Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Return to the Frontier ❯ Moiraemon, Warrior of Earth! ( Chapter 2 )

Title: Return to the Frontier

Author: AikoNamika

Warnings: Original Characters (attempts not to make them Mary Sues/Gary Stus, but they're still original), language, occasional violence, an author who's often just making things up as she goes along.

Pairings: None at the moment, but knowing me…anything is possible! (That includes shounen-ai, shoujo-ai, and het - more detailed warnings will become available as I figure it out.)

Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon: Frontier, or any of its related merchandise. They belong to rich people in big offices, while I'm just a girl with personality problems. However, all original characters, original Digimon, and the plot line belong to me, and there will be severe consequences if I see anyone stealing!

Note: I'm working with a combination of the English anime and what information I can glean off of websites - if something seems completely screwed up, well then you know why.

Additional Note: The little commentary-thingies at the end of the “episodes” will be done by my muse/plot-bunny wrangler, Nall. Just so you know who the heck he is. ::nods::

 

---

 

Nall: Last episode our heroes had to deal with getting called back to the Digital World again, but it wasn't for pleasure - some sort of mysterious bad guy is out to destroy the Digital World again, and not only do they have to deal with him, they've got to free four other Chosen Children who were trapped in their Digimon forms! And with all this going on, none of the three Great Angels can be of any help, because they're all trapped within their castle. Looks like it's going to be a long haul from here!

 

Chapter 2: Moiraemon, Warrior of Earth!

 

In the end the only feasible option was to split up and head out to take on each of the four other Legendary Warriors as soon as possible - they had to free them quickly, and it would go faster if the whole entire group didn't have to travel around as a cluster.

 

Takuya headed Northeast toward the stony wastelands there, as that was the last reported sighting of the Warrior of Earth. He didn't know what the other Digimon's name was, and Ophanimon had declined to tell him though she undoubtedly knew it. He knew that he'd recognize the other Warrior, though - for one thing, his D-Scanner would signal him, something that Ophanimon had programmed into them this time. For another thing, Legendary Warriors were often fairly hard to miss…

 

A Trailmon obliged him by carrying him as far as it could, and he spent a large part of his journey contemplating the problems at hand; who could this mysterious enemy be? How had he managed to trap the four new children in their Digimon forms? For that matter, what prevented him from getting trapped in his Digimon form?

 

`And just how am I supposed to free this guy from his Digimon self?' That last one was the one he spent the most time on, especially considering the fact that he couldn't exactly do anything about the other questions. `Should I just treat it like Kouichi? Go and attack until I can scan his Spirit and get him back to human form? Or should I try and talk it out, or what?!' Of course a large part of the answer would depend upon the response of the Earth Warrior's reaction to him. If he was welcomed warmly, things shouldn't go too badly; but if he was attacked off the bat (as Grumblemon had been prone to do) then he'd have a bit more trouble…

 

“Woo woo! Last stop, Mountain Terminal! All ashore who's going ashore!” The voice of the Trailmon broke his concentration, and he looked up to find that he had indeed reached the furthest point that outside help could bring him to. He got out, and turned to look back at the train Digimon .

 

“Hey, thanks for the ride, y'know?” He grinned and adjusted his goggles absently, smiling at the familiar feeling of his gloves, the tan leather supremely comfortable. He'd worn a pair of soft denim jeans along with a red t-shirt, a leather vest and gloves, and a pair of beat-up sneakers that were once white and now were dirt-gray/brown. To top the entire ensemble off, he wore his old hat and goggles, having pulled them from his bag that morning to complete the feeling of being back.

 

“It's no problem for one of you! You're a pretty good passenger, not like some guys who are all, `Can't you go faster? Why is this so bumpy! I thought this was a First-Class Trailmon!', whine, whine, whine. You were quiet and ya didn't bother me at all - plus, you're gonna be helping to save the Digital World again!” The Trailmon was obviously eager to talk a bit, and Takuya reflected that no one probably talked to the underappreciated Digimon too often. “I want to be able to do my routes without worrying that I'll lose my Core - I lost a good friend to that creep. It was…hard; he was a fantastic worker, one of the most efficient Trailmon you'd ever seen.” The big machine sighed heavily, and then eyed the brunette for a moment. “Get that guy for me, willya?”

 

Takuya blinked in surprise, and then smiled comfortingly. “Of course; I promise.”

 

“Thanks,” the nameless Trailmon replied, and then backed down the tracks to where he could turn around and head back to his regular travels. The brown-eyed boy turned so that he looked up at the mountains, and then sighed and hiked his backpack further up on his shoulders.

 

“I guess I better get walking.”

