Disclaimer: I do not own Digimon.

I realized that often times we can move so fast as writers we end up missing some very basic things such as chapters not lining up with their titles. The editing process seems endless, but before I start to submit online the third and final novel to this series, I wanted to make sure everything is in shipshape. The first novel is nearing it's final edit. The second novel is almost complete, and it is only going to get more cohesive as this story comes together. For those of you who read it, thank you for bearing with the mistakes. Let's reach the finish line together of this amazing trilogy. You just watch and see what happens...

...and let me know your thoughts while we're at it. Seems like I'm talking to myself a lot lately. I'm just a real headcase.

Chapter Twenty: The Crest of Courteousness

Taichi could not believe what he had just seen, unable to comprehend that this same Takeru who had been a thorn in his side for most of his life did the most noble thing he had ever seen. He watched, looking at the other digimon as they mourned crying for Takeru, barely able to keep himself together. The pain of Patamon, Yamato, and especially Hikari must have been unimaginable. How could he tell his sister that her boyfriend had sacrificed himself for her? How could the digidestined have been prepared to lose their own like this? He thought if anyone would have sacrificed themselves, it would have been him.

Tailmon hurried over to Hikari placing her hands on her knees shaking her. "Hikari, are you ok?" she asked looking up trying to see if she was back to herself. The fur on the back of her neck stood on end as she looked up in shock, Hikari completely still as if she had been trapped in a moment of eternity. "Hikari!" she whined, shaking her with both claws. "Hikari!"

Taichi bent his head, the cries of Tailmon shouting till her voice grew hoarse more than he could bear.

"What's happened to her?" she asked turning around facing the others. "Just what did Homeostasis do?!"

"I don't know!" Taichi snapped. He felt more out of control than he ever had before. "Just why did it have to be this way?" he asked looking down. "Why did Takeru have to die? And why did Homeostasis have to take over you Hikari? he said closing his eyes.

He looked over at Hikari, her face still frozen in shock. Yes, he knew the answer, but he did not want to believe it. How could Homeostasis have planned such a horrible end for those she needed most? If Takeru was dead, did this mean his sister was dead to? Everything seemed so uncertain, he just could not take it.

"Dammit!" he cursed slamming his hand on the ground. "Takeru, why did you have to be such a good guy! You were supposed to eventually marry my sister!" he raged. "You were supposed to be adopted into the family! I knew their were times we clashed and I hated you, but I envied you how you brought out the very best in my sister and I brought out the very worst! Curse you!" he cried out, breathing heavily.

Agumon placed one hand on his back. "Oh Taichi," he said, Taichi not able to be encouraged by him.

"How noble!" a familiar voice said from above him, Taichi looking up and seeing Akama standing over them on another level; a smaller building. "Really, it brings a touching tear to my eye. The digital Goddess has broken another one of her toys. Guess I was not the only one."

"Akama!" Taichi yelled out momentarily distracting himself from the pain. "We heard about what happened. And I think we understand why you are doing the things you are doing."

Akama cackled heartily. "You weaklings don't know a thing about me!" he spat. "I tested myself physically, abandoning friends and family for the sake of my partner Courtmon and the digital world. And look at what happened! My data was absorbed into my own partner! And now he's gone! I came to in a time generations away from when I was born!" he exclaimed. "My Family! My loved ones! They all passed on, including the very one I was trying to save!" he said exasperated his fingers strained, clenching together. "And now, I will have my revenge!"

Akama's gaze pierced through his sunglasses towards them all as if unable to contain his contempt for them. "I am coming for each and every single one of you! You will know how it feels to be used by her!" he lamented, "Just as Takeru did! Just as he was burdened with the Digital Record and was lost! You will see that anyone who sides with Homeostasis is my enemy!" he threatened running over towards Taichi, his fist reaching out to him.

Taichi felt a rush of wind towards him, but could not avoid it. The punch connected to his cheek, even as he turned to avoid it. As he turned he balled his hand into a fist and punched him back in the mouth, both of them staggering back.

"Come on!" You call that a punch!?" Akama taunted approaching Taichi. He growled out throwing another fist towards him, but Yamato stood in the way, much to Taichi's surprising taking the punch for his friend square in the cheek..

"If you're going to interfere then you'll go first!" he yelled punching Yamato square in the face Yamato not even flinching, much to Taichi's wonder.

Yamato's eyes glared back at him like a savage cornered wolf. "You call that a punch?" He said, his tone of voice so threatening even Akama backed off from him a bit. "I just lost my brother," he said as if he would bury him into the ground, "so you'll have to forgive me if I don't feel your pain right now!" he lashed out laying one across his face, sending him flying.

Akama groaned out as he hit the ground. He staggered, struggling to get up as if he had never been hit like that before.

