Chapter 8: Child of darkness

The gate closed behind Ken, Wormmon and Wizarmon as soon as they arrived at the saloon. There were stairs behind them and a few corridors around the place. A corridor close led to a big wooden door, which was opened by the outside, allowing a Digimon who looked like a gangster to enter the place.

"An Astamon." Wizarmon murmured, indicating with his head the Demon Man Digimon wearing a gray coat with red details over a blue tuxedo and carrying a machine gun.

"I've heard that he is quite a nasty Digimon." Wormmon commented.

"That is very brave coming from someone of your size," Astamon laughed. "I'm the third in command of this fortress. Why did Witchmon-san bring you here?"

"That actually has more to do with Mako… where is he?!" Ken realized that the other boy wasn't behind them.

"He's with Mistress," Witchmon said from above. She was floating close to the ceiling in her broom. "While they talk, you can walk around the castle and even visit the refugees. They'll treat you with kindness. Just make sure you don't go to the dungeons below."

"What's in the dungeons?" Wizarmon asked.

"Daemon is imprisoned there." Astamon replied. "Not long ago he managed to escape and go to the human world. We can't let that happen again."

Ken felt cold sweat cover him. That Daemon should be the same one who tried to kidnap him and take the dark seed from his body. However, the boy never found out why he wanted to do those things. Wasn't that a good opportunity to find out, though? It should be safe to interrogate Daemon in the dungeons.

"Don't you think about it!" Witchmon scolded the boy. "It's dangerous to get close to Daemon."

"Eh?" Ken gasped. "Y-you read my mind?"

"Ken-chan, were you thinking about doing that?" Wormmon asked, surprised.

"Well… it's a unique chance, right? Since we're here anyway…"

"What for? That monster is locked away for good!" The female digimon stated.

"He did escape once, though, right?" Wizarmon commented. "In case that happens again, it wouldn't be bad to get info on him. I can accompany the boy and guarantee his safety."

"I'm Ken-chan's partner, I'm the one who's supposed to say things like that." Wormmon complained, which made Ken laugh.

"Witchmon, as long as you go with them, there should be no problem." Astamon gave his opinion.

"Alright, alright. Let's go, then!" Witchmon agreed reluctantly.

In Lilithmon's room, the digimon and the boy were seated across each other, with a table between them. She had poured tea in two cups, but Makoto didn't touch it. He kept the gun on hand, pointing it at her.

"I was part of the Society once, along with Lucemon and Holyangemon. Back then, I couldn't imagine that both of them would become evil forces. Lucemon was the first to leave. When I started to disagree with the way Holyangemon was treating the viruses, he cursed me… and I became like this. Not that I'm complaining. Thanks to that I've gained perspective."

"I know all that, no need to tell me." Makoto stated.

"Oh. I suppose that kid told you these things already. I wonder if you know who he really is."

"This conversation is pointless."

"And yet you haven't pulled the trigger."

Makoto remained in silence. The plan was for him to kill Lilithmon by surprise. Now, he wasn't sure how to proceed. If he activated the weapon, she would have time to attack him. If he died, the order would be cancelled. He needed to create a reason for her to keep him alive.

"Do you know why the Merchant wants you dead?" The boy asked.

"I suppose he wants to free Daemon. Probably to cause even more havoc in this world."

"Why?"

"Don't you know? That kid hates the Digital World. It's only obvious that he'd do everything in his power to cause its doom."

"He's not some revengeful guy. He has a plan to fix things." Makoto whispered. Surprised, Lilithmon leaned towards him.

"Do you know what he's planning?" She asked.

"That little prophecy of me tearing worlds apart doesn't give you a clue?" Makoto taunted. He noticed how the other went pale and knew he was doing everything right.

"Nobody can destroy Homeostasis." Lilithmon stated.

"Not in its entirety, but if it never came to be completed… if a certain fundamental component were to never be added to it…"

"He knows about the Enlightened." The digimon stood up, glaring at the young man with intense eyes. "So what? So do I, Daemon and Dagomon."

"It's more than knowing about the existence of the Enlightened." Makoto stood up too. "He has found the Enlightened. And I know who it is."

Lilithmon walked around the table, towards Makoto, who yelled "Lock on."

"I can easily force you to cancel the order." Lilithmon threatened.

