Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Drifting Pieces ❯ Conversion ( Chapter 15 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Author's Note: This chapter has been rewritten since its original posting in 2010. It was then put through a hard edit. If you have not visited since October of 2010, I recommend that you start over. It’s worth it (08/2012).


Make what you will of this chapter. I hope you enjoy and please review!


Chapter 15: Conversion


Daisuke was still angry. Though his nature didn’t allow him to hold grudges, it didn’t mean that he couldn’t still be angry.

Especially when it came to his friends.

Especially when it came to Ken.

Of course, he knew that he shouldn’t have been listening at the door, but as Taichi had pointed out, how else were they supposed to get a straight answer out of the old coot?

But what he had heard… The suggestion that they just abandon him and leave him to whatever forces were at work had been too much for him to take. He’d wanted to run after the guardian. To tackle him and make him take it all back. To make Gennai tell him where the guardians were so that he could pound on them until they apologized and made things right again.

Only the combined efforts of Taichi and Yamato had been enough to drag Daisuke off to one of the spare bedrooms where he had been forced to sit and cool off.

Cooling off was the last thing he wanted to do. He wanted to rant and rave. To throw his fists into the air and demand justice. He wanted to tackle the guardian and force him to look him in the eye and dare him to talk about cutting their losses again.

With those options blocked, all that was left was for him to sit in his chair and sulk.

The others all sat around him, looking uncomfortable, morose, and guilty. They probably wished that they hadn’t heard Gennai’s little story. Though, as far as Daisuke was concerned, they hadn’t really heard everything. How could they even come close to comprehending the full implications of what they had just heard?

To Daisuke, it had been that one special puzzle piece that when finally snapped in, it completed the big picture and gave light to what it was you were finally supposed to be looking at.

Of course, he had know about the spore and the memory loss. Ken had confided that much to him once before. He had even mentioned the fact that sometimes there were flashes of another boy in the picture with him. Someone that Daisuke reminded him of at times…

Yet that story didn’t make sense. Gennai was still hiding things. Important things.

“That story doesn’t make any sense.” Koushiro mused aloud, startling Daisuke.

“What do you mean? It makes sense to me. The guardians are a bunch of jerks. It’s not something that we didn’t already know.” Yamato crossed his arms and looked at Koushiro sullenly.

“That’s not fair.” Miyako interjected. “How were they supposed to know about the spore or about that boy dying?”

“They could have done something! I bet they knew all along how to remove it. They probably just wanted to see where it went. What it did.” Yamato again. It was starting to sound like he was speaking from personal experience and judging by the look on Taichi’s face, Daisuke didn’t think that his guess was that far off.

Koushiro sighed, “I hate to admit it, but Yamato is right. The spore isn’t from this world; it’s from the Dark Ocean. It had to have passed through a gate to get here, and frankly, I believe that they had time to remove it. We know from experience that it takes several days to take hold. Maybe it would have been dangerous or difficult, but they could have found a way.”

“And that poor boy?” Miyako sounded angry and tears were starting to well up in her eyes. “What about him? Do you think that they brought him there to die?”

“No.” All eyes turned to Hikari. “What they did to Ken was wrong… But Ryo… I’ve heard that name before.”

“Akiyami, right?” Koushiro’s fingers flew across his keyboard as he did a search and pulled up some old news articles. “Yeah… I remember him. He was some sort of computer game champion. He won a lot of tournaments. He was pretty big for a while, heading to nationals and in the lead to win a huge tournament when he suddenly went missing. The media speculated that he couldn’t handle the pressure and ran away. Later reports indicated that he was sick…”

“How sick?” Iori looked up, a familiar wrinkle of worry etched across his forehead.

“Real sick.” Koushiro looked up from his computer screen gravely. “He was given just a few months to live at most.”

A hush fell over the room as they all tried to process that.

“The digital world must have given him a second chance.” Takeru looked down, deep in thought. “Gennai said that he couldn’t talk about what happened to Ryo when he died… But he was already dying. They must have called him here to give him a second chance or to offer him something… Would the illness have followed him here? If he died here, things would have been different… Wouldn’t they?”

“Different how?” Taichi looked shaken, and Daisuke didn’t blame him. He could still remember how Oikawa had merged with the Digital World.

“Do you remember what happened to Wizardmon?” Gatomon’s voice cracked slightly. “He was in the real world when he died. He didn’t reformat like he should have… Maybe it’s like that for you humans too.”

There was a heavy silence again as everyone thought about just what that meant.

“So Ryo was going to die.” Daisuke sighed and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “He came here and was sent to help Ken. Ken gets hurt and Ryo tries to nurse him back to health. Then while Ken is the sickest and Gennai isn’t there to help, Ryo just decides that his time is up and he dies in the middle of it? I don’t buy it. This is the Digital World! If the guardians had such big plans for him, they wouldn’t have let that happen. Ken was supposed to meet up with you guys anyways! It could have meant the difference between winning and losing. Something went wrong. We’re missing something important here and I don’t like it one bit.”

Hikari gave Daisuke a troubled look while Takeru refused to meet her gaze.

