Chapter Text
Disclaimer: The following is a work of fan fiction written by someone who enjoys creature collector franchises. Pokémon is owned by Nintendo, Game Freak, The Pokémon Company, Creatures Inc. and Satoshi Tajiri. Digimon is owned by Bandai, WiZ, Toei Animation, and Akiyoshi Hongo. If you want to support the official releases, worry not. Lord knows there is plenty of merchandise to choose from.
Listening to as I join a rescue team: Tiny Woods (Pokémon Mystery Dungeon Red Rescue Team)
Digimon Mystery Dungeon 1: Folly of the Gods
Okay. So here’s the deal. Last year I wrote a joke chapter for my main fanfic: The Crest of a Master. While most of that fic operates on the basis of Pokemon characters navigating the Digital World with their own Digimon partners (and no, it is not just an Adventures rewrite, don’t be fooled by Agumon and Gabumon), I wanted to have some fun with an April Fools Day chapter.
In that chapter, I had it so the forces that be made a mistake which caused the humans to be transformed into their Digimon partners instead of traveling with them. Mystery Dungeon style! People seemed to like that one shot, so I’m back.
At first, I was thinking of having those chapter appear every so often in the main fic because a lot of why this set up happened and what Digimon the kids turned into would be linked to events in the main story. But that kind of felt a bit messy, so I’m going to take reader Jarrarad’s suggestion and spinning this off into its own fic.
This fic will NOT receive scheduled updates as my main focus is The Crest of a Master. However, I’ll try to give this an update once or twice a year. Don’t expect the story to be as drawn out as The Crest of a Master either. This is just some goofy fun.
Now, for those of you who haven’t read The Crest of a Master, I’m going to catch up you on the basics of this fic’s lore using the most efficient method known to man: a text crawl!
A long time ago, in a Digital World far far away…
Digimon Mystery Dungeon
Thousands of years ago, a malicious Digimon known as Millenniummon terrorized the multiverse
To mitigate its rampage, a team of deities sent a human trainer back in time to the Digital World before Millenniummon was about to destroy it
It was a plan that was slightly less convoluted than your average Square Enix game
During his journey into the Digital World, the human brought peace to the warring factions and found ten Digimon to follow him into a final battle to seal away the ultra-level threat.
In the main timeline, the Pokémon of time and space, Dialga and Palkia, brought their apprentice Digimon to the moment after the battle to ensure the ten hero Digimon would be sent back to the Digital World so that they may reincarnate and team up with the Digidestined in the future.
However, we are not here to talk about that timeline.
We are here to talk about the timeline where they screwed the pooch.
If you’re still not caught up, feel free to read The Crest of a Master.
It’s only 40+ chapters.
I believe in you.
Post Battle Between Millenniummon and the First Human
Floating around in a nearly empty void was the debris left over from the battle between the first human, his party, and Millenniummon. Chunks of land and sea were scattered around like asteroids in space. Multiple combatants were left unconscious, flickering and glitching, their bodies barely holding together. Absent were the human, his Pokémon, and the universe destroyer himself.
Before any of the pocket dimension’s nearly dead inhabitants could awaken, a portal appeared in the middle of the debris. The portal was large and vibrant. It rippled and warped the colors around it creating an odd rainbow in an almost empty realm.
Descending from the massive portal was a small figure. Its body type mirrored a human child’s with a wide set of eyes and blue skin. Most of the Digimon’s body was covered by a long white robe while its head was mostly masked by a large, golden plate which resembled a gear. The Digimon’s long, bluish green hair was kept under a translucent, purple veil and its green arms had circuit board patterns embedded into them.
The Digimon looked around the battlefield until it spotted the glint of a small object floating in the middle of the debris: the first human’s Digivice. Giving a small gasp, the Digimon floated over to the tiny device. Sparks flew from the Digimon’s figures as it grabbed hold of the Digivice. It took a moment, but the Digimon was able to get the Digivice to project a series of holograms which the Digimon quickly began to touch and interact with.
“What are you doing, little oracle?”
Instead of closing behind the Digimon, the portal stayed open allowing two more figures to enter the room. Two very large figures. Large enough to crush the Digimon beneath their feat if they so pleased.
The first of these figures was bipedal dragon with skin hardened to the point where it resembled the surface of a pearl. Straight purple lines with sharp angles decorated its armor-like skin. Adding to its armor appearance were its armguard shaped plates on its forearms, rounded shield-shaped shoulders with large pearls in the middle, and a bladed head which resembled a gladiator helmet. In contrast to the dragon’s long neck and tail were a short pair of bladed wings sticking out from its shoulders. The dragon spoke with a smooth, feminine voice that seemed as though it had no point of origin. It was as though its voice was coming from the surrounding space itself.
“I’m adjusting the Digivice,” the oracle explained, sparks flying from her fingers and bouncing across the Digivice’s surface. Her voice sounded like that of a human girl’s. “It’s supposed to split into ten. You know, for the ten Digidestined.”
“You get ahead of yourself,” said the second dragon.
The second dragon was a quadruped with thick legs and dark blue skin that sparkled like diamonds. Like the other dragon, this dragon’s skin was patterned with glowing highlights. Unlike the other dragon, this dragon’s highlights were a light blue. It was further detailed with segments of metallic armor, the most notable being the metal horns on its head, the massive chest piece with a blue diamond in the center, and a metal sail which sat sideways across the dragon’s lower back. The second dragon had a long, powerful tail complemented with a long crest sticking out of the back of its head. Those listening to this dragon could hear its deep masculine voice before it uttered the first syllable and long after it finished speaking making it sound like this beast was not bound by the conventions of time.
The second dragon continued. “Timelines are delicate. While it is true that the Digivice will split, now is not the moment. If you act too hastily, you may cause the world and all that are linked to it to collapse.”
“I’m not going to split it now. I’m just getting it ready for when we come back to send it off to the Pokémon world,” explained the oracle. “No ne-”
Before the oracle could finish that thought a bright light enveloped the Digivice splitting it into ten new Digivices.
“Wait, I can fix this,” the oracle said hurriedly. She reached over to the devices and tried to bring them together only for the screens of the devices to light up. All around the trio, the barely alive Digimon broke down. This was bad enough as history dictated that a few of the first human’s Digimon were able to survive after the battle, but to add insult to injury the Digimon did not revert into eggs. Instead their data reformed into blue ribbons of fractal code which zoomed across the space and to be consumed by the devices.
