[Well it's good to know that at least one person is still reading. I suppose that's all I can really ask for. And as long as someone out there is listening, I'll keep on writing. I was kinda' hoping to have this fic done by the end of August, but that's looking unlikely. When I started, I had no idea it would last as long as it has. But down to business, I'm sure you (however many of you there may be) can't wait to see how the fates of the virus and the DigiDestined are about to change. This is a big chapter, and things are about to turn completely around. And so, without further ado…]

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"What have you done?!" demanded Geno.

"Exactly what was necessary," Ken replied coolly.

"You TRAITOR!" screamed Geno. "How could you do this to me?!"

"DigiDestined!" shouted the Emperor, ignoring Geno. "Use what I have given you to crush this creature!"

"Ken?" called Matt. "Are you back to normal?"

"Hardly," replied the Emperor. "But don't think I've sided with you! Just think of it as a temporary alliance to deal with a mutual enemy!"

"We'll take what we can get!" said Tai. "You ready Matt?"

"Way ahead of you," said Matt as he gripped his crest firmly and once again laid his hands on his digivice.

"Let's do this," said Tai, also readying his digivice.

Greymon and Garurumon smiled in anticipation as they once again felt the power of the crests coursing through them. The darkness covering the crests shattered, revealing the true crests beneath and restoring them to their former glory.

"Greymon!" yelled Tai.

"Garurumon!" shouted Matt.

"DIGIVOLVE!" they screamed together.

A wave of energy shot from the digivices and washed over the two digimon. The golden light stunned the dark digimon and the corrupted humans, forcing them all to shield their eyes. Several moments passed with the room filled with the flickering light, but then as quickly as it came, the surge blinked out of existence, leaving Metalgreymon and Weregarurumon to rejoin the fight.

"Time's up, virus," said Metalgreymon.

"You're done," said Weregarurumon.

"Black Metalgreymon! Black Weregarurumon!" yelled Geno. "Destroy these insects! No more games!"

Both evil digimon charged, and all were quickly locked in a fierce battle.

"That won't work," the Emperor condescended. "I think you'll find yourself completely outmatched. I don't doubt for a second that Metaldracomon has already been beaten, and you have no backup."

"Filthy human WRETCH!" yelled Geno. "I will not be talked to this way!"

"Human?" asked Ken. "Not entirely…"

"Wha—" started Geno.

"You claim to be so intelligent," said Ken. "And yet you never realized who the mon was behind the man. You didn't think twice about what it would mean when you reactivated my dark spore."

"No…" grimaced Geno. "It couldn't possibly be you!"

"But it IS!" said the Emperor with a wicked smile.

"Milleniumon…" Geno said with a sneer. "I'd hoped we had done away with you for good."

"You should know by now that I'm a better survivor than even you," said Ken, or rather Milleniumon. "And I do it without any help from the Vanguard."

"Insolent worm! You can't betray me! You wouldn't even EXIST without me!"

"I only answer to one authority, and since he isn't here…"

"I always knew you were too wild to be controlled. But tell me, what do you plan to do in that weak, human form?"

At that moment, Black Metalgreymon had shoved Metalgreymon back against a wall and drove his knee up into Metalgreymon's belly. Metalgreymon gagged for a moment, but swiftly retaliated by backhanding the beast across the face with his heavy, metal arm. Black Metalgreymon's head twisted to the side and he stumbled back a few steps, giving Metalgreymon a short reprieve to catch his breath.

"My plans were foiled some time ago by those weaklings," said Milleniumon. "I had created a perfect Kimeramon that I would soon be able to transfer my consciousness into once he digivolved, thus restoring me to my former glory. Alas, my new body was slain, and my control of this human was shattered. I had to content myself for months to observe the workings of that fool Malo Myotismon. I could only watch as he made his bid for domination of the Digital World as well as a human one."

"But why side with these humans over me?!" demanded Geno. "They would destroy you at the first opportunity! The killed your body! They've kept you from reaching your goal!"

"But I have a much older score to settle… with you. You and your brethren have always enjoyed the most power, always flaunting it in our faces. Well my associate and I have had enough!"

"Associate? Who?!"

"Why, none other than our dear friend Daemon!"

Weregarurumon threw a left jab at Black Weregarurumon's face, but the evil digimon pulled his head back and to the right, avoiding the blow. With impressive agility, Black Weregarurumon then caught Weregarurumon's arm by the wrist before he could pull it back and drew the digimon in closer, where he brought his knee up into Weregarurumon's stomach. Weregarurumon's eyes bulged for a minute and he was knocked breathless. Several more blows to the gut caused Weregarurumon to collapse, leaving him dangling in Black Weregarurumon's grip.

"Daemon!" shouted Geno. "That vile worm!"

