CHAPTER 29

BUGGED

With a great crash, two Control Spires experienced the wonder of flight before crashing to pieces among their fallen brothers. Ankylomon thumped his tail on the ground triumphantly. "That's a home run, at least!" he rumbled.

"Very good! Keep going," Cody called, then looked down at his D-Terminal. "OK, so that's another two for Ankylomon… How many has Aquilamon knocked over today?"

Yolei looked up as her big bird partner's sonic rings tore through a spire's center, and her body quaked with pride as the tower slammed into the ground. "That'd be lucky thirteen," she laughed. "Pure pwnage, just like yesterday!"

"What?!" Davis huffed. "Like hell you did!"

"Sure I did!" she snapped back. "Cody got the most on Wednesday, and I knocked down the most yesterday! Twenty-nine! Read 'em and weep!" She looked over at Cody. "Cody, read back the numbers, will ya? I know I'm right!"

Cody raised an eyebrow. "You've been keeping score?" he asked.

She face-vaulted. "You haven't?!" she gasped.

"Well, I sure have," Davis chuckled. "After all, whoever offs the most by Sunday gets a date with me!… But Kari's the only one eligible."

"Thank goodness for that," Cody grumbled.

A gust of wind blew past and the kids looked up. Once again, Pegasusmon and Nefertimon flew in perfect synch, the magical golden rope between their feet pulling down the nearest spire. Just like dominoes, that spire hit another, which hit another, which hit another, until six spires smashed into the ground. No more spires remained standing as far as the eye could see. Pegasusmon and Nefertimon landed and reverted to lower forms. Exveemon, Aquilamon and Ankylomon did the same. "Awesome work!" TK laughed, scooping Patamon up.

"That's quite a haul for today," Kari said to Gatomon. "Feeling tired yet?"

"Nothing a grilled tuna wouldn't fix," Gatomon replied.

"This was one of our most productive days," Hawkmon said. "It won't be long before the Digital World is spire-free."

"Yeah," Cody said, growing solemn again, "but that woman always makes more…"

"So we'll smash those, too! Right on top of her head!" Davis cackled, stamping the dirt for effect. "Maybe then that ugly hat of hers'll look decent!"

"It's all well an' good to talk 'bout it," Armadillomon said, stifling a yawn, "but I'm dog tired. What say we call it a day?"

"Yeah, I'm all for that," Veemon agreed. "My feet're gettin' sore from all the kicking."

"Where was the warp again?" Yolei asked.

"It's over here…" TK began, but stopped as he stared at the device. Unlike other warps he had seen, it was in the shape of a television with a built-in tape recorder… and the letters "REC" flashed in red at the top of the screen. He scratched his head; had it been like this before? And what was being recorded?

"Hey, what's the hold-up?" Davis asked. "Let's get outta here."

"Oh, uh… right," TK replied, turning off the VCR and pulling out his D3.

… … …

After the usual untangling of the man/mon pile in the computer lab, the kids straightened themselves out as their little friends gorged themselves on a bag of I-Mart goodies Cody had supplied. "Amazing how you got a load like that without them finding it," TK said as Upamon and Demiveemon tore into a sack of gummy bears and Gatomon slashed her way through a pouch of seaweed crackers.

Cody smiled craftily. "I know some good hiding places in this school," he said. "I'll have to show you."

"Mmm, this stuff's great!" Patamon laughed as he sucked the juice out of a wax soda bottle. "You have to take Cody shopping with you more often, Yolei!… Yolei?"

Yolei sat at the computer, watching the Digital World grid as another black spot vanished with a tiny blip. She sighed contently, imagining Ken's midnight-blue hair fluttering in the evening breeze, blowing away Control Spires with the guns on his finely-toned arms… And then it was all gone with one guffaw from Davis. "How 'bout that!" he said, "Ken's workin' overtime!"

"Yeah," TK said, joining Davis in looking over Yolei's shoulders, "the rate he goes, it won't be long before the whole map is spire-free."

"Well, so far as we know," Kari admitted. "We have to ask Tai when the others are going scouting again. There may be more in areas we can't see yet."

"But Izzy said this is a map of the whole Digital World," Patamon said. "But it's not finished yet, either… We could do the scouting too!"

"We could, but we've got bigger things to do," TK said. "We have to knock down those spires, not to mention figure out who that woman is…"

"Don't you worry about that," Davis chuckled. "When Paildramon gets his hands on her, she ain't gettin' away!"

"Oh!" Upamon suddenly said, and hopped over to Demiveemon, who was licking the frosting out of a sandwich cookie. "Hey, Demiveemon, I wanted to ask… How DID you turn into Paildramon, anyway? None of us can do that!"

"Yes," Poromon agreed, fluttering over, "and what's it like?"

Demiveemon put the cookie down and screwed up his face, deep in tiny thoughts. "Uhhhhhh… I dunno!" he admitted. "Ken's D3 broke, and some light came out and went into me. Then I could Digivolve."

"It broke?" Upamon asked. "When was that?"

"Back when Okuwamon grabbed him," Demiveemon said. "There's a big crack in the screen now… but it's really weird!"

Poromon cocked himself to one side, puzzled. "What is?" he asked.

"Well, even though Ken was the Digimon Emperor," Demiveemon said, "when that light hit me, I felt something really nice… something kind and gentle…"

Gatomon scratched her head. "Kind and gentle?" repeated.

Davis's smirk had faded, and now he folded his arms thoughtfully. "Ya know, when it came out, Ken seemed to think it was Wormmon…" he said. "Kind and gentle… That sounds like him."

"Plus, look at Paildramon," Patamon said. "He looks like Exveemon, but he's got other bits and pieces… and those almost look like bug parts."

Everyone pondered the question before them. "Do Digimon have ghosts?" Davis asked.

"We saw Wizardmon at the TV station," TK said.

"But even if it was," Poromon said, "can Digimon spirits force Digivolution?"

"But Digimon aren't… organic, right?" Yolei asked. "So they couldn't really have ghosts… but maybe it's a leftover program… but I guess you could still call that a spirit?"

"Then maybe Wormmon has become part of Demiveemon's programming," Kari said. "Since you got that power, Demiveemon, have you had any thoughts that weren't… yours?"

Demiveemon blinked. "No," he said, "nothing past the usual stuff, anyway."

"What about you, Davis?" TK asked. "Your D3 starts sparking when Exveemon Digivolves. What does that mean?"

Davis shrugged. "Beats me," he said. "Maybe Izzy'll know when he's done looking at the data… but he sure is takin' his sweet time; it's been more than a week already!"

Kari heaved a deep sigh. "Boy, just when we think we've got this whole Digivolution thing figured out, something new pops up," she said. "If Digimon spirits can really cause it, that opens a whole new field of possibilities!"

Yolei blinked. "What, so for Cody and me to get Ultimate Digivolutions, we should have a Digi séance or something?" she asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Séance? Is that a sauce?" Upamon asked. "Sounds yummy!"

"Well, I don't know," Kari went on, "if Wormmon really did fuse with Exveemon to make him Paildramon, I wonder if two living Digimon could do that, too." She leaned on the desk and tapped it with her finger, thinking. "I mean, if Exveemon and Angemon mixed together, we'd get a big, blue angel lizard… or if it was Gatomon, maybe an electric cat dinosaur."

"Electric cat dinosaur?" TK asked. "Sounds like a rock band."

Davis beamed at Kari. "Well, I know who I'D like to merge with," he cackled. Yolei yanked off his goggles and smacked the back of his head with them.

Kari kept dreaming things up. "Ooh, if Exveemon and Aquilamon got together, maybe we'd get a pterodactyl thing! Oh, and if it was Ankylomon—"

Cody cut her off with a disgusted snort. Davis turned on him angrily. "Hey! The hell was that?!" he snapped. "Armadillomon too GOOD to merge with Veemon?! Huh?!"

Cody shook his head. "You're too optimistic about this," he grumbled. "That light came from the Digimon Emperor's D3; it could be a computer virus. It may help now, but maybe soon, it could turn Veemon against us… just like a dark ring."

There was an unpleasant silence as the new idea filled the kids' minds. "Gee… I didn't think of that…" Kari admitted.

"I don't think so," TK said, shaking his head. "I mean, Ken would have to hack his D3 to put a virus into it… and if Izzy can't get far into their programming, I don't think Ken could."

"Good God, Cody," Davis grumbled. "Why you gotta be a buzzkill all the time?"

"And why do YOU have to be so naive?" Cody returned bitterly. "We can't trust him! He tried to enslave the Digital World, and he wasn't afraid to hurt US, either. It's all a scheme!"

"You know what I think of your schemes?" Davis snapped, his fists balling.

A wave of purple hair and shoves into the boys' stomachs ended the face-off. "OK, break it up!" Yolei huffed. "We don't know much about it, but as long as it's helpful, I say we use it! It helped us find Crest pieces, right?"

"Yeah, that's right!" Davis huffed, peering past her at Cody. "Don't knock it!"

"Besides," Yolei said, frowning at Cody like he had insulted her personally, "Ken isn't the same anymore."

"Yeah," TK agreed, "since we destroyed Kimeramon, he does seem to have changed… He sure helped me out against Devimon, and he even saved YOUR life, Cody."

Cody's glare deepened and a furious grunt escaped his mouth. Not only was he outnumbered, but he also was reminded of the debt he owed the Emperor for saving him in Suadi Arugula; just the thought that he owed that fiend his life made him feel sick.

"All right, all right," Kari interrupted, seeing things were getting out of hand, "let's all calm down before someone says something mean."

"Yeah, let's all go home and rest," Gatomon agreed. "Sounds like we need it."

Davis groaned. "Aww, man, do I have to?" he complained. "My dumb sister's started playin' this awful music every night, and I can't stand it!"

"Really?" Demiveemon asked. "That stuff's fun!"

"Not when you're tryin' to put a model together," Davis grunted.

"Well, where can you go if you aren't going home?" Kari asked. "It's kind of late to be wandering around out there alone."

Davis thought for a moment. "I'll go see Izzy," he said, "see how that analyzin's goin'…"

"Why?" Yolei smirked. "You won't understand what he tells you."

"Hey, if I don't have to listen to that music, it's fine by me!" he said.

"What do you mean by awful?" TK asked.

"It's a bunch of screechy saxophones and drums and someone bangin' on a piano," Davis groaned, rubbing at his forehead. "Just thinking about it gives me a headache!"

TK scratched his head. That did sound like weird music; he wondered what it was.

… … …

Ken squinted hard. In the star-speckled darkness, it was getting tough to tell where the Control Spire was against the forest's skyline… but not impossible; he pointed his shoulder cannon at a tiny gleam and fired, and the trees rocked with a dull thud. He relaxed as crickets started chirping again; that was the last one. He began to move to the next area, but then his eye caught the glow of the small clock on the top of his grenade launcher. A quarter past nine already? He had to call it a night; he couldn't worry his parents again.

He lowered his weapons and started searching for the warp home. He certainly had made up for lost time that day; a least a hundred spires could no longer hurt anyone. He cursed himself for even taking that day off; wretches had no right to any rest, and he was sure those kids hadn't taken a break.

He paused and stared up at the trees. Curiously, he wondered what they had been doing. Had they found another of those Crests? Had that woman gone after them? What if she had made another Spire-Born? He sighed. No, they would be fine; they had Paildramon…

He froze, then shook his head violently. What did it matter if they were fine or not? They weren't any concern to him. All that mattered was destroying the spires, along with anyone who abused them. He couldn't waste his time worrying about them; even if they said nice things, they certainly didn't worry about the Digimon Emperor. With an angry harrumph, he picked his heavy arms up and kept walking.

… … …

Izzy hadn't expected a visitor so late on a school night, let alone Davis and his partner. "Uh, hey, guys… what's up?" he asked, not sure what else to say.

"Hi, Izzy!" Demiveemon chirped.

"'Sup, Izzy," Davis said, "just wanted to see how that analysis is comin'."

Izzy thought for a moment, and then his face went an awkward shade of red. "Oh, right!" he exclaimed. "Your D3… Actually, what with the Crest pieces showing up and all that fuss, I haven't really gotten to it yet."

"What?!" Davis asked, genuinely shocked. "I thought you were a super brain!"

"Hey, that's not very fair," Izzy said, frowning. "I have to go to school and eat and sleep, just like you. I'm a human being; I get sidetracked."

Demiveemon blinked. "You run on tracks?" he asked. "Where are they?"

Davis sighed, annoyed. "OK, OK, sorry," he said. "Did you find out anything, though?"

Izzy went to his computer and opened up the analysis program, revealing a bunch of charts, graphs and number readouts that Davis thought would burst his brain if he tried too hard to understand them. "I was able to copy a little of your D3's data before you took it back," Izzy explained, "but not enough for a good analysis. I'll have to borrow it again some time to get the whole thing."

"You can borrow it now," Davis said, fishing it out of his pocket. "I mean, weekend's coming up and all that… You've got time then, right?"

Izzy shook his head. "Sorry, Davis, but not this weekend," he said. "I've got a paper for my biology class… and I'm terrible in that class, so it'll eat up my whole Sunday. Hold onto the D3 for now; maybe next weekend."

Davis couldn't help but chuckle at that. Koushiro Izumi, master of all things technological, was bad at studying living stuff.

"Still, I did learn one thing," Izzy said, turning back to the program. "The security around the programs is a real pain; even with my updated program, I won't get far without more help."

Davis scratched his head. "Help?" he asked.

"You remember when I analyzed Yolei's D3," Izzy went on, typing at his computer. "I worked together with a friend in America. Thanks to him, I got twenty-five percent of it analyzed where before I only got fifteen."

"Oh," Davis said, scratching his head. "Heh… serves me right for thinking all computers were good for was video game help and porn."

Izzy chuckled a little, then frowned at the screen. A blank text document titled "The Amoeba and I" frowned back at him. "Still, my friend can't do everything," he mumbled, "but we could make more headway on yours than we did on Yolei's; the initial security on what I copied from it was a lot easier to break into, and not just because I'd done it before."

"Whaddya mean?" Demiveemon asked.

"Yeah," Davis said, "not that I'll get what you're sayin', but I might as well hear it."

"It's the code inside your D3," Izzy said. "It's different from what was in Yolei's."

"Different? How?" Demiveemon asked.

"Well, I expected each D3 to have similar code," Izzy went on. "When I analyzed a few of our older Digivices, the coding was virtually the same… There were a few differences here and there, since they were specially made for each of us, but nothing as dramatic as this."

Davis scratched at his chin; oddly enough, he had understood a lot of that. "So… what d'ya think that means?" he asked.

Izzy sighed and rubbed at his forehead. "I'm not sure," he admitted. "I'll send a letter to my friend after I'm done with my paper… but whatever the case, these D3s are even more a mystery now than they were before… Whoo, biology and Digimon… I'm going to have a mammoth migraine by Monday!"

A low gurgle sounded. "Woah," Davis gulped, backing up. "Is your brain gonna bounce outta yer head?"

"Um, Davis," Demiveemon said, looking up at him, "that was me."

Davis looked sheepish for a minute, then chuckled. "Well, then I think it's dinner time," he said, scooping his partner up. "Whaddya say we hit the barbecue joint down the street?" Demiveemon signaled his approval with a happy cheer. "Swell," Davis cackled. "Guess we're headin' out, Izzy. Good luck on that paper."

