Digimon Empire Chapter 8

Digimon Empire

Chapter 8

FlaWizarmon led the pair into a small alcove coming off of the main chamber they were in, the small room was dimly lit from the glowing crystals. Michael felt slightly disturbed as they entered and saw the space. It wasn't a large room but there were two beds made of wooden frames and fluffed mattresses. Sheets made from some kind of wool and pillows made from the same material and likely stuffed with what the mattresses were filled with laid on top. Next to each of the beds was a small wooden table to be used as a nightstand. Each carefully carved with the same ornate glyphs that FlaWizarmon used when he cast spells. A small cup with water was seen on each of these nightstands. In the corner opposite the beds was a small table, carved with more of the glyphs, and two chairs which were more crudely carved with glyphs of the same style. On this table lay several books, blank paper, ink, pieces of charcoal, and small sharpened sticks. FlaWizarmon conjured a small spell on his hand and then passed his hand over the entryway and a heavy curtain materialized as a stone rod grew out of the rock and connected overhead.

"It may not be the best accommodations but it is a slight sight better than where you slept before." FlaWizarmon flashed a quick grin. "Rest now and when you awaken we'll eat, talk, and discuss where we go from here." Before departing FlaWizarmon materialized the sphere containing the Digivice, reaching into it he retrieved the legendary tool and handed it to Michael. Then without a word FlaWizarmon departed. Michael felt his stomach rumble sadly and he heard Cairomon's stomach but as he turned to face him the Digimon was already climbing into the bed closest the door. As Michael reached his own bed his head hardly touched the pillow before he'd fallen off to sleep.

Michael woke up and felt completely disoriented. He looked and saw Cairomon still deeply asleep and rolled back over himself. He was dreaming but his dreams were disturbed, anxious, and his mind was still echoing from the presence of Zeparmon. Even though the Djinn wasn't even in this Digital World he could still feel the overwhelming presence, the overwhelming power, the way the air felt heavy and the way the light drained from the glowing crystals that illuminated the cave. Michael realized he was laying awake now thinking about the encounter. He hadn't even realized he'd awoken yet he was and a small shiver ran through him. The presence of Zeparmon in the cave lingered, he could almost still feel the thickness in the air where the Djinn once was. The Djinn. A creation of Digimon by Digimon, the Divine, The Pantheon, the challenge that was yet to come. Before Michael realized it he was on his feet and walking out of the alcove, he looked around and didn't see FlaWizarmon. He walked directly to where the Djinn had been, he felt compelled to touch the ground where the glyphs had been that summoned the Djinn to this world.

"Zeparmon has that effect," FlaWizarmon's voice made Michael jump. He turned to see the flaming wizard moving toward him from some unknown location further in the chamber, "I feel the draw of his presence too. I can't explain it but it makes me want to follow him." Michael shook his head slowly as though shaking off a distasteful thought from his mind.

"How did he leave such a presence when he wasn't even in this world?' FlaWizarmon flashed a wicked grin from Michael's question.

"That is how powerful you made the Divine class Digimon. He is one of the weaker ones, even among all the Djinn. The Divine and Supreme far exceed his power." FlaWizarmon moved closer and Michael observed he had a small book with the same glyphs written on every inch of the cover. "I've been close to one before. Pharaohmon. It dwells in the desert to the south-west called the Ghoul Desert, There is another, much larger desert to the north of there called the Horak Desert. I could teach you about them if you'd like." FlaWizarmon flashed another wicked grin at Michael. Michael couldn't help but sense that FlaWizarmon had ulterior motives, he didn't trust the wizard.

"Why would you be willing to teach me anything? Why are you personally vested in helping me at all?"

"I am personally vested in helping you because I was captured by one of the Divine when I was just a Wizardmon. She delved into the darker aspects of magic used me as her spell caster to test the most heinous of spells on. In the end she killed me." Michael looked at FlaWizarmon skeptically. "I found my mind on the Isle of Darkness. I was able to eventually fight my way to the gate using the very spells she'd used against me. When I passed through what I feel was my 'trial by fire' I emerged as a FlaWizarmon. I am against the corruption of The Pantheon and how they feel they are above the laws they enforce on us. Furthering the work she performed on me I was able to establish a connection with several of the Djinn, finally I found one that would stand by me and we began formulating plans on how to remove the Divine."

"Zeparmon." Michael said aloud, connecting the dots of FlaWizarmon's story. "Who was the Divine who killed your first body?" FlaWizarmon shifted uncomfortably and his eyes looked uneasily around the chamber.

"Her name is Bazzlemon. She is a 'Holy Sorceress' Divine class Digimon but her path is corrupt." FlaWizarmon sighed exasperated, "The reason I am willing and wanting to help you is because Zeparmon and I feel you are the best chance we have at returning the balance of creator to Digimon back to our worlds. We want you to put the Divine and Supreme class Digimon in their place." Michael didn't like the idea that they were simply using him as a tool to suit their own drive.

"What happens after that? When you guys are done with me?"

"Done with you?!" FlaWizarmon visibly jumped back completely shocked and his mouth hung slack. "We're willing to serve you. You misunderstand us completely. We want you to restore human control over the Digital Realms. We want to serve you." Michael let the wizards words pass through him but felt unchanged. It still didn't change that he felt the wizard had ulterior motives nor did he trust him. Trust comes in time is something that Michael reminded himself.

"Okay. Where do we start with teaching me what I'll need to know?"

"We start with geography and politics, then we'll see if you are capable of learning magic. If you can than that will certainly greatly expand the magnitude of your abilities and make you much more of a threat to the Divine." Pulling his book out FlaWizarmon turned it until the pages were blank. Then he cast a quick spell onto the blank page and the page grew into a large map. The map was familiar to Michael it was the main continent. Two deserts to the west separated by a forest, a mountain range running north to south across the large continent, a river running on the eastern side. The eastern side of the continent was forest, plains, hills, plateaus, and to the extreme south a large jungle. "Now lets start with where we are and what we call the different geographic areas. I'll also highlight the cities and district lines you're unfamiliar with." The two spent several hours simply reviewing where everything was and where the district lines lay for various regions. They discussed the politics of the land while doing this. They also discussed where FlaWizarmon felt they stood the best chances of locating some of the remaining Reality Orb Fragments that had yet to be recovered. The wizard explained that the presence of the fragments augmented the world around them, meaning unusual events would occur around them.

Cairomon awoke and absently wandered around the chamber while listening in on the talk of past wars and Digimon of interest from various places. It was shortly after Cairomon had woken up that Coronamon arrived at the crystal cave chamber. At first completely shocked at their presence it soon calmed down after FlaWizarmon explained their presence. Coronamon decided to show Cairomon some of the more interesting things about the large cave that it had found. After they left the wizard and Michael resumed their discussions this time with a focus on the Digimon that hold the power within this world. Michael learned that the entire continent was ruled by a governing body of Digimon called the Empire. The Empire harshly taxed the regents for the various districts which resulted in the Digimon residing in the regions being taxed into starvation and death. The Empire sought to maintain strict control through force and by keeping the Digimon too weak to fight back against their rule. The Digimon that comprised the ruling body of the Empire were mainly Mega level being led by a Djinn class Digimon called Astarothmon, a powerful fire affinity Digimon. FlaWizarmon said that he'd never seen the Djinn himself but that he heard tales that he scorched the ground he walked on and his wrath was as strong as a volcano when provoked. As the hours passed Michael grew more and more hungry and finally he had to stop FlaWizarmon in favor of eating and rest. Cairomon and Coronamon had just returned from deeper in the cavern and also agreed to be hungry. FlaWizarmon dismissed himself to go gather food for them and Coronamon volunteered to go with him to help. FlaWizarmon cast a quick teleportation spell and the pair vanished from the chamber with a flash.

"So what do you think Cairomon?" Michael asked as the dragon Digimon sat down next to him on a rock raised from the floor of the chamber.

