“I wonder what all this sudden rush is.”

Lonnie held her phone before her as she walked beside Grace and Nicholas, down the winding riverside walk towards the roughshod facility. Their partners wandered beside them, with Dendromon bringing up the rear, her webbed feet flapping against the puddles that were accumulating over the bricks. It was a familiar walk, having travelled it for a good several weeks during her training at the facility. Although the view had become more than a little damaged since her last visit.

Grace pulled out her own phone, reading the text she’d received from Alasdair; the same one that Nicholas and Lonnie had gotten as well. Calling them all to meet him at the remnants of the gate facility. No further information. Only a meeting time.

As they approached the broken gates, Nicholas couldn’t help but whistle, looking all around him. “I always wondered what went on around here. This isn’t half impressive.”

Yethmon sneered. “Ninety percent of it is bust. You’re impressed by anything.”

“Trust me, it was even more impressive when it was in one piece.” Lonnie stepped through the old gateway, looking around tentatively at the new porta-cabin buildings, blocky and white against the rubble on the ground. She stuck her lip out. “There’s no place left to practise...”

“Hey guys.”

The group looked forwards and saw Kai waving at them, with Eloise and Lyra in tow, the latter looking just as mesmerised as Nicholas was. Grace placed a hand on her hip. “So Ali called for you too?”

“We’re as surprised as you are.” Kai scratched the side of his cheek, with Colchimon draped over his shoulders. “He seemed pretty insistent that we all needed to talk.”

“Yeah, he usually just leaves us to it,” Lonnie remarked, and she placed her arms behind her head. “Maybe something the ambassadors need from us again.”

Grace furrowed her brow. “Wouldn’t they call us themselves?”

“I have no idea what they’d do nowadays. I think they’ve been a bit annoyed with us recently.”

Grace sucked her cheeks in, and stole a quick glance at Nicholas, who was still distracted by his surroundings. “Yeah...I can probably see why.”

“I’m only messing, y’know,” puffed Lonnie with a loud sigh. “For all I know it’s just a surprise party for all the hard work we’ve been doing. Probably not a big deal or anything.”

Eloise reached the door of the main gate facility, pushing it open and letting the others in. They spread out inside, looking around the patched up control room. There were already people here; Jack and Perimon, who had gone on ahead; Mark, Inez and their partners, Alasdair and the three engineers, still monitoring the large semi-covered portal behind the newly-repaired polycarbonate. And in the middle of the control room, there stood Aaron, who turned and waved them in, with Velocimon by his side, his arms folded.

“Hey everyone.”

“Aaron?”

Eloise raised her eyebrows as she closed the door behind her, Ladomon unfurling into the air from her perch. “I definitely didn’t expect to see you here.”

“I got the invite as well.” He winked. “You’re late.”

Lyra scratched her cheek slightly sheepishly, while in the other group, both Dendromon and Grace immediately pointed at Lonnie. The girl didn’t pay attention, swinging her phone around in her grip.

“Okay, I...guess this might be a bigger deal than I thought...”

Mark seemed to be echoing her sentiment as he turned on his feet, looking towards Alasdair as he rolled forwards. “That looks like everyone.”

“Not everyone, sadly.” Alasdair let out a breath. “But unfortunately that can’t be helped right now.”

Mark tensed his jaw. “Okay, so...what’s this about? This was all very short notice.”

“It’s important.”

The man rolled forwards, with Salma behind him keeping pace with his wheelchair. Alasdair beckoned the others around a small table. He put on the brakes, before looking up at them, the polycarbonate glowing behind him as the digital gate pulsed weakly within its holdings.

“I...need...to show you all some things...”

He sighed, rubbing behind his neck. “Honestly, since you started working together I’ve been so thankful for the work you’ve done. It’s because of you that we’re in as stable position as we are. I didn’t want to distract you or cause you distress, but...I just...I had to be sure you were strong enough and...”

He felt a nudge on his shoulder, and looked up to see Salma staring into him. Her eyes were as stern as usual, although he couldn’t help but see a little softness behind them. A little sympathy.

“Enough’s enough, Ali. You’ve brought them here. Follow it through.”

“Um...excuse me...”

The two looked up to see Inez holding up a palm, her other hand bunched against her chest. “Is this...to do with Owen? What happened to him?” She swallowed. “You knew all about that...right? His father, his mother...Knuckmon...”

Alasdair closed his eyes, the group silent in front of him. Then he looked up.

“Yes, I did.”

He scanned the group, taking in their expressions. “I know about nearly all of you. Those of you who went to the digital world before will remember I tried to take care of the situation and the people involved. The digital world isn’t going anywhere, and people from both worlds are getting caught in the wrong places. So I’m trying to lessen the damage, and to do that, I need to know what’s going on.”

He shuffled, looking almost nervous. The light from the gate intensified just a little behind him, bathing him in a red halo.

“There are a few of us doing that, scattered over the world.” He nodded at Mark. “Your brother’s also helping in that regard.”

Mark tensed, but said nothing. Jack held one arm. “We know that. Why are you talking to us now?”

“Because there are some things that I’ve been keeping quiet about. Things you deserve to know.” He scanned the front row; Grace, Lonnie, Jack, Inez and Mark in turn. “You five and Owen especially.”

He took a breath, and continued, “It’s not just you I look after. It was originally just a few of you, but then the emergences started getting more common, due to...well...”

Velocimon clicked his claws, looking up. “Due to the war?”

