Author's Note: I hope everyone's healthy and staying safe.

Your reviews:

Warrior Seadra: When you mentioned the 3-way battle, I thought you were talking about Mystic Digital War, but I knew that didn't have Myotismon in it. I needed to go through my fics before I found it: War of the Digidestined. Wow, that was a long time ago, heh.

Setokayba2n: To make things work in this story, I needed to work around certain vampire myths. Sora mentioned that she can walk in the sunlight, and they obviously can't turn into bats, but yes, they do age. And no, Myotismon and all his forms are dead; Hikari is the main antagonist.

Guest: The situation's only going to get worse, lol.

A young woman with curly blond hair held her microphone close to her face, "This is Catherine Deneuve, reporting. Sora, Ruki, Ken, and Chika continued their way through the forest when they entered a part that fed on their memories. Each one was forced to relive the worst parts of their lives but Chika, having already come to peace with having to kill her vampire-turned brother, was able to break free. She helped to free the others but Sora, reliving the memory of betraying her Taichi, came to realize that she couldn't be with this Taichi. While Ai, Miyako, and Iori continued to travel with Dagomon's army, Neo and Arkadimon caught up to Taichi, Daisuke and myself. A fierce battle erupted and Taichi lost! We could only watch as Neo took Taichi back to the castle.

Taichi sat on the small cot in the cell, staring up at the ceiling. He should not have been surprised that Hikari would have an actual dungeon, nor could he have believed Neo would have beaten him.

He rubbed his eyes. Neo had been right; when had Taichi started barreling through his opponents, relying purely on his digimon's power to win? He made it to the finals of the D-1 Grand Prix out thinking his opponents, but now…

His thoughts were interrupted by Agumon's snores at the end of the cot. How could he sleep at a time like this?

The sound of footsteps brought his attention to the cell door. Neo stood on the other side. "Finally got you," he sneered, "Finally at my mercy."

"You mean Hikari's," he said with a smirk.

Neo growled. "Once she's done with you, I can have what's left!"

Taichi sighed. "Look, we can't stand each other, but is this what Rei would have wanted?"

"Don't say her name!" Neo screamed, "You don't get to say her name! When you killed her, you took everything from me!" He squeezed his fist so hard it looked like he would shatter his own bones. "Nothing is holding me back! I'm going to destroy you and then destroy the Digital World, and I'll laugh doing it!"

Taichi tried to find some semblance of sanity in Neo's eyes, but there was still nothing there. He had been right before, there was nothing left of Neo to save.

A PiccoDevimon fluttered down the hall. "Lord Neo, Lady Hikari wants to see you."

Neo stared at Taichi for another moment before following the digimon out of the dungeon.

The Dead Princess

Chapter 36

Dagomon Arrives, the Battle Begins

Hikari studied the young man over the monitor as he paced the floor of his cell. Despite how many times she had seen him, chills still went up her spine. The exact double of her older brother, the one who abandoned her to Myotismon, the one she killed and took his strength.

And soon she would add this one's strength to her own.

She felt the craving, the hunger, the anticipation tremble through her, but this was replaced by the fatigue, the drain. Her vision went blurry and she rubbed her forehead.

"M'lady."

She turned as Neo dropped to his knee. "Now that Taichi's our prisoner and with the Chosen Masters losing their grip on the Digital World, it's time to strike. Lead our forces through the exit gate. I will join as soon as possible."

He blinked. "What? But what about Yagami? You promised me…"

He gasped and struggled for breath as Hikari's eyes glowed a dark black. "I am your master! Never forget that!"

He dropped to his hands and knees and panted. "Y-yes, mistress."

She nodded. "Now go."

He rose to his feet and marched out of the room. The weariness shot through her body like a lightning bolt and she stumbled on her feet. Black Tailmon trotted over from where she had been curled up on the floor. "You need your sleep."

Hikari nodded. A digital vampire was free of the weaknesses of vampires from folklore, save only three things: the need for blood, death from a stake through the heart, and the vampire sleep. She left the observation room of the dungeon and made her way through the castle halls to her private room, furnished as any queen's would be except for the large, black coffin in the center. Lesser vampires such as Sora and Neo needed the vampire sleep, but she was the master vampire, her strength was greater, but so was the weariness. The coffin was unnecessary, any bed would do, but she enjoyed the confined darkness.