"I think we will find gaining control of this world will prove to be more of a task than either Zeparmon or FlaWizarmon care to acknowledge. Personally I don't care about the politics of it but I will stand by you and if this is the path we need to take I will walk it with you." Michael smiled, he felt a strong sense of camaraderie with Cairomon and he knew that when the whole world turn against him they would stand together until the end.

Digimon Empire Chapter 7

Digimon Empire

Chapter 7

FlaWizarmon simply snapped his fingers and a prefabricated spell circle appeared around Michael and Cairomon. This pattern was much more simple than the others he'd witnessed so far but Michael's stomach dropped when he suddenly was moved across the room and was standing before the Djinn Digimon. The thundering voice boomed and cut as though electricity itself was dancing off of its tongue as it spoke,

"I'm am glad you've made it this far human. You're a needed catalyst for this device to function at its fullest potential. First, I shall answer any and all questions you have. Every question you have I will answer to the best of my ability." The Djinn Digimon settled into a more relaxed posture while still staying within the bounds of the circles he was apparently summoned with.

"Why are you not able to leave those circles?" Cairomon asked before Michael was able to. A light gleamed from behind the Djinn's eyes.

"I am not physically here, FlaWizarmon summoned an apparition of me from a different Digital Realm. The simple explanation is that the Digital World was saved in different states and when these occurred we never left the same base universe. The reason for that I believe lies in the undue amount of power given to the most powerful deity Digimon by the creators, The humans." The echoing voice resonated through the chambers and Michael speculated over the ripples that their actions had made which resulted in these extremely unexpected effects.

"We did not design you. How do you exist? It was within the confines of the programming to allow Digimon to evolve in their Digivolution into new variations of existing Digimon, You are not a variation, you are a new Digimon. How?" Michael asked in a slightly accusatory tone, almost as though he was blaming the Djinn for its own existence. The Djinn laughed dangerously.

"My name is Zeparmon." The way his name escaped his lips was with energy and though unspoken Michael understood his name meant sound or noise in some manner and it accounted for his thunderous speaking, "You are of course correct I was not of human design. The very millisecond that the Digital World was turned on the most Divine of all Digimon whom you created conspired to inhibit human control over our realms. Some merged together with their clones in other worlds whole worlds merged into more supreme deities. The combined power of so many Digimon of that magnitude helped forge and manipulate the Time Lock. It is now considered an ancient device by most but it allowed the Pantheon of the Divine to alter the time differential between the human world and the Digital World. The slowed the differential as much as possible to allow Digimon the most time possible to evolve and grow, independent of human influence." He paused to allow Michael to process what he was saying. Cairomon stepped forward asking,

"You did not answer how you exist," The black dragon Digimon sounded defiant but Michael could hear the undertone of curiosity on his words, "If what you say is true that doesn't account for how you came to be nor any of the rest of your kind. I know there are others. I've seen them."

"One of the powers that the humans gave the most powerful Digimon was to self govern the Digital World. The programming was loose for interpretation and as such it did not take a sharp mind to translate that to mean they could create Digimon. Together they forged new Digimon species and new forms of Digivolution. I was one of their attempts of a Divine creation. Myself and my brethren are failed attempts. We gained the immortality, the power, but we lack the innate abilities granted by the human creators. We are what you would call Demi-Gods of the Digital World." He paused a moment before continuing while studying the faces of Cairomon and Michael, "Our forms all changed to look similar to my appearance, when I was created I looked much more like you do Cairomon. Part of the failure was to revert us to this state, This may have been some safe fail in the event of corrupt imaging in the program by the creators but I am more inclined to speculate that it is a result of our magic mixed with the coding that governs the Digital World at its foundations. Djinn have traditionally been considered "magi" associated and I feel that these forms more adequately reflect the influence humanity imposed on us despite not having been created by them."

"What of the other evolutions to the programming I've witnessed?" Michael asked while advancing forward, FlaWizarmon motioned him down but Michael ignored him. "Why do Digimon lose limbs, suffer, bleed?"

"The Pantheon of the Divine realized that turning into absorbable data for experience was not the only way a Digimon could die. The Pantheon would never admit it but they changed the function so that they could keep Digimon alive longer when extracting information from them."

"So they changed the default injury and death options so they could torture more information out of captives?"

"That is correct." The booming thunderous voice of Zeparmon shook the ground and walls around them. Those three small words echoed inside of Michael and he felt the pressure of each word as though spoken through a grand P.A. system with deep bass. He shook these feelings as Cairomon spoke up,

"Are these captives a side affect from the current civil war wrecking this region?" Cairomon inquired.

"No. There was an ancient war fought among the Pantheon of the Divine over how power should be distributed among each other, Especially once they'd realized they had greater control over the worlds. This "region" is the Pangean Plateau and is the major supercontinent of this world." Cairomon turned his head, seemingly ashamed of his lack of knowledge regarding local common geography of the world he'd grown up in. Michael sensed this and deflected the conversation to himself,

"What do we need to do in order to move on to other worlds?" As Michael asked he saw a gleam in the Djinn's eye.

"Ah yes!" The deep voice echoed and exerted more pressure than before on the chamber, "You will need to secure seven of the twelve Reality Orb Fragments. Each world has twelve of them total scattered through them. If you are not Divine it is the only way to pass between realms. Only one world has a completed Reality Orb, the pieces are quite hard to find. Search among the more powerful Digimon in that world as they've likely started gathering fragments by now."

"What price am I paying for this information? Why are you telling me any of this?"

"Nothing is ever truly free. We all pay a price in the end." The Djinn answered solemnly. "I am telling you this information because I intend to help you. Despite my own creators being the Divine of The Pantheon... Human influence is what drives us, created us all ultimately, and it is human influence that will save us in the end. The Divine abuse their power and I disapprove of their choices in how they've abused it." Michael was growing impatient and he could feel impatience mounting from Cairomon. He was starting to understand the feral attitude regarding conflicts that seemed petty. Yes morally what The Pantheon did wasn't right but it wasn't so inherently evil and damning that Michael was wanting to run head first to confront the most powerful being they'd made.

"That is why I stole your Digivice after retrieving it for you." FlaWizarmon spoke now for the first time, his voice sounded like it was coated in honey and soft compared to the powerful voice of the Djinn. "One of the things that the Divine did was seal the human Digivice spawn relation. It was oddly convenient to find you so easily and I am glad I was the first and it was one from The Pantheon coming to investigate the sighting of a human."

"We do not have much time human. If you are to let us help you then I donate to you this very place, a safe seclusion from the world you're in. My presence is needed elsewhere." The Djinn now spoke dismissively. "Have FlaWizarmon contact me whenever you've resolved that civil war business happening there." With that the might Djinn vanished from the chamber.

"Wait." Michael spoke but too late to stop the Djinn's departure. "I had more questions." To which FlaWizarmon eagerly stepped forward.

"I shall do my best to answer."

"Why exactly did we have to go through all this trouble just to get here if you were wanting to work with us?"

"A Djinn's assistance never comes for free."

Digimon Empire Chapter 6

Digimon Empire

Chapter 6

Michael and Cairomon ran through the lightly wooded forest looking for signs of FlaWizarmon. They didn't have a terribly hard time tracking him because the spell caster was tired from the strain of the spells he'd cast and was walking clumsily. They were surprised by the amount of trail he was leaving them to follow that they hadn't already caught up to him. He was heading deeper into the Talthos Forest rather than away from it as Michael had suspected. They came to a large clearing and it was unclear as to which direction FlaWizarmon went when leaving the area. They spent quite some time searching all around the clearing but failed to find any place where the trail continued besides where they'd already come from. There was a large mossy rock near the center of the clearing and Michael walked over to it and sat down. The smooth texture of the rock made him think of Amanda and the amount of time and work she'd spent doing the design for it. He thought of how the moss growing on part of it had been coded in by Tori and Calvin and he could almost hear Tori yelling about how many people did it take to code a rock. He closed his eyes and listened as the breeze whistled softly through the clearing. A small rustling from the leaves and branches moving in the wind and gentle chirping of birds made him feel serene. Despite whatever political conflicts were ahead, despite any challenges they'd face, despite whatever evolutions or glitching in the programming transpired he wanted this. Michael wanted to remember to appreciate the work they'd done creating this world.

