Lost and Found
Chapter Fifteen


Outside the house, EmperorGreymon was conversing with Jijimon when Mewtwo and Renamon exited. EmperorGreymon also noticed the small infant in Renamon's arms, and he knew this had to be Merenamon, the very subject the Council had just discussed recently. And the very center of Myotismon and Daemon's concern.

“So much fuss over a child,” he murmured. Aloud, he greeted Mewtwo and Renamon. “It seems your child is alright. I'm relieved.”

“Hey, there, cutie,” Mervamon said, stroking Merenamon's head. “It's good to see you again.”

Merenamon murred happily, smiling at Mervamon. At that moment, Charon exited the house, an ice pack pressed to his head. He halted abruptly at the sight of EmperorGreymon and Mervamon.

“Ah, Charon,” Jijimon spoke up. “I'm glad to see you're alright. Though what's with the ice pack?”

“To calm the ache in my head,” Charon answered. He eyed EmperorGreymon, clearly intimidated by the massive Saurian Digimon. “Um, who are these two, Jijimon?”

“Why, this is Mervamon,” Jijimon introduced the female warrior Digimon. “She's a representative of the Council. Mervamon, this is Charon.”

“Hmm. So this is Charon, huh,” Mervamon said, peering closely at the human scientist. “This is my first time meeting a human. Well, nice to meet you, Charon. Welcome to the Digital World.”

“Thank you,” Charon said.

“And this fellow here is EmperorGreymon,” Jijimon said, continuing the introductions. “He's one of the twelve Digimon who make up the Sovereign Council.”

“Oh. I hope I'm not in any trouble,” Charon said, looking nervous.

“Be at peace, human,” EmperorGreymon said. “Mervamon and I didn't come here because of any trouble regarding you. As it is, we came here to check on Merenamon. I had a suspicious feeling she may have been in danger.”

“Your suspicions were correct, EmperorGreymon,” Mewtwo spoke up. “It seems LadyDevimon decided to drop by.”

“LadyDevimon was here,” Mervamon asked.

“She was,” Renamon said. “Tell them Charon.”

“It was LadyDevimon alright,” Charon said. “She appeared out of nowhere.”

“And what did she want,” EmperorGreymon asked, though he had a sneaking suspicion he already knew the answer.

“She said she was here to delete Merenamon,” Charon replied. “She attacked and I was knocked unconscious. When I came to I saw Merenamon was alright and there was no sign of LadyDevimon.”

“She was going to delete Merenamon,” EmperorGreymon said, a note of anger in his voice.

“Apparently she didn't get the memo about the Council's decision,” Mervamon said, her tone matching that of EmperorGreymon.

“What decision,” Mewtwo asked.

EmperorGreymon sighed. “I suppose I should explain. You see, Myotismon and another Digimon called Daemon were in favor of destroying your daughter. They felt because of her latent powers and unique genetic structure, that she would be too dangerous and could bring disaster to our world.”

“They what,” Renamon snarled in anger.

“They dared to suggest destroying our child,” Mewtwo said, his own anger growing.

“The Council voted against such an action,” EmperorGreymon assured them. “Though the vote was 10-2 against it.”

“And let me guess,” Renamon said. “Myotismon and Daemon were those two?”

“Actually, they weren't,” EmperorGreymon replied. “During the vote, they said they had changed their minds, stating they had been too hasty and had time to rethink their actions.”

“I don't believe that for one minute,” Mewtwo snapped. “I don't know much about this Daemon, but Myotismon has shown he is untrustworthy and manipulative.”

“Our thoughts exactly,” Mervamon said. “That being said, EmperorGreymon figured something wasn't right and decided to come here and check up on your daughter.”

“And it seems my suspicions were correct as you said, Mewtwo,” EmperorGreymon said. “It seems LadyDevimon decided to disobey the Council's decision and she'll have much to answer for.”

“Um, I don't think she was acting on her own” Charon spoke up. “She said she was ordered to destroy Merenamon.”

“Ordered,” Mervamon said. “If that's the case, then that means...”

“Myotismon has some explaining to do,” EmperorGreymon said.

