Digimon Fan Fiction ❯ Dark Diaries ❯ Plunging into Darkness ( Chapter 16 )

Sighing softly to himself, Erin glanced down at the street from his window. Two days had passed since the bowling trip with the Detroit team, and the orphan was still trying to deal with what had happened at the end of it.

'It felt like...like I was someone else...' He thought, watching the crowd below him bustling about.

"You should eat something lad! Food'll do ya some good!"

Erin turned around to Metal Mamemon, an ally of the Detroit team. The Perfection digimon had been gracious enough to let him stay with him, and he wasn't complaining about it. Even if he had to stay fused to be in the Digital World, being in the alternate world seemed to leave him more refreshed, especially when it came to trying to deal with the emotional problems he had right now.

Taking a seat, the orphan started into one of the pieces of fruit he was offered, wrinkling his nose at the taste of spinach on his tongue. Not commenting, he continued eating slowly, looking out the window from his seat.

"Ach, are ye gonna just mope again?" Ye've barely said anything since ye arrived." Metal Mamemon gulped down a couple pieces of fruit, not seeming to have any problems with the flavors.

Glancing at the digimon, Erin sighed softly again. "Sorry... I just needed time away, you know?"

"Pah. Boy, I can tell when somethin's wrong. Holding it in ain't gonna help ye any, so just spit it out."

Erin paused a moment in mid-bite, considering telling the digimon. "Well... Have you ever felt like you were loosing control?" His gaze never shifted from the window as he watched a few clouds float by over one of the buildings.

Metal Mamemon took his time answernig, crossing his arms as he sat back in his seat. "Everyone deals with moments when they feel like things are out of control. If ye be patient enough, then ye'll work past it eventually."

Erin shook his head. "That's not what I meant... I mean, have you felt like YOU were loosing control? Of yourself, not just life."

The metal digimon tilted his head/body slightly, observing his new friend for a moment. "That I've not dealt with too much. But what happened to make ye ask such a question? Ya do be around friends, ye can tell me."

Glancing back at the small Perfect, the teen opened his mouth, silently trying to figure out what to say. Before he could think of anything, a knock at the door got both their attentions. Erin gave Metal Mamemon a look, noticing the shake of his head. Obviously, the digimon wasn't expecting someone.

Standing up, Erin followed the Perfect to the door. He looked at the digimon, nodding to one another, before slipping behind the door as Metal Mamemon opened it.

"Hey!" Sue's voice was unmistakable as Erin saw her step into the room, hugging the metal digimon. "Have you seen Erin around, I've been trying to find him everywhere! Please, Mammie!! Do you know, huh huh?!"

Erin couldn't help chuckling as he watched his friend swing around the small Perfection level digimon. Sue turned around, her bright smile focusing on him now as she let Metal Mamemon go and threw herself into a big hug around his shoulders. "There you are!"

"Well, I'm not somewhere else, I hope." Erin managed to squeak out as he returned the hug.

"Erin, come on! You gotta help me!" Sue pulled away, reaching into her pocket and pulled out a D3, silver colored with a dark blue trimming. She held it right up in Erin's face as she continued. "Emily sent me, Greg and Hilary to find out Digimentals, but I don't know where mine is! Max got the Digimental of Hope, and I don't wanna be the last one to find one!"

Erin pulled back from the device in his face, as he watched the girl give him the most pathetic looking pout face he had ever seen. She looked like she might start crying any minute over it. Rubbing the back of his head, the assimilated teen sighed and nodded. "Alright... Although I doubt Greg will enjoy my company at all..."

"Yay! Now I can find my Digimental and show Max who's got the best one!" She smiled brightly again as she slipped her D3 back into her pocket. Erin looked at the young Digi-Destined, noticing she had one of her fairy shirts on, with a jean skirt that reached to her knees and a pair of tennis shoes covering her feet.

Sue gave the teen a victory sign with her fingers, as she winked. "Alright! Greg and Hilary was waiting outside the town. Come on!" Grabbing Erin's arm, the young girl dragged him out fo the room, leaving a chuckling digimon behind them.

***********

Dark Diaries

Entry 16 "Plunging into Darkness"

Written by Rocker Starlight

Permission from Lord Archive

***********

"It's way too quiet..." Greg muttered slightly, tugging at the gray T-shirt he had worn.

