Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: Okay, so there will be one more chapter after this one focusing on the second group trying to reach the peak of Infinity Mountain, and then I promise we get to the beginning of the grand finale, at least for this Spirit Chip. Enjoy the chapter! Also, attacks have been added to my profile for Embermon's ultimate form if you want to check them out!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 192: Finding the Way
Makiya 'Mickey' Takaishi
File Island, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
Hovering anxiously between his uncle and mother, Mickey watched in terrified silence as MetalGarurumon slowly circled the female mega, his sharp eyes watching her every move, and fluttering into the air, Spritemon began to shoot her green blasts at his feet, trying to catch him off guard.
At first, MetalGarurumon was able to dodge the green sparks of energy with ease, but as the barrage continued without any break in the blasts, giving the wolf digimon no chance to rest, MetalGarurumon's reflexes began to slip, making him a vulnerable target.
"We have to find a way to get past her," Matt muttered to himself, frowning at the female mega.
Mickey agreed, but unfortunately he did not have a clue how they were going to execute such an impossible task, and though he was reluctant to do so, he expressed this concern to his uncle. "But how? If we try to get past her, she'll probably attack us!"
"Somehow we're going to have to keep her distracted long enough to make a run for it."
And we were so close! This just isn't fair. How are we supposed to distract her long enough to get ourselves out of here? It'll be practically impossible now that she's paying attention to everything that's going on around her...
A scary thought. So scary, in fact, that Mickey found himself turning to his mother for comfort. "What do you think, Mom? Uncle's right about us needing to make a run for it, but I don't see how we're going to make it past Spritemon without her noticing."
"Well, hopefully with MetalGarurumon and our angel digimon keeping her occupied, at least for a little while, we'll be able to slip past and make a run for it. Our digimon can always follow us once we've managed to make it to the other side of this battle Spritemon's started."
"But..."
Slipping her arm around his shoulders and giving him a quick squeeze, his mother said softly, "We'll find a way, Mickey. It might not be easy, but we'll get ourselves out of this mess. Don't give up yet, okay? We don't want to disappoint Rina and your dad, do we?"
"No, but...I'm scared."
"So am I, but that's no reason to give up, is it?"
His mother was right, of course, and gazing into the eyes of the one they called the Child of Light, somehow Mickey managed to smile, despite the fact that the situation didn't really call for smiling at the moment. "You're right. Thanks, Mom."
Matty, whatever you're up to right now, I hope you're having better luck than I am...
"Even you won't be able to keep this pace up forever," MetalGarurumon growled, circling the female mega and launching himself at her back. "Metal Wolf Claw!"
"Now, Gabrielmon! Heaven's Charm!" Angewomon shouted, directing her pink wave of energy at Spritemon.
"Holy Sceptre!" Gabrielmon cried.
Thanks to the combined efforts of MetalGarurumon and his celestial companions, Spritemon was knocked right off her feet, and wincing slightly in pain, she glared at the three digimon who were attacking her, her deep brown eyes flashing with anger. "You're going to have to do better than that! I'm a mega, not a rookie!"
"And you've overstayed your welcome," Gabrielmon said pleasantly, soaring quickly through the brisk breeze to hover directly above the female mega. "Heavenly Vortex!"
Tracing his sceptre in the air, a large portal opened above Spritemon's head, and letting out a yelp of surprise, the female mega quickly darted out from beneath the portal, her small wings fluttering frantically to stop herself from getting sucked into oblivion, which would have effectively caused her to end up reverting back into data, depending on how much strength she had left.
Too much, unfortunately.
And not only did she still have a lot of energy left, she was also furious. Judging by the look on her face, that is. Almost before she had escaped, she was already turning to face Gabrielmon, and launching several green blasts at him from her gauntlets, she managed to catch the celestial digimon off guard.
Or so it appeared.
To Mickey, it looked almost as if his partner might manage to get away, but at the last second several of Spritemon's glowing green blasts connected with Gabrielmon's left thigh, knocking the celestial digimon back against the cliff wall.
"Your dirty tricks end here! Giga Missile!" MetalGarurumon shouted, his deadly artillery exploding into Spritemon's small body, sending a small cloud of smoke floating into the air.
Despite the fact that she had taken a direct hit, in what was fast becoming an unfortunate habit, Spritemon did not appear to have been hurt in the slightest by MetalGarurumon's attack. If anything, it only seemed to make her even more eager to continue the fight, and calmly dusting herself off, she shot into the sky and smirked at the wolf digimon before turning her attention to the rest of the group. "Oh really? The nerve of you Digidestined. You do realize this could have all been avoided if you had just come with me right from the very beginning? All this destruction. It's such a shame, and yet...ironically you have no one to blame but yourselves. Pixie Dust!"
