Digimon Adventure: Continuing Evolution

Prologue

Obligatory disclaimer: I do not own the rights to anything related to Digimon, which is a franchise by Toei animation. Please don't sue me. --The Crest of Loyalty.

United Nations Detention Unit – The Hague, Netherlands.

September 12, 2010 – 9:30am

The man strode with an air of confidence that he did not feel as he traversed the long hallway, the walls white and nondescript and littered with doors spaced at intervals of a few meters. Each door had a small window slit at eye level covered with shatterproof glass, and he wondered briefly how many pairs of eyes might be quietly observing him behind those slits. They didn't concern him, however; he was here for one door in particular which lay near the end of the corridor, the only one that was actively guarded. The soldiers standing on either side of the door snapped to attention as he approached, sidearms visible from hip-holsters and palms raised to block his way.

"Halt! State your business here," barked the guard to his right, a broad-shouldered and mustachioed man who looked to be in his mid-forties.

He flinched. He had hoped that the first checkpoint he'd gone through at the compound entrance would have notified the guards of his coming. "I came to see the prisoner," he stated simply.

The second guard spoke. "I'm sorry sir, but the prisoner is denied visitors at this time. Please come back later." This one had a slimmer physique and was much younger, maybe even younger than himself.

"But I've been granted clearance," he protested.

The guards exchanged decidedly skeptical looks; the man standing before them was in his early twenties and wore a cheap business suit that clashed harshly with the blue tennis shoes on his feet and his disheveled mop of hair. He certainly didn't look like the type of person that would be granted special clearance. He reached into his back pocket for something and the guards instinctively put their hands on their sidearms in preparation to draw.

"Stand down, sir!" the elder guard ordered.

The man's arms flew up over his head in surrender. "Wait! I was just getting out my proof of clearance!"

The guards didn't let go of their pistols, but nodded for him to continue. "Easy does it, sir," instructed the younger soldier. "No sudden movements."

A bead of sweat came to the young man's brow, and he wondered briefly what was the point of going through the metal detector back at the entrance. Seriously. They ought to know I'm unarmed. He carefully pulled a folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to the elder guard to inspect. It was an official document containing a photocopy of his ID and a couple paragraphs of text detailing expressly what his permissions and restrictions were.

The guard's eyebrows rose and he gave a low whistle when he got to the signature at the bottom. "Straight from the top. This is legit. You must have pulled some serious strings to get this."

"Not me; a friend of mine."

"Powerful friend."

He shrugged.

The paper passed to the second guard, whose gaze bounced from the picture to his face and back again, lingering for a moment on the young man's curious choice of headgear, then to the name written on his ID as if to confirm his suspicion. "Wait, I recognize you now. You're one of them." His eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What exactly are your intentions with the prisoner?"

"I just want to talk."

"Hang on," the elder guard announced. "I've gotta take this up the chain of command. This kinda thing is way above my pay grade." He pulled out a large satellite radio and held it to his cheek. "This is Staff Sergeant Groeneveld. I need to speak to Lieutenant Haggart." There were a few moments of silence and a crackle of static before the muffled sound of a gruff and irritated voice came from the other end.