Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon.
A/N: New chapter! So, I'm really excited about what's coming up in the story, though I won't tell you what it is, but just a hint, a future chapter of this story will directly relate to a future chapter of Digimon Chronicles: The Demon Years. That's all I'll say for now. Also, the next chapter coming up after this one is for all the Daikara fans. I think you'll all enjoy it. That's it for now!
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 215: A Plan With a Twist
DarkAngelicmon
Server, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
A twig snapped somewhere off to the left, and turning slightly DarkAngelicmon raised an eyebrow at the unmistakable sound of feet squelching through the mud, along with a snort of disgust.
And yet another opportunity to indulge myself in my favorite pastime, annoying Vampiramon.
Unable to help himself, DarkAngelicmon smiled in amusement. "Now really, Vampiramon, is it necessary to make so much noise? Be grateful we are not the Digidestined. Even they would have been able to hear you coming from miles away."
"Keep quiet, you fool," Vampiramon snapped, appearing suddenly out of the trees with her hands on her hips, Ivymon and the group of Vilemon they'd left at the edge of the swamp following behind her. She looked annoyed, which wasn't exactly out of character for her, as it tended to double as her normal, everyday expression, and lifting her skirts free from the watery mess beneath her feet, she frowned at the marks staining the silky black and red fabric of her vampire outfit. "I have a headache already as it is. I don't need you making it worse."
"Any news?" BlackWidowmon demanded, impatient as usual.
"As a matter of fact, there is," Vampiramon replied, looking quite pleased with herself. "As we had anticipated, the Digidestined did indeed visit Gennai's humble home. They are on their way here to this disgusting ooze infested swamp even as we speak. Leomon is acting as their guide."
"And?" Spritemon asked sweetly, encouraging the vampire digimon to continue.
"And what?"
At this point, DarkAngelicmon felt he'd better step in. "There's something troubling you. What is it you're not telling us?"
She didn't happen to run across my dear friend Lucemon, I hope. I know he is here on Server, spying on the Digidestined most likely, which means...he must have been close to Vampiramon. If she spotted him...
"I'm not sure," Vampiramon said slowly, a slight frown marring her lovely pale features. "When they left Gennai's residence, the Digidestined were talking excitedly to one another, as if they'd just discovered something important. Unfortunately I couldn't get close enough to hear what they were saying without being caught, but there was a definite buzz in the atmosphere."
"Interesting. The fool wonders...What could Gennai have said or done to get them all excited?" Jestermon murmured, resting his chin in one of his mottled green hands. "Perhaps it was Leomon who caused the stir?"
Lucemon...you were lucky this time to escape Vampiramon's keen sight, but you may not be so lucky next time. Foolish angel, are you trying to get yourself captured by my master? And after you tried so hard to flee from the darkness...
"There's no way to know for sure unless we force it out of them," Spritemon snorted, shrugging her shoulders and gazing hopefully at Vampiramon. "Can we? It would be so much fun to torture them. Way more fun than just stealing the Spirit Chips."
"Why are you asking me? Shouldn't you be asking our leader?" Vampiramon said bitterly, her crimson eyes flashing.
DarkAngelicmon smirked at the vampire digimon before turning his attention to Spritemon. "Perhaps, if we have some time."
Have the Digidestined finally found out about Lucemon? Is that perhaps why they're excited? Have Angelicmon and Gabrielmon finally revealed their secret?
"Well, whatever it is they've discovered, it could be important," BlackWidowmon interrupted, tossing her long dark hair. "We must find out what it is. It could have something to do with the Spirit Chips, or...it may be important some other way. Regardless of whatever it is they're hiding, it could be of use to us. Better to extract from them whatever new knowledge they have before they can find a way to use it against us."
"The fool agrees," Jestermon cackled, leaping into one of his happy little dances. "I also like that idea of torture Spritemon mentioned earlier. Sounds fun."
"So, now that the Digidestined are on the move, what's the plan?" Spritemon asked curiously.
"You are coming with me," Vampiramon replied, giving the sprite digimon no chance to argue. "DarkAngelicmon will have to remain here due to his celestial nature. We can't have him ruining our plans. Jestermon and BlackWidowmon can keep him company."
"What? And miss all the fun?" Jestermon complained, shaking his head in disgust.
"We'll call you there when we have a use for you. Ivymon and the Vilemon will also be coming with me. We'll be tracking the Digidestined, and once we reach the Spirit Chip, that's where you three will come in."
At this, DarkAngelicmon raised his eyebrows and said pleasantly, "Pardon me, Vampiramon, but if I recall, didn't the Ruler of Darkness put me in charge?"
"Why yes, of course," Vampiramon agreed, giving him a nasty smile. "And since it's obvious you don't like my plan, what then would you have us do, leader?"