Cairomon suddenly stopped abruptly and inhaled sharply while by the rock Michael was stretched out on. The look on his face was confused and he inhaled more deeply before sharply exhaling.

"The scent ends here. I do not understand." Michael slid off the rock and they looked around but saw no traces of anything around the location. They tried lifting the rock but it was far too large and heavy to budge. Michael tried getting a log and using it to pry the rock up with another rock but it still wouldn't budge. They suspected that magic was involved but they were unable to determine what and there were no real traces in the large clearing. Michael ran his hands over the rock some more while Cairomon began pacing. He ran his hands over to the moss to see how it felt, it looked damp and he wondered if it would feel slick or abrasive but as his hand reached it he was surprised as it passed through the rock. Nervously he felt around the inside of the hole and felt wood, smooth, wrapped in cloth, and strong. He pulled on it and there was a loud grinding sound. The rock slid suddenly to the side knocking both Michael and Cairomon roughly to the ground. Michael painfully rose to his feet, his arm throbbing with the pain of the rock jerking him sideways while he was elbow deep in the illusioned hole.

The pair walked over and looked at the spot that opened up and saw there was a roughly round hole with a very narrow spiral staircase leading into the dark. As they both started forward to go down into the hole the rock started to move back. Cairomon hurried to get low enough to avoid getting his head crunched but Michael was too slow and had to pull the lever again and wait for the rock to move. His arm was safely pulled away before the rock jerked open to prevent additional needless injury. As soon as the rock was cleared he followed Cairomon to the narrow staircase. The steps were all uneven, it was clear they'd been crudely cut from the rock that was the wall. They were also slick from unknown liquid, it looked like water. They made slow progress at first and then the rock slid shut above them. What light there was instantly disappeared and it was blindly dark. Michael heard Cairomon's claws softly tapping the rock wall and he began slowly feeling his way down the staircase as well. It seemed they were barely making progress, the slick stairs got more narrow and Michael was stepping by placing one foot directly in front of the other. His mind wandered while they made their way down the seemingly endless staircase, what waited for them, what would they do if they had to confront FlaWizarmon, what would happen after they left, how would they leave, where do they go after they do leave? These questions haunted his thoughts and he tried unfruitfully to dismiss them because he was unable to answer them. Yet they lingered, as though the answer was just at the tip if his tongue waiting to spring out. Time seemed to go on as endless as the staircase was turning into. Michael was tired, he felt achy, his mind dull, and he wanted to lay down to rest. Cairomon broke the silence not long from these feelings settling in for the first time since they were above ground.

"I need to rest, If we are not close to the bottom we will need to rest on these stairs." Michael felt around on his armor and found a small hard pebble wedged between two pieces, he handed it to Cairomon in the dark. As they let it fall they counted,

"1... 2...-" CLANG-G-G-G-G. They were near the bottom, the entire chamber shook from the mighty noise of the tiny pebble but they felt renewed energy tear through them. While still making slow progress neither were tired any longer. They continued going and they moved faster than they had before. Michael steadily carried out his pattern of one foot in front of the other, brace on the wall, move forward, rinse and repeat. His foot went down, he shifted his weight, and his foot slid to the left right off the step. Right into nothingness he felt himself go, Cold air rushed around him as he began his fall. Within moments he realized that the fall was much further than the pebble hand indicated, it must have hit something to make any noise at all. He free fell. He screamed. Cairomon shouted. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Then all at once he was submerged, it wasn't water, it was thick, cold, and surprising. He swam slowly to the surface and carefully cleaned his nose and mouth before breathing.

"Cairomon," His voice reverberated in a deafening thrum, "Jump." There was a subtle sound of clanking as Cairomon's claws touched the rocks. Michael moved over and after what seemed like several minutes Cairomon's mass made a very quiet gulp sound as the thick slime absorbed his landing. A moment later he was at the surface, together they blindly found where they could climb out. At the base of the stairs, next to the pit of slime, the two slept. Their rest wasn't solid as both moved uneasily. When Michael did wake up he felt he'd overslept but he knew it was his uneasiness sleeping in the pitch dark he was truly uncomfortable with. He woke Cairomon and they felt their way through the dark tunnel. After a short time they found the tunnel turned and as it did small crystals growing from the walls were luminescent. Michael felt stupid for sleeping in the dark when they could have found light just a little farther. Cairomon seemed very happy on the contrary and grinned broadly showing his sharp teeth. They started making their way down the glowing tunnel until they found themselves inside a large room. The glowing crystals lining the walls and floors all over. On a raised rock near the center of the room FlaWizarmon stood his back to them, he was mid-casting what appeared to be a complicated spell, he was taking his time. They moved as quiet as they could into the chamber. FlaWizarmon backed up as he finished the last part of the spell within circles he'd created. The circles started glowing and the glyphs shone brightly. The crystals in the entire chamber dimmed as though there was power being drained from them. A shadow grew within the circles and then suddenly a Digimon was there, an entity. It was clear that this was a Digimon of intense power. It's body was solid in the upper half and fading as it went down towards it legs in the shadow that it spawned from. The Digimon was a greenish blue color and had a soft glow to his being. It was clear he was a Djinn Digimon though it was none Michael was familiar with. The luminescent crystals waned in power just due to its presence, and the air grew cold and thick making the Michael's skin goosebump. He found himself awestruck until the Djinn spoke in a voice so mighty that the chamber tremored and the sound of hundreds of small crystals shattering made Michael gasp.

"Did you get the device FlaWizamon?" The booming voice crackled as though with electricity and thunder, FlaWizamon produced the Digivice. "Good, we are one step closer to releasing my kind into your plane of the Digital Universe." Then turning to look directly at Michael and Cairomon and pointing at them the Djinn commanded,

"Now bring me the human."

Digimon Empire Chapter 5

Digimon Empire

Chapter 5

A large glowing circle with glyphs appeared on the ground surrounding Michael and Cairomon while Coronamon laughed from his flaming destruction. Cairomon ran but was knocked back by a force he couldn't see. They were trapped within the confines of the circle. FlaWizarmon stepped into sight hands glowing the same color as the glyphs beneath their feet. FlaWizarmon is a fire affinity spell caster, these pyromaniacs tend to be visible with active flames encircling them or on their clothing. They do also carry two large matchsticks instead of the wand that their pre-Digivolved form, Wizardmon, carries.

"Okay Coronamon you'll take control of this spell just like I've taught you." Coronamon walked over to FlaWizarmon and placed his left hand over FlaWizarmon's left hand and his right over his right hand. The spell shimmered for a mere moment during the transfer but neither Cairomon nor Michael could react quickly enough to take advantage of it. FlaWizarmon began casting a new spell, this one had much sharper drawn glyphs and an additional ring containing them. It took him several minutes but then it was cast and surrounded the first ring of glyphs they were trapped in. FlaWizarmon showed clear strain on his face, the spell was putting a drain on him.

He slowly started breathing and then while staying as calm as he could he began a very slow chant. As each syllable left his lips a corresponding glyph would glow brighter, starting with the outer ring and moving inwards as he finished the final glyph Michael felt a searing pain rip through him. He fell to his knees as a bright glow erupted from his chest and moved immediately outside the rings. The glowing stopped to reveal a Digivice. FlaWizarmon immediately stopped the spell he was performing and weakly picked up the Digivice.

"The MIRACLE tool." FlaWizarmon smiled as he stowed the device away. Then he slowly walked away from the clearing, very clearly drained. "Maintain the containment spell as long as you can Coronamon, and remember you've sacrificed your life for the greatest of causes. Because of your sacrifice tonight my pupil we shall win this war." With that FlaWizarmon left the clearing with the Digivice in tow.

