Good's Failure! Hope and Light Is Lost

Chapter Thirteen  

"Is it just me or is it getting hotter and hotter?" Takuya asked.

"It's probably getting hotter and hotter," Danielle said. "After we pass through this desert we should arrive before a gate. We go through that gate and we'll be in a volcano area. Hopefully, we'll find our help there."

"Hopefully?" Rika questioned. "As in you're not sure?"

"He doesn't exact stay put." Danielle replied. "He moves so fast sometimes you can't even see. If we're lucky, we'll be able to see him. Otherwise, we have wasted our time coming here." Danielle abruptly stopped walking. "We're getting closer. He's stepped on the sand I'm walking on. There's no doubt in my mind, he's at the volcano area."

"How do you know?" Ryo asked.

"You could say that I can sense him."

"Is he your partner Digimon?" Takato asked.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly call him a partner." Danielle admitted. "Let's just say he's not my partner. I just happen to have the ability to sense him." Danielle walked faster to catch up with Dark, who led the way.

"Hey, Kari," TK said. "When we get through this, remind me to take you on a vacation with me. For one, I really need a vacation after all this is over." TK up at Patamon on his head. "And you too buddy."

Kari shook her head. "Whatever you say, TK."

"No kidding," Zoe said, overhearing what TK had said.

"How far is this place?" Tommy asked.

Danielle looked over her shoulder. "You can see the gate already."

Ahead of them were mountains and there was something black amongst the mountains. For some reason, it reminded Tommy of a show he had watched not long ago when they were back home. The Lord of the Rings? It was what he thought, but changed his mind as they got closer.

"Wow," Davis said when they arrived at the gate.

"Darkmon."

Darkmon appeared besides Dark.

"Open the gate."

Darkmon started to growl and he charged towards the gate. He slammed his head against it, stepped back, and slammed against it again. He repeatedly did the same thing.

"He's never gonna get that thing open that way," TK said. "Why don't I get Patamon to help?"

Darkmon growled more fiercely at the suggestion. "Speed Dash!" All the red marks on he glowed and he charged for the gate. He slammed into it and it opened. Darkmon looked back at Dark before he disappeared.

The scenery only consisted of two colors – black and orangey-red. The ground was black as coal with little crack lines in it that showed an orangey-red color beneath. There were also small mountains around as well as several volcanoes.

TK saw Danielle looking at her hand. "What're you doing?"

Danielle lowered her hand as she turned her head to look at TK. "Nothing," Danielle replied with a smile. "Well, I can tell you one thing. He's here."

Something zoomed past them, creating a gust of wind and a small trail of fire on the ground.

"There!" Danielle yelled. "Darkmon, a little help would be nice."

Darkmon appeared and went after the thing that had passed them. He came to a stop, his head moving side to side. He lost track of the fast creature. Something zoomed past Darkmon. He growled and went after the creature. He didn't like to be teased. "Speed Dash!" All the red marks on him glowed and he began to run more than ten times faster. But he still couldn't keep an eye on the fast creature.

"What's that?" Veemon asked.

Danielle wolf-whistled.

A barking echoed.

Danielle smiled. "Lure, Darkmon!" Danielle called out.

Darkmon nodded. He went off in the direction he was pretty sure whether the barking came from. He ran far ahead, behind a volcano.

Danielle reached into her bag and pulled out a chain with a hoop at one end. She tossed the chain and what the others thought was nothing, but a creature appeared. It was dog-like. It had a metal color. It was dark grey. It had some sort of red mask on the front part of his mouth all the way to his eyes. It had an eye patch on his left eye. It was probably part of the mask. It had a silver streak on its head. The chain that Danielle had tossed seemed to have melted into the creature's collar.

The creature growled.

Danielle pulled on the chain and the creature pulled back. "Don't be stubborn, boy." She pulled at her hardest.

The creature pulled back his hardest.

Danielle mange to reach into her bag and pulled out a zip lock bag. In it contained a raw steak. She opened it and held it out, so the wind would help the smell travel to him.

The creature stopped pulling and walked to her.

Danielle slopped the steak back into the bag and put it back into her bag. "You don't eat, boy." Danielle said, scratching him behind the ear. The Digimon made a noise as she scratched behind his ear.

"What's his name?" Ryo asked.

"He doesn't have a name."

"We have him now," Davis said. "Can we go now?"

The doglike Digimon growled and launched himself at Davis, but was yanked back by Danielle who still had a grip on the chain. He made a noise of disappointment.

"What's with the mask?" Kari asked.

"He used to run loose, destroying everything in his path. He was never really conscious about what he was doing. With a single attack, he could decimate all. Scared, somebody placed upon him a mask so he could never use his powers again. But once taken off, chances are nobody can ever put it back on. So, it's forbidden to take it off. He doesn't eat, doesn't drink, doesn't sleep, doesn't tire, and doesn't feel anything."

They all stared.

Danielle laughed.  "You guys take things to seriously."

"Let's go." Dark said.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Now we have to walk all the way back." TK muttered.

"It's not that bad." Kari said.

"What's the point of us being here? Dark and Danielle are more the ones who are running this show. I'm sure Dark can handle this all on his own. He didn't seem too happy that we wanted to follow him. Remember when we were back home and the new Breeds were rampaging through town? None of our Digimons' attacks did any good. So why are we here?"

"You're paranoid."

"I have to agree with her." Patamon said.

"Yup." Gatomon agreed.

"I am not paranoid!"

At the front of the group, "He's getting suspicious about us." Danielle said.

"Hmph."

"I think we should head another way." Danielle said. "I love you too much to allow--."

A black orb suddenly surrounded both of them and Dark grabbed Danielle by the throat. "Shut up, Danielle. All their powers put together can never match me. I have worked too hard to get her back. I won't allow to screw it up with your stupid little thoughts about being in love with me. I'm so close to getting her back. After we pass the gate, get through the maze, and get to the temple it'll all be over."

He released her. The orb disappeared. "What happened?" Rika asked.

"We needed some privacy." Danielle said.

~*~*~*~*~*~

"I don't remember passing through here." Davis said. They were in a forest.

"We're taking another gate. There are four doors to the maze. The one we're going to now might be best to take. It's closer to the exit and it's easier to figure out." Danielle said. "I think we better settle down for the night."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Davis, have you seen TK?" Kari asked.

"No."

"I think I saw him walk off with Danielle." Tommy said. "They went that way." Tommy pointed in the direction he had earlier seen them walking in. "I don't think TK wanted to be followed. I saw him keep glancing over his shoulder as though he was making sure nobody was looking at him or following him. Danielle had her hand wrapped around his wrist and was pulling him into the forest."

"Thanks." Kari walked the direction Tommy pointed in. Why would TK want to be alone with Danielle? What could they possibly be doing or talking about that would need privacy? Kari froze. He could be extremely close to her, that would require privacy. He could be talking about ditching her, that would require privacy as well. But they hadn't really been together for real until not too long ago. Maybe that was why.

Kari heard talking as she continued walking. She saw a small clearing. She peeked out into the open.

TK was lying on his back, his hands crossed behind his head. Danielle was lying next to him, sideways, her head resting on his midriff. "Danielle, I need to tell you something. I love you."

Kari's whole body tensed. She turned and ran.

To Be Continued