In the Dark

Part Twelve: Fights and Friendships

***

Standard Disclaimer Thingy: Here we go again. Digimon, all related characters, etc, do not belong to me. I get, unfortunately, no money from writing this, despite the insane amount of time dedicated to it. Yes people, I do have a life. That's why this is so late. Anyway, read on and don't sue me or steal the plot, which is, almost totally mine.

Now might also be a good time to remind all that the rating on this is PG-13.

***

He stared. Numb, confused, stunned, and suddenly feeling more helpless than he had in a lifetime, Daisuke stared. Unblinking. Dazed. Lost.

Hikari had fallen from the brush she'd hid behind and lay now, unconscious, amongst the trees. A black mark was visible across her chest where the magic had crashed into her. Tailmon fell beside her partner, unable to keep higher form.

He didn't know what to feel. He felt the weight of the sword in his hand and thought about the irony of her injury. She'd given him that sword so that he wouldn't be hurt. But she was. Badly.

"No," he whispered, barely audible in the silence. "No…" He shook his head. Louder now, he questioned… "How…?"

She didn't move. Was she alive? Dead? How…was this possible when he'd tried so hard to keep her safe and now, when he hadn't even know she was there… Why was she there? How? Too numb to think clearly, he let the weapon fall uselessly to the ground and took a step towards her. He had to see if she was all right… "Hikari…"

The Kaiser's laugh pierced the silence of the afternoon, and Daisuke felt the cold metal of his enemy's sword at his neck. He didn't move his eyes away from Hikari. Instead, he shut them, certain now that his life would soon be over.

A voice, then, interrupted. "Don't kill him, please."

***

"Tempest Wing!" Holsmon called, scattering the remaining controlled Gotsumon into a whirlwind and sending sand, dirt, and ice flying into the face of the Yukidarumon.

"They've got to be stopped!" Miyako shouted with some frustration regarding the two Yukidarumon. One, obviously a more delicate situation, held Agumon, half-frozen in his arms, and the other was powerfully helping to defend it. With only she and Iori available to evolve, freeing the snow creatures was a far from easy task.

"Gold Rush!" Digmon shouted, firing his drills at the enemy. One connected with the empty-handed Yukidarumon, and he groaned loudly, but was not freed or badly injured.

"It's not going to be easy," Iori noted with a discouraged sigh.

Suddenly, unexpectedly, the Yukidarumon that held Agumon began to run quickly in another direction. "Get back here!" Miyako shouted. Holsmon landed briefly beside her and she climbed quickly aboard. "Follow that snow-mon!" she ordered, determined not to let it get away.

The other Yukidarumon watched its comrade dash off and then shrugged, returning to the battle. "Absolute Zero Punch!"

***

"Don't kill him, please," the voice said, softly, fearfully. Daring to breathe again but not to open his eyes, Daisuke wondered where he'd heard that voice before.

"I told you to stay behind, didn't I?" the Kaiser's voice snapped back.

"Yes, master. But please don't kill him," the voice answered.

'I know that voice. I know I do,' Daisuke thought with certainty. He opened one eye.

"And why the hell not?"

Daisuke opened the other eye, searching now for the source of the voice.

"Because he was your friend once. Don't you remember?"

'What?' Daisuke wondered, confused. He spotted the source of the voice, on a tree branch a few feet away, and blinked in astonishment.

"I know nothing of what you speak," the Kaiser replied dismissively. "Why shouldn't I kill him? He's nothing but a pest."

Daisuke stared numbly at the speaker, a small green creature barely visible in the leaves of the tree. "W-Wormmon?" he managed to stammer.

***

"He moves pretty fast for a snow-mon," Holsmon noted as he soared over the treetops.

Miyako kept her eyes on the white creature below them. "Keep on him, Holsmon," she advised. "We can't lose Agumon."

The Yukidarumon was in a hurry. It barreled through the trees at top speed, crashing through leaves and over sticks and rocks, leaving a hastily forged path in its wake. Miyako saw, from the vantage point of the air, the clearing he was about to enter, and also saw the three people within.

