[Zone 5] New Network City [Starting Area]

[-InsertEgoHere- Liger]

OOC: (())

══════►Raji ℈ɠσs◄═══════════════

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Before heading out to go on their first big quest as a team, Raji would notice for the first time that there was an Official Missions board as well as a gathering of tamers at the more popular tavern. He'd been slightly surprised to not have not noticed it before. He would take a moment to glance at the postings.

"Sir... I do believe that it would be wise to come back to this once we are... how do I put it." The imp would land softly on the boy's head as he searched his wide vocabulary for the appropriate words to explain their overly apparent weakness.

"I know, I know... I'm still new to this, there's no way that I could even begin to think about escorting someone through a world that I have no idea about." He would say with a sigh as he glanced at the escort and rebirth quest. And he didn't even want to comment on the other one, he was born in the summer for a reason. He wouldn't even both as he turned away to head for the city gates. "Let's go Cadaiver, the digital world awaits!"

"Yes, I would recommend... if you would have me." He would pause.

"You know you don't have to keep asking my permission to speak, ya know?" The boy would glance up at Cadaiver with a smile.

"But of course. I would recommend heading towards Gear Savanna. I have an old acquaintance that would frequently hang around there and it is a low-level enough area for us to get some combat practice as well as learn about your 'Tamer Powers'." He would take flight, taking the lead as they exited the city and into the grassy plains of the gear savanna.

[Raji & Company Exit to Gear Savanna]

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═══►Cadaiver, the Magician◄════════════

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Mission Underway: -Quest for Oni-sama Part 1- Quantity > Quality

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

There was a crackle of electricity that resonated throughout the entrance gate, unlike most Tamer's entrances to the digital world this one was going to be rough. The electricity danced around the gate and some of the technicians working the controls began to squirm uncomfortably as the charge built to almost unstable levels. With a sudden burst of light a figure emerged. The silhouette hovered in the middle of the gate for a few seconds before it ungracefully collapsed in a heap on the floor.
"Owch..."
A young man, looking in his late-teens/early-20's sat rubbing the back of his head as the electrical residue faded around him. His name, at least in the online world, was Kazu Matsumoto. He had awoken from a coma 4 years ago with faint memories of a Digital World full of spectacular monsters and friends, but it hadn't been until a few months ago that the reality of a true Digital World had become mainstream knowledge. Kazu and a group of sub-net hackers had created a device to upload himself into the Digital World so he could find out more about the memories he experienced in his coma.

The city around him bustled and as he opened his eyes properly for the first time a flood of nostalgia hit him like a bus. His pupils shrank as his heart swelled, he had made it. It wasn't a dream. He looked at his hands, turning them over and over, reaching up to his face and patting it, pinching his cheeks just to make sure.
"Haha... Hahaha!"
A true belly-laugh burst forth as Kazu accepted that he was awake and back in the Digital World. The guide who was supposed to be showing him where to sign up and get registered looked at him with a puzzled yet professional look.
"Excuse me sir. Are you ok? The entry to the Digital World is not usually that rough. I do apologise."
Kazu's laugh dimmed to a chuckle as the assistant spoke to him. He nodded to her and jumped to his feet, brushing down his clothes as he did so. Another pang of nostalgia hit him as he did so. His usual scruffy shirt and tracksuit trousers had been taken away and in their place was an immaculate school jacket, white undershirt and black trousers and shoes, exactly as he remembered from his time here before.
"Oh! One question before we get registered miss!"
Kazu walked up to the befuddled assistant and pointed with gusto at his head.
"What colour is my hair?"
Again the assistant looked taken aback, but she regained her composure quickly and cleared her throat.
"It's blue sir. Now, if you will please follow me, there are some forms you must fill in."
Kazu's smile grew wider. In the human world he had a mess of scruffy brown hair, but from what he could remember about his time here last something had caused his hair to turn blue! Since it was blue again now his resolve that he was in the right place redoubled. He grinned at the assistant and followed her to the sign-up desk.

After 15 minutes of filling out forms and providing his username (Kazu was not the name he had back in the real world), he was almost ready to go. The man working behind the desk looked up at Kazu and smiled warmly as he handed the Tamer a small device.
"Kazu is an exotic name for a man with such a strong British Accent. But, as long as we have you registered we aren't too fussed about what you choose to call yourself. Now then; here is you Digi-Vice, this model is called a D3, this is where you can store your Digimon when they are not in use, and it is where most Tamers can channel energy to aid their partners should the need to fight arise."
Kazu took the device from the man with a brief thank you. His eyes were locked on the device, unmoving and focused. It was so familiar... A sudden jolt caused his vision to blur slightly as a flood of memories awoke inside of him. Visions of him holding out a similar device, swiping cards through it and having it glow with a bright energy flashed through his mind. He placed a hand on the table to steady himself.
"I really have been here before..."
The clerk looked somewhat concerned, but Kazu simply smiled at him and followed the signs towards the next part of Registration.

Walking through the next door caused Kazu to stop dead in his tracks. Before him, under a sign reading "Digimon Partner Center" there roamed hundreds of bright and colourful creatures. As his eyes wandered the room, scores of memories erupted throughout Kazu's brain. He remembered wandering cities full of these creatures, fighting feral versions of some in forests and jungles. Kazu almost took a step back, but one of the assistants gently placed a hand on his shoulder and gestured him into the room.

As he walked around Kazu began to recall names, Kunemon, Elecmon, Gatomon, Kumamon, Impmon, the list grew as his knowledge of this world returned to him after 4 long years. But despite all this returned knowledge he still felt a void in his memories. He could remember his travels, remember those he fought but no matter how much he tried he could not remember those who he traveled and fought with. He walked through the partner center for over 15 minutes, desperately trying to remember the final pieces of his hazy memory.
"K..Kazu?"
Familiarity resonated from the voice behind him. Kazu stopped dead, a tear welling in his eye. the blanks in his mind began to fill in, colour began to return to his mind as the voice of his friend filled his heart with warmth.
"Veemon?"
Just as Kazu turned around a cyan blur slammed into him in a full body hug, knocking Kazu onto the floor. He wrapped his arms tightly around his old friend as they both burst into tears of joy.
"I thought I'd never see you again! The Colosseum collapsed and... And...!"
Kazu squeezed his Veemon tight,
"Me too buddy. I woke up in a hospital! And I-I just couldn't remember anything. I'm so sorry."

The pair embraced a little longer before regaining their composure. An assistant showed them to the door, smiling at their heartfelt reunion. Kazu and Veemon were pointed in the direction of the local Tavern where they could mingle with others. As they walked Veemon peppered Kazu with questions.
"So your memories failed you... Do you remember everything now?"
Kazu nodded, it was true. He could remember everything about the Old Digital World, from his arrival to the destruction by Yggdrasil.
"Yeah. From what I can guess, when I went into the coma some electrical equipment must've malfunctioned and sent me to this world. When Yggdrasil forced everyone out the surge of power might have rebooted my brain, waking me up from the coma. But for some reason all my memories about this place were fuzzy until this world became mainstream knowledge."
Kazu sighed, it was a mystery why he'd forgotten about the Digital World, and while he thought it would be nice to find out why, he was just happy that he had made it back and re-united with his best friend.
"Anyways, I say we head to the Tavern and make some new friends."

At the mention of friends Veemon piqued up once more.
"Speaking of which! We should try to find the others! When the first humans came through we all waited for you at the Partner Station, but eventually we all split up. I told them that I would let them know when you got back!"
Kazu had to choke back tears. Hearing that Veemon had been waiting for so long killed him a little bit, but he patted his partner on the head and took a deep breath.
"We'll do that as soon as we've found out a little more about the New Digi-World eh?"
With a wide smile the pair made their way inside the bustling Tavern...

Kazu Matsumoto was back...