“Something bad happened that day.” Takeru shook his head and frowned. “Something Gennai isn’t telling us about. Or maybe he doesn’t know either. Maybe it’s something that we don’t want to know… Whatever it was, it was bad enough that the guardians couldn’t stop it and the Digital World couldn’t reconcile it. I was at that final battle against the Dark Masters and we could have really used all the help we could get. If Ken was good enough to defeat Milleniumon on his own, we could have really benefitted from his help.”

Takeru hesitated before venturing down this next path. “What ever happened… I don’t think we should pry into it any further than we already have.”

Daisuke was about to protest when the full implications of what Takeru was saying hit him. Did he think that Ken was involved? Did the guardians believe that Ken had- No. That just wasn’t possible. It wasn’t something that he could accept.

Yet…

He stood up so fast that his chair tipped over with a crash, jolting them all out of their thoughts. “Denial isn’t the way to go. I would rather face things head on and risk being hurt by them than have them hidden away from me. I won’t let that happen. These are things Ken has a right to know about. It’s his life and he needs to know the whole story… But not from someone like Kaiser. Not from someone that wants to cause him pain. When he wakes up, I want to talk to him.”

Everyone stared at him in shock. Taichi almost looked proud while Koushiro and Yamato nodded approvingly. Miyako looked as if she wanted to ask a question, but then just shook her head and smiled in agreement.

Iori had his usual serious yet thoughtful expression before he too nodded his approval.

To the side, Takeru was silently looking down while Hikari looked up at Daisuke thoughtfully.

“Daisuke…” Whatever she had been about to say was suddenly cut off by a scream.

Daisuke was out the door and down the hall before the others could even react. He was silently cursing himself for leaving Ken and his double alone. What if they had woken up and started to fight again? What if something happened to them? What if they were phasing? Stupid Daisuke stupid!

He stopped short just inside the door and felt Veemon plow into his leg. Overhead, Wormmon had sticky-webbed his way into the room and landed on the bed with a little bounce.

The others quickly followed suit, crowding around Daisuke as he tried to figure out which Ichijouji was currently in the most distress.

Ken appeared to have had a nightmare. He was sitting up and staring straight ahead with unfocused eyes, looking shaken and confused, while Kaiser was hunched over and looking like he was about to lose it.

Daisuke was about to go to the Kaiser, who was gasping and struggling to breathe, when Gennai pushed his way past everyone.

Daisuke made a small sound that could almost have been a growl. If Gennai thought he was going to just swoop in and try to fix everything, then he had another thing coming. He was about to witness firsthand the Motomiya determination.

Ken seemed to sense Gennai’s presence as he suddenly shivered and looked over at the man. The utter intensity and venom in that look froze Daisuke to the spot. Gennai seemed just as surprised, taking a small step back as if he had been punched.

“I killed him, Gennai… I killed him.” There was no emotion behind those words and it chilled Daisuke to the bone.

Gennai took a small step forward, reaching out as if to try and comfort the distraught boy.

Daisuke’s gaze moved past them to the shuddering boy that was hunched over and now making small keening sounds. It was like watching a train wreck. He could see it coming but could do nothing to stop it. He could only watch as Kaiser managed to inhaled at last and then let it all back out in a scream.

The scream seemed to snap everyone into action. Ken screwed his eyes shut and covered his ears, desperately trying to block out his other half. Wormmon leaped up onto Ken’s shoulder, nuzzling and clinging to his partner protectively.

Gennai moved as if to go to Kaiser, but Daisuke stepped in front of the guardian defensively. Gennai may have dealt with Ken in the old days, but he knew nothing of how to deal with Kaiser. He wasn’t about to let the man muck it up anymore than he apparently already had.

The others seemed to get the message as Taichi and Miyako moved forward to grasp Gennai by the arm and lead him out of the room while Koushiro quickly followed, nervously chattering away about wanting to show the guardian some new computer program or something.

Daisuke was surprised to find Iori standing determinedly in the doorway, silently demanding that he be allowed to help.

Glancing back, Daisuke struggled to make his decision. He wanted to be with Ken more than anything. To help him and comfort him… But Kaiser… Could he really be trusted with the others in this state?

Behind him, Kaiser had stopped screaming, most likely from running out of air than anything else.

Daisuke swallowed hard then nodded at Iori and pointed towards Ken, hoping that he had made the right decision.

Iori and Hikari moved quickly, pulling Ken up from the bed and carefully getting him onto his feet.

Daisuke stopped them just before they reached the door and gently pulled Ken into a hug, pressing his chest firmly against Ken’s as if trying to confirm that the boy’s heart was still beating.

He could feel Ken’s hair tickling his cheek as he whispered, “Are you still with me?”

There was a pause before Ken slowly squeezed him back, his lips moving against Daisuke’s ear lightly and making him shiver. “Always…”

It was enough to satisfy him. Daisuke stepped back and allowed the two to guide his partner from the room.

Turning around, Daisuke was surprised to find two others awaiting his orders.

“I’m staying.” Takeru gave Daisuke a firm look.

“After last time?” Daisuke returned the look.

“I made a mistake. I can help this time.”

Daisuke crossed his arms and stared up at the child of hope skeptically.

