Chapter 24: Utopia

Disarm you with a smile, and cut you like you want me to,

Cut that little child, inside of me and such a part of you,

Oh, the years burn,

Oh, the years burn!

I used to be a little boy, so old, in my shoes, and what I choose is my choice,

What's a boy supposed to do?

The killer in me is the killer in you, my love,

I send this smile over to you…

"Utopia, huh?" Blitz asked. "Great name, but how exactly can you understand us?"

"There is no confusion in Utopia. I can understand what you mean without needing to understand what you actually say," Nako replied. "But none of that is relevant. Right now I should get you all some food."

"That would be wonderful," Gatomon said happily.

"It would be my pleasure. Come along now, follow me," Nako waved to us as he started off into the city.

The city itself was actually quite busy. Nako led us first into a wide street market which was filled with activity. There were a multitude of creatures walking about, gathering up food from various stands. There were about six different races walking around, including several beings who looked like perfectly normal humans. Something seemed very odd about the place, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. It wasn't a bad feeling, just a feeling that something was off-track here. Just the atmosphere of the city seemed to be somehow broken.

Nako led us up one of the flights of stairs and onto the pathways in the sky. These paths weren't as busy, but there were still a good number of people walking around. The roundness of everything made me feel a little uneasy as I was walking along the path, but I didn't think it would be right to say anything.

He led us through a door that was just a little too small for Izzy and I. Everyone else walked through it just fine, but we had to duck down a little. Inside was a room that looked slightly miniature, with a simple table and chairs. The edges of these weren't all entirely rounded, but there was a noticeable effort to keep with the theme of the city. On the table was a large bowl full of an odd looking pink-skinned fruit that vaguely resembled a lemon.

"Eat some of these. They're quite delicious," Nako said. "I'm going to send a quick letter. I'll be right back in."

He left the room through another small door, leaving all of us looking at each other, confused.

"Well, they look okay," Izzy said, picking up the fruit. I picked up one myself, as did Gatomon and Blitz. The peel felt like an orange peel, and as I pulled it back it looked like the inside of an orange, except that it was pink. Shrugging, I bit into the fruit.

It was very sweet and a little bit tangy, more so than an orange would be. It tasted almost like pink lemonade, only somehow fresher. "It's good," I announced. The words were hardly out of my mouth before Gatomon ripped hers open and began to eat. Aerial jumped up onto the table and grabbed one of the fruits. He took a big bite right out of the skin but didn't seem to mind it. We all quickly ate our fruit. I hadn't realized how hungry I was until then.

"I told you you'd all like them," Nako said upon his return. "Eat all you want, there millions more where those came from."

"We wouldn't want to be rude," Izzy said.

"Rude? Never! There's no shortage of fruit around here, take what you want," Nako replied.

"Um, thank you," I said, picking up another fruit. Aerial was on his second anyways.

"While you eat, I think I should tell you, the queen will meet with you any time today. We can go to her as soon as you're done," Nako said.

"The queen?" Blitz asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yes of course. Queen Remedi meets with all people who crash down on Utopia. Not that many do, but on the occasion she likes to speak with them. She is a good queen," Nako said.

"Spectacular," Izzy said. He looked around the room quickly. "Um, do you have a garbage can?"

"It is that hole in the wall. The hole leads back into the planet," Nako said. Izzy deposited the peels that remained from his fruit in the hole. After we had all done likewise, Nako led us out onto the sky walkways again.

As we passed over the city markets, I began to notice that there were no shopkeepers behind any of the Carts or stands. People were simply picking fruit up from the carts and walking away.

Gatomon poked my leg, causing me to look down at her. She was looking up at me and pointing forward. Before us was a massive palace, built in the same style as the rest of the city but on a much grander scale. In some ways it was majestic that something so large could be built like that, with no sharp edges anywhere, and in some ways it wasn't as majestic as I'd expect a palace to be. Perhaps it was that weird sense of something being innately wrong that gave me that impression, but I didn't really have time to think about it as we were being led inside.

The doors were wide open and no guards were posted anywhere. It seemed that anyone could come and go as they pleased. We walked through a large hall and into another smaller one. The round feel of everything was kind of calming after a while, and I began to feel more at ease as we wandered through the corridors with the rounded corners. Eventually we came to a very large double door which was closed. Nako didn't hesitate to open it and walk in, so we all followed.

Inside was the throne room. Again, it was no incredibly elaborate. It did have portraits of various kings and queens hung up neatly in round frames on the walls. Some round diamond-like jewels hung from the ceiling on strings, varying in height and almost seeming to give the impression of falling snow above us. I hadn't noticed it, but the colors in the palace had been fading slowly from the sandy color into a pearly white. The throne room was almost entirely this pearly white color, making it look rather beautiful. The throne at the far end of the room was built in the same style as the buildings. It had a red cloth draped over it, and on the cloth sat the person who must have been the queen. She was spellbindingly beautiful. Her hair was drawn back into the vegetable-like ponytail, just like Nako's, but she seemed to be a normal-sized human. Her face was also a little bit smaller than a normal human's, but it only added to her beauty. Her attire was rather odd, a mixture of white and blue with a few dashes of purple. In her hand she held a simple white pole with no decoration whatsoever.

"Queen Remedi, these people have crashed down upon our planet," Nako said with a small bow.

