Disclaimer: Still don't own Digimon, though if I did, you could bet Savers would be WAY different.

Voices of Realities Past

Chapter 2

"Agumon warp digivolve to... WarGreymon!"

Piedmon had shown his face at last. The exhausted Gatomon was quietly resting in Kari's arms after having defeated LadyDevimon in a rather brutal battle while Tentomon waited impatiently by Izzy for the other Digidestined to arrive so that he too could join WarGreymon against the Dark Master. The present children all watched nervously as Piedmon managed to evade all of WarGreymon's attacks thus far.

"Get him, WarGreymon!" cried Tai, fists clenched, as their enemy was thrown against a wall of solid rock. He knew that the chances of defeating him like this were probably nonexistent, but they had to give it their all. He had to buy Matt time to arrive. If WarGreymon could slow him down, once MetalGarurumon showed up, not only could he take over the fight, but the others would be free to join as well. Sora and TK would find Mimi and Joe too, he could feel it. Soon, soon they would all be together. Soon this whole nightmare would end. WarGreymon just had to hold on until that time came.

"Trump Sword!"

Snapped out of his thoughts, the young leader looked on as his partner was brought to his knees with a cry of pain from the attack. The Mega quickly got up, however and slashed at the clown digimon with one of his claws only to be blocked by two of his swords.

Piedmon smirked and chuckled at his opponent's efforts. "Getting tired, are we?"

WarGreymon didn't respond and slashed at him with his other claw instead. The Dark Master jumped away with ease and released a Clown Trick attack which hit him square in the chest, knocking the Warrior of Courage backwards.

"That's it!" cried Izzy, angrily, an emotion the younger boy usually kept in check. "Tentomon!" He turned to his digimon, digivice in hand. This couldn't go on! WarGreymon couldn't possibly win; he needed help and fast.

"No! Izzy, stop!" shouted Tai. He knew as well as anyone else that WarGreymon would likely not last very long, but he had to hold on as long as possible. "We have to stick to the plan. Matt will be here soon, along with everyone else. We have to have faith in them!" He stared at the younger boy, that ever present stubborn look in his eyes. He would not give in.

The Child of Knowledge looked furious. "Look Tai, I know we have to have faith in our friends, but WarGreymon needs help! If something happens to him now -" He didn't have time to finish his thought however as the Mega in question fell forward, having taken another Trump Sword attack from behind. The pain he was feeling was obvious from the way he tried to get back up only to collapse again. Without thinking, Tai cried out to the fallen digimon and immediately took off running towards him.

"Tai, no!" shouted Kari, Gatomon jumping out of her arms, ready to run after the boy.

"Look out!" But Izzy's warning was too late as Piedmon aimed his next attack at the young Digidestined himself. Rocks flew up from the ground, and Tai was thrown backwards as he was pummeled by the onslaught of debris, his skin easily cut by the sharp rocks. But just as a giant boulder rushed toward him, WarGreymon stood up and blocked the attack with his claws, grunting under the force. But he stood firm, determined to keep his partner out of harm's way.

Piedmon saw his chance, and he took it. Aiming once more for the Child of Courage, he yelled, "Clown Trick!", shooting a large ball of energy from his fingertips. Tai lay there, only able to watch as his digimon once more jumped in the way to shield him from the attack, taking the full force of it right in his chest. His heavy armor imeidiately cracked under the pressure, and the Mega let out a cry of pain and he was thrown backwards. He hit the ground with a loud thud, his head striking hard on the rock, rendering the digimon unconscious.

His partner watched horrified, willing his body to move. He reached his hand out weakly toward the still form of WarGreymon, whispering his name hoarsely before even that was too painful. Tai's head fell to the ground, breathing heavily from both the pain of the scrapes on his body and the feeling of complete and utter failure. He could vaguely hear Izzy's cries for him to get up, but it wasn't until the sound of galloping feet reached his ears that he finally reopened his eyes. There, riding atop of MetalGarurumon was Matt, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Tai!" he called, racing toward the fallen boy. He silently urged his partner to run faster, his previously preoccupied mind now reeling. As if somehow understanding the boy, the Mega seemed to pick up speed as he entered the battlefield.

