Children of the Digital

by Debbie Dai-chan

Part Fourteen: Get a comfortable seat and popcorn, people, because this chapter is a longie. You probably want to take a couple of breaks in between. :p The Nature Children go off to talk with Holy Beasts and Oikawa and Seijamon have their moments.

11. The Crest of Heart

A New Disclaimer made by Demidevimon!

The Trio of the D does not own Digimon. Read or I will steal your teeth.

Approved by Debbie (Dai-chan) copyright.

Children of the Digital

Chapter Eleven: The Crest of Heart

By Debbie (Dai-chan)

Tentomon's fingers slackly curled together, and he again grimaced. Fingers. Human fingers. Not talons. He saw nothing but fingers in front of his sight.

Fingers.

Tentomon closed his eyes and gave out a quiet exhale. He thought that he would never be back into that strange form again. But he did. Back in that human body, without any of his normal attacks and the ability to fly. He remembered that he, along with the other Digimon, saw Vampdevimon in his human form and he caused this . . . static or something that 'activated' the human bodies.

No longer, Tentomon was in his beetle form, but now in this vulnerable body.

The fingers felt his body around, remembering the details he once knew before. His body was clad in simple clothing: dark grey pants and a dark red short-sleeved shirt, the clothing that represented his Digimon appearance. He was barefoot; for the first time in a long time, he felt coldness radiating from the floor. The coolness on his bare skin, the skin he never had, was almost enlivening and creepy altogether. His yellow antennae were gone, replaced by red hair, not as fiery as his Digidestined's, cut just below his human ears. His face . . . it was smooth, yes, but he knew that it was marked with six grey lines, like tattoos, three on each cheek. He remembered that he had skin, the color of a soft grey-red to almost match his shell, giving the hint of a pinkish-beige color that was closest to a possible human skin color. If he could guess what age he looked like, he would guess that he was about 11 or 12 in human years.

Tentomon opened his eyes into the darkness. He knew that the other Digimon were in human bodies, the sight of static upon them was unmistakable, but so far, when he woke up from the blackness, he heard nothing. At first, he was very scared when they didn't respond, but he was greatly relieved that he still heard the steady breathing of the Digimon. They are still alive, and he was the only one who was awake.

Feeling strength coming in his limbs, he managed to sit up. It was weird, sitting up that way like a human. Being a beetle, he sat differently and he didn't need to 'sit up' like Humans tend to do. Weird. Tentomon glanced around the darkness. He knew that he and his friends had to get out of here, wherever this place was. They were too vulnerable and it will be foolish to stay here and idle. Tentomon knew that it will be hard to escape, especially in these bodies, but they had to get out.

Tentomon slowly crawled to the bars; he could see them dimly. He rested his hands upon the bars, feeling for the lock and such. To his total surprise, the bars seemed to dissolve under his touch. One moment, they were solid and secure, and now they were dust in his hands. Tentomon froze, feeling the sandy remains falling between his fingers. In his mind, two voices whispered: one encouraged him to escape with his friends and another hissed that it was a trick.

Yes, a trick, but they had to get out. Either way, stay or leave, it was foolish, but, having a choice, Tentomon chose to escape. He felt a bit relieved, somehow, that he was able to escape, and he crawled across to the cage that was front of his cage: Iyumon's cage.

In the dimness, Iyumon was just stirring. Tentomon recalled what she looked like in her human body. Her clothing was all dark purple with black and white markings to match her fur; a tank-top shirt and pants that were cut below her knees. Her skin was dark brown, almost as dark as purple to match her fur color. Her hair was short and colored dark violet, along with a red forelock to represent the red streak she once had on her forehead. Though, that she was the shortest of all, save for Gomamon, she appeared much older, almost as Elecmon.

Tentomon rested his hands on the bars, and almost suddenly, the bars seemed to sigh as they dissolved into black sand. Again, he crawled in. "Iyumon?" he whispered. He touched on her arm, and in the dimness, the ruby glow came out, lightening the area, as Iyumon opened her eyes. All the Digimon had the light coming out from their eyes in the darkness like beacons. It appeared that even in human bodies, the Digimon still had some of their abilities. While Tentomon's green light was dim and soft, Iyumon's eye light was bright enough to radiate a bit beyond her cage.

"Tentomon?" Iyumon voiced back, dazed. She sat up, holding her head, staring. "How did you get in?"

"I don't know how," Tentomon answered. "I just touched the bars and they just dissolved."

Almost suddenly, a doubtful look appeared on the lizard girl's face. "A trick. Someone is trying to fool us into leaving."

"I know that," Tentomon nodded. He knew it very well and was cautious himself. Though . . . "But we have to escape."

"We can escape if we have to, but we can't fight." Iyumon took a dejected gaze down to her hands. She clenched them, her lips tight. "Not like this."

Tentomon stood up, now more steadily. "That's why we have to leave."

Iyumon gazed upward to him, seeing the serious expression, and she exhaled. "You have a point."

With Tentomon's help, Iyumon stood, regaining her bearings. Together, they headed for the cages that held their friends captive. They dissolved the bars down and woke some of the friends; the others had already wakened up and were trying to figure out what happened. For a while, the eight Digimon gathered their bearings, some encouraging to escape while the others were too doubtful of this strange allowance of escape. Eventually, Agumon asked Iyumon and Gabumon to go to the door to listen for any sounds and asked the others to advice.

Tentomon had sat down by the opened cage, listening to some of his friends talking. He recalled that the Digimon has chosen Agumon as the 'unofficial' leader, although Agumon didn't see himself as a leader. Unlike his Digidestined, he was modest and mellow, but often in these situations like this, Tentomon can see Taichi in Agumon. Agumon had proven himself as a leader.

Agumon was the tallest, after Gabumon and Elecmon. He wore light yellow pants, loose and comfortable, along with a black belt around his waist. He wore no shirt, and the yellow clothing seemed to make him look like a sun for some reason. His skin was yellowish, as well, almost golden tan. His dark yellow hair wasn't as wild as Taichi's hair, but it had some wildness to it. He looked older than Tentomon, but in the same age range.

Agumon was saying, "I know that we have to escape, but we have to know where and how." He crossed his arms, frowning. "Even if we did escape, we don't know where to go."

"Agumon, we can't just lie around and wait for either the Digidestined, Vampdevimon, or even the Mother to come," Gomamon reminded. He was as small as Iyumon and younger. His fiery red hair was much wilder than Agumon's hair and longer, down past his ears and eyes, and his skin was as pale as his white fur, almost delicate and soft. He wore only white shorts, meant for swimming, and purple cloths that were tied around his upper arms and calves, obviously signified as his real markings. Although that his eyes remained green-golden, they didn't hold the light of mischief this time.

Gomamon gazed around the friends. "We have a better chance to escape in our bodies."

Biyomon nodded in agreement. "These bodies could be useful. We could try and learn how to use them." Her clothing was all pink, just like her pink feathers, a long-sleeved shirt and a short skirt. The sleeves were lined with azure-colored fringes, almost looked like real feathers. Her short hair was also dark pink with blue tips, along with her pinkish skin.

Biyomon canted her head to Elecmon as he added to her comment, "I suggest we leave when we have the chance." Elecmon was the tallest of all, Biyomon's head only reaching to his chin.

Agumon listened to Elecmon's words, and then his emerald eyes turned to Tentomon and Gomamon. "Do you feel it? The taint?"

Tentomon blinked, surprised. He didn't know that Agumon would still remember about the taint. Gomamon was surprised, too, gazing downward to him. Jade and green-golden eyes met, and memories appeared, most unwanted. Gomamon looked away, unhappy, as Tentomon sighed. Looking to Agumon, he simply answered, "Ever since I woke up here." Gomamon nodded, as well.

He was hoping that he will not feel that taint again, and yet he was wrong. When they were first human, he, Gomamon, and Iyumon were the only Digimon who can feel the darkness, the corruption. They didn't know how it could work, but it proved effective. They could tell where the darkness came from and how close. The taint had this foul taste, smell, and touch that Tentomon tried very hard to forget. He remembered every moment he was in the essence of the dark, he couldn't breathe because of the taint, couldn't relax because he felt like he was watched, feeling this . . . hatred and anger upon him. Hated him for being alive.

As he said, he did feel it after he woke. It was heavy and bold. At first, he thought that he would strangle in the thick foulness, but then he felt like that he was part of it, felt the very heartbeat of the darkness. It was very shocking to him because before, he only felt the taint, not experienced the life in it, as now. The darkness was everywhere, cloaking him like a blanket. Tentomon unconsciously hugged himself tighter.

"You can sense it in the human bodies, not in your Digimon bodies," mentioned Palmon what everybody knew. Looking up, Tentomon noticed the sympathy in her emerald eyes. He knew what she meant. When they returned into their Digimon forms, Tentomon, along with Iyumon and Gomamon, couldn't feel any foulness at all. After a while, he realized that maybe, being human, he can feel it, but even though, he didn't understand why only by being human, he can feel it, not being a Digimon.

"One of the advantages," Elecmon pointed out. "We could be more careful and alert against the darkness."

Agumon quietly nodded. "I agree." He glanced to each of the human-Digimon. "We leave now, but very carefully and quietly. If you find an exit, do not go to it immediately. It could be a trap. And once we get out of here, run for cover." The Digimon simply nodded, already knowing what to do. The blonde gazed over to where Iyumon and Gabumon listened by the door. "Hear anything?"

Iyumon shook her head. "Too quiet."

"Our voices are the only sounds in this place," Gabumon said. Tallest after Elecmon, Gabumon still had his blue-and-white mantle over his body, the hood shadowing his face. His azure hair was straight and long to his shoulders, tied back with a cloth strip. His underbelly symbol was etched on his bare chest, barely seen from under his mantle. His loose pants were dark yellow to match his former reptilian body. His skin was as yellow as Agumon's, and his garnet eyes were cautious as he often glanced to the door.

Tentomon heard the soft exhale from Agumon as he considered the dangers. "Well, let's go," he said, starting for the door.

Iyumon opened the door a crack and peeked out. Then she opened it wide-open, revealing more darkness from outside. With their eye lights illuminating the areas, they saw a wide stairway leading upstairs, and they alertly climbed. It didn't take them long, and soon, they arrived to a door, which Iyumon again opened. The Digimon found themselves in a hallway that seemed to reach beyond their sights. There was nothing special about the hallway, nothing that decorated the walls, except for the plain doors, which were locked and bore silence within. It was so plain, built with rocks and mildew. The air was moist and warm. There was no hint of any danger lurking around in the darkness, although, Tentomon still felt the taint pulsing in the distance.

"What a strange darkness," Palmon murmured. The darkness was the same to the night darkness: soft and protective to the eyes. "Somehow, it looks peaceful."

"Well, Palmon, I have to disagree with you," Tentomon said. "I still feel the taint here. The peacefulness could be a trick." With that, he took a quick glance to Iyumon and Gomamon. Sure enough, they appeared uneasy, Iyumon frowning at the darkness and Gomamon getting paler at every pulse.

"Even so . . ." Palmon fell silent, her eyes searching for something, and then turned to her friends. "I couldn't help but wondering about this Mother Vampdevimon spoke of."

"What is it?" Biyomon questioned.

Palmon had this pondering and curious appearance as she continued, "I wonder if you feel something from the Mother. I mean, when Vampdevimon mentioned about his Mother, I somewhat felt sympathy for her." Her delicate face softened. "As if she had suffered so much."

"I feel the same," Gabumon responded, although there was doubt on his face.

"Me, too," Biyomon admitted.

Tentomon said nothing, nor the rest. Did they feel anything? He wasn't sure if he felt the same as what Palmon felt. He only felt disbelief. He wasn't even sure why he felt disbelieved. Maybe it was because that he was back in his human body, his Digidestined was nowhere to be found, and . . . there was the taint that he still experienced. He kept silent, not knowing what to reply, and then Iyumon mentioned something.

She was staring at Palmon with uneasiness and quietly said, "Palmon, you said that you feel sympathy for her?"

Palmon nodded. "Yes, that's right."

Iyumon remained silent, seeming to try to get her words out. "I . . . I feel anger from her. As if she was so angry and sad and hurt that she . . . would do anything. Anything to ease her pain."

"Even to destroy the worlds?" Elecmon wondered.

" . . . No. To destroy herself."

Tentomon was taken back. This Mother wanted to . . . kill herself? He stared at the lizard girl, trying to read the expression on her face, but he saw only confusion. The rest was silent, too, horrified and uneasy. Then Agumon cleared his throat, also tense, but determined.

"We need to move on," he said, and that woke the rest from the horror they felt. They nodded and headed toward the darkness, their bare feet softly padding on the damp rocks. After a while, Tentomon began to notice something odd. He noticed that the taint has faded significantly, and the air seemed . . . messy. He wasn't sure what, but he felt like that he was walking right into another world that was not in order. Disorder. The walls became wavy, not stable at all, and the air somewhat rippled like water.

