Chapter 44:
Over the Edge
The next thing Akira knew, she was lying in a hospital bed. She slowly opened her eyes and saw Takashi and Nami’s relieved faces staring down at her, along with Kodamon’s excited laugh.
“Akira! Thank goodness!” Kodamon exclaimed. “How are you feeling?”
“A little… weird.”
“What’s the last thing you remember?”
Akira wracked her brain, thinking hard. “An underground room... Apocalymon... So many Apocalymons. We were outnumbered… and Touma… He saved us…” Her eyes snapped open. “Touma!”
She looked around wildly, causing Takashi and Nami to hold her down.
“Whoa! Calm down, Akira! Relax!”
“Where’s Touma? He was really hurt-”
“Akira-”
“We need to get him to a doctor-”
“Akira!”
“What?” Akira looked at the defeated expression in Takashi’s eyes, and a sinking feeling grabbed her heart. “No...”
“I’m sorry,” Takashi said. “The security guards found Touma’s body when they went down to the basement levels.” He looked away. “They’ve… already notified his family.”
“Take care of Kyoko and Kei for me.”
Akira looked down, gripping her blanket so hard her knuckles turned white. She couldn’t believe it. It couldn’t be true.
“Don’t make me regret saving you!”
She didn’t know what to feel. She and Touma had always fought, and his abusive behavior toward her was unforgivable, but she also knew that deep down, he had good intentions. He didn’t deserve to die.
The door suddenly opened.
“Excuse me,” Tian poked her head into the room. She saw Akira and her expression brightened. “You’re awake!” She blinked, reassessing the situation. “Is everything okay?”
Akira shook her head, pushing her disturbed thoughts away for the moment. “It’s nothing. What is it?”
“Mr. Araneta just woke up, and he’s called a meeting with ‘the children.’ I’m assuming he means us. He’s in the room just down the hall.”
Akira nodded.
As Tian left, Akira immediately got out of bed and slipped into the bathroom to change.
“Akira,” Nami said, “What are you doing?”
Akira said nothing as she finished dressing and pulled out her shoes.
Takashi swallowed. “Akira, the doctor wants to keep you overnight, for observation. You might have a concussion.”
“I’m fine, Dad,” Akira replied, tying her shoes and slipping on her goggles.
“Akira-”
“I’m just going down the hall. I want to hear what Mr. Araneta has to say.”
She and Kodamon entered the already-crowded room, where Minoru Araneta sat up straight in a hospital bed, laptop open and cell phone in his hand, managing a phone call and video call simultaneously with finesse, while also arguing with the nurse about his medicine.
Akira looked around, noticing that her mother and Kei were nowhere to be seen, when her thoughts were interrupted by Minoru’s voice.
“All right, all right, I’ll take the medicine. Just be gone after that. Please and thank you.”
The nurse administered the medicine, then left, muttering.
“What do you mean, the building’s still closed?” Minoru demanded into the phone, “Hire a contractor to repair it, ASAP! Time’s a-wasting!”
“And one more thing,” he said to the person in the video call, “Cancel my appointments for this morning. I have something important to attend to.”
He ended the phone call and closed the laptop, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. He let it out and stared over at the kids and their Digimon with a serene look.
“It’s so refreshing… to finally be free of that insidious voice in my head!”
“You mean Mataymon?” Rion asked.
Minoru nodded. “All my life, I had been fascinated by the stories my father told me about Digimon and his adventures in the Digital World. I had no reason not to believe they were real, and my goal was to help build a world where humans and Digimon could live in peace, if the door between the worlds ever opened again.
“It was during a beta test for a new virtual-reality system when Mataymon came to me. Even as a young man, I knew what he was, a Digimon, and readily agreed to team up with him in order to make my dream a reality. But eventually, it became a nightmare.
“Mataymon spent years living in my head, dictating to me what to do, and where to go, claiming that it was all to make the world better. It took so long for me to realize his true intentions, it was almost too late.”
Akira spoke up. “So the Apocalymon that were hidden underground… that was part of Mataymon’s plan?”
“Yes.” Minoru said, looking at her up and down. “Akira, is it? I’ve been told that it was you and your Digimon that helped destroy our underground base.” He bowed his head. “For that, I am eternally grateful.”
Akira and Kodamon looked at each other. “It wasn’t us, sir,” Akira replied softly, “It was Touma Nogami.”
Minoru listened as Akira recounted what had happened in the underground bunker, up until the moment Touma had thrown them back in the elevator, sending them away and sealing his doom.
“We would have died if it weren’t for him,” Akira finished.
Minoru frowned. “Touma… Then I was wrong not to trust him, then. He was once my right-hand man, but he turned against me once the plan to find you children was put in motion.”
