Dreams and Reality
Story By Tigertae
Sora didn't get the chance to clarify her feelings. "SO, DIGI-DESTINED, IT SEEMS YOUR LEADER STILL LIVES." Myotismon boomed, startling everyone awake.
"Digivolving time!" Agumon yelled.
"Agumon digivolve to: Greymon!"
"Gabumon digivolve to: Garurumon!"
"Tentomon digivolve to: Kabuterimon!"
"Biyomon digivolve to: Birdramon!"
"Gomamon digivolve to: Ikkakumon!"
"Palmon digivolve to: Togemon!"
"Grisly Wing!" Myotismon yelled. The stream of bats swooped towards the digimon.
"Needle Spray!"
"Meteor Wing!"
The bats fell, either scorched or stabbed. The others pressed on their attacks.
"Nova Blast!"
"Harpoon Torpedo!"
"Howling Blaster!"
"Electro-Shocker!"
"Boom Bubble! POW!"
"Meteor Wing!"
"Needle Spray!"
Myotismon was apparently still feeling the effects of the last battle, since this time, the attacks had some effect on him. Greymon reared his head back for another Nova Blast.
Tai watched his friends battling. The fire pain in his veins was rapidly increasing. "Sora…I'll always love you. Please don't forget me," His body sank back to the ground.
Greymon shrank back to Agumon, then to Koromon. Sora stared, then it clicked. "Tai! Oh no!" She ran back to where she had left Tai. She frantically searched for a pulse, or breathing, but could find nothing. Nothing. He's gone. Sora thought miserably. And I never told him how I felt.
"TAI!" Sora screamed again, anguished. She broke down sobbing over his lifeless body.
"Tai's dead?" Somehow, it wasn't registering with anyone else.
"GARURUMON DIGIVOLVE TO: WEREGARURUMON!"
"KABUTERIMON DIGIVOLVED TO: MEGAKABUTERIMON!"
"BIRDRAMON DIGIVOLVE TO: GARUDAMON!"
"Mega Claw!
"Horn Blaster!"
"Wing Blade!"
Myotismon retreated from the barrage. "YOUR LEADER DIDN'T HOLD OUT AFTER ALL. ONE DOWN, SIX TO GO!" Myotismon disappeared, laughing.
Izzy looked over at Sora, who was still crying. "I believe it would be wise to let her deal with her grief before disturbing her. Even you, Yokomon."
Only Mimi and Sora were crying. No one else could bring himself to believe that it was true. This was Tai, after all. He was their leader, their friend. He couldn't just die. T.K. picked up Koromon and carried him to the fire. Nobody said anything, but sat staring into the fire until one by one, they fell asleep. Towards dawn, Sora fell asleep too, drained from crying.
"Do you want to bring Tai back?" A voice asked in her dream.
"How can I?" The dream version of Sora answered.
"Simple. Join me. I have the power." The voice materialized into Myotismon.
"No!" Sora shrank back, to afraid to do anything else.
"You claim you love him. Or are you so selfish that you would rather keep him dead, so that you don't have to share?"
"I'm not selfish! Tai wouldn't want me to follow you just so he could live. He would prefer to stay dead, and I'd rather die and join him."
"As you wish. Prepare to join him!" Myotismon bared his fangs and moved forward. Sora stood her ground, thinking If I'm going to die, I'm going to do so fighting. A bright light suddenly flashed, sending Myotismon back. Angemon hovered there.
"The girl is not yours, Myotismon. Leave her be."
"Next time, little one." Myotismon disappeared. Sora looked up at Angemon.
"There is another way to bring Tai back to life, but you must discover it yourself." Angemon faded.
Sora slowly opened her eyes. She found herself lying against Tai's body, her head resting on his bandaged chest. Was that just a dream? Or was it real? Even if it was just a dream, that doesn't mean it wasn't telling me something. Another way,it's possible to bring him back. Sora sat up. Something glimmered in the sand next to her. The object turned out to be her Crest. Humph. The Crest of Love. Lot of good it did. A memory forced itself to the front of Sora's mind.
