Prologue

On a planet far away from Earth live a race of people who are extremely technologically advanced. Their physical form is familiar to everyone on Earth for they have visited Earth in the past covertly and were spotted by sailors who gave them the name "Mermaids". The planet formed long before Earth did. As a result, this race of fish-humanoid creatures were able to evolve and develop technology much sooner than the inhabitants of Earth. This planet is called Aqualia. Today, a special ceremony is being held; the inauguration of a new monarch.

In an underwater area, thousands of mermaids and mermen fill an area surrounded on all sides by pillars that look like the ones used in Ancient Greek Architecture. In the middle of the four sets of pillars sits a statue of a mighty merman. The four sets of pillars create a square, and the four sets of pillars lead up to a gigantic castle with a balcony. The balcony has no stairs to lead down because, of course, it's underwater, and the merpeople who want to go up to the balcony or down from it could swim. The balcony was long as far as balcony standards go. Its width was the size of the average concert stage. This is a fitting description given as though it looks like the merpeople below are waiting for a rock star to appear.

The crowd of mermaids and mermen chatter among themselves as they fill the square. Obviously, they're waiting for something, but what? All eyes gradually turn to a door on the balcony leading to the inside of the castle. The door opened and a merman slowly swam out with some young mermen and mermaids accompanying him. The merman was large and muscular like a bodybuilder, but he was clearly eldery. He wore a large golden crown and carried a golden trident. He raised his hands to the crowds to get their chatter to cease. It worked. Everyone respected the king. The merman cleared his throat and then spoke "Here ye! Here ye! I, King Ahab of Aqualia have an announcement to make!" He said with a loud, deep, and authoritative, yet somewhat raspy sounding voice. "As you know, I am getting on in years, and I have yet to name a successor to my throne. Although the kings who have come before me have always picked their eldest son or eldest daughter to be the next king or queen, it should be no surprise to those of you who have followed the policies of my administration that I don't think the same way as the previous kings did. I disagree that the eldest child should be the rightful heir by default. Coming forth from your mother's womb before your brethren does not in any way qualify you to be a king. What qualifies one to be a king is strength, determination, a sharp intellect, and an unwavering desire to see that the needs of his...or her... people are met." King Ahab extended his arm over to his sons and daughters who were floating in the water to his left. King Ahab's offspring numbered 4 in total.

King Ahab's daughters consisted of a young girl who looked to be somewhere in her teens, and a woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties. The older daughter was slim like a supermodel, with nothing on her torso but a purplish pink tube top which served to cover her breasts. She had aqua blue hair and aqua blue eyes. She had a gentle demeanor about her and she floated in the water and subtly nodded her head as her father spoke to his subjects. The younger girl had long black hair that flowed all the way down to her purple tail. She had nothing on her torso but purple clamshells covering her breasts. The black haired teenage mermaid had an annoyed look on her face. She clearly wanted to be somewhere else. "Why couldn't I be out doing something fun with my friends?" she thought to herself. "I'm just a kid. There's no way father will pick me to be the next queen. There's absolutely no reason for me to even be here." Ahab's other 2 offspring were both males. The other two looked to be in their mid twenties. The younger son had light blue hair like his older sister. He had aqua blue eyes and a fit physique. The oldest one was a lean man who looked to be nearing his 30s. Kinandon was his name. Kinandon noticed his black haired little sister scowling and occasionally rolling her eyes. He was right next to her. He leaned down and whispered, "Misty, you should try to look a little less put out. This is a sacred tradition that's happening." Misty just rolled her eyes. "I know, Kinandon. I know. But there's no reason for me to be here. I know the next monarch is going to either be you or Katie." Misty replied in a whispered tone. Kinandon was otherwise bare chested except for a brownish yellow vest and dark green metallic shoulder armor.

King Ahab continued, "Of my four children, I have thought long and hard. My youngest girl, Misty, is too young and immature to assume the responsibilities of the throne. She only cares about goofing off with her friends, playing with fish, and surfing the internet looking at funny videos of catfish." When King Ahab said this, Misty rolled her eyes. "I knew it. I'm not going to be queen. Not that I want to be, but that just makes being here pointless." She thought quietly to herself.