"Thanks," Izzy said, "I'm gonna need it…"

Davis opened the door. "Hey, by the way," he said, stopping, "the room smells OK; you musta got all that stank water out, huh?"

"Yeah, finally," Izzy muttered, wiping his brow. "Took two whole bottles of carpet cleaner."

"Sorry," Demiveemon said, his ears and tail sagging.

Davis shut the door and the room grew quiet again, save the electronic humming. Izzy turned back to his blank paper and stared at it for a while, then brought up the D3 analysis again. He leaned back in his chair, tugging at his chin. Two of the same device, yet such different sets of coding… He wished he knew what it meant.

… … …

It was odd that the Digidestined would choose such a desolate area to clear of Control Spires… and the woman didn't like oddity; in fact, she hated it as much as she hated them. In the new-fallen dusk, she fumed at the plain of toppled obelisks, her eyes sparking with silent hatred beneath her sunglasses. She had just created all of those spires the day before, and now they lay crushed beneath one another, toppled like dominoes; did those despicable delinquents think they could do whatever they wanted with her property?! She picked up a fragment of one of her precious spires and glared at it. She would have to discipline those brats; the next time she saw them… With a snarl, she pitched the rubble as hard as she could.

She jumped at the clunk it made; that was a sound she didn't expect in an empty area. Curious, she walked over and looked at what she had hit. It was one of those wretched televisions the kids used to come into the world. She looked it over with displeasure, but also curiosity. Unlike others she had seen before, that warp was making a whirring noise, and the letters "REW" flashed in red on the screen. As she watched, it clicked few times, and the letters changed to "PLAY." The screen flickered on and she bit her lip; an image of a falling spire appeared, followed by those Digidestined cheering and laughing.

"This was one of our most productive days," that eagle said. "It won't be long before the Digital World is spire-free."

"Yeah," the short, crabby kid mumbled, "but that woman always makes more…"

"So we'll smash those, too! Right on top of her head!" the idiot with the goggles laughed, stamping the dirt. "Maybe then that ugly hat of hers'll look decent!"

The screen fizzled for a moment, and then it replayed the scene. "This was one of our most productive days," the bird said again. "It won't be long before the Digital World is spire-free."

"Yeah," the short kid replied, "but that woman always makes more…"

As the gogglehead repeated his opinion on her clothes, the woman's mouth curled into a furious snarl. With one swift motion, she buried her foot in the screen and sent the whole contraption flying. As it smashed to pieces on a broken spire, she sucked in air and blew it out angrily. How dare those little vermin speak about her like that. Creepy? Stupid hat?! They weren't vandals and busybodies, but hypocrites, too; who were they to talk about fashion with the loony outfits they paraded around in?! That was the last straw; it was time to take those prepubescent pipsqueaks out of the picture.

She jerked a pink cellular phone out from her robes and punched in some numbers. The device buzzed a few times, then clicked. "It's me," she spoke into it. "Remember that plan? We're using it. Meet me there as soon as you can."

… … …

Even with Sunday on the horizon, Ken was in no mood for it. School that day had once again been a hassle. The teachers could yell at him all they wanted for assignments he had never done, but it didn't matter. None of it mattered any more. All that counted was the mission.

"Oh, hello, Ken dear," his mother said, looking up from a book she was reading. "How was school today?" She looked at her son again and the smile faded; he was looking even more haggard than before. "Is everything all right?" she asked.

"Hi, Mom. Gotta study," he quickly replied, ignoring the questions and heading straight for his room. As much as he didn't want to upset her, he had to stay focused on his job.

As he opened the door, he winced. He had turned all the lights off in the morning, but now there was a bright white glow; his computer was on. He closed his door and dropped his backpack on the floor, then walked over and scowled at the monitor; a threatening e-mail took up the entire screen:

Dear Digimon Emperor,

I warned you to stay out of my way, but you still refuse.

Since you insist on returning to the Digital World, perhaps we can come to an arrangement.

Come to the Crested Coach Motel, at the coordinates I've sent. The Digidestined and we can have a nice, orderly discussion there.

He spat out of the side of his mouth. Diplomacy from that woman was as likely as a snowball's chances in Hell; it had to be a trap.

He moved to delete the message, but then his mind hit upon something: she must have contacted the other kids… and they were definitely stupid enough to fall for it. He shook his head wildly; what did it matter what they were doing? He was sick of arguing with himself about whether they could be friends or not; he had to stay away from them.

Still… He looked at the letter again. That woman would definitely be there; between the others and himself, they had done enough damage to her spires and her subordinates that she'd have to be there to see them finished off… which meant it was his chance to finish HER off.

He reached for his D3, then remembered something: he had been eating dinner with his parents on a regular basis now. If he didn't show up, they might come in and see he was gone, and it would be a panic all over again. He had to make sure that didn't happen. He quickly pulled out his journal and scribbled out a note:

STUDYING- DO NOT DISTURB

He took a piece of tape and stuck it on the doorknob; there, that would do it. With that, he readied his D3. It was time for this woman to go.

… … …

"Wheeew!" Yolei panted, sinking into one of the lab's swivel chairs, Poromon perched on her lap. "I thought class would NEVER end!"

"Another reading assignment?" Cody guessed. "It's odd how you can be so engrossed in graphic novels, and yet you moan and groan when you're asked to flip through a paperback."

"There are PICTURES in manga," Yolei said.

"You make your own pictures for books," Cody replied. "It's called 'imagination.'"

"That hurts my brain," Yolei pouted. "I like it when someone else draws it for me."

Cody blinked a few times. "How I still respect you, I don't know," he grumbled.

"It's easier when ya never did," Davis cackled as he walked in, TK and Kari behind him.

As Yolei fought the urge to chuck Poromon at her insulter's head, Demiveemon hopped out of the closet and Davis scooped him up. "Finally!" Demiveemon laughed. "Those teachers keep you in here too long!"

"I'll second that," Patamon agreed, dropping down from one of the lights. "It's so hot and boring in here!"

"You could fly up on the roof," TK said. "I bet there's a good breeze."

"I tried that once," Patamon sighed. "Boy, was that bird mad… I kept saying I didn't MEAN to sit on her eggs, but she just wouldn't listen!"

"So, Davis," Kari said, picking Gatomon up, "how'd your meeting with Izzy go?"

Davis snorted. "We're workin' our butts off here, and what does he do? Nothin'!" he crabbed. "Well, I mean, yeah, things've been goin' a mile a minute around here, so maybe it's not so hard to see why…"

"So did he actually say anything, or are you just going to ramble?" Cody asked.

Davis scowled at Cody, then thought for a moment. "Well, he did say one thing: he said my D3 was easier to get into than Yolei's."

"Easier?" Gatomon asked.

"Yeah, he said the coding was different," Davis said, "more simple."

"Well, that figures," Yolei said. "Stupid brain, easy coding!"

"How 'bout a simple kick to yer stupid face?!" Davis snarled at her. "Or maybe it wasn't the code at all! Maybe Izzy had a tough time gettin' into yours 'cuz it stinks and he had to run out for a gas mask!"

"Hey!" Yolei snapped, looking more insulted than usual. "I've been showering every night!"

Davis blinked a few times. "Really?" he asked, genuinely surprised.

Yolei got even angrier. "What, you think I'm incapable of cleaning myself?!" she huffed, stomping in close.

"Hey, hey, guys!" TK said, getting between them and waving his D-Terminal. "What're we going to do about this?"

Davis and Yolei looked over at Cody and Kari, who also had their D-Terminals open. Puzzled, they opened their own to a bothersome message:

Dear Digidestined,

We need to discuss the debt you owe for destroying my property.

Come to the Crested Coach Motel, at the following coordinates. I'm afraid I'm very busy, so I won't be able to come until tomorrow morning, so feel free to spend the night at my expense.

Davis whistled. "I gotta check this thing more often," he said. "When did this come in?"

"Just now, while you two were arguing," Cody said.

"The gizmos beeped, but I guess you were louder," Upamon said.

"What's a 'motel?'" Demiveemon asked.

"They're little stopovers, usually along highways," Yolei explained.

"Yes, usually frequented by people on the run from the police," Cody muttered. "Not really the best place for children."

"Yeah, but that's a pretty fancy name," TK said. "Crested Coach? Who names a motel something like that?"

Davis thought for a second. "Maybe it's one of those 'love motels' you hear the grownups talkin' about," he said. "Sounds kinda girly-romantic-fancy; pink unicorns and stuff."

Yolei made a face. "It's 'love hotel,' and trust me, it isn't what you think," she mumbled.

"Have you been to one?" Poromon asked.

"No, but I've read plenty of doujinshi," she sighed.

"So, what should we do?" Kari repeated TK's question.

"You have to ask?" Yolei huffed, "This is such an obvious trap, it's like Davis set it up!"

"Oh, yeah?!" Davis huffed. "Well, if it's like I made it, then we can use my answer for dealin' with it!"

"What's that?" Patamon asked.

"Easy," Davis replied, grinning. "We go there, cash in on this super-generous offer… and then we blow that woman's ass to smithereens!"

"Is that all?" Cody asked, raising an eyebrow. "With that kind of attitude, you sound like the villain."

"Yeah, Davis, that is kinda mean," Demiveemon said.

"She's a human being, just like us!" Yolei protested. "Maybe we can reason with her; we reasoned with Ken, after all!"

Cody snorted. "Give an example that WORKS," he huffed.

TK and Kari looked at each other, but said nothing.

"Either way, we're goin', right?" Davis asked. "We gotta deal with her sooner or later."

The others all nodded. "Let's get moving," Gatomon agreed.

"Wait a second," Kari said, "if this is a motel, we should call our parents and tell them we'll be gone for the night; we don't want them to worry."

"Yeah, let's say there's a study-based sleepover or something," TK said.

"Ooh!" Davis cackled. "Can we say it's at Kari's place?"

Yolei rolled her eyes. "You just never quit, do you?" she grumbled.

"That might be a good idea, actually," Cody said. "Tai can vouch for us, plus he can open the portal from her place so we don't have to sneak out of the school."

"OK, then," Kari said, taking out her cell phone. "Let's call them."

Using Kari's phone, the kids each called their parents and got permission to stay. Davis's folks said OK almost immediately. Yolei had to negotiate a few work shifts with her dad. TK's mom gave her approval once he promised that Kari's parents were going to be there. Cody had to explain why someone as young as he was studying with the rest of them, but eventually his mom approved. "That's settled," Cody said, handing the phone back to Kari. "Just remember, this is certainly a trap. Stay alert, always keep your D3s ready, and test any food we're given."

"Aye aye, cap'n," Davis laughed, mock-saluting.

Upamon jumped in shock. "Cody's a captain?!" he gasped. "Wow! Why didn't you tell me, Cody?! What's your ship's name?"

Cody just sighed and took out his D3. "Digiport open," he instructed, and the computer screen gleamed.

… … …

Once again, the kids were greeted by a vast, empty landscape. "Man!" Davis said, looking around. "Landscapin' ain't one of the big hobbies here, is it?"

Veemon joined his partner in looking. For hundreds of meters around them, there was indeed only cracked, dead earth… but he spotted something in the middle. "Davith!" he said, pointing. "Izzat it?"

Everyone looked and saw a small, run-down looking white rectangle of a building, the words "CRESTED COACH MOTEL" flickering in red neon letters on a tall sign in front of it. If that really was the place, Cody's description had been the most accurate; it looked like a dive someone would only go to for either a sleazy affair or committing suicide. "Eww," Patamon voiced, "it doesn't look very nice."

TK nodded. "But if we can resolve this mess with that woman…" he trailed off.

"Yeah," Gatomon agreed, cracking her feline knuckles. "Let's show 'er!"

As the wind blew across the dusty expanse, Davis noticed something moving in the shadow of the giant neon sign. He peered at it for a moment, then pointed. Ken Ichijouji leaned against the sign, decked out in all his weaponry and his hair gently fluttering in the breeze. "Heyyyyy!" he yelled to him, waving excitedly.

Ken looked up and frowned, obviously not pleased to see the flock rushing towards him. "What are you doing here?" he asked. "You know this is a trap."

"Yeah," TK agreed, "it looks like that woman's trying to get us all at once…"

"I bet we can throw it right back in her face if we work together!" Yolei said, pushing past Davis and beaming at the raven-haired boy. "Whaddya say, Ken?"

Cody scowled and looked away, as he always did. Ken didn't look thrilled, either. "This is none of your business," he said, avoiding their gazes.

"Hey, come on!" Davis huffed. "Sure it is! We're all Digidestined here!"

"Don't you have some Crests to find?" Ken said, checking over his weapons.

"Ken, if you go in alone, you won't stand a chance," Kari said with worry. "Why do you keep trying to put yourself in danger like this?"

"Yeah, that lady's not gonna make it easy," Gatomon said. "She's probably got a troupe of Spire-Born in there already."

"This is my problem," Ken repeated, glaring at them. "I'll take care of it."

"C'mon, Ken, we talked about this," Davis said. "Don't be goin' off on kamikaze stunts!"

"And I told you," Ken growled, "the Digimon Emperor needs to be erased!"

The strange gleam in his eye made all of them very nervous… but one person stepped forward, breaking the icy silence. Veemon looked up at the boy with his big, red eyes. "Ken, please come with us," he said. "With Paildramon's super-strength and your big kabooms, we could take whatever gets thrown at us!"

Ken stared down at him, his stony attitude suddenly cracking. Who was asking him to come? Was it Veemon, Davis's happy-go-lucky partner? Was it Wormmon, trying to guide him on the right steps to his goal?… or was it some odd mix of both?

"We want to stop this woman, too," Hawkmon said. "She IS terrorizing the whole Digital World."

"Yeah, and with the crazy stuff she's thrown at us already, we'll need all the help we can get!" Patamon said.

"So, c'mon, Ken," Veemon asked again, "can ya help us?"

Ken stared at him a few moments longer, then sighed; if that was what the recipient of Wormmon's spirit wanted, then he would go along with it. "Fine," he muttered.

Yolei stifled a squeal. Cody shook his head. "Well, good," TK said, "then let's go in there and check it out!"

With Ken grudgingly in tow, the Digidestined walked past the sign, across a parking lot that didn't connect to any roads, and up to the door. "Who knows what kind of diseased rat hole this will be," Cody grumbled.

"I hope it ain't gonna be too gross," Armadillomon said. "I don't like spiders."

Davis pulled on the greasy knob… and once again the logic of the Digital World left all of them speechless. They had expected a crummy, vile-smelling waiting room, but the interior was wide with high ceilings and ornate decorations, famous landscape paintings on the walls, and vibrant wooden trim and furnishings. A gentle eastern-sounding flute melody floated through the atmosphere. Veemon gawked, rushed back outside, then ran back in again. "Wow!" he exclaimed. "They musta had a magician fer a builder!"

"Sweeeeeeeet," Davis cackled, nodding with approval.

"…Was this a MOtel or a HOtel?" TK asked.

Cody just shook his head. "I'm never going to get used to this world," he mumbled.

TK blinked, puzzled. Since his mother worked for a local newspaper, she had taken him on some of her trips out of town, and so he had stayed in several hotels in his lifetime. In the ones he had gone to, though, there had been a man behind a counter ready to book them in, or a bellhop to carry their bags. There were no such people here. A tall, wooden counter with a silver bell stood between two entrances to hallways, but no one was behind it. "That's weird," he said, "where's the staff?"

