Digimon 2: House of Horrors Series

Part Five: Hope and Light's Worst Fear

""It's not a pet name," Izzy said. "You're either covering something up or he knows something we don't."

Katrina bit her lip, but the distraction cost her. Katrina slipped forward and Izzy and Katrina were falling for their lives.

"Katrina!" BlackGatomon called, but the ground above had already sealed itself. Gatomon was left in the darkness with Demon.

And Katrina was falling deep below the ground."

"Katrina? Get up! You've slept long enough!"

Katrina moaned as she realized she was only having really bad dreams.

But her bruises weren't.

"Ow, Izzy, stop it!" Katrina snapped as he shoved her one more time. "My legs and arms hurt enough."

"That wasn't from me," Izzy said as Katrina opened her eyes. "We plummeted down a long way."

Katrina looked at Izzy and smiled. He had nasty scratches on his face, and minor cuts in his sweater. His face was smudged with dirt and his clothes were slightly dampened by the water in the dungeon. Katrina probably looked the same, and she could feel bruises on her bruises.

"What?" he asked, noticing her grin.

"You look like you've just got in a fight with a razor blade," Katrina said, laughing. Izzy managed a smile.

"Really? You should see the way you look! You look like you had a dispute with a pair of tweezers!"

Katrina and Izzy's laughing slowly died down due to the pain the bruises and cuts were causing.

"So, any ideas on how to escape?" Katrina finally asked. Izzy looked at her.

"Katrina, what did Demon mean by goddess?"

Katrina sighed. "I told you, it doesn't matter right now?"

"When will it?" Izzy asked. "What are you hiding?"

"All you need to know right now," Katrina said, angrily. "Is that I'm one of the good guys. When it's time, I'll tell you."

"So, are you really a goddess?" Izzy asked, standing up.

"Yes," Katrina said. "And no. Satisfied?"

Izzy nodded. "Alright then, let's go look for the other two."

"Hello? Anybody here?"

Echoes bounced off the stone walls of Demon's castle. The caller frowned, a little scared.

"I'm already scared from hearing my own voice," Kari muttered. She continued walking down the dank and eerie corridor. Kari wrapped her arms around herself, shivering.

"I can't be scared, I can't be scared," she chanted, but her foot caught on something and she bowled over. Kari felt her knees scratch as she connected with the stone floor. She rolled over on her back to examine her knee, but gasped when she saw what she had tripped over.

"TK!"

Kari scrambled over and kneeled next to the fallen boy.

"TK, I'm so glad you're-oh my!" Kari's mouth dropped open as she rolled him over. TK's face had been rubbed away.

Now there was a bloody mess for his face.

Kari dropped his and screamed, standing up and leaning against the wall for support.

"No, not TK!"

Kari turned her back on him and ran down the passage way. She found three more silhouettes up ahead, all of them lying face-down on the ground. Kari slowed as she neared one. She rolled over the body and frowned.

"Sora," she said sadly. She rolled over the other two and her eyes started to tear up.

"Yolei, Matt."

Kari's tear mingled with the Yolei's bloody face, causing the blood to land on Kari's yellow pants.

"He got you guys," Kari said. "I'm so sorry. I'm scared now. I don't have my friends to help me anymore. I'm so scared; I don't know what to do…"

"Kari…"

The girl stopped crying and looked up. "Izzy?"

"Kari…you have to wake up…"

Kari blinked in confusion. The voice seemed to come from her head. But, why'd it sound like Izzy?

"Kari, you have to stop being afraid. You have to wake up."

The voice was stronger now, and when she looked down at her arms at Yolei's body, it was actually her body from 4 years ago…and she was grinning at her with a complete face.

"I'm here for you, Kari," her little self said. Kari smiled.

"Gatomon…"

"Now, go back to your friends. Just close your eyes and open them."

Kari nodded and closed them. She felt a strange sensation and when she opened them, Katrina's face was the first thing she saw.

"She did it, Izzy!" Katrina said. "Her eyes are normal again!"

"What do you mean my eyes are normal again?" Kari asked as Katrina and Izzy helped her stand up.

"You were being manipulated by Demon," Katrina explained. "When someone's under his control their eyes turn grey and their pupils contract so that their only the size of a puncture wound. But, you broke free of his spell!"

Kari blinked. "I…didn't go anywhere?"

Katrina shook her head. "No, it was only in your head. I'm so glad we found you in time. You were fidgeting like crazy, I was afraid we lost you."

"What did you see?" Izzy asked, curious. Kari sighed.

"Well, I saw TK, Sora, Yolei, and Matt's mangled bodies."

