Hope amidst the darkness (Tylo/open)

[Ciel]

"We've finally arrived just as he told us. Don't worry about what happened there, we will return once we gathered enough strength and intelligence to help him to achieve his revenge."

What happened in the dino valley left a bitter taste in the mouths of everybody: the death of children, the brutality of the paildramon twins, a father's pain for the loss of his sole son, and Tylo's greatest failure and defeat. Ciel wouldn't have cared at all about that situation if weren't because she came to sympathize with fellow warrior sealsdramon and his furious desire for revenge, she was the same too and unless he achieved his revenge, he would never be able to feel happiness nor be able to start a family again. Heh, an angel who only knew about delivering revenge, it was rather ironic.

Nevermind, not only they couldn't go back due they were wanted digimon but also because all the other roads were closed, trying to go anywhere but the shadow zone would force them to travel through paildramon's territory and the other alternative, going back to the ocean, went against their mission to know more about the world so they crossed the borders between regions and walked into an area where the light of sun hardly shone at all and darkness reigned. The part in which they emerged was some sort of forest, whose trees further covered any light that could illuminate the duo, the alternative would be to fly on the forest, but then they would be easy targets for any possible enemy they could find.

"Just like he said, this shadow zone lives up to its name, there is almost no illumination at all. Tylo, don't stay too far from me, we need to remain together until our eyes adjust to the poor illumination and do not attacking anything that moves, that could provoke the natives into believing us their enemies"

Having the sealsdramon's night vision equipment would've been a godsend in this area, but lacking it they had to do it the old fashioned way and adapt their eyes to the darkness. And so, they wandered through the forest as they looked for any settlement.

[tylomon]

Tylomon simply followed the angel digimon wherever she went, not really caring about destination. It was not the destination that mattered, it was the journey. The shark has been very quiet lately, ever since that fateful battle. Sealsdramon did tend to his wounds while they stayed in that cave with him, but nasty marks on his skin and armor still remained. Reminders of what happen, and of what must never ever be allowed to happen again. Wary thoughts pestered his mind ever since. What was that army? Who was that black monster he fought to a standstill? Why it helped a weak-minded leader like the one Ciel had slain in the first place? None of these questions he did find an answer.

- Revenge? ... We will simply help set things like they should have been set long ago... Um... how is your arm Ciel? - Tylo asked the angel. He's been asking that one every single day since they left, being overly concerned with that injury. He heard the doc speaking that non-dinos have more difficulty with regenerating wounds, making him more worried, so he kept asking even after the wound disappeared. His own were of no concern to him at all - he healed faster, and was more heavily armored, he had nothing to worry about.

- I see well in the dark - in tends to get very dark as you go deeper into the ocean, for lack of sunlight. - he pointed out, the shadows of the realm were not very discomforting. Tylo was surprisingly well-prepared for any difficulties that waited on the solid ground, many of his natural abilities could were useful here as well. - In the ocean deeper areas, covered with darkness, are home to many vile creatures, like marinedevimon for instance. They completely lack all emotions but hatred due to their lonely life in the profound ocean depths. And they hate all those who associate themselves with the light. Won't the locals see you as enemy because you are ... well, an angel? - he asked cautiously as they went down the forest trail. It was getting dark, well, darker. And many weird noises were slowly filling the air as the night creatures were awakening. Any traveler who dared going through the shadow world, was ought to seek a shelter for the night, when powers that be are allowed to move unchecked, covered by the wail of darkness...

[Ciel]

"Setting right what was done wrong is one way of seeing the problem, and my arm is alright now, it has been a few days since we left and I am in optimum battle capabilities"

Of course she didn't heal as fast as dinosaurs, but that didn't mean she regenerated as slow as living beings does in the human worlds. By now her entire body completely healed and she was in her best state since she arrived to this universe, her body learned to heal fast after getting constantly mauled and mutilated by parallelmon, so that was one thing to "thank" him for giving to Ciel.

What the prehistoric shark said next was rather reassuring, she thought he only carried his duty as guard in the least depth areas of the ocean, but he actually also wandered into the abyss, where sea digimon who knew not about the warm of light lurked and had to rely in senses other than sight or have very well developed eyes to survive, the tylomon surely was a digimon with many innate abilities, and that truly made him an all terrain digimon.

