//------------------------------// // Meet The Rulers // Story: Taming Equestria: A Digimon Story // by AutoKnight01 //------------------------------// I only own my OC’s and the plot of this story. MLP: FiM is property of Hasbro, Lauren Faust, and DHX animation. Digimon is owned by Bandai. Taming Equestria: A Digimon Story Chapter 11: Meet the Rulers EARTH – TOKYO – WONG RESIDENCE – 12:00 PM Janyu Wong always did enjoy playing host to friends of his children whenever they came over to their house. However this time was not as enjoyable. Henry and Suzie were sitting on the couch next to each other while all the other tamers were sat around the living room be it on the floor or elsewhere as they listened to Janyu talk. Even Ai and Mako were there this time, sitting cross legged on the ground next to Ryo as they listened to the Wong patriarch. Apparently there was a lot of information relayed to him earlier that day from Yamaki that he got from Shibumi. The majority of it was disturbing to say the least. If Takato wasn’t in the Digital World, then where could he have possibly ended up? Better question to that, was he even alive? The Matsuki parents were being kept in the dark on this because nobody wanted to cause them to fly into an unrecoverable panic. Janyu wasn’t really on board with Yamaki’s idea but decided to go along with it nonetheless. If anything, he only did so because he too didn’t want to have to deal with their incessant calls regarded their son’s safety. Was it a jerk move? Yes. Of course it was. He knew it, Yamaki knew it, Shibumi knew it the whole dang world knew it. And now, after a lengthy explanation, the tamers knew it too. It went without saying that hearing this development didn’t sit well with any tamer in the room. Ai and Mako weren’t every close with Takato as the rest of them were. That was mainly due to them only meeting the day when the Digimon were sucked back through the portal. After that happened the two youngsters didn’t come to visit anymore. They didn’t see any point without Impmon around. “So you’re telling us that even though Takato went through the portal that leads to the Digital World, that isn’t where he is?” Henry asked. Janyu shook his head at this son as he kept his head turning to look at the tamers individually. “According to Shibumi, each one of your Digivices has a program inside it that transmits a signal that can be tracked from his systems. Supposedly it works both in this world and the Digital World. However, with there being no trace of a signal from Takato’s, it’s very likely that he’s either somewhere else entirely or…” He couldn’t bring himself to finish that sentence. He didn’t want to consider the possibility but that didn’t mean it wasn’t there at all. The others didn’t want to hear it either. “Takato can’t be gone. He just can’t be.” Jeri was adamant on that. “He better not be. Because when I do get to him, I’ll kill him myself.” Rika growled. “Come on, Rika. We all know you don’t mean that.” Kenta tried to calm her down. It did little good though as she just turned to glare at him. Chuckling nervously, the boy with glasses just turned back to Henry’s father. “So uh, if Takato’s not in the Digital World or here, where else could he have gone?” He asked to change the subject. “Well it’s a long shot. But have any of you ever heard of the multiverse theory?” Janyu asked them. The look on their faces was all the answer he needed. And given that a few of his listeners were little kids, he was going to have to be very simplified with this explanation. “Well it goes like this. For a very long time, it’s been theorized that our world is only one of many others that exist. And I’m not talking about planets in outer space. I’m taking about different versions of the Earth. Say a version of Earth where Rika has siblings, or one where World War Two was won by the Germans, or one where Digimon never existed at all. The possibilities go on and on. Even before we became the Monster Makers, Shibumi would go on and on about the possibilities of multiple Earths, what it would be like to talk to a doppelganger of himself from another dimension and so on. In fact it was him who shot this theory my way.” “I think I follow you, Mister Wong.” Jeri commented. “So you’re saying it’s possible that Takato might have landed somewhere else in the…multiverse?” “It’s a lead we have and nothing more. What happened to him is uncertain. But what is certain is that right now, the rest of you are forbidden from going anywhere near that portal until Hypnos and Shibumi can find more conclusive readings. Do you all understand me on this?” Sadly, all of them did. The children were all eager beyond belief to go and get their partners back, but now they had to be told to wait even longer because the door to the Digital World might not even GO to the Digital World. One by one each of them nodded their heads or vocally agreed to the terms given to them by Janyu. Then Janyu himself nodded back in response. “Good. I’m holding you all to this. No one needs any more of your parents freaking out the same way Takato’s are right now.” With that, Janyu