"But not ours?" Katrina asked. Kari shook her head.

"Nope, how come?"

"He uses your greatest fears to generate an image to make his manipulation tactics believable," Izzy stated.

"In other words," Katrina said looking at Kari's puzzled face. "He makes a little movie in your head so real that you think it's happening."

Kari nodded. "I see. So my greatest fear is seeing my friends dead?"

Katrina shook her head, stroking Kari's hair. "Your greatest fear is being alone."

It hit Kari, she knew that was true. Being alone was her greatest fear. Kari looked down at her yellow pants. No blood.

"Well," Izzy said. "Let's move on and find TK, then we can get out of here."

Katrina nodded. "Righteous, let's get moving."

Katrina walked ahead and Izzy and Kari looked at each other.

"Did she just say 'righteous'?"

Izzy shrugged. "She's been saying that since we dropped in. Literally."

"This place really needs a makeover."

TK looked around him at the stony walls and burning torches hanging from the walls, lighting the halls.

"The medieval look is so out."

TK paused as he heard a noise.

"I don't think those are the interior decorators," he frowned, but ran down the hall towards the noise. He slowed down when he saw shadows slither across the walls. He turned the corner and his eyes widened.

"Patamon!"

"Patamon digivolve to…Angemon!"

"Don't do it!" TK cried, but it was too late. Angemon and Devimon were deep in battle.

"TK, run!" Matt called. TK squinted his eyes and he could see Matt running to him from behind Angemon.

"Matt! What are you doing? You'll get yourself killed!"

Of course, that was meant to be a joke.

But it did happen.

Devimon laughed maliciously. "Evil wing!"

A string of red light shot through Angemon, blood and angel feathers spattered the wall behind him. TK eyes grew wide in horror.

"ANGEMON!"

Devimon cackled and turned on Matt. "Your turn, boy."

"Run Matt!" TK said. Matt ran to him.

"TK, I'm so glad you're-"

Matt's eye reflected pain as Devimon appeared behind him. "Boo."

Devimon's hand shot through Matt, covering TK in his blood. Blood dribbled down Matt's chin as Devimon drew his hand back out. Matt gave a weak smile at TK.

"I love you, lil bro."

"MATT!" TK said as he caught his brother's fallen corpse. Tears were running down TK's face. "No, you're not dead! You're not dead, you're to stubborn to die this way!"

Devimon cackled again, licking Matt's blood off of his hand. "I serve to kill your two loved ones."

TK bit his lip, trying to keep the tears from falling, but they just fell harder. "My greatest fear is losing my two greatest friends. But, I'm not going to let this moment ruin my life."

Devimon blinked in confusion as TK stood up, clothes drenched in blood and tears. TK threw off his hat and put it over Matt's face. TK took out his digivice and held it up to Devimon. The digimon cringed as light shot out of the green D3 at him.

"Give me back my brother," TK growled. "And my digimon!"

"They're both gone," Devimon said. "You have nothing to live for!"

"I'm not scared anymore," TK shouted. "Demon should know better than to try and trick me. Some fears scare people, some fears piss us them off. This is one of them!"

Devimon started burning, steam rising from him. "But, this can't be!"

"Get the hell away from me!" TK shouted and the light from hid D3 grew brighter. Devimon finally gave his final screech and burst into flame. The light from the D3 faded lower and lower until it went out. TK slid to the ground, panting.

"TK…"

TK looked up and turned around. Kari was standing above Matt's lifeless body, and she picked up TK's hat. Matt's body vanished as Kari stood up and walked to TK. She held out his hat to him. TK stood up and walked to her, reaching out for his hat.

"Matt and Angemon will always be there for you," Kari said. TK nodded, his hand hovering above his hat. Was this a trick?

"I know."

Kari smiled vaguely and put her hand on top of his. TK knew this wasn't a trick.

"Are you ready to come back?"

TK nodded weakly. Kari thrust the hat into TK's hands.

"Close your eyes, and let go."

TK nodded, and took in a shaky breath. He closed his eyes and felt a weird sensation spread through him. He opened his eyes and found Izzy, Katrina, and Kari smiling at him.

"There are those lovely blue eyes," Katrina said, smiling happily. Kari helped TK stand up, and she explained the situation to him.

"I already know," TK said. "I just-"

TK looked down at his shirt and sighed happily. There was no blood on his shirt.

"Are we all here?" Kari asked.

"Present and accounted for," Izzy said.

"What now?" TK asked, adjusting his hat on his head.

"We go in for the kill," Katrina said, pointing down the hallway. "Literally."