Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

A/N: Not much to say for this chapter. If you haven't checked out the FTFOD section of my forum recently, it's a good place to go if you want some new interesting information I added last week!

Following the Footsteps of Destiny

Chapter 112: The Search for the Missing Digidestined

Spritemon

Cyber, Western Hemisphere, Digital World

Spritemon fluttered anxiously into the air and hovered several feet above the large balcony DarkAngelicmon had chosen as a viewing platform in hopes of catching the Digidestined before they could escape into the forest. The stone structure looked rather small beneath her, but in reality it actually covered a good portion of the castle's rooftop. It was really more of a raised platform than a balcony, but it gave her an excellent view of the surrounding area, and it also allowed her to keep her eyes on the guards who were patrolling the walls and crouching on the balconies of all four towers. A group of about fifty guards, including Minotarumon, were pacing restlessly along the walls of the roof, which stood just below the balcony where she, along with DarkAngelicmon, had decided to make their stand, and the looks of concentration on their faces eased her mind somewhat, though not completely. A set of stairs lead directly from the rooftop to the balcony, and as a result, the guards could reach them easily if there was any news to report. It was a perfect place to set up a watch because it gave them not only easy access to the Digidestined, but to the guards, as well, and yet she still wasn't completely satisfied with the arrangements.

This is all DarkAngelicmon's fault! If that fool angel hadn't acted like such an idiot earlier, the Digidestined would be safely locked away in the dungeons by now, and I wouldn't have to be standing out here gawking at the trees like some stupid Cherrymon who's just found himself a new home! This whole situation has gotten completely out of hand, and if we don't find a way to turn things around soon, our master's going to have both our heads on a silver platter. I can't believe I'm saying this, but I wish Vampiramon were here. She always knows how to turn a bad situation around and make it work in her favour.

"Do you see anything yet?" DarkAngelicmon called out, his long, raven hair fluttering slightly in the cool breeze that had picked up sometime during the afternoon. The sun was just starting to set in the west, and Spritemon could not help feeling a little bit annoyed about the fact that they had accomplished absolutely nothing in the last few hours. And it's all thanks to Etemon and his stupid pyramid! Now there's a digimon I would've liked to have ripped apart with my bare hands!

"Well? Honestly, Spritemon, it's rude to ignore someone who's asked you a perfectly innocent question, or didn't you know that already? Remind me to give you a lesson on proper etiquette when addressing humans and digimon as soon as an opportunity presents itself because you desperately need it, I'm afraid."

Spritemon sent the fallen angel a dirty look and slowly descended towards the stone balcony at a leisurely pace. She landed lightly next to her rather annoying companion and wrinkled her nose in disgust. "No, there isn't a single Digidestined in sight, and you have no one to blame but yourself. You do realize the Digidestined still have the crests, don't you?"

"A slight setback, to be sure, but like I said before, it doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. Unfortunately the crests will help Tai and the other eight Digidestined who were lucky enough to possess on of those impressive little trinkets to digivolve, but I believe the rewards we're more than likely going to gain from such a bold move will ultimately be worth a few sacrifices. After all, the Digidestined need the crests in order for the Spirit Chips to work properly."

"Yes, so you say, but what does that have to do with anything?"

"I really wish you would pay more attention when I'm talking to you, Spritemon. In case you've forgotten already, Gennai was the one who told me about the Spirit Chips, and he insisted they wouldn't work for evil digimon, but they will work for the Digidestined. I believe we'll eventually be able to control the Spirit Chips, and the crests, as well, with help from the Powers of Darkness, but in order to accomplish our goal, we must first find the object of our search. Tell me, Spritemon, how do you expect us to find the Spirit Chips without Daichi and his friends? They think they've gained the upper hand because they have the crests in their possession, but really they're only doing our dirty work for us. Once the Digidestined get their hands on the Spirit Chips, with help from the crests, we'll be able to put our plan into motion."

"What plan?"

DarkAngelicmon let out a sigh and shook his head in disgust. "Sometimes I wonder why I even bother. The Digidestined need the crests and the D-Coders to find the Spirit Chips, right? Well, once they do manage to get the job done, we'll be able to steal the D-Coders, the Spirit Chips, and the crests all at once! Of course, we must accomplish our rather ambitious goal before Daichi and the others end up digivolving to ultimate otherwise our task will be a lot more difficult. The Digidestined don't know it yet, but the crests are actually leading them right into a trap. Daichi and his friends are going to lead us directly to the Spirit Chips, which is something that wouldn't have been possible if they had managed to escape from the castle without the crests. Our best option would be to capture the Digidestined and force them to lead us to the Spirit Chips, but because of the fact that I let them walk away with the crests, there's still plan b if they do manage to escape. In the end, the result will still be the same. It's always nice to have your enemies under your control, but sometimes you have to alter your plans a little if the situation doesn't work out the way you want it to. Gennai's information has turned out to be quite useful, even you have to admit that."