“I…I did not do that,” stuttered the oracle.
“These are pitfalls of time travel,” explained the second dragon. “You must never take liberty. The slightest infraction to the canon, even a well-intentioned one, could disrupt the flow causing the timeline to crumble.”
As if on que, the entire void began to shake. The oracle clutched the Digivices protectively to her chest. “What’s happening!?”
“We changed too much,” said the first dragon. “This universe and all realities that are linked to it are going to collapse unless we act fast. We must quarantine these events and create a new timeline.”
“No! This is my mistake! I’ve got to fix it!” insisted the oracle. “There’s got to be a way to fish out the fractal codes from the Digivices!”
BOOM! The universe began to simultaneously melt and crumble. The pieces of land floating around fizzled out of existence and, though the surrounding space seemed endless, the trio could feel the gravity close in. It was as if the universe was collapsing in on itself.
“You must let it go,” said the second dragon. “In time you shall come to learn when you will be allowed to interfere and how. For now, allow us to fix this.”
Looking down at the Digivices, the oracle frowned. “What’s going to happen to this timeline?”
“It will play out separate from the original chain of events,” explained the first dragon. “It and the timeline it branched off of will exist simultaneously. As its creators, it will be our responsibility to check in on it ever so often.”
Sighing, the oracle looked out into the collapsing void. “Next time I’ll just stick with getting the chosen Digimon back to their Digital World. I’ll save reprogramming the Digivice until we give the prophecy to the angels.”
“That would be wise,” nodded the second dragon.
The lesson finished, both dragons raised their heads and released a powerful roar. The roar echoed across the pocket dimension and reverberated across the realities it was linked to, Digimon, human, and Pokémon. Thus, a new timeline was born.
Pallet Town in the Distant Future, Yet Not Too Long Ago
Ash moaned and grunted as he rolled around in his bed as the morning light from the sun flooded into his room and threatened to pry his eyelids open. It didn’t help that his covers were a mess from him tossing and turning as he slept so when he tried to pull the sheets over his head all he managed to do was blindly pinch around the mattress, unable to reach the sheets compiled at the other end of the bed.
This wasn’t his usual sleeping habit. It just happened when he was excited and why wouldn’t he be? Yesterday he completed his Journey Preparation courses and passed with…moderately okay colors. Okay, maybe he needed to go in for a bunch of extra classes, his cooking was just edible, and he still had a ways to go in the battle simulators, but he could pick up and polish those skills during his journey. Right now, he was capable of insuring that he didn’t shrivel up and die without parent supervision and that’s what mattered!
Speaking of parent supervision, this would usually be the time Ash’s mom would wrestle him out of bed either by shaking or scolding him awake. Usually, if she wanted him up and about at a given time, she would just set his alarm clock and move it to a location where he couldn’t just pick it up and chuck it across the room (how that alarm clock still functioned was anyone’s guess).
Sometimes Ash’s mom would be sneaky with how she got her son out of bed. Some days she would allow noise to do her dirty work by opening his window to let in the crowing of the town’s Dodrio or she would deliberately take her time vacuuming outside his room. On other days she would cook up something with a strong scent. Like some well-seasoned sausage patties or freshly baked nanab berry bread. Or something with cinnamon. Mmm. Cinnamon.
Ash bolted straight up. Cinnamon! All drowsy feelings wiped from his being, Ash leapt out of bed and down the stairs towards the warm spicy scent that wafted through the air. Sure enough, the stream of cinnamon goodness turned into a full ocean the second he entered the kitchen. There was his mother icing the freshly baked buns with her usual long auburn hair in a low ponytail and a bright smile on her face.
“Good morning, sleepy head,” she said. “I figured since you’ve been working so hard, I might as well treat you.”
Ash’s mother walked over to the table with a large plate containing a cinnamon bun along with some eggs and fruit. “Congratulations on passing your classes.”
“Thanks!” Ash eagerly accepted the plate and began wolfing down the hearty breakfast.
His mother took the seat opposite him and poured a cup of tea. “So, my up-and-coming trainer, do you have a plan for your journey?”
“Ie hashn’t chaged,” Ash responded with a mouth full of egg and bun.
“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” his mother chided.
“Sorey,” Ash took a moment to swallow before addressing his mother again. “It hasn’t changed. I’m still aiming to become a Pokémon Master!”
Ash’s mother smiled at this. “I should have known. Your love of Pokémon never wavered. Just like your…” she paused for a brief moment before continuing. “Just like your father.”
At this Ash slowed his chewing. Most people wouldn’t have caught it, but after the pause his mother’s voice became slightly more subdued. He could even spot the corners of her mouth drop ever so slightly. “Want some sugar cubes?” He offered.
Instantly the woman was back to her cheerful self. “Why, yes. Thank you very much.” Ash’s mother accepted the sugar cup and peered inside. “Oh dear, it appears we are out.”
“I’ll go to the store to grab some more!” With that Ash sprang out of his seat and zoomed to the front door.
“Pajamas,” Ash’s mom called out as she lifted her cup for another sip.
Ash zoomed away from the front door and to his room to change.
One Wardrobe Change Later
Dawned in his signature wardrobe, Ash made his way down the long, dusty road to the market. Despite being home to a handful of famous trainers, Pallet Town itself was just a small farming town. Most of the town’s buildings were spread out to make room for the small fields of crops save for Professor Oak’s Laboratory which sat on top of a hill with acers upon acers of open land in the back to house the wide variety of Pokémon the professor kept for his studies.
It was thanks to those various fields that a trip to the store could take a while. Not that Ash minded. Sure, he had to pick up his walk to a jog in order to get to the store before lunch, but he always enjoyed looking around to see if he could spot any Pokémon. So far there weren’t too many out today. Just a flock of Pidgey making their way over to the woods.
Ash craned his head skyward as he jogged to watch the flock. It didn’t matter that Pidgey were common. Bird Pokémon were so cool! The way they soared around the battlefield, switching from a serene drift to a savage sky bomb at the drop of a hat. He was defiantly going to get some kind of bird for his team. A Pidgey would be nice, they were supposed to get really fast as they evolved. Heck, why stop with just a Pidgey? Why not grab and train a bird from every region he visited. He could have his own flying squadron.
