Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon.

Chapter Thirteen: The Battle for Hope

Takeru's image of his mother lit up so brightly in front of him and dissolved as if into digital bits flooding forcefully into his heart. As if a surge of power and emotion overcame him something felt as if it had been mended that had been broken a long time ago.

"Takeru," Hikari said hugging him more tightly. "I knew you'd come,"she said nearly tearing. "I knew it would hurt, but I knew you would make it. I had hope,"she said wiping away a tear, Takeru letting go.

He knew somehow that everything had fallen into place as if Homeostasis had planned even this, but, he did not feel bitterness to her for it.

"We should get out of here," Takeru recommended, the foundations of the house starting to shake.

"What's happening?" she asked gripping onto his shirt.

"The walls are coming down," Takeru smirked, feeling as if the walls in his heart literally were coming down. "My heart isn't the same as it was before, so this place, it doesn't even exist anymore. It's collapsing on itself."

He grabbed her hand, a lightness overtaking him as he ran out of the house with her, opening the door and escaping the house as it started to shake and then crumble. He looked around noticing all the foundations, every standing structure or entity around him had utterly collapsed save one shadowy silhouette.

He stared ahead as if knowing everything inside his own former collapsing heart. It was not at all surprised to see the one concealed in shadow.

"What is that?!" Hikari asked a little fearfully.

Takeru smiled kissing her cheek, calming her a little. "Don't worry Hikari," he smiled. "I'll take care of everything."

He walked aways from her facing a familiar shadow.

"Surprised to see me?" the familiar voice said chuckling.

The dust died down, and Takeru witnessed his appearance. Their could be no doubt based off of it's vehement appearance, bloody claws, and wretched form it could not have been anything but Devoiremon yet something looked different about him.

"I thought you really had died back there," Takeru said nonchalantly. "You really don't go down that easy."

Devoiremon grinned and opened it's mouth widely, the head of Gennai sticking out as if he wore the digimon over him, the fangs painfully pressing against his head, blood trickling down it.

"Nice entrance. How is it possible you are here?" Takeru asked, not so taken aback. "I watched Devoiremon devour you."

Gennai snickered, his face grinning in madness and pain. "I'm not that easy to get rid of. I may not be in the digital world anymore, but since that darkly Patamon was a digital entity and is a part of the digital record then I could go there in that one piece that is not connected to you. You might have the record back," he snarled, "But I still have Devoiremon! I uploaded my digital code into him and now he is under my control!"

Takeru saw him look at his claws, a grimace of disgust on his face.

"I may have become a digimon," he said, "but even though I have this repulsive appearance, when I kill you I will have your- oh?" he said looking over to the side of him completely side tracked.

"Hikari hello there!" he smiled waving. "Don't worry I won't leave you out of this. I'll make sure to eat you to. I've got to get my revenge on Homeostasis as well!" he exclaimed smiling.

"You won't touch her," Takeru replied walking in front of her, so he could not look at her directly.

"Ho?" he said grinning starting to walk forward towards him. "You think you can protect her from me? You don't even have anyone to protect yourself anymore," he explained. "The Tower of Completion is far away from here and there's no way I will let you escape me. You'll never reach it," he said confidently. "Face it Takeru. Nothing is going to stop me from eating the two of you and controlling your body becoming the digital record. Who knows what powers I will gain eating Hikari and Homeostasis to? I'll be even stronger than the digital Goddess herself!" he exclaimed.

Takeru glanced back at Hikari, who seemed a bit shaken by Gennai, but he smiled like he always had with her as if letting her know it would be all right.

Her face seemed to calm down, looking at him with adoration and trust. She nodded her head.

Takeru then turned around facing Gennai. "You still don't understand," he said. "You think this is all one of your little games," he said holding up his hands as if he did not know what to do with him. "You think you're a king in this three way battle between the darkness and the light and you," he smiled. "But really, you're just a pawn being used by both sides."