To their side, Yamato was watching carefully. “Takeru…” It was a warning.

“Yamato, you don’t understand. I know him. I’ve seen what he can do.”

Daisuke sighed and looked down. “Alright. You can stay. Just… Can I have a minute? I want to make sure that… That he’s okay.” He didn’t think that it’d be appropriate to tell them the real reason why needed this moment alone.

Takeru looked like he was about to protest, but Yamato moved in and picked up his younger brother and then carried him out of the room. Under any other circumstance, it would have been comical.

Daisuke shook his head and moved to slowly approach the bed. “Kaiser.” He waited.

Kaiser shuddered and slowly forced in a slow and deep breath. Daisuke knew that the Kaiser was pulling himself back together, carefully replacing that emotionless mask to fool the world into believing that he was alright.

Daisuke wasn’t fooled. He pushed again. “Ichijouji.”

There was an almost feral growl as Kaiser looked up, his eyes wild and wide. The mask was cracked and slipping.

Daisuke sat on the edge of the bed and reached out, laying a hand on Kaiser’s shoulder gently. “Are you with me?”

There was the briefest of moments when Daisuke felt certain that Kaiser had been about to lash out, but it passed and Kaiser slowly and tiredly sat up, recomposing himself. “Always.”

Daisuke relaxed. “Hell of a day, huh?”

“Hell of a life.” Kaiser slowly ran a shaking hand through his hair and then got up. “Do you plan on protecting him forever? You know you can’t. Not from this.”

“I know that… But I’m not going to let you hurt him, either. I’m going to tell him… I’m going to give him the choice that you never got. It will hurt and maybe he won’t recover… But at least he’ll know his life isn’t just full of everyone lying to him!” Daisuke angrily got to his feet.

Kaiser laughed bitterly at that. “Tell him what? That big brother killed himself because he couldn’t stand to be around me? That… That…” Kaiser’s voice cracked and he clenched a fist angrily. “That Ryo…”

“Ken…” Daisuke gently placed a hand on his shoulder again.

“Why do you keep calling me that?!” Kaiser smacked the hand away angrily.

“Because that’s who you are.”

“That’s who you want me to be.” A stone cold glare met him. “You want Ken. You want that pathetic thing that clings to you and lets you make all the big decisions and steal the spotlight. You want someone that needs your protection and only offers advice when you need someone smarter than you. You don’t want me. I intimidate you. I don’t need you like he does. I make the hard decisions and I am stronger than Ken.”

Daisuke opened his mouth to protest but Kaiser shook his head angrily, cutting him off. “I know someone that does want me. That wants Kaiser.” Kaiser’s eyes shifted past Daisuke to the closed door.

“…Takeru? What are you talking about?”

“You haven’t guessed yet? You really are an idiot. He’s drawn to me. Anyone can see it. He’s seen what I really am and he’s oh-so-very fascinated by it. It’s why he keeps coming back.” Kaiser laughed, though it wasn’t filled with any of his usual mirth.

“Takeru isn’t like that… He… He has Hikari.” Daisuke blinked in confusion.

“Hikari… That little busybody that can’t keep her nose in her own business. She sees it too. It’s why she avoids me. I terrify her. If I wanted, I could take so much away from her… But then again, why should I take from her when I have you?” Kaiser’s frown shifted into that all too familiar grin.

Now Daisuke was really lost. What the hell was Kaiser going on about? What was this about Takeru and Hikari? He’d missed something and felt like it was staring him right in the face.

Kaiser didn’t appear to be in an explaining mood as he slowly moved closer to Daisuke, an odd look on his face. “Aren’t you curious?”

“C-Curious?” Daisuke swallowed hard as he watched Kaiser shift and slowly drape himself across Daisuke, an arm snaking around his waist, the other hand running over his shoulder and up into his hair.

“About Ryo.” Lips brushed over his cheek and settled to breathe warmly near his ear. “About how I killed him…”

Daisuke swallowed hard. This felt like more than just dangerous territory. This was bigger than Osamu’s secret and he could feel it.

“I know you are… They all are.” Fingers teasingly ran through his hair and twirled in the messy locks.

“I…” It was true. That much he couldn’t deny. He was curious, but could he trust Kaiser? Did Kaiser really know the truth? If it had terrified him that much…

“No… I don’t think I’m going to tell you. I wouldn’t want you to soften the blow when it comes. To defile that memory with your kind words… Just know that I killed him… And it felt so good.”

A pause while Daisuke’s mind blanked. It had to have been a lie. There was no way that he was remembering it the way that it really happened… Right? Ken had been so young… He couldn’t have possibly killed his friend.

He blinked as his focus returned and he found Kaiser’s face barely inches from his own. “It was so easy… I wonder if I can do it again…” His lips twitched upwards at the corners and he shifted his gaze past Daisuke towards the now open door. “Takeru. Did you have a nice heart-to-heart with your brother? Did he warn you about playing with the big boys?”

Daisuke was still blinking as Kaiser slid off the bed. Alarm bells started to go off in his head as he watched the way Kaiser moved. Something was wrong and an increasing sense of danger was starting to build in the room.

Takeru, either ignoring the danger or simply not sensing it, walked into the room calmly. Yamato was not with him.