Of course, that would just be one member of his main team. As much as Ash enjoyed birds, he didn’t want to commit to being a bird keeper. There were way too many cool Pokémon out there for him to just limit himself like that! So what other kinds of Pokémon should he look for? Well, there was the classic elemental trio of grass, fire, and water. Old man Oak said that one of the reasons he became a champion was thanks to the balance that typing triangle gave to half of his team during his trainer years. It was also the reason that offering beginner trainers one of those three types as a starter was a staple all around the world. Or at least that’s what Ash thought the professor said. He wasn’t really paying attention during that lecture. Or most of the other lectures for that matter. Textbooks and lectures never agreed with him.
But hey, why just stop at flying, grass, fire, or water? There were plenty of Pokémon to choose from. Bugs were seen as weak but were easy to raise. Dragons were on the opposite end of the spectrum, difficult to find and train but real power houses. Rock, ground, and steel types tended to be hardy and could tank most hits. Unless those hits were thrown by fighting types. Psychic types were heavy hitters too, just less physical and more special. Fairies may have seemed cute and girly, but they could pack a punch while poison types worked as damage chippers who just needed one good attack to slowly wear down their targets. Ice Pokémon were famous for their ability to weather hostile environments and ghost types could make any place feel hostile if you got on their bad side. There weren’t any native dark types in Kanto, so they were about as mysterious to Ash as their name would suggest. Normal types were kind of all-rounders who didn’t excel against any opponent but could adapt pretty easily.
What type was he forgetting? Oh yeah, electric. Defiantly needed to train an electric type at some point during his journey. And all the others. A Pokémon Master had to be able to work with any Pokémon after all.
“Hey! Eyes on the road!”
“Huh?” Ash was broken out of his musings by a call and a line of what appeared to be walking yellow flowers using their roots as makeshift feet to cross the road. Ash recognized them as Bellsprout and he was closing in on them fast.
Immediately, Ash tried to stop his jog so that he didn’t trample the little guys. But the momentum from his movement didn’t quite translate gracefully and he ended up tripping over his feet and landing right in front of the last Bellsprout in line. The flower just regarded Ash with a tilt of the head.
“Sorry,” Ash weakly apologized.
“Bellsprout,” responded the flower Pokémon before waddling off to be with the rest of its group.
“Why are you in a rush? It’s not like there’s anything happening at the moment,” Ash looked up to see the owner of the voice who warned him. It was none other than his dear classmate and rival, Gary Oak. Currently the boy was leaning against a fence casually watching Ash’s crash.
Ash quickly got back up and brushed himself off. “I’m going to the store. I figured I might as well jog a bit since I’ll have to be fast on my feet while I’m traveling.”
“Yeah, I guess I could see that,” Gary nonchalantly shrugged. “Too bad you don’t have a car.”
Ash blinked. “A car?”
Gary smirked. “Yep, my old man has a spare convertible. I’m thinking of asking him to lend it to me for my journey.”
Up to this point Ash thought he had seen the extent of Gary’s one-ups-man-ship. “Do they give driver’s licenses to kids our age?”
“I can hire a driver,” Gary walked up to Ash and continued. “My plan is to get to the places with the strongest Pokémon fast so I can get started building my league team.”
Ash’s eyes once again traveled to the flock of Pidgey which was disappearing into the woods. “Wouldn’t you want to start by catching some of the Pokémon around here?”
In response Gary began waving his finger back and forth in tisk-tisk motion. “You’ve got to look at the big picture, Ashy-boy. Ever seen any of the Pokémon the champions use? They use hard hitting, fully evolved, juggernauts. I don’t see any Pokémon like that nipping at Old Man Wither’s turnips, do you?”
Ash’s teeth began to clench. It wasn’t so much that Gary was bad mouthing the Pokémon in the area, if he didn’t want to put any time into raising them it was his loss. No, what was making his blood boil was that condescending tone that Gary often took on when he spoke to anyone in their age group. Namely Ash. “A Pokémon’s strength doesn’t come from its evolution or how rare it is.” He huffed. “It comes from its trainer.”
That retort didn’t seem to faze Gary. “Guess whatever poor Pokémon ends up with you is doomed then,” Gary dramatically sighed. “You could have a legendary and still find some way to lose and lose badly.”
As Ash glared down Gary, he hardly noticed the circle of lights suddenly appear in the sky. He barely registered the group of brightly colored projectiles descend from that circle. And he most certainly wasn’t focused on the two that were rocketing right towards them.
“I’ll take you on with any Pokémon any day!” Ash almost shouted raising one of his fists at his once childhood friend. “It doesn’t have to be a legendary. It could be some random monster nobody’s ever heard of and I’d still be able to train it up to be the strongest fighter the league’s ever seen!”
Gary laughed. “Don’t kid yourself. If anyone is filling that role, it will be me.”
BOOOM!
Before Ash could respond both he and Gary were blown back by a sudden blast as some kind of small object smashed into the ground between them launching both parties back. Fortunately, the force of the push back was not enough to knock him out, just off his feet.
Groaning, Ash stood up to see what was just hurled at him. There, floating above a small crater in the ground, was a pair of what appeared to be some kind of device. Both octangular and small with a screen in the middle surrounded by several buttons. One red, one blue.
Ash stepped forward to get a closer look and found himself transfixed. He had never seen anything like these devices. Sure, he had seen a number of alien-looking pieces of technology in Professor Oak’s lab, but there was something about these tiny computers that captivated him. Particularly the red one. Ash felt some kind of yearning in his chest. It was as if the device was calling out to him.
Cautiously, Ash reached forward to grab the device. No sooner did his fingers circle around the object that his hand suddenly clamped onto it. That broke Ash’s trance. He tried to let it go or pull his arm back, but it was as if his hand had gained a mind of its own.
Now feeling panicked, Ash began using his free hand (thankfully not possessed) to grab at the hand which was gripped onto the device. He spared a quick glance at Gary to see if he could help or if he was also having problems. Sure enough, the brown-haired boy seemed to be in an identical situation as he also was trying to yank his hand away from the hovering tech with an increasingly fearful look on his face.
