Author's note: Well, so much for never doing another digimon fic, huh? Well, I had enough inspiration to write one more. Hope you enjoy.

"Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they have ever believed in can hope to escape"- William S. Burroughs

Digimon: Apocalypse:

The Second Black Death

            Life is strange, isn't it? It can be filled with happiness, energy and overwhelming joy, and other times it seems like it is nothing but heartache, pain and destruction. And why is it that the happy times move at the blink of an eye, but the bad times go on and on?

            My name is Hikari Yagami, a Chosen Child, chosen by the Digital World to receive a digimon partner, to become a guardian of both the Digital World and Earth. While this task has given me such pleasure and joy as well as heartache and pain. I had been able to save so many lives, but at the same time I had to kill so many to safeguard those lives I swore to protect. But, I would not have traded my adventures for anything.

            The Chosen Children, my older brother, Taichi, and friends so close they're family, were heroes, some would even say super heroes. But, every super hero team has an arch-enemy, ours was a hideous, monstrosity called Myotismon. Through his pawn, Yukio Oikawa, he used the depression and sadness from a dozen children to resurrect himself. We fought and killed him, and the Digital World finally knew peace.

            We grew older, some graduated from school, some found love, others found heartache. However, to our surprise, more and more children were receiving digimon partners and we became teachers to them, helping them understand their destiny and their purpose. We were all happy, truly happy.

            But happiness never lasts forever. It started five years ago when the first Trojan Virus appeared. A Trojan Horse program infects a computer, giving other programs a 'back-door' entrance but does not replicate. I'm sure you've seen these malicious programs before, they are annoying to say the least, usually forcing your web browser to open to a specific page, or making hundreds of pop-up ads appear. But others, like the W32.Delalot.B.Trojan, attempts to erase your entire hard drive. Now, imagine that destructive Trojan, as a virus that reproduces and can infect other computers on your network.

That's what happened. A vicious and overpowering virus appeared on the internet, sent via e-mail. The virus was called the W32.Delalot.B.Trojan Virus, a Trojan program that was designed to replicate like a virus, but it was very dangerous, as it deleted all files on all computers. Anyone who opened the link would find their entire hard drive erased within hours.  It spread for years before the anti-virus programs could protect against it. However, it somehow found its way into the Digital World, where it mutated and began to infect digimon. It spread like a pandemic, untold numbers of digimon died within the first year alone, and an unforeseen consequence arose, due to the connection between a Chosen and their digimon, when the digimon died, so did the human partner. On Earth it was called the W32.Delalot.B.Trojan Virus, but we Chosen called it the Second Black Death, or BD-2.

Koushiro Izumi, another Chosen, found a way to modify the same virus definition used for the anti-virus so it could be used on digimon, we called it the X-Antibody. However, only a few digimon were compatible with the X-Antibody. An unforeseen affect was that these digimon became mutated, stronger, more powerful then before. For some, their evolutionary lines were changed, others had their attacks modified, and they all changed in appearance. They didn't tire as fast, and they weren't hurt as easily. They were cured of the Black Death, but the killer virus continued to spread through the Chosen population. When we realized that the virus could not be cured, all Chosen were ordered to bring their digimon partners to Earth, where they would be safer. However, no digimon could survive on Earth for an indefinite amount of time, so a device was constructed to infuse them with synthetic digital energy. But this Synthetic Digital Energy Accelerator, the S-DEA, was a second-rate replacement, and all of the Chosen digimon that chose to stay on Earth may not have the virus, but they would continue to be weak and sickly, made all the worse from their depression of never returning to the Digital World again. A type of…'drug file,' was being developed to give them energy, but it wasn't known if it would ever be completed.

            But the S-DEA required a massive amount of energy, and those Chosen who could barely afford to power a small, home computer could not afford this expensive device. They were forced to bring their digimon to the Digital World, but every time, they risked the chance of catching the virus, which thousands of Chosen did. The Digital World had become reminiscent of Medieval Europe, where millions succumbed to the original Black Death.

