Droid Army (Hunt)

All the Troopmon wandering around made Tadayoshi extremely uncomfortable. Surely this gang couldn't be stupid as to believe a human could be passing through this settlement on his way to the Mainframe Hills, could they? Sure, it had a few shops with a few useful goodies, but it also had wandering armed digimon that seemed to discourage foot traffic who eyed any passersby suspiciously. Oddly enough, though, passing through in the middle of the street was still the stealthier way of infiltrating the village. Given recent events, both Tadayoshi and the digimon invisibly accompanying him were wanted men now, but luckily the only unfriendly digimon to have seen the boy's face was no longer in a state where he might remember it. Still, word had to be out that a human was involved in this village's troubles, so Yoshi tried his best to avoid eye-contact and keep a low profile.

Commandramon had given Yoshi a couple of tips for that: Eyes neither up nor down but forward. Walk briskly like you have somewhere to be but not so fast that you seem like you're in a rush. It's OK to notice the Troopmon, because it's normal; you'll be suspicious if you try too hard not to look at them. Don't let your eyes linger, though; be curious, not wary. Stop occasionally, and look interested in something innocuous. Remembering that last piece of advice, Yoshi stopped in front of a little trinket stall run by a Pillomon. The stall featured some cute little souvenirs for travelers - what few they probably got, both given their location and situation.

"Hi, there! We don't get many humans out here. What can I get ya?" Pillomon's greeting almost seemed exaggerated in friendliness, especially given the trial she tried to flash was clearly forced.

"Oooh... good question." Yoshi feigned interest in the stall and its goods, leaning to one side, then another trying to get a better look at some specific items. Actually, a little bead necklace really and truly intrigued him enough that he was tempted, but the only one between Tadayoshi and Commandramon who could actually store bits was in no condition to be out in public at the time. "Oh, boy. I'm sorry, but I'd better not get distracted. Have a nice day, though!"

"You, too!" As he left, Tadayoshi snuck a glance over at the Pillomon once he was a ways away. She was frowning and looking dejected.

Naturally, there was no response.

Tadayoshi didn't have to hear it from the dragonoid to know he was being reprimanded, so he continued on and tried to bury his guilt over deceiving the shopkeep who was clearly down on her luck. We're trying our best, Pillomon. I hope we'll make it happen soon. That little prayer was the best Tadayoshi could do in the moment, but it was just enough to allow the boy to move on toward where he really needed to be: just outside a specific little wood house that couldn't have been more than three rooms total. His nerves started to creep up on him as he stood before the door, but there was no choice but to knock. "Hagurumon? Are you home?" Instantly, Tadayoshi kicked himselfl for that approach; he had never personally met Hagurumon before, and Commandramon had described him as easily spooked. So, there was Tadayoshi, banging down the door and calling the name of a skittish stranger he'd never met. He couldn't just identify himself as a friend of Commandramon, either, though; there were too many Troopmon around who had a chance of being within earshot. "Sorry, uh... that Pillomon down the road? She said you were the person to go to about mechanical repairs."

Then there wasn't much left for Tadayoshi to do but cross his arms and wait. Any further prodding, and Hagurumon definitely would refuse to come to the door. Actually, after two full minutes of waiting, it seemed like it wasn't going to happen anyway, but in the end Hagurumon did indeed come to the door. "What do you need?"

Yoshi smiled, knelt, and opened his backpack. "I need parts for this, and I think you're the only one who knows where to get them." Tadayoshi then leaned his pack in so that only Hagurumon could see its contents. Lying on top of several survival supplies like spare clothes, water bottles, and, most importantly, a blue and silver Xros Loader on whose screen Commandramon was flashing a calming thumbs-up but, noticeably, not speaking. "Could you let us in?"

Hagurumon nearly slammed the door in Tadayoshi's face but hesitated at about the halfway point. Then he hissed, "Fine, quickly!" Compliantly, Yoshi made his entrance quick, but Hagurumon still almost shut the door on Tadayoshi's foot; he had to pull his shoe free to get himself completely inside. "What do you want?"

"Exactly what I said, actually." But instead of explaining himself, Tadayoshi extracted the Loader from his backpack and let Commandramon do the talking.

"That's great and all, but did you really have to include 'fledgling' in your description of me?" Tadayoshi indignantly quipped.

"Can we sit?" Hagurumon sighed but used his eyes to gesture toward a free seat, which Yoshi took. Hagurumon elected to remain standing (well, levitating). "We're looking for something: a 'data stabilizer.'"

"...right," Yoshi admitted reluctantly.

"Can you do it?" Hagurumon paused. He pursed his metallic lips. Dealing with Hagurumon must have been something that Commandramon was accustomed to, Tadayoshi thought to himself, because the cog digimon's will to avoid assisting seemed to be fading. Now it looked more like he was trying to find a way to help than a way to get out of it. "Well?"

Hagurumon went on to list a set of items he needed for the modifications necessary. Almost all of them went completely over Tadayoshi's head, and lots of them sounded like things the human world didn't even have and never would for decades. Then Hagurumon went on to list the part he already had, which, surprisingly, turned out to be most of them. "...but money has been a stretch ever since the 'taxes' went up last week. If I give you these, I don't know how I'll ever replace them!"

"Let it be an investment in a future with no more 'taxes,'" Commandramon tried to assure his friend. "Will you help us?"

It turned out the answer was 'yes,' but Hagurumon wasn't able to do everything. There were some parts that required a little doing, mainly trying to sweet-talk a few other merchants and convincing them to trade in such rare goods for such low compensation. The real challenge, however, was the 'anti-anomalyzer,' a piece of the puzzle Tadayoshi couldn't even pronounce, let alone understand the function of it. Apparently, it was being stored in one of the Black Army's treasure hoard and was already sold to a dubious Blackagumon buyer. This was an obstacle Hagurumon expected to pose the most trouble of them all, but Commandramon had very little trouble, with the use of Tadayoshi as his legs, tracking down the Blackagumon as he made his way out of town. From there it was a simple matter of tailing him nice and far from the village, reloading, and offering not to blast Blackagumon with his rifle in exchange for the anti-anomalyzer. It was an underwhelming little circuit board-type-thing, apparently, but supposedly vital.

Apparently, Hagurumon was more reliable than Tadayoshi had personally expected him to be. When he smuggled Commandramon back to the village, he'd already begun his work assembling the piece he intended to connect to the Xros Loader. With the parts Tadayoshi brought him back, Hagurumon was able to throw together a chimera-sort of little machine that he then stuck inside the device before sealing it back shut. "Should we test it?" Yoshi wondered out loud.

"Not in my house!" Hagurumon shrieked, "Now get out before Troopmon come wondering who the outsider I'm seeing is. Please."

Word count: 1,533

Acquired: Data stabilizer allowing the incomplete cross of X2 Submarimon.