At first, it looked as if the female mega's deadly cloud of green sparkles was going to descend upon MetalGarurumon's head, but then all of a sudden it began to churn rapidly in the air, twisting itself into a huge whirling tornado, and careening through the air at a speed Mickey couldn't even begin to comprehend, it engulfed Angewomon and Gabrielmon, causing the two angel digimon to cry out in pain.
"MetalGarurumon, get them out of there before they turn back into rookies!" Matt shouted, waving his arms to get his partner's attention.
MetalGarurumon let out a frustrated growl, and launching himself into the air he did the only thing he could do under such dire circumstances. Pouncing on the two angel digimon, he knocked them both out of the air, earning himself a face full of green dust, but despite the momentary flash of pain, he managed to exit the deadly green cloud without losing too much energy.
Thanks to MetalGarurumon's efforts, the two angel digimon ended up landing on a pile of rocks left over from an old landslide, and wincing at the impact, Gabrielmon raised his hand in acknowledgement of the help. "Thanks a lot. That was a little too close for comfort."
"Sorry about the rough landing," MetalGarurumon apologized, his gaze still following Spritemon's every move.
"A painful fall is still better than turning back into a rookie, or in my case a champion," Angewomon said dismissively, sitting up and waving off the wolf digimon's apology. "It takes less energy to fall than it does to endure that horrendous attack."
"Shall we continue?" Gabrielmon asked, holding out his hand and pulling Angewomon to her feet.
"Let's. I am anxious to meet up with the others."
"You think you're going to get rid of me that easily?" Spritemon snorted, placing her hands behind her back and tilting her head slightly to the side in amusement. "And here I used to think that you and your human partners could occasionally show some flashes of intelligence, despite how stupid humans can be. Was DarkAngelicmon ever wrong on this one."
"You're not exactly all that smart yourself," MetalGarurumon snapped, launching himself at the female mega. "Less talking and more fighting. I want this to end quickly. Giga Missile!"
Mickey threw an arm over his eyes to block out the glare of the sun, and he watched anxiously as Spritemon easily avoided MetalGarurumon's attack, acting for all the Digiworld as if the wolf digimon were nothing more dangerous than an annoying fly that needed to be swatted. It was unnerving, to say the least, and glancing at his D-Coder, Mickey let out a gasp of shock.
Dai!
"Mickey, is something wrong?" his mother asked gently, her dark eyes still watching the battle taking place further up the path.
Holding out his D-Coder Digivice, Mickey said urgently, "We have to get out of here as soon as possible. I can't be a hundred percent sure, but judging from the signal on my D-Coder it looks as if Dai has managed to make it to the peak of Infinity Mountain! Uncle Tai, Matty, and Ryoko are with him, but without the rest of us there, Dai won't be able to get his Spirit Chip!"
"You're right, Mickey. If something goes wrong and we're not there to help them..."
"Without the Spirit Chip they're sitting ducks," Matt said shortly, the calm expression on his face betraying the intense emotion glimmering just beneath the surface of his sapphire gaze. "I can't see Vampiramon, or whoever is waiting for us at the top of the mountain, letting Kara go while the Spirit Chip is still off limits, which means even though Tai and the others have reached the peak, Kara must still be in danger."
And if Dai allows himself to become a victim of the Powers of Darkness, the situation could get even worse...
Unable to control a sudden overwhelming surge of panic in his heart, Mickey grabbed onto his mother's arm and gasped, "Mom!"
"I know, Mickey," his mother said softly, gently ruffling his hair. "We're going to get out of this mess. Just have a little patience. Don't give up on Dai before we've had a chance to help him."
"I know, but-"
"That boy had better keep his head on straight or I'm never going to let Davis forget this," Matt muttered, frowning in annoyance. "MetalGarurumon, hurry this up! We've got to get out of here. Dai needs us!"
"What was that about Dai?" Spritemon interrupted, jerking her head up to glance curiously at Matt.
"None of your business. Holy Sceptre!" Gabrielmon snapped, a glowing ball of bright orange energy shooting out of the tip of his staff.
Spritemon, who had somehow managed to latch herself onto MetalGarurumon's back, began to shoot green sparks of energy at the wolf digimon's head, knocking him unconscious, and sensing the orange blast hurtling towards her, she quickly fluttered back into the air to avoid Gabrielmon's attack. It missed her by almost five feet, and pointing an accusing finger at Matt, she said suspiciously, "What's this about the Motomiya boy? What are you hiding?"
"Nothing you need to know," Matt shot back, glaring at the female mega.