She directed Holsmon to land in the clearing, and they arrived only seconds before the Yukidarumon, giving her little time to asses the situation before the snow creature burst into the clearing. "Ambush," it called, panting deeply.

The Kaiser, who only seconds before had appeared extremely angered about something, now turned his face into a grin. "Excellent," he noted. He waved his free hand – the one that she noticed was not holding a sword currently at Daisuke's neck – and an Airdramon appeared seconds later. Then he sheathed his sword and leapt effortlessly aboard his transportation. "Next time, you won't be so lucky," he warned his opponent. "I'd suggest you prepare."

Daisuke merely stared in stunned silence. "Ichijouji…" he muttered, almost too quietly to be heard.

"Sorry," came a weak-sounding voice from the trees, and then a small green blurb leapt from the tree onto the head of the Airdramon beside the Kaiser.

Miyako recognized that green blur. "What?" she demanded, confused. "Wormmon?"

"Wait!" Daisuke shouted, somehow suddenly regaining his ability to speak. "Ken!"

The Airdramon had been about to depart, and now, in midair, it paused. The Kaiser turned, an angered expression upon his face. "I am the Digimon Kaiser," he said, in reply to the boy's shout. "That name is dead here." He reached out a gloved hand to point at Daisuke. "This is your last warning. Next time we meet, you will die."

The dark magic slammed into his chest for the second time that day, and too weary to take more damage, Daisuke fell, harshly, to the ground. His last glimpse was of the departing Airdramon soaring away above the treetops.

***

Hikari awoke sharply, suddenly, sweating all over and feeling suddenly hot. She sat up quickly in bed and felt the cool drop of ice on her nose. A moment later and another landed on her hand. She looked up and saw a slow and silent cascade of snowflakes trickle in through a rip in the cover of the tent. As though in a daze, she wiped the dampness away from her face and tried to remember where she was. Tailmon lay beside her, still asleep and appearing peaceful even though the snow was falling on her as well. The white snowflakes disappeared on the white fur of the feline digimon.

After a moment, it came back to her. The tent, the camp, the mission they were on, the dream she'd had, what she'd seen in the woods. "I must have failed, then," she whispered softly, thinking aloud.

"Failed in what?" another voice interrupted, and it was only then that Hikari noticed Miyako, standing in the entranceway of the tent, holding a warm mug of steaming liquid in each hand.

"Is that tea?" Hikari asked instead, noticing the drifting vapors rising from the cups.

Miyako nodded and crossed the tent in a few steps, handing one of the mugs to her. "It's hot," she warned.

Cautiously, Hikari took a sip of the liquid, slowly at first until she became accustomed to the temperature. The taste was soothing. "Thank you," she said, feeling strangely peaceful.

The other girl said nothing, choosing instead to sit on the edge of the cot. After a moment had gone by, she ventured to ask again: "Failed in what?"

"What?" Hikari echoed vaguely, sipping the tea.

"You said before that you must have failed. Failed what?"

She shook her head absently. "Not what. Who." She frowned, turned away, sipped more of the drink.

Miyako waited patiently. Drank her own tea.

"I thought the whole point of being able to see things that would happen would be so you could stop them from happening," Hikari said after a few minutes, staring into her mug as though it had the answer.

"Maybe," the other answered after a moment of thought.

"Then what would be the point of it?" she demanded, turning away from her examination of the cup. "Why have a gift, a talent, a power – if you can do nothing with it? If there's nothing to be changed?"

Miyako didn't answer, and so she continued after a moment:
"If you could use magic, but it didn't do any good, what would be the point of it?"

"I suppose there wouldn't be any."

***

At that precise time, Daisuke was painfully returning to the real world himself. His stomach rocked violently, threatening to upturn whatever little contents might be remaining in it from the day before. He groaned loudly and wished fervently for a return to whatever blissful slumber he'd been enjoying before that.

"Oh, you're up," a female voice intruded just as he was rolling over and pulling the pillow over his head in a vague hope of trying to suffocate himself. "I've brought you some soup."

