Shibuya Station [C]: Delayed Departures

Business as usual for these two, they had for the most part been enjoying making some connections in the human world. From the various libraries to even one of the local newspaper companies. They had been thrilled to find people with similar tastes in things out and about in the human world. But that message over tamermet brought the both of them sharing a confused albeit worried glance with one another.

DATS was a monster of it’s own, something that when addressed or poked would become much like murphy’s law. Something in motion would stay in motion; DATS would get traction and take off and any chance of peace would be hard to get for everyone. Peace was good. Peace brought in money and strength. What this did made it difficult for them to gain either thing.

The pair of disguised digimon sent their responses that they were on their way. Figuring that they could use this to their advantage to secure a better and controlled relationship with DATS well… They could hardly pass this up no? The pair walked arm and arm, able to pass off as a couple up until they arrived at the outskirts of the station proper. Skald frowned and herald well.. Herald kept that happy go lucky smile on her face. As infuriating as it was…

The renamon was glad to have her here; if he had been the only one present he may not have responded to the call. Rather taking the time to watch from afar and figure out how to even get home without a station worse come to worse.

The pair would approach the locale and from quite a good ways away would stop. Herald held up the D-terminal and let out a small rumbling laugh. DATS had dealt with her before and well.. While she wasn’t sure the ultimate outcome and the various agents of their encounter she hardly felt like it was negative.

”Here to help boys. Where’s the boss man or lady for today?”

Charming, chipper and a big grin on her face. Skald on the other hand looked kind of bored, though he’d check his own and raise his brow. Shooting a look to his companion who was well… She handled people in this sort of situation better than he did. That didn’t stop him from speaking and he’d just add on to what she had to say…

”If they’re even on scene yet… this looks fresh.”

The disguised mons shared a look and herald gave a small shrug. If DATS even wanted their help today they would get it… Then again the agent they interacted with didn’t know what sort of capabilities they had now did they?

....Thiiiis isn't supposed to be like this. Thiiis was supposed to be a normal day, normal time at night, where after he, who just recently turned into a college student, who's tired from his hours of classes about politics and history would simply trudge back home, maybe doing a bit of a part time job (actually nah, he'll die). Yuuki was walking to Seven Eleven and grabbed a frozen meal. He now live alone in a small apartment, but hey, it's his own (and Hikaru's). Digital World is nice, but as leader of KIZNA, he don't feel he can rest properly in Ys. Perhaps it's escapism mentality... he has become weak.

Anyway, checking for updates... He opened KIZNA's BBS and Tamernet while waiting for his microwave to let out the chime that it's done when...

SOS

"FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU---------------!!!" holding back his desire to curse, Yuuki practically scrambled out of his apartment after making sure everything has been turned off. At this point who cares anymore? He wished there's a better way to do this, but frankly, elegance is not his strong suit. Yuuki quickly opened a portal to Ys Palace.

"Oh, hi, studying ha---!?!?!" and grabbed Hikaru by his waist, then quickly opened a second gate to somewhere close to Hachiko Square. Not being in AEGIS means he doesn't have that allowance to drive like crazy on the road. But whatever, here he is.

"...Um, at the very least you could tell me what's going on you know?" Hikaru commented, trying to stay limp like a doll.

"Sorry, no time. Update can be done real time, right?"

"Sheesh, this is not a good day for both of us huh..."

Yuuki quickly donned his KIZNA outfit and walked toward the agreed place to gather. Why oh why must it be outside like this... Nai waa.... As much as he wanted to ask Hikaru to scout ahead, that's not going to work. He spotted the four riot squad member... Speaking of which, there are already someone here before, huh.

"Itou Yuuki of KIZNA, here under behest of Agent Machine. Please guide me to him, and brief me of the situation meanwhile."

...Speaking of which, he already sent the CC of the SOS to KIZNA GLORIA chat, here hoping some will appear...

Behind Malik, Yuuki, and Hikaru, came other KIZNA members; namely, a certain trio of siblings, all in holosuit, out of a similar portal to the one that Yuuki and Hikaru arrived in.

