Disclaimer: I don't own Digimon, nor do I own Kibomon, Aiwemon, Velinemon, or Gessmon, who were created by RoyalKnightX, Shire Folk, Silver Kitsune Lunara, and Miss Anonymous hp.
A/N: I'm really sorry about the long wait. I've been pretty busy for the last couple of weeks, and on top of that this was a hard chapter to write for me for reasons I still don't understand. But I did manage to persevere, and finally here it is! Enjoy! After this I will be writing a chapter for Trinity while I work out what is to come next in FTFOD.
Following the Footsteps of Destiny
Chapter 256: From Friend to Foe
Ryoko Ishida
Hikarigaoka, Japan, Earth
As soon as Kenji spoke the name, Ryoko immediately turned his blue gaze on the twins, particularly Matty. Both of them appeared interested in what Kenji had to say, but Ryoko could tell from the looks on their faces that they had not yet realized the implications of Kenji's words. From what he could tell, the Takaishi brothers hadn't yet picked up on what Kenji was trying to say, and there was a sinking feeling in his heart as he continued to watch Matty.
He doesn't get it yet, but when he does...
"Another Angelicmon?" Matty asked, looking confused.
"Just like there was another Gabrielmon," Mickey interrupted. "Seems like a rather strange coincidence."
"That's because it's not a coincidence," Sam said quietly, earning himself a startled look from the older twin.
Ryoko could tell that Sam was beginning to understand as well, and gazing uneasily at the raven-haired Digidestined he felt his heart sink even lower.
This could be bad...
"What was that Angelicmon doing in the city?" Takara asked curiously, resting her cheek in the palm of her hand.
Kenji was silent for a moment, and turning his gaze towards the sunset in the distance, he said, "That fallen city used to be Angelicmon's home. It was attacked by GranDracmon's army during his search for the Seven Demon Lords. Angelicmon didn't know that at the time, though. We only found that out from Gennai much later. GranDracmon's army had been searching for something in the city, but they apparently came up empty-handed. We assume GranDracmon thought he would find one of the Demon Lords there."
"Why would a Demon Lord live there?" Matty asked, sounding outraged. "From the way you guys described it, it doesn't sound like the kind of city where evil digimon would be hiding out."
"That's a good question, Matty," Tal replied, glancing briefly at Kenji. "And it's a question we've never been able to answer. Why, of all places, would GranDracmon think a Demon Lord would be living there? It doesn't make any kind of sense."
"You see, we found out later from Gennai that Angelicmon's city used to be a home for celestial digimon," Inca said quietly, her expression growing serious. "It also used to be a sanctuary for innocent digimon who were searching for a haven where they could live in peace. The celestial digimon who lived there would watch over the other digimon and protect them. But that all changed when the city was attacked by GranDracmon's army."
"That's horrible," Sam said softly, bowing his head in deep sorrow. "And this Angelicmon was one of the survivors?"
"You bet he was," Ryoko muttered to himself, ignoring Sam's warning look.
Sam knows I've realized it too, but what about everyone else? Have they really not managed to figure it out yet?
Seta nodded in response to Sam's question, and smiling, he said, "Yes, and he was on a mission. He had come back to the city to survey the damage and to see what could be done about fixing the place up. He was determined to return the city to its former state. According to him, he was in the process of gathering surviving residents of the city to help restore it."
"Then that makes even less sense!" Matty shouted, his face beginning to turn pink with anger. "If that city had been run by celestial digimon there's no way a Demon Lord would have lived there!"
"And really, what else would GranDracmon have been looking for?" Dai added, frowning in concentration. "I'm with Matty on this one. None of this makes any sense to me."
"Demon Lord or not, did GranDracmon ever find what he was looking for in the city?" Mickey asked, putting a hand on Matty's shoulder to calm the younger twin.
"As far as we know he never did," Tal replied, looking thoughtful. "If we think back on our time in the Digital World, though, the only logical solution for GranDracmon's attack on the city would have been because he was looking for a Demon Lord."
"But why attack the city to find him?" Kari wondered. "Was that really necessary?"
