Disclaimer: Once again I do not own this amazing television show! Shame, I know. (Er...at least I like to tell myself that...)

A/N: And another chapter done! It's the beginning of a lovely new day (er...maybe the word lovely isn't exactly an accurate word to use, but still a new day nonetheless) for Daichi and his friends, so go ahead and read, and cheer them on! (Cause they're gonna need it!) Will check again for any missed mistakes.

Chapter 209: The Demons Gather

DarkAngelicmon

Cyber, Western Hemisphere, Digital World

DarkAngelicmon stood silently on the circular balcony that was a feature of the bedroom he occupied in the castle, his arms resting on the stone railing, and gazing up at the cloudy sky blanketing the Western Hemisphere, he frowned, his thoughts once again returning to last night's conversation with the Ruler of Darkness.

Lucemon...what can I do? How am I to keep you out of harm's way when you insist on putting yourself in danger? What a foolish thing to do, showing up on Infinity Mountain like that. Are you trying to get caught? If you continue down this reckless path, I will have no choice but to deliver you to my master.

And that was something he most definitely did not want to do. If Lucemon were to end up in the clutches of the Ruler of Darkness, it would ruin everything.

I must concentrate. It is Sam Ichijouji whom I need to worry about today, not my traitorous friend.

Sam Ichijouji. The Digimon Emperor's son.

Will he allow the deeply alluring power of darkness to cast a shadow upon his soul, or will he rise up and overcome the darkness, and in doing so manage to claim what undoubtedly has to be his Spirit Chip? The outcome of this little charade may depend entirely on the former Emperor. We shall see, Ken Ichijouji, if you have the strength and will to claim back your own son.

"DarkAngelicmon?"

Shame. I suppose hoping for a moment of peace in this castle was entirely too much to expect.

Now, what to do...

He couldn't exactly ignore his visitor and with a deep sigh he slowly turned to face the digimon standing in the doorway. To his surprise, instead of finding himself face to face with Vampiramon or one of his other allies, he instead found himself looking down at the shadowy feline digimon who was Gatomon's counterpart in every way imaginable.

"Well, this is certainly a surprise. And what brings you here on this...not exactly a very fine morning, is it. I must admit, I'm not too fond of the rain. It certainly isn't very kind to my wings, which is why I try not to fly in bad weather as much as possible."

Just as he finished speaking, a bolt of lightning split the sky, followed by a huge crack of thunder.

"I'm not exactly a fan of the rain myself," BlackGatomon admitted, leaping up onto the stone railing of the balcony and curling up next to this right elbow. "I'm here because the Ruler of Darkness sent me to inform you that the others are almost ready to leave."

"Vampiramon couldn't tell me this herself? I suppose that means she must still be...upset about last night."

BlackGatomon snorted in response, and lazily flicking her tail she turned to gaze out at the rain that had just erupted from the heavy clouds above and was pouring down on the valleys and forests of the Western Hemisphere with a vengeance. "You must be unlucky today."

"And why is that?"

"This storm is going to follow you all the way to the Eastern Hemisphere this afternoon. Good luck with that."

Watching her, DarkAngelicmon was struck by a sudden feeling of uneasiness stirring deep within his shadowy heart.

I wonder...

BlackGatomon had joined their ranks shortly after he himself had become a servant of the Ruler of Darkness, and watching the feline digimon now, he couldn't help remembering the day she had first come to their castle on Cyber. It was a couple months before even Vampiramon and the rest of his allies had joined the Ruler of Darkness, and he could remember the day very well.

All of the lower ranked servants at the castle answered to the Ruler of Darkness, but at the same time each of them was expected to report to their superiors, as well, which included not only him, but also Vampiramon and his other allies, Persiamon, Phelesmon, and several others within the castle.

BlackGatomon, though, was something of a rarity amongst the lower ranked servants.

For reasons he still did not understand, on the day that BlackGatomon had first joined their ranks, the Ruler of Darkness had asked him to look after her specifically, to make sure that no harm came to her, though he had almost failed spectacularly in that regard when the Digidestined had managed to sneak their way into the castle. Though BlackGatomon still answered to Vampiramon and the other higher ranked digimon in the castle, he was the one she gravitated towards the most, and over the years she had become more of a servant to him than to anyone else, which is what he secretly suspected had been his master's plan all along.

But why, though? Why did the Ruler of Darkness want him to watch over the feline digimon? What made her so important? More important than the rest of their lower ranked servants?

Unless...

Gazing at the feline digimon, DarkAngelicmon felt a small shiver race up and down his spine.