"Whoa, I feel dizzy," Gomamon whispered, his eyes shut closed. He grabbed on Iyumon's arm, she trying to keep balance.

"Calm down," Agumon voiced though clenched teeth. His hand was on the wavering wall, trying to get on stability. "We can do this. We can move on - "

Silence.

Suddenly, Tentomon was in four places. He felt like that his mind, his body, his soul were pulled in four directions, and he couldn't tell where he was supposed to go. He had nothing to grab on, something that was stable and he stood awkwardly, feeling awfully alone. His eyes couldn't manage with the sudden ripples and disorder happening.

"Guys? Guys?" Tentomon tried to call out. His voice echoed back from the four directions, dissonant and unclear. He reached out, yelling, "Guys!"

A hand grabbed on his shoulder. He gasped in shock. The view was suddenly clear. Everything was stable.

"Are you ok?" Elecmon said, his concerned face appearing in his vision.

Tentomon exhaled in great relief, holding on his hand, trying to clear up his hazy mind. "I think so." He shook his head as he glanced around. "I've never been so dizzy before."

Elecmon nodded in agreement; Tentomon could see the fading daze in his teal eyes. "You were lucky, Tentomon. I caught you before you fell."

Tentomon cast him a smile. "Thank you, Elecmon." Again, he gazed around. After a moment, realization popped in his head, and he gazed back to Elecmon with puzzlement.

"Where is everybody?"

***

In a forest. They were in a forest.

Gabumon blinked his eyes, doubting his surroundings. He knew that he was in the dark hallway, but . . . the sunlight shining from between the green leaves was too real. The scents of the trees, soil, and the air were too real. He stared around, disbelieving. How . . . did he get here?

"Where are we?" he heard Agumon murmuring.

Gabumon turned to Agumon, who was also standing by, scanning around. Gabumon shook his head. "Haven't the faintest idea, though I think we are in a forest."

Agumon opened his mouth, and then stopped, frowning at a thought. "It was strange, don't you think?" he asked, turning to the wolf boy. "First, we were in that dark place and . . ."

Gabumon tried to remember through the clouds in his mind. "I saw a flicker of something. Not light or any solid object . . ."

"A memory."

Gabumon frowned in puzzlement. "A memory?"

Agumon shrugged helplessly. "It came to my mind."

Gabumon inhaled in a breath, again scanning his surroundings, still doubting it. "Well, I have no clue to how we got here. We have to find a way back to the others. We may be outside, but they might be sill trapped."

"Gabumon?"

"Yeah?" Gabumon gazed back and found Agumon deeply thoughtful.

"Is there something odd about this place?"

"What's it?"

The dino met his gaze. "Doesn't it seem to you that this place looks . . . fuzzy?"

Gabumon blinked. "Fuzzy?"

"Yes, fuzzy."

Again, he took a careful gaze around and was taken back at what he found. He didn't believe that he didn't notice that earlier. The forest looked very real, but there was something about it that was not right. There was a very faint haze around them, just beyond the edge of clearness. Much like he was looking through flawed glass, appearing real and yet hazed. Stepping around in place, Gabumon took details in the haze, trying to find the source or something that he could tell the meaning of the haze. Then he noticed something new. There was a 'spot' in the surroundings that was . . . clear. Very clear. No haze around it. It was a walking path, faint and almost hidden from under the bushes.

"Agumon, look," Gabumon called his attention, pointing toward the path. "That path looks clearer."

Agumon nodded. "Yeah, I see that." He then looked upward. "And I noticed something else. Take a look at the leaves."

Gabumon blinked once again. He knew his wilderness very well, traveling often, and in his travels, he knew that the leaves were very different from the Real World's leaves. The leaves were always pale blue, dark pink, light red, sometimes white or purple, but never green. There were rare trees that bore green leaves, too, but the Digiworld was a strange world, then. Always any other color than green.

The leaves that he was looking at were green. Normal, dark green.

"It isn't familiar to me," Agumon said. "This place isn't in our time."

"Are we in the human world?" Gabumon wondered. It was impossible, he knew it, that any full-blood Digimon couldn't pass though the Digiports to Earth. No one except DNA-infected Digimon. Or Digimon-turned-humans?

Agumon sniffed the air and shook his head. "No, I don't think so. It doesn't have the scent of humans here."

Gabumon tasted the air and mentally agreed. No musky, warm scent of humans here. "You are right . . . Then where are we?"

Agumon gestured to the clear path. "Maybe this spot has a clue."

Following Agumon, Gabumon walked on the path. He noticed that the path was like a path of clearness through the haze. He wondered what the path was leading them to. Eventually, in the silence, he heard sounds. Sounds of a conflict. From the distance ahead.

Gabumon stopped Agumon with a hand on his shoulder. "A fight."

Agumon listened for a moment, and then glanced back. "Let us see."

As they continued down the path, they could hear the sounds of a fight. Gabumon felt his instincts bursting from inside, urging to run and face whoever was fighting, his protection intense. He, however, held it down, knowing that in his vulnerable human body, he was helpless. Glancing sidelong to Agumon, he can tell that the dino wanted to help, but couldn't.

There, they stopped and knelt behind some bushes that marked a boundary of a clearing. They were careful not to be seen as they regarded the scene before them. A human boy and a Gazimon were watching the fight from above. Two Greymons were battling, obviously for territory, as they snarled at each other on a rocky plain.

Gabumon stared in surprise. "A human boy . . ."

"That Gazimon looks different . . . " Agumon whispered in puzzlement. Gabumon took a look at the Gazimon. The fanged bunny looked the same to what they knew of, with grey fur, piercing black eyes, and sharp claws that seemed strange for a cute bunny. But he had something else that the other Gazimon didn't have. He had black stripes slashing on his back and limbs.

Gabumon agreed; the Gazimon was different. He then gazed over to the boy. He reminded him of Rosa, the Mexican girl he met. Tan skin, weathered by the sun, brown eyes that seemed to shadow the face, and unkempt dark hair. The boy was clad in rugged brown shorts, a dark green short-sleeved shirt, and worn running shoes. From the guess of the age, the boy was 11 years old. The boy appeared mildly puzzled and curious as he watched the finishing blow upon the Greymon with a Nova Blast.

As the pixels passed by in the air, the victor bent to sniff the pixels; there was no triumph upon his face and, with a simple motion, he stomped away, not noticing the watchers.

The boy made a puzzled grunt and turned to the Gazimon. Gabumon finally noticed the expression on his face. There was toughness, pride, barely seen from behind the confusion, in his face. The boy said to the Gazimon, "I don't get it. They fought, one died and the victor just left. What is the meaning of this?"

The black-and-grey bunny glanced back with mild concern in his face. "Felipe, you have to understand that sometimes it is necessary to fight, and sometimes it is not." He glanced down to the rocky plains. "They fought because they lived for it. Tragic, isn't it, that when you live for fighting, you will find your life much shorter."

Gabumon was confused. Gazimons were known for their love for fighting, and this Gazimon appeared to be a pacifist?

The boy, Felipe, appeared lightly bored, as if the Gazimon told him that many times, but still, there was the curiosity reflecting in his bright eyes. "Will you fight? For fun?"

The Gazimon shook his head. "No. I will fight only if I have to."

Felipe was silent, thinking for a moment. " . . . Will you fight for someone?"

The bunny grinned back. "I will fight for you. You are my best friend."

The boy looked away, a faint scowl on his face. "I can fight for myself."

"I know, but you've been in fights before. It's never pretty to see someone getting hurt."

Slowly, an eager, prideful smile appeared on Felipe's face. "I like to fight."

The Gazimon was suddenly sad, gazing upward, his voice a whisper. "I know . . ."

And at the very instant, everything vanished into blackness.

***

Laughter. Behind them.

Biyomon and Palmon turned around just to see a Floramon kneeling up from under the sea of flowers. She appeared grinning to someone that was hidden under the flowers. "See?" she piped, "You can have fun playing with flowers."

Someone sat up, and they saw that it was a human girl child of perhaps 13 years old. The sight of her was something new and awed, for her skin was so dark, much darker than Kimika's, shining coal black. Her eyes were pretty and bright black, and her ebony hair was tight and curly, pulled into a bun. Her face was primitive in appearance and yet primitively beautiful. Her body was tall and slender, clad in a dark orange wrap that enhanced her dark skin distinctively. Red and white designs were embroidered on the wrap, seemingly powerful in appearance, and strange circular jewelry lined her neck, arms, and ankles.

The dark girl was grinning, her white teeth dazzling against the coal black skin. She remained quiet, watching as the Floramon picked up daises. "I will show you how to make a daisy crown."

Biyomon was surprised to find herself and Palmon in a wide meadow that seemed to reach beyond the horizon. The flowers were splashes of colors that were a mess to her eyes, but beautiful, nevertheless. She then noticed that there was something funny about the meadow. A haze appeared to cover all the meadow except around them, making the flowers even messier in colors, a clash of pink, red, blue, purple, and white among the yellowish-green blurs of tall grasses. She tried to figure it out. She had this strange feeling that this place was not real at all, but at the same time, it was real in some degree of reality.

She pointed it out to Palmon and the flower gal's answer was that she felt that the place used to be real. Biyomon was baffled; first, she knew that she was in that dark hallway, then that distortion that almost knocked her out cold, and now she was here, alone with Palmon and . . . whoever the girl and the Floramon were. She knew that the Floramon looked different. While the usual Floramon had pink petals that were part of their upper heads, this Floramon had a dark purple petal covering her head and darker green reptilian skin. Her jeweled eyes were purple, too, not the normal blue.

Palmon noticed that, too, and brought it up verbally. "Look at the Floramon. She has different coloring."

Biyomon took another look at the Floramon and was surprised to see that the flower-reptile made no reaction that she heard Palmon speaking. The girl didn't notice them, either. Just as Biyomon and Pal were invisible and inaudible.

Biyomon placed her hand on Palmon's arm and whispered, "Look, Palmon, they didn't hear you talking."

Palmon kept her emerald eyes on the girl. "I wonder who is the girl and what she is doing here."

"Maybe one of the Digidestined."

Palmon looked over to her and she just shrugged back. It could be possible. Any human who was able to enter the Digiworld intended to be a Digidestined, Biyomon thought so. No other humans were able to, not without a Digivice. Although . . . she saw no Digivice on the girl . . .

The Floramon placed the finished daisy crown on the girl's head. The girl again grinned at the Digimon and spoke, her voice rich and accented, "Thank you so much! The flowers are so beautiful. I wish I could stay here forever."

The Floramon seated herself beside the girl, her lower body hidden under the grass. "Tell me more about your home. Aren't there any flowers?"

The dark-skinned girl shook her head; there was poise in her movements that made Biyomon suddenly saw her as some earth princess, a fey princess. "No. There are sand flowers, yes, but not as beautiful as these." Her rough hands brushed against the flowers.

"I do believe your sand flowers are beautiful. I always believe that everything is beautiful in its own way."

A nod from the girl. "Yes, I admit that my home is beautiful. The trees, grass, sand, and sky. They are beautiful."

The Floramon then grinned. "And you are, too!"

The girl laughed. "I don't think I'm beautiful. Pretty, maybe, but not beautiful."

"So modest," the Floramon clapped her hands together and batted her eyelids in a show of delicacy.

The girl cast a puzzled look, like she didn't know modesty, but then she shrugged in response. "I don't think that I'm . . . modest," she whispered the strange word. "Just . . . knowing how I look. I'm sure that there will be someone who does like the way I look, no matter how plain I am."

The Floramon chuckled and gestured toward the field. "I'm so sure! He will think you are beautiful, even more than any flower in this meadow."

"Is that . . . flattery?" The girl appeared lightly suspicious.

"It depends on how you look at it," the Floramon answered with an innocent grin.

That drew a light giggle from the girl. "I'm glad I'm here. I never thought I would have a flower for a friend."

"You are in luck! I never thought that I would have a human for a friend!" The Floramon took the girl's hands in hers. "Are you ready to go? We need to get there as soon as possible, Makena."

Makena . . . It sure sounded fey and rich to Biyomon. The dark-skinned girl, Makena, nodded and stood up in a graceful motion that sent her wrap-dress swaying . . .

And just then, the scene plummeted into blackness.                                  

***

"Are you feeling okay?" he heard her speaking, not surprisingly gentle and full of concern. She rarely showed that to anybody beside her friends. He considered her as one of his close friends, mainly because he enjoyed annoying her. She was like his Jyou; she tended to snap back.

Laying on his back, Gomamon pointed a finger toward the kneeling Iyumon, his other hand holding on her hands. He trained himself well enough to keep himself from giggling as he softly growled, "Remind me next time, I will sue whoever built that place!"

Iyumon's concern was lost, replaced with exasperated annoyance. Her ruby eyes rolled upward. "Get up." She used her strength to haul him off the ground. Gomamon wrinkled his nose in disgust. A swamp! Out of the places he would wake in, it had to be a swamp! He hated swamps, the bold odors, the soaked mud and bubbling mulch that gave him the creeps. He would never choose to swim in the murky waters. To his surprise, when he thought his clothes were dirty from laying in the mud, he was clean. The mud was real and wet, but he didn't get dirty.