            Thousands of Chosen died from the first outbreak of the virus, while hundreds more were either infected with the BD-2, or forced to watch as their digimon partners became weaker and weaker from remaining on Earth for too long. But those Chosen modified by the X-Antibody became outcasts. Many Chosen saw us as corrupt overlords, and a resistance was created to fight against the X-Chosen, fueled by a new religion, which worshiped a god they called the God of the Digital World. We were even forced to fight our friends...all because of this damn virus!

            Koushiro Izumi, Tentomon, Daisuke Motomiya, V-mon, Ken Ichijoji, Wormmon, Iori Hida, Armadimon, Takeru Takaishi, Patamon, Miyako Inoe, Hawkmon…my best friends…dead, the virus killed them mercilessly. Sora Takenouchi, had escaped infection, but they had decided to remain on Earth as well, where their partners were forced to survive by continued treatments from the S-DEA. But Oniichan, Yamato, Jyou, Mimi, Michael and myself were all changed by the X-Antibody. We had survived.

            We buried so many of our friends, but we tried to live life as best we could. Life goes on, I only wish that it could be easier….

111

"The United Nations is a world-wide association of governments that cooperate in regards to international law, culture and economy. They were founded in 1945 by 51 governments, replacing the League of Nations. Currently, the U.N has over 200 members that…."

            Taichi Yagami tried as best he could to stay awake as his professor continued to speak from the center of the circular classroom. He briefly wondered why rooms in universities were always built in the same semicircular fashion, but that thought was pushed out of his mind when he yawned again. He quickly sat straight up and stared at the professor. He was lucky; she did not notice his display of tiredness. Dr. Hichai was a great teacher, but she was notorious for confronting those students whose attention drifted far from her subjects. And Taichi was constantly struggling to keep his attention focused. He knew he should pay attention, Political Science was his major, but he never did well having to listen to continuous lecture.

            Dr. Hichai walked over to her desk and closed her lesson book. "And since that's all I have for today, class is dismissed."

            Taichi blinked a few times, unable to comprehend what had just happened. Hichai never let class out early, he briefly wondered if this was some kind of freak twist of reality, but let it pass as he joined his fellow students as they charged out of the room. He exited the building and stepped into the courtyard of the university. He checked his watch, 4:15, he had about forty-five minutes off, what could he possibly do now? Eh, maybe he should just head home for the day.

            He traveled the familiar streets to reach the train system, which brought him back to the apartment that he shared with his sister. Taichi had moved out first, but had not enrolled in the university right away, needing to raise the money on his own. Hikari, however, had entered college immediately following high school; having received numerous grants and scholarships. She had even graduated before him and had gotten a teaching job in the nearby elementary school. Instead of having her have to worry about finding living arrangements, Taichi offered her half of his apartment, which she accepted. They often joked that they had shared a bedroom while growing-up, and now they were sharing an apartment.

            When he entered the apartment, he was surprised to see Hikari sitting at the kitchen table. She was dressed in a white skirt and formal jacket with a pink blouse. Her hair was combed nicely, and she was dressed in heels. She was still in her work clothes. "Hikari?"

            She turned to him and smiled. "Oh, hi Oniichan."

            "What are you doing home so early?"

            She glanced at her watch. "The school day's over."

            "Yeah, but you usually stay after."

She shrugged. "It was Friday, so I just came home." She raised an eyebrow at him. "What about you? Skip class again?"

"Actually, she let us out early, hard to believe." He rubbed his hands. "Well, its Friday, so come on, I'll take you out for a drink or something, my treat!"

            "Taichi, I've got papers to correct…"

            "Come on, you need to loosen up a little. We're both home early, it's a sign or something. We're partying, now come on!" He grabbed her wrist and dragged her out of the apartment…

111

            The cities of the Digital World had changed drastically since BD-2's infection. Thousands of Chosen and digimon were lying in the streets, weak and sick, coughing and emptying the contents of their bowels and stomachs. Some were bleeding and others were writhing and screaming in pain, some of these latter infected-beings were even missing entire limbs. The BD-2 was a vicious virus, completely eating away at any and all digital information, digimon and human alike. As a result of this pandemic, the Digital World's economy simply shut down, cities crumbled, houses were destroyed. Only the trees and water continued to thrive and exist.