“And he can explain everything, after we have a few choice words with him,” Renamon said.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Mervamon said. “I hope you're not implying you and Mewtwo are going after Myotismon, are you?”

“That's precisely what she's implying,” Mewtwo replied. “I warned LadyDevimon that if she or her master bothered us, I would make them regret it. And the fact that they tried to kill our daughter gives us all the incentive we need to do something.”

“Hold on, Mewtwo,” EmperorGreymon said. “I realize you and Renamon are upset about this, but you just can't go after Myotismon like this.”

“To blazes we can't,” Renamon shouted. “He tried to kill our child! And I intend to see he pays for it!”

“My sentiments exactly,” Mewtwo said. “I don't care if he is a member of the Council, he will answer for his actions!”

“Yes, he will answer for this,” EmperorGreymon said. “But not like this.”

“Mewtwo, Renamon, please,” Jijimon spoke up. “You two need to calm down and listen to reason. If you go after Myotismon like this, he could easily turn the situation to his advantage. You already heard how he tried to petition for Merenamon's destruction, and it's obvious he wasn't too thrilled to have Mewtwo and Charon show up here in the Digital World. By going after him and even trying to attack him could result in the Council ruling in his favor. If that were to happen, then Merenamon's life could be forfeit. And not just hers. You and Renamon, and even Charon could be imprisoned or even destroyed. And don't think for a moment that just because there are members of the Council who are on your side, that you'll get off easy.”

“He's right. We would be obligated to abide by the rules and laws set by the Council,” EmperorGreymon said. “And unfortunately, we would not be able to show leniency to any of you, despite all you've done for us. You have to understand, this is a very precarious situation.”

Both Mewtwo and Renamon were silent, both contemplating what they had been told. They still simmered with righteous fury, but now calm rational thinking was setting in and as much as they hated to admit it, they new Jijimon and EmperorGreymon were correct.

“So then what do we do,” Renamon asked in frustration. “Just sit back and let Myotismon get away with this?”

“I'm asking you to leave this to me and Mervamon,” EmperorGreymon said. “We'll go and question Myotismon and get to the bottom of this. For now, though, remain here at File City with your daughter. And don't go looking for any trouble with Myotismon or his subordinates. Once we discover the truth, we will let you know what we find. And if it turns out Myotismon is indeed responsible, then you may deal with him, regardless of his Council status.”

Mewtwo sighed. “Very well, EmperorGreymon. We'll abide by your wishes. But if LadyDevimon or anyone else who works for Myotismon shows up here, I won't be held responsible for my actions.”

“That goes double for me,” Renamon added. “Especially if they try anything.”

“Fair enough,” EmperorGreymon said. “Now, if you'll excuse me, Mervamon and I will head to Myotismon's Castle and try to get some answers.”

With that, he and Mervamon turned and made their way to the town's boundaries.

“Well, quite a day we've had,” Jijimon said. “One of the Banchos defeated, the others running scared, and best of all, everyone came out just fine.”

“Well, more or less,” Charon said, rubbing his still aching head.

“Jijimon,” Mewtwo said. “Do you think we've seen the last of the Banchos? Considering they lost one of their own, will they be so willing to come after us again?”

“It's a possibility,” Jijimon said. “Despite their loss, the Banchos will really be out for revenge now. Though I don't think we'll be seeing them again anytime soon. No doubt they'll take some time to lick their wounds and come up with a new strategy. I'm certain they won't be so quick to underestimate you again.”

“If they were smart, then they'd stay away,” Renamon said. “But somehow I doubt we'll be that lucky.”

“Well, if they do return, we'll be ready for them,” Leomon said. “And we'll make sure they never bother anyone else again.”

“Sounds good to me,” Renamon said. She smiled at Merenamon. “But in the meantime, I think this little one has had enough excitement for one day.”

“She's not the only one,” Mewtwo said, caressing Merenamon's head. “I'm ready to call it a day myself.”



Outside of town, EmperorGreymon and Mervamon were making their way to Myotismon's castle. For a while, neither one said a word, both lost in their own thoughts over the day's events.

“Do you really think Myotismon ordered LadyDevimon to destroy Merenamon,” Mervamon asked, breaking the silence. “Would even he stoop to such a thing?”