"Maybe they're short Digimon," Gatomon suggested, and she climbed up the desk and looked down into it. There was a reservation book, a lamp, and a computer with a microphone attached, but no clerk. "Huh… OK, scratch that," she said.

"Try the bell," Kari said. "That's usually for calling someone."

Gatomon looked over and tapped the bell, sending a gentle TING noise through the air. Almost instantly a figure rose up from behind the desk, making her leap off the counter in shock. It was a hunched, hideous old man with just a few wispy white hairs on his scalp, his face squashed in with big, yellowish eyes and almost no nose. He smiled at them widely, nearly all of his crooked teeth showing. "Well, hello, there," he rasped, sounding like he had a giant frog lodged in his throat, "welcome to the Crested Coach Motel… What can I do for you?…"

The kids pulled back; they had never seen a guy that ugly before and were a little afraid of him. After an awkward few moments, Ken stepped forward. "We had an invitation to come here," he said bluntly.

"Hmm," the man murmured, dragging the big, green reservation book up on the counter and flipping the pages back and forth. "Ahh, yes… I have a reservation for a party of eleven from a Miss… erm… Miss…"

The kids waited, but no name came. "Miss who?" Veemon finally asked.

The old man squinted, then shook his head. "I can't read it," he said. "A bug's been smashed right across the name."

"You have bugs?!" Davis huffed. "Oh, yeah, REAL classy place!"

The old man glared at him like he had insulted his mother, then closed the book and looked away. "Your rooms are ready," he growled, dropping two marked keys on the desk. "Two, of course; we'll have no hormonal mischief here."

"What ever do you mean?" Yolei asked sweetly. "We're perfectly-behaved young adults!" She batted her eyes at Ken with a big grin.

Ken didn't notice. He grabbed the keys and started down the left hall. "Woah, hey, Ken, wait up!" Davis called, rushing after him.

The others close behind, Ken and Davis walked down the hallway in search of the doors whose numbers matched the ones on the keys. As they went, Davis couldn't help but notice how quiet the motel was. There were no footsteps, no creaking of dollies being wheeled around, no chatter rumbling under the other doors… Indeed, aside from the flute music being piped in, it was as quiet as a morgue in the sterile-white hall. He scratched at his head. Wasn't there anyone else staying in this place? The others noticed, too. "Gee, I guess this isn't the busy season," Patamon said.

"If the floor weren't carpeted, I'd think we could hear quite an echo," Hawkmon said.

"Crimony. First bugs, and now echoes," Armadillomon grumbled. "This lady sure is a cheapskate."

"You don't know what an echo is, do you?" Cody asked.

Ken stopped in front of a door. The number "116" was stamped on it in a tacky brown. He looked down at the first key to see the same number. The second key was marked "118." That was the number on the door right next to the first. "Here," he said, shoving the "118" key in Davis's direction. "Check it out."

Davis jammed his key in the slot and gave a twist, and the door opened smoothly. With Kari, Yolei and their Digimon behind him, he walked into a fair-sized room with green carpet and a double bed with matching emerald sheets. All the typical hotel amenities were there: some cupboards and shelves to store things, bedside lamps, a big television with a list of cable channels taped to its side, and a door leading to a toilet. "Swanky," he said.

"Wow," Kari murmured, walking to the window and looking out. The dead, empty landscape lay just beyond the glass; they really were in the same building they had entered.

Gatomon and Hawkmon came in. Instantly Gatomon jumped on the bed and bounced two feet into the air. "Wow!" she said, "this's way bouncier than what I'm used to!"

"You're not going to get sick this evening, are you?" Hawkmon asked, perching on the top of the TV.

As Davis stepped out of the bathroom, Yolei peered in. There was another door on the other wall. "That's kinda stupid," she said, walking over and giving the knob a twist. "Who'd stick a closet in the—"

Her jaw dropped as a full Japanese bath greeted her on the other side, more elegant and traditional-looking than the one Mimi had dragged her to. "Hey, Yolei, what'd ya find back—" Davis started as he walked in, and then he gawked, too. "Woah!" he exclaimed.

"Too late!" Yolei huffed, snapping back to reality quickly. "Girls call it!"

"WHAT?!" he roared. "You just said it was stupid!"

"Changed my mind," she said, grabbing his shoulders and pushing. "Now go to YOUR room!"

"Hey, hey, HEY!" Davis yelled, struggling against her surprisingly tough grip. "Knock it off! Kari, help me out, here!"

He was out the door before Kari could even turn from the window. "Huh?" she asked, looking over at Yolei. "What was that?"

"Nothing," Yolei said, "Davis just agreed to let us girls have this room."

"Really?" Gatomon asked, scratching her head. "That didn't sound like an agreement…"

"Yolei, did you get rough with him again?" Hawkmon asked, crossly folding his wings.

"Hey, common courtesy says girls get better digs," Yolei said. "I just helped him see it faster."

Hawkmon shook his head. "You're using common courtesy as an excuse?…" he sighed.

Yolei scowled at him. "That's it," she huffed, "you're sleeping with the boys tonight."

Outside the door, Davis fumed quietly. How come Kari hadn't stuck up for him? She'd just let Yolei shove him out! Here they were, no parental figures in sight, in a seemingly empty hotel, and he still couldn't get her attention! Stupid Yolei, he growled; not only tossing him out of a cool hotel room, but getting between Kari and him yet again, too! He gave one of his usual one-finger send-offs to the door, then stomped over to room 116.

The layout of the boys' room was a mirror of the girls', with everything flipped around. Still, it looked just as comfortable, even with three other guys and three Digimon rummaging around it. Ken sat in the corner, staring at his weapons.

"Jackpot!" Armadillomon announced as he opened the miniature refrigerator in the corner. "Get a load of this spread!"

He started to reach for a soda, but Patamon grabbed at his shell. "No, stop!" he huffed. "TK's mom says they make you pay for what you eat!"

Veemon noticed a button near the bed. "Huh… 'Magic Fingers…'" he read. "Oh, boy! I like magic!" He pushed it and the bed went into a frenzy of vibration. "W-o-o-o-o-o-o-a-a-a-a-a-a-h-h-h-h-h-h!" he gurgled, rattling around on the top. "S-u-u-u-r-r-r-e-e-e i-s-s-s-s s-s-s-s-o-o-o-m-m-m-m-e m-m-m-m-a-a-a-a-a-a-g-g-g-g-i-i-i-c-c-c!"

The bed sputtered, then bucked, splattering him against the wall. "Holy crap!" Davis yelled, running to his partner. "Are you OK?!"

Veemon got to his feet, his legs trembling… but then he grinned at Davis. "That was awesome!" he laughed. "Let's do it again!"

"Stay off that button, Veemon," Cody said, "you're not eighteen."

TK looked up from inspecting the cupboard. "Oh, hey, Davis," he said, "where'd you get to?"

"Ahh, I was checkin' out the other room," Davis grunted, scratching at his side with a cross look. "Man, this sucks. We're all crammed in here and they get a big old—"

"You should check out what's in the bathroom," TK cut in, "it's amazing!"

Davis walked through the toilet room and his jaw dropped again. There was another fancy Japanese bath, and it was twice as big as the one in the girls' room. "Heh heh heh," he cackled, folding his arms with satisfaction. "Suckers."

Feeling mightily pleased, he strode back into the main room just as TK stood up. "OK, since we got the rooms figured out," he said, "why don't we get the girls and check out the rest of this place?"

"Aww, d'we have to?" Armadillomon asked, picking up the remote. "They got car racin'!"

"It's a trap, remember?" Cody muttered, taking the device away. "We have to figure it out before it's too late."

Ken quietly got out of the chair and left. "Hey, Ken! Don't go wanderin' off alone!" Davis yelled after him.

The other boys walked back into the hall, where he was waiting, along with Yolei, Kari and their Digimon. "OK, where should we go first?" Kari asked.

"We haven't seen much yet," TK said, looking down the hall. "Let's see where this hall takes us and go from there."

"Hey, wait," Patamon said, "what if we get lost?"

"We're in rooms 116 and 118," Cody said. "Be sure you memorize that."

As the little procession started down the hall, Veemon couldn't help but notice that Hawkmon looked a bit shaken. "What's the matter?" he asked.

"I have to sleep with you all tonight," Hawkmon said. "That's what Yolei said."

Veemon grinned. "Awesome!" he laughed. "It'll be like a big sleepover!"

"Errmm… I suppose," Hawkmon replied, but his expression didn't change. He had never been away from Yolei at night, and even in his Digivolved Rookie form, the idea was a little unsettling. Would he even be able to get to sleep?

The group kept walking and looking things over, but there wasn't much else in the hall besides more hotel rooms, all of the doors locked, no sounds behind any of them. "What if this is the trap?" Patamon asked. "What if this hall just goes on forever?"

"It doesn't go on forever; you can see the end of it," TK said, pointing ahead.

"But what if it's one of those trick walls that keeps moving as we do?" Yolei asked.

"One way to find out!" Veemon said, and raced ahead. He smashed into the wall and fell over. "Nope… it's real," he groaned.

Kari couldn't help but giggle. "That happened to me once," she said.

Gatomon looked at her. "I thought you were more coordinated than that," she said.

"I was four," Kari muttered.

They all reached the corner and finally saw something in the hotel besides rooms. Off to the left were two white doors with "DINING ROOM" written above them, and straight ahead stood a long glass window and a door leading into a room full of arcade games, pinball machines, claw games and a pool table. "Hey, how about that! A game room!" TK said. "I bet you'll like that, Yo—"

Yolei was already inside, racing around and fingering the machines. "Woot! This is so awesomely retro!" she squealed. "Look! They've got 'Monkey Kong,' 'Ru-Pert,' and even 'Puck-Man!'"

Everyone else walked in to take a look… except for Ken, who shook his head crossly; he had no time to play games in a deathtrap. He turned and kept walking down the hall, his eyes darting back and forth.

Nobody noticed him leaving; they were too busy checking out the flashing machines. "Do they look safe?" Patamon asked.

Cody went to the 'Ru-Pert' machine and looked it over. He knocked on it, peeked inside the coin return slot, and pulled at the buttons. "It seems like it's a normal machine," he reported.

Davis walked up and kicked it. It gave a clunking noise, but nothing out of the ordinary. "Sounds fine to me," he said.

"Why'd ya kick it?" Veemon asked.

"I hate this game," Davis replied, frowning at the machine. "Never got past the first level."

"Hey, be nice!" Yolei huffed. "It's not the game's fault you suck, and—OH, MY GOD!" She rushed over to the corner, ogling the pinball machine. "The official 'Donkey Madness' pinball game! There were only SIX of these made! In the whole world!" she slobbered. "Somebody give me some coins! I've GOT to try this!"

"Erm, Yolei," Hawkmon said, "perhaps we should keep moving… We do need to investigate this—"

"Shut up!" Yolei roared. "Mama gotta play this! Please please please please somebody give me some money!"

"Okay, okay!" TK surrendered, fishing in his pocket and coming up with a 100-Yen coin.

Quicker than he could say "here," it had vanished into the pinball machine's slot. "ALL RIGHT!" Yolei cackled, "stand back, boys! There's gonna be a pinball bloodbath!"

"And they say there's no evidence that games are addictive," Cody muttered to Kari.

Yolei grabbed the plunger, yanked it back and let it go with a frenzied cry. Everybody waited, but nothing happened; there was a quiet whir, but the machine stayed unlit. "Huh?" Yolei asked. She pulled the plunger again, but still nothing happened.

"I don't get this game," Armadillomon said.

"Ain't a ball supposed to shoot outta there?" Davis asked.

"Someone give me another coin!" Yolei snapped, holding out her hand. "I bet didn't put enough in!"

Not wanting to see what would happen if she didn't get the money, Kari got out another 100-Yen coin and put it in Yolei's palm, and Yolei dropped it in and yanked the plunger. Again they heard whirring, but the machine stayed unresponsive. Gatomon turned around, her ears twitching; if the pinball machine was working, why was the sound coming from behind them? Just before the whir stopped, she noticed the metallic hand in the claw game shuddering. "Hey…" she started.

"Still no go?" Patamon asked.

"I think I see why they only made six of these," TK chuckled.

Yolei wasn't amused. "Arrrgghhh! More money!" she howled, grabbing Davis by the collar.

"Hey, get your hands offa me!" Davis snapped, "I don't—"

"NOWWWWW!" she roared, shaking him.

Swearing she had fangs for a moment, he yanked another coin out of his pocket. She dropped him and jammed the money in the slot. Again there was whirring, but no lights from the pinball machine. Gatomon watched as the claw inside the other game moved around, then shuddered and stopped. "Kari, the claw machine—" she began.

She was cut off by a frustrated shriek from Yolei. "STUPID PIECE OF SHIT!" she raged, yanking her leg back and kicking it with all her might. The claw in the other machine shot down, clamped a stuffed pink dinosaur and dropped it down the prize hatch. A happy tune played, making everyone else turn around.

"The pinball controls must work the claw machine," Gatomon said. "Yolei pushing the buttons there made it work!"

"Aww, this is cute!" Veemon laughed, picking up the dinosaur. "Can I have it, Yolei? Please?"

Yolei blinked a few times. "Y'know, that's the first time I've ever won something from one of those," she said.

Cody scratched his chin, then took out a coin of his own and dropped it in the "Puck-Man" machine, but the "Monkey Kong" one started up instead… and when he moved the joystick on the machine he'd put the money in, it controlled what happened on the other one. "I see…" he said, "each device actually controls one of the others."

"Wow," Kari said, "they'd better call the electricians; they really messed up the wiring."

"It's nearly impossible to play anything if it's like this," TK said. "I guess we're out of luck in here… Sorry, Yolei."

Yolei sighed drearily, but Davis grinned. "I see one that works just fine!" he said, walking to the pool table, plucking a stick off of the edge and pulling away the plastic triangle that kept the balls in place. "Who's up for some Eight-Ball?"

"But Davis," TK started, "we need to—"

"Count me in!" Yolei huffed, grabbing another stick. "If I can't play any games, I'll have to hit something anyway!"

"What's Eight-Ball?" Veemon asked, hopping up on the side. "I see more than eight!"

"Ooh, they look like candy," Armadillomon said, scrambling up on a chair to watch.

Cody looked at TK and Kari. "You had better go on ahead," he told them. "I'll keep an eye on this bunch."

"Well, if you say so," Kari said, amazed that Cody would offer to stay behind. "We'll come back if we find anything."

TK, Kari and their partners left the game room. Davis looked up in alarm; TK and Kari were going off together?! "H-hey, wait!" he objected. "I wanna—"

"Oh, no you don't!" Yolei huffed, grabbing him by the collar again. "You threw down the glove; you stay right here!"

"Actually, this looks fun," Cody said, pulling another stick off the table. "May I play, too?"

"Sure!" Yolei said, rubbing her cue stick between her hands. "Don't think I'll go any easier on you, though!"

Davis sighed and stared at the green felt. So much for trying to relax.

… … …

Having made a sweep of the first floor, Ken cautiously pushed through the dining room door. All of the tables and chairs were set up like there was going to be a meal, but just like the rest of the hotel, there wasn't a soul inside: no waiters and no cooks. There was no rattle of pots or pans from behind a corner, nor was there any hum of electric appliances; only the intercom's flute music came to his ears.

