A Guide to the Digital World

[Monika]

from the journal of Dr. Jonathan Morita

Introduction

It would appear that my father is not entirely useless. Although he has wasted much of his time at that pathetic high school computer club, his research there has paved the way for an important discovery - that of a new world. I imagine I feel as Christopher Columbus did upon discovery of the Americas (we will reserve the debate over whether he found the continents or not for some other time). This new world, which exists in a "dimension" (the term used loosely here until further research is conducted) accessible only through certain electronic devices, has already been inhabited by various beasts and creatures that appear to be human. As the first discoverer of this world, I presume the latter group consists of mere digital representations of humans - creatures that have taken human form as opposed to actual humans themselves.

The existence of such a world poses several questions, not the least important of which is how did it come to be? My father's research - the applications of artificial intelligence to children's toys and video games (absolutely disgraceful) - never amounted to more than a miserable prototype for a "walking, talking robot" (it actually rolled on treads and could formulate up to 1,000 responses based on verbal input). For it to have blossomed into a full fledged world, filled with at least moderately sentient creatures, is entirely beyond me. For it to have done this without his knowledge is even more baffling. No doubt he was haphazardly typing something into his computer and a glitch in his system ended up evolving into this. I have no intentions of mentioning this world to him; he obviously did not deliberately create it and is too oblivious to find about it. What he doesn't know won't hurt him (and it won't help him by allowing his taking credit for my discovery).

I digress. This journal is not meant for me to monologue about my father's ineptitude. Rather, it is meant for me to document each and every fact I discover about this new world - methods of entry, physical features, inhabitants, et cetera. By learning as much as I can about this world, I will be well poised to present my discovery to the IEEE and become the most famous researcher of all time, as influential as Einstein or (forgive me for writing this) Oppenheimer. Who knows? Perhaps I can present the discovery directly to His Excellency and he can appoint me the official governor of this new territory in cyberspace...

I am getting ahead of myself. Before I even think of such silly notions, I have to get to the actual documentation part. The following pages will include a list of important terms, concepts, places and anything else I deem notable.
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Locations

This world, which the inhabitants know as the "Digital World" (which, admittedly, is better than the "Alternate Cyberspatial Dimension" moniker I had thought of) is split into multiple continents and islands, much like our own real world. The locations I have discovered are listed in detail below, although it is entirely possible this list is not all inclusive. It is important to note that this world has its own government - just how advanced are these creatures? I will discuss the governments in detail later, but for now it is enough to know that each of these locations is controlled by either the "Blue Falcons", the "Gold Hawks" or the "Black Swords".

File Island

Upon first entering this Digital World, File Island was the first place I stumbled upon. True to its name, it is a giant island, whose lengths I have yet to fully discover. It is home to an enormous daycare center, filled with dozens of infantile digital creatures. The facility appears to be run by an elderly female creature (does aging actually apply here?) who calls herself "Babamon". When I first met her, she rambled at length about "tamers" and "partner Digimon" (the name for these 'digital monsters'; fitting, no?). I smiled and nodded, not particularly interested in the daycare center, more concerned with the other aspects of the world. The island is home to a plethora of "Trailmon" (digital monsters in the form of trains) and "Submarimon" (monsters in the form of submarines) who can transport passengers to other parts of the world. For a world that really amounts to nothing more than a series of 1s and 0s, the way it parallels the real world is almost eerie. It would appear that this is the only location of the Digital World that is not controlled by one of the three factions.

Northern Continent

Aptly named because of its position at the northernmost area of the Digital World, I have found this place to be extremely cold (even the simulated weather of this world mirrors our own). Naturally, it is inhabited by Digimon suited to the weather - "Frigimon" and "SnowAgumon" (giant polar bears and small, snow white bipedal reptiles, respectively). When venturing the continent at night, I have also seen some more sinister Digimon - things that resemble bats, wolves and other such creatures. There are several Digimon colonies and "towns" (I have yet to see any digital humans in this area) interspersed throughout the land, all of which are apparently under the jurisdiction of "DeadlyAxemon" and "SkullKnightmon" according to the locals. I have not seen either of the two, but if this trend of "monsters resembling the things they're named after" continues, I surmise they are both very menacing and dangerous. On further trips here, I will proceed with caution. Both "DeadlyAxemon" and "SkullKnightmon" are agents of the Black Swords.

