...
"Bluegh!"
I let out a long burp from my mouth as I felt the SandYammamon Data churn my stomach, healing me from the few insect wounds and giving me more strength.
"You're disgusting" Palmon said, tapping me on the shoulder as he let out a chuckle.
I let out a chuckle as I shot a glance at Noah and Mimi, both of whom were trailing behind us and had been talking for some time about Digimon, something about lies, and I don't know what else. I wasn't paying too much attention, to be honest; I just assumed it was a human thing and moved on.
Instead, I focused my attention on Palmon.
It was fun to have another Digimon to joke around with and have fun with!
Don't get me wrong, I liked BlackGarurumon, but sometimes he was too grumpy or serious to really enjoy just playing. Noah had called him 'Training Maniac', whatever that means.
And Patamon, sure, I had a lot of fun with him, but he was too shy to go out and play often. He usually stayed with TK and rarely left his side, even when we were resting.
About the Digimon of the other humans... I didn't know them well enough, though it's fun to make fun of Matt's Gabumon; it was incredibly funny to see him get embarrassed so easily.
While I still didn't understand a lot of Palmon's eccentricities (I still don't understand why she liked dressing like a human so much), she was quite amusing.
"Maybe that's why you're so short! You lack class!"
... Forget everything I just said....
"I'm not short!" I exclaimed, bristling the spikes on my head. "We're exactly the same height!"
"Only if you ruffle your hair, but relax" Palmon pointed to my head with a carefree smile before slipping an arm behind my shoulders. "Mimi told me that everyone grows over time."
"Really?" I muttered thoughtfully before raising an eyebrow. "Doesn't that only apply to humans?"
"Maybe..." Palmon simply shrugged before playfully touching my nose. "But that just means you'll be shorter than me forever!"
Before I could hit her, Palmon quickly let go of my shoulder before running off and letting out a laugh. I felt my hundreds of lines of code and information throb with anger before I launched myself at the playful plant in pursuit of revenge.
"I'm not short!"
***
After half an hour of walking, we finally reached the edge of what appeared to be a vast forest. According to Noah and Mimi's map, the forest was not very large, but it was in an odd position, even for the Digital World.
For starters, it was quite close to the center of the Server Continent, which was already strange considering that the Continent's vegetation was usually found at its corners or near some area with water. Like the forest near the Tunomon Village, which was practically bordering the sea.
Moreover, the forest seemed to have split in two halves thanks to a huge canyon that stretched for miles. However, it was clear that such a canyon was not natural.
... Or at least this was Noah's reasoning.
Mimi and Palmon didn't seem to pay much attention to Noah's thoughts, but it was always fascinating for me to see how much can come out of his head.
I felt a shiver run down my spine.
Quickly, I looked around only to see a strange, thick fog begin to consume the entire forest, blocking our view. I immediately knew that this fog was not natural, possibly something created by some Digimon.
"So, what's the plan?"
"Walk? I don't have a magical answer for this, I mean, it's just find the Emblem and get out."
With no better option on the table, the group quickly began moving through the shadowy forest at a brisk pace.
'Because this reminds me so much of Nanomon' I thought nervously as I looked around at my surroundings, the forest itself wasn't that unusual, sure, there was the fog, but other than that it was an ordinary forest.
We kept walking for a few minutes without finding anything, until....
...we came back to the edge of the forest.
"...You've got to be kidding me" Noah muttered reluctantly before turning to look at the fog with narrowed eyes. "...This is so... cliché..."
""Cliché?"" Palmon and I asked in unison.
Noah seemed to want to explain, but finally waved a hand gesture dismissing us. "Don't worry about it. Mimi-"
Mimi stood with her Tag in hand; the latter seemed to glow brighter than it did in the middle of the desert.
"I'm not that dumb, Noah" The girl in the white hat waved the Tag back and forth, causing its glow to change slightly based on the direction she held it.
"I don't understand" Palmon exclaimed with clear confusion on his face.
"The Tag will basically be our guide, we just have to follow it. The magic fog that always takes you to the same place is a cliché from video games and manga."
"...Manga?" I scratched my head as I tried to imagine what manga was.
Maybe some kind of plant?
"Just... let's get this over with and then I'll explain more of our world to you, okay?" Noah let out a defeated sigh as he motioned for Mimi to lead the way.
And so we did, we followed closely behind Mimi as she used her Tag as a sort of beacon to navigate through the fog. Sometimes we could hear noises resembling words or distant shouts, but whenever we got closer to investigate there was no sign of anything.
Just a normal forest.
I estimate that about ten minutes had passed before the ground at our feet was replaced by familiar material.
"...This was built by Etemon" Noah expounded on my thoughts as we eyed the metallic ground at our feet with suspicion.
Suddenly, the forest wasn't so normal anymore.
I could feel nervousness wash over me for a moment, making me look in all directions, almost expecting the self-proclaimed King of the Digimon to appear out of nowhere.
When none of that happened, we continued to move forward with extreme caution until we came to some sort of metal stairs, but clearly ancient if the vines and plants were anything to go by.
Noah and I looked into each other's eyes for a moment before nodding to each other. Noah pulled out his Digivice, squeezing it tightly, just a precaution in case of an attack.
I could feel the information inside me run through my lines of code nervously; there was this strange sinking feeling in my stomach that I had only ever felt in the presence of the orange monkey.
It was less aggressive, but it was no less faint than Etemon's aura.
It was a strange feeling to explain.
In the middle of the pedestal, a large stone plaque floated majestically, a strange leaf-like engraving that seemed to glow slightly greenish in color.
