Digital
Chapter 12 - Tochaku
by Senashenta

Here's me saying what everyone already knows, but needs to be said anyway. *sighsigh* I don't own Digimon or Lord Of The Rings. Unfortunately.

Ano....I started using some Elvish in this chapter. Legolas speaks it, mostly when he's conversing with Aragorn, who speaks it as well. Though Takeru, Ken and Ruki will probably use a word or two later on. Translations will always be included at the bottom of the chapter.

Eevee: Ne, did you think I meant the Wolfriders from Elfquest? ^^ Those are the only ones I can think of right now. :p Anyhoo, thanks for reading anyway. I can see how it might have been confusing. ^_~ Oh, oh! You have to go and read the LoTR books. Though, truthfully, I haven't even read all three of them yet.... ^^;;

Lady Fox: Thankies bunches! *glomps* (Lady Fox and I have been brainstorming together for the 3^rd installment of my Digimon/LoTR stories ^^) Oh, and, as always, everyone says hi to you, too!

Ruki: *rolls eyes*

Legolas: *sighs* She means 'hello'.

Ne, gomen gomen. This chapter isn't as good as the last few have been. :p The next chapter will go back to the way they have been. Yeah. Did that make sense? *ponders*

~Digital~
~Chapter Twelve~

"How...." Iori asked, his voice failing him. He took a moment and tried again, "how could this happen?"

"There was....nothing...." Miyako's voice came through the D-Terminal again. "There was nothing we could....there were too many, and...." she choked then, and a half-sob caught in her throat. "....Taichi, what are we going to do?"

Taichi closed his eyes, swallowing, then, "just wait....for Renamon, and get here."

"Yeah...." Miyako agreed sadly, "yeah."

"Miyako," Legolas' voice said softly, "I must speak with Aragorn. May I?"

Aragorn assumed that she handed the Terminal over, and took the one that Taichi offered to him, still propping Takeru up. The blond needed medial attention, but this seemed to be of at least equal, if not more importance. Looking the Terminal over, Aragorn frowned. The technology was unknown, but he understood that all he needed to do was speak into it. He looked down, meeting Legolas' gaze through the machine. "Legolas."

The Elf looked like hell. "Ken was taken by the winged beasts."

"Winged beasts?" Aragorn was surprised.

"Uma, Aragorn, uma." Legolas agreed darkly, "and ridden by the Nazgul, not less. Nadorhaunrim! They took him by flight. There was nothing we could do to stop them. Amin dele ten' ho." Shaking his head, he sighed and continued, "we will meet you as soon as we can. Manke naa lye omentien?"

"The place is called Primary Village. I am sure Miyako will know where it is."

Legolas nodded, "tenna' san', mellonamin."

"Vanya sulie, Legolas."

The others were staring blankly when he handed the D-Terminal back to Taichi, who pocketed it without a word. He knew they didn't understand some of what he had said, but it wasn't the time for a language lesson.

Instead of explaining, he hefted Takeru up again, nearly slinging the boy over his shoulder, and started for the Village before them.

<So the Shadow Riders also arrived in this world.>

That could be problematic. Still, the Ranger wasn't exactly surprised by the revelation. He was sure that worse things than the Nazgul had been set upon the people and lands of Takeru and Ken's world.

Takeru....

Not one to show weakness, Aragorn had kept his thoughts to himself. But he was worried about the boy. During Takeru's time in Middle Earth, Aragorn had come to respect his resilience, and, to a certain extent, his stubbornness, but he had pushed himself too hard this time. Even to an untrained eye, the wounds he had endured looked terrible, and he had surely lost more blood than was safe.

Still, Aragorn was fairly sure Takeru would pull through.

Fairly sure....

"Taichi! Hikari!" A familiar voice called out, and the Ranger glanced up to see Patamon flying toward them from the Village they were approaching. Behind the winged digimon came Wormmon and several others that he didn't recognize. "Iori! Ken just said we all had to meet you guys here and so we-" Patamon broke off, then, "who...." a moment of silence. "Gimli?! Aragorn?!"