Cineria

A massive continent that lies in the mideastern sector of the Digital World. It is much warmer than the Northern Continent; it even seems to be in a perpetual state of summer (whether or not actual time passes here is something I will have to delve into at a later date). I have found this continent to be split into two sections - Western Cineria (a mid-sized peninsula controlled by the Blue Falcons) and Eastern Cineria (a landlocked area controlled by the Gold Hawks). Here I will note that the Digital World has an actual economy and a global currency, too. "Bits" is what the currency is called; whether or not it has anything to do with the memory storage concept is currently unknown. As the similarities continue, I note that both parts of Cineria specialize in certain industries. Western Cineria focuses on fishing (it seems there are actual foodstuffs that aren't Digimon), agriculture and the like. Eastern Cineria is a bit more advanced, specializing in mining, technology (there are computers in the Digital World; I will discuss the apparent paradoxes of this later) and similar industries. Both parts are split into several territories, each one individually run by a certain Digimon. They are still under the control of their respective factions, however. Each Cineria is inhabited by both digital humans andland Digimon suited to the climate. Western Cineria also has aquatic/amphibious Digimon ("Seadramon", "Gomamon", and "Gekkomon", sea serpents, seals and geckos, respectively) while Eastern Cineria has a few more draconic and avian Digimon living in the mountain ranges above its mines (two guesses as to what "Dracomon" and "Birdramon" are).

Angel Island

I've never been one for vacations (an unproductive researcher is an unhappy researcher), but if I were to take one, it would be here. In the lower western sector of the world, this island is absolutely gorgeous. It is littered with what seem to be palm trees, beaches and scenery that puts even the most beautiful of real world places to shame. The advantages of living in cyberspace become apparent here of all places. If there were one thing that detracts from Angel Island, it would be the massive, Gothic style castle (with the misnomer "Rose Castle") at its far end. Judging from the flags scattered across the area, this island is the center of operations of the Blue Falcons, with the area surrounding the castle the Falcons' capital city. This island is inhabited by digital people and aquatic and amphibious Digimon, as well as some fairy-like Digimon (MarineAngemon and Piximon...some sort of aquatic fairy and pixie, respectively). I have seen one Digimon who looks peculiarly like a human female. She is most definitely a Digimon, however; the population of the island reveres their beloved "Angewomon" (at this point, I do not believe I am wrong in assuming that all Digimon have names that end in "mon"). She seems to be a high ranking official around the island, but further research will have to be done.

"Island of the World Tree"

On certain nights here in the Digital World, I have looked up in the sky and seen a massive island. Floating islands are entirely the stuff of fiction in the real world, but here in the Digital World I suppose it makes sense...At the very least, I have confirmed with inhabitants that my eyes aren't playing tricks on me. They know it only as the "Island of the World Tree" and say it is home to the "Royal Knights" and "Celestial Digimon". Supposedly, they are 16 powerful Digimon who make up an organization that functions similarly to our own United Nations. I have never seen a single one of these 16, so further research must be conducted to determine the veracity of these claims.

Delnacht

Truthfully, I have not actually been to this continent. It is directly to the east of Eastern Cineria and is kept closely guarded. Not one outsider has ever made it in, apparently. From what I have gathered, it is controlled almost in its entirety by the Black Swords, with perhaps a single patch of land owned by the Blue Falcons.