"Darkness means not evil, and light means not goodness. You have seen in by yourself, that paildramon lived in the light, yet he caused nothing but pain and not all light-aligned beings like angels are good, I am a living proof of that and there's others much worse than me. Same goes for beings of darkness, living in the darkness doesn't make them innately evil, they are as capable of doing good actions as any other digimon."

Even in her own world where peace was achieved and lasted until parallelmon destroyed everything things were the same, sometimes angels who dreaming with the power the high ranked lords seraphimon and ophanimon rebelled against their own people and waged into battles only to satisfy the desires of their twisted hearts, and sometimes the heavenly knights worked along members of the devil digimon clan to stop evildoers who wanted to thwart the balance of powers in the digital world. Both were sides of the same coin, and despite their alignment, they weren't really that different each other

[tylomon]

- Oh ... alright... Not everybody is good, not everybody is bad. Expect equal trouble from anyone. Got it. - the shark nodded after scratching his head. What he did not really understand though was why the darcmon was constantly using herself as example of a "bad angel". Tylo traveled with her for so long, and did not view her as a bad, faulty angel at all. She was a good teacher, and a good friend, she commended his abilities greatly, and was nice. But maybe it was because he did not encounter a "good angel" to compare...

- Why is Ciel says she is a bad angel? - his question may have sounded very naive, but he still wanted an answer non the less. Sure she lost to some some parallelguy and wishes to avenge her fallen, but was it a bad thing? Anybody would have done the same. Tylo did not understand why it suddenly made her consider herself a wrong type of angel. He scratched his head again - too many thoughts for his mind...

... The road through the forest seemed to be leading somewhere - as they went deeper, its quality was visibly improved - your average groundroad ended, merging with one covered with stone. It was not the best class, but fairly decent when compared with muddy roads the dino land had, if those could even be called roads. Maybe they were approaching something that deserved a better road than everything else, and that guess was correct...

- Light ahead... - Tylomon pointed out, as his eyes narrowed on the source of the light. It was pretty weak, but stable, constant, and it seemed to be glowing for a long time now, like a beacon. It was not possible to see anything else though - the thing was too far ahead. - What could it be?

[Ciel]

"Being an angel digimon isn't easy. Many digimon either love us for always fighting for justice and many others hates us for usually acting holier than you. What no one understands is that too many things are expected from angels: Never show anger, never show hatred, always do the right thing, always be respectful, think in the safety of others first before yours, no matter how much things get bad always be the one who gives hope to others, never despair, always undergo the toughest trainings of all to be able of protecting even those who doesn't deserve to be protected, never kill unless the enemy is completely evil, always remain pure, never show to others your face, be always an role model for others to follow, etc. I broken many of the laws an angel has to follow for my revenge, I actively seek war and fight against anyone strong regardless if that opponent fights for the sake of the weak ... I can't call myself an angel after betraying all my beliefs, I'm even worse than those who fall from grace because at least they become something else while I'm still an angel despite not acting like one."

In her old world, for becoming what she is now she would've been captured, imprisoned, punished and re-educated until she become a true angel again, the alternative would be to be set free but have her wings painfully removed from her back, that was how her clan dealt with those who refused to follow the path of light. They would never take the life of one who was once one of their own, but would make sure no one ever recognized them as angels anymore. Ciel sometimes wondered if she should just cut her wings as self-punishment for straying away from the path of the angel, but she still needed them to defeat her sworn enemy parallelmon. She saw herself as a being no longer blessed by the light and her very own combat styled lacked of the sacred light many other angels could utilize: pretty much any angel digimon can summon the miracle of the light in their attacks while all Ciel has are her cold and blood-soaked swords.

She remained in silence for a while as they walked until the more adjusted to darkness tylomon caught a glimpse of light ahead them, they were finally leaving the forest and reaching an area with a proper road.

