Author's Note: Hello, hello! White Moon Princess here! Please forgive me and Kurosaki girl 0890! Life has gotten extremely busy. Kurosaki girl 0890 is a full time student and working full time and myself, I am finishing another school year as a teacher. Life forced both of us to slow down the Dakunesu train, but thanks to prodigious11, darkness, and Rahima Khan (readers who read the story after we took a hiatus). After a few urgings from Kurosaki girl 0890…this chapter is for those of you who have hung with us even through an unexpected and abrupt end.
Chapter 7-War
Tai couldn't stop blinking as TK stood in front of him and Joe. Sora was in Angemon's arms but TK had just got finished telling them that she had to return back to Japan.
"We can't do that, we need her here. How else are we supposed to go up against Matt and hell knows what else?"
The blonde boy, whose signature white hat was missing, sighed and folded his arms, "Look Tai, some things have happened and she needs to return there for a little while. I can't explain right now what happened just know this is for her own good."
"Hell it is, Joe, back me up." Tai insisted to the taller boy that had been silent the entire conversation.
"Well...is there anything I can do to help? She doesn't look injured, but it could be internal bleeding or something. I am worried that we might need her help to carry the battles ahead, but I don't want to endanger her health." Joe thought out loud in his roundabout way.
Tai groaned, "We need her here, end of story. She'll have to deal with whatever happened to her another time. She doesn't look hurt so she isn't."
TK wanted to smack Tai upside the head. If only he knew what had happened. With a roll of his eyes he motioned for Angemon to set Sora down on the ground. "Angemon put her into a restless sleep, right now it's stopping the darkness that is swirling around inside of her. It'll take some time, and energy, to get her back to normal. Time and energy Angemon just doesn't have right now. Kari needs to be found, but I can't do it on my own anymore. Darkness keeps blocking me out whenever I feel like I'm getting close."
"Then why don't you keep going?" Tai snarled, the stress of having his sister missing coming to a head.
Angemon calmly spoke, "Because, the force of the darkness that overwhelms us is terribly strong. If TK was to keep pressing ahead...even his light would go out. We can't continue to do this on our own. We need assistance."
Tai groaned, "Great, so not even you can get through whatever do dah is blocking Kari. How the hell are we supposed to find her?"
"I don't know Tai, all I know is we have to keep trying. Right now you are focusing on Matt when you shouldn't be. Kari is the one we need to be finding, her light is the only thing that can fight this darkness and win. I can fight it but-it's unclear how long I can withstand it."
"Tai...that's not a burden that TK should have to shoulder on his own. He has his own demons too. Darkness could exploit those and then we'd be up a creek without a paddle. Matt and Mimi would win if we lose TK. Perhaps for now...we should focus on getting to Kari." Joe spoke up, defending the youngest member of their team.
Tai knew they were right but his need to battle Matt weighed heavily on his mind. Agumon looked up at him, "Tai...Kari is alone in a dark place, she doesn't do well in darkness. She never has. I know she beat it the last time it happened but that was with TK's help. Without him..."
With a sigh Tai let his urge for battle slip away, "You're right, TK we'll follow you. Take us to the place where you think Kari is."
TK nodded and pulled out his D3, "We need to go into a different dimension. Remember, this place is clouded in heavy darkness. And we'll encounter a lot of evil Digimon that thrive on it. Last time Angemon and I were there we had to fight Devimon again. And he was a lot stronger than the last time."
Tai swallowed and exchanged a look with Agumon, "You ready to possibly have to fight Machinedramon again?"
Agumon held up his claw, "Leave it to me Tai, they may have gotten stronger in that other dimension but so have I. I've had a lot of time to train and grow while you've been away."
Tai was proud of his answer and gave him a smile of encouragement, "Gomamon how about you? You ready to fight some strong evil bullies?"
"Let's go kick some Digibutt! I'm ready!" Gomamon laughed.
Joe frowned, "Don't get hurt Gomamon. We need to be careful. Perhaps we should go to Gennai's house and come up with a plan. Izzy might want to be in on this too."
TK exchanged a look with Angemon who nodded and glowed. Soon Patamon was flapping his ears to keep him suspended in the air.
"Okay, we can do that but we can't stay idle for long. The longer it takes to find Kari the more darkness forms. We don't want to risk it getting much denser."
With a yawn Tai took a step to the right, "All right then, let's hurry back to Gennai's and have a chat. Then we'll be on our way."
"I wish there was a way to really dispel the darkness or we knew Kari's exact location. Hopefully Izzy has narrowed it down for us." Joe sighed as they started walking.