Location :: New Network City >> Tavern | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[Kizadek]

█████████████████████████████████████████████████████

✽ Zadok . Eliakim . Netanyahu

⊰ ❝ Sacrifice everything for Cяeαтıνıтч . ❞ ⊱______

✎ Zadok walked behind the man camera in hand. Like an ADD child in a candy store he jerked from shot to shot taking in every sight and scene around him. He zoomed in on some of the store fronts and took rolling video of the interaction between digimon. It was close to dusk at this point and he noted that many of the shops were closing and locking the doors, heading home to their... houses? Did digimon live in houses like the people in the real world? He wasn't totally sure. he would address the issue in a side series called 'Mannerisms and customs of the digital world'. He would probably need a better working title though.

Walking backwards as he tried to show the audience how tall the DFR tower really was, he felt his legs hit something solid and leave the ground underneath him. he immediately wrapped the camera up in his arms protecting it from any harm with his body. The ground was hard, and shot the air out of his lungs, and Yolen turned and gave a belting laugh as he watched the camera toting boy tumble to the ground when he forgot to step up on the curb. Laying on the ground, eyes and camera face up, Zadok's stomach sank as he realized that every viewer at home was getting a fantastic shot of Yolen's rolling laughter at his own expense. His phone pinged and he reached over to check it. The text was from his boss and simply read

'Reviews up, Fall more.'

With a huff Zadok started to get up but felt an aching in his lungs which told him movement was going to be troublesome for a few more moments. Closing his eyes, he imagined himself being interviewed in the real world about how it felt to be the reporter who conquered the digital world and strength began to flow back into him. Determination allowed him to sit up. He braced his feet beneath him and clung to the camera once more as he prepared his winded lungs to stand up. He put strength in his legs just as he a back in his back push him to his feet. The Paw sent a rush of adrenalin through his system and he half stood, half jumped up. Like a trained peace officer pulling a gun, his Camera was immediately pointed towards the owner of the paw. A small furry bear was standing there with a huge toothy grin on his face. His head was topped with a too cool for school backwards ball cap, and leather bands went up his arms from his hands like he was training to box. He also had a single leather strap stretched from his left shoulder to his right hip. The creatures smile disappeared in a flash, the eyes that once said" they were looking at a long lost friend now declared that they were upset as his brow took a sharp angle down and his nose began to twitch. "What the heck!" The bear shouted out startling Zadok as he had to remind himself that these creatures now how to speak. "We waited all day long, and then you finally show up! You know how excited I was when I felt you enter this place! Then you make me wait a whole day to finally meet you! Whats the big idea!"

Zadok was flabbergasted. He had been focusing the whole time on capturing everything in the digital world. But he had neglected the fact that he needed to prepare himself for meeting his own digimon. "w-wait... You can talk?" He finally managed to say. He knew that digimon could, but for some reason this still took him by surprise. His own digimon would talk to him. Then his stomach flipped within him. His digimon. This creature was his own personal digital partner. Zadok was in awe, he had no idea how to react to the new information. He opened up his mouth to say something but the other creature got to it first.

Bearmon had sat for hours on end in a room of other digimon waiting for his best friend to finally come and find him. The DFR had the digimon for the tamers in a separate holding center due to size restrictions and supposedly to help out organization. He had been thrown into a room with a group of other digimon. Before the Event coordinator left them, he simply gave them one piece of information, Their partners name was Zadok, then he disappeared with a close of a door and they were all trapped. Well, they were closed in, obviously not trapped. Some of the digimon actually grew tired of waiting and left wordlessly. By the time Bearmon left, there was only two other digimon still in the room. A weird lion creature he had never seen, and a Terriermon. He had left angry at his tamer for abandoning him, but as he left he recognized the camera wielding loser in front of him as his tamer so he helped him up when he fell. But now as Zadok climbed to his feet his first reaction is about how Bearmon can talk? What the heck is that! Turning about face, Bearmon dropped down to all fours and ran off.

Zadok sat there voiceless as he watched the bear like creature scamper away. "But.. but.. but.. " He hung his head in shame as he knew that millions were watching this around the world.

"Well son, I think you better go off and catch your friend. This is as far as I can take you. Your other digimon are in that room there. Happy homecoming reporter boy." And with that Yolen walked off leaving Zadok in his shame.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"Talking" XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXThinking. XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX"Others Talking"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX ⋰ ⋱⋮ I am With ⋮⋰ ⋱Just me and my thoughts
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX ⋰ ⋱⋮ I am Doing ⋮⋰ ⋱ Trying to figure out what my father sent me for
XXXXXXXXXXCOWBELLSXXXXXXXX⋰ ⋱⋮ I am Thinking ⋮⋰ ⋱I hate my father's assailants
⋰ ⋱⋮ Out Of Characther ⋮⋰ ⋱ What do y'all think of this post style?  

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

The Tavern bustled with activity as Kazu and Veemon found themselves a table. Waving over a waitress Kazu ordered some food and drink for the pair of them and kicked back, drinking in the atmosphere of the place. As the food arrived Veemon dove upon the plate like a ravenous beast. Kazu laughed heartily as his friend looked up with a lettuce leaf hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"Your appetite's not faltered eh?"
Veemon chuckled as he swallowed his mouthful.
"The food isn't that great in the Partner Center. This though. Ohhh yeah it really hits the spot."

The pair laughed together for a while wile exchanging mild smalltalk. Eventually however Kazu's mind wandered back to burning question that he'd been meaning to ask.
"Hey... Veemon. You mentioned earlier that the others were with you to begin with. Where are they now?"
Veemon looked awkwardly at the floor. Kazu could tell that the answer he was gonna get might not be great.
"So at first, there were all of us. We waited forever but as time went on they all filtered off. Piedmon and Myotismon left first, claiming that you'd want us to live our lives. Then after they went the rest followed. They all said that if you came back to come and find them, but..."
Veemon trailed off, the topic was clearly upsetting him. Kazu sighed.
"Yeah... It makes sense. Piedmon was right. I want you guys to enjoy your lives, so if they wanted to go do their own thing then who am I to judge them?"
Kazu smiled warmly at his old friend. It was true that he was a little upset that his old friends had scattered, but at the same time he knew that it would not be fair for them to wait for him, especially since until today he had no memory of them existing.

After a few moments of silence Kazu took a deep breath and lightly bashed the table with his hand.
"Ok then! We'll make it our job to go and find the old team! They don't have to come back and join, we can just go and say hi!"
To that idea, Veemon's face lit up with enthusiasm. He jumped out of his chair and over the table to hug Kazu.
"Yeah! I know where 3 of them are right now! They still live in the city! I've not seen them in a while but I know they'll be thrilled to see you again!"

The pair finished up their meals and paid the waitress. Veemon led the way out into the busy streets and spun around excitedly.
"So, who is it that we'll be going to see?"
"There are three staying in Network City. Agumon, Gabumon and Buraimon."
Kazu nodded, they were three of his most loyal friends from before the Reset but either way it warmed his heart to know that they remained close.
"So it looks like our first mission is set! We're getting the band back together!"
Veemon and Kazu high-fived and set off at a sprint towards the heart of the city...

Location :: New Network City >> Tavern | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[lief_7]

E Rank Mission Complete!

Well done recruits and welcome to the Digital world, Your adventure is about to begin! [+10 EXP]

Zadok the 28th

Regular [EXP=0][+10 EXP]

Kazu Matsumoto

Regular [EXP=0][+10 EXP]

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

The busy streets of New Network City were even more hectic today. A pair of figures were sprinting through the busy crowds paying almost no heed to anyone around them. A Veemon was out in front with a blue haired man hot on it's heels. The man was panting as the Veemon came to a stop at a crossroad.
"How... Much further... Are we going?"
Kazu gasped for breath, he wasn't used to this amount of running. Veemo non the other hand seemed full of energy.
"Jeeze, you used to be in way better shape Kazu! Anyways, Agumon's gym should be around here somewhere. Looks like you could do with a few sessions yourself!"
"Why you..."
Veemon giggled as he sprinted off, Kazu gritted his teeth mumbled some less then savory words and took off after his friend.