"Maybe later," returned his muffled voice from under the pillow. "I don't think I'll be eating for a few years, thank you."

"Oh, nonsense." Jun was used to her brother's stubbornness, and was, on this rare occasion, willing to be patient for a moment. "There's some sort of herbs in it to make you feel better. Makes up for the lack of taste."

Astonishingly, Daisuke wasn't in the least bit comforted by this information. He groaned louder and pulled the blanket tighter around him, shivering in the cold. "No," he answered bluntly.

"For goodness sake, Dai, you're not going to feel any better if you don't eat," his sister scolded.

"I don't want to feel better," he grumbled. "I don't want to feel anything."

"Just once, couldn't you be reasonable about this?" Jun demanded. "There's no reason to be such a pest! Eat the soup!"

"Not hungry," he muttered, rolling over. Surprisingly, this seemed to quiet her, at least for a few moments. There would be peace for now, he thought – at least until V-mon awoke.

***

Takeru groaned with effort as he lifted the log over his head. He'd spent the morning and the previous evening chopping trees and cutting logs, and now it seemed he would spend this afternoon and evening helping to assemble them.

"A little higher," Koushiro advised from his perch on top of the half-finished cabin. "Just a little higher."

The log finally raised over his head, Takeru felt his arm muscles strain with the exertion. "Can't…go any higher," he muttered, squeezing his eyes shut to ignore the pain.

"Got it!" Taichi's voice interrupted then, and Takeru felt the weight release from his arms as Koushiro and Taichi lifted the log into place.

"At last," Jyou sighed, stretching his own tired arms after helping to raise the logs. "Please tell me we're almost finished."

"Actually, I think that's the last row," Koushiro replied. He glanced down, quickly counting to see how tall the cabin had become. "Yes, yes. Finished with the walls. All that's left now is to do the roof."

The exhausted builders were too tired to cheer, but they did let out a collective contented sigh of relief.

***

"A walk?" Daisuke echoed blankly when his sister proposed her plan. "Are you insane? In this weather?" He'd finally been persuaded to eat a bit of the tasteless soup, and it had calmed his stomach, but he was not about to agree to going out in the cold and walking about just for the sake of relaxation.

V-mon appeared dubious as well. "Doesn't exactly sound safe," he noted.

"Yes," she answered. "I've completely lost my senses. And so have you, so you're going to join me." She tossed a pair of warm pants in his direction. They landed on his head. "And you needn't be concerned about safety. I can keep my little brother safe, so don't you worry." She winked conspiratorially at the small blue digimon, who didn't seem in the least bit reassured.

"Jun," the younger sibling stated slowly and as calmly as possibly while pulling the garment out of his eyes, "I'm not going walking with you. It's cold, it's snowing, and I'm tire – what are you doing? Give me that!"

The Motomiya family was known for several things. The Lord Motomiya was a successful businessman and a fair landowner. The peasants who lived in the villages near his home were relatively happy in comparison to some other less profitable sections of the kingdom. His wife had been kind as well, and the family's prosperity had been very well-known in the lands.

But there was another thing that the family had in common, best evidenced by their two offspring. That trait was a very stubborn strength. Jun, encouraged in some ways by her parents high status to boost her confidence, had shown early in her relations with her younger sibling that she was not going to be considered the 'weaker sex' in this relationship. It had been several years since the two had gotten into physical fights, but they'd come close to crossing that line back into childhood.

On this particular occasion, the two siblings went tumbling headfirst, fists flying, over that line.

The action Jun performed that so enraged her brother into action despite his supposedly weakened state was that she grabbed the sleeves of his nightshirt and yanked it over his head before he could move to defend himself.

"You can't go walking in your nightshirt," the elder child replied simply to his indignant protests. Daisuke launched himself towards the garment, dangling tantalizingly from his sister's arm a few feet away. Jun took a step back and the boy fell off the bed onto the dirt floor of the tent.

Jun then performed the deadly act of laughter, which of course meant that all attempts at civility and decorum were null and void. V-mon moved cautiously out of the way in order to avoid the battle he saw coming.