"If there's light ahead is because there must be something worth to be highlighted, let's continue"

[tylomon]

- You're being too hard on yourself Teach... You're the best angel I know! And besides, I bet every other angel who would have been hounded by parallelguy for so long would have already commit suicide or something to make it stop. The fact you didn't says a lot. - Tylo tried cheering her up. He mused who put the angel types into such slavery? In the ocean everyone had a choice of what to do. Such ... let's call it dedicated community service was honored, but it was entirely voluntary. And yet here we have some ... entity telling they MUST sacrifice everything of their own for others. Why? Just because they were made white and with wings? The shark did not understand that.

- Also... You angel folk seem to sacrifice your own interests for the greater good... - he picked that up from what she said - - And you sacrificed your angelnessness in order to defeat an evil enemy and not let him do the same things to others. Tis greatest sacrifice, right? That makes you the best angel there is! - he said happily upon finishing a logical conclusion. But seriously, many would tell you how honorable it is to die for a good cause, but no one will tell you how is it like to kill for a cause...

... As they followed the light that was glowing from afar, it was possible to see where did it come from. Soon in the darkness appeared a silhouette of a ... building of some sort. It was pretty large, made of ... white stone? Yes. This was why it was possible to see it better in this darkness. The light proved to be a burning torch that lighted the gates and the fence around the mansion. Everything looked ... nice? Eerily nice, what would such a place do in a shadow kingdom?

- Somebody must be living here or something... - Tylo said as he hovered around the gates. The place did not look too bad, and probably the hosts were around as well, for somebody had to light up that torch. - Should we knock and ask if we could stay for the night?

[Ciel]

"Thanks for your encouragement, but I changed too much to ever be a good angel again. Originally I was after parallelmon out of duty and respect for those he killed, but now I only do it for revenge; I can't sacrifice anything in my quest for revenge because I have nothing left to sacrifice, he destroyed everything I had, everything that gave any meaning to my life, so as some people say, I have nothing to lose."

She rubbed the Tylomon's forehead armor with her hands as she spoke, they were still warm and gentle despite all the punishment and battle they witnessed, but that didn't change the fact those hands got stained with much blood and Ciel's sins would never go away. What's more, she was sure that if she were to eventually evolve, she would become a fallen angel digimon like a ladydevimon because she felt that the holy light abandoned her the moment she tossed away her ideals.

"Enough talk about me, I'm already resigned to accept my fate. It is more important to continue with our journey and we seem to have found a good place where to ask for information"

The angel digimon's eyes finally adapted to the overwhelming darkness of this shadow zone and saw in front of them what looked like a mansion, highlighted by the white materials used in its construction and a few torches illuminating its outside.

"We won't know if somebody is here until we ask."

Whoever owned the mansion probably was either a rich digimon or one of noble upbringing, the door was made with only the highest quality wood and was finely decorated with golden borders around it and the door itself was well cared for, one would think it was just recently acquired right from the factory. Ciel got in front of the door and knocked three time.

"Is somebody at home? We are lost travelers looking for shelter and information, it would be of much help if at least somebody could lead us where to stay if not possible here"

Said that, she waited along tylo and requested him to mind his manners, it was part of her training as a heavenly knight to know about etiquette and good manners, so while her social abilities were a bit rusty for lack of use, she had some grasp of how to treat with digimons of noble lineage.

[tylomon]

Several grumbling noises were heard from behind the gate after the angel knocked at the gates. Somebody obviously heard them coming, because keys ringing to open the door were head soon enough. In a few moments of messing with the lock, whoever was behind the door managed to open it, and let out a yawn. Obviously they had awaken him... The door opened with a sad creek, and a figure emerged from the darkness...

Tylomon would have jumped if he had legs, when that somebody finally had shown his head. It bore some striking resemblance to marinedevimon he saw a few times, but remembered what Ciel said and did not go bonanza with missile flurries the next moment he saw the guy. The devimon looked quite decent actually, for a devimon, that is. Maybe it was because of the uniform he wore, it was quite stylish, yet not instilling fear, adding class to his somewhat ... err, rebellious appearance. He yawned again, before rubbing his eyes again, before staring at the angel with a confused glare.

