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Chapter 8

The Calm

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           Something happened the night Kyoto was reduced to ruins. It seemed the victory of Rukan and Michiko spooked the digimon into staying in their world and regrouping. Not a single digimon had been spotted anywhere in all of Japan. Rukan didn't know which was worse, having them come through all the time or having to wait and worry about their plans.

           Work on the device that would breach the barrier between the two worlds was agonizingly slow. It was obvious that even Taka was over his head in this project. Rukan knew that it would come eventually and was patient enough to let Taka work at his own speed. It wasn't like there was a rush with all the digimon staying in the other world.

           It was evening on the third month of the project that it started to show hope. Taka had taken Rukan's D infinity and hooked it to his computer using Renamon's code to run a program that would simulate a small version of the digital world. I should break the barrier between the two worlds and open a portal large enough for the tamers to pass through.

           "Yes Michiko we think we have it this time. Get to Shinjuku prep school as fast as you can. Tonight may be the night." Said Rukan into the receiver of the telephone. He hung up and let out a long sigh looking out the window at the sun setting over the mountains in the west.

           The thought that perhaps the digimon had given up their crusade had crossed his mind. What if by going there they broke their unspoken truce and the war sparked up again? Rukan put his forehead against the glass and closed his eyes. Such tactical decisions to be made and still he knew he had to go. As long as Tenshi was in power there was a threat.

           "Rukan?"

           Rukan opened his eyes and turned his head to the familiar voice. Renamon walked up the hall from the lab where Taka was hard at work. He smiled a bit turning back to look at the sunset once more, "It's beautiful isn't it? How the sky becomes shades of crimson and peach..."

           Renamon nodded giving her trainer a kiss on the top of the head, "Yes it is... You want to tell me what's bothering you?"

           Rukan took a deep breath, "What if we are making a mistake in going to the digital world? What if they are waiting for this and the moment we go there they all pour through into this world? Or what if they gave up and don't want to be here anymore and us going their only sparks up another conflict?"

           Renamon frowned as the same questions had been going through her own head, "Rukan... We have to go."

           Rukan shook his head, "Do we really? We've had peace for three months now..."

           Renamon shook her head and frowned, "And what about all those digimon forced to have their data corrupted by the skull virus. A plague that has to be stopped just like any other. You know better Rukan. Digimon feel just like humans."

           The Hisashi stopped and thought about this for a moment. She was right of course. He hadn't thought of the digimon that way. How selfish of him to completely forget that they needed his help just as much as the humans in this world. Rukan nodded slowly and closed his eyes, "But if we go... Who will be here to protect everyone else?"

           "As much as I hate to say it... Hypnos should be able to handle the digimon that come through here." Replied the digimon softly.

           "What if they fail?" Said Rukan now looking up at Renamon.

           "Then we had better work fast."

           Rukan nodded and looked back out the window, "I should be down by the water today... putting a candle on a small boat to flow along the water with the rest of the candles."

           Renamon quirked a brow, "Why's that?"

           Rukan sighed softly, "It's the festival of the dead... The candle is for my sister. The one I failed to protect."

           Renamon wrapped her arms softly around Rukan and shook her head, "There was nothing you could do to stop it Rukan. Don't beat yourself up over your shortcomings and the things that you simply cannot change."

           Rukan put his hands on Renamon's paws and shook his head, "I could have said no to the boss. Said I wouldn't fight for him. Kept my honor..."

           Renamon kissed the top of Rukan's head and frowned a little, "You can go over the what if's in your head for hundreds of years but the fact remains... It will never bring her back."

           Rukan nodded, "That's why saving everyone else is so important to me..."

           Renamon hadn't realized Rukan's passion in their battles was because he felt obligated. He was so young and trying so hard to make things right. She held him a bit tighter for a moment letting the silence sink in.

           "Rukan? Michiko and Shademon are here. We're ready to try." Shouted Takeshi from the lab down the hall.

           The couple remained still for a moment before both of them turned and walked into the lab, which now was filled with wires and odd thrown together gadgets. Rukan nodded to Michiko and she did the same back to him.

           "Ok. Rukan I've added a communicator to your D infinity watch. It will allow you to contact me when you need to pull out. I've also discovered the truth behind the blue cards." Said Taka making Rukan smirk a bit. He was like a general about to send his troops into hostile territory.

           "It seems they only appear when the tamer is under extreme emotional circumstances. Rukan losing his sister and Michiko's loss of her parents are examples of this. It seems it makes a connection with a digimon in the other world, which manifests its data in the form of a blue card. Once it's slashed through the card reader it triggers the forming of a D infinity."

           Rukan looked to Michiko as Taka spoke a bit surprised. He didn't know Michi was an orphan. She looked back to Rukan and smiled a bit before turning back to Taka.

           "I've found a way to simulate this through an AI program in my computer. With the help of Renamon I've found the emotion centers in the digimon intelligence program. It's highly complicated to say the least but I was able to simulate one emotion properly. Rukan if you would hand me a card please?"

           Rukan nodded and reached into his carrying case trying to find a card they would probably never need now that their battlefield was changing. He handed the card over to Taka who hit a few buttons on his computer and set the card down on the keyboard. The room was filled with light as the card turned bright blue with the same symbol both Michiko and Rukan had seen on their own cards.

           "Taka why would you need to make a card? They only bring Digimon here." Said Michi with a bit of a frown.

           "Because I need the digimon to break the barrier between the worlds for me to isolate the portal and hold it open with the machine. I need someone to help me protect the portal on this side from hypnos as well after all. I understand that time in the digital world moves several times faster than here. I will leave the portal open and you should be back in a matter of a few moments in this world, even if you spent weeks in there."