"I'm a what?!" Gennai growled fiercely cracking his claws.

"You heard me," he said sighing. "Don't tell me you did not notice?"

"And what would that be?" he said grinning nervously.

"Homeostasis and Terrormon gave you just enough independence," he said making a minuscule gap between his index and thumb, "for you to believe you actually could manipulate your own will and they stood back while you used that emotion to their advantage."

Takeru stared at him feeling a little sorry for him, but also callous for all that Gennai had put him through. He had mixed emotions to how the old geezer helped him as child, became renewed back when he was a teenager with Azulongmon's help, and somehow betrayed everyone as he started to progress into adult hood.

"I was using them!" Gennai exclaimed foaming at the mouth. "I used both Homeostasis and King Yggdrasil and now Terrormon for me to become like them!" he shouted. "What would a digidestined brat know who followed a blind path chosen for him?!"

Takeru looked at him shaking his head. How could Gennai have devolved into such a monster? He still could not believe even after all that had been done to him and the others that this still happened to be the same Gennai as before, but following the path of darkness.

"Oh," He said looking at him recognizing the desperation on his face. "I get it now," he said dejected.

"You understand nothing!" Gennai snapped.

Takeru lifted up his hand and pointed it at him as if he wanted to reach out to him and keep him at a distance. "Gennai," he said pitifully, "You liked it. You liked the taste of darkness," he smiled sadly. "And I did for a little while to because it felt comfortable."

He studied Gennai who did not seem to understand any of the words he was saying as if he had already been carried away by his own madness.

"You want to possess hope?" he said, taking his hat and flinging it away, a ferocity burning within him he could not explain. "You think you can possess me?" he said gritting his teeth.

Gennai stared at him like a ravenous beast as if he would fling himself at him.

"All right Gennai, then let's go at it!" he said opening his arms as if he would squash all of the evil intentions radiating out of Gennai.

"Foolish boy!" Gennai said rushing towards him, his claws outstretched. "You're mine!"

"Oh no he's not!" a familiar voice Takeru heard coming from somewhere close by. He looked down as a lightness emerged from him, radiating, Gennai driven back by the intense light emitting from it.

Takeru stared down amazed, but knowing that winged companion, the guardian who watched over his past, his present, and will in his future. The little winged digimon turned towards him smiling, his eyes lighting up.

"Takeru! It's been awhile," Patamon laughed lightly.

Takeru wanted to bear down and smother his little buddy in his arms, but knew he had to hold himself back.

"What is this madness?!" Gennai exclaimed laughing as if he had lost control. "I must really have lost it!" he exclaimed. "There's no way you can be there! The Tower of Completion is-"

"-Right here," Takeru said, placing one hand over his heart. "You still don't get it Gennai," he confessed. "I've won. My body obeys my voice. My heart has broken down all the walls. You and Devoiremon are the only outsiders here," he said. "And Patamon here is the hope taken form in my heart," he declared. "You can't defeat him!"

"Try me boy!" he groaned darting around as if trying to confuse Takeru and Patamon.

"He's really jumpy isn't he?" Patamon said looking back at TK as if disgusted.

"Well, that's how he's always been," Hikari said from behind Takeru, Takeru turning towards her.

"We've got to set him free from all of this," She said staring at Takeru as if they both had the same idea.

"Just like Meicoomon," she said, Takeru noticing a tinge of pain in her voice.

He walked towards her and placed his hand on her shoulder, just like he had done in the past as teenagers. "It could be worse," he said soothingly. "We could have become part of him. I only like it when it's the two of us this close," he said as if half kidding.

Hikari looked back as if she knew what he meant, but stared down at the ground twiddling her foot as if she knew what he meant. Mhm," she nodded as if recalling their memory together.

"Hey what about me?!" Patamon blurted out.

Takeru found himself stifling a laughter, Hikari also doing the same.

"Oh don't you worry Patamon," Hikari encouraged. "When it comes to Takeru you're his number one!"