"The gentle lady who protects refugees is going to kill a child?" The boy was skeptical.

"I don't need to kill you." She murmured.

"There's no torture you can perform in less than one minute that will change my mind." Makoto made an affirmation. "You'll only survive by killing me. But if you kill me, you won't ever know who the Enlightened is."

Lilithmon wasn't sure about what she should do. She had to kill the boy to survive; she couldn't possibly put his life before the hundreds of lives depending on her. If she died, the fortress would fall, Dagomon would invade and Daemon would break free. That could throw the entire World into disaster. However, the boy was saying he knew the identity of the Enlightened, which was the most powerful and dangerous information in existence. If she could make him reveal that name, she could bring eternal peace and happiness to the Digital World. To take the human's life and waste that chance would be the same as giving up hope forever. She had to make him change his mind.

"What has the Merchant offered you, boy? Don't you know what he'll do to the Enlightened? The child must be protected from him!" Lilithmon stated.

"There's no need for the Merchant to harm him. We just have to stop the ritual."

Him? A boy? Lilithmon was surprised by the revelation. Then, that Hikari girl…

"Listen, kid, I don't think you are a bad person," Lilithmon adopted a warmer tone, "you also must know that I just want to keep this world safe. Please, think about all the Digimon who are alive. Think about all the innocent souls the Merchant is about to destroy. You saw them through the window. Imagine what will happen when those two demons return to the surface dimension. The situation is already bad enough with just the Society acting. What does your heart say? Are you just going to let me die and unfold a massacre?"

Makoto took a deep breath. The woman could see his hand tremble. She knew he didn't really want to do that and predicted that her strategy would be successful.

"You're a kind person. Whatever it is that put you on this path, it's not too late. I can help you. Cancel the order and tell me everything about the Enlightened. I promise you everything will be okay."

Makoto smiled as a few tears formed in his eyes. He put the gun down. The number in Lilithmon's chest was already 10.

"Yes." The boy said.

"Good. Now, cancel the or-"

"Do not misunderstand." The boy interrupted. The count was in seven. "I'm answering the question you made earlier. If I was going to let you die and unfold a massacre."

Lilithmon felt her heart being filled with despair. "Stop the order!"

"Yes, I am."

Witchmon had taken Ken, Wizarmon and Wormmon to the dungeons, through one of the descending halls in the saloon. A cage of red light bars was surrounding Daemon at the end of it. The monster was sat on the ground and immediately noticed their presence. His eyes, the only part of his face visible under the hood, seemed to spark with excitement.

"Ken, what a pleasure!" The Demon Lord exclaimed.

"So you remember me." Ken commented.

"How could I forget? I chased you personally, don't you remember?"

"Because of the dark seed." Ken added. "Why did you want it so badly?"

Daemon laughed.

"What's funny? Answer Ken-chan's question!" Wormmon demanded.

"Look at you, Ken. Coming here to interrogate me without your human friends. Are you no longer scared of me? Nor of the darkness?" Daemon had a malicious tone.

"A-answer the question!" Ken tried to sound resolute. The truth was that he was still scared at being in that place.

"You're such a funny kid. Now I want you even more." Daemon leaned towards the bars, and Ken, unconsciously, took a step behind. Seeing that, Wizarmon took the front and confronted Daemon.

"It's you, right?" The mage asked. "The psychopath who once led the Society. For someone who wanted to wipe the Digital World from the viruses, I have to say you found the right end."

The aura emanating from Daemon became more vicious.

"You have some nerve, Lucemon's dog."

"More than you." Wizarmon mocked. "You used to rule the Digital World and now all you can do is hope for someone to break you from jail and steal some dark seeds. How sad is your life now?"

"You really think dark seeds were what I was after?" Daemon roared. "I couldn't let those stupid followers of mine, or that stupid possessed human or anyone else know the real reason I was after Ken. The dark seed was a convenient excuse. It was a believable reason to chase this boy. Nobody ever suspected the truth."

"What truth?" Ken felt cold sweat on his face. "Why were you after me?"

"You were a perfect fit." Daemon stood up. He looked at Ken as if he wanted to devour the boy alive. "Eyes full of darkness, a bloody crown… it had to be you."

Suddenly, a strong earthquake was felt, knocking everyone down. To Witchmon's horror, the cage imprisoning Daemon vanished.