Curious, he walked into the walled kitchen area, and just as he thought, there was nothing there. He opened the cupboards, the drawers, and the refrigerator with a deepening scowl; not only was there no staff, there was no food. Was the trap starving them to death? He should run back to the entrance and check the doors; they had probably locked shut. With an angry snarl, he slammed the fridge shut. Why had he agreed to come into this place with the others?

He walked back out and sat down at one of the tables, suddenly aware of the weight of his artillery. Yes… why had he come in here with those kids? He didn't care about them, or what they were doing; he had his mission, and nothing would stop him from seeing it through… but when Veemon asked him to… why had he agreed? He leaned heavily in the chair, staring at the faded green tablecloth. It was because somewhere inside Veemon was Wormmon. Somewhere in there was his old friend, and perhaps that small part was what had asked him. That was why…

…Or was it that he really DID care? He jerked up in the chair at this stray thought. Nobody ever seemed to care about him as much as Davis and the other kids; not even his parents or the roaring crowds when he was a celebrity… Perhaps he was forming a psychological bond, even without meaning to…

He shut his eyes and shook his head angrily. He came into the building because it was his chance to get rid of that woman, he shouted at himself; that was the only reason! He wouldn't make any friends… He couldn't make any friends. The Digimon Emperor could never make friends. All he should do is finish his mission. Once the Control Spires were gone… once the Digital World was at peace again… Because if he made friends, that would make it all the more difficult to…

With an angry snarl, he banged his armored arm on the table and pushed himself out of the chair, starting for the door. Mind games were a waste of time. He had to go check the front doors to see if they were locked… and if they weren't, he'd scour the whole place for the trap. He'd destroy it before she had a chance to set it off; that would trip her up. She should know better, he thought as he walked back into the hall; nobody ever outsmarted the Digimon Emperor.

… … …

A left turn at the next hall led to a flight of white metal steps. "Where do you think this goes?" Kari asked as the small group looked it over.

Patamon flew up the stairs, then came back down. "There's a door with the word 'pool' on it," he said. "It's real bright, too. I think it goes outside!"

"What?" Gatomon asked, puzzled. "There's a pool when the room has such a big bath?"

TK shrugged. "There're lots of outdoor swimming pools in the real world," he reasoned. "Maybe some guests like that better."

"Maybe that's where the other guests are," Patamon said. "Let's go see!"

They pushed the door open and stepped into a cage of rough concrete floor and high chain-link fence. There were little white tables set up under umbrellas, and several white wooden lounging chairs lining the small pool, and even a lifeguard chair with flotation devices… but just like the rest of the motel, it was devoid of any life. The setting sun made the cement ebb with a harsh, bright light, amplifying the wasteland's heat. They walked out to inspect the place more closely. "Not even a lifeguard?" TK asked, looking at the empty chair.

Kari looked down into the pool and almost wretched. "I don't think anyone would want to swim in this!" she managed, her hands clamped over her mouth.

The others looked in and had similar reactions. The entire pool was filled with yellow liquid. "Oh, yuck!" Patamon coughed. "I thought this only happened at public pools!"

Gatomon was just as repulsed, but something about it smelled familiar. Putting her own disgust aside, she inched forward, knelt down and sniffed at it.

"Eww, Gatomon!" Kari huffed, "don't do that!"

That scent was familiar; there was no doubt about it. Ignoring her partner, Gatomon raised her paw and plunged it into the substance. Amazingly, the entire pool wiggled and shook. "Woah!" Patamon cried. "Pools don't do that!"

She pulled out her hand and licked at it, and her eyes lit up. "Lemon!" she announced.

Kari and TK looked at her, then knelt down and poked at the stuff themselves, tasting what came off on their finger. "Lemon gelatin?" TK asked.

"Well, that's a lot less disgusting," Kari admitted.

"It's more weird than gross," Patamon said, fluttering down next to TK. "You know what this place reminds me of, TK?"

TK scowled. "Yeah…" he said quietly. During his first adventure, the Digidestined had come across an empty hotel which had crumbled away at an instant, all just an illusion created by Devimon; he wondered if the devil Digimon was also behind the hotel. Was he helping that creepy woman somehow? But then, filling up a pool with lemon gelatin seemed like a dead giveaway that something wasn't right, and Devimon never hinted at his deceptions.

"Don't leave us hanging," Gatomon broke into his thoughts. "What's it remind you of?"

TK got back on his feet. "Well… I just wondered if this place was even real," he said.

"It feels real enough," Kari said, dusting her knees off. "Still, we know it's a trap; we just don't know what KIND of trap. For all we know, the floors will turn into quicksand or something."

"Geez, I hope not," Gatomon said with a wince, "that's a pain to get out of your fur."

"Maybe Ken's figured it out already," Patamon said. "Let's try to find him."

"Yeah," TK agreed, "maybe the others have finished in the game room, too."

They all headed back into the hotel, leaving the jiggling pool behind them.

… … …

One eye squeezed shut and her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth, Yolei took careful aim at the little white ball; if she sunk the six ball, she was sure to win the game. She stretched her fingers and tightened her grip, waiting for the right moment. All right, she decided, it was time… Three… Two… One…

"Hey! They're back!" Veemon's voice burst in her brain. The cue ball flew up and off the table, clocking Davis right in the gut and putting him on the floor just as TK, Kari and the others came back in.

"Oh, no!" Kari gasped as she helped him sit up. "Are you OK?!"

Davis was about to say he was fine—his well-built soccer abs had kept anything major from being hurt—but then remembered who was tending to him. "Oh! OH, GOD, OW!" he swooned, grabbing his belly. "Ohhhh, everything's going dark… Great grandma, izzat you?…"

"Come on, you'll be fine!" Kari urged. "Gatomon, see if you can find an ice pack or something!"

"Geez, Yolei, how'd you manage that?" TK asked, picking the cue ball up.

"Methinks you need to learn better concentration," Hawkmon said.

Yolei folded her arms and snorted. Getting yelled at and watching Davis milk his injury totally ruined her satisfaction of hurting him in such a spectacular way.

"You know, of course, that doesn't count," Cody said. "It's my turn now."

"Aww, shut up," she grumbled.

Gatomon returned empty-handed. "Sorry, I couldn't find anything," she said. "The kitchen was totally empty…"

"Oh… sorry, Davis," Kari said, "it looks like you'll be wearing that lump for a while."

"Heh heh… That's fine," Davis chuckled. "It's the thought that counts, right?"

"Hey, did Ken come back here at all?" Patamon asked the other Digimon.

"No, we ain't seen 'im since we got here," Armadillomon said.

"We'd better go look for him," Kari said. "I hope he's all right…"

Cody frowned. "Let us finish this game first," he said. "It won't take long."

Before Kari could object, Cody put the cue ball back on the table, studied the layout for a few seconds, raised his stick and shot. Like a heat-seeking missile, the white ball crashed into each of the other balls and knocked them down the shoots, taking out the mighty eight ball last. As the others gawked, Cody quietly put his stick back on the table. "All right," he stated.

"Huh… wha…" Yolei gurgled, her face turning red. "HOW'D YOU DO THAT?!"

"That's the second time you've done that today!" Hawkmon said. "How did you do it?"

Cody smirked. "Maybe if Yolei and Davis didn't sleep through physics class, they could tell you," he said.

Just then, a noise like someone sucking at an empty juice box made all of them jump. "Attention all guests…" the raspy old man's voice came over the intercom. "It is time for… dinner… Please report to the dining room." With another crackle, the room was quiet again.

Davis leaped to his feet. "Dinner?!" he exclaimed. "Sweet! Let's go!"

Yolei raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you just having death throes?…" she asked.

"Nope, I feel fine," he said. "Don't feel at all like throwin' up!"

She blinked. "What?" she asked.

TK stared at the intercom speaker on the ceiling. "Why does a motel have an intercom system?" he asked. "It's weird."

"Not as weird as the jelly pool," Kari said, "but I see what you mean."

The others looked at her strangely. "The what?" Veemon asked.

"Tell us about it while we're eating," Davis cackled, starting out the door. "Right now, I'm totally up for some—"

He smacked right into Ken and fell down yet again. Ken whirled toward him, his guns out. "WOAH!" he yelled, raising a hand. "Take it easy!"

Ken hesitated, then lowered the weapons. "Sorry," he said, looking away. "I haven't found anything that's an obvious trap… I'm guess I'm getting… edgy."

"Uh… sure, no problem," Davis muttered, getting back on his feet; having a loaded machine gun pointed in his face had killed his enthusiasm for dinner. "So, uh, were you goin' to the dining room?"

Ken nodded.

"So were we," Davis said. "C'mon, let's get movin'."

Everyone walked the short path towards the dining room. "This might be the trap, Kari," Gatomon warned her partner. "I was just in there, and there wasn't anyone or anything!"

"Really?" Kari asked, frowning. "Everybody, be careful! This could be the—"

Davis pushed the door in and gave an excited roar. The others ran in and made similar noises. From one side of the room to the other was a buffet line of any preteen's favorite foods: fried noodles, pizzas, hamburgers, fries, chips, soda pop, pretzels, tacos, shrimp, fish sticks, calamari, nachos, several variations of chicken, and pork chops. Ken visibly recoiled at the spread; he had been in the room not ten minutes ago, and none of that had been there. Gatomon also looked shocked; she had been in the room not three minutes ago, and none of that had been there. The others, though, looked absolutely delighted. "I guess she doesn't want to starve us," Hawkmon said.

"Hah! Maybe she ain't so bad after all!" Davis cackled.

"Ohhh, man, that looks good!" Yolei drooled. "I don't know what I want first!"

"Pork choooops!" Veemon yelled, bouncing up and rushing for the buffet.

TK, Kari and their partners hung back; it didn't seem right. "H-hey, wait!" Kari tried.

"Hold on, you guys!" TK warned, but Davis, Yolei and the Digimon were already loading up plates full of food.

"STOP!" Ken yelled forcefully. Everyone turned around, half a pork chop jutting out of Veemon's mouth.

"What's wrong?" Armadillomon asked. "There's plenty for everyone."

"Don't just eat it; it could be poisoned!" Ken snapped. "How stupid can you be?!"

"He's right," Kari agreed, "we can't just swallow whatever that woman gives us…"

Veemon blinked, sucked on the pork chop for a moment, then swallowed it whole. "Tastes OK to me," he admitted meekly.

"That's not the point!" Cody snapped. "Thinking with your stomach instead of your head might get us all killed!"

"OK, OK, enough already!" Davis huffed. "We'll test the rest of it before we eat anything, OK?! Sheesh…"

Everyone walked around the buffet, inspecting the food thoroughly. They poked at it, tore open what they could and looked inside, smelled it, and finally tasted it. Gatomon scowled as she stood over the shrimp, her tail swishing back and forth. "What?" Kari asked. "Did you find something?"

"Yeah," Gatomon said, "this shrimp's about to go bad. Aside from that, I don't see anything wrong."

"Hey, Veemon," Davis said to his partner, "you feel anything from that chop?"

Veemon shrugged. "Less hungry than before I ate it, Davith," he said.

"Well, I don't see anything bad about this food," Davis said to the others. "I think we can dig in… minus that shrimp, anyway."

Eager but much less frenzied, the kids took plates and loaded them up with plenty of foods, then they all sat down at the biggest table, spread it out in the middle so everyone could share, and dug in. "Mrrf… I gotta say," Armadillomon blurted through a mouthful of fries, "this's the nicest darned trap we ever walked into."

"Try not to overeat," Cody warned him. "We won't be able to protect ourselves if you're too full."

"Yeah, but we can't do nothin' if we're runnin' on empty either," Davis said, "so don't UNDEReat, either."

Yolei fidgeted in her chair. She was lucky to have gotten a seat next to Ken, but as she looked over her favorite foods, she realized not one of them could be eaten politely, let alone in a suggestive way… She looked away from the brooding youth and grimaced; Davis and Veemon scarfed the goodies down like it was going out of style across from her. That didn't make her feel any better; she wanted to be doing that… but no way would Ken be interested in a girl who ate like a vacuum cleaner crossed with a garbage disposal. She hesitated, then looked at the selection again. She decided to try her luck with a slice of pizza, but Gatomon's claw snatched it away just as she reached for it. She sighed wearily; it suddenly felt like dinner at home.

Kari and Gatomon ate their fill of a variety of foods. Cody ate cautiously, only partaking of the fish. "Hey now, Cody," Armadillomon said, "why not try somethin' else?"

"I like the fish," Cody replied. "The rest of this isn't very interesting to me."

"Really?" Armadillomon asked, grabbing a fried chicken leg and waving it. "You really gotta try the chicken. It's so awesome you'll even wanna suck on the bones!"

Hawkmon shuddered. "Please stop talking about it like that!" he yelped.

"What? Why's that, pardner?" Armadillomon asked, jamming the leg in his mouth.

Hawkmon turned green beneath his feathers and sat back. "Never mind," he mumbled.

TK chewed his burger thoughtfully while Patamon sucked on a soda. "Whaddya think that woman's up to, feeding us so much?" Patamon asked. "Maybe she's fattening us up to eat us, like in that one story!"

"She doesn't look very witchy," TK said. "I wonder if this food's even real…"

Ken wasn't eating; he just sat there with his arms folded, staring at his empty plate. Yolei noticed and started to worry. "Ken, why aren't you eating?" she asked. "Are you feeling OK?"

He didn't answer. She tried again, reaching for her plate; it was a big sacrifice, but if it helped… "I grabbed a calzone," she said, holding it up. "You, um, you want it?"

Ken didn't answer; he didn't even look over at the girl. He didn't trust the wicked woman's tricks, and he wouldn't eat her food; what if it had a delayed poison, or exploded once it hit the stomach? Sometimes he couldn't believe these other children were Digidestined; they were so naive and trusting.

"Hey, Ken! Ya gotta eat something!" Davis broke into his thoughts. He glanced up to see the goggle-wearing kid grinning at him, flecks of something around his mouth, as he held a plate out to him with something fried on it. "If we're not droppin' dead, you won't! Here, have one of my chicken wings. Try it in the dippin' sauce!"

Ken hesitated. They may have been naive, but they were also insistent, he thought… If he didn't eat, they might think there's something wrong with him, like his parents would… Like his parents? No, that couldn't be… but they might try to stop him from fighting if they thought he was sick. "All right," he said. He took a wing, dipped it in the little white paper cup of sauce and chewed on it. For being part of an elaborate trap, it tasted pretty good.

"Yeah, they're good, huh?" Davis cackled. "Sometimes all ya need is a big helping of junk food, and everything's right again! Go on, there's plenty more."

Ken nodded and took a few more chicken wings, a helping of fried noodles, and a cheeseburger. As he ate and Davis struck up a conversation about movies—with Cody correcting him about nearly every title—Yolei quietly fumed; Davis ruined her plans without even trying.

… … …

Forty-five minutes and a lot of bones later, Davis and Veemon leaned back in their chairs. "Guooooohhh… That was awesome!" Veemon wheezed.

"It certainly was," Hawkmon said. "I do believe half the buffet went down your throats."

"Hey, it was just that good," Davis chuckled.