"Oh really?" Spritemon raised her eyebrows and twirling around in a circle, she cried gleefully, "Well then, if you're not going to tell me, your digimon will to have no choice but to suffer! Pixie Dust!"
No!
Mickey let out a gasp as a cloud of green sparkles rained down upon MetalGarurumon's head, who was already unconscious, and crying out in surprise, Gabrielmon and Angewomon quickly hurried over to where the wolf digimon was lying on his side, intending to help him out.
Unfortunately, Spritemon was too quick for them, much to Mickey's dismay, and as a result, before the two angel digimon could reach MetalGarurumon's side, they themselves were covered by the female mega's cloud of green dust.
"Angewomon!" Mickey heard his mother cry, her terrified shout ringing in his ears.
"Without MetalGarurumon there's no way they're going to make it out of this in one piece without turning into rookies," Matt said seriously, shaking his head in despair. "We have to think of something fast."
"But what?" Mickey cried, unable to stay silent anymore. "There's no one else around to help us."
Gabrielmon...
Mickey felt his mother's arms slip around his shoulders, and holding him close, she said quietly, "You're right, Mickey, but...there must still be something we can do."
"Kari, we can't hold on anymore," Angewomon groaned, dropping out of the sky and landing against the ground with painful force.
"I'm sorry, Mickey," Gabrielmon mumbled, landing next to the female angel, his sapphire eyes slowly falling shut.
No! We can't lose. We can't!
Unable to suppress his fear any longer, Mickey made a move to race towards his digimon partner, but before he could take more than a couple of steps, his uncle grabbed him around the shoulders, stopping him in his tracks.
"Uncle, we can't just stand here and do-"
"Oh no. What exactly do you think you're going to accomplish by going over there?" Matt said sternly, frowning in annoyance. "If anything, by trying to reach our digimon, we'll just end up making the problem even worse."
"But-"
"Look!" his mother suddenly gasped before Mickey could even attempt to form a suitable reply to his uncle's outburst.
Huh?
Whirling around, Mickey turned just in time to see something dark streak through the air above the two unconscious angel digimon, and a moment later a commanding voice shouted, "Twilight Spear!"
A very familiar commanding voice.
As Mickey watched in silent disbelief, Spritemon suddenly dropped out of the sky, the green dust spurting from her body immediately vaporising into thin air, and slamming none too gently into the hard ground down below, her brown eyes fluttered closed, signaling she had fallen unconscious.
Mickey was stunned. He had seen it happen with his own eyes, and yet he still could not believe what he had just witnessed. It all seemed like some sort of crazy dream, at least until he spotted the fallen angel hovering in the air above the still forms of Spritemon and MetalGarurumon, and then it was like he was wide awake, his mouth hanging open in shock.
"DarkAngelicmon!"
He's here! He's really here!
For reasons Mickey could not even begin to comprehend, DarkAngelicmon had swooped in undetected, due mostly to the fact that Gabrielmon had been busy concentrating on the battle at hand, and taking control of the situation, the fallen angel had uncharacteristically hit Spritemon in the back with his glowing spear, knocking the female digimon unconscious.
What...what's going on here? I don't understand...
"You," Gabrielmon murmured, slowly lifting his head and wincing in pain. "What are you doing?"
Instead of answering, DarkAngelicmon landed gracefully on the ground next to Spritemon, and nudging the female mega in the back with his foot, he shook his head and said regretfully, "Shame. I was hoping to avoid a situation such as this, but perhaps I was being just a little too optimistic. A little sentimental, if you will. It's one of my very few weaknesses, you see, though I suppose I am not telling you anything you don't already know, Makiya Takaishi."
Mickey blushed when he realized the fallen angel was gazing directly at him, and turning his face away he said hesitantly, "What are you doing here, and where's Angelicmon?"
"So, you know," DarkAngelicmon murmured, glancing quickly at Gabrielmon before turning his attention back to Spritemon. "Angelicmon has gone to join Daichi and the others at the peak. You would do well to follow the same path if you want to claim the Spirit Chip of Bravery before it's too late."
"You didn't answer Mickey's question!" Matt snapped, frowning suspiciously at the fallen angel. "What are you doing here?"
"I thought you would have figured that out by now," DarkAngelicmon said quietly, turning his back on the golden-haired Digidestined and reaching out a hand to pull Gabrielmon to his feet. "If you think I'm here to help you then I'm going to have to disappoint you. The only reason I'm here is to make sure you three reach the peak. Once that happens and the Spirit Chip of Bravery is in my possession, I'll have no further use for you. At least for today. All I need is the Spirit Chip. Once it's mine, the three of you and your digimon will no longer be my concern."