She climbed into the box with Black Tailmon curled at her feet before pulling the lid shut. Kenta would watch over Taichi until she was ready for him.

Ready to feast.


Daisuke pulled Catherine behind a black rock and hissed for her to be quiet. The light of the day had only just started to push past the haze but five figures could be seen trotting along the beach. "What are they?" Catherine whispered.

Daisuke silenced her again and watched them in the distance, their features becoming recognizable as they passed in front of the black rock; Hangyomon.

"…still can't believe the master is free," one said.

"And that it was a human that freed him," another said, "It's not one of the Dead Princess's humans, right?"

"Nah," a third said, "It's some other group that came here."

"So, are they, like, our allies or something?"

"I wouldn't bet on it. You know what they say, never trust a human. The others are keeping them prisoner. At least, until we all get back there."

"But why keep them at all?"

"It's best not to question what Lord Dagomon does. Once the army gets here, the Dead Princess will be finished. They've got every Deep Saver in the Dark Ocean."

"How far away are they?"

"Not far. We'll meet up with them in no time."

They continued past and soon disappeared further down the beach. "What was that all about?" Floramon asked.

"They've got some of our group," Daisuke frowned.

Catherine sighed. "What should we do?"

Daisuke glanced in the direction of the Hangyomon and then turned to the other side of the beach. A mountain stood tall in the distance, with a castle at its peak. Help the others captured by the Hangyomon or sneak into the castle and do what they came here to do?

He turned back to the others when a sound like thunder filled the air. They crouched behind the rocks as a black mass emerged from the castle; a thousand Devidramon passed overhead; most carrying ground-based demonic digimon in their arms. Daisuke was not aware he had been holding his breath until they were a black spot in the distance.

The silence was broken by the crunch of sand filled the air and Daisuke spun around with his hand hovering near the digivice on his belt. He relaxed and grumbled, "Don't sneak up on us like that."

"Sorry," Chika smiled as she and her Piyomon emerged from the forest of rock pillars, "But I knew there was no way to warn you beforehand so…" She shrugged.

Behind her came Sora, Ken, Ruki, and their partners. "Oh, thank heavens you're all okay," Catherine smiled.

"Okay might be a strong word," Sora's Piyomon replied, "But we're here."

"Never mind that," Ken said, "You saw the army leaving the castle? Where were they headed?"

Daisuke frowned. "I've got a feeling they're going to meet the approaching Deep Saver army."

"What Deep Saver army?" Sora asked.

Daisuke related the conversation overheard from the two Hangyomon. Sora frowned. "That just made things a lot more complicated. How did you get here anyway?

"After we got separated in the forest, we ended up on the beach and just followed it in this direction."

Sora furrowed her brows. "But you should have gotten here way before us then. You took the most direct route."

"We've been hiding from Sabia," he replied.

"Sabia?" Ruki asked, regarding them for a moment before continuing, "You seen Yagami?"

Daisuke glanced at the others. "Um, he was with us until Sabia got him."

"He was captured again?" Renamon asked.

Ruki crossed her arms and rolled her eyes. "How many times do we have to rescue him?" She motioned to the castle with her head. "I take it that's the Dead Princess's?"

"Yes," Sora nodded, "The original plan was to sneak in through the underground river, to the castle's cistern, but as you can see, the mountain stretches for at least a kilometer before we get to the cave."

"It's still the best plan we've got," Daisuke nodded.

"We're going in now?" Chika's Piyomon asked, "But, sir, if Miyako and Iori are with this Deep Saver army, shouldn't we go help them?"

Daisuke turned to Sora. "How strong is this Dagomon?"

"Strong," she sighed, "Very strong."

Daisuke was quiet for a moment before nodding. "Sora knows the way to this river and through the castle. She'll come with me and Catherine to sneak inside." He turned to Ruki and Renamon, "You two can reach Mega, so we'll probably need that power against Dagomon. You'll be able to follow that demonic army with no problem. When they meet Dagomon's army, do what you can to free the others."

Ruki's eyes narrowed. "Giving us orders?"

"Let's not argue," Ken said, "We need to help Ai, right?"

The orange-haired girl stared at Daisuke for another moment before turning and beckoning the others with a wave of her hand. "Let's go."

