A/N: Sorry for taking so long! I was busy with NaNo, but now that that's over with (though the fic unfortunately not), hopefully I can focus more on my other fics.

This chapter uses the prompt "allow".

Divergent Paths
Chapter 2 – Fire at Flame Terminal

They passed the sign saying "Flame Terminal up ahead" all too soon. Too soon for the two humans, anyhow. Raccoon Dog was eager to drop his passengers off and get some rest – as his grumbling the whole way there illustrated.

Takuya and Koichi were still thinking about what they'd been told. How they – or Takuya at least – was supposed to pick up something called a "spirit" and protect it. How they might have to fight. But fight who? And how?

'Oh dear,' Raccoon Dog muttered.

Takuya poked his head out the window and whistled. 'What in the world is going on there?'

Koichi climbed on to the seat, trying to see as well. There was something red – or was it green? – shooting up in to the air: thinning, spreading…disappearing… MarineAngemon climbed up to his head. 'Is that an…explosion?' It didn't look like one, but he wasn't sure quite how else to describe it.

'That?' It sounded like the Trailmon snorted – but neither of them could really say they'd heard a train snort before, so they couldn't be too sure. But that odd noise certainly reminded them of a snort. 'That's just a warning attack. An explosion is much bigger than that, kids.'

Takuya leaned further out the window. Koichi drew back a little. The blast, before it fizzled out, had looked pretty big to him. And if that was what someone called a warning shot…

How in the world were they expected to fight that?

And it looked like they might, because Raccoon Dog was going in that exact direction and slowing down. 'Stop's coming up,' he announced. 'And my nap's next thing on the menu.' He muttered something after that too, but neither human made it out. If MarineAngemon did, he didn't share.

'Oh boy,' Takuya said. Koichi agreed with the sentiment. He'd rather the train went in the other direction…but there was something there that the angel – Angemon – had said they needed to protect.

Or rather, that Takuya needed to protect. He'd just told Koichi not to wander away from the others. Others being Takuya and MarineAngemon at that point in time, because it didn't seem like Raccoon Dog was planning on sticking around them.

Or keeping them around him rather, because even with his warning he stopped suddenly, wheels screeching no the tracks and doors opening with an ear-grating creek. 'Everybody off,' he said, a little too cheerfully.

They realised why when the seats moved, lifting them to the door and then tipping to toss them on to the platform.

MarineAngemon slid under his jacket and clung to his back – which was lucky or on purpose, because Koichi landed on his stomach. Takuya, on the other hand, landed on his back. And neither of those were particularly good places to land.

But the Trailmon was off, wheels screeching, before anyone could comment. Not that Koichi could comment. Landing on his stomach had knocked the wind out of him and he'd pulled himself up to his elbows and was catching it. Takuya had a comment though. Or several. And if Koichi had the breath, he might have laughed.

At least, until the second "warning shot" – and this time it was definitely green.

They stood up. Takuya winced a little. Koichi took a deep breath. MarineAngemon peeked out of Koichi's jacket.

'Let's go,' Takuya said suddenly. 'That's probably where whatever we're supposed to find is –and that green stuff is probably from the guy trying to take them.'

'But – ' Takuya was moving before Koichi could finish his sentence, and he hurried after the brunet. Sounds drew closer as they ran. Bangs and snarls. 'How can we –'

This time, Koichi cut off his own sentence. It suddenly didn't matter how they could fight against something spitting out green – laser beams? There was a kid there. A little kid, eight or nine or ten. Hanging on to a pipe and sort of cornered by a snarling dog – or what strongly resembled a human dog – except for the fact that it had three heads, the middle one bigger than the two on the sides. More likely, it was one of those digimon Angemon had been talking about. And it wasn't quite facing the boy, but it was still close enough and snarling enough to be a pretty big threat.

And there were two other humans too. Closer to their age. The girl holding a pipe like a bat, waving it and screaming something. At the dog to get away from the boy. Or at the boy to get way from the dog.

Somehow, they hadn't heard her over the snarls.

The other boy didn't have a weapon. He had that look on his face that clearly said he didn't want to be there. So did the girl actually. So did the cornered boy. And no doubt the two of them were sprouting the same expression too.

But none of them were backing away. Running away. Maybe it was the cornered kid that rooted them to the spot. Because they couldn't just run.

But when the dog fired another one of those green laser things that rebounded off what looked like a heater and went skyward, they realised Raccoon Dog had definitely been wrong and that wasn't a warning shot.

And seeing as the metal had melted a bit from that last shot, if a blast like that hit them, they'd be in pretty bad shape.

'Dammit.' Takuya gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. 'That's…one crazy dog.'

That was an understatement, but what else could they say? Or do?

The little boy caught sight of them. 'Help!' he wailed, loud enough to be heard over the snarls.

The dog looked their way too. But what could they do to help? Or defend themselves if the dog decided to blast at them.

MarineAngemon slipped down his back again. It was a little ticklish, but Koichi barely noticed it. The dog looked even more ferocious when it glared straight at them.

And he'd thought Kouji's dog was a little unnerving. He might as well be a puppy compared to this.