“You just keep coming back. I know he warned you about me. I know that she did too. Why don’t you listen to them? Are you trying to prove something? Do you think that you can save me like you did her? Or are you doing this because you failed to save me the first time? Did Daisuke steal your thunder?” Kaiser strolled up to Takeru, who was watching him with an odd look on his face.

Daisuke got up quickly as his alarm bells suddenly went into overdrive. “Takeru, maybe you should-”

“Please don’t interrupt, Daisuke. You and I can play in just a moment. Right now, I’d rather play with him.”

“You talk too much. If you have something to say, just say it.” Takeru bristled.

“Hm. Always so impatient. Hikari is such a patient girl. Is that why you follow her around like a puppy? Using her as a shield? Does she guide you with her light?” Kaiser lowered his voice. “Does she know about what happened? Did she tell you it was alright? That you were better than me and had nothing to feel bad about?”

Daisuke didn’t know what was going on, but he knew that this needed to stop before he had to break up another fight. He was starting to feel like a referee. “Kaiser. Back off, right now.” Takeru, I think you should wait out in the hall.”

They ignored him, Kaiser moving closer still and Takeru holding his ground stubbornly.

“She does know, doesn’t she? You tell her everything, don’t you? Hoping that she’ll give her approval and keep you in her light. Did you tell her about that dream you had that night?”

Takeru’s indifferent look shifted to one of utter shock. “How did you…?”

“You didn’t tell her. Were you too ashamed? Afraid that she’d know the truth?” Takeru slowly balled up his fists as Kaiser continued, his knuckles falling into line slowly and tightening till they turned white. “It doesn’t matter. I think she’s already starting to guess the truth.”

Takeru swung a fist. Kaiser ducked and moved forward at the same time, pinning Takeru to the wall in a very familiar position that was giving Daisuke an odd sort of déjà vu.

Daisuke was about to run forward to pry the Kaiser off of the blond when the Kaiser suddenly leaned in and kissed Takeru roughly.

Time seemed to stand still as the kiss drug out, Takeru frozen in shock and Kaiser dominating relentlessly. Daisuke felt a surge of jealousy in the pit of his stomach as he watched, utterly dumbfounded.

At last, Kaiser pulled back with an exaggerated exhale then leaned in and whispered something in Takeru’s ear. Takeru’s eyes widened and there was no mistaking the fear that flashed across those clear blue eyes.

Daisuke decided he’d had enough as he stormed forward and grabbed Kaiser roughly by the arm, yanking him away from the still frozen in place Takeru.

“Kaiser! What the hell?!”

Kaiser spun into the motion and wrapped his arms around Daisuke’s waist, pulling him closer with a smile. “I’m sorry, Daisuke. Are you jealous? I promise he doesn’t mean anything to me. He’s just a game. I should have asked you to join in. Perhaps we could play together…”

Daisuke was about to argue when something caught his eye.

“What the...” He forcefully turned Kaiser around and pushed away a few stray spikes of hair from the back of his neck where there was a dark angry mark, much like a bruise or an old burn.

Kaiser’s breath caught as Daisuke lightly traced the mark with his fingers.

“Takeru… Come look at this.” A light was starting to go off in Daisuke’s head, but he wasn’t near smart enough to figure it out on his own.

Daisuke looked up as Takeru failed to answer. “Takeru?”

“I’m sorry, Daisuke.” The other boy was now standing in the doorway, his back to the room. “I can’t do this.” He walked out, letting the door slide shut behind him heavily.

“How disappointing.” Kaiser laughed and looked back at Daisuke. “I was hoping to get to play with him a little while longer. You don’t think my toy is broken already, do you?”

Daisuke gave him a look of frustration. “We aren’t done here. You and I are going to have a nice long talk when I get back. Till then, you sit here and don’t touch anything, do anything, or say anything!”

Daisuke nodded to Veemon as he moved to the door. “Guard him. This won’t take long.”

He was starting to wonder just how the hell he was supposed to help Ken get better when the rest of his team was starting to lose it too.

“Takeru, wait!”

--(Moments earlier)--

“What is going on with you, Takeru? You can tell me.”

“It’s nothing, Yamato. I’m just trying to support Daisuke and Ken…”

“Don’t give me that. You’ve been acting weird since before we even got here. I’m worried about you. So is Hikari.”

Takeru sighed and looked down, examining the floor. “He’s getting to me. I know it’s stupid and that it shouldn’t matter, but he’s always gotten to me. He was just a kid like me, trying to find his place in the world and make sense of what was happening around him. I couldn’t understand how he could do such a thing. How he could hurt living creatures… I told myself he was a monster. It was the only way I could make sense of it.” Takeru paused and closed his eyes.

“But then… I came face to face with him. Suddenly he wasn’t just some arrogant punk out for power. He was alone and lost. He was a kid that hadn’t had the guidance that I’d had. It could have been me, Yamato. If I hadn’t of had you or any of the others… If I’d lost you in those early days… If I had been as alone as he was.”