stood up to go and make some phone calls and see if there had been any updates. The children were all left alone in the living room of the Wong household. Each one of them looked at each other with varying faces and emotions present. “Henwy, I don’t like this.” Suzie whined as she leaned her head on her brother’s body. Gently, the boy put an arm around his little sister. “I know, Suzie. None of us do.” He spoke as he sighed. “How could things get so messed up so fast?” Kazu spoke up. “What was chumley thinking jumping into that portal? Now he might be dead!” Ryo raised a hand in Kazu’s direction. “Look let’s not jump to any conclusions. Or better yet, let’s not even try to. You heard what Mr. Wong said. Hypnos nor Mr. Shibumi have any concrete evidence about what happened to Takato. It isn’t going to do us any favors to dwell on a situation we can’t do anything about.” What he said didn’t sit right with quite a bit of them. And his seriousness only added onto that feeling. Rika was probably the one who had the biggest problem with it. It sounded like Ryo was abandoning Takato. “What are you trying to say, Ryo? That we should just sit around and do nothing?” His reply did nothing but add more fuel to the fire. “I’m not trying to say that, Rika. I AM saying that.” Rika’s face started to turn a similar shade that matched her hair. She opened her mouth to tear Ryo a new one but Jeri spoke up before she could, hoping to defuse the bomb that Rika had become. “As much as I hate to say it, Ryo’s right.” She started softly before getting serious. “Guys think about it. None of us have our Digimon here. And even if we did, the problem isn’t something we can physically fight. I’m not smart enough to figure out what happened to Takato or why the portal didn’t take him to the Digital World. Are any of you that smart?” Silence. None of them had a legit answer for her because they knew she was right. They had come up with some good plans in the past but most of those were battle strategies. This situation had to be solved by brain power, not muscle. They were just kids. None of them could hold a candle to Hypnos or Shibumi in this regard. They were, all things considered, useless. “I don’t like this.” Rika groaned. “None of us do, but Jeri’s right.” Kenta sided with his schoolmate. “It’s not like the show where we can just point our Digivices at a computer and open up a Digi-port. We have to trust the adults here.” “Does this mean we won’t be able to see Impmon again?” Ai whimpered. She and her brother were holding each other while they looked down at their shared purple D-Ark. The colored rim resembled their partner so much they couldn’t help but see him through the screen. With a soft smile, Jeri kneeled down and put her hands on their shoulders. “Don’t you worry. You’ll see him again. We’ll all see our partners again.” As she rubbed their backs, Jeri silently hoped against hope that what she said was the truth. There were too many variables in play now to know for sure what was going to happen. It scared her and everyone else there to think that something even worse than death could have happened to Takato. Being lost in another world far from here with no way to return let alone make contact. Needless to say, but they were going to be in for a rough time for the foreseeable future. Their only hope now lied with Hypnos and the Monster Makers to come through with some results for them. EQUESTRIA – PONYVILLE – CASTLE OF FRIENDSHIP – 12:28 PM A loud POP echoed off the crystalline walls of the castle lobby as the teleportation from town took the mane 7 and the Digimon crew right into the center of it. Some were still dizzy from the effects but they were getting used to it, namely Kokuwamon and Calumon. As they parted from each other, Twilight looked around her castle and smiled to see everything was exactly how she left it; neat, tidy, and ready for Celestia and Luna. “Alright everyone. The princesses will be here any moment so be ready!” She zipped to the door and poked her head out to look for any signs of their approach. Takato and the rest of the Digimon just looked at her confused. “Be ready for what?” the human asked anyone. Rainbow took the chance to answer him. “Twilight can be…oh what’s a good way to put this…nuts when it comes to the princesses.” “I am NOT nuts!” The lavender alicorn called back. No Digimon knew what to say to that. Every single one of them was clueless. “Should we ask?” Impmon muttered. “Probably best not to.” Applejack replied. “OH! Chariot incoming! They’re here!” Takato’s breath became caught in his throat. He had been nervous from the start about meeting the high rulers of this world he fell into. It had only been a day and a half since he had and already a whole plate of crazy had fallen into his lap. First it was finding Guilmon, meeting all these ponies, a fight with a giant wooden wolf, and now meeting the rulers of this world. He was almost tempted to ask what else could possibly happen, but past experiences taught him over and over again that asking that question was a very stupid idea. Bad luck seems to follow him and his friends around