At long last I finally posted it up. Here it is the next chapter to The Darkness Beckons. I hope you enjoy it. At the rate I'm writing you'll have to enjoy this one for a long time. Sorry.

-A. Hox

Michael sat on his sofa while Mimi took a shower in the other room. What the hell was going on in the world? Since when did sweet little girls try to kill friends? To that point, since when did sweet little girls travel thousands of miles to kill friends?

Michael thought of this as he looked out of the big window of the apartment his movie star father gave him. Below he could see millions of New Yorkers scrambling to and fro around the busy streets. He cringed when he imagined Kari running among them, a lighter and a canteen of gasoline in her backpack.

"Hey Mimi, you done?" Michael asked Mimi.

Mimi stepped out in her robe. "Yeah."

Michael took a deep sigh. "How are you doing? Still in shock?"

Of course she was still in shock, she was almost killed. After the two of them had escaped from Kari at Central Park, they fled to Michael's apartment in the West Village. After losing Kari around Times Square, they took a shortcut to Lower Manhattan where Mimi was able to shower.

"Yeah," whispered Mimi quietly, "Michael, why? Why do you think Kari did that do us?"

Michael shook his head. "I don't know. This is really scary."

Mimi took a seat next to him. "I'm afraid to leave, Michael. I'm scared something might happen to us."

Michael nodded his head in agreement. "I know Mimi," he said, barely audible, "but Kari knows where my apartment is. I don't know how long we can stay here."

Mimi leaned here head on Michael's shoulder. "Can we sit for just five minutes?"

Michael smiled softly and leaned his own head on Mimi's. "Yeah, just five minutes."

Ken, Cody, Yolei, and Willis landed in LaGuardia Airport.

"Alright guys," said Yolei, "let's find Kari!"

Cody lifted an eyebrow. "I don't think it'll be that easy Yolei".

"Yeah," said Willis, "where should we start?"

The group thought about it for a moment. Ken looked up at the high buildings that surrounded the core of New York City.

"How about we find Mimi?" he suggested.

Izzy caroused the Internet. "To think this all started because I wanted a break from studying," he thought to himself, typing away. There was a knocking at his dorm room.

"Come in," said Izzy.

The door opened and Sora ran in, taking a seat next to Izzy.

"Sora!" exclaimed Izzy, "what are you doing here! This is a boy's dorm!"

"Come on Izzy," said Sora, "bend the rules a little!"

Izzy shook his head. "Well, alright, but I'm not going to like it."

"What's going on, Izzy?" asked Sora, "what's all this I hear about Kari disappearing."

Izzy turned his head. He had not realized that Sora was still in the dark in this story.

"Well, Kari was complaining about hearing things ever since TK went to China. After that she ran out of school and disappeared. Later, Willis told me that she showed up in Colorado, but suddenly, she made her way to New York City in, get this, a day! Now, Ken, Cody, Yolei, and Willis are in New York. I told them that the best way to start is to find Mimi and Michael. Since Michael is the leader of all American digidestined, he can probably have them keep an eye out."

"Whoa," said Sora, "that's a lot to handle."

"Not just that," said Izzy, "Gennai has returned to the human world to help find Kari, and he insists that this problem is digital."

"Wow, really!" said Sora, "where is he?"

"I don't know" said Izzy in response, "he disappeared. But from what I'm guessing, he went to New York."

"Izzy, if you keep talking, my head is going to explode!"

"Sorry Sora, but that's the situation. How's Tai taking it by the way?"

Sora sighed, "He's taking it really hard. Poor guy, you know how he feels about Kari."

"Believe me I do."

Ken sat in silence as Cody, Yolei, and Willis talked on the cab ride.

"I'm just wondering, why couldn't we go to JFK, it's closer to Willis's house anyway," asked Yolei.

Willis shrugged. "I don't know? It's all I had."

"Better than nothing," said Ken.

The cab continued down the traffic filled streets. As they edged down the crowded avenue, Cody almost jumped in his seat. "Guys!" he exclaimed looking out. "I think I see Kari!"

"What!" shouted Yolei, also looking out. There sitting on a park bench, was Kari, staring into empty space.

The group stopped the cab and payed the fee. Then, they ran to the park bench where Kari was sitting.

"Kari! What the hell are you doing here?" cried Yolei.

Kari looked over to them and looked away.

"Well, whatever," Yolei said again, "let's go home. Everyone is waiting, Tai, TK, everyone."

Ken flashed Yolei a glance, wondering why she would lie about TK, but Yolei responded with widened eyes and raised eyebrows. Kari stood up and began to walk away from the group.

"Just leave me alone," she said.

"Forget it, Kari," exclaimed Ken, "you're going home, now!"

Kari slapped Ken's hand away from her. "Don't touch me."

"Kari, what's going on here?" asked Willis, "what happened."

Kari began to giggle. But slowly the giggle developed into a maniacal laughter. "Oh, so you want to know what's happened."

She tightened her grip into two fists and smiled eerily. The whites of her eyes had developed into a dark red color.

"Well let me just show you," said Kari, this time in a low, evil sounding voice.

"What the heck is going on?" asked Willis.