Before Ash could call out in a desperate bid to get some help (not that it would have worked given they were in the middle of nowhere), the device began to light up. Ribbons of blue energy shot out from the screen and began circling around Ash in a loose cocoon. Inside, sparks of electricity began cackling. The sparks bounced off the walls of the makeshift cage and across Ash’s skin. It didn’t hurt, it just felt weird.
Looking down at his arms, Ash watched as his hands began to fizzle and break apart like a glitch in a video game. Every so often he would see a grid pattern stretch across his hand reminiscent of the skeletons used for 3D models on computers. Finally, hands began to solidify.
At first, Ash’s hands looked like they were back to normal. Then orangish, yellow scales began to sprout. The scales spread from the back of Ash’s wrists down Ash’s arm and across his hand. The fingers of said hand were fusing together turning into three large fingers. The tips of these fingers stretched out past the skin turning into three massive claws that were still gripped around the device.
As the changes continued, the device began lifting Ash into the air before rocketing him toward the stratosphere.
While Ash flew, he felt the scales finish climbing up his shoulder and were now spreading to the rest of his body. Ash’s limbs began to pull into his body, making him shorter. His clothes were pulled apart by the sparks that danced across his body before dissolving in the air. Finally, Ash’s face ballooned out creating a large muzzle filled with sharp teeth.
Sparing a glance across from him, Ash could see Gary wasn’t doing much better. Thick fur was sprouting across the boy’s upper body. The fur pulled back from his body splitting his skin in two creating a coat of blue and white fur which clung onto the main body.
Now that he was peering outside, Ash could see multiple cocoon comets just like his and Gary’s. They were all heading toward another planet, their assent quickly turning into a decent. As they plummeted toward the surface of the planet, the comets scattered separating Ash and Gary from the other kidnappies. Ash’s mind was still scrambling to figure out exactly what was happening when he hit the ground, knocking him out cold.
???
Welcome!
This is the portal that leads to the world of Digimon!
But before I can let you through, I have several questions for you.
Oh, wait. Looks like your new form has been decided.
Never mind.
???
Awakened by the sunbeams forcing themselves through his shut eyelids, Ash groaned. His eyes blinked open giving him a good look at the world around him. It looked like he was in a forest. How did he get here?
Slowly, Ash rose to his feet only to feel off balance. When he took his first step, he immediately tripped over his short legs and large feet. Ash managed to stumble over to the nearest tree to grab onto it for support. It was then that Ash realized that he no longer had human hands.
The hands that were holding onto the tree were reptilian, covered with yellowish scales, and its three fingers were each tipped with a massive claw. It wasn’t just the hands that had transformed. Ash’s face had stretched out into a massive snout long enough that he could see it sticking out right in front of him.
Now steady, Ash slowly used his claws to feel himself. The snout was real, he could feel his claws run up and down its length. He could also feel some of his now sharp teeth sticking out past the lips. Moving past his muzzle, the rest of Ash’s face felt equally alien. His eyes were set further apart granting him a wider range of vision. Almost all of Ash’s clothes had disappeared save for his hat which, somehow, stayed perfectly balanced atop his head. As Ash finished patting down his body, he managed to find his new, stubby tail sticking out behind.
Spotting a nearby stream, Ash jogged over to get a good look at his reflection. Sure enough, it matched what he felt. Looking back at Ash was a yellow lizard with a long muzzle wearing a red and white cap on top of his head. Ash let out a startled yelp, which sounded like a high pitched roar. Defiantly not human.
“What? How?” Ash rambled. He went back to patting down his new body as if he would find some kind of zipper to this crazy costume. No such luck.
“What’s the ruckus about?” someone grumbled.
It looked like Ash wasn’t the only one in this forest. Rising form the grass was a…Pokémon? Whatever it was, it looked like a bipedal reptile wearing a blue and white furred pelt and a sharp horn sticking out of its forehead. A green and yellow pendent hung around its neck.
The reptile blinked at Ash in confusion. Slowly, if somewhat clumsily, it turned to face Ash. “A Pokémon?”
“I’m not a Pokémon!” Ash declared.
“Whoa! A talking Pokémon!” exclaimed the reptile.
“I just said I’m not a Pokémon! I’m a,” Ash looked back down at his reflection. “Well, I’m not sure what I am, but I’m supposed to be human.”
That comment earned Ash a dubious look.
“Supposed to?” said the reptile raising a brow.
“Yes. You see, I was just,” Ash began to explain. He then paused. What was he doing before he woke up here? And before that? What was his life like!? He could recall certain tidbits. Ash knew for certain he used to be human and that he didn’t live in a forest. There were also basic day to day knowledge like what Pokémon were and how to talk and such, but no personal information. “I can’t remember!”
Looking back over at the reptile, Ash could see he was slowly backing away. Still feeling panicked, Ash called out. “Don’t leave me!”
“Hey, I’d like to help,” the reptile said in a placating manner, holding his hands up in a stopping motion. “But I’m not a therapist.”
“I’M NOT CRAZY!” Ash exclaimed. He then took a step back and took a calming breath. Clasping his claws together (man did that feel weird), he tried to sound less manic. “If you can’t help me, can you point me to someone who can? Or at least the nearest town?”
Though clearly still weirded out, the reptile seemed to take pity on Ash. “Okay, sure. The nearest town is…”
The reptile frowned in concentration before his eyes widened. “I can’t remember.”
Looking over Ash, the gears turned in the reptile’s head. He spoke slowly. “You don’t have your memory either.”
Ash blinked in realization. If he lost his memory and this guy also woke up in this field with amnesia, could that mean they were the same? “Are you also human?”
Immediately, the reptile’s hands went to his nose, probably to see if it was replaced with a muzzle like Ash’s. His eyes widened in shock when his hands patted a muzzle, though not as large Ash’s, was very much not human. His pats became more frantic as he felt around his body ending at his thick tail which he began to tug at. “What is this!?”
“Welcome to my world,” Ash grumbled feeling some relief bleed into his earlier annoyance. At least he wasn’t alone. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Ash spotted something shine in the grass where he landed. Walking over, Ash picked it up. It looked like some tiny device with a small screen surrounded by buttons.
“Hey! Do you think this is important?” Ash asked, waving the device at the reptile.
The reptile stopped pulling on his tail long enough to walk over to get a better look. Squinting his eyes, he studied the device. “Maybe. I think I saw this somewhere before.”
