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Primary Problems

Riina was on her feet in an instant. Her clawed fingers curled into tightly-balled fists. "Gaomon," she snarled, shaking with barely-controlled rage, "You know as well as I do why I had to stay! You and I are the two strongest digimon on this island, and we were both given a responsibility to protect the young digimon here! Instead, you chose to abandon that responsibility and go off in pursuit of your own personal gains! You have no right to even show your face here, digivolved or not!"

Gaogamon's response was a feral growl. His white mane bristled, and his front claws raked the dirt in front of him. "I don't have to answer to you, Riina!" he returned, "The Digital World is in crisis, and the only way to help solve that crisis is to get stronger. Babysitting a bunch of infant digimon won't make a bit of difference if the tablets are found and this island is invaded... again!"

I looked back at Riina just in time to see her wince. Something about Gaogamon's response had touched a nerve inside her. She fought to hold back tears. "How would you know anything about that?" she asked quietly, "You didn't have to live through it like I did... You didn't-"

"Okami, what's wrong?" Shori awakened just in time to hear the argument. She sat up, looking curiously over the scene before her. She took note of the golden digimon who was confronting her wolf partner, and of the baby digimon watching intently, some whispering amongst themselves, but when she noticed me, her face lit up. She scrambled down from Okami's back. "Hey, I didn't think I'd meet another human here!" she chimed, "I'm Unmei Shori!" She offered a polite bow.

I had thought before that things could not get any stranger than what I experienced, but now I was proven wrong yet again. Now, not only I, but a second young human had been dropped into this world I had dreamed to be nothing but the stuff of children's fantasies only a couple nights past. Even so, I didn't intend to be rude. I quickly hid my discomfort and returned the bow. "Shukumei Cheisu," I responded, "And this is Riina."

The vixen digimon ignored us and turned, walking away with her arms folded. As the shadows of the encroaching forest touched her body, Riina's form away until the darkness swallowed her. Shori looked after her, confused. "Did I say something wrong?"

I shook my head. "I... don't think so," I answered, "She's been like that ever since I first came to the Digital World. The only tenderness I've seen from her has been toward these baby digimon."

Okami padded over to our side, sighing heavily. "She always did care a bit too much about this village," he plainly stated, "You're her partner, Cheisu. Go and find her."

I hesitated. The way Riina had simply vanished, it was pretty obvious to me that she wanted to be left alone, and I still wasn't ready to admit to being her "partner," inescapable as that now was. "Why don't you go see her?" I shot back, "You're the one who caused her to walk off in the first place!"

Okami shook his head however. "Her issues run deeper than that," he answered, "That's one reason I left this village. I couldn't stand being around her when she was either gushing over the tots or crying over some great loss she'd supposedly suffered. I knew there was no way I'd get stronger when I had to constantly deal with that, so I left. But you're her partner. It's your responsibility to try to bring her back to her senses." He curled his lip, warning against further protest on my part.

Grumbling, I turned away from the two digimon and walked into the forest. Almost immediately the light from the Primary Village faded away. The forest draped its shadows around me, sending a chill down my spine. I wished now that I'd brought a coat as I began my search for Riina. Things were too quiet. The only sound I could make out was the soft rippling of a nearby river. In this strange place, I could not recall ever feeling so alone as I did now. "Riina!" I called out, only to have my voice thrown back at me. "Riina, where are you?!"

The farther into the wood I moved, the more uneasy I began to feel. Even though I could not see them, I could almost feel eyes watching me from the shadows. I slowed my walk and leaned down to pick up a solitary stick. It wasn't much, but it looked strong enough to strike a few solid blows if whatever laid in wait decided to stop watching and start attacking.

The sound of the river grew louder as I approached. The air grew colder and more humid. I could almost feel the individual droplets sticking to my skin as the water neared. My fingers clutched more tightly at the stick until splinters dug into my skin.

At last, the waterway came into view as I pushed aside some thick purple underbrush.

I welcomed the light of day again as the thick forest around me cleared. The riverbank before me had been eaten away over the years, leaving an eight-centimeter drop between the shore and the surface of the water. My eyes passed left and right, searching for any sign that Riina had come this way, but just as the previous night, she left no trace when she vanished.