After five minutes more of running Kazu finally staggered up to the front of a run-down looking building. Veemon was waiting patiently outside checking his claws.
"You finally caught up eh?"
Kazu waved off the jibe, to busy trying to regain his breath. Veemon chuckled once again and opened the front door to the building.
"After you. I think you should head in first."
Kazu nodded, took one last big breath and walked into the gym. As he entered the smell of damp and sweat stung his nostrils immediately. Looking around he could see old weights on the floor and rickety benches lining the walls. In the far back corner was a tattered boxing ring with frayed ropes and a patchwork fabric floor. All in all it looked a mess.

"Hey! Anyone home?"
Kazu's voice echoed out across the barren gym. There were no patrons, so the crippling silence made the place more dreary then ever. Kazu noticed a desk in the corner and made a beeline towards it. A small rusted bell lay in the corner, Kazu shrugged and pressed it intently, the ring echoing out across the gym. Silence. Kazu pinged the bell again, and again silence followed. Growing rather impatient Kazu repeatedly pressed the bell, absently looking around.
"In the name of Yggdrasil! Shut Up!"
The familiar voice made Kazu start, hopping away from the bell. Emerging from behind the counter, white bandages wrapped around his forearms was the reptilian that he knew so well.

"Agumon!"
Kazu showed no restraint as he launched himself at his old friend, going for a big bear hug. Startled and still not quite sure who the strange man in his gym was, Agumon grabbed the incoming human and threw him across the room.
"Gyaah!?"
Kazu landed in a pile of boxing equipment, groaning as he feebly tried to stand up.
"Owch... You've still got some bite in you huh?"
The Tamer laughed as Agumon's eyes grew wider, the realisation that this was his old friend dawning upon him.
"K-Kazu... You... I mean... You look old..."
A silence drifted after Agumon's last comment. Kazu looked at himself in one of the dirty mirrors lining the walls. It was true, if his memories were right then the last time he was in the Digital World his body would have looked about 16, but now he stoof here once again at 20. He shook his head and laughed.
"Haha! What can I say? I'm going for the 'not so grizzled veteran' look."
Agumon let out a hearty laugh,
"With as terrible sense of humour as that, I know it has to be you Kazu!"
Agumon hopped over to where he had thrown Kazu and embraced his former Tamer.

Soon after hearing the noise inside settle down, Veemon entered the gym. He greeted Agumon and the three of them joked as Agumon led them to the back of the gym. The three of them sat around a table in the dimly lit staff room, Agumon made tea and listened as Kazu explained, to the best of his ability, what had happened and why he had been gone for so long. The memory loss, the search for the Digital World and now him coming back.
"So... I'm back. And honestly, I just want to travel around and preserve the peace the DRF fought so hard for. Fancy joining me?"
A brief silence followed. Veemon looked nervously between Kazu and Agumon, fidgeting nervously as Agumon contemplated Kazu's offer.
"It's been a long time..."
Kazu nodded solemnly. He went to open his mouth but was stopped by Agumon's claw being held up in a "shush" pose.
"But... How could I say no to one of the greatest friends I've ever known?"
Kazu's eyes grew wide and tears began to well up.
"Really?"
The orange dinosaur laughed and nodded as he undid the scrappy bandages from around his forearms.
"Of course! Besides, business is pretty dire if you haven't noticed."
Veemon slammed both fists onto the table and whooped in joy,
"Yeah! One down two to go!"

After an hour or so of the three friends tidying up the gym, it was time to go. They stood outside in the mid-afternoon sun nothing but happy emotions emanating from them.
"So who next?"
A huge grin spread over their faces as Agumon and Veemon took off up the high street.
"Haha, great. More running!"

Location :: New Network City >> Agumon's Gym | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

Agumon and Veemon stood next to a fountain in the center park catching up on lost time. Kazu meanwhile was jogging towards them, his breathing labored. His two partners took one look at him and fell to the floor laughing. Kazu finally pulled up to the floored duo with a single eyebrow raised.
"Yeah, yeah. Yuck it up boys. I'll be fighting fit eventually."
"Yeah right! You used to be able to run for hours!"
"And now you can barely put up with a 10 minute jog!"
The two Digimon continued to roll around laughing while Kazu looked on and sighed. The pair were so happy to be back together, it pained him to know that he was the reason that they had been unhappy, but seeing them like this now made him realise he really did belong here.

The park that they were in was full of young humans and Digimon alike. Most of the humans would be vacationers, taking a break to the idyllic Digital Capital, the Digimon roaming the park would be locals who were just as interested in what a human was as the humans were curious about Digimon.
"So which of our remaining two are here?"
Veemon and Agumon stopped running around and turned to face Kazu, they looked between each other and nodded.
"It's Gabumon!"
"He works here in the park! But we gotta find him first..."
"I think he's like a park janitor..."
Kazu nodded, and began running his eyes over the park. The place was huge and filled with people and Digimon alike so standing still was going to accomplish nothing.
"Ok, here's the plan: We split up and look for Gabumon, then when the clock strikes the next hour we regroup by this fountain ok?"
Both his partners nodded in unison looked at each other, bumped fists and then sprinted off in opposite directions. Kazu gave a defeated laugh and set off at a jog in another direction.

The sun beat down on Kazu as he worked his way through the central park. Everywhere he went children were playing with Digimon and even human adults were holding conversations with more gruff looking monsters. There was an air of comfortable peace here, a stark contrast to the memories he had of this City before the reset. There was no underlying fear here, no questionable motives or double crossing. Just happy people and Digimon alike. Kazu was so busy contemplation this new Digital World that he didn't notice the cart in front of him.
"Wooah!?"
With a clatter, Kazu collided with the cart and went sprawling for the third time that day. The cart flipped over and garbage spilled out over the pathway.
"Hey! What in the name of Yggdrasil are you thinking!?"
Kazu looked up to see a figure standing with the sun behind it. The silhouette seemed familiar, but before he could place where he remembered the voice from he had been grabbed by the scruff of the neck and was being dragged towards the pile of trash.
"Now mister! Clean this up!"
Kazu scrambled to his feet and brushed down the dirt from his clothes.
"Yeah, yeah. I'm sorry sir..."
As Kazu turned to bow and apologise a can nailed him right between the eyes. Staggaring backwards Kazu tried to re-focus but was caught off guard and more trash was thrown at him.
"Where the hell have you been!? Leaving us here by ourselves!?
The figures words caught Kazu off guard as he desperatly tried to block more things from hitting him in the face.
"Gabumon? Gabumon quit it! Give me a chance to explain!"
The hail of garbage stopped and gave Kazu a chance to finally view his assailant. Gabumon stood there, panting as he held yet another can in his hand. On his head he wore a green janitors cap and a sleeveless and tattered shirt was worn over his fur. Kazu sighed.
"Good to see you..."

The rest of the afternoon Kazu spent explaining what had happened to him while cleaning up the trash that he had knocked over. Gabumon sat under a tree during the whole talk, not really saying much. As Kazu finished explaining himself Gabumon jumped to his feet.
"So. You want to just explore the Digital World and try and keep the balance eh?"
Kazu nodded. Gabumon, as usual, had hit the nail on the head.
"Jeeze, you're always so much trouble. But hell, being a janitor is like being deleted one byte at a time! Count me in!"
Those words were like music to Kazu's ears he jumped the reptilian wolf and swung him into the air in a flying hug. As he did so Gabumon pulled off his tattered janitors clothes, laughing as he did so.