"I felt something, Sora. It must have been your love shining through." Tai had said. Tai was the only one that felt it. Why didn't I see it then? Her Crest suddenly began to glow. Could it be that her Crest could bring him back? Please, let this work Sora thought as she laid her Crest over Tai's heart. It began to glow even brighter and spread light over Tai's lifeless body. C'mon, c'mon…It's not working…It's not strong enough by itself. Tai's Crest began to glow as well. Tai's Crest of Courage. Yes, he demonstrated courage simply by telling me how he felt. The light from the Crest joined with the light from Sora's Crest. Tai began to stir and finally opened his eyes.
"Sor-ra?" Tai managed feebly.
"Tai! You're alive! It worked!" Sora hugged him. Confused, Tai struggled to sit up. Sora helped him and let him lean against the rock. She picked up her Crest from where it had fallen and slipped it back over her head. "How do you feel?" Sora asked, still unable to believe he was back.
She's acting like I never told her I loved her. I did tell her, didn't I? So hard to remember...not thinking clearly yet...
"Tai?" Sora's plaintive question made him look up.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, I feel okay. A little weak." Really weak...but I don't want her to worry. Tai's vision finally came into focus. She looks like she's been crying for three days straight. Wait a minute...I died, I know I did. Could she have been crying for me? "Um, Sora?"
"Yes?"
"Did I tell you..." I can't go through with it! I have to. I have to know if she has any feelings for me. "That I-I love you?" I can't look at her. Tai dropped his chin to his chest.
"Yes, Tai, you told me. And I never got the chance to respond." Sora said calmly.
Oh no, oh no, oh no! I don't like that...she sounded icy. Tai swallowed a lump in his throat. "Well?" He croaked.
"Tai..." She reached out and touched his shoulder. He looked up. "I love you too." Then, before Tai could react, she leaned towards him and kissed him. Surprised, he was almost too shocked to kiss back. Almost.
Izzy woke first. I'd say it's approximately ten in the morning. He stood and stretched. Hmm, I wonder what that strange glow is? It's coming from where Sora and Tai are! Or rather, Tai's body. Izzy thought sadly. Still, I should investigate, despite the grief of losing a friend. He walked toward where the light had been coming from. Using caution, he advanced until he could see. What? Is that...Tai? Alive? But he died, he must have, otherwise Koromon would be Agumon. I wonder what could have possibly brought him back to the realm of the living? An intriguing puzzle, to be sure. Perhaps I should go offer my congratulations. Izzy nodded to himself at this last thought and moved forward. Neither Tai nor Sora noticed his approach. They were quietly talking about the dream they had had. It wasn't until he was actually standing beside them that they noticed.
"Izzy, um, hi." Sora said, jumping up. Tai attempted to stand, but failed and sat back down. I wonder how long he's been watching us? Did he see us kiss?
Odd, they both seem nervous and jumpy. I don't see what the big deal about having the same dream is, even if it involves kissing. Or is there more to this that I didn't see? Well, first things first. "Tai, you're obviously alive, but how?"
"My Crest started to glow, and then his did. I don't know how, but it brought him back." Sora answered.
Izzy nodded to acknowledge he had heard her. The Crests of Love and Courage. Clearly Tai showed his courage when he shoved Sora out of harm's way, but love? I believe I know to some extent what they are so nervous about. As I recall, Sora did cry quite a bit. She was still sobbing strongly as I nodded off, and I was the last to fall asleep. Perhaps Sora's Crest alone was not strong enough, or else she wasn't confident enough in its power. Anyway, Tai's Crest began to glow in response to hers and the combined power was able to bring him back to life. Interesting. I wonder how I can delicately ask them if I am correct without upsetting either too much?
"How is it that you live, yet your wounds do not seem to have healed?" Izzy asked, masking his true thoughts.
I guess he didn't see us kiss after all, or else he would have asked about it. "I don't know myself, but it doesn't feel like someone's pouring molten lead through my veins anymore." Tai answered.
