Sort of a long one. Better than the first, I'd say. Not much romance, but plenty of plot. Taiora with a hint of Takari. Little Matt-bashing, but I even it out with some Tai bashing and even some Mimi bashing, too.

Trying out a new concept that I might make a whole series out of. R+R if you like it. You'll know what it is.
Disclaimer: I don't own digimon, only the idea of Counter crests and BlackSkullGreymon and BlackMetalGarurumon. Any similarities are strictly coincidental.
Enjoy.

No way out
The figurative.
Orvis

Garudamon sailed through the portal, dedigivolving and depositing them right in the middle of Highton-View Terrace. Tai helped Sora up and carried her to the nearest hospital. Biyoumon and Agumon quickly high-tailed it over to Izzy's where they could hide out while Sora was being treated.
Tai carried Sora into the emergency room. She was getting weak from all the travel that Tai had to put her down to get a doctor. Finally, a white coat came over.
"What happened here?" he asked, examining Sora's head.
"Well, we were riding bikes, and she hit a bump and landed on a rock." It wasn't exactly a lie, and it wasn't exactly a good one either. The doctor was looking closely.
"Really?" he said, unconvinced. "Cause this cut looks a few days old." He looked up at Tai with one eyebrow raised.
"Ok, I slipped in the bathroom and cracked my head on the counter. I was knocked unconscious and sat there for pretty much all of yesterday. Neither of my parents are in town, so I was pretty helpless. If Tai didnt have a key and come by when he did, idk if I would've made it." Sora looked up at Tai with a look so sweet, so loving, that both Tai and the doctor knew she was sincere.
"Alright, well I guess that answers my next question: no parents." He stood up. "Come on back, your just gonna need some stitches." To Tai: "I'll bring her out when were good. Don't worry, she's safe."
'It was my stupid idea in the first place.' Tai thought as he sit down in one of the waiting room chairs. It wasn't Tai's plan to go that day, in fact it was Izzy's. He called all the shots as to the schedule of when the towers were to be taken care of. But Sora didnt have to go. It was Tai's turn and he asked her to tag along. He didnt know it would turn the way it did. They both thought it would be fun.
'I should've never let her come.' He put his head in his hands and waited.
How long he slept, he didn't know. He felt as if he'd only been there a few minutes, but the stiffness in his back and neck told him otherwise. He soon felt a soft hand gently rubbing his back. His head shot up to see Sora sitting there next to him. Her beautiful face was only slightly bandaged and the blood was gone. She smiled at him and kept gently moving her fingers around the surface of his back. He quickly sat up and pulled her into his arms.
"Sora, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for any of this to happen." he whispered with tears in his eyes. She pulled back.
"You mean you didn't want us to find each other: to fall in love?" She looked like she was about to lose it. Tai tried desperately to calm her down. He reassured her that he still loved her; that he meant the injury and the danger, not the kiss. All the while, Sora's smile grew until she couldn't hold it in anymore and started laughing.
"-And your laughing." Tai said, confused. "You were joking, weren't you?"
"Of course! Oh, Tai..." Sora regained herself.
"Oh Sora..." Tai mocked. She smacked playfully on the arm. She looked down for a second and when she looked back up, her smile had changed from one of pure elation to one of pure content. She leaned in close and kissed him softly. She pulled back, bit stayed close to him. He closed the gap and they kissed again, deeper than before. Sora put her hand on his cheek as she pulled away.
"Tai, there's something I-"
"Oh, wow, we gotta go. The others are probably losing it right now." He got up and grabbed her by the hand. "Cmon, we gotta get to Izzy's." They ran together out of the deserted hospital.