"Y-you!" he winced, groaning, holding his arm which he had landed on. "You must have been the one who destroyed Courtmon! It could only have been you, the strongest!"

"You're wrong!" Taichi shouted, Yamato putting his hand on his shoulder giving him support.. "He didn't do anything! Homeostasis told us what happened!" he exclaimed. "You got caught in an attack and both your data and Terrormon's were absorbed into Courtmon! He then transformed into Fiermon and then Freitmon! And Takeru and Hikari both put him down!"

"They killed him?!" he exclaimed incredulously. "Those weaklings?!"

"They aren't weak!" Sora protested raising her voice. "Physically Hikari was often sick and Takeru struggled as the Digital Record, but their hearts were strong!"

"That's right!" Mimi added. "Strength is more than just brute force. You should have known that!"

"Known what?!" he exclaimed. "My whole life if you were weak you were deleted even in society and I was not weak! Homeostasis used me like a pawn for her amusement when I had given my life believing I was doing the right thing! "

"That sounds harsh," Mimi said. "You mean to tell us you even sacrificed your own mother, father, and friends for Courtmon? How could you do something like that?"

Akama stared at her as if she had said something completely foreign. "I do not need to justify myself," he replied. "How else could I not?" he questioned. "As a digidestined, as the first, so much had been placed onto my shoulders. Not only my pride as the heir to the Akajirou bloodline, but then also the fate of the worlds. If I did not sacrifice everything to this cause as Homeostasis's chosen champion, then the world I lived in would have been destroyed by Terrormon! I could not let that happen."

"It sounds to me," Mimi rebutted, "That you've always felt you've never had a choice in your life," she hesitated as if holding herself back. "You poor dear."

"I don't need your pity!" he barked. "You keep quiet!"

"That is no way to talk to her!" Sora said defending her. "I may not know much about you Akama, but I do know you going around hurting others isn't going to solve anything!"

"It will end my pain!" he hissed.

"No, it will destroy you!" Yamato said walking forward. "Don't you get it? We've all had to face the darkness in our hearts, but we had each other to get through those times. You only feel that way because you think you don't have anyone!"

"I think?" he said, a dangerous glint in his eyes. "You think I'm tricking myself?" he said, gritting his teeth, a murderous look on his face. "You have your partners! And your friends! And your families! But just watch!" he declared. "If you keep this up you'll end up just like me some day."

He then placed his hand on his back and pulled out what looked like an ancient looking sword, the blade gleaming sharply.

"What do you think you're doing?" Taichi asked. "Do you really want to kill somebody?!"

He sighed, pointing the blade at them all. "It is not my intent to fight anyone without a weapon, but," he said slashing his blade down as if he would cut them, "a mercy kill is different."

"Mercy kill?" Joe questioned.

"Is this guy for real?" Gomamon said sarcastically.

"Quiet, or he'll get you first," Joe whispered.

"Yikes, I don't want to be fleeced seal skin," he replied.

"How is it merciful to kill us?" Joe asked.

"Don't misunderstand," Akama said. "Their is only one who needs to die. Only the vessel of Homeostasis," he said looking at his reflection in the blade. "With her gone all of you will be free," he said. "No one will have to be her pawn anymore."

"We're no one's pawns!" Taichi shouted. "We choose our own destinies. And if somehow it just happens to be in line with her will it's still our choice!"

Akama sighed swinging his blade with one hand causing an entire tree next to Taichi to be cleaved in two, the leaves falling down all over.

"You poor misguided fools," he said pitying them. "How can you still stay so deluded after all the sacrifices Homeostasis has made of you all? All you have to allow is only one more sacrifice and she will not sacrifice anymore. Even the Goddess of the Digital World will be gone. As long as she has a vessel, she is vulnerable."

He held out his other hand to them all in good will. "We are all digidestined here," he said. "Instead of fighting me why don't you join me and end Homeostasis once and for all? She's the real villain in all of this!" he exclaimed.

Taichi gripped his digivice so hard he thought he would break it. "Then how are you any different from Homeostasis?!" he asked. "Do you honestly think we would turn on those two? On each other? That's not something the Digidestined would ever let happen!" he exclaimed. "We have to fight for each other Akama. We can't tear each other apart."

Their eyes locked, Akama standing level with Taichi, Taichi not willing to back down.

"If I have to cut you all down," he said coldly, his sharp blade threatening them, "then so be it. It does not matter how many I have to bring down. It's all in pursuit of judging the Goddess."

He pointed the blade at Taichi, Taichi staring determined at him. Akama was not a digimon, but he still was incredibly dangerous. He had been exposed to danger so many times he truly forgot how dangerous someone like that could be.

"This blade," Akama said, "Is the Blade of Dimensions. It is fitting your lives end here, for it is said to slice through even the gates of heaven and hell, and even the digital world in-between."