Molten lead in his veins? He didn't tell me about that. I guess he was trying to protect me. Sora thought.
Izzy nodded. "I see. So my belief that there was poison on the quills was correct. The wounds on their own would not have killed you, but the introduction of the poison when you had already lost so much blood did." Sora didn't seem to know about the effects the poison was having on Tai. Was he too weak to tell her, or trying to prevent her from worrying? It's really none of my business, but I just can't resist a good puzzle.
"Izzy, what are you doing? You said we needed to leave Sora alone to deal with-" Tentomon was interrupted by Yokomon.
"Sora? Are you okay?"
Koromon blinked. "Tai? Is that you?" The small digimon bounced forward into his friend's arms. Tentomon had digivolved because he had eaten, but Koromon and Yokomon were too depressed and worried about their humans to eat or do anything.
"But you-" Tentomon was cut off by a sudden wave of darkness spreading in the sky.
"Most unusual. It's originating from our camp!" Izzy yelled. Sora helped Tai up and they ran to the camp. The darkness was fading.
"Where'd they go?" Yokomon asked.
"What's that?" Sora asked, pointing to an object in the sand.
Izzy picked it up. "It appears to be Matt's harmonica. He never goes anywhere without it."
"There's no trace of them. I wonder what could have happened." Tentomon said nervously. Izzy pulled out his laptop and began typing. "Izzy, is that really going to help?" Tai asked.
"It will allow us to pinpoint their location using the signals from their digivices. Once we have determined their location, it will be possible to formulate a plan if necessary." Izzy replied.
"Oh, okay." Tai sat down on a log. Sora sat next to him and laid her head on his shoulder.
Koromon and Yokomon looked at each other. "They're acting strange."
Tentomon tapped Izzy's shoulder. "Izzy, what are Tai and Sora doing?" Izzy briefly glanced up.
"They are displaying affection for each other." he answered and resumed typing. Izzy accepted this really quickly. Of course, he's a genius, so he probably doesn't even really see it Tai thought. He put his arm around Sora's shoulder and in her sleep she leaned into him a little more. Tai soon drifted off as well.
"Huh? Where am I?" Tai and Sora said at the same time. Surprised, they turned around to face each other.
"Okay, correction. Where are we?" Sora asked.
"I don't know." Tai answered, looking around. Wherever we are, they don't have housekeeping. The walls were dank and the whole place emitted a chill. Tai squinted. He could make out something in the darkness. "Hey Sora, look over there." He said, pointing to the vague object. He pulled out his mini-scope and focused. He could make out the forms of his friends in a cage suspended above a pit of nothingness.
Myotismon's voice suddenly boomed out. "WELL, ISN'T THIS AMUSING? MANY FAILED, BUT I HAVE THE DIGI-DESTINED IN MY POWER! THE LEADER DEAD, THE GENIUS ALONE, AND THE CREST OF LOVE RENDERED USELESS! FACE YOUR LAST, DIGI-DEAD!" The chain supporting the cage snapped and fell into the pit.
Tai and Sora automatically jumped forward. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!" They yelled as their friends vanished. A glimmer appeared in the pit, something that might help.
"AAAAHHHHH!!!!" Tai and Sora woke up screaming. Koromon and Yokomon bounced toward them, worried. Izzy was so startled he dropped his computer. He turned to look at them. Both were pale and shaking, breathing deeply to try and calm down. They look as though they've seen a poltergeist or something equally frightening. Strange, both were asleep, yet they both awoke at the same time, screaming.
"What is it?" he asked.
Sora took a couple more deep breaths. "The others…falling…into an abyss."
Tai looked stunned. "I had the same dream." He said quietly, still shaken.
"Were you in each other's dreams? And were there any signs that there could be someone or something to help us?" Izzy asked. We may have something to work with here. If I'm right. Tai and Sora nodded.
"Prodigious!" Izzy exclaimed, jumping up. Everyone turned and stared at him.
