Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: I'm finally back with another chapter, and I like this one! (I seem to really like bad guy chapters for some reason...) I'm really sorry everyone for the wait. I hope you all enjoy it, and I'll do my best to continue to update as often as I can. Oh! And also, have any of you noticed anything different about DarkAngelicmon lately and his manner of speaking? Bonus points to anyone who has picked up on what I mean and can guess the answer!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 205: Duty Calls
DarkAngelicmon
Cyber, Western Hemisphere, Digital World
"So, once again all of you have failed me," the Ruler of Darkness hissed, pacing back and forth in front of the four mega digimon and one champion kneeling on the stone floor in front of him. "Daichi Motomiya, their leader, has gained the use of his Spirit Chip, and another ultimate digimon has been born. Do you realize what this means?"
"It's all his fault!" Spritemon squeaked, pointing to the fallen angel kneeling beside her. "What happened on Infinity Mountain was his plan to begin with! He's the one to blame!"
"Silence, fool! I did not ask who was to blame! You've all failed in your own way, including DarkAngelicmon. There are no excuses!"
My, my, so quick to point the finger. What wonderful allies I have.
It was an amusing thought, and glancing at the sprite digimon kneeling on his left, DarkAngelicmon smiled to himself, his shadowy wings fluttering with silent laughter. Despite the fact that they were all in serious trouble, he had to admit, he was enjoying himself.
A lot.
"But...he...the plan!" Spritemon protested.
"I told you to keep quiet!" the Ruler of Darkness snapped, turning his back on the cowering pixie and crossing his arms over his chest. "When we originally set out to bend the Digidestined to our will, it was important to gain control of their D-Coders to have access to the Spirit Chips. That was the reason why I wanted you to steal the Digivices in the first place. Since then, we've discovered that the D-Coders are useless to us without the Digidestined themselves, and now that we have devised a better way to get our hands on the Spirit Chips, it should have been easy to take that which we desire. Simple, and yet you still continue to fail me."
"Forgive us, master," Vampiramon murmured, cowering on Spritemon's left. "You are entirely right. There are no excuses. We had Daichi Motomiya in the palm of our hands and even after he gained the full use of his Spirit Chip, we are still the stronger of our two opposing forces. It should have been easy for us to take the Spirit Chip, but instead we allowed FireDragermon to catch us off guard."
"Indeed, you did," the Ruler of Darkness said bitterly, keeping his back to the female mega. "The Digidestined are weak. You've seen that for yourselves. How easy it is to plunge their hearts into darkness. We needed Daichi to overcome that darkness and he did so magnificently, but even so that does not make him more powerful than us. That Spirit Chip should have been ours. You know what the humans are like. They are surprisingly resilient, but that alone will not save them. They rise up only to fall deeper into despair. It is only a matter of time before the darkness claims them, and when it does...then we shall have our victory."
They rise up only to fall deeper into despair and yet...the harder they fall the quicker they seem able to pick themselves back up again. Humans have such admirable hearts. How I do envy them...
And now, it appeared it was time for him to have his say.
"Pardon me, your evilness, but if I may intervene?"
"Forget it, angel boy, even the fool knows not to interrupt our master when he's angry," Jestermon hissed softly in his ear, elbowing him in the ribs.
Instead of responding, DarkAngelicmon chose to ignore the court jester kneeling on his right, and tilting his head to the side, he gazed expectantly at the back of his master's head in silence, knowing full well he would be rewarded for his patience.
He was not disappointed.
The Ruler of Darkness turned slowly to face him, and humbly bowing his head, he smiled to himself, pleased with the way things had turned out.
Oh, how he was enjoying this.
"Is there something on your mind, DarkAngelicmon?" the Ruler of Darkness asked pleasantly, regarding him with a mixture of curiosity and resentment.
"Forgive me, your evilness, but though you have every right to be concerned over the incident with the Motomiya boy, not all is lost. Rookie leader, indeed. He may have gotten his Spirit Chip, but that does not make him any less of a target. He might think he's safe now, but truly it's quite the opposite. Now that the Spirit Chip is in his possession, he no longer has a shield to hide behind. His Spirit Chip works. We've seen that for ourselves, which is actually a huge accomplishment for us."