Alasdair nodded his head, and reached behind him, pulling a briefcase onto his lap and clicking open the clasps.

“You six who were trapped over there wouldn’t have known. But there were more effects here than you could see. Cataclysms in our world, technology being affected, and more than anything, the arrival of those from your world.” He held out some photos, showing blurry presences from cameras worldwide.

“Some soldiers. Some refugees. Many just trying to survive, although some were still looking for opportunity and power.” He lowered the photos, and nodded at Inez. “That’s how I learned about what had happened to you back in Spain. Although...your aunt was the one who pushed for your safety after the fact.”

Inez bit her lip, and looked over her shoulder at Perez, but the scientist was turned the other way, shoulders hunched, avoiding the conversation.

Aaron scratched beneath his chin. “So...a lot of the issues here are due to the war, but that’s finished now. The digital world’s new again. Did our time over there make the emergences get worse?”

Salma placed a palm on the table. “A little? The fact that you made a permanent gate meant that this area was weakened between the two worlds-”

There was an indignant squawk, and Perimon hopped up onto his partner’s shoulder, scowling. “Oh, so it’s our fault? Pardon us for not being more careful while saving thedamn world.”

Salma shot him a venomous look, silencing him in an instant. The woman cleared her throat. “The problem is that it should have all been a localised effect. Sealed in place, with emergences controlled. And they hasn’t been. For the past couple of years the disturbances have been spreading; you’ve seen the effects of that already.”

Kai held a hand to his mouth. “But...if it’s spreading, then that means...”

Alasdair nodded grimly.

“Something’s wrong with the digital world. Really, seriously wrong.”

He looked behind him, and the group followed his gaze, staring at the swirling portal behind the barrier, the energy obscuring what lay beyond.

“...you’re kidding...”

Grace looked down at Jack, who had his fists clenched, his eyes wide and vulnerable.

“...we’d saved it...”

Eloise took in a breath, and glared at Alasdair. “So there was more trouble in the digital world? Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Because you’d already done enough. And I didn’t want to hurt you.”

“We could have stopped it-”

“Do you think for a second I was going to send any of you back inside just like that?”

Alasdair’s voice took on a hardened tone, and the young woman went quiet. Kai reached out, clutching her hand in his, as the old man continued. “Enough of you had already been damaged. I had no right to pull you back in.” He looked aside. “Besides, we...tried that before.”

“What?”

“A few years ago. To be honest, our hand was forced. Another issue with the digital world, causing havoc in ours. The children volunteered to go and fix it.”

Aaron swallowed. “Are...they...”

“They succeeded. But it was far from the smoothest operation. I wasn’t there, I’m afraid; I was keeping an eye on things over here.” He leant forwards, clasping his hands. “You are right. If we’re going to save the digital world again we need to send people inside. But after the past few times, we needed...I...needed to be sure whoever it was would be okay. That they were strong enough to fix it and come back alive.”

Another hand went up. Alasdair winced as he saw Lonnie step forwards, looking around her. “I don’t understand. Where...where do the rest of us fit into this? Why would the digital world choose us?”

“It didn’t.”

Alasdair sat up, the guilt clear as day on his eyes.

“The digital world didn’t choose you. I did.”

The silence echoed around the control room, revealing only the faint whirring of server fans. Alasdair could feel his muscles tensing, and looked down, not wanting to meet the gaze of the young adults before him.

“What...”

Mark stepped forwards, his eyes wide and his brow darkened. He stood at the front of the group, his eyes boring into Alasdair’s forehead.

“What...did you say...?”

The man straightened up again. “I was going to tell you eventually. Honestly I was. But at the time, I...just thought that it would be better if you found each other on your own. The Digital World has its ways to offer the power to save. It’s difficult to replicate.”

Mark tried to speak, but his words wouldn’t come out, caught and swirling around in his mind. Lonnie held her wrist. “I don’t understand...how did you pick us?”

“I told you I had information on all of you, right?”

“No, I...I know that...I don’t like it but I get it, but I don’t get...” Lonnie looked up. “We’re tamers. We have partners. We have...we have...” She fumbled in her pocket, before thrusting out her D-SEND. “I got this from Dendromon. She gave it to me. She was looking for me. How...how did you manage to make all that happen?”

Alasdair smiled sadly. He rolled forwards, beckoning the girl to give him her device. She tentatively handed it over, and he spun it in his hands, feeling the contours.

“Trial and error, mainly.” He looked up. “A digivice is forged by Yggdrasil’s hand; it is a covenant between both worlds, suited for the purpose that it’s needed for. It chooses a Digimon host, and they are linked to a human partner. Each group of tamers has a different role, so each device is different.” He looked over at Lyra, who was struggling to take in all the information. “You can attest to that, right?”

The girl started, and fumbled with the triangle in her own hands. “I don’t know exactly what you just said, but...is that why mine’s cooler than all of yours?”

“If you like.” Alasdair fumbled with the papers beside him, pulling up a blueprint. “We can’t make them directly, but during the last excursion we figured out how to...well...nudge the digital core slightly. Dominic and Perez were there at the time and they’ve been helping to monitor it. Yggdrasil makes the final decision, but we can give it information and encouragement. We can provide candidates from both worlds.”

“We managed to make the first D-SEND, but it didn’t quite work. It was never linked to this world, and it was just lost in the cataclysm. I thought it was gone for good in the Interface, but...well...clearly it made its way to the right hands.”

The man pulled the paper down, his eyes falling upon Nicholas and Yethmon. The boy started, and pulled the device from his pocket. “Wait... this one?”