After walking back over and shifting around the grass where he first work up, the reptile found a device almost identical to Ash’s. The only difference being that the screen frame for his device was blue instead of red. The reptile studied the device with suspicion. “Maybe these things have something to do with the way we are now.”
“Probably,” Ash nodded in agreement. Alright, so if the weird device turned him into a Pokémon-thing, then it could turn him back. Right? Ash began pressing buttons and fidgeting with the small machine.
“Hey! Be careful!” barked the reptile.
“Come on, come on!” Ash growled. Finally, the device lite up and projected a hologram. It displayed a picture of the creature Ash had become along with some stats and what looked like encyclopedia entries. Curious, Ash quickly read over some of the descriptions and gave an out loud summary. “I think this guy is me. Agumon, rookie level. It makes up for its lack of strength with a fierce disposition. In battle it will fight with its sharp claws and its fire breath with moves like Pepper Breath.”
“Hmm,” the reptile followed Ash’s example and scanned himself. “Yeah, it’s got me too. Gabumon, rookie level. Apparently we’re supposed to be shy and timid. To scare other Digimon (I guess we’re not Pokémon), Gabumon gather data from Garurumon to make pelts like this one. This explains nothing.”
Gabumon began to pace. “Alright, so we’re both humans who have been transformed into Digimon and lost our memories. That or we’re Digimon who lost their memories and have been brainwashed into thinking they used to be human. No, that’s stupid. Either way, our only clues are these devices and a couple of old articles of clothing. We can’t retrace our steps, so the best course of action would to search the surrounding area…”
While Gabumon continued to think out loud, Ash began observing his surroundings. He lifted his snout in the air and began to sniff. Wow! His nose was amazing! His extremely vague human memories informed him that he had a sense of smell before, but nothing like this!
It was like a blind man getting his first look at the world around him. Ash could smell the varied foliage of the forest as well as tell what kind of animals had passed by. He could smell the pacing Gabumon just a few feet from him as well as some creatures or Digimon who were further up wind. Actually, one scent seemed a bit stronger than the others though not as strong as Gabumon’s. Could there be someone else nearby?
Curious, Ash began following the scent. Spotting this, Gabumon followed with a perplexed expression. “What are you doing?”
“I think there’s someone nearby,” Ash stated. His tiny ears perked when he heard a new noise. It sounded like someone was crying. “Over here!”
Ash jogged forward and used his massive claws to push aside some bush branches to discover the source of the sound was indeed another Digimon. A small dragon. The little guy had a large head and stubby limbs giving it the proportions of a plushie. It was mostly blue from its long ears to its long tail save for its white face and underbelly. The little dragon’s large red eyes were bursting with tears.
Time to break out the scan function that I’m sure you’ll never need again.
“DemiVeemon, in-training,” Ash read off his device. “He’s a glutton who enjoys sweets and napping. He’s also quick on his feet and can use his hops to either attack or escape.”
The little dragon didn’t seem dangerous. Ash approached DemiVeemon. “What’s wrong?”
Though startled by Ash’s and Gabumon’s sudden appearance, DemiVeemon didn’t run. Tears continued to pour down his face. “I-I was playing with my f-friend, Minomon and, and, and he fell down into a Mystery Dungeon!”
His explanation finished, DemiVeemon continued to wail. Ash looked over at Gabumon to see if he understood what they were just told. Alas, Gabumon just returned Ash’s confused expression with a shrug. Ash turned back to DemiVeemon. “What’s a Mystery Dungeon?”
“You guys don’t know what a Mystery Dungeon is?” DemiVeemon asked with a sad sniff.
“We’re not from around here,” Gabumon explained crossing his arms.
“Oh,” said DemiVeemon. The little dragon wiped the remaining tears from his face. “Mystery Dungeons are cursed mazes. They appear in wild areas and suck in anyone who gets too close. Like Minomon!”
“Is there a way he can get out?” asked Gabumon.
“Yeah, but the dungeons are filled with wild Digimon who attack anyone who’s trapped inside. Minomon’s not a fighter!” DemiVeemon then broke back down into sobbing.
Pity pulled at Ash’s chest. “Can you show us where the dungeon is?”
DemiVeemon pointed one of his stubby arms toward a dip in the ground. Walking over, Ash could see that they were standing on the top of a steep hill. After a moment of staring, Ash was able to spot it. It was well camouflaged, in fact it looked like the rest of the grass around it. What set the Mystery Dungeon’s entrance apart from its surroundings was the way the light hit it. It was as though there was a thin sheet of glass lying right over the grass reflecting some of the sun. Every so often, the air seemed to ripple cementing how out of place that patch was.
“I’m going in,” Ash announced. He was about to charge down the hill and straight into the suspicious grass only to be held back by Gabumon. Ash looked over at the other human turned Digimon in surprise. “What’s wrong?”
“We can’t just go running into a cursed labyrinth right now,” said Gabumon, sounding annoyed. He gestured to his body. “We still need to figure out what happened to us!”
Ash yanked his claw back. “YOU can figure that out. I’m helping Minomon.”
Before Gabumon could argue, Ash bolted down and straight toward the spot in the grass. The second his foot touched down on the enchanted patch, Ash found himself in a completely different location. It looked like the forest he just came from. Thick lines of trees, the smell of plants, there was even a hiking trail to lead him through the dense grove. Looking over his shoulder, Ash didn’t see the hill he came down nor any signs of Gabumon or DemiVeemon. Just more of the forest.
Taking a deep breath, Ash began to march forward. No going back now.
Bit Woods B1F
The more Ash walked through the forest, the more he was able to see that it was indeed a maze. Trees were grouped so close together that Ash couldn’t cut through them and all the turns had sharp angles. Every so often Ash would stumble upon some item on the ground like a fruit or some meat or a floppy disk. Weird.
Finally, after what felt like forever, Ash stumbled upon another Digimon. This Digimon looked like a grey head with long, floppy ears. It blinked at Ash with its narrow, red eyes. Welp, time to scan it.
“Pagumon, in-training. Its ears can either be used as wings for flying or a pair of arms. If threatened these guys can defend themselves with poisonous bubbles,” Ash read. Seemed simple enough. All he had to do was make sure he didn’t seem threatening. Ash put on his friendliest smile and walked up to the Pagumon. “Excuse me, have you seen a Digimon called Minomon?”
