Chapter 9: Arrival of Darkness, Prelude to Destruction

Meanwhile, on the other end of the street, where it is the darkest a child-like voice could be heard if you listened hard enough. Her voice was as clear and as beautiful as a professional singer, but it also contained a poisonous, addictive effect as well to those that heard it.

"Darkness against Light... Light against Dark...Powers win...Powers fade...along through Time..."

A little girl was singing to herself as she walked down the quiet, night time neighborhood, playing with her long, blond hair as she walked, looking down onto the ground.

"Such fates, always constants...Heh, very true." She murmured, singing to no one but herself, stepping in a straight line as she goes on, following the lines on the road. She smelled something further ahead, which she thought was strange to be smelling soda out here, when there wasn't anyone around. Since she was looking down, her head tilted down too, she didn't see the battle that was further up the road.

"Disappear... Reappear... Heroes shall die.... Evil shall to..."

Looking up, in the distance, she could see a group of people and Digimon, one of them closer to her. Shortly, two others rejoined the one and there was a young girl screaming.

"As Destruction takes hold, and destroys all... through the path of Time!"

She twirled around at the last three words, her deep red coat opened like an umbrella, showing her grey jeans, black with white laced sport shoes and white shirt with a black skull on it. A grey and green Triangle Pendant with four buttons and a screen that is tied to her neck by a strong string also came out with the spin. She giggled as if what she said was the most amusing thing that she ever said. Facing the other direction, she starts to walk away and sings once again to herself.

"As Time flows... and days grow old... Destruction goes... and is alone once more..."

The girl stopped and frowned at the last line, feeling as it says, but smiles once more and starts back again. She hums her song again as she walks back down the road, heading the opposite direction.

Lei watched as Patamon's form finally disapated, leaving the knife onto the ground.

"How can you do something like this!?" Lei shouted at the leader of the three. He could tell the leader because she was the tallest. Stepping into the light, Lei and Starenamon got a perfect look of her. She wore what looked like a white and blue school uniform with the sleeves ripped off. Along her waist were the same knives that were used on Patamon and T.K. He knew because of the bloodstains that were on them. Looking at her face, she wore a black bandana, covering her mouth as her black hair hung in a braid behind her, though sone hung over her eyes, hiding ger face even more. One of her two gloved hands pointed to the blood ring on the ground with the remains of T.K., fleash, gore, parts, everything.

"Vampveemon, have at it." She looked directly at Lei. "I'm sure you're probably hungry." A digimon started toward it. It crossed the light and Starenamon thought at first it was Veemon, but this one was black and had a red V on it's forehead. Along his back were a pair of wings. He walked over to the pile and started slurping and eating the entrails.

"Ew..." Lei said to himself. Regaining his posture, he turned back to the leader.

Kari could no longer take any more of this and fainted on the ground. Yolei was also sickened from the sight,but

"Why are you even here? Answer me!!" She lowered her conceiled face chuckling.

"Why Lei... I never knwe you to be so, demanding before." Lei was surprised by the fact that she knew his name.

"Who are you, Ninja?" Lei asked. Slowly, she removed her bandana, her young face having a scar over her left eye.

Lei took a step back. "Sa.. Sari!?"

"You woldn't fight me now would you?" She asked in a sweet voice, but to Starenamon there was a hint of something he couldn't place in it. Like a cat awaiting it's prize. It wasn't the only thing he had noticed, and he hoped his partner knew too.

"S... How...?!" She slowly walked to the startled Digidestined of Time.

"You thought of me dead, didn't you?" She continued to walk toward him.

"Starport." Starenamon whispered and he disappeared with Flamepalmon. Sari saw this and chuckled.

"Heh. Even your partner is afraid." She brought up her Claw Glove, the three claws extended from the kuckles, glimmering from the lamplight. Lei took out his sword in defence, stepping back from her.

"Mmm. Hadn't had a good meal in a long time." Vampveemon said to himself, taking a bite of T.K.'s still beating heart, not becoming still. The third one of their little party is still just beyond the light of the lamplight.

"I... I don't want to attack you... Sari..." The smile on the other's face was pure evil.

"So give up!" She lunged at him, claws reared back, ready to slash. Lei draws his sword in front of him in time before she bropught her claws compleatly down. They clashed, sparks flying everywhere, both pushing against eachother.. Lei strained with the effort.

"Why are you doing this!?" He said to her in confusion. They both jumped back and circled eachother.

"You betrayed me... Leaving me to suffer on that day." Sari jumping out again with her claws, Lei counter attacked with a downward slash.

"I didn't have a choice!" She leaped away at the last second, grabbing her kodachi, and started to spin around.

"Like I don't now. Spinner Strike!!" Her kodachi hit Lei in the arm and chest, shredding his jacket. He grimaced in pain at the attack, bringing him down to his knees. Lei looked up at her spinning form and thought to himself.

~Her technique! That was my Spinner Strike I was working on...~ Sari stopped her spinning and looked directly at him.

"I...didn't want to leave your side... not even for a moment." He stopped when he saw some movement behind her. Lei took a glance at the new arrival, who was walking toward Sari. She looked like a Gatomon type, her tailring and fur desins on her giving that away, except that Gatomon is white and this one is black, a little taller, and her face full of malice. Sari grips the pommel of her kodachi.

"Quit your lies." A black aura begins to grow around the blade. She brings it up to her face and crouches down, her other hand behind her. Lei staggered to get up, still weakened from the last attack. She charges at him as he is getting up.