- Whoa, I didn't know anybody from the council of Incorruptible Pure Pureness was supposed to show up today... We didn't do anything bad, so to speak... - the devimon shrugged, regaining the composure. He seemed to did not hear the angel's words about being lost travelers looking for information and whatnot - he simply heard some words as he woke up.

- You're here to see the master, are you not, miss? Err... The door won't fit for your companion though, I'll open the gate for him... - he said rather politely, shaking off the sleepiness and remembering the etiquette. Tylo only looked at the angel wishing to say something, mouth opened for it already, but reconsidered. The devimon messed with keys again, and opened the gates as well. After this was done, he waved his rather long claw-hand gallantly:

- After you...

[Ciel]

Well, her attempt at trying to act like a respectful lady was for naught, the devimon .. butler? completely ignored or failed to hear what she said and instead mistook her as a member of some sort of purity council, exactly the opposite of what she was now given that now she was closer to the devil digimon species than to her own species.

The butler was well mannered, educated and helpful, he even accepted the entrance of the angel digimon into the home of what was most likely a being of utter darkness and did it all without losing his coolness.

"Thanks for your service and politeness, I shall pay equal respect and politeness to your master and the rest of the mansion's inhabitants"

She offered a curtsy at the devimon butler which looked completely out of place as it was performed by an armor-clad warrior angel digimon, and went inside the mansion. The inside was rather classy and elegant, and she could swear she saw a ladydevimon wearing maid clothes rather than the leather dominatrix ones her kin are known for wearing cleaning some vases decorating the mansion's entrance room. The level of elegance in this mansion was unlike what she had seen previously and it was not even more obvious than before that they were dealing with somebody who really appreciated art and beauty.

"Can you show us were we can wait for your master, or will he come to receive us here?"

Usually mansions had waiting rooms, so she asked the devimon butler where they had to wait until the master of the mansion came to receive them.

[tylomon]

As the duo got inside the mansion, Tylo has been very suspicious. These guys ... they were demons for crying out loud! And yet their behavior, and even appearance were not demon-like at all. Sure, not to judge a book by the cover is good, but, c'mon, really? What was next? A devimon picking flowers? Or maybe a nurse ladydevimon? Actually, what he saw next was not that far from his guesses, and made the poor shark drop his jaw on the floor.

- Of course, miss, you can wait in the waiting room. Right this way... - the devimon made a jest and led the duo into another room, which was placed directly after the corridor - no reason to wait for the guests in there... - I would sincerely hope your ... spacious friend will be careful around the vases though. Some of them are really expensive, and our master would not like to lose any due to lack of carefulness. - the devimon said politely and opened a rather big door, leading to the waiting room. Inside there were a few couches made of leather and were of turquoise color, to contrast nicely with the decor. A big, crystal candle chandelier was hung at the ceiling, so inside it was rather bright, like in broad daylight.

- Please wait here for a few moments, master will arrive shortly ... as soon as we will find him. Hey Lady! You here? - the devimon called after talking with the angel and the shark. He found the duo quite amusing, but kept his opinions to himself. After he called, noises of somebody else approaching were heard, and loon ... a ladydevimon perked up from around the corner, a duster in her hands. She also had quite a nice uniform, in it she actually looked ... pretty, rather than menacing. If not cute. She seemed to like it too.

- Yes Devi? You called? Oh! We have guests today! How lovely! - she sounded rather cheerful, displaying a great degree of fondness and familiarity, to the devimon at least. They probably were somehow related too.

- Yes, have you seen the master? Is he sleeping? - the devimon asked a bit impatiently.

- You wish. He sleeps when normal people are awake, and is awake when they're asleep. Must be in the tower. I'll go tell him we have visitors from the council at last. He's been waiting for so long! - the ladidevimon then ran up the rather long stairs that lead to the upper part of the mansion, and possibly the mentioned tower. Devimon, after bowing again, went back to his post at the door - they did not need him here much longer.

- Psst! Ciel... Can you believe these guys? - Tylomon whispered quietly, while hovering around the room, slowly, staring at the vases, which were shiny and pretty, but also keeping considerable distance from them. This looked weird. Classy mansions, pretty vases, and ... nice demons? What the hell? - And what council are they talking about?