“Your partner must have acquired it on his way through. And as soon as you took responsibility for him, it latched onto you as its user.”

Yethmon looked disparately up at Nicholas. “So all that stuff you were giving me about that this was part of some great plan was all bollocks?”

Nicholas placed a finger on his lips. “I wouldn’t say that. Do you believe in destiny?”

“Screw you.”

Alasdair placed Lonnie’s device in his lap. “I had to try several things. As I said; I had no true control over how they were made; it’s all down to the will of Yggdrasil. All I could do was guide them. After the first attempt went awry I had to use the original D-Nexus as a base, to make sure I could link it properly.”

Grace and Jack looked at one another, and held up their own devices. “A year ago...when these changed...that was you too?”

The old man nodded. “You were still fighting even then. You four have strong wills, and stronger bonds. Once I got the blueprint to work for you, I could then start finding new people.” He scratched beneath his chin. “It wasn’t easy. Most times failed. The partners didn’t make it through, the tamers ran away, the link just...didn’t happen for whatever reason, and the devices were lost. There was no real pattern.”

“There isn’t one where the Digital World is concerned,” interjected Salma, running her hands over the pages next to her. “Although the bond of partners allows for growth on both sides, and we tried to focus on that. Contact with the digital world. Prior experience. Natural affinity.” She swallowed, not meeting the eyes in front of her. “Insecurity. And trauma.”

Something snapped behind the group, and they turned, watching the door close as Perez rushed from the room. Dominic stood up, casting a nervous eye back and forth, before running out the door after her. Lonnie looked down at Inez, who had her hand closed tightly against her chest. She could see tears in the girl’s eyes. And she wasn’t the only one.

Lonnie looked forth, her mouth twisting up involuntarily. “You...used us? For this?” She shook her head. “What could be so important that you could...just...use us-“

“I don’t get it!”

Mark’s voice rang out in the control room as he held his device up. “What the hell are you playing at? You chose us? You were stuck here with us; how could you even start? What about the Digimon? Did you choose them as well? Is everyone here just one of your puppets?”

He stepped forwards, but Jack reached out, grabbing his shoulder. “Mark, please don’t-“

“You’re still standing up for him? After...after this?”

Jack stepped back. “I didn’t say-“

Mark wasn’t listening; he grabbed the sides of his head, his teeth grinding against one another. “Do you see now? What happens when you think you know someone?

Alasdair gripped the edge of his chair as Mark turned around, holding his jaw tightly. “I don’t even get it; how could you get any contact on the other side to co-ordinate all this?”

“I...had help.”

“Help?” Mark whirled round, holding out a finger. “My brother, is it? It has to be; it would be. He wouldn’t care about any of us; he wouldn’t even care about me.” He glared into Alasdair’s face. “Did he tell you everything about me? Did he...did he control everything to do with me?”

“It w-wasn’t just him.”

Mark’s eyes widened, stopping mid-sentence. The group split apart, as the young man slowly pulled his arm in, turning on his feet. He looked down, staring at Chromon‘s trembling body.

“It was m...m-m...i-i-it was me. I knew ab-b-bout this as well.”

The dinosaur looked up, his eyes glancing behind him. He could feel the eyes of the other Digimon burning into him, some more than others. In particular Velocimon, his stare a deep, intense blue. Chromon gave a small laugh.

“I’m s-s-sorry I lied to you all. Again.”

He walked forwards, turning slowly as his tail dragged along the ground. Dendromon held her hands tightly. “You found us?”

“The h-humans aren’t the only ones with stories, or affinities.” He sniffed. “Alasdair n-needed somebody on the other side. Somebody who knew the d-digital world. Again, I could only guide. But it was better than n-nothing.”

He smiled, but the gesture did nothing to hide the pain behind his expression. “Besides...it’s something I’m g-good at...”

“And so you played them all again.”

Up above, on Kai’s shoulders, Colchimon rolled his neck, his crest bristling. “How does it feel? To keep using us like this?”

“I only d-did it on one condition.” Chromon looked up, his brow firm. “I w-wasn’t going to stand behind the curtain this time. I made it c-clear to Alasdair. If I find the group to save the world again, then this time I w-will be standing on the front lines. With them.” He clicked his beak. “If I c-condemned you all, then I condemned myself with you.”

Aaron sighed, one hand in his pocket. “So then...once the digital world got worse and you needed to get the group together in a hurry, Alasdair found your own partner.”

Chromon nodded, looking up at Mark with his deep magenta eyes. The young man hadn’t spoken, standing stock still, looking at the floor.

“You, Mark. I...I chose to fight with you.”

Mark turned in an instant, rushing out of the door and slamming it behind him before anybody could stop him. With a juddering breath, Chromon ran forwards his feet clattering against the carpeted floor. Lonnie turned on her heels.

“Chromon, wait-“

“Let him go.”

Alasdair wheeled himself forwards as Lonnie turned back towards him. “They’re going to need this time to themselves.”

He leant out, passing her D-SEND back to her. She hesitated, holding her hand back for a moment, before reluctantly taking it. Her eyes met Alasdair’s, and he faltered, not wanting to meet her face. He rolled back, looking at everyone in turn.

“I can only apologise. I can honestly say that you were all chosen by the digital world to save it. It’s just that I’m the one who made the recommendation.”

“But...why?”

