I do not own anything.

Chapter Twenty-Five: Advancing Shadows

Davis had only ever been to a few graveyards in his life and he could barely remember who half of them were for. One of the ones he most vividly remembered was the funeral of Mrs. Yokota, a kind woman who loved next door to them when they were younger. Walking through the pile endless rows of graves made his heart unintentionally quicken. His only desire was not to have his name, or any of his friends added to the collection.

It was a battle for him not to jump every time he heard a crack of thunder in the distance or crack in the stone tombstones. Over head the sky was black with only occasionally flashes of lightning filling the sky with bright light. The rain that fell wasn't too terrible but it left Davis wanting to get somewhere dry fast. A low fog swept over the graveyard reaching up to his knees. To Davis's surprise the soil made a soft crunching sound with every step he took. He knew every sane law of nature had been thrown out the window when he opened his eyes to find the room he'd been inhabiting had become nothing but a cabin. For as far as he could see the tombstones stretched onward, for miles even. Only a handful of structures stood out in the background. From where he was standing he couldn't tell if they were houses or not; what he did know was that he needed to find shelter and fast. Something was eating at him, he knew the feeling, it was a danger sense he and the others had developed during their adventures in the Digital World. Mentally snorting he realized he didn't need it; one look around his surroundings told him something was after him.

The last thing he remembered was going to sleep at Yolei's place. He didn't remember if he fell asleep before or after Ken and Yolei, frankly he was just too tired to even care. He nor the rest of the DigiDestined had one moment's rest since Dagomon's monstrous assault on Odaiba. Nothing had been the same since the titanic almost five days ago.

Six hours after Dagomon's forces withdrew the water began to recede; it didn't really matter as the colossal flooding had left much of the bay and inland area completely destroyed. The Rainbow Bridge, The Fuji TV broadcasting station, and a whole slew of other landmarks had been wrecked, their pieces now floating away in all directions. The amount of damage was worst from a ground point of view but when one took to the air they were able to see just how truly devastated Odaiba was. The storm Dagomon had wiped up had come too closely to wiping the artificial island off the face of the Earth. As Davis, T.K. and Sora flew over the city they were terror stricken by the amount of damage the deprived monk had managed to cause before they could stop him. It was clear what few buildings that were left standing would have to be torn down because they were no longer structurally sound; they'd watch some of them collapse into rubble from the air. Much of ground had been cracked resulting in whole sections of the shoreline sinking into the water. That alone was going to take months if not years to repair.

Search and rescue wasn't something they did often but this tragedy was a special case. They waited one day to gather themselves before they joined the emergency rescue effort. They wore hoodies and masks to conceal their identities, after all, the last thing they needed were their faces being on the six o'clock news and having government agents break down their doors to cart them away for questioning. As it stood they were already paranoid enough. Davis had seen some gruesome things as he and ExVeemon dug through the rubble of their hometown. Beneath mountains of metal, concrete, and stone he'd come across corpses and dying civilians. It turned his stomach that he wasn't able to prevent this just as much as it did that Dagomon was willing to go this far to see them destroyed. He'd made it painfully clear he was now at war with them.

The government response to was extremely swift. By order of the Prime Minster himself the entire Self Defense Force was mobilized to lock down all water ways leading to and from Odaiba. The Chosen Children knew it wasn't going to do any good but it was comforting to know their government was taking the threat seriously. Almost the entire Minato Ward had been evacuated along with that of Shinagawa Ward as far inland as possible. The move had been a disaster with literal waves upon waves of people migrating through highways and streets like hordes of wild animals creating total chaos. Countless lives were lost in the mad dash for safety as shown by the around the clock news feed. Criticism for the tactic was all over the place but all the Prime Minster did was ask if any other nation had a better solution as they were facing similar crisis. The DigiDestined were among the thousands making the move from their beloved Odaiba to the more heavily populated Shibuya District.

By some miracle Yolei, Sora, Matt, Mimi, and Joe's families owned or had some place for them to stay. Davis's parents as well as Ken's parents were transferred from their hospitals in Odaiba to hospitals in Shibuya; they had Izzy to thank for pulling those strings. With no room for argument Davis and Ken ended up staying with Yolei and her extended family. Ken didn't mind, but then again, he was still visibly shaken by his kidnapping; Davis kept to himself amongst all the noise Yolei's family made. Just two days with them and he felt ready to take his chances finding some hotel to stay at.

Maybe in exchange the noise did some good for Ken, he hadn't been able to snap back since the battle in Yokohama. Speaking fairly none of them had managed to fully snap back no matter how tough they tried to act. Even Davis and Tai at times felt the weight of their current situation crushing all the air out of them. Davis's first response to such feelings were to go out and find something to hit. Anger had been coming remarkable easy to over the past few days. Veemon seemed to be following his lead.

Hunker down and rest were Tai's ordered to everyone. Expect for Davis the order was taken with glad tidings. Even if there was a moment of peace in Yolei's household Davis couldn't find it in himself to sit still. His dreams offered little escape from the restlessness he felt, within them all he found was darkness.

