Ashes to Ashes[Mikemon]

K was as straightforward as ever. Though K was nervous, her resolve pushed her to want to know the answer. The wolf's reply earned a small smile from the Mikemon, a nod given to his impromptu patient. "Alright, take a seat, then." He motioned to the chair she was on before, the feline moving to stand his chair back up. Instead of take his perch across the table, though, he simply snagged his papers, and dragged the seat over so that he could more properly show K his notes.

Once he took his seat, Doctor Mikemon gave a nod, and held the scratch-work so that K could observe. "Honestly, from the start, I was quite confused looking at your core. Here," the Mikemon tapped the largest core with a pen, "Is 'your' core. Its a green, vaccine element core." He scribbled a 'Va' to mark the circle, before moving to the two smaller ones. "And the two that I had said you absorbed? This one is 'Data'," which he marked with a 'D', "And Virus," marked with 'Vi'. Following this, the pen circled around the three, tracing around the 'cord' that he had drawn earlier.

"Ordinarily, absorbed data doesn't look like this. It should look like..." He drew a straight line from the center core, and then made a small circle. "Like that. The center core draws information, until its integrated entirely. That these cores even have remained for so long is strange by itself, but it seems that energy is flowing around this coil. Instead of drawing everything in, its pushed around in a loop."

Did K get any of that? Well, it was about to get weirder, as the Mikemon tapped at his notes. "But I was actually able to talk to these cores. All three of them, actually, and they spoke in very clear terms about you. Judging by how your core is organized, I have no reason to doubt them."

He paused, drawing a deep breath. "Long ago, this green ball was some powerful Vaccine level Digimon. At some point, it came into contact with two others... an Examon," he tapped the 'virus' ball, "And a 'Jesmon'," And there was a tap at the 'Data' ball. "For whatever reason, the Vaccine type thought it necessary to stop the other two. Through combat or some other method, it was able to absorb and subdue the other two, but their own will was too powerful to hold by normal means..."

The point of all this? "The Vaccine type, as far as I could tell, sacrificed its own form to create a new existence. By putting itself in such a link, it could hold the other two cores in line. But it had to suspend its own consciousness to do so... which meant another Digimon was created. One who would be unaware of this entire data set below the surface."

He sighed. "K... why you've never died, but have no recollection of this earliest time is simple. You are the creation made, so these three cores could keep each-other in check. Until recently, you kept these in perpetual check with your monstrously stable core..."

Mikemon knew with every word, that this information could destroy K's perception of herself. But still he pressed on, his voice level and his tone, at least initially, informative. So long as the Shutmon understood the information well enough, he'd press on:

"As far as I can tell, yes: a powerful Vaccine type took in the data of a Jesmon and an Examon. Those three powerful cores make a loop, and that loop produces your conscious mind." It was a heavy thing to say for sure, but as for the simple question of if she came from an egg? "It's entirely possible that your creation didn't involve an egg, yes. Or perhaps an egg was created when the loop was first started, but really, it's impossible to tell." Nor was it really that important.

But as K clutched at her head, the Mikemon swore under his breath. Did merely saying the diagnosis agitate the spirits? It was entirely possible! "Hey, stay with me there, K! I'll get-" Just as he was about to hop off his chair, though, the eyes took a blue glow. The Shutmon's expression changed instantly, sheer anger in both her expression and tone. The words that came out of K's mouth were intended to intimidate the Mikemon, and the cat?

He didn't take it lying down. "The alternative," he spat, "Is that you don't stop the loop! Leave her the ---- alone. This era isn't one for you to come back in!" He matched the spirit's anger, meeting those glowing eyes with his own, a red tint entering his gaze.

"Leave. Her. Be."

This voice didn't know when to call it quits, did it?

It seemed that Mikemon's attempt at intimidating this presence wasn't enough for it to back down. Rather, this possessed Shutmon stepped forward, pointing at the doctor from mere inches away. Once more he was being talked down to, and once more, the voice gave its angry plea. This time, however, this ancient voice finally had something useful to say:

K needed her own core, or she was going to vanish. As much as the Mikemon wanted to retort, he was forced to bite his lip. If the Shutmon continued to change forms, the imbalance would be thrown off further and further. Whether or not K would be destroyed, each change would slowly steal away her sense of self. He already knew that this was the case, and so he had no reason to believe that the voice was lying.

It took swallowing a fair bit of pride, but the Mikemon slowly loosened his hands, giving a deep breath out. "Fine. I will look into attempting to manufacture a core out of 'Free' or 'Vaccine' data. If push comes to shove, I have the core of a Rapidmon in my own data. However, this isn't a one-way deal." The feline gave a glare: "She's not an anomaly. Her name is 'K', and you will do everything in your power to keep her stable. Now. Leave her be, for now."