"What is this? What is happening?" The female digimon was lost in confusion and fear.

"WITCHMON!" Astamon came running from the hall. "The barrier has collapsed! Dagomon is invading us!"

Then, he looked at the free Daemon and shivered. "What is… going on?"

"GO PROTECT THE REFUGEES, DAMN IT!" Witchmon shouted, jumping and landing between Daemon and Ken. "Chosen child, slaughter machine, please help Astamon. I'll deal with Daemon!"

"We can't leave you!" Ken protested. Wizarmon grabbed him and Wormmon and ran, following Astamon.

"A Demon Lord is too much for us now. But maybe there's a chance to beat Dagomon." The mage digimon said. As the group arrived at the saloon, Makoto was waiting for them, in the middle of the stairs. He pointed the gun at Astamon and said "lock on."

"YOU DAMN BRAT, WHAT DID YOU DO?" Astamon questioned, preparing to attack him.

"It should be obvious. I killed Lilithmon." Makoto replied in a cold tone, astonishing everyone.

"You… what?" Wizarmon was speechless. He saw, with the corner of his eye, Astamon advancing against the older boy. Without thinking, he jumped between the two and stopped the digimon.

"What are you doing?" Astamon growled.

"I must protect him." Wizarmon said automatically. He didn't know why he said that. It was true that the Merchant had ordered him to help the human, but he felt something in his heart demanding that action. Screams were heard from the outside. The door of the castle was opened and two Ogremons entered, severely hurt.

"Lilithmon-sama… help…" were their last words. They immediately collapsed and died after that. Through the open door, Ken and Wormmon could see hundreds of digimon being massacred mercilessly by shady figures, while a tentacle monster advanced towards them.

"Wormmon, you have to evolve! We might still be able to save someone!" Ken pleaded.

"There's no helping them, Ken-kun." Makoto said, in a strangely emotionless tone. After the number in Astamon's chest became zero and he died, the boy went down the stairs, passing by the younger kid. "All you can do now is save yourself and your partner. You can open the gate and escape. I'll have your back."

Ken still couldn't believe what was unfolding before him. "Did you really kill Lilithmon?" The younger boy asked.

"He just murdered Astamon in front of us, there's no way to deny it, Ken-chan." Wormmon had a disgusted tone.

"What was the point of all this?" Wizarmon inquired, angrily.

Daemon emerged from the hall that came from to the dungeons at the same time that Dagomon crossed the door. Instinctively, Wizarmon assumed a fighting pose.

"That is… Beelzeemon?" Dagomon questioned in a taunting way. "What a pitiful form you have now. But that bloodlust couldn't belong to anyone else."

"As if you could talk about others, Leviamon." Wizarmon retorted.

"You, Lucemon's minions, are all pathetic. I could take you all down with one hand." Daemon threatened. He then gazed at Ken. "My precious child, shall we continue from where we had stopped?"

Ken trembled in fear and Wormmon jumped from his arms and was ready to defend his partner. However, Makoto walked forth and pointed the gun at the Demon Lord.

"Nobody will lay a hand on Ken-kun." The older boy stated in an icy tone.

"What…?" Ken asked in confusion. Without turning around, Makoto explained:

"I am sorry you had to see what I've done here." His voice was now full of sorrow. "I swear I don't want to harm you in any way. Please, Ken-kun, take your chance to leave. I'll hold this guy back. Wizarmon, go with him."

Wizarmon didn't take any action. He wanted to understand what was happening. Who was that boy? What were his intentions?

"Say, Makoto. Did you really want to kill Lilithmon and Astamon?" The mage inquired. He could only see the back of the boy, but noticed that the young man's body seemed to have a little convulsion.

"You had said I stroke you as a good person." Makoto's voice sounded as if it was at the point of breaking. "But it's no good to be that way. I can't accomplish anything… I can't save anyone if I allow myself to remain weak."

A gate was opened behind Ken, Wormmon and Wizarmon. Crawling from the hall, a hurt Witchmon was using her last energy to open the portal.

"Witchmon!" Ken cried, as he saw a few particles leaving her body.

"If you are the only one I can save… I won't fail on this…" The woman murmured her last words.