"I agree with you Joe." Tai replied as he went over to Sora and scooped her up into his arms. Biyomon rushed to keep up with him. "I hope she'll be okay. I'm worried about her, her skin is lighter than normal."
Tai gave Biyomon a reassuring smile, "I'm sure Sora will be just fine. We'll get to her Gennai and let him take a look at her."
"With Sora here...would it be possible for Biyomon to digivolve and we could fly?" Joe asked to no one in particular.
Biyomon looked helplessly at Sora, "I don't know if it'll work, she seems to be sick...its hard to explain but, Sora doesn't feel the way she did before we went to sleep."
TK looked up as Patamon landed on his head, "That's because she didn't stay here obviously. She was...out doing things."
Tai halted, "What kind of things?"
"Grown up things."
Joe blushed, "Let's just keep walking. Don't talk about those things TK. If Tai doesn't know and can't guess then he probably shouldn't."
'Tai can be so naive and stupid. How could Sora do that though? Sleeping with Matt is dangerous. It's really, really a stroke of luck that he didn't do something to her.'
TK shrugged, "He knows what happened, he's just going to be angry and cause a scene."
Tai's shoulders shook with anger but he swallowed it and kept moving. "We need to get there fast."
Joe nodded, leading the way. 'It wouldn't surprise me if Matt had other partners too. It honestly wouldn't surprise me if Matt and Mimi had sex together. Darkness twists people into ugly things and inhibits their ability to stop themselves from doing bad things.'
They hiked for hours and soon arrived at Gennai's house. They were welcomed in and Izzy looked up from his research, "You're back. TK, I'm glad to see you're okay."
"Yeah, thanks. But we don't have time for idle chat. How far are you to finding Kari."
"I have narrowed it down to a radius, but I can't pin down the exact location. When I get close, the signal disappears. It could be that her location is changing or the darkness is throwing us off."
"That happens when I get to a certain point as well. Obviously that means Kari is where the darkness is strongest. Makes sense." TK reasoned.
"I'm not sure how to narrow it down. I assume since you are here that the darkness was starting to take a toll." Izzy sighed.
Gennai sighed too, "TK you need rest and so does Sora. I can feel darkness coming from her."
"Yes...there's a lot of it there. Is there anything you can do for her? She's stupid and was with my brother."
"No, I can't do anything to make it go away faster. Sora's own body will absorb it and then purify it. Her crest is still good so it will protect her. With rest and good nutrition, she will be fine."
TK looked over at Sora who was on a small couch, "Good, it'd be bad if what happened between them affected her negatively."
"As long as her crest stays the way it is, she'll be fine. If it is ever defiled, she will turn just like Matt and Mimi did."
"She'll turn...because she had sex with Matt?" Tai asked, his voice low and dangerous.
"No, I mean her crest. If it is ever defiled, she will turn." Gennai clarified, "The King has found a way to defile a crest and take away human free will. If we can figure out how to do it and reverse it, we could have our full team of 8 again."
Tai looked at his hands, "Some of us don't want to come back. So even if we did return them back to normal...the ones that don't want it will only cause problems."
TK nodded, "Yes, at that time we'll have to make a decision. But until then we just have to believe that there is some part of him that wants to come back. And," his blue eyes looked at Sora, "I think the part of him that will is the part that loves her."
"He doesn't love her! He isn't capable of it!" Tai shouted, shocking the others into silence by his outburst.
Gennai was the first to speak, "Right now, you're right Tai. Matt is beyond real and lasting human emotion. Whether he will stay that way is debatable."
"He doesn't love her, and I don't think he ever will. He's just toying with her for his own amusement."
"The same could be said for Mimi. She was toying with you too."
Tai shook his head, "No she wasn't. When she was in Japan she wasn't...evil."
Gennai shook his head, "Do you think she was putting up that dramatic display in Myra Falls just for the Digimon? It wasn't just for them. Think hard...why would she make that display? She's going to make more and more until you get her message."
"Shut up."
Gennai shrugged, "Izzy, it's time to tell what you did find."
Izzy nodded, "I did find something interesting. At a certain time everyday...Mimi's presence shows on the Dark Continent. I wonder why that is, but perhaps through her...we can get to Kari..."
TK shook his head, "That's dangerous, Mimi isn't going to let us walk up to her and just chat. No, she won't hesitate to attack. I know this because I've run into her a few times there. She's strong as well, doesn't help that she's the 'Queen' either. With her being the Queen to the Dark Lord well...it makes them linked in a lot of ways. She has his power at her call as well as her own."