"Oh, don't be a worrywart! Just because we aren't getting into a fight everytime something is going on, is no reason to think it's weird." Sue rolled her eyes back at the boy, as she resumed skipping next to Erin.

Grunting, Greg muttered softly before he continued. "look, every other team has mentioned how when they got their Digimentals, they got in a fight or something. Even Emily got in one, even if it was more 'his' fault." His tone pointed the statement at Erin, pausing a moment before pressing his point. "And Max and I both have Digimentals without one nicident. Pardon me for finding this a little odd."

Sue glanced back, giving a sickeningly sweet smile to the boy. "You're pardoned!"

Ignoring the annoying noise from Greg, Hilary patted his arm softly. "Greg has a point however. From the facts, we shouldbe facing an opponent each time we gain a Digimental, who can be defeated with the acquired item. Thus, something should be happening or should have happened."

Sue looked over at the younger of the siblings, giving a sigh. "Well, Emily got in a fight, and besides, maybe this is what is supposed to happen. Maybe we just got lucky!" She perked up at the last sentance.

Hilary shook her head. "Doubtable. Emily's fight can't be counted, since it was not something she could have defeated with the Digimental of Courage and Boarmon alone. And we can't be lucky, because that factors little into actions of the Digital World, such as upgrades to our digivices and Digimentals." The young girl walked past Sue as she finished, leaving her and Greg walking next to one another.

Ignoring the sounds of raspberres behind him, Erin looked overat the young girl, still a bit surprised someone so young was a Digi-Destined. Although he had to admit, right now she seemed to be the most mature of the trio with him.

"You keep looking at me. Why?" Erin blushed a little as the young girl looked up at him.

"Well, I was just surprised at how young you are. Meeting Emily was surprising enough, but I didn't think someone your age would be involved in this."

Rubbing the back of his head, Erin watched as Hilary looked forward again. "Well, there are younger. There is one girl in Paris who's a year younger then I am, as well as one in Yutaka, Alaska. Maria of New York is only a year older. Chosen and Digi-Destined are not exactly common at our ages, but it is not unheard of."

Erin blinked as he listened. While twelve-year-olds had been one thing he had tried to adjust to, knowing even children as young as nine and ten were involve in this type of thing was a bit disconcerting. Especially when the person explaining it, someone of that younger age group, sounded so much like Ms. Klink did when she explained things. Although it did nothing to help, listening to two of her elders going back and forth like a pair of children.

"So, how do your familiers take it? Being Digi-Destined, that is."

Hilary's face scrunched a moment as she thought, before she finally answered. "Our families don't know. In fact, a lot of Digi-Destined don't tell their families unless they have too. After all, would you want your loved ones worrying about wondering if everytime you leave the house, you might be eaten by some digital monster, or forced to help kill something else?"

Erin stopped as he noticed his companions all had as well. Hilary and Greg both held a somber look on their faces. Sue's face was a little more noticable, the soft smile a bit forced for the normally chipper girl. He nodded, as the small group started walking again, with an uneasy silence falling over them.

After awhile, Hilary tapped Erin's arm, pointing off towards a small mountain that had been coming into their view. "Erin, can you see something in the side of that mountain? Kunemon thinks she can see something around that spot."

Looking at the point the young girl was pointing at, erin tried to notice anything out of the ordinary. "Yea... I think I can see something... Like a building, maybe?"

Hilary nodded, as the yellow insect, sliding along the ground next to her, scooted a little ahead. The brown haired girl held up her D3, emerald with gray colored covering, as the screen started to glow.

"Kunemon evolve...!" A pillar of light formed around the small digimon, growing larger until it dissipated away. the new digimon looked nothing like the small yellow one, aside from the fact that both were obviously insects. The blue digimon stood tall above the Digi-Destined, four arms reaching out from the torso. A helmet with a horn covered the head, aside from the gapping mouth it showed. Four translucent wings stuck out from the bug's back, giving a small flutter as the large digimon stretched. "...Kabuterimon!"

"Digital Assimilation!" Erin crossed his arms over his chest, as the armor and body suit formed over his body, a flash of purple turning him into Black War Humon.

