Chapter 2 - When Hell froze over

An inky darkness clouded Aster’s vision before a splitting headache woke her from her slumber. Jolting upwards, the injured vixen immediately regretted her decision as an intense wave of dizziness forced her body against the oversized pillow which had been propping her up. She flopped back to its comforting support, breathing deeply as she waited for her temples to stop pounding and the urge to vomit to subside. “All right...I’m injured but alive,” she reasoned to herself, opening her eyes to see the room she had rented silhouetted by a single candle on the nearby wooden table. “I’m alive...in my room…and...naked?!” she gulped, suddenly becoming very aware of the missing purple leotard which normally clung tightly to her slender figure. Even though she had never worn clothes before she had met her tamer, it still felt off. Being covered in fur just didn't seem like it was enough anymore. A flush of embarrassment rose to her cheeks, but it quickly vanished as another wave of aches and pains assaulted her battered frame.

Unable to do much else, Aster tried her best to relax until she heard the floorboards outside her room squeak. Her paranoia spiked as the door groaned opened. The stress wracked her with another headache. But rather than one of Hail’s goons coming through the door as she had expected, it was the young male waiter from before.

“Oh good, it looks like you’re awake now,” came the familiar voice of the young male waiter, Aster’s purple leotard in his hand. “Sorry about your clothing, it was pretty torn up so I repaired it the best I could,” he said holding it up so Aster could get a better look at it.

Sure enough, the youth man had done a fantastic repair job, though Aster could still make out where the gash had occurred. “Thank you, er…I’m afraid I don’t know your name,” trailed off Aster, suddenly feeling a tad ashamed that she never learned the young rescuer’s name.

“It’s Edward, though most people around here just call me waiter, barkeep, janitor, or cook. I have a bunch of odd jobs around here,” grinned Edward, trying to cheer up the icy vixen with some light humor to no success.

“I see,” replied Aster blankly, still uncomfortable that she was in the same room with a human without her clothes. “How long have I been out?”

“Almost two days now, so you must be hungry. Here, let me get you some stew,” replied Edward, rushing off before Aster had a chance to say anything.

Aster sighed to herself, taking a deep breath. “Digital world or Human world, most males always seem willing to assist,” contemplated Aster to herself with a small smile. Though most of the time they would want something in return, something Aster would never give them.

Edward returned a few minutes later, bringing a simple steaming bowl of a tasty looking broth along with a mug of some potent smelling liquid. “Here, it’s not much since those Digimon stole a lot of our food, but it should help restore your strength.”

“Why are you helping me, er, Edward?” asked Aster through dry lips, becoming aware of how thirsty she was as she accepted the mug.

“Why not?” replied the young dark haired man with a cheesy grin , his eyes focused on hers rather than wandering. “My mother always tells me that a stranger is just a friend you don’t know yet. And I couldn’t just let you freeze in the snow…it just wouldn’t be right.”

Aster thought about his words for a moment before taking a sip, immediately regretting it as the bitter flavor made her gag. “Ugg, what is this? It tastes absolutely foul!” she complained, withdrawing the liquid from her proximity.

“That’s Frostroot tea, a town special. It’s…absolutely disgusting, but it will warm you up and make you feel better in no time.” offered Edward with a smile, staring at Aster until she finished the rest through guilt despite the horrid taste.

“Blech, you happy now?” scowled Aster, setting the mug onto the nightstand as she continued to glare at the helpful waiter.

“A bit yes, the Frostroot seems to be working as you’re already moving more than you could before.” Laughed Edward, showing his teeth in a smile as Aster grudgingly realized he was right.

“So it seems,” muttered the vixen beneath her breath, accepting the bowl of stew which thankfully not only smelled but tasted better than the bitter tea.

“Well, I wish you a swift recovery,” offered Edward, gathering the serving try and empty mug before giving an embarrassed goodbye. He then shut the aged, squeaky door behind him to go assist his mother repair the damage caused to the inn by the raiders.

“That boy isn’t half the man you were, Silas,” sighed Aster sadly as she stared into the half empty bowl. “He’s got a big heart though, reminds me of when we first met actually,” she spoke softly, allowing a hint of a smile to grace her lips as pleasant memories of better days played through her head. But like all good things, they never last long enough. Aster’s cheerful memories of her previous tamer faded away only to be replaced by what she had lost. But Aster was in no mood to wrestle with her demons, so she focused on the remainder of the stew before more closely examining her repaired leotard. “Kid actually did a good job,” she remarked, gently setting the article of clothing at the end of her bed as weariness and the urge to rest crept up on her. Snuggling back down beneath the comforting sheets, Aster drifted into a heavy sleep, dreaming about what she would need to do to take her Digivice back from Hail.

The next several days were hazy for Aster as sleep consumed the majority of her schedule, along with occasional visits from Edward who brought food and drink to her room. The golden vixen had regained a good portion of her strength back, but she was nowhere near the fighting capacity she had been before her injury. Nevertheless, she trained the best she could. And often pushing herself beyond what her recovering body was capable of to the scolding of Edward’s mother, the owner of the inn.

