The Alliance
by NarimonsPartner
Chapter 1: Memories from Lives Before
"So who exactly was that man working for?"Matt Friendship asked.
In the noise of Tai, Kari, and Areil, the other Digidestined had woken up in confusion. But the one thing that cleared that up was a single phrase. A man broke into Destined House.
"He is working for the Alliance,"Areil explained agian, rubbing her bright green eyes,"The Alliance is a group of Shadows, Digimon, and Humans who currently are hunting for the Dark Crests."
"Then why would they send someone to kill us?"Izzy broke in, raking a hand through his hair.
"Because, if you are gone, their is no one to stopp it."calm laced her voice.
"How can you be calm at a time like this?!"Tai demanded of her.
Tai, for unknown reason to him, felt irritation towards the Crest Protector. Not only had she claimed right to protecting THEM, but she had used their REAL last names. Not the names of their crest's they used now.
"Leave her alone, Tai, it's not Areil's fault,"Sora swatted at him,"It's just her bad luck she has to deal with you."
For a while, noone said a thing. Everyone was trying to process this information about the Alliance.
"Now, if you don't have anymore questions, I want to ask you one,"Areil talked to the whole group.
"Go ahead,"Joe shrugged.
"Why are you here? I mean, what got you STUCK here?"
There was silence. Everyone was reliving the cruel moment when they learned they could not go back. It was Kari and TK who spoke, however.
"It's a long story,"Kari began.
"We should probaly start at the beginning,"TK commented.
"We're finally going home,"Mimi said dreamily.
"To stay,"Joe added happily.
He glanced up at the eclispe that would take them home shortly. The other DigiDestined nodded. It was good to be sure that the fighting was over, and now they could return to their old lives. The only depressing part is that their digimon would be left behind.
"And we can return to our homes as well,"Gabumon remarked with a nodd.
"I still say I hope you won't forget us,"Patamon sighed.
"Hey, don't worry about it. You're my best-best friend,"TK replied, hugging the pig-like digimon.
"TK!!"he sputtered,"You're choking me!!"
The group laughed at them, tension easing for the moment.
"Maybe we can still visit,"Kari said shyly to Gatomon.
The light shifted abrubtly. The DigiDestined turned their eyes skyward. Shock stood clearly on every face and fear in every heart. The sky was a fanfare of colors. Black streaked across a rainbow background. But, what drew the attention of all of them, was the sun. It was pure black.
"What's going on?"Sora yelled.
"And'd we'd know that why?"Matt snapped irritably.
Wind knocked into them, trying to force them down. Mimi went down, and Palmon struggled towards her.
"Devilo, Lord of all Evil, but not greatest of all, Melra lies in wait,"Kari called, her eye's glazed over,"Melra lies in wait."
For a moment everything spun to a stop, like it was waiting for someone to command it.
"Melra . . .in wait. Devilo . . .lies,"Kari whispered fragmented words.
Tai waved his hand in front of Kari's face, hoping to break her of her . . . trance.
"Look!!"Sora screamed, pointing to the gone crazy sky, fear and awe quivering in her voice.
The colors spirled together, faster, and faster.
"MELRA!! IT LIES IN WAIT!!,"Kari cried.
"KARI!! STOP IT!!"Tai yelled, freaked out.
ZZZEEERRR! The colors burst apart, like a Digimon being reconfigured.
"This is not the end . . . ."a chilling voice snaked over the air.
The sudden appearence, and disapearance of the colors left all the DigiDestined shaking.
"I want to go home,"Mimi said, bursting into tears on the spot.
"Yeah, let's go,"Matt agreed, his voice betraying his cool expression.
Tai cast his gaze overhead. Something was different about the sky. Different before it went wacko,he thought to himself. His eyes landed on the sun.
"No,"he said suddenly.
"What's wrong, Tai?"Izzy asked corously.
"The sun,"he replied, pointing to it,"The eclispe . ."
"It's gone!!"Joe exclaimed,"How can that be?!"
"Devilo has closed the portal somehow,"a weary voice stated.
"That's bascially how it happened,"Kari sighed,"And after that day, none of us have ever looked back."
"You told him Melra lies in wait?"Areil questioned in a low voice.
"Yes, what was wrong with that?"she asked, staring at a very pale girl.
"Melra was my home,"Areil said, getting the look of someone who was very far away.
She was reliving a memory she didn't wish too. In her mind, she saw the very day Devilo had attacked, and the day she had escaped to the Digital World.
"Then why are YOU here?"Izzy asked, always the one to ask questions no one else would.