"This child won't go anywhere!" Daemon growled, advancing on Ken. Makoto jumped in front of the monster, grabbed him by the arms, and shouted to Ken to hurry and get out of there. Daemon freed one of his arms and launched the boy against the wall with enough strength to make him pass out.

Wizarmon pushed Ken and Wormmon to the gate right before it closed, and remained in the castle. Witchmon was now dead, Makoto had received a dangerous blow and he was up against a perfect and an ultimate level who he had known in his past. He didn't have any chance to escape alive. However, he was able to save Hikari's and Tailmon's friends. Wizarmon approached Makoto and noticed small tears falling from his eyes. That caused him pain, for some reason.

"That damn witch! I should've made sure I had killed her!" Daemon cursed himself.

"You believe that boy is the Enlightened." Dagomon guessed. "It's a good bet, although I prefer to have my options open."

"And that is a very wise decision!" A voice came from the other side of the saloon. The Merchant was there, with his carriage. "Now that there is no barrier, I can finally come here for business."

"Who are you?" Dagomon and Daemon asked at the same time. Wizarmon took the chance that nobody was paying attention to him and lifted Makoto, gently. By having the boy in his arms, he felt his heart ache. A new gate was opened in front of him and Wizarmon saw, at the other side, a hospital.

"You'd better go and get this boy fixed. He can't die before completing his job." The Merchant instructed Wizarmon. "I can't bother to take care of him now. As you see, I'm in the middle of an important meeting with clients."

"Who are you calling your clients?" Dagomon sounded angry.

"I have information that you want, and you have something I want in return. It's a beneficial situation to us all." The Merchant said, joyfully. "Now, let's talk."

Wizarmon crossed the gate, carrying Makoto. He waved at a doctor who was drinking coffee outside, calling "Help! Please!"

The man ran towards him and, immediately, started examining Makoto.

"What happened? Is he a chosen child?"

"How do you…?"

"My son is one too, and you're obviously a digimon. How did this happen?"

"He was thrown against a rocky wall. It was violent." Wizarmon narrated, nervously, as the doctor called for assistance. "Please, help him!"

"I'll do everything in my power." The man assured.

A little far from there, Ken and Wormmon found themselves in Odaiba. The boy was still shaken.

"Ken-chan, what should we do?" The little digimon asked.

"I… I don't know…" Ken whimpered. "Is Wizarmon going to be alright? What about Makoto-san?"

"You're worried about him too?" Wormmon asked. He thought it made sense. Although Makoto had done those horrible things in the dark dimension, he was very protective of Ken to the point of risking his life to give them a chance to escape. "Is that boy an enemy or an ally?"

"We should meet Hikari-san, Taichi-san and the others right away. They were having a meeting. Maybe they're still awake." Ken decided, taking his phone out of his pocket.

In Lilithmon's castle, the Merchant had made his offer to Dagomon.

"I can go back in being Leviamon and all you want me to do is to fight the Society?" The tentacle digimon questioned, suspicious.

"The Society is a headache I want eliminated."

"What about me?" Daemon asked.

"Well, if you cooperate with Dagomon, you'll have your precious Society back. If you do a good job, I can even return you to being a sacred digimon."

"Are you proposing to make me Holyangemon again?" Daemon showed interest.

"Don't think small. I was going for Seraphimon, at least." The Merchant proposed. "What do you think? After you've won, Leviamon could take all viruses to serve him in the dark dimension, or you two could share the Digital World. It's up to you."

"How does this benefit you?" Dagomon inquired.

"This is my secret. I can only say that I have a great interest in making that Citadel fall. You couldn't ask for a more resourceful ally."

"Who are you?" Dagomon asked one more time. "How did you get this mask on your face?"

"With Lucemon, of course. I found it lying around after his death."

"Were you there when it happened?" Daemon questioned.

"I'm always in the right place and the right time. And, thanks to this mask, you must know that my information is always precise. Now…" the Merchant's tone became colder, "do you intend on continuing this chat for how long? I'm a busy man and might withdraw my offer."

"I think we can discuss a deal." Daemon said in a cautious tone.

"Anyway, you seem too weak to pose a threat to us." Dagomon mocked.

"I am enchanted to hear that." The Merchant returned to his joyful tone. "Now, let's enter my carriage. I've prepared a delicious tea and a wonderful contract."