Wherever You Will Go

by Kimiko Heroux

Mirai is consumed by darkness. Upon receiving the Digital World's fateful call, she questions her ideals and struggles against the inner demons that have made her into the damaged being she has become. Her past can either make her or break her, and it's for her to decide which. A Frontier rewrite with a harsh, broken beginning and slivers of hope within its cracks. Koji/OC COMPLETE

38. Chapter 36

A/N: I'm alive! *arrives out of breath* It's been a long week for me, but I was still determined to get this done for you guys. I sat down last night and worked till 1:30am to finish this. I actually didn't get it finished then, since I was pretty much falling asleep as I was writing. But as soon as I got up, I worked until I finished. And thus, we have twenty-three pages of...uh...this. I'm totally exhausted right now, my brain hurts so bad from looking at so many words and struggling with my iTunes, so I didn't do my editing this as I usually do after I finish a chapter, and thus, there's probably a lot more typos than there usually are. I'm just too deprived right now to read through all of it again and make corrections.

Anyway, I guess I should get on with it. In this chapter, there is a huge flurry of big words in this and the writing is a lot more eloquent than previously. Primary reason being the effects of the AP English class I'm in, so lots of the big words you see are my vocab words. I know I used a ton of them in here since Wherever You Will Go is kinda my practice for using them.

Other news, I'm glad to see that my 3rd Anniversary One-shot was pretty well-received. It just astounds me that I've been working on this for over three years now. Wow, where has my life gone?

Onwards! Don't forget to keep tabs on my writing on my blog. Feel free to follow it; all you need is a gmail account to follow and the link as I said last chapter is on my profile. It'll give you reassurance that even though my updates take forever, I haven't given up! (Plus, you get to see all the things I waste my life doing...)

Also, for those who take interest in my other fanfictions, please take a look at my Tamers fic If You Only Knew if you haven't. Since the updates for that fic are even slower than WYWG I lost some of my readers and it really makes me sad. But speaking of my other fics, most of you know from earlier author's notes that I've been planning a 02 fic. For those of you that may read it, I have a poll on my profile regarding a decision I can't seem to make. Please check it out at your convenience :)

Back to Frontier, while writing this, I listened to the song I Hate Everything About You by Three Days Grace. I fell in love with the song when I saw a Takouji amv with it on youtube. For those of you who don't mind yaoi, I'd recommend watching it.

Also, an idea that's been bouncing around my head is a Frontier/Sword Art Online cross-over. Those of you that read my 3rd Ann one-shot know that I found that anime a while ago and pretty much became addicted to it from episode one. I seriously recommend it, since it's so awesome that I just may end up doing the cross-over eventually, especially for those of you that like adventure and romance animes.

Well, all of this said, I'll end my note here. I'll try to get chapter 37 out by Christmas, but no guarantees. So bye bye for now, loves!

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Chapter 36

Floating next to MagnaGarurumon and EmperorGreymon brought me much confidence of our situation. I wasn't completely certain yet that destroying Cherubimon was something I wanted to do, but against my conscience, it was something that had to be done. Too many had suffered, one particular that came to mind standing on the sidelines. Koichi. Just seeing the pain he went through, going through those images of his countless torments within my mind gave me reason enough to put up a combatant pose and motivate myself.

"That is such a pathetic attempt, foolish children. Mere advancements cannot hold a candle to the power I possess." Cherubimon grew nearer, but we stood firm. My fingers danced on the hilt of my sword, preparing for that moment to withdraw it. A little part of me was still waiting for this corrupted Digimon to realize what he was doing was wrong and show remorse for his actions, but the better part of me knew that wasn't going to happen any time soon. "For in mere minutes, you will be in your graves, searching desperately for comfort."

EmperorGreymon poised himself, but didn't seem like he was about to attack. His blue eyes were enflamed with emotion; I knew that Takuya under that armor was putting on his leader instincts. "Cherubimon, it is you who is the foolish one!" A look of slight perplexity crossed the opposing creature's face, but said nothing to contradict the Unified Flame Warrior's words. "You seek to help those like you, the Beast-type Digimon, when really you're destroying the entire world! What help are you to anyone?! How can you possibly believe that this destruction will benefit anyone but yourself?! All you wish is to be a selfish dictator! You're mad with power!"

"But don't worry! We're not intimidated by your madness." MagnaGarurumon seemed smug with his words, his tone filled with confidence. I was certain that within his form, Koji was smiling. And just the thought of him and his smile put one on my face as well.

Cherubimon's face became expressionless. Actually, scratch that. He suddenly seemed, interestingly enough, genuinely curious. "What do you know of the Digital World? You're nothing but foreigners here; I never understood why Ophanimon had called you: Worthless children that knew nothing beyond their own world."

I placed my hand securely on my sword, but did not draw it. My words were my main focus at this point, but I would fight if need be. "We know much more than you assume. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that the Digital World is a second home for me." I paused to look about at my comrades around me and saw an agreeing expression on each of their faces. "We know what this world is like—we're not the scared little kids that arrived here on Trailmon looking for something just to spend our day doing. We've become Digimon, and by doing so, we've also become part of this world. We know how the Digimon here think and how they feel, and even if we didn't have the Spirits inside of us, it's not that hard for us to realize that their feelings aren't much different from ours."

EmperorGreymon and I exchanged nods as he continued where I had left off, "And that leads me to think that maybe we know more about the Digital World than even you, a born inhabitant of this world. You don't even understand how much pain and suffering that you've dealt to those so undeserving. If you could just open your eyes and see how many things you've done wrong, then maybe you could make up for it to make a better future for everyone."

"But if you refuse to open your eyes," MagnaGarurumon began, sending me an expression I didn't have time to decipher before it was gone, "Then we will stop you from further destroying this world. With Ophanimon, the one you had once claimed to love, fighting with us."

This sent the once-pure Celestial off the edge into a deep rage. His face tightened and evil radiated off of his form. He growled and outspread his arms, reaching them upwards toward the dark sky. "Prepare you for your doom. I will show you that you know nothing of this world and the creatures that dwell within it! That Ophanimon had wasted her powers for such a useless cause as to spare you worthless brats—I could never grasp why she cared for such feeble beings such as you when she cares little for her own kind!" You're referring to yourself, aren't you, Cherubimon? That heartache is driving you to further hate us… "Storm of Judgment!"

Dark lightning outlined in crimson rained down in intense flashes. Those of us in an Evolved state were easily able to maneuver away from the attacks, but none of us were able to anticipate the wildness of the bolts in order to block the one that struck down where our fellow humans were standing. I could hear their screams cut through me as dust arose and ground below them exploded into many pieces. Just from seeing MagnaGarurumon's expression for a split-second, I knew he was thinking of his brother.

I veered my head off in their direction and then back over to the Unified Warriors, my face tight. "We have to move them! They're not safe being this close to the battle—the next attack could do a lot more than that last one!" They looked to me and I was surprised they were letting me give orders at this point. Or maybe they were just waiting for me to give them in order to decide if they actually wanted to follow them or not. "So EmperorGreymon and I will assist the others while MagnaGarurumon distracts Cherubimon." I looked at the Light Warrior with a hint of smugness of my own. "I'm sure you can handle it. And if you can't, well… you're sunk."

He groaned at my remark, but seemed pleased enough that I had assigned him the job of fighting. "Right. I'll get 'im."

EmperorGreymon and I departed and came to the Warriors who were looking a little disoriented from the unsuspected blow. We were quick to action and took them to a higher part of the tower of the Rose Morning Star. I glanced back towards where the fighting was still ensuing without us, and a part of me just didn't want to be here at all, even if I wasn't directly in the action at the present time. There was only so much of this that I felt I could take and I was reaching that limit.

"There. You guys should be safe here." My mind snapped back to our current task and away from the Warrior of Light when I heard EmperorGreymon's voice. He began to make a light chatter with the humans, saying how he was going to make fast work of Cherubimon and that we'll be home and safe in no time. And it was at that very moment that I was sent onto the edge of my emotions, my instincts instantly perking up and spiking. I wasn't sure what it was…

But I felt something.

I could only utter one word. "Takuya…"

The part of the tower on which we placed the humans began to shake violently. I looked about hastily for something that could be causing it, but that was when the ground under Zoe broke. In an instant she plunged into darkness, the only sign of life being her scream as she plummeted. I only stared in horror at where she once stood. What just—how did—I can't believe she's go—

I couldn't even finish my thoughts when EmperorGreymon yelled the Italian girl's name out, ridden in pure emotion. His eyes were frantic and I could see him losing control. Before he could do something he'd instantly regret, I stepped before him with my voice hard and sincere, "You have to get back to the battle—you have to help Koji. I'll help Zoe." He didn't look like he even bothered trying to believe my words, but I continued, "You're duties lie elsewhere. I promise I won't let anything happen to her. Takuya, I swear, I'll bring her back to you."

