Hikari did not like when Taichi left her. Even though she knew he had to go to school and his karate lessons, it still did not stop her heart from aching whenever he was not around. It did not help that the Light inside her craved for the Darkness's presence. Her parents would often try and distract her from Taichi's absence; however, it never worked. She was always tempted to leave the apartment and chase after her brother whenever she noticed he was gone for longer than he should be.

Hikari wished she could teleport as Taichi could, but her brother told her that she needed more control and training over her powers before trying it herself. The only thing that kept Hikari sane whenever he was gone was their mental connection. She would try not to talk to him too much when he was at school or during karate practice, but sometimes she could not help herself. Fortunately, her brother was very understanding and would engage in conversation despite what he was doing. He even saw her spontaneous conversations as an excellent way to strengthen his multi-tasking skills.

Hikari knew that she was lucky to have a brother like Taichi. Though he was more than just her brother, he was her caretaker, teacher, best friend, and Darkness. She would be utterly lost without him.

Part of Hikari knew that she should probably not be so clingy towards her brother, but she did not care. She would continue to hold onto him as long as she could.

Light's Folly

Hikari had managed to get her brother's body onto her bed in their bedroom. She would make sure that her brother would be as comfortable as possible when he returned. The Light inside of Hikari suggested moving the body so that when Taichi came back, he would not have to face his death scene. Hikari agreed since the blood and remnants that came out of the gaping hole in her brother's chest were still scattered all over the floor.

Hikari soon joined her brother in the bed and held onto his body as tightly as possible. Yet, instead of sorrow, determination was on her face. Ever since Taichi contacted her and told her the plan, Hikari knew that she had to be ready when it was time to do her part. She would not let him down.

The sound of the apartment door hastily being unlocked reached Hikari's ears making her eyes widen with worry. Her parents were not supposed to be home yet. She could hear feet rushing into the apartment before suddenly stopping in their tracks. It was suddenly quiet, and Hikari guessed it was because of the current state of their living area. Though soon, the quiet was shattered by a very frantic voice.

"Taichi! Hikari!"

Hikari was surprised to hear that it was her grandfather's voice instead of her parents'. What was he doing here?

"Taichi! Hikari!" he called out again while seemingly searching around the apartment.

She debated whether to answer or remain quiet, not sure if it was a good idea if their grandfather discovered that her brother was dead. Hikari knew that he and her brother were super close. Their grandfather would undoubtedly be heartbroken if he knew what happened to Taichi.

He continued to call for them as he searched through the apartment before Hikari could hear him reach their bedroom door. Their grandfather tried opening the door, but Hikari had already locked it when she had first brought her brother into their room.

"Taichi! Hikari! Are you in there?! It's me! Please open the door?!" he begged as he pounded on the door while trying to get in.

Hikari bit her lip in uncertainty, not knowing what to do.

"Hikari," called out Taichi.

Hikari quickly turned around to see the spirit of her brother once again.

"Onii-chan," happily said Hikari as she got out of the bed and activated her powers so she could hug her brother.

"Hey, Hikari," greeted Taichi with a grin as he hugged her back.

When the hug was over, Taichi noticed the change in his surroundings.

"Why are we in our room?" asked Taichi.

A slight frown came to Hikari's lips as she looked down to avoid her brother's gaze.

"We didn't want you to have to wake up there," was Hikari's answer.

Understanding showed on Taichi's face. He was touched by both Hikari and the Light's consideration for him.

"Thank you," he replied sincerely.

Hikari looked back up at her brother with a warm smile. "You're welcome, Onii-chan."

Taichi smiled back at Hikari, yet their grandfather's voice interrupted them before he could say anything else.

"Taichi, Hikari, please open the door!" he urgently yelled while banging on their bedroom door.

"Jii-chan?" Taichi called out in surprise, not expecting his grandfather to be in their apartment.

"Taichi? Is that you? Please let me in now; it's very important!" he exclaimed once he heard his grandson's voice.