"Erin will take Sue and Floramon. Greg and Gomamon will ride with Kabuterimon and myself." Hilary said, as one of Kabuterimon's hands reached down and picked the young girl up, followed by her brother and his partner. Erin watched as Sue walked over, her bright smile back on her face, as she held Floramon in her arms.

"Shall we?" Erin said, picking the pair up in his arms, as Kabuterimon took off into the air. Swiftly following, Erin watched at the mountain came closer, soon revealing that a small temple appeared to have been built into the mountainside itself. Soon enough, the small group landed at the entranceway. Kabuterimon shifted back to Kunemon as they landed followed by Erin returning to his fused form quickly.

Walking to the arch, Hilary traced her fingers along the strange designs that were etched into the stone. After focusing on them for a moment, she pulled out her pad of paper, writing down the designs around the doorward, leaving the rest to the view.

"Erin, do you ever wonder about your family?" Sue asked, as she knelt down next to the edge of the floor.

Erin tilted his head curiously, taking a seat on the edge overlooking the fields underneath them. He thought about the question for a moment as he watched a couple clouds pass, before finally answering. "Not really... My parents died when I was seven, and if I had any other family, they would have been found, you know?"

Sue listened, not paying attention as Floramon sat next to her, watching the edge cautiously. "Doesn't that get sad though? Not having your family with you?"

Erin smiled softly as he looked at the girl. "Nah. I have my family and friends. Between the older children at the orphanage and Ms. Klink, you all here, even Mimi and Jyou, there's really nothing to get sad about."

Sue smiled sweetly, reaching up and giving Erin a tight hug around his neck, catching Floramon by surprise as she pulled her into it too. "Nope!"

Blushing, a cough from behind him caught Erin's attention, looking bac with the clutching girl and her partner. Gomamon, Greg's partner, smiled as he looked at the trio. "Greg and Hikary went in with Kunemon. Greg told me to let you know."

Clearing his throat, the brown haired teen tried to hide the slight embarrassment of the situation as he stood up. Noticing Sue was still hugging his neck, he smiled sheepishly, slowly pulling the girl's arm from around his neck, watching as she both to hug Floramon now. "Come on, we should catch up with them."

Giving a bright smile, Sue picked up Gomamon, holding both the digimon as she lead the way into the temple, following by the blushing teen.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Done necking?"

Erin ignored the smirk on Greg's face. the temple had a main passage, columns lining it, that lead to an empty pedestal in the center. From the footprints in the dusty floor, Erin guessed they were the first people, or digimon, to have been here in quite some time.

"Hilary, what are you trying to find? It's obvious if something was here before, it was been taken well before we got here. Why waste out time?" Greg turned back to his sister, who was examining the pedestal.

"If you checked with your D3, you would have noticed a signal is coming from here. So obviously, whatever it is, is still here. Logic would say, we merely need to find out how to reveal it." Hilary traced her fingers over a small pattern on the side of the pedestal, once again sketching them into her notepad.

Ignoring the scoffing noise from the Digi-Destined, Erin walked over and knelt down next to Hilary. The symbols look a little odd, a couple seemed like stars, while others were elaborate loops and similar things.

"They're the Digimental attributes."

Erin glanced at the young girl, who hadn't even looked up from her notepad. "Digimental attributes?"

Hilary nodded as she closed the pad. She pointed to the top pattern, one of the star shapes. "This is the symbol of Courage, the Digimental Emily got. Below it is the symbol of Friendship. On each side are another pair, Knowledge and Reliability, Love and Purity, and then Hope and Light." She traced each pattern as she named them, before standing up and looking at the top. "So the logical thing would be to assume it was a Digimental that was here, and possibly still is."

Erin watched, trying to remember what little he had looked up on that CD he had been given, as the young girl went to work. While Kunemon went about examining the wall behind the pedestal, Hilary continued to look for something else on it. He stepped back, leaning against a pillar near Sue and Floramon, both who seemed more confused then he did.

A few minutes of silnce passed, as the youngest member of the Detroit team examined the carvings carefully. Pressing her hand on the larger circle of the symbol of Knowledge, her fingers suddenly pushed a small button in the center of it. A loud creak came from the wall behind the pedestal, followed by a cloud of dust kicking up as it split and began to seperate. Everyone quickly stood up, wary if something might come threw the new opening.