Daisuke turned to Sora. "Now, show us to the river."


"What's the problem?" Agumon yawned.

Taichi stopped his pacing and stared at him. "What do you think?" he snapped, waving to the bars surrounding them.

The small dinosaur shrugged. "Yeah, I know we're prisoners, but that's not what's bothering you, is it?"

He winced. Damn, his partner was closer to him than…anyone. "All right," he sighed, "It's Sora."

"Sora?" Agumon blinked, "What's the problem with her?"

"When we were fighting Neo before," he said, resting his head against the brick wall, "I…When I almost gave up, I didn't think of Sora, I thought of Rei."

Agumon cocked his head to the side. "So?"

Taichi sighed, shaking his head. "You don't get it. Digimon don't have romance, do they?" He plopped down next to him, "Me and Sora were trying to…" How to put it? "…be together but…"

He shook his head again. "How can I be with her when, deep down, I still think of Rei?"

"I know you told me what happened," Agumon said, "But she was really special to you, right? So, of course, you're gonna think about her."

Taichi gave a weak smile and rubbed Agumon's head. "Thanks, buddy, but you really don't understand. Thinking of Rei just made it hit home even harder. Me and Sora are from different worlds. It's not fair to her." He stared at his feet, "I can't be with her."

Agumon frowned. "Oh, Taichi…"


Ai hugged her legs as the Hangyomon leaped to battle positions and raised their spears. Dagomon's forces had camped near a mountain, hoping the casting shadow would hide them from sight, but now a black mass of demonic digimon flew through the sky. The army was flying past on the other side of the mountain, but the Hangyomon waited until it had passed before relaxing.

"The Dead Princess's army," the Hangyomon with the red bandana said, "Do you think they were looking for us?"

"Send out an army to look for an army?" said the Hangyomon with an eyepatch, "Nah, you send scouts for that. They were going somewhere else."

"It doesn't matter," Dagomon said, in his deep gurgling voice as he towered over them, "They've passed us, so we continue to the castle."

"That might be good news," Miyako whispered to the other prisoners, "We were all heading to the castle, so maybe the others are there too."

"Maybe," Iori said, "But would that do us any good? How would they get past the Hangyomons to help us?"

Before Miyako could answer, two Hangyomon rushed up to Dagomon and bowed. "Sir! Three humans with a Renamon, Wormmon, and Piyomon were just spotted."

Ai felt her heart beat with hope. Ruki and Ken!

"Where?" Dagomon asked.

"Heading north. We think they're pursuing the demonic army that just passed."

"Where are the humans now?"

"Already passed our position, sir."

Dagomon waved his tentacle arm. "Then forget it, our destination is the castle."

Ai's heart dropped. "They passed right by us."

"Don't worry," Miyako smiled, "We're gonna get rescued. Just wait and see."

The tween girl pulled her legs even tighter to her chest. "And what if we're not? What if we're stuck here for the rest of our lives?"

"Ai!" Impmon gasped, "Where's your hope?"

"Gone," she said, in a whisper, "Taken from me."

Impmon glanced at where Dagomon was speaking to the Red Bandana Hangyomon and the Eyepatch Hangyomon. "But…"

"I just feel so naked without it," Ai sniffled, "Like part of me is gone. I can't even make you evolve to Fully Evolved anymore."

Impmon hesitated before shaking her head. "Don't worry about that."

"Yeah," Armadimon grinned, "We can evolve without crests. We'll take care a' ya."

Ai gave a weak smile. "Yeah, thanks."

The ground shook as Dagomon approached. "On your feet," he said, "The army and the other humans have passed. It's time to continue on our way."

Ai and Impmon were pushed beside the other Chosen by the Hangyomon and they marched out of a cleft in the mountain onto the dark sand of the beach. The black water of the ocean roared as it crashed onto the shoreline. A short distance ahead was another mountain, on which sat a black castle.

They continued along the beach until reaching a wide path that snaked up to the peak. A pair of Devimon stood at the bottom. "Halt!" one shouted, "Stay where you…"

Dagomon's tentacle rammed through his chest, deleting him instantly. The second took to the air, but the lord of the Dark Ocean destroyed him with a blast of black energy from his mouth. The army continued up the slope until a dozen Devidramon flew from the castle. They were torn apart by a barrage of a hundred spears.