like a stray puppy looking for a home. So instead of dwelling on the future and what might happen, Takato thought it best to keep his mind here in the now. Right now, outside the castle, the two pegasi of the Solar Guard touched down on the walkway to the Castle of Friendship. The chariot they were hauling behind them rolled to a smooth stop as they did. Once they weren’t moving, the two passengers stepped out of their seats and approached the front door of the castle. Before they could get a knock in, it opened up and there stood their fellow princess smiling before them. As the three of them exchanged pleasant greetings, Takato and the Digimon took in their first full viewing of the two princesses. They were both much taller than Twilight though one of them was taller than the other. The tallest one was stark white with a mane of a rainbow, though less colors were there than Rainbow Dash’s. The other one was a very dark blue with a mane and tail that looked like living constellations were flowing through it. Both of their manes and tails were flowing as if there was a breeze but no wind was present outside or in the castle. Odd to say the least but not the oddest thing any of them had ever seen in their lives. “We apologize it took something like this to get us face to face again, Twilight.” Celestia said to her former pupil. “You know as well as we do how daunting royal duties can be at times.” Twilight shook her head with an understanding smile. “No apology necessary. I’ve been occupied with the school and my own duties as well. So I gully understand.” Celestia’s eyes were on Twilight. But Luna’s, all she did was look over the lavender alicorn’s shoulder to see a whole other group of unrecognizable creatures standing in the middle of the castle lobby. Once she caught eyes with them, none of them moved. Looking back and forth between the two visiting parties, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, Starlight Glimmer, nor Spike dared utter a word either. They were too interested to see where this would go. A moment later, Celestia’s gaze matched her sister’s and the two groups seemed to be locked in a stare down. Celestia and Luna were very surprised to see creatures like this standing before them. They had heard stories about human beings from Sunset Shimmer about humankind though had never had the chance to see one with their own eyes. Any mention of these “Digimon” however never came up. They all looked so different from dragons to rabbits to…whatever it that big mechanical bug thing was before them. Celestia had her gaze focused on the human being that stood in front of them. Luna’s however was directed to the small purple one on the other side of his leg. She may not have known him by name yet, but Impmon seemed to radiate some aura of negativity that Luna could sense merely by body language alone. Sure he looked nervous but there was more to it than that. She could see it in his eyes. There was something else there. While she couldn’t put a hoof exactly on it, it looked like a look she had sported before in her life. Regret. The digital group had thoughts of their own as they gazed upon the two princesses. Their regalia and stature gave off an obvious aura of authority. It was kind of intimidating to most of them. Only Renamon seemed to be looking at them as if she were more curious than nervous. However there was one exception to this. And he was currently floating over to them on his earwings with a big smile on his face. Once Calumon was in front of them he looked up at both horses with the innocence equal to a foal and retracted his ears back into his head. “Woooooooooow. You two are really big.” The awestruck way he spoke, his inflections, the two alicorns couldn’t help but grow warm smiles at. “Well aren’t you adorable?” Luna leaned her head down. “Tell me little one, what is your name?” “My name is Calumon! Do you wanna play with me now?” That was pretty much all it took for Takato to walk over. Calumon was growing a reputation in this world for being a good icebreaker. As soon as he took a step forward, Guilmon and the other Digimon all joined him and closed the gap between themselves and the princesses. “You must be Takato.” Celestia surmised. “Twilight has told me about you already in her letters.” The boy nodded and then turned that nod into a small bow like he did with Ponyville a day prior. “Takato Matsuki, your majesties.” The Digimon sans Calumon took their own turns to bow as well as name themselves before the princesses. Back with the ponies Rainbow couldn’t help but think the same question again. “Okay seriously. Why does every single one of their names end with ‘mon’?” “Time and place, Rainbow. Time and place.” Applejack nudged a hoof into her friend’s gut. “I must say I’m pleased to see that you are all so cordial. Not most others that come here from other planes have that trait.” Luna commented. “Uuuuhhhh…how many visitors do you get?” Terriermon asked. “We stopped keeping count a long time ago. It gets tedious nowadays to keep track.” Celestia joked. All of the others in the room seemed to get a giggle out of that as