Izzy nodded, "I suspect that power will twist her even more than Matt is. Matt gets power from the Dark Lord too, but it's indirect. The direct connection I suspect is twisting her faster than Matt was twisted. Remember it took Matt years to become this way. Mimi has only been gone a very short time and yet she exhibits cruel...sometimes brutal tendencies. We have to save her soon or she could destroy the Digital World."
Gennai spoke up, "Destroying is probably not the plan. I suspect it is something else and much more sinister than destruction."
Tai sighed, "I'm going to follow TK on this, he's been attacked by her several times, if he says she'll attack without remorse...then she will. We need to get to Kari, hopefully when she isn't around to hinder us."
"Then we need to think about how to get to the Dark Continent." Joe commented, "How do we do that? TK, is there a way to get there undetected?"
"I come and go from there a lot and haven't been caught. I only get caught when Mimi is on one of her routine checks. However, I can avoid her when I know she's there. I get there with the power of my crest. It's draining but after getting there I rest for a while, which helps."
"Can you get us all there?" Tai asked.
"Yes, I think I can."
"Then we go. We have to try and get to Kari." Izzy looked up at Gennai, "Please look after the Digital World while we are gone. I suspect that things will get worse before they get better."
"I will do my best. The underground resistance has gone into hiding, but I fear we will be hunted down by the Queen."
Tai looked at Izzy, "Maybe...you should stay here and help Gennai and the others out. Or," he looked over his shoulder at Sora, "we can leave her here."
"I suggest we leave her. It would only make matters worse to take her to the Dark Continent."
TK agreed, "If we take her there now with the darkness that is in her...it could make things worse and it could taint her crest. She can do her job here, helping Gennai."
"Perhaps she can continue to slow Matt down. He is the main vehicle the Dark Lord likes to use." Gennai stated.
"We need to go then." Izzy sighed, "We only have a few hours at most before she comes."
Tai got to his feet, "Then let's go."
Gennai looked at Sora on the couch and then at the rest of the group, "Come back safe. TK, do you need anything from me to help you? This will be a tough journey for you."
TK pulled his crest out from under his shirt. "Is there a way...you can give this just a little bit more juice? It does fine but..." his blue eyes narrowed slightly, "its slowly getting darker."
"That I can do. Juice is easy enough to give." Gennai smiled, touching TK's crest. The crest started to glow and power flowed into it. TK felt his mind and body being rejuvenated from the power Gennai was giving him.
He took a deep breath, "Thank you."
"You're welcome. All of you come back safely."
"We'll try."
A portal suddenly opened up before them and they were transported into it. When they stopped moving, they were surrounded by thick darkness. Izzy held up his hand, not able to see it in front of his face.
"Visibility is at zero. Lovely."
TK's D3 began to glow, "I have the power to navigate through it." Patamon glowed and digivolved into Angemon once again.
"We must all follow TK, his light is the only thing that can guide us through this terrible darkness."
"What will happen if we get lost?" Joe asked, looking around.
Angemon looked at the worried Joe, "You will be lost in its darkness forever. Reliving things you wish you could forget."
The darkness around them began to thicken even more. Joe shivered as he heard a musical laughter he heard and knew well. 'No...it's her. Mimi...you have to come back to us. I never got to tell you...that I love you and I always have. I regret that now.'
"Did you guys hear that?" Joe whispered.
"Hear what Joe? I didn't hear anything." Izzy said, looking around, "Did anyone hear something strange? I certainly hope Joe isn't hallucinating."
TK looked back at the other three and their digimon, "Gomamon, you better help keep Joe sane. The voices...they work against everyone in this place. It's very possible he could be hearing his worst fear...which is what the darkness thrives on."
Gomamon sighed, "Joe is afraid of lots of things. I wonder which one is haunting him. Did you hear voices too TK?"
TK's eyes lowered, "I always do."
"Then did Angemon help you?" Gomamon reached out a claw and took Joe's hand, "I can't imagine the thought of losing my partner."
"Yes he did, I would have been lost long ago if he hadn't."
Joe sighed, "But no one could save..." he stopped and his body hunched over. Gomamon tugged Joe's arm and Joe straightened up in surprise, "Stay with me buddy. Don't let this take you."
Joe nodded, "Lead the way TK. We need to get to Kari."
TK nodded and began to move forward in the darkness. As they moved in the darkness and time progressed, voices and visions haunted them all. Tai was especially haunted as he had not one, but two things that were plaguing him. Both concerned the loss of women very close to him.
The Digimon partners held their humans together and kept them going, but the darkness was taking its toll. Each time they had visions, it grew harder to bring the humans back out. Just as they thought they would go no farther, they could hear water lapping.
