Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: How's this for a fast update! What is DarkAngelicmon planning? Well, you sort of get to know!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 90: Within the Castle Walls
Spritemon
Cyber, Western Hemisphere, Digital World
Spritemon fluttered up the main set of stairs in the old castle her master was using as a fort and entered the nearest room on the right-hand side of the stone corridor. She halted at the sight of DarkAngelicmon standing over the Crest of Courage, and her lips twitched into a small smile. The fallen angel was gazing at the misty screen hovering against the wall, and there was an odd sparkle in his bright green eyes. He looked pleased at the sight of the Digidestined hanging onto Luciamon's every word, and judging by the way the female angel had captured their attention it was obvious they had no trouble believing every single lie she had managed to create in order to get them to follow her.
It is a good plan. Luciamon's going to bring the Digidestined right to our doorstep and then we'll be able to do with them as we please. I wonder what Vampiramon will say when she finds out what DarkAngelicmon has been planning behind her back. I guess it doesn't really matter. Our master approves, and his opinion is the only one that counts. Still, I can't wait to see the look on Vampiramon's face when she finds out DarkAngelicmon has been ignoring her orders!
Spritemon crossed her arms and made a face. Although she did not want to admit it, it looked as if DarkAngelicmon's plan was working perfectly. It was certainly better than anything Vampiramon could have come up with.
"Spritemon, how nice of you to join me. I take it you've come to find out whether or not my brilliant plan has been a success? Well, see for yourself, my fairy friend. Now do you believe me when I say I know what I'm doing?"
Spritemon slowly entered the room and gave him a dirty look. "I wasn't the one who doubted you. I might not always agree with your plans, but I know you have more sense than Vampiramon, even if Jestermon and BlackWidowmon don't think so. They're the ones who doubted you, not me."
"True enough. I'm glad you've finally decided to see things my way."
"For now. What are you doing anyway?"
DarkAngelicmon raised his eyebrows and waved his hand at the screen. "What does it look like I'm doing? I knew they'd trust Luciamon. She doesn't look very threatening, does she. You'd think they would have learned by now that appearances can be deceiving. Oh well. Their foolishness will work to our advantage. Luciamon's going to lead them right into our trap. With Gennai and the Digidestined as our prisoners, we'll be able to find the Spirit Chips in no time."
"Yes, and we'll not only have Daichi and his friends, we'll also have Davis, T.K., and the former Emperor. That's quite a nice little group, isn't it."
DarkAngelicmon beamed at the misty screen in front of him and nodded. "I do believe I've outdone myself with this plan. Poor Sam. He won't even look his father in the eyes. What a shame. He deserves to know about the Emperor more than anyone else, wouldn't you say?"
Spritemon fluttered over to his side and let out a snort. "Why did I have a feeling you were going to say that? What about Mickey and Matty? You seem very interested in them."
DarkAngelicmon's eyes slid over to Mickey's face, and he smiled, his green eyes sparkling with excitement. The older twin's cheek was resting against Gabrielmon's shoulder, and his twin was sitting on his other side. Matty was gazing anxiously at his brother, but Mickey refused to look at him. The younger twin finally lost his patience, and leaning over he whispered something softly in his brother's ear. At first Mickey did not respond, but then he suddenly smiled and pulled the younger twin against him in a gentle hug before quickly turning away again.
"The seeds of doubt have been planted, I see."
DarkAngelicmon laughed and shrugged his shoulders. "I guess you could say that. They're strong, but I can be patient. It's only a matter of time before I have them both in the palm of my hand."
"You can have them as long as I get to teach little Takara Kamiya a lesson. She'll pay for ruining my plans!"
"I'm sure I can arrange something, but first we need her in order to fulfill our master's plans. Patience is a virtue, my friend. You would do well to remember that."
"Did our master go with Vampiramon and the others?"
"Yes, he has gone with Jestermon, BlackWidowmon, and Vampiramon to keep an eye on Leomon and his friends. They're still a good distance away from us, but with Agumon and his fellow rookie digimon joining up with them our situation could become dangerous. Our master wants to stop them from reaching the castle so we can deal with the Digidestined without any outside interference."
Spritemon poked him in the arm and made a face at the Crest of Courage. "Let me guess, he put you in charge of capturing the Digidestined?"
"Of course."
"Why am I not surprised? I take it Vampiramon doesn't even know what's going on, does she."
"True, but I couldn't very well tell Jestermon that, could I? He'd go straight to Vampiramon and so would BlackWidowmon. Our master will tell them what's going on when it suits him and not a minute before. Besides, Vampiramon knows not to disobey our master's orders. The amount of information she has been given is enough to stop her from accidentally ruining our plans."
"And why am I the only one other than Luciamon and our master who gets to know the details of your little plan?"
"Because you're the only one who seems to understand why we need the Digidestined alive in order to find the Spirit Chips," DarkAngelicmon said shortly. "You haven't had a change of heart, have you? You seemed quite willing to go along with my plans once I explained them to you earlier."
"No, I haven't changed my mind, but that's only because I think your way is a lot more fun, and as long as I get Takara in the end, I'm happy."
"Good. Don't worry, Spritemon. The Digidestined will be in our hands sooner than you think."
Spritemon was about to answer when the misty screen suddenly turned black and disappeared. "Hey, what's going on?"
DarkAngelicmon glanced at the crests surrounding the spot where the screen had been and smiled slightly. "It looks like the Digidestined have gained control of the crests."
