./Parable/00_Child_of_Calamity

My name is Anurak, which means ‘Protector’ in the local tongue. I am a phase electron lifeform - a Digimon. Like all Digimon, I have no parents; instead, I hatched from a DigiEgg that had spontaneously materialized.

But my first moments of life were not peaceful. I hatched in the middle of a battlefield, the sole witness to a hero's final stand.

Her name was Podarge - a JetSilphymon and warrior of great renown. They called her the embodiment of the wind - and just so, she was almost always the first to arrive at the scene. Wielding a massive pinwheel, she would swing it with such might and speed that it generated massive gusts of wind, easily devastating enemy ranks or knocking down even the strongest of enemies; or at least that was what I was told. For it turned out that I would be the sole survivor of this battle. No other DigiEgg survived, no other Digimon of any species, stage, or type survived. Not even Podarge, despite all her might.

The battle was against a ruthless foe, one that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. It was another day in the city of Ezeren, when the ground for kilometers around the city center collapsed entirely, killing a sizable number of inhabitants within moments. The survivors, through their daze and confusion, strewn across the city, watched in terror as a gigantic eldritch-like horror rose from the earth, an immense presence that cast fear deep in their hearts, dominating their minds as it blotted out the sky. Rubble was cast into the air and fell like rain, crushing many survivors as they tried to make a break for safety. Even the buildings, already weakened from the initial shock, broke apart under the weight of the falling debris, killing those who had taken shelter inside.

Yet that was not the end. Massive legs followed the rising horror, raising high into the sky before crashing down into the ground all across the city, sending additional shocks to ripple across the city. Casualties had now numbered the thousands, a significant portion of the entire city’s population. While the batch of DigiEggs I hatched from survived the initial quake, these subsequent ones eventually cracked a support beam enough to cause it to collapse across the entire hatchery. All but one DigiEgg survived.

By the time I opened my singular eye for the first time, Podarge had arrived on the scene and was fighting against the enemy. It was truly a sight to behold - Podarge’ tunnels of wind were spiralling into the gigantic being, carving out huge chunks of white data at a time, strewing them across the sky. For a moment, her relentlessness seemed to keep the unfathomable horror at bay. Still, eventually the being began to stabilize - its massive legs digging deep into the earth, rebuffing Podarge’ assault. Then it lunged.

It is hard to imagine something so massive lunging, but it did - and with a single swipe from someone unseeable appendage, sent Podarge crashing into the ground nearby in a flash. When the dust started to clear, I could see the great heroine at the center of a deep crater, clutching a side that was missing a significant chunk of data, the remnants of which was falling as a mist of green data all over the battlefield, including all over where I was located. With her other hand, she was grasping for her weapon, but the massive pinwheel had fallen a distance away, far from her reach.

I could see air swirl around her outstretched hand, and the pinwheel started to shake, moving back and forth toward her. Despite her grievous injury, she was trying to summon her weapon, ready to return to the fight. Then the sky turned black, and both she and I looked up to see a massive, solid chunk of blackness coming down towards us.

Without any hesitation, Podarge lept at me and scooped me up, the momentum carrying both of us together a distance away, out of harm’s way - just barely.

The chaos and confusion were a blur. I have a vague memory of her asking if I was okay, and of me responding with some kind of answer. But I remember her smile clearly. It was not a smile of joy or triumph, but one of desperation combined with determination. It seemed that Podarge herself knew too that I knew.

She set me down, patted me on the head, and spoke. “Your name… is Anurak.” She had said. “Protector… fitting… care for everyone for me.”

Those were her final words. Turning around to face the bringer of calamity, she flew up into the air - a distance far enough from me that I was safe from what was clear to be an all-in attack. I felt it first as gentle gusts of wind, but then I could clearly see air swirling around her, building momentum, completely enshrouding her in a mass of grey scythes. Then, as the giant being began to move once more, Podarge launched herself at the being with all her might, not giving it the chance to commit to its intentions. She sent herself directly into the body - or at least what seemed to be the body - of the being. The impact was loud and disorienting, with an accompanying distorted screech. Shockwaves rippled through the air, sending me tumbling back.

By the time I came to my senses… the wind had died down, and both Podarge and the giant Digimon were gone.

Just like that, I was the sole survivor of a great calamity. There were no other survivors, not one that made it to safety or hid within the structures. I was the only one. The locals would later call me the Child of Calamity. But for a world like mine, it was not an insult - and in fact, it was a hope placed upon me, that perhaps my unique origin would bode well for not only me, but those that would surround me.

This was especially meaningful to me given I was born a Kuramon, if one has not guessed. See, Kuramon eventually digivolves - turns, grows, becomes, transforms - whatever term one fancies, into a plethora of virus Digimon, which do have the tendency to also be nefarious. In my case, I digivolved into Tsumemon - a similarly one-eyed Digimon, and then Shamamon, my main form, and indeed a Digimon with a virus attribute. I have recently gained the ability to digivolve into Minotarumon, also a virus attribute Digimon, but cannot sustain that Champion stage form for too long.

As a Shamamon, I look like a stout goblin, with dark mossy green skin and wielding a wooden club with nails hammered into the head. In my Champion form, I am almost the exact opposite - a towering bull-like bipedal Digimon, with thick skin and muscles. While I am quick and nimble as Shamamon, I am slow in my stocky Champion form. Yet I have a very special power as Minotarumon. My left hand is equipped with a mechanical contraption called the Demon Arm, made of chrondigizoit capable of generating and releasing a massive amount of energy in a concentrated attack. I could of course, cause major damage to a single target like this, or instead strike the ground to generate a miniature but powerful earthquake.

Podarge gave me my name and my mission. I am Anurak, the Protector. These days, I fulfill the exact role my name professes.

This Digital World is made of many, many smaller land and water masses called nodes, interconnected like a spiderweb. Fittingly, it is also often called The Weave. I travel The Weave from node to node, using my gifts to destroy evil wherever I can.