Miyako peeked in through a crack in the tent and witnessed a cloud of dust, feet, and arms that she assumed must be people. A lesser girl would have been astonished, appalled, or perhaps even disgusted, but, as she had three siblings of her own, this girl understood such delicate matters as these.

Therefore, instead of stepping inside the tent and calling for a halt to such activities, she simply shrugged lightly and walked to the only other standing tent in the camp.

Hikari had managed to get dressed on her own after a quick self-test of her muscles and bones assured her that most everything was, in fact, in good working order. She was dusty and a bit dirty as a result of the limited availability of hot water in the midst of a forest, but nonetheless managed to look composed and regal as ever and not as though she wanted simply to throw herself on the ground in tears of worry and frustration.

Maybe, Miyako thought, that was what it took to be a princess. Maybe the magic helped. Or maybe this was only the uniqueness that was Hikari. She looked at her own raggedy, mostly un-washed dress, the hems of which were beginning to unravel and the edges of which were frayed and dirty, and sighed at the thought of her mother's scolding. Never mind that the dress had been mostly ruined while Miyako was fighting for her life, it was still a good dress and somehow Miyako managed to ruin so many of them without hardly trying. Hikari, however, looked as perfect as ever. She smiled when the other girl entered, and only an experienced observer would have seen the worry in her eyes.

"I'm ready," she said simply. "You said the cabin's almost finished?"

"Yes. Koushiro told me they've been working at a very quick pace and all that's left to add is the roof. An important addition, and rather complicated to build, but at least the majority of the work is finished. Are you ready to see it?"

"I'd like to," Hikari answered, standing from the cot. She was a bit wobbly, something that, Koushiro had told Miyako, and assured Taichi, would most likely happen and was perfectly normal. He'd offered much more facts about the type of magic involved and the nature of the injuries, but Miyako didn't pass that information along to Hikari because she didn't appear interested. Instead she took the duty she'd been appointed as temporary caretaker of the princess quite seriously while the rest of the camp was at work in the building of the cabin, and offered her arm as a steadying post. Hikari gripped it tightly and they walked slowly and carefully from the tent. They left Tailmon behind so as not to disturb her sleep.

The light snow Hikari had felt when she awoke was continuing steadily. Soft flurries drifted down from the gray sky overhead, landing on the heads and shoulders of the two girls as they made their way across the camp. "If the snow continues much longer the roof may not be done in time," Miyako stated with a slightly worried expression. "And if it gets much heavier than this it will be difficult for us to stay here much longer."

Hikari nodded politely, but she wasn't really listening. She was, in fact, distracted by the noise coming from the other standing tent in the camp. Muffled noises came from within, and the tent appeared to be shaking. "What is all that noise?" she wondered.

Miyako feigned surprise. "Noise?" she echoed. "I don't know. Why don't we find out?"

Hikari was confused, having the feeling she was being set up in some way, but she nodded in slow agreement. "Yes," she said after a moment. "Why don't we?"

***

Daisuke lunged, but Jun pulled out of his grasp at the last moment. "Why – are you doing – this?" he demanded, panting as he darted after. "I said I'll go with you into the stupid cold on a damn walk, so give me the shirt!"

"Nope," Jun answered, laughing and running away at the last moment. "You have to catch me first!" Her voice had a sing-song quality to it that only managed to infuriate her brother all the more. She was enjoying this.

He had little strength left for running, and little desire to play this game with his sister that made no sense. He stopped in the center of the tent, breathing heavily, and tried very hard not to scream his frustration as loud as he could. He shut his eyes for a moment, calming himself down. 'I can't catch her if I'm angry, I know that,' he told himself, and tried to remember some sort of relaxing techniques he might have learned at some point. He could remember none and his frustration at his inability to remember these things only made him angrier. He was cold, without a shirt, and determined. Jun was coming closer, he could hear her footsteps against the soft but frozen ground. At the last possible moment, he lunged.

The tent flaps opened.

