Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.

Following the Footsteps of Destiny

Chapter 149: Rejection

Makiya 'Mickey' Takaishi

File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World

"Sam, there is no need to be upset," Gabrielmon said gently, crouching next to Glowmon and placing his hand on the raven-haired Digidestined's shoulder. "You are safe with us now. You followed the light, didn't you? It was your friends who brought you here. There's no reason for you to fear the darkness anymore."

Sam slowly lifted his head and stared at Gabrielmon in confusion, and although Mickey could not tell for sure, he had a feeling the raven-haired Digidestined may have momentarily forgotten his reasons for being so upset in the first place. "The...light?"

"It was our Digivices," Dai explained, kneeling on Sam's other side and giving the raven-haired Digidestined a hesitant smile. "I'm not exactly sure how to explain it, but somehow our D-Coders responded to our wishes when we wanted so desperately to find you."

Mickey nodded in agreement and beamed at his raven-haired friend. "The light you must have seen came from our D-Coders."

"The light," Sam whispered, his deep blue gaze taking on a faraway look. "It helped me find my way out of the darkness. It took me away from...from him..."

"Who?" Embermon demanded, frowning slightly. "Are you talking about DarkAngelicmon? Gabrielmon said he was in the forest, and we saw that light shooting into the sky earlier. Where is he? Did you see him at all?"

For the second time in less than five minutes, Sam's eyes cleared at the sound of a familiar name, but instead of answering Embermon's question, the raven-haired Digidestined promptly burst into tears again. Heart aching with sadness, Mickey gently patted his friend's back and turned to gaze helplessly at Gabrielmon. He was hoping for an answer to explain Sam's strange behaviour, but unfortunately even his partner didn't seem to have a clue what was going on, and Glowmon was obviously too upset to be of any use.

"Embermon!" Dai groaned, giving his partner a dirty look. "And I'm the one who always gets accused of being insensitive. You're worse than I am. No tact at all!"

Embermon shrugged and smiled sheepishly at the goggle-headed leader. "Well, we kind of need to know."

"Yes, but you don't need to shout at him," Tirimon snorted.

Jerking his head up in surprise, Mickey turned to stare at Dai, but the goggle-headed leader refused to meet his gaze.

He doesn't know what's going on with Sam, does he?

Despite making a joke, Dai's face was pale and his deep brown eyes were dark and stormy. Every so often he would glance at Ryoko, but the golden-haired Digidestined didn't appear to notice. Instead, Ryoko's blue gaze was focused on Sam, and the expression on his face was beyond description. He looked like he wanted to run as far away as possible from Sam, and Mickey was sure the only thing stopping him from making a hasty retreat was the sound of Sam's heart-wrenching sobs. The desire to help Sam, to comfort him, was clearly something Ryoko couldn't ignore, and it was keeping the golden-haired Digidestined trapped against his will.

What could have possibly caused Sam to act so devastated and heart broken? Whatever it is, it must be really bad...

Feeling suddenly nervous, Mickey took a deep breath and pulled back slightly so he could look directly into Sam's tortured gaze. "What's wrong, Sam? Why are you so upset?"

"You don't know, Mickey. You don't even know. If you did, if you knew..."

Mickey frowned at Sam's tearful reply, but before he could ask the raven-haired Digidestined was it was he didn't know, a sudden shuffling sound broke his concentration. Turning slightly, he spotted Ryoko moving slowly towards them, but the golden-haired Digidestined had eyes only for Sam. Sam must have heard the sound of Ryoko's footsteps, as well, because the raven-haired Digidestined suddenly lifted his head and glanced in the direction the sound had been coming from, searching for the source of the noise. When he spotted Ryoko, his whole body went rigid, and Mickey quickly pulled away from him in surprise. For a long moment, Ryoko and Sam just stared at each other, Ryoko's eyes sparkling with fear and tears streaming down Sam's cheeks, and after what seemed like a lifetime, Ryoko slowly stepped closer to Sam and gave the raven-haired Digidestined a pleading look. "Sam, I..."