Leaving the protective cover of the forest behind, I ventured closer to the river. "Riina!" I called again. Unfortunately, as before only the echo of my own voice greeted me in return. Sighing heavily, I knelt down by the bank, staring into the rippling waters as I wondered where Riina could have disappeared.

"If I were you, I would be less concerned about my partner, and more concerned about myself."

At the sound of that deathly voice, I jumped up and whirled around, instinctively holding my stick en garde. The creature standing before me was none other than Goburimon: a hunched-over, green-skinned digimon with a flat face, red eyes, and a mouth sporting two rows of pointed, plaque-covered teeth. His right arm wielded a nasty-looking wooden club, and with his left he reached up, slicking back his fiery-colored Mohawk. Suddenly the stick I held in my own hand felt a bit useless.

Goburimon stepped forward, his voice rasping with every movement. He pulled his thin lips back, bearing his teeth in almost-feral delight. I took a step back, curling my fingers so tightly around the stick that my knuckles turned white. "The only question," Goburimon cackled, "is whether I should finish you off myself, or send you into the river and letting you drown. Either way, I know I will be greatly rewarded for eliminating one of the famed digidestined." He took another step forward. I took another back. A clump of loose soil gave way beneath my feet, falling with a KRPLUNK into the river.

Goburimon's smile widened, if that was even possible. He raised his club high over his head and bellowed a charge. I quickly glanced left and right, looking for somewhere to retreat, but it looked as if the only clear path I had led straight into the river. I took one more step back and prepared to get wet...

"DIAMOND STORM!" Out of nowhere, shards of bright white energy flashed toward Goburimon. The ogre digimon leapt backward, barely avoiding being turned into Swiss cheese. Riina gracefully leapt from the treetops above, placing herself between Goburimon and me. "Attack my partner again and I'll see you deleted," she snarled, "No sovereign in all the Digital World would be willing to make the effort to revive you."

Goburimon laughed. "That's big talk from a digimon who lays around sniffing flowers all day," he said, "If you think you're so tough just ‘cause you have a human partner, then allow me to test you!" He raised his club over his head again and charged, shouting, "GOBURI STRIKE!" Riina stayed perfectly still. Goburimon swung his club, aiming directly for her mid-section. At the exact instant of impact, Riina vanished. Goburimon's club whistled through empty air. Goburimon stumbled forward and looked around. "Hey! No fair running away from battle! Coward!"

"Who ever said anything about running away?" Riina's voice echoed through the forest, "Has no one told you? Appearances can be... deceiving!" Goburimon looked up just in time to see Riina once more descending on him from above, but this time the vixen digimon was diving right toward him. "POWER PAW!" Riina stretched her paws forward and instantly blue flame enveloped them. Goburimon held up his club in defense, only to have it knocked aside and burned to ashes by Riina's flames. Goburimon's normally fierce eyes widened in fear. He turned and ran toward the forest, but Riina wasn't done yet. "DIAMOND STORM!" More razor shards of energy formed around her and lanced their way toward Goburimon, striking him with deadly accuracy. Goburimon cried out in pain before suddenly disintegrating, becoming nothing more than what seemed to be a cloud of red dust which dissipated almost as quickly as it formed.

Riina nodded in satisfaction and then turned back toward me. "How could you be so foolish?!" she growled, "The Digital World is a dangerous place, and now it seems that even File Island is not as safe as it used to be! You should never have come out here on your own."

I looked incredulously at her. "Don't lecture me!" I responded, "This never would have happened if you hadn't decided to storm off on your own in the first place! I was out here searching for you! You're the one who insisted that we're partners, so don't you complain when I come after you!"

Riina crossed her arms. "Hmph... You should have come when I needed you before... I was hoping you'd let me be on my own... just like you did then." She turned and started toward Primary Village.

I started after her. "Just like I did then?!" I argued, "What do you mean?"

"I do not wish to discuss it Cheisu," Riina answered, "Come... We need to get back to the village before nightfall. We have a long journey ahead of us, and the sooner we get you back home, the better."