Hikari stared at the flying pile of arms, dirt, and legs that was at the floor of the tent. "What –?" was the only word she was able to force out of her mouth.

Miyako peered over her shoulder and sighed. "Excuse me, princess. I had no idea they'd keep at it this long." She stepped past the other girl and entered the tent, grabbing a long walking stick that had been left in the entranceway as she went.

The young apprentice mage cleared her throat with the voice of authority only one possessing of magic can summon. It was ignored. She tried again, and again there was still no response. Finally, Miyako banged the stick on the floor loudly and proclaimed as she had heard Iori announce many times at the palace: "Attention! Princess Hikari will see you Now!" She banged her staff again with the enunciation of the last word. Hikari giggled slightly despite her confusion and slight embarrassment.

The pile suddenly stopped its tumbling and became two separate human beings. As they detangled themselves and Hikari slowly began to sort out exactly who they were, the sound of muffled laughter came from the side of the tent, gradually growing louder until it was reaching hysterical proportions. V-mon and Alraumon were both turning colors from the effort of laughing. Miyako sighed slightly and offered a hand down to assist the combatants to their feet.

Jun gripped the offered hand and rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "Sorry," she apologized, face rather red. "I – uh – guess things got a bit out of hand, didn't they?"

"It would appear so," Miyako answered dryly. "What happened to our plan?"

"Oh, I don't know about that," the elder girl replied, glancing toward her brother, who, still sprawled on the ground, had fixed his eyes steadily on Hikari.

"You – you're alive?" Daisuke managed to stammer, voice barely above a whisper.

"So are you," Hikari murmured slowly. "How is that possible?"

"It would seem there's one thing your visions didn't account for," Miyako interrupted.

"What was that?"

It was Daisuke who answered. "Wormmon."

***

The snow was slowly beginning to accumulate, making the slow work of the roof building even slower. Iori was already hard at work on sealing the walls of the cabin, but Takeru had to continue the hard work placing logs. He and Jyou again lifted one end of the logs into the air and then Koushiro and Taichi grabbed them from above to place them on the roof. Then Takeru and Jyou needed to climb to the top of the building again to help maneuver them into the correct location. It was long, hard work, and Takeru felt his hands and legs grow cold and stiff.

"The hard work is what we need," Taichi had been asserting all afternoon. "We work hard, it will keep us from feeling bad about ourselves or our situation. So let's work hard!"

Maybe it was the need to get their minds off of their problems, maybe it was the cold, or maybe it was only a desire to work, but whatever it was, the group had been motivated enough to work and now the roof was half finished. Takeru paused to wipe the sweat from his brow and saw that the sun was beginning to sink into the western sky. He glanced down at the ground – a risky business considering he was at the top of a building – and saw a figure coming closer to them.

"Maybe you should take a break and eat?" Miyako called up in suggestion. "None of you have eaten since breakfast – you must be tired."

"Is there any food left to eat?" Takeru questioned practically. The supply tent had been badly damaged during the ambush.

"Enough to make us some food," Miyako answered. Early that morning the other two remaining doctors had left to make their way back to the palace in a request for some food. It would be a long journey, though, and no response was expected for a few days.

"Where's Hikari?" Taichi wondered, making his way down the side of the building.

She pointed back toward the tent. "With Daisuke and Jun. Doing fine." She paused. "I would advise leaving them alone for a bit, though. They both believed the other to be dead."

***

Agumon slept, feeling weak and tired. The floor was a cold, gray metal, and it felt soothing against his skin. He felt strangely peaceful and calm.

A loud cracking sound pierced the air and something hit the ground beside him. "Get up!" a voice shouted. "Get up, you useless thing. If I got nothing else out of that disastrous battle, I will make something useful of you."

The small dinosaur digimon opened his eyes slowly and found himself staring at a pair of dark gray boots. He blinked in confusion, uncertain of his surroundings.

"Get up, I said!" the voice belonging to those boots shouted again, and this time the whip struck Agumon across the nose. He cried out in pain, clutching the wounded area with his claws.

"Useless… completely useless." Those were the last words Agumon remembered hearing. The last thing he saw was a strange black ring being tossed in his direction.