           Takeshi picked up the blue card and quickly slashed it through the card reader and the tamers that knew better quickly put their sunglasses on and covered their ears as the room was once again filled with a bright light and a high pitched squeal as the fourth known D infinity was created. Taka strapped it to his wrist and quickly started hitting buttons on the computer as the portal to the digital world formed and a small mechanical digimon fell through.

           The portal flashed electricity shooting from the machinery branching across the portal before forming around the edges and holding it open. Rukan looked at the little digimon and smirked a bit. It looked like a little robot Taka himself had thrown together. He was beginning to understand the correlation between tamer and digimon now. The nature of their Digimon is always the true nature in one's heart. Rukan's honor brought Renamon. Michi's reclusive nature brought Shademon and now Taka's knowledge of technology brought this new digimon.

           "Hello. I am Techmon." Said the little creature.

           "Hello Techmon. I'm Takeshi. I brought you here into our world with a blue card" Replied Takeshi as he bent down to be eye level with the small thing.

           Rukan leaned against Renamon for a moment and whispered in her ear, "Teleport back home and bring my electricity deck. If Hypnos comes He'll need it."

           Renamon nodded and disappeared quickly. Taka saw it and looked at Rukan curiously. Rukan just shook his head, "Techmon... What is the current state of the digital world?"

           The digimon looked up at Rukan and shook it's head making a whirring noise, "In disarray. The sickness has taken every continent now and the population not infected is low. I thank you Takeshi for removing me from that dying world." Replied Techmon.

           Rukan's jaw clenched as he realized that if they couldn't find a cure they would have to destroy the entire digital world to halt the threat. He spoke softly at this point being careful not to let his emotion's bleed through his words, "Is there a cure?"

           Techmon looked to the ground, "All that are infected are under the control of the king. If you destroy the king they will be free."

           Taka spoke before Rukan could this time, "Who is the king?"

           Renamon appeared with the deck in her paws right next to Rukan and Techmon jumped with a yelp, "It's her!"

           Taka caught the little digimon and found he weighed a bit more than expected as the robot knocked him over, "That's just Renamon. She is friendly don't worry."

           Techmon looked at the baffled Renamon once again and shook his head, "It's not her... The queen. She is the king's power. Dark and evil, she shows no mercy."

           Rukan looked to Michiko and spoke softly, "Tenshi... He found a way to use the corrupted Digimon hypnos created and spread the virus throughout the digital world. A world innocent an untouched by people once again desecrated by greedy and power hungry men."

           Techmon shook his head as he got off Takeshi and spoke once more, "The king is no human... He is a god."

           The room went quiet as the digimon stopped speaking. Rukan looked to Renamon and shook his head with a frown on his face. Tenshi had established dominion over the digital world as a god. It sickened Rukan how far men would go for power. That disgrace of humankind had the power to enforce his rule as well.

           "He looks like a human but moves and has power like a digimon." Said the techmon.

           Rukan quickly looked to Michiko and she shook her head not knowing what the thing meant either. Perhaps Tenshi had found other effects of the cards. He would have had ample time to find out what they did. Rukan looked to Renamon who he found giving Shademon a serious look. She knew something she wasn't telling him and it seemed that Shademon knew it as well.

           "What do you two know that you haven't told us?" Said Rukan with a frown.

           Shademon spoke in his wispy voice still sending a chill down Rukan's spine, "There is a possibility that Tenshi is both human and digimon..."

           Renamon nodded slowly and took a deep breath, "There is a place in the digital world where the energies of both worlds collide. It is a place protected by the most powerful amongst us and if a human were ever to past the test of spirit they would become like us gifted with two forms, one of the human and the other digimon. This has never happened before but I think it's safe to assume that Tenshi has become a humon."

           Shademon nodded, "According to the prophecies a humon would have more power than any digimon having the grace of both worlds and be like a god. It makes sense that the digimon still in the digital world would see Tenshi as such."

           Rukan felt his heart sink at all of this information. He wouldn't stand a chance against Tenshi if he really had that much power to call upon. He would have to put aside his humanity and become something more, he would have to become a humon just like Tenshi, he and Michiko both.

           "Then time is of the essence. Every second we spend talking here Tenshi has hours to infect the rest of the digital world and then he will only be fighting a one front war, one that the earth has no chance in ever winning. It's time to go..." Said Rukan with new determination growing in his heart. As Renamon had said to him that night in Kyoto, failure is not an option.

           The Hisashi walked up to the portal and turned to the rest of them, "This is going to be the hardest and most dangerous thing we will ever do in our entire lives. We will probably never been known for what we do here and in that other world but in our hearts we all know that we cannot just sit back and let Tenshi do what he wishes. This is my chance to regain my honor for the loss of my sister... I failed my world once before by being unable to save it. This is a second chance for me to make this world right as well as the other."

           "I won't lie. I'm so scared I should be shaking up here but we know how to beat Tenshi. We know what he is and know how to become that and more. We may be just kids but we are the only hope this world and the other has. A wise person once told me in a situation like this... Failure is not an option."

           Renamon smiled warmly and worked her way through the room to stand by Rukan's side, "Keep us safe Taka."

           Michiko shook her head and giggled a bit as she and shademon joined the other two at the portal, "You got a thing for the dramatics Rukan. A real samurai."

           Taka nodded to them and Rukan turned to face the portal, "Every journey begins with the first step..."

           With that said Rukan stepped forward into the portal.