Taichi was concerned hearing just how worried his grandfather sounded. Taichi knew his grandfather was a very calm and collected person and that he would only lose his composure if the situation were truly dire.

Taichi almost went to try and open the door himself in response to his grandfather's plea; however, Hikari suddenly grabbed him to stop him from doing so. Taichi was about to question Hikari until he noticed the white glow around her body currently holding his translucent form in place. Taichi was a little embarrassed that he momentarily forgot about his current state but hurriedly shook it off to address Hikari.

"Hikari, hurry, open the door for Jii-chan," Taichi told her seriously.

Hikari frowned at this.

"Are you sure, Onii-chan?" she asked him while briefly glancing at her brother's body lying on the bed.

Taichi followed Hikari's gaze and cringed when he saw his body. Nevertheless, the knowledge that he would soon be brought back to life eased Taichi's nerves and strengthened his resolve.

"Yeah, I'm sure."

Hikari still did not look convinced but relented to her brother's request. She let go of Taichi and walked over to the door to unlock it. The second she opened the door wide enough, their grandfather swiftly entered the room.

Their grandfather was relieved when his eyes quickly found Hikari and Taichi. Yet when he noticed that the Taichi in front of him was translucent, he was perplexed. It did not help that he saw Taichi's unconscious body lying on the bed.

"Is there a reason why your astral projecting right now, Taichi?" he asked his grandson.

Taichi could not blame his grandfather for coming to that conclusion when looking at his body. Since Hikari had healed his body, the hole from his spiritual form had been healed too. It would seem that he was sleeping in bed while projecting himself outside of his body to anyone else. Also, his grandfather knew that he used to astral project to the Digital World when he was younger and had only stopped doing so when it became dangerous to travel there. So, theoretically, he should still be able to astral project there or somewhere else again if he wanted. Taichi would have to investigate that when he returns to life, but he would have to tell his grandfather the truth for now.

"I'm not using my powers Jii-chan…I-I'm dead," admitted Taichi.

Taichi saw comprehension dawn on his grandfather before anger came to his face.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" he cursed loudly while continually punching the nearby wall in frustration.

This was not the first time Taichi heard his grandfather curse, but it was the first time he did it in a fit of rage. Taking a glance at his sister, Taichi saw that she was now giving their grandfather an understanding and sympathetic look. Taichi was not surprised that their grandfather's display would not put off Hikari. If anyone could relate to how upsetting his current death situation was, it was her. Still, Taichi did not like seeing his grandfather this way, especially when he would be coming back soon.

"Jii-chan, it's okay. I won't be dead for long," Taichi told his grandfather to calm him down.

Their grandfather immediately turned toward Taichi.

"What?" he asked in shock.

"The Digimon from Witchelny figured out a way to bring me back. That was the reason why I'm here. I wanted to let Hikari know that we're about to start the spell so she can be ready to help," explained Taichi before a thoughtful expression appeared on his face.

"Actually, Jii-chan, you might be able to help too. Having you and Hikari being my connection might make it easier for the spell to work. I can ask Witchmon if that would work," proclaimed Taichi excitedly.

"Okay, hold on, Taichi. You completely lost me here," he told Taichi with a perplexed expression.

Taichi apologized to his grandfather when he realized that the man had no clue what he was talking about.

"Sorry, Jii-chan, I got carried away," Taichi apologized.

"That's okay Taichi, just start from the beginning," he instructed his grandson.

Taichi nodded and quickly gave his grandfather a summary of what led to his death and what happened afterward. Many emotions flickered on their grandfather's face as Taichi explained everything. When Taichi was done, their grandfather had a troubled look.

"Jii-chan, what's wrong?" asked Taichi, not understanding why his grandfather seemed even more worried now than before.

The older man faced Taichi with a severe gaze.

"Taichi, even if you come back, those Digimon will try to kill you again. If we don't figure out a way to permanently stop them from coming after you, then there is no point in bringing you back to life," he explained in a severe tone.