King Ahab continued. "My youngest son Davaqua is likewise immature and unfit for the throne. On several occasions in the past when we were about to be at war with neighboring planets, his gut reaction was to wage war with them rather than to try to negotiate. A good king should always save war as a last resort, when all negotiations fail." This time, Davaqua rolled his eyes. "Stupid old man. You know as well as I do that the people of Devlillis are an inherently violent race. If it weren't for the fact that you appeased the queen with some inappropriate favors, they would be trying to slaughter us all." Davaqua muttered.

King Ahab continued. "That just leaves my oldest son and my oldest daughter. Kinandon is 2 years older than Kathrine. Kinandon is an outstanding man. The finest quantum engineer Aqualia could offer. He created technology that exploited the physics of wormholes that allowed swift communication between us and our neighboring planets; both enemies and allies. Were it not for this communication technology, or 'Digi-Worm Phones' as he calls them, we wouldn't have been able to request a meeting with the queen of the planet Devillis. And if we hadn't been able to request a meeting with the queen of Devillis, we wouldn't have been able to negotiate with them, and if we hadn't been able to negotiate with them, we would surely be at war with them to this very day." Kathrine (or Katie as she preferred to be called) smiled and elbowed Kinandon's bare chest. "Well, well, big brother. That's some high praise coming from father. You might just be the next king." She said in a teasing tone. Katie had always been close to Kinandon ever since they were guppies. Even when they went off to university to pursue their careers, they remained the best of friends. Kinandon studied quantum physics and Katie studied law. On Aqualia, it was not unheard of for princesses and princes to pursue careers in science or law. It often helped serve the subjects of the kingdom. And if the prince or princess were extremely successful, it would add to the legacy of their father; the king. Katie had won so many legal cases that she earned the nickname "The Prosecuting Princess". Kinandon, on the other hand, made breakthroughs in quantum mechanics that would make Earth scientists become overwhelmed with envy. He not only managed to reconcile quantum physics with gravity, but he discovered a way to both open and exploit wormholes for the sake of interplanetary communication. He also made it possible to teleport to anywhere in the universe with ease! Even if the destination was millions of lightyears away!

King Ahab continued, "Although Kinandon is a genius, a kind hearted man, and desires the best for the kingdom, I have often found him to be quite timid and introverted. I don't think he's fit for the kingdom either." Kinandon frowned. Katie put her hand on Kinandon's shoulder and gently patted it. "I'm sorry, big brother. I know how much you wanted to be king." Of course, Katie knew. He would talk about it a lot when they were children. And it wasn't because he wanted people to think he was a great man, it was because he really cared about his subjects. But his father Ahab was right. He was far too timid. Oftentimes his scientific colleagues would push him around and he never stood up for himself. He always complied to avoid making a fuss. "It's ok, Katie. I know you'll make a fine queen." Kinandon said, trying to cover his pain.

"That just leaves my daughter, Kathrine." King Ahab continued, "As a lawyer who has helped put countless criminals in prison through her logical argumentation in the court of law, she has more than proven that she has a sharp intellect. She is also brave and kind. She is gentle, but not weak or timid. She has proven her gentleness and kindness in the way she has looked after Kinandon his whole life. And when Devillis threatened us with war, she used Kinandon's technology to contact the queen in order to have her come here and meet with me for negotiations. Moreover, I can't tell you how many of her clients have told me that she wasn't just a lawyer they hired to put their child's or their friend's murderer in prison, she was a good friend and a counselor to them. I cannot think of a better successor to my throne than her." King Ahab then turned to Katie and beckoned her to come closer to him with his hand. Katie swam over and floated next to her father. Ahab put his hand on Katie's right shoulder. "I present to you; your new queen; Queen Kathrine Neptune!"

The crowd then cheered with a mighty roar. Then they began chanting in unison "All hail Queen Kathrine! All hail Queen Kathrine! All hail Queen Kathrine!"

