There was something quite odd about walking along the bottom of the Dark Ocean, the location itself notwithstanding. When thinking of an ocean floor, one would expect to see seashells, seaweed, coral, or even stranded sea life flopping about due to the sudden loss of water. Instead, there was nothing but sand - gray, unending sand sloping gently ever downward until the horizon was lost in an indistinct blur of gray and gold.

It only served as a grim reminder of what they were dealing with.

"There's nothing at all. Everything looks the same," Sora muttered. "If we didn't have a path telling us exactly where to go, it'd be so easy to get lost."

"I'm guessing that you've never been down here," Yamato said as he glanced at Keiko and Nyamon, both of whom were walking alongside the group. The fact that the two had decided to join them in their mission felt so natural that he didn't even bother to question it. Even the fact that they were ghosts seemed less and less unsettling the more time he spent around them.

"Actually, I have," Nyamon said with a shake of her head. "I make it a point to search the ocean every day, for as long as I can stand it."

Jou blinked at that before turning his head to look at Nyamon. "Wait, what?"

"I've been looking for Ryo," Nyamon said as she turned her head to meet Jou's gaze. "Well, trying to look for Ryo. As Sora mentioned, it's impossible to tell where you're going and where you've been… and your senses are usually being bombarded by the dead, which makes it even harder. But I still had to try… but it was usually just walking around aimlessly."

"B-but, it's the Dark Ocean!" Jou said as he gave a wide gesture to the water that was currently being held at bay. "You actually went into the Dark Ocean!?"

"It doesn't affect me," Nyamon said with a flick of her ear. "And not just because I'm dead - no Darkness Digimon can be tainted. It's just an ocean to me - a screeching, spiteful ocean."

"So, wait, you're saying I actually could go swimming in the Dark Ocean?" MarinDevimon asked as he tilted his monstrous head, a hint of a mischievous smile curving his toothy mouth.

Keiko gave MarinDevimon an appraising look. "With that evolution and confidence? Yes." She started to frown as she glanced at her partner. "But it will not be pleasant."

"You're more than welcome to, if you're that eager to have vengeful spirits of dead Digimon screaming in your ear about how unfair it is that you're alive and they're not," Nyamon said. "But it seems to me that following our nice path out here where they apparently can't reach would be better."

The image was enough to dampen MarinDevimon's enthusiasm towards the idea. "...Yeah," he said after a significant pause. "I think that's one experience I'm fine missing out on."

Nyamon gave a nod with a small, wry smile on her face. "Good idea."

"So, where exactly is it taking us?" Takeru asked as he watched Monodramon head the way, the dragon's gem and the crest of Miracles both still glowing brightly. "Is Zeed Millenniumon really just… hiding on the bottom of the Dark Ocean, with Ryo? How would he not drown?"

"Those are some very good questions," Black Tailmon said. "Unfortunately, the only one to ask would be Zeed - and I don't think anyone wants to talk to him."

Taichi's expression was grim as he kept sharp watch on their surroundings, before he paused when he noticed Koshiro walking while holding his laptop out. "What's up, Koshiro?"

Koshiro glanced over his shoulder at the Chosen of Courage. "I'm running a charting program. That way, if we lose the path, we can find our way out."

"Koshiro, if we lose our path, we'll be underwater," Blade Kuwagamon said.

Koshiro paused at that, then grimaced. "Uh, well…"

"Naw, it's still a very good idea," FlaWizarmon said, with a wave of his hand. "Sure, it won't do no good then but it don't mean it'd never do you any good."

"What he's trying to say, dearie, is to not be discouraged," Witchmon said. "It never hurts to have as many plans in place as possible."

Koshiro smiled awkwardly at that as he felt a rush of relief but also embarrassment at the praise he was receiving. "R-right! That's what I think, too."

Keiko shook her head slowly. "The water of the Dark Ocean isn't like normal water anyway. You can breathe in it just fine if you need to. The Dark Ocean was meant to be a trial, not an actual ocean."

"What do you mean by that?" Koshiro asked, his eyes alight with eager curiosity as he turned to Keiko, already taking notes on his laptop.

Keiko paused for a moment, her gaze scanning the area around them before she gestured vaguely off in some direction beyond one of the golden walls. "Mama's domain is across the ocean. When Digimon die, they are supposed to sail across the ocean to reach her at the top of the Crystal Tower. If they reach there, they will be reborn."

"Sailing… to the top of the tower?" Taichi repeated, staring at Keiko oddly, unable to wrap his head around it.

"Or swimming," Keiko added helpfully. "It depended on how the Digimon chose to travel."

Takeru stared blankly at Keiko before shaking her head. "That's the Digital World for you."

Koshiro let out an awkward chuckle even as inside part of him screamed at the impossibility of it. "I guess so…"

"The Dark Ocean is a trial," Keiko continued, as though the others weren't giving her odd looks. "If you try to cross it with a heart full of sin, you'll sink to the bottom and then be washed back onto the shore. It was supposed to be that you could only be reborn after you've reflected on your evil actions and made amends for them in the Dark World. That's what the abandoned city was for… but after the Dark Ocean was tainted…"

"Then it couldn't be used anymore," Koshiro concluded, his mind spinning with possibilities. "So what does this mean for the Digimon who were reborn? Is there another way for Digimon to cross the ocean to Tenraimon's world? There has to be some way there, otherwise none of the Digimon would be able to be reborn. Did the entire coding for the process get rewritten?"

Keiko sighed without breath and nodded. "Papa couldn't fix the Dark Ocean, and crossing it was too dangerous, so he and Mama overwrote part of the code. Now, Digimon are immediately reborn without being judged. That's why I had to spend so much time tracking down evil Digimon and killing them all the time back when I was alive." She sighed again and shook her head. "Making them suffer the pain of death and the frustration of starting over from scratch was the best we could do to make them stop doing evil things, at least for a little while, but most of them just swore vengeance upon me instead of reflecting on why the gods sent me to kill them."

"Some just refuse to learn, no matter how many times they were killed," Nyamon said with a sigh. "There was a particularly stupid Digimon named Etemon that couldn't get the hint. He was as tenacious as a cockroach."

"Etemon?!" Taichi blurted out. "You fought that weirdo too?"

Keiko's mouth contorted into a sour expression. "Way too many times. Listening to him talk, or worse, sing was the worst part of dealing with that idiot."

Taichi and the rest of the Chosen shuddered at the memory of Etemon's horrific caterwauling. "No argument here."

The conversation wound down from there, reduced to Koshiro questioning Keiko about the specifics of the code in increasing detail when it became apparent that the spirit was familiar with the coding of the Digital World. The rest of the Chosen Children were quickly lost in the technical minutia, with only the pair's partners and a distracted Miyako to occasionally add a word in here and there.

Soon enough, even that discussion petered out as the quiet oppression of the Dark Ocean surrounding them on all sides weighed down on the Chosen. An uneasy quiet settled in on their continued trek through the path carved by the Crest of Miracles, heading further and further away from shore as they ventured deep in to the depths of the Dark Ocean. While someone would occasionally attempt to make some light conversation to chase away the distant whispers and waves that surrounded them, as time ticked onwards, the morale slowly began to tick away as the children and their partners saw nothing new. All of their surroundings looked the same, and it felt as if they had lost track of even time itself, with no way of seeing how far they had come or how far they had left.

There was nothing but gray, dreary sand and walls of gold stretching ever onward.

Kudamon grimaced, her face twisted in an impatient scowl as she hovered over her partner, before she let out a thin whine. With a sudden burst of energy, she spun about violently in a tantrum. "Holy crap, come on, come on, come on already!" She twirled about before she flopped downward onto the ground, furiously kicking up the sand. "How far are we going!?"