“Myotismon is cruel and vindictive by nature,” EmperorGreymon said. “Much like the rest of the dark half of the Council. I wouldn't put it past him to do such a thing. And LadyDevimon certainly wouldn't have a problem following his orders, even if those orders include killing a child.”

“What I don't understand is why did she leave without finishing the job,” Mervamon mused. “Don't get me wrong, I'm glad Merenamon is alright, but you have to admit it is a bit odd.”

“Yes, it is,” EmperorGreymon concurred. “Something must have happened. Either her orders suddenly changed, or....”

“Or what,” Mervamon asked.

“Or someone else was in that house when she attacked,” EmperorGreymon replied.

“Are you saying someone may have ambushed LadyDevimon and sent her packing,” Mervamon asked.

“Possibly. Or deleted her,” EmperorGreymon mused.

Mervamon halted abruptly. “You don't really think someone would do that, do you? I can understand fighting to protect a child and forcing LadyDevimon to retreat, but deleting an emissary of the Council? Any Digimon that did that would face serious consequences regardless of the situation.”

“That's true,” EmperorGreymon said. “What's more, I would think if someone had fought off LadyDevimon they would have stuck around to ensure Merenamon and Charon's safety and inform us about what happened. There's just too many questions right now. Hopefully we'll get some answers when we speak to Myotismon.”

“You realize he'll probably deny everything,” Mervamon said. “Chances are he'll probably say he had no knowledge of LadyDevimon being there and may throw her to the wolves, claiming she went against his orders.”

“No, I don't think he would,” EmperorGreymon said. “Myotismon is a lot of things but he wouldn't toss aside one of his strongest and most loyal subordinates. Even if it meant him getting in trouble.”

“Can we be sure of that,” Mervamon asked.

“Right now, there's a lot I'm not sure about,” EmperorGreymon replied.



Meanwhile, at Myotismon's castle, the vampire Digimon in question was pacing in his chamber, waiting on LadyDevimon to report back to him. At the moment he had no idea how things were progressing in File City and didn't want to risk sending any of his scouts there lest they be discovered and questioned. Hopefully LadyDevimon had accomplished her mission and was now on her way back to the castle. Still, it had been quite a while now since she had left and he was starting to wonder if something had happened. Had she been caught? Had the fight ended and Mewtwo and Renamon had returned to find his emissary in the process of eliminating their child?

“If she did get caught by them, then nothing will save her from them, not even her status as my emissary,” he muttered. “And I certainly wouldn't be able to garner any sympathy from the Council if that happens. It was difficult enough before, but if she's caught red-handed...”

He stopped as there was a knock at his chamber door. Finally! LadyDevimon had returned.

“Enter,” he called out.

The door opened. Myotismon anxiously waited for his emissary to enter, only instead of it being LadyDevimon, it was Phantomon.

“My apologies for bothering you, sire,” Phantomon said, bowing. “But you have a visitor.”

“I have no time for visitors, Phantomon,” Myotismon said. “Tell them to come back another time.”

“It's Daemon, my lord,” Phantomon said.

“Daemon? Hmm. Well, in that case, send him in,” Myotismon said.

Phantomon nodded and then exited the room to fetch Daemon. Myotismon already had a good idea just why Daemon had decided to stop by. No doubt he was anxious to hear what had transpired at File City. A pity he didn't have any information to share with his fellow Council member. Following on the heels of that thought, Daemon entered.

“Welcome, Daemon,” Myotismon greeted.

“Myotismon,” Daemon replied, nodding. “I assume you know why I am here?”

“If it's regarding the child, then I'm afraid I have nothing to tell you,” Myotismon said. “I have yet to hear from LadyDevimon. Either she has yet to succeed, or she has and is on her way back here now. I can only assume she's taking her time so as not to be discovered.”

“Understandable,” Daemon said. “We certainly can't afford to make any mistakes by being hasty.”

Several more moments passed and both Digimon continued waiting for LadyDevimon to show up. Soon, though, they were beginning to lose patience.

“Where is she,” Myotismon growled. “It's been long enough. She should be back by now.”

“Perhaps we should dispatch someone to check on events at File City,” Daemon suggested.