Only DarkAngelicmon can say something that makes entirely no sense and still sound as if he's just given you a logical explanation for yet another one of his crazy ideas. No wonder Vampiramon wants to strangle him to death!

Spritemon studied the fallen angel's handsome face for a moment and crossed her arms over her chest. "DarkAngelicmon, you do realize our master's going to skin you alive, don't you?"

"Actually, I think he'll be pleased with my quick thinking and my ability to salvage a disastrous situation and change it into something that will work to our advantage. I'm sure he'll be upset about the crests, but he'll change his mind eventually. You'll see."

"You're not serious, are you?"

DarkAngelicmon gently touched her cheek and gave her a sweet smile. "Relax, Spritemon. I'll talk to our master when he gets back. You won't have to say a word. I'll even take the blame for what has happened here today. That should ease your mind, at least a little bit, if not completely."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you, especially considering the fact that this whole situation is your fault to begin with!"

He sounds so confident, but I'm not sure our master's going to agree with him when it comes to the crests. I just hope I'm not around when our master decides to take his anger out on his servants.

DarkAngelicmon looked like he was expecting an argument, but before he could say anything, a male goblin digimon suddenly sprinted up the stairs and collapsed onto the stone balcony at the fallen angel's feet. "I'm sorry to disturb you, my lord, but Kotemon and I discovered something rather unusual, and we thought we should bring it to your attention."

"Have you discovered where the Digidestined are yet?"

Goblimon winced and meekly shook his head. "No, my lord, but..."

We don't have time to listen to rumours being spread around by a bunch of rookies with too much time on their hands! If DarkAngelicmon can't learn to control the guards then we're going to have a rebellion on our hands! Why do I always have to do all the dirty work around here?

Spritemon tugged impatiently on her long, emerald hair and sent the goblin digimon a look of absolute disgust. "What do you mean, no? We told all of you not to bother coming up here unless you had news about the Digidestined and their whereabouts, and since you obviously don't, I suggest you quit wasting our time and get back to your post before I really start to get angry!"

"But, but-"

"Ignore her," DarkAngelicmon interrupted, reaching down and helping the goblin digimon into a standing position. "Now, what is it you wanted to tell me?"

"Um...well...you see...Kotemon and I went to warn the rest of the guards about the Digidestined trying to escape from the castle, just like you instructed us to earlier. We spoke to most of the ones inside the building who weren't waiting outside the crest room, whom you forgot to mention in your speech, but we didn't tell the guards outside because they were...um...gone..."

"Gone?"

Goblimon nodded vigorously and glanced nervously at the forest as if afraid they were being watched. "That's right. Kotemon and I thought that was a little strange so we decided to check things out, and according to a Phantomon I talked to earlier, two DarkTyrannomon, several Bakemon, I'm not exactly sure how many, and a group of Vilemon have gone missing. It's like they've just disappeared into thin air. What do you think is going on?"

DarkAngelicmon frowned and slowly shook his head. "I'm not sure. It does seem kind of odd, though, doesn't it? Are you sure they haven't just ignored Spritemon's orders and wandered back into the castle?"

Of all the nerve!

Spritemon jabbed the fallen angel sharply in the ribs with her elbow, but the fool digimon never even batted an eyelash. He was mocking her right in front of her own face, and he didn't even have the decency to admit it!

"Maybe, but that seems highly unlikely, especially when you consider the fact that none of the guards Kotemon and I talked to earlier have seen the two DarkTyrannomon or any of the other missing digimon recently," the goblin digimon said slowly. "I'm sorry to bother you, but..."

DarkAngelicmon gently patted the rookie's shoulder and quickly shook his head. "Not at all, Goblimon. Thank you for the information, and thank you for informing the guards I mistakenly overlooked. I forgot about the ones inside the castle. I'm assuming Spritemon didn't want to pull them away from their posts in case the Digidestined escaped so she chose mostly guards from outside the castle to watch the entrance to the crest room. I guess she does use her brain once in a while, after all, though I did notice there were some guards outside the crest room who were positioned inside the castle earlier, as well. I assume you left BlackGatomon and Ivymon to inform Devidramon and SkullSatamon?"

"Yes, my lord. I figured you had probably sent those two to the dungeons."