"The Dark Ocean is vast," Nyamon said. "There's really no telling how far we might go, and if we can even reach there without several days of walking."

"Days!?" Yamato whirled around, horrified by the revelation. "You think this could take days!?"

"The Dark Ocean is an ocean, Friendship-kun," FlaWizarmon said as he quirked an eyebrow. While he couldn't hear the other side of the conversation, it was easy enough to tell what was being said. "How big are yer oceans on Earth?"

Yamato paused at that, then grimaced, as he felt like kicking himself for being so foolish. "We didn't even consider that, did we?"

Takeru frowned before he looked to his partner. "Devidramon, how about we go flying ahead to see if we can spot anything?"

"You got it, Takeru," DeviDramon said with a nod before he crouched down, allowing his partner to climb aboard before he quickly took to the sky.

"That's a good idea," Gabumon said. "Yamato, I could evolve and carry you as well."

"Right, let's do it," Yamato said as he watched Takeru, his expression grim. He wasn't about to let his brother go off on his own as a scout. He waited only a moment for Gabumon to warp evolve to MetalGarurumon before he quickly climbed on his partner's back to take after the Chosen of Hope.

"I'm sorry, Taichi," Lavorvomon said, drooping. He gave a meaningful look towards his spikes along his back, which glowed like miniature volcanoes preparing to erupt. "I don't think you should ride on me like this."

"That's fine, buddy," Taichi said as he reached out to gently pat his partner on the snout, away from the more dangerously hot areas. "Someone has to stay back and guard the others."

A flash of evolution signalled Piyomon's own change to Garudamon. She flexed her arms as she grinned at Lavarvomon. "We'll watch over everyone, so don't worry."

"Do you know how far we'll go, Monodramon?" Sora asked as she turned to their guide.

Monodramon paused, the dragon Digimon blinking before he drooped, pressing his claw tips together. "I-I'm sorry, I… don't really know. Lord Zhuqiaomon didn't tell me."

"What a surprise," FlaWizarmon said with a snort.

"Well," Miyako said as she reached up to adjust her glasses. "We might want to discuss what we'll do if this is a longer trip than we expected."

"We'll have to email our parents," Jou said nervously. "Let them know we'll be gone for a while so they can call our schools." He paused before he patted his bag. "We'll have to worry about provisions, too. I packed some, but definitely not enough for more than a day, if we ration."

The other Chosen glanced at each other uneasily as it slowly dawned on them that they weren't nearly as prepared as they thought they were. In the back, FlaWizarmon and Witchmon watched the Chosen Children, their expressions wry.

"It kind of makes you think, don't it?" FlaWizarmon asked as he glanced to Witchmon. "Lady Keiko had to think of all this stuff, but these ones never had to. I guess it's a growin' experience."

"You can't really blame them," Witchmon said as she pressed her hands together. "It's not as if they ever had anyone to guide them, like Lady Keiko or even Ryo and Ken-chan did. They've done a pretty good job figuring this stuff out on their own."

"True that," FlaWizarmon said with a shrug.

All further conversation was suddenly cut off by the sight of Yamato and Takeru returning, landing before the other Chosen Children as their partners kicked up sand around them upon impact.

"That was quick," Taichi said with a blink.

"Does that mean you saw something?" Sora asked hopefully.

"Other than sand, sand, and more sand?" Kudamon asked, her cynical tone expressing her doubts clearly.

"Yeah, definitely," Yamato said as he stayed atop MetalGarurumon. "And you're not going to believe this."

Takeru turned to point straight ahead, even as he turned to the others with pure bewilderment on his face.

"A city! There's a city down here!"


Daisuke, Iori, Hikari, Mimi didn't know what to expect when Cassandramon said she would be taking them to Ken's room. With such a build up and their own expectations, it felt like surely the place must have been as extraordinary as the rest of the Crystal Tower. However, now that they were actively looking inside the room, they were stunned to see how ordinary it looked - it wasn't made of crystal at all, its inside furnishings looking like something they'd see from a nice bedroom in a hotel.

Mimi wasn't sure if she felt disappointed or even more bewildered. "It's so… normal."

"The intent was to allow the Chosen Children to feel as comfortable as possible," Cassandramon said. "In surroundings that didn't immediately remind them of their otherworldly situation."

"Their situation?" Iori repeated slowly as he turned to stare at Cassandramon.

"There were rooms set aside for you all as well," Cassandramon said, without looking at Iori. "Though they have gone unused."

Daisuke looked around at Ken's bedroom. There was nothing he could see that stood out to him as belonging to Ken in particular, but still he couldn't help but feel a keen sense of interest. "What, were we all supposed to live here or something?"

"Yes," Cassandramon replied. "Or at the very least, you would be able to use this place to rest, and be taken care of."

"We definitely could've used this during our first adventure," Palmon said as she looked over the bed, then back to Mimi. "Instead of having to sleep on the ground."

Mimi nodded vigorously. "Constantly trying to find food and a safe place to sleep was just awful! Not to mention we could barely ever get a bath! Ick!"

"The Digimon named Bokomon would cook meals for the Chosen of Darkness, Miracles, and Kindness," Cassandramon said. "He continued to cook for Ken Ichijouji after their adventures, when his parents denied him food as punishment for not meeting their expectations."

Iori frowned at that. "Did… Ken eat here often?"

"Yes," Cassandramon said as she finally turned to Iori, her expression unreadable. "Ken Ichijouji often failed to meet his parents' expectations."

Hikari felt a twinge of pain in her heart. She thought back to her own dealings with Ken's parents and it didn't take much to imagine how they might have behaved towards their own son. It was enough to make her feel a surge of uncharacteristic fury at them and a decided lack of good will.

Daisuke cringed deeply inside, but he managed to only show it in a twitch on the outside. He knew that feeling well. Even though things were far better between him and his parents now, it wasn't all that long ago that they treated him like a hopeless, violent idiot.

V-mon glanced at Daisuke before he looked away, scowling. He gave a huff before he turned to glare up at Cassandramon, arms crossed. "So why did you bring us here? There's nothing here to see!"

"Have you looked under the bed?" Cassandramon asked as she tilted her head, peering down at V-mon.

V-mon paused, blinking. "Huh?"

Cassandramon continued to stare down at V-mon, her expression unchanging. The small dragon Digimon stared back before he began to grow uncomfortable, then glanced back to the bed. Shifting his glance between Cassandramon and the comfortable looking piece of furniture, V-mon hesitantly approached Ken's bed before peering under it. He immediately stopped as his eyes widened before he suddenly dropped to his stomach, crawling underneath it.

"There's something here!" V-mon shouted, his voice muffled by the bed.

Daisuke's first thought was of the magazines he hid under his mattress and his cheeks turned pink. "W-wait a sec, V-mon!"

"Huh?" Mimi turned to stare at Daisuke, noting not only his expression but also the strange one on Iori's face. "What's wrong?"

"I-it is nothing," Iori said quickly. A quick glance to Daisuke confirmed that the Chosen of Honor shared his thoughts, and was all the more mortified for Ken's sake. "Just… V-mon, could you please confirm what you found first?"

"It's a box!" V-mon chirped. "I'm bringing it out!"

Iori grimaced. "W-we should check the contents first - discreetly. It is, after all, Ken's personal property. It could contain something… private."

"Private?" Palmon asked. "Like what?"

"Guy stuff!" Daisuke blurted out, trying and failing to appear casual. "Just… just guy stuff. You… you girls probably wouldn't understand, so just let us check first, okay?"

"Guy stuff?" Hikari repeated slowly, confusion clear on her face. She vaguely recalled Taichi making a similar comment once before, when she had been helping their mother gather dirty laundry to wash. The pure panic that had overcome him when he saw her kneeling down to reach for a seemingly discarded sock stood out firmly in her mind. She never understood what exactly had happened, beyond that it had caused her brother to always clean his room whenever asked from that moment forward.