Spritemon gazed suspiciously at him and crossed her arms. "What do you mean?"
"The crests only respond to those humans who have the ability to use at least one of the nine traits that were chosen to protect the Digital World. Our master has found a way to use that power to his advantage."
"Okay, and what does that have to do with anything?"
"The crests are linked to the hearts of the humans who control their power, and that bond is what gave our screen the ability to see the Digidestined. Daichi Motomiya and his friends have the powers of the crests running through their veins as a result of the relationship they share with their parents. T.K.'s and Ken's Digivices have already started glowing. You know what that means, don't you?"
"They must be getting close to us, but if what you say is true then why aren't the D-Coders responding to the crests?"
"They will eventually. Daichi and his friends aren't the original holders of the crests, so the link isn't as strong. It will take their Digivices a little longer to pick up the signal of whichever crest or crests they are connected to."
"What about Davis and the other two? Yolei and Cody?"
"The crests will respond to them, as well. When the powers of the crests were given up to protect the Digital World, Azulongmon, Gennai, and the rest of their little gang had some of that power stored away in order to create the Digi-eggs, and that same power, the power of the crests, will be used to give life to the Spirit Chips. Do you understand now? Davis Motomiya and his friends are also connected to the crests, and therefore they, too, will eventually be able to pick up the signal."
"So like with Dai and the others the connection isn't as strong as it is with the original Digidestined, right?"
"Exactly. Gennai did not tell Centaurumon everything, and as a result Daichi and his friends are missing some valuable information. It's information we can use to our advantage."
"Wait. There's one thing I don't understand. You said the crests only glow for the humans so why are they glowing for us?"
DarkAngelicmon ran his fingers over the Crest of Courage and gave her a disappointed look. "They aren't. Haven't you heard a word of what I've said? The powers of the crests can still be used even if the Digidestined aren't close enough for the crests and Digivices to pick up each other's signals. They will still glow because they're linked to the humans who use their power, but the only time they can glow at such a distance is when the crests are working together in harmony towards the same goal. The barrier used to protect the Digital World is a perfect example."
"Right, so Joe's crest, for example, will still glow even though there's no one around who is directly connected to its power."
"Yes."
"Well, I guess we now know why Dai and the others were chosen to be Digidestined."
"They were chosen for the same reason Davis and the others were chosen. The last two groups of Digidestined were drafted because they have the ability to use the powers of the original Digidestined. They all have something in common with Tai and Kari, but even to this day Gennai and the others still don't know exactly what that is."
Spritemon fluttered her wings and gave him a dirty look. "Where did you learn all of this?"
"Gennai, of course," DarkAngelicmon said, looking amused. "The Digidestined are close enough now to control the powers of their crests, and that's why our screen disappeared. The crests are waiting for them, and they will no longer unknowingly aide us in our plans. It's only a matter of time before our friends get here, and when they do we'll be ready for them."
"How can you say that? We have no idea when they're going to arrive. The screen's not working, remember?"
DarkAngelicmon slowly walked towards the wall and placed his hand on the Crest of Hope. "I wouldn't worry too much about that, if I were you. Luciamon will let us know in her own way."
"She'd better or our master's never going to put you in charge of anything ever again!"
"The crests can become corrupted," DarkAngelicmon said quietly, almost to himself. "The Spirit Chips, as well. That is the only way we can get them to respond to us, and once they're covered in darkness their power will belong to our master. Remember that, Spritemon. The Digidestined will be ours and the Digital World will fall under our control. You'll see."
Spritemon stuck her tongue out at the Crest of Courage and kicked the stone pedestal. "If you say so. Sometimes you make absolutely no sense, you know that? I thought you wanted the Digidestined to trust you. How do you plan to get them to be your little friends when they're going to end up in the dungeons? That'll stop them from trusting you real quick."
"No it won't. You'll see."
"Whatever. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going to go make sure the guards are doing their job."
Without waiting for an answer she turned and fluttered out of the room.
Taniko Izumi
Odaiba, Japan, Earth
"Do you guys think they'll be okay?" Mimi asked nervously.
Taniko Izumi pulled her eyes away from the computer screen and turned around in her seat to give Ryoko's mother a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, Mimi, they'll be okay."
At least I hope so. I don't know why I'm worrying so much. My dad always knows what he's doing, but still...
"Their dots aren't moving," Noah said quietly, pointing at the screen. "Do you think they might have run into some trouble?"
Taniko glanced nervously at her father, and her dark eyebrows rose in surprise when she realized he was frowning at the screen. "What's up, Dad?"
Her father turned to look at her, and he shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows. They could be trying to figure out where to go or maybe they've run into a digimon who has some information that could help them find the crests. It's hard to say."
"It's not fair. I wish I could be saving the Digital World with them," Ema grumbled.
Taniko nodded in agreement and leaned over to give her friend a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "I know how you feel, Ema."
"Me, too," Taysuke sighed, running a hand through his carrot-coloured hair.
Yolei glared angrily at the computer screen and clung tightly to her daughter's arm. "Ken had better be looking after Sam!"
"I'm sure he is," Kari replied, hiding a smile.
Taniko exchanged a look with her dad and slowly shook her head. She did not know why she felt so uneasy all of a sudden, but for some reason, no matter how much she tried to tell herself she was being silly, she could not shake the feeling that something wasn't right...