**Somewhere in the Digital World**
	
	Stupid Tai...
	
	Sora sat atop Jennai's overstuffed armchair with her face cradled in her 
hands.  Tears rolled down her rosy, dirt-streaked cheeks like pouring rain, 
threatening to turn the inside of the digital enigma's ranch home into something 
rivaling its underwater surroundings.  As it was, they were already soaking her 
favorite pair of jeans and soft pink blouse.  Tears of sadness, tears of 
heartbreak, of rage, depression, and simple exhaustion...right now, the sixteen 
year old girl couldn't decide just what they were, and she didn't particularly 
care at the moment.  She was too busy trying to figure out just what had 
happened, and why.  Why?  Why had Tai pushed her out?

	"Go back..." she heard herself whisper.  "Further back."

	It had all seemed so innocent at first; Jennai had sent Izzy a short e-
mail telling the children of a new riddle's appearance in the digital world.  
Some sort of tower, or castle of some sort.  Naturally, it was their job to 
check it out, and with summer vacation's arrival, it was a simple matter of 
finding a working computer and opening a digiport up.  Davis, Yolei and Cody 
were left behind, outside of the Digital world.  Tai had been through enough bad 
experiences to know that a backup team wasn't a bad idea.  Sora couldn't help 
but wonder if they would have made a difference.  Something told her it wouldn't 
have mattered.

	Jennai himself had led them to the fortress.  It was hardly necessary, 
though; whatever the new threat was, it could be seen for at least a hundred 
miles away.  It had taken them a full two weeks just to cross the rough terrain 
that had appeared in the surrounding region of the towering structure, battling 
their way through Rookie henchmen, Champion guardians, a few Ultimates here and 
there...it was hardly anything new to them.  Even Ken and Stingmon had been able 
to hold their own.  It was only until after they had entered the fortress that 
they realized just how out of their league they were.

	Tai had done his best, and the rest of them had given their full support 
and confidence.  Still, Sora couldn't remember the last time one of their 
battles had ever gone so very, very badly.  She wasn't sure what had frightened 
her most.  It wasn't the cold, sterile interior; the feeling of being trapped 
inside of an endless, soulless machine that threatened to devour your spirit.  
It was the kind of setting that had come from the back of her mind, where the 
nightmares lived.  She had always loved the outdoors, and the fortress seemed to 
stand for everything she was against.  Still, that hadn't been what had made her 
blood run cold...

	It had been the monsters.

	They weren't like anything she had ever seen, or ever wanted to see again.  
Izzy had tried desperately, but his Digianalyzer refused to give any data on the 
hoardes that had descended upon them, ravaging them like a bloodthirsty hoarde.  
Strange purplish rats, screeching birds, and walking mushrooms...those were only 
a handful of the ones she had seen before the Digidestined deleted them.  It had 
been a hard fight, but each time the odds grew greater, they digivolved again 
and again.  By the time they had reached the spires high in the clouds, the 
Digimon had each gone to the Ultimate level, with two exceptions: WarGreymon and 
MetalGarurumon.

	"It wasn't enough..."

	A cat.  A small, pink, cute, flying cat with a long, wispy tail.  That was 
what they found in the final chamber...  How could something so innocent have 
been so vicious?  The company the cat had chosen was worse: dragons.  She 
couldn't be sure how many there were.  It all happened too fast.

	"Too fast." she sobbed, "Too fast..."

	One or a thousand, they were all obviously at the Mega level...maybe even 
higher.  They had made short work of the Digidestined and their Digimon, who 
were already exhausted from the battles beforehand.  What followed was what TK 
always jokeingly called "One of our famous 'tactical withdrawls' from the 
scene."  It seemed more like a hideous marathon, with the gift of life being the 
prize.  It must have been a hundred flights down those damned stairs, with the 
ravenous dragons behind them every step of the way.  The entire way down, she 
wasn't sure how many of them the dragons had gotten...the only people ahead of 
her were Kari and a few of their Digimon, and even then it was just barely.  
After what seemed an eternity, they finally saw the gateway, and beyond that, 
the sweet techno-nature of the Digital world.  The only problem was, it was 
closing, fast.

	And then she had tripped...

	It wasn't her fault.  One of the dragons had launched a furious attack, 
blasting a good chunk of the tech-castle's wall, sending it skewing right into 
her path.  It wasn't as if she had fallen flat on her face.  It had been more of 
a stumble, something that was harly worth mentioning on an average day.  This 
time, though, it meant death.  It should have been her death, but it wasn't.

	"Tai..."

	Yes.  Yes, now she had gotten her train of thought back on track.  Stupid 
Tai.  Stupid, stupid, noble Tai.  The door was nearly closed, and she had slowed 
her pace to regain her footing, when something from behind gave her a vicious 
shove through the door, catching the teen completely off guard.  Sora managed to 
twist in the air as she flew through the rapidly closing portal, catching a 
glimpse of a sight that would haunt her dreams for the rest of her life; Tai, on 
his knees, giving her one last smile.  He called out to her, but couldn't get 
his voice to rise over the thundering din of the battle.  Nevertheless, Sora had 
been able to read his lips, which had only broken her heart further.