As Kazu placed his friend back on the floor and they shook hands firmly. As they did so the clock clanged as the hour turned. Kazu led Gabumon back to the fountain where Veemon and Agumon were already waiting. Upon seeing their friend Gabumon they both ran forward in excitement and the three danced around together exchanging hellos and friendly jibes. Kazu's heart swelled once again seeing how happy the three of them were. He knelt down and hugged all three.
"Alright guys, lets go find Buraimon and then all of us can go out to dinner and stuff our faces eh?"
This comment elicited a rapturous cheer from Veemon, Agumon and Gabumon who all danced around in excitement. Kazu grinned as they headed off towards the city gate, this time they weren't running which he was thankful for, but there was a decidedly chipper spring in their steps as they headed off. Kazu was happy that everything was going smoothly, but he had a feeling that convincing Buraimon may be the toughest task yet.

Location :: New Network City >> Gabumon's | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

The day had been productive. Kazu had seen a large portion of the city and at the same time been reunited with 3 of his closest friends. Having lost his memories while in the human world, each new memory that returned to him filled his entire being with happiness. Even though he could recall painful memories of his time in the Digital World, the fact that he could remember this place at all was a blessing. The four partners, Veemon, Agumon, Gabumon and Kazu, made their way down the largest street in the city, heading towards the main City Gate. Kazu's palms were clammy as they approached but the rest of his friends were full of energy and excitement. Kazu shook his head despairingly. The others didn't seem to realise just how difficult it might be to convince Buraimon. The Bird-Samurai was a proud Digimon who had fully devoted himself to Kazu after a really-rather messy incident in the Old World that had resulted in Kazu almost dieing. That devotion may not be as strong after Kazu vanished for years without an explanation...

The sun was riding low in the sky as the group approached the gate. The three Digimon bundled together out of Kazu's earshot and began furiously discussing something.
"Guys? C'mon now what're you yapping about?"
The three Digimon looked at him for a second before resuming their conversation in hushed tones. Kazu sighed and waited for them to finish. As their heads were raised back up, it was Gabumon who came to the fore-front and announced the plan.
"Ok. You're gonna march up to the guard on the gate and ask if Buraimon in available. If we've timed it right he should be on his break. Then, you and him are gonna go for a walk, where you're gonna explain what happened and see what happens."
Kazu raised an eyebrow at the plan. But to be honest he could not think of anything better so he shrugged it off, offered a high five to his tea (of which Veemon and Gabumon caught full on while Agumon tripped and fell on the floor in his attempt to hi-five) Steeling himself Kazu approached the gate.

A Leomon and an Andromon stood guard, both wearing a shirt signifying their membership of the city guard. Kazu stood before them, feeling rather intimidated by the large Digimon infront of him. The pair of guards stared blankly ahead of them, almost oblivious to the human standing before them.Kazu cleared his throat. Nothing. He tried once more, louder this time. The Leomon broke his stoic gaze and looked towards Kazu there was nothing friendly about his eyes.
"What is it you want, Human?"
Kazu ignored the obvious animosity radiating from the Lion Digimon and stood his ground.
"I... I'm here to see Buraimon. I heard he worked along this wall."
This comment drew the attention of the Andromon who shot a dark look to Leomon.
"Unfortunately, human, you will have to wait until Buraimon is on duty before you may speak with him."
Kazu gritted his teeth, this wasn't what he had expected. Nonetheless he persisted with the two guards.
"Look he knows me! I just need to talk to him for a minute or two!"
This new statement from Kazu seemed to irk the Andromon who finally spoke up.
"Silence Human! Or we will be forced to make you leave!"
Kazu hesitated for a second before clenching his fists and taking a determined step forwards.
"Hey! I have every right to --- Hurrgh!"
Before he could finish the Andromon's hand had clashed itself around Kazu's neck and he was lifted a clean meter off the floor.
"I will not be disrespected by a mere, Human!"

Kazu's desperate attempts to talk back to the Digimon were lost as the android Digimon's hand clamped around his throat. Behind him he could hear vague, familiar voices shouting in protest. In his peripheral vision he could see Leomon moving to block what he could only assume to be his three partners.
"God... Damn it..."
As Kazu's mind grew blacker the he could swear that he saw a flash of red...

The next thing Kazu remembered was being surrounded by Veemon, Agumon and Gabumon as a tall red and yellow figure stood between them and the two guards. Kazu spluttered a few breaths as a mish-mash of angry shouting came into focus.
"You will not lay a single finger on this man!"
The first voice seemed familiar, but at the same time it was full of anger.
"Stand aside brother! He was accosting us!"
"He would not listen to direct orders!
The two guards seemed steadfast in their anger towards him but the third figure was apparently standing up for Kazu. His vision was still blurred but there was one sound that pieced his ears, both because of it's familiarity and it's menace.
"My brothers. These blades were not meant for you..."
The sound of metal on metal silenced the gathering. Kazu took the oppertunity to take some recovery breaths and to clear his vision. As his focus returned he was taken aback by the scene before him. Andromon and Leomon were both backed up against the town wall, anger plastered across their faces as the third Digimon, a Buraimon, pointed a pair of twin Katana at each of their throats. Kazu tried to speak but his voice caught in his throat as he coughed. The two guards both looked at the spluttering Kazu but Buraimon's gaze did not leave the guards infront of him. A few seconds passed as Kazu's coughing died down, it was only when there was complete silence did Buraimon choose to speak.
"Master... I don't want to hear a single word from your mouth until this situation has been resolved. Much has changed since you were last here, anything you say will likely cause more hardship."
Kazu nodded, allowing Gabumon and Agumon to step in front of him protectively while Veemon held him safe.

The standoff grew more tense as the seconds ticked by. One move by Andromon, Leomon or Buraimon would surely result in a full scale brawl. Silence ruled for the next thirty seconds. The tension rested upon a knife's edge. That is until a booming voice echoed from above.
"Cease this foolishness brothers!"
Immediately all three of Andromon, Leomon and Buraimon fell to their knees in a salute-esque position. Kazu's eyes shot up only to see a blindingly bright figure descending from atop the City Gate. Shielding his eyes he could make out eight wings carrying the figure towards the ground. As the figure landed he cast his gaze briefly over all who were gathered. Seraphimon's voice boomed loudly.
"Buraimon... I can see where your true loyalty lies. Begone. I trust this is not the last that we will see of you or your friends..."
Buraimon acknowledged the statement, got to his feet and, without a single word to the guards, walked away, subtly gesturing for Kazu's group to follow. Jumping to his feet Kazu, with Veemon and Agumon's help, followed the bird samurai. As they left Kazu caught a snippet of the Seraphimon's conversation to the guards.
"You two should know about that Brother's case! Did you not pay attention in our 22nd briefing meeting!?"
As they walked away his voice faded, but Kazu got the feeling that despite the intimidating voice, Seraphimon was on his side.

The group walked back towards the center of the city, towards a hostel for Tamers that Veemon had heard about. As they reached the front of the hostel Buraimon stopped and turned to the group.
"Before we go any further... I would like to request an explanation. Master Matsumoto."
Kazu bowed his head. He had figured this was coming, but now he had to just man up and get it over with. He thanked Veemon and Agumon for holding him up and returned to his feet unassisted. He rubbed his sore neck as he thought about what to say.

"Where to begin..."
But even to this rhetorical question Buraimon burst forth,
"How about you abandoning us without an explination!?"
Kazu was speechless to this outburst. His mouth opened and closed a few times but no words came, a sign Buraimon took to continue.
You left us! All of us! Piedmon took most of our friends away in the first few weeks and you just didn't return!"
The shock faded and a pang of anger overtook Kazu.
"That isn't fair and you know it!"
Anger made him forget his painful throat, instead a furious need to explain himself took over.
"The last thing I remember is that God-Forsaken Colosseum and our friends dying left, right and center! You think if I had any say in matters I would have left!? No! I would have done every single thing in my power to stay and help you all!"
As the shouting escalated Veemon, Agumon and Gabumon shrunk back from the arguing. Buraimon however still seemed ready to argue.
"That's irrelevant! You should have been stronger! You should have... Should have..."
There was a flash of movement. Agumon gasped, Veemon shut his eyes and Gabumon lept forward to help. But after the initial shock, everyone realised that there was no aggression, just that Kazu had thrown himself around Buraimon in a full-body-hug. The samurai looked taken aback as Kazu began talking.