"How so?" BlackWidowmon demanded from Vampiramon's left, forgetting her place.
"Have you forgotten so quickly? We can't bend the Spirit Chips to our will if the Digidestined themselves cannot even get the Spirit Chips to work. In order for our plans to succeed, we need the Digidestined to gain the full use of their Spirit Chips. Their leader has done that, thanks to my careful planning, which means we're half way there, at least as far as the Motomiya boy is concerned. Granted, we did not get a chance to steal his Spirit Chip today, but that does not mean there won't be other opportunities to do so. All the Motomiya boy needs is the right motivation to give up on himself, and once his heart has been plunged into darkness, we will be able to use those dark thoughts to bend his Spirit Chip to our will. I assure you, it's only as matter of time before we have the leader of the Digidestined right where we want him, and where he goes the others will follow, if they don't manage to fall first, that is."
"You are a sentimental fool, DarkAngelicmon, but you are right," the Ruler of Darkness sighed, shaking his head in amusement. "All is not lost, but that does not excuse what happened today. How often do you waste your time keeping the others out of trouble. I do wish you could put that brilliant mind of yours to better use."
"As do I, my lord."
"You already used the Kamiya girl," Vampiramon snarled, grinding her teeth together. "Do you honestly think you can find another excuse to plunge the Motomiya boy's heart into darkness?"
Such a ridiculous question. No one is safe from the darkness. Not Dai, not Davis, not Tai, not even Takahiro Kuroki.
DarkAngelicmon could tell that the vampire digimon was upset about the praise he was receiving, while she herself was being called a failure, but that did not bother him in the slightest. He had more important things to worry about.
"The Kamiya girl is only one tantalizing point of interest in the Motomiya boy's life. There are many more, each with the opportunity to send his heart over the edge of despair. It's just a matter of finding what makes him tick, and when it comes to the Digidestined, I happen to be a master at that, if I do say so myself."
"Where were you?" Vampiramon demanded, pointing an accusing finger at him. "You left, and you did not come back. If you had been with us when Daichi claimed his Spirit Chip, the battle might have ended differently."
At this sudden declaration, DarkAngelicmon raised his eyebrows, and smiling innocently at the female mega, he said sweetly, "Vampiramon, my dear, are you complimenting me?"
"I am doing no such thing! You neglected your duties and therefore you deserve to be punished!"
"No more than the rest of you," the Ruler of Darkness said harshly, dismissing the female mega's words with a wave of his hand, "but Vampiramon does have a point. Things may have ended differently if you had been there to stop Daichi from getting away with his Spirit Chip. Where were you, my fallen angel, and you'd better have a good excuse."
DarkAngelicmon smiled at his master, and leaping lightly to his feet he circled the Ruler of Darkness with a triumphant gleam in his emerald eyes. "I was busy sewing the seeds of destruction."
"Explain, please."
DarkAngelicmon suddenly stopped, and taking his master's hands, he knelt in front of the Ruler of Darkness, his forehead coming to rest against the mysterious digimon's stomach. "I feel tainted."
"So, in other words, you've been in the presence of other angel digimon. Angel digimon who do not work for me."
"It is good to be by your side again, master."
The Ruler of Darkness gently patted his head, but DarkAngelicmon could tell his master's mind was somewhere else. "Angel digimon...you don't mean..."
No!
Realizing he'd almost made a mistake, DarkAngelicmon quickly shook his head and said, "No, not him. Angelicmon."
"Angelicmon?"
"Yes, and his celestial companions, but Angelicmon is the one of most notable interest."
"How so?"
DarkAngelicmon quickly pulled away from his master, and turning to face the torches lining the walls, he murmured, "The Takaishi twins. The seeds have been planted and now we must wait for them to take root. When the time comes, I have no doubt their Spirit Chips will be ours. It was too good of an opportunity to pass up. I thought Vampiramon and the others would be able to handle the Motomiya boy without me, but obviously I was wrong to put that kind of faith in them."
"We almost had him!" Jestermon protested, chucking a black spear angrily in the fallen angel's direction.
DarkAngelicmon caught it easily in his hands, and throwing it back, he said playfully, "Not close enough, obviously. Despite your failure, though, my conversation with Angelicmon proved to be quite useful."
