Kodamon snorted. “Sure.”
They sat for a few more minutes, then Akira sighed and got up. “This is useless. I’ve never seen so many cameras, outside or inside. How are we supposed to get into the restricted areas without getting caught?”
“Maybe Jun could figure something out!”
“I don’t know,” Akira replied, “I think we’ll need more help than just us. It’s starting to get complicated.”
They walked quietly over to the nearest bus stop. “Hey, Akira,” Kodamon said, “that stuff your mom said-”
“Don’t worry about it,” Akira interrupted. “I’m not angry. Just… disappointed. What she said just confirmed a few things in my mind, that’s all.”
The bus arrived and the two got on, with the driver doing a quick double take at Kodamon before driving off.
Meanwhile, Kei was sitting on her front porch, upset. Terriermon sat in her arms.
“It’s not fair!” Kei murmured, “We should have been able to go with Akira and Kodamon. We would have helped, and not got in the way!”
“Your mom’s just worried about you,” Terriermon replied. “She doesn’t want you to get hurt!”
“Okay, sure, but she needs to know that we’re important to the team!” Kei shot back. “We’re needed, and we can’t just not do things because they’re dangerous! And besides, we’ve been through dangerous things and gotten out just fine!”
“You should tell your mom these things,” Terriermon answered.
“I know…” Kei sighed. “But it’s hard. She won’t listen to me, and I guess I’m a little scared of what she’ll say if she did listen. It’s so stupid…”
They sat in silence for a while, as fog began to roll in.
“Fog…” Kei murmured. Then she and Terriermon looked at each other suddenly. “Digimon!” They both looked around frantically, up and down the street, searching for any sign of Digimon attacking.
There was a sudden series of booms and a couple of screams from one certain direction.
“That’s coming from the bus stop!” Kei said. She and Terriermon nodded, and they took off running down the street.
As they ran, Kei pulled out her Digivice and slotted in her Crest. “Get ready!” she called out, and Terriermon quickly evolved up to Rapidmon, with his golden and magenta armor.
The bus stop looked like a war zone when they arrived. The bus was overturned, and Akira and the driver were helping the other passengers out. Auramon was locked in combat with several Antiramon, while a horde of Wendimon terrorized the fleeing passengers.
“Huh?” Kei stared at the Antiramon in confusion. “Antiramon? Yuka?”
“Don’t be fooled!” Auramon shouted, “They’re all part of the Midnight Army!”
Rapidmon hovered in the air, took aim at the Wendimon, and fired. “Rapid Fire!” Missiles fired from Rapidmon’s arms and slammed into the Wendimon, knocking them down flat.
Akira turned toward them, breaking into a relieved smile. “Kei! Rapidmon!”
“Aura Burst!” Auramon’s attack blasted back the Antiramon that were crowding in on her.
One of the Antiramon remained standing. After looking around at its fallen comrades, it smirked at Rapidmon and Auramon, and started powering up for an attack.
“Brace yourself” Auramon called out.
However, no attack came. The Antiramon instead turned its attack on its own teammates.
Akira and Kei looked on in horror. “What?” Kei yelped, “What’s it doing?”
The Antiramon continued to attack its teammates until they all dissolved into data, then it absorbed it all. Afterward, it glowed, then changed into another form – a dark purple beast Digimon with long, tattered ears and hulking arms.
“It evolved!” Kei shouted.
“Cherubimon Vice,” Akira read from her D-Coder. Her eyes widened. “Ultimate level?!”
Cherubimon Vice gave a deep, distorted laugh, and lifted its arms, summoning a group of thunderclouds. Then it made a sweeping motion down.
“Heaven’s... Judgment...”
Lightning bolts rained down, Auramon and Rapidmon hovering in the air trying to dodge them. Kei and Akira took cover inside the overturned bus.
The onslaught soon ended, and Auramon and Rapidmon continued to hover, panting heavily.
“Kei!”
Kei looked outside the shattered bus. “Mom?”
“I finally found you!” Kyoko said, grabbing her by the hands. “I should have known you’d be wherever the danger was!”
Just then, Cherubimon Vice formed a handful of spears in its hand and threw them at Auramon and Rapidmon.
“Lightning... Spear...”
Auramon dodged the spears, but Rapidmon was not as lucky. One spear hit Rapidmon in the chest, causing him to fall over and revert to Terriermon.
“Terriermon!” Kei shouted. She tried to run to him, but Kyoko gripped her tightly in her arms.
“Kei! Don’t go!”
“I can’t abandon Terriermon!” Kei said, “He’s my partner! We fight together!” She twisted out of Kyoko’s grip and ran toward the battle. “Terriermon!”
When she reached him, a bright light blasted from her Digivice and it transformed, becoming sleek and silver with green accents. Around her neck, a second Crest materialized next to her first one – the Crest of Fate.
Terriermon glowed and began to change rapidly.
“Terriermon, warp evolve to… “SaintGalgomon!”
A giant robot dog appeared, green armor glinting in the light. He moved slowly, but the sheer amount of weapons he had equipped hinted at immense power.
“Burst Shot!”
SaintGalgomon unleashed his entire arsenal toward Cherubimon Vice, bullets, missiles and all. A few of them missed, but the vast majority hit home.
Cherubimon Vice let out a roar, caught some bullets in its hand, and threw them back. The bullets hurtled back toward SaintGalgomon, but Auramon hovered in and blocked them.
“Ready?” Auramon called out.
“Let’s do this!” SaintGalgomon answered.
“Aura Burst!”
“Giant Missile!”