Ladomon gently nudged Eloise’s head as the young woman stepped forwards, biting her lip to stop herself from yelling. “Why did you do all of this, Ali? What...what’s so damn important in the digital world that you did all this?”

“You deserve to know that as well. That’s why I brought you all here. To show you.”

The man wheeled sideways, looking behind him at the swirling gate beyond the clear plastic, as it reflected in his eyes.

“If you’re going to go back inside and save it, then...then you need to see the true extent of the damage for yourselves.”

The rain had gotten heavier, sliding off Chromon’s armour as he rushed through the grounds, kicking up gravel either side of him. He ignored the cold, powering forwards as fast as he could, running for the entrance to the facility where his partner was still walking.

“Mark, w-w-wait! Please!”

The boy stopped, standing utterly still as the rain fell down his shoulders. Chromon caught up to him, out of breath as he tried to speak.

“I should have told you sooner! We all should have. I’m sorry.” The dinosaur sniffed. “This d-doesn’t change anything between us, though. You’re my partner, no matter what...” He bowed his head, ignoring the cold and the wet as he kept his eyes closed. “Please...I’m s-sorry...”

He stayed completely still, waiting for a response – any response – from the young man in front of him. Mark looked up staring at the clouds.

“I thought...just for once in my life, I thought I’d made something of myself...”

The young man’s voice was dull, and drained. Chromon clamped his beak together, trying to stop himself from crying, as Mark carried on.

“I thought...maybe...I was finally able to stand up on my own. That my life hadn’t been a complete waste up until now. I thought I’d maybe earned this. That I’d earned you.”

He turned around, the rain falling down his cheeks as he looked down at the dinosaur.

“All of this was just a...a fabrication. All pretend. I hadn’t done a thing; all this was just convenience. Some way for you to pretend to atone.” He gritted his teeth. “I knew my brother didn’t care, and I was bracing myself for Alasdair, but you...the one friend I had that I could completely rely on was just another lie-“

“No! It’s not true!”

Chromon looked up, the tears streaming from his face as he stared into his partner’s stony gaze. “I wanted to be with you, and to fight with you. P-p-please believe me, Mark, the Digital World doesn’t make mistakes. We are...p-partners. We were always m-meant to be; nothing will change that, I swear-“

“Did Alasdair tell you to say that?”

The dinosaur faltered, choking on his words as Mark looked down at him. The boy bowed his head.

“Did my brother tell you to make me happy?”

“Mark...I-I-I’m so...sorry...so sorry...please don’t go, not like this...”

His voice cracked, and was swallowed up by the hardening rain. Mark just stared downwards, water trailing down his cheeks. For a moment his face cracked, his breath shortening. Then he turned, walking towards the ruined gates, only glancing back with a single venomous eye.

“You’re dead to me.”

Chromon stumbled, falling to one knee as he watched the young man walking away. He tried to call out, but the words were all catching in his mouth. Unable to say a thing, all he could do was look through tear-stained eyes. Watching as Mark turned at the end of the track.

And then he was gone.

“You want to send us to the Digital World?”

Alasdair shook his head at Grace, who had posed the question. “There will be a time when you’re going to need to go back there and fix the damage.” He wheeled around. “But what I’m not going to do is send you in unprepared. If you’re going to go, you’re going to know exactly what you’re up against.”

The group shuffled awkwardly, with Inez raising a tentative palm. “Pardon me, but...how are we going to see exactly? It’s all locked behind the gate, isn’t it?” She paled. “You don’t mean...we need to go through, do you?”

“Not all the way. There’s a gap between our world and the Digital World which we call the Interface. When the portals appear they pierce through this layer and form a link between the two worlds, almost like a reference point. And because the links pierce through you can see an overview of the world from within the Interface.”

Alasdair looked over at Aaron, who rolled his head from side to side. “Yeah, I can attest to that. Though it’s not a fun place to be.” He raised an eyebrow. “Have you actually done this before?”

Salma sat back on the table. “We’ve had this open for over four years now. How do you think we explored it before?” She let out a sigh. “Kent was willing to take more than a few trips.”

“Was he now...” Aaron folded his arms. “Oh who am I kidding; of course he did. The guy never found a life-threatening investigation he wasn’t willing to tackle.”

“It would just be a short dive.” Salma nodded at a reinforced column next to the gate. “If you went, you would be tethered here. And that’s only if you’re willing to go.” She placed her hands in her pockets. “We won’t force you.”

The group looked amongst themselves, none of them really willing to speak up first. Alasdair turned back, tidying the papers on his desk, when all of a sudden Lonnie stepped forwards. “I’ll go-”

“There’s no need to rush. It’ll take about an hour to set everything up anyway. Please decide amongst yourselves.” He looked up. “I’ll warn you now though; what you find in there may not be pleasant.”

Salma stepped forwards, pulling out her phone. “If you’re definitely coming, I need to get you measured for protection kit.”

Lonnie followed her, with Jack and Inez bringing up the rear. The others dispersed, but Alasdair rolled forwards, holding out a hand.

“Lyra?”

The young woman held back as Alasdair approached her, an apologetic look on his face.

“I’m sorry. We’ll need to calibrate the gate to each person through their digivices. We’re familiar with the D-SENDs and they’re based off the original D-Nexus’s, but...” He looked down, seeing the golden triangle hung loosely in her fingers. “I’m afraid I don’t know exactly how your digivice works-“

“Let me guess; you’re telling me I can’t join the party?”

Alasdair bit his lip. “I think it would be quite a risk.”