Daemon from the past, banished to the Dark Ocean. Lucemon, my old friend, unable to face the truth of who he is. A stray BlackGatomon having come to the castle. LadyDevimon reborn. How long before we see Lilithmon, the Demon of Lust? All connected to the past. Could it be that I am right about my suspicions concerning the digimon Takahiro Kuroki and his Digidestined allies defeated? Was it really him, the Ruler of Darkness, that Tal banished to a life of eternal slumber deep within the World of Darkness? If that is indeed true...then the Digidestined are not a force to be taken lightly.

"DarkAngelicmon, are you feeling okay today?" BlackGatomon suddenly shouted in his ear, startling him out of his thoughts. "You're being awfully quiet for a digimon who's...well, never quiet."

"I'm fine, BlackGatomon. In fact, if you must know, I'm feeling particularly cheerful today."

"Only because you get to play with the Emperor's son today."

"Indeed. If nothing else it should prove to be an interesting day."

"I don't doubt that for a minute. Oh, and a word of advice, your evilness. I'd watch my back today, if I were you. As you've obviously already guessed, Vampiramon's in a nasty mood."

"After last night, that was to be expected. It's about time she started getting used to it, though. I very much doubt today will prove to be any kinder towards her, especially with yours truly in charge of the operation."

BlackGatomon laughed at that, and leaping off the railing she beckoned him towards the door and said, "You'd better hurry up, your evilness. If you show up late, they'll blame me for it."

"We can't have that, now can we."

BlackGatomon beamed at him, and turning his back on the stone balcony, he quickly followed the feline digimon towards the door, his thoughts still on the events of yesterday.

It was not going to be easy to continue to thwart Vampiramon, but somehow he was going to have to manage it, if his master's plans were going to succeed.

The more we focus on the Spirit Chips the less my master will be inclined to think about Lucemon. It's all up to you, Sam. Do not fail me, or we will both suffer the consequences...

Sam Ichijouji

Odaiba, Japan, Earth

"Sam, Mickey's here to walk with you to school. You'd better hurry up if you don't want to be late!"

At the sound of his mother's voice, Sam reluctantly pulled his eyes away from the small television in his bedroom, and letting out a soft sigh, he quickly stood up to turn off the old VCR sitting next to the DVD player on the shelf beneath the television.

Friday the thirteenth. Today of all days.

He had surfaced from a deep sleep earlier than usual that morning to find two old video tapes sitting on the nightstand with a note from his mother, indicating that she had been successful in her quest to borrow old footage of the late Sam Ichijouji from his grandparents on his father's side, and for that he was grateful. He wasn't sure if his mother would manage it, but she had pulled through for him, proving once again that she was, as Takara always said, a formidable woman.

The current date, though, wasn't exactly helping his mood, and it put quite a bit of a damper on the good deed his mother had done for him. Normally, Sam wasn't a superstitious person, but considering what had been happening to him lately, and what was still to come, he couldn't help feeling just a tad bit uneasy.

Uncle...

His mother must have gotten home last night after he'd already fallen asleep because he had not heard her come into his room to place the tapes on the nightstand. As much as he loved his mother, he was grateful he hadn't had to face her again last night, though he had a sneaking suspicion that was due mostly to the fact that he had still been trying to get over his father's speech to him through his bedroom door before falling asleep.

He was a little curious to know what his father would think about the tapes, but at the same time he wasn't about to tell the man. Better that the raven-haired Digidestined didn't know. That way he would be less likely to start asking questions Sam did not want to answer.

Uncle, I was right all along. It was you. You were there on the beach with me. You were really there, encouraging me not to give up...

There was no denying it. The voice on the tapes was the exact same voice that had been in his dream. He had known his uncle's voice before he had ever heard it. The Sam in those tapes of old school competitions and birthdays looked and sounded exactly like the Sam from his dream. He doubted even Ryoko would be able to come up with a sensible answer for this unexpected twist of fate.

Not that he won't try, I'm sure, but that's Ryoko for you. That's why I like him so much. He keeps me sane when I keep trying to drive myself crazy.

"Sam, get down here right now! It's rude to keep a friend waiting."

"We'd better hurry, Sam," Glimmermon whispered frantically from his place on the rumpled bed sheets. "Your mom's a really nice lady, but she can be pretty scary when she's angry."

"Don't I know it," Sam grumbled, and to his mother, he shouted down the stairs, "I'm coming!"

