Chapter Text
Agumon awoke in a familiar field of red flowers. What did Takuma call these? Red DokugaLillymons? That wasn't it.
"Taku--" Agumon's throat was too dry to finish even a single word. When was the last time he'd had something to drink? There was no telling how many hours he'd been unconscious after stepping through the portal, but he could swear he hadn't had anything to eat or drink in over a week. Labramon would probably say he was being hypertolerant. Hyperbouyant? Whatever the word, Labramon would know.
As Agumon ruminated, his sense of awareness returned at a glacial pace. These were red spider lilies. He'd had a big bowl of water with breakfast before the first fight with Piedmon. He was being hyperbolic. And Takuma...
Slowly getting up off the ground, Agumon took stock of his surroundings. Miyuki was nowhere to be seen. This field of red spider lilies had a twin in the other world. Was it possible that the portal had failed? There was nothing to suggest in which world Agumon found himself, but somehow he knew. The sense was different than what Agumon had felt when he passed out. His connection to Takuma was distant, and his soul ached with a phantom pain. The sensation wasn't all that different than when he was Koromon, before he'd met Takuma. The only difference was that now he understood what it was like to be whole.
It was then that Agumon noticed the fog. His mind snapped to focus. This was bad. Where was Miyuki? He couldn't sense any humans nearby. Damn. I'll just have to regroup. With a deep inhale, Agumon took off as fast as he could for the school. Just had to hope it was safe there.
To his surprise, Agumon could sense that the others had already regrouped at the school. As he sprinted past the shrine and through the woods, the sense only grew more distinct. He could could sense Falcomon, Labramon, Floramon, Dracmon, and Syakomon. All their human partners seemed to be safe as well!
As Agumon neared the end of the woods, he could sense that Minoru and Falcomon were closer than the others. Why would they be out here? Falcomon knew how dangerous the fog was! As Agumon pondered this, the hunger and exhaustion from two battles with Piedmon began to catch up to him. The sprint became a run and then a jog that was barely faster than a power walk.
"Huh, it sounds like someone's there... Must be my imagination..." The voice was unmistakable.
"Falcomon! Minoru!" Agumon forced the words out of his throat like a baby flame, and the raspy sound produced was barely recognizable to himself.
"A-- Agumon!?" Minoru's voice matched the expression that was just coming into visibility, an expression of having seen a ghost. "I can't believe it! We thought you and Takuma were dead! Speaking of, where is he?!"
"Takuma... is in the human world." Agumon's words came out as barely a whisper.
"What..." Minoru's expression only turned more gout upon processing what Agumon was saying.
"We need... Miyuki..." Before Agumon could elaborate, his vision turned blurry and dark, and he lost consciousness once again.
Minoru's mind had a million questions swirling around right then, but Falcomon's tseer brought him to attention. "What is it, Minoru? Did I hear you call out Agumon's name name just now?" Appearing from behind a tree, Falcomon saw the disheveled orange mass laying in front of his partner. "Agumon!? He survived after all!?"
Carefully, Minoru picked up Agumon, holding him as delicately as he could in his arms. It would have looked rather heroic if 'as delicately as he could' didn't mean 'like a 19-year-old uncle being handed a baby for the first time' to Minoru, gripping Agumon from under the arms. No matter. Being a hero isn't about looking cool, after all. "He's in bad shape, Falcomon. We need to have Aoi and Labramon look at him."
Falcomon nodded with wordless, determined agreement.
Upon waking up in the cafeteria, Agumon ate the hot meal that Aoi had prepared. Labramon had treated him with cure liqueur. After holding his mouth under the sink for several minutes, Agumon felt as good as new, physically. Spiritually, there was no avoiding the pain of telling everyone about what had happened in the human world. About Piedmon, the natural disasters, Miyuki's song, and eventually, about Takuma's decision to stay behind. Aoi's newfound confident leadership kept everyone quiet while Agumon spoke. After exchanging information, it became clear that the few hours Agumon spent in the human world amounted to ten days here. In that time, Haru had struck out on his own, unable to bear staying at the school without Miyuki.