Celestia looked down to Twilight again. “Twilight, I hope you do not mind but I wish for our conversation to be private.” Twilight shook her head rejecting any notion of negativity. The other Equestrians understood as well. They had heard the story before already so it wouldn’t be like they were missing anything. And any new information that came forth would be relayed to them by Twilight anyway. “Not at all. The throne room should hopefully suffice.” Nodding, the two alicorns made their way there with the digital group following. Once they reached the door, Twilight opened it up for them and allowed for them to enter before her. Once she joined them, the door was shut and she took her seat upon her throne allowing the others to sit wherever they wanted. Takato sat in Rainbow Dash’s char next to Twilight’s while Celestia and Luna took their seats in Rarity’s and Pinkie Pie’s thrones respectively. The Digimon seemed to scatter amongst the room. Guilmon remained by Takato’s side but everyone else just chose a random spot. Calumon and MarineAngemon seemed content with resting on the alicorn’s crowns. Thankfully neither of them minded. Though Twilight did wonder how they could be so comfortable to just make a nest in anyone’s manes. “So uuuuhhhhh…..where should we start?” Takato wondered aloud. With that, the ice was broken and the princesses got down to business. “Well Takato how about from the beginning?” Celestia started. “I know it must be annoying to have to keep repeating yourself at this point but my sister and I would deeply appreciate it if you would tell us in your words exactly what happened and why it happened.” Takato let loose a sigh and pulled the band of his goggles. He had a feeling he would have to tell the story again. He just hoped the feeling wouldn’t turn to fact. Yet here he sat. “Well I hope you’re comfy and those chairs don’t make your butts itch. It’s gonna be a long sit.” Terriermon joked. Twilight would normally panic that someone used the word “butts” around the most regal ponies in Equestria, but she kept her cool and gestured for Takato to tell the story. He did so nearly identical to the way he told Twilight the first time and left out no details. “And that’s how I ended up here. As for how Guilmon and the other Digimon got her first, I still have no clue.” Celestia and Luna were both sitting calmly as Takato told the tale. It was actually quite moving to them. This young human seemed to have gone through quite an ordeal similar to what Twilight and her friends seem to face on a regular basis. Not only that, but he and his own friends were more than capable of handling it alongside their Digimon partners. It warmed Celestia’s heart to know that the power of friendship was still a force to be reckoned with not only in this world but others as well. Then the princesses asked about the events that transpired last night. They had heard news of a monster attack from their guards in the morning but the details were not enlightened on. So once again, Takato divulged the details in full, all the way up to Guilmon’s miraculous digivolution. Once the details of the fight were disclosed, the story ended. “And that’s how it happened, your royal horseness.” Impmon commented. “Pineapple head here saved my butt and roasted those wooden mutts to ashes!” The two alicorns didn’t give a care for the interesting name Impmon used for them. They were laser focused on the fight that Takato described. “That is quite the tale.” Luna commented. “Never mind the transformation. The fact that Guilmon here was able to take on a hoard of timberwolves by himself in their combined form is nothing short of impressive.” “But let us backtrack to that transformation.” Celestia took her turn. “Twilight, you commented during Takato’s story that during the time that Guilmon turned into…I’m sorry what was it again?” “Oh. Growlmon, ma’am.” Takato replied. “Right. During the time Guilmon turned into Growlmon, you noted that your horn and that of every unicorn in Ponyville began to glow at the same time?” Twilight nodded confirming it, causing the princesses to put themselves deep in thought about what could have caused it. MarineAngemon and Calumon stirred around about on their heads as they tried to think of an idea but struggled to settle on a coherent one. “Perhaps an emotional response from the boy triggered a dormant magic?” Celestia suggested. “But from every mare stallion and foal in town that has a horn? That’s more than just a dormant magic.” Luna replied. “Takato you said that you carry a device that connects you to Guilmon and allows him to perform these changes.” “Yes your majesty.” Takato immediately brought out his gold and red D-Arc to show to them. “May I?” Celestia asked as her horn glowed a bright golden yellow. Takato nodded and the device itself was encased in a golden aura as it floated out of Takato’s hand and in front of the faces of Celestia in Luna. The two of them looked closely at the small thing as Celestia began to scan it with her magic to find anything out of the ordinary. She could sense there was a powerful force within the confines of the