Not tonight apparently. Wind rattling against the walls awakened Davis from his sleep to find the Inoue family loft was gone. The room he was in was now a single room cabin with only a window and stool besides his bed. Outside rain pounded heavily against the walls giving him the impression there was a storm outside. Opening the door was quite a shock for him, indeed there was thunder and lightning but the rain wasn't half as bad as he'd suspected. Davis could have easily just gone back into the cabin but he didn't that would do him no good. T.K. and Kari had told him how sometimes they saw things in their dreams, clues to whatever current threat they were up against. Izzy had mentioned at one point that sleep allowed the mind to wonder freely between the worlds. It had been startling to hear such things come out of the logic and techno based teenager's mouth but since it did Davis took it to heart. Taking in his grave surroundings Davis snorted, if someone was trying to help him he gladly would have taken a nice five star hotel room or some noodles shop instead of this place.

Davis had a got fleeing whoever had invaded his dreams weren't friendly, oddly enough he welcomed the idea. In the real world he hadn't been able to take his anger out on anything, now he could. It was a shame Veemon wasn't with him though as he would have loved his partner's company. And his protection.

The closer he got to the buildings the more he realized they were ruins, houses, businesses, and offices. With a shutter he recognized the ruins as being those of Yokohama and Odaiba. Before his eyes the ground beneath his feet seemed to change into a grassy field over cracked concrete. His breath caught in his throat as everything came together. The sea of graves weren't random, they belonged to the lives lost during the attack. Given the damage it wasn't hard to believe there were enough deaths to fill an entire graveyard. What was to become of the bodies of the thousands of dead? Those that couldn't be recovered until all the debris had been cleared away? These tombstones were all those people would have.

I…didn't want to die.

Not like this, please not like this.

Why did it have to be water!

Someone please help me!

Mommy! Mommy!

No! NO!

When would he get his hands on the monster responsible for all this?

As far as we're concerned the person responsible is standing right here before us.

The sounded like a gobbled mix between male and female, its tone incredibly chilling to hear. Davis stopped in his tracks spinning in all directions for its source. Cover! He thought now realizing whatever that had been stalking him was now going on the offensive. I need to find some damn cover! There was nothing around him but the ruined remains of buildings he'd passed hundreds of times but never really paid attention to. Above his head came the loudest crack of thunder yet and he broke out into a sprint. He didn't know where he was going and he didn't care, all he was certain of was that he had to run as fast as his lungs could carry him. Between the sky and his sides Davis was amazed he hadn't tripped over his own feet in his mad dash for safety.

And so the coward flees, unwilling to face the disaster he has wrought.

"Shut up! I didn't kill these people!" The goggle head shouted to the sky. "I'm trying to find the bastard that did!"

How so? Who's idea has it been to stick his middle finger in the face of powers greater than he could possibly fathom? We believe it's time for you to pay for all the lives you've indirectly taken with your profound arrogance.

Out of the darkness to his right Davis saw something, an object to act as his anchor. Without a second thought he ran for it at full speed. His hands felt the cold stone then his back was pressed against it. "You want me? Come and get me!"

Challenge accepted.

Davis felt the familiar chill wash over him. In that instant he knew he'd just made a terrible mistake.

He now had an idea what it felt like to be a crab's prey. The helplessness, the fear, Davis hated it. Effortlessly he was lifted off his face to face the stone face. All the fight left him as he stared into the cold gray eyes of the statue. Blood sipped through the eyelids of the face adding a surreal horror to the image. It felt like he was staring into an abyss from which there was no escape. Even if the statue didn't have its fingers around his neck Davis doubted he'd still be able to breathe properly. Inside his chest he could feel his heart thundering like a drum.

Fear, never in all Davis's life had it struck him with such intensity as it did now.

As always, you brought it on yourself. It spoke through its motionless lips before tossing Davis as far as the eye could see.

It felt like his back had taken a blow from a cinder block, all the air in his lungs was gone. For forty seconds all Davis could do was lazily stare at the sky listening the cracking of stone growing closer. At the edges of his vision he saw some gray blip coming down on top of him. Air came back in one big intake with the realization of what it was.

With reflexes that had been honed through his adventures he rolled onto his side and pushed out of the way. The impact kicked dirt, dust, and water into the air. Something spewed out splashing Davis's face and the surroundings. It felt cold against his face making him feel like someone had just splashed his face with liquid ice. Blood. Keeping his hands up to shield his face his eyes focused in on the object that had just broken the ground. "Shit."

Standing its full height of eight feet was a stone angel, like the kind that were found in old European cities, churches, and very rarely as garden decorations. What Davis was looking at wasn't a work of art, it was a nightmare straight out of some horror novel. Bright red blood sipped through every pore in the statue from its eyelids down to its toenails creating a series of crimson rivers over its stone skin. Implanted in the ground was a knight's spear, it came out of the ground with s simple pulled from the statue. The blood from the statue had stained the spear a mixture of red and black. Its footsteps were soft tremors that made Davis wonder just how its wings were able to carry it.

Standing side by side the angels coldly regarded the teenage boy with their dead eyes. Despite the fact one was armored and the other wasn't they both radiated the same sense of danger. Now your life will pay for the blood you've spelt. They spoke in perfect unison.