Erin gave a small cough as the dust began to settle again, revealing another pedestal in a softly glowing room. Sitting on the pedestal was something that looked like an oddly shaped cone, colored yellow and with a couple folds around the sides. A small, gray point stood on the top, while the symbol of Knowledge appeared in blue on the front of it.

Without a moment's hesitation, Hilary walked towards the find, taking it in her hands and removing it from it's resting place. The yellow cone shimmered brighter for a moment, before disappearing, leaving the room back in it's original light, with the new addition of the same small, gray box Emily had gotten, in Hilary's hands.

"W... What was that?" Erin asked, noticing the snort from Greg, while Sue ran over to Hilary and gave her a small hug.

"That was the Digimental of Knowledge." Hilary gave a faint smile as Sue congratualated her. "Kunemon, would you like to try it out?" A nod from her digimon confirmed the mutual though as Hilary picked up the D-terminal, holding her D3 towards her partner. "Digimental up!"

"Kunemon, armor evolve...!" The yellow insect began to glow again, this time more color forming around the small digimon. As the glow finally began to fade, a much different form greeted the group. A large silver beetle stood in the middle of the room, a flat saucer with the symbol of Knowledge on it's back, and two long antennae extending from its head. "The oddity of knowledge, Searchmon!"

Watching closely, Hilary immediately walked up to her partner, running her fingers along the smooth metal body of the insect. "I think I remember something about this evolution. We should get back home, so I can check it out. Then, we'll be able to optimize your abilities, right Searchmon?"

Nodding to her partner, Searchmon shifted against the young girl.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"So, are you ready to come with us?" Sue tilted her head as she watched the older boy.

Erin glanced at Hilary and Greg, doing something with the TV that would take them back home. "I don't know... I don't know if I should be around people at all right now..."

"Why not?" Erin blinked as Sue's partner spoke up. "Besides, Sue will just worry if you don't."

"Hey! That's not why! I'm just concerned about him staying in the Digital World all the time like this!"

Erin sighed, giving a soft smile as he watched Sue protest back and forth with her small partner.

"Hey, knock it off! Hilary is trying to figure something out!" Greg barked at the trio, as his sister knelt in front of the television, staring intently.

"Hmm? What's going on?" Sue asked, quickly forgetting the discussion as she led her partner and the older boy over.

"Well, it seems my computer has been shut down. I'm not getting a signal from it. In fact, the only signal I seem to be able to find it Emily's laptop, in Erin's room." Hilary tapped on the TV screen a couple times, adjusting the Digi-portal as she assessed the situation.

"Then Erin can come back with us! He can give us a fast ride home, and help us all sneak into our houses, so no one notices!" Sue smiled brightly, as she looked up at Erin. "Please?!"

Erin rubbing the back of his neck, trying not to look at the big kitten eyes the blond girl was giving him. "Fine... I'll take you guys home."

Sue wrapped her arms around the taller boy's neck, squeezing tightly. Erin flushed, noticing the huff from Greg as he tugged the girl slowly off.

Hilary gave a soft smile as she watched, before she stood up. "Lets go then." Holding her D3 up to the screen, the TV flashed, taking the four through the gateway.

*~*~*~*~*~*

"Ok, this REALLY isn't a good sign..." Greg mumbled to himself as he crawled out from under the pile of people and digimon.

Erin looked around, lying on his stomach as he waited for the girls and their partners to get off of him. Aside the light coming frmo the laptop's screen, then entire room was filled with darkness. It almost looked like a room from a haunted house, the kind that masked men jumped into suddenly.

"You do know that you have a habit of stating the obvious, right brother?" Hilary remarked sarcastically, as she brushed her skirt off. Walking back to the laptop, the young Digi-Destined began typing away, while Sue and Erin pulled apart and walked to the window next to Greg.

"It's... It's so dark..." Sue said, picking Floramon up and hugging her tightly against her chest.

"Wow, nothing gets past you, does it." Greg snipped, getting a raspberry from the girl.

Erin stared out into the darkness, watching the raindrops reflect off the window from the light of the computer screen. It was almost relaxing, listening to the rainfall while staring into the infinite seeming blackness.