"Excellent work, Goblimon, your information could be important. I'm not sure what it could mean yet, but I'll think about it, and hopefully I'll be able to come up with an explanation that makes sense. In the meantime, you'd better get back to your post, and if you do notice anything else that seems a little bit suspicious, please inform me immediately, and the same goes for Kotemon, as well. How does that sound?"

"Very good, my lord. I'll tell Kotemon right away!"

Goblimon beamed at DarkAngelicmon before hurrying back down the stairs, and Spritemon made a face at the fallen angel. "You don't think the missing guards have something to do with the Digidestined, do you?"

DarkAngelicmon tugged on one of the dark ear-like feathers sticking out of his head and frowned at the forest. "I'm not sure, but...something doesn't feel right."

"Well, I could have told you that!" She had felt the same way ever since the Digidestined had managed to escape from the crest room, and instead of disappearing, the uneasy feeling in her heart had only gotten worse. "By the way, what do you think you're doing being nice to your servants? They're not supposed to love you, they're supposed to fear you!"

"I punish my servants when they fail me, and when they do something right, I reward them. It makes sense, doesn't it? No wonder the guards hardly ever listen to you!"

"Will you just shut up and concentrate on keeping your eyes peeled for the Digidestined?"

DarkAngelicmon smiled slightly and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "As you wish, Spritemon. I must say, I do enjoy your company much more than Vampiramon's, or even BlackWidowmon's, for that matter. It pains me to admit it, but no one understands my witty sense of humour as well as you do, except perhaps Jestermon. At least you know how to take a joke, unlike some of the others, I'm afraid."

"In that case, I must be losing my mind. DarkAngelicmon, I'm...worried. Something about this whole situation just feels...wrong..."

The fallen angel tugged lightly on one of her wings and gave her a teasing smile. "Spritemon, are you sure you're feeling alright? You're not exactly the type of digimon who's known for allowing herself to show any signs of weakness."

"Will you please stop fooling around? I'm trying to be serious here!"

"So am I. Don't worry, Spritemon, as long as we pay attention to what's going on around the castle, everything wil be fine. The Digidestined can't escape without somebody seeing them. As soon as they try to leave the castle, we'll have them in our grasp, and then we won't have to tell our master anything."

"I hope you're right."

Spritemon huddled against the fallen angel's side and anxiously fluttered her wings. The Digidestined did not scare her, and neither did Gennai, but the thought of what her master would do to both DarkAngelicmon and herself if they failed made her tremble with fear. He was not a very forgiving digimon, and if the Digidestined managed to escape, then both she and DarkAngelicmon would not be able to avoid getting themselves into serious trouble.

And it's all because of Luciamon! Watch out, Lucemon, I don't care what DarkAngelicmon says. When I find you, I'm going to destroy you! Luciamon tried to ruin our master's plans, and your death will be my revenge. You can't help the Digidestined if you're an egg!

DarkAngelicmon always made sure he had a backup plan when things got tough, but she had a backup plan of her own, and if she never saw another angel digimon again, it would still be too soon for her liking.

Mimi Ishida

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

"Izzy, what are they doing now?" Miya asked, hovering anxiously over the computer expert's shoulder.

Mimi stood next to Yolei's daughter and made a face at the dots on the screen. Ryoko and the others had stopped moving again, but this time they were standing near the bottom of the screen instead of in the crest room, which was closer to the top, and it looked like they were below ground. "Izzy, are they in the dungeons?"

Izzy beamed at her and nodded. "It looks like they've finally found Gennai. Now they just need to get to the East Tower, and once they're flying over the forest towards the gate, we'll be home free."

"Izzy, do you mind changing the map to an aerial view of the dungeons?" Noriko asked, poking the computer expert in the shoulder to get his attention. "It'll be easier to see what's going on that way, and we'll also have a better view when they start heading back up to the first floor."

"Oh, right. Sorry about that."

"Yes, I'm sure you are," Yolei muttered.

Izzy quickly magnified the section of the castle they were all currently studying, but before the computer expert could say anything more, they heard the sound of footsteps in the hallway, and a moment later Matt stalked into the room with his arms crossed over his chest. "Where's Ryoko?"

Mimi rolled her cinnamon eyes in her husband's direction and pointed at the blue dot on the screen. "He's right there, and yes, honey, he's perfectly fine."

At least, he was the last time T.K. bothered to e-mail us, but Matt doesn't need to know that!

"Matt, you're here!" Izzy cried, leaping out of his seat and throwing his arms around the golden-haired Digidestined. "Have I ever told you how much I enjoy your company? Seriously, Matt, you have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

Matt raised his golden eyebrows and gave the computer expert a rather odd look. "Izzy, what in the Digiworld has gotten into you?"