Envicil

Another continent, this one far below Eastern Cineria, attached by a small strip of land. It is primarily mountainous and cavernous, with a climate similar to Switzerland's. It is home to a significant portion of the mining industry and, as with Eastern Cineria, is under the control of the Gold Hawks. In terms of physical features, it is quite similar to Eastern Cineria, to the point of making me wonder whether plate tectonics actually separated the two areas once upon a time. With the similarities I've seen between this world and the real world, I wouldn't at all be surprised. Like Eastern Cineria, it is home to avian and dragon like Digimon and digital humans.

Digital Colosseum

A large arena in the center of Envicil. Here, digital humans partnered with Digimon do battle. It is quite barbaric, but I suppose it bears some similarities to our world's martial arts tournaments. Perhaps it only seems more violent because these monsters are wielding energy cannons and shooting fire balls from their mouths...

Palace of the Four Great Dragons

In my venture toward the highest mountain of Envicil, I found a large palace with architecture reminiscent of the Ancient Romans. All I know of it is its name, which is inscribed on the front of the palace under carvings of four giant dragons, presumably more Digimon.

Sobiden

The last of the continents I have found, lying at the south of the Digital World. Precipitation would be the best way to describe this continent, with most of the areas here having rain for the duration of my visits. Land here seems to be split 20/50/30 between the Blue Falcons, Black Swords and Gold Hawks, respectively. Interspersed throughout the continent are rainforests and swamps. Naturally, insect and other unsavory Digimon reside on this continent ("Kuwagamon", a giant beetle, and "Garbagemon", an actual pail of garbage come to mind).

As mentioned in the introduction to this section, this list is not all inclusive, and it is entirely possible I have missed some continents in my travels. Further research on any missing continents and a more detailed analysis of those places I have already explored shall be done soon.

[Monika]

Government

With a general idea of territory distribution throughout the Digital World, now would be a good a time as any for me to note down the different factions that control the world. For the most part, it appears that each faction is roughly imperialistic in nature. While each individual territory may have its own form of government (the Northern Continent appears to be one massive dictatorship, whereas Angel Island runs like a monarchy, for instance), as a whole, all territories are a part of either the "Black Sword Empire", the "Gold Hawk Empire" or the "Blue Falcon Empire". Each faction is led by a single human "Tamer" (I shall get into the habit of calling these digital humans "Tamers"; it seems to be the generally accepted term for the partner of a Digimon) and one Digimon.

Black Swords

The first of the factions I shall note here, as well as the largest. The Black Swords are shrouded in mystery, and much of what I have learned about them is hearsay and conjecture. Rumor has it that they are the most technologically advanced of the three factions, but all of their technology is safeguarded in a massive citadel located within their capital city, Ragnarok (if I ever find out why such a name is used for their capital, I will be sure to update this section). As the city, Ragnarok, is on the inaccessible continent of Delnacht, I have no way to confirm or refute these claims. What I do know, however, is that of all the Black Sword territories outside of Delnacht, not one has shown much in the way of technology - the Northern Continent, for instance, seems to be little more than a nationwide Middle Ages reenactment. All Black Sword territories appear to be dreary and inhabited by Digimon one should be wary of. ("Devimon", presumably named after the actual, real world Devil, is definitely one to avoid.)

The Black Swords seem to be led by a man who is mononymously known as "Hiryo". His partner is "BlackGuilmon", a rare subspecies of the reptilian Digimon "Guilmon". Their flag, perhaps the only thing of the Black Swords I've seen regularly, depicts two silver swords interlocked at a 45 degree angle, set upon a black background.

Gold Hawks

The second largest faction and the polar opposite of the Black Swords, the Gold Hawks make every effort to be known throughout the world. On each one of my visits to a Gold Hawk territory, some festival or parade (always led by a massive amount of human and dragon Digimon foot soldiers) was going on. I do not believe I would be without reason to claim that every day is a national holiday in Gold Hawk territory. Between the holidays, the widely televised colosseum events and their control over the lucrative mining industry, it would be impossible not to know of the Gold Hawks after a single trip to the Digital World.