Darkness swirled like a mist around them and then gathered around a spot in the water. Unexpectedly, red eyes opened and a pale hand flicked. Black material covered her formerly naked body as she stared them down.
"Welcome. It's about time all of you showed up. But sadly, Kari won't be joining us and neither will Matt. It's just me." Mimi's musical voice spoke.
TK's eyes narrowed, "You can't defeat me, we've realized that for a very long time. So why waste our energies fighting a fight that neither can win?"
"I don't intend to fight. I wouldn't engage in a pointless task. I only wish to pose an offer and deliver a message, that's all." Mimi answered, stepping out of the water and shaking some excess water out of her hair.
Tai looked at her, "What is it you want to offer?"
"I want to offer each of you a chance to join me. I promise that you will die humanely and be resurrected. Each of you will have a chance to gain power. Plus..." she stepped forward and caressed Tai's cheek, "a chance to fulfill inner desires in a new world."
Tai pulled away from her touch, "Sorry, I'm declining."
"As am I." TK answered.
"And you two?" Mimi glanced at Izzy and Joe.
Izzy shook his head, "I cannot."
Joe stayed silent and Mimi's eyes narrowed, "Ah, I think someone is seriously considering my offer. You know Joe...with this power, you could become more powerful than Tai. Darkness helps us progress. I have progressed farther than I could have ever gotten on my own."
"Joe..." Gomamon looked up at his friend, "you want to separate from the team?"
"I want a chance to have the unattainable." Joe answered slowly.
"Then come. You will have your desire." Mimi watched Joe, "I controlled the darkness here. I know what your desire is. You desire to have me, which you view as unattainable."
Tai shot his arm out, cutting Joe off from walking to Mimi, "Joe, step back or I'll punch you so hard you'll be seeing stars."
"You would deny him free will? You are no different than what you fight." Mimi giggled.
"I'm different all right, but I don't have to explain myself to a dimwit."
Joe looked over at Tai, "Mimi isn't a dimwit. How could you say that to her? You're not worthy of her!"
Mimi smiled. 'Just as planned. Under my control already. His love will be what brings him to me. I have succeeded where Matt failed.'
Tai easily clenched his fist and swung back, it effectively struck Joe on the side of his head, sending him tumbling to the ground, blood dripping from his lip. TK looked down at Joe, "He's out."
Mimi shook her head, "The seed has been planted. I have succeeded where your brother failed Takeru. And your brother...he'll pay for his failure. He will not come back to you, so you can cease your useless hope."
"I won't. I will keep hoping and one day the darkness will fail, and you'll have nothing but regret left." TK stated boldly, unafraid.
"We could go on about this all day. I have to deliver my message and then you will be ejected from this world and I will return to our King. My message is this, the war will not just involve the Digital World, but all worlds. When our King rules them all, the bloodshed will stop. Also, as a favor to what we once were I will give you a piece of advice. We are dead and that cannot be undone. There is nothing to save."
Mimi's eyes flickered for a moment, showing a little sadness and pain. But it was quickly replaced to the emotionless norm they had become.
"It's time for you to go." Mimi flicked her hand and a portal opened. Powerful wind began to suck them towards it. When they came through it, Mimi disappeared from the Dark Continent.
Tai cursed madly and TK frowned. "It's okay Tai, we'll get back there. She's sent me out a lot and I always get back."
"Good."
Izzy breathed a sigh, "All of us made it out mostly unscathed. Poor Joe...I never knew his feelings for Mimi ran that deep. It might be too much of a risk to have him near her. What Mimi said might be true."
"We'll have to swap him out for Sora." TK mumbled, "Even though that's a double edge sword as well."
"Tai what of you? Are you going to be okay? You seemed to have a very hard time in the Dark Dimension. It might be best for none of us to return."
"We have to though, we need to get Kari otherwise all of this will continue. We can't allow that to happen." Tai replied.
"We are all human. Darkness lives within all of us. I suppose we can go in pairs and take shifts."
"That means..." Tai looked at TK, "you'll be going the entire time."
"Yeah, that's all right, I've been doing it for a while now. I can keep doing it." TK shrugged.
"Lets go to Gennai's house. It's not far from here. We can check on Sora." Izzy suggested.
Tai picked up the knocked out Joe, "Let's go."
They walked the short distance to Gennai's house, but when they got there, it was obvious that something was wrong. His house was completely ransacked. Furniture was destroyed and papers were spread over the floor. Izzy rushed forward, feeling especially bonded to his friend Gennai.
Searching the premises, Izzy couldn't find his friend. What he did find sent horror through him. 'This is entirely my fault. My fear...came true. My knowledge...or lack of it has hurt someone close to me.'