“There's just one problem.” Heads turned toward the corner of the room where Kaito had been standing silently. His face was plastered with a dark scowl. “If Takuma wanted to save Miyuki so damn badly, why the hell isn't he here?”
Agumon attempted to interject, but before he could get a word out, Kaito was screaming.
“That bastard knows everything that's going on! He knows that we're here, fighting just to survive and watching each other get ripped apart by those hands! And he just sends Agumon to give us the message that it's not enough to do the impossible task of living through this nightmare, we have to somehow stop The Master from destroying both worlds too? Where is Takuma!? And you!” Kaito pointed an accusing finger at Agumon. “Why aren't you angrier!? Your partner sent you to die while he runs home to mommy!”
Kaito's words were like a knife in Agumon's heart. Takuma sent him here... to die? No, of course not. Takuma loved Agumon. Takuma had faith in Agumon. Right?
“Kaito! That's way too far!” Miu's shrill protest broke the momentum of Kaito's rant. “You're making it sound like we're just doomed here.”
Kaito's expression softened an infinitesimal amount. “We could barely take Piedmon with seven of us. Then Takuma disappeared and Garurumon left. I'll do everything I can to keep you safe, Miu, and we've managed to keep our heads above water with the five of us. But if we're seriously talking about taking the fight to The Master?” Kaito's anger had run down to fumes. He silently avoided the gaze of his peers.
Agumon looked around the room. None of the humans could look him in the eyes. Down at eye level, none of the other Kemonogami could, either. “Falcomon? Labramon?” A glance of pity from his two oldest friends was the only comfort Agumon received.
“None of this is productive,” Aoi spoke up. “Agumon, thank you for telling us everything you know. For now, we need to focus on a plan of action. Whatever you think of our chances of success, our failure is guaranteed if we do nothing. Yesterday we reached a consensus that we would relocate if nothing changed. With regard to the fog, nothing has. The fog has consumed the forest and the shrine, and it's clear that it's coming for the school. We need to find somewhere safer while we decide on what to do about The Master. Now, does anyone have any suggestions on where we might relocate?”
Minoru frowned. “We haven't exactly found any clues about anywhere safer.”
“Yeah,” Saki agreed. “Everywhere with shelter is overtaken by the fog. The city by the factory is thick with the stuff.”
“What about the amusement park?” Miu pondered aloud. “It's a long hike, but we don't have many other options. Besides, if we're going to need to fight The Master, we'll need more allies. I know the kids there aren't very strong... But Jijimon is a walking encyclopedia about this world! I bet he knows where we could find people willing to help!”
“I think that's a great idea.” The Professor had a gentle, reassuring smile on his face. “With any luck, The Master considers the amusement park too unassuming to be worth invading. If we can relocate there, we'll be much more well-equiped to defend our position than we have been.”
Aoi's gentle smile cushioned the blow of the skeptical look in her eyes. “Really? Why do you say that, Professor?”
“You said there was a large play castle, yes? While the materials might not be as resilient as a real castle, its layout is surely more well-suited to surviving a seige than a humble school.”
Aoi's expression turned more neutral. “Hmm... My only concern is about how we're going to transport supplies. We don't have much in the way of bags or wagons, and that's a long way to transport our food rations.”
“Anywhere we go is going to be a long hike,” Saki replied bluntly. “I think at some point we need to just accept the drawbacks of the least bad option.” A flash of sadness seemed to consume Saki. It was gone before anyone noticed.
As the humans worked out the logistics of converting sheets into makeshift knapsacks, Agumon and the other Kemonogami migrated outdoors to stand guard.
“What are we looking out for, anyway?” Agumon asked Falcomon.
“I need to tell you what the humans are too scared to discuss, Agumon. While you were gone, Miyuki was taken by the Kenzoku.”
“O-- oh.” Somehow the information washed over Agumon more easily than Falcomon expected. “But how did that happen when Miyuki was with me in the human world?”