And there was something else, too. The place was blurred. A light haze that tugged at the edge of his vision and watered his eyes when he tried to look at it, messing the swamp.

Gomamon covered his eyes. "Oh, someone please adjust the knob on clearness."

He felt a pressure on his arm from Iyumon. "Will you stop joking? This is serious."

He grinned. "I know that. I'm supposed to be the joker. I'm supposed to joke in serious situations."

That made her sighs in a controlled tone. She carefully glanced around. "Well, you are right. This place looks blurry."

Gomamon again looked, trying not to focus on the eye-watering haze, and he noticed a clear spot in the air. The haze formed a circle around the clearness, the details sharp and intense. He also perceived that there was a path within the clearness, a walking path left by Marsh Digimon, maybe. He showed that to Iyumon. "Look. This way looks clear to me."

She was silent, eying the path carefully; she always did that, analyzing it until it was safe enough for her satisfaction. Another exhale and she looked back. "Should we?"

"Why not? Nothing gets by unless we do something."

They stepped into the clear path. This time, Gomamon was serious, as he gazed upon the strange path. What has happened to Iyumon and him that separated them from the rest? He had this strange feeling that he was back in the dark building, the physical feeling, but his eyes stubbornly told him that he was here in the swamp. The scent, the sights were unmistakable. It was too real, and it could be real enough if it wasn't for the haze. That haze was bothering him, telling that this place was not real and real at the same time.

He paused in his tracks, along with Iyumon. He heard something. A voice, obviously a human voice. Singing.

"Did you hear that?" Iyumon whispered.

"Yeah, someone singing." Gomamon was impressed. The voice held high grace, sang with such a harmonious tone that it sounded pure. It sounded like an angel. "Very melodic, I have to say."

"And I hear Gekomon, too."

"Ah, carolers!"

That earned him a snarling glare from the lizard gal.

Gomamon made no move to apologize, instead spoke firmly, "Honestly, Iyumon, you can get way too serious. Lighten up. We will find the others. For now, let's find what has happened."

Iyumon muttered under her breath, but then nodded. She followed him down the clear path, the singing voice leading them. He felt his heart melting at the voice; he never thought that a human would sing so beautifully. Mimi's voice didn't even compare that good to the voice; she may sound really great, but that voice was pure, full of innocence, and dreamy. It made him feel like he was in clouds, floating aimlessly, having no care, and yet, full of care, sincerity, and honesty, like a fluffy blanket keeping him warm.

They took a hiding place behind a strange-looking tree with all its roots tangling out of the water. It was too thin for them to take full shelter, but at least, none of the group they saw paid any attention to them. There was four Digimon, three of them Gekomon. The other Digimon, an Otamamon, was sitting beside a human boy, young and small. Gomamon didn't mistake the tone in the voice. The boy appeared innocent, so much like Takeru and yet like Hikari, sweet, kind, and shy. He had the appearance of a Chinese, with deep black eyes as intelligent as Koushiro, the dreamy expression in his young face, and the small size. He appeared to be 9 or 10 years old, probably the same height as Iori, and his clothing was a dark red Chinese jacket with the buttons at a side and the high collar, dark blue wide pants, and sandals.

Gomamon then noticed that while the boy sang, the Gekomon had the awed look in their eyes, watching with wide budging eyes and mouths gawking. The Otamamon was grinning widely and proudly.

He felt a movement of surprised start from Iyumon and he quickly looked at her to see if she regarded any danger. But she was staring at the group with uncertainty, confusion. He patted lightly on her shoulder. "It's alright. They don't know we are here."

She shook her head. "That's not it. Look carefully. We are in plain view. They don't even notice us."

Gomamon realized she was right. Any of the Gekomon, or Otamamon, or even the Chinese boy could simply turn his head and see the human-Digimon, but they didn't even notice them. Their eyes passed over them like they were just part of the swamp, paying no acknowledgment. He turned to her. "We are invisible to them?"

Iyumon was still uncertain. "Like we aren't supposed to be here."

The singing faded down and the boy blushed at the wild applause given by the Gekomon.

"Fabulous!" a Gekomon wooed. "I never knew that a human can sing so lovely!"

The second Gekomon nodded in agreement. "Thank you for singing for us. We greatly appreciate it."

The boy made a small but respectable bow toward the Frog Digimon. "It's my pleasure." Even in the normal speaking tone, he spoke like an angel.

Gomamon watched as the Otamamon stood up and was startled. That Otamamon looked different! His coloring was much darker than the normal Otamamons, with his violet-blue skin, black fins, and bright black eyes. Gomamon took a careful look at the Gekomon and once again found they were different, too. The Gekomon were larger than usual, towering over the boy by a mere foot, with longer limbs, and their skins were bright green-blue, not the usual pale yellow-green.

The third Gekomon spoke, "We hope you will visit us soon."

The boy nodded. "We will."

"Bye!" The Gekomon hopped back into the swamp. The Otamamon remained at the boy's side, and he was looking up with admiration in his eyes.

"You have a kind heart, Sying," the small tadpole mentioned.

The boy, Sying, quietly smiled timidly. "They looked so sad. I just want to help."

The Otamamon cracked a grin. "How did you sing so beautifully?"

"My aunt taught me. I love to sing, and I like to sing whenever I feel sad so I can feel better."

"I like it when you use your voice to help people."

Gomamon frowned. Why did he have that feeling that the boy was a Digidestined . . .?

Sying nodded down to the Digimon. "Yeah, I want to help all the time. I don't like to see people being sad, and so I just want to make them feel happy."

The Otamamon once again gave him an affectionate grin and wobbled toward the spot where Iyumon and Gomamon hid. They tensed, but the Otamamon made neither move nor hint that he was aware of them. He turned to the boy. "Come on, we need to go."

Sying had a small bounce in his step as he curiously regarded the Digimon. "Tell me, why do we have to go to that place?"

"Don't you remember?" the Otamamon said. "So we can meet our new friends."

"Will they like us?"

The Otamamon laughed amiably. "With your voice and my charm, they will."

As they strode past, the spectacle went into blackness.

***

"Where is everybody?" Tentomon asked.

Here it was again. The distortion that seemed to pull his body in four directions. The air rippled in a haze that hurt his eyes. Everything was unstable and the only stability he could hold on was Elecmon, they hanging on each other. Tentomon thought he saw several people in the darkness, glowing in strange colors, like jewels that shone under a layer of dirt. Then as quick as it happened, the distortion faded and everything was stable. Tentomon swayed, hanging on Elecmon's supporting arm, blinking his jade eyes from the aftereffects of the strange jeweled colors. The people were still here, and Tentomon gasped, realizing that they were his friends. They stood in the same place, just before the first distortion occurred, and this time, they looked puzzled in a way that they saw something odd.

Shaking his head out of the daze, he spoke, "Are you all okay? What happened to you?"

They glanced to him, then to each other. He noticed the realization in their eyes and was suddenly curious at what happened to them in the brief seconds during the distortion. They gazed around, appearing mildly disbelieved, then Palmon spoke, her voice uneasy but certain.

"I think . . . I experienced a memory."

Tentomon blinked. "A memory?"

Palmon nodded. "Yes, Biyomon and I saw a dark-skinned girl and a Digimon Guardian, a Floramon. Must be one of her memories."

Agumon was nodding, glancing to Gabumon. "We experienced a memory of a boy with a Gazimon."

"Say, we also saw another boy with an Otamamon, too," Gomamon said as Iyumon bobbed her head.

Tentomon was seriously baffled. Memories? New kids with new Digimon? They spoke so sure of what happened to them that Tentomon began to suspect the building itself. What had it done to his friends?

"What are you talking about?" Elecmon demanded, gazing at each one of the Digimon. "What memories?"

"We experienced memories that are left behind," Biyomon mentioned. Tentomon waited, but she didn't explain more. It was odd. They were so certain that they saw memories, but seemed not to explain more, as if they expected Tentomon and Elecmon to understand.

Elecmon was clearly confused. "How could you know that what happened to you were memories?"

"I just know that where we went is not in our time."

Elecmon stared at Biyomon for a moment, and then turned to meet the confused gaze of Tentomon. They felt like they were lost in these paths of conversation. First, they were lost in this huge, strange building, trapped in their human bodies, then this . . . distortion that disappeared the rest except Tentomon and Elecmon and lasted mere seconds before they appeared, speaking of strange memories and kids? This was too bizarre for Tentomon's taste. He rubbed his face and softly groaned, "You are not making sense."

He felt the hand of Iyumon rubbing his shoulder and was grateful for it. Tentomon disliked touching, except for his Digidestined's hands upon his shell and the only other touches he tolerated was Iyumon's and Patamon's, his second 'digi-brother'.

"It's difficult to describe," Gabumon spoke, "But what we saw are memories, that's for sure."

Tentomon removed his hand and gazed at the wolf boy intently. "Memories . . . memories that are left behind here? You mean disembodied memories?"

Gabumon nodded in response.

Elecmon raised his eyebrows and again shook his head. "Bizarre." He then glanced at the slightly rippling walls. "Listen, we need to get out. It's unnerving here."

Palmon looked like she didn't want to leave. "Wait, I want to know more about that girl. Who is she - or was - and why we experienced her memories."

Agumon rested his hand on her arm, smiling faintly. "I do want to find more about the boy we saw, but we don't have time. We have to escape."

Tentomon cast the hallway a suspicious frown. Would they ever be able to escape? The hallway was so wide, so long that the exit - if there was ever one - was hidden behind the dimness. It made him feel that the hallway was endless and they will never escape. The party moved on, the scout Digimon - which were Gabumon and Iyumon - checked the doors and listened for any sound that might hint an ambush or an escape. As they passed on, Tentomon noticed puzzlement came over Gomamon's face. The seal boy slowed down in his tracks and tilted his head to listen. Tentomon almost imagined one of his seal ears perking. He also slowed down, watching Gomamon patiently. He knew that Gomamon had extraordinary hearing and maybe he heard something that Iyumon and Gabumon missed out.

The golden-green eyes turned to one door farther back in the hallway that the scouts had already checked and Gomamon ran up to it. He knelt and pressed his right ear on the door. Tentomon walked to him, careful not to make a sound, and he heard the rest coming closer, noticing the seal's keen listening.

Gomamon slowly nodded and looked up to Tentomon. "I hear weak breathing."

Gabumon frowned, but Iyumon appeared thoughtful. As she walked up to the door, Gabumon said, "Even though there is breathing, the door is locked. I could bet it's a trap."

Iyumon quietly turned the giant knob with both her hands; the giant knobs on the small doors seemed out of place. The knob turned.

"Don't open it," Agumon warned, frowning. Iyumon shrugged, but didn't attempt to open the door.

"But what if the New Digimon are in there?" Biyomon said. Tentomon's heart beat. It was possible, and the poor kids would be panicky in their human bodies.

"Shh!" Gomamon snapped and the voices faded down, waiting as he heedfully listened. "I hear a voice . . ." His face took on the visage of surprise. "Ruigumon!"

Tentomon gasped and placed his hands on the door. "Ruigumon! Are you ok there?"

He felt his hearing straining to hear her voice again, and then it came, very weak, fragile, but just strong enough to be heard through the door. " . . . Tentomon? Is it you?"

"It's settled, then," Iyumon murmured and with her strength, pulled the door open. Ignoring the warning in his head, Tentomon dashed in. The inside was darker, but his eye light brightened the tiny area. He saw the Butterfly, in her Digimon body, sitting against the far wall. Her limbs were limp, laying useless. Heavy chains were bound to her ankles and wrists. Tentomon thought it strange; to capture a powerful Digimon, one does not use mundane objects, such as chains, to keep it captive. He could feel the taint present, but he ignored it, wanting to aid his friend. He knelt by her, gently lifting her bowed head so she can look at him.

Tentomon lightly smiled with relief when the wide orange eyes opened into slits. "Ruigumon, are you alright?"

The orange eyes widened in disbelief, but she didn't make a move, being too weak. "Who are you . . .?"

Biyomon knelt by her, giving the Butterfly a reassuring grin. "It's alright. It's just us."

Ruigumon stared at the bird girl, then toward the bug. Understanding mixed with confusion dawned in her eyes. "Biyomon, Tentomon?" She then gazed toward the rest. "But you are in human bodies . . . How?"

Biyomon shook her head, standing up. "Later. First, we need to get out."

Tentomon watched as Elecmon and Gabumon took their places beside the chains. Using their strengths, they yanked the chains out from their holds in the walls. They came out easily, perhaps due to the mildew that weakened the stones. Again, Tentomon felt the uneasiness growing inside him; it was too easy. He ever heard Iyumon muttering the words under her breaths. The manacles were weak, as well, broken under the fox and wolf's fists, letting go Ruigumon's ankles and waists.