"Um...er...nothing..."

"Honestly, Izzy, will you quit fooling around and get back to work?" Yolei snapped.

The lavender-haired Digidestined attempted to drag the computer expert back towards the desk, but Izzy was having none of it. Instead, he clung to Matt's arm and let out a low moan. "Save me!"

Matt's sapphire eyes lit up with sudden understanding, and he quickly pulled his arm out of Izzy's grasp. "Sorry, buddy, but you're on your own!"

"But-"

"Sit down!" Yolei shouted, shoving Izzy back into his chair and motioning for Miya to keep an eye on him.

"Hey, Izzy, do you think Noriko will let us kick her out of the house?" Miya whispered, glancing ever so slightly in her mother's direction.

"How about you and I leave instead?" Noah asked hopefully.

"You mean...together?"

Noah blushed and quickly lowered his dark eyes to the ground. "Yes. I mean no! I mean..."

"He means yes," Ema smirked.

"Shut up, Ema! Who asked you-"

"Hey, Matt, where are the others?" Kari asked, interrupting Noah before the older teen could finish insulting his sister. "I didn't think you would manage to get here before Dai and the others came back. Does this mean Tai and the rest of our friends are going to try and come, too?"

Matt tore his eyes away from Ryoko's blue dot and frowned when he realized everyone was watching him. "Tai and Sora might be a while, but the others are going to try to get here as soon as possible. Oh, Izzy, Mina told me to tell you she'll be here in a few minutes."

"Really? That's the best news I've heard all day!"

"I'd be saying the same thing, if I were you. Tai didn't tell me why he'd be a while over the phone earlier, but I'm sure he has a good reason for it. So, what's going on?"

"You'd better sit down, Uncle Matt. It's kind of a long story," Taysuke sighed.

"What do you mean?"

Mimi smiled at the sudden look of alarm on Matt's face and held out her arms. "Matt, why don't you come sit next to me and we'll explain everything."

"But-"

"Sit!"

Matt immediately sat down next to her and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. "Are you sure Ryoko's okay, and what about our nephews, and T.K., and-"

"Everyone's fine, Matt. I'm worried, too, but if we let our fear get the better of us then I think Izzy will go completely insane."

"If he hasn't already."

"My daddy will keep everyone safe," Rina said confidently. "Right, Aunt Mimi? Oh, that reminds me, have you picked out any names for my new cousin yet? Mommy told me she and Daddy had a lot of fun picking out names for my brothers."

Mimi laughed and pulled her little niece into a warm hug. "Your Uncle Matt and I have a few ideas, but we want Ryoko's approval first before we make our final decision."

"Well, in that case it's a good thing you're the ones having a new baby instead of my parents. I shudder to think what kind of names Dai would approve of!" Ami giggled.

"I'll tell you one thing, if we have a girl, we're not going to be naming her anything stupid like Mutsumi," Matt said stubbornly.

Mimi raised her eyebrows and rested her cheek against her niece's dark hair. "What's wrong with Mutsumi?"

"Nothing. I'm sure it's a perfectly good name for some people, but no daughter of mine is going to be named Mutsumi, thank you very much!"

"Any objections if we have a boy?"

"Yes, if you name him something like Kazuteru or Nagaharu, I'll never speak to you again!"

Mimi stared at her husband and promptly burst into giggles. "Oh, Matt, I knew there was a reason why I married you!"

"Huh?"

"Sweetheart, do you know what I love about you?"

"What?"

"You have extremely good taste, just like your wife!"

Matt gazed at her for a moment and smiled slightly. "I should have known you were going to say that."

"Good, then stop talking and give me a kiss."

Matt quickly pressed his lips against her mouth, and glancing down he gently poked her in the stomach. "Well, at least you're still safe, baby, which is more than I can say for your bother. I swear that boy is trying to give me a head of grey hair."

The golden-haired Digidestined shuddered at his own words, and Mimi was once again forced to roll her eyes. "And Yolei thought I was having a mid-life crisis when I cried on my fortieth birthday! Honey, there is such a thing as hair dye, you know, which reminds me, I'm letting my hair grow out so I can have my natural hair colour again. I am getting older, after all, and pink really doesn't suit someone my age. Besides, it isn't good to dye your hair when you're pregnant."

"Which explains why you gave up on dying your hair when you were pregnant with Ryoko. Now will someone please tell me what's going on?"

Izzy turned around in his seat, and the look he sent Matt was filled with pride. "Well, if you want to know the truth, I think Dai and the others have just found Gennai."