            Jyou and Gomamon X arrived in one of the cities early that day. Even though they had seen cities like this for the past year, the infected Chosen and digimon of the city of Ylicis caused even them to gasp in horror.

            "This is bad," Gomamon X said, "Really…really bad!"

            "I know," Jyou said, putting his large backpack down on the ground in the center of the city, "But we've got to try and help them." He reached into the large sack and began to pull out stacks of red floppy disks. "Here!" he shouted, "I've got medicine! Medicine!"

            The sick and dying citizens slowly rose to their feet and lined up before Jyou and Gomamon X. They calmly waited their turn for Gomamon to hand out the floppy disks while Jyou gave the humans injections of antibiotics. "At least they're not like the little kids waiting in the waiting room, right?" Gomamon asked.

            "They're sick," Jyou said, "Give them a break."

            Unknown to them, a similar gathering was being held only a few blocks away. A young woman was standing with a digimon dressed like a red witch. The Chosen and digimon that he managed to coerce from Jyou and Gomamon X stared up at him with awe and wonder.

            "My fellow Chosen!" she shouted, "My name is Chihi Miayag, this is my partner, Witchmon. As you have no doubt realized by now, she is not an X digimon! She does not require daily doses from the S-DEA!  And yet, she is able to stand amongst you without fear of being infected by BD-2! That is because of the power bestowed upon us by the God of the Digital World!"

She began to walk through the crowd, mentioning with her hands, "You can be healed too! Do not let this virus harm you any longer! Do not be fooled by the false medicine given to you by those digimon that have been corrupted by the X-Antibody! You no longer need to be sick, ill, waiting to die! The Sovereigns are false, the angels have died, only the Digital God remains, the true god! Bow before him, accept him, and you will be strong!"

            Miayag smiled when she noticed that many in the crowd where staring up at her with curious eyes. She nodded at Witchmon, who hovered into the air. "If you want to be saved, then follow Witchmon, she will be the one to guide you to light and truth! Go now."

            The crowd began to follow after her, walking slowly due to their illness. Jyou and Gomamon X had been watching from a safe distance. "Those stupid cultists!" Gomamon X said, "They're gonna kill all those Chosen with their stupid magic, or whatever the hell they have." A smile crossed his lips, "Hey, let's go kick some butt!" He was about to run forward, but Jyou caught him.

            "Hold on."

            "What are you doing?" he shouted.

            The human shook his head. "Why don't we follow them and see where they're going?"

            A sly smile crossed the digimon's lips. "Getting sneaky as we get older, huh?"

            "That's not it!" Jyou protested, "I'm not getting into a fight if I can help it…or at least until I know what we're up against. Besides, if we start a fight now all those Chosen and digimon are gonna be caught in the cross-fire."

            "Know what I think?"

            "No," he answered.

            "I think you just want to see if you can take out their boss or something, right?"

            Jyou hesitated, then shook his head. "N…No, of course not. Now do you want to see where they're going or not?"

            "All right…all right, I'm coming."

111

            Hikari was still protesting Taichi's offer; she had projects and school work that she needed to finish. Her older brother debated with her until he offered to take her to a bar closer to home so she could be back home within an hour. She finally agreed.

            The bar they arrived at was a local hangout for young adults, so they were expecting the pub to be packed with drunken college students, but it was surprisingly vacant. "Cool," Taichi said, "We can get a seat at the bar."

            The two siblings found seats at the bar near the entrance to the kitchen. After ordering their drinks, Hikari began to sniff the sent coming from behind the kitchen door. "Wow, that fish smells good."

            "Hungry?" her brother asked.

            She smiled slightly and lightly patted her stomach. "I'm trying to watch my weight."

            "Oh come on, you're looking even skinnier then Mimi," he said.

            His sister smiled as she gently sipped her drink. "So, how are things going with you? Passing all of your classes?"

            "So far, yeah."