"Tell us what happened," Agumon asked gently.

Ruigumon delicately touched her tender wrists. "I must've lost all my energy from Vampdevimon's attacks and blacked out. I woke in here. I haven't the energy to fight."

"Let's hope we don't have to," Agumon added. "Can you stand?"

To answer him, Ruigumon boldly pushed herself on her feet. Being used to herself being strong and capable, she resisted Tentomon's and Elecmon's offers to help her standing. For a moment, Tentomon thought she could stand long enough, but Ruigumon almost tumbled down. Luckily, Elecmon was at her side, holding her upright until she regained her balance. Tentomon stood by her other side, letting her resting her hand on his shoulder for support as Elecmon helped leading her steps out the door.

Agumon ordered, "Iyumon, Gabumon, check ahead for exits and traps. Gomamon, Biyomon, you two and I will be the back guard. Palmon, help Ruigumon." The Digimon followed his orders, and in a few minutes, they were on the way. Iyumon and Gabumon vanished beyond the darkness, scouting. Tentomon and Palmon stayed in ahead of Ruigumon and Elecmon, the fox whispering to her, giving support and encouragement. The rest carefully watched the back, seeing no dangers so far.

Eventually, Ruigumon muttered uncertainly, "I don't like this. It's too easy."

I thought so, too, Tentomon thought to himself, but he said nothing, absent-mindedly listening to the faint heartbeat of the taint. He found no comfort in it, but at least he could notice if the taint was near or stronger and warn his friends. But then . . . will they be able to face the taint, whatever it was, and fight? They had no attacks, no powers, and Ruigumon was too weak to even face a Digibaby. He did not like this.

Palmon was saying to her gently, "We know, Ruigumon, but we just can't linger around here."

Ruigumon grunted, but otherwise kept silent.

Tentomon sighed, wishing that the stupid hallway had an exit. He then glanced up at the darkness that hung ahead and gasped. The heartbeat! It pulsed faster! He felt the taint thickening in his mind's eye, the greasiness and blackness smothering him. He recoiled at the sickly scent, his body trembling at the greasiness. He wanted to get away from the awful feeling, feeling so filthy and unclean. Amidst in the sounds of his dry retching, Gomamon was also in the same position, cowering from the taint, whimpering. Half-hearing his friends calling for him, Tentomon shakily gazed at the darkness ahead. To his horror, the darkness was alive, coiling and billowing like a slug of some kind. The darkness was out of reach, but Tentomon could feel it on him, its thickness choking him from air. Then he realized . . .

'Iyumon! Gabumon!" Gomamon screamed in terror. The lizard and wolf were in the darkness!

"It's a trap!" Tentomon managed to gasp. But it was too late.

It came so fast. From the darkness, chains, shiny and thin, shot outward, many flashes of grey, and Tentomon felt the cold chains wrapping around his body, limbs, and neck, binding them tightly to his sides. An icy-cold chain slapped around his head, he wincing at the pain, gagging him. The chains hung him in the air; he could see that the chains bound his friends as well, they struggling, but to no use. He knew it . . . it was a trap to escape . . . and he had led them to it . . . Tentomon fought back human tears and again strained at the bindings, wanting to break through.

Then he saw a Digimon coming out with two other Digimon in chains. Iyumon and Gabumon! They didn't move, lost their energy from struggling against the bindings. But their red eyes glared at the grinning Digimon. Tentomon saw her once, sitting on Vampdevimon's shoulder, grinning madly and all. The snake-woman . . . He felt the taint in her, as he felt it in Vampdevimon. She was not supposed to exist. Wrongly made. He fought an urge to avert his head away from the mad golden eyes as she voiced girlishly, "It's not a trap. It's a welcome from my Mother."

Just then, Tentomon grew drowsy. He felt energy sucking out by the chains. Panic rose in his chest, but he gave up. It was his fault to foolishly lead his friends to the trap. It was too late for him . . . Tears trickled out and wetted his cheeks. It was too late . . . It was all his fault . . .

Tentomon welcomed the blackness.

***

When she woke from the blackness, feeling the cold chains around her body, and remembered the recent memories, that was when she realized it.

Ruigumon popped her eyes in sudden start and wildly darted her gaze around. To her anger, she found herself still bound by the damned chains cast by that snake. Again looking around, regaining her composure, she was in a new dark chamber, this time wide and modest in appearance. The only other object was a throne seated in the center. He saw a small part of the darkness, softly billowing, on the throne's seat, as if it was actually sitting down. Around her, her new Digimon - in human bodies - were also bound in the chains, slumbering peacefully, unaware of their surroundings.

Ruigumon quietly growled to herself. She felt most of her energy regained and she decided to give a try to break through the chains. Her hands were free, and they clenched into fists, she trying to using her arms to loose the chains.

"It's useless to break through my chains."

She heard the voice of the snake-woman as she came in her vision. She narrowed her eyes in warning. "Who are you and what do you want with me?"

The Cobra Digimon shrugged, grasping her hands behind her back in a shy fashion. "I'm Verzyemon, and I don't want anything from you." The golden eyes glanced to the darkness on the throne. "Mother only wants to talk with you."

Ruigumon was startled. "Mother? Vampdevimon said that . . .?" She remembered he said that when Cleo demanded of his reasons of his destroying. Mother . . . "What are you talking about?"

Her orange eyes were attracted to the darkness. It was shifting, twisting, moving closer. With a gesture from Verzyemon, Ruigumon was moved forward to the throne level, her feet barely touching the floor. Ruigumon strained, averting her head, but was forced to watch as the darkness melted from the hidden figure. Ruigumon softly gasped for the figure was a girl child. So beautiful, so lethal, and so innocent. She looked so human that there was no Digimon appearance around her. Seven years old, she could appear, clad in a waist-less dress, sleeveless and wide, billowing around her knees. The dress was dark black, soft to the eye. The simple, plain dress only enhanced her innocence. A black scarf was wrapped around her neck, high enough to cover her lips. But she could see the full lips peeking from under.

Her beautiful mane was jet-black, swaying by a hidden breeze, almost blanketing around her pale white skin. A small black stone was clasped on the center of her forehead, round and shiny, and that attracted her gaze. It shone dark light, not the darkness. She could feel the warmth of the dark light playing on her face. The very minute she noticed it, the stone seemed alive, sucking energy, and data out from her, and Ruigumon drove her gaze away. What was that? What stone was it that had the power to suck energy?

The most terrifying thing about the small child was the blindfold. A white cloth strip was tied around her head, shielding her eyes, and the strip was . . . bloodstained. Blood of whom? She was too afraid to find out.

Ruigumon felt her heart thumping wildly, and yet, at the same time, she wanted to let the small girl hug her, feeling safe in her motherly calmness. What was that abnormality? "Who . . . or what are you?"

The girl standing on the throne didn't answer, but tilted her head as Verzyemon spoke from behind, "She is my Mother. She is the First and Final Evil. Daematermon."

The Butterfly stared down to the girl in total incredulity. That child, that humanlike Digimon was . . . the very last evil that the Digidestined must face to free the worlds from? That beautiful, innocent child?

Daematermon smiled under her scarf and spoke, her voice soft and motherly, "It's my pleasure to meet you, Ruigumon."

Ruigumon shook her head dubiously. "It can't be . . . You cannot be the Final Evil! You are nothing but . . . a child!"

Daematermon may have her eyes shielded, but her gaze was powerful and deep that Ruigumon felt like she was exposed to her, her soul and mind fully opened to see. Nothing can be hidden from Daematermon's eyes. The girl reached out a tiny hand with long fingers and very lightly touched on Ruigumon's cheek. The Butterfly bristled and gave out an agonized scream, for the gentle wisps of the fingers sent powerful surges of fire, fire that burned from within, flashes of red gusting through her face.

As the scream faded into sobs, Daematermon whispered, "Can a child burn you like this? And can she soothe you like this?"

The fingers again stroked her burning cheek, and Ruigumon felt silent in awe as the touches spread coldness and soothed the burns immediately. The coldness relaxed her tense muscles and encouraged her to go to slumber and be safe in the child's darkness. Ruigumon fought to stay awake and only stared back in speechless wariness. She even found herself semi-consciously pushing her cheek against the motherly touch, feeling awe and reverence in her. She told herself repeatedly that Daematermon was nothing but a child and could not be the Final Evil, and yet after what she did to her, she was fully convinced that the child was the Final Evil. If this child held power that no one ever know or face before, how could the Digidestined be able to face her?

Daematermon was smiling at her silence and leaned against the back of the throne, gazing quietly. Eventually, she spoke, "I can see in your beautiful eyes that you seek answers to your child's secrets."

"What child?" Ruigumon was puzzled at the change of the subject.

"Your Watcher."

Ruigumon inhaled sharply, her temper flaring. "If you every try to lay a hand on her, I will - !" She couldn't finish her sentence, for it ended into a series of growls, the energetic Digimon eager to try her strength on the Final Evil, even though she knew it was folly. Yet, anything to keep Cleo away from that . . . child . . .

Daematermon's lips pouted and the black mane swayed as she shook her head once. "I have no desire to hurt her. I only want the crest she carries."

"Her crest?"

'The crest is never hers. She only found it. She thought it's hers, but actually, it doesn't belong to her."

Ruigumon scowled. "You speak vaguely."

Daematermon's head turned a bit to glance at the slumber human-Digimon. "You will find out in time, Ruigumon, that your child is carrying an object that I cherish to have." Then her blindfolded gaze was sharp as it turned back to her. "Whoever dares to keep it away from me shall suffer."

Again, the warning growls. "You . . . stay away from her."

The Daemon Mother remained silent, staring back, then again shook her head once. "I do not want her. Only the crest."

"And the destruction of the worlds, I believe," Ruigumon snapped.

To her surprise, the girl seemed hurt and sad. "No."

" . . . No?"

Daematermon slightly bowed her head. "Why should I? The world means nothing to me; everything means nothing to me . . . except for the Crest."

Ruigumon heard no desire or no greed in her voice, but there was sadness to the tone, the sadness that she lost everything and the only meaning in her life was to have the Crest. It baffled Ruigumon. The Final Evil was sad and she wished to have the Crest to complete her life? She seemed so lost that Ruigumon almost didn't resist the yearning to embrace the Daemon Mother in her arms. It was no trick, she knew it. Daematermon was truly sad and lost. But it confused her . . . Why was that this lost child Digimon the Final Evil? What did that mean?

"I don't understand . . ." she whispered.

"And never you will," Daematermon responded before the darkness took her. But she didn't leave the throne and Ruigumon only stared at it, left in her confused musings.

***

As quick as it appeared, the static diminished from the scenery, from the air, from the four Digidestined's bodies. The high-pitched shriek quieted into the whispering breezes that suddenly appeared from the static. The static may be gone, but the distortion remained, the very edges of the vision hazy and eye-watering. The haze faded, as well, but Taichi had the feeling that it wasn't the last time he saw the static. His mind then turned to the concern of the affected Digidestined. The static affected Ken, Kimika, Koushiro, and Jyou, and he didn't know how deep, but it affected them enough that left them weak. They seemed to collapse from within, gasping for breath and their limbs shaking from the strain.

He knelt by his best friend, making sure she was alright - apparently, she wasn't, and he looked around the rest of the Digidestined who huddled around the affected ones. "What happened to you?"

Kimika and Koushiro were silent, too shaken to respond and Ken appeared greatly confused as he looked down to his trembling hands. But Jyou was stable enough to respond. He was shaking his head of blue-black hair, looking cautious of something. "I don't know . . . It went so fast . . . But I think I'm fine."

The other affected ones responded in awkward agreement. But Taichi wasn't convinced. He noticed something that he hasn't seen in four years. It was so familiar that he feared that it has happened all over again. The four Digidestined's skins were blanched so white that they were sickly pale. Yet they didn't look sick at all, but just exhausted, and their limbs were still shaking slightly, as if they experienced something terrible. That happened before, when they were marked by Amayamon and were taken away. Taichi frowned, where did Ken fit in, then?

Taichi felt that it wasn't important this time. What was important was that everybody was back together. Except for the Old Digimon, but Taichi felt confident, felt that even though they were separated, they will handle themselves fine. Still . . . he wondered what happened to Agumon . . .

He stood up and took sharp glances at the New Kids. Like Daisuke, their clothes were changed; the colors matched the colors of their D-3s. Taichi guessed that they must have found their powers, which bewildered him. He never knew that there were other actual powers, powers that were used by other Digidestined. Why didn't he know about it before? But then, he never knew about his own power until he found it on his own. He also noticed that Takeru and Hikari had their new clothes as well, and he suspected. Still, he knew that it was time to calm the Digidestined down and find out what happened so far.

He glanced to the orange-clad hunter - Willis, he thought and wondered why he saw the reserved blonde as a hunter - and asked, "Willis, is it really safe here?" He didn't doubt the quiet nod and turned to his friends. His voice attracted their attention. "Then I believe that it's better for us to rest and tell what is going on here, shall we?"

