Chapter Text
Airi Hamasaki stood in front of her dresser, looking into the mirror with concern on her face. Last night, she’d gone to bed feeling under the weather, but when she awoke that morning, she felt much better. However, she also had started to develop magenta scales on her upper arms, similar to those of an insect. She thought she’d be able to conceal them until she could get them looked at, but they had spread down her arms and appeared on her torso and lower legs too.
Now, as she looked at her reflection, she could see her eyes had changed too, becoming solid-looking amber orbs that seemed to bulge out of her head slightly, again similar to an insect.
Somehow, she knew she was becoming something not entirely human—or rather something more than human. Yet it felt almost natural, like she was a caterpillar turning into a butterfly, albeit without the need for a chrysalis.
I wonder how long it will take, Airi wondered. More importantly, I wonder what exactly I’m becoming.
*
At Hypnos headquarters, Mitsuo Yamaki was looking over the readings from the past few days with concern. Up until a week ago, Digimon had emerged rather infrequently, and most vanished soon after. However, not only was the rate of incursions slowly going up, but several incredibly strange readings had come up—it appeared that the equipment was detecting multiple instances of something not quite Digimon and not quite human.
Some sort of hybrid? he wondered. And if so, who or what is responsible?
Hearing a knock, he looked up to see Tally standing in the doorway. The technician’s skin had developed a pink tinge, and her ears were now somewhat pointed.
“M-Mister Yamaki...I think something’s wrong with me,” she said, her voice trembling slightly.
“When did this happen?” he demanded, hastily getting to his feet.
“I didn’t notice until about an hour ago,” she answered. “And Riley—”
She didn’t get the chance to tell him what happened to Riley because at that moment, he felt a sharp twinge in his temples and his back, making him fall to his knees.
“Oh my God, are you okay, sir?”
“Does it look like I’m okay?” snapped Yamaki.
“You’re right. I’m sorry,” Tally quickly apologized. “Maybe you should lie down.”
I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to rest, just for a while...
“Can you help me get to the infirmary?”
*
Rika hovered above the spot where she and Renamon had fought against a Dokugumon, and where Renamon had Digivolved into Kyubimon for the first time. Less than a week ago, she had started developing strange abilities—intangibility, invisibility, and flight. It had taken some time for her to get them under control, but once she had done so, she found herself liking them.
And she wasn’t the only one changing, either. Takato had begun emitting some form of radiation, though thankfully at low levels. He could, however, generate higher amounts, primarily in the form of energy blasts. While Henry had yet to develop any abilities, she didn’t doubt that he would do so in time.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted two figures moving. Instantly, she turned invisible and floated closer. A boy and a girl were huddled between a pair of trees, although the former looked more like a shadow with glowing white eyes.
“What’s happening to us?”
“I wish I knew, Katsu-kun.”
Rika’s eyes widened. Katsuo Fujieda and Yui Shimizu had both been reported missing the day after she first discovered her powers. But neither of them had anything to do with Digimon, as far as she knew.
So what exactly happened a week ago? she wondered.
Just then, the familiar fog that accompanied the emergence of a Digimon began to materialize. Both Katsuo and Yui jolted in alarm.
“What is that?”
Rika, meanwhile, had already sent a mental call to Renamon, and the fox Digimon agreed to bring the other Tamers with her. Hopefully, they could end this quickly.
*
Ben Green yawned and gave a good stretch as he stepped off the plane. He’d slept most of the flight from Japan to New York, and he was almost certain he could stay awake long enough to get home and greet his family. Then straight to bed to sleep off the jet lag—two weeks in Japan on a business trip could wear anyone out.
I hope Marie and Nicky like the Digimon figurines I got for them, he thought to himself as he retrieved her bag. They told me they were still missing three of the ‘partner Digimon’—Kudamon, Gaomon, and Biyomon, if I recall correctly.
As he turned a corner, he bumped into a woman. Fortunately, both were able to avoid dropping their luggage.
“Sorry, didn’t see you there.”
“It’s all right,” Ben told her. “Pretty tired myself.”
With that, he turned and continued on towards Ground Transportation, not knowing that not only was he slowly turning into the first American member of a new race, but that he was the one who brought the catalyst of transformation to the United States...