Ophelia would be the first out, eyes casting about with a tense expression. That Golden Week was more or less happening all over again - except with a far more grim situation - certainly wasn't comforting news, for the lioness. However, she was ready to do whatever she could, to protect all those present. A hand would be gripping at the belt that held up her jeans - where her sword would normally be sheathed in her main-line forms - in a agitated tic, as she walked over to Yuuki and the others. "Me and my siblings are here with them," She'd state to the present DATS riot squad, nodding to Yuuki and Hikaru.

Next, was Cassie. She appeared more nervous than necessarily tense - a clear worry for humans and innocent digimon alike clear in her expression. Having gotten used to walking around in a holosuit, she was far more steady-legged this time around than she was during Golden Week; though that didn't mean that she wasn't fidgeting in place, shifting her weight back and forth, from foot to foot. "I'm.. I'm ready to heal, if anyone's hurt, or gets hurt!" She'd state as she approached the others - attempting to stand up straight and ready. Something told her that this situation wouldn't be as easy to defuse as the one in Golden Week, but she was ready to try her best and make Valt proud again...!

Finally, there was Laertes. Normally, as a Strabimon, his ears and tail were the source of most of his emoting; his expression typically not changing from it's usual stoicness. However, in his holosuit, he lacked this; making his expression near-impossible to read, as he followed after his two sisters. This wasn't to say that he felt calm, per se, though. If he was honest, he was agitated and wary; being in a new place, much like with when he had first come to Ys. On top of this, the situation was a delicate one, given the hostages. Despite this, he wasn't about to leave his sisters behind to deal with this on their own - nodding to the others in a quiet acknowledgement, as he took up a vigil at the edge of the congregated group, leaning against the tree.

Once the siblings were situated, Ophelia would glance about - taking stock of the different people, digimon and humans alike, present. In particular, she'd glance to the ones she didn't recognize - Malik, Littorio and her Zurumon companion, and Skald and Herald. The first of the lot had a somewhat familiar scent - she was pretty sure that she had smelled him around the Sanctum at some point - but the other four were completely new to her... Hopefully, they'd be able to pull their weight and help out with this mess. "So, what's the lowdown?" She'd ask - adding "From what we hear, this is a right fuckin' mess that these digimon caused."

"Is this related to the Arachnemon from before...?" Cassie would quietly wonder to herself; a rhetorical question, as she didn't want to make any assumptions. She wanted to peek out from behind the tree, to get a better idea of what all they were dealing with; but she didn't want to risk alerting the WarGrowlmon that she could hear bellowing beyond.

Laertes, on the other hand, would glance down at himself - briefly considering using Trick of the Light, to safely scout out the situation. He wasn't sure if any of the digimon present had a sense of smell as strong as his, but they hopefully would be unable to see him or detect him, if he played his cards right...

Malik's expression shifted ever so slightly to one of worry and sadness "All this trouble...to fight. For what reason...? This will only spread hate...and that cycle will continue to spiral..." He was mostly muttering to himself as he ran his hands through his messy hair "Such a mistake...such a waste...digimon antagonize humans which then leads to humans thinking all digimon are the same. Then humans antagonize digimon, leading digimon to think all humans are the same. Why must this continue to spiral..."

He continued to listen to the briefing after he was done muttering to himself. So they had to figure out how to save the hostages from the hostile party's grasp. He mulled over a variety of reasons they could do that. A distraction? They would likely leave someone behind to watch the hostages. Any sort of ability that could retrieve them safely? That would be difficult to count on. They would have to play this by ear. "Do...we know why they want to fight DATS? If we can get that answer out of them...then maybe we can reason with them. At the very least we can figure out a way to negotiate the release of the hostages." He looked around, insecure. "Though I understand if you would rather not listen to the words of a fledgling. Forgive me." He bowed his head slowly.

He agreed that casualties should be avoided at all costs, which is why diplomacy would be a logical first step. Going in with the intent to attack or threaten could just escalate the situation further, which he wanted to avoid at all costs. "R-regardless, you have my support. I-I only ask that we keep diplomacy in mind. I do not want to see anyone, human or digimon, get hurt when it can be avoided..." He still felt like he was the odd one out here. Compared to the others, his strength was probably laughable. All he really had were his words, so he thought. If he couldn't aid diplomatically, he struggled to think of how he would assist otherwise.