'I'll have to tell him eventually...' Sora thought as they ran to Izzy's. She was referring to the fact that Matt had a thing for her. And, she had to admit, she did too. They had been, in a way together since Matt saved her at his bands show a few weeks back. She felt grateful, and almost as if she had to be with him because of it. She loved Tai with all her heart, but she didn't know if she could bring herself to hurt Matt that way. This was all very confusing to her.
"Tai, stop." she said as they approached Izzys apartment. He did. He looked at her with his hand on the door knob.
"What's up, Sor?"
"Tai there's something you have to-" She was interrupted as the door flew open and Kari flew out with her arms open, latching on to Tai.
"Your ok!" she cried into his chest. She looked up. "Sora!" She dragged them in to a group hug. "I was so scared."
"Hey, it ok..." Tai said to sooth her. "Were ok." He locked eyes with Sora and smiled. She returned the act.
"Yea, I'm fine, just a little bump on the head."
"I know, Agumon told us everything." Kari said, her face buried in Tai's chest. Tai raised an eyebrow.
"Did he, now? How much did he tell you, exactly?"
"Oh, he said quite enough." Izzy said rounding the corner. He had on a face Tai though was supposed to be evil, but ended up looking more congested. "Lucky for us, Digimon don't understand privacy and secrets." He grinned mischievously. "Go on, then. Show us?"
"Fine!" Tai's refute was pitiful, but he turned to Sora anyway and locked their eyes. She found she couldn't resist it. They pulled in for a big kiss. But they never made it.
"Oh, please spare us." Matt's bitter sarcasm interrupted.
"What's the matter, Matt? Jealous?" Tai taunted. He could see anger grow in Matt's eyes as he cooly leaned in the doorway. Sora grabbed Tai's arm.
"Tai, I tried to tell you..." she trailed off. She looked down at the ground, sheepishly blushing.
"Tell me what Sor?" Tai asked, obviously oblivious. "Wait..." he said as a realization slowly dawned on him. He look in Matt's direction with an anger only dreamt about in the minds of those most greatly betrayed. "What did you do to her?" he growled.
"Nothing you haven't done." A dark smile crossed his face. "Well, maybe not."
That was it. Tai lost it, flying across the few feet that separated them at light speed. It took the combined efforts of Izzy, Kari, Sora, and Agumon to drag Tai off. Gabumon stood by Matt, making sure he wasn't going to jump. He wasn't.
"Tai, calm down..." Sora stood between the two, becoming the only obstacle Tai couldn't pass. "Nothing happened with us. Not like that."
"Then what did happen?" Tai asked, easily shrugging off. Kari and Izzy. He picked up Agumon and put him down behind him.
"Remember the Digimon at the the Christmas concert?"
How could he forget? It was when he first thought Sora was gone. He recalled her standing outside the trailer with the box of cookies for Matt. He saw something in her eyes; something he knew to be love. She was having trouble getting up the courage to go and talk to Matt. That's where Tai came in. His crest of courage and hers of love frequently worked together, and this was an example. He loved her so much that didn't hesitate to encourage her to see Matt. He thought she would be happier that way.
"Yeah...?" Tai answered.
"Well, when the tent was coming down, he sorta saved me from a falling pilar."
'For some reason, that doesn't seem right.' Izzy and Biyoumon simultaneously thought. They all dropped it when Sora continued.
"I guess I felt so grateful I just had to do something for him..." She started blushing again.
"You kissed him, didn't you?" Tai asked as the reality of their situation dawned on him. She nodded.
"Well that's not that bad." Kari started.
"Well it wasn't. That was the problem. We've sorta been... Dating...since then."
Everything was quiet for the following moments. Tai finally broke the silence.
"So... You lied to me, Sora?" he asked with his teared eyes fixed on the floor.
"Tai, I -" she started, but it was hopeless. He picked her up and set her off to the side. There was nothing left in-between him and Matt now. He looked Matt in the eyes and for the first time in a long while, Matt was genuinely scared.
Tai slowly approached Matt who was stubbornly standing his ground. "You knew, Matt. You knew what I felt for her..." Izzy grabbed Tai's arm.
"Tai, this doesn't-" Tai threw him off like a small bug. Now, Izzy wasn't the smallest of kids, and the fact that Tai so easily disposed of him made everyone else stay away. Except Gabumon. He stood right in Tai's path. Matt put his hand on his partners shoulder.
"No, I can handle this." he lied.
"...and you took her anyways!?" Tai finished his thought. He was now only a foot or so away from Matt. His crest began to glow, but not it's normal orange. Instead it let out a black so dark as to poison the heart of love itself. Everyone watched in awe as Tai came within inches of Matt.
"And you thought I wouldn't notice." Tai smiled an evil smile. He wound up and punched Matt so hard he almost killed him. Matts unconscious body quickly hit the floor. Evil Tai chuckled, then stormed out, leaving everyone there stunned. Joe came out of the bathroom to see everyone standing around something.
"Whad I miss?" he asked, drying off his hands.