	*I love you!*

	Sora sobbed again, her wail carrying throughout the house with frightening 
volume.  As Sora carried on, her tears drew the attention of three small, 
bizarre creatures that she had called 'friends' for some time now.  They stood 
on the threshhold of Jennai's living area, watching her silently.  
"Tai...Biyomon..."

	"Y'think she's all right?" Gomamon peered around the corner of the bay 
door, scratching his reddish-orange fringed head with his massive foreclaw.  The 
oceanic Digimon turned to his two companions, looking at them with worry in his 
large, feral eyes.

	"Of course she's not all right!" Tentomon cried out, waving his sharp arms 
and feelers in the air wildly.  He quickly covered his mandibles, hoping that 
Sora hadn't heard him.  "Of course she's not all right." the gigantic bug said 
more softly, "She's heartsick."

	Agumon scratched his head as well, more confused than ever.  "Heartsick?  
Is she going to need an operation?"

	"I hope not." Tentomon exclaimed in earnest, "Jennai may be smart, but 
he's got a terrible bedside manner."

	The soft thudding of footsteps brought the attention of the Digimon away 
from the sobbing Sora over to Matt.  The tall, lanky sixteen-year-old was 
yawning and working the kinks out of his shoulder through his tattered green 
army jacket as he approached the trio of troublemakers, eyeing them 
suspiciously.  "What's going on?" he mumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, 
"I was trying to catch a few Z's..."  He recieved his answer with one look into 
the living room.  "Oh no..."

	"Sora's crying again." Agumon confirmed sadly.

	Matt nodded, pondering.  This was the fifth time since their battle that 
Sora had broken down.  Five times in only two days.  He had never seen her like 
this; Sora was always the calm voice of reason.  She was the heart of their 
group...the love.  This wasn't like her at all.  They were all beginning to 
worry.  Still, if crying is what she needed to do, then crying is what they 
would let her do.  He didn't mind being pulled from his slumber.  He just hoped 
that her emotional fatigue didn't wake up-

	"Matt?" Kari mumbled softly.  She had emerged from her room down the hall 
of the ranch, just as he had.  Dressed in her rumpled cutoff shorts and 
sleeveless T-shirt, she looked in about as bad of shape as the rest of them.  
"Matt, what's wrong?"

	"It's Sora."

	Kari glanced over, her face contorting with sadness.  "Oh no..."  The 
petite woman crossed the threshhold into the living area, plopping down next to 
Sora.  She tried in vain to comfort the heartbroken teen, speaking to her in 
soft tones.  "It'll be all right, Sora.  We'll find some way to save them.  I 
know we will."

	Matt quickly followed suit, opting for leaning against the back of the 
couch rather than sitting on it.  He sighed, brushing a lock of sandy blond hair 
out of his eyes.  "I'm not so sure.  I mean, let's face facts; those guys had us 
out-gunned and out-classed.  I'm not sure we could have beaten them, even with-"

	"Matt!" Kari cried indignantly, tilting her head towards Sora, who was 
becoming more upset.

	He looked between the two, becoming confused.  "I'm just saying, we don't 
even know if the others are still alive.  We might have to come to terms with 
the fact that they're...not coming back."

	Something inside Sora snapped.  Everything about her that was calm and 
collected simply shattered, making way for despair and rage.  "How could you 
even say a terrible thing like that?" she sobbed.  Her features grew twisted 
with anger as she made a vicious leap for Matt.  It was only Kari's last, 
desperate grab that kept her from throttling the other Digidestined.  "How DARE 
you!" she roared, "Who are you to give up just like that?  If Tai were here-"

	"Tai ISN'T here, Sora!" Matt shouted back.  This seemed to strike a chord 
with everyone, quieting the room.  The silence was broken after a few moments by 
Agumon, who abandoned his hiding place from around the corner.  The three-foot 
dinosaur padded in, trying to encourage the disheartened group.

	"C'mon, guys...it can't be that bad.  I mean, we're still here!" he 
exclaimed.  "We just go back there, do a little Warp-Digivolving, and 
everything'll be hunky-dory, A-OK."  Tentomon and Gomamon rushed after him, both 
becoming entangled in each other as they tried to squeeze through the door at 
the same time.  "So cheer up!" Agumon finished his pep talk, grinning his toothy 
smile.

	Matt, who was on a hot-streak at the moment for pointing out the negative, 
despondently shot Agumon's theories of victory apart.  "Sorry to break it to 
you," he said with arms behind head, "But our Digivices aren't exactly 
interchangable..."

	"Yeah," Gomamon exclaimed, shoving Tentomon aside and joined the 
discussion, "That's right!  It'd be like hooking up a nuclear battery to a solar 
generator in the Starship Enterprise's warp core.  The whole thing would go 
totally wonko in the Plutonium Dilythium Crystal Cells."