Mimi squinted her eye at the nervous boys and put her hands on her hips. "What kind of 'guy stuff' are you two thinking about?"

"Pornographic magazines," Cassandramon said, blithely.

The response was an explosion of embarrassed blushing as Mimi and Hikari gawked at Casandramon. They then quickly turned to stare at Daisuke and Iori, who jerked nervously and they looked anywhere but at the ladies in what was the most pathetic pretense of innocence the two had ever seen.

"Daisuke!" V-mon said as he came back out from the bed, holding the box. He held up the lid as he looked up at his partner. "There are pictures in here, plus some other stuff!"

Mimi snatched the box before Daisuke had a chance to respond, her mortification turning to irritation that demanded that she take action. "Let me see that!"

"Ah, that…!" Iori began before quickly losing his voice, looking away when Mimi gave him a furious stare before returning her attention to the box.

Rather than seeing magazines packed with nudity, Mimi was greeted by pictures of Ken. However, they weren't just of Ken, but of Ryo and Keiko as well. They were very candid pictures, such as Ryo looking abashed over something, Keiko smiling at the camera, and one of them eating at what Mimi immediately recognized as the pizzeria Ken introduced them to with Nyamon stuffing a whole slice in her mouth while the others looked on in laughter. There were pictures of Kyoumon, FlaWizarmon, and Witchmon, but also startlingly images of Leomon as well. She saw what appeared to be two angels, an armored one with black wings and the other white with robes, and even a picture of Neemon with a cream-colored Kappa-like Digimon wearing a pink belly-band. Right on the top was a picture of Ken with an older child that Mimi didn't recognize - a stern-looking boy with wild dark purple hair and glasses.

"What is it, Mimi?" Palmon asked, noting the odd expression on her partner's face. "What do you see?"

The embarrassed agitation instantly disappeared as Mimi looked over the photographs, her heart suddenly wrenched in a painful vice. "Oh… Ken."

At seeing Mimi's reaction, Hikari, Daisuke, and Iori drew closer to peer into the box. The previous atmosphere completely evaporated, replaced with a far more sober one as they were greeted by the pictures - memories of the things Ken had lost.

Hikari's eyes stung as she looked from one cheerful memory captured on film to the next. Unthinkingly she brought a hand to her chest and squeezed, as though it would somehow alleviate the tightness gripping her heart.

"This is… unfortunate," Iori said, at a loss for words.

Daisuke furrowed his brow as he stared at the picture of the strange boy with a sense of déjà vu. "Who's that?"

"That would be Osamu, Ken's older brother," Iori said. "The one that… did not survive the car accident." He recognized the boy immediately from all the research Miyako had done regarding Ken, both before and after he was exposed.

Daisuke flinched at the news, remembering all too clearly the website Miyako had showed them, and kicking himself for not realizing it. He only now remembered the tiny photograph a young Ken had been holding in the newspaper photo. Even if he had been more preoccupied with Ken's injuries and obvious grief in the shot, he chided himself that he should have done better in remembering the face of the other boy's deceased brother.

Palmon drooped, tears in her eyes. "Mimi..."

Mimi wiped at her eyes after setting the box down onto the bed, hugging Palmon close immediately after. Palmon returned the gesture, gripping her partner tightly.

"That box contains all the painful things that Ken Ichijouji could not bear to keep with him, yet could not bear to throw away," Cassandramon said from behind the Chosen Children. "He gave them all to Wormmon, to remove from his sight."

"I see," Iori murmured softly before he paused, noticing something sticking out from underneath the pictures. He hesitated before reaching to move the photos aside, revealing a floppy disc. He carefully lifted it up, finding nothing written on it to identify its contents. "What's this?"

"That…," Cassandramon said, her voice somehow emphasizing the floppy disc without ever changing its tone. "…is the backup code for the Village of Beginnings."


There were few things the Chosen Children expected to find at the bottom of the Dark Ocean, and the ruins of a city were not one of them. Even stranger, they were not the ruins of a typical Digimon city, which were usually haphazard and nonsensical in appearance, but something straight out of the depths of Tokyo itself. In fact, as the Chosen Children stood on the cracked asphalt road that the sand led them to, they truly felt that they were back in Tokyo - albet after some horrific disaster that had eliminated all life and wreaked havoc on the sturdy buildings that loomed ominously over them.

"What… the hell," Taichi said slowly. "It's like… we're back at Hikarigaoka."

"The only thing that's missing is the overpass," Yamato agreed, breathlessly. "What the hell is this doing here?"

Black Tailmon scanned her head about, taking in the sights around her with open bewilderment. She then turned to Keiko and Nyamon. "What is all this?"

Unlike the rest of the Chosen Children, Keiko was completely unaffected by their surroundings. "This was the first and only city humans built in the Digital World."

The statement sent a shockwave through the Chosen Children.

Takeru turned to gape at Keiko. "What?"

"Ya'll know yer not the first humans to ever visit the Digital World, yeah?" FlaWizarmon asked, his arms crossed as he leaned against one of the ruined buildings.

"Wait, so… you're saying there are humans stuck in the Dark Ocean!?" Jou asked with growing horror.

"Yep, some of the poor bastards stuck in the muck are human," FlaWizarmon said, with a casual shrug.

"Were," Witchmon corrected, her expression somber.

"Were human," FlaWizarmon agreed with a solemn nod. "And they're gonna be stuck in the Dark Ocean, gunkin' it up, 'cuz it can't process them. It doesn't know how."

A self-deprecating smile creased Keiko's face. "That's why Mama never brought me back to life. She can't. Even with the orb draining her, she would've broken herself to do it if she could."

"But Narakumon thinks it can be done!" Black Tailmon protested. "He clearly thinks reviving you will work!"

"He wants to glitch the system," Nyamon said with a shake of her head. "He wants a Miracle, essentially."

"Then I guess that's what we'll have to do," Takeru said, with a bright grin. "We've caused a lot of things to happen that shouldn't have… so it's about time we cause one that we actually want to happen."

Monodramon frowned as he watched the exchange, feeling like he clearly was missing something. He at least understood by this point that they were talking to someone he couldn't see, and it was clearly an important conversation. He certainly didn't want to interrupt it, though he couldn't deny he felt a strong sense of urgency to get to Ryo and get out of what was quite literally Digimon Hell. He just needed to remind himself that they were almost there, and that nothing had happened up to that point - so perhaps nothing would.

And if anything did, the Chosen Children could take care of it. Probably. Maybe.

Witchmon looked from Takeru to the empty space the boy spoke so confidently to. She dragged her long, sharp teeth along her bottom lip and looked away as her ghostly cat crouched low against her hat, ears folded back.

"Obviously, I ain't gonna discourage ya," FlaWizarmon said, his voice rough. "I've seen enough to know that ya'll can do some pretty damned crazy things… but ya'll have to forgive me for thinkin' that this is at least one situation where yer biting off more than you can chew."

"That's fine!" Kudamon said, cheerfully. "We'll just enjoy making you to eat crow!"

Miyako looked at FlaWizarmon with a deadpan expression. "The Digital World has the ability to create sentient life, alter time and space, and attached itself so closely to the real world that if it gets destroyed, Earth will go boom along with it." She smirked crookedly as she adjusted her glasses. "Forgive me for thinking the concept of 'impossible' just doesn't exist."

FlaWizarmon paused as he considered that before he reached up to pull down the brim of his hat over his eyes. "Can't argue with that… but I reckon I'm just a coward who can't handle gettin' his hopes up only to have 'em squashed."

