Author's Note: Oh boy! This story's just begging to be updated, and here it is! The next chapter! Now you get to see what happened to Sora! ^_^
Rating: R, the whole fic is R, so I'll just rate all the chapters that way. Hehehe
Disclaimer: I hate writing these stupid things! Well, that is unless I have something witty to say. lol. At the moment I don't, so curse you disclaimer!! *shakes fist*
A pungent aroma began to burn the inside of her nostrils, as her eyes slowly opened, surveying nothing but darkness around her. She moved to sit up, but hit her head on something cold and hard above her. She felt around her and ran her fingers along what appeared to be silky soft linen. Sora cried out in horror upon realizing she was in a coffin!
Her arms instinctively flew up and pounded on the lid of the casket, but to no avail. It was stuck tight. Her whole body began to tremble as wild thoughts raced through her head. Had the vampire killed her? Did they think she was dead and buried her alive? Was she a vampire?! So many scenarios made her head spin and if she hadn't been entombed she very well would have vomited. Sora began to feel her face, she wasn't cold therefore, she couldn't be dead. Her fingertips traced the outline of her mouth until she ran them along her teeth. No fangs. That was a good sign, she thought.
Then quite suddenly, a flood of memories washed over her, making her stomach churn. She had been kidnapped; yes, she could clearly remember that. But by whom? She bit her lower lip and furrowed her brow in frustration until it had finally dawned on her. The vampire!
Sora's eyes began to water, she silently prayed that any moment now she would wake up and this would all be a terrible nightmare, but she had already woken up. All she could think about now was how she would escape from her prison.
She hadn't tried kicking the lid off. "Good idea," she congratulated herself. Sora raised her legs up and pressed her feet against the lid. This position was really uncomfortable, considering her cramped surroundings. She sucked in a big gulp of air before her muscles tensed and she began to push with all her might. To her surprise, the sarcophagus lid gradually slid out of place. A seam of light broke through the darkness of the coffin's interior, and Sora slipped her fingers into the small crevice and pushed the lid a few inches more. The cover must have been made of some kind of stone, she thought, because it was no easy task removing it. After about ten minutes of trying, she had finally managed to slide the heavy slab over enough so that she could step out of the casket.
The strong odor she had smelt before washed over her again. Sora let her eyes adjust to the darkness. There had only been a tiny hole in the dirt-encrusted wall, which allowed a speck of sunlight to show through. From what she could see, Sora made her surroundings out to be some sort of crypt. She cautiously made her way around the small area, covering her nose and mouth as she neared one particular spot. The odor seemed to be strongest there. Sora leaned in closer to inspect what it was and stumbled backwards, landing on her rear. Her eyes widened at the sight of the skull grinning back at her. The smell had to have been the decay of ages past.
She turned her head and held back convulsions when she made out the entire scene. Not one, but several decayed corpses lay rotting in the corner, covered in worms and maggots, which meant that some of them had been recent. Sora slowly began to crawl backwards, feeling around for something she could use to pull herself up.
Her back hit something cold and solid, which she used to push herself to her feet. She turned around to see another coffin and could only imagine the horrors contained therein. Her inquisitive nature told her to open it and see, while her common sense advised against it. Sora licked her dry lips and placed her hands upon the lid of the second casket. She braced herself and started to shove the lid off. When she had gotten it half way removed, she timidly peered inside. What she saw made her jump back in fear, nearly toppling over a second time. Her breathes came in short, quick gasps, until she shook her head and recomposed herself, somehow remembering that vampires only slept in the day light hours. And to her knowledge, it was still daylight.
Little by little she inched her way back over to the open coffin. Trying to muster up enough intestinal fortitude to investigate it further. Looking back inside the casket, she saw the outline of the vampire's figure. Two sharp animal-like fangs poked out from underneath his upper lip. It was right there and then she decided she wanted out of that horrible place as fast and as soon as possible. She struggled to push the lid back over the casket, and then began to feel along the walls for some sort of entryway or passage.
It seemed like hours had passed by before she felt a weak point in the wall. Sora forced all of her weight into the wall; she could feel it starting to give way, and tumbled out on the other side.
Sora blinked a few times before bringing herself up to her knees. She gazed around a long corridor, her mouth hanging open in wonder. There appeared to be at least twenty or thirty doors down the long stretch, and she hadn't a clue where to start. She rose to her feet and dusted herself off, inspecting her arms and legs for any minor injuries she might have sustained the night prior. The hallway was dimly lit with hundreds of candles hanging from the walls. Despite her current situation, she did admire what she thought to be lovely, scarlet red wallpaper, that is, until she got closer to it. Her hand flew up to her mouth at the ghastly sight.