Katie blushed. "Wow! This is a bit overwhelming." She said. "My child, go on and speak your first words to your subjects as queen." King Ahab said. Katie quickly calmed her nerves and took a deep breath. Katie leaned into a microphone that was connected to several large speakers. These were the speakers King Ahab was using to speak to the thousands of merpeople in the crowd. "People of Aqualia! I, Kathrine Neptune; daughter of Ahab Neptune, am your new queen! I vow to do everything in my power to make this planet prosperous and healthy. I will even give up my life if that's what it takes for Aqualia to be a planet where people are safe and happy." She said, her voice booming with confidence. The crowd cheered.

"You'd be willing to give up your life for that?" they suddenly heard a voice say. The voice sounded like it was right next to King Ahab and Katie. They turned around to see who could have possibly sneaked past security to be right next to them. They saw a glowing bluish white portal that had opened up. The moment they looked, a mermaid with long orange hair swam out with a smug look on her face. The orange haired mermaid had two pink starfish covering her breasts, a satchel around her waist, and blue eyes. "What is this? Who are you?" King Ahab asked. "I would like to hear that last line again, Queen Kathrine." The orange haired mermaid said. The words "Queen Kathrine" came out of her mouth with the sound of absolute disgust. "I...I said that I'd be willing to give up my life if it meant that Aqualia could be a planet where people are safe and happy." The orange haired woman chuckled a little. "Good. Just wanted to make sure." She reached into the satchel tied around her waist and pulled out a gun. It was a ray gun. The orange haired woman pointed it at Katie and fired it without hesitation. Immediately, a laser went through Katie's chest and blood started filling the water around her. Katie's eyes went wide with shock. She coughed up a large amount of blood all at once and her body went limp. Her body floated face down a few inches off the balcony floor like a dead goldfish. A look of horror filled Kinandon's face. "KATIE!!!!!" Kinandon yelled at the top of his lungs. The audience gasped in horror. Immediately, the mermaids and mermen in the crowd started swimming away to try to get away from this assassin who showed up out of nowhere. It was utter chaos!

Kinandon turned Katie rightside up and watched as a large amount of blood filled the water. "Katie! Sister! No!" He said. He could feel his heart breaking within him. He embraced his sister tightly as he began to sob. "We need a doctor immediately! Call the royal medical staff!" Kinandon shouted, looking over at one of the royal guards. One of the royal guards saluted Kinandon and said "Yes, your highness!" He turned and swam away to get medical help. "You'd better not stop him." King Ahab said in a stern voice. "Why would I do that?" the orange haired woman asked. "I hit a vital spot. No doctor in the entire universe can save your daughter now." The orange haired woman was grinning from ear to ear as she spoke. Kinandon was sobbing uncontrollably as he embraced Katie's body. Katie was still conscious, but just barely. She put her hand on Kinandon's shoulder and said "Kinnie." That was her nickname for him when they were children. "Kinnie." She repeated. Kinandon stopped sobbing and pulled back a little from Katie to see her face. "It's...too late for me. I...will be joining….our….mother soon." Katie said, before coughing up some more blood. "Don't say that! The doctor will be here any moment! Don't give up!" Kinandon said as tears came out of his eyes. Being underwater, they didn't stream down his cheeks. But it was obvious he was crying. On Aqualia, the chemical composition of the water causes their tears to become a dark black color. This is due to the unique chemical composition of the Aqualian water rather than anything about merperson biology. Were a human to cry underwater, the same thing would happen.

"Brother…...I…...love you. You'll…...be a great king." She said. She took one last breath and her eyes glazed over. Kinandon lost control of himself and started weeping uncontrollably, tightly embracing Katie's corpse. Misty and Davaqua were floating nearby in utter shock. They were so afraid that they neither moved nor spoke. Suddenly Davaqua grabbed Misty's hand. "Let's swim out of here." He said, turning around and beginning to swim in the other direction with Misty in tow. "Where do you think you're going?" The orange haired woman asked rhetorically before firing the laser gun at Misty and Davaqua. Misty took 3 laser gun blasts directly to the head while Davaqua took 1 laser gun directly to the chest. They both fell limp. Kinandon screamed "NOOOOO!!!!!!!!" He couldn't believe it. All of his siblings were dead. "My, my! There sure is a lot of blood in the water. We better be careful or else we might attract sharks." The orange haired woman said in a mocking tone.