He released a single breath, trying to contain his anger. His eyes locked upon me as he let out words slow and controlled, "All right…" When his next words came out, I thought for sure I saw the image of his real human form, his bright brown eyes putting his trust in me. "Thanks, Miri."

A small smile broke out onto my face at the name that brought me so much happiness, that showed me so much affection. I hoped that he could see the real me as I saw the real him mere moments ago as I spoke, "You don't need to thank me…Taky."

I lunged down into the darkness before I could sense any reaction on his part. A distinct feeling arose from inside me that desperately wanted to know what was triggered by the nickname for him that I hadn't used in so long. Did he even notice? I wondered, but quickly shoved the thought from my head. There were much more important things that I had to focus on at this point. The significance of how Takuya thought of me had to take to the backseat and wait until it became priority. Right now I had a superior objective that needed my complete attention and a vow to the Warrior of Flame to keep.

My feet dropped gracefully to the ground and my eyes took in the area around me. A canvas of thick darkness was dropped down to the floor, rendering my skill for detail almost completely useless. Not far from me, I made out a silhouette of the Wind Inheritor unconscious on the floor. My voice let out her name, despite that the blackness prevented me from seeing what kind of condition she was in. A fall like that would've undoubtedly killed a human, but my ears caught the sound of her breathing.

"'I swear I'll bring her back to you.' How touching. It's hard to believe something like that came from your lips, especially directed to him of all people. It's really quite droll actually."

My whole body became completely rigid. That voice. My mouth turned downward as the notes of that all-too familiar voice penetrated through my armor and maneuvered straight to my inner being. I poised myself with my fingers dancing upon the hilt of my sword, trying to appear unwavering and unshaken. "What do you want from me, Karin?" I questioned after a long moment of contemplation. I tried to sense exactly where she was, but I couldn't feel her presence anywhere.

Her figure materialized from the darkness, and only then I felt her being, her form in that of Crescemon. One arm was akimbo, her eyes gleaming at me nefariously as if she was anticipating a fun game to commence. "Why are you assuming I want something from you? You're not always the focus of everyone's lives as you clearly believe."

Her remark offended me, as it was meant to, but I tried to keep it from throwing me off the edge, so I attempted to avert my questioning with, "All right. What do you want from Takuya then?" I tightened my gaze upon her, testing to see if I could get to the very heart of the issue that she had confronted me for, whether by her vocalizing of it or analyzing her physiognomy for some sort of efficacy. "I won't let you get anywhere near him."

She snorted obnoxiously and then laughed at my remark in a matter that seemed like she thought I was trying to be funny. "It amuses me that you're trying to control him as if you think you own him. That's how you've always been with him, so possessive. When are you going to realize he isn't yours?" Her ruby-like eyes remained unchanging upon my silence; the air around us became vacuous and crisp. "Even when you have prior, more dominant commitments, you still toy with him as if he's your little plaything."

I cocked my head to the side slightly. This all sounded very familiar. "That's a load of crap, Karin, and you know it. I know who I hold interest in, and it's not him. I'm not the manipulative, controlling bitch you perceive me to be." At a distinct sighing sound, my eyes trailed to the Warrior of Wind, who I could detect was beginning to rouse. She was far too close to my enemy for comfort. "I don't understand where you get your information. Do you analyze me yourself or do you brood upon the past more often than you should?"

Her rabbit-based figure fidgeted with the weight of her weaponry but her gaze remained solid, amusement twisting around inside her irises. "Oh, I watch you, hon. No decision you make goes undetected. I can catch you in your lies; I know exactly who you hold interest in." Her eyes suddenly flashed to the blonde who appeared a bit disoriented and unaware of her place and the situation, but in an instant, they were back upon me. "For example…" Her armored fingers flexed down at her side, still holding tight onto Nuova Luna. "That break you took before arriving at the Rose Morning Star. What game were you playing…? Oh yes, I recall it was hide-and-go-seek. You and your little plaything hid together in that hollow tree that you accused him of ruining..." If I could've seen her mouth, I'm sure she would've been smiling deviously at this current point. "Does this ring any bells?"

The human me under all of that armor of my Polymerization Spirit grew warm with a feeling of insecurity, like she had invaded my privacy by bringing this up, and it offended me severely. But it didn't cancel out the fact I knew exactly what she was talking about. Pushing him away whenever he tried to lean against me. Allowing him to rest his head on my lap. We had even brought up Karin in our conversation. I could remember Takuya's exact words, "Hey, uh…where do you think we'd be if Karin hadn't done…you know…did what… she did?" I frowned, my voice a single, mumbling note, "So you could hear us talking about you…"

"Precisely." Her voice, filled with acidic tones of self-proclaimed dominance, fell upon my ears deafly. Any confirmation that she had I didn't need, nor did I want. I was too busy being preoccupied with my own plaguing opinions. She's talking in contradictions, I concluded after a little thought. She always would speak of how I hated Takuya, and now here she is saying this… I don't understand what she's getting at. My throat jammed up, knowing that my thoughts were probably soon going to have an answer.

Her voice continued after my moment of silence, realizing I wasn't planning on responding to her single-word remark, "I'm flattered that you added me into such a discussion. And that look on your face when he asked you that one little question—ooh hoo hoo! It was delightful to watch!" I thought for sure she was going to abandon her weaponry to bust some girly, human pose, so it surprised me when she just stood there plainly as she chattered. "Hon, you think you've got it all figured out! You play it cold and distant on the outside—but not too cold as to shun your little fire boy away; that's why you're so friendly at times, to reel him back to you—and on the inside, you're just aching for his attention."

I couldn't completely comprehend what she was saying, but either way, I felt seriously affronted that she was making some sort of assumption of me as if she knew me in any relevant way, so thus, I went on sharply with my words. "I don't require anything of him! Who the hell are you to make that sort of judgment of me?! And stop talking so vaguely! Say exactly what you need to say and without all of the dodging of the point!"

At this point, I noticed just how intently Zoe had been watching and listening. I hadn't detected any sort of movement on her part, aside from lifting her head, but she was taking in our conversation with acute observation. Her emerald green eyes were filled with so much emotion, locked upon me with each passing moment that words were passed between Karin and me. She appeared not to notice, or maybe not care, that she was so close to someone I was speaking to so lividly, as if she'd been taken away by a feeling of blasé. Did she…actually trust me to keep her safe?

Karin's voice sounded crass in my ears. Her tone as she had conceded voluntarily to my demand came to me rather too easily like there was something I was totally overlooking. "My point is, hon, that you're horribly insecure. You're constantly reminded of how your relationship with Takuya suffered back in the human world, and those reminders make you overly-cautious of how durable what you and that Warrior of Light have created is. You're readying yourself in case of failure. Holding one boy tight as your relationship with the other fails will make a safety net so that you'll always have someone to catch you when you fall."

Her words hurt, I couldn't deny that, but I had to question the truth contained in them. Was that really what I was doing? If even subconsciously, was that still the case when it all came down to it? My first instinct was to deny any hint of truth that she poured out, but what if it was all truth? What if it was all lies? And how can I distinguish the true from the false if I can't even determine what my mind is telling me? God, this is so messed up…

"And the best part is," Karin continued cheerily, drawing my attention back to her with her tone, "it's the whole reason why you continually reached conflict with the Warrior of Wind."

I open my mouth to object, but then closed it again. What the hell is she saying? I narrowed my eyes upon her to try to discover what she was even implying by studying her figure. I could just imagine her true human form with that little smirk that she was just too good at and internally, that's probably what she was wearing. My eyes flickered back to the aforementioned Italian; her mouth was like a little O as she tried just as I was to put this all together. But her eyes held a little hint of recognition. Does she know what Karin's referring to?

"Enlighten me here, Karin," I responded, my voice flat. I had gone for it to come out cleanly and smooth, but each syllable felt rockier than the last. "Exactly what are you implying? If you think that I made things a competition with Zoe for Takuya, then you're—"

"Absolutely correct," she cut in, like she had just said the simplest thing in the world. "And, girl, you really made things fun to watch, because…" She paused to set down one of her Nuova Luna, reach down, and lift Zoe off the ground by her hair, inducing pain-ridden screaming to escape from her agape mouth. "…this one is just so obsessed with him."

I drew my sword and took a step forward, but stopped myself before I could take another. If I threatened her, she could easily end Zoe's life with a single blow and I knew for certain she wouldn't hesitate. "Karin! Put her down!"As if she'd actually listen to any demands I make… "It's not her that deserves any suffering—she's never done anything to you! Is the hostage method really what direction you wanna go?" I pursed my lips, hoping my words didn't come off too strong as to offend her.

Clearly they didn't. She began to laugh, a high giggly sound. "You really have grown soft, haven't you?" She briefly looked at the blonde, who had sunken her teeth into her bottom lip to keep from any more agonizing sounds and whose face was contorted with high discomfort, then back to me with piercing eyes. "It's pathetic really…I liked you better when you wouldn't have hesitated with attacking." She took the time to sigh and shake her head at my development.