"Pathetic," Dagomon snarled, "I hope the Dead Princess has not weakened during my imprisonment. I want a challenge!"


Daisuke peered around the edge of the corner into an empty hall. "It's clear."

The others joined him as they exited the stairs of the cistern and entered the castle proper. A brick hall that smelled of dampness stretched before them. "Okay," Daisuke said, "Where to?"

He turned to Sora, who was staring at her feet. "Takenouchi!"

She blinked. "What? Oh, um, if we keep down this tunnel, we'll be on the bottom floor. Lady Hikari's throne room in on the top floor."

Chika blinked. "What about Yagami?"

She gasped. "Oh, um. The first place we should check is the dungeon."

Her Piyomon looked up at her. "Sora, are you okay?"

She nodded and started forward. "Yeah, I'm fine. Come on."

They turned right into another hall and then left at another. The damp black bricks gave way to dry gray ones. The darkness parted as windows appeared on the walls. "Sunlight," Floramon grinned.

"Or what passes for it here," Catherine muttered.

Her partner shook her head. "It's good enough. I don't like the darkness and…look!"

The others joined the plant creature and hissed in unified shock. An army of Hangyomon was right outside the castle walls, with a massive squid creature at the head. "It's him," Sora sighed, "It's Dagomon."

"Dagomon?" Daisuke blinked, "But if he's here, then where did that demonic army go?"

V-mon sighed. "And we just sent Ruki and the others to free our captive members."

Daisuke echoed his partner's sigh. "Let's hope that they realize they past Dagomon's army and come back." He motioned to the window. "Open it. I want to hear what's going on."

Chika pushed open the glass and a boy's voice could be heard. "Well, Dagomon, welcome. I see that you're looking more yourself."

"Kenta," Sora's Piyomon explained, "He must be on the upper balcony."

The massive Deep Saver gurgled. "Where is your queen?"

"She is…indisposed at the moment," the boy answered.

Sora raised an eyebrow. "Indisposed…? Where could she be?"

"The vampire sleep?" Piyomon asked.

"Yeah, maybe."

"Vampire sleep?" Catherine asked.

The vampiress nodded. "I think it's some adaption of the stories of vampires needing to sleep in coffins during the day. Digital vampires can sleep just like other humans but if we hold off sleeping for too long, we go into something like hibernation. Since Lady Hikari's the strongest vampire, she needs the sleep more than me or the others." She crossed her arms, "It has to be, why else would Kenta be dealing with Dagomon?"

Dagomon's voice echoed through the air. "Your forces are more incompetent than I remember. Your army passed right by us."

Kenta responded with a laugh, "That army was not for you."

Daisuke turned to the others. "Then where was that army going?"

"And where are they leading Ruki and the others?" Catherine asked.

Dagomon must not have like that answer, as his voice grew louder and deeper. "That matters not!" He lifted a familiar object that dangled from his tentacle. "Your mistress is looking for these…crests, yes?"

"Where did you get that?" Kenta asked.

He smirked. "The same Chosen that freed me."

Sora leaned out the window and squinted her eyes, catching a glimpse of yellow in the center of Dagomon's tentacles. "Ai," she said as her face fell, "Ai freed Dagomon and he stole her crest."

"So," Dagomon continued, "What say you? Shall we bargain?"

There was a pause before Kenta's voice answered. "We could, or we could just take it from you!"

A shadow suddenly blocked out what little light there had been and the air was filled with the screech of Devidramon.

"So be it!" Dagomon screamed, "I will destroy you! Attack!"

The line of Hangyomon leaped into the air and threw their harpoons in a rain of projectiles. What little light in the sky was soon darkened by the shadow of an army of Devidramon that dropped from the sky. Their demonic claws knocked aside the harpoons, but many still screeched as their data vanished from the sky. A large number still made it through the barrage and used their Crimson Nail to slash across the Hangyomons' chests.

A force of Octmons scurried up the rear line and fired Roaring Sea Ink from their guns. The Devidramon cried as ink splashed over their eyes. The Hangyomon darted between their blind swings and jabbed their harpoons through their chests. More Devidramon were deleted but another wave flew down from the castle roof, led by a Phelesmon.