"Who said anything about me not liking the plan? It sounds like an excellent plan. Carry on, please."
Vampiramon stared at him, her mouth hanging open and her right eye twitching. "You just said-"
"Indeed I did, and as the leader of this little operation, I only have one request."
"Which would be?"
"We'll go along with your little plan, but I'd like to add a bit of a twist to it."
"Go on."
DarkAngelicmon was silent for a moment, and lifting his face to the dreary sky above them, he said softly, "You must make sure Sam suffers."
"Excuse me?"
"Our plan to steal the Spirit Chip will not work if we cannot give Sam a reason to need his Spirit Chip. Everything depends on Ken Ichijouji. Without him, we're doomed to fail. Sam must suffer at the hands of the Emperor. Make it so. If you do not, I will not be pleased."
Vampiramon studied him curiously for a moment, and nodding slightly she smiled an unpleasant smile that was meant for the poor, unsuspecting Sam. "That can be arranged. In that regard, Ivymon and the Vilemon will come in useful. I'll see what I can do."
"That is all I require. Otherwise carry on with your plan as you see fit."
And if you honestly believe I'm going to sit here waiting while you set the playing field then you are sadly mistaken. There are more important matters for me to attend to other than playing the waiting game. There is much to be done when it comes to Sam and the Emperor, and I intend to be a part of it. And then there's Lucemon...Somehow I must warn him...
"Well, if we're ready to go then let's hurry up," Spritemon said impatiently, leaping into the air. "Can you lead us back to the Digidestined?"
"That won't be a problem," Vampiramon smirked, gesturing with her hand. "I took note of the direction they were heading in upon leaving Gennai's residence and followed them for a bit. By this time they should be approaching the edge of the swamp not far from us, which means you'd better get out of here, DarkAngelicmon."
"Of course."
"Easy prey," Ivymon laughed, the Vilemon all nodding vigorously to show their support.
"Let's go then."
DarkAngelicmon watched the group in charge of the Digidestined slip away through the trees, and bowing his head he smiled to himself. Once again his plans were being set smoothly into motion. Now all he needed was to figure out how to deal with Lucemon...
Lucemon
Server, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
Lurking in the tall grass, MarineAngemon by his side, Lucemon watched as the Digidestined, accompanied by Leomon, emerge from the lake chattering with excitement, and frowning, MarineAngemon whispered, "What do you think has them so excited?"
"I'm not sure, but perhaps we'll find out if we can get close enough to them without being spotted. It appears Angelicmon and Gabrielmon still have not mentioned my presence to the Digidestined. We're still as yet undiscovered, at least for the moment. How long that will last I cannot say. Best to make the most out of our obscurity while we still have a chance."
"Angelicmon, Gabrielmon, and even Angemon and Angewomon would never betray your secret."
"No. Not unless they have to, and I fear...that day may be coming soon."
"Then why not tell them now and be done with it?"
Lucemon smiled sadly.
Many reasons, MarineAngemon, or perhaps none at all, except the one I refuse to admit to myself. I'm just not ready. Not ready for what I don't deserve...
"It looks like they're heading towards the swamp," MarineAngemon said after a moment, resigning himself to changing the subject.
"That must be where the next Spirit Chip is. It does seem like a place where one would be hidden. The swamp here on Server isn't exactly easy to navigate, and the Spirit Chip would have a more likely chance of going undiscovered."
"That's for sure. And there goes Vampiramon. It looks like she's following them. What do we do now?"
"We follow them as well."
"And DarkAngelicmon?"
Lucemon frowned, his pale blue eyes falling closed as he searched for the presence of his old friend, something he had purposely been ignoring earlier so as not to distract himself.
"We know he's on Sever, but..."
"His presence seems to be coming from the general direction of the swamp, but I can't say where exactly for sure."
"So you think they already knew the Spirit Chip was there and they've been waiting for Vampiramon to confirm the location of the Digidestined?"
"I don't doubt that, MarineAngemon. The Ruler of Darkness and his spies are very sneaky. I know because I used to be one of those spies. They certainly know much more than we do and they're taking advantage of the knowledge they possess. We must be careful and we must make sure the Digidestined do not fall into any of their traps."
"Sure. I know we can do it if we try hard enough."
"Then let us depart. Be wary of Vampiramon. If she spots us then all will be lost and we will be in serious trouble."
"I'll be careful. Come on, Lucemon, let's go help our new friends."
Friends...If only...How can I call them my friends when they have never met me? Especially with all that I am hiding...
But MarineAngemon was like that. Everybody was a friend, as long as they proved themselves worthy of such an honourable title.
I wonder...will they ever truly be able to call me a friend?
Lucemon slowly followed the little mega hurrying along in front of him, and shaking his head at his own foolishness, he let out a soft sigh.