After about a weeks time, Aster had learned the location of Hail’s base from a local lumberjack and was ready to take back what rightfully belonged to her.

“You can’t just rush off into things Aster, you could get hurt again or worse!” cautioned Edward as Aster finished gathering her spartan belongings and headed for her motorcycle. Luckily it had been locked to prevent it from being taken, but that hadn’t stopped one of the cheekier Icemon minions from drawing a lewd symbol and slur on it with a marker.

“I’m a warrior, I know how to handle myself kid,” chided Aster as she scowled at the vandalism to her precious bike. “Besides, this is personal for me and I need to get back what Hail stole.”

“What about all of our stuff Hail raided from Bleakburrow huh? Don’t you think it’s personal for us too? If you’re going, then you’re taking me with you!” persuaded Edward who was fully dressed in his snow gear with a knife at his belt. Though it came across as less persuasion and more begging from Aster's viewpoint.

“It’s too dangerous,” denied Aster, extending a slender muscular leg over the seat of her bike. After sitting, she checked her utility pocket strapped to her leg before realizing something important was missing. “Where is it? I swear I left it in here,” mumbled Aster as she rummaged through her pockets and storage areas to no avail.

“Looking for something?” grinned Edward as he dangled the ignition key to Aster’s motorcycle from his finger.

“Hey! When did you-”

“I found it when I was washing your clothes. Figured I should hang on to it just in case you tried to do something stupid.” chuckled Edward with a triumphant boyish smile. “I’ll give you the keys if you take me with you, deal?”

“What if I told your mother you’ve been stealing from the guests?” countered Aster with a glare, though she was surprised the young man had planned out this far in advance.

“You do that and I’m dumping this thing in the outhouse. Good luck fishing it out of there,” threatened Edward, reasoning he had a decent chance to outrun the recovering vixen if he had to.

“…Fine, but don’t get in my way,” grunted Aster, waving Edward over with a nod of her furry head before she activated the hard light visor over her eyes.

However, Edward had never ridden a motorcycle before and to Aster’s annoyance it took him almost a full minute to get on.

“Keys,” ordered Aster briskly, grabbing them quickly before inserting them and turning over the ignition which brought the bike purring to life. “That’s a good girl, did you miss me?” whispered Aster to her beloved transportation, checking her gauges to make sure everything was functioning properly. Thankfully the cold left it unharmed. “Alright, hang on unless you want to end up face first in the snow,” commanded Aster, frightening Edward into putting his arms around the vixen’s waist for stability. But the feeling of having someone so close to her once more felt strange to Aster, so she rolled the throttle and accelerated before her mind could dwell too much on unwanted subjects.

The sudden jolt of movement startled Edward, instinctively tightening his grip around the steering fox’s midsection for security.

As they drove through the gentle ever falling snow, the strange twosome gradually grew more comfortable. Aster’s ambition reveled in growing closer to her vengeance and Edward realized he (probably) wasn’t going to die horribly on the strange two-wheeled contraption.

Then it finally dawned on the young waiter how close he actually was to the attractive vixen and that his arms were around her in an awkward sort of back hug. “Huh, first girl I’ve ever hugged who isn’t my mom,” joked Edward to himself as Aster navigated them skillfully out of the frozen forest and onto the ice flats towards Hail’s base.

After almost a half hour of driving, the flicker of flames in the distance prompted them to slow as the outline of wooden structures surrounding a large cave came into vision on Aster’s visor. Edward however, could see virtually nothing besides Aster’s white tipped ears which blocked his view and occasionally hit him in the face when he wasn’t paying attention.

Pulling off behind a rocky cluster, Aster waiting for Edward to dismount/fall off before swinging deftly off and peeking over the rock for a better view of Hail’s guards. To her surprise and irritation, the Icemon guarding the outside were drunk of their asses, clearly still drinking through the alcohol acquired from the raiding of Bleakburrow.

“So, what’s the plan?” whispered Edward, trying his best to be as stealthy as possible. He mimicked Aster’s observation stance the best he could despite not having a visor that allowed him to see past the snow.

“You’re going to wait here and watch my bike as I sneak in and get my Digivice back,” instructed Aster before searching through her saddlebag and pulling out a white blanket.

“I’m not useless you know,” chided Edward with a look of disappointment chiseled into his face as he watched Aster wrap herself up, allowing her to blend in with the snow.

But Aster wasn’t listening as she began to gradually advance towards the wooden ramparts surrounding Hail’s cave, keeping an eye on the Icemon in case they sounded an alarm. When she looked back, she saw Edward standing by her bike with his arms crossed. “He’s actually listening,” chuckled Aster before refocusing her attention as she trudged through the soft snow. Her approach was slow until she zoomed up with her visor and realized both of the Icemon were passed out due to their alcoholic consumption.