"...Digimon," Takeru winced smiling at him.

"Well, then don't leave me out,"Patamon huffed.

"Don't worry," Takeru grinned. "Are you ready to show him what you're made of?"

"You mean what you're made of," Patamon said, a glint of determination in his eyes. "I am the hope in your heart manifested right?"

Takeru nodded agreeing with his buddy. "Then let's show him what true hope looks like," he said determinedly as if mustering all the hope in his heart and entrusting it to his best friend.

"Patamon!" he shouted infusing him with it.

In a bright blinding night he watched as magnificently Patamon digivolved all the way to Seraphimon, his digimon gleaming with his blue and golden armor.

Gennai seemed to halt in his tracks looking up at the magnificent mega level digimon. "It's not possible!" He exclaimed. "Seraphimon!"

His eyes then matched with Takeru's as if he started to understand what he meant from what Takeru had told him before.

"This is fine," he swallowed starting to shake grinning from ear to ear. "Who needs hope when their is none? The darkness tastes so much more delicious!" he exclaimed giddily running at him.

Fiery dark orbs appeared in his hands and he jumped up and released them towards him.

"Shadowy wisps!" he commanded, all of the strange fire-like glowing orbs rushing at Seraphimon.

Takeru watched curiously as the wisps danced around Seraphimon and then set him ablaze in purple, white and black flames in layers.

"Ha!" he scoffed. "How do you like that?" he cackled. "Not even a mega level is a match for me!"

"Not so fast," Takeru said looking up at Seraphimon, Gennai's hateful glare meeting his.

In a glint of the eye Seraphimon raised his golden arms and pushed them going out from his head to the east and west the flames vanishing in a golden burst of glory.

Gennai seemed to shield his eyes as if it hurt him to look upon it.

"Gennai," Takeru called out, barely able to stop Seraphimon from delivering the finishing blow, "You knew both hope and light," he said as if mourning for him trying to break through to him, "But you still chose the darkness. Instead of building yourself up with hope you chose to despair and despair leads to it's own destruction. But I chose hope," he countered. "Even if life turned against me, I still chose to hope," he explained. "Even if those I loved fell away or disappeared from this life I still chose to hope, but you chose the darkness Gennai because you refused to understand hope!" he exclaimed feeling as if his entire body resonated with the digital record and the crest of hope within his heart. "Hope is not something meant to be kept to yourself, but to be shared with others," he declared. "It's to lift others up and so lift yourself up!" he added. "Don't you remember?" he asked as if trying to force Gennai to move past all of the madness to his past when he did not have any viral infections. "You did that Gennai when we were kids! You gave us hope for the future! You told us about what we needed to do to save the digital world and our world! It was you who did it!" he said.

Gennai lowered his head, Takeru wondering if his words got through to him.

"Somewhere..."Gennai rasped as if it pained himself to saying anything but vitriol, "...Somewhere in my data banks I once knew. But I have long forgotten," he said as if swallowing recognizing any feeling to his words. "But now," he said lighter, his eyes turning more maniacal than he had ever seen them. "I don't need it! Dam it all! Light! Hope! Despair! Darkness! Just let it all collapse into chaos!" he bellowed laughing uncontrollably.

Takeru shook his head sadly. He knew that without a shadow of a doubt, Gennai had completely given in.

He watched as he came at him claws sharpened ready to cut apart and devour all of them.

"Let's see how you handle the chaos!" he shouted. "Wailing Waltz of Despair!"

Instantly his claws literally extended out of his hands painfully, blood spurting out turning into blood red swords, which he used savagely in a sinister dance wailing on Seraphimon constantly, not even giving him room to even breathe.

"How do you like that?!" He shouted. "Do you feel how much despair I truly am in?! Do you taste the darkness?!"

Takeru casually looked at Seraphimon whose armor looked a bit dented from all of the force against him, but he expected even this.