“I'm afraid we may never fully understand the temporal relation between that other world and this one, Agumon. All I can tell you is that since The Master took Miyuki, the Kenzoku have grown much stronger. They walk on their own feet, they come in waves of dozens, and each one is stronger than Arukenimon. Some possess power rivaling Piedmon.” Falcomon's voice was perfectly steady throughout the entire speech. Agumon listened attentively. “Agumon, I value you as a friend, and I admire your warrior spirit, but I need to say this plainly. If the Kenzoku come, you must stay out of the battle. Without Takuma, we don't know if you can evolve. If you can, it surely will be a fraction of your full power. Either way, your death is certain if you attempt to fight.”
Those words, 'without Takuma,' rang in Agumon's head. His gizzard twisted as everything else seemed to go silent. “Without Takuma...”
Falcomon's face finally twitched, betraying the empathetic pain he felt for his friend. “Agumon, I need to know that you understand. I want you to keep yourself safe. We all have a role to play here, but leave the fight against The Master to us, okay?”
“Okay...”
“Thank you, Agumon.” Falcomon could feel an overwhelming emotion boiling up and threatening to break his composure. He turned away and pretended to be very interested in a nearby tree.
Labramon, who had been silent up until then, spoke up. “We all care about you, Agumon. I can't imagine what you're going through. If I was ever separated from Aoi, I don't know what I'd do.”
“Without Saki, I'd be completely lost!” Floramon added.
“I don't even want to think about not having Miu in my life...” Syakomon whispered.
Dracmon was the one to break up the gloomfest. “Alright, alright. We get it. I don't think any of this is making Agumon feel better. Takuma made a choice. There's no reason to make that about ourselves.”
“Oh, I didn't mean to--” Syakomon started. Agumon cut her off.
“It's okay, everyone. I appreciate the concern. The truth is, when Takuma said he wouldn't be coming back with me, I had never felt more hurt. It was like our friendship didn't mean anything at all. Like I waited my entire life for nothing.” Agumon's irises contracted, his face taking on the appearance of a cold-blooded predator. “I understood how Garurumon felt, just for a split second. Our fated bond seemed like such a stupid thing to believe in.”
After a moment, Agumon's expression softened. “And yet somehow, I couldn't bear to be mad at Takuma. I just promised to save the world, wished him well, and stepped into the portal with Miyuki. Now she's not here either. It's just me...”
Nobody could find the words to soothe Agumon. All Falcomon could offer was a wing on the shoulder. For what felt like a very long time, the six of them stood guard silently.
“Oh no,” Dracmon muttered.
The other Kemonogami looked up to see them. Emerging from puddles of sickly smoke, there they were. The awful creatures Falcomon was talking about. Twisted and bloated masses of calcified darkness.
Kenzoku, Agumon thought to himself.
“Agumon! Get the humans! We'll hold off the Kenzoku for as long as we can! Go!”
“Right!” Energized with purpose, Agumon took off. The exhaustion and heartache was washed away by pure adrenaline.
BOOM! SLASH!
“Labramon, cover me!”
“On your left, Syakomon!”
“EEEEEEEUUUUGHHHHHHHHHAAAAAA!”
The sounds of battle blared behind Agumon as he burst through the doors of the school. The rotting, debris-covered floor proved challenging footwork for the panicked Kemonogami, but within the minute, he emerged into the cafeteria. “Guys!”
Nobody was there.
Damn, where are they? Agumon wracked his brain. The music room? The classroom? There was no time to search the school. I'm sorry, Falcomon. If Agumon couldn't gather the children, it all ended here. Maybe Takuma was right to stay behind. Maybe Kaito was right that they were all doomed. How could Agumon hope to take down The Master if he couldn't even do a simple task like this right?
Maybe I should just turn back and fight, Agumon thought. But I promised Falcomon. Search or fight? Agumon didn't know what to do. This was exactly the kind of thing Takuma was good at. Agumon was agreeable, but not as decisive.