 

***

 

It was a beautiful day out; the sun was shining, a lone Biyomon were singing, and it was surprisingly lovely in the mountains. He'd thought it would have been barren and lifeless, just miles and miles of rock stretching away as far as the eye can see. Yes, there was plenty of rock, but there was also sections of grass where there was enough dirt to grow, and moss clung to every available surface, providing the land with a covering of green. Small clusters of tiny blue flowers grew in some spots, and when he bent to look closely at one patch, it reminded him a great deal of the forget-me-nots he'd seen a few times before.

 

The air was dry but warm, the sun providing clear light and heating the day to a comfortable temperature. It smelled clean and fresh, neither of which be could really gained in Japan unless you went a very long way away from the cities. He smiled and watched some sort of little brown rodent Digimon scurry across the path in front of him, carrying a mouth full of grass stuffed in his cheeks and spilling out as well. It paused, sniffed at him, and then took off again.

 

“It's so great to be back in the Digital World, even if some creep is harassing everyone - at least I get to see this place again! I've missed it,” Takuya said out loud, his voice sounding slightly out of place in the quiet sanctuary of the mountains. He fell silent once again and just enjoyed the peaceful scenery.

 

***

 

Takuya was really beginning to wish that he'd asked to go after a different Warrior - his feet were killing him, and it seemed that his backpack gained an extra pound with every step he took. Finally he found a convenient rock and dropped down onto it with a groan, letting his bag fall from his shoulders and using it as a back rest.

 

It was really, really nice to get off his feet, and as he glanced at the sun, trying to gauge how long it would be until sunset - not too long, as far as he could tell. He'd been traveling all day, first on the Trailmon and then on his own two feet, and he figured that he should probably start looking for somewhere to stay the night. Fortunately for him, he didn't need to look for food at all, because some helpful Digimon in the castle had provided him with plenty of supplies (both cooked and non-cooked) that should allow him to last our here for about a week. After that, he was on his own - but he really hoped that he wouldn't be out here long enough to come even close to running out of food.

 

With a resigned sigh he stood again, pulling his backpack back on over his shoulders, smiling slightly as he realized an unexpected side-effect of his pause - the slight breeze that was being funneled between all of the mountains had cooled the sweat on his back and on his bag, and so it was like having a cool cloth applied to his skin. The rest, though short, had done him quite a lot of good, and he hiked on in much better spirits, scanning his surroundings for a convenient (and safe) cave to spend the night in.

 

It wasn't too long before he found a viable option, though getting to the actual mouth of the cave would require a bit of a climb. Takuya scrambled up the rocks, occasionally pausing so that he could catch his balance, the unwieldy weight on his back throwing his balance off a bit. However, when he stepped into the cave, he knew he'd found the place where he wanted to stay the night - it wasn't too open, but large enough that he could comfortably have a campfire and stay warm the whole night through. Indeed, a spot on the stone that had been scorched black by firestone indicated that he wouldn't be the only one using this as a way-station.

 

Soon enough he had a cheerful little blaze going, a meat-apple toasting on a stick above the dancing flames. It cooked quickly, proving to be flavored like pork chops when he bit into it.

 

It was when he'd just started eating that the trouble began. The ground rumbled underneath him, and he leapt to his feet, looking around in worry as small stones tumbled from the roof of the cavern. He snatched his back and lunged out of the cave, tumbling down the small incline to the path below, watching in shock as the cave collapsed on itself, burying his fire and what could have been him in piles of rock.

 

“Okay…I think that might have been a hint.” Takuya stared, wide-eyed, and then his eyes narrowed as he realized what that probably meant. He lifted his head and glared up the cliff toward the top, even though he knew that the Earth Warrior was almost definitely here. “Hey, you! I know you're here! Come out and face me!”

 

“Granite Barrage!” It wasn't just the sudden attack from behind him that startled him - it was the fact that the voice that said it was female. He yelled in surprise and ran to the side, managing to get out of the way of the deadly stones that hurtled out at him from the darkness.

 

“Well, there goes any chance of talking this out peacefully,” he muttered to himself, and then pulled out his D-Scanner, slashing it across the ring of Digicode that appeared around his hand. “Execute! Spirit Evolution!” For a moment he felt like he was surrounded by flames but not burnt, and then he felt his Digimon side come to the front.

 

“Agunimon!” The blond Digimon glared toward his target, yelling out at her again. “Come on, face me! Or are you too afraid?” He sneered the last word at her, and a growl of anger proved that his accusation had hit the mark. Then she stepped forward into the light of the moonlight, the silver glow rendering her in shades of gray; armor encased her almost entirely, smooth stone-like armor like it had been made of river rocks. Her helm had a long plume of hair - her hair? - trailing down her back, and the only part of her that wasn't covered by the armor was her eyes and the skin around them. He couldn't tell the color in this uncertain light, but he could see the glare she wore pretty clearly.