Taichi's eyes widened when he realized that his grandfather was right. It would have been fine if the angel Digimon had not found out about his attempted resurrection, but now that they did know, they would most likely send assassins after him again, and Taichi did not want to end up trying to be brought back to life twice.

Taichi frowned. How was he supposed to stop Digimon of Light from coming after him? Even when Hikari and the Light defended him, that did not stop the angel Digimon. So, what will? Taichi had no idea what to do.

"We've had enough! We'll end this once and for all!" vehemently declared Hikari. With the echo in her voice, it was clear that the Light and Hikari were both talking.

Taichi and their grandfather immediately looked at Hikari and saw the blazing white aura surrounding her and the firm determination on her face.

"What are you going to do?" their grandfather asked Hikari with concern in his voice.

Hikari's eyes narrowed with resolve.

"If they don't leave Onii-chan alone, then no longer shall the light dwell within the Digital World," Hikari and the Light declared.

Taichi's eyes widened in shock when he heard this. The fact that his sister and the Light were willing to go so far in protecting him and the Darkness was astounding. Taichi was about to show his gratitude to Hikari. But then, the data inside him that had belonged to the numerous angel Digimon that Lucemon had given him suddenly stirred inside of him. Their urgency was so intense that they suddenly took control of his mouth before Taichi realized what was happening.

"You can't do that! If you take the Light away, then the Digital World will plunge into chaos!" exclaimed several voices mixed in with Taichi's voice.

Hikari faced her brother with a firm expression on her face. She was livid.

"We don't care! If you all want to take away the Darkness so badly, we'll return the favor and take away the Light!"

Taichi could tell that Hikari and the Light meant every word they said, and so did the Digimon inside of him. Taichi could feel the angels' panic and desperation, but he thought it served them right. They had pushed Hikari and the Light too far. Now they were about to suffer the consequences of their actions. Taichi could tell that they wanted to try and talk her out of doing this, but he knew just how stubborn his sister and the Light could be when they made up their minds.

"Child of Light, please…" they began as they continued to speak through Taichi, but his sister and the Light refused to listen to them anymore.

"No! Our decision is final! No dark then no light! Now get out of my Oni-chan!" they screamed vehemently as she suddenly grabbed him and began ripping out their data from him.

Taichi did not expect Hikari to react so violently and quickly tried to stop her before she tore all their data out of him.

"Hikari, no, I need their data!" Taichi yelled in urgency. However, Hikari did not comply.

"No, they don't belong in you! Angels are bad!" screamed back Hikari as she continued her onslaught.

If the situation were not so dire, Taichi would have been amused at the ironic statement, but right now, he needed to find a way to calm Hikari down before he lost too much data.

"Hikari, stop!" he commanded in a firmer voice as he managed to grab her hands and take them off him.

Yet Hikari seemed to be lost in her rage and managed to get a hold of him again. Only this time, her grip was much tighter and her attack on the angel Digimon data inside of him more vicious.

Taichi could hear the painful screams of the angels inside of him as the Light itself was destroying them. He felt their anguish, and soon their agony became his. Taichi was growing weaker as he was losing too much data. Fortunately, their grandfather chose now to intervene

"That's enough, Hikari! You're hurting Taichi!" he shouted as he swiftly pulled Hikari away from Taichi and restrained her in his hold so that she could not escape.

"No! Let me go! Let me go! I have to take the bad angels out of Onii-chan!" exclaimed Hikari as she tried to get out of her grandfather's grip.

"If you do, you'll hurt Taichi even more than you already have! Do you want to continue hurting your brother Hikari?!" he yelled back sternly.

Their grandfather's words pierced through Hikari's rage, and she immediately stopped fighting in her grandfather's arms. She then looked at Taichi, and to her horror, she saw him on his knees in pain as his form was constantly flickering in and out of existence. She could sense that her brother was losing energy fast. Tears came from her eyes when she realized the damage she had done to her brother in her fit of rage.

"I hurt Onii-chan," Hikari said in a regretful tone.