Leaping to his feet, Sam quickly hid the tapes in one of his drawers beneath a clean pile of socks and underwear, just in case his father decided to go snooping in his room, (not something the former Emperor had ever done before, but there was always a first, which wouldn't surprise him due to the fact that he knew his father was worried about him) and racing out of the room with Glimmermon in his arms, he came to a stop on the landing of the stairs, his sapphire eyes surveying the scene below him.

Mickey was standing in the front hall talking quietly to the former Emperor, and next to them, Sam could see his mother helping Nao pull on his backpack. Off to one side, Ami and Miya were chattering happily with Noah, Taka, and Makku, and gazing at his father, Sam felt a sudden lump in his throat.

"Hey, Sam," Taka called up the stairs, giving him a rather reserved smile.

Sam managed to smile back at his cousin and he blushed as both Mickey and his father turned to stare up at him, the expressions on their faces giving no indication as to how they were feeling at the moment.

"Ami, Miya, and Noah were just filling us in on what happened yesterday," Makku explained, a grin on his face. "We want to keep up to date with what's going on, you know."

"Which is why we're coming with you to Dai's house this afternoon," Taka added.

Sam felt a sudden rush of affection for his two cousins and moving slowly down the stairs, he joined them in the front hall, taking extra care to avoid making eye contact with his father. He hadn't seen his father since last night, and after their one-sided conversation through the bedroom door, he had to admit he felt a bit nervous in the former Emperor's presence. "I didn't know you guys were here."

"Well, maybe if you hadn't been hiding in your room all morning you would have heard them raiding the refrigerator this morning," Miya snorted, before either Taka or Makku could answer. "Add Noah and Ami into the mix and it's amazing there's any food left in this house."

"You ate just as much as we did this morning!" Ami shot back, giving her best friend a dirty look.

"And you didn't finish your dinner from last night like you said you would," his mother scolded, shaking her finger at him.

Sam blushed and quickly ducked his head, trying unsuccessfully to avoid his mother's wrath. "Sorry, I'll...um..."

"Just make sure you eat a good lunch today to make up for it, okay? And regardless of how much you all ate, or didn't eat, you're going to be late if you don't hurry up," his mother interrupted, giving Nao a gentle push towards the door. "Make sure Miya drops you off at your school before she goes running off with her friends, sweetheart."

"Like I'm going to forget when he's standing right next to me!" Miya shouted indignantly, taking hold of Nao's elbow and steering him towards the front door. "Come on, Nao."

"We'll see you this afternoon, Sam," Noah called out, waving and following Miya out the door.

"We'll be cheering you on!" Taka added, following Ami.

"Give the bad guys a couple of hits from us, too!" Makku called cheerfully, winking and closing the door behind him.

All of a sudden, the house seemed unusually quiet, and turning to Mickey, Sam said hastily, "Um...where's Matty?"

"He went on ahead to Ryoko's house. Are you ready to go?"

Mickey was smiling and his tone was pleasant, but something about the way he'd said Matty's name made Sam look a little bit more closely at the older twin. Mickey seemed unusually tired and there was no doubt about it, the smile on his face was definitely forced.

Something is definitely going on. Probably something to do with Matty, no doubt.

"You're still planning to come to the Digital World this afternoon, right?" Mickey asked Ken, turning once again to face the former Emperor.

Sam glanced hastily at his father's face, but instead of looking back at him, the former Emperor merely stared at his feet and said quietly, "Don't worry, Yolei and I will both be there."

"You can count on it!" Yolei said fiercely, crossing her arms over her chest. "I'm not passing up a chance to see Hawkmon again."

"I'll be there, too," Wormmon said pleasantly, from his comfortable position in his partner's arms. "We need as many digimon as possible if we want to stop the Spirit Chip from falling into the wrong hands."

"Are we ready to go then" Palelymon called out from Mickey's backpack.

Sam quickly shoved Glimmermon into his own bag and turning his back on his parents, he mumbled, "I'll see you guys later."

"Be good," his mother lectured from behind his back. "And make sure you keep Dai out of trouble today! If he messes up our plans to go to the Digital World, Davis is going to hear about it from me later!"

"Have a good day at school," his father said in a hopeless sort of voice, as if resigned to the fact that he probably wouldn't receive an answer or even a simple goodbye in return.

For some reason this greatly disturbed Sam, and following Mickey out the door, he turned to look back over his shoulder and said quietly, "Bye, Dad. I'll...um...see you after school."

He just had time to register the look of surprise on his father's face before he hurried down the steps after Mickey, doing his best to ignore the older twin's failed attempt to keep himself from smiling in amusement.

This time, Sam noted, the smile was genuine.