Michael's mind was racing, he needed to devise a plan to escape this containment circles sooner than later. He thought of Coronamon and tried remembering what he knew about their innate natures that were programmed in. They were impish, their bodies were solid but they were enveloped in a living flame instead of a skin. Even if he could strike it there was no way for him to break the containment circle. He'd have to shake him, he'd have to scare him.

"Cairomon we need to get that, I know what that tool is. It is a Digivice. It is used for a Tamer to Digivolve their Digimon at a greater capacity than that which a Digimon would normally be able to naturally achieve." Cairomon narrowed his eyes and then a soft glow was seen in his jaws. Michael felt heat as a molten fireball erupted from the dragons throat and hit the barrier. The barrier absorbed the blast but it shimmered for only a moment. Coronamon's eyes grew wider and he looked surprised but maintained the spell without causing it to lapse. Cairomon attacked again, and then again, and then again once more. Each time Coronamon looked more strained. Michael drew his sword and aimed it at Coronamon.

"Cairomon, when you attack this time the barrier will fall just long enough for me to kill him. When he's dead lets eat him slowly before we move on. With any luck I'll just injure him so we can start eating before he dies." Coronamon's eyes grew wider as Cairomon prepared another molten fireball in his jaws. Cairomon let the blast go but Michael didn't move. The barrier shimmered as it waned.

"Again Cairomon." Cairomon complied. "Again." "Again." "Again." Finally Michael walked to the very edge of the circle closest to Coronamon. He stared at the little fire beast and slowly licked his lips. "You'll taste so good. Cairomon... again." As Cairomon let the molten ball from his throat Coronamon dropped the spell and turned to run. Not fast enough though, Michael sprung forward and struck the Digimon with the pommel of his sword. Coronamon slumped to the ground in an unconscious heap.

"Leave him Cairomon, he won't wake up for hours. We need to find FlaWizarmon. Lets go!"

Digimon Empire Chapter 4

Digimon Empire

Chapter 4

AxeBattlemon twirled his mighty axe in a deadly display as he quickly advanced on Michael and Cairomon. The narrow alley way offered no shelter but as Cairomon turned to run out the other side Michael stopped him.

"We need to stay here, he's too big and limited in how he can attack us in here," As he said this AxeBattlemon narrowed his eyes and began hacking giant chunks out of the buildings of the alley, "Uh nevermind lets run." The duo ran out the back side of the alley and saw both gold and silver Guardmon fighting in various pockets along the street, the large AxeBattlemon trying to work his way through the narrow streets in pursuit but could do little more than shout for his soldiers to pursue.

Michael and Cairomon met with little resistance as they worked their way around the small city. They found the northern part of the city to be mostly deserted and they'd lost the AxeBattlemon along the way. They were pushing towards the western wall, to escape the city walls and the battle ensuing. They had come across a couple scared silver Guardmon whom they dispatched quickly between the two of them but they saw very few inhabitants of the city. Smoke was growing thicker and the city was thick with the sounds of battle. As they reached the western wall Michael understood why he hadn't seen the inhabitants. A small Gazimon was ushering some Moonmon into the ditch beside the wall. Gazimon are feline rabbit hybrids, predatory by nature with unusually long sharp foreclaws. They digivolve from Moonmon which would explain why it was ushering the little In-Training level Digimon under the wall. As he saw the duo approaching Gazimon ran in after them. Michael could see AxeBattlemon smashing through buildings heading further east into the city. Cairomon slipped into the small ditch and crawled through on his belly. Michael followed close behind, leaving the city behind.

When they emerged they found they found the fields surrounding the city scarred with fire, dead Digimon, and destruction in general. Any Digimon Michael crossed that were still alive but critically injured he dispatched and moved on. Nearing the edge of the imminent destruction area Michael came across a Guardmon that had lost a hand and an entire leg. It lay there in mud slowly dying. Michael sighed heavily as he started to unsheath his sword but Cairomon stopped him.

"I will send this one off. I've thought of why you're doing this. I realized now that if I were in their position I would be grateful for the quick end." Michael stepped back as Cairomon walked to the suffering Digimon. He spoke quietly with the Guardmon a moment before dispatching it. Cairomon walked over to Michael, the look in his eye was of understanding. They walked on together in silence from there on. After a short time they reached the Talthos Forest to the west of the city. Cairomon's eyes glowed softly as he led the way, maneuvering them around obstacles seemingly only seen by him. Michael's mind wandered while they worked their way into the woods. He absently wondered where the Gazimon and Moonmon had disappeared to so quickly as they were not far behind them. He decided they must have hid among the destruction nearby the exit. He wondered about what had become of the MetalBattlemon. He never saw a carcass but he doubted that the AxeBattlemon would have let him live. His mind wandered to thoughts of the City, the name of which he didn't know and the inhabitants which lived in fear.

"What was the name of that city?" Michael asked, breaking the hour long silence.

"Talthos, hence the name of the forest." Cairomon retorted. They continued on in silence for some time further until at last Cairomon stopped and smelled strongly, listened carefully, and looked around a small clearing. Similar to the clearing Michael had started from.

"We'll stay here for now," Cairomon declared, "We need to gather what we need to make a temporary shelter and then get some rest." They spent the better part of the next couple hours gathering sticks, bark, vines, and large soft leaves similar to those Michael was wearing. In a short amount of time from there they had crafted a small shack with two elevated sleeping bunks. Within no time at all they had both fallen asleep, it was just before dawn. When he awoke Cairomon had already gotten up. It was in the late afternoon but he felt like he could still sleep more. When he emerged from their small shack he was surprised to see that the clearing had a firepit, and there was a string of fish roasting. His stomach growled and he checked to see if the fish were ready to eat.

"Those are for you, I've already ate." Cairomon's growling voice came from the edge of the clearing as he walked in carrying a bundle of sticks. He placed these in a pile next to the firepit with other wood he'd already gathered. Michael ate from the fish until he couldn't eat any more.

"These fish are amazing, how did you find them?" Cairomon straightened his back as he stood looking proud,

"There is a Seadramon in a nearby pond. We traded for fruit that he wanted which I gathered while you were sleeping. They aren't very bright so it was an easy trade." Michael now understood that they weren't just in a clearing similar to the one that he'd arrived in but they were actually in that clearing.

"This is where I arrived."

"I know," Replied Cairomon, "and that is why we're here. You need to be here for the miracle to take place."

"Miracle?"

"Legend has it that when the human would walk among Digimon a tool of destruction would appear if they stayed where they arrived." Cairomon explained, "I followed your scent to this place." Michael understood now why Cairomon had been so invested in smelling every corner of the clearing.

"Has any miracle tool arrived?" Michael inquired. Cairomon shook his head. While they waited for the miracle tool they continued to add improvements to their clearing home. They talked while they were working and Michael asked about politics, time, and history. He was trying to gather as much information as he could about the localized conflicts. Cairomon had only recently been imprisoned he came to find out, over not paying his taxes after it was discovered he was living on a small island in isolation for several years without paying the local tariffs. Being unable to pay he had been arrested and so far he knew a little of the tensions between the Empire and the rebel forces. There had been a couple rebels in the jail with him but they were quickly executed. Cairomon seemed to hold the opinion that neither side of the fight were good, bad, or all that intelligent as neither side had clear goals as to what they were fighting for or towards. The rebels in jail would ramble on about how it was unjust and the Empire must fall. The Empire would tax their subjects to the point of starvation and death which resulted in no subjects. Michael could understand the reasons for the rebellion given the state of political unrest but it made him uneasy at how feral Cairomon's resolution regarding the situation. It was as though Cairomon felt the entire situation mundane, the rebels shouldn't fight the Empire and the Empire shouldn't tax harshly. Michael caught himself smiling at Cairomon's simplistic understanding of the situation, like a child explaining the concept of war. Cairomon had no sense of time and could not answer questions regarding what year or day it was so Michael resolved to find out that information at a later date from a different Digimon.

"Why do you not care about the war Cairomon?"

"Because a long time ago I was once the leader of a small village of Gonamon, my pre-digivolved form. The Empire suspected that we would ultimately turn against them in favor of supporting either the Divine or the legendary arrival of humans. When I found out the Empire was mounting an attack I reached out to the rebellion to help support our village. They refused, said there were too few of us and too few of them to move against the Empire for us. We had no aid when the Empire struck."