He didn't know if the Digidestined would ever consider him a friend, but there was one thing he did know. He would do whatever he could to help them, even if it cost him his life. He would make sure they saw DarkAngelicmon for who he really was, even if it killed him.
Ken Ichijouji
Server, Eastern Hemisphere, Digital World
Ken was at a complete loss of what to do. They had been walking for almost two hours now, and he had hoped, but not really believed, he would be able to use the time it took for them to find the Spirit Chip to at least establish some kind of communication with his son, but considering the way Sam was attempting to avoid him even more enthusiastically then when had they first entered the Digital World, it didn't look as if he was going to have much luck in that regard. Sam was deliberately walking at the front of the group while he, Ken, was lagging near the back, but he knew if he attempted to make his way towards the front, Sam would immediately head to the back of the party.
Is this how it's always going to be? Will I be forced to watch over my son from afar instead of being able to stand by his side when he needs me the most?
"Hang in there, Ken," Wormmon pleaded, looking up at him with worried eyes.
"You have to believe me, Ken. It won't be like this forever. It won't be," Yolei insisted, though it sounded almost as if she were trying to convince herself as well as him.
Yolei, Wormmon...I can't hide anything from them. They know me so well. I want to believe them, but it doesn't seem to matter what I say. Every word out of my mouth always ends up being the wrong thing to say. I just want to be able to talk with Sam, laugh with him, watch television with him, help him do his homework. All the things we used to do before everything got so complicated.
"Hey, Leomon, how did you guys find out that the Spirit Chip was in the swamp anyway?" Dai asked curiously, turning to the champion walking next to him.
"Do tell!" Embermon butted in, his crimson tail twitching in excitement.
"Well, we've spent a lot of time gathering information from all the digimon here in the Digital World. Rumours and stories, that sort of thing. You can thank them for most of what we've managed to find out."
"Nice to know there are so many digimon here on our side," Matty said happily, quickly occupying the space on Leomon's other side to listen in.
"That, you do. With regards to this particular Spirit Chip, we had help from the digimon who live in the city of Code, which lies several kilometres west of the swamp. Most of the information we received from them actually came from the digimon who live in the small village of Modem, which lies deep within the swamp. The digimon from Modem often visit Code on their travels, bringing news and rumours from the swamp."
"And I take it you heard a particularly interesting rumour in Code that must have come out of Modem?" Ryoko concluded, a slight smile on his face.
"Indeed. Apparently quite a few digimon from Modem had come across a rather strange purple light emitting from a small clearing about a half day's walk from the village, but none of the villagers have ever been brave enough to investigate the source of the light."
Ken suddenly froze, his heart almost coming to a dead stop, and edging closer to the front of the group, he swallowed a lump in his throat that was making it difficult for him to speak. "Wait a minute...a...did you say a purple light?"
Almost immediately, everyone turned to look at Sam, and blushing a deep shade of red, the raven-haired Digidestined proceeded to gaze uncertainly at his feet.
Out of all the new Digidestined, only Sam had a purple D-Coder to match the colour of the Spirit Chip.
"Yes, purple," Leomon confirmed, also glancing quickly at Sam before continuing on with his story. "The rumour sounded exactly like the kind of thing we were looking for, so we made the trip to hear the tale from the digimon there ourselves. They confirmed what the villagers of Code had already told us earlier, so we went to investigate."
"And that purple light turned out to be the Spirit Chip of Compassion," Alopemon finished.
"Exactly. It will take us a while to get to where it is, though."
"That's fine. I was anticipating we might have to stay the night anyways," Izzy said quickly, beaming at the champion. "We came prepared."
"That's good to hear," Leomon replied, nodding to show his approval. "It will probably take us two days to get there. The only reason we were able to find it so quickly the first time was because we got a ride from Azulongmon, who had come along to help out, though he remained discreet and spent most of his time in the clouds so as not to attract attention."
"So...if the Spirit Chip is purple then that means it has to belong to Sam, not me," Ryoko said slowly, looking both relieved and happy.
He's happy for Sam because he believed right from the beginning that it wasn't his. He wants it to be Sam's because it suits Sam so perfectly. But...why relieved? Unless one of the other Spirit Chips has caught his interest and he thinks it might suit him better...
"Don't get too excited," Sam grumbled, his tone bitter. "Just cause it looks like mine doesn't mean it'll want me."
"Sam, don't say things like that," Glowmon gasped, his transparent wings drooping slightly. "I believe in you..."
Sam didn't reply and Ken had to close his eyes at the look on his son's face. He still didn't know what to do. He was still lost and it scared him.
It scared him a lot.
What if I can't find a way to reach Sam before it ends up being too late to save him? What will I do then?