"It is us, little one." Aragorn responded grimly, "as well as others."

"Merry and Pippin." Wormmon remarked, "what's going on?"

"Why are you- AHH!" Patamon shrieked suddenly when he came close enough to recognize Takeru, sprawled over Aragorn's shoulder. "TAKERU!" Flapping over, the digimon hovered in the air in front of them. "Aragorn, what happened-?!"

"We encountered Orcs shortly before Renamon arrived." The man explained, "and Takeru was hurt."

"Renamon?" Wormmon wondered, "but she-"

"Takeru," Aragorn interrupted, "needs to see a healer. We can explain everything later."

"Of course." Wormmon nodded, his eyes flicking back to where Growmon was still carrying Hyouga, and Galgomon was standing with Lee, Takato and Shuichon. His gaze flitted over them and then he turned, "Gomamon, we need Jou."

"Sure," one of the unfamiliar digimon shrugged, seemingly nonchalantly but with confusion and worry in his features, and turned, leaving the way they had come.

"Gomamon will get him," another of the creatures- this one resembling a cat- explained, "but we should go to the Village anyway. Jou can take better care of him there than here." When Gimli gave her un unsure look, she continued, "Jou is a doctor. A healer. He can help."

As she was saying this, a taller boy with dark blue hair appeared, running from Primary Village with four others- two other boys and two girls- on his heels. Panting, he stopped a few feet away, "Gomamon told me that someone needed- WHAT HAPPENED TO TAKERU?!"

"He's hurt." Shuichon said.

"Obviously," the boy commented. Frowning, he adjusted his glasses, "look, we need to get him inside so I can see how badly....you there, come on, hurry up. You've already got him, so you can keep carrying him. Let's go, let's go!"

The Ranger ignored the fact that he wasn't used to being ordered around and proceeded to follow his instructions. The others, had they not still been trying to absorb the fact that Ken had been kidnaped and Daisuke was....well, if they hadn't been distracted by those facts, they might have been able to show surprise when Jou began ordering Aragorn around.

He had never been a leader (okay, once, but that had been prompted by Sora and ended badly) and never showed that kind of forcefulness. Being in medical school and learning the importance of time in treating people had made him stronger, apparently.

"Is he going to be okay?" Patamon asked worriedly, perching on Jou's shoulder for a moment, "is he? Jou?"

"I don't know." Jou responded truthfully, starting after Aragorn. "We'll see."

A second later Gimli headed after them, with Merry and Pippin, who scrambled to keep up with the Dwarf. Yamato, looking confused but too concerned for his brother not to follow, went after a moment of hesitation.

"Takatomon...." Growmon whined, his voice punctuating the silence that followed their departure, "Growmon is tired, and Hyouga wants down."

The Warg was beginning to look distinctly annoyed.

"Just ....carry him for a couple more minutes, okay?" Takato told him, "and you can put him down in Primary Village, so he can get his leg fixed up."

He sounded somewhat doubtful, a feeling that the others shared with him. No one, besides Hikari, was sure about Hyouga yet. The Warg was dangerous, and despite Hikari's insistence that he was now her friend, he was still a potential threat.

"Taichi," Sora said finally, "what's going on? I woke up this morning and everyone was gone, except for Mimi. There was no power. We couldn't get the D-Terminals to work, either, and then suddenly mine came on and Ken said to get to Primary Village."

"Ken...." Taichi muttered. "And Daisuke...."

"Tai'?" Mimi asked, tilting her pink-haired heard to the side, "you look upset."

"Mimi," with a half-sob, Hikari picked Tailmon up and hugged her. "Daisuke....he's...."

Even before she said it, the looks that crossed the faces of their friends were horror-filled. That was also part of being a Chosen Child. They seemed to have a semi-link with each other, though not a strong one. It generally didn't do much good, especially over long distances, but in this case, with the tears that were streaming from Hikari's eyes, and the grief that was radiating from her brother and the others, there was only one conclusion that they could come to.

"No. No...." V-Mon looked to Taichi frantically, "Daisuke's not....you can't....he isn't...."

