Candelabra's lighted.

Satan has been sighted.

Never has there been an evening like...

This is what they wanted.

Always to feel haunted.

Rasputina-- Transylvanian Concubine



"Wow!" Mimi gasped. "This place is so beautiful!"

"And familiar." Tk said, as he shivered. He pulled the navy blue jacket he was wearing, over him more tightly.

"I'm freezing." Sora said, as she looked at the outfit she was wearing. "And I look like Sailor Moon!"

"Yeah, now that you mention it, these outfits do kinda look like the ones they wore, but without that tacky bow in the back." Mimi said, as she slammed her oddly shaped staff into the ground. It looked more like a silver scythe with a knife at the bottom though. There was an amber jewel, the size of a fist right in the middle of the blade.

"But, I'm freezing!" Sora repeated, as her teeth chattered. "This thing doesn't have enough materiel to make a hair elastic!" her weapon, which Izzy was holding, was a long, slender pole, with what looked like a large opal, that cris-crossed, and plummeted down the middle. There was also a stone in hers, but it was shaped like a sun, and was blue.

"Maybe we can ask one of the people in those houses over there, if we can rest for a few hours." Matt suggested. His staff was a massive spiral that went straight, in just a little area, where he could grasp it. There was a floating crystal at the top, which gave off a pleasant warmth, and was a deep green.

Joe has been silent since they arrived in the strange world. He was bus looking at his staff, and pondering what they did. His was shaped more like Sora's, than anybody else's. But instead of having a type of symbol at the top, it looked as if the top of his had been split in four, and just drooped. But the four parts that stuck out, were covering in spikes. The spikes surrounded an orange gem, which was shaped like a tear drop.

"Well, let's not stay here and turn into popsicles. The wind is picking up, and I'm kinda chilly myself." Izzy said, as he used his weapon as a walking stick. His was like a giant lightening bolt that was rigid and jagged. Like Matt's there was a small area, where he could grasp his, without hurting his hand. His stone was practically shoved into his staff, and it gave off a purple glow.

"But we don't know if those houses have humans in them." Tai argued, as he fidgeted with his pole, that was exactly like Mimi's, except it had four scythes, and had a yellow stone.

"We'll have to take our chances." Tk said. "But don't you guys get the feeling we've been here before? I mean. This place gives off these vibes." his weapon was very plain. It looked like a javelin, with a circle in the middle. Mostly, to hold his pink stone.

"I don't remember this place." Izzy said, as he looked at the small village. It was terribly worn down, and looked deserted.

"Maybe there's somebody in one of those houses." Mimi ventured. "Look. The windows are open." she said, as she pointed to the town.

"Let's get going then." Tai said, as he slipped his arm around Mimi's waist, ad pulled her close to his side. She giggled lightly, as she leaned in, and kissed his cheek.

Matt clenched at his long staff tightly. He was very close to snapping it in half practically. He had to take several deep breaths, to calm himself.

Mimi and Tai were blinded by it. They didn't see the look of loath in his face, as they walked past him. Or they didn't pick up on the hurt in his eyes as they kissed. They were just blind to it. But everyone else caught onto it.

They strode aimlessly through the dirt streets, gazing up at the buildings. There were people in the town. But they were all safely hidden in their beat up old houses.

It was odd though. As they walked along the main road, the people in the houses, scrambled to their windows, to get a better look. But upon seeing them, a huge gasp was heard through the quiet little town, and the people began shutting their windows quickly. Some made the sign of the cross as they passed.

"What the hell is going on?" Tai asked, since he was in the lead. A small boy, maybe four years old, ran out in front of them. His panicking mother rushed out, moments later, snatched him up, and ran into the house, barricading it behind him.

"I have no clue." Matt muttered, as he continued walking, looking up at the houses.

"The Infinites..." they heard an elder woman gasp. They all turned their heads, and looked up from where the crackling voice came from. They heard the window slam shut, and someone scurrying down a flight of stairs.

Almost immediately, the wooden front door swung open, revealing a stout, aged woman, with long silvery white hair, pulled back into a bonnet.

"Come in!" she cried joyfully. "I've been waiting for you, for so long!"

"Do we know you?" Tk asked, as he was shoved in a comfortable wicker chair.

The whole hose looked as if it was constructed from a history book. The interior looked as if it were from the Renaissance. There was a small fire place, with ash and soot covering everything near it. There wasn't much furniture though. A few chairs, and a table.

"I'm so sorry for the mess. I had no idea you would be arriving today!"

"No." Sora said politely. "Thank you for not shutting us out. We were freezing."

"Oh!" the woman cried mournfully. "I beg you. Take mercy on the others. They do not mean to make you angry! They are just scared!" she said, dropping to her knees, and bowing. Her nose touching the dusty cobblestone floor.

"We have no intention of hurting them!" Joe said taken aback.

"Thank you. You are to kind." she said standing up.

"Why did you think we would hurt them?" Matt asked, as he twirled his long staff in between his fingers.

"Because!" the woman exploded. "You are the Infinites!"

"The what's?" Tai asked.

"The Infinites! The Infinites boy!" she said, as if she knew something they were supposed to.

When she saw the look of complete confusement on their faces, she sighed. "You don't know who you are."

"No." Izzy said. "But since you seem to, may you please explain?"

"Those in your hand." she said pointing to Tk's. "Are the 7 Ecliptic Stars."

"These sticks?" Joe asked.

"No. The jewels in the sticks. The weapons alone are practically just ordinary farming equipment without the gems." she suddenly got an idea. "Wait here for a moment." she said, as she dashed back up the stairs.

You would think for an older woman like herself, running would be extremely hard, if not impossible, but for her, she acted like she was a ten-year-old trapped in a ninety-year old's body.

She reappeared a minute later, heaving a huge book. "This will explain it all!"

"Who are you?" Mimi asked. She had hidden her weapon from the elder woman, for fear it might give her a heart-attack. But after seeing that she wasn't scared, she brought it out while she was searching for the book.

"My name is Nova." she said not looking up, as she grabbed a candle. "I am... AH!" she screamed, as she dropped the light, and stumbled backward.

"What's wrong?" Mimi asked worriedly, as she stood up.

"Keep away from me!" she said pointing at her staff.

Mimi noticed at what she was pointing at. "This?" she asked baffled.

"Yes!" Nova cried, as she scrambled up, and faced Mimi. "You're holding the Mourning Star!"

"The what star?" she asked.

"The Mourning Star! Don't you know what it can do?"

"No." Mimi said in a small voice.

"That, my dear, could kill civilizations in an instant!" Nova said snapping her fingers.

"What?" Mimi said feeling sick.

"If you swing that blade, you will bring about the destruction of the world!" Nova said shacking her. "You must promise to never swing that weapon! Promise me!"

"I promise." Mimi said scared. "I don't want to kill anybody!"

"Come here." Tai said motioning for her. She shuffled over to his arms, and collapsed into them. "I'll give you mine."

"No! You mustn't switch!" Nova cried. "Each star, has been given to you, and only you!"

"What does that mean exactly?" Matt asked. "Does it mean that my weapon, won't work if Tk uses it?"

"Exactly!" Nova said smiling.

"What's my stone called?" Izzy asked. "And what are its powers?"

"You have the Firebolt. A gem capable of controlling anything electric. Mainly the sky's lightening." Nova said in awe, as she gazed at Izzy.

"And mine?" Joe asked.

"The Water Nymph. Controls anything aquatic."

After a long session of questions, they had found out what their staff did, and what the gem on it did.

Tai had something called Liquid Air, which controlled anything to do with the sky.

Tk's was called Mother Nature, and had the power to manipulate the earth.

Matt's was dubbed, Metal Psyche, because it could take over people's minds, but if they were under his control for too long, they would turn to metal statues.

Finally, Sora's was called Galactic Impression, because it held all the power of the stars.

Together, they were called the Infinites. The most elite team in all the universe. Each holder, was special, because only they could call upon the powers of their gems, and in the wrong hands, they would be noting more than a fancy piece of jewelry.

Nova then explained to them, why they were sent to this world. In her opinion, to save them, but others thought they were there to destroy their world, like they did so many others.

Their conversation lasted long into the night, and after a while, they all felt extremely tired.

"Please. Feel free to stay here. I would be honored." Nova said pleasantly. Not even time seemed to have an effect on her cheery attitude.

"Thank you very much Nova." Mimi said on behalf of all the Digidestined.

"Please. Make yourselves at home." she said, as she open a closet, and pulled out a pile of sheets.

Joe was wondering around, looking at all the small possessions the Nova had in her small hut. A few small bottles, filled with different colored sand. A rock collection with smooth, multicolored stones, that had beautiful patterns on all of them.

He then came to a wall that was completely bare, except for one picture of a beautiful woman, in her late teens. She was wearing a low-cut, midnight blue dress. The same color as her hair, which was flowing off the dainty shoulders. Her eyes, were the exact same color as her hair and outfit.

"Hey! How's the babe?" he asked as he gazed at it more clearly. She was holding something like their staffs, but it was covered in jewels. Much like herself.

"Who Joe?" Tai asked as he approached what he was looking at. His jaw almost fit the ground. "That's her!" he cried. "That's the girl who was keeping me sick!"

"What?" Sora said, as she rushed into the room. She was being followed by Mimi and Nova.

"Who my dear?" Nova asked. Tai pointed to the picture. "Oh my." Nova said quietly.

"Who is she Nova? Tell me please!" Tai begged.

"That, is Satanica Spiral. The ruler of this dismal place." Nova said bitterly.

"Spiral. What an unusual last name." Izzy stated.

"That's not her real last name Izzy." Nova said. "She took it up. Said life was only a downward spiral into hell." she said sourly. "And she's right."

"She's a witch though!" Tai said hastily. "She was doing something to my mind!"

"Yes. Satanica likes to do that type of thing. Pick a handsome young man, and toy with them. And when she grows weary of them, she executes them. How, none of us know. But they're never seen again."

"That's horrible!" Mimi said she squeezed Tai's arm. "Why does she do that?" she asked, fearing for Tai's safety.

"Because she can." Nova said simply. "She can do whatever she wants, and nobody can do a thing about it." she looked remorseful, as she reached into a small bureaux, made of hardwood. "This was my brother. Damien." she said showing them a picture of a dashing 20-year-old man.

"What happened?" Tk asked.

"When Damien hit 20 years of age, Satanica's family took him from mine. They brought him to their castle, and he never came out again. Oh corse, Satanica was only a baby then, but her family was still very powerful. They thought that he would be a fine suitor for her, even at her age." she sighed heavily, as a tear rolled down her wrinkled face.

She took a seat on her couch, and placed the picture back in a drawer. Matt handed her a cloth, which she accepted, and dried her eyes.

"Satanica was always very strong. Her powers exceeded her our families, a thousand folds. So they did what she wanted. Always. But ever since she was a toddler, she has wanted the same thing. Someone to love. She has taken almost every man in this village, but none have seemed to please her."

"But what would she want with me?" Tai asked. "She knows that I'm with Mimi."

"She likes things she can't have. The more forbidden, the more she wants it. You wouldn't believe all the women she has widowed."

"Those poor men." Sora said.

"Tai, listen to me." Nova said. "I have seen what Satanica can do. What you say she did to you, happened to Damien. I don't want you to suffer the same fate as him."