For the second time Davis took off running, this time in the opposite direction. Behind him the ground shattered as both angels took off after him. Not daring to turn around to see which was closer he simply followed his instincts and ducked to the ground. A right hook flew over his head dropping blood on his blue hair. Springing forward with the legs he'd prized so much he just barely managed to avoid a kick that would have shattered his backside. Rolling onto his back he saw the spear diving towards him, he jerked to the right. Everything coming in through his left ear was drowned out by the impact of the stone spear breaking the earth. Getting up he fell back while the two angels began their advance. Their wings made no glorious flapping like the demonic wings of Devimon or Daemon, all they did was crick and groan like they were constant taking a stone chaslte. In spite of that Davis was still fairly certain they were gaining on him, no, they were hovering above him like vultures waiting for the last breath of life to leave their meal so they could begin feasting. All he could was keep running, trying not to trip over the tombstones and small hills in his path.

There was a loud crack followed by the sound of something large and heavy falling through the air. Not sparing a glance upward Davis dove to his right, hoping he'd dodged in the right direction. The bare-handed statue smashed the ground where he had been leaving a four foot deep hole in it. As the dust cleared Davis realized its entire right hand was coated in a thick layer of solidified blood. Quickly the fact that the statue was a Digimon became clear, even if it was so unlike any Digimon he'd ever encountered. He didn't have his Digivice with him to give him any information nor did he have Veemon with him to fight it. He was screwed in the simplest terms possible.

Standing up to its full height the statue regarded him coldly. Well? What happened to all your bravado? Did it just turn to dust like it always does? Like our bones will as the decades continue to mount? Decades we could have spent living our lives?

He needed to find something he could use as a weapon, something, anything that could give him some chance of survival. Davis didn't get the chance to look very far as the second angel came down behind him holding its spear over its shoulder. At the exact moment it struck out with its foot Davis sprung forward.

The kick grazed his ribs although Davis felt like he'd just taken a baseball bat to the gut. The air spilled from his lungs as he rolled across the grass. He could taste the blood in his mouth and the pain building in his abdomen. With one arm clinching his injured ribcage the goggle head pushed himself upward. He'd managed to get to his feet when the stone angel grabbed him by the throat. It lifted him high enough so he could state into its demonic stone eyes. Davis didn't see cold emotionless rock as he was suspended, what he saw was a monster that couldn't be described in mere words. In one motion it slammed Davis down into the ground with such force Davis thought his back had been shattered. Still not willing to give up he began clawing at the stone hand holding his throat.

Blood dripped all over his face while the statue raised its spear. The other angel stood at the side waiting passively for its compatriot to finish the deed.

Always remember, you are only ever awarded what you are deserved.

In a flash the spear came down piercing Davis's stomach with a stinking crunch. His scream went up like geyser. White pain filled his vision then blocked out every sound in audible range.

"AAAHHHHH!" The youngest Motomiya screamed bolting up from his bed flailing his arms about. Grabbing at the air his mouth opened and closed several times, each scream varying in volume from the last one. When all he saw was darkness his brain immediately hit the panic button. It hadn't registered that he was safely in the Inoue family loft; he'd simply slipped from one nightmare to another. All together this probably lasted about forty seconds then once he could hear the sound of his heart pounding in his chest he was able to calm down. "Eh?" he questioned as his surroundings began to finally come into clear focus, or more rather, the total darkness around him. Sleepy moans permeated the darkness reminding him he was safe. "S-S-Sorry about that everyone." Davis whispered wiping the sweat from his brow.

He couldn't go back to bed in his condition so he got to his feet and moved to the nearest exit he could find. As carefully as he could he made his way through the sleeping bodies in order to get to the door then quietly push it open. Behind him he could hear Veemon's feint snoring meaning his partner had already fallen back to sleep. No matter how helpful he would have been Davis felt like he needed a moment to breathe alone. Moving through the darken hallways he came out at one of the few balconies in the loft. Exhausted he slumped against the railing to watch the nightlife of Shinjuku continue on below him. On his first day he found Shinjuku to be quite different from Odaiba, life continued onward even under the cover of night and the threat of impending doom. Strangely Davis took comfort in the fact that Shinjuku hadn't been slowed down in the least by the latest tragedy. As nice as it was Davis knew he still preferred the water front view of Odaiba, the place where his life had literally changed.

Even though he was thousands of miles from the harbor Davis could still smell the salty air of seawater, a sign of just how bad things were becoming. It rode the wind like a horseman on his stallion. He was so tired of the sea, of water and all things associated with it that he wanted to flee to the mountains and continue the war there. When had this war become personal? When had he taken such an extreme view of the world?

Since when was he able to look out over the city and instead of strolling the town he fantasized about himself choking the life out of a satanic Lovecraftian monster with his bare hands?

"Davis?"

Sluggishly he turned around to see Ken had come to join on the balcony. There were shadows under his eyes, ones he was quick to point out mirrored those of Davis's. Wordlessly he joined Davis on the railing to look out at the star filled night. Lucky for them there had been a break in the ever present rainstorm leaving the area dry for the moment.

"How bad?" Ken asked after a heavy silence. Davis looked him in the eye and instant knew his best friend had an idea what he was going through.

"I was…walking through a graveyard. Halfway through the whole place changed so it looked like Odaiba, or…what was left of it." The goggle head explained with a shutter. "Then these…stone angels showed up, I think they were Digimon."

"Digimon? In your dreams? As in solid figures and not just outlines?"