Yolei nibbled on the end of a fork miserably. Her first meal with Ken present, and he hadn't even looked at her! She needed more of Mimi's advice; she had to write Mimi and set up the next meeting as soon as she got home.

"I hope you can still move," TK said, getting up from the table. "We should look over the motel again, see if we can find something about that trap."

"Awww shucks," Armadillomon groaned, trying to lift his head off of the table, his face smeared with globs of everything he ate. "Wish ya'd said that sooner…"

"Do I need to carry you again?" Cody grumbled.

"Naww, I'll be fine," Armadillomon said, dragging himself off the chair and crashing onto the floor. "Just, uh… Just gimme a minute, here…"

The kids and Digimon stacked up their plates and walked out of the dining room. The creepy old clerk was there, waiting for them. "Ah… hello…" he rasped, rubbing his hands together. "I trust you enjoyed your meal?…"

"Yes, thanks," Kari said, bowing politely.

"We were just going to walk some of it off now," Gatomon said. "Is there a—"

"Oh, no…" the clerk coughed, shaking his head slowly. "No, no, no… That won't be possible… Something has come up, and we need to… spray for bugs. I'm afraid you'll have to go to your rooms and stay there for the night… It should be taken care of by morning…"

"Got a lot of bugs, huh?" Veemon asked.

"Enough to warrant a cleaning," the clerk replied.

"Um, maybe there wouldn't be so many if you cleaned the pool," Patamon said. "It's full of lemon gelatin."

"Oh… is it?" the old man asked, smiling strangely. "I'll have to see to that… Now, off to your rooms, please… and feel free to use the baths… They're very nice…"

Normally Davis or Yolei would have argued about it, but Davis was too full and Yolei was too glum. They filed past the man along with the others, headed back towards their rooms. "Well, that's annoying," Patamon said. "Now how do we look for traps?"

"Spraying for bugs could be the trap," Cody said. "We could be gassed in our sleep. Make sure you open all the windows!"

Yolei hesitated; maybe she should try talking to Ken again. "Or, um, maybe there's something in the bathwater," she tried. "Maybe, uh, maybe they switched it with acid or something! What do you think, Ken?" Ken didn't respond or even look at her. "Well, uh… I'll test MY water before I get in it," she went on, hoping he'd turn and look. "I sure wouldn't want to end up as, err, soup."

"Yuck! Me neither," Kari said. "Good idea, Yolei."

"Yes," Cody said. "Thanks for suggesting it."

Yolei sighed.

They came to room 118 and Kari stopped. "Well, here we are," she said. "I guess this is goodnight."

Kari opened the door. Hawkmon moved to follow Yolei, but Gatomon stopped him. "Hey, you're going the wrong way!" she said. "You're with the boys!"

"But I'm Yolei's partner!" Hawkmon tried, "I should be where she is!"

"Sorry, Hawkmon, but this is different than home; I told you earlier," Yolei said.

"Why can't I stay in the same place as you?!" Hawkmon huffed. "Why is it different?!"

The others had all gone into the rooms, leaving the two of them alone in the hall. "Look, you and I get along fine," she said, "but you might make Kari and Gatomon uncomfortable. That's why you're with the boys."

"Uncomfortable?" he objected. "But how? I'm the very model of chivalry and etiquette!"

"Sorry, Hawkmon," she said, pushing him toward the other door. "It's just for one night, OK? I'll make it up to you; I promise."

She walked into room 118 and shut the door. Hawkmon paced and grumbled for a few moments, then crossly knocked on 116's door. Davis opened it and let him in. "Threw you out, huh?" he chuckled.

"I just don't understand!" Hawkmon huffed, exasperated. "Are girls and boys really such different creatures?!"

"Lemme tell you, bird buddy," Davis said, "girls and guys are as different as cherry pies and banana splits."

Hawkmon blinked. "What?" he asked.

The boys' room bustled with activity. Cody was pushing the windows open and making sure they would stay that way. TK was on the bed channel surfing while Veemon and Patamon tried to have a pillow fight with pillows bigger than they were. Ken sat in the chair double-checking his weapons yet again. Armadillomon lay on the floor, groaning and rubbing his stuffed belly. Hawkmon sighed. He wasn't used to being in the same room as so many people; how would he get to sleep that night?

"OK… they'll stay open," Cody reported, turning from the windows. "The air is warm tonight, so I don't think we'll catch colds."

"Sweet," Davis said. "So, what next? How 'bout we take that bath like the old guy said?"

"There's not much on," TK said, shutting off the television. "That sounds good."

"Yeah!" Veemon laughed. "That's Davith, always comin' up with the best ideas!"

"Ugh… ain'cha s'posed to wait thirty minutes or somethin'?…" Armadillomon groaned.

Ken frowned. "A bath is the perfect place to get the jump on us," he said. "I wouldn't."

Cody scowled at the Digimon Emperor; he had been thinking the same thing. Davis, however, didn't look worried. "Relax!" he said. "If any creepy-crawlies show up, just flick soap in their eyes! That always works when my sister walks in on me."

"It's true," Veemon said, "it's her secret weakness!"

"Besides, when's the last time you got to be in a swanky bath like that?" Davis added. "Didja see it? I mean, wow!"

Ken hesitated; he really should stay alert and not get complacent… but a hot, soothing bath was tough to pass up. "All right," he surrendered, hitting a button on his grenade launcher. The three pieces of armor clicked open and he pulled them off, setting them on the chair carefully… much to the shock of everyone.

"Err… that doesn't look very safe," Hawkmon swallowed.

"Are those going to be OK?!" Patamon asked.

"They're only armed when I put them on; nothing can set them off right now," Ken said, stepping into the bathroom.

There was an awkward silence as everyone stared at the artillery. "Wow… this is new," TK said, chuckling weakly. "Hotel room with a laser… Hemmm."

Cody looked over the weapons carefully; the flashing lights were off, and the triggers wouldn't move. "Looks like he's telling the truth… this time," he muttered crossly.

"Well, if he's gonna lighten up, I'm gonna chill, too," Davis said. "C'mon, last one in's a rotten DigiEgg!"

… … …

After a good, long scrubbing in the washroom, the boys retired to the large, hot bath. Everybody but Hawkmon and Armadillomon sat in the warm, plant-encircled pool. "That's what I'm talkin' about," Veemon sighed, sinking in to his neck.

"TK, look," Patamon said, then sank under the water for a few moments before resurfacing. "I don't need a DigiEgg to be a submarine!"

"Don't stay under too long," TK advised. "This water could burn your face."

After that, things got quiet in the bath as the boys just enjoyed the water. The silence annoyed Davis; he couldn't sit still in such a quiet place. He had to get people talking again. "Hey, Ken!" he said, "how's soccer going lately?"

Ken looked just as stony as he did with clothes on. "I gave it up," he said.

That got a reaction out of most everybody. "What?!" TK asked.

"Why?" Patamon asked. "You were really good!"

"Yeah," Armadillomon said, "you squashed Davis's team like you were steppin' on an anthill… with cleats."

"Thanks a lot," Davis grumbled, then turned back to Ken. "Why'd you give it up?! I was really lookin' forward to a rematch!"

Ken didn't look up. "It's not important," he replied, "not anymore."

Another awkward silence filled the bath. TK shifted his weight; Ken always sounded like a harbinger of doom. "I dunno, I think it's important," he said. "I mean, we all have to have fun somehow, right?"

"Yeah!" Veemon agreed. "Without havin' fun, life would be… uh… no fun?"

Ken kept quiet. "Well, maybe you'll change your mind once we take this lady down," Davis said. "We'll have way more free time then!"

TK leaned back with a relaxed sigh. Cody frowned at him. "How can you be so calm?" he scolded. "The Digimon Emperor is in here with us!"

Ken scowled, but didn't look up. TK shook his head. "Cody, I have to say, Ken doesn't seem all that bad any more," he said. "Besides… it's hard to be scared when he doesn't have clothes on."

"But NONE of us have clothes on!" Cody argued.

"Exactly," TK replied, "so the field is even." He paused, then his smile faded. "What I'm worried about is if this water's even real."

Cody blinked. "What?" he asked.

TK straightened up and shook his head; there was no sense worrying the others. "Never mind," he said.

Armadillomon scooted closer to the water's edge. He wanted to get in the water with Cody, but it looked really hot and deep… and the filthy, stinking swamp water of the Arumbaya Marshlands was still fresh in his memory… and most important of all, he had never tried swimming on his own. "Hey, Cody," he spoke up, "whyn'cha turn me inta Submarimon? Then I can get in the water, too!"

"Then there wouldn't be room for the rest of us," Cody said. "Just come in."

Armadillomon still hesitated. "Come on, I'm sitting on the shallow end," Cody tried, sounding a little softer, "I'll hold onto you if you have trouble."

"Well, if ya say so," Armadillomon said. He slowly moved forward, and then his claws scraped on the stones and he slid into the water. He shot up and flailed around, spluttering wildly and throwing hot water on everybody. Cody grabbed him and guided him to the side of the pool, where he clung to the side. "Wha… wha… whew!" he panted. "That'll put fur on yer shell!"

Davis reached up and crossly squeezed the water out of his hair. "Just what I needed; a deep-fried face," he grumbled. "You'd better not pee the water, man."

"He's better trained than that," Cody said.

"Err, yeah…" Armadillomon mumbled, blushing. He looked around fast for something to push the subject away from him, and his eyes fell on Hawkmon; the bird hadn't said anything in a while, and just stared at everyone in the bath. "Hey, pardner, what's up?" he asked. "You're 'bout as lively as a stuffed turkey."

"Huh?!" Hawkmon asked, jerking up fast, then looking embarrassed. "I was, uh… I just didn't realize how different boys were from girls," he said. "It's… rather shocking."

"Yeah, I know!" Veemon laughed. "Aren't boobs great?"

"Errr… I don't think that's what he's talkin' about," Armadillomon said.

"Yeah, you haven't seen the other side of things, have you?" Patamon asked Hawkmon. "It must be weird, having a girl partner when you're a boy."

Hawkmon looked down at the boys in the water. "Much weirder than I thought," he murmured.

Sensing what Hawkmon meant, Davis looked around at his fellow bathers. After a few moments of keen observation, he leaned back with a smug smile. "Hey, uh, Davith," Veemon said, "why're you lookin' so happy?"

"I'll tell ya later, buddy," he replied, stirring the water with his finger. "I'll tell ya later."

… … …

Things were much more quiet in the girls' smaller bath. Kari sat across from Yolei, feeling awkward as she listened to the water slosh around. She tried to think of something they could talk about, but after several minutes of staring at her, she realized she had nothing; sitting around with none of the boys or their Digimon to chatter, Kari realized just how little she had in common with Yolei, and she suddenly felt uncomfortable and a little homesick.

Gatomon sat against the wall, licking at her paws. "Gatomon, why not come in?" Kari asked, trying to break the silence. "It's nice."

"Simple," Gatomon replied, "that's water, and I'm a cat."

"All right…" she said quietly. It wasn't much fun at all.

Yolei wasn't too pleased, either. This place was way more cramped than the bath Mimi had taken her to; she couldn't help but feel like she was back in her own bathroom… with Kari and Gatomon watching her. She was starting to wish she had let Hawkmon stay with her. It would have livened up this bath, and at least she would have had someone to talk to; Kari was as chatty as a rubber duck. "Hey, uh," she tried, "you tried that new 'Guitario Brothers' game yet?"

Kari shook her head. "No… I'm not really into games," she replied.

"Oh," Yolei said. She leaned against the wooden-looking wall and drew circles on it with her finger. It was going to be one boring soak; what could she do to amuse herself in here?

Suddenly, her finger went into the wall. Surprised, she looked over and discovered it had found a hole the size of a coin. "Hey, what's this?" she asked, putting her eye to it. Almost instantly her chest throbbed and her face burned. Through the hole was the boys' bath… and they were all in it. "Woooooh! Oh, baby!" she gasped, pressing her body against the wall and spluttering a string of goofy giggles. Even without her glasses, she could make out the biggest details.

"What? What is it?!" Kari asked, surprised by Yolei's sudden excitement.

"It's them! It's the boys!" she squealed, not taking her face away from the hole. "Man oh man oh man! I can see EVERYTHING!"

"What?!" Kari huffed, her cheeks flushing. "Yolei, get away from there!"

"So?" Gatomon asked. "You see them all the time."

"That's not what she means, Gatomon!" Kari said. "Remember that time you walked in on Tai in the bath?"

Gatomon's ears sagged and her face went pink. "Oh… THAT 'everything,'" she mumbled.

Yolei hadn't heard any of their conversation; she had changed from delighted giggles to annoyed grunts. There was Ken, his raven hair and his pale, sculpted shoulders… with his back to her. What rotten luck; so close, and yet so far away… She could see Cody and TK… and also Davis, unfortunately. His scrawny features were like a train wreck; as bad as they were, she couldn't stop staring. In fact, none of their bodies looked at all like the ones of boys their age in her doujin. Oh, well; at least she could lord it over them all that she knew what they looked like. As TK stood up and moved a bit, her cheeks flared and she began chuckling.

"Come on, Yolei, that's not nice," Kari urged. "Stop it."

Yolei turned to her and grinned; maybe they could have something in common after all. "You've gotta see this," she said, waving her over. "It's awesome!"

"No way," Kari muttered. "It's… r-rude… and gross!"

"C'mon, don't tell me your hormones haven't kicked in yet!" Yolei said, smirking.

"That doesn't mean I'd spy on my friends," Kari objected.

"Don't be such a stiff," Yolei said. "Aren't you even a teensy bit curious how they measure up? This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance!"

"Kari…" Gatomon tried.

Kari bit her lip. Peeping was definitely not something she wanted to do, but she didn't want Yolei to think she was boring… and she was a little curious. "Oh, OK…" she surrendered, sloshing over.

"Take a good long look," Yolei cackled, moving away. "It's worth taking in! "

Kari peered through the hole and her breathing almost stopped for fear of being noticed. The adolescent forms were like nothing she had ever seen before. She had seen her brother on a few accidental occasions, but never any boys her own age. Cody was in the water up to his neck, so nothing could be seen there. Ken had his luminous back turned. Davis's athleticism showed on his wiry body, full of young, thin muscles… but TK caught her attention the longest. Unlike Davis, his baby fat hadn't all gone away yet, and he wasn't rigid or bony… He was softer, almost cuddly… like a straw-haired teddy bear, she thought for a moment. A strange feeling crept over her, making her heart race with both excitement and fear. She jerked away from the hole and gasped for air. "Kari! Are you OK?!" she heard Gatomon ask. "You're red all over!"

Yolei grinned wryly. "So… see anything you like?" she crooned.

"I… uh… um…" Kari stuttered, "I'm, uh, I'm gonna get out…"

Kari made for the exit, Gatomon following close behind. "Well, suit yourself… More for me!" Yolei replied, creeping back to the hole. She wasn't feeling done yet; she had yet to catch of a glimpse of Ken's elusive front.

The dream boy shifted his weight, then rose up out of the water and her libido got up and did a jig; maybe she was about to get her wish. As he started towards the other side of the pool. She felt her face start to melt; she was about to see the entirety of Ken Ichijouji.

He started to turn around… and then he became a big, blue eye. "Hey, look!" Patamon's voice came. "There's a hole in the wall over here!"