"He and I have had enough," said Milleniumon. "He came to rescue me months ago after masterminding his escape from the Dark Ocean, but unfortunately, Malo Myotismon and his pathetic servants, as well as the DigiDestined interfered. Daemon was banished back to the Dark Ocean, and I was left to rot in this human's body. I was used by Malo Myotismon to reopen a gate into the Digital World. If it weren't for that fool slowing us down and allowing the DigiDestined to defeat Daemon, he and I could be ruling this entire quadrant right now!"

"A fascinating story, but I think I've heard enough. I've been given the power, not you. I won't let you take it away from me, and I'll see to it that you never get the chance to interfere in the business of the chosen again! "

Geno's eyes began to glow solid white, and a gentle wind seemed to float up around him. Shattered glass, rubble, and globs of green ooze from the shattered tanks that once held the two black digimon all rose into the air as if they were weightless. Geno's hair stood up on end, and his Crest of Corruption made its fiery glow visible once again.

"Do what you will to this body," said Milleniumon. "I'll find another in due course."

"Not after what I have planned," said Geno.

The Crest of Corruption shot out a wave of red light. Ken was knocked to the ground with incredible force and slid back into a wall, but one thing was left hovering where he had stood: the dark spore.

"Nice of you to show your face, Milleniumon," said Geno.

Weregarurumon was on the edge of unconsciousness. He strained to move, but was far too weakened by Black Weregarurumon's brutal attack. He lay helplessly on the ground as his evil counterpart pressed his foot down on his face. Black Garurumon let out a hyena-like laugh as he prepared to crush Weregarurumon, quite literally, underfoot. Weregarurumon shut his eyes tight, but the finishing blow never came. Instead, Metalgreymon dealt with Black Weregarurumon with a single blow from his massive tail. The force of the strike catapulted Black Weregarurumon across the room and sent him crashing into a group of the ooze-filled capsules, causing them all to shatter around him. He fell to the ground, his fur saturated with the noxious fluid.

Geno had meanwhile taken hold of the dark spore and looked at it very intently.

"You should have learned this lesson long ago, Milleniumon," said Geno. "Those who disobey me all end up dead."

Geno was just about to crush the dark spore in his hand, thus wiping out the last vestiges of Milleniumon once and for all, but a cruel voice stopped him before he could carry it out.

"Hold, Corrupter."

With a maddened look in his eyes, Geno glanced into the darkness from whence the voice came. A tall figure in a black hooded robe stepped into the light a second later. His crimson eyes glowed with a terrible power.

"Do not destroy that spore," said the figure.

"Why not?!" demanded Geno. "The Vanguard can't possibly want Milleniumon to live on!"

"Milleniumon is of no concern to us," said the figure. "But that spore contains something infinitely more valuable than any of us. You are to hand it over immediately."

"You won't rob me of my vengeance!" said Geno. "Don't forget that I still have the white digiegg, and I could unleash Protomon once again, and he would destroy you all!"

"Wake up you blind FOOL!" yelled the enraged messenger. "You've already lost control of that accursed digiegg! Protomon is very much awake, and now he will KILL you for your arrogance!"

"What?!" asked Geno. "No! It's impossible! He can't be alive!"

"But he is…" said the figure. "We warned you about this. We told you to destroy that digiegg while you had the chance, but you were so blinded by your pride that you could not even conceive of your being defeated like this."

"No… NO!!! THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING!!!"

"There is still hope for you yet. Hand me the spore, and all will be forgiven."

Geno scrutinized the messenger for a few moments. The nearby sounds of battle raged in his ears. A quick glance confirmed that his minions were losing.

"Fine!" shouted Geno. "Take it!"

Geno practically shoved his hand in the figure's face. With unusual care, the man lifted his hand up and gently took the spore. Geno let his hand fall limply at his side while the figure held the spore between his thumb and index finger, glancing at it carefully.

"You have done well…" said the figure.

"Yeah, yeah," said Geno. "Now what?"

Just then, Black Weregarurumon slid along the floor after receiving a hearty blow. He came to a stop just behind Geno, and his tongue lolled out from his mouth. The figure took no notice of this. He was concentrating deeply on the spore. Suddenly, sparks of red light began swimming up and down the seed, and even curling around the man's slender fingers. Within seconds, the streams of electricity had multiplied to the point of completely covering the spore, and in a sudden burst of energy, the outer layer of the seeed was torn away and destroyed, leaving a black, perfectly shaped sphere in the man's hand.

"Goodbye, Milleniumon," said the figure.

"What?!" demanded Geno.

"You were right," said the figure. "Milleniumon was too unpredictable to be allowed to serve us. We'll let him rot in the dark whirlpool for a few centuries. Maybe then he'll become a bit more trustworthy."