Davis let out a humorless laugh. "Oh trust me Ken, they were solid alright. I was attacked by…shit I can't even say it without getting jitters." He admitted running a head over his abdomen. "As crazy as it sounds I was attacked by statues, angel statues that were bleeding blood from every crack possible."

Indeed Ken looked at Davis differently; however, he wasn't looking at him like he'd lost his mind but with a cross between fear and unease. "That's…disturbing." He offered having noted the way Davis had ran his hand over his stomach. It didn't take Ken long to figure out how the dream might have ended. Now he looked at him fully expecting him to reveal his nightmare. "I was…drowning again. Something was dragging me to the bottom of the ocean."

"Dagomon," he sneered. "Could he have been any more obvious?"

While Davis steamed Ken watched him from the corner of his eye. He didn't know the full extent of his dreams because Ken didn't feel safe enough to tell him the truth. It wasn't tentacles that were dragging him down, it was hands, human hands. Though the wind was quiet Ken could still hear the shrieking of the deceased as they grabbed every part of him they could have. They were all screaming the same thing, that this was his fault. "Davis…do you think…if I hadn't sent Daemon to the Dark Ocean…none of this would have happened?"

Regarding his friend Davis put back on his brave face. "None of this is your fault got it? Ken there's no way you could have known Daemon and Dagomon would go to war with each like this."

"But I should have!" he shouted banging his hands on the railing. Numbers, calculations, and images danced in his vision. Biting his lip he stared out at the lights; they were faces laughing at his stupidity. "What did I think was going to happen when two evil psychos were part together? That they were just going to share control of the Dark Ocean? God Davis, I've been there! I remember! It's way my Digivice became black, it's were practically the birthplace of the Digimon Emperor! Why the hell would I ever send Daemon there?"

"You were pressed for time and we were running out of options." Davis countered. "It's not like we had a lot of time to consider were we should dump a pyromaniac Digimon while he was busy trying to turn us into candles. Could you have thought of any were else to send him?"

"No," Ken whimpered feeling his hands tremble from the coldness of the railing.

"Did you think Daemon would be smart enough to use the Dark Ocean against us?"

"No."

"Did you think Dagomon would take things this far?"

"Of course not, I never thought any Digimon would be crazy enough to plunge the whole world into hell."

"Did you think Dagomon would ever try to get to me using my family?"

"…No, I always knew there were some evil things in that place but Dagomon takes the cake."

"Heh," another humorless laugh left the DigiDestined's youngest goggle head. "Then you've got nothing to feel bad over. Dagomon's…" he seethed tightening his fist. "He's a monster Ken. Just like Kimeramon, Diabromon, and MaloMyotismon, just another monster we're going to have to put down." The way he said put down made it sound like he was talking about some rapid animal barely worth the air it was breathing. "Once we find him we're just going to have to delete him down to the smallest fragments of data."

Ken could guess what was on Davis's mind. Likely to humor himself he decided to ask the question that needed to be answered, "Davis…are you…"

"You already know Ken." His best friend grimly confirmed with hate in his eyes. He too was looking out over the lights like he was seeing something different; in his case it was a being he wanted to watch die in painful agony. "If he leaves behind a Digi-Egg I'm destroying it." Davis finally confirmed. "I don't care if Veemon's too burned out to do it. If I have to I'll crush it with my bare hands."

Davis's words set off something inside of Ken, something he'd been suppressing for a long time. Long had he admired his willingness to take action long before any kind of rational plan could be worked out, even now that seemed more obvious than ever. Ken was always the opposite, the antithesis that made their partnership work. Now as he stood side by stood with him while their homes were sinking beneath the Minato Harbor Ken was left asking, could that dynamic continue? It was his thinking that got them into this mess. It was his lack of thinking and action that had kept them in this mess. What was thinking going to do for him now?

You don't need to think. A voice whispered behind his ears. You already know exactly what to do! It's been staring you in the face this whole time! It was right. It's your lack of action that's killed everyone! That's going to get everyone killed!

Ken felt like he had tar in his mouth at the statement. Over a thousand lights stood lay before him representing a thousand lives he could save if he acted. Action, the one thing he'd always done during his days as the Digimon Emperor. Back then when faced with a problem he eliminated it, when had that changed? Had switching sides really have that much of an impact on him? "Why can't I do it? I had no trouble quelling rebellions from Megas when I was the Digimon Emperor! Power that I need now! What's different? What the hell's changed!?

Don't you get it? You gave up that power.

"When?" Ken screamed.

You gave it up when you went soft.

Ken blinked once then three times. Floating on the air was the featureless mass he'd dreamed of earlier. At this point it was nothing but a shimmer in the air in a humanoid outline. Apparently like before it had its arms crossed. Don't you get it? The powerless can't do anything but mourn for their losses. They don't get to have something precious in their lives, they're the ones who have those things taken away. That's exactly what you are. It narrowed its nonsexist eyes at Ken's unblinking own. If you had the power you had back down…maybe you could get Jun back. Maybe you could keep Kari from becoming Dagomon's bride-to-be. Just maybe…maybe…you could keep Yolei alive just a little bit longer.