He slowly walked outside, clutching a paper in his hand. His eyes were on the ground so he could hide the tears he was shedding, "Gennai...it was a trap. He's gone...and so is Sora. This paper proclaims him a traitor to the Digital World and a committer of high crimes against the King and his Queen. We might not see him again."
Tai lowered his eyes, "He'll be okay, we have to believe that. He's gotten through a lot of worse things. He'll be fine."
"My fear came true. I should have known that it was possible Gennai might be traced. Perhaps even the Mimi we met was not the real one, but a clone." Izzy's voice cracked, "This war is sick. It just needs to end."
Tai set Joe down on a chair that TK had flipped back over to the right position, "We're going to end it."
"I'm sorry. I will find a way to fix this." Izzy sat on the floor and pulled out his laptop. Tentomon sighed, "Izzy will be in cyberland for a while now."
Patamon landed on TK's head, "Will Sora be all right? I'm sure that paper that was in Izzy's hand was a note. Hopefully she isn't in big trouble."
TK looked out at the dreadful night sky, "My guess...is she is. And if she's not...she will be."
Skin crashing into skin echoed around the enclosed room. Pain soon followed, but two pairs of eyes stared each other down, not betraying any emotion. Slowly a hand was lowered down and then lips opened to speak.
"You're a fool Matt. I don't understand how you could mess something like that up. I allowed you to have your tryst with Sora in the hopes that you would get her crest as we planned. But you failed." her eyes flashed and though she was angry, her voice was cold.
"There will be other chances." Matt replied, kneeling down and kissing Mimi's hand, "All is not lost my Queen. We are going to win the war. I am committed to helping win the war."
Mimi's anger started to boil over when the fiery lust came over her when his lips touched her skin. She knew he felt it too and was using it at this moment to distract her from her anger at him.
"Do not manipulate me! I should tell the Master that we have a traitor in our midst! He would seal your ass away so fast that your head would spin!" she yelled snatching her hand away.
A small smirk appeared on Matt's face. He stood up again and looked her in the eyes, "Jealousy is unbecoming of a Queen. You know that there will be other chances for me to steal crests. That's not what you care about. You're mad that I slept with her and not you."
"I'm leaving!" she turned in a huff, fully intending to go straight to the King and expose Matt for the traitor he was, "I plan to win this war and I will use whatever leverage I need to do that."
It was then that Matt felt a familiar prickle at the back of his neck. That presence...he knew who it was, but why was she there?
"No, no, no, no." Matt rushed after Mimi, sensing just exactly what leverage she meant. He barreled down the stairs to the dungeons to stop her. Getting just inside a large dungeon cell, he was mere feet from Sora when he was suddenly stopped.
He pushed to try and go farther, but was like he was a puppet on strings all of a sudden and his body wouldn't go any farther. Mimi glanced behind her with a bored look, "Stop trying. You aren't going anywhere."
Then she turned forward and closed the distance to where Sora was being suspended in the air by her wrists, "Sora, so sorry the accommodations aren't like a 5 star hotel. The dungeons are filling up with traitors and criminals. I had to pull strings to get you this. You should be happy, you even have a guest who has come to join us."
Sora slowly opened her eyes, one moment she had been talking to TK and the next...she was here. Her wrists ached and she slowly looked forward, her eyes locking with Matt's. 'Wait...I'm not supposed to be here...and...' her heart sank, 'why does he have that look in his eyes?' That's when she realized she was suspended in the air and Mimi stood beside her. "What's going on?"
"I could ask you the same thing. What were you thinking? It was a pretty stupid thing to have sex with Matt. You are vulnerable to darkness more so now than ever before." Mimi began to twirl a piece of hair around her finger, "You truly thought that you could cure Matt? I am about to remind you how wrong you are. I'm going to make both of you suffer for this little tryst."
Sora looked back at Matt, ignoring everything Mimi said, "I don't blame you, I never could."
Matt fought against what was holding him back and his hand slowly began to pound against an invisible wall, "Dammit! Don't say stupid shit Sora! Worry about yourself!"
She gave him a weak smile, "I'll be okay."
"No you won't..." Matt whispered.
Mimi's hand turned into a fist and she punched Sora in the ribs. A few cracked instantly from the strength behind that punch. Red eyes burned with fury as they stared at the exotic beauty suspended in the air. 'Now it's payback time. You have everything you want and I want to take it away. You thought I was perfect and my life was peaches and cream, but it wasn't. It was your life I wanted.'
"I will not be ignored! You will wish you had left well enough alone!"