When Taichi saw how upset his sister was, he wanted to comfort her immediately, but his form became more unstable when he tried to move toward her. Taichi was starting to panic as his soul was slipping into inexistence. The Darkness inside Taichi quickly reacted to his plight and used its power to try and stabilize Taichi's soul. Sadly, maintaining the communication spell was draining Taichi faster, and the Darkness could only do so much to keep Taichi's soul stable.

"Onii-chan/Taichi!" both Hikari and their grandfather called out in alarm when Taichi had suddenly disappeared.

Hikari could no longer sense her brother, and neither could the Light. The weight of what she had just done hit her full force. Hikari was wrought with devastation and guilt. It was her fault that her brother was gone for good. She was no better than the angels. No, she was worse than them. She was the one who had dealt the final blow.

All Hikari could do at that moment was break down and cry.

Plutomon was the first to sense when the Child of Darkness's soul was suddenly severed from the living realm. This saddened him. He had genuinely hoped that the boy would have succeeded. He knew that the boy was destined for something great even if they had not known what that destiny was. Yet, the child's life had been cut off before he could get the chance to fulfill it. The worst part was that the child's fate could have been avoided if those of Light had not been so blinded by their prejudices.

But now that the Child of Darkness was gone, Plutomon was sure that there would be serious ramifications from this. Not only did he expect those that the child had befriended would seek out vengeance on his behalf and cause anarchy in their wake, but without the child's presence to maintain the Darkness, those who wished to abuse its powers could no longer be restrained.

Without the Child of Darkness, Plutomon was sure that the future of the Digital World would soon fall into chaos and devastation.

The only thing Plutomon could do was decide his role in the upcoming madness. However, his choice was evident from the start.

He was a being of Justice and Darkness.

His duty was to seek out those who had wronged the Child of Darkness and carry out their proper judgment. And that is what he intended to do.

Witchmon was concerned when she felt the Communication spell getting weaker. That was not a good sign. She hoped that Taichi would finish talking with his sister soon before he exhausted his energy again.

Unexpectedly, Witchmon could no longer sense Taichi as the Communication spell was broken.

"No, Tai!" she frantically exclaimed as she tried to recast the spell in hopes of reaching the child again.

However, Lucemon stopped her.

"He's gone. I can't feel him anymore," stated the fallen angel with a grave expression on his face.

"No, he can't be! There must be something I can do!" replied Witchmon, refusing to accept her friend's demise.

"Nonexistence is different from death," Lucemon said to her.

Of course, Witchmon knew that. It was one thing to try and resurrect someone, but bringing someone back from nonexistence was entirely different. Still, Witchmon could not accept that Taichi was gone for good.

"I won't give up yet. Not until I know he is truly gone," proclaimed Witchmon with a firm look on her face.

Lucemon gave Witchmon a contemplating look before replying.

"What do you need from me?" he asked firmly.

Witchmon gave the fallen angel an appreciative glance before a determined expression came on her face.

"I'm going to perform a locator spell. I'll need your help to strengthen it," she told him.

Lucemon nodded in understanding, and Witchmon immediately began casting the spell.

Witchmon waited in anticipation and hoped that the locator spell would find its intended target. With Lucemon adding his power to the spell, its scanning range and radius were increased tremendously.

Please find Taichi! Witchmon pleaded as the spell continued searching for the child's soul.

Witchmon was starting to worry when the locator spell had not found Taichi after some time passed. She was beginning to fear that the spell had not located her friend because there was nothing to find. But if there was one thing that she learned from Taichi, it was not to give up no matter how impossible things seemed to be. So, she would remain hopeful, and if this locator spell did not work, she would have to try something else.

I won't give up, Taichi, I promise!

SkullWarGreymon continued his onslaught as more of the enemy's army showed up. He refused to stop until every one of them was defeated. Suddenly, SkullWarGreymon felt an excruciating agony course through his body, causing him to falter amid battle. Fortunately, before the enemy could take advantage of him being distracted, several of their allies came to his aid and protected him. However, SkullWarGreymon could no longer focus on the battle before him because he knew that the pain that he was currently feeling was because of Taichi.