A kink went off in Ken's brain, in one swift motion his head snapped to the doorway. As if he was seeing through the darkness and around the corners he perfectly see Yolei peacefully sleeping in her bed, blissfully unware of the maelstrom around them. He'd seen her sleeping quite a few times over the two years they'd known each other, he would say it but she truly looked beautiful when she was asleep, more so without her hat. Everything about her he cherished. Out of everyone it was her forgiveness he'd craved the most. When he'd started having break downs she was there with him; she never know the full extent of his nightmares and that was how he'd resolved to keep it. He wouldn't be able to much longer if his dreams continued.

She won't be alive much longer at this rate. Ask yourself which is worse, watching her family die before her eyes or dying knowing the rest of her family will soon follow? Those are the only paths she has.

Clinching his fist Ken mentally screamed his defiance. "NO! That's not true! I won't late that happen!"

And what the hell are you going to do about it? Snarled the figure from behind him. You can't do ANYTHING as you are now. You really think Stingmon is strong enough to turn the tide of this war? Paildramon? Stingmon is loyal to a fault to you, if it comes down to it you know damn well what's going to happen to him. And this time…he won't be coming back.

A second kink sounded in Ken's head.

I ask you again, what the hell can you do as you are now? Before you were a conqueror, an emperor! War is their trade, their enemies the stones from which their castles and thrones are built on! Where is that power! Why did you forsake it! For friendship? So you could be accepted? What good are any of those things if you don't have the power to protect the things that matter to you!?

A third and final kink.

Ken's arms felt entirely weightless as the full scale of the phantasm's words washed over him like a tidal wave. Since that day at the rig he'd been thinking more and more about his time as the Digimon Emperor, a time when even as he was now had to admit, he was much stronger than he currently was. He'd been able to bring legions under his control, legions they need desperately needed. "Could…could I…could…I get that power back? If could…would it make a difference?" Ken thought as he survived the scenery with Davis who was still wrapped up in his own thoughts. The thought was more than appealing to him, it resonated with him. Something in his gut told him if he still had the power of his darker days he could turn the tide of the war without having to sacrifice so many lives. The only problem was where was this power to be found? As far as he knew it was gone.

No, Came the phantom again slowly fading away into the nighttime wind. You know exactly where it is, you just have to crack that vault open.

"Crack…it open?" The genius whispered so quietly Davis barely heard him.

Matt thought that if he lived passed this nightmare he was going to do everything in his power to lock the events of the recent few weeks away. It wasn't just they were awful, they were just flat out odd. He couldn't remember the last time he'd ever been this active, getting up at almost five in the morning to go recon the wreckage of his former home, keeping away from the water, doing recon work, and generally supervising the rest of the DigiDestined when Tai wasn't able to. Now as he sat in the kitchen with a glass of milk in his hands it dawned on him just how much he'd stepped up to take his place as Tai's second. The newbies had been looking at him with the kind of awe reserved only for older siblings; Matt had to admit it brought something of a blush to his face even in such direr times. He'd always known Tai felt the stress of leadership during their first days as DigiDestined and now Matt could understand what that stress was like, he too was looked at as a pillar of strength not just by his little brother but by the rest of the DigiDestined.

"Out of all of us you're the only one who can stand on equal footing with Tai and Agumon." Izzy had once said to him almost a month ago when things started to go bad. "Davis is getting there but not yet, even he knows when things really come down to the wire everyone puts their hopes on you two. You're the second Matt, there's no easy way to tell you."

In the past he may have resented such a position, but now after seeing what Tai goes through as the leader he was grateful for it. "Heh, another selfish thought." The blond chuckled pouring himself another glass of milk. His dreams had been manifestations of the hundreds of outcomes of the war playing out in his head. War was another funny term, it'd been a collective shock to them when they came to the conclusion that's why they were involved in. "If this is a war and Tai's the general, what does that make me? Assistant general? Field commander?" Not for the first time he laughed at the absurdity of his current situation. How in heaven's name had they ended up as this?

Coming from his left were a series of footsteps Matt immediately knew were too soft to be his brother's or his father's. "Matt? Honey is that you?"

"Y-Yeah mom." He said instantly going to pull out a chair. Once she was seated he poured her a glass of milk. "I-If you want something else I can-"

"Matt," she started placing a soft hand on his arm. "It's fine."

Maybe in his own mind that was the craziest thing of all, the fact his family was living under the same roof again. There wasn't an argument when the decision was made they'd all live together. Matt knew it wasn't the first time his parents had sat aside their differences for the good of the family, they'd done it when Myotismon first invaded the human world. After that incident things had steadily begun to…change to put it lightly. T.K. was optimistic about things, Matt wasn't but he could see a spark. Maybe not while he was in school but years later when he was a working man their parents would quietly get back together. There was nothing quiet about any of this, neither of the brothers could have foreseen this event would be the one that would bring their family together. Neither of them would have wanted it either but it's what they'd gotten.

"You're worried about that girl, Jun, aren't you?" his mother off-handedly asked shocking Matt. She flashed him a small smile, "I'm sure your father's told you but you act a lot like me. When something's on my mind I can't sleep. He works all the time to bury the stress but I just…I just try to find some quiet place to let my thoughts roam free."

After trying and failing to come up with a reasonable answer Matt nodded his head in slow confirmation. "I don't know where she is mom, the last time we talked to her was almost a half a month ago. I don't know if she's…" an unexpected lump formed in Matt's throat. He couldn't bring himself to say it for fear it would come true. Just thinking about Jun was often enough to cause him to either lose himself in guilt or anger.