A tug on his sleeve brought him back to the present, looking down at Floramon as she continued pulling. "Hey, you back now? Hilary thinks she found something."

Erin turned around, noticing everyone had moved around the laptop without him realizing it. Nodding to the Child digimon, he walked over, starting to listen to the conversation now.

"So half the state is out?" Sue asked.

"Yes. It seems an unknown factor has taken out the power for the lower half of Michigan." Hilary answered, still typing. "Luckily, emergancy services seem to have backup generators up and running, so that's not a problem."

Opening his mouth to ask something, Erin paused as a roar ripped through the air. Screams from the lower flowers as well as a sudden smash verified where the noise was from, as the assimilated teen burst through his door, sprinting down the stairs.

Erin blinked for a moment at the sight he was greeted to, as he reached the first floor. In one corner were the families that lived in the building, huddling with a few candle placed around the room and a look of terror in their eyes. The source of the fear was easy to see, as a black, dragon looking creature tried to reach further into the building, apparently too large to actually fit inside through the hole in the wall it had made.

"Digital Assimilation!" Black War Humon quickly took the place of the teen, sliding between the predator and its prey. Auburn eyes stared into the four, deep red eyes of the monster, a growl showing it's annoyance at having its meal interrupted.

"Black War Humon!" Erin glanced towards the stairs, long enough to see his three friends and their partners standing close by. Hilary opened her mouth again as she continued. "That's a Devidramon! It's very powerful, but you should be able to handle it! Just remember to use your claws!"

'Claws?' Erin thought for a moment, before he realized what she meant. Giving a small grin, he spread his arms and legs, making himself into a shield to the large digimon. "Alright ugly. I think it's time we danced!"

Not giving the Devidramon time to react, Black War Humon threw himself into the digimon's chest, quickly pushing it out of the abandoned building and down the street across from it.

Pushing himself away from the large Adult, Erin got his first good look at the digimon. Large, leathery wings stretched from its back, with a long tail slamming into the ground behind it. It's forelegs seemed almost more like arms, while the back pair resembled more of an animal nature, in the way they were bent.

"Red Eye!" The dark digimon yelled, firing beams of energy from it's eyes. Erin moved quickly, dodging the attacks. He barely noticed as bits of his building started to rain onto the ground, as he floated in front of his opponent.

'Damn it!' Erin thought, trying to avoid another volley of blasts from Devidramon's eyes. 'Didn't think he would have a way to fight at a range...'

"Leaf Wheel Cutter!" Erin spared a glance back as a new voice rang out. A large leaf sliced through the debris that had been covering the hole in the way from Devidramon. A moment later, a big frog jumped out, with Greg riding on top of it, before the leaf swung back and re-attatched to it's back.

Devidramon's attention shifted as the new target was presented, swinging one of the overly long arms at the frog and Digi-Destined. The new digimon leapt to avoid the first swing, but the second caught it in the air, slamming the pair into the ground.

"Frogmon!" Greg shouted, crawling to his fallen partner. Frogmon's eyes closed as a small light covered him, de-evolving back into Gomamon. Holding his partner, Greg didn't notice the dark digimon closing in on him.

"Hey now!" Black War Humon called out, as he slammed himself into Devidramon's back. "Attacking a guy while he's down isn't kosher!" Wrapping his arms around the struggling digimon, Erin lifted the large mass with little trouble, spinning and launching it down the street again.

Hearing a defiant roar as Devidramon started to stand again, Erin simply floated in the air, slamming his gauntlets together with a clang. "You attacked my home, and for that, I can't let you live! Black Tornado!" With a sudden rush, he bgan the whirlwind, slamming his spinning claws right into Devidramon's chest. It roared again, louder this time, before shattering into data and disappearing.

Black War Humon floated in the air for a moment, staring into the darkness again, before he went back to the abandoned building. He shifted out of his fully assimilated form, although he kept himself fused with the coin. Sue was kneeling next to Greg, checking Gomamon over a little, while Hilary tried to calm the homeless people of the building down.

"You!" One of the adults yelled at Erin as he walked closer. He didn't recognize the person, as the yelling continued. "You brought them, didn't you! Even when these kids came once in awhile, we never had anything like this happen!"