"I won't." he said stubbornly. "Listen. You don't have to worry about me. I can take care of myself. Besides I have Liquid Air. I'll be fine." he said reassuringly.

"Still. I suggest you stay in my house." Nova said. "She can't come into any of our houses. We had a witch doctor put a curse on the front door, and all the windows."



"Mistress Spiral. He is here." Sinclair said bowing. "So are his other friends. Shall I take care of them?"

"No. Let me do that." Satanica said. "I want the pleasure of watching the look on his face, when I eliminate all he holds dear to him. Starting with her." she said pointing at Sora.

"As you wish. Shall I fetch him for you?"

"Don't bother. Let my army do it. They are quite capable."

"I shall ready them your highness." Sinclair said bowing again.

"Oh, before you leave, tell me this. Is she ready?"

"Yes. She has been rejuvenating for quite some time now. She's at her highest point right now. Shall we send her as well?"

"No. Save her for the fun. Might as well cause a lot of pain and suffering as this proceeds. I am in dire need of some fun."

"Yes Mistress Spiral."

"Oh, and Sinclair." she said calmly. "My lord..."

"Will not be harmed." he reassured her, as he began walking away. He suddenly stopped, and faced her again. "Beg my pardon your majesty, but are you sure he is the one?"

"Yes." she said smiling. "I am positive this time. He has something that none of the others had. And everything this one does, makes me even more sure. He is the one!"

"Is it you will that he is brought here?" Sinclair asked.

"It is my will." she said haughtily.

"Then your will shall be followed through." she said, as he shut the door to the master chamber, and took off through the winding castle, off the army base.

"You are the one Tai." she said, looking at him through a new mirror. He had his arm around Mimi, holding her close to him, and occasionally kissing her cheek.

Even though this made her burn with intense anger and jealously, it made her feel good.

"Soon, you will be giving that love of yours with me." she said smiling. "Every last ounce of it." just that thought alone, made her whole body tingle. She jumped from her thrown, and dashed off madly to her chambers.

There, she threw herself on her bed, and squealed with joy. "We will be so happy together." she said talking to a picture of him she conjured up. "I can give you things, you've only dreamed of." she said as she hugged one of her silk pillows. "Power. Fortune. Prestige. Love." she said listing the things.

Someone knocked at her door. "Who is it?" she asked contentedly.

"It's me." a feminine voice said through the thick doors.

"Come in." she said, as she sat up, still clutching onto the pillow. "It is nice to see you again. I thought that it was the end of you."

"As did I." she said sitting down. She then smiled at her friend. "I heard you have chosen the new king. And I have come here to offer my felicitations. I know he will be a powerful ruler."

"He shall." she agreed. "I have something to ask you." she said slightly embarrassed. Her face had turned slightly darker with a maroon blush. "Have you ever been in love?"

Her friend chuckled heartily. "Why? Is her majesty in love with someone?"

"I think I am." she said. "Tai." she said sighing his name. "There is something about him that makes me loose all my sense. I mean, when I was preparing him for this world. I had to Tag him."

"And a smart move at that Satanica." her friend said as she passed a hand through her brow hair.

"But the anguish in his eyes. When I saw him in the pain I was causing him, it nearly killed me. I just wanted to snap it away, and never make him feel that way again."

"Go on."

"And later, when he was in the hospital, I was just playing with him. You know, what I normally do, but somehow, it was different. He just wouldn't give in." she said flustered, as she looked at the pillow she was clutching. "But then I kissed him." she said smiling at the memory.

"I suspect you Iced him."

"I did." she said. "But something happened."

"What is it Satanica!?" her friend said excitedly.

"While I was kissing him, something warm just filled me from top to bottom. It was this, unexplainable sensation, but after I broke away, I thought my body would stop functioning. Like we had to be together, for me to keep going."

"Nothing but lust my dear cousin."

"It was more than that though. I have dealt with lust in the past. This was more of a need."

"I cannot sympathize with you. I have never felt what you are describing."

"Oh, it's the most glorious feeling in the whole world." she cooed, as she fell back on her gigantic bed. "And then he kissed me."

"He kissed you! Do tell!" her cousin said excitedly.

"Well, he really didn't kiss me, because I kinda tricked him, but still, he didn't pull away. He just took me in his strong arms, and held me tightly. I could have passed out right then and there." she sighed. "And he said he loved me, and it made my head spin. I felt so sick from happiness that I was going to burst!"

"Well who did you disguise yourself as?" she asked. "I know all to well how you trap your victims."

"That brat Mimi." Satanica snapped. "She doesn't even love him! Not the way I do! But he still sees her. It makes me so angry!" she said throwing the pillow at her large vanity.

"Then destroy her. I've seen you do it before, why not now?"

"Because. They're the Infinites. And you know what that means, and why I can't."

"Yes. I understand. Is she the one?"

"Yes." Satanica said dully.

"Then she must be the last one we take out. She will grow weak without anyone."

"I know. That's why we're going for the other girl first. She has the Galactic Impression. I can easily defeat that." she said playing with a string of blue beads on her necklace.

"Now. I, must be off now dear cousin. I have seen the Infinites, and I must prepare myself for their arrival.

"Cousin. Do any of them please you? I have no need for all of them."

"One does please my grace. The holder of Metal Psyche."

"Then inform the army they are not to hurt my Lord or yours."

"You are most kind cousin." she said as she curtsied, and breezed out of her room.

"Soon Matt. We will be together again." she said, as she opened her door, and walked into her room.



Now. Goodnight to you all." Nova said, as she blew out the candle. "Best dreams."

"You to Nova." Tai said, as he lay his head down on the pillow.

"Sweet dreams Tai." Mimi whispered as she kissed him.

"Oh corse. You'll be in them." he said as he smiled at her, and pulled her closer to him.

Mimi snuggled under his chin, and rested her head on his shoulder. His long brown hair rested lightly on her forehead as she slept peacefully. He slowly crept his hand over to hers, and held it tightly.

Mimi's amber eyes fluttered open, as she looked at the shining moon outside. It was giving off a pleasant glow, which illuminated the night, revealing the neat arrangement of houses.

Tai's breath was tickling the top of her head, so she gently pulled away, and gazed at his face.

It had been such a long time since she had watched him sleep. He was always so peaceful. So fragile. So defenseless. But she could still feel his love for her. Awake or asleep, it was always there. Never dying. Never-ending.

"Tai." she whispered so lightly, it sounded like a quiet breeze. "I don't want her to take you. I don't want you to ever leave me. I care about you too much for that. I would just die without you with me." she then kissed his cheek, and placed her head back in its comfortable position.

"I would die without you too." he whispered back to her, kissing her head. She squeezed him tensely, as she shut her eyes.

Just then, as the Digidestined were almost into a deep sleep, a piercing scream echoed through the roads.

Everyone's heads shot up, and the jewels from their weapons shone brightly. At once, they soared across the room, to their respectable owners.

They all piled out of the house. Looking for where the scream had been heard. "Who did that?" asked Tk. His heart was racing, but he was still groggy.

"I don't know!" Izzy said a little on edge. He was ready to strike at any second.

"Over here Infinites." said a demonic voice. Their heads spun around to the direction where the voice had come.

Standing in front of them, were skeletons. Each had on a thin sheet of armor, and they were all holding large swords.

They saw through the rows of dead warriors, a small girl, that was captured, one of the soldiers had his boney covering her small mouth.

"Let her go!" Mimi cried.

"Make us." the leader crackled again. He let out a horrific laugh, which sent shivers up their spines. "Attack!" he screamed suddenly.

At once, a hoard of un-dead demons came charging at them. All the Ecliptic Stars shone again, empowering them.

"Fight back!" Tai bellowed, as Liquid Air took over his body. He felt a surge of energy corse through his veins, as he charged face first into the battle.

His eyes almost glowed as his staff connected with the sword of a skeleton. With a mighty swipe, Tai had sliced the demon in three. Each part falling to the ground. The once soldier was reduced to a pile of bones.

One by one, the Digidestined began to feel their stone take over them. The captain of the army, being obviously the smartest one, kept the soldier with the young girl in hands, back, out of harms way.

After their fierce battle, everyone was panting hard, wiping away some traces of blood, or rubbing a sore area of their body.

Tai, who had a large, bleeding gash on his forehead, spoke first. "Let her go!"

The captain, spoke first. "Our mistress requests your presence at her castle. You are to come with us at once."

"You think we'll go with you after you swarm us with you minions?" Matt exploded. "I don't think so!" his left arm was bleeding from a cut he had gotten, because he had been careless.

"We knew this would be a problem." the soldier with the girl said. Mimi looked at them. The child was crying furiously, and her tears were wetting the skeleton who was holding her. Even from the far distance they were, she could see her trembling.

"Guards!" the captain shouted. At once, all piles of bones on the floor, began to piece themselves back together.

"Not again!" Izzy cried, as he ducked. A sword barely missing his right ear.

But instead of rebuilding each skeleton separately, they merged, into six monstrous soldiers. Each skeleton seemed to have picked one Digidestined. Everyone had someone to fight, except Mimi.

"Quick!" Sora yelled. "Save the kid!" she was then pinned to the ground by her attacker. The other soon fell as well.

"Ah. The Mourning Star." the leader snapped.

"Please let her go." Mimi said as she approached him.

"You'll have to fight me." he snickered.

"I don't want to, but I will." Mimi bit back, as she lunged herself at him. Since she wasn't allowed to swing her weapon, she brought it back, and stabbed the captain with the knife at the bottom. It just tore through his bones, and he fell to pieces.

But before he fell down defeated, he smirked. "Kill her." he instructed the other warrior.

"No!" Mimi screamed, but it was too late. A deafening snap run through her mind, as the small girl fell to the ground in a heap. Mimi rushed over to her, picking her up. She cradled her in her arms, but it was no use. He had snapped her neck.

She glared up, tears blinding her, but the skeleton had vanished. Along with her friends.

Mimi looked up, letting the child rest forever. She spied the area, looking for them. "Tai!" she yelled. "Matt! Sora! Anyone!" she said breaking down in tears. She threw her staff to the ground. The dull thud of it, made her cry even more. "Where are you?"



"Where the hell are we?" Matt demanded. There was a bright white bandage tied around his arm, stopping the blood flow slightly.

"I have no clue." Tk muttered. "But I know I've been here before!"

"Correct as usual Takeru." Satanica spoke. She had just appeared on her thrown.

"What do you want with us?" Sora asked. There were no bandages on her, and her slash across her stomach was still bleeding.

"Nothing at all." she said carelessly, as she gazed at her guests, who were lined up in a row. "Well, at least not you anyway."

"Where's Mimi?" Tai demanded. His gash was completely gone. "What have you done to her?"

"Nothing." Satanica said hurt. "I haven't even touched her."

"Cousin, stop playing!" called a shrilled voice. "Just cut to the point already!" Matt's eyes opened wide. The voice rang in his head over and over again.

"Fine cousin dearest." she spat. "Welcome home my Lord." she said bowing at Tai. He suddenly levitated and his bindings were removed.

"What?" Joe said astonished.

"I am not your lord!" Tai barked viciously.

"Oh you are." Satanica said coyly. "One way or another, you will be mine!" "Never!" he shouted. Just then, Satanica raised her arm, and closed her fist. When she opened it again, there was a small piece of yellow glass in it.