Sam never gave Ryoko a chance to finish. Raising his fist, he stepped right up to Ryoko and hit the golden-haired Digidestined hard in the face. Ryoko staggered backwards, a gasp escaping his throat, and he fell hard on his back, his hand coming up to press against his cheek.

Clapping his own hands over his mouth in horror, Mickey stared at Sam in silent disbelief, unable to believe what he had just witnessed. He had known Sam since the two of them were babies, and not once had he ever seen his kind, gentle friend lash out so viciously towards another human being before. In his entire life, Sam had never hurt so much as a fly before, and to see the raven-haired Digidestined acting so violently towards one of his closest friends left Mickey feeling sick to his stomach.

"Oh, Sam!" Glowmon moaned, fluttering onto Tirimon's back and hiding his face within the large champion's pale blue fur.

Instead of answering his partner, Sam continued to stare at Ryoko, his face a mask of hurt and betrayal. "You knew. You knew all this time and you didn't even tell me?"

At first Mickey thought Ryoko wasn't going to answer, but just when it looked as if the golden-haired Digidestined was going to pretend he hadn't heard his friend's words, he suddenly lifted his head and gazed directly into Sam's eyes. Normally Ryoko was very good at hiding his emotions, but this time the look in his sapphire eyes was only all too easy to read. Clearly, for reasons Mickey still did not understand, Ryoko had been afraid of something terrible happening, which somehow had some sort of connection to Sam, and now the golden-haired Digidestined looked as if all of his fears had managed to come true all at once.

"Say something!" Sam shouted, his words ending in a sob. "I don't want to hear any more lies! You knew! You knew the truth and you kept it a secret from me!"

"I only found out last night," Ryoko choked out, his voice barely above a whisper. "It's not like I really had-"

Sam let out a strangled cry and grabbed a fist full of Ryoko's blue shirt, the pain and rage flashing in his dark blue eyes almost unbearable to watch. He tried to hit Ryoko again, but Dai suddenly leaped into action, his sudden movements catching Mickey by surprise. Without a word, Dai grabbed Sam by the wrist and pulled the raven-haired Digidestined away from Ryoko, putting some distance between his two friends. Ryoko was still sprawled on the ground, but instead of trying to fight back, he merely sat there with his head lowered and his hand pressed against his swollen cheek.

"Hey, what was that for?" Embermon shouted, glaring at Sam and crossing his arms over his chest. "He never did anything to you!"

"Nothing gives you the right to hurt your friends, no matter how much you believe they might have hurt you," Gabrielmon said quietly, stepping up behind Sam at a gesture from Dai and keeping his gaze focused on the raven-haired Digidestined's every move.

Tirimon moved over to join his partner and he nuzzled the golden-haired Digidestined's side, but surprisingly enough, he did not look at all upset over the way Sam was treating his partner. Instead, he merely looked curious, as if anxious to know why Sam felt so strongly about whatever it was Ryoko may or may not have done to hurt the raven-haired Digidestined.

"Let go of me!" Sam snapped, jerking his arm out of Dai's grip and glaring at the goggle-headed leader.

Ignoring Sam's hateful expression, Dai knelt next to Ryoko and placed his hand on the golden-haired Digidestined's shoulder. The look on his face was hard to read, but after staring at Ryoko's swollen cheek for a few minutes, he slowly turned back towards Sam and gazed calmly at the raven-haired Digidestined. "That wasn't really necessary, was it?"

"You're one to talk! You never seem to have a problem with hitting him, so don't try to give me a lecture!"

"I'm not trying to lecture you. What would be the point? You won't believe Ishida no matter what he tells you."

Sam stared at Dai, and to Mickey's complete astonishment, fresh tears began to slide down the raven-haired Digidestined's cheeks. Dodging Gabrielmon's hand, Sam sank down on the ground in front of Dai and Ryoko and stared at the golden-haired Digidestined in horror "You told him? You told him the truth, but you wouldn't tell me?"