"Dead." Taichi finished for him softly, "yes." Then, closing his eyes for a minute, he started toward Primary Village again. Behind him, the others were still trying to comprehend what he had told them. V-Mon was staring in shock at the ground, his eyes darting frantically as his mind worked. "We need to get everyone cleaned up," the former-leader of the Chosen Children said, "the others will be here soon."

Koushirou seemed to be in shock when he scrambled after Taichi, "w-what others? What's happening?"

He found himself ignored, and had to give up after several tries at catching his friend's attention. Sadly and still in shock, everyone followed Taichi in silence, everyone except for V-Mon. The little blue digimon continued to stand and stare blankly at the ground, silent sears welling into his eyes. These were followed by a flash of sudden anger, and he clenched his hands into fists, his claws digging into his skin.

"V-Mon...." Hikari had stopped walking and turned back. "I....might not know exactly what's happened, but....I know....that Takeru, and the others....Aragorn and Gimli....V-Mon, they will find a way to...."

"You can't bring him back." V-Mon stated flatly.

"No," the girl agreed, "but they'll do everything they can to make sure the people that are responsible....that they are punished."

V-Mon glanced at her, angry tears spilling from his eyes, and then simply stalked toward the Village, leaving Hikari and Tailmon to stare worriedly after him. Finally, the Child of Light sighed and began to run, carrying her partner along for the ride, looking for wherever they had taken Takeru for treatment.

She found the place shortly, a smaller hut near the center of the town, and squeaked inside to stand out of the way while Jou worked. The doctor-in-training had managed to order Aragorn around until Takeru was securely in a bed and stripped down to almost nothing. (Hikari would have had to avert her gaze, had they removed much more of his clothing.) He had also commandeered the Ranger, as he was in need of an assistant, to help him while he did a quick examination of the unconscious blond and decided the best course of treatment.

In the end, the only thing he could really do for Takeru was stop the bleeding of the arrow-and-sword wounds in his side and sew them up. With nothing to dull the pain of the needle and thread (which was kindly supplied by a random Floramon), Jou was to a certain extent glad that his younger friend was passed out.

Once he and Aragorn had stitched the wounds on Takeru's side, he set to work on the gashes that ran across the boy's chest (Jou made a comment to the effect of Takeru being attacked by a bear, to which Aragorn responded that he wasn't that far off) and, though they weren't deep enough to require stitching, bandaged them up tightly.

Which would have hurt his ribs, had Jou not done his best to bandage THEM as well.

The bloody lip only needed to be cleaned, and the concerned digimon of Primary Village gave them a helpful potion to apply to all the various bruises that stained Takeru's skin. Apparently, made of a flower that was indigenous to the area, it would calm the swelling and keep the discoloring to a minimum.

Jou and Aragorn took their word for it.

Yamato and Patamon stood by the entire time, hovering in a nearby corner and watching worriedly. Hikari and Tailmon were much more collected than Takeru's brother and digimon, though in fairness Hikari had seen more in the previous three hours than anything Yamato had ever seen, and Tailmon had always been a calmer digimon than Patamon.

Indeed, Hikari and Tailmon, while both worried about Takeru, were still dwelling on Daisuke. Both Yamato and Patamon had left before the revelation of the redhead's fate, but it was sure that they would have a strong reaction when they found out.

"Well," Jou stood back, after what seemed like forever, and made as if to wipe his bloodstained hands on his pants (not something that he EVER would have done) before hesitating and glancing down. When his eyes took in the amount of blood that was already smeared across his clothing, he sighed and wiped them on his pants anyway before turning to Yamato and Patamon. "He lost a lot of blood, and from what I can tell he's got at least two fractured ribs. I can't be sure about that without x-rays, though, so I might be mistaken."

"He'll be all right, won't he?"

"Hm," a tentative nod, "I think so. He needs to rest, but he should be all right."

Yamato's expression was severe, and he cast a wary look at Aragorn. "I need to go talk with Tai'. He has some explaining to do."

"You do that," Jou said vaguely, then to the Ranger, "thanks for your help...."