"If she's Davis's sister I have faith in her." his mother spoke. Mother and son locked eyes, one trying to read the other. Placing their drinks down Nancy reached over and embraced her son. "Do you know how I was able to get through this the first time?" she asked referring to the Myotismon invasion. "It's because I knew T.K. was in good hands."

"I-I understand." Matt started. "H-He had Joe, Tai a-"

"No Matt," she softly interrupted placing both hands on his face so she could look her son in the eye. "I was able to sleep because I knew you were with him. I had faith in you, faith that you'd do anything to protect your little brother. Do you have faith in Jun?"

Matt blinked at the question. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"There's no science to back it up but I believe if you have faith in someone that gives them the strength to push through whatever's threatening them. I don't know if you ever thought of me or your father the first time but…we had faith the two of you would make it back to us. Don't you have faith in your friends?"

"I always do." Matt nodded with something a smile on his face only to have it morph into a deep frown. The only time he ever let this part of him show as around his family or Tai or Sora. He was the second, the number two, he couldn't allow himself to look weak even more than Tai could. "I just…mom Jun doesn't know anything about this. She doesn't have a partner, she's alone, and scared and…it's my fault she's trapped in the Dark Ocean. If I hadn't been so hot headed…I haven't even repaired the guitar she made for me." He sighed dropping his head into his hands.

Nancy continued rubbing his shoulders in a way she knew only a mother could. "We all make mistakes Matt, sometimes they're small and sometimes they're…" she didn't need to say it as they both know where the conversation was going. "You told me you weren't thinking straight that day right?"

"I wasn't." Matt softly admitted. "If I had the Control Spires could do that then I probably would have skipped band practice all together. She was just trying to help me and I…"

"Matt, I don't know the full story but I have to know, do you have feelings for this girl?"

That was…a loaded question and she probably knew it. Matt had never, ever looked at Jun in a possible romantic light, the possibility of it gained a small foothold after she'd reworked her entire personality for him. "I…I don't know. I mean I want her as a friend but-"

"That's a good enough answer." Nancy concluded clapping her hands together. "Matt it doesn't have to be romantic love that connects you to another person, preferable a female. You want to get to know Jun as a person just as she tried to get to know you, don't you think that's worth fighting for?"

Slowly he nodded his head.

"Then have faith she'll make it back so you two can continue that friendship. It doesn't have to become a romance, it just has to matter to you. I'm sure Davis hasn't lost faith in his sister."

"It's Davis mom," he laughed. "He never loses faith in anyone, that's why we call him the second Tai."

"Maybe you can learn a thing or two from him." She smiled. "You've got the power to get her back Matt, I know you do. You've got great friends, a partner, and if you're like your father, and me," she joked. "I'm sure you can do it."

Following a short pause Matt found himself hugging his mother as tightly as he could. It was times like this that reminded him of just how much his mother loved him. "T-Thanks mom."

Outside their window the pair saw a flock of birds fly off into the night. At this Nancy fell back in her seat a little with a withdrawn expression.

"What's wrong mom?"

"I'd like to take that as a sign but I don't want to jinx the world when it's already bad enough." She answered.

"What do you mean?" the owner of the Crest of Friendship questioned.

"You know how I studied literature in college right?" she began taking a sip of her milk. "Well I came across something kind of interesting and scary when I was given a list of old books to read. In multiple mythologies and cultures birds are often seen as massagers of the divine, especially if they were larger than average."

"You mean like Zeus's eagle?" Matt offered.

"Exactly dear. A bird is a divine messenger, a giant lizard like a dragon is a monster in almost all instances expect here in Japan." A shadow fell over her face that made Matt feel like she was recalling a bad memory. "Another creature tends to pop up a lot in mythology."

Matt was dreading the feeling in his stomach but he thought if he voiced his thoughts it would make it go away. Another stupid idea. "What? What other creature pops up a lot?"

"A sea monster Matt." She answered getting a brief shutter. "All the way as far back as the Mesopotamians believed in some kind of primordial sea monster. Sometimes it was a dragon, a sea serpent, a giant fish, and other times it was a…octopus. When I was a little girl living in the southern part of Japan there was a small village that was terrorized by a giant octopus. Just a few miles up north was another town that had a tradition of catching and eating octopuses. When they were asked to help it took them two weeks to find it and kill it. I remember seeing them bringing up the carcass on the news. I honestly doubt it would have looked any different if it was alive, those eyes were just so…" another shiver ran up her spine, this time Matt mirrored her. "A giant octopus or anything with tentacles is the devil itself. I think that's how that American author Lovecraft got the idea for Cthulhu and all his other creatures."

Unknowingly Nancy's words had resonated strongly with Matt. She'd pretty much just described everything he was fearing and even Digimon to a certain degree. Draconian Digimon did have a tendency to be pretty monstrous in comparison to avian Digimon which tended to be somewhat nicer in personality. The octopus part had…made him think of the one being he'd been dreaming of pulverizing. "A giant octopus is the devil…" His mother's animal analogy had given Matt an idea. "Mom, if you can, do wolves pop up anywhere?"