"I wanted to tell you," Ryoko whispered, his hand trembling against his cheek. "I wanted to tell you more than anything, but would it have made any difference if I had? Would you have even believed me?"

"How could you do this to me?" Sam said tearfully, ignoring the golden-haired Digidestined's questions. "I thought you were one of my best friends! I thought I could trust you, but instead you talk about me behind my back with Dai? Instead, you tell him things you're supposed to be telling me?"

"If I had told you, would you be acting any differently than you are now? No, it would still be my fault. Why do you think I couldn't make up my mind? No matter what I did, I knew you would accuse me of betraying you. Don't you see? It's because I care about you that I had to tell someone! I wanted to protect you..."

"I hate you so much right now," Sam whispered, his dark blue gaze never leaving Ryoko's face.

Mickey stared at Sam as if he had never seen the raven-haired Digidestined before, but his reaction was nothing compared to the look in Ryoko's sapphire eyes. The golden-haired Digidestined visibly flinched at Sam's words, but he didn't even try to fight back. Ryoko, who was always so quick to jump to his own defense, never even said a single word to argue against Sam's opinion of him. Instead, he seemed to wilt under the raven-haired Digidestined's gaze, and he closed his eyes to hide the pain glimmering just beneath the surface of his sapphire gaze.

"You don't mean that," Dai said flatly, getting to his feet and jerking Sam into a standing position. "Look, I know you're upset. In fact, I can't even imagine what you must be feeling right now, but it doesn't change what we now know to be the truth. I don't blame you for your feelings towards Ishida, for the way you probably feel about me now too, but if you think I'm going to let you get away with taking the anger and pain you feel towards your father out on your friends, forget it!"

"How can you-"

"I will die before I let you break up this team, do you hear me?" Dai snapped, his sharp words cutting through the air like a knife.

There was silence. It was almost as if time had come to a complete stop because even the wind had died, and the trees had grown silent and watchful. Standing on the sidelines, Mickey felt like he was staring at a group of strangers, the familiar faces of his past becoming people he could no longer recognize. A part of him wanted so badly to comfort all of them, but more than anything he wanted desperately to understand what was going on.

What kind of secret has Ryoko been hiding from Sam, and why does Sam feel so betrayed? Dai obviously knows what's going on between Sam and Ryoko, but that doesn't make any sense either. Why would Ryoko reveal his secrets to Dai, of all people, and why won't anyone tell me what's happening? I wish Matty and Kara were here...

"Please, Sam," Ryoko said sadly, "you have to believe me. You know I would never want to hurt you."

Unable to look at Ryoko, Sam let out another sob, and before Mickey could stop him, the raven-haired Digidestined suddenly backed away from them and began to run in the opposite direction, his path following both the coastline and the edge of the forest. At first Mickey was so stunned he didn't know what to do, but a moment later he found himself trying to follow Sam, his feet moving him steadily towards the raven-haired Digidestined's retreating back. "Sam, wait!"

"Come back, Sam! It's dangerous for you and Glowmon to be on your own!" Gabrielmon shouted.

"I'll protect him. I promise!" Glowmon called out from the comfort of Sam's arms. Thankfully, the little rookie was able to flutter into Sam's embrace before the raven-haired Digidestined could make a run for it, so he wasn't completely alone.

But...but what about DarkAngelicmon?

Mickey stumbled, nearly tripping over a fallen tree branch, and before he could recover, Dai suddenly grabbed his arm and pulled him to a stop. Whirling around in surprise, Mickey stared at Dai in disbelief and tried unsuccessfully to pull his arm free from the goggle-headed leader's grip. "Dai, what are you doing? We have to go after him!"

"Let him go, Mickey."

"What? Are you crazy? Dai, DarkAngelicmon is still out there somewhere, and if he meets up with Sam, possibly for the second time, then Sam could be in real trouble, especially considering we don't know what actually happened to Sam in the forest..."