            She shook her head. "I still can't believe that you're going to be a politician, it's so…weird."

            "What do you mean?"

            "Just that I thought you'd end up being some kind of…of commander for a world-wide Chosen Children army," she frowned, "Even though the Chosen are dying…"

            Taichi wanted to say something comforting, but he could not think of anything.

            "Hikari, is that you?"

            Hikari turned around and saw a familiar orange-haired young woman enter the bar. "Sora, hi!"

            Taichi raised his eyebrows. "Sora?" He turned around and almost dropped his beer mug. He knew the woman standing before him was Sora, he had known her since they were both very little kids, but, at the same time, his mind was having trouble believing this was Sora. The Sora he remembered was attractive, but this person could rival even a supermodel, her skin was soft and graceful, her hair radiating like the morning sun. Her face was still flawless; her hazel eyes were the most beautiful eyes he had ever seen. She was wearing a low cut, sleeveless dress in an off-colored blue, which ended slightly above her knees. He tried to speak, but found that he could not.

            Sora walked over to Hikari and smiled. "How are you doing? I haven't seen you since you graduated!"

            "Well, I got a job as a teacher," she said proudly.

            "That's great! Congratulations!"

            The brown-haired young woman nodded. "Yeah, but I left early, that's why we're here for a drink."

            Sora glanced over Hikari's shoulder and noticed the young man beside her for the first time. Her eyes shot open. "Oh my…Taichi? Is that you?"

            He finally found his voice. "H…hi Sora.."

            "Taichi, it's been like two years, ever since you went away to college! Oh my gosh…"

            Hikari smiled and mentioned to the empty seat beside her. "Why don't you join us?"

            "I think I'm going to have to," she said, dropping her purse over the back of the chair, "I'm just going to use the restroom, be back in a minute."

            Taichi stared at her as she disappeared in to the ladies room. He turned to Hikari.

"Wow."

            Hikari giggled. "That dress is beautiful, isn't it? I can't wait until it's available in stores."

            "She didn't buy it?"

            "No, she designed it herself."

            Taichi once again almost dropped his mug, "She designed it?"

            "Yes, she's a fashion student, remember?"

He was amazed. "Wow, Sora's…changed, since I've seen her."

            "Well, it's not like you ever made an effort to see her since you moved away," she frowned, "I know that I haven't seen her since I got a job, but I've called her and sent her e-mails."

            Taichi hesitated, thinking of something to say, but nothing came to mind.

His sister waited for him to speak again, but when he did not, she continued. "The last time you saw her was for her twenty-first birthday, and that was three years ago."

He coughed slightly and mumbled a reply. His sister rolled her eyes and continued drinking. They sat in silence for a moment, before Hikari took a deep breath. She then asked her brother something she was sure he did not want to answer. "Do you still have feelings for her?"

            "What? No, no way, any feelings I had are gone." He drank his beer and thought, "And before this moment, I would have been one hundred percent sure…"

The two sat in silence, which was then interrupted by the clip/clop sound of Sora's heels as she returned from the rest room. Taichi noticed something weird about the sound, like it was not even. He wondered if she was limping on one foot, but he could only focus on her face. "Sorry, it was a long train ride," she smiled, sitting next to Hikari, "So, Hikari, how are you?"

            The brown-haired young woman grinned, and the two girls began to chat. Every time Hikari tried to include Taichi in the conversation, Sora changed the subject. Her brother was forced to sit silently and stare at his former childhood friend.

            Soon, Hikari glanced at her watch. "Oh, I'd better get going."

            "Really?" Sora asked.

            "Yeah, I've got some school work to do." She stood up and hugged Sora. "I'll see you soon." She walked over to her brother and kissed him lightly on the cheek. "Thanks Oniichan. I'll see you at home later."

            They both waved a farewell to Hikari as she left. The two young adults then sat in an uncomfortable silence. Finally Taichi broke that silence. "So, Hikari told me that you're studying to be a fashion designer?"

            She nodded. "Yeah, that's right."