"What?" TK's voice came.

Yolei froze. With even the smallest breath, she could give herself away and her peep show would be cancelled… and she wasn't leaving until she saw what she came for. She stayed right where she was, waiting; maybe two people staring in at once blocked the light and kept her undetected.

"Hey, move over, Patamon," Davis's voice said from almost directly the other side. "Lemme see that…"

The blue eye disappeared, and then something stuck Yolei right in her eye. She tumbled back into the water, trying hard not to yell out in pain. A finger jerked around in the hole, probing the air. "Huh, I thought I felt something, but now it's gone," Davis's voice came. "Whatever it was, it sure was squishy."

"I didn't see anything," Patamon said. "It was all black."

"Maybe it's insulation," Cody said. "Sometimes that comes loose…"

As the boys talked amongst themselves, Yolei staggered over to the other side of the water, nursing her throbbing eye and sulking. Davis always ruined everything.

… … …

After an hour of soaking, the boys felt comfortable enough to turn in for the night. "Yeeeeeah…" Davis said through a yawn, "I'm gonna be out like a light!"

Cody looked around the area. "Does anyone see any towels?" he asked.

TK disappeared back into the bathroom and came back with a handful of towels, and also four bathrobes. "Looks like they thought of everything," he said, offering the pile to Ken. "Want to pick first, Ken?"

Ken took only a towel and walked out. "Gee… maybe he doesn't like robes," Patamon said.

The other boys dried off, found their underwear and slipped into the fluffy blue bathrobes. "Man," Davis grumbled, "you can't wear one of these without lookin' silly."

"Yeah, but we're all wearing them," TK said. "That means there's no problem."

"Wish they had Digimon-sized ones," Armadillomon said. "They look mighty comfy."

They walked back into the hotel room where they found Ken sitting in the chair again, his clothes and weapons strapped on as if he had never been in the bath. "Hey, Ken!" Davis said. "Ya gotta chill out, man! It's bedtime!"

Ken shook his head. "The most effective assassins always come when the victims are asleep," he said, his gun arm clicking.

"Uh… well, OK," TK said, looking between Ken and the bed, which the Digimon bounced on. "But, uh, those weapons won't be very comfortable for the rest of us when you're sitting up in bed."

"What?!" Cody hissed, turning on TK. "I'm not sharing a bed with the Digimon Emperor!"

Ken scowled at the boy. " I am staying right here," he replied icily.

"Good," Cody said, turning and strutting away, the bathrobe dragging behind him and making him look like an angry little wizard. Davis couldn't help but snicker.

Hawkmon fluttered over to the pile of clothes that had appeared on the windowsill when the boys had emerged from the bath and sat down in it. "Hawkmon, what're ya doin'?" Veemon asked. "Don'cha wanna sleep with us?"

"I'm not very comfortable on that bed," he said, kicking around and finally sitting down in the pile. "This will be just fine."

"Wanna keep it just like home, huh?" Patamon asked.

"Well, my home doesn't have cable," Davis clucked, seizing the remote. "What say we browse the boob tube before we hit the sack?"

"I got no gander at what ya just said, Davis," Armadillomon grumbled.

Davis flicked on the TV and the flashy words "DIGIWORLD NEWS FOUR AT TEN" burst onto the screen, accompanied by the ticking of a clock. The words faded out to show a Gazemon in a suit sitting behind a reporter's desk, the glare from his phony black wig horrendously apparent. "Good evening, Digital World," it said. "We've got a big thunderstorm brewing for the northwest of File Island, but first, let's have our top story; the reconstruction of Spaghetti Junction is complete, thanks to the hard work of our very own Resistance movement."

"Oh, great," Veemon grumbled, "just who I wanna hear about before I fall asleep."

"As you know, Spaghetti Junction was almost completely destroyed a few months prior by sympathizers of the Digimon Emperor," the Gazemon went on, "but with every citizen chipping in, the old west looks brand new."

The kids clenched their jaws. Sympathizers to the Digimon Emperor?! There were no sympathizers of the Emperor in Spaghetti Junction; it had only been themselves, and Starmon and Garudamon, both of which had been controlled.

"That's not the end of this tireless band's work, though," the Gazemon said. "With all of his can-do troopers in tow, the head of the Resistance, Gargomon, has announced plans to move on to Suadi Arugula, and help those Digimon rebuild their lives as well. Digiworld News Four managed to get an interview with the big-hearted bunny."

The screen changed to Gargomon smiling proudly, the fully rebuilt Spaghetti Junction behind him. "I'm glad to see that, despite what the Emperor did, the spirits of Digimon aren't broken," he said. "So long as every Digimon does his part, we'll be back on our feet in no time!"

"Huh," TK murmured. As rough and unpleasant as he had been with them, Gargomon and his men had restored an entire city, and now he was encouraging the viewers. As gruff as he was, he seemed to care about the Digimon; he could see something noble in that.

"Thank you, Gargomon," the anchor's voice came, "but what do you have to say about the Digidestined? Rumor has it that they're still present in the Digital World."

Gargomon stifled a laugh. "Well, we might be on the way to recovery," he went on, "but there's still a lot to be done to curb the human invasion."

Everyone's mouth dropped open. "WHAT?!" Davis yelled.

"I advise every Digimon to be on the lookout for them," Gargomon said, looking into the camera with a determined frown. "If you see anything suspicious, contact the Resistance. Every Digimon must remain vigilant; they haven't left our world yet!"

The screen returned to the anchor-Digimon. "A hero for our times, to be sure," he said. "If you spot any human activity, the Resistance urges you to contact them. Their numbers have been on the rise dramatically, so it's very easy to get word to them; in addition to Somber Harbor, they've opened new bases of operations in Spaghetti Junction and Santa Geria—"

The screen went black and Davis hurled the remote against the wall. "Man, what a load of crap!" he snarled.

"Yeah!" Veemon huffed. "Not all humans're bad!"

Cody shook his head. "I can understand why they'd get so much support, though," he said.

"Why's that?" Patamon asked. "It's sure not Gargomon's award-willing smile."

"Think about it," Cody said, frowning. "This world has been sealed off from ours since Tai and the others came… and now the first contact they have with humans is a tyrannical overlord who enslaves, tortures and humiliates them… It's a like Europe's colonial era."

Davis blinked a few times, then scratched his head. "How?" he asked.

Cody sighed; he wasn't in the mood to give a history lesson. "My point is: if that was your first experience with a new species, wouldn't you think they were all like that?" he asked.

TK stared at his covered feet. "Yeah…" he said, "I guess they have a right to be mad."

"Rights or no rights, they're takin' it out on us!" Davis huffed. "I don't like it!"

Ken silently took it all in. So, not only had he attacked the Digidestined directly, but his iron fist had caused Digimon to attack them out of resent. Though he didn't show it, the realization made him feel sick; once again, his actions had consequences he hadn't foreseen.

"Well, there's nothing we can do about it for now," Hawkmon said. "Why don't we turn off the light and get some rest?"

Everyone agreed on that. The boys crawled beneath the blankets, Cody on the left, Davis on the right and TK in the middle, their respective Digimon curled up at their feet. Hawkmon shifted the clothes pile around until he was satisfied, then sat down. It didn't have the same smell as his nest at home, but it was the best he could do.

Suddenly, TK realized something and sat back up. "Hey, wait," he said, "shouldn't someone keep watch? I mean, this is supposed to be a trap."

"Aww, geez," Davis grunted, glaring at TK from his sprawled out position. "OK, fine. You can go first, since you brought it up!"

"You don't have to," Ken spoke from the chair. "I'm not going to sleep. I'll keep watch."

"Really?" Veemon asked. "Aww, cool, Ken, that's just—"

"Stupid," Cody cut him off, glaring at Ken again. "He's the Digimon Emperor, and a walking munitions depot. I'm not sleeping while he's in here."

"Fer fark's sake, Cody!" Davis huffed, "the hell is wrong with you?!"

"Fine," Ken replied, "then both of us can stay awake."

TK wanted to break up the fight, but neither Cody nor Ken looked ready to back down. "Well… OK, then," he gave up, "looks like both Ken and Cody are the night watches. Wake us up if anything happens."

"Believe me, I will," Cody said, still looking at Ken. Ken just looked away.

Patamon flew over and shut the lights off, then snuggled in next to TK as he lay back down. Davis rolled over so he was facing the bedside desk, mumbling that nobody had better touch him. Veemon and Armadillomon lay on their sides quietly. Hawkmon just closed his eyes. Cody took his pillow and propped himself up with it, his eyes fixed on Ken.

Ken didn't move from where he had been the whole time, staring into the darkness and ignoring Cody's glare. His mind was completely engaged in one line of thought. He considered the best way to deal with that woman: a hail of bullets… some grenades all around… or a laser headshot.

… … …

With a frustrated moan, Kari switched off the TV, her candy-pink bathrobe suddenly uncomfortably hot. She didn't like Gargomon's choice of words about them at all. "Talking about us like we're monsters…" she muttered as she put the remote on top of the TV. "I don't like where this is going."

"Yeah," Gatomon said, "anyone who spits on someone as nice as you is no hero to me."

Kari sighed and got off of the bed. Yolei still wasn't out of the bath, and she was getting bored… but the news report had put her off watching any more TV. "I don't suppose you'd want to chase a shoelace?" she asked Gatomon.

"Sorry, I've gotta be in the mood," Gatomon said, then motioned to one of the cabinets. "You know, I thought I saw some books in there. Why not read 'til Yolei shows up?"

Kari opened the cabinet. Sure enough, it was stacked full of books… but as she looked over the titles, her heart sank. There were no fantasy titles or adventure stories; they were all trashy romance novels, like she might see near the checkout counter of a grocery store. She liked to daydream as much as any pre-teen girl, but these books were just too corny and unbelievable for her. "Ugh, I don't know how I'm supposed to like these," she said as she looked over them and flipped one open. After reading a few lines, she shivered and slammed it shut. "Especially this one!" she huffed.

"What? What's wrong?" Gatomon asked.

Kari showed Gatomon the cover. It was called My Blood Runs For You, and the cover showed a girl Kari's age lounging in the arms of a pale, slick-haired teenage vampire. Gatomon couldn't help but cringe herself; both her partner and she had too many bad memories of vampire Digimon to enjoy that.

"Maybe I'll just go to bed," Kari sighed, stuffing the book back on the shelf and pulling back the blanket. "Not that I'll get much sleep now…"

"Don't worry," Gatomon said, hopping onto the bed. "I'll keep watch in case something starts… and also so Yolei doesn't land on you."

"Thanks," Kari said, switching off the light, laying back and closing her eyes. The bed was pretty comfortable, and her bathrobe felt much nicer, like another layer of blanket. Gatomon's furry back lay against her feet, just like at home. She inhaled and sighed; maybe falling asleep wouldn't be so hard after all.

The feeling didn't last long. Five minutes later, the bathroom door flew open and out staggered Yolei's soggy form, also clad in a robe. "Oh, you're… in already…" she murmured, sounding half asleep herself; being in the bath so long must have made her drowsy. "No… don't get up… I'll just… slip right in…"

Kari heard the clatter of Yolei's glasses hitting the bedside table, and then a massive, wet shape tumbled down next to her, splattering her face with tentacles of wet hair; Yolei hadn't dried off very well. "Yolei?" Kari asked.

"Ewww!" Gatomon hissed as a wet foot landed on her nose. "Yolei, go dry off better!"

Their answer was a loud snore; she was already out like a light. "Geez," Gatomon grumbled, "I hope she never has to be your roommate, Kari."

Thanks to having an older brother, Kari could put up with a lot… but a sloppy girl was a new one on her. She brushed away what hair she could and scooted as far to the right as she could, trying to get back into the comfortable feeling she'd had. Yolei snored one more time, then rolled over on her side and stopped. Gatomon watched her for a moment, then turned away, satisfied. Twenty minutes passed with only the sound of crickets chirping outside the window. The warm, dreamy feeling melted over Kari again, gently dropping her eyelids…

And then a hand pressed into her back, creeping along it and feeling its shape, with Yolei muttering something she couldn't make out. "Rrmff… Yolei…" she grunted, squirming further towards the edge of the bed to get away. The hand came again, fingering its way from one shoulder to the other, and then sliding down the groove of her back… and then it crept over onto her stomach and clutched at it. "Yolei, stop it," Kari mumbled louder. Her answer was a second hand sliding under her and clutching her belly, too… and one of Yolei's legs draping over her own, followed by some more mumbling and a garbled chuckle. "Yolei! Stop it!" she huffed.

The limbs didn't recede, but they stopped moving. She heard Yolei snort once, and then it got quiet again. Kari didn't like the position she was in, but then she thought maybe Yolei didn't like sleeping alone. Maybe she cuddled Hawkmon in her sleep, like she herself had done with stuffed toys… or maybe she was feeling cold because she was still wet, and the window was open—

Something slimy and wet pressed against the back of her neck and she shot out of bed. "That's it! I am sleeping on the floor!" she declared, making Gatomon look up with a shock. She grabbed her pillow and tossed it on the ground, then lay down with her arms folded.

"What happened?" Gatomon asked.

"I don't know, and I don't want to know," Kari grumbled. "Why didn't you stop her?"

Gatomon shrugged. "I thought she was cold," she said.

The whole bed to herself, Yolei rolled back onto her back and started snoring again. Kari groaned and buried her face in the pillow. It was going to be a long night.

… … …

The night grew darker as it crept on, but not everybody slept soundly. Hawkmon grunted and shifted in his makeshift nest, but it was no use; he couldn't get to sleep. As stuffy and stuck-up as he made himself look, he missed Yolei and her familiar scent… not to mention that the sounds she made before she fell asleep helped him nod off, too; it wasn't the same without them.

Ken looked around from his chair, watching Davis, TK and the Digimon sleep. He envied them on some level; he was sure that nightmares didn't plague them until sunrise. It must have been nice to still have that childhood innocence… to not have hands stained with blood…

A groan made him turn, and he saw that little boy's head bowed slightly; he had finally fallen asleep too. Despite his burning suspicion, his little body had finally succumbed to fatigue. A weight came off of Ken's shoulders. As different as he was now from being the Digimon Emperor, he still felt a stinging dislike for the stone-faced child. It was bad enough trying to go about his mission without that kid bringing up his sins; he brought them up enough on his own.

Knowing he was the only one awake made weariness seep into his body. His head drooped, but he lurched back up. He had to stay awake. Whatever that trap was, it would go off as soon as all of them had fallen asleep; that was how he—the Digimon Emperor—would have planned it… but with those weapons on, his arms felt like lead… and his back sank deeper into the warm, bed-like chair, its arms dropping away… No, he had to stay awake. She would be right around the corner, ready to strike… He couldn't let her stop him… He… had to…

… … …

Yolei couldn't help but gasp as Ken's skilled hands slid down her back, a gentle scent of blueberries wafting from his hair as he kissed her neck. She wrapped her arms around his back and squeezed him tightly, rubbing herself against him as a signal to take the passion to the next level. Everything she had ever wanted in him was there, and he was more than willing to give it. His hands gripped the small of her back and he slid himself up to look at her, his blue eyes hypnotic. "Yolei…" he whispered lusciously.

"Oh, Ken…" she whimpered, "more… Do more…"

"Yolei… wake up," Ken said.