"And to think our time here in the Digital World began with something so simple as DarkAngelicmon overhearing Gennai's conversation with Azulongmon. That's where he found out the names of our D-Coders and he later had it confirmed by Gennai himself. Gennai mentioned the name to Vampiramon and DarkAngelicmon when they were torturing him," Dai said quietly, shaking his head. "That's where he found out a lot of stuff about the Spirit Chips, too. It used to be so simple. All we had to do was stop the bad guys from stealing our Digivices and everything would be fine, but now...how did it all come to this?"

"If you can believe anything Gennai told us then this whole thing started long before he was captured," Ryoko mumbled, climbing slowly to his feet. "They already had an idea of what was going on before they captured Gennai and then they later confirmed the truth about the new name our Digivices were given. It also helped them find out about the Spirit Chips, too, though obviously they still don't know everything. In fact, I think the root of our problems here in the Digital World really begin with Tal Kuroki, but the part of the story that truly affects us begins with what happened fifteen years ago."

Dai frowned and nodded slowly in agreement. "You know what, Ishida? I think you might be right."

"What about Sam?" Gabrielmon asked anxiously.

Dai held up his D-Coder and gave the celestial digimon a reassuring smile. "Don't worry, he'll be fine. He's moving towards the gate near the ocean that Gatomon mentioned just as we were leaving to head towards Infinity Mountain. She was arguing with the others about which gate they should stay close to in case we needed to contact them, remember?"

Mickey frowned impatiently at Dai and crossed his arms over his chest. "Even so, we can't let Sam wander off on his own. At this point in time, I don't think we should be letting him go anywhere near the ocean, especially if, as I suspect, the Dark Ocean really was calling to him."

"Why not? We set him free from the darkness, didn't we? I doubt he's going to step back into the World of Darkness again if, like you said, that's where he really was to begin with. We still don't know for sure. Remember, there's still a lot about the World of Darkness that our parents haven't told us yet, and I'm sure there are things even they don't know. Besides, DarkAngelicmon isn't following Sam," Dai said bluntly, his dark gaze coming to rest on Gabrielmon. "Isn't that right, Gabrielmon?"

Gabrielmon blinked in surprise and slowly nodded. "I can still feel his presence coming from somewhere within the forest. How did you know?"

"Gabrielmon, do you remember what you said earlier?"

Mickey let out a gasp and turned to look at his partner. "You thought DarkAngelicmon might not be able to sense us, but you also said there was a chance he might want us to save Sam. I think your second idea was the right one. DarkAngelicmon must know we're here, but he hasn't been making any effort to hide from us!"

"You're right, Mickey," Dai said seriously. "DarkAngelicmon obviously doesn't care whether or not we know he's here, so why would he suddenly try to sneak out of the forest without us knowing? If he wanted to leave, he would fly, and I don't know about you guys, but I still have yet to see him come bursting out of the trees, which means he's still in there somewhere."

"Wow, Dai, you're really smart!" Embermon piped up, beaming at his partner.

"Not really. I'm not like Taniko. I guess I just have a good dose of common sense."

"The forest is no longer covered in darkness," Gabrielmon murmured. "It disappeared as soon as Sam stepped out of the forest."

Mickey nodded in agreement and turned slowly to face Ryoko and Dai. "What's going on? Why is Sam so upset? You two obviously know something and whatever it is, it has something to do with Sam."

Ryoko glanced frantically at Dai, and the two of them stared at each other in silence. They both looked nervous, but it was Ryoko who appeared uncertain of what to do.

"Well?" Tirimon asked quietly.

Tears filling his eyes, Mickey clasped his hands together and he gave both of his friends a pleading look. "Please tell me. You guys are my friends and so is Sam. I want to help."