"That's fine," Taichi said as he held out his fist in front of him with a confident grin. "As long as we don't give up, that's all that matters." He turned to the rest of the Chosen. "Right guys?"

"Right!" Sora agreed enthusiastically, clenching her own fists as she raised them up to her chest. "We'll all work together and make this happen, Keiko!"

"Exactly," Yamato said with a nod. "We're in this together."

Jou reached up to adjust his glasses. "We've done crazy enough things up until this point. It might sound weird to say, but this actually seems tame compared to everything else."

"I know that logically, it doesn't make any sense," Koshiro said. "But that's human logic. The Digital World has its own type of logic, and even that can apparently be changed."

FlaWizarmon laughed weakly as he raised his hands in defeat. "Alright, alright… I getcha. Clearly I ain't gonna get far with you. Just don't do anythin' reckless, alright?"

"We don't want to lose anyone else," Witchmon said softly, though she kept her misty eyes up ahead rather than towards the optimistic children.

Keiko silently took in the determination around her, the ernest smiles directed at her. Even in such an unrelentingly terrible situation, even the quiet horror of the Dark Ocean radiating all around them, shaking their insides with barely controlled fear as it whispered terrible things at the edge of their hearing, these children who hardly knew her were resolute in their conviction to cheat death and rescue her from its cold grasp.

In spite of the hopelessness she felt for the past few years after her world fell apart around her, Keiko somehow managed to be sincere when she smiled back.


Video screens flickered, showing all the various angles of the Chosen Children as they resumed their journey, heading further in to the ruined city. The screen occasionally flashed static, as if something was messing with the signal, but the view would eventually return, proving it to be a temporary interference.

From his throne, the Digimon Kaiser watched, his entire body rigid as tense fingers dug into the armrests in an unrelenting vice grip. The monitor's light was the only illumination in his dark throne room.

"It's going well so far," Dracomon said, half-hidden in shadow at the dictator's right.

The Digimon Kaiser let out a low, uneasy rumble at the back of his throat. "I don't trust how straightforward this is. It shouldn't be this easy to extract Ryo from the Dark Ocean."

"The Dark Ocean did almost take one of them already," Dracomon remarked.

The Digimon Kaiser squeezed the armrest tight enough to make the leather creak. "That's what I'm talking about. They should be fighting for every inch against the Dark Ocean. They should be terrorizing it with Darkness to keep it at bay. It shouldn't be so… calm."

"The crest of Miracles is doing something," Dracomon said. "Zhuqiaomon must have expected this, even though Miracles should have no effect on the Dark Ocean." The small dragon Digimon paused before he narrowed his eyes. "The Holy Beasts definitely know more than they have told."

The Digimon Kaiser nodded, his scrutinizing gaze focused on Monodramon. "Neemon was an agent of Zhuqiaomon too." His voice lowered in a mumble directed to himself. "What is his obsession with Ryo about?"

"Once I am able to find that little rat, I will bring him to you," Dracomon said, with blazing intensity in his eyes. "In pieces, if I must."

"Rip off his limbs, but make sure he doesn't delete," the Digimon Kaiser said, his voice low and dangerous. "We need to remove him as a threat for good."

Dracomon's lips curled up to reveal his sharp teeth. "I will be very careful."

The Digimon Kaiser nodded, lapsing into a tense silence that lingered as he watched the children wander through the ruins.

Dracomon watched the screen alongside the tyrant, his eyes switching from each of the Chosen Children before he finally focused on Monodramon as he led the way. Moments slipped by before the dragon Digimon spoke again. "I remember this place."

The Digimon Kaiser cocked his head in the Digimon's direction. "Was this where you scavenged those electronics?"

"Yes," Dracomon said. "There are numerous rooms filled with computers and other types of equipment."

The Digimon Kaiser grunted to himself. "Laboratories. Of course. It's probably where those ghosts linger most." After a pause, he returned his focus to Dracomon. "It's dangerous to go through the Dark Ocean alone, even for you."

"I was not alone," Dracomon said, immediately without any sign of hesitation. "I had you. Because of you, I could protect myself… and you. I fear nothing, so long as I have you."

The Digimon Kaiser went silent, his gaze never wavering from the screens.


It was impossible to fully explore the city, as only bits and pieces were accessible due to the way the golden walls cut its path. While the temptation was there, somewhere past the unsettling fear that hung weighty in the air around them, the Chosen Children ultimately knew better than to venture beyond the golden walls just to look around. They weren't there for curiosity's sake to begin with, they were searching for one thing and one thing only - Ryo Akiyama.

Thankfully, even if they themselves didn't know where they were going, the path certainly did. It cut them straight through what appeared to be a shopping district towards a massive government-style building - complete with numerous concrete steps guiding them upward past a broken fountain and what appeared to be planters that could have conceivably held flowers a long time ago.

"It's pretty amazing," Takeru said as he stopped by one of the planters to stare into it, not in the least surprised to find it without even a hint of life - only gray sand. "It really is a city - an actual city."

"I'm going to take a look ahead," Devidramon said as he turned to his partner, who nodded his approval. Without another word, he fanned his wings and took off to the sky.

"Who the heck lived here anyway?" Taichi asked as he turned to Keiko.

"I was wondering that too," Koshiro said, head perking up. "Gennai only mentioned your group as the first to come into the Digital World, Keiko. He didn't say anything about any other humans."

"She was the first Chosen Child, yes," FlaWizarmon said, before Keiko could finish opening her mouth. "But she wasn't the first human."

"Humans have been meddling with our world since its creation," Witchmon said with no small hint of bitterness clinging to her voice. "They got themselves killed and the gods have been trying to keep them out ever since."

"Got themselves killed… how?" Sora asked, uneasily.

"By killing Huanglongmon, of course," FlaWizarmon said, with false cheer. "You don't kill a god of the Digital World and not suffer consequences for it."

Witchmon spread her arms out as she spun about on her broom in place. "Huanglongmon's death is why the Dark Ocean is the way it is now."

"'Course, it wasn't intentional," FlaWizarmon said, with a wink at the Chosen Children as they all turned to gawk at the pair. "They were just real keen on torturing - I mean, 'experimenting' on him and did it a liiiittle too much."

Witchmon flashed a smile filled with too many sharp teeth. "So he killed himself, taking the wicked humans out with him."

FlaWizarmon made a popping gesture with both of his hands as he mouthed 'boom'.

Witchmon continued to smile in spite of the shocked expressions directed their way. "As you might imagine, dearies, this made a lot of Digimon who were there at the time absolutely hate all of humanity. The gods included." She paused for a moment before focusing on Black Tailmon. "Yes, all of them."

Black Tailmon blinked at that, her eyes widening with understanding. "So even Tenraimon…"

"They were both tortured too, ya know," FlaWizarmon said as he looked skyward, his expression grim. "For many, many, many years… before Huanglongmon saved them, at the cost of his own life. That's not somethin' you can forget."

"But that…," Sora murmured as she struggled to understand. "What… changed?"

The harshness of Witchmon's smile melted into something painfully nostalgic. "Lady Keiko. Tenraimon might've butted heads with Narakumon and argued that innocent children shouldn't be punished for the sins of others of your kind, but if you knew her, you could see the hate was still in her. When Keiko arrived…" She trailed off with a soft sigh, her eyes going distant as her mind drifted somewhere far away.

"Huanglongmon saved 'em physically," FlaWizarmon said, his voice rough as his emotions flared again. "Lady Keiko saved 'em spiritually. She saved all of us."

"She loved them," Witchmon said fondly. "Loved us, needed us. She'd been wronged by wicked humans, tortured and held captive just like our gods had, so she understood them more than anyone." She looked around, but, sadly, couldn't find any trace of the spirit of the Chosen Child of Darkness. "She loved Narakumon and Tenraimon, and that love grew inside of them until they loved her enough to break the Digital World for her, and that love spilled over to the rest of you children too."