"So, that's where you were? Consorting with the enemy?" Vampiramon demanded, clearly outraged.
"In a matter of speaking, yes."
"You really are a fool!" BlackWidowmon snorted, shaking her head in disbelief. "Worse even than Jestermon."
"Hey, I resent that!" the fool shouted, leaping to his feet. "When it comes to being the fool, no one is worse than me!"
"You said it," Spritemon smirked.
"You lie," Vampiramon hissed, tugging angrily on her skirts. "Angelicmon was there. He helped the others fight. I don't doubt you spoke to him, but where did you go after that? If Angelicmon could get back in time to defend the Spirit Chip, why couldn't you?"
Well now, she has more brains than I gave her credit for. This should be interesting.
DarkAngelicmon knew he couldn't deny the female mega's words, so he didn't even try. Instead, he merely turned to his master and said quietly, "She speaks the truth. Where was I then? I made that quite plain already. Sowing the seeds of destruction. Watching and planning. Our moment will come. The Takaishi twins will be yours, my lord."
"You mean yours," the Ruler of Darkness laughed softly, beckoning him closer.
"What is it, your evilness?"
"Come here."
DarkAngelicmon hesitated only a moment before joining his master, and placing a hand on his head, the Ruler of Darkness said, "Do not fail me."
"You can be sure I won't. The Spirit Chips are as good as yours."
"If we can even find the rest of them," Spritemon grumbled, making a face.
Indeed, that will be our next challenge.
DarkAngelicmon didn't like having to agree with Spritemon, but thankfully before he could voice his opinion, the Ruler of Darkness said calmly, "That will be the least of our problems. Persiamon, Phelesmon, if you could please inform my servants here of what you've discovered?"
Of course...
DarkAngelicmon nearly jumped as both Persiamon and Phelesmon suddenly appeared out of the shadows, and crossing her arms over her chest, the feline digimon said, "While the five of you have been out playing with the Digidestined, we've been spying on Gennai and his allies, much like he's spying on us. We've discovered that the Spirit Chip of Compassion is located on Server."
"And thanks to Gennai we know exactly where it is," Phelesmon smirked.
"You will be given the details tomorrow morning with your instructions," the Ruler of Darkness added, folding his black-gloved hands together. "Until then, I need some time to think."
The Spirit Chip of Compassion. It appears I know the Digidestined better than they know themselves. How the Digidestined can be so blind is beyond me. Sam Ichijouji, it's time for you to take to the stage. Will you play your part accordingly or will you fail us all? A question I don't think even Piedmon would have been able to answer.
"And so the plot thickens," Jestermon murmured.
DarkAngelicmon smiled. It was almost as if the court jester could read his mind, and beaming at his companions, he said confidently, "Excellent, the Spirit Chip of Compassion. It appears the young Ichijouji boy is our next target. This should be quite interesting, I believe."
"How do you know the Spirit Chip of Compassion belongs to the Emperor's son?" Vampiramon snapped, glaring accusingly at him with her hands on her hips. Forgetting her place, much like DarkAngelicmon himself had earlier, she had jumped to her feet in anger only to be rewarded with an angry hiss from the Ruler of Darkness, which greatly pleased DarkAngelicmon. Apparently he could get away with breaking protocol, but the vampire digimon could not.
"How do I know? It's simple. We have Gennai's words to prove it. The Spirit Chip of Compassion can only belong to either the Ishida boy or the Emperor's son, and out of the two of them, which one do you think would be mostly likely to own the Spirit Chip of Compassion?"
"The fool agrees," Jestermon replied, summoning his black spheres and juggling them lazily above his head. "The Ishida boy is a bit too cold for the Spirit Chip of Compassion, I think."
Ryoko, cold? How little these fools know their enemies. Cold on the outside perhaps, but certainly not on the inside. He is very attached to those he cares about and his heart will not let him forget it.
"Okay, let's say you're right. Let's say the Spirit Chip of Compassion really does belong to the Emperor's son. How exactly is that going to help us?" BlackWidowmon demanded, shaking her head in disgust. "Do enlighten us, DarkAngelicmon. How exactly do you plan to give the Ichijouji boy a decent chance of claiming his Spirit Chip?"