Piedmon stood off to the side and simply watched in amusement. The Child of Friendship had finally arrived, as had been expected. The Digidestined weren't the only ones awaiting their friend. If everything had gone as planned, this fight would soon be brought to an end, and he wouldn't even be forced to use half of his remaining strength. "Perhaps I shall just have to see how this little tale plays out," he muttered to himself with a confident smirk.

"Tai! Hang on!" Matt jumped off of his digimon and raced over to their fallen leader, vaguely wondering how he had managed to get as badly beaten as his partner only a few feet away. He slid to his knees and gently cradled Tai's head in his arms while MetalGarurumon kept on toward his fellow Mega. Just the sight of either one of them was enough to cause the feeling of guilt in the pit of his stomach to become almost unbearable. The young boy in his arms was covered in scrapes, and his breathing was uneven.

But despite this, the smaller boy just looked up and smiled weakly. "I knew you'd make it," he said simply, his voice obviously strained, "I never doubted you, Matt."

Tears crept into his eyes as Matt knew that he meant it. After all of his wanderings and hesitation, he knew he didn't deserve it. After all, had he been there to begin with, this wouldn't have happened. But he also knew that the other boy would soon be taking back those words. His body shook as he quietly replied, "Thank you, Tai, for believing in me. And I'm sorry for coming back too late." His voice grew stronger as he continued. He had to convince him. "You have to know just how important your friendship is to me. No matter what happens, you have to understand that!"

Before he could go on, however, he felt a sudden tingling in his chest. He looked down as his Crest of Friendship sprang to life, emitting a bright light that engulfed the two boys and their digimon partners. Tai could feel the pain leaving his body as the warm light touched his skin. As the light began to fade, he blinked and tried to sit up. Clutching his head, he whirled around to see that WarGreymon had also been mysteriously healed.

"The power of friendship, huh?" he thought to himself with a smile. Who knew that the Crests held such a power? He turned back to Matt, wanting to get a quick thank you in before Piedmon decided to start attacking again, but his smile faded as he looked into his friend's troubled face. His body was still shaking, his hands now clenched into tight fists at his sides. He was staring blankly at the ground, eyes narrow as if deep in thought.

"Matt?"

"Matt!"

The two boys suddenly looked up at the familiar voice. TK was waving wildly from Angemon's arms, Birdramon carrying Sora and Joe not far behind. As they drew closer, Tai stood up, ready to run and greet them, but he suddenly felt dizzy, his strength having not fully returned to him yet. Matt immediately got to his feet and steadied the boy.

"Take it easy," he said simply, wrapping their leader's arm around his neck so he could better support his weight. Tai looked up at him, worried. He could tell that Matt was extremely anxious about something. It seemed to be something more than just nerves before their last big fight, something deeper. "But what could be bothering him so much?" he thought, "And at a time like this?"

As soon as Angemon had landed, the little boy in his arms jumped out and ran towards his brother, a huge smile lighting up his face. "I knew you'd be here!" he cried as he threw his arms around the Child of Friendship, "Joe said he'd found you, but before he could reach you, you were running away, toward Spiral Mountain, and here you are! I was so worried about you!" TK looked up at Matt's face, nothing but pure joy at being reunited safely showing on his own. The older boy tried to smile back as he wrapped his free arm around him, but he could tell it wasn't a very convincing one as his brother's once bright face started to reflect his concern.

"I've missed you too, TK," he said quietly, trying to reassure the younger boy.

Sora watched the three boys a bit nervously. There simply wasn't time for them to just stand out there! Piedmon could attack at any given second - so why hadn't he? He was just standing there, a confident smirk on his lips. She glanced over at her fellow Digidestined. Joe looked just as nervous as she did, Izzy actually seemed a bit angry, while Kari appeared the calmest of all of them, but every one of them would glance toward the Mega as if the same question were on their minds as well.

"Why is Piedmon just standing there?" she asked, finally voicing her feelings, hoping that one of the two that had been there the whole time knew something that she did not, though she wasn't counting on it.