"You managed to get it out." she said angrily. "No matter. I'll just place it back in again."

"No." Tai begged. But she didn't listen. The small piece of glass flew back into his right eye, causing him to scream out in pain, and fall limply to the ground.

"Tai!" everyone screamed. But he began to stir, and he sat up.

"Welcome my Lord." Satanica said again, as Tai walked over to her.

"My Lady." he whispered, as he kissed her hand. She then pulled them up the thrones. She pulled off the plush velvet cape, and pinned it to his back, tying it with its golden clasp. A crown of brightly selected jewels was now lying on the seat.

With a wave of her hand, it flew on top of Tai's head, and her own crown appeared. They sat down, gazing at the mystified Digidestined. Tai's right eye, the one with the shard of glass, had turned a bright red, with orange and yellow specks.

"What have you done to him?" Izzy demanded.

"Made him who he really is." Satanica said as her eyes flashed with happiness. "Cousin, you may have you pick."

Just then, a girl wearing a burgundy dress, exactly like Satanica's came out of the shadows. Everyone gasped.

"Casey!" Matt muttered, as she leaned over him.

"Lor!" Tk said bitterly.

"Yes." she said, as she touched Matt's shoulder. He levitated like Tai. "I have made my selection."

"Very good. But he will still participate in the activities, will he not?" Tai asked. His voice had completely changed. Even though it still sounded like him, everyone could pick up on the evil that was beaded into it.

Satanica glared at Tk. "You are still pondering about this place." she told him. "I'll give you a hint." Sinclair then appeared.

"You knew me best as the kindly old Mayor Bea Ellsabut." she said laughing. Tk, suddenly felt sick.

"I know where we are..."

"Welcome back." Satanica said laughing.

"To hell..." Tk said weakly.




Spiral is their master.

Cackling with laughter.

Now she's having just one piece of...

Cakey is their make-up.

Catholics try to shake up.

All the things that form their lives.

But they're dead.

Rasputina-- Transylvanian Concubine




"They're gone." Mimi sobbed, as Nova tended to the wound on her back. "They're gone because of me!"

"Don't say that Mimi!" Nova hissed. "This is the work of Satanica! She will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Nothing can stand in her way!"

"They killed a little girl." Mimi cried. "She didn't do anything to them, but they still killed her!"

"Mimi, you can't blame yourself for that!"

"But it's true..." she wept. "Now I know why Matt couldn't count on me! Nobody can!"

"Mimi." Nova said viciously, as she spun her around. "Satanica Spiral is pure evil. She would stab her own mother in the back, if it meant she'd get what she wanted! You had no control over what happened, and you couldn't have stopped it!"

"But she was so small."

"Small or not, we can't do anything about it. But if I was you, I'd stop worrying about it. You have to save your friends!"

"You're right Nova." she whispered, as she dried her tears. "I have to help them!"

"Now listen to me child," Nova warned "Satanica uses a lot of mind games. No matter what you're seeing, no matter how horrible it is, chances are it's a hallucination."

"Thank you." Mimi stated, as she got up, and grabbed the Mourning Star. She dashed out the door, and ran as fat as she could to Satanica's colossal mansion.

She didn't take breathers, because t only slowed her down, and she had quite a motivation. The man she loved was being held prisoner there, and she had no clue what Satanica would do to him.

'Please be all right.' she prayed. 'All of you.'



"Hell..." Sora quivered. "What do you mean hell?"

"Remember when we found Matt's stone?" he said, his azure eyes never looking away from his captors. "Well, to make a long story short, we were really in hell, disguising itself as an actual place."

"Very good memory little one." Lor said, as she walked over to him. "My! How you've grown! Almost the spitting image of your brother! If I ever grow tired of him, I will be sure to put in a request for you!"

Tk lunged at her, but the shackles holding his wrists, legs and mid drift, were keeping him well restrained.

"Cousin." Satanica bellowed as she held Tai's hand. "You may tag him after the festivities. I want to see how long he can last!" her eyes flashed in the fire lit room.

"My queen." Tai exclaimed, still bringing shivers to the Digidestined's backs. "What shall be done with the holder of the Mourning Star? She has still not arrived."

"She is mine." she barked. "I want the pleasure in destroying her myself. She shall pay dearly. I can tell you that!"

"Leave her alone!" Matt demanded.

Satanica smiled. "Ah yes! I remember you." she said walking over to him, as Tai followed close behind. "I thought you were the original Lord of this land. The hatred in your heart made you an easy target. But you gave in too easily."

"She sent me to clarify it." Lor stated. "And her assumptions were correct."

"I don't care about that." he snarled. "I swear, if you harm one hair on Mimi's head, I'll kill you!"

"Not if I kill her first!" Satanica snapped. "Don't go around making threats you can't keep boy! It'll only get you punished!" she said slapping his face hard.

Matt's bottom lip began to bleed, but it didn't matter to him. "But I will keep that threat." Matt stated. "I will use every last ounce of strength in my body, to make sure you pay."

"How dare you raise your voice to the queen?!" Tai gasped, as he took Liquid Air in his hand, and smashed it across the side of his face, with incredible speed and accuracy.

Matt's body slumped to the floor. "Matt!" Tk cried, as he tried to move closer to his injured brother.

Matt groaned, as his head lobbed up, his whole cheek was bleeding, and bruised.

"Next time I will kill you!" Tai bit sourly. "Come my love." he said holding out his hand. Satanica grabbed it tightly, and the two swept out of the room gracefully.

"Let the games begin!" Tai shouted, as the two doors the great hall slammed shut.

"What are they going to do with us?" Joe whispered.

"I don't know." Izzy said extremely worried. But their questions were soon answered. Three large, swirling portals oped on the floor in front of them. A powerful wind kicked up, sucking them into separate holes.

They all screamed, as they fell into a pit of darkness, but the only thing louder than their screams, were Tai and Satanica's evil laughing.



Something odd was happening to Mimi. She had been running for over an hour, and her lungs were burning. She decided to take a quick breather.

She was leaning against a tall stone grey building, inhaling deeply. She was several miles from any type of civilization, and he was tired. Her heart was racing in her chest, and her whole body was going to collapse. Her legs were like jelly, and she could barely support herself.

She closed her eyes, still breathing hard. Out of nowhere, something cold hit her face. Her eye flew open, just in time to see thousands of tiny white snowflakes fall from the sky. They soon littered the ground, covering everything in a thick blanket of snow.

"This is just great." Mimi muttered, as she continued running, so she didn't get caught in a downpour.



"Sora! Sora wake up!" Joe said, lightly hitting her face.

"What..." she grumbled, as she opened her eyes. Her head was spinning, and her leg had a sharp pain rushing through it.

"Where are we?" he asked. "It's certainly not the castle!"

"Joe!" Sora said panicking. "I can't see anything!"

"What?" he said pulling her face up to his, and pulling apart her eyelid. Sora's whole eye was pure white. No pupil or iris at all. He gasped in shock.

"What is it? Tell me!" she said hysterically.

"Sora," he gasped "you have no eye!"

"What!" she said trembling. She lost the puny grip she had on Galactic Impression, and it fell to the ground dully. She quickly scrambled to recover it, and grasped it tightly.

"I'm so sorry." Joe said weakly, as he placed Water Nymph to his side, and took her in his arms. She began crying loudly.

Sora's head shot up instantly. "What was that?"

"What was what?" he said dumbfounded.

"That sound..." she whispered. "Joe behind you!" she screeched, as a giant goblin shot out of a bush. He had a large Samurai sword, and it was arched directly for Joe's head.

Within a heartbeat, Joe had his weapon in hand, and had blocked the shot sent straight at him.

The gem on his staff, began glowing brighter and brighter as the battle continued. Soon, the aura of orange, was circling the whole area.

"By order of her majesty Spiral, you are to be killed!" his hissed like a snake. It's large, bulging green ears began twitching feverishly every time he swung his sword.

"Well that's not going to happen any time soon!" he said bravely, as his tear shaped Ecliptic Star almost shattered. Water droplets began swarming around him and Sora, like a force field. The four, long, spiky attachment, began to turn blue, and the water began to flow to it.

The goblin began quivering, and he dropped his sword, and began running fast, as if he knew what was going to happen. Just then, Joe's body filled with a sense of determination, and he pointed the staff, right in its direction.

"Boom!" he grinned mischievously, as an unheard of amount of water flew from the top, and followed the demon, until it hit him, square in the back.

It dissolved almost instantly, as its lifeless body hit the ground with a thud. The barriers of water that were surrounding them immediately fell to the ground, soaking them and causing rather large puddles of mud. One, in particularly which Sora was sitting in.

"Sora." Joe cried, as he rushed over, and helped her up. Her outfit was horribly stained with mud and blood.

"Joe." she said eerily. "Something's different." she stated plainly. "I can see."

"But that's impossible!" he almost shouted. "Sora, you have no eye!"

"But I can see things." she said, as her long weapon began to glow like his. "Something is going to happen to us. And it's not going to be pretty."

"What do you mean?" he asked her.

"We will fail. The dead shall re-die. People we love will be lost to us forever." her eyes were glowing the exact same color as her jewel.

"Sora snap out of it!" Joe said shaking her. "You're freaking me out!"



"My turn." Satanica said, as Tai kissed her hand.

"Have fun my queen." he smiled. His eye blazing like the fire that was lit next to them.



"Sora please! Stop this!" Joe begged. Her head fell to her chest, and shot up moments later.

"What?" she said groggily. Her eyes returned to their normal amber color.

"Nothing." he muttered. "But there's something up with these Ecliptic Stars."

"How so?" she said, as she sat down, and held her head.

"I think in order for them to actually work. They have to take over your body. The feeling I got when I was holding Water Nymph, was outstanding! Every part of me wanted to see that monster die, and then it just happened."

"How very correct you are." Satanica stated. "They act on your deepest urges! Their power only unleashed when the holder is at his or her peak!"

Joe and Sora instinctively held up their weapons, ready to strike. "Get away from us!" Sora said menacingly.

"Dear." she said simply. "You can't do anything to me. At least not with that pathetic weapon!"

"Sora." Joe whispered. "Attack on three."

"Three, two," she whispered quietly, as their stones began to shimmer. "ONE!" she screamed, as the gems let off a blinding light.

"What!" Satanic cried, as a forceful blast of water collided with her rib cage, followed by a series of slicing stars.

She cried out in anguish, as she fell to the ground. Almost every square inch of her was soaked and her arms and legs were badly cut. She glared up viciously, as she stood up. Joe and Sora were gasping hard, because the attack had drained them, of almost all their energy.

"That will be your downfall!" she screamed, as she let out a powerful blast from her own staff. The shot missed them, because it was aimed for the sky, directly above their heads. The shot then exploded into two large rectangles, with a hollowed out center.

"What the hell are those?" Joe asked fearfully. He was so weak that Water Nymph fell from his hands.

"I don't know." Sora whispered, as Galactic Impression slipped from her grasp.

The two rectangles suddenly fell, and landed around them. A spark flew out, hitting both of them, paralyzing them completely.

"It was fun while it lasted Infinites." Satanica spat, as the rectangles slowly began to rise, erasing all that they covered.