Taichi stared at him, nervously wondering if their was any way they could beat him, but not even their digimon could interfere or help them since it was not in their code.

"Come on," he said aloud to himself, "Think of something Taichi."

"Taichi," Agumon said tapping him on the shoulder.

"I've got to figure this out," he said. "Maybe I can dodge it..."

"-Taichi!" Agumon's voice called out again, but he still he ignored it.

"…Or maybe I can counter him before he even swings the blade and-"

"-TAICHI!" Agumon shouted, Taichi completely distracted.

"Sorry Agumon," he said shaking his head still a bit nervous. "I got a bit sidetracked there. I was thinking of some crazy things."

"You are kind of crazy," he laughed, Taichi laughing right back.

"What is wrong with you two?" Akama asked obliviously. "Don't you know I am about to end your lives?"

"You may think so," Agumon grinned stepping in front of Taichi, "but I won't let you."

"Agumon!" Taichi said surprised, Agumon only grinning back. "If you face him you can't fight him! He could even kill you!"

"No worries. Just make sure to make something yummy after all this is over, ok?"

He could only appreciate his good friend and his misguided optimism.

"All right buddy. You just name it."

Agumon then set his sights on Akama.

"Are you ready to die digimon?" he asked starting to rush at him, his gaze sharp and directed.

"Ready whenever you are!" he yelled back.

Akama wasted no time as he attacked the miniature orange T-Rex.

He managed to run up to him, getting close and nearly swung his blade cleaving Agumon in two, but Taichi noticed his composure change.

He tried swinging the blade at Agumon's neck to cleave his head from his body, but somehow he twisted himself up swinging as if holding himself back.

Akama groaned out as the momentum of him holding himself back threw him past Agumon, tumbling about until he had stopped, his blade still in his clutches.

"Just what happened?" Yamato asked.

"Yeah," Gabumon questioned. "I thought Agumon was going to turn into Agumon tail soup!"

"I don't know," Taichi said, still unable to figure him out. He found himself walking one step closer to Akama, becoming less and less apprehensive as he approached him, Akama lying down struggling to get up.

"Why didn't you attack?" he asked, taking a knee next to him.

The iciness in his eyes seemed to melt away briefly as if he had realized something when he was attacking them.

"Just for an instant," he sighed, "I saw him. My digimon Courtmon."

"Courtmon?" Sora said coming over as well. "You saw him?"

"What brought this on?" Joe asked, him starting to dig in through his satchel he always carried for some medical supplies.

Akama still gripped his blade fiercely, but all his angst seemed to melt away from him.

"You there, Agumon," he swallowed, "When I saw you standing theree like that,it reminded me of my days sparring with Courtmon. We would always fight each other, getting ready to attack, clashing with each other, and sometimes he would win. But sometimes I would win," he smirked as if recalling the memories so fondly. "But at the end of the day, we respected each other enough to never 'let' each other win. We both were very prideful."

Yamato stared his way nodding his head. "I understand that. You truly were partners, weren't you?"

Akama responded back closing his eyes, hesitating as if he held the memory close to his heart. "I had been so consumed by rage," he said, "I almost forgot to cherish the good memories. I am such a fool for forgetting," he scoffed, trying to lift himself from the ground, but failing. He managed to sheathe his blade back in his sheathe.

"Speaking of forgetting," Koushiro said, walking up to him holding his computer screen. "Do you recognize this?"

A strange symbol lit up on the screen, Taichi wondering what it could be, but the look on Akama's face said it all.

"It's the crest of courteousness," he said in awe.

"That's right," Koushiro replied. "Homeostasis sent it to me before you arrived. At one time in your life before you were absorbed it was your greatest strength and helped Courtmon mega digivolve into Noblemon. That attribute helped your friend, but even if he's gone you still have those memories don't you?"

"I guess," he said wiping his mouth, some blood trickling from it. "It's hard to believe those two actually defeated Noblemon, err, this Freitmon. But if that's the case how did I come back?"

"I got this one," Yamato said, before anyone else could answer. "Akama, we did not start hearing about you until Freitmon had been destroyed. He released some kind of light which went into our world and that's when we started to hear about you terrorizing us. It must have been your data! Freitmon must have released it just before he was destroyed!"

"Freitmon did that?" Akama asked as if he was unable to believe it.

"Yeah," Taichi said bending down and grabbing his hand, helping him stand. "I believe deep down Courtmon was still there helping you trying to save you and take the darkness that he had become down with him. It's because you are, and always will be, partners."

Taichi's words stirred a look of desperation and sadness in Akama's eyes. His tears started to poor out trickling down his glasses. Akama was forced to pull them off of his face and let them fall to the ground as he started to break down, tears pouring out in agony.