"My name is Aragorn."

"Ah." A nod, "thanks for your help, Aragorn. Now have a seat."

"Pardon me?"

"You've been hurt, too. Sit down so I can take care of it."

Aragorn shook his head, "I will be fine."

"No you won't, you've got a bad cut across your arm there, and your back is-"

"I've had worse."

"I'm sure you have, but-"

"My thanks, but I need not-"

"It won't take very long, so just-"

The man started for the door, much to Jou's exasperation, only to find Hikari blocking his path, Tailmon still in her arms and a tolerant but firm expression on her face. "Hikari, please move so I may pass."

"Aragorn, you've got to let Jou fix you up."

"I don't think-"

"Aragorn!" She snapped, giving him a hard look, "SIT DOWN."

The Ranger blinked, surprised by the force behind her words, and after a moment stepped backward and sat down uncomfortably in one of the small and strangely pillow-y chairs that adorned the room. Pillow-y seemed to be the theme of Primary Village.

"I'm glad Takeru's going to be all right." The girl said, at the same time as Jou managed to goad Aragorn into removing his tunic to have his injuries treated. "But....there are some things we need to explain to everyone, and I'm just getting in the way here so I'm going."

"Good idea." Tailmon added. "Yamato and Patamon should come with us."

"But I don't want to-"

"Patamon," Hikari looked at the digimon, "some things have happened....and you both need to hear about them. Come on."

With a sigh, Patamon fluttered over and perched on her shoulder, gesturing for Yamato to follow. It was a rare thing when the Child of Friendship took orders from anyone (least of all his best friend's little sister) but he simply followed them silently, casting a final glance back at his brother, who remained blissfully unconscious.

"Jou?"

"Yes, Hikari?"

"I'll send Gimli in on-"

"HIKARI!" A familiar voice called, tinged with tears, and at about the same time that the brunette opened the door, a blur of violet hair collided with her, squashing Tailmon and making them both gasp.

"Miyako, you're crushing me!"

"Tailmon?" Miyako sniffled and stepped back. Her eyes were red-rimmed and her voice was choked. "S-sorry...."

Hikari set Tailmon down and shut the door behind her, leaving Jou to argue with Aragorn. "Miyako, are you all right? When did you get here?" Glancing past her friend, Hikari noticed Juri, standing with the rest of the Tamers. She seemed to be explaining something. Beyond them, Ruki was leaning against a tree with Legolas beside her. Both of them looked terrible. "Everyone's here now."

"Yeah...." Miyako looked down, "except for Ken and Dai...."

"I know." Hikari said quietly. "We're just going to get everyone together....we need a plan....we need to...." her voice trailed off even more, then, "we need to get Ken back." Giving Miyako a push, she looked at Gimli, who was standing just outside the hut with Merry and Pippin. "You should go in. Jou'll have a look at you and bandage you up."

With that she picked Tailmon up again and headed toward her brother.

Everyone was there now, and there was a lot they had to discuss.

**********

TIME FOR ELVISH-CORNER, WITH LEGOLAS (Elvish) AND ARAGORN (Translations)! (Yay! ^^;;)

Legolas: Uma

Aragorn: "Yes"

Legolas: Nadorhaunrim!

Aragorn: "Cowardly Dogs!"

Legolas: Admin dele ten' ho.

Aragorn: "I am worried about him."

Legolas: Make naa lye omentien?

Aragorn: "Where are we meeting?"

Legolas: Tenna' san', mellonamin.

Aragorn: "Until then, my friend."

Legolas: Vanya sulie.

Aragorn: "Fair winds." (a goodbye)

**********

Me: Yeah. Kind of a bad/boring chapter. *sighsigh* I had to force it out, but I SWEAR the next chapter will be better. Better, I say!

V-Mon: Daisuke....he's....

Me: .....

Wormmon: Where's Ken? Why didn't he come with the others?

Me: .....

Hikari: Everyone's hurt, and....things won't be like this for the rest of the fic, right?

Me: There's a third one in the works, too! =^.^= It's gonna' be a trilogy!

Hikari: --_--;;