"T-that's n-not wallpaper…" she choked, staring at the bloodstained walls. The horrified girl crept down the long passageway and decided to start with the doors on the left side. She slowly turned the knob to the first door and flinched as it made a loud, and very obnoxious creaking sound. The room looked ancient. Every article of furniture and ornaments that decorated the room were covered in a thick coating of dust. Sora shut the door and proceeded to the next one.
"This could take hours." She sighed forlornly. Time was something she didn't have to spare.
Koushiro Izumi was awakened by the sound of his telephone ringing. He moaned slightly as he rolled over in his bed, and blindly reached for the receiver. His eyes slid half way open as he hit the talk button with his thumb.
"Hello." He yawned.
"Izzy! It's Tai!" The brown haired boy all but shouted into the phone.
"Tai?" Izzy said hazily, glancing at his alarm clock. "It's only 6:30am, what are you doing up this early?" he queried.
"Well wake up and I'll explain everything." He replied urgently.
Izzy did as he was instructed and within twenty minutes was on the computer cross-referencing information about vampires. He only had a few hours before Matt would be released, and Mr. Ishida was supposed to pick him up so they could begin their search.
The red-headed digidestined whizzed by his mother on his way to the door, carrying his laptop under one arm, one of his shoes in the other.
"Izzy! Where are you going? You haven't had your breakfast yet!" his mother shouted.
Izzy hobbled back over to the kitchen and set his laptop down on the floor.
"Sorry mom, I'm kinda in a hurry. The guys are waiting for me." he explained as he pulled his other shoe on.
"Oh, I see. Well at least take something to eat." She said, offering him a piece of toast, which he accepted gratefully. Outside, a horn blared, and Izzy hoisted his laptop back up, raced into the kitchen and quickly pecked his mother on the cheek before bolting out the door.
"Bye!" she called after him waving.
Tai stood with the car door open as Izzy dove into the backseat, then he quickly shut the door and hopped into the front.
"Hi guys!" the redhead greeted the four other children and Mr. Ishida.
"What have you got for us Izzy?!" Tai said, not giving anyone a chance to reply.
"I got a lot of things. I found this guide to vampire hunting online." He stated.
Matt raised his eyebrow, giving Izzy a quizzical look. "Someone out there has way too much time on their hands." He said.
"Who cares? Where do we start?" Tai urged.
"Calm down Tai, this could take a while, and getting overly anxious isn't going to help you any." Izzy commented. Tai squinted his eyes at the boy and then let out a long sigh.
"Izzy's right Tai." Kari added. "Don't worry though, we'll find her." She said reassuringly.
T.K. leaned over his brother, who sat in between them in the backseat.
"Careful T.K." Matt complained, "My stitches."
"Oh sorry." He apologized, grinning sheepishly.
"Alright, it says here that vampires sleep during the day." Izzy stated.
"Yeah, yeah, we know that." Tai said impatiently.
"It says, they often chose dark, secluded places during their slumbering hours." He continued. "For example, graveyards, caves, stuff like that."
Kari thought a minute and was the first to speak up.
"The only graveyard nearby is the Odaiba Cemetery." She announced.
"Then we'll go there first." Tai said, buckling his seatbelt, as Mr. Ishida pulled out of Izzy's driveway.
Twenty minutes later, the so-called team of vampire hunters arrived outside the rusted iron gates of the Odaiba Cemetery.
"That place sure does look spooky." T.K. commented as the car slowly rolled past.
When the car had come to a complete stop, the children unbuckled their seatbelts and piled out.
"Alright, what's the game plan?" Tai asked clenching his fists.
"Well, since we have no idea what it is we're exactly looking for, I suggest we split up." Izzy advised.
"That's your plan!?" Tai shot back with a less than enthusiastic frown. "We could be wandering around here for hours!" he yelled, throwing his hands up in the air.
"Got a better idea Tai?" Matt said, folding his arms. "I'm waiting."
Tai bit his lower lip and gazed down at the gravel spread across the outside perimeter of the cemetery gates.
"Alright, fine. We'll split up." He shrugged.
"I'm with Matt!" T.K. announced before running back to the car for something.
"I'm coming with you Tai." Kari stated.
"I guess that leaves just you and me Mr. Ishida." Izzy laughed.