The Gold Hawks are led by the Tamer Eric Strider and his partner "ShineGreymon", a massive humanoid dragon Digimon, presumably an advanced subspecies of "Greymon", a Digimon native to Eastern Cineria. Both are eerily outgoing, having participated in many of their own colosseum tournaments and traveled across the world several times. I was fortunate enough to encounter Eric on one of his travels, but he had to depart before I was able to obtain any information.

The Gold Hawks flag is ubiquitous at their sporting events, and depicts a golden hawk flying in front of a blazing orange sun. Their capital is located somewhere in Eastern Cineria.

Blue Falcons

The last of the three major factions, the Blue Falcons are the smallest and seemingly least developed of the three. I use "seemingly" here because of relativity; the Blue Falcons are well known for both their navy and airship fleets, side effects of controlling primarily island and peninsula territories. Compared to the technological and military strength of the Gold Hawks (and the supposed marvels of the Black Swords), however, the Blue Falcons' feats seem comparatively unimpressive.

Most notable about the Blue Falcons is their leader and her cult of personality. Jessie Taylorson and her partner, Angewomon (the same Angewomon I saw at Angel Island, I'm sure), are well known and respected throughout Blue Falcon territory. Perhaps this is because the Blue Falcon Empire is small and closely knit, so Jessie and Angewomon can divide their time equally amongst the inhabitants. Perhaps it is because of mass brainwashing. As usual, further research is required.

The Blue Falcon flag depicts a large white falcon hovering between a bright blue sky and a dark blue ocean, no doubt a reference to their navy and air force.

Independents

Every now and then I have found a small territory (generally an island a Submarimon has taken me to) that is uncontrolled by any of the three factions. Whether this is because the three factions do not know of these territories or because they are too insignificant to be cared about is unknown. These territories are mentioned only for the sake of completeness and are otherwise non-noteworthy.

Royal Knights

13 Digimon said to reside on the "Island of the World Tree" and serve as the mediating body between the three main factions. I have never seen the Digimon themselves, so I know little else besides the fact that they exist and that they have names: "Alphamon, Craniamon, Crusadermon, Dynasmon, Examon, Gallantmon, Kentaurosmon, Leopardmon, Magnamon, Omnimon, UlforceVeedramon" and two other unknown Digimon. Whether or not they look like knights or not is unknown, though since everything in the Digital World is quite literal, I assume they are.

Celestial Digimon

A group of 3 Digimon that also reside on the "Island of the World Tree", distinct from the Royal Knights and probably more powerful. They also have names: "Cherubimon, Ophanimon and Seraphimon". I do not know what they look like, but from their names I deduce that they are related to the biblical cherubs, ophans and seraphs, leading me to believe they look angelic in appearance. Perhaps they are even the equivalents to the creators of the real world? Further research must be conducted.
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Brief History

From talk with the inhabitants, I have compiled a brief history of this Digital World starting from their most recent major event - "The Cyber War". I am no historian by trade and would much prefer to continue research on the inhabitants of this world (the way these Digimon work is still beyond me), but I shall write what I have learned. In the event this world is colonized by real world patrons, perhaps one of them will have better luck deciphering the history of this place.

What I have gathered is that long ago (I still have not uncovered the mysteries of time in the Digital World) the world was split into hundreds of countries, each one with its own government. The Blue Falcons, Gold Hawks and Black Swords did not control the world as they do today. Instead, they each acted as organizations devoted to protecting the rights and interests of a certain type of Digimon (the types are Data, Vaccine and Virus; further research will be done to learn what this means later). For years, the Blue Falcons (the Data organization), the Gold Hawks (Vaccine organization) and the Black Swords (Virus organization) did their job, ensuring that no injustice befell their dedicated Digimon type. Eventually, however, there was an upsurge in violent crimes caused by Virus type Digimon. In an effort to curb the violence, Seraphimon (the leader of the Celestial Digimon, and a Data type himself) proclaimed that there would be a limit to the amount of Virus type Digimon allowed to inhabit the world, and the perpetrators of the violent crimes would be destroyed outright.