            "I never really pictured you as a fashion designer. I kinda always thought that you were gonna be a florist or something. What happened to your mother's shop?"

            "It's still there. I just didn't like the idea of following in my mother's footsteps," she explained flatly.

            Taichi noticed how cold she was being to him, but he tried to ignore it. He tried to think of something to say, when he noticed the shoes that she was wearing. They were a pair of thick white shoes with a slight heel in the back. "Um…those are odd, shoes, aren't they?"

            She blinked and glanced down. "W…what do you mean?"

            "Um…just that most of the girls I see are wearing sandals or something like that during this time of year…"

            She shrugged. "There are a lot of shoes out there, Taichi."

            He decided to ask. "Is there something wrong?"

            She glared at him. "You mean besides the fact that after my so-called friend goes away to college, the only communication that I get from him are e-mail greetings for birthdays, which, by the way, I know that Hikari's sending me from your e-mail account."

            He cleared his throat slightly. "I wondered why I was getting those e-mails from Hikari's boyfriends…."

            "I don't find anything funny about this," she said, "We were like best friends since we met at soccer camp, and after you went away, it's like you just disappeared."

            He sighed. "I'm sorry, all right. I just…you know…"

            "No, I don't know. Why is it that whenever Hikari comes to visit, you never come with her?"

            "I…it wasn't just you," he said, "I…I just…"

            "What?" she asked, "What?"

            He hesitated a moment longer before sighing deeply. "It…just after the virus…after we buried Koushiro, I….I just broke down, I guess. I really couldn't…."

            "We've all been affected by that virus!" she shouted, "Koushiro, Daisuke, Ken, Takeru, Iori, we had to bury them all. You're lucky, Agumon was modified by that Antibody, but Piyomon became so sickly, we can't even go back to the Digital World, or we'll probably die, all because of the damn virus! Yet, I still manage to talk to Hikari, Jyou, and Yamato, why couldn't you?" She glanced at her watch, "I'm sorry, I need to go."

"Wait, let me walk you home."

            "I don't think so."

            "Hey, come on, we could at least…catch up?"

            She stared at him, but he flashed his goofy smile and her anger melted. "All right."

111

            Jyou and Gomamon X had tracked Miayag and Witchmon to a mysterious building only a few miles away. It looked like a church or some other kind of place or worship. However, it looked like it had been abandoned for years, as the entire structure was collapsing. As they peered inside through the missing stain-glass windows, they could see that Miayag and Witchmon was standing in front of an wooden altar, with the infected Chosen and their digimon partners kneeling before them.

            "Do not fear, my fellow Chosen," Miayag said, "For I will bring you strength and power. However…" She began to wave his hands again, in a rhythmic fashion, "While accepting the God of the Digital World will give you the strength to overcome the BD-2, one of you will be given an extra gift, one that I can only bestow upon the strongest one…" Her hands began to dance again, swaying and moving before they eventually pointed towards a young man with bright red hair. Seated beside him was a Betamon. Due to the affects of the BD-2 virus, parts of their bodies were missing. The boy's right arm was missing, while Betamon's fin had been completely eaten away. Not to mention that large chunks of their skin were missing, like massive blotches of red and green. "You."

            The boy looked at him. "M…Me?"

            "You name, what is it?"

            "J…James, ma'am," he said. He spoke with a British accent.

            Miayag smiled. "You will be the one, the one to receive the special gift…"

            "W…what about the others?" he asked.

            "They will be healed, do not fear," she grinned, "Now, will you accept the Digital God's gift?"

            James hesitated, then glanced at Betamon, who only stared up at him weakly. The British man nodded. "Y..yes…"

She mentioned to Witchmon, who walked over with a strange, bluish glowing orb in her hands. James struggled to his feet, he was obviously not used to missing one arm yet. He must have lost it recently. He reached out and held the orb within his left hand.

            "Now," Miayag said, "You need only merge it with your digivice. Do it, and become one of the strong!"

            James glanced down at the digivice which was hanging from his belt. He hesitated for a moment before bringing it over the device, which to his surprise flowed easily through the screen.

