Chapter 7: Digidestined a la Mode

"Gabumon!"

The figure was a yellow Digimon with a horn in its forehead wearing a pelt of light blue fur with dark stripes. Its mouth was taped shut and it was wrapped up with rope.

As it stared up at you with wide eyes, you turned to Patamon and Gatomon. "A friend of yours?"

"Gabumon!" Now T.K. and Kari ran over and T.K. immediately began undoing the ropes that bound the Digimon.

"T.K.!" Gabumon's voice was low like Tsukaimon's but without the rough, raspy edge to your partner's. "I'm so glad to see you!"

He stood up to hug the boy and you were surprised by how big he was. Gabumon was twice the size of the other Digimon and of equal height to the kids. 'I guess Digimon come in all shapes and sizes, just like people.'

"Thanks for the help. It was getting stuffy in that bag."

"You're welcome." You debated offering a handshake - did he have hands? - but instead bowed to him. "My name is Shar."

He bowed back. "My name is Gabumon."

"What happened to you, Gabumon?" Patamon asked. "How did you end up in this place?"

"I'm not sure." Gabumon looked around as if he hadn't seen these surroundings before. "I was just minding my own business in the Misty Forest the other day when darkness surrounded me and I blacked out."

"I wonder if it was the same darkness that we encountered before?" Kari wondered.

"It was almost like water. I saw it flowing along the ground and then it jumped up and wrapped around me," Gabumon explained.

It was an unpleasantly familiar image. You vividly recalled how the ooze had drained the energy from Patamon and Gatomon and how it had then come after you and Tokomon. It wasn't hard to believe that Gabumon would've been knocked out when the darkness had got him.

"We should hurry and leave this place," you said urgently. "If that darkness brought Gabumon here then we could be in danger too."

"She's right. Let's make tracks out of here!" Gabumon ordered.

"Okay!" Tsukaimon said. "Which way?"

"Um…" You, Kari, and T.K. looked at the two doors which opened into the storeroom. Judging by their faces, they couldn't remember where you had come from. Even worse, you couldn't remember either.

You gave yourself a mental kick. You were the oldest - you should've been paying attention to the turns the group was making.

But before you could get too down on yourself Gabumon spoke up. "Don't worry everyone. I'm sure we can find our way out in no time."

"Yeah, I'm sure we can!" T.K. said cheerfully. "At least nobody lives here to get mad at us for wandering around."

Suddenly snickering burst out of a corner near the ceiling and you all whirled around to look. Smoky grayness was swirling around menacingly and it was from there that the laughter was emanating.

Your reaction was instinctive - you shoved the kids and Digimon through the nearest door with the shout to run and followed them closely. You shut the door behind you all, wishing it had a lock on it, and darted across this room towards the next door. A portion of your brain noticed that this was not the kitchen you had come through before - you'd taken a wrong turn in your rush. But there wasn't anything you could do about it now; the shadows were chasing after you.

And they were fast. A shadow shot past you and wrapped around Gabumon before you could react. He cried out and then vanished before your eyes.

"Gabumon!" T.K. cried.

"He just vanished!" Kari gasped.

More shadows were closing in and you pushed the kids on into yet another room. Here there were stairs and you all ran up to the second floor.

But you weren't fast enough. At the top of the stairs darkness closed in around your group again. This time T.K. and Gatomon were swallowed up, leaving only you, Tsukaimon, Kari, and Patamon.

"T.K.!" Patamon wailed tearfully.

"Gatomon, no!" Kari looked as if she wanted to run back and physically rescue her partner but you grabbed her before she could.

"Stay back, Kari! It'll get you too!" you cried.

"Come on, Patamon!" your partner shouted. "We've gotta protect them!"

Tsukaimon charged and after a second of hesitation Patamon joined him. They swooped at the threatening shapes and launched attack after attack.

"Boom Bubble!"

"Purple Haze!"