"I know... I've been so weak for so long. I should have been strong enough to reject Yggdrasil's Reset. Strong enough to fight whatever challenges that Yggdrasil threw our way. But I wasn't, and I can never apologise enough!"
Tears rolled down Kazu's cheeks, heating up Buraimon's chest as Kazu embraced him. The Samurai Bird looked around awkwardly, it had been so long since he had shown emotion that the next statement came across awkward and broken.
"I... I'm sorry... I've been bitter for so long. Blaming you for everything bad that has happened. After you were gone we were reborn in this new world. So I joined the city guard to uphold your values, your ideals. But they knew, and in a way I knew too, that my life belonged to you... I know I shouldn't have blamed you. I shouldn't have... I..."
Buraimon was cut off as tears flowed down his cheeks. Kazu noticed this and hugged his partner tighter.
"I'm back Buraimon. I'm not going to go anywhere. From now on, we're all in this together!"
The samurai nodded, clearing his tears. The rest of the Digimon, who had previously recoiled were now jumping around Kazu and Buraimon. The pair took a step apart, embarrassed about the display of affection between the them. Kazu coughed and then laughed.
"Alright guys! How about a celebratory dinner? Let's begin our time back together as we mean to go on!"
A few seconds of silence followed an enormous cheer from the Digimon. Buraimon shared a subtle, yet meaningful, glance with Kazu before smiling and nodding in agreement.

As the group headed into the hostel for a well deserved meal, Kazu could only think of one thing. How lucky he was to be back, and how excited he was for the adventures ahead...

The band was truly back together.

Location :: New Network City >> City Gate | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[Xiatian Li]

Hikari Haruno
Somewhere, a voice calls, in the depths of my heart
May I always be dreaming, the dreams that move my heart

<---- Current Attire
Location: a Maid Cafe in New Network City Calendar: Summer, July, Fifth day in Digital World, Sunny.
Misson: Playing nanny for a day!
AP: 10
Equipment: Digivice, shoulder bag, waist bag, violin and its case, wallet, a pack of bubble gum, taser with flashlight, rubber bands, cell phone and its charger, and medical kit.

✁ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -✘

{{OOC: the reason why Hikari is still calling Gabumon X ‘Gabumon’ is because she hasn’t know yet he is Gabumon X, and the digimon didn’t know that she doesn’t know.}}

It was a pretty slow day in New Network City today. The afternoon sunlight filtered through the city as loud, incoherent noise kept on coming as usual. Looking through a window, Hikari casually observed the outside to distract herself. Like the past five days, the street was filled with considerable number of tamers and their digimon: some walking side by side while others literally creating distance between each other. What was the reason behind each action? Now, that was none of her business; however she couldn't stop her mind from mulling over the question, taking notes of every small, barely noticeable gestures, and putting information together in many different ways to form one theory after another. If only one could read her mind, one would learn that she wasn't quite a normal ninete--wait, then again, outwardly she didn't exactly look normal at all, posessing sky blue-dyed hair as well as a pair of amethyst-colored contact lenses in her eyes. Considering her look, nobody could have imagined this serious-looking girl sitting at a table where two silly digimons were singing childishly merrily while clapping their paws together rhythmically. But, oh well, here she was doing her best to ignore the childishness of the situation while enjoying a cup of delicious warm milk tea the cafe could offer to their customers.

“Hi-ka-ri, is this cake yours~?” Oh no, here comes her turn. Would they perhaps continue on without her if she remained in silence for a few more minutes? It wouldn't hurt to try. Sensing a couple pairs of eyes on her, Hikari glanced over firstly at her wolf-like partner, who was directing a very, very big smile up at her, and then slid her gaze to Cutemon, the child in her charge for today, who stared up straight at her. The two had their eyes locked on each other, not appearing hostile yet clearly radiating the sense of mistrust. Hikari had her eyes stayed on the other longer, watching as one corner of its lip lifted up into a small mischeivous smirk. ‘He must be planning something.’ She concluded mentally. "Hi-ka-ri! Come on, it's your turn!" A plate of strawberry shortcake was handed to her way. Oblivious to the tense atmosphere, Gabumon urged her persistently to join in their little game, and Hikari couldn't help but roll her eyes in response, withdrawing relunctantly from the unofficial staring contest. If the smirk on the pink digimon could get any wider, then it surely would.

Ignoring the shortcake, Hikari spooned a piece of three-layered chocolate cake sitting on a rotating stand onto her plate. The spoon was about to dig into the cake when the Gabumon shouted out, “Nooooo! Don’t eat yet! You have to sing first, Hikari!” Those amethyst orbs narrowed down in annoyance at the volume of his voice. Seriously? Was it really that necessary? Hikari was about to gently decline the offer, but was immediately stunned by Gabumon’s special attack, the puppy-dog eyes! The longer she looked at them, the more she felt like she had just kicked a puppy. The guilt almost made her comply to his wish. Almost. “Gabumon,” After taking a deep breath, Hikari broke the short silence that settled briefly over them, “We both know that I’m no longer at the age where silliness is appropriate in the eyes of the public, and I’m certain that you’re old enough to know what does being a good role model mean, am I right?”

“Uhhhh, yeah. Sure, I know.” Hearing that, Gabumon became confused. “But this and that are two different things right? Aren’t we requested by Babamon to watch over the kid while she is away? Entertaining a child is also a part of our duty too.”

‘…what are your eyes made of?’ Since the start of the game, Hikari hadn’t yet seen the pink digimon smile like it was enjoying it. The little guy was just playing along to misled others into believing he was truly a good, obedient kid. “Well, then, as someone who is at the age where a child could view you as a older brother, why don’t you do the honors of taking care of the entertainment department all alone until the end of the day?”

“Whoa, all alone?! Me?! W-wait I’m at lost to--”

“A brother figure is what a child needs the most, because it was what kids would look up to and strive to be like in the future. It’s one of the duty as a good older brother to lift up the child’s mood and maintain it all the way to the end. The person must possessed the qualities that are qualified to be a good role model for kids, and furthermore, the age gap should be at acceptable range, so they could feel comfortable and open up to them. Obviously, between you and me, there is only one who is capable to take on the position, and that someone is you, Gabumon.” Hikari paused for a moment to take a small sip of her milk tea, allowing her words some time to sink deep into the skull of her partner. “As your tamer, I’m proud to say you’ve grown a lot in such a short time we’ve been together. I hope you would keep up the good work and continue to improve yourself as we continued on our journey together; I can atleast expect that much from you, can’t I?”

“…” Apparantly either her psychology manipulation skill or her overwhelming speech had fried his brain, leaving him speechless with mouth wide open. Whether or not she had to sharpen her skill doesn’t matter right now. Now that her partner was distracted from his main objective, it was time for her to indulge in the long-awaited delicious-looking chocolate cake. Yum, yum.

---------------- Line Break ----------------

One hour later, the group was done with their lunch, which had wide variety of desserts arranged neatly on white, round table only a moment ago. Fruits had been pushed off to the side of the plates by the two 'siblings', but luckily, the 'blue-headed mother' was there to forcefully spoon-feed them with what was intentionally left behind. To Hikari, it was understandable for a kid like Cutemon not to like some fruits--especially durian which gave off a very unpleasant smell, and she was putting it nicely. But for Gabumon too? A few seconds were spent with her eyeing discreetly at those sharp claws and long untamed furs of his, and then finally she made up her mind. 'Some hygiene refresher courses will be needed right after today.' Apparently his laid-back days would never be the same again.

"I've to pay the bill." Hikari stated, standing up on her feet. "I won't be away for too long, so wait right here until I come back...." Her gaze settled briefly on the Cutemon who was smiling...'innocently' at her. As innocent as a smile on a cursed porcelain doll. Looking at it left a bad taste in her mouth--and she just ate cakes! "Don't go wandering off, is that clear?" She added suddenly.