"That's enough," he said, lifting up his hand towards Seraphimon.

"End his despair my friend," he said solemnly slowly putting down his hand.

In a brilliant golden light, Seraphimon took on a golden appearance, all semblances of blue replaced by brilliant gold and white gold. He raised both hands and unsheathed a brilliant golden sword from a sheathe on his back in a language that could not be recognized.

Gennai looked on him stunned, diving forward with all claws as if ready to commit suicide taking him down with him.

The brilliant digimon turned towards Takeru who nodded his head as if telling him to end it.

With that Seraphimon shouted out "Seven Star Attack: Hopeful Knight!"

In gleaming golden flashes he slashed Gennai's claws apart one by one until finally his last one stabbed through Devoiremon, Gennai screaming out as he burned away as if the sword had reduced him to nothingness. Not even a digital bit remained.

He hesitated staring over at where Gennai once stood as if truly had been a shame.

He felt Hikari's arms wrap around him from behind him supporting him.

"Takeru," she consoled.

He grabbed one of her hands and kept shaking, not at all rattled, but puzzled he did not feel any remorse; only pity.

Seraphimon hovered over towards him, went back to Patamon's form and hugged him.

"Did I do good Takeru?" he smiled, Takeru watching as Patamon dissolved slowly merging back inside him.

"Yeah buddy," he said feeling that part of him return. "Thank you...for everything."

Takeru did not have long to satisfy a goodbye to that part of himself. The environment around him started shaking as if it would shatter, Hikari grasping onto him.

"Hikari," he said. "Don't worry, we're both going to be leaving," he said.

He looked down towards her and put one hand on her cheek.

He felt one of her hands grasp his shirt as if forcefully, Takeru feeling slightly uneasy.

"Whose going to be leaving?" Hikari asked innocently.

He watched unnerved as her eyes changed to a brilliant purplish color, Takeru instantly recognizing Amalgami.

"Y-you!" he stuttered. "Where is Hikari? Where is she?!" he shouted.

He felt unnerved as Amalgami grinned pushing herself away from him.

"She's gone back," she admitted. "She's going to go reclaim her body, but you are still here aren't you?" she said walking away from him, turning around, her hands behind her back as if hiding something from him.

"Yes," Takeru said a bit puzzled. "If I have my heart and the digital record then why am I still here?"

'You're so silly," she laughed, one hand cupped over her mouth giggling. "Don't you know in order to open a locked door, you have to use a key to open it?"

Takeru stared at his hand, realizing what she meant. He thought he had used the record to defeat Gennai when he had brought Patamon forth, but if he did their could be no way he still was stuck in his own heart.

"The way you are now," she said, "Is worthy. You are worthy to use the Digital Record Takeru," she declared. "But, you can't open the door on all of that power at once otherwise you will be obliterated," she advised."So what are you going to do?"

Takeru placed one hand on his head, gritting his teeth frustrated at himself. Despite how far he had come, this last obstacle would still keep him here, or cause his own death even though he would save the others.

"I did not come here to die," he said putting down his hand, grasping his fist near his side.

"I certainly would hope not!" Amalgami teased. "But I'm sure before you left you managed to obtain at least a little of the record to summon. You know, as a preliminary to the main event?" she said curiously looking down near his fist.

Takeru stared down where he saw her glancing intently. He felt his fingers brush against something hard in his pocket, wondering what it could be.

He remembered then how this teenage self had said their was something important at the school and put something in his pocket, but Takeru had forgotten due to the intensity of everything that had been happening around him.

He felt the smoothness of it in his pocket and pulled it out.

Amalgami glanced at it giggling as if Takeru had tricked himself. "Oh? What do you have there?" she said as if she already knew what it was.

Takeru looked down contemplating the wondrous item in his hand unable to believe it, the glass like world of his former heart shattering into pieces around him. "I can't believe it," he said barely able to breathe, the world completely breaking. "It can't be! This is-"