Thankfully, the Mikemon seemed to have reached this core's intrigue. Could a powerful enough core be simply created? "A core is but one aspect that makes up a Digimon. There's already theory behind making a shell itself, and I should be able to work on a shell that will suit your needs." Alternatively, the Mikemon could try strengthening the Rapidmon's core, which was already at a mega-state to begin with.

But they soon struck a deal: the cores would leave K alone, and Doctor Mikemon would provide them a shell, one way or another. This presence would additionally protect K. In her brilliant posture, she finally revealed the form of the Vaccine core: GraceNovamon. "I'll hold you to that, Knight. I will observe her data directly if we need to talk again."

Soon enough, though, that presence finally left K. Her slumped state, followed by a set of data stripping away from her frame, caused the Mikemon to blink in surprise. Was it just too much for her to handle? "K! Are you-"

No, no, she wasn't in danger. After a month of being trapped in this Ultimate form or higher, K finally returned to her 'resting' state, that of a Renamon. She was slumped over the side of the chair, the cat quickly moving to catch her side. "Careful there, I got you..." It took a little effort, but the Renamon would soon be lying on her back, resting on that observation bed. Once she was settled, his gaze briefly settled on the blue bands floating around her arm.

"K..." As the spirit's last comment flicked past his ear, the Mikemon gave a sigh. Was the Renamon even aware about any of what was going on? Briefly, he rested the back of his paw on her forehead, checking if her head felt hot. He stepped back soon after, a small smile on his face as he moved to his desk.

"We'll have a lot to talk about."

It made sense that K was completely drained. The whole deal with the GraceNovamon aside, the Renamon had quite literally hopped from the Eastern Timberlands to the Southern Tropics, as well as spent several hours in her mega state. Moreso than that, though, was that K finally reverted back to her rookie state, and a month's worth of fatigue would take over her at once.

All Mikemon could do for this time was let K rest. The Renamon would lie there overnight, Doctor Mikemon taking to his own room to catch his own five or six hours of sleep. He intended for it to be longer, but either he or the Stingmon had to keep an eye on her, for when she finally woke up. Thus, when K shot up from the bed and grasped at her chest, the feline was already there! Standing up from his own desk, he called out: "Easy, easy there, K." His voice was firm, but careful, as he made his way to the side of the bed. That little 'scratch' in her data was concerning, but considering everything else, it wasn't the worst state she could be in.

"Deep breath, count back from ten. You're a Renamon - try and keep that form for now." He was careful with his tone, not trying to set anything off. There would be a lot to explain, but first? "Tell you what, how about I get the coffee on? We can discuss this once we're settled for the morning."

Each time that the Renamon's data flickered or gave a small phase, the Mikemon carefully observed her appearance. It made sense that her data would be a little unstable, as K's three separate cores were currently wrestling for a new state of stability. It wouldn't have been too surprising if she jumped back to her Shutmon form.

Just because it made sense, however, didn't mean that the thought wasn't concerning. Slowly, K's form began to stabilize, ultimately settled by the glowing bands around her left arm. It seemed that the Renamon wasn't quite aware of just what had happened before she passed out, but that could wait for a bit: "Don't worry, your data should be settling soon. Ah, and easy, there..." He stepped back, as the Renamon pulled herself up. "Its been a while since you've been in this form, so it'll take a minute to adjust back to your balance."

---

Still, it didn't take long to get back into the swing of things. Back out in the waiting room, the smell of coffee already filled the place. Stingmon made a fresh pot every morning, and with a small wave, a paper cup of black coffee was provided to both of them. That, and a small breakfast pastry, would make up their impromptu breakfast.

Settled in, and hopefully with K's balance and head more settled, the Mikemon would finally ask: "Well, before I show you what your 'core' had to say last night, I guess I should ask - how are you feeling? Any problems keeping that form, so far?"

Honestly, there was more than enough to go around as far as cheap breakfast food, and with a second cup of coffee in front of each of them, the two started to discuss what had transpired last night. As K described her current condition, the feline nodded in recognition. "What you describe is in line with what I figured out last night. Your three cores are in contention. Now, this may be difficult, but..."

He turned, directing to a screen to his right of the table. "I had Stingmon pull the tapes and audio from last night. This should already be set to the point where you lost your memory. Let's see..." Plucking up the remote, he tapped 'play'. After a moment of static, the time and date would tick away in the top right. K would see herself as a Shutmon ask if she came from an egg...

... And shortly after, she'd see how her own eyes pulsed blue, and as that strange voice took herself over. The GraceNovamon's entire conversation with Mikemon played by. If K requested it, he'd replay any other part she wanted to see again, and describe the condition to the best of her ability.

The video would end when K reverted to a Renamon, and collapsed against the observation bed. There, the Mikemon would pause, and give a sigh. "... That's how it is."