Instead of answering, the Pagumon growled. Startled, Ash took a step back. Spotting Ash’s hesitation, Pagumon leapt forward with its teeth barred.
“Ah!” Ash yelped, his eyes bugging out of his head. He turned and ran. “I guess you’re one of those wild Digimon, aren’t you?”
As if to answer, Pagumon began spitting purple bubbles at Ash. The bubbles struck his back creating a stinging sensation. Ash kept running, hoping to lose the grey fur ball. Alas, it was pretty fast for a creature with no legs.
Eventually, Ash found himself facing a dead-end. Looking behind, the Pagumon was coming straight for him. With nowhere left to run, instinct began to take over. Ash held his claws forward and began growling at the other Digimon. The Pagumon momentarily paused, but ultimately decided to keep up the assault. It leapt at Ash opening its mouth to show off its sharp teeth.
Suddenly, Ash felt a raging heat form in his chest. The heat worked its way up his throat and began to flood his muzzle. It didn’t hurt, but like a cough or a burp Ash knew he had to release the flames that were now licking the roof of his mouth.
“Pepper Breath!” Ash called out. He spat out a fireball straight at the Pagumon. The fire collided with the smaller Digimon causing it to burst into thousands of glowing particles. The particles came back together creating an egg with a grey shell that landed on the ground.
Ash stared in surprise. What just happened? Did he just breathe fire? Did the other Digimon turn into an egg? Was the egg still dangerous? Rather than take any chances, Ash carefully inched around the egg like it was a bomb and left the hallway.
It didn’t take long for Ash to bump into another Digimon which his device identified it as a Gigimon. The tiny dragon growled and charged at Ash.
Just like before, Ash gathered fire in his maw. Except this time he focused on doing it through his will rather than rely on instinct. “Pepper Breath!”
The fireball hit Gigimon square in the face sending the little dragon flying back. Though knocked back, Gigimon wasn’t out. It got back up onto its stubby legs and darted straight back at Ash. This time, it managed to tackle Ash.
Ash swatted at the pest trying to push it away. His large claws ended up slashing into the Gigimon. He followed up by chomping down on the feral monster and breathing another ball of fire, finishing it off.
Blinking in surprise at the red egg that reformed after Gigimon disappeared, Ash carefully poked the egg. Nothing happened. Okay, so either Digimon turned into eggs when you beat them in battle or at least dungeon Digimon did. Good to know.
After pushing the egg over into the protective grass, Ash hurried off. Now armed with the knowledge on how to fight as an Agumon, Ash was able to effortless mow through every obstacle thrown his way. Except the trees. The trees that made up the walls to the maze were very much impervious to both his fire breath and his sharp claws.
Eventually, Ash stumbled upon a hole in the ground. Leading down the hole was a case of stairs that were carved into the earth. Odd, but Ash had yet to come across a better path forward. Ash descended the stairs.
Bit Woods B2F
The second Ash’s feet touched the ground of the next level, the stairs vanished into thin air. Pushing forward, Ash found that this level was a lot like the previous floor. Trees, grass, dirt paths, random items. The main difference was the Digimon. There were more on this floor, some were even stronger than the ones Ash had previously fought.
“Take this!” Ash growled, slashing his claws forward. The mouse Digimon chittered as it scurried out of range.
Though technically stronger than the in-training Digimon, this new Digimon was still pretty small and weak. It resembled a bipedal, pink mouse with a mouth full of flat teeth and a deranged look in its eyes. Ash’s device identified it as a Chuumon which was a rookie level like Ash. A smaller and weaker rookie whose main attacks involved throwing Cheese Bombs, garbage, and telling lies to make its opponents lose the will to fight. That last ability didn’t really apply to this individual Chuumon as it couldn’t talk.
“Pepper Breath!” Ash spat a fireball at the Chuumon causing it to squeak in fear and run away. Now that the mouse was taken care of, Ash could return to his search. He looked around at the different tunnels leading out of the large room he was currently in and scratched his head. Which way should he go? For that matter, where did he come from?
Ash’s thought process was interrupted when he felt something that suspiciously smelt of cheese nail him in the back of the head. Groaning, Ash turned around. “Ugh. I already beat you. Will you please leave me aloooo-uh-oh.”
The Chuumon was indeed back, but not by itself. Standing behind Ash was a massive hoard of Chuumon. Each were grinning or snickering and some were even tossing Cheese Bombs up and down, ready to hurl them at Ash.
It’s a Monster House!
As one, the Chuumon charged. Ash attempted to break up the hoard by shooting multiple Pepper Breaths into the crowd to no avail. It didn’t take long for the wave of mice to climb all over Ash and push him to the floor where the smaller rookies proceeded to crawl across his body Gulliver’s Travel style.
Ash tried to squirm and shake off the Chuumon, but it was no use. Every time he managed to get rid of one mouse, another would instantly replace it. The Chuumon began to scratch and bite Ash electing a snarl of pain.
“Blue Blaster!”
Suddenly, a thin stream of blue fire erupted into existence. The fire whipped back and forth like a flamethrower sending the Chuumon flying. Squeaking in terror, the Chuumon hoard broke apart and retreated from the dungeon room. Ash was able to quickly finish off the remaining mice before taking a moment to finally catch his breath.
“Overtaken by a mob of rodents, some adventurer.”
Turning around, Ash was able to see that his savior was the Gabumon from before. “Gabumon? What are you doing here?”
“Saving you,” Gabumon replied, folding his arms. A smug grin stretched across his face. “You’re welcome by the way.”
Something about the way Gabumon was looking down at him (both figuratively and literally) ticked Ash off. “I didn’t need your help! I was perfectly fine on my own!” Ash pushed himself back up onto his feet and dusted himself off. “You just so happened to interrupt me before I had a chance to intact my counterattack!”
Gabumon skeptically arched an eyebrow. “Yeah? What was your plan?”
“I, uh, was going to…roll…and breath fire…and it’s a lot easier to do than explain,” Ash stuttered hoping Gabumon didn’t see the blush rising on his scales.
“Relax, I can tell you’re an improv kind of guy,” Gabumon stated as he strutted past Ash.
“Yeah, I guess I kind of am,” Ash admitted scratching the back of his head.
