“This looks good,” the cultured voice remarked as he raised the clawed hand. “digital field come forth!” The typical energy lanced upwards and returned to earth, exploding in a thick fog. “There now. It should be soon.” <><><> “Lopmon, I don’t think they’re gonna allow you to come to school with me anymore,” Eric said, pulling on his orange vest. “The school suffered enough damage when that digital field showed up the last time.” “I’ll just pretend I’m a stuffed animal like I always am.” Lopmon said. “C’mon, lemme come along! I’ll get weak if I don’t come along.” Eric sighed. “Okay, but you’re riding in the backpack. There’s too many people and dad almost found out that I was toting a digimon to school.” “What about Sharmamon or Labramon? Why do I have to be a secret from your folks while they can do anything they want?” Lopmon asked, pouting. “Because Lopmon, the fact is that they were caught bringing them home. Labramon can pass off as a pet dog while Sharmamon does his ‘guy in a suit’ routine that seems to fool everybody.” Eric sighed. “I don’t want to make them worry if possible.” “Oh I see.” Lopmon leapt to his head as he drooped over it. “Lets go then.” <><><> Two clawed hands reached out as Jullie whipped around. “Who’s there?” Nothing. Jullie calmed her breathing. “It’s nothing. Just the wind. I hope.” As the neared the school, a icy chill came over her. Shivering, she turned the corner, only to find that the school had been totally covered in ice. “Oh no, what happened?” she asked one of the students who were at the front of the gates. “I don’t know,” he replied. “I came here this morning for class and the whole place is totally frozen over.” Jullie nodded as she handed him her backpack. “I’ll see if I can get the doors open. I’m sure the city can replace the locks.” Marching up to the school, she grabbed the handle and started to pull. She tugged harder and harder. With a loud crack like a gunshot, the door ripped off it’s hinges. Jullie let it fall to the ground in shock, the metal plate slamming on the ground. “The ice must have made the door brittle.” She turned to the students and said, “It’s okay, the door is open!” Suddenly, two hands reached out and dragged her inside the school as she screamed. The kids screamed in fear as they ran away. The front door covered itself in ice. <><><> Digital Diaries : Adventures 2003 written by Shaun Garin authorized by Lord Archive, set in his Digimon Series, Red Digivice Diaries/War Diaries <><><> File 06 : Fallen Ice Eric turned the corner. “Sheesh, what’s with the air today? It’s in the middle of... huh?!” He stared at the school, now with snow in the middle of the track and piled up in drifts along the sides of the school. “What is going on here? It looks like someone was playing with a snow maker!” Eric walked up to the door and looked at the now frozen into the ground metal door. “Wow, the door too? It must be less than minus twenty in there!” Knocking at the sheet of ice, Lopmon popped his head out of the backpack. “Want me to try and blast my way in?” “Good idea. The ice is too thick for me to break.” Eric said, stepping back. Lopmon leapt out, opened its mouth and called out, “Blazing Ice!” The projectile smashed against the ice wall, kicking up shards of ice and a cloud of snow. When it settled, there was a small hole in the middle of it. “I’ll try again. Blazing Ice!” Eric watched. Suddenly, he heard a thudding sound. Looking up, he saw Jullie pounding at the window of one of the classrooms. “Jullie!” he shouted. “What are you doing in there?” Suddenly, Jullie screamed, a faint sound that echoed through the windows as two clawed hands pulled her back. Eric’s eyes widened as he turned to Lopmon. “Keep blasting! There’s a monster inside with Jullie!” “Gotcha! Blazing Ice, Blazing Ice, Blazing Ice!” The barrage continued for a long moment before the whole doorway caved in, revealing a icy hallway and dense mist. Lopmon sat down, panting. “I’m pooped.” “You did great Lopmon.” Eric put on his ski goggles. “Now lets get moving.” “Not without us.” Eric turned to see Raine, Lee and their digimon with them. They had just come for school when the sight of Eric’s digimon blasting away at a frozen door made them stop. Lee shook his head. “You need backup. Whatever is in there had the power to freeze this whole place.” “Thanks guys, that means a lot.” “I’m coming too.” The group turned to see Bones step out of the bushes, brushing off snow from his pants. “You need a doctor if Jullie is injured in any way. And I’m well versed in keeping digimon healthy.” Eric smiled. “Thanks Bones.” “What were you doing here?” Raine asked. “Monitoring the school.” Bones checked his watch. “We have two hours before I have to leave. We’d better make this quick.” With that, he walked to point and took out the tricorder, scanning for lifesigns. “This way,” he said, pointing to the stairs. ‘Hold on Jullie, I’m coming for you,’ Eric vowed as he ran up the stairs, careful not to slip and fall. Bones stopped at an intersection before he scowled at the tricorder. “The signal is now coming from the gym.” He descended the stairs as he cleared away the mists with one hand. As they reached the doors, Eric gasped. “It’s frozen solid as well!” “Let us handle the door,” Raine said as her digivice beeped. “Labramon evolve!” her form changed to a grid as she was entombed with light, her skin ripping off and reskinned into ivory and gold colors. The light exploded, revealing