"Now if you kids find anything, you report back to the group." Mr. Ishida instructed, "The last thing I want is for a mob of angry parents hunting me down because one of you got hurt. Nobody's going to be a hero. Is that understood?" he stated firmly. Everyone nodded in unison.
Tai and Kari decided to begin their search on the East side of the cemetery, while Mr. Ishida and Izzy took the West. The two brothers proceeded to the North.
Izzy carefully stepped over each marked grave, glancing at the names on the headstones. He knew the vampire would not be here, but he was going on the notion that he might find a fresh plot of dirt that the vampire might be using as a temporary hiding place. Mr. Ishida was also looking for the same.
"Up the hill further is a mausoleum." He commented to the young boy.
"Perfect." He remarked. "Let's head over there, I don't think we'll get very far looking here." He said motioning to the ground.
Meanwhile, Matt and T.K. were racing each other along the stretch of headstones leading up to the top of the northern hill of the cemetery. The younger blonde tucked the object he had retrieved from the car into the pocket of his shorts and smiled. It was his father's crucifix, something had told him that they may need it.
"What's the hurry T.K.?" his brother asked as he ran along side him.
"There's a crypt located at the bottom of this hill, I saw it when we were driving down that winding path that leads to the front gate." He replied. "Is it really okay for you to be running with those stitches?" he asked, a hint of concern in his voice.
"They're fine, I only had to get about twelve of them, and my running isn't pulling on them!" he assured.
By the time they had reached the bottom of the hill, the two were completely out of breath. Matt shaded his eyes from the sun overhead with his right hand. He squinted at the stone-like building in front of them.
"Hey T.K., how did you know this was a crypt? I thought those were supposed to be underground?" Matt asked.
"One of my friends at school has relatives buried here. He said there was a crypt in the middle of the cemetery. When I saw this from the car, I figured it had to be it." T.K. explained as they searched for an entrance. "Actually, the top part is more of a mausoleum, but downstairs is the crypt." He added.
Matt ran his hand along the length of the structure, and paused when his hand hit something cold and metallic, a doorknob. He quickly ripped away the tangled mess of vines that had enshrouded the doorway. T.K. headed towards his brother, and stood beside him watching inquisitively as the door began to creak as he slowly pulled it towards him.
"I think they need a better gardener." T.K. said, commenting on the outer appearance of the crypt. Small weeds and vines had overrun it, and oddly enough, the grass surrounding it was almost knee high.
"It's like nobody's been here for ages." He continued.
"Why do you suppose they let it go like this?" the older blonde asked, as he stepped inside.
"Beats me?" T.K. replied, rubbing his arms as a cold chill blew by him upon entering. "Let's make this quick, this place gives me the creeps." He muttered.
Matt too began to feel the sudden coldness, and started to rub his hands together. They both scanned the names engraved on the tombs that surrounded the entire room.
"What are we looking for?" T.K. asked feebly.
"I'm not quite sure, but just check for anything suspicious." Matt answered.
T.K. pushed the door open that led to the crypts below and slowly crept down the stone steps.
Matt was preoccupied with looking at the names that covered the walls. Behind each one lay the earthly remains of the former living. He hadn't noticed T.K. disappear down the winding corridor leading to the tombs below. A prickling sensation ran up Matt's spine and he quickly whirled around to see his brother gone.
"T.K.?" he said warily. "This isn't funny." He slowly made his way to the open crypt door. Matt peered down the stairs to see the faint glow of a light.
"Takeru?" he inquired, making his way towards the light, every nerve in him tensing up.
He had made it all the way to the bottom of the stairwell when a dark figure loomed out at him. Matt jumped back in surprise and slammed up against the cold, stone wall. His heart nearly leapt out of his chest, when he heard a familiar voice.
"Hey Matt!! Check this out!" T.K. shouted.
"T.K.!!!" he yelled, clutching his chest. He had started to say something, but all that escaped his lips was an irritated groan.
"Oops. Sorry Matt." He grinned sheepishly. "But you gotta see this!" he said, motioning towards the incandescent glow.
Matt sighed and followed his brother towards the light. It was a single candle burning in the middle of the room. It scarcely lit up the place, but it was enough light for the two boys to see a large gaping hole in the wall.
"What's so weird about this?" he asked.
"Look!" T.K. pointed to the hole. "This dirt was freshly dug. It's still moist." He commented, scooping up some in his hand and sifting it with his fingers.
Matt gazed at the hole and moved in closer. He noticed something that appeared to be broken, lying on the ground below the hole. The blonde picked up the shattered pieces of what had broken and brought them over to the light.
"What is it?" T.K. asked curiously.
