A Hero's Legend

The Hazards Will

Fates Deal

Part 2

Matsuki Takato (14)

Legends are Written from the accomplishments of the Heroes, but the Heroes themselves are never worthy of the Legends. These are the stories not told in the legends.

It had been one year since the destruction of the D-Reaper. One year since they had left their digimon. One year since life went back to being what it was. One week since Takato had been a total moron and entered the digital world without telling anyone or doing anything except thinking about Guilmon.

To everyone's surprise, after a week of searching insanely, Shuichon managed to find the portal as well, and Yamaki figured that was where Takato had disappeared. The worst part, if not for Jen, Shuichon definitely would have disappeared with Takato.

Yamaki began a search for the leader of the tamers in digital world. Shibumi helped out and established a connection between the Sovereign Zhuqiaomon and the upper world. The Phoenix told them that Takato was fine, and the sooner they could get him and the rest of the Numemon sludge out of there, the better. He did describe Takato and everyone else in much more flowery language.

Takato was currently waiting at the point to which he would return to the digital world. It would still be half a day, and all of the digimon were currently residing themselves and enjoying the last of Zhuqiaomon's palace. In which Terriermon had gotten in more trouble then Takato thought possible. A mad Sovereign was not the pleasurable of things, and neither was a freaked out Lopmon. (She was going to have gray hairs before Suzie turned fifteen if Terriermon kept it up.) Takato was waiting, the area that he stood was so barren. Even Lopmon, who usual stood at the guard here, was missing. A red desert surrounding Zhuqiaomon's Castle.

This spot that he was standing on. He knew it, he knew where it was, what it was, he knew the pain caused here, but he didn't know why here was here. He had avoided this place like the plague until now, where he sought it out.

He knew why though. A very simple answer.

Megidramon.

Simple as that. He still felt guilty for what had happened. There was so much pain that he caused in such a careless moment. Costing thousands of digimon their lives and almost destroyed the human and digital world.

He placed his hand on the ground. It was here. He was standing here when it happened. In this very spot. He shouldn't have known that, but he did. He knew everything about that time. His dreams had plagued him about it. They were relentless, but they were his punishment, he could not say no them.

His dreams had taught him something too. They were too precise, too calculated, too... perfect. Their timings seemed as if they knew the future. Takato hadn't known what to think of them until two days ago when Ebowumon talked to him.

"Takato, there is something I need to talk to you about." Ebowumon told him, "It has to deal with the symbol on Guilmon's chest."

"The Hazard?" Takato asked.

The old turtle nodded. "You see, there are... programs even more complex then humans themselves that exist. As Digimon, we have no way of actually contacting them. We have at one point, but no longer. The point is that there are several different ones. The Digital world itself is the most commonly known program. The Digital Gates are another one, and each of the crests. In fact each and every digivice and D-Arc are one of the programs, but there's something different about these programs. They have a mind of there own. They have wills of there own. You've seen this evident in Grani, one more of the programs. Most of these programs are often aligned with the will of their owners, such as the D-Arcs. Part of there programing comes from each of the humans that are given them."

"Was the D-Reaper one of these programs?" Takato asked.

Ebowumon laughed, "No, but I imagine it wished itself to be. The D-Reaper was far too simple to be one of these programs. Far too simple."

Takato sighed, that was a relief, somewhat. The idea that his digivice could not do what it was made to do kind of scared him.

"Why I am I telling you all this... because you have been chosen." Ebowumon told him. Takato cocked his head to the side confused. "The Digital Hazard has traveled through many digimon, and left its mark. Lucemon, MirageGaogomon, and a few others. The thing is, it's chosen you to work through now."

"Me?"

Ebowumon nodded, "No doubt you've been noticing something else seemingly guiding your life? That's the Digital Hazard. It's manifested itself to you through Guilmon. You could call it the bond between you two."

"The Bond?" Takato said confused, "I thought it was a program?"

Ebowumon nodded, "It is, but that is the complexity of such a progam. The Digital Hazard is second only to the Digital World in its complexity."

"So... I'm just bound by the fate of whatever this Digital Hazard chooses for me?" Takato asked.

"Do you feel that it has led you astray? Do you not enjoy everything you've learned and done?" Ebowumon asked, "Besides, that. The Hazard merely prompts you. It can not force you to do anything. You however..."

"I can force the Hazard to do things?" Takato asked getting even more confused.

"You already have. You've seen the affects, you've felt the power of the Hazard as you grabbed a hold of it. It refused to cooperate though, and the great Demon Dragon fell, but opened up a new way to use the Hazard."

"Dukemon."

"Exactly." Ebowumon told him, "I fear however, that you will not be careful with that Hazard. Any and all of it's forms are not only dangerous and powerful, but if you do not use it proportionately, it will Kill you and the Hazard. Its done its best to not let that happen... but be careful."