"Shadow Strike!" She rears her arm back for the killing blow. Sari brought it down hard, releasing the stored energy when she was four feet away. Lei braced himself for the impact, but it never came, only a sound of metal being hit and a strained scream. Lei looked in front of him and saw Starenamon in front of him, taking full force of the attack. He fell and changed to his rookie stage, Demirenamon. Past him, Sari leaped back to where she was.

"Shall I put an end to his misery Master?" The black furred feline asks Sari, a grin on her blackish face.

She looked down at Demirenamon's fallen form as the words Darktailmon said repeated in her head...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Flashback - Date and Time Unknown~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A young boy was valiantly fighting off four fiends all wearing cloaks, all with their own Bastard Swords, against his own Long Sword. They were quick to the draw with their sword styles, faster than the boy trying to protect his friend. "Spinner-- gah!!" One of the robed figures slashed him before he could execute his best move, forcing him back and away. He fell to his knees, his silver hair falling over his bloodstained face.

"Sari...!!" He tries to call out to her, but only forces out a groan and falls to the dust ridden earth of the forest path. She tries to call out to him, hoping that he could still help her, but it was muffled, as she was instantly captured when the boy fell by the other three one of them holding a gauntleted hand over her mouth. A fifth came out from the trees and landed near the first one, who was over the fallen protector.

"Shall I end his misery, Master?" He asks the new arrival.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~End~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

~That one day... He really was trying to protect me... He shall live this day. I must think on this more.~ Sari thought to herself.

"Master Sari?"

"No..."

Vampveemon looked up with a rib in his mouth, surprised. "What?"

Sari looked to her two allys. "I said no." Sari puts her Kodachi back in it's shethe across her hip. She looks to Lei, then turns to leave.

"Why... Why leave me here?" Lei called out to Sari. "Coward... finish your.." Lei fell to the ground next to Demirenamon, unconsious and out of energy.

"Coward am I?" With a quick gesture, she is directly over Lei's sleeping body. She bent down.

"I'm no coward betrayer, just thought I'd give myself a better challenge is all. I'll give you three days to recover, before I kill you." She gets up and takes out her Black Diamond Digivice. She looks down at Lei one last time.

"Next time, this assassin won't be so kind. Digital Gate Open!" A black portal appeared behind the three and they walked through it, leaving Lei and Demirenamon alone.

From nearby, another young boy, spiked red hair, of perhaps 15 years of age, who caught the tail end of the fight, saw the three leave. Looking around cautiously, he slowly walks toward a body lying on the ground. Seeing who it is, he runs to it, noticing this time a three-foot in height blue digimon near him.

"Wonderful, just wonderful." He says to himself as he took out a walkie-talkie transmitter.

"Torcher to Metal Smith, Torcher to Metal Smith." A little static was his only responce for a moment before a voice came through.

"Torcher? Metal Smith here. What did you find?" The boy looks down at the two tattered and sleeping forms.

"Didn't find Omega... but I found Alpha, but Flame isn't with him, only his partner, Star, is. Looks like something got to them." He took a scanner out of his green jacket he was wearing and held it over them. "Seems.... That there is some dark energy residue on them." He said into the transmitter. "Darkness must'ive got here first. Let me know when you get the transport machine up and running. In the meantime, we'll be at Alpha's house."

"O.K. Torcher, Metal Smith out." The boy puts the transmitter back. Running a hand through his short stood-up red hair, he sighs.

"I better get going." Picking up the two, both on either side of him, he carries them past the burnt opening.

"I thought I told you to destroy everyone!" The spirit raged at the three, their mission incompleat. He turned sharply, his transparent crimson cloak rustling as he did.

"I apologise Master, I don't know what happened to make me sidestep from my goal." Sari told him, her, Darktailmon, and Vampveemon kneeling in front of the spirit, heads down.

"After seeing this one boy, I felt something for him." Hovering a few inches off the ground, he listens to her report. Sari shook her head of a memory.

"Although, I believe they wont be interfearing any longer, since I used my best technique on the one called T.K. " Although she didn't see this, a gleeful smile came across her Master's face.

"T.K. you say?"

"Yes. It was him, and his partner." The spirit chuckles to himself.

"Well, one less prophacy to worry about." He said to himself. He turned to Sari. "Anything else?"

"Yes Master, I have also learned that the ones called Tai, Sora, Agumon and Byiomon weren't at the main fight." The spirit sharply turned his head toward her.

"They weren't?"

"That is all I have to report." Sari finishes. Facing forward again, he starts to walk to his chamber.

"Wait here..." Upon entering, he noticed that his Orb was glowing with a faint aura. He walks to it. Looking inside, he sees his ultimate form, compleatly restored.

"Finally! My ticket back! Ha Ha!!" He outstreaches his arms and hands, "Awaken, awaken and be free!" The Orb glowed a bright red, filling the room with it's errie light. A wind began to stir, and the Orb began to take in the air around, like a small black hole. The first feeling the spirit felt was a searing pain. "GRRRRAAA!!! What's... happening..." Being pulled forward from the wind, the spirit was sucked inside and all calmed down. A hairline crack suddenly appeared on it as more cracks started to appear. It shortly exploded, sending shards of glass everywhere. A person was there, kneeling on the ground. A black cape conceiled him. It rose up, panting and turned around. This person was wearing a blue shirt with a golden bat on the collar of it and matching blue pants with black boots. A couple of blonde hair strands fell over his blue eyes, which were covered by a red mask. His smile revieled a pair of fangs as he looked apon the broken shards of the late Time Orb. He chuckled to himself as he stood up.

"I have finally retained my body." He said in a calm voice, like telling someone that they were about to die. He raised his hand, and grasped the air, testing his arm.

"In three days, those damned Digidestined will be a mere memory, by my hand..."

End of Chapter 9