Instinctively I knew what it was.
The Emblem of Purity.
As if reacting to our presence, the Emblem began to glow brightly as the mist swirled around it, causing a small tornado that completely blocked our view.
"What's going on?!" Mimi exclaimed in fear, not noticing that her Tag also seemed to glow and float slightly.
Before anyone could do anything, an oppressive presence nearly brought us all to our knees as it flooded us with its aura.
A tall humanoid figure appeared within the whirlwind; I couldn't see what it looked like, but I could make out the several wings coming from its back and the thin sword it held in its left arm.
The figure's eyes glowed a greenish color as it looked Mimi straight in the eye, as if it was judging her.
A long second passed before the figure slowly nodded and dissipated with the same mist that brought it, thus leaving behind a small green-colored platelet.
The green platelet floated directly towards Mimi before sliding into the Tag.
The forest fell silent as the Emblem of Purity was reunited with its destined owner for the first time.
"I finally have my Emblem!!!" Mimi shouted in excitement as she scooped Palmon into her arms and gave him a tight hug. "Now we can become stronger!!!"
"But what if I turn into a Digimon similar to SkullGreymon?"
"Don't worry! You and I will find a way to solve that problem! Besides, Tai was standing on top of SkullGreymon's head at the end, wasn't he?"
"You're right!"
Noah and I simply stood on the sidelines as we watched both girls dance and celebrate. They seemed to have completely forgotten that just moments ago a mysterious figure that makes Etemon look like a worm appeared right in front of us for a moment.
"Good! Good!" with two claps Noah interrupted the small celebration. "If we're done here, then let's go before Sora and the whole group comes looking for us-"
The moment we turned around, a disturbance in the atmosphere brought the whole group to a screeching halt. We looked around, but the forest seemed to be completely silent.
Sghhh...
With a ripping sound, a circular portal began to form right in front of us.
Feeling the urgency through our connection, I didn't think twice and quickly positioned myself in front of Mimi and Noah; I could hear Palmon's footsteps before he positioned himself right next to me, letting a handful of vines make their way out of his fingers.
As I extended my claws, Palmon and I glanced sideways at each other with a worried look. We both knew that our limit was quite close, as we had expended a lot of energy with the SandYammamon and Raremon fight; we were in no good condition to fight.
A small sound akin to a sonic boom echoed through the temple, announcing the formation of the portal. Palmon and I stood on guard...
...only for a small pink furball to pop out of it.
"Guess who's back, pi!" The little Digimon exclaimed with a playful giggle as it flew around us.
"Who are you-"
Before Noah could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a shout from Mimi.
"Piximon?!" Mimi's voice made me turn around to see her looking at the little fairy with a frown on her face and her arms on her hips. "Where were you?! Do you know how long we've been rotting in the middle of the desert?!"
I tilted my head in confusion as I watched Mimi try and fail to catch the fairy with her hands before Palmon joined her companion with a laugh. Noah and I looked at each other with bewilderment on our faces before simply shrugging with an incredulous smile.
I had heard a bit about Piximon during our time at camp, about how he had helped BlackGarurumon, TK, and Patamon when we were captured by Etemon, about how he helped the other Chosen Children, and about his help in getting to the pyramid undetected by Etemon.
Slow footsteps made my ears twitch as I turned my attention back to the portal, finally noticing a figure much taller than the pink fairy but much more forgettable than the extroverted fairy.
It was a strange feeling, as if my lines of code were actively dictating that I ignore the figure.
He was short, perhaps a few inches taller than Izzy. On his head was only a small clump of gray hair growing in the center of his head and tied back like a ponytail. He was wearing an impeccable dark blue suit with red and yellow decorations, a strange X-shaped belt, his hands were hidden by reddish gloves, and a shell necklace hung from his neck.
And the most important thing about the figure... it was clearly human.
A conversation during our stay at the Etemon Pyramid came back to me.
"Aging?" I asked curiously as Noah scratched the quills on my head.
"Yes, we humans age over time. As time goes on, our bodies go through this 'aging' as the years go by."
"Oh! So they're like Evolutionary Stages!"
"Yeah-, no, well... ehhh" Noah paused for a moment before muttering something under his breath. "Bah, let's say yes, but unlike Digimon that get stronger with each stage, we humans get stronger as the years go by. I wouldn't know exactly how to classify them, but they range from: baby, child, teenager, adult, and elder. Depending on how many years go by, humans naturally advance, or something like that."
"I see... how many years does it take for a human to evolve into an elder?"
Noah let out an amused snort before scratching his head thoughtfully. "Well, for a human to evolve into an elder, they must be... like fifty years old, give or take."
'So, this is an elder?" I thought curiously as I looked intently at the old man. 'Noah will look like this when he's fifty?'
"Hello, Chosen Children" Said the human elder in an affable voice. The human elder looked me in the eye for a brief moment before settling his gaze on Noah. "I believe this is the first time we've met, Noah Tatsumi. But I must say that your performance along with that BlackGarurumon and Herissmon so far has been exemplary, worthy of the Emblem Bearer of Miracles."
I could feel Noah's feelings change rapidly between surprise, suspicion, and wariness. The sudden emotions caused my quills to release a small electric spark between them.
"Allow me to introduce myself."
The old man clasped his arms behind his back serenely before giving a small bow.
"My name is Gennai, The Watcher"
...
A/N: SORRY FOR THE DELAY! College took me by surprise, you know how it is, another semester, another headache for a few months.
As usual, I may not be able to meet the writing deadline, I may have to post it 1 or 2 days late.
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