"Joe!" Sora screamed, as the frame became filled in. A picture of herself sitting on a chair was all that remained of her.

"Is that what's gonna happen to me?" Joe asked as the frame kept rising. He felt the pieces of himself being picked apart, and glue onto the type of pallet.

"Just about." Satanica said, as she waved her hand over her body, fixing herself. The other painting fell to the ground.

She waved her arm carelessly, making the pictures disappear. The scoffed as she realized how easy it was to beat them.

'I thought that the Infinites would be a little more of a challenge.' she thought, as she stepped back to her castle.

Tai was sitting on his thrown, grinning at the two new additions to their house. They were floating in mid air, Sora on the left, Joe on the right.

"Very well done my love." he said sweeping her into his arms and kissing her passionately.

"Do you give in yet?" she asked him hopefully.

"No. Not yet." he replied, as he kissed her neck. "But please. Give me time."

"I have all eternity." she whispered, wanting to stay in that exact moment forever.



"Tk, I do believe we have a problem." Izzy stated, as they looked at the thousands of skeletons surrounding them.

"Really! When you figure that out? Before or after we realized we were trapped in the Underworld?" he said sarcastically.

"No need to be snappy!" Izzy smiled as he swung at a soldier that can close to him. He only rebuilt himself.

"What are we going to do?" Tk cried, as he destroyed more warriors, which only came back. They were getting nowhere fast.

"We have to permanently get rid of them!" Izzy said, as he raised Firebolt, and sliced it through the air. "Come this way!" he said, grabbing Tk's arm and pulling him through the small path he had just cleared.

They made it through, and started to dash quickly. Soldiers were popping up everywhere, making it almost impossible to get through.

At long last, they had reached a dead end. The edge of a cliff. The only way out was a long drop, which didn't appeal much to either of the boys.

"That's it." Tk said fed up. "I've had enough of this running. I'm going to fight!" he slammed Mother Nature into the ground, in a fit of anger.

"You're right." Izzy stated, as he held Firebolt tighter. "We have to fight!"

"Well here they come." he said courageously, as his pink gem began to glow. "I'm not running any more."

Just then, the earth irrupted, and caused a giant wall of earth to separate the army from the two Infinites. Tk's staff glowed pink, just like his stone.

Izzy, seeing the determination in his friend's eyes, suddenly felt courageous as well. He grasped at his only weapon, so tightly, he began to draw blood from the jagged edges.

The sky then darkened, and grey clouds, that were almost black rolled over the sunny sky. Rain poured from those clouds, and thunder was soon heard. The purple from his star, was emanating an intense light, which seemed to split the sky in half.

A large bolt of lightening, splintered the tree closest to them, sending the chunks of wood everywhere. Some small pieces, stuck in Izzy and Tk, but neither of the felt it.

Izzy let out a giant yell, as a beam shot out of the top of his staff, and connected with the nearest bolt of lightening. At once, the large bursting sound echoed in the small area, and sped toward the opposite side of the wall.

The skeleton soldiers hollered and bellowed in pain, as the volt hit them, frying them to a crisp. The sky cleared up, as soon as the bolt had hit, and shortly after, the ground began to sink back into its original position.

An unbelievably large amount of ash blew through the area, covering everything its path.

"At least...we... got them." Izzy panted, before he fell to the ground. Tk, since he didn't do much, caught him as he fell.

"My army!" Satanica cried, as she saw what they had done. Tk and Izzy both looked up, to see the beautiful girl, who was talking.

"Tk get out of here!" Izzy cried, as he slumped lower and lower.

"I'm not leaving you!" Tk said, as tears began to form in his eyes.

"I'll only slow you down. Get out. Save yourself!" he panted, as he used Firebolt in an attempt to keep himself standing.

Tk's staff, which hadn't left the ground, suddenly snaked a path over the gorge, large enough of only one person, not to mention it looked as if it wouldn't support a snail.

"Please do run. It makes the hunt so much better!" Satanica laughed.

"Get out!" Izzy screeched, as Tk obeyed, and grabbed his staff. He started to run over the narrow bridge, and couldn't help but look back.

Izzy had a type of picture frame around him, and by the looks of it, it was erasing him. Tk forgot everything Izzy had told him, and raced back to try and save him.

"Leave him alone!" he bellowed, as he jumped the last few steps. By this time, Izzy had completely vanished, and all that was left was a lifelike image of him, holding Firebolt tightly. His hands were covered in blood, as he smiled politely.

"Tell me this, and I might spare your life." she said, as she looking into Tk's blazing eyes. "Why did you come back?"

"Because! Friends don't ever abandon friends in a time of need." he spat. He noticed another frame like Izzy's hovering above his head, but was helpless to do anything.

"What an odd way to look at things." she said, as she touched her chin. "But I have a news flash for you. The only one you can ever count on in life, is yourself."

"This coming from a heartless bitch, I'll take what I have thank you." he said bitterly, as his eye began to glow. The leaves off all trees in the area, promptly twisted themselves off their rightful tree, and were sharpened almost like a blade.

Tk waved his hands, as the leaves all shot forward, hitting Satanica, as she flew in the air.

The leaves sliced through her skin, causing her to bleed twice as much then before. She fell to the ground with a limp thump, but got up, as if nothing had happened to her.

"Nice try." she spat. "But I am prone to injury. Your deplorable attacks do no harm to me. I am immortal, as long as this world exists!"

"Then I'll have to destroy it!" Tk said, as he slammed Mother Nature into the ground, causing the earth to upturn, and bump.

Earthquakes rumbled everywhere, as he had a smile of satisfaction on his face.

Satanica was quick to act, as the threw the frame over him, trapping him in the painting. The rumbling stopped, but the whole ground was completely ruined.

"I'll make you pay for that." she said, as the two paintings vanished. Tk still had the smug smile on his face, as the painting appeared with Tai.



"Think Matt!" he screamed at himself, as he wandered helplessly through the small desert he was in. The sun was shining down on him, causing him to sweat and burn.

Several times he thought he would fall from lack of water, but the simple thought of Satanica hurting Mimi was enough to make him go on.

He had been walking for hours now, and still there was no sign of anyone. He took this as a good sign, for he didn't have to fight anybody.

He was just about to thank his luck stars, when a mummy appeared out of the sand, and rushed face first at him.

But Matt had learnt how to control his power a long time before, just stayed still, but raised Metal Psyche.

The mummy instantly froze, and roared fiercely. "Tell me where Mimi is!" he demanded.

"I will not tell you." the mummy spoke, as he spat out sand.

"Tell me, or I'll be forced to hurt you!" he said through clenched teeth. His first was turning white from holding on so tight.

"Queen Spiral told us to not tell. You may kill me, but she will resurrect me! You will have only wasted your powers!"

"Fine. Then I'll have to do this the hard way!" Matt said viciously, as he channeled his powers, opening up a rift into the mummy's mind.

Matt saw snow. Piles, upon piles of snow, but no Mimi. The whole picture then contorted, and there was a wave of black that passed in front of Matt's eyes.

A short man, with straw blond hair, and pale blue eyes appeared. Even though time had worn his face, it was still unmistakable.

"Aaron!" Matt cried in surprise.

"Matt, you must listen to me!" the elder man said seriously. "Everything that I have told you, is about to come true. Everything!"

"Are you sure?" Matt asked uneasily, for he knew some of the things Aaron had told him over the many years.

"Positive. This is it Matt. The final battle. All those that have judgement to be passed, will happen tonight! You must leave this place as soon as you all get back together!"

"Aaron, does that mean the thing about Mimi..." Matt started feeling sick.

"It might. It all depends on you. As soon as you get back to the others, leave. I have a way you can go back home without the last Life Stone."

"Aaron, but Mimi!" Matt said. He had feared this moment, from the second he had heard Aaron mutter it.

"You must save her! Or all will be lost!" he said, as the picture was suddenly blanketed in silver.

Matt was pushed out of the mummy's mind forcefully, as he looked at a now metallic demon. His time had passed, and he didn't even have enough time to figure out how to save everyone. Especially Mimi.



'Just a few more miles.' she told herself, as she wrapped her arms around her freezing body tighter. She had been walking in the snow for hours now, and had gotten caught in a blizzard.

She kept a firm grasp on the Mourning Star, as she continued to shuffle through the now knee deep snow.

Her skin had turned an awful shade of blue, bordering on purple, but she still continued to walk.

'I have to save them!' she told herself over and over again. 'I have to save him!'

But it was as if her body didn't want to listen to her, and it just gave out. She collapsed in the snow, dropping her only defense. She began to sink into it, as more snow just piled onto of her, at an amazing rate.

Soon, the only part of her, not completely covered in snow, was her face. Her eyes stayed open, as she looked at the miles of pure white ahead of her.

She tried to keep her eyes, open, just long enough to get up, and keep on going but it didn't work. She lifted her hand up slowly, but a strange power took over her every moving muscle.

Her eyes then fluttered shut, and her hand fell limply to her side, sinking into the cold snow.

There was complete silence surrounding her rigid body, but then the maniacal laughing of Satanica ripped through the air, drowning out everything else.






They're dead.

Their sighs.

Their song.

They know what they did was wrong.

Stay here with us, it's just time.

Raspustina-- Transylvanian Concubine



"So dear cousin. Are the preparations ready yet?" Lor asked, as she twisted a piece of her curly hair around her finger.

"Almost." Satanica said, as she marveled at her new pictures. She placed Sora and Izzy's on the right-hand wall, hanging one beside each other, and Joe and Tk's went on the left.

She particularly hated Tk's picture, because of the smile he had on his face. Not even her powers could rub it off.

"He almost killed you." Tai said, as he swept into the room. His velvet cloak twirling around his legs.

"I do. He's not your average Infinite. He's not as naive as the others. He sees beyond all the sparkle and shine." Lor stated, as she stood up, and walked over to a mirror, which had a picture of Matt on it. He was racing through the desert rapidly, ignoring the heat.

"He's trying to get to her." Tai smirked as he leaned over Lor's shoulder. "He loves her!"

"Shut up!" she screamed at Tai. "Don't you think I know that already?" tears began to form in her eyes, and she started to cry lightly. "I care for him so much that I would do anything for him!"

"And he would do anything for her." he hissed in her ear.

"I wouldn't be so placid if I were you." she bit back. "She didn't love you either."

"You're lying." Tai said stepping back, allowing her to turn and face him.

"I do no such thing, your majesty." she said smiling mischievously.

"Prove it." he said threateningly.

"With pleasure." she said, as she raised her hand, placing it next to his temple. The smile still plastered on her evil face.

A vague, but unmistakable picture of Mimi appeared in his mind. She was completely covered in snow, and was the color of ice.

"Mimi." Tai breathed, as he saw the vision. A bit of the old him started to surface, making his eye then brown, then red again.

"Let's go a bit deeper shall we?" Lor said, as she touched the side of his head. A bright white light zoomed by his eyes, and after a few minutes, he pulled back.

"I congratulate you Lor. Your mind game almost worked on me." he smiled, before walking out of the room dignified.

"'Tis no mind game." she said truthfully, as she turned and gazed back at the man that had stolen her heart.



The large doors slammed shut, as Tai entered his chambers. He threw Liquid Air onto the floor, and ripped the cape from his back. He pulled off the crown, and threw it into the mirror, smashing it into small shards.