A frown came upon my face at her words. I never liked myself when I was like that. The only reason you did was because you took enjoyment out of my anger… "I see you, on the other hand, haven't changed." I stuck my sword into the dirt and upturned my palms. "Look, I don't want to fight you. Not anymore. I know we can't change the past, but we can forgive each other and work for a better future—one where maybe we can be friends."

She made an 'mmm' sound as if she was deeply contemplating how to respond to my request. "…Doubtful." With one, fluid movement of her hand she threw Zoe to the ground, but before she could aim her Nuova Luna, I had grabbed my sword and took up the place between her and the girl. At my attempt at chivalry, she began to cackle. "How cute. It's all quite amusing how you are just so intent on keeping your little promise to Taky."

I stiffened at her usage of the nickname. It was complete mockery that just bluntly said, 'You know I'm right with everything I've said. You want him. You want him more than you'd ever admit.' "I'm not doing it just for him," I growled from deep in my chest. "You think I don't care about all of the Warriors? They've done more for me than I could ever repay." I turned my head to look back at Zoe briefly. "I'm keeping a promise, yes, but I'd keep any and every promise I make to my friends. Any one of them."

"Nice sentiment, but if I believed you, I'd say so, hon." She held her Nuova Luna up and it changed into a blowgun form. The air instantly grew dense and heavy. I could hear my heartbeat echoing inside me as she aimed it downward at the Warrior of Wind. I was in between them, but it didn't necessarily mean Zoe was completely safe.

I bent my knees and angled my sword with distinct precision. My eyes never once left those of Karin and for a moment we just stared vacuously at each other. Words came from my mouth before I had realized I had even unparted my lips, "Why do you think so wrongly of me, Karin? Why are you always so desperate to cause opposition between us? Things can be worked out without fighting; is whatever you're plagued with worth bloodshed—has it ever been worth bloodshed?"

Her eyes burned with contempt. "If you're pretending to have empathy, you can just quit while you're behind! You can't suddenly play peacemaker after all this time!" She fired ice arrows and I easily blocked them with smooth, fluid motions, but I hadn't anticipated her to continue after the first few shots.

I positioned myself better before Zoe, but left myself more vulnerable to attacks. What I couldn't block with my sword connected hard with my armor. I could feel each blow bending my armor more and more, and the sound of them hitting the Digital metal resonated up into my head, amplified from the small space between me and the encapsulating armor. The deafening noise kept interrupting my thoughts that were trying to decipher each and every one of her words. 'Pretending to have empathy'? Why doesn't she doesn't want sympathy from me? "I'm serious, Karin! I want to be your friend—I know you don't wanna be mine, but can't we just call a truce?!"

She suddenly stopped with her barrage of attacks. Her voice screeched, "Will you just shut up?!" She swung her crescent-shaped weapon and struck me hard with it. I cried out as I tumbled from my position, my body contorted with pain. Her weapon had punctured through my armor and slashed into my side just below where my ribcage ended. When I grasped my fresh wound, she walked over to me as if she was doing the catwalk, confidence and poise in her steps, a feeling of hegemony in her eyes that was rooted deep in vehement origin. "You're such a pretty girl. Oops, did I say pretty? I meant petty." Her voice didn't match the words that it made; all sort of teasing was diminished, replaced by irate taunt. "Because all beauty has been uprooted at the site."

Staring up at her with critical eyes, I sputtered, "Hasn't anyone ever told you that beauty isn't just skin-deep?" My fingers curled tenderly around the break in my armor even tighter, trying to hide how much it was enflaming my entire body with agony and trying to keep from shaking.

She chortled something cold. Something evil. "Ah, the Ugly Girl Motto. I do miss hearing that in my school days; my friends and I would laugh so. The only ones that needed to say such a phrase would be the ones that have nothing to admire about themselves. I never needed such a phrase. And here as well—oh yes, I forgot to show you something." She emitted a white light that consumed her entire body. "Crescemon Digivolve to…" An intense flash made me turn my head away and then faded like a fog dispersing. "Dianamon."

To say in the least, her newest form was elegant. She stood tall on heals that were concealed by crescent moons that went up from her the toe of the heels up and up her shins to where they jutted upward on her knees. Sleeping faces were etched upon them. A short skirt came down from her hips, which led up to armor covering her entire upper body and down her arms. A crescent came off of each of her shoulders and rods protruded from her back. The tails of a long, pink scarf flowed from her neck down to her shins. Her Nuova Luna were replaced by a single, scythe-like weapon that had blades on each end. Her face was entirely covered by a helmet, only revealing her ruby eyes.

Her voice had become more refined and older-sounding, but her nature was still evident in her tone. "I've been waiting to use my Mega form for a long time, just for you. Aren't you glad you're going to be destroyed by someone as beautiful as I?"

I tightened my gaze and with it, my entire body went rigid. "I don't understand you, Karin. I offer you friendship; I apologized for my wrongs. What more do you want?" My body feeling flimsy and unsupported, I managed to bring myself up to one knee, one hand still holding my wound, the other resting on the ground to hold me in balance, just an inch from the hilt of my sword. "I don't see the point you're trying to make by attacking me."

Her gaze momentarily left me and her head turned to look at the Italian girl. She said nothing at the sight of the blonde, but then averted her eyes back to me. "A weak-minded girl such as yourself wouldn't understand my motives." Why did she look at Zoe before speaking? What does this have to do with her? "I guess you could say I just want to remove every and all things that could prove to be competition. I can't let those like you ruin my plan."

Competition…Those like me… What is she getting at? I interrupted my own thoughts as I grabbed hold of my sword, knowing thinking had to come later. "Really?" I retorted flatly, rising up to my feet and refusing to wobble. If I can get her to fight me, maybe when she weakens, she'll let loose some more information. "I haven't seen much of this removing taking place. We've been here a while and you still haven't done anything to exterminate me. I thought you wanted me gone. Or is your Mega form not as good as you make it out to be?"

In an instant, she was headed for my throat. She swung her weapon with velocity I couldn't prognosticate and as I blocked with my sword, the clang from their collision deafening as sparks shot to the ground. It became a battle of sheer strength, each of us pushing to make the other falter. All the while, we didn't remove our eyes from each other. Hers were on fire with rage and loathing, made evident by her acidic voice, "You talk so cockily. I'm going to make you regret ever crossing paths with me!"

"Well, I can safely say it's too late for that!" I snapped back, testing to see just how far I could push her before making her crack. My eyes flashed off of her and to my sword. My hands were trembling; I only could hold her off for so long. I bent my knees downward the most undetectable amount, wavering only slightly and swung one leg around, striking her ankle and hooking the curve off my foot around the back of hers, the momentum enough to trip her down onto her knees. I knocked her weapon from her hands with one motion of my arm, and it took only a second for me to reposition so that both hands were on my sword and the blade was up to her throat. "I bet you regret crossing paths with me, don'tchya, buddy?"

I wasn't sure what it was, but something amidst all of this was humorous to her, as she began to laugh loud and long. "Don't flatter yourself, hon. You're not as threatening as you think." A glint flashed in her eye and she snickered. "If only your reality matched your self-image. Then, you'd actually get somewhere." Without warning, she back-flipped from her position, kicking my sword out of my hands, and landed poised in between me and Zoe. "If you were really as good as you think, you would've been able to anticipate that." She drew an arrow of ice from the protrusions on her back; it glistened faintly as she delicately fingered it. "Now, I'll give you a second chance if you wish."

You bitch… The vulgar name-calling barely formed in my mind before my Digimon instinct took hold and moved my body faster than if I had consciously made it. Nothing else mattered at that moment, nothing but the safety of Zoe. The safety of my friend. No remorse filled me as the ice arrow punctured through my armor and into my skin, as I tumbled back down to the ground, holding my tongue to keep from screaming out. I only lied in the dirt, locking my jaw to keep my cries inside and convulsing uncontrollably. My eyes stared hard at the arrow driven into me, but found no ability to try to remove it, no matter how much it was killing me inside out.

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen…" Out of the very corner of my vision, I detected Karin's Digimon form approaching me, her hips swaying as they had when she was human. She stopped before me, her crimson eyes dilated with madness as she looked down at me. "Heh. This is what you deserve for defending that girl." She reached down and wrapping her fingers gingerly around the arrow, I could only squeeze my eyes shut and brace myself.

She twisted the arrow around and yanked it from me.

I could only cry as she ripped skin off of me like a madman skinning an animal live. The action only lasted a second, probably less, but the pain felt perpetual as if my organs all had been ripped out and shoved back in. Tears that blinded me fell freely from my eyes. I unclenched my jaw and with it, my hold on my Spirit was released. In my brittle, human state, the agony was intensified tenfold and it felt as though my whole body was on fire, enveloped in an inescapable inferno that succeeded in both burning and freezing me simultaneously.