"Well did you move the Gonamon out of the village before the attack?" To which Cairomon was already shaking his head and Michael could see the frustration in his eyes.

"Gonamon must stay in hot coals or they die, it takes quite a bit of work to raise one into a Cairomon," Cairomon sighed deeply as though resignation over the loss was some annoying inconvenience, "That's why I don't care about the war Michael, neither side is good and my species is now on the verge of extinction. I'll fight both sides with no discretion because I detest both." Michael understood now why Cairomon was as detached from the conflicts as emotionally possible. He could tell the Digimon bore the weight of the loss personally and he couldn't blame him since he'd very realistically do the same if it were him that had lost so much. They would have to prepare hard to help other Digimon not experience those same losses. They needed to train and despite his reservations regarding it Cairomon eagerly helped teach Michael how to fish, how to hunt small game, how to survive.

The two also spent some time sparing. At first Cairomon easily dominated Michael but within a couple hours Michael's determination drove him to keep toe to toe with the Digimon but only through use of the sword and sheath in both an offensive and defensive tool set. Michael liked the feel of both aspects. The two sparred each other off and on to keep their apprehension subdued though neither voiced this to other. This level of reservation was comfortable to both of them and they could each sense what the other felt without having to say it out loud.

Two days passed and still nothing had happened when Michael suggested they venture further out and see if they could gather news of happenings in the area and determine what they would do after they left their secluded shelter. They gathered some supplies and left. They were only gone for a day but they found out very little. They saw small camps spread over several miles that consisted of gold or silver Guardmon respectively but no other Digimon or signs of them were to be found. They made their way back to the clearing and as they neared it they saw bright glowing coming from it. Cairomon growled low,

"We put the fire out there should be no light, move with caution." Michael drew his sword as they advanced. As they peered into the clearing the entire place was ablaze. Flames rapidly eating away at their shack and food supplies. Everything they'd gathered was being destroyed and the flame looked as though it was living, moving from place to place in the clearing as though it was being controlled. Then he was finally able to make out a face, eyes, and shape among the flames. Coronamon, a small rookie level Digimon. It's is a living flame that carries the body shape of a small feline monkey hybrid. They tend to digivolve from Sunmon and they generate additional heat and power from the sun to be stored at night. It stopped spreading flames and stood there happily surveying its destruction.

"Thank you for joining me finally. My master began to worry you wouldn't arrive."

Digimon Empire Chapter 3

Digimon Empire

Chapter 3

Michael tried peering through the grating in the ceiling but couldn't see anything outside of frantic shuffling of feet and occasional glimpses of the moon. A large red glow streaked by and he thought it may have been a fireball. The Digimon with the sharp glowing eyes and rumbling low voice was now standing by him. He recognized the Digimon but couldn't quite place who it was. A small dragon, its neck slightly longer than that of an Agumon, and less bulky than a Guilmon. His scales were black like obsidian and his veins in between each scale glowed a soft red, the same soft glow as were in his eyes. His snout was pointed and not snubbed, all in all he had a rather majestic look despite walking on two legs.

"We can't break out of here. You will need to hide, hopefully they don't check well." Michael looked around as he said this but decided there was no place to hide in the exposed cell. Hours crept by and the two stood there staring through the opening seeing increasing numbers of fireballs and streaks of light. All at once there was a rush of Guardmon entering the dungeon. The Digimon shoved Michael in the corner and slammed him down to the floor. Then turned quickly and stood directly in front of him shielding him from view. The Guardmon that entered opened the cell and filed in.

"Cairomon step aside. We have been ordered to move the 'humon' out of the city before the rebels take him. It is evident they're attacking this boldly on account of his presence. We need to keep them here." They moved forward as a solid group and went to take Michael. Cairomon growled,

"He will not leave here without me."

"Step aside prisoner or be punished." The Guardmon at the front drew his standard sword and menacingly aimed it toward Cairomon. Cairomon didn't back down until Michael grabbed him by the arm while standing.

"No. It's fine I'll go with you." Walking around Cairomon Michael found himself seized and dragged from the cell. The Guardmon locking the door securely before marching Michael further into the dungeon below the long house of the city rather than upstairs and out. When they reached the cell on the furthest point of the dungeon one of the Guardmon stepped in and lifted the bunk on the floor revealing a staircase leading on. All at once the group was enveloped in pitch black darkness. It was thick, like sludge or burnt motor oil. His mind raced, he couldn't think of a single Digimon, attack, or element they'd created that attacked or moved like this. He heard the Guardmon falling to the floor around him. He could still feel the heat from their torches but he could see no light. There was grunting, sounds of slams and metal clanging, and death. There was no mistaking that sound. Michael reached out blindly he tried working his way down to hall back towards the cell he'd shared with Cairomon. His legs grew heavy, as though the shadows themselves were pulling back on his ankles. The touch was oddly familiar though he couldn't place where or how that was possible.

Then Michael stumbled, freed all at once and in the light where he could see again. The shadow was actively tearing apart the Guardmon and he ran from it. As he reached the cell that Cairomon was still in he frantically searched for a key but to no avail.

"Either leave me here or go face the shadow and retrieve a key from one of the Guardmon that fell." Michael looked and saw the shadow retreating into the secret passage at the end of the hall. As he made his way toward them he was taken aback by the gruesome scene. There was blood and gore splattered everywhere. This was not coded in, this was another evolution the Digital world had taken. He retrieved a set of keys and one of the swords from a fallen Guardmon, carefully removing the sword and sheath from the belt hold. He'd started to walk away to head back but realized that the Guardmon was roughly the same size as he was. He quickly gathered up some loose armor from the fray and tried putting it on. The greaves were a little large, the boots a little small, and the chestplate fit on a funny angle. Overall though the Guardmon's armor replaced his makeshift leafy clothing. Satisfied that this outfit offered better cover and protection and that it was situated on him well he headed back down the hall. Not without a glance back to the cell where the shadow dwelled. One day he'd have to come back to confront the entity. Shaking the thought he moved more quickly until he reached the cell and unlocked it. Cairomon stepped out and looked at the scene down the hall and then looked at the stairs leading up.

"Which path do you want to take, I smell death in both." Cairomon's nose flared. Michael simply shook his head.

"We're going up. I need to see what's happening above ground and after whatever that thing was just tore through those Guardmon I'm not going that way." With that the duo moved upwards and as they came out from the dungeon they bore witness to Guardmon fighting Guardmon actively in the room in the long house. The Guardmon that were the captors, like those who perished below, were all wearing silver armor. They were fighting Guardmon who were adorned in Gold armor, a bright bronze shining brilliantly as though just polished despite the obvious signs of battle and destruction around.

"We have no allies here," Cairomon whispered in a low growl, "Lets get free from the city and then we'll focus on where to go." As they reached the door a Gold Guardmon rushed through, in one swift movement Cairomon jumped back and Michael thrust the sword he'd liberated from the Guardmon in the dungeon forward deep into the Gold Guardmon. The Guardmon shook, rattled, and slid off the end of the sword in a heap. Cairomon looked visibly impressed but refrained from speaking as they hurried from the city. Just outside the door there was another gold Guardmon whom Cairomon dispatched. It was as though it hadn't even seen him approaching as Cairomon tore into it. Michael explained that due to their helmets they had enhanced line of sight vision but terrible peripheral vision. Meaning so long as they stayed out of direct site of the Guardmon fighting everywhere they could easily dispatch them. It simply took being smart and moving efficiently. They set off from the long house in a straight shot for the gate and encountered nearly no resistance. As they reached the city gate however they stopped. MetalBattlemon was squared off with an AxeBattlemon, a digivolved form of Battlemon. AxeBattlemon wielded a massive two-handed axe, he was less heavily armored as his opponent and pre-digivolved forms. Sporting this flexible leather armor, his head was most greatly exposed revealing his goblin like features. Sharp teeth, pointed ears, and a green complexion. AxeBattlemon was a menacing foe to behold. MetalBattlemon had his sword molded from his right arm armor and a shield had formed in his left hand. The two crossed weapons and the ground shook in concussion. Cairomon and Michael slowly backed away and made their way down a bloodied alley. Guardmon may not have good peripherals but those two ultimate level Digimon definitely did and that was one battle better left avoided.