"She's lying!" he told himself, as he began to cry lightly. His right eye turning brown again. "She does love me. She has to love me." he cried into his palms.

Satanica then knocked at the door with her staff, and it opened magically. "What is the matter my lord?"

"Lor!" he hissed.

"What has she done?" she said, as she swept down next to him, sitting on his king size beg.

"She told me that Mimi doesn't love me." he sobbed.

Satanica looked at the ground, bitting her bottom lip slightly as she looked back at him. "Tai. Listen to me." she said taking his hand in hers. "You know I love you. And I say this, not to hurt your heart, but so that you realize she was going to. She never loved you. Not like the way I do."

"No." Tai whispered, as Satanica reached out, and dried the tears on his cheek.

"Yes." she whispered back. She pulled herself closer to him. "It's true. All of it." she touched his head, in the exact same spot as Lor.

'Might as well get him this way.' she thought happily.

The same picture flooded back to his mind. This time, the feelings were at least a thousand times stronger. Tai began losing his composure. He cried nonstop, as his back began to slump down. Satanica grabbed him, and pulled him close to her.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, as he willingly hugged her back. His salty tear stung her skin.

"I'm sorry." she whispered to him. Seeing him in so much pain, made her as sad as he was, and she began to cry too.

"Thank you." he cried, holding onto her tighter. "I just wish there was someway to forget this pain."

"I know a way." Satanica said smoothly. "But you won't like it."

"I'll do anything." he said looking into her eyes.

"Give into me." she said staring back into the brown eyes that made her melt.

"Yes..." he whispered ashamedly.

At once, a wine-colored light passed through Satanica. She leaned in, and kissed him. Tai didn't pull away, or fidget, or anything.

He just kissed her. Giving into the taste of her lips. The fell of her body. The pure evil that was flowing through him like blood.

He suddenly pulled away, as something gripped at his heart, squeezing and tearing at it. He clutched at his chest, and doubled over in pain.

All Satanica did was hold his hand, squeezing it tightly. "It'll all be over soon." she promised him, as she stroked his sweat drenched forehead.

Tai opened his eyes, and yelled out in pain. He began to flinch, but then he stopped, and lay lifeless on the bed.

Satanica was waiting for something to happen. She lied down near him, pulled his head on her shoulder, letting it rest lightly.

His warm breathing soon turned ice cold, and the once warm feeling of his skin became frosty to the touch.

"It's already begun." she smiled, as Tai's eye flashed open. The piece of glass flew from it, and exploded. The remains disintegrated as it fell.

His eyes were no longer brown. Or red. They were colorless for the longest time. Minutes later, they began to take on an actual color. Pure black.

"My queen." he said, kissing her hand, and levitating.

"My king." she said taking his hand. With the wave of Tai's right hand, his cape, and crown flew back on his body.

"Come." he ordered. "We have much to discuss. Like how we are going to destroy the last two Infinites." he raised his hand threateningly, and Liquid Air flew right into it.

"She is dead. The boy is to be spared for cousin Lor."

"Very well then." he said, as they marched off the thrown room. "Are we to destroy the paintings?" he asked as they walked into the thrown room.

"I rather like them. A constant reminder of how evil will always win out in the end." Satanica smiled, as she stood beside Lor.

"Very well." Tai said. "There's a nice area over there, for the final Infinite."

"Her." Satanica tisked.

"Now my love!" Tai smiled. "Don't tell me you're jealous!"

"Of that!" she snapped.

"Don't go all edgy." he chuckled heartily. "We'll just have to wait it out. She's still alive."

"How can you tell!?" Lor demanded. "Look at her! She's dead!" she said pointing to the mirror, which held the picture

"Patience my dear." was all he replied.



"Mimi. Mimi you must get up!" a feminine voice called out to her.

"I can't." her mind screamed.

"You must. All of their lives depend on you!"

"But I can't. I'm so cold." she whispered.

"Then I'll help you." she said, as she touched Mimi's skin. She instantly felt herself being filled with life, as he body began to float up from the snow. Mourning Star instantly flew into her frigid grasp.

"Who are you?" Mimi wondered.

"You've forgotten me already?" she said in a mock tone. "It's me! Trinity!"

"Trinity!" Mimi gasped. "I didn't recognize you!"

"Over the many years, my face has changed. But not my soul."

"I'm so terribly sorry." Mimi said a little ashamed. Her body was walking forward, but she had no control over it. Mourning Star was acting like a crutch.

"It's not your fault dear." she said reassuringly. "Oh Mimi, how are things with you and Tai?"

"How do you know about me and Tai?" she said taken back.

"I told you didn't I? I told you, you were destined to be together." she smiled proudly. Mimi could tell she was trying to make conversation. She knew that they would be together for a long time, might as well make it pleasant!

"You did, didn't you?" Mimi said sadly.

"I told you Matt was going to hurt you. And sure enough, he did. I just feel horrible that it happened to such a nice girl like you."

"Thank you Trinity, but I don't really want to talk about Matt right now." Mimi said dully.

"Of corse!" Trinity said happily. "Let' talk about Tai. He certainly has turned into a handsome young man!" she had turned really giddy.

"He has." Mimi agreed. "And he's the sweetest, most caring person alive! He's always worrying about me. I don't think there has been a day that passed since this nightmare started, that he hasn't saved my life."

"He does it out of love. Pure, undying love." Trinity said sniffing. "That boy cares about you so much, he would lay down his life, repeatedly, just to see you alive and well."

"I know." Mimi said sadly. "And I know that's gonna kill him one day."

"Don't worry. He has a healthy life ahead of him. All your friends do." she said smiling her warm smile.

"I hope so!" Mimi said truthfully. "My friends are my whole world."

"I know they are." Trinity sighed. "And you mean the world to them. But enough of this chitchat. We have to save them!"

"Yeah." Mimi agreed, as Trinity began to run in her body. Mimi felt her legs

begin to move, and she dashed forward, off to Satanica's castle.



"Matt." the wind called out to him. It was coming from every direction possible, and it just swirled around him.

"What?" he called out. He was no longer in the hot desert, but a cool forest. There was mud everywhere, and it was splashing his outfit, staining it with brown blotches.

"Come to me Matt." the voice cried again. This time, the wind didn't carry it, and he was able to identify it.

"Lor." he bit as he ignored her, and continued to run.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." her voice rang through the lush forest.

"Thank God I'm not you." he spat back, not stopping to hear her reply.

"Matt. Why are you doing this? If you just give up now, you can come join me and Satanica."

"I'll never join you." he said as he grinded his teeth together. "You ruined my life. You took away the one thing I cared about the most, and now, she might die!"

"Matt, Matt, Matt." she scolded. "Satanica won't kill Mimi. She never kills anyone. She never has!" she laughed. v"I don't believe you." Matt said suddenly halting. He prayed that what she said was the truth.

"You should." Lor said, as she appeared in front of him. She was disguised as Casey though. "She will want to see her suffer."

"What?" Matt exploded. He was burning with rage.

"Satanica will want to put Mimi through hell before she tires." Lor said as a chair appeared and she sat in it.

Matt understood. "Tai."

"That's Lord Tai now." she smiled wickedly.

"What did you do to him?" Matt shouted angrily.

"So much concern for the man you despise!" Lor said shocked.

"Tai's my friend!" he said spitting the words as if they were poison. Lor began to laugh at him.

"Sure he is. And I'm the Virgin Mary."

"Shut up!" he bellowed. "Tai is my friend, and I won't let her put Mimi through that hell again!"

"Again." Lor reminisced. "That was fun. No matter how much you try to deny it, you had fun with me."

"That wasn't fun." he said sharply. "You killed me, by taking her away."

"And I can make you forget that pain. Just give into me!"

"No. I'm not falling for that old song and dance again." he said, as he continued to run.

He didn't even get 5 feet when Lor appeared again. "Matt." she said impatiently. "Sit."

Another chair suddenly appeared, and Matt was forced into it. Bindings were attached at his arms and legs.

"Let me go."

"Not until you listen to me!" she pleaded as her seat appeared as well

"Looks like I don't have much of a choice." he said bitterly.

"Matt." she sighed. "I can save your friends, and return them to your world."

"What does this have to do with me?" he stared plainly, not giving a damn.

"Isn't it obvious?" she cried. "I want you. Join me, and the others will be free. "

"No!" he shouted angrily. "Even if I do agree to this, I would neer be able to make them forget what I did! They would have to go through the rest of their lives feeling bad about me!"

Lor looked at him oddly. "Oh. You've never been to hell before have you? Well, other than your first visit here?"

"No." Matt said rolling his eyes.

"Well." she explained. "When you get permission to leave from someone in hell, you forget everything. It's like you're having a really bad dream, but then you wake up."

"No." he said stubbornly. "I'll just be selling my soul to the devil."

"No. You'd be selling it to me." she smiled. "But think it over Matt. I would." she floated up from her seat, and disappeared. Matt's bindings vanished, just as quickly as she did.

"I will not help you." he vowed, as he grabbed Metal Psyche and continued running. He wouldn't stop until he was safely by Mimi's side.



'Sora! Can you hear me?' Joe wondered, as he called out to her.

'Yeah! I can!' she said.

'We can communicate telepathically!' Tk said happily. 'I guess Satanica forgot to take away the power of speech!'

'No. She likes to hear us speak.' a woman with bright red hair said. She had her hands in her pockets, and there was a field behind her. 'But after a while, it gets better. Trust me. I've been here for more than a hundred years!'

'She was lucky.'a man with brown hair said. 'Satanica used to be happy. She had her love, and it was peaceful. Then he left, and she started taking her wrath out on us. Almost all of us are here because of her bitterness.'

'Then why is she here?' Izzy asked.

'I defied her. It was a horrible mistake on my part. I protected everyone in the village, by placing a curse on their houses.'

'Oh.' Tk said. 'But what was up with Satanica and the whole love thing? You're telling me that there was someone else besides Tai?'

'Oh dear yes!' the redheaded woman said suddenly. 'Hell used to be just as happy as heaven. You see. Satanica isn't evil. She's just miserable. When she's sad, we all feel her pain. But when she's happy, this place is bright and cheerful! It's not the way you picture it, believe me.'

'But why did she become sad if she had someone to love?' Joe asked.

'He left her to find his first love. It killed her. But at least now she has filled him in. Replaced him with another, that mind you, looks a great deal like him!'

'Yes, now that you mention it, our new king does look a lot like the old one!' the man in the painting above Sora said.

'Who was he?' she asked.

'We are not allowed to invoke his name. We do not wish to suffer the effects of such a foolish action!' the man said.

'We understand.' Izzy said sighing. 'Will she ever let us out?'

'I highly doubt that.' the woman said. 'Well, since we'll be spending some time together, we might as well become acquainted! My name is Cassandra.' the redheaded woman smiled.

The man next to her, who they had been talking to smiled slightly. 'And my name is Damien.'



"I must leave you now Mimi." Trinity told her, as she left her body. A cold sensation passed through her.

"Thank you Trinity." Mimi said weakly. She was leaning on her staff as her only support.

"Just bring them back to their world safely." Trinity smiled, as she vanished. Mimi sighed, as she gazed at her surroundings. A forest.

She felt a sudden surge of strength in her, and she began to run. Not very quickly, but fast enough for her hair to be taken back by the wind.