Tai shut his bedroom door and sat down on his bed.
'What just happened?' he though. 'One minute I'm outside Izzy's with Matt and Sora, then suddenly I'm here.'
He lay down with his hands on his face.
'What the hell did I do?'

"How bad is it?" Sora asked when Joe was finished looking Matt over.
"Well," He said standing up. "Judging by the lack of blood in his face and the lack of any injury, I'd say..." He looked her in the eyes and smiled. "He fainted."
"Thanks, Joe." Sora said as she sat down next to Matt, waiting for him to come to. Joe walked in the kitchen to wash his hands. 'You can never be too careful' he thought.
Meanwhile, Izzy had called up Genai and told him what had happened with Tai.
"And then his crest started to glow black."
"Black, you say?" Genai made sure he had heard him right. "Well it sounds like a counter crest. Every one of your crest comes with a positive side that you already know all about."
"But there's a negative side, too?"
"Come on, Izzy. You know there's no such thing as monopoles. Anyways, the darkness you saw is the opposite of Tai's crest. The counter crest of Courage is that of Fury. Tai must have been angered beyond anything he's ever experienced. But now that ones been activated, all of them will start activating. Now, let's see if I can remember these crests. The opposite of love is hate; the opposite of knowledge is arrogance; the opposite of sincerity is corruption, the opposite of reliability is recklessness and I think you can figure out the opposites of hope and light."
Izzy nodded. "Despair and darkness."
"Thats right. Your going to want to watch out for Kari. When hers activates, it's possible that something truly evil could appear."
"But Genai, what about Ken's crest?"
"Well, Ken is special. His crest already changed from that of kindness to that of pain. He was lucky enough to be able to overcome the power it put him under before it overtook him completely."
"So that means Ken's done for good?"
"I don't know. This is the first I've seen of it. But I wouldn't think you'd have any more problems with it."
Just then, Kari came running in the room with TK right behind.
"Matt's gone!" she said. "He just woke up and turned black like Tai. Then he stormed out."
"I knew I was forgetting something." Genai sId through the the screen. "The opposite of friendship is vengeance."
An idea popped into Izzy's powerful brain. "Thanks, Genai." Izzy said as he was preparing to close his laptop.
"Wait!" Genai stalled. "I forgot to tell you something!" Izzy opened the laptop computer back up. "I forgot to say, if Agumon or Gabumon digivolve while their partners counter crest is active, there may be nothing you can do to stop it. For example, Agumons Counter-Warp digivolution turns him in to BlackSkullGreymon, a digimon more powerful and more angry than anything you've ever seen. In fact, I've never heard of a more powerful digimon than BlackSkullGreymon."
"What about Matt and the rest of us?" Izzy asked.
"Well, I've only heard of one other, and that's BlackMetalGarurumon. He's also not one to mess with."
"Thanks Genai." Izzy slammed the laptop closed.
'No one says goodbye anymore...' thought Genai back in the digital world.
"What was all that about?" Kari asked as Izzy finished packing his laptop.
"I'll tell you on the way. We should probably look for Tai at your house. I think that's whereMatt will be too." Kari nodded and they headed out, taking everyone else on the way.