	"Uh...right." Matt scratched his head, trying to figure out exactly what 
the amphibious, mohawked Digimon had babbled about.  
"Anyway, we still don't have a plan, and all I can think of right now is 'Run 
Far, Run Fast,' and that's a terrible plan."  He grumbled, hating to admit his 
own shortcomings as replacement leader.  He and Tai had always been sort of a 
team when it came to battle: Tai wrote the songs, and he played them.  The only 
problem was, these new Digimon on the block had just cancelled their latest show 
and stolen his best songwriter.  Worst of all, he couldn't seem to stop thinking 
in music industry metaphors for battle.  "We need to get the others here, and 
fast."

	"No can do, my young friends."

	The haggard, grizzled old voice of their mysterious host drew their 
attention once more to the door.  There stood a wizzen old man of a mere three 
and a half feet, dressed in samurai robes and sporting a rusty katana on his 
back.  It was rather ridiculous at first glance; the mere thought that this old 
man could be a warrior!  The Digidestined knew better, though.  Jennai, the 
ancient master of the Digital world-or servant, depending on which way you 
looked at it-stood his full height proudly as he addressed the children.  "I'm 
afraid that the digital gateways to your world are currently sealed...probably a 
courtesy of our new neighbors.  It seems that Davis, Yolei, and Cody will not be 
in this fight."

	"The Digiport's closed!" Kari cried out.  She could literally feel the 
last remnants of hope slipping out of her body, as if it was something tangeble 
that she had just lost.  She slumped down into the couch, the glimmer 
disappearing from her eye.  "Then it really is over..."

	Tentomon waddled over to Jennai, who was remaining motionless in the 
doorway.  "Jennai," the gigantic beetle warbled worriedly, "Isn't there anything 
we can do?  We can't just give up now..."

	"I'm afraid I don't have many tricks left up my sleeve, Tentomon." Jennai 
chuckled.  He tossed his rusted katana off to the side, then entered the room 
and plopped down into an ancient armchair.  Filled with holes and stains, the 
piece of furnature looked nearly as old as Jennai himself, if not older.  He 
seemed to melt into the cushion, exhausted from his 'scouting mission'.  "In 
fact, I can only think of one last thing..."  Jennai left the children in 
suspense for a moment, waiting to see which of them cracked first.

	Surprisingly enough, it was Sora.  "Jennai, what is your plan?" she asked 
softly.  The tears were wiped from her eyes as she sat up straight, looking 
focused and ready for the first time in two whole days.

	The old man smiled; just as he had hoped, Sora was fine once she had been 
given a purpose...for now.  Only time, her strength of heart, and possibly Tai, 
would determine her future from here.  "I would think it obvious, child: We need 
more Digidestined."  Again, he waited for their reaction with bemused 
anticipation, and again he wasn't disappointed.  The children and their 
mismatched Digimon friends fairly exploded in an uproar, bombarding him with 
questions and indignant outbursts.

	"How can that be?"

	"You said the gate was closed!"

	"Where are they?"

	"Who are they?"

	"Why didn't you mention this earlier?"

	"Do they like computers?"

	This last question from Tentomon quieted the others of the group, and the 
beetle Digimon soon found himself being stared at curiously.  "What?" he asked, 
shrugging his tiny shoulders.  "I didn't think it would hurt to ask."

	Jennai chuckled again, holding up his hands to quiet child and Digimon 
alike.  "Calm yourselves, peace, please!  The gate is indeed closed, and it will 
be impossible to bring any of the existing Digidestined from your world to the 
Digital world."

	"But you said-" Matt cut in on his explination, and was instantly silenced 
with a mere gesture from Jennai.

	He smiled a secret, all-knowing smile.  "I said the gateway to *your* 
world was closed, young one.  There are many other worlds linked to the Digital 
world.  Indeed, my world is a culmination of all their technology and data 
combined...not just that of your world."

	Kari was the first to recover.  "But Jennai," she raised her hand as if 
they were in a class, "What about Digimon?  If they're to be Digidestined, then 
where will we find the Digimon to become one with them?"  Her thoughts drifted 
to Gatomon, her beloved battle-cat.  Losing Gatomon was just as painful on her 
as losing Biyomon had been to Sora.  Also as Sora did, she, too, grieved for her 
brother.  Kari hoped desperately that Tai was all right.  Knowing him, he was 
probably already planning their escape, assuming that they were still alive.

	"Fear not, child." his eyes glimmered with a knowledge that he could not 
yet share with the Digital world's saviors...not just yet.  "I assure you, I'll 
have everything worked out by morning."  He hauled himself out of the chair with 
a grunt and a groan, readjusting his spine after the maneuver.  "For now, you 
should rest.  By tomorrow morning, I should have everything ready."

	"But Jennai-"

	"Conserve your energy.  You may not be able to fight in this battle, but 
the new Digidestined will still need your help."  He turned to leave, exiting 
the room filled with curious children and baffled Digimon.  They no doubt 
wondered how he could magically produce a new team of Digidestined.  Truth be 
told, he wasn't sure how he could do it either.  But Jennai always spoke the 
truth; he knew of a world where the perfect Digidestined awaited...the same 
world where their new foes hailed from, in fact.  

	And the three children he had his eyes on would indeed need the help of 
Matt, Sora, and Kari...as much help as the Digidestined could provide.

TO BE CONTINUED...