"Mirai!" I felt Zoe's fingers grasp around the back of my hand, the touch making me flinch. In a millisecond, I heard her tone change to spew hot lava, "How could you be so callous?! Whatever grudge you hold against Mirai isn't worth this! You used to be human—you have a human heart! Isn't that sufficient to realize when enough is enough, when sorry and offering reconciliation may be all that can be done? You're tapping into powers beyond us all to get revenge and it's not worth it. …What was your name? Karin, right? Karin, I don't know what happened to make you so vengeful or why it concerns Mirai and Takuya, but—"

My eyes snapped open at the sound of Karin smacking Zoe across the face and the girl stumbling backwards. The Warrior of Wind held her hand to her cheek and her emerald green eyes was filled with sympathy for her, despite all that had happened. This Italian girl had caring persistence written on her face that sought to push past the barriers that Karin put up time after time, hoping to forge something under it all. It was the exact same strategy she used on me.

Karin's voice came out without emotion, "You're right. You don't know, so stop pretending you can make sense of it. I'm not looking for concern or empathy from anyone, especially you Legendary Warriors." She looked from Zoe to me. When her gaze locked with mine, she seemed to be portraying a bit of amusement from my current position. "But it doesn't seem like you're in a place to give concern at this point." She flexed her fingers easily. "It's a shame. I was really looking forward to a good battle with you, but you've grown much too soft. Protecting this slut…" Her eyes tossed from me to the Warrior of Wind then back again. "You've fallen so far…"

I frowned at her, feeling offended. My voice came out as a hiss. "You take that back. Zoe is a much better person than either one of us—she doesn't deserve to be called such things. You, for one, don't even know her to be passing such a hard, uncalled for judgment…" I felt my D-Tector begin to vibrate within my pocket, and feeling my strength beginning to return to me, pulled it out. "I won't let you badmouth any one of my friends. Anything regarding them you'll have to run by me first." With the power shed on me by my Digivice, I stood back up, my pain decreasing heavily. "And as for saying I've fallen, I'd like to correct that. Actually, I haven't fallen as you said, Karin. You think friendship has made me weak. In truth, I have actually risen! Risen to a level you could never understand!" I held out my D-Tector, beginning to smile. "And this is what makes me strong, carrying me through any wall standing in my way!"

As soon as I pressed the button to activate Spirit Evolution, I felt instantly powerful. The dint only further increased as the ring of Data appeared around my hand and I slid the scanner against it. "Execute! Polymerization Spirit Evolution!" I almost assumed that over time, I would've grown used to that feeling of Spirit Evolution, but every time that I felt the energy and instinct of my Spirits flow through me like my own blood, I was once again proven wrong. It was a feeling to be craved for its ever-changing allure and going hand-in-hand with it, always existed a flash of hope. "Ryoushinmon!"

Karin crossed her arms, boredom wafting off her figure. "This again, Mirai? At least if you're too stubborn to admit defeat, try something new. You and I both know how this is going to end."

One corner of my lips curved upwards as I drew my sword, my voice escaping with a level of smugness that I didn't bother trying to conceal, "Yes, we do. Just like last time. Although…I believe you're gonna need a little more than another plastic surgeon this time." I ran my finger along the edge of my blade absentmindedly. "Since I realize you're far too driven by madness to console. You don't even bother to open your eyes to see how much I wish to help you—it isn't ignorance, it's lunacy." I pressed the blade into the dirt for it to stand erect and free my hands. "You heard what Zoe had said. You're using powers that surpass human bounds. Merely being here, serving under Cherubimon is enough to drive a human insane, but with all of the power that is being controlled by a human mind…"

"Off you go again, pretending you know all!" She drew another arrow from her back, daring me with her eyes. "Everything about you is so detestable; I should've destroyed you long ago while you were still lost of mind. It would've been oh-so easy, just as easy as it had been to destroy your little Digimon friend." She snickered, running her fingers along the arrow as I had done with my sword moments before. She was openly taunting me.

I averted my eyes from her, my voice coming out flat and quiet. "You heartlessly destroying DemiVeemon is distinct evidence of your insanity. But back then, you had an objective in mind..." I peered back up, studying the mask that covered the face underneath. "But now…you say you have reasoning, but I see that wild, uncontrolled look in your eyes. I don't see what sort of reasoning lies behind those feral eyes." My mind uncontrollably flashed back to her words, Competition. You can't play peacemaker. Those like you… "There once was a reason why Cherubimon called you of all people to come here; at first it was merely to destroy me out of revenge…" I turned my head and looked directly at Zoe, who had mixed emotions written on her face, but never for a second showed any doubt in me. "…but over time, you also found it necessary to go after Zoe as well." My face snapped back, and I cocked it slightly, playing the smallest of smiles. "Do you want to know why that is?"

Karin released a beast-like snarl and hurled the ice arrow at me. With the simple raising of my hand, a small force field formed and deflected it, adding to her complete frustration. "You know nothing!" she growled, losing her hold on herself. Her eyes were burning with abhorrence, tangled in a frenzy. "You always thought you were so smart, so superior! How did you end up with someone like him?! There is no way in hell you were worth him, yet there you were, attached at the hip! Even when you were acting like a total bitch to him, he never held it against you! He was far out of your league, yet there you were!"

My lips flatted out once again. "I never understood it either…" It surprised me when my tone seemed almost melancholy, but regardless, I decided to continue. "He'd always look the other way and turn the other cheek, day after day and time after time. How he had so much patience for me, I never knew… And I'll admit, I almost enjoyed making enemies with you, and now I think I actually know why I indulged in such a feeling. I enjoyed making you suffer, watching you wallow in your jealousy."

In a flash, she retrieved her weapon that had been long-abandoned and was rashly assailing me. One of the crescent-shaped blades was swung at me, and I withdrew the spikes that were concealed in the place covering my gloves, connecting with the edge of the blade with a shower of sparks. She pulled back and swung with the blade on the opposite end, aiming for my back. There wasn't enough time for me to turn around, so I proceeded by executing a back flip over the weapon, landing nimbly in a crouch. In the time it took for Karin to reposition herself, I had already righted myself and held out my hands. Energy swirled about them, collecting into intensely-hued orbs. "Manifold Cataclysm!" I slammed my palms together and the two orbs fused together. It followed the motions of my fingertips and I sent it off directly at my target.

At the contact, my attack that was once compact into its small, round shape, burst in a flash of brilliant light. Karin's double-bladed weapon went reeling from her grasp as she let out a blood-curling shriek, more animal-like than human. I could see her silhouette within this chamber from which there was no escape; the armor covering her body was being ripped into shreds and disintegrating. As the attack began to eat away her body, I forced myself to turn away, remorse for dealing such an end biting me.

But…there was no other option…She has become so hardened as to refuse listening to reason and enveloped in her craving for revenge…

As the effects of my attack faded and Karin's Digimon form melded into a DigiEgg, I noticed no Fractal Code to be scanned. Instead, a mist arose from the surface of the egg like fog rising from a lake on a cool morning and like smoke, drifted upwards to the heavens. The DigiEgg, in turn, floated up as well, but I knew it was going to a different sort of haven. Karin's spirit was pulled from that of Crescemon's, and thus was going back to the place it belonged, finally laid to rest.

I De-Spirit Evolved and dropped my head. "I'm sorry, Karin. I never meant for it to come to this…" I could feel emotions weighing on me, heavy-laden on my heart, but I refused to cry. Now wasn't the time for tears; I wouldn't permit tears to fall. "I realize now all you wanted was him…"

I felt Zoe clap me on the shoulder with her hand, and when I peered back at her, she gave me a half-smile, her eyes soft and filled with that sympathy she was ever-so good at providing. "You did the right thing. Being here in that state was only destroying her inside. If you hadn't, eventually it might've been too late to save her." By the slight contorting of her face, I knew she saw me holding back tears; she embraced me and let me put my face in her shoulder.

But I killed her. I killed another human being… I grasped the soft fabric of her lavender jacket, curling my fingers around it with distinct need for it. "I just want this war to be over…"

There suddenly was a deafening explosion and the ground began to tremor violently. The ceiling cracked, showering dirt down upon us, and began to crumble. I was instantly snapped from my melancholy and became aware of the situation all around. The sadness was replaced by instinct's desperation as I broke out of the embrace. "We have to get outta here!" I snatched up her wrist and took off running, pulling her along. The Rose Morning Star was collapsing and if we stayed where we were, we'd be a little bit more than flattened.

Without the warnings of all of my quick turns to avoid falling debris, Zoe probably didn't appreciate how wildly I was running about. "Mirai, I know you don't wanna get squashed, but must you cut the circulation off in my wrist?" At her words, my arm was yanked back, signaling to me that she almost tripped in the haste I was making her have. When I glanced back, she was holding out the arm I wasn't grasping for balance. I really didn't blame her for taking precautions.

I stopped abruptly when a large slab of ceiling fell down just before me, causing the Italian I was dragging along to bash into my back, but I hardly let that deter me, as I maneuvered around the once-ceiling and continued. Through my breathlessness, I sputtered thoughtlessly, "Look, I can't let anything happen to you, otherwise Takuya will kill me!"