Lyra tapped her foot, looking back towards the main control room door. Alasdair continued, “I’m sorry. You can still stay here and observe if you want.”

The girl gave a short smile. “Nah, that’s fine. I know when I’m not needed.”

“I don’t mean it like that-“

“I’m kidding. Although to be perfectly honest it seems to me like you don’t ‘mean’ to do a lot of things you do to people.”

Alasdair gave a hard expression, but he didn’t comment. The girl slung the device back in her pocket, and shrugged her violin case up her shoulder. “I’m not too bothered about seeing it anyway. Let the others know I’m heading out.”

She wandered away towards the exit, with her partner watching after her, tapping his feet nervously.

“Lyra, are...are you-"

“Come on, Tsurumon. If we’re not gosh darn well wanted then I guess we’ll just have to go and force our company into somebody else. They might need it, after all.”

Tsurumon was about to comment, but he picked up the deliberately dramatic tone, and noted the wink that she gave him over her shoulder. The crane nodded, and hopped along after her.

“Sounds like a plan.”

Alasdair watched the two walk away, with Lyra giving a vague wave over her shoulder, before she disappeared, the door swinging behind her. The man held the bridge of his nose.

“Good one Ali. Piss one off, piss everybody off. Well played.”

Inez held her breath, before reaching out and knocking against the doorframe.

“...Auntie Bella?”

There was no reply. Inez could see her aunt’s figure hunched over in the chair, clutching her forehead with one hand.

With a rolling sound, Dominic pushed himself back smiling weakly at the girl. He leant aside, nudging his co-worker.

“I think she’s talking to you.”

“I don’t deserve to be talked to.”

Dominic stuck his lips out. “Well...darn.” He scratched behind his neck. “I mean, I can try and fill in but you know I suck at the small talk. You keep telling me as much. All I do is end up accidentally telling people the multitude of ways in which they could possibly get killed or deleted or maimed or-“

“You’re doing this deliberately now, aren’t you.”

The man winked at Inez, before rolling back to his hot desk, poking at the balancing toy beside him. Inez waited patiently, tiptoeing forwards as her aunt unfurled herself, leaning against the desk. She pushed up her glasses, and looked over at her niece, her full sixty years showing plainly on her face.

Inez stood awkwardly in front of her, fidgeting with her hands, and then pulling them down out of sight.

“So...I guess...you knew all of this as well...”

Perez swallowed, and nodded, very slightly. “You have every right to be furious at me.” She leant sideways. “I didn’t want any of this to happen.”

“Did you...help choose me?”

“I didn’t want to get you involved at all. But Alasdair and I knew your past, and we decided...well...if we were forming a new team, then disregarding you just because you’re family was unfair. And you’d had experience.”

She leant forwards, her glasses slipping down her nose. “Still, I was...hoping so much that it would just be another failed connection. I didn’t want you to be hurt again. But when we tried it...” She looked up, her eyes meeting those of the seahorse as he sat on Inez’s shoulder. “Syngnamon came through straight away. Your bond was there, and it was stronger than ever. We couldn’t go back on it then.”

Inez bit at her cheek, and reached up, gently brushing underneath Syngnamon’s mane. Dominic rolled back, gently placing a hand on his colleague’s shoulder.

“You did the right thing-“

“The right thing?” Perez snapped, pulling herself away and clenching her fist. “I’ve allowed too many children to suffer because of this job. Nothing about this is right. It never has been.” She buried her face in her palms. “Even my own family...have to suffer because of this. This is all shit. I’m utter scum.”

Inez walked around the barrier, running her fingers over the computer desk.

“It’s...kind of true that I didn’t ask for this. I’d be lying if I said I wanted it. And it has caused me more pain than I ever imagined.” The girl looked up, a brightness in her eyes. “But if I hadn’t met Syngnamon then right now I’d still be suffering from the wounds that Anglermon gave me. I’d never even have started to heal in the first place.”

Perez looked up, her face nearly torn with worry and regret, as she looked into her niece’s eyes. The girl shuffled.

“I can’t speak for anyone else. But...for me...this has been a gift. I...I love being a tamer. Even more now than ever.”

She leant forwards, embracing her aunt in a wide hug. Isabella blinked for a few moments, before reciprocating the gesture, holding Inez tightly.

“I am so proud of you, cachetes.”

Inez squeezed the woman tightly, burying her face in her shoulder. “Thank you for always thinking of me.”

“Aww...”

The two pulled apart, and caught sight of Dominic, resting his head on his hand and looking dreamily between them. “That is so sweet.”

Perez flushed a bright red, and immediately went back to straightening papers, while Inez just giggled in a shy manner. “Oh, and thank you as well, of course, Mr Dominic.”

Dominic raised his eyebrows as Inez walked away again, giving a little wave. “I need to get ready. I’ll see you in a bit.”

Dominic watched her leave as his partner gently steamed next to him, and he scratched at his small beard.

“’Mr’ Dominic, huh? That’s a new one.”

Perez leant back. “You’re telling me. I didn’t think you’d graduated from ‘scrub’ yet.”

“Hey, I’ve worked very hard for that title.” Dominic took a swig of coffee, before returning to his screen. “Come on; we need to get ready for them as well. Don’t want to leave any important safety nets out.”

“...aaaand that’s the end of my warm fuzzies for the day. Thanks a bunch.”

“Hey, it’s what I do best.”

“Damn scrub.”

“So are you two going?”

Kai looked up as Aaron sat down beside him, letting out a long breath. He looked between Kai and Eloise. “You two weren’t involved in any of this, you know.”

