Hello again, readers! There'll probably be a week or two until this story's complete, so I hope I can get it done before life really gets busy again.

Well...not much else to say here except that I don't own Digimon...and...I hope you like this chapter

Daemon's Wrath

"That was fast." Tsukaimon broke the silence. He pointed to a towering silhouette barely visible on the dark horizon. "There it is already. Get ready kids. I'm willing to bet he'll attack as soon as he sees us. And that's not mentioning the Shades. For all we know, there's an army of them right beneath us."

Most of the children had already shuddered at the mere mention of the shadow creatures, but now they kept their gaze below, watching nervously for their enemy. TK, now wide awake with the adrenaline coursing through his veins, held on tightly as he looked wildly about. He couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched, especially as it grew stronger with their approach to Daemon's fortress. No one realized that the sea of black beneath them was actually a horde of Shades until they were right in front of the tall fortress. The creatures parted, clearing a pale-looking segment of bare ground for GranKuwagamon to land. The mega did so warily, ready to defend his cargo should the shadow creatures attack.

But they didn't. They were waiting. The word of attack had yet to be given. A pathway to the fortress opened up, and soon the presence of evil in the air more than doubled. It was obvious the demon lord of wrath was approaching. In response to the threat, the children disembarked and allowed their digimon to take a protective stance around them.

And then he came. A wall of flame announced his advent, racing towards the group of Digidestined. MetalGarurumon and MagnaAngemon stood forward to put forth a counter attack. It was a tiring effort for the two Chosen digimon, but they did manage to cancel out Daemon's fire. There was no time to relax however, for the inferno was only the beginning. The battle against the Shades erupted.

The digimon had their hands full immediately, and barely had time to resume their line of defence around the children. The kids themselves pressed close to each other, keeping an eye in each direction. It was a wonder that the digimon were holding out at all against such a large force.

Kari felt jostled around until she was in the near centre of the group. It was as if the others somehow knew she would be a target. It made her wonder why TK was in front of her. Dragomon was gone, after all, so she doubted she was the main focus. Kari tried to worm her way between Yolei and TK in order to get a better look at the battle, but the two children were so engrossed in the scene that they barely bothered to make way. It took a moment, but TK finally gave a little leeway for her to see. Kari gazed deep into the ranks of the Shades. The way the black horde stretched in all directions made her feel like she was back on the beach, surrounded by the Dark Ocean.

A still figure in the mass of Shades caught her eye, and Kari realized it was staring straight back at her. It was an unnerving sight. Amongst all the chaos, as shadow battled digimon, as the attacks of the Chosen and of Daemon roared in each direction, this Shade had its eyes on her. Kari retreated a small step back behind TK and Yolei. She tried to call the other kids' attention to the creature, but her voice was weak and all that came through was a small whimper.

TK turned to her slightly and placed a protective hand on her shoulder. "I see him," he said calmly.

His words brought little comfort, for their attention was brought back to the rest of the battle by Matt's voice crying out behind them. "Ken!"

Kari noticed that TK left her side, and she immediately missed him, being that she was still locked in a staredown with the Shade. Sora had soon taken TK's place beside Kari, and not a moment too soon. A shriek erupted violently from that sole Shade, attracting the attention of several more around it. Without any more warning, it suddenly made its way towards the group, its eyes fixed on Kari.

It seemed as if that whole half of the Shade horde was following, charging towards its newfound prey. Kari cowered as Sora and Yolei held her tightly, willing to risk their lives for her sake. It didn't make any sense to the child of Light. Dragomon was gone, so why would the Shades still be after her?

The advancing shadow creatures were halted by two rather angry voices.

"Blast Rings!"

"Phoenix Claw!"

The two attacks were effective, Aquilamon's blow stalling the front line of Shades in order for Garudamon to strike. The first front was decimated, but they were easily replaced by reinforcements from the never-ending army. They were getting closer, slowly driving Garudamon and Aquilamon back. Kari felt a tap on her leg, and glanced down to see a very desperate Gatomon.

"I can't digivolve, Kari. I've been trying, but..."

"Of course you can!" Yolei cut in. She looked at Kari. "You haven't forgotten, right?"

Kari smiled suddenly, shaking her head. "DNA style!"

They soon had the attention of Yolei's partner, and the digivolution began.

"Aquilamon!"

"Gatomon!"

"DNA digivolve to...Silphymon!"