There was a knock at the door, so Tai got up to answer it. He was surprised to see everyone staining out there. He opened the door.
"Oh, hi Sora, what-" That's all he got out before his cheek was assaulted by the palm of Sora's hand. Sora was strong, but Tai was used to it. He jumped back more out if shock then pain.
"Ow! Damn, Sora, what was that for?!" he asked with his own hand on his red cheek.
"That," she said, walking in close to him. "Was for knocking Matt out. This," she said, drawing in closer. "This is for trying to keep me yours." With her hands on his chest, she kissed him deep. He was still confused, but he didn't let that stop her.
Being that this was the first time anyone had seen them together, they all looked away, awkwardly, except for Kari, who simply held her hands and squeaked with joy.
"Er...what?" Tai said when they finally broke. "Last thing I remember, I was asking Sora if she lied to me, then I woke up here."
Izzy and Joe filled Tai in on what he did. Joe assured him that he hadn't hurt Matt, but that Matt had feinted on his own. Tai realized Sora had never answered his question, but due to the circumstance, he dropped it.
"So why can't I remember anything?" Tai asked.
"That wasn't exactly you. You kinda turned evil." Izzy explained to him about the counter crests. And how Matt's was of Vengeance.
"I think he's on his way over here now." Tai nodded, his arm around Sora.
"Ok. You guys leave. I'll handle Matt."
"No, Tai! I won't let you!" Sora cried.
"What's the worst that could happen?" He grinned with his goofy grin.
Izzy shook his head. "I have to agree with Sora on this one. Matt will say and do anything to get back at you. If your counter crest activates, it could be disastrous."
"Whado you mean?" Tai asked.
"When the counter crest activates, it changes the digimon's forms, too. If you lose it and try to have Agumon digivolve, he'll turn into BlackSkullGreymon."
"BlackSkullGreymon?!"
Izzy nodded. "He's more powerful than any other digimon. And he'll be completely out of your control."
"Well I can't just let you sit here while Matt tears this place apart!"
"You'll have too." Joe pipped in.
"You have to leave, Tai." Sora said, looking up at him. "I won't let you stay. Trust me, I'll be fine."
He locked eyes with her. Her mind was set, and he knew that there was no way he could change it.
"Ok." he gave in. "I'll go out my window and wait at your house for you." He kissed her goodbye and ran to his room, shutting the door behind him. He opened the window, preparing himself to leave, but he couldn't. He needed to be there, even if he wasn't needed. So he sat on his bed and thought about what was happening with Sora.

She was trapped. Not in a physical sense, no, but in an emotional dilemma. She loved Tai with all her heart, but owed Matt her life. And that wasn't the only problem. She did like Matt; how much, she didn't know. He was her friend and he counted on her to be his. She couldn't allow herself to hurt him, even if it meant losing Tai. But she couldn't lose Tai, either. They were best friends since even before the digital world, and he meant more than the world to her. She couldn't live without him. This didn't leave her many options.
She felt the beginnings of tears forming in her eyes and insisted to herself that she remain calm.
'I'll figure thus out somehow.' she thought.