Keiko couldn't look at anyone. Although she had no blood within her, her cheeks still turned pink due to overwhelming emotions that swelled within her soul and threatened to overflow.

Takeru frowned. "Is that why Zhuqiaomon hates humans?"

"Yep," FlaWizarmon said. "He won't ever forgive or forget. It don't matter what you do, how many times you save the Digital World. He will hate you forever."

"Whee, 'justified' racism," Miyako said flatly as she trailed her fingers along a broken piece of wall. "How fun. I feel so much more confident trusting a guy like that who blames innocent people for what assholes did."

"L-Lord Zhuqiaomon loves the Digital World!" Monodramon protested. He didn't fully grasp the conversation, but he understood enough to understand that his master was being insulted. "He… he sent us here to rescue Lord Ryo! So… so…!"

"That he did," FlaWizarmon said with a small nod, tugging on the brim of his hat. "Surprised the crap outta me that he did, but he sure did."

Monodramon frowned as his tail whipped about behind him. He clearly looked unhappy with FlaWizarmon's response and about ready to argue, but lacked the nerves to actually voice it. In the end, he stood quivering impotently.

Taichi felt his heart go out to the little dragon, and he placed his hand on Monodramon's head. "Hey, don't go taking it personally. Maybe Zuky does hate us, but we're all fighting for the same thing right now. That's why you brought us here, right?"

Monodramon paused at that before he smiled thankfully up at Taichi as the brunette winked at him. "T-that's right! And Lord Zhuqiaomon knows that, too! He k-knows you're allies of our world and w-wants to help!"

FlaWizarmon glanced to Witchmon and lifted his hand to block his face so that he could discreetly roll his eyes.

Witchmon looked back at him calmly, somehow managing to keep her expression impassive, but her ghost cat retched as though it was coughing up a hairball.

Nyamon quirked an eyebrow before she turned to grin wryly at Keiko. "Ah, the innocence of youth."

Keiko returned the smile with one of her own, though her eyes were hard. "Maybe they'll have better luck than I did."

"Takeru!" Devidramon's voice boomed from above, interrupting the conversation and causing all eyes to turn up to him as he returned to the group. "It looks like the walls are taking us straight to a building!"

"A building?" Takeru asked, slowly. He hesitated before he furrowed his brow in concern. "Like a fortress?"

"No," Devidramon said as he landed beside his partner. "It kind of looks like… a hospital?"

Nyamon made a strange face at that before she hurried forward ahead of the others, heading straight up the long steps climbing up the hill ahead of them. Black Tailmon was quick to follow her dark counterpart, the two cats bounding up the steps with ease.

As the two cats neared the top, a massive building came into view. It was heavily damaged, but both had to admit that the comparison to a hospital was an apt one. Despite the huge doors leading inward, it seemed like a building they would've come across in the real world. It was multiple floors with rows upon rows of windows, each and every single one had seemingly been burst outward, with glass scattered across the ground outside. Hints of equipment could be seen through the open windows, which only served to add to the eeriness.

"That's… not what I expected," Nyamon muttered.

"I don't think anyone expected it," Black Tailmon replied, her ear giving a backwards flick as the only acknowledgement of the rest of the group as they joined the duo at the top of the steps. "Or any of this, for that matter."

"So this is where Zeed has been hiding with Ryo?" Yamato asked as he crossed his arms and took a slight breather at the top of the stairs. "For some reason… I was expecting a grand palace, or something."

"Yeah, it's definitely a downgrade from his usual haunts," FlaWizarmon muttered as his eyes scanned the windows for any sign of movement. "He has a particular… taste, if you can call it that. It was always gaudy - gold, jewels, you name it." He turned to give Witchmon a vicious smirk. "I'd say it's a testament to how far he's fallen if this is where he's been spendin' his days."

Out of curiosity, Taichi followed the wall of the hospital along the only side not blocked by a mountain of rubble until he reached the corner. Unfortunately, he found the gap between it and the golden barrier that protected them to be far too small for any of them to squeeze through. "No way around over here. Guess this is the place, or we're supposed to go through."

"Wonderful," Sora muttered, her voice heavy with sarcasm, as laced her fingers together so that she could clasp her hands tightly as she walked double time to Taichi's side. The whole place gave her goosebumps, and the hospital was absolutely not helping - nor was the fact that Taichi had wandered so close to the edge of their safety net. She tried to be inconspicuous as she went to guide him back to the others, clutching his arm a little more tightly than she necessarily needed to.

"Don't worry, Sora," Garudamon said as she looked down at her partner. "We'll get through this together."

"I know," Sora said as she loosened her grip on Taichi to something more comfortable and turned to smile weakly at her partner. "I just can't shake this bad feeling I have."

Taichi felt compelled to say something comforting, but the chill coiled in his belly froze any soothing words that might have left him. So, instead, he took Sora's hand in his and squeezed it. "Yeah," he eventually admitted. "Me either."

"This whole place is nothing but a bad feeling," Kudamon said as she hovered over Miyako. "So you'll just have to get used to it!"

"Okay," Miyako said with a firm clap of her hands, both to get the others' attention and to bolster her confidence. The sound it made was too loud, and whatever echo came back - if it was even an echo - sounded… wrong. She shook it off quickly and forced herself not to think about it. "Two pairs of Darkness at the front, two at the back. Light in the middle with Miracles at the sides. Let's be ready for an ambush or a trap or some cosmic horror hiding in here, people."

Taichi ran a hand through his hair as he looked around at the others. There were times when his gut decisions led him astray, but this time, his instincts told him with crystal clarity he did not want to go inside this hospital. "Okay… normally I'd volunteer to go first, but that's probably stupid-"

"Just a bit," Yamato cut in as he gave the Chosen of Courage a lopsided grin.

Taichi shot Yamato a glare, but there was no fire behind it. The barb oddly managed to loosen a little of the tension. "Okay, smart guy, then you and MetalGarurumon can go first with Sora and Garudamon. Miyako and Kudamon will…" He paused, brow furrowing as his thoughts tripped over one another. "Wait, no, we need someone to back up Kudamon… but we're going to need our guard up in the front…"

"Nyamon and I will take the lead," Keiko said, her expression stony as she folded her arms across her chest. "Nyamon has more experience exploring the Dark Ocean than anyone and she can still hurt anything in here; I can teleport and go through walls, and, most importantly, I'm already dead so nothing here can kill me."

Taichi faltered at the dispassionate reminder a ghost gave him of her lack of mortality. He squirmed in place, grimacing, before he tried forcing something resembling a placating smile. "S-sure, sure. Right. Okay. Uh… so you two and…"

"I'll go with Keiko," Yamato said, stepping forward. "Sora and Miyako can watch the back."

Sora gave a nod. "Okay. That sounds good to me."

"No arguments here," Miyako said, swallowing a sigh of relief as she tried to maintain a poker face.

"Alright, then!" Yamato said as he turned towards the front door, marching forward with great purpose. He stopped only a moment to notice how bizarre it looked, with the small pressure switch on the wall by the door so small and within arm's reach while the door itself was absurdly tall. He made a noise in his throat before he pressed his hand against the switch, watching it immediately activate as the doors slid open with a 'swoosh' before he glanced over his shoulder to the others. "Now, everyone be-"

The Chosen of Friendship immediately froze when he saw a look of shock and horror spread across the other Chosens' faces. He quickly whipped his head about to see the source of their sudden reaction, and immediately came face to face with a human crumbled face first on the floor. It looked to be an adult male, though most of his body was hidden by a large white lab coat. As Yamato realized what he was seeing, he jerked back with a cry before he quickly rushed across the threshold towards the fallen man.