Something or someone was hurting his partner! He needed to find Taichi and help him!

SkullWarGreymon tried to use his senses to locate Taichi, yet it was like his partner was miles away instead of somewhere in the school. SkullWarGreymon remembered that this happened before when Taichi had used the Communication Spell to contact Hikari. But if Taichi was in the Human World talking with Hikari, what could be hurting him? If he was going to figure that out, he needed to find Taichi first.

When SkullWarGreymon was about to search for his partner, the bond between him and Taichi suddenly disconnected. He knew that the only thing that would cause their bond to sever was if Taichi's soul no longer existed. He immediately tried calling out to Taichi through their connection even though it was now broken.

Tai!

Tai! Please answer me!

He tried again, hoping that his partner would answer him.

Taichi!

TAICHI!

Yet, SkullWarGreymon never received a reply. His partner was finally gone.

The loss of his partner hit SkullWarGreymon hard. For a moment, all he could feel was grief and heartache, but then it soon turned into an uncontrollable rage. A menacing-looking black aura surrounded SkullWarGreymon as his eyes turned blood red.

He would avenge Taichi! He would make sure that no angel or other Digimon associated with them would be left standing! He would destroy them all!

SkullWarGreymon let loose all his anguish and rage on the enemy. No angel could escape his wrath.

Some tried to stop the Undead Digimon but were deleted and absorbed within seconds. Others who could sense how dangerous and out of control he was, tried to make a tactical retreat. However, SkullWarGreymon did not give them a chance to escape as he hunted them down and instantly killed them.

The Digimon of Witchelny and those of the Demon Army had also sensed the Child of Darkness' demise and were just as vicious as the Undead Digimon. They, too, decided to avenge Taichi and would not stop fighting until every angel Digimon was deleted.

Even more Digimon, who had sensed Taichi's demise, had joined the battle to avenge the fallen child.

The angel Digimon and their accomplices were overwhelmed and outnumbered. They soon realized that they would not win this battle, yet it was too late. There was no reprieve for them. They were being mercilessly slaughtered left and right by all the vengeful Digimon.

This war had now become a bloody massacre.

Through his many years of living, Satoshi knew the pain of loss very well. He had lost many family and friends over the years, and still, there was no getting used to that feeling of utter grief that came from losing a loved one. However, the unexpected loss of his grandson broke something deep in Satoshi.

When his old partner had told him about Taichi's death as a courtesy in honor of their friendship, Satoshi did not want to believe it. Yet, when he got to the apartment and saw the bloody mess in the living room, the reality settled in. But after finding Taichi and Hikari and hearing that there was a chance for his grandson to come back to life, Satoshi became hopeful even when he knew it would not be as easy as Taichi first thought it would be. Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worse. Because he had been too late to stop Hikari, too much damage had already been done.

Hikari had broken down immediately when she realized what she had done, and now the girl was in a ball on the floor, crying her heart out. If Satoshi was honest, he wanted to do the same. Even though he loved his family equally, he would not deny that Taichi had a special place in his heart.

When he saw Taichi as a newborn, he knew that the Digital World had already chosen the child. Even though it had been many years since Satoshi's adventure in the Digital World, his sensitivity to anything related to that world never dulled. Yet, he had not been thrilled when he understood that this meant his grandson would one day have to go and fight evil to protect the Digital World. Satoshi had hoped that there was no longer any need for more children to be called to the Digital World after he and his friends had defeated the Dark Masters, but apparently, that was not the case. Nevertheless, he knew there was nothing he could do to change Taichi's destiny, and so he did his best to support and prepare his grandson for what was to come.

Yet, in the end, his efforts had been for naught. His grandson had not just been killed but was now gone forever.