"Otherwise what?!"

I caught myself from repeating what I just openly blurted out and laughed awkwardly as if the whole building wasn't about to crush us. "Oh, hahaha, nothing!" I pushed my hair from my face and squinted hard at what was ahead, trying to decipher its identity. If my eyes were deceiving me, then what I wasn't seeing was an opening to the outside, but I was praying to God that it actually was what I was seeing. "Is that light up ahead?"

"Yeah, I think so!" I could hear the optimism in the notes of her voice. Just hearing it, made me feel a little bit more sanguine as well. Her constant hopefulness never ceased to amaze me.

We ran to it, and unfortunately, the thought that we might not be on the ground floor of the Rose Morning Star didn't cross my mind until I was flailing my arms to try not to fall off the edge. And even more unfortunate than that, was my forgetfulness that I was still grasping Zoe's hand, and as before, my sudden stop was a bit too sudden for her to not run into me, so we found ourselves tumbling out of the tower. And plummeting.

My intelligent mind wasn't screaming, as my instinct probably would've told me. Instead, I was spewing out a flurry of, "Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap!" in such a fast pace that I was practically out of breath from that alone, "Oh crap, oh crap, oh cr—oof!"

Luckily, what we crashed into wasn't the ground below. Rather when I looked up, I was met with the shining, amused eyes of EmperorGreymon and his taunting voice. "Well, that was smooth, guys."

I was too busy pouting to notice how Zoe reacted to the remark. I tried to ignore the question that appeared at the sight of EmperorGreymon carrying not just Zoe and I, but MagnaGarurumon on his shoulder and all the other Warriors as well, though I knew that since I had noticed, it was going to bother me until I asked, "Hey, since when are you so str—?"

My question was interrupted without warning by someone calling out, "Look out!" and everything being shrouded in dust. Less than a moment passing gave way to the booming of an explosion.

---

I wasn't certain what did it, but something made a distinct, clear-cut point of making my head throb like hell. Before I bothered opening my eyes to see where we landed and if anyone felt as discombobulated as I did at current, I reached up and felt the growing knob on my head. A groan escaped, figuring that was the source of my pounding headache. But at this point it felt more like a baby squirrel trying to burrow its way out of my head.

But I digress. At times like this, they're basically the same thing.

The effort to get into a sitting position, which took me half of forever, was nothing in comparison with how long it took me to get onto my feet. As I was dusting myself off, I saw Takuya stand up, looking a little bit out of it (as I'm sure everyone was at this moment), but him primarily so because he pretty much had a big rock on top of him previously. He wiped the dust off his face and moaned, "Oww, my head... It's the only part of me that doesn't hurt."

"Too bad it's the only part of you that's completely useless," I retorted flatly.

He gave me a childish frown, slight amusement from my remark shimmering in his eyes, but said nothing. It was just one of those times he was better off not saying anything. Although, honestly, I wasn't sure how he could've responded to such a thing anyway. He turned his head away from me just as he caught ear of Zoe calling out, his face showing distinct tentativeness.

"Is everyone all right?"

Koji, who had taken off his bandana to dust it off, smiled. God, I loved that smile. "Yup," he answered shortly, yet still held a noticeable amount of cheerfulness in his voice. He increased in cuteness sevenfold when he was cheery. Though cheery didn't seem like the right word when describing him, at this particular moment, it seemed quite perfect for him. The way his blue eyes shone, the way dirt spotted his face as if he was a little child that had been playing in a sandbox, the way some of his bangs stood right up…

…Yeah, he was pretty.

But he was also dismissing the fact Neemon was hanging upside down from a large, pointy rock by the crotch of his pants just behind him.

"No one got hurt?" Takuya questioned, also ignoring the yellow bunny. He threw his arms back behind his head and let loose a big grin. I decided then that everyone was being very optimistic. "Well, I guess there's a first time for everything." It was a pretty good reason for him to be content, and therefore, a good reason for the rest of us. Even though the Warrior of Flame had a better hold on his rage and hero complex than before, whenever there was a casualty, there still existed that possibility he could lose control of himself.

Apparently Neemon was now tired of being ignored. "What about meee?" And proceeded to let out weird noises when Patamon tried to help him from his plight by pulling on one of his ears. During this, I thought for sure through the laughter of Zoe and Tommy I heard Bokomon call them nincompoops.

"So what happened to Cherubimon?" The Warrior of Wind completely changed the mood of the group with her sudden question, but to know the condition of our opponent was well worth it. Despite the fact I had growing sympathy for the celestial that had fallen, it was an important mission at hand to make sure he doesn't cause any more death. Too many Digimon, comrades, and friends had met an undeserved fate all because of a little love story gone horribly wrong.

Bokomon looked up at the girl, his eyes showing surprise when thinking of a possible answer. "Well, I guess Takuya and Koji must've actually defeated him." You make it sound like it was an impossible task for them. That could be very insulting…

"No." The sound of Koichi's crisp voice caused the rest of us to fall into silence and look at him. His eyes were clouded and his face was solemn. It was the expression he always made when referring to those he once called allies. "I know him. There's no way he could be defeated that easily." His tone was chilled and quiet, filled with knowledge of the side of evil that had encapsulated him and controlled his heart. "... He has to be alive…"

A long pause ensued. Or at least until JP decided to open his jaw and flap it about. "Even so, we—" 'We'? "—destroyed his hideout and I bet we—" What is with this 'we'? Did I miss the part when you got out and fought? "—did a lot of damage to him. He's probably off somewhere licking his wounds."

I frowned and narrowed my eyes at his wording. "What do you think he is, a stray dog?" Eyes met me as soon as I closed my mouth after defending Cherubimon —although my approach was rather blunt—and I knew I probably had to explain myself. "He's not that different from any other Digimon or even us for that matter; you don't have to be so rude, even if he's the bad guy we're facing." He's just the one to get the short end of the stick within a love triangle. And maybe that's why he picked Karin; they're more alike than I anticipated…

At this, everyone gave me a perplexed expression, each of different proportions, but I could see in every one of their faces, acceptance of my opinion and feelings. Seeing it made me happy within amaranthine bounds, knowing that they considered me both a teammate and an equal. Had it been earlier in our time here in the Digital World, I would've felt they were judging me for my opinions, let alone if I had even bothered to share them to begin with.

"Sorry to break this awkward silence, but we have a problem."

We instantly changed gears as the Warrior of Flame spoke, coming to attention as he pulled out his D-Tector. The tone went from discomfited to serious within a matter of seconds, causing his face to light up with that amused, cheesy smile. He let out a slight chortle as he stated, "Hey, relax guys. What? You think everything I say is gonna lead to something bad happening? Wait, don't answer that… I just meant we have to get you your Spirits back somehow."

As if him saying that was a trigger of some sort, the screen of his D-Tector glowed and if I hadn't seen the little Spirit figurines themselves, I would've thought rainbows shot out of it. And then seeing Koji's D-Tector doing the same thing, I was almost pretty close to questioning the Ancient Spirits' sexuality, but that probably wouldn't have been the best of ideas. Regardless, the little rainbow-like beams shot upward and the Spirits leading them collided and rained down, back into our D-Tectors.

"You know you're in the Digital World if the spirits of ancient creatures are falling from the sky…" I muttered, but at the same time taking out my own D-Tector for my Spirits of Time to return. I didn't realize I was smiling until I saw my reflection in the little screen as I looked down at the faces of Gryphanimon and Laikasmon. I heard the other Warriors express their delight at the return of their Spirits; I wasn't the only one that felt like I was reuniting with old friends.

As the others joked about, JP saying that he thought he'd never be so happy to see something he couldn't eat, I was snapped from my little silent revelry by the sound of something different. My eyes snapped up and I instantly was on my toes. I looked about, beyond where all of the Warriors were standing around chatting, and in every direction. I couldn't define what I heard exactly; it was almost like a crunching sound, but not the sound of something breaking, more like an amplified sound of someone cracking their frozen knuckles. But it seemed like it stopped the moment I began searching for it, leaving me a bit baffled. I kicked my shoe in the dirt, double-checking that I hadn't made the noise unintentionally, but nothing replaced that feeling that something was here.

I peered back down at my D-Tector, consulting my Spirits. Is there something here? Or was it my imagination? The blank screen stared back at me, no sound emitting from the device. My lack of hint frustrated me, leaving me no closer to figuring out if there indeed was something out there or if I was just suffering from paranoia. But with my luck on sensing such things, it most likely was the latter of the two, as it usually was on similar occasions.

Deciding to turn back to my group to listen to and possibly join in on the conversation, I instantly became a spectator of a little moment between the twins. Koji was leaning up against a large rock, his face nonchalant and his mind seemingly off in space when Koichi approached, his face distressed and pink with embarrassment as he began to speak, "Um…Koji?" His deep eyes darted downward as soon as his younger brother turned to him, his face contorting in discomfort even further now that his brother's attention was caught. "So, uh…listen."