"Hey!" Yamato said. "Hey! Are you alright-!?"

An abrupt shock of unnatural cold made Yamato jerk back the hand that was reaching out for the man as he found Keiko suddenly between them.

"Stop!" Keiko shouted, causing a jolt to run through everyone present and sending them on alert.

"Don't touch him!" FlaWizarmon yelled, unintentionally adding to Keiko's warning as he couldn't hear Keiko's words. He quickly moved to Yamato's side. "Don't even think about it!"

"He's already dead, dearie," Witchmon said in a hushed tone as she tugged at Yamato's shoulder, pulling him back and blocking the view inside. After a solemn glance at the inside of the hospital and a pause to shudder, she turned back to the group. "Children, don't raise your eyes from the floor. We'll tell you where it's safe to step."

"What?" Yamato moved his head to stare from Keiko to the two Digimon in turn. He hesitated before slowly looking back down at the human. While he didn't see any visible injury, he also couldn't deny that he didn't see any movement either - not even breathing. "He's..."

Keiko looked sadly at FlaWizarmon and Witchmon as they tried to act as a barrier between the Chosen and the body, preventing any of the others from entering. With a sigh that held no breath, she turned to Yamato. "The bodies here are g…"

Yamato turned to look at Keiko as she abruptly stopped talking, but he found her attention was no longer on him. The calm, imposing air the ghost normally held about her was gone, replaced shockingly by naked fear, as her wide eyes locked onto something just off to his right.

Yamato jerked in the direction Keiko was staring, bracing himself.

And just as quickly he wished he hadn't.

The thing standing in the shadows just outside the door frame wasn't human. Yamato's mind instinctively rebelled against the very idea even as he could see bits and pieces that far too much like it. Although it stood immobile, occasionally part of it twitched, not from any sort of muscular movement, but from whatever force that had warped the body into such unnatural contortions. The neck and limbs had stretched and folded like rubber, eyeballs popped forward and inflated, and its mouth curved out and crushed into its nose that widened until each nostril was bigger than a baseball.

There was no way a human body could be contorted to such dimensions - at least, not bloodlessly. There should have been blood, even bruising, but there was none. The tones of the skin were distorted, like a smear of color bleeding onto another, but there was no injury. The figure likely would have been cartoonish if drawn, even laughable, but this gaping thing staring right through him with its almost detached eyeballs was made of flesh and blood.

Out of the corner of his eye, Yamato saw more of them, more people twisted up and frozen in place save for minor twitches. He didn't want to look, but his curiosity dragged his gaze along against his will. Some of the not-people had objects fused to them, through them, or were partially stuck in the walls and furniture. Even the man on the floor, he now noticed, had no face. There was nothing but weird jaggy fleshtones and hair behind a pair of floating eyeballs and gum-lined teeth.

Yamato's stomach churned, but before he could lose his lunch, Keiko placed a hand over his eyes, forcing them closed with a shudder. Despite the cold that reached deeper than his bones, he felt grateful to be snapped out of his horrified gawking.

"I'm sorry," Keiko said softly, an odd catch to her voice. "I wasn't expecting them to look like this either."

Yamato opened his eyes unthinkingly, but unpleasantly he noticed that he could still see through Keiko's hand just a little bit. Fortunately, all he saw was her, but it was enough for him to notice the ghost trembling ever so slightly. Such a detail was enough to tell him that the fate of these people disturbed even the dead.

"Okay," Yamato finally said, pausing to swallow and wet his suddenly dry mouth. "Yeah." He angled his head downward and stared resolutely at the floor even after Keiko removed her hand from his face. "So… everyone keep their eyes on the floor, and don't go looking around. We're going straight in for Ryo, and nothing else."

"What… did you see?" Sora asked. While she was curious, every fiber of her being told her to not give in to curiosity.

"More bodies," Yamato said, his voice stiff. "If you can even call them that."

"What?" Jou furrowed his brow. His mind immediately went to all his medical books, as his brain struggled to come up with possible theories for what Yamato had seen. "What does that mean-?"

"Don't look," Yamato said, firmly, cutting off any argument. "I'm absolutely, one hundred percent serious."

Taichi made sure to move carefully as he tightened his grip on Sora. Despite feeling obligated to step inside and see for himself, the grim look on Yamato's face told him enough to keep him rooted to the spot. "I'm guessing it looks like a slasher film ran through there, right?"

"Something like that," Yamato muttered. "But think 'digital corruption' instead of 'gore'."

"So… they're 'glitched'," Koshiro guessed, speaking slowly as he inched his way closer, his intellectual curiosity overwhelming his trepidation. "Like the Battlefield Memorial?"

"Organically glitched," Yamato said. "As in… body parts."

"I'm going to regret this, I just know it," Miyako muttered. Steadying herself, she took a deep breath and strode forward quickly, sticking her head in past Yamato's shoulder. She jerked back with a shrill scream only a moment later, her eyes wide and her pupils shrunk into pinpricks. "I… that… holy…"

"Miyako?" Koshiro asked, her reaction halting his tracks before he could take another step.

Miyako removed her glasses and rubbed at her eyes as she shook her head. She glanced at Koshiro through blurry eyes and tried to speak, but her voice cracked. Giving up on explaining, she went back to rubbing her eyes while trying desperately to forget what she saw, as Kudamon curled comfortingly around her shoulders.

Keiko shook her head at Miyako's choice before she met Koshiro's gaze, her eyes crinkled at the corners with discomfort that her calm mask couldn't quite hide. "Can you handle seeing a person run through a taffy machine?"

That was clear enough of a description to kill Koshiro's curiosity completely and make everyone else wince.

"You really shouldn't look, dearies," Witchmon said with a sigh. "Curiosity can lead down roads you don't want to travel, and scars that can last forever."

"I'd say the Battlefield Memorial is a pretty good comparison," FlaWizarmon said, grimly. "After all… it was Huanglongmon's power, unleashed upon the humans who had enslaved him. And unlike Narakumon, it was completely intentional. Even if the act took his own life, he was going to take theirs along with him."

"They were going to find out together what would happen to them," Witchmon murmured as she lowered her head, clasping her hands together as if in prayer. "What would happen to those the Digital World couldn't process in death."

"So this… isn't just some hospital," Takeru said, slowly. "This is… where Huanglongmon died."

"Seems like it," FlaWizarmon said. "No idea why Zeed's been hidin' out here of all places."

"I-it's so… so... disrespectful!" Monodramon said furiously as he clenched his fists, raising them as if to shake them at the monster in question. "T-t-to desecrate Lord Huanglongmon's memory like this…!"

"B-but wait!" Jou protested, struggling to comprehend what he was hearing. "If these are the same humans… then that means they've been here for years! And that doesn't even count how much passed during the time distortion! So why aren't they showing any signs of decomposition at all? They should probably even be nothing but bones…" His rambling trailed off to silence as a thought suddenly popped into his head. "…Oh."

"Jou?" MarinDevimon leaned down to look at his partner. "What is it?"

"Well, I… just remembered," Jou said, with a frown. "They're… data right now. They've been converted, so they don't currently have any tissue to decompose. But even more, the data they do have isn't the same as a Digimon's. They're… a total anomaly. That's why the Digital World can't process them, and why they're still…" His gaze dropped to his hands as he slowly flexed them. He then jerked before his gaze quickly turned to Keiko, his eyes widening as it immediately made the next logical connection . "Oh!"

Keiko met Jou's wide-eyed gaze coolly, arms folded in front of her. "Yes, my body still looks the same as it did when I died, too. It's not rotting. Papa wouldn't let it even if it could."