Satoshi could not help but feel partially responsible for this. The moment he had learned that Digimon were trying to kill Taichi, he should have told him about his own experiences in the Digital World, and then they could have worked together to come up with a solution. Or he could have tried and contacted his friends for help. Instead, he had grown too used to keeping his time in the Digital World a secret from his family and kept his mouth shut. Now it had cost him his grandson's life.

Still, Satoshi was the adult here, so he kept his composure as best as he could and took Hikari into his arms, holding her tightly as she continued to weep.

Taichi felt dread when he found himself surrounded by blackness. One minute, he was still with Hikari and Jii-chan, then he was here. The only conclusion that Taichi could come up with was that his time had finally run out. He had lost too much energy, and now he was gone for good.

Tears began to fall down Taichi's face in both sadness and frustration. After all of that, he had been so close to coming back, but now it was too late.

More tears came as sobs emerged from his throat. There was nothing he could do but wallow alone here in this nothingness.

Please do not cry, Taichi, a comforting voice echoed through the blackness.

Taichi immediately recognized the voice, though he was confused that the voice was not coming from his head like usual. Instead, it sounded like the voice was coming from all around him. He began looking for the source of the voice, yet he could not see anything in the utterly black area.

"Darkness, w-where are we? A-Am I-I gone?" Taichi anxiously asked.

No. But you were on the brink of inexistence. I had to quickly take you to my world to keep you from fading away permanently, Darkness answered gently.

Taichi was a bit relieved to hear that he was not gone yet. This meant that he still had a chance. Now that he knew where he was, Taichi was less worried and became more curious about this place. When he looked at his surroundings again, he realized that this place was not as dark as he initially thought. Taichi could see the ocean and a lighthouse in the distance. It only took a second for Taichi to conclude that he was on a beach.

"So, this is your world," stated Taichi in amazement.

Yes, and as my chosen, this world is yours as well, replied the Darkness.

Taichi nodded in understanding

"What do we do now?" Taichi asked, unsure what his next course of action should be.

Taichi guessed that the moment he left the World of Darkness, he would be back to fading out of existence again unless he gained more energy. But where could he get that? The Darkness knowing Taichi's thoughts answered his question.

I have something to give you that will help. Go to the lighthouse, Darkness instructed Taichi.

Taichi did as told and made his way to the lighthouse. When he got there, the Darkness led him inside and up the stairs until he reached the very top of the lighthouse.

What you need is in the aerobeacon, said Darkness.

However, a perplexed expression came on Taich's face when he heard the word aerobeacon. Sensing Taichi's confusion, the Darkness could not help but be amused.

I keep forgetting you are still very young. It's the large rotating object in the center, explained the Darkness.

"Oh!" stated Taichi in understanding before hastily walking over to the spinning aerobeacon.

Yet when Taichi went in front of the aerobeacon, it immediately stopped rotating at the point where the giant lens was now facing him. Taichi was surprised when he looked inside the lens and saw a small square-like object embedded into it. Somehow, even though Taichi did not know what the small square was, he instinctively knew that it belonged to him.

"It feels like it's mine," whispered Taichi as he could not take his eyes off the object.

That's because it is. I made it personally for you, my chosen child, Darkness replied in a fond tone.

"What is it?" wondered Taichi.

Your crest, Darkness answered.

"My crest?" Taichi said in a puzzled voice, still not fully comprehending what the crest was.

Take it.

Taichi did not hesitate to reach inside the lens and grab the crest. The moment Taichi touched it, power flowed through him, and he could feel himself gaining some strength back.

After taking the crest out of the lens, Taichi could not help but stare at it in amazement. Nonetheless, he did not understand what this crest was nor why it was created for him. Once more, the Darkness was aware of Taichi's thoughts.

I hoped to wait till you were older to explain certain things to you, but with our current situation, I feel you should know why I have chosen you, Taichi.

Taichi had always wondered why he had been selected to be the Child of Darkness. The Darkness had told him that he was destined for something great, but it had never told him exactly what for.

"Please tell me," Taichi begged, eager to finally get the answer to his questions.

The Darkness complied and told Taichi everything.