“We said we were gonna look after the new guys, Aaron.” Kai rested a palm on his knee, looking ahead. “Even if we weren’t part of Alasdair’s grand plan, that just makes it more important than ever that we’re there. They need at least some responsible adults looking after them.” He bit the side of his cheek. “Besides...I feel like I need to see it...”

He felt something slide from his shoulders, as Colchimon hovered upwards, twisting around Ladomon above him. Eloise remained crouched over, tapping her fingers against her knee.

“All those battles, and yet...here we are again.”

Aaron sighed. “You know as well as I do that things change.”

Eloise scowled, before looking hard in his direction. “I hope you’re not thinking of going.”

“Nope.” Velocimon clicked his teeth behind Aaron, and shook a finger. “We’ve discussed this. He’s being sensible for once.”

Aaron smirked. “The general’s right. Given how much the Digital World and the Interface have already done to me I think it would be unwise to push it.”

Eloise gritted her teeth, and made to speak again, but the young man stopped her. “Besides...it’s like you said. We need somebody to keep an eye on the new kids. And to keep an eye on Alasdair.” He nodded. “We’ll keep watching over you while you’re inside. Don’t worry.”

Kai gave a humourless side-smile, and looked up, his gaze distant behind his glasses.

“It’s too late not to worry, unfortunately.”

Nicholas placed a hand on the clear plastic, watching the mysterious gateway swirling around, just beyond his reach. He whistled, his eyes moving round and round in time with the energy.

“It’s not every day you’re able to gaze into another world.”

“Please don’t look directly into it.”

Nicholas turned round to see Salma eyeing him, holding a series of masks which Jack was currently trying on.

“Sorry. Is it dangerous?”

“It’s not without risk. But I’d rather you didn’t in any case. Not until I’ve got you the right goggles and things.”

Jack grinned beside her, tapping the goggles currently over his eyes. “This is way more advanced than what we got last time.”

Grace walked up beside Nicholas, already wearing a metallic padded jacket and holding her own goggles in her hands. She peered through the lenses, a look of worry on her face. “What exactly are you trying to keep us safe from? You do know that we were able to...like...breathe and see and everything in there last time, right?”

“It’s not so much keeping you safe as it is keeping you in place. The Digital World works by different physical rules than this one. The reason you could breathe and see and everything is that the Interface converted your bodies into a compatible format.”

Nicholas sat down on a chair, looking fascinated. “So...we mutate?”

“It’s just converting the base building blocks.” Salma looked up at Grace. “You must be somewhat aware of this from your own experience?”

The girl went slightly pale, but she nodded. “It’s just small things that are different. We don’t need to eat or drink, and we heal faster. And if we ask really nicely we can turn into Digimon ourselves.”

“What?”

Nicholas’s eyes widened even more, but the girl placed a finger on his lips before he could comment further. “It. Hurts. Or not hurts exactly, but it tingles really badly.

Jack pulled his own eyewear up, grinning excitedly. “But it does still hurt when you get punched through a wall by a blue mushroom zombie.”

“I’m going to stop you before you give your sister a coronary...” Salma sighed, and returned to what she was saying. “The main thing is that your body changes. Which is why we’re protecting you; this is all to keep you tethered to our world and stop the Interface from converting you too far. If it does then there’s a chance you might be pulled forwards to the wrong world.”

Now even Nicholas was beginning to grimace a little, and looked down at the goggles in his hands. Salma placed the lid on the equipment box. “All this material only permeates one way. You’ll be able to see, to breathe, and to hear each other. But very little from the Interface is going to get in.”

Jack stood up, and Perimon hopped forwards on the table beside him. “Hey, what about us? Where’s our fancy protective gear?”

“You’re not going.”

“WHAT?”

Now it was the bird’s turn to yell indignantly.

“Why?”

“Same reason. Even more so actually; you’re not from this world. If something goes wrong then there’s a very good chance you will get sucked into the other world, and then we will be in trouble.”

The bird spluttered, looking helplessly at Jack. “But...but...you can’t...”

“Besides, if you stay here then that’s another tether.” Salma raised a hand, counting off on her fingers. “Physical, sensory, and you’ll be the emotional one. They’re definitely going to make it back if there’s somebody here to make it back for.”

The bird looked highly distressed, but Jack reached out, placing a gloved hand on Perimon’s shoulder. “She has a point. I think. I managed to follow about half of that.”

Perimon blew a raspberry. “How come your human adults end up always ruining any semblance of fun?”

“’Cause they care, my dude.” Jack sighed, and looked over his shoulder at Alasdair. “Even if they’re weird about it at times.”

Perimon wasn’t the only one distressed about the news, as Vulpimon wandered up to her partner, whining at her feet. Grace bent down, rubbing the fox on the chin. “It’ll be fine. We’ll only be a short time.”

“I don’t like being away from you, Grace.” Vulpimon looked away, her golden eyes seeming dull. “You know that.”

She nuzzled forwards, and Grace held her in return, the contact doing little to sate the twisting feeling in her gut. She looked up, and saw Nicholas, resting on the side of the table as Yethmon summarily and affectionately completely ignored him. The girl nodded.

“Still glad you got involved?”

Nicholas raised an eyebrow, before shrugging. “I’m glad I know where you are now, at least. And I guess it’s a hobby.”

The girl puffed her cheeks out. “I have to admit; this morning I wasn’t expecting the situation to go from nought to sixty like this.” She bit her lip, and looked away, her cheeks going slightly pink. “And...actually...I’m happy you’re here...”