"Ishida, we might as well tell him," Dai said firmly, his words leaving no room for argument. "There's no reason to keep what we know a secret anymore. Sam obviously knows the truth already, and because of that everyone else will probably know before the night is over, if they haven't already figured it out for themselves like you did. There's nothing to hide anymore, and it'll be better if Mickey finds out from us instead of from Sam or someone like DarkAngelicmon. That way he'll be prepared when Sam finally decides to start speaking to us again."

"Tell us," Gabrielmon said softly.

Ryoko took a deep breath and slowly nodded, his sapphire eyes growing dull and lifeless. "We know who the Digimon Emperor is."

Mickey stared at his cousin in shock and slowly sank to his knees. "What? That...that can't be true..."

"It is. Tell him, Ishida," Dai sighed, nodding his head for Ryoko to continue.

Ryoko turned his face away and sat down with his arms wrapped around his knees. "I figured out the truth last night, and ever since then I just haven't been able to face Sam. I've wanted to tell him the truth so badly, but I'm not brave like Tai and Davis, or even Daichi. I just couldn't bring myself to do it, but I knew I needed to tell someone, so I told Daichi."

Mickey placed his hands on his cousin's shoulders and gazed directly into the golden-haired Digidestined's deep blue eyes. "Why couldn't you tell him?"

"Because I wanted to protect him."

"But Sam said...you mean it isn't because you were afraid he would hate you?"

Ryoko quickly shook his head and smiled bitterly at his hands. "No, I knew he would hate me whether I told him or not."

"DarkAngelicmon must have told Sam the truth. That's the only way he could have figured it out," Dai muttered, almost to himself.

"So...you think DarkAngelicmon really did meet up with Sam?" Embermon asked curiously.

"I'm positive. Sam would never have figured out the truth on his own. How could he when there's no way he would have ever let himself believe it? Someone else would have had to convince him to accept what he would never want to hear."

"I think he knew," Ryoko whispered. "Deep down inside, I think he knew all along. In fact, I think we all did, but who would want to accept it? It was so obvious, Mickey."

"What do you mean? I don't understand. Why would the truth about the Emperor's identity upset Sam so much?"

"Mickey," Ryoko choked out, covering his face with his hands, "it's Ken. Sam's father is the Digimon Emperor."

Mickey stared at his cousin, unable to look away, his mind racing over all the conversations he and his friends had had with Gennai, their parents, Leomon, Elecmon, Andromon, Centarumon, Veemon, Agumon, and the rest of their parents' partners. It was like a sudden sense of understanding had washed over him, and although he wanted desperately to believe otherwise, he knew Ryoko was telling the truth. Almost every single word that had been uttered about the Digimon Emperor had somehow been related to Ken. Whenever the Emperor had been mentioned, Ken's name hadn't been far behind. It all pointed to one thing. Ken was, without a doubt, the legendary Digimon Emperor, and hundreds of innocent digimon had suffered at his hands. Sam's reaction to the terrible news of his father and Ryoko's fear of telling Sam the truth suddenly made a whole lot of sense, and so did Ryoko's desire to tell someone, especially Dai.

Sam...you believe your father has somehow betrayed you, but you couldn't be further from the truth. Why can't you understand what I've believed all along?

"Mickey?" Ryoko whispered, reaching out a hand towards him. "Mickey, are you...are you okay?"

Mickey could feel both Dai and Ryoko watching him, and his partners hand came to rest gently against his shoulder. He could tell they were trying to judge his reaction, clearly nervous about how he would respond to their terrible news, and even though he was quite sure he was in shock, he knew there was only one way he could respond. There were still some things he didn't understand, but if there was one thing he was sure of, it was what he truly believed deep inside his heart. "Well, then I was right, wasn't I? Sam should be proud of being compared to the Emperor."