Of course, the Black Swords and their leader thought this was unacceptable - punishing an entire group of Digimon for something done by a select few did not sit well. After failing to get their point across with nonviolent protests, the Black Swords resorted to fighting. The Blue Falcons naturally sided with Seraphimon and joined the other side of the war.

Meanwhile, the Gold Hawks were divided. The leader of the Gold Hawks also found Seraphimon's methods unjust and wanted to join the Black Swords' side. The Gold Hawks second-in-command, on the other hand, was concerned more with the well being of their own organization; it was a bad idea to fight against one of the legendary Celestial Digimon. Eventually, the Gold Hawks split, with the leader and his followers joining the Black Swords, and the second-in-command and his group siding with the Blue Falcons. What started as Seraphimon's way of solving a crime problem spiraled into a three way war between the different organizations of the world.

Here is where my knowledge of the Digital World history stops. No one is entirely sure what happened to end the war, but the battling culminated in today's landscape, with the three Tamer organizations owning different parts of the world and the Celestial Digimon nowhere to be seen.

[Monika]

Digimon

At long last, I have documented most of the economic, historic and geographical aspects of this world. I can get to the most interesting part, now - the inhabitants themselves. The Digimon Tamers bear enough similarities to real world humans, so here I will cover only the monsters, unless I happen to witness something peculiar about the Tamers.

Digimon, short for "digital monsters", seem to be the primary inhabitants of this world. Although they differ in intelligence, appearance and habitat, they are all alike in that they are creatures who exist solely in cyberspace. As such, they share the following attributes:

Digi-Eggs

From what I have gathered, all Digimon are hatched from Digi-Eggs. I have only ever seen Digi-Eggs on File Island, on that daycare run by the Babamon. A revisit to that daycare gave me new insight on the Digimon life cycle. According to Babamon, pure data takes the form of a Digi-Egg. That Digi-Egg eventually hatches into one of the infant Digimon I saw her raising on the island. When the Digimon gets old enough, it leaves the island and moves to one of the other continents. When it gets too old and dies, it is converted back into data, which transforms into a Digi-Egg for the cycle to continue. A world full of immortal creatures...Further research is required.

Attribute

Each Digimon has a particular attribute, as I learned from my delving into Digital World history. A Digimon can be either a Data type, a Vaccine type or a Virus type. I know little about the types; it seems that Digimon that bother me the most ("Devimon" still frightens me) are Virus types, with the rest of the world's Digimon distributed evenly between the other categories. The three types interact with each other in a "Rock-Paper-Scissors" fashion:

Virus beats Data
Data beats Vaccine
Vaccine beats Virus

Supposedly, this interaction translates into advantages during combat, though I have yet to see exactly how.

Gender

...This topic requires the insight of a biologist (do biologists even study digital life forms?). I have seen some Digimon act like men and some act like women. All infant Digimon act like real world infants. Sometimes a Digimon's gender is immediately obvious - Angewomon, for example, looks just like a human woman, so it is sensible that she would behave as such. I have seen members of other Digimon species, such as the avian Biyomon, behave as either men or women, with no visually identifiable differences between the two.

As they are all data, Digimon do not sexually reproduce, lending the topic to further confusion.

Digivolution

Perhaps the most notable aspect of Digimon is the process of Digivolution, which I witnessed for the very first time in a Gold Hawk tournament fight just earlier today. Digivolution, a process akin to real world metamorphosis, involves the transformation of one Digimon into another, generally more powerful Digimon. The Digimon in question changes its name (as a caterpillar becomes a butterfly, an "Agumon" might become a "Greymon") but retains its personal identity. If it sustains enough damage, a Digimon might revert to its previous form; near lethal damage could revert the Digimon to a Digi-Egg.