Jou blanched and nervously fidgeted with his glasses. "I… sorry, I didn't mean to remind you of-"

Keiko raised a hand to silence the Chosen of Honesty. "It's fine. I'm dead. It's not exactly a topic that can be avoided." She gestured down at her faintly translucent body. "I'm better off than the other humans that died here, at least. If Papa didn't step in, my soul would be trapped in the Dark Ocean right now, just like them."

"And don't forget," Nyamon said with a snap of her tail, her arms crossed. "This all would apply to you too."

"Well, isn't that a lovely little reminder," Kudamon muttered as she rested on her partner's shoulders. "That's fine, I wasn't going to let Miyako out of my reach, anyway."

"We need to hurry," Sora murmured as she placed her hands over her chest. Her heart ached, as all the suffering that had happened in the past hung over her head like a suffocating cloud. "So we can get Ryo out of here as quickly as we can."

"Okay," Taichi muttered before trying to put more energy into his voice as he straightened up. "Sora's right. No matter what's in there, the plan hasn't changed. We're here to rescue Ryo, no matter what monsters or creeps are waiting here to stop us."

"No arguments there," Yamato grunted before he forced himself to face forward again, down the long ruined hallway that awaited them. Upon seeing glimpses of things that were once people, he quickly redirected his gaze towards the ground. "Everyone stick close and… just don't look around."

"Children, I think you should let your partners lead you along," Witchmon said. "FlaWizarmon and I will direct you Digimon so you won't have to look too long at things, but you'll need to make sure nobody trips. We don't want to risk any of us touching them. It might spread their glitches to you."

The assembled Digimon, though wary and unsettled by what they had heard, all gathered their courage and drew close to their respective Chosen in order to fulfil their grim mission.

The eerie corridor lead the humans and assembled Digimon straight into the heart of the building, past numerous hallways that led to different areas within it. However, they focused only on what was in front of them, as none wanted to see what horror rested within that darkness. As a result, they saw only the barest hint of technology scattered about - computers, monitors lining the walls, and other expensive looking equipment aplenty. However, any temptation to explore was sufficiently snuffed out by the presence of the glitched corpses as they focused instead on their goal.

It wasn't long until they arrived at a massive doorway, the door blown completely off its hinges. Light poured in through the opening, revealing the outside world once more. While the building's design implied that it should have continued onward, the entire backside of the structure was gone. Only the long hallway - or what was left of it - continued onward narrowly, its white linoleum tiles all that remained before it tapered off in to a sharp cliff overlooking a massive crater. The size of the crater itself was impossible to judge, as only a section was visible as the rest disappeared past the walls of gold that ended a ways past the cliff.

At the very edge of that cliff lay what appeared to be a brown-haired human child, face down on the linoleum, garbed in bloodstained clothes

Keiko gave a start as she immediately recognized the child. Instantly, she flickered out of existence, only to reappear by the boy's side. "Ryo!"

"Holy shit," FlaWizarmon muttered before he raced after Keiko unknowingly, his eyes focused exclusively on the prone child. "It's him! It's really him!"

The boy with spiky brown hair and tanned skin did not respond to their cries or Keiko's bone chilling touch as he lay face down, dressed in dried blood that coated most of his skin, purple shirt, green cargo pants, and white gloves. His head was only slightly turned, allowing him to breathe - despite how each breath caused his body to shudder and twitch.

The rest of the Chosen Children and their Digimon were quick to follow, hurrying as fast as they could along the narrow path to the unconscious Chosen of Miracles. None of them noticed a small purple-furred draconian Digimon as it peered out from behind a ruined wall at them. He looked considerably worse for wear, covered in injuries. The white of his belly, snout, tail tip, and feet were stained, matted and bloodied much like the rest of his fur while the red triangular gem on his forehead was cracked. Even his draconian black wings did not escape injury, with one dangling uselessly at his side while the other was pressed tight against his back. Only his golden eyes were bright as they glared at the Chosen Children, his expression anything but friendly. His gaze lingered on Keiko as she dared to lay a hand on Ryo before he let out a low growl, then limped towards the golden walls as they rested just within reach of the walkway. He hesitated only a moment before he slipped through the barrier of Miracles, disappearing into the Dark Ocean.

FlaWizarmon knelt down to roll Ryo on his back, propping him up with his arms so that he was half-holding him against his knees. He ignored the strange chill in the air that seeped into him, not knowing he moved through Keiko to do it. His attention was fully engrossed on searching for any injuries or sign of taint. His eyes halted when they came across a thin white scar that ran circular all around Ryo's neck, completely uniform. It was almost imperceivable, but it could not escape the Digimon's prying eyes.

FlaWizarmon paused before he quickly looked up to Witchmon. Witchmon had apparently seen the same injury, her own expression troubled as she met her partner's stare. FlaWizarmon paused before he gave a shake of his head. "I… can't believe it. He's really breathin'. He's really… alive."

"It's a miracle," Witchmon whispered, her voice hushed in awe.

"Well, that is what he's known for," Nyamon said, trying to sign wry even as her eyes were moist with tears. She couldn't touch Ryo, no matter how much she wished, so she had to be satisfied with watching everyone else check over her dear friend. "Always with the Miracles."

Despite knowing it was futile, Keiko couldn't help but place her hand against Ryo's cheek. If she could focus hard enough, she could faintly sense the warmth of his skin against her palm. However, seeing him shudder and unconsciously turn away from her ghostly touch broke her concentration. An exquisite pain went through her, cutting through the relief that brought tears to her eyes that disappeared when they fell from her chin, and she drew away to let the others bring her friend back the warmth she had unintentionally taken away.

Jou sat down beside Ryo, mindful of Keiko and FlaWizarmon crowding around the unconscious boy, and examined the fallen Chosen Child with a more critical eye. The blood staining Ryo was old, flaking off as he was shifted about and prodded. Jou furrowed his brow at the strange scar ringing Ryo's neck, but quickly dismissed it - the injury was old and thus not as important.

A few minutes of examination left Jou relieved and worried at the same time, as something just seemed amiss despite his prognosis. "I don't see any injuries… or any taint."

"There's no taint?" Koshiro asked. "How-?"

"L-Lord Ryo!" Monodramon practically wailed, drowning out Koshiro's questions as he covered his face with his snout, tears of relief falling from his eyes. "I'm s-so glad… I'm so g-g-glad he's okay…!"

"I think we're all glad," Yamato said with a heavy sigh before he straightened up, noticing the way Takeru hung back as he glanced about the area with a concerned expression on his face. The Chosen of Friendship blinked before he frowned, furrowing his brow. "Yo, Takeru. What's up?"

Takeru jumped slightly before he turned his attention back to his brother, looking sheepish. "I… don't know. It could be nothing."

"What could be nothing?" Yamato asked, arching an eyebrow.

"What is it, Takeru?" Devidramon asked as he craned his head about to look at his partner.

Takeru faltered before he glanced about their surroundings again, his concern returning to his face. "It's just that… isn't it odd how Ryo was just lying there? Isn't he… wasn't he supposed to be with Zeed Millenniumon?"

"Shit," Miyako hissed. "You're right. This screams 'trap.'"

"Good going, Captain Kill-joy," Kudamon said, even though her fur was bristled. "Go ahead and ruin the reunion by inserting logic into things!"

The suggestion sent a fresh wave of anxiety through the group as they looked around for signs of danger. Even FlaWizarmon looked uneasy as he quickly scooped Ryo up in his arms, taking care to treat the boy delicately.

"Well, if that's the case," FlaWizarmon said, as glanced about before side-eying Witchmon. "Then I think we outta-"

FlaWizarmon was cut off by a sudden rumble that pierced through the air, loud and echoing like thunder. The sound reverberated through everyone and everything, causing even the golden walls to ripple in a way that instantly put everyone on alert.. Panic flooded the assembled Chosen Children and their Digimon as they looked around for the source, the humans huddling together while their partners quickly formed a perimeter around them and Ryo.