She had advanced several meters on her own, but she suddenly fell, tripping over something on the ground, and landing in what seemed like, a vat of mud.

"Ow." she moaned, as she held her head. She sat up, and looked at herself. Her entire outfit was ruined. 'First the snow, then the mud.' she sighed, as she stood up. Miraculously enough, Mourning Star hadn't fallen out of her hands.

The gem in the center of the large blade began to shine, sending off an eerie glow. She then noticed that the area she was in, was also glowing, but a different color.

Mimi felt foolish, but stranger things had happened to her. She sighed as she spoke to her staff. "What's wrong?"

It darted out of her grasp, and seconds later returned with another Ecliptic Star.

"That's Sora's!" she gasped, as Galactic Impression flew to her side, and practically glued itself to her other hand.

Sora's life force was fed into Mimi, making her more powerful. She understood how to use her weapon, and was instructed on how to locate Satanica's castle.

"I understand how these work now." Mimi told the area.

"It is important that you do." the area responded. "Just remember. Nothing is as it seems. Anybody or anything could be and is probably a deceitful trick."

"I will remember that." Mimi said gratefully, as she ran. Even though her body was about to give up on her, she ran as fast as she could. There was a feeling in the pit of her stomach that someone was going to die if she didn't get there soon. And she had an even worse feeling about who it would be.

'Anybody or anything could be and is probably a deceitful trick.' it rang out in her head.

"Please. Please I beg you God. Don't let the man I love get hurt."



"This is getting me nowhere fast." Matt said as he stopped to take a breather. He shut his eyes, and inhaled deeply. He wished more than anything that he had a bottle of water.

He looked up, cringing at the ugliness of the land. It was worse than the desert, because all the vegetation had dried up and died.

It was almost as if a large forest fire had swept over the area, killing all in its path. He almost stepped on a shriveled up bush, but avoided it, and walked to the right.

The dead land started to swirl. It began to melt and bubble, as color started to appear. Everything seemed to get sucked into each other, as a totally different picture appeared in front of his eyes.

He had to rub them several times to see if he was dreaming or not, and even when he was sure he was awake he didn't believe it.

There he was, standing in front of the biggest castle he had ever seen. It must have been four times bigger than the castle he had met Aaron in.

"What is this place?" he wondered aloud, as he gazed at the bridge, that must have been at least a mile long. It was the only thing that connected the entrance to the castle, and the area he was standing.

"This place you must go to save them." Aaron said, as the wind carried his voice away.

"Are you sure?" Matt asked him, hoping for an answer.

"Yes." he replied. "But remember Matt anybody or anything could be and is probably a trick."

"What does that mean?" he asked again.

"You will have to figure that yourself. I just pray you don't figure it out too late. It could mean the world of difference."

"Thank you for your help Aaron." Matt said thanking the ghost.

"No problem." he said, as the voice died down, and was replaced by the howling of the wind.

"I'm coming to get you." he told the castle. "I won't let anything happen to you. Any of you." he promised, as he stepped onto the long, winding stone path.

Something told him to slow down. Conserve energy, so he did. He just kept his gaze focused on the task ahead of him. Saving the people, he cared about. Especially Mimi.



"Is he almost here?" Satanica asked impatiently, as she tapped her index finger on the marble thrown.

"Patience is a virtue." Tai smirked as he looked at his beautiful companion.

"And when was the last time I was virtuous?" she said coyly, as she scooted over to him, and sat on his lap.

"For my sake, I hope you aren't." Tai smiled as he wrapped his arms around her waist, and kissed her deeply.

Satanica sighed happily as she reluctantly pulled away and stared into his magnificent black eyes. There was still a glint of the same warm brown ones, but now there was an unruly sense of power stirring in them.

"Tai..." she whispered.

"Sh." he said placing a finger to her lips. "Don't." he advised her, kissing her again. "I love you."

"But that's just it." she said pulling away from him. "The only reason you care for me, is because I made it that way."

She blinked back tears as she began to walk out of the room. The doors in front of her slammed shut, startling her. She turned around, to see Tai standing up, with his hand extended. He was inhaling deeply.

"What?" she started to say looking at him bewildered. He stormed down the small flight of stairs, and headed straight for her.

"I told you over and over again." he snapped at her, as he shook her violently. "What do I have to do to prove to you that you're the only one I love?!"

"Just love me." she said hugging him tightly.

"You know I will." he said kissing her forehead.

"Mistress Spiral." Lor said smashing through the closed doors. "My Lord." she said bowing to Tai.

"What is it cousin?" Satanica asked as she sighed deeply, and pulled herself away from Tai.

"My lord is here. He is on the grounds. I just came to ask permission for a tag."

"Of corse you can have a tag." Satanica smiled happily, as she clapped her hands together excitedly.

"A thousand thank you's." Lor said smiling.

"Oh Lor." Tai said as he turned to her. "I would watch out for this one. He is different from the others. Almost as much of a pain as his younger sibling."

"Thank you for the warning my lord." Lor said bowing again, as a small shard of purple tinted glass flew to her side. "I shall put this to good use."

She turned on her heel, and walked out of the room, smiling happily. As she exited, the doors slammed shut behind her, which made the paintings rattle.

"Now." Tai said looking at Satanica. "Where were we?" he said as he pulled her back in his arms, and leaned in for a kiss.

"Not now." she said smiling slyly. "Later tonight I'll let you have all the fun you want." she promised kissing the tip of his nose. "We have to watch the fun!" she said bouncing over to a mirror.

Tai let out a heavy sigh, as he looked up at the ceiling. "That's no fun!"

"It is for me." she smiled as an image of a tired Matt appeared on the surface. "This should be quite interesting." she chirped as Matt fell to the ground, completely drained.



'Damien!' Sora almost shouted. 'That name! You're Nova's brother!'

'That I am.' he smiled proudly. 'How is she doing? I'm very curious.'

'Alive and kicking!' Joe joked, which made Damien laugh heartily.

'Alive and kicking. That's Nova! Old devil never tired easily!'

'She was so kind to us.' Izzy said. 'She took us in.'

'So she was the one that brought you here. The person that made you realize your duty to this place.'

'I guess you could say that. She really did help us. But I don't understand why! She could be killed for helping us!' Tk whispered, as if it was a secret.

Damien broke into laughter again. 'Die! In this place! I don't think so!' he said gasping for air, as he continued to laugh. Cassandra and everyone around them laughed as well.

'What's so funny?' Joe asked as his eyes moved from side to side, scanning the faces of the trapped people.

'Let me tell you something about this place.' Cassandra said as she stopped laughing. 'Something I thought you would have picked up on by now.'



"That wasn't too bad!" Matt exclaimed, as he sat on the lush grass. Even though he had walked, it was the longest walk he had ever taken in his life. The path seemed to keep growing.

He would keep telling his brain, just a few more meters, but then, those meters turned to kilometers. He thought he would never reach the castle. But now that he was there, he almost wished he hadn't came.

"Hello Matt." Lor said as she appeared from a black opening in the night.

Matt was too tired to think of a quick comeback, so he just stared at her, not moving his gaze. He knew she was quick. Just too quick for him.

"What do you want?" he asked harshly.

"Nothing but you." she said laughing evilly. Matt looked at her horrified. She kept up her insane laughing, and wouldn't stop.

His instincts told him to run. Run very, very fast. But there was something holding him there. The shackles were back on his arms and legs, binding him to the floor.

"Let me go." he said menacingly.

"Or what?" she smirked, as the small piece of glass appeared at her side. "Prepare to meet your destiny Matt. As a servant of hell!"

"Never." he spat, as she threw her arm forward. With amazing speed, the small tinted device lodged itself in his left eye, causing him to let out a heart-stopping scream.



Mimi looked up, as a male cry rang through the dead silence of where she was.

"That was Matt!" she realized, as she broke out into a mad dash. It was harder for her to run, because she had two weapons in her hand. But she didn't let that slow her down.

She practically flew through most of the forest, but stopped suddenly, as she looked at the gorge below her.

"Now how am I supposed to get across?" she sighed silently. As if her prayers were answered, a shaky looking bridge appeared.

A small light then flashed, briefly illuminating the area. It looked as if there was a house in front of her. She squinted her eyes, trying to see if she could see more. The light went off again. This time, it lasted longer.

"It is a house!" she cried happily, as she took a hesitant step forward. She determined that it was safe to walk on, and took a few more steps.

The sound of crumbling rocks made her heart stop, as she peered over her

shoulder. The end of the bridge had fallen off, leaving her only one choice. Forward. "Isn't this just peachy?" she quipped sarcastically, as continued walking. The stones behind her just kept falling. "Could this get any worse?" she questioned.

She swore someone was listening to her, because just like magic, the path had become covered in thorns. Thick, sharp thorny vines had sprouted and wrapped themselves around the stones.

Mimi wanted to cry. She was too far ahead to turn back, and even if she wanted to, there would be no way she could get across. Matt let out another distressing scream, which alerted Mimi.

'I have to do this.' she thought, as she swallowed hard, and began walking through the bushes that were growing rapidly.

Sharp daggers seemed to pierce her skin, causing her to bleed, but she still continued. Some of the duller spikes just grazed her skin, causing long red scratches.

'I have to do this.' she reminded herself.



"Stop trying to fight it Matt!" Lor hissed in his ear.

"No!" he cried out, as the sharp piece of glass dug deeper into his eye. The pain was killing him.

"Now, now Mattie." she smirked. "Is that any way to talk to your new master?"

"I'm not going to be your slave!" he said squeezing back tears. He could feel the hot blood stream from his left eye. It rolled off his cheek, dropping slowly off the tip of his chin.

"Don't be silly my love!" she exclaimed. "I always get what I want!"

"Well I guess you luck's changed." Matt sneered. "Because you're not getting me!"

"Words! Just words!" she said throwing her arms in the air. She bent over, and stared him straight in the eyes.

She reached out, and grabbed his chin, pulling it up to face her. She sighed, as

she examined his handsome features.

One of his beautiful azure eyes was squeezed shut, as the other glared up at her, filled with loath.

"You're forcing me to do something I don't want to do Matt." she said passing her fingers through his golden locks. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Then just leave me alone!" he uttered, as the pain started to die away. "Don't you see that just being around me is hurting me!?"

"You say that now." she said hushing him. Her voice was very soothing, and musical, almost as if she was hypnotizing him. "But just wait!"

Matt opened his eye. The sharp, stabbing pain was gone, but his vision was still blurry. He saw everything with a purple coating now. The sky, the trees, Lor. Everything.

He tried to fight the feelings that were sweeping over him. He was trying to push them away, but they were just too strong for him.

Much to his dismay, the strongest feeling, a sense of everlasting duty, was the first to attack his every moving muscle.

"Matt." she scolded. "It's going to be so much fun! You, doing everything, I command you. You obeying me now and forever. You killing that last inferior Infinite."

"No." he gasped, as he clutched his head in pain.

"But yes!" she exploded. "I'll have you totally mutilate her body!" she hissed maniacally.

"No!" he shouted louder, as a wave of nausea passed over him. "I won't hurt her!" he stated, as she squeezed both of his eyes shut. "I refuse to hurt her! I love her!"