"Sir, yes sir! Believe me, Hikari, as long as I'm here, there is nothing for you to be worried about!" Gabumon saluted, back straightening and one hand rising up diagonally to forehead, like a proud, reliable soldier! He was more than just ready to take on any missions given by Captain Hikari. But do the blue-headed girl think the same?

Hikari eyed passively at her partner a few seconds before heading off to the cashier area with one thought dancing worriedly in her mind. 'Believe me, your positive reassurance is giving off the opposite effect.'

❄- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -❄

The whispering voice, we will never want to forget,
in each passing memory always there to guide you
When a miror has been broken, shattered pieces scattered on the ground
Glimpses of new life, are reflected all around

 

[lief_7]

E Rank Mission Complete!

Well done recruit, keep this up and you might just become a real Tamer [+10 EXP]

Kazu Matsumoto

Regular [EXP=10][+10 EXP]

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

~Mission Start!~

Kazu and Agumon strolled through the city. The streets were crowded with Digimon going about their daily business, and the general babble of people talking meshed together into one unintelligible mess. Kazu yawned and scratched the back of his head, he'd been given a job by the owner of the hostel he was staying in. Apparently a bunch of rich folks had been targeted by a thief and it was beginning to cause some bad press around the area. The hostel owner had asked if Kazu could look into it if he had some free time, and since Kazu had nothing but free time he figured he would ask around. He'd already rang up the newspapers that had run the stories on the thefts and managed to contact the three victims, he had arranged to meet them all in succession in order to find out more about the thief and then to go on from there.

A small cafe sat along one side of the high street. Agumon looked down at a sheet of paper in his claws and tugged at Kazu's sleeve.
"There's the first one! Miss Waterstone."
Kazu lazily looked over to where Agumon's claw pointed. Sat at a table outside, sipping from a cup of coffee was indeed the first victim. She was a human and looked in her mid 50's, she wore a striking purple number and large sunglasses that covered her eyes. Kazu nodded to his partner and walked over, a big smile appearing just as he spoke to her.
"Good afternoon. Miss Waterstone is it? I believe we spoke briefly on the phone?"
The woman looked at Kazu before inspecting him up and down.
"My, my. I didn't expect such a handsome man to be on the other end of that charming British accent."
Kazu could feel his cheeks reddening but he cleared his throat gently.
"Thank you Miss. May we take a seat? I won't take up much of your time."
The woman agreed and Kazu and Agumon pulled up two chairs to sit on.

"So Miss Waterstone, could you describe the incident for me?"
Kazu pulled out a notepad from his satchel and prepared to take notes while Agumon absently swung on his chair. Miss Waterstone nodded, took one more sip of her coffee and began,
"Well dear, I was out shopping last night by myself. I had just bought this delicious outfit you see now when he struck! Oh I could hardly move I was that scared! Like a flash he came out of nowhere then before I could even ask the clerks in the shop to help he had vanished! With my money!"
Kazu nodded along with the story, all the while jotting down notes. Miss Waterstone began to prattle on about how unsafe she now felt around town so Kazu had to patiently wait a minute or two before he could interject with a question.
"That's just awful ma'am. If you don't mind my asking; how much was stolen?"
The woman looked sheepishly at Kazu as she answered,
"Around ten credits..."
"Was that all the money you had on you?"
An even more sheepish look crept onto the woman's face,
"Well... No, I alway carry at least two-thousand credits with me... But that isn't the point young man! The point is that somebody stole from me and I want him to be punished!"

Kazu sighed and folded away his note-pad into his bag. He asked her one last question about which direction the thief had run away to but got caught in another rant about how inadequate security in the Digital World was. When he finally managed to escape the conversation and say his goodbyes he turned to find Agumon fast asleep on the floor. The Tamer grunted and stuck his foot into the orange dino's ribs, startling the Digimon and waking him from his nap.
"Did we catch the bad guy!?"
Kazu chuckled and petted his friend's head.
"Maybe we'll let Gabumon or Veemon come along on the next interview eh?"
Agumon nodded sleepily as the pair headed off towards the next victim to be questioned...

Location :: New Network City >> City Gate | With :: Veemon | Talking to :: N/A

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

~Mission Continued!~

Kazu looked at his watch for what seemed like the thousandth time. The second victim of being robbed was nowhere to be seen. Kazu and Gabumon were waiting outside a rather expensive coffee branch (the interviewee's choice of location) and were not so patiently scanning the crowds. Gabumon finally couldn't take the monotonous waiting and began rubbing the top of his head.
"Kazu I can't take it! I'm not cut out for all this waiting and not doing anything! Graah!"
Kazu let out an exasperated chuckle and ruffled the fur on top of his partners hair. He knew exactly how Gabumon felt but at the same time he knew that it couldn't be action all the time.
"I know buddy. I'll bring Veemon along to the next one, which will be pretty soon if this guy doesn't turn up soon."

The pair ended up waiting for another 30 minutes before the guy turned up. The man was well dressed, wearing a smart suit and with what looked like a headset in his ear.
"Yeah, yeah just fire the lot of them! We can always find people who'll wor cheaper, hey maybe even we could recruit some of these Digi-whatevers."
A booming, obnoxious laugh erupted from the man. Kazu and Gabumon exchanged a pained glance between themselves, the guy clearly seemed like the kind of person you would avoid by any means under normal circumstances.
"Yah, yah! It's cool bro. Yah, some kid's here to interview me for his local paper or some trash. Yah! Yah! You know how it is. Later Bro..."

The man pulled up a chair and swung into his seat, looking at Kazu expectantly. Kazu clenched his fist hard under the table and forced a grin.
"Mr Waterhouse. Pleasure to meet you. I hope you answer a few quick ques---"
"C'mon kid! Just spit it out, you wanna know how to become a successful businessman like me!"
Gabumon let out a subtle growl, Kazu gently nudged him with his foot to shut him up.
"Actually sir, I'd like to ask you about the mugging you experienced the other night..."
The businessman looked taken aback by the fact that Kazu was not kneeling at his feet and hanging on his every word. His raised eyebrow eventually settled as he let out another gaudy laugh.
"What's there to talk about!? The little red devil dashed out of no-where and stole 20 credits! It's not like I care about a trifling amount of money like that!"
Kazu jotted down the colour and the amount of money,
"I see sir, very good. But can I just ask, was it the only money you had on you? And did you see which way the assailant went?"
The man was clearly growing bored with the conversation as his tone shifted to an impatient babble.
"Nah kid, I always carry a couple grand on me! I don't give a rat's backside about 20 credits! The creep ran off towards the shanty side of town. Probably a bum getting money for unspeakable things!"

The businessman left shortly after, rambling about high ranking meetings and how the whole interview had been a waste of time. As he walked away, already on another phone call and speaking loud enough for the whole street to listen in, Gabumon raised his hand in a most unsightly gesture before turning around to face Kazu.
"By Yggdrasil's bloody beard. Count me out of this intel-gathering rubbish in future, eh Kazu? I wanted to blast that guy across the street!"
Kazu burst out laughing, Gabumon was right, the guy was a first class, arrogant so-and-so. But at least he had given them a few new tidbits of information; the thief was red in colour, further confirming that he was likely a Digimon, and that he headed towards the rougher edges of the city. Kazu let out another sigh. He had one interview left for the day before he would head back to the hostel to collate his information with the owner and try to dig up any final clues.
"All right Gabumon, head on back. I'll let Veemon suffer through our next person..."
Gabumon bowed in appreciation before transforming into a ball of light that was sucked into Kazu's D3.
"Here's hoping contestant number three can give us a greater insight..."