"Everyone stay back," Black Tailmon said as she moved in front of the humans. "We'll cover… you…"

The cat Digimon tapered off, her voice cracking with a slow seizing of her throat as her wide eyes locked onto something across expanse of the crater. The action along with her expression instantly drew everyone else to follow her gaze.

The glowing golden path ended somewhere beyond the massive crater in front of them in a gentle outward curve that was now distending inward sharply until something pierced through the secure walls created by the Crest of Miracles. At first, it was an approaching wall made from gilded scales of unparalleled decadence that gave the impression that the protective barrier was changing shape, but then the blackness bled from between the cracks of those same scales that barely hung onto the maw of a beast whose size was beyond the children's comprehension.

The thing emerging from their greatest means of protection in the Dark Ocean was an abomination. Dull gray flesh dotted with too few of those beautiful scales hung from the edges of a jaw that held teeth large enough to tear through the belly of even a being as titanic and powerful as Narakumon. Armagemon, for all of his terrible size, could not even compare to this thing. Even larger than its menacing teeth were its rows of wicked horns that lined both sides of its massive maw and the eight scooped out holes along the sides and top of its head that may have once served to house eyes once, but only wept thick waterfalls of black. The viscous sludge oozed from every orifice, creating streams from its wounds and rivers between its teeth, all of it flowing into the crater and filling it with something darker than even the waters of the Dark Ocean itself.

Although the monster moving ever closer to them had no eyes, there was no question that it knew they were there, and it was coming for them.

Black Tailmon's ears canted back as her eyes became mere pinpricks. All the fur on her body puffed up at once, from the tip of her nose to her tail. It was a reaction that even Nyamon mimicked as she stood beside her light counterpart, staring across the exposed crater. The rest of the Chosen Digimon froze, each locked in a paralyzing contradiction of fight or flight instinct.

Yamato's jaw slowly dropped as he gaped, while Sora covered her mouth with both hands as all the color drained from her face. Jou's glasses slid down his nose while Koshiro dropped his laptop from his numb fingers. Keiko stood rigid like a statue as Takeru looked on uncomprehending, while terror seized all ration from Miyako's mind. Even FlaWizarmon and Witchmon were frozen in place by the sight. Monodramon tried and failed to utter even the tiniest squeak as he looked about ready to either faint or vomit, whichever happened first.

Taichi had frozen along with the others, but then instinct snapped him free, allowing him to break his gaze away and turn to his friends with a scream. "Everybody run! Get the hell outta here!"

The sound of Taichi's voice was enough to snap everyone awake, and a burst of activity soon followed as the Chosen Children whipped about to race back inside the hospital, their partners guarding their retreat even as they followed suit.

"Keiko!" Sora shouted back even as she raced after the others, noting how the other girl hung back behind them. "What are you doing!?"

"I'll be fine!" Keiko snapped, though a slight tremor in her voice betrayed her courage. "I'm dead, remember? It can't-"

The Chosen of Darkness was unable to finish her speech when Nyamon snatched her by the arm and dragged her after the others. "Dead or not, we're leaving!" the dark feline said, firmly.

"Digital Gate open!" Yamato snapped as he threw his hand forward, clutching his Digivice. When no light came forward, he threw it forward a few more times. "Digital Gate open! Digital Gate open!"

"It's… it's not working!" Sora gasped out as she stumbled after the others, waving her own Digivice wildly. "Why isn't it working!?"

"Be careful, Sora!" Garudamon said as she quickly nudged her partner away from inadvertently straying too close to one of the glitched bodies. "Watch your step!"

"Taichi!" Lavarvomon shouted. "Look! The walls are shaking!"

Inside the hospital, there were few places to see the golden wall through the twisting turns of the hallways, but slowing down beside a passage gave Taichi a glimpse of part of one of the protective barriers. True to his partner's word, the golden walls that had been sturdily holding back the Dark Ocean quivered violently like the surface of the sea in a maelstrom. To his horror, he saw black cracks spreading amidst the churning golden light.

"O-oh god," Monodramon stammered as he flailed his claws in the air, racing alongside the Chosen. His panic was so great that he failed to notice how the crest around his neck, which held a gentle glow that matched the protective walls surrounding them, was now flickering, its light diminishing ever weaker with each erratic pulse. "O-oh Lord Z-Z-Zhuqiaomon, save us!"

"They're going to come down!" MetalGarurumon barked.

"Witchmon!" Taichi shouted as he snatched Sora's arm so they wouldn't be separated. "Teleport us back to Crystal Tower! Hurry!"

"On it, dearie!" Witchmon shouted as her cloak snatched up the closest person to her - Black Tailmon - who mercifully disappeared once the cloak consumed the feline.

"What the hell are we gonna do about Lady Keiko!?" FlaWizarmon demanded as he hefted Ryo along. "How can she teleport what she can't see!?"

"Tell him not to worry!" Keiko shouted as she kept to the back of the group with Nyamon to make sure no one flagged behind. "Ghosts can teleport anywhere at any time! You get out first!"

Miyako turned to Witchmon as she clutched Kudamon close. "Keiko says-"

Unfortunately, she was unable to convey the message, as Witchmon chose that moment to warp the pair away.

"She says don't worry!" Takeru finished for Miyako breathlessly, before DeviDramon scooped him up. "She can teleport at any time, and to get us out first!"

"Good enough for me, Lady Darkness," Witchmon said before snatching up Taichi and Sora next, their partners shortly after.

The ground shook and a terrible rumble of stone and metal crushing together behind them, sending a fresh wave of pulse-pounding panic through the fleeing Chosen.

FlaWizarmon held Ryo tight as flames erupted around him. He paused only to snatch Monodramon by the tail, hefting the squealing Digimon upwards. "Witchmon! I'm getting Ryo outta here!"

"Do it and don't come back!" Witchmon shouted as she snagged Koshiro and Blade Kuwagamon who started lagging behind. "I've got them!"

FlaWizarmon have a sharp nod before he disappeared with a burst of fire, taking both Monodramon and Ryo with him.

"What, what, what, what!" Jou repeated the litany repeatedly as he rushed along before he was suddenly scooped up by MarinDevimon. "What the hell!"

"That's exactly what's coming for us!" MarinDevimon said as he quickened the pace to catch up with Witchmon as she dove for Takeru and Devidramon, delayed only by the sheer size of the virus Digimon. "So hold onto your butt!"

Jou clung to his partner with one hand as he adjusted his glasses, catching a glimpse of Witchmon snatching Yamato and MetalGarurumon next before he found himself staring past his partner as death itself approached them. He took no further notice as Witchmon whisked away the rest of his friends around him. The only thing his eyes could see were the glimpses of the unspeakable horror that made the reinforced walls of the hospital crumble around it as effortlessly as a castle made of sand.

It was only when Witchmon suddenly snagged her arms around Jou's neck that he looked away, crying out in a burst of panic before he saw who held him. "Easy, dearies," she said. "We're getting out of here."

The last thing Jou saw before he disappeared was part of one of the golden walls as it shattered, unleashing a tidal wave of dark water made of empty eye sockets and wailing mouths that called out for him to join them.

Keiko and Nyamon were the only ones left to witness the damned surging towards them their desperate and enraged voices finally unleashed to a deafening volume with the destruction of the protective barrier. Countless malformed arms grasped towards them in a blind attempt to force the two spirits to join their unholy amalgamation. The pair disappeared before the damned ever reached them, leaving the Dark Ocean to erase every last trace of the lost city and the monster that once slept beneath the waves.