And then he remembered no more.

***

The snow began to fall harder, burying much of the land in a white blanket of ice crystals. The only creatures safe from it were those taking refuge at Primary Village – the magical shield generated by the energy of newborn digimon assured that the infants and those with them were safe and warm at all times of the year. The rest of the eastern forests were hidden.

Miyako was wrapped in the warmest cloak she possessed and peering out the only window in the cabin, a hole created by a gap between two logs in the upper sections of the wall. The rest of the building had been constructed flawlessly, meaning no wind or snow could creep in, but it also meant there was no way to see out into the rest of the world. As soon as the building had been completed, Miyako had climbed the shaky ladder to the upper level of the cabin and spread out her blankets and bedding material. Now she sat, reading one of her magic books and listening to the lively conversations around her.

A temporary heating system had been constructed using three heating stoves salvaged from the tents. It was a complicated mechanism, and had taken several hours to assemble. Now, however, it managed to keep the majority of the cabin warm and toasty.

"Still snowing?" Jun questioned, interrupting Miyako's peaceful thoughts to hand her a warm cup of tea.

"Seems that way," she answered, closing her book and taking the mug. "I'm cold still, but I'd rather be in here, behind nice, safe, warm, wooden walls than within flimsy, cold tents."

Jun sat on the ground, wrapping her own cloak around her and peering through the crack at the still-falling snow. "I agree. Although if I had my choice I'd rather be within safe, warm, stone walls than wood." She sighed contentedly and leaned back against the wall, holding the steaming mug within her hands. "I'm quite glad your sister isn't here though."

Miyako nodded, thinking of her increasingly pregnant older sister with a bit of regret. "I wanted to be there through the whole of the pregnancy," she sighed. "I never did get to explain to her what was going on. Or to my parents. I hope they're not terribly worried. There just wasn't time."

"It's all right," the older girl assured her with a calming voice. "Momoe and I have talked about this and we've both decided that it's just best sometimes not to ask questions, just to simply…have faith, I suppose."

The younger of the two thought about that statement for a long while before she answered: "I wonder which of us truly has the more difficult job."

***

It was nearly midnight, and yet for some reason or another, Sora couldn't sleep. She'd stayed up late speaking with Momoe, whose continuing bouts with morning sickness and the other joyful aspects of pregnancy were making it difficult to maintain a schedule when it came to sleeping.

There were other things on Sora's mind as well, including but not limited to the safety of her friends. It was the first time in her limited experience as Chosen that she and Piyomon hadn't been able to assist in the fighting in some way. She knew the others were feeling this uselessness as well, which was why Yamato paced most nights around the courtyard when he thought no one was watching, why Taichi had insisted upon going to the scene, why Jyou (who ordinarily disliked leaving the palace) didn't insist upon returning home at once and leaving another, still competent physician there for emergencies. And it was why Mimi was lounging about the palace, attempting to be useful in whatever way possible but still feeling as though she was without purpose.

Piyomon was fast asleep on the bed, and so didn't notice when Sora slipped out of the room, restless even after laying in bed for nearly an hour. She slipped into one of the empty rooms facing south and turned her eyes toward the east and the direction of the Primary Village. A few, solemn, silent, snowflakes drifted across the sky, the beginnings of a slow moving storm. Squinting her eyes in the dim light, Sora thought she could make out a mass of dark clouds in the distance. Before she could begin to speculate on this, she heard a shout from below, and in the light of the lanterns hanging from the main gate, she could see a carriage arriving late, pulled by a single worn out and half frozen Monochromon. She could see a bit of snow glinting in the flashing firelight.

Knowing that the majority of the people in the palace would be asleep and that the travelers would be exhausted, Sora considered going to assist. She was tired, though, and knew that someone would be found to help whomever it was with their belongings. She turned away from the window, disappointed that there were no stars that night, and started back towards her room.

Early that morning, barely before the sun could peek through the hazy clouds, Sora was awakened by a knock on her door. A boy who'd been covering duties more often now that Iori was gone told her that Yamato wanted to see her. Confused, Sora nodded and told the boy she'd be by as soon as she was dressed.