            His body suddenly stiffened and was overcome with a strange blue light. His missing pieces of skin began to reappear, as did his missing arm. As for his partner, he was overcome with the same blue light, but instead of his body repairing, he began to evolve! He grew longer, taller, more serpent-like. "Betamon evolve to Metalseadramon!"

            The infected Chosen who were seated in the church gasped loudly and cheered in awe. They all began to crowd around Miayag, demanding to be healed. Jyou and Gomamon X were in awe too, from their place in the window.

            "Metalseadramon?" Gomamon X exclaimed, "Metlaseadramon!"

            Jyou shook his head. "There's no way we can take on a Mega!" He sighed, "Come on, we need to get help.

111

            Hikari had waited up until well after midnight before Taichi finally returned home. "Where have you been?" she gasped.

            He smiled and shut the door. "I was jus' with Sora…"

            His younger sister gasped. "Sora! You two didn't…you know…did you?"

            "Wha? No…no…" he said, waving his hand, "No…no…" He suddenly fell to the ground.

            "Oniichan!" she gasped, running over to him. He was struggling to his feet, and she helped support him.

            "T..thanks…H…Hikari…"

            She sniffed the air. "You're drunk," she sighed.

            "I just had a few at Sora's…place…man, she still drinks like the girl I…I remember…" He stumbled for a moment, "I…I think I…I wanna lay down for a…a minute…"

            She smiled and helped him into his room, where he collapsed onto the bed. She chuckled and was about to leave, but he called out to her. "Do you think everyone has a certain person they're meant to be with for the rest of their lives?"

            She paused at the door. "I…I'm not sure Taichi, I think that if you really want to be with someone, it doesn't matter it you're meant to be or not."

            "Do you think I'll find someone?"

            She smiled. "Of course you will, you're Taichi, you're great! You're a lot better then me…"

            "Don't put yourself down so much," he said, "You'll find someone…too…." He began to drift to sleep. Hikari chuckled and turned the light.

            "Good night, Oniichan."

111

            The next morning Sora woke up with a mild hangover. "Oh man, my head…" She blinked a few times and rubbed her forehead. "Well, it's not the worse I ever had."

            She glanced around and saw that she was lying on her bed, still wearing the same dress as last night. She even had her shoes on.

            "Grandmother would probably have a heart attack, if she saw me wearing these inside," she smiled to herself as she slowly slid her right foot out. Her smile faded and she took a deep breath as she pulled her the left shoe off. On the left foot was a thick bandage wrapped tightly from heel to toe.

            She continued to hold her breath as she slowly undid the wrapping. Only her big toe remained, the other four were completely gone. But that was not what caused her heart to slip into her stomach, it was the revelation that the part of her foot where the missing four toes would be attached to had begun to disappear as well, like being eaten away by a mysterious, invisible mouth.

            She limped over to her vanity table and plopped into her chair, due to her hangover and to the pain from placing weight on her injured foot so early in the day. She began to wipe away the make up she was still wearing and then frowned at her reflection. There were giant splotches of red all across the left side of her face, it was even nearing her eye.

            When she heard the door open she spun to face her digimon partner, who was standing weakly in the hall. Most of her pink feathers were gone, as was the tip of her right wing. "How bad is it today?"

            Sora mentioned to her foot. "It's moving faster. I…I'm afraid that by tomorrow it will be completely gone. And…" She mentioned to her face, "It's spread to my eyelid. I…" Her shoulders started shaking and she began to sob. "It's not fair!"

            Piyomon limped over and placed her wing on Sora's back. "I know…I know…I…I think it's time we told Jyou…"

            "What's the use?" she asked, "There's no cure…"

            "So we're just gonna give up?" she gasped, "Sora, that's not like you!"

            "But…what's the use? We're just gonna end up dying! Oh Piyomon, I'm so sorry."

            "Sora, it's not your fault that we're sick like this…" she looked to the ground, "If anything, it's my fault."

            Sora stared at her. "Piyomon, it's not your fault!"

            "Well, it's not yours either!"