“Especially since thinking and planning ahead is defiantly not your strong suite,” Gabumon added on.
Ash’s eyes narrowed. “Hey!”
Gabumon ignored him and continued walking. “Alright, since you decided to go charging in here, let’s go grab Minomon. You coming, Agumon?”
At the name ‘Agumon,’ Ash glanced down at his claws. He flexed and bent them, trying to get their movements to mimic a human’s hands. Ash looked back up. “Ash.”
“Huh?” Gabumon paused and turned around.
“My human name. I’m Ash,” Ash stated firmly.
Gabumon stared off into the distance. Ash walked up beside him and saw that his eyes were narrowed in concentration. Finally, he spoke. “Gary,” he said slowly, like he was testing the word out in his mouth. He then said it again with more confidence. “My name is Gary.”
“Nice to meet you Gary,” Ash said, perking up. He then bolted down one of the tunnels. “This way!”
Gary gave chase. “How do you know where you’re going?!”
Bit Woods Ground Floor
The pair took several twists and turns before finding another staircase. When they descended these stairs they found themselves in a clearing. There were no paths to lead them off into a new maze, just a bunch of rocks and trees.
Laying down under a log on the other side of the clearing was a tiny green and brown Digimon that looked like a large bagworm sticking out from its cocoon. The little Digimon’s beady eyes were darting around the room while its body shook uncontrollably. A quick check on the device revealed that this little guy was, indeed, Minomon.
“Don’t worry, Minomon!” Ash grinned. He ran jogged forward. “We’re here to help you!”
Despite Ash’s reassurances, Minomon’s eyes grew wide with fear. “No! Don’t come any closer! He’ll see you!”
Ash stopped. “He?”
“Look out!” Gary cried.
Confused, Ash looked around. Out of the corner of his eye he could see a large figure jumping for him. Ash dodged out of the way just in time to avoid the massive Digimon that would have squashed him.
The Digimon who landed in the clearing was a tall and muscular ape. Its body was mostly covered in white fur save for its dark gray chest, hands, feet, and face. Unlike its beefy, left forearm the Digimon’s right forearm was replaced with a massive cannon. The Digimon began to beat its chest and roar.
Well, we all know the best way to start a boss battle. Scan that monkey!
“Gorillamon, champion level,” Gary read. “These guys are strong enough to crush even the sturdiest object underfoot. Despite their bulk, they’re very nimble and can hit opponents at a distance using their Power Attack.”
“Power Attack? What’s that?” Ash asked.
Gorillamon raised his cannon arm and took aim at Ash. The cannon hummed to life while a bright light gathered in its mouth. Ash barely got away in time before a large energy blast tore apart the ground where he was previously standing.
After dodging several more blasts, Ash spotted Gary taking cover behind a large boulder and ran over to join him. “We need to get Minomon out of here!”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Gary muttered peeking out from behind the rock. “I can’t find any stairs, which might mean this floor has the exit. Hopefully.”
“It’d be easier to look around if we got rid of this guy,” said Ash. He joined Gary in looking over the rock. From the way Gorillamon’s cannon was humming he was probably recharging the energy.
“Easier said than done,” snorted Gary. “It would be better if we could just lure Gorillamon away and double back to grab Minomon. If only the stairs back up didn’t disappear. We’re trapped.”
“Then we fight him!” Ash declared.
“Are you crazy!? Look at the size of him!” Gary snapped.
Before Ash had a chance to debate, Gorillamon finished charging his cannon back up and used Power Attack to blow apart the boulder. Though they tried to move, neither Ash nor Gary were fast enough and were sent flying.
After skidding across the ground, Ash shakingly got up. No sooner did he finish rising from to his feet that he realized that Gorillamon was now looming over him. Though startled, Ash quickly switched back into battle mode and took aim at Gorillamon’s face. “Pepper Breath!”
The fireball hit its target and Gorillamon roared in pain. Taking advantage of the ape’s momentary blinding, Ash ran over to Gary to regroup. He grinned confidently. “I think we can handle him!”
“GRAH!” roared Gorillamon. Now the ape monster was glaring red eyed at Ash. Just like before he raised his arm and took aim. While he powered up his cannon, Gary’s eyes widened in realization. Gary grabbed Ash and pulled him out of the way before the Power Attack could land.
“Did you see that!?” Gary shouted to Ash over the explosion.
“The laser cannon ball? Yeah!” Ash replied as he spat out another Pepper Breath. Gorillamon swept his beefy arm through the air, snuffing out the fire.
“Not the laser! I’m talking about the gun!” Gary explained. The two rookies ran around the room together, avoiding the volley of laser fire. “When Gorillamon was charging up the first Power Attack, he took a while to build up energy. I think we can use that time to take out his cannon.”
“Are you saying we need to chop off his arm?” Ash asked. Sharp as his new claws were, he doubted they would be able to cut through those thick arms without resistance.
“We probably don’t have to,” Gary explained. He nodded over to the arm in question. “See those tubes hooked up to the cannon? I’m willing to bet that they help the cannon function. They also look a lot easier to slice through than the entire arm.”
“So, we just have to take out tubes?” Ash surmised. “Can do! Pepper breath!”
Ash’s fireball went soaring through the air and nailed one of the tubes. The tube wasn’t destroyed, but it was looking singed. Seeing this, Gary ran a little closer. “Blue Blaster!”
The stream of blue fire finished off what the Pepper Breath started and successfully burned through the weakened tubbing. Feeling energized by their success, Ash followed up with multiple Pepper Breaths. The volley rained across Gorillamon’s body, hitting multiple tubes and distracting Gorillamon away from Gary who then worked to cut the tubbing with his own attack.
Gorillamon himself was at a loss. He was clearly angry as he was roaring, stomping, and firing his attacks at both of his assailants. However, he was having difficulty picking a target. Ash and Gary had split up and began moving in different directions around the ape. Every time Gorillamon took aim at one rookie, the other would launch an attack tearing his attention away.
Finally, Gorillamon settled on Gary as a target. The ape charged forward, arms out stretched. Gary tried to run away, but between Gorillamon’s longer legs and stronger stature it was only a matter of time before Gary found himself cornered.