“I don’t think so, Takeru. You’ve never even been close to being the way that he was. You’ve never even been tempted. Not like I was.” Yamato closed his eyes for a moment, remembering his own failures for just a moment. “You were always caring and far too willing to prove just how useful you were to the group. You would never have gone down that path. Even without me. Don’t you remember when I left and you were on your own?”

“But you don’t know that!” Takeru shook his head angrily. “Ken was the same age as I was when he was here the first time! He didn’t even have anyone helping him along. All he ever had was that trainer. He saved this world all on his own! You heard Gennai. For all we know, he was just like me. Like any of the rest of us! To think that he could go from that to… To what he was…”

Yamato was silent as Takeru looked down at the dust and rubble on the floor around them. “I’m sorry, Yamato. I just… It scares me sometimes. I’m supposed to have hope and believe that there’s good in all of us… But when I first met him, all I could see was the bad. I couldn’t believe that he could ever change. I couldn’t see what… What Daisuke saw…”

“Takeru… What is this really about?” Yamato asked softly, giving his brother an unreadable look.

“What do you mean? I just told you-”

“That was in the past.” Yamato cut him off. “We’re talking about right here and now. What’s in that room right now with Daisuke is not what you met back then. As much as we all want to think so, that is NOT the Kaiser. I’m not even sure that he knows what he is. Maybe it is a part of Ken, but we can’t be sure.” Yamato glanced at the door as if to make sure that it was really completely closed. “Whatever has you so wound up is not letting you think straight. I’ve never known you to be so impulsive and hot headed. To not listen to Hikari and go out of your way to cause trouble. You’ve been after him since you first saw him and I think this is running deeper than you think.”

“What are you getting at, Yamato?” Takeru glared at his older brother. Did he think that Takeru had purposefully caused that fight? That he was out to hurt the Kaiser? To hurt Ken?

“This isn’t about helping Ken and you know it.” Yamato looked down, refusing to meet his brother’s eyes. “I think this is about Daisuke.”

“What? I-”

Yamato held up a hand to silence him. “Daisuke had been chasing Hikari since the first time he laid eyes on her. She allowed it. You allowed it. Maybe you just didn’t want to hurt him, he’s a good friend, but I think it became more than that at some point. It wasn’t about protecting Daisuke anymore. But when Ken showed up…”

Takeru scowled and then looked away. “You’d have to be an idiot not to know this, Yamato. He stopped chasing after her. She wasn’t even on his radar once Ken showed up. We all know who he wants.”

“Even so, it wasn’t until recently that Ken started to openly return Daisuke’s advances.” Yamato crossed his arms, remembering his own earlier days of playing the game of chase with Taichi.

Takeru gave Yamato a stubborn look. “It was obvious to Hikari and I. We’ve been around you and Taichi long enough to recognize the signs.”

Yamato flushed and looked down. “Yeah, well… The point is that he never returned the advances. Ken is shy and Daisuke is hard to take seriously. All of a sudden, Ken can’t go five seconds without clinging to Daisuke like he’s the only human left on earth and the Kaiser… Well, I’ll just say that I’ve seen groupies be more subtle.”

“Yeah. Kaiser doesn’t seem to have any concept of other people’s personal space or have any problems going after what he wants.” It came out sounding far bitterer than he liked. “I don’t have a problem with that.”

“I think you do.” Yamato looked up at him with a look that pierced through him. “I don’t know what went on between you and the Kaiser back then… But apparently it’s starting to cause problems. You need to back off now before you get hurt or you hurt someone.”

“You think I… That I…” Takeru sputtered as he starred at his brother. “I am NOT… I-This isn’t about that! This is about him being wrong! He shouldn’t even exist or be trusted! I know what he is and I can’t believe that no one else can see it! Someone needs to put him in his place before it’s too late!” Takeru pushed past his brother and moved to the door.

Yamato placed a firm hand on his shoulder and stopped him. “Takeru, I’m asking you… Please… Just listen to me. If not me, then listen to Hikari. Back off.”

“You and Hikari need to keep your noses out of my business. I’m not a child anymore! I can take care of myself!” He shrugged off the hand and pushed his way into the room angrily.

Yamato stood in the hall for a moment, completely at a loss and feeling defeated. There was only so much he could do for his little brother. All he could do was hope that whatever that thing was that was in that room wasn’t nearly as bad as Hikari had guessed.

--

Takeru exited the room and slowly walked down the hall in a daze.

A surprisingly steady hand rose up and finger tips moved to lightly trace across his dry lips. He kissed me.

He could still feel the Kaiser’s lips pressed against his, teasingly starting out so tender and then quickly dominating him. He could still feel that warm body pressing solidly against his own. He could still feel Kaiser’s hips meeting his roughly while a cold hand slowly slid down his spine and pulled him closer, the other hand kept him forcefully pinned against the wall.

This had been unlike anything he had ever felt before. Hikari’s kisses were always so sweet and gentle. They were shy and always left him feeling calm and relaxed.

This kiss had been controlling and dominating, yet almost playful… It held the promise of violence and something else… Something that had left his heart pounding in his ears.

Takeru shuddered and slowly wiped his lips on the back of his hand.

Being that close had left him feeling like there was a great sense of danger building up around him, ready to crash in on him at a moment’s notice. Is this what Daisuke feels?