Takato sat on a rock, and placed his head on his hands, thinking. "Is Dukemon when the Hazard always me to use it? Could I have another Ultimate level evolution?"

Ebowumon shrugged, "Perhaps, but the Hazard resides with you, and it will not let its hold weaken. Dukemon is when the Hazard give you as much control as it possibly can."

"And Megidramon?"

"Megidramon is when the Hazard helped you, but you forced it beyond the limits it was willing to go, and it held back away from you. Megidramon did not even have a fraction of what he should have. For all the chaos he did, it was nothing compared to what he's capable."

Takato sighed, he looked up to see Renamon standing on top of one of the pillars of the gate. Her eyes viewed him cautiously. Takato wondered what she was thinking. The Kitsune took another moment to

ponder Takato's presence here. The same place she had come every morning since the arrival of the human. The Kitsune digimon disappeared, and Takato took one last look around before leaving.

Sigh.

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Jen watched as Shuichon went through her cards yet again. She had already sorted through them three times already. "Oni-san?" she asked looking up at her older brother.

"Yeah." Jen asked as he noticed she was holding a certain card in her hand. Antylamon.

"Do you think... Lopmon... do you think that she'll stay with Zhuqiaomon-kun?" she asked worriedly.

Jen didn't know what to say. It was a possibility. He honestly hadn't thought about it though, she was the last remaining Deva. Zhuqiaomon might actually hold her back himself. He looked down at his little sister. He really didn't know what to say, he didn't want to give her hope if Lopmon didn't come, but he didn't want to just leave her.

He placed his hand on her head, "Even if she doesn't, she'll make sure that Terriermon will be there to protect you."

Shuichon cast her eyes downward.

Jen didn't know what to say and was at a lost. He looked up to see Ruki right there. She knelt down by Shuichon, "Don't worry. Takato-sama won't let her be left behind even if he has to threaten her with a thousand years of Terriermon if she doesn't come." Shuichon smiled a bit. "There, that's a girl." Ruki said. Jen glared at her, jealous of her. It was HIS sister, he should be the one who should be deciding what she was going to be told?

"Yeah and what if he doesn't?" Jen demanded of her. Ruki stood up, "What then? Huh. What happens when Lopmon-chan doesn't show up?" Jen was furious with the redheaded girl.

"Back off." Ryo tried to intervene, "She's just trying to help."

"Shut up Ryo-kun." Ruki told him. "Jen has a point." she told him sharply. Not only was she now annoyed at Takato, but also at Jen and Ryo all on top of the anxiety of Renamon coming back.

"Everything will be fine." Shibumi told them trying to calm their nerves, "I mean, unless there's some obscure digital anomaly, you'll be back with your partners within the hour." he told them.

Jen rolled his eyes, "Knowing us. The odds are a hundred to one that there will be. It's part of being a Tamer."

While the four of them relaxed slightly, Ryo continued to flirt with Ruki, who tolerated it, and occasionally gave a dry answer back, but her mind wasn't interested in being a pain to him right now. Her digimon had been gone for a year, and she didn't know what to do.

Kenta on the other hand had something else on his mind. "Jeri-chan?" he asked quietly, the girl sitting on the bench. She held her D-Arc close to her chest and had her head down.

"Yeah?" she answered, her voice a soft breeze that while comforting, was the first winds of a storm.

"Are you all right?" he asked, sitting down next to her.

Jeri was silent for a moment, "I... I'm just worried about Takato-kun."

Kenta looked over at the fountain. Takato's parents were pacing tiredly back and forth on the other side of it. Kenta couldn't imagine what they were going through. "Jeri-chan..." Kenta tried to go on, but no words seemed to fit into the chilly air that night. He pulled his jacket closer to his body. "When I heard that Takato-kun had been found, I was happy, and I know you were too. Then when I heard that the digimon we're coming back with him, even my MarineAngemon, I became estatic." Kenta's eyes ran across the top of the trees. "I thought how great it would be to see him and Guilmon and all the other digimon again... and I don't think I've ever been happier in my whole life... but then I saw you here tonight, waiting... just like everyone else..." Kenta shook his head.

"I can't explain it in words very good, but I know this is hard for you... and I want to help... somehow. I know I'm not Takato-kun... but I can't bear to see you this sad. I'm sorry, I don't know what I'm saying, I'm just getting confused."

Jeri shook her head, "No... Thank you. I'm not expecting Leomon to come back." she said. She gripped her D-Arc tighter, "But I wanted to know that the rest of you were happy... so I had to come... and yet..." Tears started to well up in Jeri's eyes, "I know I should be over him... but it's so hard... its so hard to think that you'll all be able to meet back with your partners..." Jeri turned to him tears streaming out her eyes. Kenta didn't know what to do as she grabbed on to him, but he gave her a supportive hug.