"They're scared to death because they saw the rest of our friends get sucked into a pit of nothingness and this is a good thing?" Tentomon burst out. Once I explain it to them, they'll understand. Identical dreams shared by persons close to each other and remembered in clear detail afterward are signs of extrasensory perception activities. That dream could have been a possible future that we can change, or merely the attuning of their mental abilities. Izzy explained his theory as well as he could.
Tai raised an eyebrow. "So you're saying that Sora and I have ESP powers and that our dream might be the future of our friends?"
"Yes!" Izzy said, still excited.
"And this is supposed to help us how?" Sora asked. Izzy started rambling about linked alpha waves, REM patterns, psychology, brain waves, and other scientific nonsense.
Sora finally got him to stop. "Izzy, plain layman's terms. How does that fact that we had the same dream help us?"
"As I've already stated, this means that your brain patterns are flowing in the exact same manner. This can produce a signal that will contact the person or creature that might help us. The signal will enter the person's next dream and draw them here through a dimensional portal that your mental powers created." Izzy explained much more slowly.
"So whoever can help us will come?"
Izzy nodded.
Sora continued, "So how do we send that signal?"
Izzy frowned. "You may have already sent it, or it may be sent the next time you two have the same dream." No need to worry them. I had always thought that one would know how to use mental capabilities once introduced to that fact that one has them.
In the children's home dimension, a teenage girl lay in her room, asleep. She awoke suddenly. The girl stared blankly into the night, then got up and put on some outdoor clothing. She shook her head slightly, like she couldn't believe what she was going to do. Then she stepped forward and disappeared.
Izzy was bored. The program he had designed had not completed yet, so he was unable to do anything else on the computer. It had been three days since the twin dream incident, and everyone was beginning to wonder if Izzy had been correct. Especially Izzy. A brief flash of light and a small thud attracted Izzy's attention. He found himself looking at a teenage girl.
Victoria Mitchellson looked up. There were three strange creatures looking at her, plus a red-haired boy, a brown haired boy and a female with a blue helmet on. These people look somewhat familiar…oh, yes, my dream. Victoria knelt on her right knee and slightly inclined her head forward. "Digi-destined, you have requested my aid and so here I am." She rose quickly.
Tai stared. Ok, how is she going to help us? She's obviously older than us by a couple of years, but she doesn't even have a digimon. I mean, yeah, she's tall and muscular for a girl, but still, how is this going to help us? Somewhat surprised by her formality, he managed to introduce everyone.
The girl smiled without humor. "My name is Victoria Mitchellson, but my friends call me Silver."
"Pardon my ignorance, but in what manner will you be able to assist us? No offense, but you do not seem overly strong, nor fast, and you do not appear to have a digimon companion." Izzy asked.
From my dream, I know that this opponent I am to face is very strong in the arcane arts, perhaps to the point of being able to probe minds. I will have nothing to fear from that, but the fewer who know my-our-secret until the time comes, the better. I will have to either say I have no clue why I was selected, or make up a story that is believable. Well, this pause before I answer gives me the reason. "I don't know."
She had to think about my question, and the only answer she could come up with was "I don't know." Perhaps she has knowledge from previous dreams that will help. Izzy thought. Izzy's computer started to beep. Izzy went over and checked. "Wonderful. I have the location of the others, but the bad thing is, it's Myotismon's castle. There is a somewhat good side though. We won't have that far to walk."
"Lead the way, Izzy." Tai said, getting up. The others fell in behind. Silver walked along, thinking about her home when she heard Sora gasp. "What is it?"
"I thought I just saw Silver's hand change color."
"Must be an reflection of the light." Silver said. Oh, no. I-we-were thinking about that last fight at home and started to automatically change, didn't we? I can't let that happen again. Huh? That Izzy kid is looking at me strangely. He's obviously very intelligent. I hope he doesn't figure out my secret too soon.
Izzy stared at Silver. She made an excuse for what Sora saw rather quickly, and now she seems to be mentally kicking herself. I wonder what the real reason she was chosen is, and why she didn't tell us.
