Digimon Story: Rainbow Traverse -- Chp 10

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As interesting as this rivalry was intriguing… Alemana would speak up “As guilty as he might be and as bad of a person he proved himself to be.. I think the fact that Varamon sent a goon to try to steal from him is pretty significant.” He said reasonably. “Especially since we- and by we I’m pretty confident I mean me and my compatriots- have no idea what that device was or how it worked. So Hookmon.. if you can take it from the top: what exactly was that thing and what did it do?”

"Hmph. Why should I tell you anything?" asked Hookmon.

“For one.. we own your ship right now,” the boy said reasonably. “The other.. well you hate Varamon, we want to stop Varamon. That alone should be good enough for a.. gentlemon of your tastes.”

[Hmm... roll Persuasion]

[Rolling: 5 1 5 + 6= 17]

The pirate scoffed, turning his back on the group. But after sitting down on his cell's cot, the only funiture to be had besides a moth-eaten blanket - and an honest-to-Akua chamber pot - a sigh growled from his unseen lips.

"...The astrolabe is a device me and my predecessor came across while traveling the Net Ocean," he said. "Forged from solid digizoid, it alone is able to bridge the gap between the multitude of different Servers that comprise the Digital World. For decades, mayhap even centuries, we charted the stars for Terra Incognita, shores yet untouched by the boot-treds of others. Since the interference, however, the device has proven useless, as you cannot sale through the portal it creates without a ship, and the Paradiso remains landlocked."

"Wait, portal?!" echoed Ike, only to rub at the back of his head. "Does that mean you could - uh, travel to places outside the Digital World?"

At this, Hookmon gave an icy laugh, sharp and mirthless. "Don't be ridiculous. Were it so powerful, I would rule more than a simple enterprise such as what I've built here."

"Still an interesting point," reasoned Mach. "If Varamon and the Green Lady got their hands on something like this, it would spell trouble for more than just Waihona."

That caused Alemana to pause.. and he would then take a few moments to then say “Well.. if someone else stole this device, at least it’s away from the Green Lady for now. We still have to find them , though. Right, MachGaogamon?”

The cyborg nodded. "No doubt about it, cousin. This just hit top priority."

"Hey, wait a sec!" said Ike, shooting a finger at Al. "I just remembered!"

"Remembered what?" asked #81.

"Gesomon! He said Hookmon had something that belongs to him!"

"Pretty sure that he's not the only one with that kind of relationship."

"I'm talking about a Ki'i!"

Mach's golden eyes flashed as his ears perked. Al looked up at the cyborg's face to see how the canine was gritting his teeth as much as showing them, almost in a silent growl whose intensity could shake mountains.

"Hookmon," he said, clenching his mechanized fists. "Is this true?"

"And what if I have?" asked the captain. "Do you intend on deleting me over it?"

That caused Alemana to grow just as tense.. and he too would  would speak up “No.. but we do need it. Something is happening.. and that Ki’i are monumentally integral to what’s going on. More importantly.. it’s not meant for you!”

"I acquired it through a legitimate business transaction," said the crook. "If you have qualms about it, you should take it up with Gesomon."

"A kahuna would never trade away something as sacred as a Ki'i," said Mach. "What would have that'd ever be worth it?"

"Take it up with Gesomon," Hookmon repeated. "I don't make a habit of giving out client confidential information, not that you would believe anything I told you regardless."

Mach turned to face #81. "Show me the vault," he said. "Now."

The Sailormon shrank under the intensity of the cyborg's gaze. "Can do," he said, gulping. "It uh, it's right this way."

Ike shared a look with Al before following the two back outside in the storm, leaving Hookmon and Hi-VisionMonitamon under the watchful eyes of the other Sailormon present. When Mach stepped out, Gargoylemon went up to approach the cyborg but closed his mouth shut when Mach continued storming after #81.

"(Always liked this mon,)" he whispered to Kyubimon. "(Now? I think I'm in love.)"

The nine-tails rolled her eyes at her fellow Champion, but she couldn't fool Al. She was not interested in competition, nor did she think of Gargoylemon as such.

This caught him off guard, and he wouldn’t even give Hookmon another glance as he would trot out after MachGaogamon, worry starting to weigh on him. That weight would be lifted to an extent, however, when he got outside.. and felt that strange sense of territoriality towards the Kahuna coming from Kyubimon, which surprised him almost as much as the revelation that Hookmon had a Ki’i in his posession.

(“It looks like I have some competition, huh? I don’t blame you- he’s definitely something else!”) he thought to her- teasingly.

("I... don't know what you're talking about,") thought Kyubimon, holding her head high with eyes closed, as she walked along with the others.

Down inside the lower decks, the Paradiso had hallways designed with Champion level digimon in mind, allowing Kyubimon to dry off the last of the rain as a sudden cloud of steam by way of controlled releasing of heat. Much to Gargoylemon's chagrin, as he hadn't the time to fan his wings dry if he wanted to keep up with the group. Upon reaching the vault, Al was reminded of the ones seen in banks, a giant crank at the center of a door that dominated the entire wall of a room twice the size of any others he'd seen aboard the Paradiso. Several Sailormon were standing nearby, but quickly moved out of the way upon seeing MachGaogamon. The vault door was already ajar, but with barely a tap from the cyborg, it was ripped clean off its hinges to reveal a treasure trove worthy of a cartoon billionaire. Gold and silver coins stacked up like hillocks, with gemstones dotting them like lustrous wildflowers. And while the Sailormon all stared at the now ruined, adjacent wall through which the door had been tossed through, the canine cyborg climbed inside the vault.

The interior was bedecked with shelves and pedestals showcasing strange works of art, relics, and curios that Al had no names for. Maps lay in cubbyholes or tubes made from fine leather, while primitive weapons were set up to dominate an entire corner of the vault just by themselves.

"You know how much my folks back home could pay off with all this?!" said Ike, the tamer grabbing fists full of gold.

Alemana would gently rest a hand on one of her cords in a reassuring manner, though his teasing continued. (Kyubi and Mach, sitting in a tree-“)

———

Upon reaching the vault- and moving a fair bit away when he wrenched the door from its hinges.. he would look around in wonder at everything… but he would snap back to reality when he heard what Ike was saying.

“Do you think treasure here would be valuable back home, though..?” He quietly asked, his tone uncertain. But even as he asked that question.. he would slowly reach into one of his zipper pockets- pulling his digivice out. Perhaps the Ki’i inside would react to the presence of another.. if it was here that was.

"Why wouldn't it?" asked the blond tamer, though the strength in his voice wavered. He contemplated the doubloon in his gloved hand, brushing it with his thumb as he turned it over.

Ignoring the commotion outside, Alemana and MachGaogamon worked in tandem as they explored the room. The cyborg sniffed at the metallic, stale air, eyes narrowing as he stepped deeper in. Yet Al's theory bore fruit of its own, the tamer's digivice thrumming in his hand. It was barely noticeable, like the brush of a breeze or feather against the skin. The fact he was still wearing his Troopmon Deluxe made such an observation all the more interesting.

"Well I'll be," mused Mach, a smile melting away his steely complexion. "You really are a tamer..."

“I just don’t know if their stuff is the same as our stuff-“
Alemana almost jumped as he felt it, and he would point his Digivice this way and that, seeing if it would have a stronger reaction… but he then would stop as he looked up at MachGaogamon. “Well.. I guess I should come clean. You’re right, I’m a Tamer, and Kyubimon’s my partner. That Troopmon over there is also a Tamer-“ he said, pointing to Ike. And a moment later- he would lift up his mask to reveal his face. “My name is Alemana Sonson.. nice to properly meet you-!”