“I had hoped to avoid doing that just in case they got caught,” Myotismon said. “But perhaps we could risk it.”

He was about to summon Phantomon when there was another knock on the door. It opened and Phantomon entered.

“Ah, Phantomon,” Myotismon said. “Fine timing. I need you to...”

“Um, sire,” Phantomon interrupted. “I'm afraid you have two more visitors.”

“Whoever they are, tell them to come back later,” Myotismon said.

“But, sire, I'm afraid it's EmperorGreymon and Mervamon,” Phantomon replied.

Both Myotismon and Daemon stiffened in surprise. EmperorGreymon and Mervamon? Here? Now?

“Why would they be here,” Myotismon asked.

“You don't think...” Daemon said.

“No. It couldn't be,” Myotismon said. “But then again...Show them in, Phantomon.” Phantomon nodded and then left. As soon as he was gone, Myotismon turned to Daemon. “You'd better hide yourself, Daemon. They might get suspicious seeing you here.”

Daemon nodded in agreement and ducked inside a large wardrobe. No sooner was he out of sight when the chamber door opened and in strode EmperorGreymon and Mervamon. And neither one looked happy.

Do they know, Myotismon wondered. Aloud, he said, “Welcome, EmperorGreymon, Mervamon. To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?”

“You can start by letting us talk to LadyDevimon,” EmperorGreymon replied, his tone hard.

Myotismon struggled to keep a straight face and not look surprised at the request.

“LadyDevimon,” he said. “May I ask why?”

“Just a short time ago, the Bancho Digimon attacked File City,” EmperorGreymon explained. “During the attack, your emissary showed up at Jijimon's house and attacked the human, Charon. Before he was knocked out, he heard her say that she was there to destroy Merenamon.”

“Outrageous,” Myotismon said. “What proof do you have that LadyDevimon was there? Did anyone see her? Other than the human, that is?”

“Unfortunately, no,” EmperorGreymon said. “Only Charon saw her. By the time the battle finished, she was gone.”

“Aha. So you only have the old man's word,” Myotismon said. “Can you really trust his word? From what I've heard, before he came to the Digital World, he ran with a rather disreputable crowd. I would also like to add, that if LadyDevimon really had tried to destroy the child, I assure you she would have finished the job. And since she, and the human, are alive and well, then there is no proof that she was there, let alone trying to destroy the child. That being said, this is a very serious accusation you're making.”

EmperorGreymon ground his fangs in frustration. He had had a feeling the conversation might go in this direction. Still, he had to follow through with this regardless.

“You're absolutely certain LadyDevimon didn't go to File City,” EmperorGreymon asked.

“Why would she,” Myotismon countered. “If she did, perhaps it was for some other reason. Perhaps she had gotten word of the Banchos and decided to check it out. I had ordered her to keep an eye out for those troublemakers after all.”

“Fair enough,” EmperorGreymon said. “But I'd still like to speak with her. Just to be certain.”

“While I would like to comply with your request, I'm afraid I can't,” Myotismon said. “As it is, I'm not certain where she is at the moment. However, I could dispatch some of my scouts to look for her and bid her to return here. Though I'm not certain how long it would take.”

“How very convenient,” Mervamon muttered under her breath.

“Do so,” EmperorGreymon said. “And when she does return, tell her I need to speak with her immediately.”

“Certainly,” Myotismon said. “Though I'm sure she'll tell you just as much as I told you.”

“We'll see,” EmperorGreymon said. “Come, Mervamon. I suppose we're not going to get any answers at the moment.”

Mervamon nodded and followed him out the door, though not before casting one last suspicious glance at Myotismon.



As soon as the door closed, Myotismon turned to the large wardrobe. “You can come out now, Daemon. They're gone.”

The doors swung open and Daemon stepped out.

“What do you make of that conversation,” Myotismon asked.

“Fortunately, it seems they have no solid proof of LadyDevimon's involvement,” Daemon said. “Despite the old human's claims.”

“Yes, but what troubles me is that LadyDevimon didn't accomplish her mission,” Myotismon said. “You heard EmperorGreymon. The child still lives. I wonder what happened?”

“Perhaps she had no choice but to abandon her mission,” Daemon speculated. “But even if that were the case, why has she not returned yet?”