"But… why did you…?" stammered Geno.

"Your crude methods would have destroyed the most important aspect of the spore. And now that we hold it once again, we can use the power it contains towards the end it was meant for. As for you, you have dug your own grave. If you are somehow able to survive this situation, we will consider forgiving your failures. However, don't expect any help from us. Good day…"

With a demonic laugh, the figure melded back into the shadows along with the dark spore. Milleniumon was dead, and Geno found himself abandoned. Whatever thread of sanity was holding his mind together had been cut by this final insult. He turned back to look at his minions. His body was hunched over, he shook violently, and he drooled from his open mouth. The sight of his now beaten and battered digimon was too much for him.

"No… no, no, NO!!!" screamed Geno. "This can't be happening! It wasn't supposed to be like this! It's not right!"

"Face it," said a weak voice behind Geno. "You're in way too deep with no way out."

Geno turned to face Ken, who had recovered from the blow dealt to him, and was now free of Milleniumon and the Emperor.

"Give it up!" called Tai.

"You lose," said Matt.

"No… I don't lose," said Geno. "I can't lose! I WON'T lose! Black Metalgreymon! Black Weregarurumon! Digivolve, digivolve, DIGIVOLVE!!!"

The Crest of Corruption exploded with energy, sending out a wave of red light that washed over the two fallen dark digimon. Their eyes shot open and they sprung to life. Their forms were completely consumed with the burning light. The crest threw out such power that Ken, Matt, Tai, and even Metalgreymon and Weregarurumon were all thrown back against the walls. Rings of flame encircled the two dark digimon and Geno smiled with maniacal glee.

"I'll show you all!" screamed Geno. "No one will ever defeat me! I will destroy you all! DigiDestined! Protomon! Vanguard! You are NOTHING to me!"

One final surge of light swept over the room, and then it all stopped. A pair of digimon, their eyes closed and the bodies rolled into a fetal position, slowly floated down to the floor. They extended their appendages at just the right time to land firmly on their feet. Then, they opened their eyes with deliberate slowness. On Geno's right stood the mighty Black Wargreymon, and on his left stood the terrifying Black Metalgarurumon.

"Almost done," said Geno. "Almost done. It's coming. Soon, I alone shall reign over this world, and there will be none to stop me!"

The whole room was hit with a sudden shock, when a pillar of pure white light tore through the center of the room, dividing Geno, his digimon, and Ken from Tai, Matt, Weregarurumon, and Metalgreymon. The stream of light reached from floor to ceiling and left a gaping hole once it dissipated. Everyone just stared at the gaping holes on both sides of the room for a second before a surprise emerged from one of the holes. Lillymon, Infermon, Birdramon, Magna Angemon, and Angewomon all leaped into the open, ready for a fight. All the other DigiDestined and their digimon, as well as Ogremon, Wizardmon, Meramon, and the visibly weakened Bahadramon quickly followed them.

"Tai!" shouted Kari. "You're okay!"

"Matt!" called TK.

"Uh… hi guys," said Tai in bewilderment.

"Your timing couldn't be better," Matt assured.

"Hope we didn't miss too much," said Ogremon. "I'm lookin' forward to some smashing!"

"Where's Ken at, you monster?!" Wormmon demanded of Geno.

"Wormmon!" yelled Ken. "Stay back!"

"Ken?" asked Yolei. "Are you really back to normal?"

"That's what we figure," said Tai.

"Alright!" said Davis. "Now we're cooking!"

"What luck!" said Geno. "You've all come just in time to be SLAUGHTERED!"

"Oh Jack…" whispered Kari. "How can this have happened to you?"

"The boy is not here!" yelled Geno. "Now, I am the only one!"

"Jack, wake up!" hollered Bahadramon, stepping towards his old partner. "I know you can hear me! You've got to fight the virus!"

"Stay back!" yelled Geno. "No one takes another step!"

"I'm afraid we've got you outgunned," said Sora.

"They've backed you into a corner," said Ken as he removed his Emperor glassed and cape. "You're out of options."

"Not yet!" said Geno. "I still have my trump card!"

"And we still have ours!" said TK.

"You should listen to the children," said a very noble, very commanding voice from within the gaping hole in the wall. "Right now, what they have to say is your only hope for survival."

"No…" gasped Geno. "It's just not possible!"

A three-fingered, purple, scaled hand gripped the side of the opening, and a figure of absolute power stepped up onto a pile of smoldering rubble. In his right hand he gripped the hilt of his powerful sword, which was resting in the belt of his sash. A white cape was draped over him. He looked just as he did the last time they'd all seen him, only now the light in his eyes no longer shone a deadly red, but a gentle, wise blue. Protomon was restored.