The moment he paused to try to collect himself was when I realized how silent everyone else was and how they were all watching in curiosity. I crept over to Takuya and mumbled, "Notice how everyone is eavesdropping now…"

Takuya was about to respond to me, but stopped as soon as he saw Koichi's mouth open again as he tried to continue, "You see…"

He stopped at the sound of Patamon beginning to wail loud and harshly. In the midst of his cries, he interjected to tell us exactly why, and it wasn't exactly good news, "Something's coming!" Ugh, God, my stupid feeling was right…

The area grew instantly cold. When I exhaled, I could see my breath in the air. Ice formed under our feet, even with no water present. But then jagged chunks of ice shot up from the ground, trying to impale us. One of the edges seared against my shoulder, and I let out a hoarse gasp, trying to hold my tongue from crying out. Pressing my palm up to it, I didn't want to look; I didn't want to believe that there was blood here, even as the warm liquid touched my fingertips.

"Mirai, you gotta move!" Takuya grabbed my arm and pulled me with him just as other obelisks of ice emerged where I had been standing moments before. His eyes were moving about, checking on all the others. In an instant, his hero complex kicked in and he was off to help the other Warriors.

In the area all around us, rang out the echo of an evil cackle. A tall shadow overcame us, and I looked up to see a vicious, vampire-like Digimon. He was all white and had belts about his body. His arms were too long for his body and tattered bat wings protruded from his back. Two horns a lot like a bull's were on the sides of his head, in line with hypnotic, crimson eyes. Just below, he wore a devilish smirk that revealed sharp, beast-like teeth, two of which were longer, signature of a vampire. That is definitely not Edward Cullen…

"Cherubimon sent you to finish us off, didn't he?!" JP snapped, his jaw hard-set. "I knew it! He's too injured to finish us off himself, so he sent one of his cronies to do it for him! The lazy, cowardly oaf; he won't even man-up!"

At the Warrior of Thunder's slight rant, the ice Digimon widened his eyes. He even seemed to be a little amused at the remark, emphasized by his jovial tone. "Cherubimon? Ha! I wouldn't compare me to that weakling if I were you! There's no way I'd work for him; if anything, he's better off working for me!"

"If you're not with him, then what do you want with us? And who are you, anyway?" Zoe's eyes were filled with curiosity, but under them, I thought I caught a little hint of trepidation. However, that didn't surprise me; I could assume everyone felt that way right at this moment.

Bokomon let out a yelp, his eyes wide with terror, his entire person trembling. In his hands was his green book, open, and probably providing him with information that he just didn't want to know about this guy, especially now that he was standing before us and insulting Cherubimon's strength. "That's IceDevimon, one of the nastiest Digimon around! Don't expect any mercy from this cold-hearted creature! All he wants is death and destruction—you don't want to know what it says in here!"

We all vocally protested against his act of not telling us what IceDevimon had earned a reference in the book for, and thus Bokomon conceded and explained, "Well, if you must know, many years ago he went on a rampage across the Digital World, destroying Digimon and eating whatever Data he could get his hands on without the slightest amount of hesitation or remorse. Eventually he was captured, and since he was too powerful for even Cherubimon to destroy, he was sentenced to imprisonment without end. Are you happy you asked now, Misters and Misses Pushy Pants?!" But then he looked up from his book and to IceDevimon, then back down again, seemingly doing a double-take. "Wait, 'imprisonment without end'? Sure looks like it ended to me."

"So does the book say where he's supposed to be imprisoned?" Tommy questioned, not hiding the nervousness taking over in his voice. Even with his big hat concealing most of his face from my sight, I could see how he was becoming more and more worried.

Now Bokomon was frozen, his eyes glued to the vampire Digimon staring down at us with anticipation. "It doesn't, but I have a sinking suspicion that we found the place…"

IceDevimon grinned deceitfully, displaying to us his animalistic fangs. "So tell me; you're humans, are you not?" We all stayed silent, our eyes trained to him in a defensive glare. "Not going to answer? That's just as well; I—" He suddenly stopped, pausing as if trying to figure out the answer to a question suddenly asked of him. "Do I smell—" His gaze snapped to me like a snake snapping at its prey, dilated with impious craving. "—blood?"

My fingers curled around my shoulder instinctively, but I didn't move from my place. We locked eyes, his sadistic and lustful, mine fearful yet resolute.

He chortled and sneered, "You know, I haven't ever received the pleasure tasting human Data, let alone human blood." He took a step toward me, testing to see how much fear I would display. Then came another step; I didn't move. And another. "This should be—"

Koji was between us in an instant, his D-Tector tight in his grasp, his other arm out before me, rings of Data surrounding his hand sparking and flaring with intensity. Despite that his back was toward me, I could see his physiognomy. His eyes were solemn and inexorable, yet burned with a passion I had never before seen. His tone was brusque and severe beyond compare, "Why don't you just go back to that rock you crawled out from before I have to put you there myself?"

IceDevimon tilted his head slightly, analyzing this new development with genuine inquisitiveness; then he chuckled, licking his lips before breaking into full-fledged laughter. "Oh, I see now! You love each other, don't you? How very sweet." He spat the final word out almost resentfully, but the tone was contradicted by his beaming. "You know, back in my days of freedom, I enjoyed the sight of a young couple in love…" He leaned down toward us, his eyes contorting. "…as they died in each other's arms."

"Heartless bastard," I scoffed, shooting daggers at him with my glare.

His tone was far too cheerful for my liking; it was haunting. "Actually, I believe I was quite merciful. They only had each other up until the bitter end. As they say, 'Till death do us part', right? It's far better than now…" He took time to give us each individual looks, enjoyment reigning paramount in his bloodthirsty gaze. "Because I think I'll feast on only one of you right now and let the other watch as their beloved meets their delightful end…"

"How about you don't eat my friends?!" Regardless of how dumb that sounded, Takuya darted over, his D-Tector in his hand and ready to Spirit Evolve. But then he made a face. "Okay, that was something that sounded so much better in my head."

The murder-seeking Digimon didn't appear amused by the Warrior of Flame's little quip, but then again, no one else was, either. "Oh, so you wanna get involved as well?" I didn't like the look on his face that formed when eyeing Koji and Takuya up. "I have a most pleasant idea… No, call it a gift for releasing me." He lifted a single finger and from it, two shots of ice formed and hit their advanced D-Tectors. The devices froze solid and the sounds that are always audible suddenly muted.

Takuya glared, openly opposing the one with a clear advantage without a single hesitation. "What did you do to our D-Tectors?!" Despite the fact he now had no way of defending himself, I could see that determined aura about him, that aura that said he just didn't care how much danger he was in as long as he was fighting for the right cause. Damn that hero complex…

"I can see that you two are the bigger prizes in this little game, so I'm saving you for later, after I get rid of these smaller distractions," he responded absent-mindedly, looking at each of the other Warriors with increasing hunger. "How's that sound? You both get to watch this glorious bloodbath before getting to join in for yourselves! The screaming in terror, the tears as they beg for mercy, the sound as their brittle bones shatter—it will be beautiful, will it not?"

This guy is a psychopath… I pulled my fingers from my shoulder, feeling how sticky they were from the blood, but regardless, reached into my pocket for my own Digivice. If it's a battle you want, IceDevimon, then it's a battle you'll receive… "The only begging for mercy that'll be done is when we have you backed up in a corner!" I tried to keep myself from looking about to make sure there actually was a corner for him to be backed up into to begin with. "So you might as well start searching for that corner now so there's less pain to be dealt!"

He released a loud cackle at my attempt at a threat. "Little human, you have spunk. It'll be genuinely delightful indulging upon you when your blood is splattered on the ice. I bet your Data tastes especially delicious!" He licked his lips cravingly and that mere action made me take a half-step back from his daunt. "Oh yes, it is much better when the prey is scared! You are reacting perfectly; this will be quite entertaining, don't you agree?"

"Okay, you weirdo! This has gone on long enough!" Zoe flipped her hair back behind her shoulder, getting out her D-Tector. "It's time for us to take you down!"

Tommy joined her, his own device in his hand. "I'll second that!"

"Count me in!" JP didn't exactly appear like his words were supported by his face, which looked totally fear-stricken. He had his fingers clenched to his palms and up to his face like a little kid afraid of being hit by a bully to get his lunch money taken from him.

"Me too." Koichi's eyes raged with resolve; it was the same look in his eyes that he held when standing up to Cherubimon's copy. The screen of his D-Tector was glowing a strange, purplish color. "I'm not gonna let you hurt my friends!"