He closed his eyes against the echoing whisper of Kaiser’s soft and sultry voice hissing in his ear. “Let’s play a game. Who do you think will fail first? Light, Hope, or Kindness?”  

“Takeru! Wait up!” Daisuke’s voice pierced the silent hall.

Takeru wiped his lips again and slowly straightened, trying not to look as scared as he suddenly felt. How did Daisuke do it? How could Daisuke get so close to the abyss without falling in? How could he handle the darkness without it consuming him?

“Takeru.” Daisuke stopped just behind him. “I’m sorry.”

Takeru looked back at him in surprise. “What are you apologizing for? You didn’t do anything. I should be apologizing to you. I should have listened. I should have just stayed away from him.”

“I’m sorry I’ve been so hard on you. It’s not your fault. I knew that he was getting to you and I…” Daisuke hesitated as if thinking something over, and then nodded as he came to a determination. “I’ve always felt that he was my burden. That Kaiser was something I needed to face alone, you know? Like if I was supposed to be the leader, I needed to prove that I could take him down without any help.”

“But you did. You faced him while the rest of us wanted to run home and hide. You took him down while we all watched from the side lines.”

“You guys didn’t run. You backed me up! You think I could have done it without my friends there to support me?” Daisuke sighed. “That’s not the point. After everything, I still had that same feeling. Ken was my responsibility. No one understood him like I did. No one knows what he goes through like I do… And I think it’s my fault. I wanted to keep him to myself. I was his first friend and he was my first best friend.”

Takeru tried not to wince from the sting of that. They had always been friends to Daisuke, but he had always been treated as just another guy that they had to tolerate because he wouldn’t go away. It wasn’t till much later that they had really seen just what kind of friend Daisuke could be.

Daisuke struggled as if trying to find the right words to make Takeru understand. “I want to help him. To help both of them. I feel like I’m running in circles trying to keep one under control while I’m trying to keep the other one from drifting away. I think… It’s starting to become clear that I can’t do this on my own. I need your help. I can’t keep my eyes on both of them.”

“Do you really trust us with him, thought? Dose Ken trust us enough to let us help him? Do you trust us enough to leave us alone with the Kaiser?” Takeru glanced back at the door, wondering if Kaiser was laughing at him.

Daisuke looked down then back up at Takeru fully. It was a struggle not to take a step back under the suddenly intense fire that was now burning behind those deep dark eyes. “I’m just going to have to learn then, aren’t I? Ken needs me, but he also needs to learn that he has friends that are willing to help him. As for Kaiser… That one’s going to be harder. He’s… It’s hard to explain. He’s…”

“Dangerous.” Takeru finished “But not for you.”

Daisuke blinked in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“I don’t know what it is… Maybe it’s because you’re the only one Ken trusts… Maybe it’s because you’re the one that Ken… likes.” He ignored the way Daisuke’s face blushed and the way his own heart felt like it had skipped a beat. “He’s enamored with you. It’s like he wants all of your attention and he gets jealous when he doesn’t have it. I think I’m starting to understand what he is… With you, he’s different. I don’t know what it is… But there’s something in him that only comes out when he’s with you. He’s impulsive. He lacks control. He’s emotional and he’s needy. With us… He’s just plain dangerous. I’m starting to think he wouldn’t hesitate to hurt us…”

“Ken would never hurt anyone!”

“He’s not Ken! Maybe he’s a part of Ken or maybe he’s something else. We don’t know what he is.” Takeru gave Daisuke a hard look. “We can only guess. And you don’t seem to remember that Ken did hurt people back then. Digimon and human alike, he was vicious. I know he’s different now and that was a different situation, but the truth is, with that spore active in him… There’s no telling just what either of them is capable of.” And there’s still the little matter of what happened to Ryo. Takeru shivered at that last thought.

Daisuke looked stricken, the fire in his eyes much smaller now. “Fine. I’ll deal with him. If you’re so scared of him, I’ll make sure he doesn’t hurt anyone. You won’t have to go near him again.”

Takeru paused. “Keep him away from Hikari, Daisuke. I’m trusting you. Back there he told me… Just keep him away from Hikari.”

Daisuke seemed to think this one through carefully before nodding. “Yeah. Okay. I want to keep him away from Ken, too. For the time being anyways, until I can figure a few things out. Please… Take care of Ken. I’ll be by to check on him soon. If there’s any trouble at all… You come get me.”

Takeru nodded and Daisuke looked satisfied, if not troubled. Daisuke turned back towards the bedroom but Takeru stopped him. “Daisuke, wait.”

Daisuke stopped and looked back over his shoulder. “Hm?”

Takeru’s stomach clenched unpleasantly. “About what happened in there… When he…”

Daisuke smiled. “Don’t worry about it. He’s just trying to get a rise out of me. He gets bored real easily. I guess all smart people do.” Daisuke turned back to the door with a casual wave, dismissing the incident as if it were just an annoying fly buzzing about. “Don’t let it bother you.”

Just before Daisuke went back inside, Takeru could have sworn that for the briefest of moments, he saw a familiar look on Daisuke’s face. The same questioning look that Hikari kept giving him.