Lor's face contorted as she balled her fists. "Love." she spat, as her bottom lip began to tremble. "We'll see how much you love her when you're plunging a dagger into her heart!" she shouted viciously, as she stood up, and left him there.

Matt began to feel extremely dizzy, as he tried to stand up. His legs felt like jelly, and he couldn't retain his balance for more than a few moments. He kept collapsing in a heap on the floor.

"Just give it up Matt." she scoffed as she entered the castle. Matt tried getting up again, and this time he managed to walk a few steps, but he fell once again, this time, hitting his head across a rock.

He blacked out, as Lor waved her hand, making him and Metal Psyche follow her. "This should be quite interesting." she said as the two thick wooden doors slammed shut.



'Please tell me you're joking.' Tk said as he stared at them, with his jaw practically hitting the base of his frame.

'Why would I kid?' Damien asked. 'Take a look for yourself. My neck.'

The Digidestined strained their eyes to get a better view of his neck, but it was mostly hidden by his long collar.

'I see it.' Joe said as his face turned a little green. He shut his eyes, and began to inhale deeply.

'So, all of you are...' Sora began.

'Yes.' Cassandra finished for her. 'But don't be alarmed! We would never do anything to anybody. You are our friends!'

'Thank you.' Izzy said, as he swallowed hard.

'In our time, we have done several things that we are immensely ashamed of. But we have learnt from our errors, and we have vowed to never let them happen again.'

'When the day of judgement passes, we will fight against this evil. We will protect the future!' Damien said, smiling at them.

'That...' Joe started, but was interrupted by the slamming of a door. Everyone in a painting spun around to see who it was.

"Everyone!" Tai boomed as he and Satanica stepped into the large chamber. "Today, is a great day!" he stated as he walked over to his massive seat, and sat down.

"Yes. Today, we have proved that we are stronger! We have proved that evil will win out in the end! Here joining us forever, is four out of the seven Infinites. Two have been spared to be rulers of this dismal place, and the last one shall be murdered."

Lor came in with an unconscious Matt floating beside her. "He has been tagged, but he still refuses to obey. He certainly has gotten stronger since the last time we met."

"They all have grown tremendously. That is why we must finish them all off! The two strongest will be saved though." she said attaching herself to Tai's arm.

'Matt!' Tk screamed, as he saw his brother. Lor let him fall to the ground, as she walked over to Satanica and Tai.

'What have you done to him!?' Izzy shouted at the trio.

"Nothing that concerns you." Satanica expressed audibly. Her voice echoed in the large room.

"Is it almost complete?" Lor asked, returning to her fallen love. She picked up his body, and held him tightly in her arms.

"All we have to do is wait for the girl to come. She's almost here." Tai said pointing to a mirror that had a long bridge covered in foliage. "That slowed her down. And with the plant's ability to extract energy from anything it touches, she'll be an easy victory."

"Excellent!" Satanica said giddily. "Do you want the honors?"

"No." Tai smirked. "Let him do it!" he said as he stared at Matt.

"A wonderful idea your grace." Lor said, as she rose her hand, making Matt float over to them.

"Wake up." Satanica instructed, as Matt's eyes flashed open. "Good." she smiled. "Now. You are to listen to me."

Matt groaned as his head lobbed up and down slightly. He was lowered to the ground, and he stood on his own two feet.

"Now. As soon as the girl gets here, you are to kill her. Do you understand?" she asked him, as she took his face in her hand.

"Yes." he muttered, as he fell to the ground again. He had a star-struck look on his face, and his left eye kept flicking purple and blue, on and off.

'What's wrong with him?' Sora asked.

Cassandra sighed. 'He has been tagged. It's a small piece of glass, with powers capable of enslaving millions. Once the shard enters a person through the eye, it travels to the brain, and lodges itself deep inside the nerve that give a person the freedom to do whatever they want.'

'So basically a tag alters a persons' mind, into believing they have to serve, and do whatever she wants.' Damien said. 'And once it takes over your body...'

'Instant slave.' Tk finished, looking down at his brother. If he didn't know better, he would have thought he was sleeping.

"How long till she arrives?" Lor asked, as she took a seat on her designated seat.

"Only five more minutes, and last Infinite will be destroyed!" Tai said as his black eyes blazed red. "In only five more minutes, nothing will stand in our way!"



'You have to keep going Mimi.' she encouraged herself. In the last few minutes, she felt all the energy just zap out of her. She could feel she was growing weaker and weaker.

"You can do this." Trinity's voice said, which encouraged her to go on. "Only a few more steps, and you'll be back in the arms of your loved ones!"

Mimi gazed down at her body. Her legs were cut, scraped, bruised, you name it. She was also growing fainter from the blood loss, but she didn't let that stop her.

"I have to keep going. They need me!" she reminded herself, as she forced her way through the thick bushes.

After a long, and tiresome journey, she finally broke through the thorns, and she made it off the dangerous road.

"I made it!" she exclaimed happily, as she passed out.



'Mimi no!' Tk cried as she hit the dirt. 'Get up!' but she couldn't hear him. 'You have to get up!'

Satanica, Tai and Lor just laughed. "Get her Matt!" Satanica snapped, as Matt's semiconscious body stood up, and limped out of the room. For the first time, Metal Psyche didn't follow him. It just stayed on the floor, unmoving.

"Will he do it?" Satanica asked Tai.

"He will. To what degree, I'm not sure yet." he replied, squeezing her hand.

"He will." Lor promised. "I know he will."



"Mimi! Get up!" Trinity spoke to her. She quickly nudged her awake, and propped her up.

"I can't go on." Mimi sighed weakly. "I don't have the strength."

"You do! You have it deep inside you!" a dark cloud passed over them, and lightening began to crash. Thunder rolled over the mountain tops, but it didn't rain. The sky became a deeper shade of grey, and the lightening and thunder just kept growing. The lightening, became brighter, and the thunder became ear splitting.

A figure appeared out of the castle doors, becoming her to enter. She didn't know why, but she decided to go in.

She stood up, with much effort, and entered the massive doorway. The figure, still hunched over, began leading her into the castle, guiding her through the mazes and secret passages.

"Who are you?" she asked, not looking at him directly. He didn't answer her. He only kept hobbling along. He finally stopped in front of two large hardwood doors.

They open at his touch, and Mimi was lead into a highly decorated room, which seemed to have no ceiling. She stared at everything in the room, in awe.

The paintings were beautiful. Almost lifelike. Gold and silver, jewel studded borders hung everywhere.

"This place is beautiful." she gasped.

"Glad you like it." Tai said as he walked over to her.

"Tai!" Mimi cried, as she ran over to him, throwing her arms around his neck. "I missed you so much!"

He slowly pulled away from her, staring at her lovely face, that was scraped and cut. "What happened to you?" he asked, his voice filled with worry. "Oh my God." he said pulling her to his chest again. He began to stroke her hair.

"Everything gonna be okay now that you're here." Mimi whispered to him, as she leaned up and kissed him.

Tai immediately pulled away from her, throwing her to the ground, and wiping his lips forcefully. He had the most disgusted look on his face. "Get away from me you brat!" he cried. "God! I made the biggest mistake by saying I loved you! How could anybody possibly love someone as spoiled as you!?" he said, as he began to back away frightfully. "Just stay the hell away from me now on!" he cried.

Mimi's whole world collapsed, she was too shocked and hurt to even move. The tears just flowed out of eyes as if they were Niagra falls. She stared at him, horrified beyond words. Everything he said rang in her head like a gong that wouldn't stop pounding.

"Tai..." she managed to squeak after a minute of silence.

"Just shut up! Don't even talk to me! I hate you!" he screamed at her. "I thought I could trust you, but all you did was let me down! I might as well be dead!"

"Don't say that please..." she begged.

"No!" he bellowed. Just then, Satanica appeared behind him, with a jeweled knife in her hand.

"Tai look out!" she screeched, but her warning came too late. Satanica shoved the weapon deep into his back. Tai hit the ground, as his blood poured out of the wound.

"No!" Mimi cried, as she scrambled over to him.

"Get away you mistake!" Satanica hissed, as she kicked Mimi away from him. "I'm sorry to have done that my love. But you would never fully love me because of her." she said glaring over at Mimi. "You killed him."

"No, I didn't! You did!"

"No matter how much you want to deny it, it's all true. You killed him, because you didn't love him! You didn't care about him!"

"That's not true!" Mimi screamed at her, as she got up, ignoring all the emotional and physical pain that was exploding inside her.

"Sweet, naive Mimi." Satanica tisked. "Aren't you just a constant stream of disappointment?"

"Shut up!" Mimi threatened, as she grabbed Mourning Star in her hands.

"I'm not scared of you." Satanica said icily. "But tell me something Mimi. What do you think of Matt?"

"What?" Mimi said confused.

"Turn and see for yourself!" she smiled, as Mimi looked over her shoulder. Matt was there, standing directly in back of her. He lunged at her, sending her sprawling on the floor.

He jumped on top of her, and grasped at her throat, strangling her. Mimi chocked out cries for help, but they were no use.

'No!' Joe, Tk, Sora, and Izzy cried as they saw what was happening. 'We have to help them!' they all said in unison.

"Matt please." Mimi begged as the room began to turn black.

"I don't want to do this!" he whispered, as he began to squeeze tighter. Mimi began gasping and wheezing more, as she kicked up her injured arms and legs.

"Please stop." she pleaded, forcing out the words.

"I'm sorry." he said a tear rolled down his cheek. "Please forgive me!"

"Matt, I..." Mimi started to say. She couldn't finish her sentence, because she didn't have the energy. She gave up her battle to save herself, and just let him ring the life out of her.

"No!" Matt screamed, as he jumped away from her, hitting his head. He clutched it in anger and pain, as he screamed.

'Matt!' Tk screamed as loud as he could. The pink jewel on his staff let out a blinding light, as he suddenly felt himself being freed from the picture.

A bubble surrounded him, as he floated down to the ground. Mother Nature's Ecliptic Star kept on emitting a bright light that flooded the room.

The light died down instantly, and the room was suddenly filled with people. All the paintings bare.

"We're free!" Cassandra said, as she placed on of her feet on the cold marble floor.

"Yes. Welcome back to the land of the living." Nova said, as she pushed her way to the front. She headed straight for her brother, and gave him a bear hug.

"Watch out." Damien advised happily, as he caught his head before it hit the ground.

"Nice to see you again Cassandra." Nova said as she approached the girl with the fiery red hair.

"It has been a long time." she smiled as she extended a skeletal hand. The flesh had been completely removed from it. She stepped forward, also revealing two bone legs, singed with black marks.

"Mimi!" Joe said, as he rushed over to her, and grabbed her. She was chocking and gasping for air, but she managed to stand up without his help.

"I'm fine." she said as she still cried. "But Tai." she sniffed, as she closed her eyes, not wanting to look at him.

"Mimi don't beat yourself up about it. You couldn't have stopped her." Izzy said placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"Matt." Tk said panicking. "Matt!"

Everyone turned to look at him. He was clutching his head, grinding his teeth fiercely. "Get out of my head!" he screamed, as the shard of glass flew out of his eye, and exploded.

He looked at his hands, and smiled. Metal Psyche arrived in his palm a second later. "I did it! It's out of me!" he cried triumphantly.

"Matt." Tk said hugging his older brother. "Thank God you're okay."