Sora coughed and winced, "Jealousy is unbecoming Mimi. I remember the days when you'd actually be happy for me. I miss my friend."
"She's gone, drowned and reborn. I don't miss her. Now I have become more powerful than I could have on my own." Mimi's eyes flashed for a moment before her hands reached out and easily crushed the bones in Sora's right leg.
Sora bit on her lip and muffled a cry. She wouldn't give Mimi the satisfaction of hearing a scream. Sweat trickled down her temple as she fought the pain. Her eyes went to Matt again and she tried to tell him with her eyes that she was okay, and that she loved him.
"Savor it Sora. When we're done here, Matt and I are taking a little trip. You won't see him again." Mimi broke Sora's other leg without a second thought, "Then, your true fear will come true. He will be mine."
Sora took ragged breaths, "You're wrong."
"I'm right. I'll shut off those scary feelings for him. He'll thank me."
"You can't shut them off. You may be able to 'distract' him from them...but you won't be able to turn them off." Her vision was going in and out of focus. "Matt...please, don't give up on me."
Matt continued to pound on what was keeping him from Sora to no avail. His anger began to well up in him followed by guilt. 'Dammit! This is my fault! I dragged Sora into my world and I knew that Mimi would go after her with a vengeance. I'm so stupid...I should have left her alone...but...'
His mind instantly flipped to the anger he felt. 'Punish me! Punish me for what I did and leave her alone! I hate...I really hate Mimi! She is my worst creation!'
"Punish me bitch! I betrayed you and chose her over you! I had sex with her instead of you! Come after me! Break me and leave her be!" he shouted.
Mimi stopped pacing for a moment and sneered, "Hero complexes are so annoying...I'll need to destroy that too."
Sora's eyes closed and soon a red light started to emit from her chest. The heart design of her crest shining through, causing Mimi to have to shelter her eyes from the painful glow. "Shut up Mimi. I think the one that needs to have things destroyed is you. For instance, the color of your hair. It's changed since you've come here, it really is a fashion...disaster."
'Crap...I didn't want my crest to react. It really does have a mind of its own. The glow is numbing my pain though. For that I'm grateful. But,' her reddish brown eyes worked to focus on Matt, 'I don't want him to be punished instead of me.' She knew he could read the thoughts she was having by her eyes. 'I won't let you take this...because she can hurt you so much more than she can hurt me. And that...would kill me. I can't stand to know she's hurting you and...being with you. I'd much rather have this happening to me.'
Matt blinked, not feeling as much of the terrible pain that came from the light of a crest. Sure, it hurt his eyes, but it wasn't unbearable like it had been before. He knew that if the crest didn't stop glowing, Mimi would retreat. Sora wasn't going anywhere being suspended and now having both legs broken. They had infinite time. He gulped when a wicked smile crossed Mimi's lips.
'Oh boy...that thought has already crossed her mind. She's going to make sure I never break loyalty again. If I don't fall in line...she might just seal me like she did with Kari. After all, she's more powerful than I am now.'
"It's okay. You'll be okay." Matt said to Sora, "I'm not human remember? I can't break like you can."
It was only then that Sora's eyes brimmed with tears, "D-don't Matt...please..." she was afraid of what he was relenting to do. "Please...I can't..." the tears trickled down her cheeks, "I won't be able to handle it, you know that!"
"What choice does he have?" Mimi asked, turning her back on Sora, "He has to save you. He knows giving me what I want might get you a reprieve. If he serves me well, I might keep you alive instead of killing you. Sucks when you have a weakness, because there are always ways to exploit it."
"You might as well kill me right now!" Sora shot back, "Because even if you do get him to do what you want, he'll always have me, always want me, and nothing you do will change that."
"That will fade with time. He didn't tell you did he? You two experience something like a jolt when you touch. When he and I touch...there's quite a fiery feeling that passes between us. He actually made moves on me first. Our Matt is quite a player."
Sora hung her head, "The only reason why that is...is because you got turned evil, just like him. So of course the 'fire' between you guys will be stronger. There's a big difference between you and I. I didn't need to be evil for him to be attracted to me. See, you had to change for him to like you. Which means, he doesn't like you for who or what you are. He only likes you for the power you have. Once again...you're only being used, just like it's always been for you." Deep down Sora knew it was stupid to bring forth Mimi's insecurities but at the moment she didn't care. Mimi was doing mean punches, and it was time Sora stopped acting like a little victim.
Mimi's face didn't react, but Matt could feel exactly what Mimi was. All her life, Mimi had felt that she had been used. She was a pawn in a game she couldn't control and she hated it. For a long time, she had smiled and acted carefree, but going to America had changed things.