"Like we've said before, GranDracmon was ruthless," Seta explained. "By attacking the city he was showing everyone, including the Demon Lord he was looking for, his strength and power. Who would want to challenge a digimon who could destroy a whole city of celestial digimon in one day? He was sending a message to everyone, including the Demon Lord he sought. Join me or face my wrath and be swallowed by the darkness. That sort of message would catch the attention of a Demon Lord almost immediately. The Demon Lords seem to thrive on darkness, and so naturally they would have been attracted to GranDracmon's power. That alone should have been enough to lure the Demon Lord out of hiding, or so one would think."
"But that didn't happen," Rumi said quietly, turning her face away. "All those poor digimon. Deleted for nothing..."
"There's no way LadyDevimon was from that city," Matty snapped, stubbornly crossing his arms over his chest. "I don't care what anyone says. There's no way GranDracmon was looking for her in that city."
Kenji nodded in agreement, and frowning slightly, he said, "We all know by now that celestial digimon share a special connection. Angelicmon would have known if LadyDevimon had been a fellow resident of the city, but it was clear at that point that he had never met her before. It also doesn't sit right with me that Daemon, Leviamon, or Belphemon would have come from that city. I suspect in this case that the digimon GranDracmon was searching for was one of the three Demon Lords that he was never able to find."
Ryoko frowned, and directing his words at Kenji, he said, "Who do you think those other three Demon Lords would have been?"
"We have no idea," Kenji replied, shaking his head in regret. "We never found out who the other three were."
"And GranDracmon wasn't kind enough to tell us," Mai snorted.
"So in the end we can assume that despite his show of power GranDracmon either misjudged the location of the Demon Lord, or if there was a Demon Lord there he or she wasn't interested in joining him," Inca sad slowly. "And like Rumi said, thanks to GranDracmon's error in judgement, all those digimon lost their lives for nothing."
"That's terrible!" Ema shouted in outrage.
"So you're telling us Angelicmon came back to the city all by himself despite the risk of possible danger?" T.K. asked, glancing uneasily at Matty.
He knows or at least suspects the truth.
Ryoko glanced at Matty as well, and shaking his head he chose to remain silent. Tal and Kenji would make sure that Matty understood, and truthfully Ryoko was relieved. After his experience with Sam earlier, it was nice to share the burden of carrying a secret that could change Matty's perspective on everything that was going on.
I never got the chance to tell Sam about the Emperor before DarkAngelicmon got to him first. At least this time Matty will hear the news from a friendly face...
"He was alone at the time," Kenji said slowly, keeping his gaze focused on Matty.
"Alone in body, but not in spirit," Tal continued. "He told us he was traveling the Digital World with two very close friends of his. He said they were doing what they could to counter the darkness threatening the Digital World, and they were working towards rebuilding their home."
"He sounds like an amazing digimon," Mickey replied, smiling softly.
Kenji turned his gaze on Mickey, and speaking quietly, he said, "Yes, he is an amazing digimon. You would know that for yourself."
For a moment there was a sense of confusion hovering around the courtyard, and then Mickey's eyes widened in sudden understanding.
"What do you mean?" Matty demanded, having yet to pick up on what his brother had just figured out.
"The Angelicmon we met was funny, witty, and pretty sassy for his celestial nature," Kenji replied, smiling faintly at the memory. "He was a playful digimon, but at the same time there was a great sense of wisdom about him and a sense of mystery. How many Angelicmons do you know who fit that discription?"
"Only one," Mickey whispered, his entire face crumbling with acceptance.
It was then that understanding finally reached Matty, and leaping to his feet, the younger twin cried, "No! No way! It can't be the same one!"
"Why can't it be?" Kenji asked calmly, his sharp, green gaze never wavering. "From your description of DarkAngelicmon I don't see how they couldn't be the same digimon. And not only that, but the Angelicmon we knew told us he'd been traveling with two close friends. You can't tell me that's a coincidence. I don't think there's any doubt that the two digimon he was referring to were Lucemon and Luciamon."
"But...it just can't be!" Matty cried, his amber gaze flashing.
"Open your eyes, Matty," Mickey said quietly, his words catching the younger twin off guard. "It all adds up. It just makes too much sense for any of this to be a coincidence."