“You’ve got to be joking,” she sighed, rubbing her eyes with a paw in annoyance. Removing her camouflage, Aster approached directly to the guards who were snoring soundly by their welcoming fire pit. Without hesitation, Aster quickly dispatched the foolish Digimon with her claws before absorbing their data life-force, grinning contently as it was added to her own body. Still expecting Edward to follow after her, Aster gave a hesitant look back with her visor only to discover he was playing around on her motorcycle and pretending to drive it, making Aster thankful she had taken the keys with her.

Taking a quick look around, Aster couldn’t really find anything of interest before she decided to descend the crude stairs which lead into Hail’s loot cave. Aster winced as the first wooden stair creaked beneath her, causing her to freeze with baited breath as her long ears twitched nervously for any indication of hostile movement. The seconds ticked away with anticipation. But luckily the vixen’s blunder went unnoticed, prompting her to step off the main path and onto the rocks on which she stairs had been constructed. The going was slower and the stones hurt her paws, but she was able to move much quieter which put her nerves slightly at ease.

Pressing forward, Aster found herself inside an enormous frozen cavern with large icicles dangling from the ceiling. Taking a moment to massage her feet paws, Aster noticed several campfires dotting the cavern floor where small groups of Hail’s minions kept themselves warm while in varied states of debauchery. “This place smells worse than that stew Edward gave me,” grimaced Aster as she slunk forward, hiding behind a woodpile as two loud guards passed her by.

After making sure she was free to move, Aster snuck her way throughout the cavern, finding herself in a smaller tunnel which descended even deeper into the frozen ground. Thankful for her visor and sharp eyesight, Aster navigated her way until something shimmering caught her attention. Freezing in place, Aster realized it was an icemon carrying a flashlight, and he was approaching Aster’s direction.

Wasting no time, Aster used her “Diamond Dagger” attack, forming a crude crystal shank in her paw while rushing forward, impaling the unsuspecting Icemon before he had a chance to respond. The unlucky Digimon bleed before the vixen, his data weakening until it broke apart into a fine dust which Aster readily absorbed. Continuing down the linear path, Aster eventually came across what she had been after, Hail’s treasure trove, or at least what passed for treasure out in the frozen wastelands.

Random bits of furniture and odd knickknacks lay scattered about, though it was clear a good portion of it had already been put to use either as the crafter intended or to fuel the campfires Aster had seen earlier. Engaging and quickly dispatching the remaining guards, Aster began to freely pick through the stash in hopes of finding her precious lost stolen Digivice. Rummaging through the miscellaneous items, Aster’s uneasiness began to build the longer she searched. Suddenly, a chill went down Aster’s spine, making her instinctively turn around.

“Looking for something?” came the familiar sinister chuckle of the Icedevimon, Hail, as he dangled Aster’s Digivice from a bony finger. “Despite your feminine appearance, I guess you’re tougher than you look.”

But rather than falling prey for Hail’s bait as she had before, Aster immediately vaulted herself into the air, unleashing a shower of jagged crystals with her “Diamond Storm” attack. Unfortunately, the attack did little in terms of damaging the demon, but the quick distraction was enough of a surprise to cause Hail to drop the Digivice. Sprinting forward with everything she was worth, Aster snatched the Digivice as it fell, narrowly missing Hail’s blind swipe in retaliation.

Her cover blown, Aster tore through the cavern outpost as fast as she could, knocking over objects and guards which tried to slow her down. This time, Aster sprinted up the squeaky stairs before emerging onto the frozen tundra, Hail and his minions snapping at her tail as she went. She could hear their yelling, cursing, and movement as she ran. Aster didn’t dare look back in fear that it would be all over if she did. Hurtling towards the rocky outcropping where her bike was parked, a loud bang echoed across the landscape followed by screams of pain behind her. As she looked up, she was astonished to see Edward standing atop one of the boulders, an old revolver in his hands. The young man fired off several more shots before his courage degraded as the Icemon fired explosive chunks of ice in his direction, forcing him to dive behind cover.

Aster hurdled over the protective rocks before landing near her motorcycle and hastily inserting the key into the ignition as Edward scampered on, an expression of terror plastered on his face. Jerking on the throttle, Aster’s motorcycle shot forward with a jolt, propelling them rapidly away from the enraged ice Digimon and their demonic leader.

“No you don’t!” screeched Hail, his massive vampiric wings stretching out to their full span before snapping forward. “Leather Wing!” hissed the demon as a dark wind was unleashed from his wings which slashed through Aster’s back tire sending both the Renamon driver and her passenger hurtling through the air before crashing into the snow.

“N-no, not like this…I’ve come too far to die in a place like this,” grunted Aster, lifting her face to her approaching doom. “I-I’m sorry, Silas…looks like I’ll be seeing you soon.”

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The second chapter of The Road Less Traveled. It looks like people enjoyed the Prologue and first chapter of the story. So we hope that you enjoy the continuing story!

Character design and story outline by  AtticusKotch
Story written by ThornWolf33 on DA (https://www.deviantart.com/thornwolf33)