Digivice, but she couldn’t put her hoof on what exactly it was. It felt like magic but at the same time it didn’t. It was difficult to even form a precise explanation in her head let alone try to voice one out loud. While Celestia looked it over from a technical view, Luna was more interested in its aesthetics. In the human world this little thing would obviously look like a children’s digital pet toy. But here in this world such a thing didn’t exist. Luna was entranced with the overall look that this Digivice was gifted with. The gold and silver mixture on the main frame was gorgeous. And the code around the rim, although she couldn’t read it, was a beautiful sight to behold to her. “Quite remarkable.” Celestia levitated the Digivice back to Takato. “Do all of your friends have devices like those?” “Almost identical save for color.” Renamon answered. “Without a Digivice, achieving digivolution is nearly impossible for a Digimon without a partner.” “And if anything happens to the partner or human in question…” Lopmon started. “Then…th-the Digivice is useless. It just becomes a-a fancy paperweight.” Impmon was the one to finish that sentence. Once again Luna was drawn to the tone he used. There it was again. That regret, that pain. Luna could tell there was something more to this Impmon than first meets the eye but they had only known each other for a matter of minutes. She wanted to know more but she knew this was not the time. There would be one though. Tonight in fact. But she quickly got back on subject. “This is all very fascinating. But let us get back on track now. Twilight, you said when you inspected the mirror that there seemed to be nothing wrong with it. Am I correct?” Shaking her head, Twilight too got her train of thought in the right direction. “That’s right. I even went through it to test it and I ended up back in front of Canterlot High. So I don’t know what could have caused it.” “Perhaps we should ask him. He might know.” Celestia looked over to Takato as she said that. The human just looked like he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “Me? But, your majesty, I already told you everything.” “I know you did. That’s why I need you to calm down.” Celestia spoke just like she used to with Twilight when she was her old student. “A lot has happened since the night you came here. A lot for your mind to process. Just focus on that night. When you came through the portal, tell us in your own words what happened what you felt, what you saw. Maybe it will give us a clue.” Looking around the room, Takato saw that the others there, pony, dragon, and Digimon all seemed to agree with Celestia’s idea. If there was something missed in this whole thing maybe it could be found in a simple recollection. “Okay.” Takato began as he let loose a breath. “I snuck out of my house, and went to the park where the portal was.” *FLASHBACK* EARTH – TOKYO – SHINJUKU PARK – 10:00 PM “Hold on, Guilmon. I’m coming for you and the others too. You’re all coming home.” Kneeling down into the hut, the young tamer began to crawl through the tunnel Guilmon himself made the first time they went hunting for the portal. Far away at the end of it he could see the distorted doorway. Bits of data and flashing punctuation marks floated out like a cloud of fog. The closer he got the more excited he grew at the prospect of seeing his partner again. He didn’t even hesitate. He picked up speed as he crawled through the tunnel and right into the digital gate. He kept crawling for a few seconds before he realized he didn’t need to anymore. He was currently inside the void between his world and the Digital World. All the room he needed to stand up or float around in the air. Also he was floating around in the air. It was exactly like last time. Nothing about this place had changed. No rules, no nothing. Just a bunch of data trying to figure out where to go. Right now Takato was on par with that data. He didn’t seem to be doing anything. All he was doing was floating there and not moving. So he did the only thing he could think to do; talk to himself. “Okay….nothing’s really happening. And I would very much like for something to happen. Let’s see what happened last time? We were walking. Then we were floating. Then Jeri…oh dang it.” Just like that Takato realized what he needed to do to get moving. Part of him just didn’t want to do it. Taking his backpack off, he clutched it in his arms as if he were protecting something precious, put his goggles down over his eyes, and braced himself. “That way is down.” He pointed in the direction he at least THOUGHT was down. A moment later, he began to move. Fast. Gravity in this world had decided that Takato’s down was indeed down and he began to fall. For the most part, Takato did his best to keep calm as the journey downward picked up more and more speed. It became increasingly difficult to do that when he started to crash through the different layers of data again. Luckily this time though he didn’t lose the contents of his backpack again. Opening his eyes again after that, Takato could see in the distance the familiar desolate landscape of