"Aren't I always little bro?" he joked, as his gaze fell on Mimi. There was a bruise forming on her neck, and she was touching it softly.

He stopped talking to Tk, and stood up, and walked over to Mimi slowly. He could see her trembling slightly, as he approached her.

"Mimi, I'm sorry." he apologized sincerely. "I am so sorry." he said touching her neck lightly.

She shivered at his touch, but smiled slightly. "It's okay." she said raspily. "You didn't mean to do it."

"God I'm sorry." he said pulling at her arm, and hugging her protectively. He sighed at the feel of her in his arms again. It had been too long. He held her closer to his chest, as she shut her eyes, and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Matt I have to tell you something." she whispered to him, as she stared into his clear blue eyes.

For the first time, in a long time, she could see directly into his soul again, and everything seemed all right again.

"Damn you." Lor yelled at them. "You can't do this!"

"Why not?" Matt asked as he looked at her, with Mimi still in his arms. "We're not going to let you win!"

Everyone in the room, dead and alive stepped forward ready to fight. Mimi suddenly remembered she had Sora's staff, and she handed it to her.

Sora grabbed her weapon, as the Ecliptic Star shone. "If we're going to fight, might as well make it memorable." she smiled, as Nova stood beside her.

A powerful gust of wind shot through the room, knocking everybody to the ground.

"What the hell was that?" Joe asked as he stood up, dusting himself off.

"Tai." Mimi gasped, as she saw him emerge from the shadows, and stand by Satanica. "But how?" she wondered. Something forced itself into the front of her mind. 'Anybody or anything could be and is probably deceitful a trick.' "But why?"

"Your misery almost killed you." Satanica clarified. "If he had only held on a few more seconds!"

"Nothing would have happened." Matt said defensively. "I would never hurt Mimi!"

"You say things. I say things. But do we ever really keep our promises?" Tai asked. "I said I loved you. And you never answered back. I gave you my heart, and my soul, and you just took it for granted."

"No." Mimi said as she approached him slowly.

"Attack!" Satanica cried, as the skeleton soldiers appeared from the ground. Each of them looking more fierce than before.

"We'll hold them off!" Nova said as she removed the white bonnet from her head, revealing the large chunk of her skull that was missing.

At once, the people from the paintings dashed off, and started to fight with the soldiers from Satanica's army.

"We just can't let them kill themselves!" Sora exclaimed.

"Sora, they're already dead. They can't get killed!" Izzy pointed out.

"Wrong." Lor smirked. "If you die in hell, you die for good. No being brought back."

"Then we have to help them!" Tk said, as he rushed over to a man, that was cornered, with a soldier hovering above him. He shoved his staff right through him, and he fell to the ground, sliced in half.

A long stream of wind came out of Tai's weapon, and hit Tk, sending him crashing into the wall in back of him.

"Tk!" Joe cried as the eldest boy ran over to his injured friend. Another blast of air headed straight for him. Joe ended up crashing into the wall as well, and ended up exactly like Tk.

"That's it." Matt said aggravated. "I've had it with you."

"Bring it on." Tai mimicked, as he gently brushed Satanica aside. "Have fun dear." he said kissing her.

"With pleasure." she said heading straight for Sora. The two girls began to clash, but Satanica was much stronger than Sora, so Izzy had to help keep her from killing his girlfriend.

"Sora!" he cried, as Satanica smashed her staff into her stomach. Sora doubled over, and Satanica raised her weapon to strike at Sora's head. Izzy worked fast, as he swung his jagged metal staff at her.

Satanica saw it coming a second too late, and it embedded itself into her stomach. She screamed out in pain, as Izzy pulled his staff out of her chest. There was a slight blueish tint to the edges, but other than that, there was no blood.

"You'll pay for that you brat!" she promised, as she waved her hand in front of her stomach, closing the wound and fixing her dress.

"Holy love..." Izzy said backing away from her.



"Just give up Matt." Tai sneered, as he gave a mighty swing of Liquid Air.

"You first." Matt retorted, as he blocked the shot, and returned one, with just as much force.

"You're fighting a pointless battle Matt." Tai informed him, as he armed his staff to fire.

"At least I'm fighting." Matt grinned, as he smashed Metal Psyche onto Tai's hands, causing him to drop Liquid Air. A gust of wind, as powerful as a small tornado narrowly missed Matt, and collided into the wall, completely destroying it.



"Bad shot Tai." Matt snapped.

"Big mistake Matt." Tai said, as he jumped at him, tackling him to the ground.

Mimi sat in the room, gazing at everybody. Her friends were fighting, and losing badly. People she didn't even know were helping them. Everything was wrong.

The situation was wrong. Tai and Matt shouldn't be fighting. Joe and Tk shouldn't be fighting demons, to save people that were already dead. Izzy and Sora shouldn't be fighting the devil herself.

'This isn't right.' she thought, as she watched Satanica strike Sora in the face. 'This isn't fair.' she said as her eyes drifted over to Joe, who had just gotten, kicked in the back. 'They shouldn't be doing this!' she said as she watched Tai and Matt duke it out.

A pair of Skeletons rushed over to Nova, attacking her with both their swords. She ducked under one, but didn't see the second one behind her.

"No." Mimi gulped, as the action crossed her path, but never touched her. "Stop it." she warned quietly. The skeleton raised its sword high, and brought it down forcefully. "No." Mimi gasped as the blade dug deep into her back. "Stop this!" she bellowed at the top of her lungs, as she squeezed her eyes shut, letting the tears flow freely.

Her Ecliptic Star shone. It swept over the room, completely erasing everybody in it, except for the Infinites, Satanica and Lor.

"What the?" Satanica demanded as she stared at her bare room. "Where did you send my paintings?"

"Back to where they belong!" Mimi said forcefully, as she began walking over to Satanica. Tai ran to her side, and Mimi held up her hand.

"Go!" Tai said stepping in front of Satanica. "Get out of here!" he told her.

"I'm not leaving you." she said truthfully, as Mimi held her blade in the air.

"Tai you have to remember me. Remember all the things we used to do. Remember all the good times we had."

"All I remember is you not loving me. I remember the hurt and the suffering you caused me!" he told her.

"That's not true Tai." Mimi told him, as the jewel began to die down. It seemed to set off all the other jewels in the room. A rainbow of colors began to swirl on one of the walls, and a circular, multicolored light appeared.

"Just forget all the lies they've told you. Just forget everything you've learnt here." she advised him, as he held his head.

"I can't." he gasped. There was a throbbing sensation just passing through his skull, as he dropped his staff.

"Don't listen to her!" Satanica shouted as she touched Tai's shoulder lightly. He shrugged it off, as his memory seemed to wipe itself clean. His eyes turned back to their normal chocolate brown color.

"Mimi..." he whispered as he gazed at her. He felt sick to his stomach after, and he began to lose his balance.

Tai collapsed and Matt and Joe rushed out to catch him before he hit the ground.

Satanica readied herself to attack, but Mimi was quicker, and she pinned her to the wall, with Mourning Star positioned at her neck.

She looked over at Tai, who was still conscious, but very dizzy.

"See Mimi." Satanica smirked. "Not even the man who loves you can trust you." she said as Mimi pushed the slender, twisting blade closer to her neck.

"Tai..." she said confused as she looked at him. Matt had one of his arms around his shoulder, as Izzy had his other.

"Not Tai." Satanica said, almost laughing. She was staring straight at someone, and Mimi looked over at who she was watching.

"Matt." she said as her arms suddenly went weak. Holding onto Mourning Star was almost impossible now.

Matt was oblivious to what was going on. He was helping Izzy carry Tai to a safe area.

"You're lying." Mimi said shakily. "Matt doesn't love me!"

"But he does, and he always will." Satanica said softly. Mimi looked down. She couldn't bare to look her in the eyes anymore.

Something caught her eye as she stared at the many jewels on Satanica's neck. The dark blue-beaded necklace.

She smiled to herself, as she reached out, and touched it. Sure enough, the small picture of an oddly designed cross was there.

The Life Stone of Reliability. With one quick motion, she pulled it from her neck, causing all the other stones to scatter everywhere.

"Here." she said holding the stone firmly between her thumb and index finger. "Take this."

'Remember the little girl Mimi. You couldn't save her. She couldn't count on you!' Satanica told her mind. 'And Matt couldn't even trust you enough to pull him up from a ledge.'

'It's true.' she realized. Her whole body went numb. 'They can't count on me...' she thought, as a tear rolled down her right cheek. She clumsily removed her tag and crest, and held them in her shaking hand. 'I have to do this. For them. For him.'

"Mimi come on!" Matt shouted. Mimi looked over at him. Her gaze then fell on Tai. They stood for a long time, just staring at each other. Her eyes pleading for forgiveness.

Tai looked up at Matt, and sighed heavily. He began to tremble slightly, but he knew it wasn't meant to be. He nodded his head slightly, and let it just dangle lifelessly.

"Here." she said throwing her crest at Matt, who caught it. "Take it."

"But you'll need it!" he said persistently.

"No." she said crying. "I'm not going with you."

"What!?" he exploded, as he began to shake. He was sure his legs would give out on him.

She faced a smiling Satanica, and then turned back to him. "I want you to remember me as reliable too." she said looking at the Life Stone, before throwing it to Joe.

"Mimi no..." Matt replied as he began to cry. "You can't..." he whispered. "You can't leave me..."

"Go!" Mimi commanded, as her Ecliptic Star began to grow green. The red stone was giving off a green light that surrounded the whole weapon and Mimi.

Matt realized there was nothing he could do to stop her, but he had to tell her how he felt. He would never get another chance. "Mimi." he said, as she turned and looked at him. "I love you. Now and forever."

She smiled, as another tear fell from her eye. "I love you to Matt." she told him. "Now get out of here!"

"I'm not leaving you!" he told her, as he let go of Tai, and began to run to her. Joe caught him, and sadly dragged him back to the portal. All the Life Stones had been put together, and the gateway to home had been opened.

"We have to go Matt." he said sadly, as he cried. He violently brushed away the tears, and carried him into the safe area.

"Let me go Joe!" Matt screamed, as he kicked to get away from him.

"I can't do that old friend." he said as the practically through Matt into the portal. The lights bragged at his arms and legs, holding him safely in place. All he had to do was take another step in, and he would be back home.

He tried to fight against the lights, but they were holding on too tight. All he could do was watch. He saw Mimi back away from Satanica a few steps, and hold Mourning Star closely to her body.

Mimi's eyes were shut firmly, as she breathed heavily. Satanica had a look of pure horror on her face. "You'll kill us both!"

"At least I'll get rid of you!" she said fiercely, as she brought the blade above her head. 'Goodbye my friends. Never forget me.' she thought, as she brought the blade down with force. A green light illuminate the room, as Satanica fell.

Her once beautiful features covered in a blue liquid. The castle floors began to crumble apart, and levitate.

Matt turned his eyes to something else. He had watched every painful moment of what Mimi had done, and after all they had been through, he watched as her staff, falling but her side with a deafening clatter. And her lifeless body hit the ground, with a terrifying thud.

Matt's whole world died instantly. He was just too shocked to even cry or move. But miraculously, a voice filled his head, as Izzy pulled him through the portal.

'Matt.' Lor said wickedly. 'I give you permission to leave.'

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