"But-"
"It's the same digimon," Halomon spoke up, his tone leaving no room for argument.
Matty snapped his mouth shut, and glaring at Kenji's partner, he said stiffly. "How would you know?"
"I can feel him," Halomon said simply, his deep blue eyes watching Matty closely. "I could feel Angelicmon's presence in the fallen city before he even revealed himself. His presence was strong, and so was the light that seemed to radiate from his body. When he finally made an appearance I could feel his presence even more strongly. Even after all this time I still haven't forgotten what his presence felt like."
"That doesn't mean anything," Matty snapped.
Halomon stared at the younger twin, and lowering his voice, he said, "When I first met DarkAngelicmon in the World of Darkness I could tell right away it was the same digimon. There's no denying his presence has been tainted by darkness, but underneath that darkness I can tell it's the same feeling. There's no doubt about it."
"So the Angelicmon you met so long ago really is the DarkAngelicmon we know now," Mickey said sadly, shaking his head.
"No doubt about it," Halomon repeated, gazing sympathetically at the twins. "And even though he denied having ever met me before, I could tell from the look in his eyes that he knew I was speaking the truth when I said he felt familiar to me. I could tell he was questioning his own memory."
"Do you think his confusion has something to do with the darkness surrounding his heart?" Sam asked curiously.
Halomon frowned, and wiggling his fluffy ears, he said, "I'm sure of it. That's the only explanation that makes sense."
"Why?" Matty shouted, the words exploding out of his mouth. "He had such a bright future ahead of him! He could have done so much to help the Digital World! Why would he let the darkness take him? What happened?"
"I wish we could give you an answer, but unfortunately we don't know what went wrong any more than you guys do," Inca said sadly.
"But his heart is so strong!" Matty cried, leaping to his feet and clenching his hands into tight fists. "Even with the darkness you can tell his heart his strong. I just...I don't.."
Matty broke off, and turning his face away he suddenly moved off to sit by himself with his head in his hands. The younger twin was still close enough to hear the conversation, but he had moved far enough away to have a moment by himself. Dai made a move to stand, but Mickey quickly put a hand on the goggle-headed leader's shoulder and firmly shook his head.
"But Mickey-"
"Leave him be," Mickey interrupted, glancing once at Matty before turning his attention back to Dai. "We all need a moment to ourselves once in a while, Matty included."
Dai looked like he wanted to protest, but instead he let out a deep sigh and settled back into his seat. The goggle-headed leader was clearly concerned about Matty's behaviour, but out of respect for Mickey he chose to remain silent. Ryoko had his concerns as well, but they weren't quite what anyone would expect.
Matty isn't acting like this because he feels the same way that Sam used to feel about the Digimon Emperor. It's more than that. He's angry, no doubt about that, but not really at DarkAngelicmon. He's angry at whoever hurt DarkAngelicmon and forced him to become what he is today...
And Ryoko could tell that Matty wanted to do something to help DarkAngelicmon, but at the same time it was obvious that the younger twin was uncertain if there was anything he could do.
"We wondered several times if DarkAngelicmon might have been a good digimon, and all along our suspicions were correct," Mickey said sadly. "Luciamon tried to tell us, and if she had survived we would have known a long time ago."
"But if there is a way to become a victim of the darkness then there's also a way to come back from it," T.K. said firmly, his expression growing determined. "His situation isn't completely hopeless. It's still possible for us to save him and free his heart from the darkness."
"But in order to do that we first need to know exactly what happened to him," Izzy said slowly, his fingers pausing over the keys on his laptop. "If I had to make an educated guess I would say DarkAngelicmon's transformation must have taken place sometime within the last twenty-five years. His fall into darkness might also have something to do with the strange behaviour of the gates between the human world and the Digital World during that time period."
"Then it comes down to what we've been saying all along," Dai interrupted, gesturing with his hands for emphasis. "We need to get into contact with Lucemon. He's the only one left out there who might know what happened to DarkAngelicmon back then. That's pretty much what Luciamon was trying to tell us back then. Lucemon should be able to answer all of our questions."