We Spirit Evolved, I to my Polymerization Spirit, the others to their Human Spirits. Not a second passed before we went into action. Beetlemon charged with a Thunder Fist, of which IceDevimon dodged by merely hopping back, and Kazemon took the opportunity to use Hurricane Wave, but that too was avoided by the simple bending of his body. Kumamon came in from above with a Frozen Tundra, but before he could even get close, the vampire snatched him out of the air and licked him like he was a popsicle. Eww, if that's not a fetish, I don't know what is…

"Hey, back off from that bear!" I yelled, joining with Kazemon to assist the Warrior of Ice. We charged in, Kazemon to the air and I running with my sword unsheathed. I leapt up, grasping my sword above my head as if it were an ax. He locked eyes with me, smiled and with one swipe of his arm that I could hardly see, he hit me clear out of the air with a force that left me on winded. When I looked back up, he had Kazemon tight in his grasp and the sound of her wails was painful like a bed of needles on my ear.

He eyed the fairy with crimson, glinting eyes. Lust burned in his gaze as he retorted licentiously, "You look so much prettier when you're writhing in agony. Those beautiful sounds are so…" He paused to snicker subtly. "...arousing."

You don't know when to shut up, do you?! I got back up and went into the fray again. Using the same stance as last time, I positioned my sword, but instead of direct approach, and gave a cry as I drove its shining blade into IceDevimon's wrist. I internally cringed at the sound of the metal surpassing through what lied beneath his skin, but held a little relief that he stepped back and released both of my comrades he held captive as I jumped back into place beside Lӧwemon.

Kazemon sent back a slight smile in my direction, but I was too focused on our current adversary and the way he was smiling down at us. My sword still pierced deep into his skin, only the hilt visible above the surface, yet his expression showed no concern of this malady. "Is the little girl jealous of the notice she receives? I find it droll to no end how much you use violence as a cry for attention." With two nimble fingers, he grasped the sword and slid it out from his wound as one would a sliver. "Here, I'm sure you will enjoy this attention." He hunched forward and outspread his albino bat wings above him. Only two mere flaps sent gusts of freezing winds across the ground, a chilling sensation that became a numbing cold without warning.

We looked down and ice was crystallizing upwards, like vines making its way up a wall. I heard the others' exclamations matching the thoughts going through my mind as all sensation and feeling in my lower body began to diminish. It flowed upward to my shoulders, pinning down my arms with little space.

But at the same time, somehow I was all too aware of vibrations flowing through the ground. He was stepping towards us, his arms out with his fingers curved like he was trying to figure out which one of us he wanted to eliminate first. However, I wasn't at all doubtful of that idea, especially as he sneered, "This makes it so much easier to pick just who I want. But don't worry, the rest of you will just have to wait your turn. There's enough agony for you all!"

"Crystal Freeze!" Kumamon's alignment to Ice rendered the attempt feckless and allowed him to sneak by undetected to blow crystals of ice upon IceDevimon's leg and freeze him to the ground. His distraction also allowed Lӧwemon to get in for a Shadow Lance, however the attempt was all in vain. IceDevimon broke from the ice and took to the sky, leaving us to stare up at him in vexation as he folded himself into his wings, seemingly preparing for something.

My mind tried to comprehend what was going to happen, but nothing could possibly come to mind with the countless number of possibilities. "Be on your guard, guys!" was all I could say, knowing that there wasn't much that Kazemon, Beetlemon, and I could do in our current predicament. We could only stand there and hope the two remaining Warriors could hold their own and beat this guy. Looking to the others captured in the ice, I knew they were aware of the same thing.

The vampire Digimon outspread his wings and hovered high above the base of the Rose Morning Star, but even from this distance, that smirk on his face was still discernible. Lӧwemon's glare shot up to him as he demanded, that courage that was hardly evident in his human state shining through, "Come down and fight unless you want us to come up there to you!" A silence ensued that became a clear signal, and along with Kumamon, Slide Evolved into the Beast State.

"We must stop him now!" Korikakumon snapped open his deep brown eyes and picked up his axes. In a flash, he jumped up, seemingly much to IceDevimon's delight. "Avalanche Axes!" He swiped his axes about at the vampire faster than one could blink, focusing on power more than accuracy, but that mere factor allowed maneuverability to avoid each and every swipe. The Beast of Ice landed to the ground with a boom, frustrated with the opponent's persistence.

JӓgerLӧwemon took his place on the offensive. "Ebony Blast!" A collection of dark energy formed at his mouth and he fired it at IceDevimon, however he blocked the attack with his wing as if it were nothing. How the hell is he withstanding all of that? It's like this is all a little game to him…

I cussed out of the corner of my mouth, irritated with how this was all going. I felt useless and to blame that this was going as poorly as it was; if I could've gotten out on the battlefield, I would've been able to help them. My sword had been abandoned by IceDevimon off in the distance and I could just make it out shining in the vague light as if it were purposely trying to mock me. God, I wish there was something I could do… My eyes shifted to Kazemon and Beetlemon; I couldn't make out the words, but I knew they were saying something, possibly trying to reassure each other of Koichi and Tommy's abilities, and a part of me wanted to be able to hear those comforting words. Right now, all I could do was wallow in my anxiety.

"Hmm. Now what do you think you're up to? I thought I told you to wait till I was finished with these distractions."

That voice snapped me back into attention, but the owner had moved from his place in the sky to the ground. In a single instant, I was aware of what he was doing, and just who he was trying to torment. A burning rage developed; I would not permit that to happen. I curled my fingers only slightly, causing the spikes on my armor to eject, and began with the most motion the ice would sanction to start scraping it away with the sharp razors.

He reached behind fallen debris and captured Koji and Takuya tight in his fist, satisfied by the contorts of their pain-ridden faces and how their voices cracked. By that twisted, crazed look marred on his face, it seemed like he had wanted them to try to get their D-Tectors to operate from the beginning, just so he could justify malicious punishment. He reached one fingertip of his opposite hand to them, the very tip letting out a little flash.

"Don't you dare do anything to them!" I barked, feeling my whole body tense into one raving, livid mass. Collecting myself was impossible now, closing my lips even more so. "If you hurt them, I swear I will throw you through more torture than you could ever concoct, where the only relief is the release of your spirit into the depths of hell."

At my threat, he simply titled his head at me, standing in silence for a moment as if he didn't comprehend what I was saying. But then a macabre leer played onto his face, accompanied by a menacing cackle, "Such words come from you, but I know you won't make a move against me, even if you could get free! The love you have for them—ha ha! Ha-ha!—it's so sweet, it's revolting! It stands in your way from all the bloodshed and suffering—break free and just attack; you know you want to!"

I wanted to pull my eyes away, but something inside of me wouldn't allow me to do so. His tactic of using them as human shields was repulsive and with it, he was toying with all of us. He was trying to convince me it was of no harm to attack, even though it was clear it'd put Koji and Takuya in imminent harm, as if it would suddenly make no difference to me. Why did all of the enemies do this with me? Was it that plainly obvious that I was the weakest link, the one expected to turn away first? Could they just sense that aspect about me, how close I had wandered to their side, that it was simple to manipulate me and push me over that beckoning edge?

He looked back down at the two Warriors, pleased with the development and the complications I was creating for myself. "You know," he began casually, as if he was going to suggest something completely sensible and sane, "I don't really know that much about humans. There are many things I have been curious about." He brought them closer to his face, my body stiffened, and he made a face like he was inspecting them as one would merchandise. "So weak and fragile…" He further clenched his fists, causing them to cry out a sound that almost brought me to tears. "So I propose a little game. Let us see how high of a pain threshold these humans stand and how much you're willing to watch them scream."

He placed them on the ground and all around them, a blue dome formed. It flashed a single time with a yellow light—

It took all the will I possessed to turn my face away just as Kazemon called out to IceDevimon, "Fight, you coward!" The curve of her mouth told me everything she was feeling—I didn't have to hear her words or see her eyes to intake it and understand. I could almost see the Italian girl under that armor, ripped apart inside yet bathed in anger. I could imagine those mossy green eyes dilated and teardrops tugging at each of their corners, feel the strength she exuded to keep them from falling.

From his gaze on the Warriors of Light and Flame, to his gaze on Kazemon, his facial expression remained unchanged. "Coward? A coward runs from pain—I embrace it." He suddenly shot from his place faster than the blink of an eye and assailed JӓgerLӧwemon and Korikakumon with a single swipe of his arm to knock them off their feet. He then turned to us, his tone filled with taunting and all of its accompanying emotions. "So do you still want to fight?"

"Hey, you let us out of here, and we'll give you a real fight!" Takuya's voice cut through the air like a sharpened blade. In the notes, he still had that same drive that failed to deter him. He held his D-Tector in his grasp, banging both fists against the encasement.

Koji was the exact same way in aura. His jaw set tight and passion emulating from his enmity that could not be daunted. "Yeah, quit stalling and confront us like you should've from the beginning! Embrace your destined pain!"

IceDevimon's head turned in slow motion, his physiognomy devilish. "You already have a fight on your hands. Maybe it's time for you to embrace the pain destined for you."