Yuuki eventually put Hikaru down. The king dusted himself off and even shook his body. He's definitely not at all imposing considering his very small size. "Thank you, finally!" he sighed. "King Hikaru, here to lend you my assistance! Alright, so I get the gist of it... basically they want to fight with you DATS agent as a payback or whatever it was after the failed Golden Week effort, sort of? And Malik, as much as I want to answer your question, it's a bit too long to answer in details, but let's just say apparently the old DATS was fallen to a state where they're not any different from those they swore to protect against. Brainwashing, terrorism act... the validity of the rumor itself is not known, but at my beginner age, they're quite well avoided, with mentions of "brainwashed" being waved around.

Anyway..." the king looked at the rest "...I suggest we take parley. I'm not sure if they're going to listen to a king from a city state. My authority means jack to them, but there's no harm in trying."

"Right, that's my idea too... Considering Agent Machine is something like the face of the organization they hate, they probably won't hear him. However, if you tagged along, Agent, surely it will give them favorable outlook that at least DATS aren't craven." Yuuki commented. "But then, there's this problem... We're out in open, and the opponents are in Perfect stage... I'm not sure if we can contain the state of secrecy like this if they got aggressive... "

"Is there a way to disperse the crowd? Is there is a way to not let them watch or anything like that?"

"...A false report probably? Gas leak or something..." Yuuki suggested.

"A  bit too weak... I think if we could make a booming sound without causing an explosion..." Hikaru mused. "...But I think that's best to save for later. In case of combat happening, I'd like all of your cooperation, everyone. Shall we tell each other our specialty? I myself can evolve to Perfect stage... two routes. I can be your protector and supporter with buff and healing abilities, also protecting shield, I think. However my weakness in that form is I don't have a lot of damaging technique. The one I have is a quite... damaging. Meanwhile, the other one, I have more control over my offensive, but... it's very 1vs1 orientated. Debuffs, self buff, extending the opponent's cooldown and such. I cannot as easily offer support in that form. It's pretty much my "Kill opponent on sight" form. Which one do you need at the moment? Do share."

"Meanwhile I think I need to know how to cause incident that can pull people away from this site..." Yuuki mused "I think threat of terrorism is a bit too major incident meanwhile..."

So these digimon taking hostages wanted a fight with DATS... Ophelia frowned a bit; crossing her arms, and briefly tilting her head in a thoughtful fashion as she pondered over the information that Seifer and Machine presented to herself. "Fuck; and I thought that crashing what was supposed to be a happy and playful demonstration like in Golden Week was bad enough." Ophelia remarked, unable to help a slight rumble in her throat; the sound being a bit odd, given that she was still in her holosuit.

She already knew this of course, from the heads up; but the reiteration emphasized the fact that this was happening, that there were innocent people in likely danger. There really was no need to bring innocent humans and digimon into this, but the opposing group really went there, huh...

... While she herself wasn't exactly sure how to go about this - given that she'd never handled a hostage situation like this before - others, such as Skald and Herald, on top of Yuuki and Hikaru, all had their own suggestions as to how to handle this.

As the others talked out potential plans, Cassie would glance to Malik - noting his insecure demeanor. The holosuited Gomamon-X would offer Malik a kind and bright smile, and pat him on the shoulder - mentioning softly "It's okay, buddy! I think that's still a good question..!" Though her expression grew a hair somber at the reminder of the hostages, her voice was still encouraging and hopeful - adding "We'll all do our best to make sure no one gets hurt, and I'm sure you'll do just fine in helping, too; okay?"

Laertes, meanwhile, remained silent - simply observing the assembled group. To note, Malik, Herald, and Skald all would be the ones that he was most focused on; namely because he was unfamiliar with them, whereas Hikaru and Yuuki were more familiar to him. He was unable to help but briefly wrinkle his nose a little at Malik - not because of any distaste, but because of the sour scent of anxiety that the holosuited digimon had about him. They both were nervous, him and Malik alike, though they displayed it in different ways.