"Thank you Nako," the queen replied. Her voice was sweet and calm. She sounded a little bit childish, but still she had a somehow queenly presence. Nako left the room, closing the door and leaving us with the queen.

"Um, Queen Remedi?" Blitz asked.

"That is my name," the queen responded with a laugh. "What are all of your names?"

"I am Blitz," the zafara began. "This is Izzy, Kari, Gatomon, Tentomon, and the freaky little thing is Aerial."

"It's a pleasure to meet you all," she said kindly. "And I would like to welcome you to Utopia. I'm sure you have questions, and I would be happy to answer them."

"Yes, a few," Izzy said. "Most importantly, is there any way you can help us get off of this planet?"

"Off of the planet?" Queen Remedi asked.

"Izzy," Tentomon said, poking him for his rudeness.

"Oh, it's quite alright. Most people who crash down initially want to leave. You are welcome to try as well, but I warn you that no one has ever managed to get off of the planet. You see, a thick asteroid field orbits us, protecting us from the outside but preventing anything from leaving as well. But fear not. I am certain you will enjoy being here," Queen Remedi said.

"Thank you for your concern," Izzy said apologetically. "Um, I do have another question. What exactly is this place? Nako called it Utopia."

"And it is," Queen Remedi said. "This planet is called Utopia, and it is exactly what its name implies. That is why I feel you will like it here."

"Pardon me for intruding, but my definition of utopia is a perfect world, a paradise of sorts," Blitz began.

"Exactly. This is a perfect world," Remedi replied.

"A perfect world?" I asked. "How can that be? I thought there was no such thing."

"It simply is," Remedi began. "Here on Utopia, there is no war, no strife. There is no hunger, no disease, no problems, and nothing to worry about. Nothing bad ever happens in Utopia."

"How can that be? Are you immortal or something?" Blitz asked.

"Oh heavens no. Death does happen here, but it is not a sad thing. That is usually the hardest thing for outsiders to grasp. A person's death is, for us who live in Utopia, a joyous occasion, for they are free to move on to the afterlife."

"That's, really strange," I said. I didn't just mean the idea about death; I meant the entire concept of a perfect world. It seemed somewhat illogical to me. Perhaps that was what I was feeling before, a sense that this place was different from everywhere else. It made me wonder about something; if this place could be perfect, maybe other places could as well.

"So nothing bad ever happens on this whole entire planet?" Blitz asked. "What if I went outside and started blowing stuff up?"

"You're not going to," Remedi said simply.

"Well obviously, but what if I did?" Blitz asked again.

"This world is many things, but one thing that it is not is hypothetical," Remedi answered kindly. "There is simply no need to worry about such things, because nobody would ever do such a thing."

"Right, but what's to stop someone from doing these things?" Blitz asked again.

"You really don't get it? Nothing is there to stop them. Nothing is needed. It is simply the case that nobody does such things," Remedi said again. "Perhaps you can think of it like this; if anyone did do those things, the world would no longer be perfect. People do not do those things so that the world remains perfect."

"Yeah, but people are, like, greedy and sneaky and stuff," Blitz said. He apparently didn't want to believe that a perfect world could exist.

"What do they have to be greedy for? There is plenty of food and there are homes for everyone. Nobody has any incentive to break the perfect order," Remedi continued.

"But, it, doesn't, make, sense," Blitz moaned. "Oh forget it."

"The more pressing concern is how we are going to get off of this planet and find the Gyros, or at least find our homes," Izzy said. "As wonderful as this place sounds, I'd like to see the rest of my friends again."

"I will facilitate you in every way I can, but I will remind you that many have attempt to leave the planet before and none of them have succeeded," Remedi said. "Now, for your stay here, however brief or long it may be, you will need to be able to operate within our culture. Feel free to take as much food from the market as you need. There is an ample supply of it and famine does not exist. The food is constantly overflowing. There should be plenty of empty homes on the outside of the city. Simply set some kind of object on the tables inside so that anyone looking for a home will know it is yours. Every morning, we ask that you walk out of the city and pick about fifteen fruits from the trees of the forest, and then bring them to the market. That is how the food is constantly restocked. Do not worry about which fruits you bring, at generally evens out in the end."

"Is there anything else to eat besides fruit?" Gatomon asked.

"No, but do not worry. The fruits contain all the nutrients you need to live," Remedi said. "Lastly, there are always many games being played in the open parks of the city. Go there to have fun. Everyone will be glad to have new players. If you ever need anything, advice or just someone to talk to, I'm always here."

We said our thank yous and goodbyes to Queen Remedi and then headed back out of the palace. For some reason I still had a strange sense about this place. It almost felt like a pressure coming in from all around me, very gently squeezing me as I walked around the city. It wasn't uncomfortable or threatening, it was just there. I had to overlook it for now, though. There were more pressing issues at the moment. For one thing, we needed to find a way to contact Gaustal or get off of the planet ourselves. Another thing was on my mind, though. I still wondered in the back of my head how this place could have ever actually achieved a condition of Utopia. I felt like I wanted to study the place, find the secret, and go and tell everyone else. Maybe everywhere could be like this. As far as I could tell, Remedi spoke the truth. All around me as we walked through the city, there was only happiness and laughter. People went about their business smiling, talking, and being friendly. It was like a dream world, and yet for some reason that nagging feeling wouldn't go away.