Both Dai and Ryoko stared at him, but before either one of them could respond, the sound of something moving in the forest caught their attention, and Mickey jumped up just in time to see something shoot out of the trees. The graceful figure quickly hurtled towards them, and Mickey stumbled backwards into Dai as DarkAngelicmon suddenly landed in front him, the breeze from the dark champion's wings stirring up a cloud of dust and dirt. Gazing into the fallen angel's bright green eyes, Mickey swallowed a lump in his throat and let out a soft sound of despair. "You told him, didn't you."

DarkAngelicmon suddenly moved closer to him, and Mickey let out a gasp as the fallen angel unexpectedly grabbed him by the front of his green shirt and lifted him off his feet. The two of them were now at eye level, and the fury, sprinkled with overwhelming pain and sadness, glimmering in DarkAngelicmon's eyes caused an unpleasant shiver to race down Mickey's spine.

"Let him go!" Gabrielmon snapped, pointing his sceptre at the fallen angel's back.

Mickey ignored his partner and stared at the fallen angel in astonishment. "That light! It really was you!"

DarkAngelicmon didn't reply. Instead, the fallen angel glared at him and hissed, "One day your soul will be mine!"

"Please, don't do this..."

"Mickey!" Gabrielmon cried.

Mickey suddenly felt himself falling backwards and he hit the ground on his back. Wincing in pain, he quickly sat up and stared at the fallen angel in disbelief. DarkAngelicmon had carelessly tossed him aside like he was nothing, and the dark champion's sudden change in attitude left him feeling both frightened and confused.

"Hey, what was that for?" Dai shouted, glaring indignantly at the fallen angel.

"You are a fool, Makiya Takaishi!" DarkAngelicmon snapped, launching himself into the air and turning his back on their small group. "You can't help anyone if you cannot save yourself first! Your hatred for me will be your undoing and the same is true for your brother. I will make you pay, both of you!"

Before anyone could respond, DarkAngelicmon flew off in the direction of the Western Hemisphere, eventually disappearing into the sunset. Gazing at the setting sun, so unlike the symbol he now knew would be the image on his Spirit Chip, Mickey wiped at the tears in his eyes and humbly bowed his head. "But...I don't hate you. Not really. I never did. I realize that now..."

"Mickey! Ryoko! Dai!"

At the sound of his brother's voice, Mickey quickly turned around and spotted Matty, Kara, and the five adult Digidestined, along with their partners, racing towards him and the others. Letting out a gasp of relief, Mickey hurried over to his brother's side and pulled the younger twin into a quick hug. "Matty, you're safe!"

"Forget about me, what about you?"

"I'm fine, which is more than I can say for Sam..."

"Dai!" Takara shrieked, throwing herself in his arms and hugging him tightly around the neck. "I was so worried about you guys! Are you okay?"

"We're fine, Kara," Dai mumbled, his cheeks turning a faint shade of pink. "I was more worried about you than I was for my own group. We weren't the ones fighting megas. I'm glad you're safe."

Takara raised her eyebrows and gave the goggle-headed leader a small smile. "Like there was ever any doubt of that!"

"Where's Sam?" Sora asked curiously, glancing around at the landscape in search of the raven-haired Digidestined.

"We saw him break away from you guys on our Digivices," Matty explained, holding up his yellow D-Coder.

"Well, isn't anyone going to tell us what's going on?" Tai demanded.

Mickey glanced anxiously at Ryoko, but instead of answering Tai's question, the golden-haired Digidestined suddenly flung himself at his father and wrapped his arms around the former musician's waist in a tight hug.

"Ryoko, what's wrong?" Mina gasped.

Matt stared at the top of his son's golden head in astonishment and shook his own head in confusion. "Ryoko, why are you so upset? Did something happen?"

"Does this have something to do with DarkAngelicmon?" Izzy asked hesitantly.

Mickey glanced miserably at his twin, and Matty's eyes suddenly widened in understanding. "No way! You mean...you know?"

"Know what?" Tai interrupted, moving slowly towards them. "What are you two talking about?"

Dai gazed directly into the former leader's dark eyes and let out a deep sigh. "Tai, we know who the Digimon Emperor is."