The Digidestined took this rare time to rest ever since the picnic. How many days since, they didn't know, but they knew that it was very long since. They felt fatigued and worn-out. The unnatural sleep from Vampdevimon's attack didn't offer refreshment, and some of the Digidestined were more than ready to slumber at the spot. Even the Digimon were silent, seriously using the rest to gather their energies. Taichi didn't want them to sleep, not yet, not in this strange place. But they were glad of the rest and wisely used the time to quietly listen to the New Kids as they explained what happened.

The powers were the entertainment, explaining about how they got their powers and faced the strange Dark Digidestined. When they came around to the dolls, these roused the Old Kids. Taichi remained silent, the best way to think through his thoughts and hear what his friends said at the same time.

"Now I remember," Frankie was the first one to speak. He glanced to the Old Kids. "You told me about the dolls, but I thought the dolls were gone."

"I kept them as secrets," Takeru admitted, looking vaguely puzzled as he glanced to the dolls. "I kept them in my closets ever since. No one else knows that I actually kept them except Patamon."

His brother frowned. "Why did you keep them?"

The younger brother shrugged. "I don't think that the dolls would not be used again."

It was no mistake that the dolls were used by Puppetmon, despite the changes. Yamato shook his head. "Someone must've known about the dolls."

Willis quietly said, "Perhaps one of the Dark Digimon?"

Iori glanced to him. "Do you think Vampdevimon is the one who is responsible?"

"That or Verzyemon or even the Final Evil."

The Seeker lightly frowned in disagreement. "Even if one of them is responsible, a Digimon cannot enter Earth without a Digivice."

"Except for a Digimon infected with Human DNA," Koushiro reminded.

"Verzyemon . . ." Mimi murmured and turned to the others, "She is infected with Human DNA. She has a human form, just like Arukenimon and Mummymon."

Daisuke closed his tawny eyes and crossed his arms. "How could it be? Oikawa didn't create any more Digimon."

"I don't think he is responsible," Kimika pondered. "Someone else might have."

The Keeper frowned, resting his chin on his fists. "A new Digimon infected with Human DNA and someone else knows about the dolls . . . Something's up."

"Of course, something's up," Yamato muttered.

"No, no, wait. If Verzyemon knows about the dolls, what does she want with them?" Frankie gestured down to his doll. "The dolls were used to control your bodies before, right?"

As the older Digidestined nodded, Iori wondered, "But this time, they weren't used for that. We believe that your dark selves possessed them . . ."

As he vaguely listened to his sister's demand for the purpose, Taichi glanced across to Cleo, who sat by Koushiro, resting her head on his shoulder. She appeared confused and deep in her thought. He saw no doll in her hands, and he wondered if she did see her dark self. He didn't know if it was possible, but how else did Willis use his new power for? She did look like she saw something scary, and maybe she did meet her dark self. Even so, where was that doll the dark Cleo possessed?

His attention turned to Koushiro as the redhead explained, "It's a probability that the dolls were used to separate us and put us in the memories."

"Trapped in our memories . . ." Kimika quietly murmured.

Koushiro nodded. "Right. I assure that whoever controlled the dolls is trying to separate all of us, Digidestined and Digimon."

The black-clad Ken added, "So we will be powerless and alone . . ."

Jyou shifted with a solemnity that kept Taichi's curiosity up. "It seems as if the Final Evil is trying to get us out of the way."

Michael turned to him, also puzzled as the rest. "Out of the way?"

"To get something. Something that might be of importance to her."

"Her?"

The dusky eyes held certainty that made Taichi's neck hairs stand. "The Final Evil. Vampdevimon's 'Mother'. I don't know why, but it makes me think that the Final Evil is a she."

Taichi's attention shifted to Daisuke, who grinned. Now what was he thinking about? Then Taichi had to chuckle at him as he voiced, "Of course . . . a female is more deadly than a male."

"Oh, really?" Miyako gave one of her trademark glares that could melt Daisuke, but it only drew another grin from the Brother.

The brief humor did lighten up the dark mood and the Digidestined and Digimon laughed, chuckled, or smiled, finally relaxed from the dark hours they once again experienced through. Taichi wished it would last longer, but he was aware that he and his friends weren't finished. There was one thing left. Taichi cleared his throat, resting his elbows on his knees, as he said, "I know one thing . . . we won't finish anything if we sit around." He again intently gazed around the group. "I'm also curious about Verzyemon, Vampdevimon, and this Final Evil, but first things first. We need to find our Digimon." The worry and concern appeared in the older Digidestined. "They are somewhere, probably needing us. We need to find a way out of here and find the Digimon."

"There is a problem . . ." Taichi looked over to Cleo, who sat upright, looking uncertain. "We can't get out."

"Excuse me?"

"We are stuck here. Something is blocking us from leaving."

Taichi closed his eyes, sighing. That was not what he needed to hear. But he was glad that Miyako took up his role and asked, "Maybe you can call for help from outside . .  ."

"Doesn't work. I couldn't even call Prophetmon."

"Cleo, what is blocking us?" he heard a hint of worry beneath the aloof tone in Yamato.

Taichi gazed to Cleo, who had the apologetic look on her face. "I can't identify it . . . Something is out here, but I couldn't tell what." With that, her gaze met his gaze, and for some reason, Taichi didn't like the way she looked at him. It was like pity and weak self-confidence. That was ridiculous, he knew that. She can't be going around, apologizing to everybody when she couldn't find something worthwhile and meekly departing without a word of encouragement. That was not the Cleo he knew. He knew that he really wanted to find Agumon, but he won't accept any meekness. He wanted to see more effort. Especially from her.

"Tai?" he gazed over to Mimi, her face gentle. "I meant to tell you that I'm feeling our Digimon's essences. Although . . ."

"What's it?" Sora asked.

Mimi's hazel eyes glanced upward, in thought. "It's quite odd. Normally, our Digimon share our essences, so I would feel one essence, not two . . . But now, their essences are separated from ours."

Taichi frowned in puzzlement as Sora continued, "Do you sense their locations?"

Mimi stood and pointed toward the top of the cliff where they sat near. "Over there."

Some of the Digidestined stood and craned their heads for a better look. Taichi attempted to see something upon the top. All he saw was thick grey clouds coiling at the edge. It was impossible to see the very top unless you had a flying ability.

"In that castle?"

Taichi turned at Kimika's voice. She was standing near the shore, her head bending, but her brown eyes seemed to have locked on a spot somewhere on the cliff. Several kids and Digimon followed her on the shore and tried to see.

"What castle?" Willis murmured. "I don't see anything."

Kimika pointed. "The castle is very dark, vague, but I see it. It's right there, on the top."

Taichi watched carefully at the smaller group. He noticed that Jyou, Ken, and Koushiro had the same expression as Kimika's, aware and certain, just as they did see the castle, as well. They murmured agreements with Kimika, pointing and describing the appearances of the hidden castle. Taichi moved to Kimika's side and let her guide his sight on the top. He saw nothing. Nothing but clouds. He stared until his eyes watered, and he sighed rubbing them. He gazed around his friends and decided it.

"Castle or not, out Digimon are out there. We have to go there." He turned to the sitting Cleo. "Cleo, can we go there?"

The Watcher calmly shook her head. "The cliffs block us and no matter how high you guys fly to there, you will be blocked from reaching it."

The calmness in her voice, the trapped feeling from the cliffs upset him. His voice rose as he glared toward Cleo. "There must be a way! I'm worried about Agumon!" Then he mentally slapped himself for snapping out from his self-control. He rubbed his head, keeping his eyes closed to avoid the look on Cleo. But he did apologize. "Sorry, Cleo."

"It's alright, Tai." The voice was soft, but her iridescent voice in his mind was sharp, unhappy. 'I am worried about our Digimon. But it's not necessary to snap at me when I have no answers.'

Taichi quietly met her gaze, which was also sharp, and mental-spoke back, 'What about Prophetmon? He knows everything.' It was just a response, to explain why he was upset. But he held truth in his words. Since Prophetmon was so smart and so omniscient, why in the heck did he leave them in here, this trapped place? And even if he did know about this place, he should at least let Cleo know the way out. Cleo did answer back, again with that pitying look.

Taichi knew there was awkward silence between them and the rest kept silent, wisely knowing not to interpret or calm them that quick. He discerned a flash of yellow and he turned to see Iori walking up to his side. There was determination in his face.

"Taichi-san . . ." the youngest Digidestined voiced. "It might sound crazy to you, but I think I might have a way out."

Taichi would mutter under his breath at the false hope, but seeing the honesty in the boy's face, he assumed that it was possible to have a way out. "Is that so, Cody?"

The sierra-haired boy nodded. "I believe our crests can show the way." In his small hands, the Crest of Wisdom was glowing dimly, rays of dark purple-red spreading.

The leader lightly frowned and glanced to the other New Crests. Sure enough, they were glowing, still glowing ever since the Digidestined got out from their memories. Ice blue, sea green, lavender, rose-red, and soft orange lights bathed the nearby kids and Digimon in their colors. The New Kids didn't seem surprised at all, looking thoughtful as they gazed at their crests.

Iori again got Taichi's attention. "Our crests were pointing at that black lighthouse ever since we got here." Sure enough, as he remarked, the crests focused their glows toward the strange black-stone lighthouse, thin beams shining in that direction. He knew that the Digiworld worked in funny ways, and he didn't find any doubt or disbelief in this possibility. It was a positive thing; the crests might have a way out. The crests never failed them.

Koushiro's voice spoke, "I don't think it sounds crazy. After all, you were the ones who guided us out from our memories. It's a probability that you might show the way out."

"And probably to your Digimon."

Yes, the crests never failed them, but not always in a good way. Taichi turned to them, saying, "Let us not keep our hopes too high. We must expect mistakes, distractions that might appear."

Miyako's dun eyes bore at him, holding persistence. "But it would be worth a try."

Taichi allowed a faint smile on his face; once again, he was glad that he picked her. He then looked to his friends, who nodded agreement. Better than stand around, doing nothing. The New Kids led them toward the Black Lighthouse. The shelf was surprisingly steep; he misinterpreted the distance. At first, he thought it was shallow and easy to walk upon, but the stones were rugged, sharp enough to scratch through the boots and moccasins, and steep enough that the kids had to focus on using handholds and footholds to climb. Luckily, the top of the shelf was wide and level enough for everybody to stand on. The lighthouse was enormous in size and height, its top was gone within the clouds, but the beam of black light was easily noticed. While the white light from the other lighthouse was bright enough to blind eyes, the black light was too dark to allow anybody to see through. It didn't give the sensation of blindness, although.

Taichi tore his gaze from the black light toward the lighthouse itself. There was a door, indeed, arched and just big enough for an army to march in. But he saw no lock, latch, or even a knob. A door without a way to open. "I have checked the door, but there is no lock," Cleo murmured as she frowned. "And how can the Black Lighthouse lead us to the way out?"

Her ward shrugged as he walked up to the lighthouse alone. He placed his hands on the surface and Taichi wondered what he felt, coldness or just stability in this strange place. Willis spoke, "Maybe there is a lock that we don't see . . ."

The sea green light shifted as he kept his crest directly to face the door. The light shrunk into a shape that seemed a piece of a circle, a tiny arch of sea-green, shining on the black surface. The New Kids stepped forward, shifting the lights. They also formed arches and they matched, somehow, into a shape . . . Taichi was puzzled; the shape looked like a twisted circle, the eight-shaped symbol for infinity. He heard a soft gasp and that was from Cleo. She appeared confused, but he suspected she remembered something once forgotten.

The twisted circle brightened for a bit, and he heard a click from behind the door. The Digidestined moved back to allow the giant door silently opening wide. Inside was simple, a circular dark room with a stairway curling down. The end was too dark to be seen.

"Careful," Sora murmured as Daisuke and Ken moved closer to peer inside. "The dangers might be in there."

Frankie had this calm expression on his face and Taichi knew the answer. "Sora, I feel no danger. I feel nothing . . ."

Daisuke took a glance toward the stairway and spoke, "Even so, we should check. Ken?"

A soft orange shimmer and a black dazzle came over the Brother and Friend, and Taichi saw that they were in their armor clothes. Blades of orange and night blue and blood-red claws flashed in the dim lights and Ember and Blood headed for the stairway.

"Wait a second," Taichi demanded, walking to them. "What are you doing?"

Blood's twilight eyes regarded at him. "Scouting. Don't worry, we are checking for any possible hint of an ambush." He then vanished inside the darkness where Ember was already gone. Taichi crouched by the entrance, trying to peer in the darkness.

"It's amazing," he murmured, rubbing his chin. "It's like they aren't themselves."

He heard the rustling of Miyako as she knelt by him, her soft red garments swaying in her motions. He liked her clothes; it suited her better than the former uniform. She looked like the real Miyako. She glanced down to the stairs and spoke to answer his words, "I think our Powers enhance our survival abilities."