a large white and gold beast digimon. “Shiisamon!” “Tiidiya!” The spirits raced forth and blasted the door inwards. “All right!” Eric ran into the gym and screeched to a halt. “Jullie!” Jullie was in the embrace of two white leathery wings that belonged to a white demon like digimon. He looked up and smirked. “Well now, this is a surprise.” “Let her go!” Lee demanded. “Who are you anyway?” “I am Ice Devimon,” he replied. “And no, I will not let this girl go. She is to be my daughter, the heir to my power. No one will stop me, not even you pesky chosen children!” “We’ll just see about that! Sharmamon!” Lee called out, holding out his digivice. “Sharmamon evolve!” His form tore off into the grid as he was entombed with light. He was then changed into a short squat red and tan ninja digimon as the light exploded off. “Ninjamon!” Ninjamon leapt up and threw several stars. “Iga Style Shurinken Throw!” The shurinken bounced off the demons skin as he smirked, his eyes glowing. “Zero Freeze!” Ninjamon dodged the attack which froze a section of the basketball nets. “He’s strong!” “Tiidiya!” Shiisamon howled, the blue flame spirits racing forth. They were neatly batted away. “He’s too strong, even for both of them! Eric, you’ve got to evolve Lopmon!” Lee called out. “Right. Lopmon, are you ready?” Lopmon nodded as he leapt off his head, the familiar light and grid washing over him. “Lopmon evolve!” His grid expanded and changed, red and brown fur covering his body as the energy exploded off of him. “Wendigomon!” Landing, he shot out his arm. “Club Arm!” The fist bashed Ice Devimon in the chin as he flew back from the impact. Jullie stood there, her eyes still blank, devoid of emotion as Shiisamon caught her fainting form and left the battle scene. Ice Devimon stood up, wiping blue blood from his mouth. “Good, but not good enough. Frost Claw!” One of his arms lanced down in a cutting blade which Wendigomon dodged, rolling back. His upper torso shot up, revealing weapon pods where his ribs where. “Destroyed Voice!” The multiple weapons fire slammed into Ice Devimon as he followed up with both fists in a Club Arm attack. Ice Devimon faltered under the attacks, heaving and coughing. “Imputent digimon, who do you think you are?” “Not a friend of yours,” Wendigomon replied, extending his weapons again. “Destroyed Voice!” Ice Devimon cried out as he was knocked back into the wall where he laid there, coughing. “Very good... good... but the damage has already been done.” Eric looked up from where he was helping Bones tend to Jullie. “Huh? What do you mean?” “He means he infected Jullie,” Bones said seriously. “He implanted his data into her. I don’t know what could happen.” “I’ll tell you what can and will happen,” Ice Devimon sneered. “She will become my heir. A human with the power of a champion level digimon, and your greatest threat ever. At first, she will have a power of a champion. Then, a perfection. Finally, an ultimate. She will be unstoppable.” Raine brushed back a bit of Jullie’s hair. “Can it be removed?” Bones shook his head. “I don’t know how. I never came across a case like this before.” “It’s too late.” Ice Devimon stood up as his hand formed into the blade. “She is MINE.” “You... you BASTARD!” Eric screamed. “WENDIGOMON!” “DESTROYED VOICE!” Ice Devimon had no time to scream as he was blown into data. Eric’s eyes watered as the room changed back to normal as he slumped to the ground, sobbing. Raine enfolded her arms around him as she rocked him. “It’s okay, we’ll find a cure.” Lee felt a twinge of jealousy but shoved it down. This was no time to feel like that, he berated himself. <><><> “Is she going to be okay?” Eric asked as the paramedics placed her in the ambulance. “A bit of frostbite, and a chance of the flu, nothing serious. On the other hand, we have that viral data to tend to, and she’s unconscious.” Bones rubbed the bridge of his nose. “I’ll be going kids. I have to attend classes.” He left silently as Raine supported Eric on her shoulder. “We’ll find a way, Eric,” she said as he nodded. “We’ll find a way to purge Ice Devimon’s data from her body.” “But will it be too late?” Lee asked, voicing the question they all had in their minds. The ambulance left the school as the three kids trudged into the school, their minds focused on the previous battle, and things to come. <><><> Journal Entry - Third week of April Today was the longest day of my life... at least, that’s how it felt like. I always looked forward to battling digimon. It made me feel alive, like there was a connection between myself and Lopmon. But when I saw Jullie in trouble today, I could only feel rage. I had never killed before, and I never intended to do so. But when Ice Devimon stood before us, laughing, taunting, Jullie, lying motionless on the ground, I realized that I wanted him dead. Wendigomon killed him. No... more like *I* killed him. It was my order. And frankly, I would have killed him again if he ever tried to return. All we can do now is hope for Jullie to recover on her own. Bones and Carter did the best they could. Now, it’s up to her. <><><> Authors notes : Ooh, set up. The effects of the viral data inside Jullie will come out later. It’s just a matter of time. Coming up - Digital Adventures 2003 : File 07 Unknown Hunter - When the kids find that someone else has beaten them to a digital field, and it’s not one of the elder chosen, will a single clue lead them to the unknown hunter?