Wincing slightly, Erin turned away from the accusations. He rubbed his chest absently, trying not to think about the slight pain he felt, as he walked over to Sue and Greg. The girl now had the little white digimon in her lap, stroking his head as Greg sat close with a worried expression on his face.

"How is he?" Erin asked, kneeling down on the other side of the young girl.

"He'll be alright. It's been awhile since any of us have been in a battle, and it seems Gomamon wasn't ready for that strike. He's just resting now." Sue smiled sweetly. Floramon stood a little apart, apparently keeping an eye out for any further trouble.

"Lets get in out of the rain then. Won't help any if we all get a cold, right?" Erin smiled.

Sue nodded, gently handing Gomamon back to his worried partner. Both began to walk inside, followed by Erin, who kept his head down and turned away as they walked past the building's residents, not wanting to see those accusing looks.

As they walked back into his room, Erin grabbed his blanket, handing it to Sue. "Here. You guys can use this to dry off."

Hilary sat back down at the computer, typing furiously, while Sue took the blanket with a smile. Erin turned away, not wanting anyone to notice the slight blush, even in the darkness, as Sue began to dry herself thoroughly. It was only a second before Greg joined him. It did surprise him when his enhanced sight noticed a slight darker color to the boy's cheeks, guessing he was staring out the window for the same reasons.

Cradling Gomamon in his arms, Greg fidgeted nervously, before he finally gave a soft sigh. "You know... out there... well... thanks, ok?" He sputtered out, turning away from the older boy with a grimace.

Erin smiled softly. That was probably the first, almost nice thing Greg had ever said to him since they had met. "No problem." He answered softly, not planning on pushing it, considering how Greg's attitude seemed to be normally.

A small protest came from behind the pair, causing the boys to look as Sue began to try and dry a squirming Hilary. Both teens chuckled a little, before she wrestled the blanket away from the older girl, dropping it on the ground.

"Stop laughing! This may be more serious then we thought!" Hilary yelled, catching everyone's attention. "Kunemon, Digimental up!"

Kunemon quickly armor evolved into Searchmon, taking up more space in the small room, as she settled next to Hilary.

"Alright, can you do a scan for any forms of digital life in the area?" Hilary asked, pulling the laptop into her lap as she sat in front of her partner.

Searchmon's antennae stood at attention as her eyes began to glow. After a few minutes of silence, the antennae finally relaxed again. "I can find roughly fifteen digital life-forms within the confines of my search. Two can be identified as Tsukaimon and Mecha Norimon. Two other signatures are of Perfection level, while the rest appear to be Adults. Identities for the remaining can not be configured without further data.

Hilary began typing as soon as Searchmon spoke, leaving everyone else in silence. before she raised her head again. "Can you pinpoint Tsukaimon and Mecha Norimon?"

"I'm afraid not. Tsukaimon's signal is to weak, but is north of here. Mecha Norimon is almost out of my range to the south. The Adults seem to be scatted in all directions."

Nodding, Hilary finished typing, before standing and putting the laptop back on the table. After a few minutes of silence, Sue finally spoke up, stepping closer to Hilary. "Hilary, do you know what's going on then?"

"Hold on." Hilary began typing again, connecting a cable between her D3 and the laptop. She fiddled with one more thing, before turning the screen towards everyone, showing what appeared to be a map with two blinking dots near the top and bottom.

"This is a map of Detroit. With my D3 hooked up, I've been able to get a general idea of where Emily and Max are. However, if all those Adult signals are more Devidramon, then we have a problem. They both might already be fighting, and these kind of numbers are something we can not handle."

"Then we have to help them!" Sue stepped closer, clutching her D3 close to her chest. "What if those big meanies have already attacked Max and Emily?!"

"You said Tsukaimon's signal was weak, right? What if she's already been hurt?! Emily might be in danger!" Greg burst out, stepping closer himself.

"I understand, but we need to plan this carefully. Even if they aren't Devidramon, if all those Adults are here and against us, we'll have trouble. If we split up, we should..."

"No." Erin interrupted, gaining everyone's attention. "Kabuterimon and Floramon's Adult form should be enough to keep you safe, right?" Watching the young Digi-Destined give a nod, he continued swiftly. "Alright, then you three go after Max. I'll help Emily."