the Digital World. He was almost there. He just had to fall a little bit more and he would be back. Suddenly, a glow from the side drew Takato’s attention away. He turned to look and he could see a bright light coming from…somewhere. He couldn’t tell where it was coming from or what was causing it. All he could make out of it through the lenses of his goggles was a vague shape of…a heart? Just as abruptly as the light came, Takato’s direction of travel jerked away from the Digital World and right towards that heart shaped light. He almost lost his grip on his backpack it was so out of nowhere. As he got closer, the only thing he could see was a bright light. He had no choice but to close his eyes. *END FLASHBACK* “Next thing I know, I fall here and there’s Twilight.” As the young tamer gave the details of his trip to his audience, all of them were listening closely trying to find anything that could be of help. Luckily, one detail had the present alicorns thinking they found it. “It couldn’t be. Could it?” Luna wondered to her sister. “I’m unsure. The Crystal Heart’s ability has always been shrouded in mystery.” Celestia thought aloud. “Um….the crystal what now?” Terriermon waved to get their attention. Remembering they didn’t know what that was, Twilight, Luna, and Celestia all turned to the Digimon. “The Crystal Heart.” Twilight said. “It’s an ancient relic up in the Crystal Empire. It has powerful magical abilities but we still don’t know all that much about it.” “Well then let’s go see this Crystal Heart thing and ask it to send us back home!” Calumon said with enthusiasm. None of the ponies in the room shared it with him however. “I’m afraid that’s not a good idea.” Luna declared. “Awww why not? I’d ask it politely.” Calumon weakly argued back. “I’m sure you would but that isn’t the point, little one.” Celestia said, agreeing with her sister. “Ponyville is, for now, the only place in Equestria that knows about you. If you were to travel around now and be spotted, it would only cause more complications to this situation.” “As much as I hate to admit it, she’s right.” Takato chimed in again. “I wanna get back home too but we have to play our cards right in order to not cause a panic doing so.” The Digimon wanted to argue against it but after taking a moment to think, they couldn’t think of a decent one. All of them, especially Guilmon, Terriermon, Renamon, and Impmon remembered how the humans of Earth reacted whenever they were spotted out in the open. It was mostly panic because plain and simple; they were monsters. People fearing what they don’t understand has always been a fundamental but annoying part of human nature. Even they were smart enough to catch onto that. And from the way some of the ponies reacted upon meeting them earlier today, it was a good guess that the masses of Equestria would not be that different a story. It only made them sadder at the prospect that getting home or even finding a clue to get home would be a process with no definite time frame. All of them save Guilmon missed their partners something fierce. The more time that dragged on without them by their side only made their steps forward feel heavier, as was evident by the looks on their faces. Renamon was looking down at the ground wondering how much longer she would have to wait but was diverted when she felt something pat her shoulder. She saw Twilight there flapping her wings and sporting a comforting smile on her face. “Don’t worry.” She said softly. “We’re gonna make this work.” “Yes we will.” Celestia agreed. “Luna and I will help you as best we can.” Then Luna talked again. “Celestia and I will contact Cadence and Shining Armor to inquire about any odd activity with the Crystal Heart. Twilight? Are there any other leads that you can chase?” Before she could answer, the door to the room opened up and Starlight came walking through it with her magic levitating something behind her. “I’m so sorry to interrupt your conversation. Twilight, I figured you’d want to see this.” She floated the object behind her into view and showed that it was a journal. On the front cover it was emblazoned with a mark that was half of Twilight’s cutie mark. The other half appeared to be a sun similar to Celestia’s but not identical. The book itself was pulsing with light on the cover and spine and vibrating. The sight of the book and the action it was doing caused Twilight to grow a smile. “As a matter of fact, I do have a lead, Luna.” Walking over to Starlight, Twilight took the book from Starlight and opened it up, reading carefully what was inside. “What is that?” Guilmon wondered. “It’s pretty.” MarineAngemon commented. Twilight didn’t seem to answer them. She was looking closely at what was written in the pages of that book not even hearing anything else around her. When she was finally done, she gave the book back to Starlight and looked back to the Digimon and goggle headed tamer. “Takato, there’s one more friend I need to introduce you to. And I’m gonna do that very soon.” Takato’s head turned to the side a bit, not knowing if this new friend would be of help, or even who or what it was.