Apparently, there are several "stages" a Digimon can go through:

Digi-Egg (the initial stage)
Baby (the stage of the Digimon I saw at File Island)
In-Training
Rookie (the stage of the Digimon most often seen in the wild)
Champion (full grown, "adult" Digimon)
Ultimate
Mega (the most powerful stage normally attainable by a Digimon)
Super Ultimate (the most powerful stage, period)

Digivolution entails the transformation of a Digimon from a lower stage to a higher stage. There are nearly a dozen types of Digivolution, some of which I shall cover below:

Normal Digivolution

This is the standard type of Digivolution. Apparently, throughout its life a Digimon is constantly absorbing data from its environment. When it has absorbed a set amount of data, it "Digivolves" to the next stage. Digimon partnered with Tamers undergo this process more rapidly, and can Digivolve or "de-Digivolve" at their Tamers' command. More often than not, when a Digimon is undergoing Digivolution, it will say something along the lines of "X Y-Digivolve to...Z!", where "X" is the Digimon's name before Digivolving, "Y" is the type of Digivolution, and "Z" is the Digimon's name after Digivolving.

Warp Digivolution

This is a form of Digivolving in which the the Digimon skips one or more stages in the Digivolution process; i.e. a Rookie Digimon transforming directly into a Mega Digimon. General consensus is that only Digimon partnered with Tamers can do this.

Dark Digivolution

It would appear that Tamers have a powerful link to their Digimon, a link that goes as deep as emotion. I'm not sure of the logistics behind it, but if a Tamer is angry enough, his or her Digimon can transform into an alternate, dangerous form, separate from his or her normal Digivolution path. These forms are typically reckless and uncontrollable.

DNA Digivolution

Perhaps the strangest form of Digivolution, it is possible for two Digimon to combine together and transform, generally into a Digimon of a higher level than the two it was combined from.

Burst Evolution

This is apparently a big deal in the Digital World. Certain Digimon have the ability to temporarily reach the full limits of their power if they are partnered with a Tamer. These Digimon change their appearance to reflect their power and are quite a sight to behold. I have witnessed this once, when Eric's ShineGreymon transformed into "ShineGreymon Burst Mode" during a tournament match.

Mode Changing

A form of Digivolution similar to but distinct from "Burst Evolution". Certain Digimon without Tamers, if powerful enough, can transform into more powerful forms. Because they do not rely on the power of Tamers to transform, Digimon who can undergo a "Mode Change" are generally exceptionally skilled and dangerous.

Biomerging

At last, I have discovered something strange about the Tamers that live in this world. It seems that some of them have the peculiar ability to merge with their Digimon; similar to "DNA Digivolution" but with a person and a Digimon instead of two Digimon. The resultant Digimon is generally humanoid and classified at the Mega stage, meaning they are very powerful. Rumor has it that the leader of the Black Swords is capable of this, which is why his partner Digimon is always in a fairly benign form.

Spirit Evolution

Another difference between the Tamers and real humans. Some Tamers do not have partner Digimon, per se. Instead, they carry with them "Digimon Spirits", the essences of ancient Digimon long since gone from the world (how Digimon can leave behind spirits is a topic for further research). By using some strange devices, these Tamers can merge with the Digimon spirits and transform into Digimon themselves. It is currently unknown how many Digimon Spirits or out there or how many Tamers wield them.

Armor Digivolution

Supposedly there is an ancient form of Digivolution in which a Digimon harnesses the power of an "armor Digi-Egg" (distinct from those Digi-Eggs which Digimon hatch from) to change form. Armor Digi-Eggs are long gone, apparently, so no one knows if this process still exists (or ever existed, for that matter).

There are probably still several more types of Digivolution to be researched, but I shall delve into those topics some other time.

[Monika]

Methods of Entry

The most important thing I should note is how to enter the Digital World, yet I honestly have no idea. I stumbled upon this realm while examining my father's computer. Presumably, any device that can access the world of cyberspace (cell phones, PDAs, computers) could access the Digital World, though I am still unsure of how to force the process.

I have seen some Tamers with what they call "Digivices" (short for "digital device", probably), which appear to be the cell phone equivalent to this world. If I could obtain one of those, perhaps I could discover just how to leave this Digital World...