He just nodded; he understood because it worked in the similar way with the Old Kids. If the Armor Powers helped the New Kids improve their fighting and survival abilities, they would be valuable fighters. The Nature Powers gave the Old Kids abilities to control Nature and be more sensitive with it. The abilities helped enhanced the Old Kids' understanding of life and death within nature.

The Digidestined patiently waited for Blood and Ember to return - the Heart-Names seemed to suit perfectly while they were in their Armor clothes - using the minutes to again rest. Better to be prepared, no matter what, because the Digiworld did work in funny ways. A minute later, Ember's head popped out from the darkness.

"It's clear. It's all but stairs."

Taichi nodded, standing up. "Okay, got it." He beckoned the group. "Now, go quietly." One by one, the kids and Digimon followed Ember downstairs. Taichi was glad that the Digidestined had extraordinary teamwork; they knew who were stronger and capable to face danger ahead and keep the weaker in the middle. Taichi stayed behind, waiting as the last kid, Jyou, headed downstairs. He glanced at the door, hoping that it won't close and lock the kids inside. He turned to walk down. The minute he left the first step, he felt the closing.

Jyou popped out, eyes wide. "The door!"

Taichi needed no warning. He rushed ahead, hoping that his strength would be enough to stop the door from closing. But it was folly. It shut in his face, leaving him in total darkness.

***

The Vampire paused just inside the chamber. His eyes watched his Mother carefully as she paid no attention to her surrounding, the small black-haired girl Digimon floating by the single window. Her hidden gaze was looking outside, noticing something that he couldn't see. He was surprised to see a change in Daematermon. Before, she would stand tall and bear a certainty in her stance that she seemed larger than life, holding such an authority that he respected. Now, a great sadness had come over her. Her body was coiled into a ball, a tiny fist pressured upon her covered mouth. Then he realized it. She was not in her darkness. The darkness she so favored to take comfort within was not there. She was there in plain sight.

Vampdevimon suddenly didn't like it. What happened to her while he was gone? But he decided not to bring it up to her. Daematermon didn't like being reminded. In his human form, he quietly stepped forward to stand behind her, watching the soft black hair billowing around her body. He patiently waited until she regarded his presence.

She kept her eyes outside, but then spoke, "They are coming."

Vampdevimon tilted his head in curiosity. "Who?"

Daematermon's head turned to him. "The Children. The Crest. Look outside, son." She moved beside, allowing Vampdevimon to glance out. He didn't like the sight of the grey beach, the two lighthouses and the icy-black waters. The sight was too bland, too negative. Not his colors. He saw several dots on the beach and, looking harder, saw that they were the Digidestined. He was pleased to see them out of their memories; he preferred them sane and aware than have Daematermon's plan working out to keep them separated. He looked forward to another battle; the last battle was delicious to his soul. He thirsted for it.

He watched closer and noticed that four of the children were staring upward, toward the citadel. It surprised him. The citadel was supposed to hidden to any eyes except for his and his sister's. For some reason, it gave him the creeps, seeing that those kids won't be that easy to fool.

Vampdevimon turned around and leaned against the wall beside the window, his eyes on his mother. "So they are strong enough to break through their memories. Look like your plan to keep them apart failed."

The girl's voice was amazingly calm. "I don't insist to have my plan working. I want to see how strong they are."

"How strong are they, Mother?"

"Very strong . . . but not enough to defeat me." He could hear a hint of disapproval in her voice. She made a childlike shrug. "Still, they've proven their strength. They remind me of the Fallen Children."

The red-clad Digimon frowned in puzzlement. "Fallen Children? But aren't they just - "

"Legends?" The hidden eyes were on him now, sharp and patient.

"Well, yeah."

She fixed her gaze on him for a minute, then to the outside. He felt like she was studying the children under glass. "Yes, they are legends, very ancient and vague. But the Fallen Children are still alive, after all."

"Alive?" Vampdevimon shook his head in incredulity. "It just can't be. They cannot live that long. It happened thousands of years ago. Humans can't live that long . . ." His eyes widened as he grasped information he otherwise didn't notice. "Unless . . ."

Daematermon nodded. "They are Unmons. That's how they live that long. But remember, they are alive and yet they are not."

He was puzzled. Everybody knew that Unmons were nothing but pieces of data left over from Digimon and shaped like Humans. The name Unmon was the reason the Digimon called them that because they were Digimon and not Digimon. Unmons were so secretive that no one except probably them knew their origins. They were known for the mysterious forces working within the Digiworld and held practically everything sacred. No one had seen an Unmon before or even once in their lifetimes. The only Unmon who was often seen was Gennai Unmon, who decided to allow himself to be known as the Mentor of the Digidestined. But one thing appeared out of place. Humans cannot turn into Unmons or even Digimon. The Fallen Children cannot be Unmons at all! It was ridiculous . . .

"How could it be?" Vampdevimon muttered in bewilderment. He knew the legends, but not that detailed.

A darkness came over her and it wasn't the soft darkness she used, but the darkness that showed her other side, the devilish, vicious Daematermon. "There were five Fallen Children, seeking to destroy me. The Avenger is the only survivor of the First Battle and he still remembers. The Maiden is long dead . . . " He heard the great sadness creeping in her voice."And the other Fallen Children, the Hunter, the Matron, and the Dreamer . . . They are alive, but without memories of their pasts." A slight smile appeared on her lips. "In order to defeat me, the Avenger needs memories and the Fallen Crest to awaken the sword. And I know it's impossible to do that . . ."

Vampdevimon kept silent, inwardly frowning. That was new, hearing that from her. Daematermon rarely talked and when she did, it was only what she needed to explain the duty to him. Now the Final Evil was speaking idly about the First Battle. She was the First Evil, alright, but she never mentioned about the life she had before she became Daematermon. Daematermon was a Mega. There must be a life before she turned Mega . . .

"Mother . . . who are you, really? What happened to you that turned you to Mega?"

The blind gaze was fixed on him intently. Her voice held no tension or warning. "You begin to doubt me?"

He gazed back for a minute, and then lowered his head toward his crossed arms. A grin played on his face as he uttered a human saying, "Curiosity killed the cat."

Daematermon answered with a disapproving pout. "You don't know my past, son. You don't know my suffering." The black mane flowed as she sharply turned to watch the kids again. Her voice was flat. "Why are you here, then?"

Vampdevimon scolded himself for saying such a thing. Even though he was a Mega, his powers were nothing but powers of an In-Training compared with her. He also knew her method of discipline, no matter how painful. He softly sighed and responded, "I believe I can find the Shields. I've figured out the clues and locations."

"Indeed? Do you know that if you destroy one of the Outer Shields, the Inner Shields will become harder to find? And even if the four shields are gone, the other four will be completely invisible." She shook her head. "It's a risk, Vampdevimon."

He didn't care. He didn't have a desire to harm the Digiworld or even destroy it. He was bored. Searching for the Shields will keep him busy, and plus, he will have the chances to visit lands to gather precious memories. If he was going to die soon, he will make sure that he sure will have memories to keep him company in that oblivion. Memories were more important than harming the world. He simply shrugged. "I just know how to find them. The world will die even if just one of them is broken."

"Are you willing to take the risk? I'm not seeking to destroy the world."

Vampdevimon made a show to scratch at his claws; he wasn't nervous, but the sharp gaze on him was just biting at him. "Everything eventually dies, Mother. I'm just helping speeding the process." He looked up at his Mother's gaze. There was no disappointment or gladness in the pretty face. Nothing but mild patience. He lightly frowned, strengthening upright. "Mother, don't tell me you don't want to destroy the world."

Daematermon shook her head and again watched outside. "My only desire is to find the Crest of Heart."

The Vampire sighed with light exasperation and leaned on the windowsill, looking down to the children as they enter the Black Lighthouse. She never mentioned any reason why she desired it, why she must have it. At first, he respected her desire, believing that it was just a desire, but she made it sounded like the Crest was the only thing that had any meaning to her. He decided to ask her this time to find out the reason. "You never told me why you want that Crest. Why is it so important to you that it must be destroyed?"

"So I will be free . . ."

Vampdevimon was startled, looking back to her, but her face was easily smooth, held no expression. Her voice held nothing, as well, and he grew curious of the reason. Freedom? He frowned, but drew no more words from her. "I will take my leave," he slightly bowed as he stepped out from the chamber.

Walking in the seemingly endless hallway, he felt his strong curiosity growing and gnawing at him. Who was his mother, really? The Legends about the First Battle were all but lost, and bits of the stories were known among the Higher Digimon, the Guardians, and probably the Unmons, from what he heard about the Fallen Children becoming Unmons. He didn't really know how Daematermon became to be. He wondered what really happened in that battle. He didn't know how it started or finished, either. Daematermon never mentioned one word about the battle, not one word, and that annoyed him. All he knew was that the Watcher had the same looks as her child. Her Digidestined child. He grunted, shaking his head. A Digimon Guardian was the First Evil? What irony.

But the stories Daematermon told him recently didn't help much. He felt an urge to go out and seek Unmons or anybody that might know more about the First Battle, in order to understand his mother better.

Faces appeared in his mind, the faces of the Digidestined. Well, if Mother wants the Crest of Heart so badly, he would be more than happy to go to the Watcher and snatch the Crest of Heart from her pretty neck. End her life and offer his mother happiness.

Still, there were questions . . .

His ears picked up soft footsteps and he knew that it was his sister, once again eavesdropping on his conversation. She sure loved her hobby. Stopping, he turned to mildly glance down to the snake in her human form scampering to his side. "I heard everything, brother . . ."

"Didn't you know that eavesdropping is bad for you?"

She grinned, flashing her tiny fangs. "I'm supposed to be bad, remember?" Then a pout appeared on her face. "What's the matter with Mother?"

"She is remembering her past." He glanced up toward the chamber, lost in the darkness beyond, then back to Verzyemon. "What will you do?"

"The children are coming. Mother and I will welcome them."

"What else?"

"What else?" Verzyemon repeated in puzzlement, and then shrugged. The shrug looked too alike to Daematermon's shrug. "I don't know . . ." Her golden eyes narrowed. "Why?"

Vampdevimon stared back, not wanting her to know his other plans. He stepped past, muttering, "Keep an eye on Mother, will you?"

Verzyemon kept at his side, again grinning. "Ah, so now you afraid of her?"

Vampdevimon abruptly stopped, not in stiff anger, but in mild interest, gazing down to her. "You are an idiot if you aren't afraid of her." Ignoring the fierce scowl on the childlike face, he continued, "She knows more than she tells us."

Verzyemon pressed a fist under her chin, appearing wistful. "Is it really necessary for her to tell us everything?"

Vampdevimon suddenly didn't like her. For one thing, she was made, not born from a Digiegg. She was too creepy to be normal. He forced a stony smile at her. "Will you excuse me? I have someone to attend to."

As he moved on, Verzyemon continued, quiet and carefully, "Be gentle, big brother. Mother will not be happy with you if you harm the Crest."

And she can read minds! Well, heck with it. "It's not just the Crest I seek. It's the Watcher. I have questions that needed to be answered." He didn't look back for a response as he vanished in the dark.

***

She thought that when Myalomyotismon cast his darkness to spread all over the Digiworld and Earth, the darkness was the darkest she'd ever seen, so dark, casting shadows on the landscapes and yet giving out some sort of light that she can see by, seeing dark light for the first time. It was not like the darkness of the Dark Ocean, which was much like the one by the grey beach back there. Myalomyotismon's darkness gave out a glare of pure evilness, the evil that froze her heart and whispered of nightmares. The darkness from the Dark Ocean was negative, radiating great despair and doubt, gnawing at her heart with agony.

This darkness was none of those.

Miyako felt softness and peace from the darkness, the darkness she would be content to sleep in. That spooked her. Was that supposed to be? As the group strode through the tunnel - it was clearly a tunnel, from the light reflected by Kimika's Light Power in the form of a glowing ball, natural and rugged - Miyako had the feeling that they were heading for the cliff and this building that no one except four of the Digidestined had seen. The stairway was leading downstairs for a brief time, and then straightened up into a level ground that lasted for even longer. She hinted the ground going slightly upward. It was no doubt; they were going to the cliff.

Miyako exhaled, hoping that whoever or whatever was waiting in the castle were just the Old Digimon, not some evil like Vampdevimon or the Final Evil. She hoped.

The tunnel ended up into another stairway, curling tightly upward. It was narrow, just enough for everybody to walk one by one. Miyako felt the wall as she followed Frankie in the line. The walls were smooth, almost like marble or jet. She wondered who made it. The stairway seemed to last forever, and just when she thought her feet would bruise, Daisuke at the very lead voiced that they stopped at a door. She heard Taichi's approval to move on and then perceived the door opening. The darkness there was dim, light from Kimika no longer needed. The dimness showed that they were in a gigantic empty room that its ceiling was unseen from above. Miyako suddenly felt alone in all the space.