Ruki watched the two, "Earth to Ruki-chan?" Ryo asked waving his hand in front of her face.

She glared up at him, "What do you want?"

Ryo was taken back. This wasn't one of her flirting what do you wants, she was being a hundred percent serious. "I've been trying to get your attention for five minutes." he told her.

Ruki wasn't really listening though, "How could we be so selfish?" Ruki asked him.

"Huh?" Ryo asked her, then took a moment to follow her eyes. He saw Jeri sobbing into Kenta's arms. The kid was trying to give her as much support as he could while also trying to make it not look or feel to embarrassing on his part.

"Have we really depended on Gogglehead that much?" Ruki asked him again.

"Huh?" Ryo asked again, very much confused.

"You can't even see beyond your own nose, can you Ryo-kun?" Ruki asked him, her face filled with disappointment in him. "Jeri-chan. Who's looked out for her all these years, huh? Who was it that helped her get over Leomon, who was it that could forget enough about the loss of his own digimon so that he could help Jeri-chan deal with the death of her Step-father she had just come to trust. Who was it that's watched out for each and every one of us since the we lost our digimon? Huh? Who was it that watched over Shuichon when her older brother got mad at her? Who was it that kept me from falling back into my old ways? Who was it that helped the Imp twins get through their own loss. Who was it that made sure you didn't just fall out of the group?"

Ryo's mind stopped, and all fear that had caused, not only him, but everybody to act slightly different, on edge. He had cooped by teasing Ruki-chan, but Jeri-chan. "Takato... Takato..." he couldn't say it, he couldn't answer her question. Ruki made too much sense, but to say it would be to admit defeat to him. Who was it that stayed with the group while Takato went off to do his own thing? Him. Who was the better tactician? He was, and yet, if it weren't for Takato, he probably would have dropped off from the face of the tamers. It was Takato who had gone searching for him, making sure that he came to there gatherings. What made a leader anyways? "Takato-sama." The word was a bittersweet taste on his tongue, on one side pleasurable, but on the other.

Ryo expected for Ruki to make some huge deal about him finally admitting defeat, but the girl had yet to surprise him once again. "Yet were are we when Takato-sama needed us? Here Jeri-chan is, coming because she was willing to support us in our joy, and the only one to give a Digital is Kenta. Are these the people we want to become, so wrapped up in our own world that we can't reach out for somebody else who very obviously needs our help?"

Ryo had no answer. He looked over as a mist appeared at the fountain, and Grani in his Arc form appeared in it.

Takato stepped out and was instantly smothered by his parents. Shuichon had shot to Lopmon instantly, hugging her for all the little girl was worth. "You came!"

"Yeah... could I get some Air?" Lopmon choked out.

"Hey Jen? When was the last time you humans took a shower? You all stink!" Terriermon said instantly as he stepped out.

"Terriermon!" Jen scolded him.

The Dog smirked and grinned and Jen face palmed.

Ruki simply stood off and watched as Kenta escorted Jeri to the group of humans.

"You've been thinking." Renamon said from the tree above her. The tall digimon's eyes watching the group of humans.

Ruki didn't turn around or respond immediately, "So have you." she said in a thoughtful manner.

"Perhaps." The Kitsune a short smirk creep into her face.

Ruki let a small smile cross her mouth. "Your training starts tomorrow Renamon." she said.

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

Ruki started to walk forward as Takato's parents let his friends get to him. Takato turned to see Ruki marching straight towards him. "Takato-SAMA!" she yelled, "First you take off without telling anyone! Went to the digital world when you had no way of protecting yourself! KEPT ME UP for three nights searching for your Digital Tail! AND!" Takato started to back up as Ruki's wrath came upon on him. He closed his eyes and turned as she came within hitting range.

Takato, to his surprise two soft pair of arms surrounded him. Ruki was giving him a hug? "Thank you. I missed her." The world seemed to stand still before Ruki stepped back, Takato completely stunned. Ruki gave him a smirk, then ran off towards the forest where Renamon was waiting.

Takato scratched his head, then decided that it was to much to think about after today. He turned to see Jeri, and all of sudden he was hit with the fact that Leomon was dead, but all the other digimon had come back. "Jeri?" he asked quietly as he grabbed the girl into a hug.

"Takato..."

"..."

Takato didn't know how long he just stood there holding Jeri, it must have been at least half an hour. You know, as much as it's creepy to think that something else is controlling my destiny, there's been so many things that it's done for me that I would never trade back. The Hazards Will may be an odd one, but I guess that's my choice, isn't it? Guilmon, Jeri, everyone? Are they all results of the Hazards Will?

Remember young one. I while never lead you astray, I will ask you to have faith in me and trust me, but never will you regret doing the Hazards will, but it is always your choice... Always Young Child.

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Fates Deal

Part 1 Dragon's Heart

Part 2 The Hazards Will

Part 3 Second Best