"We're going to need to find another way out of the city," Cairomon said in a hushed tone, "There is no way we're getting past them." A gurgled cough came from behind a damage crate and a strained voice quietly echoed out.

"Th-there is... another way-ay out." Michael moved over to see a severely injured Guardmon, "Go, to, Go, to, the western wal-al, There is a small-al, hole under the wall. Squeeze through and leave." Michael looked at the Guardmon as Cairomon already started moving to the west wall pausing only to wait for him. Michael closed the Guardmon's eyes and lifted his sword, thrusting it into the chest cavity of the terminally injured Digimon. Cairomon turned his head quickly,

"You are strange to end him."

"He was suffering," Michael replied, "I was sorry for him to suffer and there was nothing to be done to save him. I let his death come quicker." Cairomon nodded and as he turned back to walk again a shadow fell over the alley.

"Just as I'll let your death come quicker." The booming voice of AxeBattlemon echoed, his bloodied axe twirling in hand. Their escape just became much harder.

Digimon Empire Chapter 2

Digimon Empire

Chapter 2

Michael was growing increasingly apprehensive as several minutes passed by. He should have awoken from the stasis pod already yet he hadn't so his mind racing about the possibilities regarding his situation. He was painfully aware of being naked so he started gathering some material to make himself some makeshift clothing. It was mainly large soft leaves but it did the job in covering him up and protecting him from the chilly wind. The wind cutting across made him think it was late evening yet when he looked around he realized it was almost exactly noon based on the position of the softly glowing sun. Though he knew if he was stuck here he'd need to find some shelter soon.

Michael left the clearing moving slowly around the pond he'd spotted the Seadramon in. He needed to avoid it seeing him when he couldn't defend himself. Seadramon were inherently predators yet minimally intelligent, however given his current state he thought it better avoided than not. His progress was painfully slow as he walked barefooted through the lightly wooded area he'd started from. As he neared the edge of the woods he came to an abrupt stop. A grassy field area was ahead of him and marching in exact formation was Guardmon, a Digimon he'd designed as general soldier type to patrol towns and cities in later years. Guardmon were essentially living suits of armor. Silver shining steel covered them from head to toe, the humanoid Digimon looked almost enchanted due to their appearance. Their eyes were the only physical aspect of their bodies visible outside their armor. Even so their eyes were shrouded in shadow with only a faint twinkle coming from within their helmets. The result is that Guardmon have restricted peripherals despite being designed with stronger than average line of sight vision. Something was definitely wrong. Guardmon were not designated to spawn into the Digital world until the year 1000 when they'd simulated the "medieval" era began. He understood that something had glitched between him entering the pod and arriving in the Digital World. He needed time to think and determine what he was going to do given this development however as he began to back into the woods some of the Guardmon spotted him and all at once they were moving in his direction.

Michael ran into the woods to try and evade the Guardmon and found he wasn't gaining any ground over the pursuing troop. His bare feet were already bleeding as he slid down the wooded hillside to only further injure them. As he reached the bottom he was in a full sprint and started his way up the next hill. As he made the first step beyond the crest of the next hill armored hands gripped his arms and tore him back. Within minutes they were back in the grassy field and making progress quickly to the east. He was surprised at their speed, he'd had a good lead on them yet they caught up to him in no time at all. He wondered as they neared the first of many large hills in the area if the Guardmon he was in company with were a specialty class or just standard Guardmon. Specialty class Digimon were Digimon he'd designed as special variations of a standard Digivolution. So these could have been SwiftGuardmon or ScoutGuardmon or something similar which would give them the advanced speed they so quickly subdued him with. As they broached the crest of a hill he saw they were approaching a city. Not a village, or a town, but a city. All thoughts of speciality and subclassing was instantly gone from his mind. Something was definitely wrong with the time, as he was supposed to start at 00;00:00 in the Digital World, there shouldn't have been Guardmon and definitely not cities.

As Michael passed through the city gates he saw visible wear on the stones making the wall. Cracks and abrasions, even small claw marks. He was surprised at the growth of moss and weathering the rocks which were used for the walls had already endured. Then there was obvious wear on the stones for the main walkways. It was clear that these stones used for the pavement received extremely heavy traffic, they were worn down to where there were wear tracks in the pathways. He looked around in awe at the site of the buildings, stone with wooden roofing, wooden doors, and glass paned windows. Inside the windows he saw the faces of Digimon and as he looked around the city as he was being marched in he saw more and more Digimon. There were Digimon of all species within the walls of the city and they were visibly scared. He didn't know if they were scared because of him or because of the presence of the Guardmon. Then he started to see where he was being led as they progressed further into the city. At the center of the city was a long house and the Guardmon led him directly to the ornate gates at the front entrance for it. Battlemon, the Digivolved form of Guardmon, stood posted outside the door and after some hushed conversing with one of the Guardmon they opened the door and Michael was led inside. The Battlemon were much more intimidating in person than they were in concept. Towering 7' tall heavy armored Digimon brandishing battle maces instead of swords. Their peerless eyes looking almost hungry at him as he was led past them. As he was brought inside he was taken to the center of the room where their leader, possibly the Digimon running this entire city was standing at a table overflowing with food, It was a MetalBattlemon, one of the possible Digivolved forms of Battlemon. Unlike normal Battlemon, this ultimate level form could manipulate his metal armor forming weapons on a situational basis. It could be brandishing a sword one minute and a lance the next. It would do this by manipulating the metal in its armor. The heavy armored MetalBattlemon was even larger than the Champion level Battlemon, standing in at a solid 8' tall and broader at the shoulders. The mere presence of it in the room drew attention, it was a powerful Digimon.

"Guardmon, report why you've abandoned your patrol." The metallic grinding voice echoed in the large room. The Guardmon that had spoken with the Battlemon at the door stepped forward,

"Sir, we captured this creature fleeing into the Talthos Forest after curfew. We do not know what nature of Digimon this is and so we brought it directly to you." The MetalBattlemon motioned for Michael to come closer and one of the Guardmon harshly obliged by shoving him to his knees in front of the group.

"What nature of Digimon are you?" The metallic voice sneered with a clanky aire.

"I am no Digimon," Michael retorted while rising to his feet, "I am a human."

"A human?" The MetalBattlemon stood more erect and apprised Michael more fully. There was little doubt in Michael's mind that the MetalBattlemon either didn't understand what that meant or he didn't believe him.

"Yes I am a human. Not a Digimon."

"I do not know what that means but our laws are very standard in such matters. You shall be tried in the Southern Pangean capital of Soulgrande and the council shall decide what to do with you." The MetalBattlemon motion dismissively and Michael was quickly led down a staircase. After being roughly thrown into a large cell the Guardmon disappeared. Michael looked around for a way out but realized that it was probably fruitless since it should be able to contain Digimon that can attack it and he lacked those abilities. The window for his cell was centered on the ceiling and it didn't take him long to realize that the grate looking out was in the middle of the street. There were other Digimon in the cell with him but they were sleeping. He saw a soft glow coming from one of the bunks where the Digimon laying there eyed him. Michael slumped in the corner of the cell and fell lightly into sleep.

He awoke a while later and felt his head hazy. He vaguely remembered being in a cell and he looked around without shifting position. The bars were made of iron if not steel itself, the stones of the cell were solid and the cement that held them together smooth. He noticed scratch marks on the walls and wear on the wall behind the toilet. Digimon must often stand on it to get a better look out the small grating in the ceiling. As he let his eyes wander to the grating he was surprised by the amount of traffic still passing overhead. It was clearly the middle of the night yet there was a steady flow of foot movement overhead. His eyes wandered back to the bunks where the Digimon lay and saw the soft glowing of its eyes on him. This unsettled him, and so he rolled over and drifted uneasily back to sleep.