By pure luck, she was the only one around when the Watch saw him coming. She ran to the Inner Tower to find a runner who would warn the people.
"Devilo is coming,"she spat at the nearest runner,"Tell everyone!!"
The runner looked dumbfoundede.
"GO!"Areil commanded.
He took off as she faced the south agian.
Catamon,she called with her mind.
Areil?the digimon questioned.
Devilo is coming, meet me at the Mist Waters,she replied, keeping relitivly calm.
We will fight him thenCatamon stated.
And hopefully win,Areil added.
"Dark Rain!!"a chilling voice yelled.
Confusion clouded her mind.
"How could he be here so soon?"she muttered.
But all the same she flew down the hundereds of steps that led out of the tower. All it means,she reasoned with herself,Is that we have to fight sooner than later. Areil felt tightening in her chest just as she prepared to step out.
"This is it,"she whispered,"Melra is really in trouble."
She knew her bond to her world was strong, strong enough so when it was hurt, so did Areil.
"Areil!!"a voice called to her.
She turned to see a black panther/dog with tourquoise wings and chest palte speeding towards her.
"In coming!!"it called to her.
Areil, as soon as it was beside her, flung out her hands, catching the chest plate.
"Kick the speed up, Flagamon, Melra is in real trouble,"she told the digimon, adjusting herself on it,"We have to get to him!"
"No need,"the same chilling voice that had called the attack told them smoothly.
Flagamon all but ran into the shop across the street in surprise. Areil, however, had been more graceful about it. She twisted to see the digimon.
"We will fight you, Devilo, and we will win,"she stated calmly to him.
The bird shaped shadow laughed.
"Daring, are you?"Devilo sneered.
"No fear,"Areil snapped.
And she had no fear, only detirmination. But, then, never before had she had fear in a fight. She would not start now. Devilo took a cocky stance, and the fight began.
Melra had all but been destroyed.
"We tried,"the weary panter digimon Catamon told her restless partner.
"We didn't try hard enough, and now everyone in Melra thinks WE are the reason it took such a beating,"Areil vented off fustration.
They had stood strong in the fight, but it proved not to be enough. In the end, Devilo was stronger, and that was all that mattered. Smoldering ruins replaced once great buildings in Melra. What was worse was that THEY, who had tried to protect it, were claimed outcasts. The Watch had claimed he knew nothing about Devilo's coming, leaving it to fall to Areil to be blamed for no warning. She and Catamon were alone in the Worlds.
"Alue, an entity, found Catamon & me, made me a Crest Protector, and like you, we've never looked back,"Areil finished.
"Wow,"Sora said softly,"At least we weren't disowned by everyone we loved."
Areil laughed, not one of humor though. The thought of her family as who she loved was ridiculous.
"My family hadn't loved me, and I didn't love them,"she assured Sora,"I would have been disowned sooner or later . . sooner was better for me."
"Well, call us lucky then,"Mimi smiled,"Being given all this."
She spread her arms to indicate the Destined House. Mimi remembered when they had first been given the House, and how deeply she hated it, how she had rejected it.
Mimi looked at the house looming above her. Uneasiness filled her at how well everyone seemed to be taking it.
"What's wrong Mimi?"Palmon asked with a frown.
She sat with her head in her hands.
"I'm just worried that if I accept this house, I'll forget my old life."Mimi covered her face,"I don't want to forget, even if the others do!!!!"
"We're not forgetting, Mimi,"Matt's voice came,"We're just accepting that we CAN'T go back."
She jumped up and faced him. Anger covered up her depression for the moment. But she couldn't believe how well they accepted it all.
"I DONT want to do that EITHER!!"she snapped,"I WANT to GO HOME!"
"Right now, this IS home,"Sora said gently,"We want to go back too, but right now we have to make the BEST of this situation as we CAN."
Mimi slumped in mesirable queit.
"I think we should come up for a name for this prehaps,"Izzy suggested.
"Good idea,"TK nodded with exuberance.
"I think we should use something from DigiDestined,"Kari piped up.
"How bout Destined House?"Tentomon suggested.
Nodds went around the room.
"Alright them,"Tai said, raising his glass of water,"To Destined House!"
Silence reined over the room. Nothing was being said, everyone understood that everyone else was in a different time. Not a thing would have been said if a flashing light wouldn't have suddenly blinded them.
"What's that?"Kari whispered.
Only Areil was not surprised. She pulled out a tear shaped green stone.
"It's time to go,"she said simply,"The Alliance is on the move."
TBC