            Sora wiped a tear away from her eye and smiled. "All right, Piyomon, it's time to stop feeling sorry for ourselves. Let's call Jyou."

111

            In the Western Hemisphere of the Digital World, another city was under siege from the deadly BD-2. Maria lay on the back of her Centarumon as the Adult digimon weakly made his way through the streets full of the sick and the dying. Many of the Chosen and digimon were missing large portions of their bodies. Even the young Latino girl and her partner did not escape: she was missing both of her legs past her knees, while Centarumon's tail and left arm were gone.

            The centaur digimon trotted into a back alley and stopped before two Chosen and their digimon partners: Tatumj, a girl with light orange hair tied into braids and her Airdramon partner and and Sam, an African American male with a Flare Lizamon. They too were suffering from the affects of the BD-2.

            "What's up, Maria?" the braided-haired girl asked.

            The younger girl sighed and shook her head. "Michael and Mimi aren't back yet."

            "Damn it," Sam said, "Damn it!"

            "Calm down," Flare Lizamon said, "It will be okay."

            "No it won't," he said, "We're all gonna end up dead!"

            "Don't say that!" Maria protested, "Don't ever say that!"

            "But it's true," Tatum frowned, "Why is this happening to us? We saved the Digital World so many times, why did it turn on us like this?"

            "It's not the Digital World's fault!" Maria continued to protest, "It's just…something that happened."

            "Well it sucks," Sam said.

            Maria was going to say something, but loud cries from the street caught her attention. "What's going on?"

            "The Crowd is gathering," Centarumon said.

            A Chosen boy with dirty blond hair peered inside the alley. The BD-2 had actually claimed his right eye, behind him was a Veggiemon. "Hola," he said, "My name is Vicente."

            The six beings all nodded in greeting.

            "What are you doing here?" he asked, "The Digital God's messenger is here. Come, he will heal us!"

            "No thank you," Maria quickly said.

            "Wait," Sam said, "Maybe we should at least hear this guy out."

            "You're not serious!" Maria shouted.

            "I think he's right," Tatum said.

            "No!" the young girl gasped, "No!"

            "Maria, we're dying," she said, "If he can save us, then I think we should hear what he has to say."

            Maria tried to find the words to protest, but to her horror her friends were already following Vicente out of the alley.

….this is just the beginning….

Terms:

W32.Delalot.B.Trojan: A Trojan Horse that attempts to delete all files on a computer's hard drive. It eventually mutated to a hideous virus that caused a pandemic to the Chosen and digimon. (This is a real Trojan Horse, by the way, which, if infected, will destroy all the files on your hard drive. I'd avoid this at all costs)

Black Death-2 (BD-2): A deadly virus spreading through the Chosen population. As it mutated from a computer threat designed to destroy all files on a hard drive, the BD-2 eats away at the digital information of what ever it attacks. Digimon and Chosen infected have their bodies literally eaten away. For at least 90 percent of the Chosen, there is no cure.

Synthetic Digital Energy Accelerator (S-DEA):: A device designed to infuse digimon with artificial digital energy so they can remain on Earth. This device gives them the energy needed to stay in the real world, but leaves them weak.

The X-Antibody: A special program designed to cure and protect Chosen from the BD-2 virus, however, only a few digimon are compatible. The X-Antibody mutates a digimon, giving them a new appearance, attacks, evolution lines, ect. Only 10 percent of the remaining Chosen have been modified.

Deceased Chosen: Koushiro Izumi, Takeru Takashi, Daisuke Motomiya, Miyako Inoe, Ken Ichijoji, Iori Hida, two of the Poi Brothers from China, Lola from Russia, Steve from America.

Infected Chosen: Sora, from Japan, Noriko, Hiroshi, Takashi, Keiko from the Dark Seed kids, Catherine from France, Tatum, Maria and Sam from America, Mina from India

Chosen modified by the X-Antibody: Taichi, Yamato, Hikari, Jyou, from Japan, Michael and Mimi from America, Chichos from Mexico, Dingo from Australia, one of the Poi Brothers and Yuehon from China, Yuri from Russia.