It was only about fifteen minutes until Matt showed up. This delay worried Izzy.
'He was a good hour ahead of us. What was he doing? We stopped by Mimi and TK's houses and still got here before him. I wonder what he has planned...'
He soon found his answer. Upon arrival at the Kamiya's, Dark Matt simply knocked the front door in. He entered as it swung broken on it's hinges. As he entered the living room, everyone was waiting for him. Everyone but one.
"So where is your 'fearless leader'?" Dark Matt asked with a laugh. Sora pushed out her chest.
"He's gone. We're not gonna let you hurt him." She stood firm against the blackened eyes of her "boyfriend". Unknown to everyone, Tai was still there. He had heard the door break in and had cracked his door open to watch what was going on, all the while, ready to jump in if he was needed.
"Who says I'm here for Kamiya?" he smirked, staring directly at Sora. Kari picked up on this and stood right in the way.
"We won't let you hurt her!" she cried. Joe, Izzy and TK did the same. Mimi simply started crying. But Matt was a step ahead.
"I would be hurt if you would." he said, pulling a wicked, black handgun from his back pocket. Izzy then understood what took him so long. The others froze, but Sora walked around them to Dark Matt.
"I'll go with you, just don't hurt them."
He grinned. "Wouldn't dream of it." he said, mocking innocence. He grabbed her arm, spun her around and put the gun to her head.
"Get your computer!" he barked at Izzy, who realized what he was doing and hesitated. Like in a movie, Matt pulled the hammer on the gun back, despite not needing to. Both Kari and Sora were crying now. Kari in full sobs; Sora in small tears. Mimi wailed in the corner, but she was doing that anyways. Izzy slowly as possible work his laptop out of his bag and on to the table, trying desperately to work out an exit strategy.
Tai sat helplessly at his door, knowing that the second he shows himself, Sora was gone. Slowly, he started piecing things together. 'Why does he want Sora and not me? I was the one that knocked him out.' Then he realized he didn't. In fact, he never hurt Matt at all. It was Sora who had broke his heart. Sora who hurt him. And Sora he had prisoner. But Tai's realization came too late.
While Izzy thought about how to save the day and Tai figured out what actually was happening, TK was trying to figure out what he'd say to Kari when she was helping him up. He mustered all his strength and dove at his brother. Without missing a beat, Matt turned the gun away from Sora's head and shot TK.
Everything happened in slow motion: TK flying, the shot, TK falling down. Kari shot forward, crying now not just for Sora, but for her love too.
"TK!" she screamed, rolling him over on his back. The shot had hit his torso, but just barely. It had found ground in his left shoulder. Not a mortal wound, but one that would certainly need attention. TKs breathing was shallow and he was bleeding profusely. Joe dove on him and go right to work. Kari stood up.
"You Bastard!" she screamed, lunging at Matt. Lucky for her, Joe got her before she too got shot. He threw her off to the side. He hated to hurt her, but he had to get to TK and couldn't afford anyone else getting hurt. She lay on the ground, sobbing, repeating her curse over and over again in a whisper.
By now, Izzy had his computer set up.
"Good." Dark Matt said, well, darkly. He put the gun back to Sora, who was crying harder now. "Open it." he ordered.
She wanted to resist, but she knew it was hopeless. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her Digivice. Everyone who could, including Tai, watched in horror as she said the three dreaded words.
"Digi port open."
Tai jumped up and ran out of his room, diving around the corner, just as Matt and Sora were sent away in the white light. He held out his Digivice and went along with them.
All was quiet except for TK and Kari. After they left, she crawled close to him. She put her head on his good shoulder and told him everything was going to be alright. Joe ran to the bathroom to get some rubbing alcohol and some wet towels.
"Kari?" TK croaked. (A/N not in the sense you're thinking.)
"Yes TK?" she sobbed.
"If I don't make it-"
"Shut up. Your going to make it." she said sitting up. "You hear me, you're gonna be fine."
"I need you to do send a message to someone." he continued.
"Anything TK..."
"Well, theres this girl..." he started. Kari's heart dropped. "Can you tell her I live her?"
"Where does she live?"
He smiled at her. "In every mirror you look in." The realization of what he was saying slowly dawned on Kari. She dropped a tear for love instead of pain.
"I love you too, TK." she said, leaning over and kissing him. It was, honestly her first kiss, and she was glad to share it with him. Shortly after, the blood loss and the pain hit him, and he hit his dreams of Kari with a whole new view.

Whadya think? Good? Bad? R+R and save your flames for the grill. Chapter three, "No Way Out, The literal (again)" coming soon.
Peace \V/