"Thinking about Gabumon?" she inquired. "As a matter of fact in European mythology wolves are either seen as advents of evil or warriors. I remember reading an old Norse story that said Odin keeps two wolves at his side at all times, accordingly in some cases they chase the sun so the moon can rise."

"Advents of evil…and warriors." Matt thought to himself looking out the window. Both descriptions did an apt job of summing up his story up until that point. One stupid decision had nearly cost them everything in more than one case. "Thanks mom, I think I needed to hear that."

As Matt walked back into his room he made silent vow while looking at Gabumon. He knew his partner would be there to support him every step of the way though he wondered if Gabumon was willing to accept what he was planning on doing to Dagomon when they found him. It certainly wasn't the sort of thing one would have expected from the calm and cool duo of the first batch of DigiDestined, but they'd been pushed that far. Far enough to the point that when Matt went back to sleep he wanted his dreams to be filled with vintages of a snarling wolf tearing apart a screaming octopus.

Matt knew he'd jinxed something when he awoke to find himself on the bank of a shallow river. What stood out was the fact that the entire area was covered in fog and mist so thick he could barely see the outlines of trees. He called for Gabumon, T.K., his parents, anyone but no one came. His voice seemed to be carried on in infinity into the trees. The loudest sound possible was from the river which seemed to grow in size and strength further down the line. Something drew him down in that direction, what he couldn't be certain.

THICK! THANK! THICK! THANK! THICK! THICK! THICK! THANK!

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

At the sound of the scream Matt lost all sense of control over his body. He ran. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him down the river. His eyes were wide with horror whilst trying to peer through the mist. Fear, it had him and it wasn't letting go no matter what happened. "JUN!"

Now he recognized that sound. Ordinarily people would have said there's something wrong with a kid who knows what a whipping sounds like but Matt had seen many things children weren't supposed to see or hear. The sound of a whip being used and an ear-piercing scream following it were just one of many.

Didn't change the fact it still ranked pretty high on his horror scale.

He screamed her name every time he heard the sharp crack of the lash connecting with her skin. It was the worst sound Matt had ever heard.

The river never increased in depth, only going up to his knees.

He came to a small clearing that looked like it'd had been carved out. The trees circles the clearing with the river branching around it like some kind of moat. Standing in the center was a shadow female figure holding up Jun in one of its tentacles. Now that he was close enough he could get a better picture…and he wished he couldn't.

Jun's body was covered in a myriad of lash marks and blood. She looked like a lifeless doll that had been dipped in a ketchup. The tentacle temporarily released her only for another to come in and slam into her shoulder. A pain filled cry came from Jun's mouth along with a handful of blood. Two more lashes followed before the creature had Jun in its clutches again.

It laughed, cutting through the mist and forest was a laugh that was without remorse or humanity.

"LET HER GO!" the dirty blond screamed kicking off his feet.

"Nnnnnnnooooot ssssoooo faaaaaaassssst!"

Something extremely fast and powerful slammed into his chest knocking him into the water. He barely had time to realize what had happened before he felt something wrap around his legs, pull him out of the water, and slam him into the ground. Registering in his ears was a soft hissing he knew could only be laughter.

"Sssssssssoooo eeeeeaaaasssssyyy toooo bait!" The voice laughed. Shadow towered over Matt, its form shifting between man and snake and something in between. It wasn't helped by the fact it kept swaying from one side to another. A pair of crimson eyes were focused on him no matter what shape it took. "Aaaaalllll yyyyyooouuu atttttempppppted, alllllllll yyyyooouuu ttttreeeasuse," it hissed whilst circling him. "Aaaaaallll bbbbbbeeeecccccaaaaaauuuussseeeeee yyyyyooouuu sssshhhelllter a fallllsssseeee profit!"

The tale came down on top of him nearly shatter all his ribs. To his right he saw Jun was no longer being held up, she was being thrown around like a rag doll. He wanted nothing more than to crawl over and throw his body over hers but he had his own problems.

"FFFFFFFFFooooooooorrrr yooooour sin thhhhheeerrrreeeee iiiiiissss nnnnoooo ppppunnnissshmment but dddeeath!" the serpent shouted coming on top of Matt again.

"What sin?" Matt hollered. "What did I do!?"

"WWWWhhhhhaaatt?" the monster chuckled raising its monstrous tail high enough it looked like nothing but a thin line in the sky to Matt's blurred vision. "YYYYYoooouuu sssshhheltttteeered aaa faaaallse ppproift!"

Moments before the tail came down crushing him like a pancake Matt's eyes widened in realization. He knew what he monster was referring to, or rather, who it was referring to. "T.K." he whimpered before everything went black.

What he woke up to was the feeling of air rapidly leaving his body courtesy of the green and white snake squeezing his throat. Panic widened his eyes followed by shock when he saw Gabumon flaring up beside him.

He took one look at the beast trying to strangle his partner and he was leaping from his sleeping spot, jaws flying open.

Never in all her life had Chiyo thought she'd be staring out at the Shinjuku skyline, now that she was she laminated how lackluster it felt. She couldn't enjoy the scenery because in just about two hours it was about to become a battlefield. Or maybe it was the fact she was about to unleash hell on an unsuspecting populace. On the people she felt she could call her friends.