"Demon Shout!" he screamed, soundwaves so loud that it sent cracks along the ground.

A Crescemon flew out from the Deep Saver army. She attacked with her bladed weapons but Phelesmon blocked with his trident.

Daisuke pulled away from the window. "We can't watch this all day." He stared at Sora, "Where's Taichi?"

She thought for a moment. "Prison cells."

"Lead the way."


Taichi turned his head when he heard the dungeon door open. He gasped. "What the hell are you guys doing here?"

Daisuke gave a half smile. "Just thought we'd stop by and see how you're doing."

Catherine wrung her hands in her shirt. "How can you be joking right now?" She looked over her shoulder, "Is someone coming?"

Sora was silent as she unlocked the cell and swung open the door. "H-hello, Taichi."

He once again thought of Rei. "H-hey, Sora. Um…"

"We need to talk," they said in unison.

The castle rumbled and Catherine shrieked. "Can you do that later?"

"Yeah, what's going on out there?" Agumon asked.

"Dagomon's fighting Kenta," Sora explained.

"Dagomon?" Taichi asked, "He's freed?"

"We can talk about that later," Daisuke said, "But Sora thinks Lady Hikari's vulnerable."

He blinked. "What?"


Iori watched the battle for a moment before studying the Hangyomon standing guard around them. A Devidramon made it past the front line and sent blades of razor-sharp wind from its wings. The Chosen and their digimon dropped to the ground but a swarm of Octomon tentacles grabbed the demon and ripped him apart.

Iori brushed himself off. "We need to find a way to escape. We can use the chaos of this battle."

"How?" Miyako asked, ducking as an explosion sounded in the distance, "We go anywhere we're gonna get killed! And where are we supposed to go?"

He paused. "Ichijoji and Makino went after the demon army. We either go after them or we sneak into the castle and take Princess Hikari."

Impmon looked to her partner. "What do you think, Ai?"

The tween girl was staring at the ground with her hand resting on her chest. "Ai!"

She blinked. "What? Oh, um, I, um, I don't know. Sorry."

Impmon rested a hand on her leg. "Ai, we'll find a way to get back your crest."

"But it's more than just me," she said, "You can't reach Fully Evolved."

Another explosion followed by a massive scream. Dagomon grabbed demon Digimon with his tentacles and ripped them in half with his teeth. Iori studied their Hangyomon guards again. "Get ready. We'll need to wait for the right moment."


Taichi peered around the corner. At the end of the hall sat a staircase stretched up to a balcony etched with demonic gargoyles. "Up there?" he whispered.

Sora nodded. "Yeah, that's her bedroom."

"She's up there in her coffin?" Chika asked with a shiver.

The Chosen stepped around the corner and started for the staircase.

"Halt!"

They spun around to see a squad of Devimons rushing forward, claws and fangs ready. "We'll handle this," Daisuke ordered, "Get up there, Taichi! This is what we came here for."

"Go!" Sora shouted as she grabbed her digivice.

Taichi watched V-mon, Sora's Piyomon and Chika's Piyomon evolved to XV-mon, Birdramon, and Peckmon before they met the incoming Devimons. He nodded at Agumon. "Catherine, you're with me."

She and Floramon followed them up the stairs without a word.

Taichi pushed open the double doors at the top of the stairs and stepped into a bedroom fit for a queen, but where the bed should have lain was a blue coffin etched with gold.

"She really went into this how vampire queen thing, didn't she?" Agumon said.

Taichi could only nod; his heart was pounding too hard for him to answer. He swallowed, though his through was so dry it took him three tries and pushed open the lid. Hikari lay there in her blue gown, eyes closed and arms folded over her chest. She looked like a young woman who died before her time, even more of a tragic story than her life already was, save for the two fangs pushing through her lips.

Taichi swallowed again and pulled out the small mallet and wooden stake he brought with him into the Dark Ocean. He pressed the point over where he guessed her heart to be and rested the mallet on the other end.

This was it, the end of his quest. The reason he was here in the Digital World. He held his breath and swung.

Next: A battle, a force of darkness, and heartbreak. Can the heroes survive or will their dark sides emerge?

Chapter 37 The Darkness of the Heart

Did you enjoy it? Any criticism? Thanks for the read and please remember to review.