“A good question,” Myotismon said. “I can't help but wonder if something happened to her. Phantomon!”

The phantom Digimon appeared. “You summoned me, my lord?”

“Send word to all of my scouts,” Myotismon ordered. “Tell them to seek out LadyDevimon and find out what's happened to her.”

“At once, my lord,” Phantomon said, rushing from the room.

“I suppose all we can do now is wait,” Daemon said. “And hope that LadyDevimon turns up soon.”

“And when she does, she'd better have a good reason for not completing her mission,” Myotismon replied.



Outside the castle, EmperorGreymon and Mervamon were making their way back to the Council Hall. Mervamon was about to speak up to discuss their conversation with Myotismon. EmperorGreymon held up his hand and shook his head.

“Not yet,” he said. “Wait until we're out of Myotismon's territory.”

Mervamon nodded in understanding. No point discussing anything with the possibility of Myotismon's spies lurking around. After a while, they left the Vampire Digimon's domain behind them. However, it was still some time before EmperorGreymon finally deemed it safe enough to speak.

“Well, what do you think, Mervamon,” EmperorGreymon asked.

“It's obvious he was lying,” Mervamon said. “He knew darn well LadyDevimon was in File City. I'd even go so far as to say he did send her there. We both know he and Daemon were all for destroying Merenamon, despite their so-called ''change of heart''. I'd be willing to bet LadyDevimon was there at his castle and he's just hiding her.”

“No,” EmperorGreymon said. “I agree he was lying about dispatching LadyDevimon to File City and possibly deleting Merenamon. But I could tell he was being honest about LadyDevimon's whereabouts. Which leads me to believe my earlier theory that something happened to LadyDevimon and Myotismon has no clue as to what happened to her.”

“So we're still no closer to the truth than we were before,” Mervamon huffed. “How frustrating. If you ask me, we should let Mewtwo talk to him. I'll bet he'd be able to read Myotismon's mind with those psychic powers of his.”

“As tempting as that sounds, it won't work,” EmperorGreymon said. “Due to his supernatural and undead attributes, Myotismon is highly resistant to psychic probing. Mewtwo would not be able to read his thoughts at all.”

“So back to square one then,” Mervamon sighed. “What do we tell Mewtwo and Renamon?”

“Nothing yet,” EmperorGreymon said. “Not until we know something for sure. I don't want either of them to go after Myotismon based on hunches and hearsay.”

“Hopefully they've cooled down enough that they won't try anything rash,” Mervamon said. “Though I can't say I blame them for being upset. If I had a child, I'd be pretty ticked off if someone threatened them.”

“Indeed,” EmperorGreymon said. “If Myotismon did try to have Merenamon destroyed, then he's going to have more trouble than he can handle.”

“Will you speak to the Council about this,” Mervamon asked.

“I'll mention it to our allies,” EmperorGreymon replied. “However, for now, I think it would be best not to mention this to the dark side of the Council. For all we know, Lucemon and Barbamon may have decided to make a move of their own. It's possible they could have either coerced LadyDevimon to act on their behalf or sent someone who resembles her to throw shade at Myotismon. Either way, I don't think we can trust any of the dark Digimon at the moment.”

“Even Laylamon and Piedmon, despite voting against destroying Merenamon,” Mervamon asked.

“Yes, even them,” EmperorGreymon said. “It occurs to me that their nonchalant attitudes could have all been an act and secretly they agreed with Myotismon and Daemon's concerns. Either way, we keep this strictly between us and the light side of the Council. I realize it goes against what the Council stands for, but right now we have little choice in the matter.”

“I don't mind telling you I have a really bad feeling about all of this,” Mervamon said. “It feels like something terrible is on the horizon, something that could lead to a disaster worse than Emperor Leomon and even the Banchos.”

“I feel the same way,” EmperorGreymon replied. “Lets just hope it's nothing.”

Mervamon nodded, though deep down inside, she felt sure about the ominous sense of foreboding. A dark shadow lay across them, and it was growing darker and heavier. Something was coming, something that could very well mean trouble for the Digital World and it's inhabitants.


End of Chapter Fifteen....