Suddenly, there were no friends to fill her life with meaning and she had felt betrayed by her parents. They said the incidents in the Digital World hadn't bothered them at all, but after hearing a late night conversation, she found out her parents had uprooted the family specifically to keep her from what she loved.
After that, it had been a downward spiral. She had tried to act carefree again and managed it until the incidents last year had passed. Then things had turned ugly. Resentments that had been held for so long boiled over and what was private could no longer be kept that way. That was when trouble had really begun to brew in the Tachikawa house. Her parents had threatened boarding school or military school, confirming Mimi's thoughts of being a pawn.
After a long time, she spoke, "I don't have weaknesses like you do Sora. Low blows don't hurt me like they do you. I can see why Matt loves this state. Those nasty emotions don't come anymore. It's pretty nice."
Walking forward, she moved through the barrier and stood next to Matt, "Are you going to honor your words Hero? I'm tired of being here and we have a date in the Dark Ocean to get to."
Matt looked up at Sora, wishing they could have just ran away together. 'That's sentimental shit, but...it was nice to think about. My life isn't my own anymore.'
Sora lifted her head and looked at him. Her hand moved against the restraints, "Remember? What I said? I'm not going to forget..." she smiled, "I'll be the place you can return to."
"Unless you die of course." Mimi held up Sora's crest, which she had willed into her hands, "We'll see if I throw this in the Dark Ocean or not. Come on." she said to Matt, effectively ending the debate. Matt laid his eyes on Sora once again and turned around to follow Mimi. He felt his posture slumping. 'Well, at least she's safe. If I do well enough, Mimi won't throw that in the Dark Ocean and give Sora a death sentence. I have to help Mimi forget her pain. She completely lied to Sora there. Everyone has weaknesses and those don't go away, even with infinite power.'
Sora tried to yank her arms out of the cuffs but her strength soon gave out. Hanging limply in the air she felt utterly broken. 'How did she get my crest? I know it stopped glowing when I got angry with her...but still. She shouldn't be able to touch it. Matt couldn't even touch it at first, is it because she hasn't been surrounded in the darkness for very long? Could her own crest have a small light of its own left?'
The travel to the Dark Continent was short. Mimi breathed a sigh of relief at being surrounded by the thick darkness again. It comforted her like a child wrapped in their blanket.
They walked for a while in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Only the sound of lapping water brought them out. Mimi stopped at the shore's edge. The sting of the conversation that had taken place on this beach were brought back for a moment, but then were numbed by the darkness.
"Wash yourself in the ocean. That will burn off whatever Sora put inside you. It will be painful." Mimi ordered, her voice almost mechanical.
Matt sighed as he undid his armor and took his clothes off. He stepped into the water and was up to his waist before the pain started. Focusing on his inner self, he accepted the pain. Washing his body thoroughly, he felt more darkness enter him, but he still felt the anger, guilt, and sadness of what had happened. 'It won't be as easy as a bath to get rid of this. Both of us know that.'
The pain slowly subsided and he turned to look at Mimi, "Come join me. You look like you could use it to."
Mimi didn't hesitate to strip off her clothes and join him. She even went as far as to submerge herself in the water for as long as she could. When she surfaced, Matt's arm reached out and wrapped around her tiny waist, crushing her to his chest, "You know...it's okay...we're numbing ourselves. Might as well admit that what Sora said hurt. It was a low blow for sure. She has no idea what it feels like to be used."
Mimi didn't answer him, she just breathed in his scent and continued to let the darkness bury her feelings. Being in his arms and hearing his words made her feel slightly better, but she knew they were hollow in the end.
Matt waited patiently, running his hands through the wavy hair near him. He felt so bad for Mimi. His own pain was bad, that's for sure, but sharing hers too was overwhelming. 'I guess that's the downside of me turning her. We share so much now.'
"There are things she will never understand Matt. She won't understand the horrible pain either of us has gone through or the loss of free will. We only have each other for comfort in that respect."
He nodded slowly, "You're right. She's never experienced a nasty divorce that puts you in the middle or the pain of being used by others for selfish gain. You and I have that in common now."
"Let's go back. I'm okay now and I put the crest with my clothes." Mimi slowly pulled away and began to make her way towards the beach.
Matt started to walk towards the beach too when he noticed something strange in the treeline. He kept his thoughts centered and neutral when he recognized blue eyes. 'This is the only chance Sora has. If they get her crest back, it will be safe.'