 

“Don't you ever call me afraid, you little rat,” she growled. “I'm not afraid of anything, much less a stupid human like you, even if you can turn into a Digimon!” She drew what he hadn't seen before, a long broadsword with a rather deadly-looking edge. “Boulder Slice!” A blaze of energy emerged from the blade of the sword as she slashed it downward, the edge-on attack coming straight for him. Once more Agunimon managed to dodge, leaping aside and landing on the ground far to the right of his previous position. A loud explosion had him looking toward where he had been before as the attack hit and broke a huge stone in half and cleaving a huge gash in the side of the cliff.

 

“Geeze, what did I do to piss you off that much?” He commented incredulously. Then his eyes narrowed as he looked back at the other Warrior, and he stepped forward boldly. “Who are you, and why did you try to kill me?” This probably wouldn't work too well, but he had to try.

 

“I'm Moiraemon and I'm gonna kill you before you even get a chance at me! I'm not going to let you attack me like all the others have!” She declared, bringing her sword around once more.

 

`Others?' Agunimon thought incredulously. `What others?' Then he was dodging again as she let out another “Boulder Slice!” He leapt and spun and dodged all around the clearing, not wanting to attack her unless he had to (though it was looking more and more likely that he would) when he tripped over a stone that had been hidden in shadow.

 

“Damn it, I can't take this anymore! It's too dark!” He stood and moved away from Moiraemon's most recent attack, and brought his fists together in front of him, little flames springing to life above his wrist-guards.

 

“Pyro Darts!” The small bits of flame flashed out to different areas around the clearing they'd been battling in, catching hold of the few burnable things and setting them ablaze - it illuminated the two of them in lurid colors, but it gave Agunimon a much better ability to see.

 

“Okay, let's try this again. Moiraemon, I don't want to hurt you! I just want to help you!” He was getting annoyed and rather worried; the longer she spent battling the deeper she would get into her Digimon self - he knew that, and he knew that he was starting to get slightly tired, too.

 

“You lie!” She shrieked, and then held her hand palm-out at him. “Granite Barrage!” Once more stones were hurtling at him - but there weren't nearly as many this time, nor were they going anywhere close to their previous speed. She was getting just as tired as he was, if not more.

 

“I'm not lying, I promise! You're human, you've got a human heart, and you're from my world, the human world! Remember it; remember that you're trapped in your Digimon form!” He moved away again, leaping up and then landing behind her, bringing his arms forward and trapping her in a lock. “Listen to me: you have to remember who you are, you can't let the guy who trapped you like this win!” She seemed to be relaxing a bit, and he thought that he'd convinced her of the truth. “Don't you remember?”

 

“No,” she said softly. “I do not `remember', and I won't; because you're lying!” She yelled the last word and then trapped his arms, flinging him over her head and into a rock a ways away. He looked at Moiraemon from his upside-down position, expecting to see her readying her blade to finish him off. To his surprise, she was backing off, shaking her head and murmuring, “You lie. You must be lying. It's not true, it's not…”

 

He let himself fall to the ground, lifting his upper body up a ways as soon as he was prone. “I'm not lying, I promise! Moiraemon, we need your help, you have to remember who you are!”

 

“NO!” With that, the Warrior of Earth turned, escaping into the night and running from the truth that she didn't want to admit.

 

With a swirling of Digicode, an exhausted and bruised Takuya sat up the rest of the way, staring off into the night after Moiraemon. “But it is true…”

 

A long moment passed, and then Takuya pulled himself the rest of the way to his feet, heading over to where his fallen backpack lay in a pile away from the main battle zone. He lifted it, pulling it over one shoulder with a wince, and then made his way toward the nearest fire that he'd started, gathering bits and pieces of things to help it burn - the others were already starting to dye out.

 

“Well, since I'm here I might as well try to get some food and then sleep,” he commented to himself, then speared a meat apple on a stick and began to toast it.

 

***

 

Far above the now-sleeping Flame Warrior, a troubled pair of eyes looked down, watching him in confusion. Then they turned to the sky and the three moons, Moiraemon searching her memory frantically for any recollection of being human. But it was so hard, because of that dark wall that blocked anything from before a couple weeks ago off. She couldn't remember anything…

 

`Could it be true…?'

 

-tbc-

 

Nall: Ouch. Looks like Takuya's got a bit more on his hands than he was anticipating, huh? At least he's gotten Moiraemon to start thinking about what he was saying instead of blindly denying it. Maybe he'll have a better chance of convincing her the next time he sees her!

 

[Offstage]

 

Nall: Once again I ask for reviews - things you like, things you hate, even if you only want to comment to tell us that you like chocolate chip cookies. The authoress just wants to know that someone reads her stuff, and she can get pretty pitiful when she wants to…