With that, the girls now had two humanoid bird digimon standing guard before them. It gave some comfort, but all three knew the odds hadn't tipped very far in their favour. The sea of Shades still stretched as far as one could see, and their attack became more vicious in response to the increased threat of the ultimate digimon. Garudamon and Silphymon were soon having trouble even keeping them at bay, let alone beat them back. The Shades were closing in, and yet, their approached slowed as they came closer. Chaos spread throughout the enemy ranks, but the Digidestined girls and their Chosen digimon failed to discern the cause.

A group of the shadow creatures suddenly broke off of the main body and pounced on Garudamon, latching onto various places on her body. The ultimate failed wildly in an attempt to throw them off. The Shades held fast, however, and tried to bring Garudamon down as more and more piled on. The digimon kept her presence of mind through it all and prepared to retaliate.

"Wing Blade!" She cried out, and her body was engulfed in the fire of the attack. The heat burned away every single creature that touched her. Once she was clear of her attackers, she launched the blast into the midst of the horde, creating a rather insignificant dent in their ranks.

The attack on Garudamon wasn't so much an attempt to defeat her as it was an attempt to draw her away from her charge, and the Shades had succeeded in doing so. Both she and Silphymon had been driven from the three girls, and the humans were now surrounded by the black army.

Kari held her breath as the creatures advanced towards them, and was almost unwilling to watch. Moments before she had realized that TK was nowhere to be seen, lost somewhere in the battle. Ken and Matt with their digimon had disappeared as well. She could only hope they were still together with their partners and Tsukaimon, keeping the fight going. Kari caught sight of a blaze of fire in the distance, followed by a blast of blue flames. The form of GranKuwagamon could barely be seen in the dense black fog. They were small signs, but they reassured her that the battle was still hot. Only now, separated from their partners, it didn't seem like their fight would last much longer.

It made Kari wonder why they weren't being attacked by the Shades in the first place. There was a lot of shoving and snarling, mixed in with unearthly shrieks and Yolei's screams, but the girls were unharmed in the midst of the dark creatures. What was restraining them?

A cold hand grasped Kari's arm, telling her that the Shades weren't exactly holding back. She spun to look her attacker in the face. It had its free hand raised in a move to strike, but the creature was surprisingly knocked aside by another of its kind. Kari gave herself and instant to breath, which turned into a sharp gasp as she saw several more Shades charging straight for her. The closer the shadow beings got, the more they began shoving at each other. It began to look like the whole army was fighting itself to get to her first.

Kari never noticed Sora had left her side until the other girl had completely disappeared. Heart racing in panic, she looped her arm through Yolei's, holding tight to make sure she wasn't taken away either.

"Sora's gone," she said in Yolei's ear, just barely loud enough to be heard. The lavender-haired girl spun around, alarm filling her eyes when she couldn't spot the older Digidestined. There wasn't much room for the two to move, let alone try and search for their friend. The Shades were upon them, each trying to make a grab for their prize. Yet in the whole chaos of the situation, if one managed to take hold of one of the humans, it would be immediately torn off and another would take its stead. They were unrelenting, bearing down on the children as they cowered together.

"Static Force!"

Silphymon's unmistakeable voice came from above, and momentarily deterred the enemy.

"Think that's all? I've got more coming!" The digimon continued, its body beginning to glow brightly. "Astral Laser!"

The blast cleared away some of the attacking creatures, allowing the girls some breathing room. The three kept close to each other, constantly rotating, Silphymon whacking away any shadow that came too close. Yolei shouted at her DNA digimon, masking her fear with anger.

"What were you doing, leaving us alone like that?" She snapped, "Taking a nap?"

"I needed it," Silphymon replied dryly. "I feel so much better already."

Kari ignored the exchange and focused on the battle raging around her, trying hard to find signs of the others. She felt a small pang of guilt that she hadn't followed TK when he left, but it happened so suddenly. Just like Sora disappearing. As the skirmish wore on, she grew more and more worried about the others.

When TK had left Kari, Matt and Ken were luckily not too hard to find. With the protection of MagnaAngemon and a little help from Tsukaimon, he made it shortly to GranKuwagamon. Ken was riding safely on top of his digimon, out of reach of his enemies. Matt was nearby as well.

"Matt," TK said as he came up behind the tense body of his brother. The older boy turned sharply to him. His face was pale.

"We managed to keep Daemon away from Ken til he got up there, but a little help would still be nice. I think he's after me now."