Gorillamon lifted one of his heavy fists to mash the troublesome Gabumon. He was about to bring it down when he felt something leap onto his shoulders. Gorillamon roared in pain when he felt a bunch of sharp claws dig into its back curtesy of the Agumon which was now holding onto him and biting down on his shoulder.
Taking advantage of Gorillamon’s predicament, Gary launched his own attack. He spotted a nearby tree that was busted up by Gorillamon’s attacks. The trunk was hanging by a thread, only kept stable by branches from the surrounding trees. Taking a deep breath, Gary swept his Blue Blaster through the tree branches clearing them away and allowing the falling tree to complete its decent right onto Gorillamon’s head.
THAWK!
Ash let go of the big ape, slicing the final tubbing for the cannon as he fell. He then dashed away from Gorillamon successfully avoiding the champion’s face down collapse. Grinning, Ash strode on over to Gary to offer him a high five. “Alright! Now let’s get Minomon and find a way out of here!”
“Rrrrr.”
Whoops! Never mind. Judging by the loud growl being emitted from the ape’s fallen form he was very much conscious and was now much, much angrier than before.
Not wanting to be within ripping distance, both Ash and Gary jogged away from Gorillamon. Slowly, the big ape rose to his feet where he let out a loud roar and began rampaging around the clearing. Gorillamon grabbed whatever was nearby whether it be stones or logs and began hurling them into the air or smashing objects with his fists.
“I thought you said we’d take him out if we disabled his cannon!” Ash shouted over Gorillamon’s angry screams.
“I said it might stop him from shooting at us! Not from pounding us with his bare hands!” Gary shouted back.
A boulder went flying overhead, nearly smashing Ash’s skull. Ash ducked. “Well, what do we do now?!”
“I don’t know!” Gary called back while narrowly avoiding a spray of punched earth.
The two rookies ran around in circles trying to avoid the rain of debris created by the gorilla’s rampage. It was while Ash was recovering from a hit to the shoulder that he noticed where Gorillamon was now standing. Its rampage had brought it close to Minomon’s hiding spot. Too close. It was standing over the shivering bagworm.
Steeling himself, Ash bolted forward. He ignored Gary’s cries to wait and slid between Gorillamon’s legs to plant himself between the enraged ape and Minomon. Ash spat out multiple Pepper Breaths to no avail. All Ash achieved was making Gorillamon look angrier as it slowly reached down for him and Minomon.
Ash’s mind raced. His and Gary’s attacks did seem to have a cumulative effect on Gorillamon as evidence by the collection of scorch marks and scratches decked across its body. He could probably take the ape down if he had a bit more time to pelt him with some more fire. Or maybe there was an alternative. Maybe if he hit Gorillamon with one giant fireball he could take it down before it had a chance to pop Ash’s head off his body.
Just like with Pepper Breath, Ash gathered fire in his throat. Except this time, he didn’t stop when he felt like he had enough. He held it in and let it build only releasing the flames when Gorillamon’s fist was less than an inch from his face.
“Spitfire Blast!” cried Ash. Instead of the typical fireball, a river of flames erupted from Ash’s maw. The fire flooded over Gorillamon electing a screech of pain. When the attack finally died down, Gorillamon was covered in blackened fur and scorched skin. The giant swayed before falling on his back and staying down.
Ash himself was about to topple over too only to be caught by Gary. “Alright, you got him. Now let’s find the way out before he gets back up.”
Outside the dungeon
After giving the final dungeon floor a thorough search, Ash and Gary were able to find a portal not unlike the rift Ash used to enter the maze. The trio stepped outside to find DemiVeemon waiting with baited breath. When DemiVeemon saw Minomon, his tears instantly cleared up and the little dragon hopped on over to hug his friend and perform a little celebration dance.
From the side, Gary watched the reunion with a small smile. Even if he had his doubts about plunging into a magical dungeon the reward was worth it. The dancing friends was a heartwarming scene which Gary would rather focus on instead of the mess that was standing next to him.
“Didn’t your parents teach you any table manners?” Gary asked Ash. Gary’s muzzle scrunched in disgust. Once DemiVeemon and Minomon were reunited, Ash immediately made a beeline to a nearby fruit tree. The Agumon grabbed as many fallen fruit and began scarfing it all down smearing seeds across his muzzle and causing juice to dribble down his chin.
“I can’t help it! I’m so hungry!” Ash said between mouthfuls. He paused to give Gary a questioning look. “What’s a parent?”
Gary opened his mouth to respond, only to realize he forgotten the answer. “Don’t know,” Gary answered in a low voice. “Just another reason to figure out what happened to us.”
“Wow! That’s a lot of fruit!” DemiVeemon said in awe. “That dungeon must have really taken it out of you!”
“Wouldn’t surprise me. You should have seen them fight! Gabumon figured out how to take out the cannons then Agumon climbed Gorillamon’s back and was like RAWR! And then Gabumon cut down a tree and Agumon spat a whole bunch of fire in Gorillamon’s face and, and, it was awesome!” Minomon gushed. “They were so cool!
“You’re pretty observant,” Gary said smugly, folding his arms.
“It wasn’t that big a deal,” Ash said bashfully, rubbing the back of his head.
“You two should be rescuers!” declared Minomon.
Ash and Gary exchanged confused glances. Gary looked back down at Minomon. “Rescuers?”
“Rescuers are Digimon who go into Mystery Dungeons,” explained DemiVeemon. “They explore the dungeons, save other Digimon, stop bandits, and hunt for treasure! They’re the best of the best!”
“They’ve got guilds at all the major cities. I think there’s a building in one of the neighboring towns,” Minomon added on. “If you want, we can show you the road.”
“Exploration, fighting battles, and saving the day,” Ash said thoughtfully. “I can get behind that. What do you say, Gary? Want to join the guild?”
“A large organization like that should have a bunch or resources like archives of information. Plus we’d have the chance to poke around and find out how to get home,” Gary said thoughtfully. “I’m in.”
“Alright!” Ash grinned. “Let’s go!”
Though our world may seem expansive, it is but a speck of dust in the endless cosmos. Some scholars theorize that a vast multitude of universes exist, created by various circumstances. The slightest change in a decision can completely change the outcome for both your life and the lives of those around you. Just remember: no matter where you find yourself in this gargantuan web of possibilities, never forget your sense of adventure.
AN: There we go. A completely original chapter written from scratch. No short cuts or reposts.