Location :: New Network City >> Cafe | With :: Gabumon | Talking to :: Businessman N/A

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

~Mission Continued!~

The setting sun bathed New Network City in a beautiful orange glow. Kazu and Veemon were sat at the third cafe of the day, sipping from a large mug of coffee each. Before them sat a scrawny looking man with a tousled brown hair and a pair of strikingly red tinted glasses. The man's name was Mr Goldsack and he was the last interviewee of the day. He was the president of his own company in the Digital World that specialised in deliveries around the Digital world, employees were Human and Digimon alike and there was always room for Tamers to freelance. He had been early and insisted to buy the pair of them the biggest most lavish coffee in the shop. Kazu had tried to resist at first but eventually the man's insistence wore him down. They had spent the last hour or so talking about life in the Digital World and how amazing it was that humans could now come and go as they pleased, but Kazu needed his questions answered and gently turned the conversation towards his questions.
"So I've read that, despite all of the security and all of the precautions, you were still robbed while in the city. Would you care to share any details about the robbery?"
The man shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
"Ahh yes... I knew it would come round to this smidgen of unpleasantness... It really was no big matter, I had plenty of money on me anyway..."

Kazu, for the third time that day wrote that the thief had only stolen a small amount. He scratched his forehead with the end of his pencil.
"Now y'see Mr Goldsack, that's the line that we keep hearing. The thief never stole a lot of money, he only took a small amount. Is there any other information you can give us?"
The man's brow scrunched up as he thought.
"Well. The fellow was red, and he had sort of a yellow scarf around his neck. And some funny looking staff too."
"It sounds like you got a real good look at him..."
The man shifted awkwardly once again.
"Well yes... When he accosted me I noticed that he looked rather, well, underfed. So I asked him if I could offer him more money. The red fellow flat out refused! Saying that he couldn't take anything from someone like me. He tried to return the money he took, but I wouldn't have it! I told him to fetch something to eat and to take care of himself. The poor creature..."
Kazu and Veemon looked at one another, the case was taking a strange turn indeed. Veemon piqued up,
"Sir you really did a good thing!"
Kazu nodded in his agreement, Mr Goldsack was clearly a caring man, and thanks to his nature the mystery was beginning to fall into place.

After that the three had stayed to talk with Mr Goldsack for another half hour or so before the street-lights came on. They all parted ways, Kazu even getting an offer to visit Mr Goldsack again at the delivery company. As they parted ways, Kazu pulled out his notepad and consulted the known information. Veemon on the other hand began to run a short distance ahead before becoming pre-occupied with something else and zig-zagging his way across the street. Clearly Kazu would have to regulate the blue Digimon's coffee intake.
"So we know it was a Digimon. Red in colour with a yellow scarf and weird staff. He never took much money at all, in fact he seemingly targeted those who he knew had a lot of disposable income. We also know that he ran off towards the rougher side of town..."
Veemon's zig-zagging had brought him back to Kazu's side, he was jittering with excitement.
"So he's taking what he needs from those who have more then they need huh? Sounds reasonable! Especially if what Mr Goldsack said is true and our thief has been stealing."
Kazu nodded and bagged up his notepad. It was a very Robin Hood-esque scenario, with the thief taking from the rich and giving to the poor.
"Regardless Veemon, stealing is wrong. We should ask the Hostel Manager if he knows anything. "
Veemon nodded his head quicker then Kazu could follow.
"Got it! Race you back!!"
The caffeine fulled Digimon tore away at a sprint in the direction of the Hostel. Kazu sighed as he set off at a jog after his friend.
"Superb... More running..."

Location :: New Network City >> Cafe | With :: Gabumon | Talking to :: Businessman N/A

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

~Mission Continued!~

Kazu, Agumon, Gabumon, Veemon and Buraimon sat around the one of the communal tables. Kazu had his note-pad out on the table and they were all pouring over the details. The culprit of the robberies was a Digimon, red in colour, he only stole a small amount of money from people who he clearly knew had money to spare, and he wore a yellow scarf with a weird pole-like weapon. Kazu sighed, he had no idea what species of Digimon it could be, and despite knowing that the thief hid in the rough side of town Kazu knew it was a large area to search, even if there were four of them. He got to his feet while the three Rookies argued over who it could be and Buraimon sat in an annoyed silence.

Kazu walked through to the main desk and leaned on the counter. He tapped the bell to attract the manager and looked at some of the posters on the wall, odd jobs, taxi numbers, things people locally had to sell and even a "Help Wanted" sign for a job in the hostel. Kazu's attention was drawn to the Manager, a burly Leomon who was carrying a towel, likely from him cleaning up some dishes in the back.
"Ahh Master Kazu, any luck on your investigation?"
Kazu shook his head with a sigh. He stretched his arms out above his head and yawned.
"Unfortunately not. We know it's a red Digimon from the bad side of town who carries a weird pole and wears a yellow scarf... But then again that doesn't really help much..."
The manager stroked the mane around his chin and hummed deeply.
"That sounds familiar... Red Digimon... Yellow Scarf..."
Kazu raised an eyebrow at the manager and straightened out. The lion-man had his eyes closed as if deep in thought. Suddenly his eyes snapped open and he slammed a paw down on the desk.
"That's it! It has to be that little tyrant!"
Kazu's eyebrow remained firmly up as he gestured for the Leomon to continue.
"I remember a week or two ago some little red upstart tried to jump me. I quickly slapped some sense into him and sent him packing. He was called Shoutmon I believe! There he limped off back to a warehouse, I can give you the rough area if you like."
Kazu's eyes lit up as Leomon's new information filled in the gaps in his own.
"That would be great! Thanks!"
Leomon scribbled out the directions on a piece of scrap paper and handed it to Kazu, who in turned thanked him and ran back to the table waving it in the air.

Around an hour later, Kazu and Buraimon stood in the dark, outside a large, seemingly abandoned warehouse. A chill was in the air and the only light came from a flickering filament light above the only entrance to the building.
"You don't have to be here y'know. From what I've heard, Shoutmon should only be a Rookie. Plus I only want to talk."
Buraimon tutted as he scanned the entrance.
"I am here to protect you Master."
Kazu clicked his tongue in annoyance, he hated it when Buraimon called him that, it ground against his ears.
"I can handle myself..."
Buraimon rolled his eyes before finally looking straight at his Tamer.
"You are really going to try and argue? You left the three fools behind, you are out of shape and I have not seen a hint of your Digi-Soul since your return. What part of that sounds like you can take care of yourself?"
Kazu was taken aback, only able to gawk at his partner in the wake of his outburst. Buraimon was usually the epitome of cool and collected but this was a totally new side to him. Buraimon coughed and seemed embarrassed.
"I apologise Master... I-I just don't want to lose you again..."
Kazu nudged him playfully and smiled, his surprise gone.
"I know buddy, I'm sorry. I am glad that you came along. Sorry..."
The pair looked at each other, smiling. Kazu held out his fist to which Buraimon bumped and the pair silently made their way towards the warehouse.

Both entered the building in sync. A dank, damp smell filled their nostrils and the only light came from the moon that filtered in via cracked windows. Kazu strolled forwards and peered into the shadows ahead. Nothing noticeable was there, so he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Hello? I'm here to talk to Shoutm--- Woah!"
In a flash a spotlight above Kazu blasted on. Kazu threw his hands up to block out the light. Buraimon's hand flew to his sword, but in the same instant a purple rope-like object lashed out and coiled tightly around Kazu. The Tamer spluttered as his arms were bound to his side and he was squeezed tight. Buraimon spun on his heel to see the assailant. A Gumdramon cowered in the corner, it's extendable tail wrapped around Kazu.
"B-Brother! I got him!"
Kazu grunted as he fell to his knees. There was a clang in front of him, he looked up, and standing before him, a Shoutmon.
"Let my Master go!"