Even Takuya was silent, just breathing, waiting – and then the dog turned away and started blasting at the heater again. They sighed in relief. But then the little boy screamed and the girl dropped the pipe and screamed too and they realised all those deflecting blasts were doing more than going upwards.

Bits were deflecting to the side. And it looked like one had hit the girl's hands and made her drop the pipe. And another had hit the little boy's hat and knocked it off.

He clung to the pipeline with both hands. Takuya swore, then gritted his teeth. 'I'm going to get him.'

MarineAngemon wriggled his way down Koichi's right sleeve and poked his head out. 'Pu? Pu?'

'Well, I can't just leave him there!'

Koichi understood that. Really, he did. 'But if you go closer, won't he – ' think you're an enemy and attack you?

But Takuya had moved before he could finish talking. Again. And MarineAngeon emerged from his sleeve completely and gestured with its tiny arms. 'Pu! Pu!'

'Follow him?'

MarineAngemon nodded.

Koichi swallowed. 'All…all right.' But he was slower. More careful. More cautious. Not that it would actually accomplish anything, because the dog had three heads, but that was instinct talking. Not letting him run full speed in to danger.

Which let him duck when piping broke away from somewhere and came dangerously close to his head. 'Watch out!' he cried.

Inexact, but that got the other kids on guard. And gave them more to worry about. The girl screamed as something dropped close to her – or maybe it was because the boy shoved her out of the way. The little boy was in the biggest trouble though. That's why Takuya was climbing that same pipeline. Trying to reach him. That was why Koichi, though hesitant and behind, was following.

And then the heater burst and all of them were in trouble. Koichi covered his face, though he knew it wouldn't accomplish much. MarineAngemon jumped in front of him. 'Pu! Pu pu!'

Koichi lowered his hands. MarineAngemon had unleashed a mass of pink heart-shaped bubbles that was gathering around the broken heater, containing the explosion.

And it did contain the explosion, evaporating as if they were water putting out a fire and leaving only a glowing, red thing behind.

The dog stepped forward, then stopped and turned. Takuya climbed further up the pipe, then stopped when he realised he was glowing too. Or, rather, the digivice he'd tucked in to his pocket was glowing.

He took it out. The dog snarled and leapt. The red glowing thing flew through the air and disappeared in to the digivice before anyone else could react.

And then Takuya really was glowing, and the dog was flying backwards as if struck. And Takuya was changing. Even though Koichi blinked – he daren't rub his eyes right then. Takuya was changing. Becoming taller. Sprouting armour. Growing golden hair.

The other children just stare in awe, then horror as the dog fires another green blast. But Takuya – or whatever Takuya had now become, simply punched at the air before it.

'Pyro Punch!'

And the green blast was struck by a fist of fire and extinguished.

'Pu,' MarineAngemon said.

No-one else had a comment. They simply watched the dog fly through the air again.

'Damn you,' the dog snarled. 'You – you're the warrior of flame.'

'I am,' Takuya – but it didn't sound like Takuya anymore – replied. 'And you're about to be roasted.'

The glow changed. It was no longer light but fire. A man covered in fire, leaping towards his foe for the final blow. 'Fire Dash!'

The snarl turned in to a scream and Koichi looked away.

When he looked back, the little kid was off the pipe and on solid ground and Takuya was on his knees and panting, his digivice beside him.

The other two kids came closer too. The girl was still cradling her hand – which Koichi could now see was blistered. MarineAngemon saw it too. He flew to her and blew another of his heart-shaped bubbles.

They – the standing kids – blinked as the blister faded away.

'It's gone.' The girl rubbed her skin, then grinned. 'Thanks.'

'Pu,' MarineAngemon said in reply, floating back to Koichi.

The girl grinned at him too. 'Thanks,' she said again.

'I didn't do anything,' Koichi replied, truthfully.

The blister was gone, but they were still pretty shaken too. And though MarineAngemon had stopped an imminent explosion, the heater was smouldering ash and the rest of the metal infrastructure was scarred.

Takuya sat back on his heels, feeling for his digivice. 'That was…' He fished for the words. 'Something,' he finished.

'You beat that monster,' the little boy said. 'How?'

'This…' Takuya looked at his digivice. 'I felt something enter me, and then…'

'You were cool,' the boy breathed. There was still fright in his voice, but he was recovering.

'Scary,' the other boy muttered.

The girl stopped grinning and bit her lip. 'Everything was scary,' she confessed. 'We were just talking here, wondering if we could find another Trailmon to take us back home, and then that dog showed up.' She looked at the ashes. 'What – happened to it?'

Takuya picked up his digivice. A picture of the dog appeared on the screen, along with numbers – zeroes and ones – running over it. 'He's…in here.'

'He will be restored, Warrior of Flame.'

The little boy jumped. The rest of them just stared. The voice…it wasn't any of theirs, but coming from the digivice.

'You're – ' It was the girl this time. The one who'd had the pipe, who'd hurt her hand. 'You're the voice who called us here!'

Koichi didn't recognise the voice at all, but he guessed that meant she was the Ophanimon that Angemon had spoke of.

And her next words confirmed it. 'Yes. I am Ophanimon, one of the rulers of this world. And I ask for your help.'