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The four of them went quiet.
Then Jake, Sophie, and Lily all turned to look at Ethan.
Tai was his card. The explaining was his job.
"He went back," Ethan said, feeling the weight of everyone's attention.
"Went back?" The Response Team captain looked baffled.
He'd clearly seen the boy heading this direction just moments ago, had tracked him visually until he reached the group.
Now he'd vanished?
Back where? They were inside a Rift.
"Where do you mean, 'went back'?"
"Into the card, I guess." Even Ethan felt weird saying it out loud.
"Into the card?" The captain's brain stalled.
What did he mean the boy went back into the card? Had he set up a little apartment in there?
After several seconds of mental processing, a possibility occurred to him.
"Are you saying that boy just now was a summon?"
"Yes."
"WHAT?!" The captain's voice boomed, and Ethan flinched.
He didn't think he'd done anything wrong, so why the intensity? It felt like getting caught with his phone in class by the dean.
"Who makes a child into a card?! What were you thinking? Do you think this is ethical?"
"..."
Look, I'd love to be a DigiDestined too, but MY Holy Evolution Agumon won't Digivolve without a partner. If I could make him evolve on my own, I would've skipped the kids entirely.
"And you three —" The captain rounded on Jake, Sophie, and Lily. "When he had the idea to make this kind of card, didn't any of you think to stop him? There are no laws against it, but have some basic ethics. Don't create children for combat."
Ethan looked at the captain's deadly-serious expression and wanted to argue — but couldn't find the words.
Without those kids, his Digimon couldn't evolve. It was that simple.
"Uh... that might not be possible," Ethan said after two seconds of deliberation.
He figured if he agreed now and did it again later, he'd just get yelled at worse.
"Excuse me?"
Jake, Sophie, and Lily had collectively adopted the posture of ostriches trying to disappear. None of them were about to talk back to a Response Team captain.
They just hadn't expected Ethan to double down.
"They're an essential part of my deck. Without them, the whole system breaks down."
"What do you mean it breaks down? These are custom cards! When you were designing the setting, didn't it occur to you to make them adults? Or remove the people entirely?"
"I can't explain it in a way that'll satisfy you, but the bottom line is: without them, my deck doesn't work. I can't agree to stop."
At the Tier 3 stage, Digimon are basically invincible. Instant evolution. Combat power that hits Immortal-rank in a flash. You can't even imagine it.
Plus most Digimon are big enough to ride.
And my next card is going to be Angewomon — powerful AND gorgeous.
"You—!" The captain was at a loss.
Jake sensed the situation spiraling and stepped over to tug Ethan's sleeve. "How about... we stop making kid cards? Aren't Naruto and Pikachu strong enough?"
"That's different. They're completely separate series. You can't compare them."
"Captain!" A voice interrupted — one of the other Response Team members jogging over from the cleanup.
This was the same soldier who'd told them to evacuate earlier.
He arrived, noticed the captain's crimson face, and looked confused. "Captain, who pissed you off?"
His eyes swept Ethan's group. "Where are those two kids from before?"
"..." Ethan said nothing this time. Just looked at the captain with a calm expression.
The captain took a breath. "He put them back in cards."
"Put them... in cards?" The soldier repeated the phrase, blinked — then got it immediately. Much faster than his captain.
"Oh — the boy and the card are a set, right? Custom evolution mechanic? That's actually impressive. Creating something that powerful at your age." He didn't notice his captain turning an even deeper shade of red.
"I originally came to thank that kid and apologize for telling you guys to leave earlier. Didn't expect it to be like this." He grinned at Ethan. "Not bad. Real talent."
"No — you were right to tell us to clear out," Ethan said. For a reasonable person, he could be perfectly polite. "We just wanted to help where we could."
He wanted to be polite to the captain too. But the man was being a bit of a hardliner.
See? Your own teammate didn't mind at all.
"That's very kind of you—" the soldier started on some polite back-and-forth.
Bonk.
A fist landed on top of his head. The soldier looked up to find the captain glaring down at him.
"Captain, what the—"
"You're praising him?! You don't think using children in cards is a problem?"
The soldier scooted two steps sideways, rubbing his head. "There's no rule against it, Captain. They're virtual — even if they die, they get remade. You're being a little... old-fashioned."
Old-fashioned.
The word echoed in the captain's skull.
Old-fashioned... old-fashioned...
He couldn't touch these four college kids. But he could definitely touch this guy.
He lunged forward and got the soldier in a headlock. "Who are you calling old-fashioned?!"
"Me! Me me me! I'm old-fashioned! Captain, please — mercy! I take it back — using children in cards is totally unethical!"
After throttling him for a satisfactory duration, the captain released his grip and turned back to Ethan.
He sighed.
"I'm not saying you're absolutely forbidden from using children. It's just..." His voice softened. "Kids should have a wonderful childhood. Not be dragged out to fight. If possible, I'd prefer you set the characters to at least twenty when you design them."
Ethan took a breath.
"Sir — it's not that they don't have wonderful childhoods. In my setting, they grow up alongside their partners." He gestured toward where Agumon and Angemon had been. "That dinosaur and angel you saw? Those are their partners."
"In the story, every adventure is with their partners. They face danger together, yes — but they also have joy, friendship, and growth. I'm not saying the setting has to be children."
"It's because the story is about a group of kids who possess courage, friendship, love, purity, honesty, knowledge, hope, and light — and they grow. Every time their Digimon evolves, it represents a step in their growth."
He paused.
"A wonderful childhood isn't only about studying hard and living safely. A childhood spent adventuring and growing with friends — that's a happy childhood too."
The captain stared at him.
"...Digimon?"
A beat of silence.
"Alright, kid." A faint smile crossed the captain's face. "I acknowledge you."
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