Blue energy balls merged with smiley-faced missiles as they plowed through Cherubimon Vice.
Cherubimon Vice staggered back, breathing heavily. With a few swipes of its hands, it conjured a black portal and stepped inside. With wisps of hot wind, it began to disappear into the portal.
“I’ll… be… back…” Cherubimon Vice croaked out, staring back at SaintGalgomon and Auramon with narrowed eyes and a smirk. Before either of them could do anything, Cherubimon Vice disappeared.
Immediately SaintGalgomon and Auramon reverted to Terriermon and Kodamon. “We did it!” Kodamon said faintly, collapsing on the ground.
“But he got away!” Kei said hopelessly.
“We made it out alive,” Terriermon answered, “That’s the most important thing.”
“And if and when he comes back, we’ll get him!” Akira added.
They all quieted down when Kyoko walked over and crouched in front of Terriermon. She reached out a trembling hand, and stroked Terriermon on the head. “Thank you,” she murmured. She looked at him with newfound awe, knowing now that her daughter was in good hands.
“Hey!”
They all turned around to see Seita and Yuka running up to them with Gazimon and Lopmon. “We saw the fireworks,” Seita said breathlessly, “How much did we miss?”
Kei laughed. “Everything!” She pulled out her new D-Coder from her pocket. “I finally caught up with you!” she sang out.
Yuka pulled hers out, smiling, and she and Kei did a high five.
Meanwhile, Kyoko faced off with four people she’d rather not have seen again.
“Hello, Nami,” she said warily, “Takashi. Taira and Souichi.”
“It’s been a long time,” Taira answered, smiling. Kyoko only nodded.
“Dad! Grandma!”
Takashi and Nami turned their heads as Akira bowled right into Takashi, giving him a fierce hug. Nami joined in the hug, and they stayed that way for a few moments. Then, Akira took a step back, her eyes glistening.
“It’s been so long… I didn’t think I’d see you guys again!”
“We would never abandon you,” Nami said serenely.
Something about that comment hit Kyoko in the gut, though no one else seemed to notice.
Akira then focused her gaze on Nami. “You have a story to tell, don’t you?” she asked.
“Later,” Nami answered, “When everyone’s settled.”
Akira then turned to Seita and smiled.
“You’re okay?” Seita asked.
“Never been better!” Akira answered.
They stared at each other for a moment, smiling, until Ryou, Rion and Guilmon ran up.
“We heard the commotion. Is everyone okay?” Ryou asked.
Akira nodded. “Just everyone else finally showing up!” She turned back to Seita, who was eyeing Ryou warily. “Seita, this is Ryou. He’s Rion’s brother and one of the first friends I made here!”
Seita reached out and took Ryou’s hand, shaking it slowly. “Nice to meet you,” he said cautiously.
Ryou nodded. “Same.”
Suddenly, a bright spark exploded in the sky, and Sakuyamon approached, ferrying three passengers inside a sparkling half-dome. They landed, and Sakuyamon immediately reverted to Renamon, collapsing in exhaustion.
“You did great!” Tian said, giving her a hug. “Get some rest!”
“I fully intend to,” Renamon answered.
“Tian?” Taira called out.
“Mom!” Tian ran into her arms and gave her a hug.
“You got my letter?” Taira asked.
Tian nodded. “We can talk later.”
Taira looked over at Cai-lin and Yuu standing nearby. “Nice to see you again, Cai-lin! And Yuu! My, you’ve grown! You were only a baby the last time I saw you!”
Tian looked around, catching Ryou’s eye, and they both gasped.
“You…” Tian murmured.
“I saw you on the street corner,” Ryou said softly, “Just the other day. How...?”
Tian shook her head. “I don’t know.”
Ryou held out his hand. “I’m Ryou. Rion’s brother.”
“Tian.” She took his hand, smiling.
Rion watched his brother closely as he shook Tian’s hand, and smiled to himself.
“Over there, Dad!” a voice called out, “They’re all here!”
Mana and Jun ran up to join the crowd with Salamon and Patamon following. Mana’s father brought up the rear.
“We’ve finally powered up!” Jun said, pulling out his new D-Coder, while Mana pulled out hers.
“Great!” Kei said excitedly, “Now when Cherubimon Vice comes back, we’ll kick his butt!”
“Cherubimon Vice?” Yuka asked.
“Long story!” Kei answered.
They were interrupted by a ringing noise. Mana’s dad excused himself, pulling out a cell phone and answering it. After a few moments, he ended the call, looking grim.
“I have to report to work.”
“What?” Mana blurted out, “Why?”
Her dad shook his head. “I can’t say. They’re directing me to the naval base, so it may have something to do with the Digimon.”
“They can’t be deploying you again! You just came back!”
“And I don’t know what good it’ll do, considering what we just went through. But orders are orders.” He looked at Patamon and Salamon. “You’ll take care of them while I’m gone?”
“We will.” Patamon and Salamon nodded.
Mana stared back at him fearfully as he drove away. “Please be safe,” she said softly.
Suddenly, sirens sounded as a group of police cars showed up on the scene. A police officer emerged from a squad car and started shouting into a megaphone.
“All right, people, take your costume party and go indoors now. The city is locking down. A curfew is in place. Repeat, everyone indoors, now!”
“Curfew?”
“Costume party?!”
Kyoko groaned into her hands. After taking a moment to regain her composure, she looked up and called out to everyone gathered on the street.
“Okay, everyone follow me.” As she led the large group toward her home, she wondered, not for the first time, how Touma was doing, and then wondered what he’d think of the zoo she was letting into their house.