"Hey, who put you in charge?! Besides, your not the only one who wants to make sure she's safe, you know!" Greg shouted again.

"Erin, you shouldn't go alone anyway! What if you get hurt or something?!" Sue protested, concern in her voice.

"Actually... He may have a good idea." Hilary jumped in, gaining a surprised look from Sue and Greg both. "His Dramon Destroyers give him a distinct advantage against Devidramon, or any other Dramon who might be involved. He could also reach her by flight faster then we could. It would only burden him down to have to carry someone else, while Kabuterimon shouldn't have a problem with us three, plus Gomamon and Yashamon."

Greg sputtered as his sister agreed with Erin's plan, trying to find some flaw in it, while Searchmon de-evolved back into Kunemon again. Sue looked between the older boy and younger girl, before giving a soft sigh.

"Well, you take care then, alright?" Sue leaned up, giving a quick peck on Erin's cheek, bringing a dark enough flush to his cheeks to be noticable in the faint light. "If you don't come back fine, you'll answer to me, got it?"

Erin blinked for a moment, then smiled faintly. "It's a promise."

Hilary looked the map over a moment, before adjusting something onto it, bringing a small dot near the center. "Erin, this is where we are, alright?" She barely paused, pointing to the dot before continuing. "You'll need to go two streets east, then turn left and go straight. I don't have a pinpoint signal, so try and watch for Twelve Mile. Once you're there, you should be able to track Emily down with some searching."

Nodding, Erin barely listened as HIlary began explaining the flight plan they would take to Max, getting some assistance from Sue on where Greg lived, since it seemed it be close to the signal. After everything was worked out, they all walked back downstairs, the main room empty now, with all the residents having fled to undamaged rooms.

Hilary helf the laptop on one arm, typing slowly with the other. "Alright. It's agreed then. We'll all meet up back here once we find our friends and plan our next move from there." As everyone nodded, the young girl took her D3, holding it out towards Kunemon, as the small insect slipped into the rain. After a flash of light, Kabuterimon stood in Kunemon's place.

The three Digi-Destined quickly ran out, Sue and Greg grabbing ahold of each of her legs with their partners in tow, while HIlary climbed into one of the blue insect's hands. Erin watched, before giving a yell as he turned himself back into Black War Humon.

"Erin!" Stepping out into the rain, Black War Humon turned his head back towards Sue. "I have my cell! If you can, find a way to call me once you find Emily, alright?"

Erin smiled, giving a nod to the girl, as Kabuterimon's wings began to flutter. Despite the falling rain, the big, blue bug was airborne in almost no time, swiftly flying south. Turning towards the street, the sound of feet caught his attention, looking back to see two of the children that lived in the building staring at him.

"Mr. Erin?" The young boy asked, absently tugging at his shirt, which was a couple sizes too big for him. "Is that you?"

Sighing softly, he nodded, remaining where he was. "Yes, it's me Jacob."

The young girl stepped up behind Jacob, moving his bushy hair off his shoulder as she stood behind him. "You're gonna go fight the monsters, aren't you?"

"Right, Crystal. I have friends out there I need to make sure are still safe. If I find any monsters, I plan to make sure they don't hurt anyone." He turned slightly, waving his gauntlet at the siblings. "Now you two get back to your parents. They'll get worried about you."

The pair nodded, before running back towards the stairs. As Jacob continued up, Crystal paused, looking back again. "Mr. Erin? I'm sorry about Mr. Southerlan. That was mean of him to yell at you. Good Luck!" She quickly took off up the stairs after her brother.

Black War Humon smiled faintly as the girl ran out of earshot. "Thanks, kiddo." He said softly to himself.

Turning back towards the dark street, he glared into the pitch black, watching as flashes of lightning began to light up the area. "Storm's getting worse. Better get on my way!" With a yell, Black War Humon took to the air, shooting down the street.

***********

ToyAgu ~ Wow, seems like they have their hands full!

Rocker ~ It would seem that way, wouldn't it? ^_^

Flora ~ *giggles softly* Yes, it would. So next time, Erin continues on, searching for Emily in a city of total darkness! And to make matters worse, he ends up getting a couple of surprises along the way. Find out who and what they are, next time, in the next chapter of Dark Diaries!