In confirmation of the boy's words, several waves of Shades descended on them from all sides. MetalGarurumon shouted out.

"Matt! TK! Get on!"

The two boys complied immediately. Matt vaulted easily up, then turned to help his handicapped brother. TK gratefully took the hand, and was lifted up. As his feet left the ground he took a sharp gasp that escaped his lungs in a loud grunt as he landed behind Matt. The older boy spoke over his shoulder.

"How you doing?"

"I've had better times defeating evil digimon."

As soon as the boys were secured, MetalGarurumon suddenly roared an attack, spinning in every direction as missiles from all over his body shot into the horde of Shades. The blast had its desired effect, holding off their enemy with enough time for the mega and MagnaAngemon to form some sort of defensive stance.

But the Shades had completely stopped their advance.

TK could tell the battle still hadn't ended; he saw GranKuwagamon fighting strong nearby, and even caught glimpse of Garudamon's Wing Blade. But the Shades that had them surrounded completely stopped their fighting. The immediate ranks of the enemy soon parted to reveal the demon lord standing in wait. The very sight of a furious Daemon was unnerving. The digimon had its huge fists clenched; his wings spread and quivering with rage. Flames spurted from underneath his cloak as he restrained his anger towards the two boys. Daemon's eyes were staring straight into Matt's, causing the human to tremble.

"The Child of Kindness is mine," Daemon said in a deeper and more menacing voice than TK ever remembered. "And I punish any who try and rob me of him. He has something I want. And petty humans will not get in my way!"

The mega finished his sentence with a flourish of his hands, calling forth a blazing wall of flames. MetalGarurumon leapt out of the path of the blast, completely stretching out his body in desperation to escape the inferno. The mech landed hard, jarring the boys from their places. Matt and TK slid off, Tsukaimon taking to flight to make sure none of the Shades made a move towards the children. They didn't. The creatures only watched as Daemon moved to deal with his prey, though some looked edgy and unwilling to do so.

The evil digimon strode over to where the two boys were recovering, barely giving them any time to react as he raised a hand up to strike. It was TK who saw the blow coming just in time. He dove into Matt, driving his brother into the ground a metre from where Daemon's claws clove into the ground.

Matt exhaled shakily and ran a hand through TK's messy hair as they picked themselves up and ran over to MetalGarurumon and MagnaAngemon. "I owe you that one."

Daemon yanked his claw out of the ground with an infuriated roar; the call to attack.

Chaos ensued once more. TK found himself being shoved about by the numerous cold bodies of shadow as the Shades strove to claim their prey. Only a few seconds passed before he lost sight of Matt, but at least he could still hear MetalGarurumon fighting in a last-ditch effort to protect his partner. MagnaAngemon was doing the same, swiping at every Shade that came within reach. Even Tsukaimon fought as hard as a rookie could, using the Boom Bubble that he had learned while mimicking Patamon.

Through it all, TK couldn't shake the feeling of dread that came when he recalled the way Daemon looked at Matt. The evil digimon was going after his brother. Matt had protected Ken, and Daemon would react in the same way as he did when TK had saved Kari and Yolei. He would strive to kill.

"MagnaAngemon!" TK cried up at his partner. "Help Matt! Daemon's going after him, not me."

The angel shot an incredulous glance at the blond. "And leave you here alone? I will not!"

"Course I won't be alone!" TK said, gesturing at Tsukaimon. The rookie gave the ultimate the closest thing he could to a thumbs up, given his stubby fingers.

"You can trust me buddy! I'll die before they hurt TK! I swear it."

MagnaAngemon hesitated only once, and then nodded solemnly, relenting. He flew off to where MetalGarurumon's voice was coming from. As the form of the angel disappeared, TK returned his attention to the Shades around him. They were keeping their distance, but were more than ready to strike at any time.

"Got my back, Tsukaimon?"

"You know it."

"Any idea what to do?"

"None. Not sure how we're going to get you out of this, but a promise is a promise, TK. Daemon's not keeping you here anymore. I'll make sure of it."

"Well, I'm counting on it."

Tsukaimon smiled. It was a good feeling to be trusted by a Digidestined. They had done so much for him. He had been freed from the darkness and given a chance to prove himself. They had gone as far as to accept him into the group and give him a place among their ranks. They had saved him, and he was determined to return the favour.

I thought this chapter would turn out a little longer...but then again...I thought this story would be, like 50 chapters when I started.

Review please and I'll see you next update!