“Yeah… No worries…” Takeru shivered and headed down the hall to try and find Hikari. She had gone with Ken and right now, Takeru wasn’t so sure that he trusted Ken any more than he did Kaiser.

--

Hikari, Iori, and Ken all sat together on the floor of one of the larger guest rooms. The room felt completely unused, which it most likely was, and looked as if it had been abandoned halfway through being furnished.

Hikari couldn’t help but feel sad about how each guest room seemed to have been carefully thought out and decorated with the most intricate of detail only to have been abandoned and forgotten shortly after completion, if not shortly before. It was all just one of the many mysteries that made up the riddle of Ken.

Ken seemed to be doing better now that he’d been taken away from the general vicinity of Kaiser. He had some of the color back in his cheeks and his eyes weren’t as vacant and lost as they had been when he’d first woken up.

They sat in silence for a moment until Ken finally sighed and shifted, brushing his hair back out of his eyes. “I know you want to ask, so just ask already.”

Iori seemed taken off guard when Ken looked directly at him. Of all of them, it somehow seemed appropriate that Iori be the one to be asking the questions. He was, after all, always thinking up the deep and meaningful questions. However, Iori always worked them around in his head for hours, sometimes days, before he felt confident enough to do the question justice in asking.

Hikari had come to respect the quiet and thought filled questions. He had certainly asked her a few doozies a short while back and she had done her very best to answer each and every one truthfully. No matter the question, it always felt wrong to leave them unanswered.

Looking at him now, she could tell from the look on Iori’s face that he had been holding this one back for a long time.

“Is he really a part of you?” That was obviously not the question he had wanted to ask, or the one Ken or Hikari had been expecting. Apparently, the boy just wasn’t ready for the big one yet… Or maybe he was building the stepping stones first.

“Yes.” As short as that answer was, it held a note of finality about it that all present were willing to accept.

Iori fell silent as he let it process. “Back then, when you were Kaiser… Was that him?”

Ken clenched his fists in his lap and Hikari breathed slowly as she watched them. Iori had been the last to accept Ken and forgive him for all that he’d done, but it was obvious that he still wondered. Maybe they all did.

Ken sighed heavily. “No. I was aware of what I was doing. It was all me. It has always been me. He is… New.” Apparently these were all questions that Ken had already asked himself.

Iori seemed dissatisfied with that answer. “Then you really did think it was all just a game? Is it because of what Gennai and the Guardians did? What they told you?”

Hikari tensed as Ken’s fists clenched tighter. “No. Not entirely. They left behind traces of memories. I don’t know what I believed, but I fooled myself. I knew what I was doing. What this was. What they were. I just didn’t want to believe.”

Iori was now looking at Ken with the intense concentration that only a Kendo master could possess. “Then why did you do it? What made you want to hurt them? To take control?”

Ken’s fists trembled for a moment before the boy let out a long slow breath as he started to relax with the control of a Judo master.

“Sometimes, bad things happen, Iori. We have no control over them. We have no say over who lives or dies. All we can do is react.” Ken looked up at last, his focus completely on the smaller boy. “Your father was killed protecting what he believed to be right. He was probably killed over something small and trivial. Something that someone else thought was worth killing another man over. You chose to be proud of him. You were taught to be proud. To understand that he gave his life so that you could know that there were good people in the world that were willing to die for something just and right.”

Iori looked surprised, but oddly touched by that description.

“What would have happened if it had been different? What if he was just walking home one day and he had been shot in the back? What if your grandfather had been indifferent to you and simply tried to wash the death away like it was a nasty stain on the carpet?”

Hikari felt as if the air in the room had dropped ten degrees.

Iori looked away. “I never thought about that… I guess I would be someone different. I would want answers. I would want justice.”

“You would want control.” Ken slowly pulled Wormmon into his lap and started to stroke his antenna. Gatomon was sitting near Hikari, trying to seem uninterested, but the steady twitch of her tail gave away the fact that she was listening with intense concentration.

To the side, Armodillomon was watching Iori as if expecting something. Perhaps he was waiting for some grand epiphany.

“I don’t think that would make him want to hurt people. To do what you did…” Armodillomon ventured slowly, seeking understanding.

Gatomon spoke up, her light voice startling them all. “It’s hard to see a situation from someone else’s eyes. Ken lost someone in a very different situation. You both coped differently. You wanted to make your father proud and you wanted to protect what he had died for. Ken…” She trailed off, her tail flipping unpleasantly.

Ken gave her a dead look. “Oh, I lived up to my brother too.”

Hikari flinched and looked down as that answer made her feel cold and scared.

To his credit, Iori didn’t shy away. “What was your brother like?”

Ken looked at Iori as if he was trying to make up his mind about something. “Osamu was…” He breathed deeply, his brow furrowing as his struggle for control became more and more apparent. “Osamu was perfect.”

Iori frowned in protest to that less than satisfactory answer. “No one’s perfect, Ken.”

Hikari looked from Iori to Ken, suddenly feeling anxious and not knowing why.

Ken slowly blinked at Iori as if he’d just said something that didn’t make any sense, and then looked away. “I’m sorry. About your father. He sounded like a good man. I bet you make him proud.”