"Right...If you say so."
"What about Spritemon?" Angewomon demanded, accepting the fallen angel's hand and leaping lightly to her feet.
Turning to look at the unconscious pixie, DarkAngelicmon said dryly, "She was being a nuisance. I can't very well have her ruining my master's plans, now can I? Which is exactly what would have happened if I had allowed her to stop all of you from reaching the peak. I mean really, the stupidity I have to put up with. I'm sure she'll understand. Once she's awake again, of course."
To Mickey, the fallen angel's words were like a slap in the face, and bowing his head, he said quietly, "So...you're only here because of the Spirit Chip. And in order to get it, you need our help, which is why you didn't want Spritemon interfering."
This all feels so wrong. It's not supposed to be like this. He's supposed to be here because he cares, not because we're just a bunch of tools he needs to get the Spirit Chip...
Mickey could feel hot tears beginning to form in his amber eyes, but before they could escape, he suddenly felt a hand cup his chin. He knew the hand belonged to DarkAngelicmon, but even so he couldn't help looking up in surprise, despite how upset he was, and almost against his own will he found himself gazing into the fallen angel's bright green eyes.
"Listen to me, Mickey, and listen well," DarkAngelicmon said quietly, his intense gaze never faltering. "Right now, Daichi's in trouble and he needs your help, not only for his Spirit Chip, but for something even more important. His heart. I will do what I can to help all of you safely reach the peak, but after that..."
"We'll be enemies again."
For a long moment the two of them just stared at each other, neither saying a word, and then leaning close, DarkAngelicmon whispered, "Sometimes, in order to reach the light, you must first find your way through the darkness. Do not forget that, Makiya Takaishi."
"How...how did you know where to find us?"
Glancing at Gabrielmon, DarkAngelicmon said in amusement, "How do you think?"
Mickey almost wanted to smile, but instead he mumbled, "Why...why wouldn't you look at me before?"
He fully expected DarkAngelicmon to give him some sort of an elaborate excuse, but to his surprise that did not happen. Instead, DarkAngelicmon merely said, "Go now, before Spritemon wakes up. If you leave now, Daichi may still have a chance. Do not fail him, Mickey. Both you and I want the same thing. If you and your friends cannot save Daichi, we both lose."
"But I...DarkAngelicmon, wait!"
Mickey tried desperately to grab the fallen angel's arm, but before he could get a good grip on the celestal digimon's wrist, DarkAngelicmon had already fluttered into the air and disappeared from view.
"Mickey, are you going to be okay?"
He wasn't sure, but he knew he needed to give his mother an answer. "I...I think so."
"As much as I hate to admit it, we should take DarkAngelicmon's advice and get out of here while we still have a chance," Matt interrupted, striding quickly towards his partner and kneeling next to the wolf digimon. "Are you okay to keep going?"
Lifting his head, MetalGarurumon said firmly, "I'm fine, Matt. Let's go before we encounter any more of Vampiramon's flunkies."
Matty, what would you have said if you were here in my place?
Not needing to be told twice, Mickey quickly hurried along the path between his mother and uncle, MetalGarurumon at the front and the angel digimon watching the rear, and silently shaking his head, he tried unsuccessfully to stop himself from thinking about the fallen angel.
Why? Why can't he see how much we want to help him?
"Mickey, I wouldn't worry too much about DarkAngelicmon if I were you," Gabrielmon murmured, coming up suddenly behind him and placing a hand on his shoulder.
"How can you say that, Gabrielmon? You heard him! He considers us his enemies!"
"That's nothing new, Mickey. He has been saying the same thing right from the very beginning. I do not understand why it bothers you now."
"It's just..."
"Something has changed," Gabrielmon said softly, a thoughtful look appearing suddenly on his handsome face. "I cannot explain it, but something about him seems...different."
Gazing miserably at his hands, Mickey mumbled, "Great, that's just what I needed to hear."
"I never said it was a bad thing, Mickey."
"Huh? What?"
Unable to help himself, Mickey turned to gape at his partner, and smiling mysteriously, Gabrielmon said in amusement, "Change doesn't have to be a bad thing, Mickey. Sometimes it can be a good thing."
A...good thing?
Mickey wanted to answer, but before he could come up with a suitable reply, Gabrielmon quickly fluttered off to join Angewomon at the back of the group again. That left Mickey with nothing else to do but stare unseeingly at the path up ahead, unsure of what to think of his partner's behaviour.
Before you can reach the light, sometimes you first have to find your way through the darkness...That's what he said, but...was he talking about me or was he talking about Matty? Or maybe...was he actually talking about himself?