Nicholas blinked. Then he crouched down, holding one arm around the girl’s shoulder and shaking her reassuringly.

“I’ll be here as long as you need me, alright?”

“...thanks...”

The two held each other, gently stroking Vulpimon between them in silence.

Well, silence save for the subdued ‘yeuch’ from Yethmon. But the two were enjoying the moment too much to be bothered.

Alasdair clenched his fists as he heard the footsteps behind him, before they stopped. He slowly wheeled himself around, coming face to face with Lonnie, all suited up in her new gear; jacket and coveralls, gloves, goggles and mask. She pulled the face-wear off, and gave a brief twirl. “How do I look, Uncle Ali?”

The man smiled, running his hand beneath his nose. “It never fails to look slightly ridiculous.”

“So, perfect for me then.”

The two chuckled, as Dendromon waddled up beside her partner, arms folded and trying her hardest to look aloof. She sniffed as the laughter faded, and the awkward silence began to take hold. Lonnie scratched behind her head.

“So...uh...”

“Look, Lonnie, I-“

The two coughed, tripping over each other’s words. Lonnie held out a hand, but Alasdair shook his head.

“I’ve been talking enough. You first.”

The girl swallowed, and looked down at Dendromon, seeming uncharacteristically nervous.

“Why me, Uncle Ali?”

Alasdair gripped the arm of his chair even more, struggling to meet the young girl’s eyes. She rubbed her arm.

“You chose everybody, right? Why did you choose me? I haven’t had any contact with the digital world; what makes...what makes me so special?”

She trailed away, seeing the pain on Alasdair’s face. He drew in a breath through his teeth. “I was so...so desperate not to get you involved, you have to believe me-“

“Oh, I don’t mean it like that!”

Lonnie waved both palms in front of her, shaking her head. “I don’t care about that, really I don’t. This has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I don’t feel like you’ve betrayed me or anything.”

Dendromon raised an eyebrow. “You serious?”

“Well...not really. I mean not at all, I mean...I’m a bit narked, I guess, that you didn’t tell me or tell anyone else, but actually it’s all done now and I...I...” The girl slapped her cheeks, and cleared her throat. “I’m not going anywhere. I believe in you, and I want to save these worlds no matter what. I just...want to know why me.”

Alasdair leant back, looking at the girl’s bright eyes, and the flame of red hair poking out from behind her goggles. He smiled, almost wistfully.

“You know...you remind me so much of her every day. Of Yvonne.”

Lonnie held a hand to her chest. “Of...Granny?”

The man nodded. “Always smiling. Always running at full speed. Never backing down, and never stopping doing the right thing. A hero through and through.” He lowered his head. “How could you not be the best tamer I could think of?”

There was a pause. Lonnie rocked back and forth, blowing one cheek out. “She did warn me not to get into trouble, y’know.”

“Because she knew how like her you were.” Alasdair leant forwards. “And I can tell you now that she couldn’t have been prouder.”

“Aww...stop...”

Lonnie seemed to shrink down even more, as Alasdair rolled sideways, his expression turning slightly more distant. “It was...everything. You’ve inherited the best of her. You’ve fought through the most horrifying situations and you’ve still come through as the strongest and most selfless person I know. You were always going to be a strong tamer.”

He stopped, and looked down at Dendromon. “And even more so when Chromon found you.”

The salamander blinked, looked behind her, then pointed at her own chest. “Me? I’m just a backwater nobody.”

“Perhaps you aren’t aware. Digital lives are still an enigma to me.” Alasdair sighed, and turned to look at both partners. “You two...you share more history than you know-“

“Alasdair.”

The group turned round to see Salma stood at the edge of the ramp, gesturing downwards. “We’re ready. Just need to do final checks.”

Another figure trotted up beside her, and Alasdair nodded solemnly. Chromon shuffled, looking down at the floor.

“How did it go?”

“Mark’s...not g-gonna be going with them.”

Alasdair looked over his shoulder, looking more tired than ever. “I had a feeling he wouldn’t be.”

The dinosaur looked up. “I can still g-g-go. I can guide them. It’s only right.”

Dendromon raised an eyebrow. “I thought that was a bad idea?”

“I’m f-familiar with the Interface from some of my old friends. I know how it works.” The dinosaur swung his tail. “B-b-besides...if Mark’s still here, that’s all the r-reason for me to come back, isn’t it?” He sniffed. “H-however he feels, I still care about him more than anything. That won’t change.”

He gave a smile, but it did little to mask the sadness in his gaze. Dendromon just stared back at him, her eyes meeting his, as if trying to crack the dinosaur’s mind open. Lonnie sighed next to her.

“We’re coming.”

Lonnie walked over to Alasdair, helping him down the ramp as Dendromon walked beside her. He stopped, looking over his shoulder.

“Lonnie...it’s wrong of me to ask you anymore. But I need you to be stronger than ever now.” He gripped his arms. “I need you to make things right.”

Lonnie nodded, her jaw firm as she carried on down the ramp.

“We can all be stronger, Uncle Ali. But you just need to trust us.”

It was a tense several minutes as the group of seven stood together, having various items clipped all around them by a very diligent Salma. Then, one by one, she checked their goggles, their masks and their radios, and one by one led them into the chamber of the digital gate. It was cold inside, and the walls were showing remarkably little damage; a testament to the level of engineering that had gone into making it. Even after being nearly destroyed from both inside and out, the gate was as sealed as it had ever been. Although the whirring of the fans in the vast structure in front of them was easily taking up their minds more than the impressive surroundings.