"And once he does we might finally be able to put all the pieces of this mystery together," Sam finished.
"There's still the question about Daemon, as well," Seta spoke up. "What happened to him after Ken sent him to the World of Darkness? Did he survive? Did he escape? And if he did manage to break free, could he possibly be involved in what's happening now?"
"Could Daemon be the reason why DarkAngelicmon mentioned the prophecy?" Joe asked, looking to Izzy for an answer. "Was it supposed to be some kind of a hint?"
Izzy frowned, and shaking his head, he said, "It was a hint all right, I'm just not sure what he was hinting at."
"You don't think Daemon is the new Ruler of Darkness, do you?" Ema demanded, her dark eyes growing wide. "That would explain why DarkAngelicmon would hint at the prophecy."
"It's a possibility," Izzy replied, once again focusing on his laptop. "But it's not the only theory that might explain what's going on."
"You don't think this new Ruler of Darkness is trying to gather the Demon Lords like GranDracmon was trying to do, do you?" Takara suggested, exchanging a look with Dai.
"That's also a possibility," Izzy said pleasantly, nodding to himself. "At this point we can't rule anything out. I think it's safe to assume now that whatever the Ruler of Darkness is up to, it has something to do with past history. And not only that, I also believe it's somehow related to what GranDracmon did thirty-three years ago. I think it's also safe to assume that this new Ruler of Darkness has something to do with the behaviour of the gates over the last twenty-five years, and I believe he also has something to do with what happened to DarkAngelicmon."
"There's too much to think about," Nao whimpered, huddling between his parents.
"Come on, Izzy! You can do better than that!" Tai teased, crossing his arms over his chest. "You must have some idea of what's really going on."
"Well, there's also the question of LadyDevimon and how she fits into all of this," Izzy replied. "I can't really come up with a good theory until we know for sure what happened in the Digital World during the twenty-five years when it seemed as if this world was at peace. There's still too much information missing to say for sure what the Ruler of Darkness is planning."
"Which brings us back to Lucemon," Matt interrupted. "He's the key we need to make sense of all this."
"Which means we know exactly what our priorities are right now," Izzy agreed. "Locate Lucemon and find the rest of the Spirit Chips."
"Whatever happened back then Lucemon hasn't forgotten," Sam said quietly, obviously thinking back on the celestial rookie. "I could see it in his eyes. He knows what happened, and it's hurting him badly. And...I could tell he so very badly wants our help..."
The courtyard fell silent again, and hopping to her feet, Mai said cheerfully, "Why don't we all have something to eat? The food is probably cold by now, but it might help lift our spirits."
There was a chorus of agreement, and everyone gathered around the picnic tables to load up their plates.
Everyone except Matty, that is.
Ryoko calmly filled is own plate, and watching Matty he kept his face expressionless. Mickey was kind enough to fill two plates, and bringing one over to his brother he handed it over without saying a word. Matty took the offered plate without protest, and avoiding his brother's eyes he picked at his food in silence. Mickey was obviously concerned, but instead of trying to coax Matty into talking he simply gave the younger twin's shoulder a quick squeeze before moving off again.
Once everyone had eaten they gathered back around the benches again, and Izzy turned to Tal with a smile on his face. "Was there anything else we need to know before we leave today?"
"I think we've covered everything," Tal laughed, returning the smile.
"I suppose we should probably get going then. It's getting late. But before we leave we want to thank you all for taking the time to tell us your story."
"We were happy to help," Seta replied, giving a smile of his own.
"And if you require any further assistance, don't hesitate to ask," Inca added.
"Don't worry. If things get tough we'll definitely be calling you guys for reinforcements," Dai laughed. "In the meantime, though, you guys deserve to spend some time with your partners. Keep them with you."
"You're serious? We can stay?" Kibomon asked eagerly.
"You might as well," Izzy replied, waving off Kibomon's words. "It's not often we have an opportunity to spend a lot of time with our partners. You might as well make the most of the time you have."
A cheer went up from Kibomon and his friends, and beaming at the original Digidestined, Takara said, "You've definitely given us a lot to think about. We'll be sure to keep it all in mind as we try to figure out what's going on."