Like a car driver suddenly aware they've driven all the way to their destination without thinking, Agumon found himself back outside. Somehow, the humans were already there, and everyone was in their evolved form. I guess they heard the battle happening and came. Takuma isn't the only one who doesn't need me, huh? Wait!
“Crowmon, no!” Minoru's scream could shatter glass. Crowmon had caught a nasty attack on the side. His left wing burned, he crashed into the school. The impact was accompanied by a sickening snap. Was that the sound of the wall's structural integrity being destroyed, or Crowmon's bones? Agumon shuddered at the thought. Minoru screamed again with the pain of a boy uncertain if his best friend was alive or dead. “Crowmon!”
It was then that Minoru noticed the Kenzoku hobbling toward his partner. With Crowmon immobilized, Minoru had no doubt about what was going to happen if he did nothing. Looking around, he saw Kaito, Miu, Saki, and Aoi all on the back foot fighting the Kenzoku. There was nobody who could help him. “No... No! I'm not losing Falcomon again!”
Minoru's legs moved on their own. In an instant, he was standing between Crowmon and the Kenzoku, arms outstretched.
The Kenzoku stopped to regard Minoru, seemingly out of curiosity. For eight heartbeats, they just stared at each other.
The Kenzoku took a step forward.
“Fuck you, you evil piece of shit!” Minoru lept forward, fists clenched, with no regards for his own safety. A hero's not afraid to give his life.
The punch landed with less than a thud. Minoru felt a hand on his calf. Oh no. He looked down to see a familiar smoke, the one that had appeared to Ryo, Fangmon, and Miyuki. Somehow it looked entirely different under his own feet.
“M-- Minoru?” Crowmon stirred. It hurt to move, but he managed to turn his head enough to see what was happening. “Minoru!” Crowmon started to scramble to his feet before the paralyzing pain shot through every nerve in his large body. In a flash, the weakness caught up to him. When the light dimmed, he was Falcomon again, powerless to save his fated child.
“Guys, Minoru!” Agumon yelled out for help as he ran to Minoru. Kaito was the first to turn to attention. The girls followed shortly. With their Kemonogami fighting tooth and nail against the Kenzoku, the human children made their way to their friend who was slowly sinking into the ground, grey hands pulling on every limb.
“I've got you!” Agumon's claws prevented him from getting a good grip, but he managed to slide his arms under Minoru's.
A swarm of hands found themselves on Agumon's body as well. Saki, Aoi, Miu, and Kaito. The fated children against the Kenzoku in a sick game of tug of war.
“Argh!” Minoru screeched in pain. His shoulders were both dislocated, and he could feel his skin ripping every direction. And he was still sinking.
“Don't let go!” Agumon grunted through clenched teeth. This can't all be for nothing!
“Hang on!”
“We're coming!”
“Pull harder!”
Agumon had no idea who was saying what. Slowly, the direction of pull seemed to reverse.
“The Kenzoku all disappeared when the smoke grabbed Minoru! The Master must being using everything he has to pull him in!”
Dracmon had arrived and began pulling on Kaito's back. Floramon wrapped a tendril around Saki's waist. Labramon's fangs gripped Aoi's shirt.
“We got him! We got him!” Agumon yelled, pleading with fate.
Then the worst happened. The Kenzoku let go of everything but Minoru's legs. Unable to keep his arms down, Minoru's arms flipped up. His groan of agony was inhuman. Agumon suddenly had no grip on Minoru at all. Everyone went flying backward. With a sickening crunch, Minoru vanished.
“MINORU!” Falcomon's despair was greater than any physical pain. He rushed over the blood-moistened ground where Minoru had been just moments before. “Minoru... Why... Oh, why?” Agumon had never seen Falcomon like this.
“Falcomon...”
Spores of light began to flake off the usually-stoic warrior as he dropped to his knees.
“No... This can't be real,” Falcomon whispered to himself. “You said we would stick together from now on. I only ever wanted--”
Falcomon's final thought would never be voiced.