"Huh…?" she asked, dreamily confused. Wake up? His voice sounded, funny, too… higher than normal.

"Come on!" a familiar voice came from her left. "Get up, Yolei! We've got a problem!"

"Problem?…" she slurred, hardly knowing the meaning of the word. She was in paradise; there were no problems.

Ken looked at her hungrily, then opened his mouth to speak. "Get UP, Yolei!" Kari's voice came from his throat. "This is serious!"

Something kicked her in the shoulder, and she shot up and opened her eyes… to complete darkness. Something thick and heavy pressed down on her head, and she felt hot and itchy all over. "WAAAGH!" she yelled out loud. Where was she?! Had she finally gone blind from looking at gross things, like her sisters had always warned?!

"Yolei!" Kari's voice came from behind her. "It's OK! Just come towards my voice!"

Yolei whipped around and her heart leaped; there was an opening to the cave! She crawled out as fast as she could. The light stung her eyes, but she could make out Kari's shape in front of her. She also felt a draft. Her eyes adjusted, she looked down, went red and grabbed at her torso; her comfy bathrobe was gone, leaving behind only the yellowed panties she had somehow put on after her bath. "What the?!" she yelped.

"Look behind you," Kari said.

Yolei turned around and almost passed out; the "cave" she had just come out of was her bathrobe. "Woah! Is this what happens when you get too wet here?!" she asked. "You shrink, but your clothes don't?!"

"It's not just your robe," Nefertimon, who stood nearby, said. "Look around."

Yolei turned and peered out over the white expanse. It ended at a large, brown wall that connected to a cream-colored sky that reached up, had an angle in it and kept going. Next to the robe was a sheer cliff that looked down into a green, rough-looking jungle… the same green color that the carpeting was in their hotel room! Her flustered brain finally snapped into place and she blurted out her realization: "everything got big!"

"Yeah," Kari agreed, nodding gravely.

"Oh, geez!" Yolei gulped. "Then… Ken, and Hawkmon, and the boys…?!"

"We'd better go find them," Kari said, then offered Yolei a pile of clothes with her glasses on top. "But first, uh… you should get dressed."

Yolei snatched the pile and stuffed herself into them. "Amazing," Nefertimon muttered, her masked face looking away, "you see some disturbing things in the morning…"

"Aww, shut up!" Yolei snapped, jamming on her leather cap and stepping into her boots.

The girls got on Nefertimon and she flew them down to the floor. Things certainly had become huge; they sank into the shag carpeting up to their ankles. "Sheesh," Yolei grumbled as she looked around; she had only seen a ceiling that high at a symphony hall.

"Well, at least now we know what the trap was," Kari said.

"Yes, but what was that woman expecting?" Nefertimon asked. "Did she hope we would roll off the beds and kill ourselves?"

"Seriously!" Yolei huffed. "I coulda made a WAY better trap! If I wanted to get rid of someone in a hotel, I'd rig the lights to shoot lasers, or have trap doors in the floors, or electrocute the bathwater, or—"

Yolei stopped walking; she heard some strange buzzing and clicking noises from behind her, like a bee flying past her ear… or rather, a LOT of bees flying past her ear. Kari and Nefertimon stopped, too. "Did you hear that?" Kari asked.

Yolei swallowed. "Hear… what?…" she tried.

"It sounded like buzzing or clicking," Nefertimon said quietly.

The girls looked at each other, then slowly turned around. The noises came from the darkness under the bed, along with dozens of shining, blinking eyes.

… … …

The situation in the boys' room wasn't any better. "You big bully!" Patamon yelled as he slammed into the giant, blue furry thing that sprawled across the ground, clawing at it with his trotters. "Cough TK up right now!"

"Um, Patamon," Hawkmon tried, "I don't think it 'ate' TK, rather—"

Patamon burped a Boom Bubble into the side of the beast, and with a scream TK flew out of its gaping maw, clad only in his skivvies. "OW!" he yelled, getting up and rubbing at his head. "Patamon, why'd you do that?!"

"TK!" Patamon yelled, rushing to his partner and knocking him down with a hug. "That big blue thing must've popped up during the night… and it ate your robe!"

"Um, no," Hawkmon said, landing next to them. "What I was trying to say, Patamon… is that big, blue 'monster' IS the robe."

"Wha?" TK asked, turning around. Surely enough, the blue bathrobe had grown gigantic… and so had the bed… and so had the whole room! He saw Cody's giant robe sitting up against the bed nearby, but where was Cody? For that matter, where were any of his friends?

"Hey! HEY!" a voice came. He turned just in time to see Davis scramble down the side of his robe, also in just his underpants. Veemon came tumbling down after him.

"Are you guys OK?" TK asked.

"Yeah, except for bein' chilly," Davis said, motioning to his bare limbs. "I thought you were supposed to outgrow yer clothes, not the other way around!"

"Where's Cody an' Armadillomon?" Veemon asked.

Cody's giant robe shuddered, and then Armadillomon burst out of its stomach. Cody crawled out after him, wearing as little as the other two boys. "Hey! Cody!" TK called to him.

Cody and his partner rushed to them. "I think the trap's been sprung," he said crossly.

"No kidding!" Davis said, looking around at the immense room. "Y'know, this is a lot like that one story, 'Gullible's Travels!' You know, where some kid sells his cow for a magic goose, then fights a troll on a bridge, then saves a sleeping princess by climbin' up her hair!"

Cody opened his mouth, but then decided that it just wasn't worth it.

"That's almost everyone," Patamon said, looking around at his friends. "Where's Ken?"

They all scrambled to Davis's side of the massive bed, where they could see the door out into the hallway. Ken, just as small as they were but wearing both his clothes and his weaponry, was down on the floor, walking towards the exit. "Ken!" Davis yelled. "Hey, Ken!"

Seeming not to hear Davis, Ken crawled under the door and disappeared. "Now where's he goin' at a time like this?" Armadillomon asked.

"I don't know, but we'd better follow him," TK said. "Something tells me that shrinking isn't all to this trap."

"Yeah," Davis agreed. "Veemon, Digivolve and let's get down there!"

Veemon coughed and looked embarrassed. "Well, I wanna, Davith," he said, "but, uh…"

Cody's eyes widened in horror. They needed their D3s to Digivolve their partners… but he had left his in his pocket. "Where are our clothes?!" he asked.

"Um, yes," Hawkmon spoke up behind them, "hang on just a moment…"

He flapped his wings and flew back to the counter where he had slept. In a few minutes he returned hauling a giant ball of clothing, which he dropped down on them. Davis's D3 fell out and clunked him in the head. "OW!" he yelped, "those things really hurt!"

"Thanks, Hawkmon!" TK said, grabbing his pants and stuffing a leg into them.

"I'm worried about Yolei," Hawkmon said. "I have to find her!" With that, he took off. TK thought it was very strange, though, that he flew into the bathroom instead of under the door where Ken had gone.

Davis looked up from jamming on his jacket, realizing something. "Aww, geez! Kari's in trouble, too!" he said. "Where d'ya think they are?!"

"Let's worry about one thing at a time," Cody said, pulling his head through his tan shirt. "We should get out of this room and see what Ken is up to."

"Yeah," TK agreed, "Kari and Yolei can take care of themselves for now."

Davis fumed at TK, but also knew he had a point; Kari certainly could handle herself in a dangerous situation. "Fine," he grumbled, jamming on his goggles. "Then we're checkin' outta this room! Veemon?"

"Ready, Davith!" Veemon said, pumping his fist.

In a flash, Veemon was Exveemon. He scooped up, Davis, Cody and Armadillomon and glided off the bed. "Let's not get left out, Patamon," TK said, raising his own Digivice.

Patamon became Pegasusmon and flew his partner down to where the others waited. The boys started towards the giant door, but suddenly they stopped; there was a faint buzzing behind them, and it was getting louder. "What in tarnation…?" Armadillomon asked, turning around to look, and wishing he hadn't. Bursting through the window screen came a swarm of bee-like Flymon, their stingers out and ready. "Cody!" he yelled, rushing behind the boy.

"Shit!" Davis swore. "We HAD to leave a window open!"

"Pegasusmon!" TK yelled.

Pegasusmon and Exveemon took to the air against the throng, blasting away as quickly as they could, but for every one they knocked out of the sky, two more came through the window. The downed ones didn't stay down for long, either; they shot back up even angrier. It wasn't long before both Digimon pulled back. "This's gettin' us nowhere fast!" Exveemon panted, using his laser to knock back a feisty one.

"What're you waitin' for, Cody?!" Davis yelled, "get Digmon in on this!"

Cody frowned and shook his head. "Something isn't right," he said.

"What, besides gettin' attacked by a whole beehive?" Davis huffed. "Get serious!"

"I am!" Cody huffed. "Look at all of those bugs! Could that woman have created that many Spire-Born in so little time?!"

Davis hesitated, wondering if Cody was right. A heinous amount of Flymon had poured in; there couldn't possibly have been enough Control Spires around to make them all…

"Can we save the thinking for later?! We're outnumbered!" Pegasusmon growled. "We have to fall back and regroup."

"But where?!" TK asked.

Davis pointed at the door. "Same way we were goin'!" he said. "Move out!"

While Pegasusmon and Exveemon fought off the bees, the boys and Armadillomon ran under the door. Pegasusmon turned and shot an Equis Beam into the wood, making an escape route. The Flymon tried to go after them, but three went in at once, got stuck in the hole and effectively cut off the route. "Hah!" Davis laughed at the bugs. "How d'ya like that, buzz boys?!"

"Come on," TK said, grabbing his arm, "let's find Ken before they get loose."

… … …

"Kari," Yolei gulped as she stared at the swarm glowing eyes underneath the bed, "please tell me you stuck a bunch of shiny rocks down there…"

Before Kari could answer, out scrambled an army of disgusting brown roach-looking Digimon with skull marks on their wings. They snarled and cackled maliciously as they raced towards the girls. "Roachmon!" Nefertimon huffed, leaping in front of her friends. "Watch out!"

With frenzied yells, the Roachmon attacked. Nefertimon drove a few back with her Rosetta Stones, but she couldn't shoot enough to keep them all back; it wasn't long before one of the vile insects got past her and went for the girls. Kari leaped back in horror, but Yolei threw herself at it, punching and kicking with all her might. The Roachmon was light for its appearance, and she knocked it back into the others fairly easily. "Woah!" Kari exclaimed. "That was amazing!"

"I find these things in my room often enough," Yolei grunted, balling her fists. "I can deal with 'em!"

"Maybe one, but there're too many of these!" Nefertimon huffed, bounding backwards. "They're Champions, too; we have to get out of here!

"The door!" Kari shouted, but as soon as she turned around, she saw it wasn't an option; the Roachmon had gone around behind them, cutting off their escape.

"On my back!" Nefertimon ordered, shooting another Rosetta Stone and then kneeling.

Kari bounded on without another thought. As Yolei was mounting, however, two Roachmon grabbed her legs and yanked her back down. Nefertimon soared into the air before she saw what was wrong. "Yolei!" Kari yelled.

"Get yer hands offa me!" Yolei yelled, desperately swinging her fists. "ALL of 'em!"

Suddenly, a familiar feather flew down like a boomerang from nowhere, smacking both Roachmon in the face. Yolei scrambled away as Hawkmon landed in front of her. "Digivolve me!" he ordered.

Yolei didn't waste any time raising her D3, and Aquilamon airlifted her out of the mess, the Roachmon cursing at them angrily below. "Whew!" she panted. "That was epic! But… how'd you find me so fast?"

"The hole in the bathroom wall," Aquilamon said. "Davis said he poked something squishy… I put two and two together."

Yolei went beet red; he was way more observant than she thought. "Keep it to yourself, OK?" she mumbled.

Kari and Nefertimon hadn't heard; they were busy worrying. "Why are they attacking us?" Kari asked, looking around. "I didn't see any dark rings…"

"I don't know," Nefertimon said. "let's find the boys, and quickly."

"They were going out into the hall, after Ken," Aquilamon said.

"Then that's where WE'RE going!" Yolei yelled. "Full speed ahead!"

A sudden hissing above told them their troubles weren't over yet; dropping from the ceiling on silky strings came a gang of little yellow larva Digimon, which unleashed a volley of sparking spittle at them. "Kunemon!" Aquilamon growled, flapping away as one tried to drop on him. "Watch out for the threads; they're charged!"

Kari cried out as Nefertimon quickly dropped to avoid a salvo. They had to get out of the room; as big as it was, they were hopelessly outnumbered. "Quick! The door!" she yelled.

Weaving around the hissing bugs, Aquilamon and Nefertimon flew towards the door. Nefertimon fired her eye beams, and Aquilamon followed with belching rings, blowing out a chunk of the wood big enough to escape. As they flew out, Yolei heard the bugs hissing and yelling behind her. "Sheesh!" she huffed, "I'm not gonna recommend this place to anybody!"

… … …

It didn't take long for the boys to catch up to Ken. No sooner had they crawled under the door than they saw him cornered on the far side of the hallway by a hang of buzzing Snimon. "Quick! We gotta save him!" Davis yelled.

Cody was confused by what he saw. The Digimon Emperor had enough firepower to turn the Snimon into bug juice, but he wasn't attacking them; only when one lobbed a purple wave of energy did he shoot, and then only destroying the blast. He was sure the Emperor wouldn't waste any time in ravaging his enemies; did he suspect the Digimon weren't Spire-Born, too?

"Pegasusmon!" TK called. "Get in there and save Ken!"

Pegasusmon and Exveemon both dove at the swarm, but instantly the swarm turned their sickles on them, driving them back. Cody scowled, then raised his D3; it was his turn.

With a gruff roar, Ankylomon smashed through the bug barrier, sending the mantis Digimon flying left and right. "Quick, Ken, get on!" he grunted, and Ken did just that. Before the bugs could regain their senses, the dinosaur charged down the hall with Exveemon, Pegasusmon and the boys on his heels, taking refuge in a half-open closet. He bounded up the cleaning buckets and landed on the first shelf, where he shrank back to Armadillomon. The others landed there promptly. "Are you OK?!" TK asked Ken.

"What the hell's going on here?!" Davis demanded.

Ken dusted himself off, then frowned at them. "This has to be the trap," he said.

"Yeah," Pegasusmon agreed, "we all get shrunk, then bugs rip us up! Very dastardly!"

"I don't think we shrank," TK said, "the building and everything in it got bigger! That's why our clothes were the same size, right?"

"An' why the ground 'round this place's empty," Armadillomon said. "It needs the space."

Ken nodded, somewhat impressed they figured it out, too.

"Well, then I know what we do next," Exveemon said. "We get our butts outta here!"

TK looked around, suddenly getting worried. "We can't go yet; we need Kari and Yolei," he said. "Let's find them, then make an exit."

Ken shook his head. "No. That woman is here; I know it," he said. "You all go… I have to deal with her."

He started to walk away, but a firm hand clenched his shoulder. He turned around to see Davis frowning at him. "Nothin' doin', pal," he said. "I'm goin' with you! I've had it up to my goggles with that bitch."

Ken could have objected, but he knew Davis wouldn't take 'no' for an answer. "Just stay out of my way," he grumbled.

Cody scowled; any of them going alone with the Emperor was bad news. "Then I'm going, too," he said, scowling at the raven-haired boy again.