Blue, vein-like projections sprung from the ground under their feet. Koji acted upon reflex and pushed Takuya out of the way, becoming entangled in them as they wrapped around his body. His scream was bathed in torture, wrenching upon every nerve in my being.

"Koji!" I thrust out my arms and shattered the ice withholding me, feeling the loathing overtaking and consuming every sense that I once had control over. Each breath I took shrieked with contempt, shaking my bones with an apprehension far beyond evaluation. My mind coiled around one word, twirling about in possessive desperation to capture it within its clawed grasp, repeating it without rhapsody or loss of meaning, Die. Die. Die. Die.

Madness suffocated me; my perception grew dim and blind as everything flashed by. Vision trembled with rough derision; all I knew was the feeling of an all-enveloping flame. Retribution was what was sought—my being palpitated with that craving, that necessity, by all means necessary. A cut, a slash, the deliverance of pain. All was a single distortion captured within the gust of untraceable time. My body wouldn't be levied by deterrence, continuation being a word of far too little simplicity. All it fueled upon was a vision of reprisal.

Suddenly, an uncontrollable spiral. The whirl sent me about with inflamed faintness, burning pulsation, and reinstated sight. Cold earth filled spaces between my shaking fingers, but rendered me immobile with a sense of amnesia. But in a blink came clarity, and a hard truth to carry. My gaze set upon a blackness—no, a Darkness—that shadowed JӓgerLӧwemon. I could sense merely from the closeness of us the bends of his overwhelming fervor, far more overpowering than my own, yet his eyes were clear with direction, his voice steady and with foundation regardless of all of the battery he received that weakened him, "No one hurts my brother!"

The taste of blood in my mouth delivered reality, the sight of countless gashes across IceDevimon's chest an onslaught of futility. Rage pulled no strings for me in my search for vengeance; my turn had passed. "Koichi…" The change from Polymerization to Beast Spirit I commenced was made for one purpose and one purpose only. I willed my strength to pool together, as it left my loins it left a distinct feeling that a part of me was leaving with it as well. All of it gathered in the silver ring around my tail, inducing a bright glow of countless colors. "Gift of Life!"

My Spirit Evolution disintegrated, but in my hands rested the ring, crackling and shimmering with life and all of the energy my Spirit beheld. Upon the knowledge given by my Spirits, I cast the ring to JӓgerLӧwemon and upon contact with his body, it absorbed through his skin into his being. And with it all of the hope I possessed.

His scars and maladies healed at the connection. He poised himself, power written into his aura. The Dark mist clouding him grew denser and more vibrant a hue at his beast-like roar. He lunged at IceDevimon, who dodged easily, but the real intention had been made clear at its fulfillment. He tackled the dome head-on and shattered it into uncountable shards with the sheer force of impact. His attention was turned instantly, however, to IceDevimon airborne above him.

He was enveloped in a violet and red smog, the red a hue too-closely resembling blood to be coincidence. His mouth was open, the corners curved upward, opening farther and farther with increasing psychosis. His fangs seemed to grow longer and his eyes swirling into a shade like red wine. "I hope you are well-prepared. I want your last battle to be memorable; I want to take every little ounce of strength from your body as you fall into the sweet abyss of death!"

The Beast of Darkness growled and sprung up at IceDevimon. At the closeness of him, the vampire wrapped his wings around him and created a tall, pillar of white wind to surround them while inside, they commenced their struggle. There were flashes of light, but no way to see what was happening in there, let alone who possessed the upper hand. I could only hope and pray it was Koichi. He had that look in his eyes; I knew he'd go full-force at his opponent. Or die trying.

The twister suddenly shattered, JӓgerLӧwemon dropping to the ground near Korikakumon, and the Dark aura about him faded. Above him, IceDevimon guffawed stridently and landed on the ground just before the Darkness Beast's head. Korikakumon poised himself, calling out to his comrade, "JӓgerLӧwemon!"

"I'm fine," he responded gruffly, pulling himself back up onto his paws, shakily at first, but with moments passing, more assuredly. He turned his head and eyed him with a fierce gaze that demanded full respect and attention. "You go free the others!"

As JӓgerLӧwemon leapt up at IceDevimon once again, Korikakumon went to Kazemon and Beetlemon. With his axes he shattered the ice that held them in place, and they took to the air, expressing conviction as they Slide Evolved into their Beast forms as well. Now, I knew, was when things were going to get much more interesting. My eyes were locked on the scene as walked to the other two un-Evolved Warriors. "You two better watch this," I retorted, a smile escaping as I peered at them out of the corner of my eye. "IceDevimon is about to get the butt-whooping of his life."

The vampire didn't seem to think so, however. He sneered at them, his words holding all notes of taunting, "It amuses how you think this will stop me. But don't worry; I always enjoy destroying many rather than just a few."

JӓgerLӧwemon spoke from behind him, the aura again beginning to emulate from his form, flaring more and more like an unstoppable inferno. "Too bad only one will be destroyed. And unfortunately for you, you're that one." His eyes sparked, a signal to his friends to begin.

Korikakumon blew a small scream of snow from his mouth, then Zephyrmon swooped down, spinning to make her body a twister, and touched it to make it a powerful gust of freezing wind. It encapsulated IceDevimon to keep him from seeing just how close MetalKabuterimon was with his cannon positioned. So when he suddenly became aware of his impending doom, the android Beast already had finished charging the Electron Cannon. With a deafening boom, the tower of wind burst in the same manner that a light bulb would explode. All that was left was IceDevimon in a state of panic, staring at his large hands as brilliantly-hued cracks began to form about his body.

"No! This can't be it! This can't be happening!" His body trembled, in a state of denial. "It's impossible that a bunch of human children defeat me! You are nothing! What could you have possibly harnessed to do this?!"

The aura enveloping JӓgerLӧwemon was filled with red lights. They twisted around and around as they merged, coming to agreement and full dint. "What we have harnessed is the power of friendship! A power you could never understand!" He jumped up, a shining silhouette of a lion overshadowing him, and he let out a roar. "Dark Master!" He ripped through IceDevimon's chest to the other side. Landing with fluidity and turning back to the enemy, he wasted no time in Slide Evolving to scan the fiend's Data. "IceDevimon, your Data has been in long need of purification!" The D-Tector in his hands slid across the revealed Fractal Code, sparks shooting out at the contact. "Fractal Code! Digitize!"

The ring of Data surrounding IceDevimon was absorbed and it left the DigiEgg suspended in a pure state. I watched it for a moment shimmering in the air. Hopefully when he hatches again, he'll never witness the hand of evil again, let alone take part in its path of corruption… It floated up and out of sight, to where it needed to go. His heart was shut so tight that he couldn't grasp what bonded all of the Warriors together. He couldn't understand friendship—he worked to cause suffering between those who loved each other. He had fallen so far… I looked at Koji and Takuya, giving them each a small smile. But when he's reborn, I'm sure he'll understand every bit of it.

The instant I saw Lӧwemon fall to his hands and knees and De-Spirit Evolve, Koji was already making his way over to him. For a moment, he only watched his older twin catch his breath, but when he eventually regained it and looked up at him, he held out his hand and broke into a smile. I could hear the faintest sound of a chortle as his brother took his hand and got to his feet. I had never heard in chuckle in such a manner before, nor had I ever seen that unmistakable glimmer in his eyes.

The others De-Spirit Evolved as well while Takuya crossed his arms and huffed, a grin beginning to make its way out onto his face. There was no oversight of how satisfied he appeared. "Well, I gotta say. After that performance, Koichi, you are definitely one of us."

JP took this opportunity to chant in a cryptic manner, "One of us, one of us, one of us…"

Zoe didn't hesitate for a second to jab him in the side with her elbow to shut him up, but said nothing regarding his total absurdity. Instead, she followed suit of everyone else and began to beam. "Welcome to the team, Koichi!"

"The team that fights the bad guys, always is searching for food, and throws low blows at each other," I continued in jest. "Yup, you'll love it."

Interrupting us was the sound of Takuya and Koji's D-Tectors. For a second I thought they were smoking or something like they spontaneously combusted, but then I saw the ice covering them melt. Along with them, the ice pillars that had arisen also began to melt as quick as if they were sitting in a frying pan. With this newest development, Bokomon was ready with information about it, "With IceDevimon gone, his power on the ice is losing its hold as well. I'll consider that a job well done!"

Takuya threw his hands onto his hips tight in determined fists. "Well then, this is a perfect time for a victory dance!" He pumped a fist into the air and looked to me with excitement ignited in his eyes. "Care to join me, Miri?"

"Taky…" I sighed and narrowed my eyes. "Bite me."

Apparently that left an opening to persist with other options. "A victory song?"

"No."

"A victory cheer?"

"No."

"A victory hug?—oh wait, I forgot that you reserve those for Koji."

"Hell n—wait, what?!" My double-take made him snicker and I felt my face burn like his Element. I hated it when he pulled crap like that. Especially when he was right.

So now was the opportune time to try to beat the crap out of him.