"You're not okay. You want to forget and I'm willing to oblige." his hand reached out and grasped Mimi's tiny wrist, pulling her into him where he could distract her with a kiss. The darkness thickened as they shared it between them and they felt the wonderful release from their pain. Then the fiery lust began. Forcing himself to lock his feelings tightly in a chest within himself, Matt focused on forgetting and helping Mimi forget. He prayed that Sora would be left alone, safe, and that TK would use this golden opportunity to grab the crest while Mimi was more than happy to focus on what was in front of her, not what was around her.
TK's eyes furrowed as he sensed what his brother was doing. But he still wondered why he was doing it. Dropping from the tree easily and silently, he snuck towards Mimi's clothes. That was when he saw Sora's crest among them. He picked it up slowly, grasping the tag in his clenched fist. It was after he had it safely in his hand that he looked up and over at his brother. 'Why? Why distract her and give me the nonverbal hint this was here? And why...are you allowing yourself to be with her when you so clearly don't want to be, even though the darkness inside of you craves her power?' TK knew Matt could her his thoughts, or at the very least, sense them. It was something they had always been able to share since TK was a small child.
The sense TK received back was hope. Matt hoped, perhaps foolishly that this would keep Sora safe when he couldn't do it himself in the dungeon. At least with this...Sora wouldn't be turned. She would stay her perfectly human self.
TK looked down at Sora's crest again, 'So...there is something redeemable in you after all.' A small smile formed, it had been the first smile he had had since arriving back in the Digital World. With his eyes filled with hope for his older brother he looked back at him. 'Don't die dumbass, got me? And...you better lock those feelings you have for Sora away in a place Mimi's powers can't reach because...she's the best damn thing that's happened to you and you know it.'
Matt moved his hand down to the small of Mimi's back, but two of his fingers flicked telling TK to get going. 'For right now...let's hope so. I might have to do some unforgivable things again. Sora will hate me for what I need to do next...'
TK began to slowly move back towards the bushes. It was odd for him to actually hear Matt's voice in his head. It was probably because of the influence of the darkness. He had been searching for Kari for several hours and he was getting beat. At the moment however, he let the darkness collide with him. It was the only way he could communicate with his brother. 'You know Sora, she's always had a big heart. As long as you don't forget her and turn your back on her...she'll come around.' He faltered when he was hidden in the brush, 'I know this is crazy for me to say...and I hope I won't regret it...but...be careful Matt. From what I've gathered...Sora isn't in a good place right now and you're the only one that can get to her. But by doing so...you'll be going against the rules you live by. Just,' his blue eyes shook, showing his weakness in that moment, 'be the big brother I could always count on. We all depend on Sora a lot...she's kinda like our mother figure and well...without her I would have killed myself a long time ago. It's hard living without you...'
Matt felt a lot of guilt rushing in. He knew his own decision to stay in the Digital World had hit TK hard. He didn't know TK was suicidal about it. 'I'm really sorry about that. Sora is a really great person and I don't deserve her. She needs to find Mr. Normal Human guy. Even if a miracle happens and I'm somehow made human again...I can never, ever be good enough. I know that...I'm really not good enough to be your brother either. You always were the better one.'
TK shook his head, all the emotions rushing back to him of the times in the Digital World when Matt had been there to save him. The small boy that all that did was cry for those first few months they had arrived. 'Whether you deserve her or not, you got her. And...' Matt could feel TK's emotions as he tried to fight them. They varied from sadness, depression and happiness, 'I...forgive you. So...when all of this is finished, either way it ends up...at least you'll know that your little brother doesn't hate you. And,' he put Sora's crest over his neck and under his shirt where it rested beside his own, 'I'll protect the crest of the girl you love with everything I have. I promise.'
'Thanks TK. I really mean it.' Matt thought, fighting to keep tears from coming to his eyes. Until just now, he didn't realize how much he had feared his own brother hating him. It brought incalculable joy to hear that his brother had forgiven him despite all the bad things that had happened between them.
TK smiled again, 'Do what you need to do to keep Sora alive Matt. Leave the rest to me.'
Matt flicked his fingers again, reinforcing that TK needed to go. It would be hell on Earth if TK was caught and Mimi somehow bested him. She'd be so pissed and angry...she'd for sure throw the crest in the Dark Ocean. But a huge part of him was sad to have his brother leave. They were just starting to bond again after so long.
With a nod, TK got to his feet and touched the tree that was close by. He looked over his shoulder, sensing the underlying tone that his brother didn't want him to leave. 'See you soon. Love you big brother and...I trust that you'll keep Sora as safe as you can.' With that he ducked into the tree as a small portal opened up allowing him to leave the Dark Ocean behind.