"It was great meeting you all. I hope we can do this again sometime!" Mai said enthusiastically "Don't forget to keep in touch!"
"Yes, we should definitely get together again sometime," Sora agreed.
Kenji was watching Matty, who had finally joined them again, and speaking quietly, the raven-haired Digidestined said, "We don't know exactly what's going on or who this new Ruler of Darkness is, but we do know that DarkAngelicmon was our friend, and he still is no matter what he has become. Please, do what you can to save him."
"We know you can do it," Tal said simply, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
Mickey nodded, and bowing his head, he said, "We'll do it. I know we will. I'm never going to give up until he's free from the darkness."
Matty was sitting next to his brother, and although he didn't say anything there was a fire in his eyes that Ryoko had never seen before. It gave him hope, but at the same time it left him with a sense of dread, and glancing at Kenji he could see the raven-haired Digidestined had noticed Matty's expression as well.
Matty...you're taking on a burden that you can't handle alone. You need us, and we need you...
Everybody took some time to say goodbye, and as the others were getting ready to leave the courtyard Ryoko took one last look at his surroundings. The sun had almost set completely by now, and the air around him held a sense of mystery. Ryoko could almost picture that evening thirty-three years ago when Tal and his group of Digidestined were sucked into the Digital World. It was the beginning of an amazing friendship that had blossomed between Tal and Kenji, and it left a bittersweet feeling in his heart. Thinking back on that moment, Ryoko found his gaze drifting until it settled on Daichi, who was joking around with Seta and saying goodbye to Mai.
Will we ever have that kind of friendship? Will Dai and I ever be as close as Tal and Kenji? Will I ever be that important to him or will we always be struggling to find common ground? Will we be able to put our differences aside, or will we end up growing apart? Will we ever really be friends?
A hand on his shoulder made him jump, and letting out a gasp Ryoko turned to find Tal and Kenji watching him. It was Tal who had touched his shoulder, and nodding his head towards Dai, the golden-haired Digidestined said, "You can't give up. No matter how impossible it seems, you can't give up hope. If I can do it, so can you."
Ryoko felt his face crumple with despair, and shaking his head, he said, "I don't know if I'm strong enough."
Kenji put a hand on his shoulder, and gazing down at him, the raven-haired Digidestined said, "You are, and deep down inside you know it. I didn't think I was strong enough either, but in the end I didn't give up even when it would have been easy to do so. You know what it was like for me when I was a child. It wasn't easy, but in the end I let my friends guide me in the right direction. If you want Dai's friendship you need to do the same. You need to go after it. You can't just sit by and let it slip away."
Ryoko nodded, and avoiding Kenji's eyes, he said, "I'm really happy for you."
"Now let me be happy for you," Kenji said gently, giving him a warm smile.
"You might not believe me, but Dai feels the same way as you do, and despite his courage he's every bit as scared as you are to make the first move, " Tal said quietly. "Trust me, I know. I've been there. He'll find his way eventually, but he'll need some help from you, just like I needed some help from Kenji."
Ryoko could feel his emotions starting to overwhelm him, and though he wanted to speak he didn't trust his own voice.
Tal and Kenji seemed to understand, though, because they smiled at him, and Ryoko found himself smiling back.
"Go on," Kenji said softly, gesturing to the crowd still exchanging goodbyes. "They'll want their chance to see you off."
Ryoko nodded, and taking off he went to say goodbye to the rest of the original Digidestined and their children. It almost didn't surprise him that Shinji and Toma seemed to take special interest in him. He could see Tal and Kenji standing off to one side still watching him, and every so often they would bend their heads together to speak softly to one another.
Once they were all done their goodbyes, Ryoko took a final look around the courtyard before following the others back to the parking lot.
As he was about to leave he heard Kenji call out to him, and turning his head he nodded to show he had heard.
"Good luck," Kenji said simply, looking him right in the eyes.
Thank you, Kenji. And you too, Tal. I'll do my best.
Seeing the original Digidestined standing there with their children, Ryoko felt a sense of something special stirring in his heart, and with the sun disappearing over the horizon behind him, he left the legacy of Highton View Terrace behind.