"Must be something important if it can't wait until later," Piyomon commented, yawning and peering out the window towards the freshly fallen snow.

"I wonder if it doesn't have something to do with that carriage that arrived late in the night."

"What carriage?"

While Sora changed from her warm but simple nightgown into a warm yet not quite so simple looking dress, she explained about the snow covered wagon she'd seen arrive in the middle of the night. "It was past midnight," she recalled. "And snowing steadily. Anyone sane would have stopped and waited for better roads before continuing. Maybe it was important."

"Did you see which direction they were coming from?" her partner wondered. "Maybe that would explain why they were in a hurry."

Sora shook her head and began to slip her shoes on, having finished with the complicated process of dressing. "I didn't notice them until they were already at the gate. I was facing southeast, so I'd guess they came from there, but I can't be certain."

With speculation aside, both agreed there was little to do but respond to Yamato's request and so went and found him pacing about one of the parlors. Gabumon sat in a chair and watched his partner with a solemn face. There was no one else around, and he was so involved in his pacing he didn't notice she had entered until she spoke:

"At least you don't brood." It was said with a grin, because both knew of Taichi's habit, and both knew that Yamato tended to try to break the other of the inclination. Ordinarily it might have received a laugh or smile in return, but today, the comment was only met with a shrug.

"No, pacing appears to be more my style," he answered. "What took you so long?"

"Well, I would have rushed right down, but I didn't think it would be exactly appropriate, being as I'd just gotten out of bed," she returned. "What's wrong?"

"There was a carriage last night with the two remaining physicians that were left at the camp at Primary Village. They had a few things to report."

Sora and Piyomon exchanged glances. "Had a feeling that carriage would be important," the small pink bird mumbled, shaking her head with a sigh.

"I saw it last night," her partner explained before Yamato could question further. "What news then?"

"Long and complicated story. First it seems that yesterday around dawn there was an unexpected attack on the camp. No one was badly hurt, although a few injuries were sustained." Sora breathed a sigh of relief. "However," he continued, and she took a breath again, "it would appear that two things of importance happened. First being that Agumon was captured."

"Captured?" Piyomon echoed almost before he had finished speaking the words.

"Oh my," Sora whispered, feeling slightly weak.

"He's taking it well, so far as I'm told. Hasn't gone completely off the deep end yet, so to speak." Yamato flashed a grim smile.

"Yet," Gabumon spoke then. There was silence.

"You said there were two things of importance," Sora recalled. "What was the second?" 'And please let it be better news,' she thought.

Yamato didn't answer right away. He glanced toward his partner, who only shrugged as if to remind his partner that the job of imparting information was his alone. He scratched the back of his head. "Well, it seems that at least the identity of the Kaiser has been determined," he said finally, trying to inject a false note of cheerfulness into his voice.

"Oh, has it?" she asked in a conversational tone, concerned for the sudden hesitation. Yamato ordinarily didn't hesitate when it came to telling people important things.

"Yes," he answered in the same tone, glancing toward the window. "It would seem that there were a series of battles and whatnot…I'm not sure of all the details myself…" He trailed off.

The others waited for a moment. When it became apparent he wasn't going to continue on his own, Sora finally did: "Details aren't important at the moment, Yamato," she assured him. "Just get to the point." She glanced toward Piyomon with a worried expression.

"It would seem that the person… that we … who calls himself the Kaiser," he paused again, looked at his feet, "…is none other than…"

"Than who?" Sora demanded, frustrated by the drama more than anything else.

"Ken Ichijouji."

***

"There must be some sort of plan," Taichi stated, scratching with some burnt wood on a piece of undamaged wood. "If we had some idea of where Agumon's been taken, where the base might be…." He tapped uselessly on the board.

"I have a feeling that if he went through so much trouble to get Agumon, he's not simply going to let him rot," Koushiro predicted from where he sat nearby. The building had been assembled so quickly, there was little in the way of furniture. The wizard sat upon a pile of thick and sturdy looking books.