They simply didn't have the speed to keep up though. The shadows danced and whirled across the walls, easily outpacing the two winged Digimon and their projectiles. Then they struck back.

"No!" you shouted as the shadows grabbed them and they vanished.

Now the shadows focused on you and Kari. They circled like sharks and Kari clung to you tightly. You pushed her so her back was against the wall and took a protective stance in front of her. You could handle yourself in a fight, though a fight against shadows was unusual. But backing down wasn't an option with Kari relying on you.

"Come on, you cowards! Show yourselves!" you snarled. "I'll give you a fight you won't forget!"

The small shadows continued to circle closer. But wait - was that the black ooze from your fight with Fugamon?! The corners of the room were gloomy to begin with but you could see pitch blackness squeezing through the cracks of the wood like moisture. It creeped along the ceiling and floor towards you.

Then your attention was diverted and a thrill of fear ran up your spine as the small shadows all converged on you and Kari. She gasped and you tensed, ready to punch or flail or… something.

The shadows rose up and took shape. Their new appearance gave you no more comfort than when they'd been darting formless shadows - they were ghosts the size of T.K. and Kari, covered by a ragged white sheet. They had glowing red eyes and mouths filled with large fangs, much like Tokomon had had.

They stared at you and you stared right back. No one moved.

Suddenly your digivice, that strange device that had fallen out of the sky at camp, beeped loudly from its position at your hip and it emitted a brilliant flash of light. You flinched but the ghosts still didn't move.

After the flash you looked back at the ghost Digimon. To your surprise they were smiling!

One drifted forward and bowed before you could take the chance to strike out at it. "Welcome your Highness!"

You stared for a minute and then glanced at Kari. She looked just as confused as you felt. Could the ghosts be talking about her?

Then several more glided up to you and took hold of your arms and shirt, gently pulling you forward. "Huh?!"

"Yes, you, your Highness!" they said cheerfully. "We Bakemon have been waiting so long for you to come! Hail the Queen of the Bakemon!"

You looked at the ring of black eyes and white sheets all around you and your surreal situation momentarily left you speechless. What were they talking about? Waiting for you - like Tokomon? And how on earth were you the queen of anything, let alone a bunch of digital ghosts? WHAT WAS GOING ON IN THIS WORLD?!

"Wait, wait," you said, resisting their relentless pull. "If you're so happy to see me, then why were you chasing us?!"

"Umm…" The Bakemon looked at one another in confusion. "We were?"

"Yes-" Then the memory of the blackness in the corners darted across your mind and you glanced up. Nothing was there anymore, just normal wood and shadows.

"That can't be right." There was a moment of contemplation and then the Bakemon resumed pulling you. "Well regardless, you're welcome now. Come, we're going to have a feast to celebrate your long-awaited arrival!"

"Kari!" you said as you looked back over your shoulder. "My friend comes too."

"Of course." The Bakemon drifted up to flank Kari, though they didn't touch her, and they guided you back down the stairs and through a couple of rooms until you were once again in the entry hall in front of the huge staircase. Now there were Bakemon everywhere, floating along the second floor balcony and through the doorways. As your group passed they all waved to you and called out greetings. You and Kari waved back, though not as excitedly as them.

Then you entered the dining room. Apparently while you'd been talking to Gabumon and running for your lives, the Bakemon had decked the place out for their feast. Sconces lined along the walls and candelabras on the table were glowing with flickering light and the table itself was draped with a heavy, luxurious, wine-colored cloth framed by gold lattice. The solid wood chairs were upholstered with a similar fabric of deep red and each was like a throne unto itself. Serving vessels, plates, bowls, utensils - even in the dim light you could see the gleam of gold and silver. Each place was also set with a crystal goblet filled with what you hoped only looked like blood.

"Wow!" you exclaimed. "This is beautiful!"

"Of course, your Highness! We would only use the finest flatware for this long-awaited miracle!"

"But where are T.K. and the Digimon?" Kari asked worriedly.