Suddenly the medics arrived on the scene. One of the pieces of equipment was just a small rectangular device that had a tube and an oxygen mask attached to it. It also had a small metal rod at the bottom. The Oxygen mask had no tank attached to it. Rather, it was capable, through the box-like device, of transmitting oxygen and hydrogen molecules from the water. Although Aqualians can breathe under water, they need a steady supply of oxygen and hydrogen entering their bodies when in fish-humanoid form (or in other words, water), and oxygen when only in pure humanoid form, for Aqualians are an amphibious race. They can change between mermaid and human form at will. The doctor put an oxygen mask over Katie's gill slits and tried pumping oxygen and hydrogen in, but Katie wasn't breathing at all. The doctor then put his finger on Katie's wrist to check her pulse. "No pulse. I'm sorry. She's dead. The queen is dead." The doctor said. "No shit!" Kinandon said angrily.

King Ahab was stunned. "Why? Why are you doing this?" he asked. The orange haired mermaid pointed the laser gun at him. She kept pointing as she swam over to the microphone. Although most of the crowd had already disbanded, Queen Kathrine Neptune's speech was being broadcast all over the galaxy, so even Aqualians who couldn't make it to the inauguration in person were still able to view it. They were watching it on their TV sets, their computers, their mobile devices, or they were there via virtual reality. Other planets like Devillis and Felinia were broadcasting it too. The orange haired woman knew this, so she took the microphone out of its stand and looked directly at one of the cameras. "I'm doing this because the people of Earth want me to." She said. King Ahab's eyebrows shot up. "The….people of Earth?" King Ahab said. "That's right. Earth has been jealous of Aqualia's technology for quite some time now." She stopped looked at the TV cameras and back over in Ahab's direction. "They remember the treachery you did long ago. Do you remember a civilization called Atlantis? Earth does. Remember when you caused your terra formers to cause the whole city to sink into the depths? Earth does." The orange haired woman said. "But that was about 2,500 years ago! How does that justify slaughtering my children who had nothing to do with it!?" King Ahab asked indignantly. "The fathers ate sour grapes and the childrens' teeth were set on edge." The orange hairedwoman responded, smiling smugly and twirling her hair with her left finger. "Stop babbling in riddles, you bitch! Explain yourself plainly!" King Ahab barked. The orange haired woman continued "You think that just because you had nothing to do with the revoking of our wonderful technology that you're innocent? Well, that may be so. But justice still requires that Earth takes back what they deserve. Earth is not the most fun place to live. It's taken them 500 years just to become a fraction as advanced as this planet. "

King Ahab asked "Are you…..declaring war on behalf of Earth?" "That's right." The orange haired woman answered. "My name is Jessica Glovion and I'm declaring war on Aqualia on behalf of The United Nations of Earth!" She then fired the ray gun and King Ahab was shot dead. She deliberately fired at his heart so that he would die instantly. Jessica then swam over to Kinandon who was still kneeling before Katie's corpse. She put the ray gun up mere inches from Kinandon's head. Every inch of Kinandon's body was trembling. He had just witnessed his brother and sisters, and father shot dead in cold blood, and now, this cold blooded woman was about to take his life as well. Flashbacks of his time with Katie flashed through his mind rapidly. He remembered the time he scraped his arm on a coral reef when they were around 10 and she helped bandage him up. He remembered the time they were having a foot race on the shores of one of Aqualia's relatively few islands. He remembered the time they built a huge sandcastle on that very same island, and Kinandon put on a plastic crown and pretended to be the king of Aqualia. "People of Aqualia! I, Kinandon Neptune; son of Ahab Neptune, am your new king! I vow to do everything in my power to make this planet prosperous and healthy. I will even give up my life if that's what it takes for Aqualia to be a planet where people are safe and happy." the little Kinandon said in the flashback. What Katie said at her inauguration wasn't off the cuff, it was what all new rulers said to their subjects when they were inaugurated. But that didn't mean that Katie didn't mean those words from her heart. The little Katie in the flashback clapped her hands. Another memory flashed by; Katie was comforting Kinandon when a girl he had been seeing broke up with him. Kinandon trembled more and more. He knew his life was flashing before his eyes, and all of the memories he had were of his beloved sister.