"He's waiting," was all the Child of Knowledge responded with, his fists clenched. He was planning something, or already had. That much was obvious. There was simply no other explanation for his willingness to just watch and wait as the Chosen gathered together. He had to be stopped before he could fully see his plan through! "Sora, we have to attack him now!" he said firmly, gaining both Joe and Kari's attention as well, "If we don't, he'll -"

"We made it!" Suddenly distracted, everyone quickly turned as Mimi's voice rang out across the battlefield. She was smiling from atop a Unimon while Lillymon, Ogremon, Frigimon, Meramon, and other assorted digimon followed close behind. As Joe had said, the girl had indeed brought a healthy amount of digimon willing to help them in their fight.

Izzy's face relaxed a bit, clearly happy to see reinforcements. "Alright, now's our chance!" he shouted with a smile. He turned to his partner, his digivice and crest springing to life. "Tentomon!"

But before the Rookie had time to evolve, the five Chosen and their allies let out a cry and backed away as something large landed abruptly in front of them. When they looked up to see who or what had surprised them, they gasped as they looked into the growling face of MetalGarurumon.

"Not so fast," he warned gently.

Everyone's eyes fell immediately on the Child of Friendship, willing for this to not be happening again. Was this the answer he had come to by wandering by himself for so long? Had he truly decided that they, the ones he had been with for so long, fighting alongside from the very beginning, were his enemies? It just didn't seem real - it couldn't be true. Could it?

"Matt, what's going on?" Tai demanded, trying not to sound too impatient, as he let go of the boy to stand on his own. He had believed his friend's words from just moments ago, so why? Something was bothering him, that much was clear, but could whatever it was really be solved this way and at this time? Or had he truly betrayed them - no, he refused to believe that!

"Matt..."

"What are you doing!?"

"What's going on?"

"Now's not the time for this!"

Matt closed his eyes. "Maybe not," he began quietly. It was too late to turn back now. He'd just challenged his fellow Digidestined, and no amount of apologizing would make that go away so easily. Even if he did back out now, they would all be too distracted to even have a hope of defeating the last Dark Master. At the thought of the Mega, he opened his eyes and glanced back to see Piedmon staring at him, a smile on his face. The young boy's eyes narrowed as he continued, "But I have some questions I need answered first."

Assuming that he was being addressed, their opponent suddenly jumped down from the ledge on which he stood, landing only a few feet away from the boy. TK clung tighter to his brother, and even Tai seemed nervous at the digimon's close proximity. With an air of calm arrogance, he finally spoke. "Pleasant dreams?"

Everyone just stared at the two wondering what could possibly be going on, a confused look crossing Tai's face. 'Pleasant dreams'? What kind of a question was that? But as if he wasn't perplexed enough, his friend's answer only made him more curious.

"So those were your doing." The boy had guessed as much. Who else would show him such things? Only Piedmon and his allies had anything to gain by giving him such knowledge, knowledge he wasn't even sure he should trust just yet. But he just simply couldn't ignore it. There were far too many coincidences for him to do so.

Piedmon gave an elaborate bow. "I would like to keep all the credit, but surely you realize that it's not all mine to take." The Dark Master stood up straight, staring the boy in the eye.

Matt glared back, eyes narrow. "We'll see about that." But where to begin? He had so many questions, he wasn't quite sure what to address first. He glanced over at MetalGarurumon whose attention was divided between watching the Chosen and his own partner, but when the wolfish digimon noticed the unsure look on the young boy's face, he tried to give the most reassuring smile he could muster and a small nod. The digimon himself was uneasy with the entire situation, but he had to be there for Matt, no matter what came of it. Even if it were to mean fighting against those he once thought of as allies.

"Perhaps," began Piedmon, breaking the silence, "you would like to hear an old story." The boy simply nodded in response, so the Mega continued. "Once upon a time, there was a small island that was created to hold all types of digimon. There were lush forests, deep lakes, vast deserts, tall mountains, and even a portion that had snow year round. In the forest region lived a Tsunomon, and every day he would be visited by someone, a human in fact." He paused for effect as the Digidestined all exchanged looks - a human visiting not only the Digital World but a Tsunomon.