"How nice of you to ask, BlackWidowmon."
"Huh?"
DarkAngelicmon turned slowly to face his fellow digimon, his back to Persiamon, Phelesmon, and the Ruler of Darkness, and smiling slightly, he said, "That's already been taken care of."
"What do you mean?" Spritemon asked suspiciously.
"Contrary to what you might believe, our young target knows that his father, the famous boy genius, Ken Ichijouji, was the Digimon Emperor."
"What?" Vampiramon shrieked, nearly tripping over her skirts in shock. "Since when?"
"Oh, he has known for quite a while now."
"How?" Jestermon spluttered, his black spheres tumbling to the ground and rolling across the stone floor in different directions.
"Why, I told him of course."
"When?" Spritemon demanded, clearly shocked by this sudden turn of events.
"It doesn't matter. The point is he knows, and we can use that to our advantage. As you can imagine, he and his father are at odds at the moment. What more incentive does he need to have a reason to get his Spirit Chip? His father's crest is part of one of the seals protecting the Spirit Chip, which means Ken Ichijouji will have to be present for this search. Our little Emperor won't be able to avoid his father then. Let events play out as they will, and we will have our Spirit Chip."
"What's that supposed to mean?" BlackWidowmon snorted.
"It means we sit back and wait and let the Digidestined, or more precisely, the Ichijouji boy and his father, do all the work for us. Wait and watch, and when the time is right that's when we'll strike."
"You never cease to amaze me, my faithful servant," the Ruler of Darkness murmured, clearly pleased to have a least one capable underling on his hands. "You will lead the others tomorrow. Do as you see fit."
"What do you mean, he'll lead?" Vampiramon snapped, glaring at the Ruler of Darkness.
"Know your place, Vampiramon. What it means is that he will lead the operation tomorrow, you will follow. This is your punishment for such a spectacular failure today. I suggest in the future you try to be a bit more diligent in your duties. Now leave me. You and the others are dismissed."
In response to her master's words, Vampiramon stormed out of the former crest room, Jestermon, BlackWidowmon, and Spritemon right on her heels, and watching his fellow companions DarkAngelicmon could do nothing but stare after them in amusement.
I do believe this is another victory for me. My apologies, Vampiramon, but you're going to have to play second best for now. At least until I get what I want.
With that thought in mind, DarkAngelicmon made to follow after his companions, but before he could take so much as a single step, the Ruler of Darkness caught his arm, forcing him to stop. "You will stay. As you may have already guessed, there is something I need to discuss with you."
Try all you like, he will never be yours. The darkness will claim me first before I let you take him back.
DarkAngelicmon closed his eyes briefly, doing his best to compose himself, and taking a deep breath he turned to gaze at his master with a neutral expression on his handsome face. "What is it, my lord?"
"What of Lucemon? Has there been any progress?"
"No, my lord. He is a difficult digimon to locate when he does not want to be found. I do not sense him like I used to. He has become...very distant from me."
A lie, but the Ruler of Darkness did not need to know that.
"I see. I suppose that is to be expected. You will continue searching for him as well as for the Spirit Chips. Though you may lead your allies tomorrow, your main duties are not to be forgotten. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, my lord. I will do my best not to disappoint you."
"I expect nothing less from you."
"Of course, my lord."
The Ruler of Darkness reached out to gently stroke the feathers sprouting from DarkAngelicmon's head, almost like he would a favorite pet, and turning to face the torches lining the walls, he whispered, "DarkAngelicmon, bring my servant back to me. After all, what are the Demon Lords without their leader?"
No...please...
"Phelesmon!" the Ruler of Darkness suddenly called out, snapping his fingers and motioning for the fallen angel digimon to join him. "I must rest now. Please see our comrade out."
"Yes, my lord," Phelesmon murmured, bowing deeply to his master.
DarkAngelicmon allowed the other celestial digimon to take hold of his arm and upon reaching the door, Phelesmon leaned close and whispered fiercely in his ear, "Just you wait, you won't be our master's favorite forever!"
Lucemon...
DarkAngelicmon stopped dead in his tracks and turning to glare at his fallen angel companion, he snapped, "No, I won't be!"
And with that, he stormed out the door, leaving Phelesmon to stare after him.