With your eyes now adjusted to the gloom you could see she was right - aside from a flock of hovering Bakemon the dining room was empty. "Yeah, what gives?" you demanded of your guides. "What did you do with them?"

"Never fear, your Highness, the intruders have been dealt with."

'I don't like the sound of that,' you thought anxiously.

"What do you mean?! What did you do to Gatomon?!" Kari wailed.

"Did you hurt them?" you growled.

"I don't know. They're in the kitchen. Undoubtedly the chefs are preparing them into a delicious meal in your honor."

"What?!"

"Of course! It's not every day that we have such tender Digimon arrive here in time for dinner."

"No!" you and Kari cried.

"You can't eat them!" you said. "They're our friends! We won't let you!"

The Bakemon looked shocked by your passionate outburst. "But… your Highness…"

"No!" you ordered. You shifted into a defiant stance and pointed a finger directly at the closest Bakemon's face. "If I'm really your queen then you have to listen to me! And I say that no one eats my friends! Now, bring them here unhurt!"

For a second all the Bakemon stayed frozen with indecisiveness but then the one you were pointing at sighed. "As her Highness commands."

At his words several of the Bakemon rushed out through a far door and you exhaled with relief.

"I'm sorry if we upset you, Highness. We were simply trying to properly welcome you with an excellent meal." The Bakemon glanced at the table and let out a disappointed sound. "But without fresh-cooked Digimon and a side of young human, this feast is a disgrace for every Bakemon in the Digital World."

Great. Now you felt guilty; of all the crazy emotions to feel after refusing to let digital ghosts cook your friends.

"Um… Listen," you began. "I appreciate the thought and all, but I would've been more upset if you'd eaten T.K. and the Digimon. And I'm sure your chefs can cook up something else that's just as great! What do you guys have around? I'm not bad with a frying pan."

"Oh no, your Highness! We couldn't ask you to cook for us! Even if we had the ingredients for another dish."

"Pshaw!" you scoffed. "We'll think up something to cook for everyone. And if I gotta be somebody's queen, I'm not gonna be the sort of queen who sits around being waited on."

Then the far door burst open and in ran faces you feared you'd never see again.

"T.K.! Gatomon!"

"Guys!"

"Kari! Shar!"

Tsukaimon flew straight to you and leapt into your arms. "Shar! I'm so glad you're safe!"

"Ditto!" You squeezed him as hard as you could, marveling at how he seemed completely boneless. "I'm glad you weren't made into a Tsukai-soufflé!"

"That reminds me…" He slipped free of your arms and with a vicious growl began attacking the nearest Bakemon. "DIE YOU SAD EXCUSE FOR A DISHTOWEL!"

"Save me your Highness!"

"Woah, woah, woah!" you yelped and grabbed your partner. "Easy, Tsukaimon! It was all a misunderstanding! They've learned their lesson!"

You and Kari explained everything that'd happened in the last 15 minutes (though you didn't mention the black ooze) and the Bakemon apologized too. And it didn't take much to convince the others to cook up and alternative meal for you all. At first you were at a loss of what to make - the Bakemon had been right about the lack of food in their pantry - but when you caught sight of T.K.'s backpack and remembered the baked Power Bananas you were struck with a brilliant idea.

You, the kids, and the Digimon set about making a huge pot of creamy soup with the Power Bananas as the main flavor. You'd never made soup like this before so the whole time you were just winging it. It involved a lot of tasting and discussion but finally you ended up with a pot of sweet, warm, apple-cinnamon soup.

The Bakemon loved it. Their chefs begged you for the recipe, but unfortunately you weren't thinking of recording it for posterity at the time you were making it. But you told them the important ingredients and the order in which you'd added them and the amounts as best you could.

"From here, you guys should experiment and find a soup mix that you like best," you suggested. "No two chefs cook the same way just like no two people have the same taste. But no more eating Digimon and humans, okay?"

"Yes, your Highness. And if your other human friends come by, we'll send them after you."