"This human was the caretaker of the island and all of it's inhabitants," he said, grabbing their attention once more. "If ever something was to go wrong, he would be the one to put a stop to it and fix the problem. But he took special care of the Tsunomon, ever since he was a mere digiegg. In fact, he would often bring another, smaller human with him so they could keep each other company while he was working. The two would play together often, the first human watching them, studying them, if you will. The Tsunomon was very happy, but it wasn't to last as the smaller human was sickly. After only a few short weeks, the human died, and the first human seemed to simply disappear."

Piedmon's gaze grew darker as he continued with his story. "With the human caretaker gone, the island fell into chaos. Hoping the human would one day return, the Tsunomon evolved into Gabumon in order to keep the peace as the human once had. But as a mere Rookie, he wasn't strong enough to take on the more powerful and unruly Champions. It was also around this time that a virus began to take hold of the island and it's occupants. Before this incident, only Data and Vaccine types were in existence, but the digimon began evolving into creatures never seen before, thus creating what you now know as the Virus type digimon."

Tai folded his arms, a curious expression on his face. "So you're saying that before all of that happened, there weren't any Virus types and that all of the ones that exist now are actually just regular digimon who happened to catch this virus? Even you?"

The Mega's gaze fell on the boy. "My, my, it seems you do have a brain hidden somewhere behind those goggles," he taunted.

Tai and WarGreymon both looked as if they wanted to jump the clown digimon right then and there. But the boy continued on, though his tone was a bit harsher. "So what, are you telling us this so that we'll feel sorry for you? Or do you just want us to nurse you back to health or something? Or maybe you think Matt was this human since Gabumon is now his partner and you want to kill him before he takes care of things like he did before?"

"Tai," said the Child of Friendship sharply before the other boy could continue, "Just let him finish." Their leader looked at him curiously, but he decided to keep quiet. He still wasn't sure how or if all of this did indeed involve his friend, but it seemed that Matt already knew something that he and the rest of the Digidestined did not. But could the other boy really have been the one to just let the Digital World digress into a virus infested existence? Realizing what Tai must have been thinking, the other boy said simply, "I want to hear what he has to say. Then you can accuse him all you want."

"How thoughtful of you," Piedmon smirked, "Perhaps Thoughtfulness would have been a more suitable crest than that of Friendship, hm?" Matt's fists were suddenly tightly clenched at his sides, a pained look on his face. "But perhaps we shall get back to the tale at hand and save that for later."

His voice grew serious once more as he picked up the story where he had left off. "Once the virus struck, the Digital World's very existence began to change. It started to grow, larger than had ever been anticipated, in order to make room for all of it's occupants, and many digimon began to leave the island. But the Gabumon refused, convinced that the human caretaker would one day return. Many years went by with no sign of him, and the Gabumon eventually evolved into Wizardmon due to the harsh cruelties he endured daily and the strength he had gained from them. It was during this time that at last, the human reappeared.

"The Wizardmon recognized him at once, but he soon realized that the human he had once known was gone. He was no longer the kind caretaker, but instead he felt disgusted at what had become of the Digital World in his absence. He even went so far as to blame the Wizardmon himself for what had happened, and vowed to destroy the Digital World once and for all. The digimon tried to convince him otherwise, but in return he was left alone yet again, and this time all the human left behind was a promise of destruction.

"It was not long after this that the Wizardmon himself caught the virus. It seeped to his very core, poisoning his mind, and leaving him only with thoughts of his beloved human's betrayal. He soon evolved into the first Phantomon, an Ultimate level Virus type. He would go around attacking innocent digimon purely for fun, as he no longer had a goal to live for. But as time passed, he grew tired of the island's inhabitants and found his way to the nearest continent. There, he tested his strength against more powerful digimon, where he realized that in order to be the strongest, he must find a way to evolve further, beyond that of any digimon thus far.