TK looked at Cody thoughtfully for a moment, but then remembered his other friends were in danger. "OK, then I'll find the girls and make an escape route," he said. "If things get too hairy, though, I want to see you get out, too!"

"Don't worry," Exveemon said.

"Yeah, we'll make sure they don't bite off more n' we can chew," Armadillomon said.

"Good luck, then," Pegasusmon said. TK mounted him and they flew out of the closet.

"So… where next?" Davis asked.

"Let's try the front office," Cody said. "Maybe there'll be a clue there…" He trailed off. Ken was looking at him with an unreadable expression. "What?" he asked crossly.

Ken hesitated, then sighed. "You saved me back there… Ankylomon and you," he said. "I, uh… I owe you for that."

"Awww, 'Tweren't nothin'!" Armadillomon laughed, blushing. "Always glad to help a—"

"You saved me from Thundermon," Cody snapped coldly, cutting off his partner. "We're even, Emperor. Don't expect it again."

Armadillomon grew silent, looking downhearted. Ken returned the scowl. "Have it your way," he growled.

The boys stared each other down for a tense minute before Davis got between them. "OK, Sooo…!" he said. "We goin' to the front office or what?"

Ken broke his scowl with Cody. "Yes, that sounds like a good idea," he agreed. "She could be there; it has a computer."

"Right! Then off we go!" Exveemon said, hopping onto the floor as the boys crawled onto the buckets and slid down. They peered out the door; the bugs had vanished, most likely having taken off after Pegasusmon. They quickly left and made a dash for the office.

"Hey, Ken," Davis said as they went, "I gotta know; why didn't you blast those Snimon?"

"Simple," Ken said without looking at him, "they're real Digimon."

Everyone stopped. "Say what?!" Exveemon asked.

Cody was shocked; he knew something was weird about those Digimon.

"Wha… how d'ya know?" Davis asked.

Ken hesitated, then looked away. "As they came at me, I saw they were flinching and twitching… like they were in pain," he said quietly. "Spire-Born don't feel pain."

"Pain…?" Cody repeated.

"Whaddya mean?" Davis asked.

Ken turned away and kept walking, albeit more stiffly. Not knowing what else to do, the others just followed him.

… … …

Yolei couldn't keep the cuss words from escaping as Aquilamon veered away from the Snimon's blades. Just when she thought they were in the clear, the hallway was full of killer bugs even nastier than the ones in their room! That woman had a sick sense of humor.

Nefertimon grunted as a sickle nicked her front paws. "We can't fight them all!" she growled. "We have to retreat!"

"Where?!" Yolei asked. "It could be the same through this whole dump!"

Just then, a whinny caught the bugs' attention. Kari and Yolei shouted in surprise as Pegasusmon appeared, blasting his way through the swarm. "Quick!" TK yelled. "Get moving!"

Not having to hear it a second time, the Digimon sped down the hallway towards the game room, leaving the Snimon in a disorderly, buzzing heap. "Thank God!" Yolei said. "You sure know how to time things!"

"Ken and the others are hunting for that woman," TK said as they zipped past the game room doors. "We should look for an exit!… Kari, what's wrong?"

As dangerous as the situation was, Kari had to look away from TK; seeing him brought back the memory of what she had seen in the bath, and her face was turning strawberry red. "Um… what about the pool?" she asked.

"Hey, that's right!" Nefertimon said. "It was outside, and there was just a chain-link fence. We could get through that easily."

"Sounds good to me," Yolei agreed. "Where're we goin'?"

"Follow me!" Pegasusmon said, rushing to the front of the pack.

The Snimon starting to catch up, the Digimon banked a hard left at the next corner, then a right, and then left and up the stairs. Pegasusmon shot out the door's window with a quick Equis Beam and they all zipped out into the hot morning sun… and instantly they wished they hadn't. Swarming all over the gelatin-filled pool, not to mention poised on the tables and chairs, was an entire legion of bug Digimon of all kinds! Roachmon, Flymon, Snimon, and plenty of others they had never seen all locked onto the intruders and let up a deafening, angry buzz. "I think I get it…" Kari swallowed, "that pool was THEIR cafeteria!"

The winged bugs all shot up into the air, forming an impenetrable insect wall between the kids and the fence; as soon as the Digimon shot one down, two more moved into its place. To make matters worse, the door back inside suddenly broke into splinters, revealing the angry Snimon that they thought they had left behind. They were trapped.

TK and Kari bit their lips. Yolei started hyperventilating. "Any ideas?" Aquilamon rumbled, hiding his nervousness.

"Erm… I'll have something," Pegasusmon swallowed. "Just give me some time…"

Nefertimon shook her head. "Time's what we just ran out of," she said.

… … …

"Hey, that's weird," Exveemon said as he looked behind him. "All the bugs're gone…"

Davis thought that was a good thing, but only for a few seconds; if the bugs weren't after them, he realized, they must have gone after Kari. "Shit!" he swore.

"Don't get worked up," Ken said, still not turning around. "You'll need your wits."

Cody looked up ahead and saw the carpet was changing. "Here's the office," he said.

The party ran across the threshold and stared up at the stadium-sized desk… and the shocking surprise behind it. The creepy manager had grown along with the hotel, towering over them like a rejected parade balloon. "Golly!" Armadillomon said. "He sure ate his spinach!"

At Armadillomon's voice, the man looked down at them and his face twisted into a hateful sneer. "Fah!" he hissed. "When spraying for pests, you always miss a few…"

All of them recoiled as the man's whole body writhed and shuddered, then ripped away into a mountain of Roachmon, then dropped towards them, spitting and shrieking wildly. "Son of a bitch!" Davis yelled as a Roachmon tried to land on him, but he sent it reeling with a well-placed kick. "We've gotta get somewhere these bugs ain't!"

As Exveemon punched the Roachmon away and Ken drove them back with his laser, Cody looked around; the bugs were all the same type, and so far, he hadn't seen them try to fly; maybe if they flew high enough… but where could they hide where the bugs couldn't crawl to?

Suddenly, his ears picked up a weird detail; all through the crazy bug brawl, the flute music hadn't stopped playing throughout the hotel. Where was it coming from? He strained his ears over the battle noises and his eyes took him up onto the ceiling, where a small speaker hung over the desk. "Let's get up there!" he said loudly, to get the others' attention.

Exveemon looked where Cody pointed, then kicked away the Roachmon accosting him and grabbed the others, launching himself upwards. Ken freed his machine gun arm and fired upwards, blasting a hole in the speaker's grate-like structure. Exveemon flew through the hole and they found that it wasn't a speaker at all, but a wide, tall air vent. Exveemon landed and the boys crept back to the hole and looked down. The Roachmon furiously tried to fly after them, but their stubby wings wouldn't take them that high; they were safe. "Whew… I ain't gonna do that again," Davis sighed.

"Good idea, Cody," Armadillomon said. "What made ya think of it?"

"It was the music," Cody said, then winced. It may not have been a speaker, but the flute music still played in it, and the echo stung his ears.

The others cringed as well. Ken wished he could put his armored hands over his ears. Exveemon shook his head, trying to block it out. "God, that song's annoying," Davis huffed. "Let's do our heads a favor an' shut it off!"

Ken listened for a moment, then pointed down the tunnel. "That way," he stated.

They walked down the metallic vent, their feet sending up loud, hollow bangs; it helped drown out the song a little, but not much. "I swear, if I ever ran a hotel," Davis said, "it'd be moldy oldies and that's it."

"I bet Matt could make a jazz CD for you," Exveemon said. "Jun says Jazz is supposed to make people feel good."

"Then what's Matt doin' playin' it?!" Davis cackled.

Exveemon and Armadillomon chuckled. Cody rolled his eyes. Ken didn't respond, but quietly he enjoyed the snappy remark; he wished he could crack jokes in times of crisis.

They followed the vent until it ended in a large chamber full of wooden planks and beams, with a shaft of light coming from another speaker grate below; maybe it was over one of the hotel rooms. The kids weren't thinking about that, though; they had found the source of the music. Standing on one of the beams, a silver flute to her lips, was the mysterious red-cloaked woman. Her fingers delicately moved across the instrument as she blew the haunting melody. Cody's eyes narrowed. "So, you were playing all along," he growled.

"Knock it off!" Davis yelled. "I'm gonna jam that thing right up your ass!"

Ken raised his gun arms and his laser swiveled. "This is the end for you," he snarled.

The woman lowered the flute and smiled at them… the same cruel, wicked smile that she always wore. "Where are your manners?" she asked. "Don't you know better than to use such harsh language towards grown-ups?"

"Harsh?" Davis huffed. "You don't wanna get me started on 'harsh,' lady!"

"Well, I'm feeling generous today," she said, ignoring Davis's remark, "so I'll gladly give you a lesson in respect."

"You couldn't," Cody said. "The way you create Spire-Born and wreck towns, I'd say you don't know the meaning of the word."

The woman chuckled darkly. "I overestimated you children," she said. "If I knew you would walk into such an obvious trap, I would have set one the first time we met." She paused, then pulled at her hair, the smile still on her lips. "But then, you are just that: stupid children," she went on.

"Funny you should mention being stupid," Ken said. "You're cornered."

She looked at him, the smile turning more unpleasant. "Ah, Emperor… So macho and tough when your little friends are around… even if you insist that you don't want them," she cooed. "Then are you trying to impress me? Naughty boy."

Ken's scowl deepened. Cody fingered his D3. "Forget about him," he growled, "we're the ones you should worry about!"

The woman chuckled ever so slightly. "Is that so?…" she asked softly.

Cody quickly estimated that the room was too tricky for a big monster like Ankylomon; Digmon would have to capture her. "DigiArmor Energize!" he said, raising his D3.

Ken looked at the appearing Digmon in horror. "No, stop!" he yelled.

"Grab her," Cody said to his partner.

"Yeah, you too!" Davis told Exveemon.

The woman silently watched the two Digimon come towards her. "Better just give up," Digmon warned. "It's two against one!"

The woman smiled, raised the flute and began to play. Instantly Digmon cried out in pain and grabbed at his head. "Woah!" Exveemon yelped. "Are you OK?!"

Digmon's response was thrusting his drills right at Exveemon's face. The blue lizard leaped back as his friend came at him, his tools whirring. "Hey!" he yelled, "what gives?!"

"Cody! What the hell?!" Davis snapped. "Tell him to quit it!"

Cody was horrified. Somehow, the woman had taken control of his partner. "Wha…" was all he could get out.

He found Ken scowling at him, instead of the other way around. "Why did you use Digmon?!" he demanded. "Can't you see that flute controls insects?!"

"What?!" Davis asked. "News to me!"

"The whole hotel is full of bugs," Ken growled, "and that music was playing the whole time! You couldn't figure it out?!"

The woman lowered her flute. Digmon fell to his knees, shuddering and gasping. "What a smart Emperor; you get a gold star," she laughed. "This flute does indeed control insect Digimon… but I'm sure you don't know why…"

Cody bit his lip. Now that Ken mentioned it, it seemed painfully obvious the flute controlled insects… but was Digmon… "He's an insect?…" he asked quietly.

"The locust wings on his back weren't a big enough clue?!" Ken snapped angrily.

Cody stayed silent, his teeth clenched. The woman laughed and raised the flute. "So… any requests?" she asked.

"Yeah, how about 'Stupid Hat Lady Better Shut The Hell Up?!'" Davis yelled. "Exveemon, break that stupid flute!"

Exveemon charged at the woman, but as soon as she started playing, Digmon got in the way, ready to knock a few holes in him. "Digmon, stop!" Cody yelled. "Stop it now!"

Ken raised his machine gun and grenade launcher. With the two Digimon fighting, that woman was completely undefended; he had his chance. He pulled the triggers on both. Almost as soon as he had, though, Digmon whirled around and fired his drills. One intercepted the bullets, the second destroyed the grenade… and the other three bore into Ken's weaponry, sending up a volley of sparks and exploding ammo. Ken screamed in pain and collapsed, both arm weapons smoking and useless. "Oh, no!" Exveemon shouted.

"Shit!" Davis yelled, rushing to Ken and helping him back on his feet. "Are you OK?!"

Ken coughed and moved his fingers inside the armor; thankfully, they were all still there. "I'll be fine," he growled.

The woman lowered her flute and Digmon collapsed again. "What's that flute doin' to Digmon, anyway?!" Davis growled. "It's like it's makin' him go crazy!"

Cody's eyes widened. The bugs being real Digimon, looking pained, attacking wildly… Davis was right. "Exactly!" he said, frowning at the woman. "That flute's giving off sound waves to drive insects mad, isn't it?!"

"Well, you get a gold star, too," the woman said. "That's right. When I play my song, it hurts them so much that they'll attack anyone that isn't of their own kind… and since you, most decidedly, are not…"

She raised the flute and started playing again, and with a wild yell, Digmon rushed at Exveemon and sunk his drill into his arm. Exveemon screamed and fell backwards. Digmon turned on the kids with murder in his agonized eyes. "Oh, HELL NO," Davis swallowed.

"Digmon, stop!" Cody yelled, getting desperate. "You remember us!"

Ken stepped forward and his laser started up, locking onto Digmon; it was the only one of his weapons that still worked, and he wasn't going to waste it. That woman was going down, whatever the cost. Cody, gaped at him in hateful horror. "What're you doing?!" he demanded. "You can't shoot Digmon!"

"He'll kill us," Ken growled, the weapon starting to hum. "What would you do?!"

Digmon started towards them, his drills spinning. Ken's laser fixed on him. Cody thought fast, then put his hands together and clubbed Ken in the back of the head. The boy lurched forward and his laser fired down onto the floor, which gave away almost instantly. The boys tumbled down, screaming…

And then they landed on something bouncy. Davis opened his eyes and tried to sit up, but couldn't; whatever it was, all of him but his legs and feet were stuck to it. Ken couldn't move except for the very ends of his feet. Cody, however, had landed on his bottom, and he cringed as he saw it was a gigantic spider web. "Oh, no," he muttered.

"You idiot," Ken snapped at him. "I could have stopped her!"

"You were going to murder my partner!" Cody yelled hatefully. "Wormmon wasn't enough for you?!"

Ken froze, his face contorting. The woman's laugh came down from above. "Ah, you children make this so easy," she crooned. "Very well, I can change my plans… While my new servant is practicing his dental work on your lizard, you can meet my lady-in-waiting."

A feral snarl came from behind. Davis craned his neck to look and almost threw up. Sitting at the far end of the web was a gigantic spider Digimon with a golden helmet, half a dozen green eyes, and fangs dripping with saliva. "Aww, man," he rasped.

"That's Dokugumon," the woman said. "You can all get to know her… over breakfast."

The flute music began again. Dokugumon shrieked in agony, just like Digmon, and slowly lurched towards the captured boys. Up in the crawlspace, Digmon's drills started up, and they could hear blows being landed, with Exveemon grunting furiously. Ken scowled at Cody. "This is all your fault," he snapped.

"MY fault?" Cody fumed. "Not on your life!"

Davis just lay there, staring at the approaching spider queen. What a rotten morning it was turning out to be: Digmon had turned on them; TK, Kari and Yolei were AWOL; Ken and Cody were fighting each other; and they had all changed places on the food chain. How would they get out of this? How could they? All he could do was flail his legs and shout the only two words that expressed how he felt: "GOD DAMMIT!"