"I don't know," said Ken jumping in front of Yolei, "but I don't like it."

Tai and Matt were driving from Kyoto to Odaiba.

"Damn," said Tai, "Its days like this when I wish I went to school closer to home."

"Yeah," said Matt, "what we really need is to go to Tokyo U. with Joe."

Tai sighed as he looked out at the bay to his right behind the cars on the right side of the lane. "Yeah, how is old Joe doing anyway?"

"I don't know exactly," Matt admitted. "I haven't kept in touch with him for a while."

Tai looked forward. "Well, I guess now's as good a time as any. We're gonna need every Digidestined we know to fix this problem."

"Yeah," said Matt.

Kari was now standing on the park bench with the other four backing away frightened. Yolei had tripped and was on the floor, but Ken made sure to stand in front of her to protect her from the new evil Kari.

"What's going on, Kari?" asked Ken.

Kari grinned. "Kari? I am the Daemon and I'm afraid you're little friend isn't here anymore."

The group cringed. "What do you mean?" asked Cody, "where is she?"

Kari smiled back and looked away.

"Why are you doing this?" asked Willis.

Kari remained silent, staring into space again. The tensions rose in the park and Ken and Willis began to walk closer toward Kari. Suddenly, Kari snapped her head to the two boys.

"Let's play a game. First one to Michael and Mimi gets them. Last one to them get whatever's left."

With that she ran off.

"Oh my God," said Yolei, "did she mean what I think she means?"

Ken didn't say anything. He had already begun running.

Mimi was putting on the set of clothes she kept in Michael's apartment and he was still sitting on his sofa. Mimi stepped out of the room.

"Michael, honey, do you have a jacket I could borrow?" she asked.

"Sure thing, check the closet."

Mimi opened the coat closet and began putting on a coat. Michael himself walked into the kitchen to get an apple when there was a knocking at the door.

"Mimi, can you get that."

"I don't know, Michael, I'm not really dressed right now."

"All you need to wear is a jacket."

The knocking continued.

"Alright, I'll get it," said Michael. He slowly made his way for the door and touched the doorknob.

Yolei was panting for breath. "Please Ken, can we take a break."

"No!" shouted Ken, "if we don't hurry people might die!"

"Yeah," said Cody, "we can't hesitate."

"Well we better hurry," said Willis, "we have ten blocks to go."

"Run, Mimi, run!" shouted Michael.

"Alright!" Mimi responded.

"Quick, you cannot be there!" yelled a Chinese high school aged boy.

"What's your name anyway?" asked Michael.

"It's Liu," he said, "and please, keep running."

The three of them continued down the road. Suddenly, Liu made a face. "Everyone!" yelled Liu into the air, "get down!"

He jumped behind a bench and brought Michael and Mimi with him. There was a huge explosion on the floor where Michael's apartment was. Debris flew around the area, nearly hitting them.

"Watch out guys," said Liu, "that was a close one."

"What's going on, Liu?" asked Michael.

Liu took a deep breath. "Look you guys, I wasn't completely honest with you. My name is not Liu, its Gennai." As he said that he transformed to his old man image.

He hugged Mimi and shook Michael's hand.

"What's going on Gennai?" asked Michael.

Gennai shook his head. "It's a long story."

"Tell us later Gennai," said Mimi, "right now, we gotta get outta here."

"First," said Gennai, "we have to find Ken, Willis, Cody, and Yolei."

Yolei began to weep. "She did it, didn't she?"

Ken lowered his head as well. "I can't believe it."

The group sat quietly thinking that Kari had succeeded and Michael and Mimi were, well, gone.

"I can't believe this is actually happening," said Yolei, "I never thought this could happen to us."

They had seen the explosion and assumed that Michael and Mimi were killed.

"They were so young," said Yolei, "they were young, bright, happy, full of life, and…and…and…"

"And right over there!" Cody shouted pointing to three people running of over to them.

"Ken! Yolei! Willis! Cody!" cried Michael running over to them.

"Oh my God, I though you guys died!" said Mimi.

Mimi and Yolei hugged.

"That was a close call," said Ken.

"Yeah," said Michael, "if it wasn't for Liu, I mean, Gennai here we would have to touch the face of God."

"Don't talk like that man," said Willis, "that would have been terrible."

"Yes," said Gennai, "but now we have a real problem. Kari is still loose in the city and I don't know how to find her."

"I don't think it's that hard," said a deep, evil sounding voice.

The group turned around in surprise to find Kari walking along the rubble of the building which she had just blown up.

"What the hell, Kari!" shouted Michael, "you just killed all those people!"

"Oh, shut up," laughed Kari, "I'm not here to cause trouble. My job is much smaller."

"And what is that?" asked Ken.

Kari laughed and ran up to them. "To eradicate the Digidestined. That is my mission."

The group was taken aback at the charging girl before them.

Matt pulled up his car to the parking lot of Tokyo University.

"Alright," said Matt, "let's go find Joe."

Tai nodded. "Yeah, let's do this."

Sora and Izzy sat next to each other in Izzy's dorm room.

"I don't understand Izzy," said Sora, "how do we help the others."

"We wait Sora," said Izzy, "we wait."