Buraimon's voice demanded authority and filled the room. The Gumdramon squeaked and Kazu felt the tail loosen a tad, giving him more chance to breath. The Shoutmon stood fast, his yellow scarf trailing on the ground behind him. He raised his staff, which looked like it had a microphone on the end and pointed it squarely at Kazu's head.
"Get out of here! I have no business with you! Take your human and beat it!"
Kazu looked up, regaining his composure. Shoutmon, while looking tough seemed to be on edge, his hand was shaking slightly and his eyes were fixed not on Kazu but on the Champion level Buraimon. The Samurai had one hand on one of his Katana's and both eyes were drilling back into Shoutmon's. After a tense minute of silence Buraimon spoke.
"The choices you make here will either allow you to live... Or they will spell the death of both of you..."
The silence somehow seemed more deafening than before as the weight of the bird-man's words sunk in. The Gumdramon was now shaking in fear, something Kazu could feel through the tail.
"Bro... Bro I don't wanna die. Let's just hear them out!"
Shoutmon's voice pierced the room as he screamed.
"NO! You will leave this place! I am refusing to listen anymore you overgrown chicken! If you don't go right now I'll end your precious human!"
Shoutmon swung his staff up above his head and poised it there, ready to bring it down on Kazu's head. The Tamer felt a bead of sweat roll down the side of his head as he inspected the spikes on the microphone-staff. He gulped, but remained looking at the Digimon inf ront of him. He seemed to still be shaking slightly...

Another minute of silence passed as Shoutmon and Buraimon had a stare-off. Gumdramon shook in the corner, with Kazu still in his grasp. Finally Buraimon took one, purposeful step forwards. Shoutmon cracked under the pressure.
"You've done it now!"
Kazu could only watch wide-eyed as the staff was swung down, aimed for the side of his temple.

"Wrong choice..."

Location :: New Network City >> Warehouse | With :: Buraimon | Talking to :: Shoutmon/Gumdramon

 

[Kazu Matsumoto]

"I will return to this world...

Kazu Matsumoto

... To fight for this new future."

~Mission Continued!~

Kazu's eyes closed on instinct and refused to open. There was a loud clanging noise, metal striking metal, followed by an loud grunt and a thud. Kazu's eyes opened to find Buraimon standing before him, one katana drawn and poised to strike again. The Shoutmon was no longer holding his staff and instead was lying in a heap on the other side of the dim warehouse floor.
"Big Brother!"
The small purple Digimon burst forward, it's tail freeing Kazu as it aimed itself at the samurai instead. The Gumdramon's shout was more then enough of a tip-off to Buraimon, who spun around 180 degrees and slammed the rear of his sword-fist into the younger brother's face in a downward sweep. The force was so great that the Digimon actually hit the floor then bounced off in a spiral, crashing into a pile of crates in an opposite corner of the room.

A few seconds of silence followed as Kazu hoicked himself to his feet, finally able to move again.
"What was that about handling yourself?"
Kazu shot a dirty look at his partner and brushed himself down. He hated admitting he was wrong. There was a groan from Shoutmon as he returned to his feet. Buraimon scoffed at the Digimon and went to pace forwards.
"You don't understand... You need to leave!"
The Digimon held up both his hands above his head, fiery energy began to build between his palms. Buraimon held his free, left arm out protectively in front of his Tamer as the energy began to take the shape of an eighth note.
"Rock Soul!"
The Shoutmon launched the blazing energy towards Kazu and Buraimon. Kazu threw up his arms protectively while Buraimon took a fighting stance. The tip of his blade grazed the ground as he waited for the energy blast to come within a certain radius. In a flash the katana was swung upwards catching the underbelly of the blast, Buraimon grunted as he pushed upwards, deflecting the shot off and into the ceiling. The impact induced a huge explosion that rocked the building and showered the combatants with debris. Kazu lowered his arms to see Buraimon in a full sprint towards the panting Shoutmon, blade poised to strike it in the neck...

"STOP!"
Kazu's voice bellowed out. Buraimon dug in his heels and screeched to a halt before his target, the tip of the blade literally less than a centimeter from the neck of it's intended entry-point. There was a brief pause before Buraimon responded.
"Why should I? He has threatened my life and, perhaps worse, he targeted you too."
Kazu shook his head and slowly walked to Buraimon's side.
"This isn't how we do things. If he did it mindlessly then fine. But he wanted us to leave and we refused him and made the situation worse."
Kazu gently placed a hand on the top of the katana and lowered it slowly. The Shoutmon let out a sigh of relief but he was still obviously nervous. Kazu bent onto one knee to speak to him.
"Things got kinda crazy there... Sorry. How about we go see if your brother is ok and then we can talk? I promise you're not in trouble."
The Shoutmon looked at his feet, then to where his brother lay groaning in the pile of crates and then to one last door behind him. Kazu followed his gaze to the doorway. Poking round was a tiny pink head, with headphones and a trailing pink scarf, her eyes were wide in a mixture of fear and surprise and were locked to Kazu's face. Kazu smiled at here warmly, it wasn't the first Cutemon he had encountered but it was certainly the most shy...

Eventually they had dug Gumdramon out of the crates and all five of them were sat in a circle. Aside from a few bruises everyone was in one piece.
"So... I'll start off on why we're here. We've been looking into a string of robberies and all the evidence seems to point to you as the culprit. Is that correct?"
The Shoutmon looked shamefully at his feel before solemnly nodding.
"Ok. Now then, why steal? There are plenty of ways to make money."
This time Gumdramon piqued up,
"That's right! But no-one would hire us! We tried everywhere but all the jobs were either full or needed more experience. And we're way too weak to leave the city and travel to another in search of work..."
Kazu sighed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head. The Cutemon, who was nuzzled into the Shoutmon also chimed in,
"My big brothers may be idiots, but they're the only ones who have ever looked out for me. Life is hard for orphans in the Digi-World! We have no idea where we come from or what to do, we just hatch and are left to fend for ourselves!"
Buraimon sat, arms folded and not reacting, but this comment seemed to strike a chord with the samurai, as his arms unfolded and he seemed to lean in to better hear.
"Well what you've done is wrong, but you've never stolen much money, and most of the people you did steal from don't seem to care... Ech, there has to be something we can do..."
Like a light-bulb pinging on, an idea struck Kazu. He turned to Buraimon and whispered in his ear. For the first time that night the man-bird smiled and nodded his head in agreement with the plan.

~ The Next Night ~

Kazu raised his hand to attract the attention of the waiter. Their eyes met and he scuttled over, flicking to a fresh page on his note-pad.
"Hey Kazu, how can I help?"
Shoutmon, apron and all took a pen and prepared to take the order. Meanwhile; Cutemon was manning the front-desk answering questions and distributing room keys, Gumdramon was in the back washing dishes and occasionally running in to sweep the floors. Kazu smiled and gave the order to his new friend, after the fiasco at the warehouse he had brought all three Rookie Digimon back to the Hostel where he stayed. He had spoken to the Manager Leomon about the "Help Wanted" sign and worked out a deal for the three Orphans. In exchange for front-of house, kitchen and desk duties all day everyday during the week, they would receive a modest pay and free weekends as well as sharing a small room in the attic of the building. The Manager had also insisted that he give them a rollicking lecture on how irresponsible, unacceptable and inappropriate their actions had been, to which they all solemnly agreed and apologised for. Kazu had been there and at the end of the telling-off the Leomon had knelt down and hugged the three outcasts, in a heartwarming moment of tenderness for the lion.

Kazu leaned back in his chair as Shoutmon brought his drink over.
"I can't thank you enough Kazu..."
The Tamer silenced him by waving his hand in the air and sipping his drink.
"I was happy to help! Anything for a family in need."
Shoutmon nodded and ran off to serve more tables with a final "Thank You". Kazu smiled. It felt good to be making a positive difference in the Digital World. And he truly hoped that he would continue to make this place a true paradise for all beings, humans or Digimon, who resided within the virtual landscape...

~ Mission: Complete! ~

Location :: New Network City >> Warehouse --> Hostel | With :: Buraimon | Talking to :: Shoutmon/Gumdramon/Cutemon