Iori blinked at that, unsure on how to respond.

There was silence as Iori slowly gathered himself up and finally asked the question. “You and Daisuke.”

Hikari and Ken both froze. It had not been the question they had expected after all of that build up. It hadn’t even been a question. It was more of him thinking out loud than anything.

Ken blushed brightly and Hikari looked away, trying not to laugh. She failed and started to cough, trying to hide the giggles.

Wormmon spoke up proudly, much to his partner’s dismay. “They are the best of partners!”

Hikari was now having a coughing fit while Gatomon pattered her on the back, looking amused.

“I… We haven’t…” Ken had a rare moment of incoherency as he stuttered for the right answer. “Nothing is official.”

Iori just looked confused by the ruckus. Finally, Hikari got hold of herself and smiled brightly at Ken. “Official or not… I’m happy for you both.”

This made Ken blush even more.

Iori seemed to have just accepted it as one of those things he wasn’t going to get an answer to and sighed while Armodillomon patted his shoulder consolably.

The door opened behind them and Takeru walked in, moving with purpose before firmly taking a seat next to Hikari. Her smile faded as she caught the look on his face. He looked shaken.

“How is Daisuke doing?” Iori asked softly.

“He’s fine. Kaiser seems to have recovered and is back to being his usual pleasant self.” Takeru’s answer sounded bitter. “He doesn’t need my help. He’s got it under control for the time being.”

Hikari smiled softly at Takeru and was about to offer kind words of comfort when she caught the looks Ken and Takeru were giving each other.

“Takeru? Are you okay?” She ventured cautiously.

Takeru ignored her. “Do you have a connection with him?” It was accusing. Almost angry. “You do, don’t you? You know what he’s thinking and doing. What his plans are. You can feel what he does.”

Ken shook his head almost desperately. “I don’t. I don’t know what he’s thinking. He has memories that I don’t have. Memories that I want. He knows everything I’ve forgotten! Do you think I would let him hold that over me on purpose?”

“Maybe you don’t know what he’s thinking, but if I understand things correctly, his mind is yours. He has access to your mind and you must have access to his. Out in the desert when he was angry, you reacted. You can feel what he does.”

Iori looked at Ken in surprise. “He’s right. When one of you gets emotional, any kind of emotion, the other reacts.”

Hikari didn’t like where this was going. “It doesn’t mean that he can or should use it. You heard Gennai earlier. If he tries to tap in or use it, it could backfire and hurt him. We don’t even know if Kaiser is aware of the connection or not. If it goes one way, it must go the other. He could use it to hurt Ken.”

“But what if Kaiser is up to something? We can’t trust him. Maybe he behaves himself around Daisuke, but with the rest of us he’s different. I’ve seen it. He doesn’t care who he hurts. Even with Daisuke… Can we really trust him enough to let Daisuke stay alone with him for long periods of time? You’ve seen the way he is with him…” Takeru looked at Hikari almost pleadingly.

“With that line of thought… Who’s to say we can even trust Ken?” All eyes snapped to Iori. “He’s fractured. Gennai said he has a split spirit and mind. Who’s to say that this Ken is the Ken that we all know and trust? Kaiser seems to have all the traits that Ken normally doesn’t. Everyone has a darkness inside of them, a darkness that wants something, but we also normally have the light to balance us out. To tell us when to stop or not do something. The light lets us know when enough is enough. Kaiser seems to lack that. But to assume that’s all Kaiser is, is wrong. I’ve seen him act in kindness. He treats Wormmon as well as Ken does. He’s gentle and feels guilt over the past. Earlier… He looked lost. He was in pain. Maybe it’s all a front… But there’s more going on than we all think and it would be foolish to assume that one of them is good and the other is evil.”

Hikari was startled by how even and well thought out Iori made it all sound. So this was what he had been carefully thinking about this whole time.

Finally, the real question they had all been waiting for emerged. “Can we trust you, Ken?”

All eyes slowly moved back to Ken, who was looking down, his hair hiding his face.

Hikari watched him closely, feeling light headed as she searched for something that she just couldn’t quite see, but knew was there.

As a child, she had always possessed a gift for sensing what others could not. Her quiet nature allowed her to hear what others couldn’t and she had always been able to see what others refused.

What she felt now alarmed her more than words could ever possibly do justice.

A dark mark was slowly starting to bloom and spread out across the back of Ken’s neck as a twisted smile worked its way slowly over his lips.

When Ken looked up, his eyes locked with hers and she felt something ice cold wrap around her heart and squeeze.

“Let’s play a game. Who do you think will fail first? Light, Hope, or Kindness?” The voice was dark and mocking. For just a moment, she swore she could hear the sound of waves crashing on distant rocks.

She gasped out and blinked, the cold feeling disappearing suddenly as reality was restored.

She found Ken simply looking at her blankly, the smile and dark mark gone as if they had never been there in the first place.

No one else appeared to have seen or heard what had just happened. It was as if she had imagined the whole thing.

Finally, Ken answered. “No. I don’t think you can…”

His eyes slowly shifted over to Takeru and he slowly licked his lips with a distant smile.