She noticed that Frankie had this puzzlement and an unpleasant frown on his face the minute he stepped into the room. He was like that until he stopped Michael who moved closer to a wall with an opening that she assumed as a hall from the darker spot. "Wait . . . hold on a minute . . ." He tilted his head as if he was sensing something.

His brother turned to him. "Do you feel danger?"

The Keeper's frown deepened. "I sense great peril in here. I'm not sure what kind." His hazel eyes glared around the room. "Someone is here, very dangerous, but it doesn't want to hurt any of us. Its anger is directed to one of us . . ."

"Can you tell where the danger comes from?" Yamato demanded. Miyako noticed that while Taichi took his time thinking carefully through situations like this, Yamato tended to take over the leader role. Not really surprising, for Taichi can get frustrated easily and needed time away from his natural role.

Frankie grunted with such a frustration that Miyako believed it came from the difficulty to sense danger. "Where? It's everywhere. It's like the castle itself is dangerous."

The Master hummed to himself and turned to Mimi and Cleo, raising his eyebrows in question.

Mimi gently shrugged. "The Digimon are here, yes, but I can't tell where exactly. They are blurred, fuzzy."

Cleo nodded in agreement. "Same here. Their presences are too distant, changed."

"Changed? What do you mean, changed?" Yamato questioned.

"I don't know. Changed."

The group shifted in doubt, glancing around the strange, peaceful darkness. Miyako kept her eyes on the darker spot, the hallway, hoping that it was where it led to the missing Digimon. There was the only way to find out.

"Our method is simple: find your Digimon and find a way out," she heard herself speaking. "We won't fight, but we will have to if there is no other way. Hopefully, it's not necessary in our case. We have to move fast, in and out, and hopefully, we will find your Digimon soon."

She felt her cheeks heating under the gazes of her friends. She was very astonished at her words and wondered where they came from. But when the older kids nodded and smiled in agreement, she relaxed a bit. She didn't miss the beaming grin on Taichi and that reddened her face further.

They headed for the hallway. It was very empty as the room, and it appeared to stretch in distance, both ends soon lost in the darkness out of their reach. The darkness made her feel uneasy. It seemed alive, coiling and twisting. She tried to ignore it and focused at the ahead, where now Willis and Ken explored in the darkness. Ken's black clothing was perfect for him to vanish in the darkness, and Willis's orange garments made him an obvious target, yet he seemed perfect for a scout. They were checking the doors, leading into empty and surely useless rooms. She watched Willis carefully as he opened yet another door. She then heard a soft sound, like gasping, and Ken was suddenly there, out of the darkness. Paleness whitened his already pale skin and a strange, incredulous expression on his face.

"Ken?" Miyako whispered, stepping forward.

Ken glanced to the opened door, where Willis had disappeared inside. "I think . . . we found them."

The Kids rushed to the door and peered in another enormous room. The sight struck Miyako speechless. She knew that they did find the Old Digimon, but . . . but . . . Why were they in these . . . bodies?! The Digimon were truly there, but their Digital forms seemed to be changed into humanlike bodies. Their clothing was easily marked to match the coloring of their Digital forms, but . . . They were human! Truly human! Except for Ruigumon, who was still having her Digital form, which was odd. The Digimon-turned-humans were in chains, chains that looked like easy to break through, and yet the Digimon looked too exhausted to move, their eyes closed. The Kids were speechless, but Mimi was the first one to recover.

"Palmon!" Mimi rushed to her Digimon's side. She tried to break the chains, but couldn't. She then shook Palmon, a frightened visage on her face. "Palmon!"

The green-clad girl opened her emerald eyes; Miyako knew it was Palmon's eyes. Palmon appeared surprised to see her partner present, then weakly sat up. "Mimi?"

Mimi grinned in relief, and then lost it. "What happened to you?"

Palmon placed her hands on Mimi's shoulders, and there was a cold certainty in her eyes that provoked Miyako's tension further. Her voice was quiet and shaking. "Mimi . . . get us out of here."

The Kids rushed ahead to break the chains. Frankie froze apart the manacles with his Ice Power while Taichi simply melted the other manacles with a touch. Cleo and Hikari also helped, Cleo using telekinesis to bend the chains apart and Hikari aging the locks into rusts that she then broke. The human-Digimon were shaken, begging to leave and ignoring the soothing words from their partners. It was clear to Miyako that this place terrified them. They were not easily spooked, not from what they had experienced all their lives.

Ruigumon held terror for everybody, her orange eyes pale with horror. "Please, we have to get out of here! Before Daematermon finds us!"

Cleo tried to calm her Butterfly Digimon down. "Daematermon? Who is she?"

The Butterfly seemed to refuse to answer, instead pleaded the Kids to take the Digimon out of the awful place. "Please! Go now!"

"Oh, no, you will not . . ."

A shadow appeared at the door and it was a humanlike Digimon, leaning on the doorway, shaking his head. His voice was clearly Vampdevimon's and the clothing was almost matched to his Digital Form. The golden eyes were the real thing; she will not forget it, the angelic eyes in a demon. He was a Digimon with Human DNA, no mistake about it. Vampdevimon drawled calmly, "My Mother will be very displeased with me if I let you leave. Such terrible manners."

The red stars sparkled over her body as she opened her deadly fans. The Armor Children also summoned their weapons, taking positions in front of the Old Kids, their weapons flashing in a warning. Vampdevimon paused, glancing at the weapons in interest. "So . . . you really have found your powers already." The grin revealed long fangs. "You really think you can defeat me?"

Jewel felt a large hand resting on her shoulder and heard Taichi voicing, "Everybody, don't fight."

She gawked at him in disbelief. "What?! Sure, you don't mean - " But the sharp, calm eyes silenced her. He then shook his head. She didn't stop a scowl from smearing across her face, but she had the feeling he knew what to do. She closed her fans and jerked her head toward the waiting Armor Children. The Armor Children lowered their weapons and stepped back. But then she captured the gaze of Glass, who nodded. He stepped beside Taichi in order to be his guard. She could feel the disapproval from Taichi, but otherwise said nothing.

Taichi eyed the strange humanlike Digimon that was Vampdevimon. He ignored the fact that Vampdevimon had the ability to change into a human and focused on the danger present. He knew what he was going to do was not always wise, but he didn't want his friends to get in danger, especially their Digimon who were also in human bodies and too weak to fight back. He boldly met the golden gaze. "I'm not going to fight you. None of us will. I know you are powerful and we will not defeat you or even fight you at this moment. It's foolish for us to battle you when we know we will fail."

Vampdevimon kept a calm gaze at him. "You speak wisely, Master."

A faint smile came on the Master's face. "It's quite a surprise to see you again, Demidevimon."

The Vampire reacted nothing to his previous name. But he did cast a simple smirk, as if it was ironic that he once served Myotismon, one of the most terrifying Digimon ever reigned the Digiworld, and now that he was dead, his seemingly worthless minion had raised to power. Evil begets Evil.

The Master's face then hardened. "What do you want with us?"

"To answer your question, I have questions of my own to ask one of you." A frown appeared. "And you are in my way."

He didn't plan to fight any Digidestined, simply using his attacks to state a warning to them. From his hand, a dark flame, the red-tinted black light casting shadows upon the walls. A memory appeared, reminding him of that Master and his courage to overcome his former master. A twinge of revenge dawned, and he simply used it to flare his power. The dark flame then pounced for Taichi. Taichi was unmoved, but his guard, the blasted Patron responded. His body flared with an aura of ice-blue and twilight purple, and he raised a hand.

"Stop!" Michael uttered, concentration on his masked face. Taichi felt something funny happening. The space between him and Vampdevimon become thicker, much like gelatin, the air becoming solider as well. The Dark Fire seemed to freeze in midair, like it was frozen in Time. Then he felt the space aging, somewhat. The air became stale, old, and the flame sizzled out in mere seconds. He stared at the violet paladin in astonishment.

"A Reality Child! Why . . . there are other powers as well . . ." Vampdevimon shook his head from the astonishment he also had for Michael, and then scowled. "Step aside. I don't want to fight you all." With that, his body burst into a leap into the group. It went too fast. Midst of the confusion, the red blur seemed to catch on someone, who screamed in surprise. Then Taichi felt a push on his chest. It wildly shoved him against the wall and kept him there. He felt his chest crushing from the force and he helpless struggled. Looking around, he saw the kids and Digimon were in the same situation, pinned on the walls. Taichi glared over to Vampdevimon and his heart hammered to see Cleo straining in Vampdevimon's arms. Her attempts were too weak and Vampdevimon held her up as if she was nothing but a feather.

Cleo felt strange warmth and awful, awful wrongness from his arms. She felt sickly, the wrongness affecting her limbs into exhausted weakness. Nevertheless, she kept on struggling, her ears picking up the words from Vampdevimon as he calmly strode to the doorway. "Face it; you are not fit to fight me." Then she felt his eyes on her. "Watcher, stop struggling. I have questions to ask."

She fought back tears and dared to peer up to his face. So human and so snakelike. "What do you want with me?"

Somehow, Vampdevimon did show gentleness and reassurance. He even held her like a child, cradling her carefully. "Please do not be so frightened."

Her fists pounded on his chest, seeing that they didn't harm him. "You monster! You destroyed innocent Digimon and stole our Digimon! How could you tell me not to be frightened?!"

"Because the one you should be frightened of is my Mother."

Memories came in her mind, not hers, and yet so familiar, a ghostly face with amber eyes and a curious grin, peering out from under a black wide-brimmed hat. She hesitantly looked up to Vampdevimon's face and saw that the golden eyes were very familiar, almost the same to the color of the amber eyes, but they weren't. There was no calmness, no protection in the golden eyes. But why did she remember this strange memory that wasn't hers? With her mind's eye, she stared at the amber eyes and then realized that they looked much like . . . Prophetmon's eyes. Not the color, but the protection, certainly.

Prophetmon . . .

'Call me whenever you need help.'

And she needed his help . . .

'Prophetmon!'

***

The iridescent mind-voice burst with such a force of fear and insistence that it almost yanked Prophetmon out from his momentary worry. Blinking, Prophetmon turned his azure eyes toward the direction from where he received the mental cry. At first, he was confused, not recognizing the sudden cry of his name in his mind, but then he saw the swelling colors from the voice. Heart suddenly hammering, he focused on the exact location and his heart then tightened as it came from far, far south.

"Cleo!" his voice boomed in disbelief. "Not now!"

As his dark cloak finally embraced around him, preparing for transportation, he then called for the warrior.

Protect the Watcher from the Daemon Mother!

***

The warrior was already at the grey-sanded beach, not remembering how he got here from the seemingly unreachable cliffs. He's never seen the place before and assumed that it must be sheltered from the rest of the world. He could feel the shelter shimmering around the area, almost could see the greyness that twinkled now and then. It was safe, but unfortunately, darkness was present. He can feel it, feel it as part of his soul. Although, he wasn't here to experience the sight of the strange beach.

He was supposed to search for the children and he was disappointed to find nothing. Oddly, he felt a mental tug pulling on him, much like when he sensed the Destiny Stones, supposedly to lead to the children. He didn't know which kid who did the tug, but at least, he had a lead to find them. But he found nothing but this place. The tug told him that the children were here, or used to be here, and he stood by the Black Lighthouse, deeply disappointed in himself.

Protect the Watcher from the Daemon Mother!

He didn't jump at the suddenness, calmly receiving it, recognized the voice as Prophetmon. The fright and terror in the voice roused him, however. His golden eyes quickly gazed around the beach, seeing no danger or no person that might be the Watcher. Seeing nothing, he then glanced up to the dark-tinted building that hinted him as one of the Real World's Japanese temples. A citadel. It was the better word. She might be in there. He must find her now.

Spreading wide his shield wings, he took up in the air, darting for the citadel.

***

Cleo broke her gaze from the golden eyes and again struggled. "What does she want with me?"

Vampdevimon calmly circled his large hand around one of her wrists, pausing her struggles. "She wants your crest." His eyes glimpsed down to the lilac crest resting outside her chest. "Your Crest of Heart."

Her other hand closed around it, and she forced herself to stare back. "Why?"

"She doesn't tell me why, but I know she will come for you."

"Why me?"

The Vampire simply shrugged and let go of her wrist. He then fell silent, studying her face in such an eerie interest that shivered her. Why is he looking at me like that . . .? She should have used her Power to cast him away, but she couldn't. She was not a fighter. Her body was too frail to allow any added strength, and although that her mind had advanced to extraordinary strength to use telekinesis, she couldn't use it. Her mind shut down from terror. She half-heard her friends grunting in their struggles and yells toward her to use her Power, but the wrongness, the electric warmth from Vampdevimon baffled her. She couldn't think straight. It was the first time she found herself lost in the face of danger. She was too scared to do anything, only stare in hopelessness as Vampdevimon quietly continued.