"It's one of those name plates, like the ones upstairs that tell you who's buried there." The older boy explained as he placed the smooth white pieces together.
"What's it say?" T.K. prodded again.
"Hold on a sec." His brother replied, seemingly agitated by his brother's impatience. "It says…Mircea Tepes."
"Who's that?" T.K. queried.
Matt shot him an annoyed look, "How the hell am I supposed to know?"
"I dunno?" T.K. shrugged, "just thought maybe you'd heard of him."
Matt studied the name, trying to recall if he had ever heard it before.
"Hey Matt." T.K. said shaking his brother's shoulder.
"Yeah, what?" was his reply.
"Look." He said solemnly, pointing to the candle.
"What is it?" Matt asked, giving him a bewildered look.
"T-that candle isn't melting." He stuttered.
"What?" Matt said in disbelief, as the two boys moved in to inspect T.K.'s findings.
Just as the younger boy had said, the candle had not melted. The wax remained perfectly intact, and the wick had not burned down either. A cold gust of wind permeated the small enclosure and both boys trembled involuntarily.
"M-Matt?" T.K. whispered.
"Yeah T.K.?" his brother replied.
"If we're underground, and there are no doors or anything down here…then…where did that gust of wind come from just now?"
Matt brought his gaze up to meet his brother's. They both stared wide-eyed at eachother in silence
Not a word was spoken, no communication was required. They both felt it was time to vacate the premises.
Tai sprinted across the grassy fields of the cemetery. He was determined to find Sora. However, he hadn't realized that he had left his little sister in the dust.
"Tai! Wait up!" she cried, trying her best to keep up with her brother. Tai suddenly slowed to a halt and whipped his head around to see his sister closing ground.
"Sorry Kari." He apologized.
"I know you're trying your best to find her…" she panted as she jogged up beside him, "…but you need to slow down."
"I know," he admitted, his gaze shifting to the ground. "Come on," he urged as he broke into another run.
"I don't think he understood me." she sighed, and picked up her pace. Beyond the stretch of grave markers was a small forest. It was not part of the cemetery, but it was connected to the land that made it up. There were no fences around it, but a few signs forbidding entrance were scattered here and there. Tai completely ignored the signs as he bolted through the underbrush and the trees.
"Tai wait!" his sister admonished, "Don't go in there!" But it was already too late. Kari did the only thing she could think of, and followed her brother into the eerie cluster of trees.
Tai paused here and there, his eyes darting right and left, searching for anything that might lead him to Sora or that evil creature's hideout.
"Tai!" he heard his sister shout. Once again, his mind had gone elsewhere and he wheeled around to find his sister, having forgotten about her in his haste.
"Kari!" he called, cupping his hands over his mouth as he ran.
The brown-haired boy jumped over a fallen tree and shoved past branches that had jutted out into the pathway.
"Kari!" he tried again, before his feet went out from under him. Actually, it was more like the ground went out from under him as he fell down a large black pit and landed hard on the leave-covered ground below.
"Tai!?" Kari screamed, letting her ears guide her to where she had heard her brother last. "Taiiiiii!!" she hollered as she stepped forward and was engulfed by the blackness as well. Her arms flailed in the air as she desperately tried to find something to catch herself on, but to no avail. The entire descent was filled with the sounds of her screaming as her own voice echoed off the cavernous walls. Her horrific fall finally came to an end when she landed on something warm, soft, and…furry.
"Tai?" she asked tentatively, feeling around in the pitch-blackness, as her hand caressed the rims of his goggles. She hopped off of the unmoving boy and stared up in fear at their gloomy surroundings. Wherever they were, it was completely shrouded in darkness, she mentally noted. Kari couldn't even see her hand in front of her face, let alone her own brother.
In the shadows, she heard a sudden movement, and automatically knew it wasn't her or her brother.
"Tai?" she said fearfully, her bottom lip trembling, as she shook her brother to wake him. She could hear the creature moving towards her, and the hairs on the back of her neck bristled.
"I want to go home now." She whimpered.
Closing Note: So, what's the verdict?? Should I continue? Well, I'm going to anyway, but just curious as to how many ppl want me to. ^_^ Like my other fic, I shall apologize in advance for the upcoming chapters. The only time I write now is during the peak hours of the night and mid morning, so if my writing has lost a tad bit of pizzazz, blame it on…uh…*searches for nearest scapegoat* the keyboard, yeah, darn thing! *smacks keyboard* Yeah, I'm pathetic aren't I? But at least I'm not arguing with myself anymore. *smiles*