“Mobius Two?”
Minoru nodded. “It was Mataymon’s intention to find all of you and destroy you before you’d received the powers of your Crests. But I’d intentionally dug my feet in and delayed the search, telling him it was a waste of time and resources to look for children that would mean so little to his cause.
“But I knew otherwise. I was already doubting Mataymon’s intentions, and I knew from my father’s stories that whenever children were called to the Digital World, it was for a good purpose.”
“It’s up to us to defeat Mataymon now,” Akira said, “and put a stop to whatever else he has planned.”
“He said that it was only the beginning,” Tian added.
“If only we knew where he’d strike next,” Jun said, folding his arms.
“I’ll give you my full support,” Minoru said, “Whatever you need – equipment, food, a place to congregate – I’ll make sure you get it.” He paused, “As soon as I get out of here, of course. These doctors – they’re being so difficult!”
After a brief argument with the doctor about staying overnight, Akira and family managed to get her released from the hospital. As she walked down the hall with everyone else, she spied Kyoko and Kei sitting in a nearby waiting room. They both looked exhausted, as if they hadn’t slept a wink.
Kyoko looked up, and upon seeing them, she got up, pulling Kei with her. They walked up and joined the group as they walked outside, not saying a word.
Akira walked closer to Kei, feeling uneasy. Kei’s facial expression was blank and closed off, and there were faint circles around her eyes. Akira opened her mouth, then closed it. She had no idea what she should say.
“Why…?” Kei murmured.
“Huh?” Akira answered.
“Why couldn’t you save him?” Kei asked, a little louder. She looked up at Akira with unconcealed rage and sadness in her eyes. “You and Auramon have beaten so many Digimon and saved us all so many times. So why couldn’t you save Daddy?”
“Kei, I-”
“It’s as if you killed him yourself!”
There was a shocked silence as Akira took in a breath and Kodamon curled her paws as if in self-defense.
Kyoko placed her hands on Kei’s shoulders. “Kei-”
“I hate you!” Kei shouted, “I hate you, Akira!”
Kyoko was about to answer when Takashi stepped in.
“Kei, stop it. That’s gone too far.”
“Don’t you tell Kei what to do,” Kyoko shot back, “She’s not your kid!”
“And Akira isn’t yours?” Takashi shouted. “I thought you favored one over the other, but this is insane!”
“Of course Kei would be angry. She’s just lost her father. I just lost my husband. Cut us a little slack!”
“But that doesn’t mean she can get away with saying nasty things to my daughter-”
The argument continued as Kyoko said something equally nasty to Takashi.
Akira stood helplessly as the argument sparked several more in her memory.
“I can’t believe I’m hearing this. All this time, and now you’re saying the Digimon aren’t real?”
“I’m saying you’re all chasing an insane conspiracy theory! A dangerous game!”
“It’s not a game-”
“It’s a game, played by overgrown kids, and it got Tao-rin killed. And now you’re involving Akira in this madness. There isn’t a day that goes by that she isn’t going on about ‘Digimon this’ and ‘Digimon that’!”
“Then tell me why you’re leaving without her. Even better, tell her why you’re leaving her behind.”
“That’s not fair. You know I don’t have a choice. The job, the living arrangements-”
“That’s total bull. It’s that man of yours who doesn’t want your kid. Admit it!”
“I’m sorry…” Akira said, so softly that hardly anyone could hear her. Then she shouted, “I’m sorry!” As Kyoko and Takashi stopped and looked her way, she turned around and ran.
“Akira, wait!” Kodamon ran after her.
Without thinking, and before anyone could stop them, Seita and Gazimon followed them.
“All right,” Nami said, getting everyone’s attention. “That’s enough. Let’s go home, and give each other some time to cool off. We won’t get anywhere like this.
Takashi and Kyoko glared at each other, as Kyoko picked up a sobbing Kei and walked off, Terriermon following behind them.
Seita and Gazimon ran past several parked cars as they looked around frantically, wondering where Akira and Kodamon had gone.
Gazimon looked one way and pointed, “There!”
Seita turned to see Akira and Kodamon crossing an intersection at top speed.
By the time Seita and Gazimon had crossed the same intersection, Akira had slowed down, breathing heavily. Seita caught up with her, grabbing her wrist.
“Let go of me!” Akira shouted, “Leave me alone!”
Seita did the opposite, as he pulled her into a tight embrace. Akira tensed for a moment, then relaxed, letting out loud sobs.
“It’s not your fault,” Seita said softly, “She didn’t mean any of those things.”
Akira didn’t say anything as she continued to cry, and Seita continued to hold her.