"I sacrificed so much," he wept. "And, in the end, Courtmon still helped me. He helped me give me back the life I once had," he confessed.." I just wish I could have seen him one more time. One more time just to say goodbye."

Sora walked forward to him and smiled putting his sunglasses back on his face. "I think that deep down we all think that. We don't want to ever part with our digimon like the way you did. And I don't think Homeostasis meant it to happen either. You just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time," she said, her voice soothing, empathizing with him.

Akama seemed to listen to her words, his demeanor loosening up, but he turned around suddenly and put his hands against the wall he had jumped down from as if he would hurl.

"Is he all right?" Agumon asked.

"He'll be fine," Patamon said, crying. "But what about poor Takeru? My best friend is gone," he cried, sneezing into Yamato's jacket. "TK! Come back!" he cried over the loss of his childhood friend. "TK!"

"That's right," Taichi said, clenching his teeth. He walked over to the others, all of them around Takeru as if mourning for him, the momentary distraction over.

"It's funny, I watched that little guy rely on me, but grow up so fast," Joe said. "He really came a long way from the carefree child that nearly cut my fingers off at summer camp."

"And he certainly did mature teaching the newer generation about the darkness that we faced in our generation," Koushiro said. "He may have joked a lot, but he took his responsibility as a digidestined very seriously."

Taichi noticed Takeru's brother trying to constrain his emotions. To show his support he put a hand on Yamato's shoulder, who could not stop shaking.

"Takeru was always such a carefree happy whiny crybaby," he said. "When our parents separated, he still stayed that way, even hiding his pain when we were all no longer together.."

Sora nodded her head and wrapped her arms around Yamato from behind. "They had just started to really blossom their relationship," she groaned. "And now, it's too painful for words," she said burying her head into Yamato's shoulder.

Taichi could not stand looking at Takeru and stared at his sister, Homeostasis's expression remaining the same as if she had been frozen in time. He struggled to come to terms with Homeostasis sacrificing him, killing him in the process just to summon the Digital Record. How could she have been so heartless? And what even happened to her? She looked like she had been overwhelmed with emotional shock!

Akama's voice called out to them all, turning their heads in his direction. "Wait," Akama said, his voice breathing heavily, taking his sunglasses and crushing them in his hands until they were nothing but pieces, exposing his dark red eyes. "It's not over," he said sluggishly walking over to them still recovering from his fight with them. "If Homeostasis really removed the Digital Record Takeru should have completely dissolved!"

Taichi listened, holding out hope as he hurried over to Takeru, turning him over, Takeru breathing out as if he had been gasping for air.

"He's alive!" Taichi explained. "Look, Yamato! Your brother, he's not dead!"

"Takeru!" Patamon exclaimed rubbing his face against his chest. "You scared me! Takeru!"

Takeru sat up, shaking, as if he had just had a near death experience, his eyes still hazy as if he was not even there.

"Am I alive?" he said him looking around at himself and the others as if he was not there. He grabbed his chest, his body heaving as if he struggled to breathe, Yamato running over to his side and bending down.

"Just take it easy,' he said starting to lift his shirt over his head to give him air. As he did, they all saw a strange pattern around his chest resembling the crest of light.

"What is this?" Yamato asked inspecting it.

Takeru, as if almost having forgotten everything else stood up and grabbed Hikari's shoulders. "Hikari, are you still there?" he asked concerned. "Are you all right?"

Taichi marveled as Hikari mouthed Takeru's name, tears streaming down her face even more. He watched Takeru hugging her, shaking, but his eyes also so very far away as if he had not woken up.

"Hikari," Takeru said, his eyes glazing over. He collapsed holding her in his arms. They stood serenely holding each other so equally, neither one of them toppled over, the two of them locked in what seemed like a serene eternal embrace.

"Takeru!" Yamato yelled, as if surprised he had fainted again. "Are you ok?!" he asked rushing over about ready to shake him awake, but Sora caught him from behind around his chest. "Takeru!"

Patamon flapped his wings anxiously as if not knowing what to do. "I don't understand. Just exactly what happened?" he asked.

The air suddenly changed, no one having any idea of what just transpired. As if to answer in the absence Akama spoke out, a cold and unfeeling tone in his voice.

"It's simple," Akama grinned, Taichi noticing his body language change looking at them. He started laughing as if he knew something about this they did not.

"Homeostasis became corrupted by Hikari," he answered. "She is unable to summon the Digital Record. And now that she can't she has resigned herself to destruction," he said, snapping his fingers as around them a swarm of dark digimon appeared from portals that looked like they led to a dark abyss.

"Now Akama can have his revenge and so can I," he said surrounding them with the dark entities. "All threats will now be eliminated..." he smirked.

"...Just as I anticipated..."