What felt like seconds later Michael awoke with a start. There was shouting and the ground rumbled occasionally.

"We're under attack. The rebels are attacking the wall. Prepare the anti-siege weapons!" Voices shouted over head only to be drowned out but loud piercing shots, like small missiles striking, and mini quakes the shook everything.

"Hmm..." a deep rumbling voice came from the bunk with the pair of eyes that were fixed on Michael when he'd entered the cell, "This could be bad. If you are what you claimed you were they will kill you if they get to you."

"Kill me? Why?" Michael asked in surprise.

"Because you're human."

Digimon Empire Chapter 1

Digimon Empire

Chapter 1

Michael was sifting through stacks of paper stacked precariously over the four desks his friends and him used for their project. His dark brown hair cut short and choppy, his usual style. He wore his usual ensemble of jeans and a button up short sleeve short over a solid colored t-shirt. His usual expression and tone was serious though he did try to be light hearted, especially around his friends. A small group of friends; coders, graphic animation designers, and then... Michael. While he wasn't as skilled as his friends he had the creative mind that had drawn them all together. These were some of the things Michael thought about whenever he'd start his morning work out routine. He was an aspiring amature boxer when he wasn't otherwise indisposed due to work or the project they were all working on. He felt that it helped him keep his mind sharp and focused which was something he needed since he was responsible for organizing their massive project. It had been two years since they'd started designing everything for their project and they only very recently started implementing their system. It started just a couple months ago when they began digging out their central base, an underground multi-level complex to house their massive project.

Michael admittedly relied most heavily on his best friend, Keith. Keith and his twin brother Kyle were both engineers who were both actively working towards their Master's degrees in engineering. Kyle was the better of the two but each had their strong points. Few people could distinguish between the two if they were standing side by side, but Michael could as could Amanda who was Keith's girlfriend. The duo stood at a sometimes staggering 6' 9" and had broad shoulders. They each sported natural bleach blonde hair and a chinstrap. The biggest difference between the two was around the stomach where Kyle tended to forgo more meals than Keith. Another distinguishing difference between the two was the Keith tended to dress more rigid than Kyle who preferred laid back style clothing for all occasions even wearing sweat pants to job interviews. Keith was also missing a chip out a tooth after Michael and him fell out of their treehouse as young teens. Keith spent most of his time tinkering with algorithms and complex equations that Michael couldn't wrap his mind around. Kyle was more focused on helping out with the general things that the team was going to need such as a workable toilet system and intra-networked computer systems.

Keith's girlfriend Amanda spent most of her free time designing 3D models of different elements for their project. She'd spent several months working on rocks alone but she'd complained quite a bit about how boring they were and kept getting sidetracked making leaves, barks, and sticks of varying sizes. She was especially gifted at pulling all of these elements together into forests and wooded areas. Her brother Tony on the other hand was better with grasses, plains, and hilly regions and spent a large portion of his time toying with various wind effects on both his elements and his sisters creations.

Dj and Mark were friends from a different flock than Michael and the others. They had grown up in project homes on the rougher side of town but Tony had made friends with the pair when they'd joined the local graphic design college. They were 3D animators but lacked the skill to compete with Amanda and Tony so they spent a large portion of their time cloning and recoloring the elements made by the others. Dj found he was especially good at autumnal colors and could give Amanda's forests a gorgeous autumn foliage.

Tori and Calvin were friends of Kyle and the pair had been dating for longer than anyone could remember. Even as small children they were inseparable. These days they sported a cultured gothic style but despite appearances they were two of the best coders in the entire region. Tori worked for a high scale private security firm and spent most of her working hours tracking threats to the firewalls for her employer. Calvin on the other hand worked for new project development for Google and had personally done the bulk of the coding for the newest style of Google+ not to mention the countless smaller security updates he'd assisted with for Gmail. When the two weren't working they were home on their laptops staring and massive classes of script as they rewrote and revised the various elements in code that their graphic animator counterparts created. Tori would often make snide jokes about how much coding does it take to make a rock, in place of the commonly used phrase 'how many people does it take to screw in a lightbulb. She'd use this phrase anytime she felt people were spending too much time overlapping work which she felt was wasting time. Unfortunately she felt this occurrence was happening daily so it was something they heard quite often. Calvin would simply smile at her sweetly and then explain to the team how it would be more efficient to do things differently to provide less overlap.

When the time came to start breaking ground for the base where they would create the Digital world however this was little talk or thought of overlapping, coding, graphic designs, 3D models, or how much coding it takes to make a rock. Everyone rolled up their sleeves and set in for the long haul. Gathering the necessary tools seemed simple at first but not everyone could do everything and it took some coordination to make it happen in the end. Finally Amanda stepped up and spent more time designating tasks than digging just to help the process move along. The digging itself was arduous and time consuming. Starting with a basic mine dig out; remove dirt, enforce with boards, encase with tin sheeting, and then expanding until room size sections were dug out. The work started with just flashlights and electric lamps until the first few rooms were done. Then Michael and Kyle worked out how to get fixed power underground. This task wasn't the easiest to carry out but during a storm induced power outage the duo connected into the city power grid. Next came water from a well that Mark's family business drilled out. The first room was the entry, the two adjacent rooms were for bunks and kitchen space. Over the course of two months the modest start turned into three complete levels going further underground. There was a general lounge room, two bathrooms with showers and a sauna in each for the guys and girls respectively, and the first kitchen was turned into a dining hall with a full larger kitchen later added down the hall. The second floor was accessed via ladder and was the work station floor. One large room with tables, desks, computers, and an array of monitors to make any menial work station look lacking and primitive. The third floor was comprised nearly entirely of server space, and food storage, and the end of the floor was were a large waste access room was made for toilet and trash disposal.

Now Michael was spending his time sifting through the stacks and stacks of pre-conceived materials and disbursing them to the appropriate work stations for everyone to work on. Most everyone else worked during the day but Michael was still in college and took his courses online which appropriated him enough free time to work on the project during most of the day. Tori was who funded most of the project as she'd inherited a small fortune from elderly family members who had passed and it took a lot of the relief away from financial strain regarding the servers especially. Kieth was studying to be an engineer and was busy tinkering on the third floor for a virtual reality pod. In hardly any time at all Kieth took his pod concept from paper into reality and Mark whose day job was working for a chemical engineering firm helped further this along with the necessary chemicals and compounds to add in a stasis like aspect to the pods. This design would allow the user to enter mentally into the component while they were put into a stasis like state of being.

The next six months were spent expanding the base further, adding additional servers, doing massive amounts of coding, animation, and concept design. After six solid months of work the team had finally created a world in their digital intranet that was roughly 1/24th the size of earth but it was a complete world. Varying continents, islands, and topographical features. Trees, grasses, and even rocks to sand were coded and designed individually. Every feature that we see as mundane in the world had to be designed and coded. Once this world was completed their was a lengthy process of backing up the world and saving it as this copy, untouched, on both the servers and external saving sources in the event that something catastrophic happened.

Then they finally began designing the inhabitants of this world they'd created. Digimon, there had been great debate over how the entire system would work but ultimately they agreed to pull aspects from all elements of the Digimon universe. The designing process and coding process took months more to complete with nearly a week of solid work per Digimon but it included all elements of the Digimon evolution hierarchy. In-Training, Rookie, Champion, Ultimate, Mega, Ultra and at that point the evolutionary level label varied pending on various elements such as affinity and life experiences of the Digimon. The Digimon creation process carried on steadily for two more years. Kyle, Ca;vin, and Tori revised, replaced, revised, replaced, and revised yet some more the overall personality algorithm of the Digimon. Never truly satisfied, they did their best to emulate their personalities being influenced by real life situations. No one left the project over all this time but they did add a couple more graphic design artists after Amanda started working for a popular gaming design firm and got a couple of her coworkers, Jen and Jamie, to join in on the project.