His voice was so soft that she thought she was the only one to hear him, one of his long fingers tracing her chin. "I feel no reject . . . You are pretty, strong, despite your frail appearance." His face frowned. "I don't understand why she wants you, personally. She told me you are in her way to be free, so it makes me think . . ." There was a new gleam in his eyes. "I want her to be successful. I want her to be happy."

She stiffened as the claw-finger traced down to her neck; for a moment, she thought he would cut her throat right there, but he didn't. Simply encircling a hand around her chest - she didn't notice that his hands were so large! - , pinning her arms to her sides, Vampdevimon then held her at arm length, again inquiring her. There was strange pity in his face. His voice was soft, "Dear Watcher, you are unfortunate to bear the Crest of Heart. You are unfortunate to bear the same looks as my Mother's Digidestined. You are unfortunate to die so young . . . Are you destined that way?" Then the gleam again appeared, and he raised his other hand, which was curled into a lethal claw. Cleo felt her throat closing with fright as the hand began to glow with the red-black light. "Forgive me, Watcher."                                       

"Terra Destroyer!"

A thunderous roar filled the very building, violently rumbling. In astonishment, the Vampire looked over his shoulder just in time see a massive sphere swelling with red energy coming for him. The sphere crashed into him and thrust him backward, forcing him to drop the girl. Vampdevimon smashed on the far side, narrowly missing some of the kids and Digimon on the wall. Cleo felt the heat sizzling on her skin as the sphere passed her, not noticing that she was free from the Vampire. In the brief instant, she was hoisted up from her fall. She felt the coldness of metal, the powerful strength in the arms, and dazedly, she looked up to see the face of her rescuer.

Black Wargreymon carefully shielded the girl with his black Dramon Destroyers and glared toward the recovering Vampdevimon. When Vampdevimon came to his feet, upset to see him alive, Black Wargreymon simply growled. "You want the Watcher? Go ahead and fight me first."

Vampdevimon also growled with objection as he held on the wall for balance. "I have no time for this. My plan may be foiled, but you don't know what is in store for you! By denying Mother the crest, you are enraging her. She will not be gentle with you, all of you." With a disdainful snort, Vampdevimon blinked out into midair, leaving everybody in bewilderment. The invisible force he held over the kids and Digimon was gone, releasing them from the binds. Some stared at the newcomer with caution and perplexity. He was alive? How? They hesitated to go to him, wanting to keep Cleo away from him, and at the same time, were confused to see the protection he had over her.

Agumon recovered first and ran to the black warrior. Black Wargreymon glanced down, showing no confusion of his new human body, but with recognition. Agumon murmured hesitantly, "Black Wargreymon?"

He saw the friendliness, softness in the golden eyes that he never seen before. Black Wargreymon's voice rumbled, "Friend Agumon, I'm asking you to trust me. We cannot delay our stay any longer. The Watcher is in utter danger here."

Agumon was surprised to hear the pleading in his voice, and then gazed to Cleo. The blonde was too shaken to respond to anything, staring out of nowhere. She was shaken by the words of Vampdevimon. Agumon nodded at Black Wargreymon. "I trust you, friend." Turning to his partner, he shouted, "Tai, we have to go! We are in danger here!"

"Right! Move, people, move!" Taichi ordered as the group regained their bearings and ran out the room. There was the only way out - the way to the beach. It may be dangerous to return to it, where there was no other way out, but it was better than staying in the dark building and waiting for whoever coming. Driven by fear and protection for one of their Digidestined, the group dashed down the hallway, following Black Wargreymon, who seemed to know where to go.

"No! St-!" Frankie's warning cry was abruptly cut off by something. Willis and Elecmon, who were with him, whirled around and saw thin silver chains binding around the Keeper, silencing him, blocking him from breaking through. An instant later, chains shot for them, sharply wrapping around their bodies, binding tightly. The human-Digimon and Ruigumon recognized them and yelled at the rest to avoid them while they fought to dodge from the flying chains. It was useless. After a brief casting of the Powers and dodging, the entire group was chained down. Somehow, the chains had an ability to block their Powers, leaving them vulnerable.

Black Wargreymon was the only successful one, using his claws to slash through. The chains were too fast and they bound around his limbs. Black Wargreymon strained against them, holding Cleo close to his chest. It appeared that the chains were trying to tear his hold off Cleo. Black Wargreymon failed and his limbs were pulled back, Cleo falling down to the ground, jerking her from the daze. She blinked around the chained friends and gazed up to Black Wargreymon.

Black Wargreymon voiced, pleading, "Run! She is coming for you!"

Who? Who is coming for me? Her eyes picked up a movement within the dimness. A Digimon, she saw, was walking out from the darkness. The darkness was part of her, just like a cloak . . . like Prophetmon's cloak of darkness. A Digimon . . . or a human . . .? It was a girl, a simple-looking girl . . . But she knew that it was a Digimon as well, a humanlike Digimon. She looked six or seven years of age, donned in a black peasant dress and a bloodstained strip around her head, hiding her eyes. Her jet-black hair was like a mane, long and wavy, flowing down to her feet. She looked so familiar . . . but she wasn't like that before. She was bigger, taller, and angrier . . .

Sudden memories flooded in her mind and Cleo shook her head from them. What were they, the mysterious memories? They weren't hers, but she felt like she had known them for years. She remembered the First Battle. She remembered this child-Digimon when she was a monstrosity, wild and insane with power, casting down her energy to destroy everything in her path. The black stone that proved peril, not hope as the friends thought so. The friends who had died to stop her. Her brother . . . No, not her brother, someone's brother . . . She now remembered the name.

Daematermon.

The Daemon Mother.

The Final Evil.

Her Digimon . . .

Cleo gasped as the voice of Nikhai spoke out from her own mouth as if she was Nikhai herself. "No, not Wissy! Not my monster!"

But she is Daematermon . . .

Cleo unconsciously winced as the black-clad girl turned her head toward her, noticing her with blind eyes. She watched her for a moment, then voiced out, "Verzyemon." As the snake-woman appeared beside her, grinning with dark delight, the girl asked, "Who is she?"

The grin turned into a smirk, and Verzyemon gestured her hands. The chains pulled the group away from Cleo, leaving her alone and vulnerable in the center of the hallway. Then she answered, "Sad Eyes is the bearer of the crest."

Daematermon faintly smiled, almost in relief, and then gently beckoned toward Cleo. "Littler Watcher."

Cleo ignored the motherly calmness in the voice and stood up. She summoned her Power for protection and an invisible dome appeared around her, seen only by the outline of the oily rainbow light, like rainbows reflected by sunlight upon oil. Feeling only a bit safer under her dome, Cleo stepped back, casting a weak glare toward Daematermon. "Stay back, please."

Daematermon shook her head. "Watcher, you don't need to be frightened of me. Vampdevimon made a mistake in trying to harm you. He forgets that it's not just you that I want."                                                                                                  

Again, Nikhai voiced through her mouth, this time directing to Cleo, "Butterfly, don't listen to her! She's my monster! Hide for her!"

Daematermon froze at the voice, total shock radiating from her. "You . . . you are using her voice . . ." Her body then shook with hesitance. " . . . Lucy?"

"Get away!" Nikhai snapped in fearful anger. "You hurt me! You killed your friends! Go away!"

Daematermon appeared heavily hurt at the words. "Lucy . . . I never thought that I would ever hear your voice again . . ." Her voice grew remorseful, ashamed, "Lucy, forgive me . . . I cannot change what I did . . ."

"Go away . . ." The cries of Nikhai faded into Cleo's warning words, "Leave Nikhai alone!"

Daematermon again paused in puzzlement. "Nikhai?"

Cleo clenched her fists, glaring. "What do you want with me and Nikhai?"

A change came over Daematermon, from the motherly child into the cold, calculating Digimon. A twinkle flashed from the dark stone set on her forehead, somehow shone with dark energy. A dark aura, foul and filthy, began to encircle her, her hair and dress swaying as if by winds. She floated up in the air, her face stoned, darkened. Even Verzyemon stepped inched from her, startled at the sudden change. Her voice was flat, "Actually, what I want from you is the crest you wear, Watcher of No Heart."

Startled at the change of her title, Cleo grasped her hands around her crest tightly. "I won't let you have my crest."

"It is never yours. It belongs to my child." When Cleo boldly glared back, Daematermon almost hissed, "Do not make me force you."

Cleo abruptly screamed at the silver-red waves of agony bursting within her mind. The protective dome vanished from around her as she clenched at her head, dropping to her knees, unable to bear the thick, heavy pain. She felt it from Daematermon, like waves of raging waters surging against her. The presence of Nikhai was gone from her mind, lost somewhere in the increasing stupor, her ears buzzing with her screams. Lastly, the pain abruptly stopped and left Cleo semi-conscious, her arms now limping at her sides. Faintly, a light glowed around her, an ungodly aura of greyness stroking the outline. Her head rose up and her jade eyes were blank, lifeless.

Daematermon smiled under the scarf. "Come here, Watcher of No Heart."

Cleo stiffly got up to her feet, slightly swaying with lifeless balance. One by one, she dragged her feet toward Daematermon, unaware. The group was furious, seeing that a Digidestined was at the mercy of the Final Evil. Amidst of their increasing determined struggles in the chains, colorful lights appeared around them, first, a violet aura glowed, then more colors shimmered as the Digidestined and Digimon summoned their auras. Even Black Wargreymon, a nondestined Digimon, was glowing with an insane golden light. It seemed that the auras were called by their fierce persistence to protect the frail Watcher. Verzyemon was uneasy as she regarded the angry swirls and rays of the auras. She winced at the pain cast by the lights, feeling her body bit by needles. She had a feeling that she was being deleted, pixel by pixel. She crawled backward. "Mother . . ."

The girl-Digimon paid no attention to them except to Cleo. As she stood before the Final Evil, Daematermon whispered, "Give me the crest."

Cleo appeared to resist the automatic response, her hand twitching. She then failed, her hand jerkily reaching for the crest and closing around it. Daematermon widely grinned as the blonde donned it off. The lilac crest seemed to twinkle within the glass screen of the brass tag. Daematermon frowned, gazing closer to the crest.

Wait . . . there is something wrong with the crest . . .

What? It is broken! It isn't complete!

Where is the other half?

The lilac crest then twinkled, this time blazed with the colors of a rainbow. The glares blinded her, reminding her so much of the damned sword with all the glowing colors! Daematermon cried, shielding her face with an arm. The room was aglow as the auras removed the chains away from the group's limbs, somewhat having a power to free them. Or perhaps, the determination from the group was powerful enough to cast their wish. The blinding lights also deleted Verzyemon, which, being a powerful Mega, was unable to resist the light of goodness. The colorful light from the Crest of Heart also banished the ungodly aura from Cleo. She quietly gasped, blinked, and then plummeted into inertia.

Ruigumon moved in time, catching her partner in her arms and grasping on the crest out of the Daemon Mother's sight. Black Wargreymon was quick at her side, shielding both the Butterfly and the Watcher in front of Daematermon. The group returned to the ground, standing in defensive stances, glaring at Daematermon. Daematermon quietly looked around, carefully remarking each Digimon, each Digidestined, seeing the powerful emotions swelling in their faces. She almost recognized it.

"Devotion . . ." she whispered in mild puzzlement. "You would protect the Watcher of No Heart with your lives? You must be foolish . . . or truly loyal . . ." She had seen it. In the children who once faced her. Her lost friends.

"Everybody, get out of here!"

The Daemon Mother stiffened at the voice . . . She didn't make a move as she watched three new Digimon appearing in the hallway. The Fate Digimon . . . and . . . Prophetmon? She speechlessly stared at him; even when the Yin-yang attack blinded her, she didn't shield her eyes again. She faintly heard the confusion and voices as the children and Digimon vanished through a tear in the air - a tear that she remembered from the past. As the voices faded, Prophetmon was the last to leave. Standing by the tear, he gazed back at her. She could see the doubt and the struggle in his azure eyes . . .

A new emotion was in her chest, filling her with the strange warmth. Joy . . . mixed with shame. Joy, for she knew who he was. Shame, for he saw what she was.

"You are still alive . . ." Daematermon whispered shakily, stepping closer. "After all the years . . ."

The doubt abruptly shifted into a hot visage of loathing. Prophetmon glowered and gestured toward her. It wasn't an attempt to attack her or even test her power. It was fury that he held within his chest, finally released after all the years bottling it in.

"Destiny's Light!"

A circle, twisted around its middle, glowing with the rainbow's colors, appeared in the air, again reminding her of the sword. Daematermon quickly gestured to halt the attack in midair. She never had seen it before, one of the rare attacks. Of course . . . only Native Digimon had rare attacks that weren't simplified and controlled like those Artificial Digimon's. The twisted circle flickered into darkness and was gone. Once again, the room was dark, and Daematermon found herself alone and lost. Staring at the spot where she saw Prophetmon, she clenched her fists and held them close to her chest. Once again, she felt wetness straining her face, which was surprising, since she had no eyes. Nevertheless, she was weeping.

'Prophetmon . . . my son.'

To be continued!