Several hours later, it began to get dark. Izzy stopped at a small clearing, unable to read his computer's signal. Tai and Sora started to set up camp, while the digimon began to gather firewood and food.
"Great, we have firewood, but no way to light the fire." Tai pointed out. Silver shrugged after a minute. "I got it covered." She pulled a pack of matches from her pocket and lit the firewood. It blazed up quickly, and they proceeded to cook what food they had. Silver caught Izzy staring at her again. She turned away and busied herself preparing her food.
I know that she didn't use those matches to start that fire. No matches could have caught sticks those size on fire that easily. Also, the flame didn't seem to be coming from the match itself. Izzy tried to ponder this out, but was just too tired to do so. He and his friends shortly fell asleep, with the exception of Silver. She stayed up to stand guard, and to think. I may as well go ahead and tell them. That genius is already beginning to distrust me, and I can't protect them if they don't trust me. But can they understand? I barely do and I've been- Her thoughts were cut short by the sound of branches breaking behind her. She turned quickly.
There stood Izzy. "I don't know what the deal is, but you have to tell us. I know you haven't told us the whole truth and I want to know why."
"I…We were thinking about telling you anyway." Silver answered.
"We? Do you have multiple personalities or something?"
"No. I am…it is…we are symbiotes. We are the same, and yet not. Each of us has retained our own individual consciousness, but we share thoughts as well. I don't know why she selected me as her partner, but now I wouldn't have it any other way. Based on images in the human's mind, I formed a weapon out of myself that could be used to fight the forces of evil in her area. My natural form is a blob of silvery metal. What I was before the Joining was a semi-intelligent symbiotic isotope of the element tritanium."
"Tritanium? I have heard of no such element." Izzy commented. When they speak at the same time, they refer to themselves as we. But both are able to speak separately as well, and there is no noticeable difference in vocal patterns when they shift between the individuals. I had to think about it when the shift occurred.
"It does not exist on Earth. It is similar to titanium, which I'm sure you are familiar with. However, tritanium, as the name suggests, is three times as strong and has three times the heat tolerance. It has only half the weight, does not conduct electricity and is not magnetic. There are several advantages to having a symbiote; one, we are never alone; two, my symbiote allows me to breathe any atmosphere; three, while we are together our minds cannot be read; fourth, as a weapon no one else can use it. From my imagination, it has several gadgets that are just too cool, is regenerative, allows me to heal more quickly and any energy attacks used against me are used to provide power to the gadgets."
"May I ask, which mentality is dominant, or more used? Or are you equal at all times?"
"During normal functions, such as school, the human mentality is used for speech. Occasionally, the other must speak, but we are always equal; it is merely speech patterns that fluctuate."
"Why didn't you simply tell us to begin with?" Izzy asked, somewhat hurt by the lack of trust.
"Because in our dream we felt that the enemy we face is extremely powerful, possibly capable of reading minds. While this does not affect us, Myotismon could still have read your mind or Tai's or Sora's or the digimon's and that would have greatly reduced the element of surprise. However, we now feel that it will not matter in the outcome of the battle. We-I-suppose that the others should know about my secret."
"You have resumed speaking with the human mentality. Why?"
"Actually, we find that when dealing with humans, it discomforts them when we refer to our duality. It is also easier for us to maintain the illusion at other times if we continue to use a singular pronoun."
"Interesting. I suggest you allow me to inform the others. I will be able to phrase it in a manner they will be more likely to understand, and less likely to reject."
"Thank you. This will make it much easier on me. It was difficult enough explaining to you. No offense, but the few people I have been forced to tell did not react in an encouraging manner."
I wonder who she had to tell. Actually, for once, I'm more tired than curious. I should probably go back to sleep. "I suppose I should go get some sleep."
"Yes, I believe that would be wise. Good night." Silver turned back to her watch position. This has been interesting. I hope nothing else equally so happens. Silver continued to stand guard for the rest of the night. Fortunately, nothing more than the spotting of some nocturnal digimon on the hunt occurred.
Tentomon buzzed to her in the morning. "We're ready."
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