"I'd agree," the other sighed. "I have a feeling we won't need to look for him as much as he'll be dropped into our laps, so to speak."

The others had gathered round for the discussion. Jyou spoke up now: "I think the most important thing to decide would be who is going out into that territory to fight. We have people injured who should probably not go and yet will most likely insist upon it anyway." His eyes turned conspicuously to Daisuke. Slowly, all others followed.

"I'm fine," the boy asserted. "I intend to go out there and do my part. Right V-mon?"

"I'm set if you are," the blue digimon replied cheerfully.

"Is that precisely safe?" Hikari wondered sensibly, turning back to Jyou. The physician sighed.

"It would make me and most of the medical profession feel much better if he did rest a few days, but there's no real risk. I must admit there were no serious physical injuries," he admitted.

"The magic didn't do much more than stun either of you," Koushiro observed, arms folded in thought. "Incredibly lucky, from what I can tell. I have a feeling you won't be so lucky next time."

Daisuke frowned. "He said as much himself," he answered, nodding. "But I'm not about to do anything risky and get myself hurt."

Takeru snickered under his breath. "I'm sure," he commented sarcastically, earning a laugh from the rest of those assembled, especially Jun. After a moment, he sobered though. "In this case, I'd wonder that you're willing to do anything at all." His eyes locked on to the other's and now they showed not jest or rivalry, but a serious concern.

There was a long silence as the other boy thought and the others waited for his response. Finally, after glancing at Miyako briefly, he answered. "I'm not saying I'm looking forward to the experience," he admitted. "But I'm not willing to let anyone get hurt. I would like to somehow see Ken relieved or cured or freed from whatever caused him to be this way." He glanced to the ground for a moment. "But I'm not willing to let him hurt anyone else, either. He's made it clear that he and I are enemies this time around, and I'm not going to disagree with him."

Miyako spoke for the first time since the meeting had begun. "Are you giving up on a friendship then?" she asked, looking Daisuke directly in the eyes.

He shook his head. "Not giving up, Miyako. Just…accepting, I suppose." He sighed. "I don't like this situation, but I doubt very much if he'd be willing to let me talk sense into him and…turn him back to our side or anything like that."

"But you're willing to fight," she argued.

"Only because I know there's nothing else for me to do," he returned. "I don't want anyone else to get hurt, either."

Miyako didn't seem willing to accept this explanation, but she didn't answer. Taichi spoke then: "Miyako, if you'd rather not come along, it's perfectly all right."

Takeru agreed. "It's not going to be easy on any of us. If you'd rather not fight, there's no one forcing you to."

"Are you certain?" she asked, looking for a moment as though she was on the verge of tears. Hikari sat beside her on the floor and put an arm around her.

"Of course. Miyako, no one's going to make you do anything you don't want to do." She glanced a meaningful glance toward Daisuke, who had been about to say something. He took the hint and shut his mouth again.

***

In the words of Charlie Brown: "Augh!!!"

Deepest apologies to all for the very extended delay on this. I don't even want to know the last time I updated this. ::covers eyes:: That's school for you. Never take into account the fact that some people might want to, I don't know, have free time? Of course not.

Anyway, the all important chapter of discovery has been posted. Now that the secret's out, what will happen? I'm sure most of you have a vague idea, but you'll just have to wait to find out.

A few notes about a few things involved in this chapter that some people might be asking about.

First off, I have no intentions of abandoning any of the relationship between Daisuke and Hikari. That will continue. I left out some of the more mushy scenes that could have gone into this chapter simply because they didn't seem to fit the rest of the chapter. I will devote a portion of time to them and only them as well as their relationship at some point in the future where it will fit. Can't say where yet.

Secondly, feel free to read the scenes between Yamato and Sora as you wish. ::evil grin:: I can say no more. (Please, say no more.)

Last, but not least, don't expect that this will be the end of any underlying tension between Dai and Miyako.

And now, I really can say no more. Till next time (which hopefully won't be as long a wait as this time), ta-ta!