Inez held her wrist tightly, shuffling on her feet. Grace noticed, turning towards her.

“Are you scared?”

“A little.”

“It’s going to be fine. They’re watching us.”

She reached out, holding the other girl’s hand supportively. Eloise and Kai did the same, not sure what to say to one another. Stuck between the two, Nicholas looked around, the goggles blocking out his peripheral vision. She glanced back outside the polycarbonate, and nodded. “ Oh hey, look who’s come back to join us.”

Jack and Grace followed his look, as they watched Chromon shuffle inside the chamber after them, looking incredibly small. Jack held his arm. “ Does anyone else feel a bit sorry for him?”

Nicholas tilted his head. “ Well...considering we’re the ones about to march into his world partially thanks to him...”

Grace nudged the boy, shaking her head. “ Now’s not the time for agitation.”

“I wasn’t agitating. It’s pretty cool, really. I’m just being honest.”

Grace sighed, and looked at the group of partners again. “ Everyone’s being too honest nowadays if you ask me. It’s draining.”

The nerves weren’t just bouncing between the tamers, as from their vantage point the Digimon clustered together, watching the goings-on intently. Perimon shuffled away, hanging out close to Velocimon and scowling at Chromon through the polycarbonate. Alasdair sat beside them, rubbing the side of his cheek.

“This could have gone more smoothly...”

“Nice going, you two,” came Colchimon’s gravelly voice as he drifted sideways. “All according to plan. Really bringing your perfect handpicked team together on this one.”

A little puff of snow struck the wyrm in the face, and he looked down to see Vulpimon lying stroppily on the ground. “Really? Sarcasm? Now of all times?”

Alasdair allowed himself a small smile. “It’s the least I deserve, honestly. I’m grateful.”

Colchimon sent a smug look at the fox, before he was forcibly pulled away by Ladomon, who looked apologetically at the others. Vulpimon rested her muzzle back on her paws, whining a little.

“I don’t like this. You’re taking them away from us.”

“You know we need to stay here,” came Syngnamon’s monotone voice from behind her. “We need to be their reason to come back.”

“I understand.” Vulpimon clenched her front claws. “I just don’t like it. I’m scared that they’ll enter and then we won’t see them again.”

There was no answer. But the fox could still sense the seahorse watching intensely, not taking his eyes away from the gateway.

There came a click from inside, and a few of the lights changed. Salma stood up inside the barrier, and one by one the tamers reached down, holding onto the cables attached to their waists. Ladomon held her breath as she and the other Digimon gathered as close as they could.

“It’s starting.”

Unable to hear their partners, the tamers held themselves nervously as Salma stood between them and the gate.

“Remember now, you’re not going in for long. Keep going straight until you can see the Digital World. And once you’ve seen it, then come straight back. Tug on your cords and we’ll slowly pull you in.” She held up a cable. “Keep your heads about you; direction is erratic in the Interface. Do whatever you can to keep picturing this world. Keep a hold of each other if you can, and keep remembering how this world feels, and who’s waiting for you. Picture what you know, not what you can see or feel.”

She took a breath, her face unbroken, as if she’d given this speech many times before. “The most important thing is to stay together. We can talk to you but we won’t be able to hear you. You’re going to need to communicate with each other.”

Inez raised a hand, before pulling her mask up. “What about Chromon? Can we talk to him?”

The dinosaur looked up, revealing a far less full-on set of equipment strapped around his head and back, which included an earpiece. “I won’t be far away.”

“You’d better not be.” Salma held her hands behind her back. “Don’t rush, but don’t take more time than you need. And the most important thing is that we’re here. Even if something goes wrong, we’re not going to abandon you.”

Kai looked up, his voice muffled through his mask. “That part we’ve managed to figure out for ourselves.”

“I’m glad.”

Salma gave a short bow of her head, before tapping the side of her neck. “Switch your earpieces to blocking mode. We’ll be opening in a couple of minutes.”

The tamers did so, the devices instantly blocking out all external sounds. Lonnie looked over her shoulder, watching Salma close the door behind them, the pneumatic puff now completely silent.

Salma pulled a few keys, and in an instant the lights in the chamber dimmed, changing to an amber hue. Lonnie could only barely see out the glass; at Alasdair moving back and forth between the two control stations, at Salma hovering over switches, and at the group of Digimon staring out at them, with Aaron sat next to them, his hand on his chin. He must have caught her looking, as he raised a hand, giving a small wave.

Lonnie reached out, clutching the first hand she could find, which turned out to be Kai’s. The seven tamers slowly bunched together, watching the lights flicker silently in front of them. The lights went green, and the guard stops slid back, revealing the digital gate in its full glory.

For some, it was a painful memory. For others, a new and alien sight.

But for all of them, the gate instilled a sense of fear and awe; a single pathway through from this world into another one. They could see into the distance; a point of light at the end of a long tunnel. Not as erratic as the residual gates they usually came across. No bursts of energy, or twisting spikes of light. Just a long corridor, gently shifting in front of their eyes like a magic eye picture. Looking part crystalline, part gelatinous, and part ethereal.

The lights dimmed again, and the front of the gate shimmered, the wall of energy peeling away as the lances dug into the portal. The light above the door flicked off.

Chromon nodded. They had their signal.

And they began to walk.

TO BE CONTINUED...