Almost four years after the project began Keith approached Michael and asked him to be the first to test the pod simulation. A simple test, he would enter the Digital world at 00:00:00 and he would stay in the world for 60 seconds and then ejected at Digital world time 00:00:01. Keith had been experimenting with a world speed enhancer. He intended to simulate time in an accelerated pace by tapping a download of information into the bulk of the human brain that was otherwise unused to avoid any damage done to the brain. The basic idea was that a day would pass in the Digital world in about a minute or so. Michael would be in a slower version of this at merely 2x speed. He would be in stasis in the pod for 30 seconds but 60 seconds should pass in the Digital world while he was there.

Michael agreed and the team went forward with preparations. It took three days but finally Michael climbed into the pod. As it slid shut the last thing he saw was the excitement and jealousy in the eyes of his friends. He felt himself drift off to sleep as his mask pumped him with the stasis gels. Then he felt his mind wake up. A rushing feeling around his mind, like when you dream you're falling and wake up with a start, and then with a slam he was laying there on the ground. He was naked and cold, standing he looked around, he was standing at the edge of a clearing. Trees swayed, wind blew, he could smell the crisp air, he could feel the grass between his toes. For a moment he doubted he was in the Digital world due to the level of detail and the subtle chirping of birds around him. This doubt was quickly subdued as he witnessed a Seadramon breach out of a pond he could see beyond the clearing. The Seadramon was a more basic minded Digimon, they were created to fill the role of a predatory eel. The Seadramon carries a classic sea serpent appearance and was designed as a natural constrictor, killing its prey by wrapping its long body around it until the prey suffocated. Seeing this his heart started racing. Then he began to count in his head, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5... ...58, 59, 60, 61, 62. Something was wrong, several minutes passed and he was still here.

Michael's mind was trapped in the Digital world.

Prologue and Author Notes

Digimon Empire

Prologue and Author Notes

Hey guys, thanks for reading Digimon Empire. I wanted to take a step back from writing the plot to give some author notes and a loose framed prologue. Please note: I do not own Digimon, Digimon Images, or any aspect of the intellectual property of the Digimon Franchise. I'm just a writer who is writing about a series I'm fascinated with. First off there are going to be some discrepancies in this Digimon universe in comparison to the Anime, Video Games, Manga, and Trading Card universes. This is due to the fact that this is my own adaptation of a story I've been working on since I was around 12. As of the time of writing this I am 25 years old, every day I daydream about Digimon a little bit and on some of those days I've daydreamed several days or weeks of events. I decided to start writing about this story I've day dreamed about all these long years because I wanted to share the experience I've had through my own variations of storytelling. So lets start with the basics:

Digivolution

Digivolution is when a Digimon (Digital Monster) reaches enough power/experience (EXP) to grow to a new stage. This evolutionary process can be short lived and the Digimon will revert back to a lower stage. Once a Digivolution has been unlocked it is traditionally easier for the Digimon to go back to that level when prompted.

Traditionally, Digimon Digivolve into higher classes from lower ones with each class having a distinct level designation: In-Training (Level 0), Rookie (Level 1), Champion (Level 2), Ultimate (Level 3), and Mega (Level 4).

In my universe Digimon Digivolve into the following distinct level designation:
In-Training (Level 0), Rookie (Level 1), Champion (Level 2), Ultimate (Level 3), Mega (Level 4), Ultra (Level 5), and Ancient (Level 5). Divine Classes (These Digimon DEFAULT at level 6): Divine (Level 6), Demon Lord (Level 6), Supreme (Level 7), and Malignant (Level 7).

In my universe Digimon gain permanent EXP through life experiences; crossing a river, solving a personal issue with a neighbor, or defeating a rival Digimon in battle all constitute as life experiences. When a Digimon reaches enough experience it Digivolves. The Digimon should have to revert back to its Rookie level until such a time it can Digivolve into its Ultimate level, at which point it can then choose to remain in its Champion form as its permanent base level. When it reaches Mega level it can then choose to remain in its Ultimate form and so on. The Digimon may of course choose to revert to lower levels whenever it wishes. This helps the Digimon to conserve both energy and food since higher level Digimon tend to get tired more frequently and they have accelerated metabolism to give their bodies the energy needed to sustain their Digivolved state. If a Digimon reaches a point where it has not eaten or cannot sustain the energy needed to hold their Digivolved state they will revert to a lower Digivolution state.

In my universe Digimon can Digivolve into other states from their normal Digivolution lines due to extenuating factors such as climate, gender orientation, life experiences, traumatic experiences, and other life events. This can result in an Agumon Digivolving into Greymon, FlamingGreymon, or Meramon (Just as three examples, Agumon can Digivolve into many more forms and variations than those listed). This branching Digivolution results in a lot of adaptability factors and adds a lot of depth to the universe as a whole.

In a nutshell; in my universe Digivolution is not linear.

Different Digivolution Methods

In my universe Digimon can Digivolve in different methods;

Digivolution

• Standard traditional Digivolution, when a Digimon reaches enough EXP it can grow to the next level. 
• In order for a Digimon to reach Ultimate level it must first Digivolve into Champion level if it is starting from Rookie level.

Digi-Egg Armour Digivolution

• Specialized Digivolution method when a Digimon can be Digivolved by activating the power of a RARE Digi-Egg.
• This is shortened as Armor/Armour Digivolution.
• Only Rookie and very select Champion level Digimon can Digivolve to a higher level using Digi-Eggs.
• Digi-Eggs that are capable of conducting this form of Digivolution are a direct result of Divine and Supreme level Digimon transferring their Divine power in the hopes of creating a Divine level Digimon but the egg failing to hatch into what is known as Djinn Digimon. It is a dud Divine egg.

DNA-Digivolution

• Two Digimon can very temporarily merge into one. 
• This short term form of Digivolution can occur with a minimum of two Champion level Digimon.
• Digimon must be the same level to DNA-Digivolve.
• DNA-Digivolved Digimon cannot conduct DNA-Digivolution.
• DNA-Digivolution Digimon are always one level above the level of the two merged. IE. Champion + Champion = Ultimate

Digivolution Card Digivolution Method

• Alternate form of Digivolution for achieving Champion level from Rookie level.
• Requires swiping a Digivolution card through a Digivice with the Digimon being selected on the Digivice to activate.
• Short term form with forced revert after a limited amount of time.

Matrix Digivolution

• Alternate form of Digivolution for achieving Ultimate level from Champion level.
• Requires swiping a Matrix Digivolution card through a Digivice with the Digimon being selected on the Digivice to activate.
• Short term form with forced revert after a limited amount of time.

Biomerge Digivolution

• Merges a Human and a PARTNER Digimon together to form a Mega Level Digimon.
• Requires Human.
• Requires Human and Digimon to be Partnered.
• Could be potentially permanent.

Assimilation Digivolution

• Host Digimon assimilates other Digimon, destroying them permanently and gaining power without merging with their personality.
• Permanent.
• Irreversible.
• FORBIDDEN

CHANGE LOG (for paragraph references each line break shall count as one paragraph):

Prologue and Author Notes:

• Fixed the URL

Chapter 2:

• (December 7th, 2014) - Reworded paragraph 2 to allow more linear transitions for reading.

Chapter 4:

• (December 7th, 2014) - Proceeding paragraph 16 I have added in a conversation between Cairomon and Michael further explaining Cairomon's past and the reasons why he's shown disinterest in the localized conflicts.

Chapter 7:

• (December 7th, 2014) - Added in the following: "What do we need to do in order to move on to other worlds?" As Michael asked he saw a gleam in the Djinn's eye.
• Reality Orb Fragments (RoF or ROF, can also be described as merely fragments)

Chapter 8:

• (December 7th, 2014) - Paragraph 14 I added in references to Reality Orb Fragments
• (December 7th, 2014) - Paragraph 15 I reintroduce Coronamon and have him interact with Cairomon a little.
• (December 7th, 2014) - I split one of the larger paragraphs to make the chapter more fluid and less wall of text.