"What do you want Chiyo?" Valére started with a chuckle as he casually flipped his coin in his left palm. His other hand was in his pocket completing the carefree look he possessed in opposition to Chiyo's. "Naturally I plan on taking some of Tokyo for myself but I'm willing to let you have a few shares? What do you say?"

She regarded him coldly. Just when she thought working for the Demon Lords couldn't get any worse Daemon had to introduce her to Valére, Barbamon's partner. For the first time she actually wished Daemon was still around coaching her. Yes, she wanted the hate-filled, sarcastic, murderous demon over the sociopathic, sadistic, and most of all greedy human she now found herself beside. He was everything she'd resisted becoming and he took pleasure in their differences. He wasn't Emi, he was something worse.

"Screw you." Was all she could say in response.

Valére merely chuckled at her. He found it cute. "I'm sure Davis would appreciate it. If not for yourself then why not for him? After all isn't he what you're doing all this for?" In three steps he was on her, his hand reaching up cup her face. "The idiot you could never have? The life you could never have? It's okay to tell me Chiyo, I promise you it won't leave my lips."

With a snarl she swatted his hand away and jumped back. Her normally sullen face was twisted in a deep snarl, her eyes blue eyes narrowed into dangerous slits aimed solely at Valére. A blue aura cackled into existence around her, a challenge daring him to make another move just so he could remove one of his arms.

The nineteen year old smirked at the fourteen year old girl before him. "We're not so different you and I, I just wish you'd stop hiding it."

"I am nothing like you!" she yelled over the howling wind. Her aura screamed at him morphing into a pair of snapping jaws.

"Because you feel remorse? How long do you think that's going to last? Up until you get that goggle wearing con."

"I'm not a sociopathic bastard who killed his own parents." Chiyo hotly countered.

"You're not a sociopath?" Valére grinned. "You're a manipulative, scheming sinner…just…like…me." With each word he leaned in, his grin ever widening. It didn't matter that her aura was now threatening to rip his head off. Deep down he knew she didn't have the heart to do it…yet. "There's a chain linking us, greed and envy. You may say there's not but there is." Valére leaned in close enough to whisper in her ear. "You envy me Chiyo, because you want to be like me. You want that, the power, the ruthlessness to take what you desire, and the reckless abandon that I live with." One of his hands wrapped around her neck. "It's okay to feel that way, after all, you're only human."

Chiyo shoved him away, her breath coming out in heavy puffs. "Just….help me…open…the God damn DigiPort."

With another shrug Valére took his place on the opposite side of the large TV screen on top the skyscraper. If anyone bothered to follow the paper trail they would have found Kawamura Records, the building in question, was owned by Valére. The names on the documents would have pointed in the direction of a man named Hiro Hoshikaga, a man whose identity was tied several others all leading back to the same person. Within this records building was the ark that would usher in a new age.

Both teenagers held up their own personal Digivices. Their respective auras flared to life before diving at the TV screen. It sparked to life with its face showing lines upon lines of red DigiCode zooming across the screen. Arcs of electricity arched out in all places though neither Chiyo nor Valére had any fear of them.

Access to the Digital World had become much harder as the war continued to escalate. A defense mechanism enacted by the Digital World itself. It was clever but Barbamon had easily found a way around the various barriers and firewalls that had gone up separating the two worlds. Granted once a hole was found it had to be sealed quickly least the "guardians" find some creature trying to cross it and eliminate them on the spot.

The DigiPort opened into a red abyss of swirling clouds and energy. From this abyss came countless inhuman howls and cries that would have been enough to leave most humans stark raving mad. Two hands latched onto the side of the portal in order to pull the body through. The figure passed through and landed on the roof top with a soft thud that shook the whole building.

"Welcome to the Human World Mephistomon." Valére laughed as he bowed. "We do hope you enjoy your stay."

Chiyo was silent as the horned demon looked out over the sea of lights. She just added another thing to the ever growing list of reasons Davis was going to hate her guts. And Sora. And Mimi. And Jun.

Curiously the Ultimate level demon looked out over the horizon, his expression unreadable. "Too much light, this place." His haunting voice boomed shaking both teenagers to their core. "We'll have to do something about that, won't we gentlemen?"

From the gate came the same chorus of howls and cries, expect they sounded a hell of a lot closer than before.

In the depths of the sunken ruins of Odaiba two massive shadows swam through the remains flanked by swarms of unidentified creatures. Above them on the surface a thick fog was rolling in from the water. Anyone who looked into the mist would have been struck by a mix of awe and terror at the horrendous shadows moving in the fog. Then they more than likely would have been devoured by the hungry beasts lurking within.

The two shadows poked their heads above the water. Their crimson eyes were set in one direction: Shinjuku.

You may now play the big dramatic piano. Another all-out brawl is coming next chapter, this time featuring the Seven Deadly Digimon's forces in the city of Shinjuku! Will it be pretty? No chance in hell. Meanwhile on the other end Jun learns just how deadly Dagomon's "children" can be, they may be even worse than their father.

The analogy Nancy gave in this chaper comes from the manga Terra Formars (I LOVE this series) and going over various mythologies I found it to be true. In later chapters it's going to be played straight as more and more Digimon of different shapes and sizes make their appearance. Please Review and see ya next time and Happy New Years!