Hopefully Cassie can ease those anxieties, though; Laertes couldn't help but pick up on the emotions about him, causing him to chew at his thumbnail briefly.

As Hikaru suggested sharing everyone's capabilities though, Ophelia would be quick to speak up; grinning confidently as she disengaged her holosuit. "I'm Ophelia, for you new faces over there," She'd wave to Malik, Skald, and Herald as she spoke - standing proud, even though she was in the comparatively shorter form of a Spadamon.

"I can go up to Perfect stage, though only one line. I'm best with single targets, however; I hit them hard, am hard to stop in my tracks, and can take a few hits from them with my shield, too..! So point me at the big guy and set me loose, basically..!" Her tail was lashing a bit in excitement as she spoke - as though she was already hyping herself up to fight - though she would catch herself after a couple of moments.

Shaking the excitement out of her body briefly, Ophelia would roll her shoulders and add "I also got an armor form - only up to Champion, though, so I don't think it'll get much use - that is decent for bouncing off of allies while I fight, and has got a bit of healing in a pinch."

Cassie would disengage her holosuit next; revealing her Gomamon-X form. "I'm Cassie; Ophi's sister!" She'd introduce herself with a cheery smile; seemingly trying to keep the mood up, even in the serious situation. "I, uhm... I don't fight as well as Ophi or Lae do; but I shine best with healing and helping others out...!" She'd explain; blowing a large bubble about the size of a basketball and bouncing it on her head, as though to prove her point. "I use bubbles for my abilities, and toss them at whoever needs any given bubble at the time...!"

After a moment, she'd blink for a second - as though something occurred to her, before smiling brightly. "Oh, yeah; and I can go to Adult stage, too..! I'm still new to it - but it has a few extra tricks that I can use to get around faster, and get rid of ailments, too...!"

Then, there was Laertes. He'd watch quietly as his two siblings showed off their true forms and explained their capabilities; briefly wondering if he should be up front, as well. He, admittedly, was still quite wary; but the other two seemed to be trusting enough to everyone present - even if a few of the people assembled here appeared to be strangers - so... Maybe he could relax a bit, and trust in the others, as well...

... Disengaging his holosuit, a tall Strabimon would be revealed; his tail twitching restlessly. "... Laertes." He'd introduce himself quite simply, stepping forward towards the assembled group. "I'm a distance fighter primarily, but one of my attacks is up close, and also strongest in ambushes and when I can't be seen. I go up to Adult, and can obscure both my appearance and my signal. I am also able to greatly increase my speed in short bursts; though it's a bit exhausting to do so repeatedly."

Malik felt a little more comfortable after Cassie decided to cheer him up a bit. He offered her a small smile "T-thank you. And yes, our main priority should be the safety of the hostages first and foremost. Going in with any other plan will just lead to disaster..." He admitted. He didn't want to give them the fight they wanted, at least not until the hostages' safety was absolutely guaranteed.

He stepped forward to introduce myself. "I'm...Malik, as I've said. I can go to Champion Stage...o-or Adult, whichever term you prefer. I a-appear to specialize in speed and confusing the enemy. I...think." He said. He worried that would make him seem absolutely ill-suited for any kind of mission if he barely knew what he was capable of. Still, he didn't want to be dishonest. This was the extent of his abilities, as far as he knew.

As the briefings continued, Malik felt a little lost, but he also did his best to take in as much of the information as he could. One thing did bother Malik about this though "Why are there Digimon hostages as well? If they wanted to solely damage Digimon and human relationships they would have just targeted humans specifically. Unless these Digimon are sympathetic to humans, in which case this could be a message to anyone they deem a traitor to Digimon kind for trying to associating with humans." That was Malik's theory. Whether or not it would help was another question entirely.

Upon being told to take a form that could do well in a fight against multiple opponents, Malik nodded. He disabled his own holosuit, revealing a tiny Lopmon in its place. With a swift, if not strangely glitchy digivolution, he would take on his Renamon form. Once more his expression was impossible to gauge, but his mannerisms remained. "This is the best I can do s-so far. I will be ready to go when the rest of you are." He said with a slight bow of his head before he listened in on any more ideas.