Jessica grinned widely with glee knowing that she was about to claim another victim. "War is hell." Jessica said as she pulled the trigger. Kinandon flinched when he heard the sound of the trigger. He expected to be dead in an instant. But he wasn't. "What the?" Jessica said in confusion. The gun did not fire! Jessica started shaking the gun up and down, and smacked it a few times. "How the hell does a RAY GUN jam!? It's not like it has bullets in it!" Jessica said, clearly annoyed. Kinandon seized his chance and swam off quickly. "Is that woman really a fellow Aqualian? She was talking like a cave woman. Everyone knows laser blasters have a finite amount of energy. You can only shoot them so many times before they need to recharge." Kinandon said to himself. Kinandon swam as fast as he could to get away from this psychopathic mermaid. He moved his tail up and down rapidly, and even moved his arms to gain even more speed. As soon as Kinandon was in shallow water, he popped his head up above the surface and morphed his merman tail into legs. When Aqualians take on pure human form, their scales cluster around the buttox and genital areas. The cells containing the DNA responsible for creating the tails are turned off and DNA responsible for creating legs turn on. Then the cells become densely compacted in these areas while they're in human form. Unfortunately, they're naked from the bottom down, so most Aquailians wear some sort of loin cloth around their tails that will be present for when they want to shift into human form. Females always have something to cover their breasts though. Starfish and clams are the most popular covering of choice, but some wear tube tops. Never full shirts though. Those were cumbersome in the water. However, most Aqualians prefer living in the water rather than on the islands and continents (of which there are few), so most mermen and mermaids alike don't even bother with a loincloth because they don't intend on getting rid of their tails to go onto land anyway. Such was the case with Kinandon. His privates were exposed for all to see. Fortunately, no one was around. The island he fled to was a random spur of the moment choice and there wasn't another person in sight.

Kinandon ran into the jungle on the island in case Jessica was pursuing him. Once he realized she wasn't after him, he stopped. He fell to the ground and began sobbing. Thoughts of his sweet Katie continued to fill his mind. He felt guilty for not thinking of his father or his sister Misty, or his brother Davaqua as frequently. Katie was obviously his favorite. He was the closest to her out of every person in his family. He bawled until he hyperventilated. He just kept playing her death in his mind over and over. Soon, night fell. Kinandon had stitched together some tree leaves for a makeshift loincloth so he'd be covered in case anyone came upon him. He walked out of the jungle and onto the beach. He stared out at the ocean waves illuminated by the moon and the stars. Suddenly, Kinandon heard a voice. "My deepest condolences." Kinandon was startled. He turned around and saw a figure clothed in a dark purplish black aura. "Such a tragedy. I was a big fan of Kathrine." The voice sounded distorted, like someone was using technology to mask what they sounded like. Who was this? Jessica? Or was it an accomplice of hers. The figure seemed to know what was going through Kinandon's mind because it said "Relax. I'm not here to kill you. I'm here to help you get revenge. You see, Jessica doesn't currently live on Aqualia. She lives on Earth. In fact, she's married to a human" It said. The word human left the figure's mouth in a tone that conveyed a sense of "can you believe it? A human!" Kinandon said "I don't need your help. Aqualia is one of the most advanced planets in the galaxy. We can send a fleet to Earth and wipe them out for their atrocity." Kinandon said. The figure chuckled "Don't be so arrogant. Earth may be primitive by Aqualian standards. But they have something you don't." The figure said. Kinandon tilted his head back, "And what is that?" He asked. The figure replied. "They have Digimon."