"As more years passed, the Phantomon only grew stronger, knowing nothing but battle, until at last he had reached his goal. He was the first digimon to ever reach the Mega level, and thus it was thought for a long time that one could only reach the Mega level if they were willing to become a Virus type. But he knew that one day the human would somehow return and try to follow through with his plans to destroy the Digital World, and since he had already gained his ultimate power, the Mega set himself a new goal - to set up rule over the Digital World so that the human would not be able to fulfill his goals."

"That was you?" Matt asked suddenly, staring at the remaining Dark Master. "That Tsunomon, it was you all along." His eyes narrowed as if he were remembering something, lost in his own thoughts. Tai glanced over to him, wishing he could figure out just what was going through his head right then.

Piedmon's voice took on an ominous tone as he responded. "Indeed, I was once that pitiful excuse for a digimon, desperately clinging to the past and the life of living as a human's pet," he spat out, his disgust dripping from his words.

"But why should we believe you?" asked Sora. His story sounded so suspicious, as if he were trying to convince them that he was not the true enemy and that this human in fact was, even though he himself admitted to slaughtering hundreds upon thousands of digimon. "How can we believe what you are telling us when none of the digimon we've befriended, Gennai, or even the digital being that needed Kari to speak mentioned anything even remotely like that?"

"Yeah, and what does this have to do with us, anyway?" added Mimi, obviously gaining courage from Sora's lead. "It's not like we're here to destroy the Digital World - we're here to save it and our own from you!"

The Mega digimon smirked once more as he turned toward the two girls. "Really? Is that so? Then tell me, just what is happening to the portions of Spiral Mountain that are disappearing once you defeat a Dark Master? Or perhaps a better question is what happens to the digimon that once lived in those areas?"

At these questions, all of the Chosen stood silent, their growing concern clearly shown on their faces. Matt merely stared at the ground, one arm around TK who was now gripping his shirt fiercely. The young boy looked up into his brother's face, tears threatening to fall from his blue eyes, and quietly asked, "It's not true, is it? We're saving the DigiWorld, aren't we?" When his brother didn't reply, the younger let go of him and turned toward Piedmon.

"It's not true!" he yelled, fists clenched, "You're lying! Everything is just waiting to be reconfigured once we beat you!" A few stray tears fell down his cheeks. "After that, Whamon and Piximon and everyone else will come back at Primary Village, and the land and stuff will all go back to normal!" TK wiped his tears away fiercely, a determined look on his reddened face.

Piedmon watched as the faces of the Digidestined and their digimon friends became more hopeful at the younger boy's words. His eyes narrowed dangerously. "Is that what you have been told? You humans are such fools, always eager to believe if the outcome is to your liking." The clown digimon took a step toward the little boy, Matt immediately pulling his brother back. "The Crest of Hope, is it? Of course anyone would listen to you if you have that. A smart move, choosing Hope as the crest for the youngest. It's so easy to manipulate them when they are young and naive, isn't it? Though some of the others seem to have caused you a bit of trouble, haven't they? There was at least one you just didn't know what to give, so you gave him one that you thought would keep him from ruining your plans. 'Friendship' - what a pitiful attempt to keep him in check. It's too bad that very crest is what made him so very useful to me. You placed that seed of doubt in him the moment he found it, allowing my Nightmare Soldiers to distract his mind long enough for my virus to show him the truth. And now that he knows, everyone will know that you are in fact to blame for this..."

The Mega turned toward the larger cluster of Digidestined and glared at Izzy.

"...Izumi Koushiro."

to be continued...

A/N: Whew, took a lot to try and get this chapter to end with that little bit of info, but Piedmon's back story was longer than I thought it would be, so it worked out. Hope it wasn't too boring - it's hard for me to gauge this fic since I've known all along where I was heading with it (though some slight alterations have sprung up along the way). Chapter 3 will have everything explained, and hopefully some more action, though admittedly action isn't my strong point in case you couldn't tell... At this point I think I'll be able to end it with just 3 like I'd planned, though it may end up being 4 if 3 starts getting too long. So we'll see how it goes.

Let me know what you think so far!